Li Wei rolled his eyes.
Whether Li Jianning was truly stupid or merely clumsy, Li Wei didn't know.
He only knew one thing—he was someone who dared to believe anything, and dared to learn anything.
Under Ancestor Lan's misleading guidance, even now, he remained convinced that his aptitude was insufficient.
That belief alone was why he cultivated all 720 acupoints, narrowly escaping death time and again.
Having finished giving instructions to the descendants,
Under Li Zhiheng's leadership, the family members boarded the spirit ship, numbering over a thousand.
Those who remained behind were entrusted to Li Qiuming and Li Chuxiu, while Huang Xiujin—who had assisted Li Jianshu for over fifty years—now took on new disciples.
Within the Martial Immortal Grotto-Heaven, the remaining descendants watched with envy as their clansmen boarded the spirit ship.
Generation after generation, many of the Li Clan had grown weary of seclusion. Now that chaos engulfed the world, who knew how many longed to witness its vastness—even at the risk of death.
Yet Li Jianshu's words held true: if some ventured out to temper themselves, others had to remain and guard the family.
Li Zhiheng looked down at the children below, then gave a slight nod to his mother and wife.
Soon after, with a wave of Li Jianshu's hand, the spirit ship set off toward the Northern Frontier.
"The clansmen stationed behind the Wu tribes in the two nations haven't returned yet," Li Jianning said.
"We'll move ahead first," Li Jianshu replied.
"The journey is long. Inform them to prepare themselves mentally."
Li Jianshu gazed toward the distant north, arcs of lightning flickering faintly within his eyes.
Having finally laid down the burdens he had carried in the Azure Cloud Prefecture for so many years, his entire being felt lighter.
The Northern Frontier, the Western Frontier, even the Duskwild Prefecture in the Eastern Frontier—he had long heard of them all.
A true man's ambitions stretch across the four seas. How could he not have dreamed of venturing out to temper himself?
And now, with his burdens gone, that opportunity had finally come.
Yet even so, a trace of unease lingered in his heart.
Before long, he and Li Jianning entered the inner chambers of the spirit ship, where their father, Li Yuanwu, sat cross-legged in meditation.
Concern flickered across Li Jianshu's face, but seeing his father immersed in cultivation, he did not dare disturb him.
In truth, when news from the Northern Frontier first arrived, Li Jianshu had already sent word to the Martial Immortal Grotto-Heaven.
At the time, he had yet to decide—but Li Yuanwu's response had given him great encouragement, and the old man had insisted on accompanying them.
Though unwilling to admit it, seeing his father so aged and frail filled Li Jianshu with sorrow.
He recalled the years when his father wrestled tigers and wolves in the mountains, and raced eagles across the skies.
Even the demonic beasts of the Ethereal Immortal Grotto-Heaven had praised him, saying, "Few men in this world possess such resilience."
Of course, there had also been no shortage of mockery, calling him a "stubborn mule."
Whether it was him or Jianning, neither could accept that the hero in their hearts had grown old.
Seeing his elder brother's reddened eyes, Li Jianning reached out and patted his shoulder.
"Father walks the path of Martial Dao. Everyone in this world has something they seek, and something they desire."
"Mhm."
Li Jianshu said nothing more.
At this moment, aboard the spirit ship, Li Zhiheng's heart was utterly still.
He felt no confusion about leaving home, no sorrow at parting from those in the Azure Cloud Prefecture, nor any excitement at stepping into the wider world.
"Thump, thump..."
The Heavenly Dao Divine Heart pulsed within him.
Recalling the complicated expressions of the clansmen—both those remaining in the Martial Immortal Grotto-Heaven and those aboard the ship—Li Zhiheng rarely found himself frowning.
"I feel nothing. Not a single thing."
He vaguely remembered that before obtaining the Heavenly Dao Divine Heart, even when his father and the elders teased him for being slow, he could still understand much of the world.
He remembered the indignation of being falsely accused when his wife, Sun Sixiu, called him a "lecher."
He remembered the grief of a white-haired elder sending off a black-haired junior when his great-grandson, Li Qiukong, died—and all that followed when the younger generation went out to temper themselves.
He remembered, too, the quiet joy when the elders praised him.
But these emotions—these things that made him human—were gradually fading as the Heavenly Dao Divine Heart fused with him.
His once-pure, childlike heart suppressed the greed of the Heavenly Dao Divine Heart. Yet having seen the greed of the world and the depths of human nature, he had in turn cast away what he deemed vile—human emotion itself.
"To gain the Heavenly Dao Divine Heart and lose my own… this is the price of my rapid cultivation."
Li Zhiheng drew in a slow breath, then murmured softly,
"I am a descendant of the Li Clan. My father is Li Xinnian. My wife is Sun Sixiu. I have three children, and many grandchildren.
For their sake, I must preserve my humanity—to ensure the Li Clan endures for ten thousand generations."
As he spoke, it seemed those words carried weight.
Li Zhiheng looked toward Li Yuanwu within the spirit ship, his lifespan nearing its end, then turned his gaze to the Ancestor's Spirit Tablet with a faint smile.
"Ancestor, if Yuanwu cannot break through his shackles on this journey, then leave it to me."
"There are always geniuses in this world whose bodies may be borrowed for Yuanwu.
Chuyuan's body is suitable. If not, there is still a heaven-defying genius within the family's Divine Tree."
.......
The Northern Frontier.
Across a land of heavy, swirling snow, a group of white-clothed cultivators moved in silence.
Their garments concealed their auras, allowing them to nearly merge with the frozen world around them.
At that moment, led by the figure at the front, they employed the Ground-Shrinking Art, leaving not a single footprint upon the snow.
Ahead of them, they pursued a raging blizzard.
The storm tore across the snowfield, leaving chaos in its wake.
Within the howling wind, a massive shadow flickered in and out of sight.
Something lurked within the storm—amidst the shrieking winds were deep, furious roars, clearly not the wrath of nature alone.
Suddenly, the white-clothed figures came to an abrupt halt.
From the clouded sky above, a streak of golden light cut through the storm, striking toward the leader.
He raised his right hand without hesitation, catching it cleanly between two fingers.
It was a fragment of iron.
The leader carried an extraordinary presence. Beneath shoulder-length black hair was a sharply handsome face.
Yet as the golden light faded from the iron shard in his grasp, his calm expression shifted—fear surfaced in his eyes.
"It's been exposed… No wonder those sent to hunt Li Zhijing never returned. Bastards!"
Qiu Xunfa cursed aloud, his spiritual power surging and scattering the surrounding wind and snow.
Within the distant blizzard lay the dragon he had pursued for years—even going so far as to attempt killing Li Zhijing to secure it.
But now, he could only stop.
"Was Li Zhijing rescued?" Hearing this and seeing Qiu Xunfa's reaction, the Qiu clansman beside him inhaled sharply.
"Elder, there's no need to fear. The Li Clan doesn't have many Void Refinement cultivators—they're nothing to worry about. Consider Li Zhijing fortunate—"
Before he could finish, his head snapped to the side, a palm print blooming across his stunned face.
"Not many Void Refinement cultivators? This will cost me my life."
Qiu Xunfa flung the intelligence report toward him.
The clansman's expression instantly turned ashen, as though mourning his parents.
He lifted his head toward the falling snow and let out a long sigh—the howling wind now grating harshly against his ears.
They had pursued that dragon in the Northern Frontier for years.
The intelligence they previously held on the Li Clan only indicated that the Li Clan possessed a few additional Void Refinement cultivators in the Western Frontier.
But today's report was enough to instill fear even in Qiu Xunfa.
The Li Clan had already displayed overwhelming might in the Western Frontier—if it had stopped there, it would have been manageable.
But fate was cruel. In his pursuit of the dragon, he had failed to completely erase his tracks.
Li Zhijing had been rescued by Li Clan elders, and worse—their Ancestor had personally escorted Li Zhijing to the Qiu Clan.
A Half-Step Body Integration expert!
And this Ancestor had even fought against true Body Integration cultivators in the Western Frontier!
"What should we do, Elder?" The clansman who had just been slapped senseless finally regained his bearings, staring blankly at Qiu Xunfa.
"The world knows the Li Clan avenges even the slightest grievance. They—"
"Hmph!"
With a cold snort, Qiu Xunfa struck him again—this time across the other cheek, leaving both sides perfectly symmetrical.
Qiu Xunfa's voice turned cold and ruthless. "You're thinking the same as Qiu Naihe—handing me over to save yourselves? Ridiculous. All your years of cultivation have gone to waste if you think to trade my life for your survival. Don't even dream of it."
"I am a dignified mid-stage Void Refinement cultivator. So what if I killed Li Zhijing? If they want my life as compensation—let alone Li Zhijing, a mere branch descendant—even the current Li Clan Patriarch isn't qualified to demand it."
"Qiu Naihe… the older he grows, the more foolish he becomes."
Taking a deep breath, Qiu Xunfa cast an unwilling glance at the blizzard drifting further into the distance. "All of you, return. Deliver my words to Qiu Naihe exactly as I've said them."
"Where will Elder go?" one of the white-clothed cultivators asked, neither servile nor arrogant.
"Where I go is none of your concern—especially not yours, junior. I will return in a few days."
In the next instant, Qiu Xunfa vanished without a trace.
The remaining Qiu clansmen exchanged uneasy glances, then sighed before turning back toward their clan.