Chapter 125: Chi Long Mansion, The Curtain Falls
The sun dipped below the western horizon, casting the sky in deepening shadows. Inside the rear hall of the Chi Long Mansion, Li Feng sat cross-legged at the center of the ever-burning lamps, his gaze fixed on the remaining hundred or so lights.
Suddenly, a gust of cold wind blew through. With soft “puff puff” sounds, two more lamps extinguished, their flames turning into wisps of blue smoke. A bad premonition stirred within Li Feng, and his brow furrowed. Simultaneously, three light knocks sounded at the hall door behind him.
“Longling… come in.”
Creak—
“Yes, Father.”
Li Longling pushed the palace gate open and looked at Li Feng’s back, her brow furrowed and her lower lip bitten. Standing outside the door, she took several deep breaths before mustering the courage to step over the threshold, enter the hall, and close the door. After walking ten steps forward, Li Longling lifted her skirt slightly and knelt down with a “plop.”
Hearing the thud, Li Feng turned around in surprise, seeing her kneeling behind him. He asked, “Longling, what are you doing?”
“Father,” Li Longling lowered her gaze and remained silent for a moment before asking, “Wu Yue… did you place her beside me?”
“…”
Li Feng was completely unaware of this matter. He had been in seclusion these past few days, ignoring all outside affairs, meditating in peace. But hearing Li Longling mention Wu Yue’s name and seeing her kneeling behind him, even he, however foolish, could infer that Li Longling had likely discovered the truth of the situation. Perhaps she had no proof, but…
Puff puff puff—
Three more ever-burning lamps were suddenly extinguished. Li Feng closed his eyes, gritting his teeth, but soon loosened his jaw.
“…”
Li Longling waited for her father’s answer, remaining silent. She waited until the twilight glow filtering through the window completely vanished, leaving only the light of the ever-burning lamps in the palace hall.
“Father, she has the jade token you gave her, she is your confidante, but she is a demonic cultivator.”
“…”
“Father, don’t you want to say anything to me?”
“Longling, what do you want to hear?”
Unexpectedly being asked in return, Li Longling subtly snuffled. She had hoped for her father’s denial, and would have even accepted his scolding. But his current question undoubtedly amounted to an admission of everything.
“Hoo—” Li Longling took a deep breath. “Why? I want to know why!”
“For you.”
“…”
Puff puff puff—
The ever-burning lamps extinguished one after another at a rapid pace, but Li Feng no longer cared.
“Longling, you have been blind since childhood. For over ten years, I have tried countless methods but still could not heal your eyes. And my lifespan ends in one month. After that, you will have no one to rely on like me.”
Li Longling’s expression was one of shock. She had no idea about Li Feng’s lifespan.
“…So, you colluded with demonic cultivators…”
“I had no choice,” Li Feng stated calmly. “I am a cultivator with a four-spirit root. There are only a handful of four-spirit root cultivators who can form a Nascent Soul in the immortal families. If I want to continue living, I could only resort to those demonic cultivation methods, forcibly breaking through with blood sacrifices.”
“Blood sacrifice?”
“This Chi Long Convention was organized to gather sacrifices. I used the Sky-Splitting Sword as bait to lure the young masters and elders from the hundred sects in the Western Regions. They will all become sacrifices.”
Li Longling pursed her lips, mustered her courage, and interrupted, “Father, please stop. Have you forgotten how you and Dan, the High Immortal, drove the demonic cultivators to the Eastern Domain? My mother also because…”
Li Feng’s brow furrowed, and he immediately cut her off, “And then wait to die? Waiting to die, and you will be alone and helpless. Your cultivation is only at Qi Refining Completion, and you are blind. Can you manage the Chi Long Mansion alone? Can you survive alone?”
“I…”
“Father is supporting you now, but after I die, how will those immortal families treat you, a blind person? Do you think everyone in the immortal world is a saint who will extend a helping hand to you? Do you think that old woman from Xuan Xing Sect will remember our old friendship and take care of you? No!!”
“…”
“That old woman has lived for thousands of years and long since seen through life and death. My lifespan is ending, and she won’t even come to see me one last time.”
“Father, you…” Li Longling’s brow furrowed deeply. She felt as if her father had become a different person.
Li Feng interrupted again, “Longling, until you form your Nascent Soul, until I find a way to cure your blindness, I will protect you, even if it means going to the Eastern Domain.”
As he spoke, Li Feng formed a sword finger and flicked his hand. Several threads of spiritual energy flew from his sleeve, encircling Li Longling before forming a cage on the ground, trapping her within. Although Li Longling could not see, she could still feel the spiritual energy and asked in fear, “Father, what are you doing?”
“You will stay here for the next seven days. Only here will you be unaffected by the formation.”
With that, Li Feng stood up, glanced at the less than one hundred ever-burning lamps remaining, and walked around Li Longling towards the palace gate. Hearing Li Feng’s footsteps, Li Longling quickly reached out to grab him, but her hand touched the edge of the restriction and was repelled by a force.
“Ah—”
“…”
Reaching the doorway, Li Feng glanced back at her, hesitated with a frown, and finally pushed open the palace gate and stepped out. Outside the palace gate, Li Feng walked into the corridor and encountered a maidservant from the Chi Long Mansion waiting not far away.
Seeing him emerge, the maidservant hurried forward to bow, “Mountain Lord.”
Li Feng looked at her, pondered for a moment, and said, “Longling is confined for seven days. Please keep her company and talk to her.”
“Ah? Confined?” The maidservant looked surprised. “Wh-why? Did Miss do something wrong?”
“Do you have the right to ask?”
“…”
The maidservant’s neck recoiled instantly. She slowly raised her head to look at Li Feng’s expression. In the decades she had served as a maidservant in the Chi Long Mansion, this was the first time she had ever seen Li Feng so serious, so serious that it was somewhat terrifying. She swallowed and quickly bowed her head, “Yes… this servant understands.”
Li Feng glanced at her and bypassed her, walking outward. From the corridor, one entered a garden. Li Feng strode forward, entering the garden through a moon-shaped gate. The moment he stepped through, he felt someone watching him and immediately turned his head in the direction of the gaze.
The silver-haired girl was hiding behind a nearby tree, holding two ginkgo leaves as camouflage. Seeing him look over, she quickly retracted her peeking head behind the tree. Li Feng narrowed his eyes and instantly appeared behind her, looking down at her, “Feng Yu Die?”
“Ah…”
Feng Yu Die hadn’t expected to be discovered at all. She felt she had hidden quite well and stiffly turned her head, smiling foolishly, “Ahaha—Immortal Master Li, I came to see Junior Sister Li.”
Upon hearing this, Li Feng let out a cold laugh and said, “With your and Xiao Girl’s cultivation, you cannot change anything. I advise you one last time: take Xiao Girl and leave the Chi Long Mansion immediately, and return to your Xuan Xing Sect.”
Feng Yu Die straightened her head and blinked rapidly, looking bewildered, “Immortal Master Li, what are you talking about?”
“Heh…”
Li Feng snorted dismissively and turned to walk deeper into the garden.
…
