Family Cultivation: I Become a Mirror-Chapter 179 - 167: An Family Father and Son (Two-in-One)_2

Mu Yalu waved her hand to silence the maid and spoke softly,

"The main branch has its means; she has managed the concubines in the house obediently for so many years, and Xiu'er has also been well-educated. She's capable of managing a household and is certainly not an ordinary person. She views Yuanjiao as Yuanxiu's future capable right-hand man, and naturally wants to maintain a good relationship with me."

After placing the small teacup on the table, Mu Yalu continued in a low voice,

"Did you find out what I sent you to inquire about?"

"Madam, the man's name is Shamo Li, the fourth son of Mu Jiaoman, and he now resides on the eastern side of the town."

Mu Yalu smiled slightly, her eyes gently narrowed, and in a soft voice, she said,

"What a godsend opportunity, the Eastern Shanyue will henceforth be even closer to the Li Family, and when Yuanjiao grows up, he will also be able to enjoy the support of the Mu Deer clan!"

Although the maid did not understand why Mu Yalu spoke of a godsend opportunity, seeing her mistress so pleased made her happy too. But before she could dwell on it, the courtyard door gave a light sound, followed by two soft "knocks."

"Mother, your son has returned!"

"It's the young master!"

The maid immediately rejoiced, and Mu Yalu quickly got up and walked briskly to the front of the courtyard. Gently pushing the door open, she saw Li Yuanjiao standing there with a beaming smile.

"Yuanjiao!"

Mu Yalu stepped forward and embraced him, asking softly,

"Are you accustomed to living in the mountains this year?"

"All is well; my brothers and sisters are all quite kind to me."

Li Yuanjiao chuckled and strode into the courtyard, sat down by the stone table, took the teacup, and asked in a low voice,

"Father is in seclusion in the mountains this year. Has anyone given you a hard time at home, Mother?"

"Not at all."

Mu Yalu softly replied, refilled his cup with water, and saw Li Yuanjiao heave a sigh of relief and say with a smile,

"Stepmother has been reasonably good to Mother, and there have been no despicable affairs in the house, which relieves me. It spares me and my brothers the distress and saves a lot of trouble."

Seeing Mu Yalu nod and smile, Li Yuanjiao paused before speaking earnestly,

"These past few days in the Clan Head Courtyard, I have been handling affairs with my brother and learned quite a bit."

Mu Yalu raised her eyebrows at him, and when she saw Li Yuanjiao put down his teacup and speak in a low voice,

"Mother, have you sent someone to gather information about Shamo Li?"

Mu Yalu was immediately startled, nodded slightly, and replied somewhat anxiously,

"I have..."

Li Yuanjiao shook his head and instructed,

"Mother, given your sensitive status, you should have delegated this task to someone to inquire on the mountain. In the future, do not go out to seek information. The Li Family's territory is different from the Eastern Shanyue; the Clan Head Courtyard has many eyes and ears. Mother is unaware of the details and must be careful not to give them any leverage."

Mu Yalu was both shocked and frightened and quickly asked,

"Is there any consequence to this? Has Mother caused you trouble?"

"There is nothing serious."

Li Yuanjiao took a sip of tea and said with a smile,

"It's not a significant issue to begin with. Moreover, my brother has given me the sealed letter to handle as I see fit. I came primarily to remind Mother."

"That is good to hear."

Mu Yalu sighed softly, conversed briefly with her son, and after calming her spirit, she let the maid leave. Then she asked in a low voice,

"Young Master Yuanxiu... Does he still treat you the same as before?"

"Indeed."

Li Yuanjiao's voice also lowered as he responded,

"In the family, only my brother is capable of cultivating. With the clan's scarce population, they make no distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children, male or female, when it comes to the heirs of major Spirit Aperture Seeds. I have not suffered any grievances; on the contrary, I have gained an enormous benefit."

"That is indeed very good."

Mu Yalu immediately let out a sigh of relief, but then Li Yuanjiao spoke again,

"I heard that the family is considering my fourth uncle's single-minded pursuit of Pure Yang Taoism in the South Wilds and his indifference to romantic entanglements. The family elders wish to adopt me as his direct heir... I've come back this time to ask for Mother's opinion."

"What?!"

Mu Yalu was momentarily stunned, feeling as though a pie had dropped from the sky and hit her, she said in a raspy voice:

"But... is that the Qing Sui Sword Immortal?!"

"Precisely."

Li Yuanjiao was quite shocked when he first heard Li Xuanling secretly hint at this, watching his mother's incredulous expression, he softly said:

"He... Father also agreed, and if so, I will become the eldest son of the fourth lineage, which will greatly benefit me in the future."

"That's right."

Mu Yalu nodded her head; her entire heart was set on her child, so of course she agreed. After pondering for a few moments, she said in a low voice:

"With this, you could compete with Yuanxiu for the position of the young clan leader..."

"Mother must not speak nonsense!"

Li Yuanjiao shook his head, and said solemnly:

"I respect my elder brother the most. He is the only one fit to be the young clan leader. In this life, all Jiao'er wishes is to help my brother diligently and harbor no other intentions."

"That's good too."

Mu Yalu smiled upon hearing this, thinking about how to relay these exact words to the ears of the main branch.

"As for Shamo Li, he has a nature that seeks pleasure."

After talking for a while, Li Yuanjiao detailed Shamo Li's temperament and Mu Yalu laughed, saying:

"Not everyone can be skilled in understanding human emotions. Your Li Family is only decent to its own people and subjects, so it's rather pitiable for Shamo Li to fall into your and your elder brother's hands."

"He was given the throne; what's there to pity!"

Li Yuanjiao disagreed, laughing heartily, while Mu Yalu watched him with a smiling gaze. Her thoughts moved from Li Xuanxuan to Li Yuanxiu, realizing that none of them were easy to deal with, and silently thought to herself:

"Every single one in the Li Family is a rascal, sharp and cunning, it's not too bad as long as they are focused outward. Once relations become distant in the sixth or eighth generations, it truly will be a grand spectacle of a dragon and tiger fight. Luckily, my son was born early and doesn't need to struggle against equally shrewd and crafty individuals!"

————

Atop Lijing Mountain.

Li Tongya took a few steps in the air, his figure shifted ghost-like, several watery silhouettes appeared around him, floating back and forth for a moment before disappearing with a puff in front of him.

"River Rapids Step! Finally, it's mastered, now I'll have more security against enemies. Unless I encounter a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, even if I cannot defeat them, I can leave with ease."

There are three layers to the "River Rapids Step," with the initial practice being reasonably difficult, and the later stages much more challenging. It took Li Tongya seven to eight years to master the first layer.

Li Tongya's cultivation of the "River Qi Decision", the foundational cultivation method of the Ling Yu Sect, came from the same lineage as this stepping technique and was supposed to be practiced rapidly. However, in these years, his primary focus was on cultivation, hoping to break through to Foundation Establishment before he turned sixty. Therefore, he only practiced this stepping technique when he hit a bottleneck in his cultivation – what could have been accomplished in three to four years took him seven to eight years to master.

In his family, only Li Xuanling had a talent for footwork, having mastered it early on. None of the other clan members were known to have achieved it.

"It's a shame about that Pill Fire Heart Decision. It's astonishing that the vast Li Family can't find anyone capable of producing pill fire..."

Li Tongya thought for a moment, the Xiao Family members far outnumbered those of the Li Family, and within the entire Xiao Family only Xiao Chuting and Xiao Yuansi were capable of conjuring pill fire; he found solace in that.

"No wonder Yu Muxian, who joined the Green Pond Sect from the Yu Family, is given such importance. Being able to refine artifacts must satisfy some special conditions of a cultivation technique."

Li Tongya had barely settled on the mountain when a mana voice transmission flew into the formation, echoing in the cave mansion.

"An Zhiyan of the An Family comes to visit, I kindly ask Brother Tongya to open the Great Formation!"

"An Zhiyan?"

Li Tongya hesitated for a moment; he didn't have much of a relationship with this person. They had once divided Lu Family's assets with tacit understanding, and he wondered why he sought him out today.

After opening the formation, Li Tongya had barely sat down in the courtyard for a moment when Li Xuanling had already led An Zhiyan inside. Li Tongya gave him a glance and courteously said:

"Li Tongya greets Brother Zhiyan."

"Brother, you are too kind!"

An Zhiyan cracked a smile, greeting Li Tongya with a fist and palm salute. He was now wearing a grey and white leather hat on his once brightly polished bald head, finally not resembling a butcher from the secular world and more like a wealthy landlord.

"I've heard Brother Tongya has already broken through to the Eighth Layer of Qi Cultivation, truly remarkable speed!"

An Zhiyan took the teacup and nodded smilingly. The two hadn't seen each other in decades; back then, their cultivation levels were quite similar, but now An Zhiyan had reached the Fifth Layer of Qi Cultivation while Li Tongya was already at the Eighth Layer.

"Brother Zhiyan flatters me."

Li Tongya didn't want to waste words with him and got straight to the point:

"For what matter has Brother Zhiyan come today?"