Taiyi Dao Fruit

Moving inward from the flagstone-paved main road, the terrain slowly elevated, and houses started to appear on both sides, neatly arranged. People could be spotted in front of the houses or peering from the windows, either openly or covertly sizing up Jiang Li as they took note of his arrival.

Even though the related news had been sealed off beforehand, the noise Jiang Wuming made earlier was so significant that when his brothers came to throw their weight around, they might as well have shouted it until every person in the ancestral land knew Jiang Li had come.

And so, now everyone knew that Jiang Li, who was born in a branch family but dared to confront the main family, had arrived.

Following the path for about three miles, the distant mountains came into view, their carved deity-like figures standing in stark contrast to Jiang Li, as if an invisible aura was emanating all around them.

Ahead lay a great plaza where buildings clustered together, surrounding a central hall. The stone constructions exuded an ancient and time-worn solidity, compelling even someone as irreverent as Jiang Yang to stow away his frivolity in this place.

As Jiang Li and his companions approached, a middle-aged man in splendid attire stepped forward with a congenial smile and said, "The Clan Elder invites Jiang Li into the hall."

The implication was clear—they were not inviting anyone else inside.

"We came here with Jiang Li," Gongsun Qingyue stated, standing side by side with him.

Naturally, they intended to go together.

Gongsun Qingyue suspected there might be an ambush inside. Perhaps upon the Clan Elder's signal with a dropped goblet, five hundred axe-wielding soldiers would rush out and chop Jiang Li into pieces.

Unchanged in demeanor, the middle-aged man replied, "Lie Mountain Hall is where our clan deliberates important matters. Normally, only the heads of the main family and the various branch families are allowed inside. Other clan members are not permitted entry."

"Is that so?" Gongsun Qingyue looked at Jiang Li, "What about my junior brother then? Why does he get an exception?"

The middle-aged man smiled without a word.

But he had already given his answer.

If it wasn't an exception and he wasn't the head of a branch family, then naturally, he must be from the main family.

Inadvertently, he had revealed his allegiance.

Hearing this, Jiang Li offered a slight smile and said, "Sister, you and the others wait here for me, I shall return shortly."

With that, he followed the middle-aged man into the hall.

Inside Lie Mountain Hall, the vast space was filled with the heavy hues of gray and black. At the far end of the hall stood a huge stone seat, with slightly smaller ones lined on both sides, stretching from the entrance all the way to the end where the largest seat stood.

No one was seated in the central stone seat, but on the left-hand side, the first one was occupied by an old man dressed in hemp clothes, his hair simply tied up with a wooden hairpin, embodying the image of an idle hermit.

To his right and on the other seats sat uniformly middle-aged individuals, their appearance ranging from forty to fifty. However, Jiang Li, with his experience, knew their actual ages far exceeded what they looked; it was only due to their cultivation practices that they did not show signs of aging.

Upon seeing Jiang Li enter, seventeen pairs of eyes from both sides swept towards him, a mix of imposing auras rushing forward like a tidal wave.

Jiang Li's steps, just lifting, suddenly came to a stop.

Then—

"Heh."

He let out a light chuckle and stepped down; a powerful wave of Qi swept forward from underfoot, striking the figures standing like deep pools and towering mountains. For a moment, only thirteen people were overwhelmed, almost tumbling off their stone seats.

These were individuals with high realms but lacking in real strength, having withdrawn from the court. Since they had lost their connection to the Divine Domain, now they were nothing more than a show of bluster.

"Insolence!" a former court official grumbled in a low voice.

"Arrogance!"

Jiang Li retorted sharply, and suddenly his body gleamed with a crystalline hue, standing tall like a deity's statue. He radiated an aura both divine and demon-like, sending invisible ripples from his center, causing the blood and sweat of the Jiang Family members present to surge and their hearts to throb.

"Divine Farmer's appearance!"

"He actually developed the Divine Farmer's appearance to this extent?"

"How is that possible?"

Jiang Li advanced with composed steps, and with each step, an invisible ripple spread out, "The Divine Farmer's appearance is revered in our clan as the incarnation of the Ancestor, so—"

"If you see the Divine Farmer, why not pay homage?"

The intangible fluctuations grew more intense, blending with the aura of Jiang Li himself, rolling in like a tide so forcefully that even the middle-aged man leading the way felt his blood surge.

Though he still possessed cultivation, the agitation of the Divine Farmer's appearance on the bloodline of his own clan was undeniably real. And now, Jiang Li had developed the Divine Farmer's appearance to a certain degree, what was once a whim of blood and sweat had truly begun to influence his physical vitality.

Those who had lost their strength were even worse off.

"Stop!"

To the right, the first middle-aged man with a goat beard and wide sleeves spoke in a cold voice, "Among those present, which one is not an elder to you? Even if you possess the Divine Farmer's appearance, by what right do you demand your elders bow to you?"

Jiang Li glanced at him and said, "How shall I address you?"

"I am Jiang Jingyuan."

"So, you're the head of the sixth branch family residing in the Divine Capital's Flying Cloud," Jiang Li said with a smile that was not quite a smile, "Old man, you got one thing wrong. Only those worthy of my respect are called elders. As for those like you who follow the main family and only bring calamity to our clan, you have no right to be an elder to Jiang Li."

"How disrespectful!" Jiang Jingyuan slapped his hand on the armrest of his stone seat, causing a surge of Qi to burst out.

He was one of those close to the main family, and his clan's base was near the Divine Capital. However, because of the peculiar ecosystem of the court there, Jiang Jingyuan had not taken office, and so he had not taken the path of Earth Deity.

Innate Qi surged forth from his body, condensing around him into pieces of tortoise shells with ancient patterns. Jiang Li stood amid them, like a boulder unaffected by the onslaught of the Qi waves.

"Anyone who blindly follows the main family, I will surely kill them. Jiang Zhuyun is already dead, do you still think my blade is not sharp enough?"

Patterns complex and profound emerged in Jiang Li's eyes, with Eight Trigrams, the Celestial Stems and Earthly Branches, and Star Battle evolving within his gaze. Wherever his eyes landed, an invisible oppression immediately came to bear on the hearts of those under his scrutiny.

He showed a hint of cold killing intent and said, "Gentlemen, Jiang Wuye of the Qi Mountain Jiang Family died at home just recently. Now, the Qi Mountain Jiang Family stands among the top branches. Jiang Wuye attained the Seventh Grade Realm, yet he still died at home. You all have Realms but no real power; you don't know on which day you might follow in Jiang Wuye's footsteps."

"So Jiang Wuye was indeed killed by you!" Jiang Jingyuan immediately shouted.

"It's just an example for all of you," Jiang Li said indifferently, "Jiang Wuye's death has nothing to do with me. Jiang Yang can testify for me."

While he said this, everyone present, being experienced old foxes, did not believe a single word about it being unrelated.

Following Jiang Li's logic, the majority of those present felt a chill run down their spines.

Jiang Zhuyun was dead; who in the Jiang family would Jiang Li not dare to kill? If he wanted to kill someone, how many of those present could escape death?

"I am concerned for your safety."

Jiang Li suddenly smiled, and in a flash, it was as if spring had returned to the earth, dispelling the chilling feeling completely, "Therefore, this time, I am willing to help my clan members cultivate Innate Qi to ensure the 'safety' of my 'elders.'"

He emphasized the words "elders," giving everyone something to ponder.

Those who did not follow the main family, or in other words, who followed Jiang Li, were his elders. The rest were enemies, to be killed.

This strategy of giving a blow followed by a caress, wielding both a stick and a carrot, was all too familiar to everyone seated, both using and being used to it.

Yet when Jiang Li employed this tactic towards them, they had to admit that the trick wasn't afraid of getting old; as long as it worked, it was good.

At least this move was still exceptionally effective at the moment, and many had already been tempted.