Li Jing’an saw that Li Guanshu looked quite anxious, so he said, “The youths of the Imperial Clan have their own life-saving magic treasures and invocations. Nangong Diyi destroyed the mountain with three swords. It did have the power to destroy heaven and earth, but it was not for killing cultivators in the low level of Qi-refining. If they don’t have too much bad luck, they will not die.”

Li Guanshu’s voice was low. “Anyway, we have to find Li Ye first. If he really died by the sword of Nangong Diyi, that will be less trouble.”

Li Jing’an chuckled. “Ultimately, Duke and Prince An just have a dispute of interests. Why are you guys like this?”

Li Guanshu snorted. “If it weren’t for this Li Ye fellow who made such a scene in Luoping Village, how could the current situation be like this? I almost died because of him!”

Li Jing’an did not answer.

Li Guanshu threw his sleeves and said to Li Jing’an, “Among the youths of the Imperial Clan, I have no animosity with them except Li Ye. Li Ye and I definitely won’t stop fighting until death, but the others don’t need to do so. Anyway, you’re not in any danger of dying. As for the other losses, I will compensate you.”

Li Jing’an smiled and said, “As long as the Duke can afford a good price, it is not difficult to seal our mouths so that we do not expose the matter between you and Sanqingguan. I will also persuade the other youths of the Imperial Clan for you… But how about Duchess of Li?”

Li Guanshu said coldly, “Duchess of Li and Li Ye have an immense friendship, but Duchess of Li is not alone. If I can persuade Wu Hongshan, it won’t be a problem that I can’t persuade her.”

Li Jing’an nodded. “In this case, we only need to deal with Li Ye.”

Li Guanshu glanced at Li Jing’an. “If Li Ye died in this Niushou Mountain, you will definitely be in first place for this examination.”

Li Jing’an smiled and said, “It’s my pleasure to cooperate with you, Duke, and we can just take what we need. When Li Ye dies, I will help you to negotiate with the other youths of the Imperial Clan.”

Li Guanshu nodded. “Now those youths of the Imperial Clan are hostile to me, so I cannot talk to them. Of course, it will be better to have you help me. If this matter is solved, I will certainly help you.”

Li Jing’an said, “Duke, you are Duke Wei’s right-hand man, so it’s my great honor to make a connection with you… In this case, the most important thing is to find Prince An and kill him.”

Li Guanshu said, “Niushou Mountain is completely chaotic now, and we don’t know where that Li Ye fellow is hiding. It will be faster for us to split up and find him… He is in Level 3 of Qi-refining, like an insect, it’s easy to kill him whether you or I find him.”

…

Before the waterfall, Li Ye sat and breathed quietly in the lotus pond.

Beside him, there were three green lotus buds.

As Li Ye entered the state, the Dragon Qi in his Elixir Field began to swim rapidly. After a while, the golden Qi became a whirlpool above his Elixir Field.

Above the three green lotuses, streams of cyan air flowed, which was attracted by the whirlpool formed by his Dragon Qi, entering Li Ye’s meridians along his nostrils.

The green lotuses withered at a rate visible to the naked eye.

Instead, three green lotuses were formed gradually in Li Ye’s Ocean of Qi.

Dragon Qi surrounded the green lotuses.

The majestic Spiritual Qi and vitality were rejuvenated in the Ocean of Qi.

Previously, Li Ye only knew that the green lotuses in the pond were not common things, and could heal Xu Qingfeng’s injuries. However, the movement in his Ocean of Qi made him realize that the role of the green lotuses was far more than the treatment of injuries.

The green lotuses in the pond were raised in the Taoist sect and contained Taoist’s Luck!

What the Dragon Qi absorbed was Luck. Otherwise, the Dragon Qi would not move.

Li Ye had no Spiritual Roots and he could not absorb the Spiritual Qi of heaven and earth. His cultivation relied on the Dragon Qi absorbing Luck and turning it into his own cultivation power. These days, his cultivation made rapid progress. The growth of his cultivation seemed very simple for him, but it was not.

In the case of people’s Luck, he could not gather other people’s Luck if they were not truly loyal to him.

It was not easy to make people truly loyal to him. Even if he was the commissioner who commanded tens of thousands of troops, he could command the troops, but it did not mean that those troops were truly loyal to him.

The loyalty of the soldiers was more to the authority of the imperial court than to the identity of the commissioner. In other words, loyalty was to the authority rather than the individual.

In addition, the eight hundred guards of the Manor only made Li Ye’s cultivation improve from Level 1 of Qi-refining to Level 2. For each improvement of cultivation in the future, more Luck was required. Although his cultivation improved rapidly now, for the middle or high level of Qi-refining, how many people’s loyalty would be needed to improve his cultivation to a higher level?

To build his foundation for the future, to break the shackles of life, and to achieve the Spiritual Master Realm, how many people’s loyalty would be needed? One hundred thousand or one million?

Moreover, the Royal Seal of Prince An and the official’s seal and silk ribbon both possessed the Luck of the Tang Empire, which could be used by Li Ye. But there were preconditions, where he must be the rightful heir and recognized by the imperial court. In other words, he could not use others’ stuff.

In comparison, it was much more direct for the Dragon Qi to seize illusory Luck, such as the Taoist’s Opportunity and Luck in the Taoist scriptures left by Yuan Tiangang.

However, such lucky chances were too rare and there were not many in the whole world. How could Li Ye encounter them so easily, not to mention have a chance to let the Dragon Qi seize them?

Leave that aside and focus on the present.

As the three green lotuses grew in the Ocean of Qi, the originally exhausted Ocean of Qi was gradually filled with Spiritual Qi.

After a while, the Spiritual Qi in his Ocean of Qi was tumbling and suddenly swayed outward.

The Dragon Qi in his Elixir Field seemed to make a loud sound!

“Click,” his diaphragm was broken.

All of a sudden, an unprecedented aura of Spiritual Qi filled Li Ye’s whole body.

Li Ye was delighted.

Level 4 of Qi-refining!

With the power of these three green lotuses, Li Ye was promoted successfully to the Level 4 of Qi-refining!

What’s more, the three green lotuses in his Ocean of Qi were swaying like in a spring breeze and the buds seemed to bloom!

Li Ye clearly felt that in these three green lotuses, there was a sharp power that could be used by him!

“In the ‘Purple Clouds from the East’ that I cultivated, there are Sword Methods like ‘Sword Qi born Lotus’ and ‘Step-by-step Lotus’ which can generate lotuses. Surprisingly, these three green lotuses coincide with them. That is to say, if I use these Sword Methods again in the future, they will be much more powerful! But I don’t know how powerful they will be, which needs to be verified in actual combat.”

Li Ye could not help feeling another burst of joy.

He opened his eyes.

The first thing he saw was a dead body in front of him.

When Li Ye saw this body, he looked slightly surprised.

This person turned out to be Fang Zheng who took them to Sanqingguan.

Of course, Li Ye would feel strange that Fang Zheng died in front of him.

Even stranger to him was a woman standing three steps away.

A woman, dressed in purple robes with black eyes and a graceful figure, was very mature and enchanting.

Li Ye did not know this purple-robed woman and did not know that she had had a conversation with Xu Qingfeng under a pavilion somewhere in Niushou Mountain.

Li Ye found that the purple-robed woman was looking at him with her phoenix eyes playfully and full of meaning as if she was looking at a rare treasure.

She was not extremely beautiful and her appearance was not as pretty as Shangguan Qingcheng’s. But her skin was like water, white and red, and just like a ripe peach which exuded her charms. Even just standing quietly, she had a charm that attracted mature men to raise criminal impulses.

Especially those phoenix eyes which were always rippling. Even if she did not talk, she was still breathtaking.

“You are very lucky,” the purple-robed woman said quietly when Li Ye opened his eyes. Her temperament was enchanting, but her voice was as clear as a lark.

“It seems that half of my luck should be thanks to you.” Li Ye glanced at Fang Zheng’s body, stood up, and bowed to the purple-robed woman. “Thank you.”

When Fang Zheng appeared in the lotus pond and saw Li Ye, he would, of course, kill Li Ye. But now Li Ye was fine while Fang Zheng was dead, so obviously he was killed by someone.

“You’re very polite. Not bad.” The purple-robed woman stood still and accepted Li Ye’s bow calmly.

Li Ye frowned slightly because these words should be said by elders. He could not help but look at the purple-robed woman carefully.

It was all right when he did not look carefully, but when he did, he immediately noticed something strange.

“Your gaze is very strange,” Li Ye said directly.

“Other men will say that I have beautiful eyes,” the purple-robed woman said with a smile.

“The way you look at me is no different from the way those men look at you when they say that you have beautiful eyes,” Li Ye said.

“Of course not.” The purple-robed woman smiled more. “They say that my eyes are beautiful, which means that they want to possess them or whoever has them, but I don’t want to possess you.”

“You certainly don’t want to possess me.” Li Ye took a deep breath and felt that it was weird to say that, so he continued, “You don’t even want to possess the three green lotuses that have entered my body.”

There were no green lotuses in the lotus pond anymore.

The green lotuses had already entered Li Ye’s body.

To be exact, the Lotus Qi was absorbed by the Dragon Qi.

The purple-robed woman giggled, stretched out her fingers as white as scallion roots, and pointed a little at Li Ye through the air. She said in a seductive tone. “Don’t say that. I am not a good person.”

Li Ye sighed and he sighed heavily again.

Then the way he looked at the purple-robed woman became very strange, and what he said next was even stranger. “Aunt Song, do we have to talk like this?”

The purple-robed woman was a bit surprised and her beautiful eyes, better than any scenery in the world, opened a little wider. “You recognize me?”

Li Ye helplessly spread his hands. “Aunt Song is proficient in transfiguration which can change your face, but Aunt Song, you should know that whoever has met you will never forget your… temperament.”

The purple-robed woman was surprised, and then she covered her lips and laughed. Her eyes were like an autumn wave and she said innocently, “You little guy, the last time you saw Aunt Song, you were just a kid. Did you already have some… unspeakable feelings for Aunt Song at that time?”

After saying that, she pretended to spit. “You little pervert!”