"Fellow cultivators, our Pingyang Mountain is but a humble sect we truly dare not involve ourselves too deeply with your esteemed selves. We only wish to stay out of trouble and keep ourselves safe..."
"Here are the access tokens prepared by our mountain master. Each allows for ten round trips before it becomes void. I believe this should suffice for your purposes..."
"The underground legacy is yours to explore at will, just be careful not to trigger the formation seals and cause a lava eruption that could destroy the entire Chidi Mountains..."
"On behalf of myself and the mountain master, I thank all of you in advance!"
Outside Pingyang Mountain, Luo Feibai spoke cautiously as he handed out three tokens to Liao Shengtao, Zou Zifu, and Kong Changsheng.
Behind him, the mountain-protecting formation had already been fully activated, tightly sealed with no intention of receiving the trio in person.
Seeing this scene, the three leaders from the major Golden Core sects couldn't help but chuckle in disbelief.
They weren't even being received face-to-face, seemingly out of fear that any disagreement among them might turn violent and spill over to the mountain.
Li Ye, that man, was cautious to such an extent? He was planning to remain hidden within the mountain until everything was over before showing his face again!
"Hah! He's too afraid to even pick up the opportunity at his doorstep. Doesn't even dare get involved in our exploration..." Liao Shengtao chuckled with a sharp tone. "This Li Ye is rather amusing!"
Most of the cultivators from the three sects wore strange expressions, though Deng Tiancheng and Fan Yuanzhou remained unfazed as if they'd expected this all along.
Cai Shiwei, however, showed a hint of nostalgia in his smile, even licking his lips unconsciously.
Just as Luo Feibai turned to leave after finishing his speech, Zou Zifu glanced at Deng Tiancheng.
The latter immediately understood and called out, "Daoist Luo, please wait!"
"Eh?" Luo Feibai paused mid-step, turning around with a somewhat nervous expression.
Deng Tiancheng simply stepped forward and handed him a storage pouch.
"Since Brother Li has made things easier for us, our Jiuding Valley isn't the kind of sect to use force to bully others. The rules set by Brother Li should naturally be followed. This is the entry fee for all of our cultivators please verify it."
Luo Feibai was briefly stunned but quickly relaxed. After scanning the pouch with his divine sense, he nodded.
"No error in the amount. Your sect is most considerate!"
At that, both Liao Shengtao and Kong Changsheng's expressions shifted slightly, each giving a light snort.
"Your Jiuding Valley always loves these hollow formalities. Do you think we'd try to cheat you out of a few spirit stones?" they muttered.
Still, they had their men step forward to hand over their storage pouches to Luo Feibai.
From the Flying Feather Sect's side, it was Cai Shiwei who performed this task. He added,
"Please pass along a message... An old acquaintance has come to visit. Once everything is settled, I hope to sit down and speak with Junior Brother Li."
Huh?
Does our mountain master have a connection with someone from the Flying Feather Sect?
Wait a minute he called the mountain master junior brother?
Does that mean the mountain master was once a member of the Flying Feather Sect?
Luo Feibai's mind was a whirlwind of questions, but he dared not delay. "I will be sure to pass on the message."
With that, he swiftly took his leave, vanishing back into the mountain formation.
"Daoist Cai called Li Ye 'junior brother'...?" Kong Changsheng blurted, eyeing Cai Shiwei up and down.
"Don't tell me he's from your Flying Feather Sect? Did you already know about the ancient legacy here and sent him in advance to investigate?"
Zou Zifu also looked uneasy, glancing at Deng Tiancheng only to receive a blank, confused look in return.
Even Deng had no idea of Li Ye's origins.
"Hey now! Brother Kong, that's quite the accusation!" Liao Shengtao replied with ease. "Everyone knows that my Brother Cai here spent years undercover in the Purple Profound Sect."
"This Li Ye isn't from the Flying Feather Sect. He was merely an outer disciple of Purple Profound Sect back in the day…"
"If you want to start pointing fingers, maybe he's part of a scheme by the Purple Profound Sect!"
"Purple Profound Sect again…" both Kong Changsheng and Zou Zifu frowned, more confused than ever.
Especially since Purple Profound Sect hadn't even sent anyone yet!
In the end, Kong Changsheng waved it off, "Forget it. If Li Ye were a Purple Profound agent, he wouldn't have stirred things up like this and made the entire world aware, letting us all fight over it."
"We're here for the legacy underground. Instead of standing here arguing, we should get moving!"
With that, he signaled to his companions and flew off.
Liao Shengtao and Zou Zifu also saw no point in lingering and quickly followed.
However, as they neared the market surrounding Dengyun Town, they subtly split up each selecting a different entrance to the underground fire passages.
Without hesitation, they slipped past the barrier formations and descended.
Not long after the three major sects made their descent, streaks of light appeared above the same fire passageways other cultivators following closely behind.
They might not have their formation masters or high-grade talismans, but that didn't mean they couldn't ride the coattails of the big sects.
Let the major sects eat meat there's no harm in the others sipping a little broth.
........
"Cai Shiwei… heh."
While channeling the formation to water spiritual plants, Li Ye accepted the spirit items from the storage pouch. Upon hearing Luo Feibai relay the message, he repeated the name to himself thoughtfully then suddenly let out a chuckle.
Luo Feibai couldn't quite tell whether Li Ye was pleased or angry. Not daring to ask further, he excused himself and returned to his residence on the mountain.
With the three major sects sending people, along with numerous other factions and rogue cultivators gathering at the underground fire channels, the total number of Foundation Establishment cultivators present was truly alarming.
Li Ye hadn't even needed to ask Luo Feibai had already volunteered to stay at Pingyang Mountain with him, helping to guard the place. That way, if any ill intentions arose, he could provide backup in time.
Besides, Mount Dengjin was right over there. He could always return once these people had taken whatever benefits they could and the situation had calmed down.
Once alone again, Li Ye finished tending to the jade cluster fruits with care, then strolled back.
Unbidden, memories of his time both his own and his predecessor's in the Purple Profound Sect resurfaced. A cold smile grew across his face.
"Cai Shiwei, oh Cai Shiwei... If you had truly wanted to reminisce, you could've sought me out privately for a casual chat. Perhaps then we really could have laughed off the past and let bygones be bygones…"
"But instead, you deliberately brought up our connection right in front of the other two sects, as if you wanted them to grow suspicious of me. If everything goes smoothly for them, then fine. But if they suffer heavy losses, they'll likely start suspecting me…"
"All I ever did was turn down your attempts to recruit me a few times maybe bruised your ego a little. Yet even something so trivial, you've held onto for all these years. And now you'd go so far as to set me up like this… You want me dead, don't you?"
Li Ye's gaze turned icy, though the smile on his face only deepened.
"If I hadn't been so cautious back then, kept my distance from you entirely, I might have been dragged down by that sudden assassination attempt of yours…"
"And there's still the grudge over my predecessor's death. Since I now occupy his body, that karma is mine to settle as well…"
"You've come knocking on my door so let's take this rare opportunity and settle all our scores once and for all."
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