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Chapter 114: Chapter 114: The Third Elder Cunning as a Fox
Li Quanqing was pushed out from the crowd, suddenly exposed under the watchful eyes of two Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
To tell the truth, he felt quite out of his element.
He lowered his hands, not knowing where to put them, and looked towards the curtain at the end of the hall, only to show an awkward yet polite smile.
The Li Family Patriarch was silent for a moment: "Indeed, he is an excellent seedling with rapid progress in cultivation, a solid foundation, and a Water Spirit Root, most suitable to become the young clan leader of our family."
"Once he breaks through Qi Refining Perfection, I, as an elder, will request a Foundation Establishment Pill for Quanqing from the Sword Sect, ensuring at least a Foundation Establishment Spiritual Object and a Protecting Vein Pill for him."
Spiritual Objects can assist in breaking through to Foundation Establishment, while a Protecting Vein Pill can protect the body’s meridians.
Even if the breakthrough fails, it can save one’s cultivation and life, providing another opportunity to start over.
To obtain these two things is what every Loose Cultivator and small family cultivator dreams of.
Third Elder opened his mouth, still somewhat unwilling, and was about to say something.
But Clan Leader Li Zongyao suddenly let out a soft sigh: "Kunli, stop being stubborn, I have already given the Green Tide Pearl to Yumiao. With his Foundation Establishment cultivation, he has a seventy percent chance of refining the Foundation Establishment Pill successfully!"
In the crowd, Li Yumiao suddenly stepped forward, a spherical green pearl spinning atop his head, lustrous and gleaming.
The eight-faceted Green Tide Pearl suddenly cast a swath of light as deep as the sea, causing the mana in Li Yumiao’s body to surge.
In the end, he actually broke through the barrier, reaching the realm of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, an achievement not to be impeded by mere Qi Refinement.
What kind of pearl was this?
Li Quanqing watched, dumbfounded, as the Azure Sea Magic Power ran through the meridians in his body, producing a strong desire to possess that Green Tide Pearl!
As the elders witnessed Li Yumiao harnessing the power of the Green Tide Pearl, the scales of victory began to tip increasingly towards the Grand Elder’s side amidst the buzz of the crowd.
Such is the nature of a family, with its advantages and disadvantages.
Backed by the Green Jade Li Family, Li Kunli was born with no lack of resources for cultivation, sailing smoothly to Qi Refining Perfection, and becoming a respected Second Rank Artifact Refiner.
But similarly, within the clan’s structure, a single decree could take away the spoils of war he fought desperately to claim.
The elders knew this was unfair, but Clan Leader Li Zongyao had reigned for a hundred and eighty years, living for over two centuries; all the elders present had grown up under his gaze.
Even Li Kunlun owed the clan leader a favor from his youth and now, putting aside his dignity and those old favors, was biased towards his own grandson.
Furthermore, with the support of the Shuihua Sword Sect behind Li Quangeng, and Li Yumiao’s own refining of the Green Tide Pearl, the success rate of refining the Foundation Establishment Pill with Foundation Establishment cultivation was extremely high.
The elders had no choice but to sigh and make their choice.
What can one do!
"Fortunately, I knew these old fellows were unreliable; I never pinned my hopes on the family!"
Third Elder watched with a cold eye.
He had found a total of five thousand-year-old spiritual medicines in the ruins; the two that he gave to the Sword Sect that day were just a diversion.
The remaining three had already been secretly traded to Yanyue Sect through Shen Mengli in exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill.
Now, he was disputing the Sword Sect’s Foundation Establishment Pill allotment.
Firstly, it was for appearances; secondly, he was genuinely upset and wanted to spite the Grand Elder and his people.
Why should they take away what I fought so hard and risked my life to earn?
And thirdly, it was for the sake of the most talented junior in his Artifact Refining Hall.
Li Kunli watched as Li Quanqing quietly retreated to the back of the group, trying to keep a low profile to remain unnoticed.
He couldn’t help but sigh in his heart.
The boy was good in every aspect, just too indifferent by nature, always staying in his fish pond, seldom venturing beyond his own doorsteps.
With such a temperament as tranquil as water, how could he one day take control of the family’s power, gathering the entire Green Jade Li Family’s resources for his own Foundation Establishment?
Raising fish is good, but can raising fish produce Foundation Establishment Spiritual Objects, can it produce a Foundation Establishment Pill?
Third Elder looked at the young man, thinking that if he knew, this Foundation Establishment Pill was originally meant to be fought over for him.
Now, it has slipped through their fingers.
The expressions must be quite a spectacle, right?
Li Kunli lowered his gaze, reined in all his thoughts, and after brewing his emotions, he flung his sleeve and bellowed angrily. 𝖓𝔬𝖛𝔭𝔲𝖇.𝔠𝔬𝖒
"A bunch of pedantic old fools; the clan will sooner or later fall into ruin by your hands!"
"Even without that Foundation Establishment Pill, I can still break through to Foundation Establishment!"
"Just you wait, hmph!"
With those words, he left with a sweep of his sleeves, striding out of the hall with a tumultuous aura.
Behind him, the original forty-two Elders exchanged looks, many with a flicker in their gaze.
In the end, only twenty-seven clan Elders followed him out.
After all, with Li Yumiao on the verge of completing his Foundation Establishment, and the Clan Leader’s lineage soon to have two Foundation Establishers, their power swelled, and naturally, others took the hint and aligned with the prevailing winds.
After all, they all had large families to support and weren’t just looking out for themselves.
Li Quanqing, of course, resolutely chose to follow.
While the hall was full of cheer, this group exuded a gloomy atmosphere, with the downcast expression of the Third Elder clearly visible—a look full of suppressed sorrow in his eyes.
"Everyone disperse, no need to follow. I want to be alone for a while," said the old man.
He spoke slowly, gazing toward Green Jade Spirit Island, his body emanating a visible weariness.
His robust figure now seemed somewhat bent, his hair prematurely gray.
Seeing this scene, Li Quanqing also felt an unpleasant twinge in his heart.
It seems that he too must take action, to establish his foundation sooner rather than later, and then try to give Third Elder a hand.
After paying his respects, the youth dispersed with the others.
Li Quanmo had been paying attention to the commotion and hurried over, "Did it fail?"
His tone was anxious, his expression nervous and unsettled, his heart racing with impatience.
"Failed," Li Quanqing sighed, "The slot was taken by Li Yumiao."
"Damn it! Despicable!"
"Third Elder should never have returned in the first place; he should have gone to the Golden Core Immortal City tens of thousands of miles away to seek Foundation Establishment!"
After venting, Li Quanmo gradually calmed down, "With Third Elder’s temperament, without the elixir, he’s bound to cause a big commotion within the clan. Qingyu Island is not a place to stay any longer, it’s a place of trouble."
Li Quanqing knew this as well, but instead he gave a bitter smile and shook his head, "We Elders have been ordered not to leave the Green Jade Islands until the matter of the Foundation Establishment Pill is settled."
A thousand years ago, when the power balance in these seas had just stabilized.
Every time the Sword Sect bestowed a Foundation Establishment Pill, the seed candidates of the various families would go to the Shuihua Sword Sect to take the elixir and attempt the breakthrough.
But for some reason, the failure rate of these candidates was extremely high, often only one in ten would succeed.
Various speculations ran wild for a time.
Later, the Foundation Establishment Families had no choice but to covertly take the Foundation Establishment Pills from the Sword Sect and have their family members ingest them at home.
Naturally, this did not come without its own intrigues and deceits, such as the unfortunate incidents of Foundation Establishment Pills being stolen. Over the past thousand years, this had happened more than once.
"The family says we can’t leave the Green Jade Islands, not that we can’t leave the main island."
Li Quanmo suddenly spoke up, "With the once-every-five-years Immortal Ascension Conference about to take place, we can certainly take on a mission to go to the dominions of the mortal islands under our jurisdiction."
"Not only can we avoid the Third Elder and not provoke his ire, but we can also bring in some Spiritual Roots with excellent potential as our own Immortal Seeds to strengthen our power."
"The Immortal Ascension Conference?"
Upon hearing this, Li Quanqing’s interest was immediately piqued.
