NOVPUB
Chapter 1226: Chapter 1082: Spread
Li Zhirui returned to the sky, gazing down contemplatively at the jade bead in his hand.
The infant was Liu Bairui’s only surviving descendant. His other heirs had died one after another for various reasons in the past few days. As luck would have it, this made him the sole rightful inheritor of the Dafeng dynasty’s legacy.
Thus, the dynasty’s remaining dragon energy was entrusted to him, viewed as the seedling for its revival.
Unfortunately, Li Zhirui, proficient in Human Dao methods, not only located him but also used a secret technique to extract this thread of dragon energy—severing any chance of the Dafeng dynasty’s reconstruction.
Even if some future descendant of the Liu family were to establish a new "Dafeng dynasty," it would merely be a name without any real connection to the original.
However, what Li Zhirui had not anticipated was that the infant possessed a Heavenly Spiritual Root!
Originally, the dragon energy residing within him suppressed his spiritual root, making it imperceptible and completely preventing him from stepping onto the path of cultivation.
Yet, by eliminating the hidden danger, Li Zhirui inadvertently cleared the way for the child to cultivate. In the end, he acted to extract the child’s spiritual root as well.
As for why he did not simply kill the infant, it wasn’t out of mercy. Instead, he sensed residual waves of divine power descending in this direction—igniting the dilapidated house.
Since the child’s fate was already sealed, there was no need to dirty his own hands.
Li Zhirui refocused his attention and surveyed the battlefield below. The Liu family, having enjoyed a century of privilege and prosperity under the dynasty, had gained considerable strength—but it was now of little use.
With the collapse of the legal network and the dynasty’s fortune turned against itself, they could no longer wield their power effectively.
Their prior internal strife had severely depleted their strength, leaving them disadvantaged. And now, they were being completely crushed by the Li family.
Seeing that the outcome was decided, Li Zhirui flew toward the royal palace. This was no ordinary mortal dynasty. Over the century, the Liu family had waged wars and destroyed Spirit Mountains and temples during their conquests, annihilating Immortal Dao influences. Moreover, their cultivation techniques required Spiritual Objects to refine Magic Artifacts, so they likely had amassed quite a collection of Spiritual Objects.
On his way, he spotted palace attendants fleeing with money and valuables. Since none of the items were particularly valuable, he decided not to act and instead flew directly toward the gathering site of Spirit Light.
The palace treasury was naturally protected by formations, but those had crumbled along with the collapse of the Human Dao Law Net.
Arriving late due to handling the infant, Li Zhirui discovered the treasury’s gates wide open, clearly plundered by someone.
However, upon probing with Divine Sense, Li Zhirui noticed a secret chamber within the treasury. Though the items inside were few, each could truly be considered a rare treasure.
"A fine harvest," he remarked.
Casually opening the partition, he did not inspect the items individually, instead sweeping them all into his Storage Magical Treasure.
In the following days, Li Zhirui focused on hunting down any remaining fugitives. He didn’t expect to exterminate every single member of the Liu family—a clan that had proliferated for over a hundred years, with a population likely exceeding tens of thousands scattered across various regions. Eradicating them all would be both arduous and time-consuming.
For now, as long as the Liu family’s foundations in the capital were obliterated, those who survived wouldn’t be able to stir up any meaningful trouble.
To ensure this, cultivators from the Li family sealed the capital for an entire month, thoroughly scouring it and slaying tens of thousands of Liu family members, along with destroying numerous Human Dao methods.
With this, the Liu family’s Dafeng dynasty was completely obliterated, leaving it no chance for resurgence.
Meanwhile, tens of thousands of Li family cultivators swiftly occupied the lands, stabilizing the chaos and smoothly claiming the several-thousand-mile territory.
However, since the region was far from Mount Wanxian, and the Li family had yet to fully develop Shanhai State, most Spirit Veins other than a few Spirit Mountains rich in Spiritual Energy remained sealed.
These miscellaneous affairs no longer required Li Zhirui’s involvement. Leaving them to others, he returned to Mount Wanxian early, handing over the Spiritual Objects to Clan Leader Li Taichang before resuming his secluded cultivation.
During the past decade, while meticulously orchestrating the downfall of the Dafeng dynasty under the constraints of the Human Dao Law Net, Li Zhirui could not cultivate. Nevertheless, he never ceased to comprehend the Purification Principle.
In fact, the unique environment seemed to enhance his focus on understanding the Laws.
Thus, even though his cultivation had not improved in the slightest, his realm had advanced significantly.
And this, far more than cultivation itself, was cause for celebration.
...
News of the Li family’s acquisition of the Dafeng dynasty’s lands soon spread throughout Wanzhu State. Any cultivator with a functioning mind could easily deduce who orchestrated it behind the scenes.
This elicited envy toward the Li family for obtaining such a vast territory, though none dared to challenge them or seize even the smallest piece of land.
Simultaneously, curiosity grew about how the Li family managed to "conquer bloodlessly" and dismantle what had been a source of immense pressure for various Integration-level factions—the Human Dao dynasty.
For in the western parts of Wanzhu State, yet another Human Dao dynasty had risen!
Similar reports emerged from various regions of the East Continent. Unbeknownst to the cultivators, these dynasties formed a distinct faction of their own.
Though separated by vast distances—the nearest being tens of thousands of miles away—who could guarantee that they would not one day surge forward? Or that another Human Dao dynasty wouldn’t emerge within the local territory? No one wished to relive the pain of being suppressed.
Thus, various Integration-level factions approached Mount Wanxian with overflowing sincerity for visits.
Initially, Li Taichang was unsure of their intentions, but as probing conversations unfolded, he began to discern their motives.
