Rebuilding the Immortal Cultivator Clan Chapter 2025 1481: Giving Up (2)

With all affairs concluded, Li Mingyao departed without delay, rushing off swiftly—he needed to hurry back and report everything to Li Zhirui immediately.

Pinpointing the culprit who sabotaged Qingcang was utterly hopeless—absolutely no means to track them down!

That discussion between Li Zhirui and Qingcang had circulated everywhere back then, pulling in hordes of cultivators, loose ones in particular, to the Ten Thousand Spirit Sea Area upon hearing the buzz.

Although plenty of cultivators had trickled away during this time without catching sight of the Thunder Tribulation, the numbers lingering to watch still hit at least twenty or thirty thousand.

Faced with such a vast throng, the Li family lacked both the manpower and the moment to sift out the perpetrator amid tens of thousands of cultivators.

This was partly due to Qingcang's triumphant breakthrough—had it gone otherwise, the crowd couldn't have slipped away so smoothly.

...

As Qingcang scraped through the Thunder Tribulation by the narrowest margin, Li Zhirui in a separate realm awaited the ripening of the Starlight Vine.

The formerly gloomy vines burst forth with radiant, eye-catching starlight, presenting a spectacle of sheer magnificence and allure.

Yet Li Zhirui had no leisure to gaze upon it then—promptly, he harvested the Starlight Vine and secured it within a custom-crafted vessel.

Those five Spirit Seeds yielded by the fully ripened vine got replanted by him across three distinct Spirit Mountains.

Even should Li Zhirui have perfected his desired creation by the time those three Starlight Vines ripened, the resource wouldn't prove worthless.

Its quality ranked impressively high, boasting defenses of remarkable resilience. Prized for exchange or magic artifact refinement, demand never waned.

The leftover pair of Spirit Seeds, he planned to set aside for clan use.

"Five Elements, I'll trouble you to look after these spiritual treasures well. I'm heading out now."

The critical issue of Qingcang's Thunder Tribulation and bid for Heavenly Immortal Realm breakthrough lingered fresh in Li Zhirui's thoughts.

Stepping out from the space, he extended his divine sense beyond the portal and at once detected a Jade Slip deposited there, while Li Debo raced toward him from the distance.

Li Zhirui's features clouded over at the sight of Li Debo's frantic, horror-stricken, rage-filled visage—had calamity truly struck?!

Waste no time on speculation; he materialized instantly before Li Debo, inquiring gravely, "Has something happened?"

"Ancestor Rui!"

"What disaster could rattle you to this degree?"

"Bad news! Amid Green Cang Spirit Ancestor's Tribulation Transcendence, an interloper meddled, throwing everything into chaos and surging the Thunder Tribulation's might sky-high!"

In a flash, Li Zhirui's countenance turned profoundly somber—such an unforeseen twist had blindsided him.

"What's the status of things right now?"

"Green Cang Spirit Ancestor survived the Heavenly Tribulation through dire peril yet unscathed in the end. He's retreated to his cave mansion for closed-door cultivation to consolidate his realm."

Irritated, Li Zhirui shot Li Debo a sharp look and grumbled, "You really are… Why hold back the vital details and let me fret pointlessly?"

Li Debo then caught on how his phrasing invited misinterpretation. Flushing awkwardly, he suddenly remembered and appended, "Ancestor Yao races back to the clan at this moment—he could hold some insights."

"All right."

Li Zhirui gave a nod before producing a jade box. "Inside lie two Starlight Vine Spirit Seeds. Task the spirit planters with planting them."

"If no further commands, Ancestor Rui, I'll withdraw first."

"Go on."

Shortly thereafter, Li Zhirui received Li Mingyao's arrival back at the mountain.

"Mingyao, did you uncover the identity of the interferer?"

Li Mingyao bowed his head in shame, murmuring lowly, "Tens of thousands gathered to witness the Thunder Tribulation then. I arrived just as the anomaly struck. Spotting no leads, I skipped any investigation and allowed their departure."

Li Zhirui offered no reprimand or sign of displeasure. Truth be told, even he could devise no superior response in those straits.

Still, private doubts churned within him.

The Li family's sole Heavenly Immortal contacts comprised Dongyuan Sect, Sea Tribe, and Wanling Alliance—with the latter pair alien kin. No chance they'd traverse afar without leaving tracks.

Thus, Li Zhirui zeroed in his doubts upon Dongyuan Sect.

Regrettably, zero leads or proof supported his hunch. Bare speculation inflicted zero damage on Dongyuan Sect.

This left the Li family forced to choke down the bitter pill in quiet.

Though fury and resentment boiled in Li Zhirui, helplessness bound him. Besides, he shunned further entanglement, wary of piling on karma to stall his own ascension.

"It's all over now."

Li Zhirui's declaration marked the clan's abandonment of further pursuit.

This outcome left him faintly disheartened nonetheless; he sent Li Mingyao away with a wave before withdrawing to his cave mansion.

"The world is full of dust—it's best to leave as soon as possible."

Such a sentiment welled up unbidden in Li Zhirui's heart.

"Soon, soon, just wait a bit longer!"

A peerless expert in the law of purification, Li Zhirui sensed worldly grime and taint with acute clarity. He understood the Yuanling Realm hadn't yet brewed sufficient malice and corruption for him to harvest immense merit, resolve his karma, and depart this plane.

Whoosh—

A sudden chill wind gust swept past, scouring away every vestige.

...

Now, turn to the opposing scene.

Dongyuan Sect's main hall stood hermetically sealed in utter darkness, barring any sliver of light or whisper of breeze.

"What happened? Speak to me in detail," the Dongyuan Sect's sect master commanded.

"Reporting, Sect Master. Per your orders, I unleashed that spirit bug undetected, and indeed, the Thunder Tribulation's ferocity multiplied several times over. Yet none foresaw Water Lord powering through it raw."

The sect master lapsed into quiet after the report. Further action lay beyond reach—procuring that supremely elusive spirit bug marked Dongyuan Sect's utmost feat.

They'd banked on thwarting the Li family's new Heavenly Immortal, only for their plot to crumble spectacularly.

The lone silver lining: this disciple's secrecy held firm. Li family vengeance, even if sought, couldn't trace back to them.

Deep down, the sect master recognized this as their slimmest miss at triumph—any future Li Heavenly Immortal would manifest securely inside Li domains.

In that setup, foes couldn't even approach, never mind tampering with the Thunder Tribulation.

"Alas! Forget it! Let's leave it at that."

After extended musing, the sect master heaved a sigh, shelving ideas of ongoing strikes against the Li family. Persistence courted discovery of their hand.

Though Dongyuan Sect dwarfed them in might and scoffed at Li raids—in truth, an attack would play right into their hands—

Their paramount dread was the Li family covertly amassing proof and whispering scandals abroad, shredding Dongyuan Sect's prestige.

And judging Li Zhirui's nature, the sect master knew with certainty he'd stoop to precisely that!