Longevity Begins With Zongmen Handyman

Chapter 160: The Vortex of the Great Clan

After a long time.

The old woman carefully inquired about the situation of Li Hua.

"The only one who came here back then was our Jiang family's patriarch, Jiang Riqing..."

"If I'm not mistaken, you should be his descendant--"

The old woman's eyes were filled with emotion. "I never expected to meet you today. It's fate, fate..."

She kept stroking Li Hua's head and smiled, saying, "Now that I've finally met a member of the Jiang clan, I should stay here for a few days..."

For the next few days, she really did stay in the village.

When the villagers heard that she was Li Hua's relative, they were all very happy, and the old woman was also very friendly.

But Li An keenly sensed that something was wrong.

If the old woman had seen Li Hua, why didn't she express her intention to take her back to the clan?

Li An's heart grew heavier. With a little thought, he already understood... the old woman was waiting!

Waiting for news.

This news was related to Li Hua.

"All the great clans in the world are the same..."

He couldn't help but fall silent. There was no such thing as blood being thicker than water. Even in the world of cultivation clans, calculations were everywhere.

It seemed that Li Hua's appearance was a crucial variable for the Jiang clan.

So they needed to weigh the interests at the higher level.

If Li Hua's appearance was in line with the interests of the higher-ups, then she could be welcomed back to the Jiang family.

If not...

Then Li Hua might...

Disappear.

This made Li An deeply regretful. He had heard from the old woman before that Li Hua's identity was extraordinary, which was why he brought her here, but he hadn't anticipated this aspect.

Li An was prepared to use his two small swords at any time.

Once the Jiang family had murderous intentions towards Li Hua, they would definitely kill him as well.

Even though Li An owed the old woman his life, she would not hesitate to kill him in order to keep him silent!

However, what made Li An somewhat relieved was that the old woman's strength was actually very weak now. If he made a move, she would definitely be overwhelmed by his killing intent.

On the other hand, Li An was only pretending to have killing intent, but his strength was at its peak.

With two third-grade small swords, coupled with his Foundation Building stage perfection, and the powerful physique of the Golden Treasury Art, killing a True Dan stage cultivator who was almost defenseless...

The odds of success were very high.

Li An secretly prepared his flying sword, ready to attack...

Meanwhile, Li Hua, who was ignorant of the world, was deeply moved by the old woman's warmth...

...

The next morning.

"Lihua, your wandering outside is due to the negligence of our family. Don't worry, I will bring you back to the family!"

The old woman spoke warmly, taking out a second-grade magical tool from her body and handing it to Lihua with a smile. She said, "Accept this item as a gift from me. From now on, when you return to the family, no one will dare to bully you even a little bit!"

Seeing this, Li An secretly breathed a sigh of relief and put away the two third-grade flying swords.

If the old woman really wanted to kill and silence them, there was no need to give Lihua another magical tool.

It seems to be stable!

Lihua was unfamiliar with the Jiang family and asked, "Grandmother, will Master and Er Niu also go?"

Li An already knew that this old woman and Lihua's grandfather were cousins.

Therefore, Lihua should address her as "grandmother".

"Of course."

The old woman readily agreed, appearing very enthusiastic. It seemed that she found joy in Lihua, which diluted the sadness brought by the death of her grandson.

Immediately, Lihua and Er Niu packed their things, and Li An followed the old woman to the Jiang family.

The Four Scenic Mountains undulated and stretched for a long distance. By following the Four Scenic Mountains, they would eventually reach the border of Yan Kingdom.

The Four Scenic Mountains actually spanned two countries, and in the Yan Kingdom, they were called the Wan Zhang Mountains.

It took Li An half a month to finally step out of the territory of Da Li!

Stepping out of Da Li, Li An felt that his breathing had become smoother.

According to his speculation, at present, Shangguan Shengxian's main target should be in Da Li, and Yan Kingdom should mostly be peaceful.

And even if she wanted to take action against Yan Kingdom, she would target the upper royal family, not the border region like Qingzhou, which she would look down upon.

It would be safer instead.

In Qingzhou, Yan Kingdom, after completing the matter of refining the Dan, he would be free!

By then, he could directly leave the entire Xiling Yuanzhou and cultivate in other continents, which would also be a good choice.

"First, go to the Jiang family to establish a foothold, and then come back later to retrieve my pills and treasures..."

Li An made a plan in his heart.

His top-grade Yuan Ling Dan was still in Baihu City, and his core treasures like the third-grade flying swords were hidden in the Four Scenic Mountains. He had to come back no matter what.

...

Although the northern border of Da Li was adjacent to Qingzhou in Yan Kingdom, the two places were completely different. After entering Qingzhou, prosperity could be seen everywhere, far surpassing the northern border of Da Li.

There were even more cultivation forces in Qingzhou than in the northern border of Da Li.

There were at least five Foundation Establishment forces, such as Xu Ning Temple and Ming Dao Sect!

The Jiang family, a Nascent Soul family, was even more famous!

The Jiang family's location was in Xingluo Mountain, so it was also called "Xingluo Mountain Jiang Family".

The entire family was built along the mountain, occupying the veins of the land.

Around Xingluo Mountain, there were four large cities, all of which were the territory of the Xingluo Mountain Jiang family. The four cities were very lively, each no less than Tianyang City!

This was the heritage and glory of a Nascent Soul family.

But what surprised Li An was that the three of them did not directly enter the Jiang family, but were arranged to stay temporarily in "Beixing City" at the foot of Xingluo Mountain, in a mansion.

"Lihua, the elders on the mountain have been in seclusion these past few days. Once they come out, they will come to see you. You can stay here for a few days, and you can ask Ah Si for anything you need."

When the old woman left, she lovingly stroked Lihua's head, embodying the image of a caring grandmother.

She assigned a Foundation Building cultivator named Ah Si to take care of Li An and the other two's daily needs.

Lihua and Er Niu were at a loss in this luxurious place.

Li An, on the other hand, was pondering the intentions of the Jiang family.

"The crisis is still unresolved--"

He reached a conclusion!

Especially when he wanted to go out, Ah Si politely refused, saying, "Master Ri Hua has ordered that Miss Lihua's whereabouts are a secret of the Jiang family. To protect Miss Lihua, Fellow Daoist Wu should not go out for now. If you need anything, Ah Si will fulfill it!"

The old woman's name was Jiang Ri Hua.

Ah Si's actions confirmed Li An's suspicions.

Until Lihua was formally recognized by the Jiang family, anything could happen.

Li An began to observe his surroundings, preparing to escape in case of an emergency.

With his current cultivation level, as long as it wasn't a Nascent Soul expert, it wouldn't be difficult to escape!

...

In the blink of an eye, a month had passed.

On this day, there was a commotion outside the mansion.

When Lihua, Li An, and the others walked out, they were taken aback.

The procession was grand and solemn.

Leading the way were three Nascent Soul cultivators, with a middle-aged man at the forefront. He exuded a powerful and restrained aura. Li An's heart trembled at just one glance. This middle-aged man was probably at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage!

Jiang Ri Hua hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Reporting to the family head and the elders, this is the direct bloodline of Jiang Ri Qing, Lihua--"

The middle-aged man glanced at Lihua indifferently, waved his hand, and an old man stepped forward to verify Lihua's bloodline.

There was no doubt that she passed.

"As the direct bloodline of my brother, according to the clan rules, she should be cultivated as a candidate seed."

The middle-aged man nodded. "Take her back and hold the ancestral ceremony."

...

That day, Lihua was welcomed back to the Jiang family with great pomp.

Li An also set foot on the Starfall Mountain.

"A fourth-grade spiritual vein!"

Standing on Starfall Mountain, Li An could feel the immense heritage of the Jiang family.

For now, everything was going smoothly despite the twists and turns.

As long as he could gain the support of the Jiang family, it wouldn't be difficult for him to break through to the Nascent Soul stage!

...

Next, the Jiang family held a grand ancestral ceremony for Lihua.

Although Er Niu was close to her, he was not of the Jiang family bloodline and only became a disciple of the Jiang family.

After staying for a few days, Li An roughly understood the situation of the Jiang family.

The Jiang family currently had two Nascent Soul experts, but both of them were old and had been in seclusion. Major matters in the clan were decided by the family head, Jiang Ri Lan.

In addition to Jiang Ri Lan, there were four senior cultivators at the Foundation Building stage.

Jiang Ri Bai, Jiang Ri Ping, Jiang Ri Dong, and Jiang Ri Hua.

Among them, Jiang Ri Hua and Jiang Ri Bai were siblings.

During the recent period, it was a critical time for selecting the "candidate seeds" of the family.

Three people were selected as candidate seeds, with one spot naturally belonging to Jiang Ri Lan's descendants. The four Nascent Soul experts could only compete for the remaining two spots.

The descendant of Jiang Ri Hua died in the Four Scenic Mountains, and her brother Jiang Ri Bai's two descendants, Jiang Ruo Chun and Jiang Ruo Shi, also failed in the competition.

At the decisive moment, the old woman suddenly reported that she had found the direct descendant of the former family head, Jiang Ri Qing--

This completely changed the situation.

It meant that either the descendant of Jiang Ri Ping or Jiang Ri Dong would be eliminated!

After much debate, Jiang Ri Lan personally made the decision to welcome Lihua and let the descendants of Jiang Ri Dong and Jiang Ri Ping compete again.

...

With all this sorted out, Li An understood everything.

In other words, Lihua, who suddenly appeared, became a pawn in the power struggle among the Nascent Soul elders!

Jiang Ri Hua had been waiting all this time, waiting for the results of her brother Jiang Ri Bai's descendants' competition.

If Jiang Ri Bai's descendants, Jiang Ruo Chun and Jiang Ruo Shi, could enter the candidate seeds, Lihua's existence might not be known and she would quietly disappear!

Because it was impossible to create more competitors for their own descendants.

But Jiang Ri Bai's descendants failed and lost their spots in the candidate seeds.

So they brought in Lihua.

This was the plan of Jiang Ri Hua and Jiang Ri Bai!

Family head Jiang Ri Lan couldn't not support Lihua because he himself was a beneficiary of this system and had to maintain it.

Moreover, Jiang Ri Ping and Jiang Ri Dong were forced to eliminate one of them, and they would inevitably become enemies in the competition, thus dividing their power.

Jiang Ri Hua welcomed Lihua into the family, gaining credit, and could continue to participate in the power feast with Lihua's help.

Killing three birds with one stone!

"The larger the clan, the more internal struggles there are, everywhere is a whirlpool..."

Li An sighed. If he wanted to make it in the Jiang family and reach the Nascent Soul stage, he had to be cautious at every step.

"Mr. Wu Qin, the three elders are requesting your presence--"

At this moment, a voice came from outside the door.

The three elders were Jiang Ri Bai.

Li An's heart trembled slightly. They had finally arrived.

...

(End of this chapter)