Star Trace Gate

After much deliberation, Uncle Li finally decided to attend the banquet at the Sun family's house. He didn't want to get involved in the three major cases, much less get embroiled in the power struggles among the major clans. However, upon looking back, he realized that his youngest nephew was already a traitor within the family. Furthermore, the fact that the Sun family had taken the initiative to invite him at this time made him realize that it was probably too late for him to avoid the situation.

Since that's the case, why not go to the Sun family in person and see what this old fox, Sun Michen, is really up to?

However, although the invitation sent by the Sun family looked very brief, the "requirements" were very clear. Sun Michen had made it clear that he only invited Brother Taishan to have a drink and talk at night. In other words, what he wanted to say could only be said to Uncle Li Er himself. If you come, you must not bring anyone else.

This request made Uncle Li feel somewhat uneasy, and even sensed a hint of a trap.

I definitely have to go, but what will I do there? What might I talk about with Sun Michen? How should I respond? What do I and the Li family really want? I need to think about all these questions in advance, understand them thoroughly, and prepare accordingly.

Li Erbo's personality appears unrestrained and domineering, with the air of a rough and tumble warrior. But if you examine him closely, you'll find that he is actually a meticulous and extremely reliable clan leader, even more so than Sun Michen and Qian Zhongge.

Why do you say that?

Let's recall the Li-Yin conflict. To outsiders, it might seem like a contest that decided the outcome on a stage, determining the rise and fall of the two clans in less than half an hour. From Li Erbo's aggressive entry into the Yin family demanding a fight to the death, to Yin Hong's eventual defeat, the shame of his entire clan, and the mass migration, the entire event lasted only one morning.

The fate and future of the two great clans were decided in such a short time, which gives people a very hasty and absurd feeling, as if two hot-headed clan leaders decided on a whim to fight each other to the death.

But is that really the case?

That's definitely not the case. To convince the Li family that he couldn't refine pills, Yin Hong put on a show for decades, bearing the reputation of being a pill-refining failure and never personally participating in any affairs of the family's pill academy. As for Li Erbo, this "audience member," he seemed to be deceived by Yin Hong's performance, but in reality, he was on a higher level. The fact that he compressed the Eternal Spirit Fire with the power of the void was enough to show that he already knew Yin Hong's pill-refining level and had absolute confidence in defeating him.

In addition, just a few days before the Yin family was forced into a deadly struggle, Yin Hong happened to refuse the Zhao family's proposal to share the Heaven-Mending Formula, which meant that he did not receive any external help when his family was on the verge of death, and no one spoke on his behalf... It was at this time that Uncle Li Er came knocking on their door, forcing them to follow his own pace.

Are all these events really just coincidences?

Nonsense. There are no coincidences in the world. It's all about enduring for decades, gradually eroding resources, and scheming step by step.

To outsiders, all of this happened on an inconspicuous morning, suddenly and absurdly, but only the Li and Yin families knew how long they had been preparing for this deadly battle.

From this perspective, Li Taishan's victory was by no means a fluke, but rather a well-prepared burst of energy that swept the enemy in one fell swoop.

After the Li-Yin dispute ended, Li Taishan was truly exhausted. He had originally intended to use the Divine Scripture of Mending the Heavens to secretly bide his time and gradually strengthen his clan's power. However, unexpectedly, three major cases suddenly occurred in the Illusionary Village, and his most valued nephew was, to make matters worse, the mastermind...

Left with no other choice, he was forced into the situation and, within a single night, came up with a final decision, made a firm commitment, and made thorough preparations for it.

The next day, at dusk, in the attic.

Before setting off, Li Taishan wrote a secret letter and personally handed it to Li Fusheng, instructing him: "Make sure the letter is delivered to him personally, and do not mention the letter if you do not see him in person."

"Yes." Li Fusheng looked at the name on the envelope and nodded solemnly, "I'll take care of it right away."

"Go."

After waving his hand, Li Taishan slowly got up and walked towards his sixth grandfather's courtyard.

Sixth Grandfather was one of the oldest and most senior members of the Li family. He was only one auspicious day away from passing away. This old man didn't have much time left to live, and he was sometimes confused and sometimes lucid. He seemed very unreliable, but Uncle Li Er still liked to consult with him on important matters, and he could always get some insightful advice from him.

Uncle Li sat in the inner hall of the courtyard, drank a few cups with Grandpa Liu, and chatted for half an hour before leaving with a rosy complexion.

He kept his promise and went to the Sun family alone.

……

At the end of the You hour (5-7 PM), at the Sun family's house.

After exchanging pleasantries, Sun Michen personally led Uncle Li to the back garden of his house and they sat down in a pavilion.

The stars and moon were bright, a gentle evening breeze was blowing, and servants brought out several dishes of delicate side dishes, followed by warm wine.

There was no one else in the pavilion except the two clan leaders, who sat facing each other, drinking wine and chatting quietly.

For the first half of the conversation, Sun Michen kept rambling on about trivial things. He was actually observing Li Erbo's attitude and reaction, and he was also very hesitant about whether he should reveal the truth to him and take the initiative to win him over.

However, one thing is certain: if Uncle Li had brought his family's experts with him today, it would have shown that the other party had no sincerity, and Sun Michen would never have risked trying to win him over, nor would he have hesitated as much as he does now.

Fortunately, the other party understood the contents of the invitation and came alone, which means that... Li Taishan "respects" him, has a good impression of him, and is also "looking forward" to tonight's conversation, so he abides by the rules.

After a few rounds of drinks, Uncle Li finally couldn't resist. He picked up a peanut, popped it into his mouth, and asked with a smile, "Brother Sun, you didn't just invite me here to drink and chat, did you?"

"Haha." Sun Michen laughed loudly, "I've been dealing with a lot of trivial matters lately, and as the head of the Law Hall, I'm indeed feeling quite exhausted. That's why I thought of inviting Brother Li over for a few drinks to relieve my boredom and relax a little...!"

"Your invitation said, 'These are turbulent times, and people are filled with anxiety.' Those eight words kept me up all night," Uncle Li sighed. "That's why I came here specifically to hear your insightful opinion, Clan Chief Sun…!"

Sun Michen blinked and asked in a low voice, "These three major cases are all suspicious. What, has this matter also kept you up all night, Brother Li? Hmm... This shouldn't be the case. Your family members aren't involved. You should be watching the show and not caring about the bigger things."

This question was somewhat malicious, and it was also full of suspicion of probing and trying to get information out of people.

Uncle Li's heart tightened, thinking that the other party was implying that "the Sun family already knows that Little Fatty is an inside agent." However, as the head of a large clan, he would naturally not show any flaws in his expression, let alone be made to lose his composure and break down his defenses by a single sentence.

He smiled and replied calmly, "These are turbulent times, as you said, and people are filled with anxiety, as you also witnessed. My Li family is one of the four great clans, and no matter who dies or perishes, it's difficult to remain unaffected. It's precisely because I know so little that I... haven't slept all night."

This reply was watertight, leaving Sun Michen with no way to continue probing or testing the waters.

Old Sun picked up his wine cup, frowned, took a small sip, and then changed the subject, asking, "Brother Li, there are no outsiders in this pavilion, so we can go wherever we want. In your opinion, if we were to rank the four major clans in order of seniority right now, who should be first and who should be last?"

Uncle Li pondered for a long time: "Then naturally the Zhao family and the Qian family come first, your Sun family in the middle, and my Li family at the end."

"Brother Li, you really flatter my Sun family..." Sun Michen said politely.

"No, this is not flattery." Uncle Li Er solemnly commented, "Look, before the end of the old master's era, all the immortal heroes in our sealed land perished by using the Ten Thousand Paths to Bury Eternity, a historical event known as the Tide Burial of the Dao. At the end of that era, the ancestors of our four clans all fell at the gate of the road to leaving their homeland, their corpses piled up like mountains."

"However, in order to ensure the survival and continuation of the descendants, before the Tide War began, the former master also had a small number of supreme beings hide in secret to ensure the safety of the descendants."

"Among these supreme beings who have not yet participated in the war, the Zhao family has the largest number of survivors, followed by the Qian family."

"After the era of the old master ended, the Zhao family seized absolute initiative by virtue of the large number of surviving Supreme Beings. Before their passing, these Supreme Beings also secured numerous opportunities for their descendants, thus forming a family foundation that far surpassed others and ensuring the prosperity of their descendants. On the other hand, the Sun and Li families were too upright and inflexible... In protecting their descendants, they did not show any selfishness, and too many people died in battle... Therefore, they were severely weakened, and in the end, very few of their family ancestors survived to this day."

"The Qian family has integrity and is also very fortunate. At the end of the old master's era, their population was too large. Although many died, many also survived. Even after countless years, they are still enough to be ranked as the second largest clan based on this foundation alone."

Uncle Li's analysis was logical and very objective: "Without using the Immortal Palace's coffin, our Sun and Li families would probably only be able to settle for last place."

From their conversation, we can roughly understand the history of the Illusory Village: before the four major clans jointly ruled, there was an era called the Era of the Old Lords. Judging from the name alone, it's not hard to guess that the Era of the Old Lords was likely a monarchical system, where one person held absolute power.

This is somewhat similar to the Nine Li Continent. Once upon a time, one person became emperor, suppressing all ages with the Great Dao and completely unifying an era. Then the emperor died, and the era of alliance tribes began. The lords rose up, checked and balanced each other, and decided the future together.

"Can you use the divine coffin of the Undying Hall?" Sun Michen asked with a smile.

“Of course not.” Uncle Li shook his head without hesitation: “The time is not yet ripe, the Hall of Immortality has not yet awakened, and people like you and me are not worthy to pry into its secrets.”

"Oh." Sun Michen nodded slightly: "If the divine coffin in this Undying Hall cannot be used, what will this Illusion Village look like in a few hundred years? Will the four clans still exist? Will your Li family and my Sun family still exist?"

Uncle Li frowned upon hearing this, and after pondering for a long time, he shook his head and said, "To be honest, I don't know."

“Let me tell you. Hundreds of years from now, Zhao Mi will definitely break through the existing constraints and embark on the path of the Great Dao. He will also be the first to understand the secrets of the Divine Tomb and bring out the Divine Coffin of the Undying Hall before us, becoming the unparalleled leader here.” Sun Michen said with a solemn and very confident expression, “This place will also return to the era of the old master, and the situation of the four races coexisting will no longer exist.”

After a brief pause, Uncle Li frowned and raised his wine glass.

"Brother Li, tell me the truth, do you want to see this kind of scene tomorrow?" Sun Michen asked in a low voice, "Are you willing to be Zhao Mi's personal servant, holding his horse's stirrups and pulling his horse?"

"It's an inevitable trend. If I'm unwilling, what can I do?" Uncle Li Er took a sip and grinned, then asked rhetorically, "The three clans united to resist the Zhao family?"

"Heh, the three clans united? Can you persuade that pedantic money-grubber to ignore the current rules and join us in secretly suppressing the Zhao family?" Sun Michen asked again.

“That old man… I really can’t persuade him.” Uncle Li shook his head honestly.

“That settles it then.” Sun Michen sighed and held up one finger: “There is only one way to change tomorrow’s situation.”

"What?" Uncle Li asked casually.

"The inheritance of the old master—whoever obtains the inheritance of the old master may be able to unravel the secrets of the Divine Tomb and Immortal Palace; they may also use this inheritance to dim the brilliance of Zhao Mi's methods." Sun Michen lowered his voice: "A complete Devouring Inheritance can bring about a tremendous change for our race!"