Chapter 25: Breakthrough and a False Couple

Since his strength was insufficient, he would break through.

Yesterday, after returning from the Bounty Pavilion to the inn, Yan Li set up a barrier in his room and asked Xuan Shiyan to keep watch outside.

After a moment of hesitation, he took the moon-white ruqun from his storage ring and changed into it.

Once ready, he sat cross-legged and guided the spiritual power in his dantian along his meridians, pushing it forward slowly.

Perhaps it had been stored too long. The moment the spiritual power was released, it surged like a pent-up flood finding an opening, impossible to stop.

His meridians expanded under the impact. The array patterns on the moon-white ruqun lit up, and Taiyin radiance flowed from the hem into his meridians.

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth around him seemed drawn in, gathering toward him without end and then swallowed into his body.

The spiritual power vortex deep in his dantian grew larger and more solid.

His aura climbed step by step, finally settling at a new height. A clear sword hum rang from deep within his dantian.

Late Foundation Establishment. Done.

Yan Li clenched his fist, feeling the new power circulating through him.

His spiritual sense had grown sharper, his spiritual power thicker and more refined, and his meridians were far wider and tougher than before. Every movement carried a sense of easy control.

He opened his eyes. A flash of light passed through them, and his spiritual power moved through his meridians without the slightest obstruction. He was completely different from before the breakthrough.

He let out a slow breath, steadied his mind, changed back into his Daoist robe, removed the barrier, and pushed open the door.

Xuan Shiyan was leaning against a pillar in the corridor. Hearing the sound, he looked up.

Warm yellow lamplight spilled from the room onto Yan Li, softening his already refined features.

The aura around Yan Li had not fully settled. The lingering rush of spiritual power in his meridians became a faint sheen on his skin.

His skin was warm as jade, his eyes still cool, but now there was an indescribable otherworldly air about him.

Xuan Shiyan’s gaze froze.

He knew perfectly well it was Yan Li, yet he was still dazed for a moment. Only when the pressure of late Foundation Establishment washed over him did he barely recover.

“Congratulations, senior brother.”

“Many thanks.”

The two exchanged a few words and returned to their rooms.

Xuan Shiyan closed the door, leaned back against it, and shut his eyes. He pushed the daze from his mind bit by bit.

He frowned. In that instant, his heart really had been thrown into disorder.

After a long while, he opened his eyes and muttered a curse at himself: “Crazy.”

But when he closed his eyes, that face still floated clearly in his mind and would not go away.

The flying sword beneath his feet cut through the morning wind. Yan Li’s gaze passed through the churning clouds, and a long, narrow gorge stretching between the mountains had already appeared along the distant ridge.

A black sword light drew near, and Xuan Shiyan’s voice reached his ear.

“Senior brother, we’re at the edge of Qingfeng Gorge. Should we go down first?”

Yan Li nodded.

The two sword lights descended from high in the sky and landed silently in the shadows of the forest.

Ancient trees rose around them, branches interwoven, blocking most of the daylight. The forest seemed dim.

“If we fly any farther, we’ll be discovered.” Xuan Shiyan lowered his voice.

Yan Li grunted in acknowledgment. Holding Yan Shu, he sat down against an old pine and unfastened the baby carrier on his chest so she could breathe.

The little thing was finally let out. She kicked her small arms and legs excitedly, babbling “ah ah” without stopping.

Yan Li could not resist rubbing her head, then took out spirit milk to stop that hungry little mouth.

Ahead was Qingfeng Gorge.

Two steep peaks stood like knife cuts. The gorge entrance was wedged between them, white mist spilling from within and shrouding the entrance in haze.

Yan Li took out the map Chen An had given him and spread it on his knee. His gaze moved slowly over the dense markings.

He had to admit, Chen An had put in real effort. He had even circled several spots where ambushes or sentries might be placed.

“Chen An said there are more than ten of them. The bandit leader is late Foundation Establishment, and below him there’s another late Foundation Establishment, one mid Foundation Establishment, plus five early Foundation Establishment.” Xuan Shiyan raised an eyebrow. “What kind of bandits are these? They’re almost a small sect.”

Yan Li nodded. “That’s why it’s strange. They’ve been holed up here for two months. They can’t be relying on luck alone.”

Xuan Shiyan smiled. “What do you mean, senior brother?”

Yan Li looked toward the depths of the gorge. The white mist was heavy, hiding everything inside. “We scout first, then act.”

Xuan Shiyan nodded. “Good. I was thinking the same.”

The two split up at once, one left and one right, advancing along the ridges on either side of the gorge.

It turned out to be trickier than expected.

Barriers had been set around the gorge, faint spiritual light sealing the entire place tight. If they forced their way in, alarms would trigger and alert the bandits inside.

The barrier was not high grade, but it had been laid with nasty cunning. At their current cultivation, breaking it silently was unlikely.

The two met up and retreated into a hidden mountain hollow.

“The fastest way is to break the barrier and charge in,” Xuan Shiyan said.

Yan Li shook his head. “No. Once the barrier breaks, the people inside will know immediately. More than ten bandits waiting for us would be bad.”

Xuan Shiyan knew he was right. He sighed. “Then we’ll have to find another way in.”

They fell silent for a moment. Wind howled through the gorge, sweeping fallen leaves across the ground.

There were only nine days left until the Treasure Pavilion auction. They still had to deal with Qingfeng Gorge, and after that Sunset Valley and the Nine-Turn Soul-Returning Grass.

They were strangers in Tianque City. Even if they wanted to find people to team up with, there was nowhere to look.

Just then, the rumble of wheels came from afar.

Yan Li looked up. At the end of the mountain road, a caravan was slowly approaching.

Three carriages, seven or eight guards, and a blue flag on the carriage. It looked like a mid-sized trading company from Tianque City.

The caravan was not large, but it had quite a few guards. They clearly knew this area was dangerous.

Yan Li and Xuan Shiyan exchanged a look.

“Caravan.”

“Caravan.”

They spoke almost at the same time.

The idea was there. What remained was how to blend in.

Xuan Shiyan rubbed his chin and thought. “Senior brother, I have a method.”

“Speak.”

Xuan Shiyan pointed at Yan Shu, then at the two of them. “Two grown men traveling through a place like this with a baby. What does that look like?”

Yan Li frowned.

Xuan Shiyan answered himself. “Not like honest travelers. More like kidnappers about to run off with a child.”

Yan Li fell silent.

It sounded bad, but it was not unreasonable.

Yan Li looked down at Yan Shu, then at the distant caravan. “So?”

“So we need different identities.” Xuan Shiyan spoke with a perfectly serious face. “An identity that won’t draw suspicion.”

“For example?”

Xuan Shiyan cleared his throat.

“Husband and wife.”

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