85: As the situation changed, the third brother left a letter.

The stone door of the secret room opened slowly, and a stream of pure, un-dissipated Spiritual Qi flowed out.

Li Qinghe took a deep breath, feeling his entire body become light and his five senses clear; the subtle sounds and movements of the world were all clearly visible.

He stepped out, and before he could fully adapt to the daylight outside, he heard several uniform, excited, and happy shouts:

"Congratulations, Junior Martial Uncle Li, on your successful Qi Refinement. May you have a hundred years of fortune and longevity, and may your immortal path flourish!"

Looking closely, led by Lin Luo and Li Youfu, five half-grown children were standing respectfully at the door, bowing to him.

Having not seen them for a long time, these boys had grown a bit taller, and the childishness on their faces had faded quite a bit. Especially Lin Luo and Li Youfu, whose bodies already had faint glimmers of spiritual light flowing, which was clearly a sign of having entered the Qi Ling First Layer.

Seeing this, Li Qinghe felt refreshed and laughed heartily:

"Hahaha, good, good, good! You boys are very thoughtful!"

He was truly happy. Having sat in solitary seclusion to break through his shackles and enter the Qi Refinement Stage in one go, seeing his familiar Juniors now filled him with an indescribable joy.

But as his gaze swept around, a hint of doubt mixed into his joy. At such an important moment, why was Third Brother Li Qingfeng not here? With Third Brother's cultivation, it was impossible for him not to notice the changes in aura triggered by his Breakthrough.

"Junior Martial Uncle Li,"

Lin Luo seemed to see his doubt and took a step forward, his expression becoming serious.

"You have been in seclusion inside for nearly two years. Outside... many things have happened."

His speaking pace was not fast, and his logic was clear:

"Master urgently transferred us from the Spiritual Fields and ordered the five of us to take shifts day and night, guarding this place without leaving to act as your Protectors."

"Master specifically instructed me before he left that when you successfully broke through your seclusion, this stone door would open on its own from the inside. Once you came out, I was to immediately give you this handwritten letter."

The youth held up a sealed letter with both hands, his attitude extremely solemn:

"Master also said that if the two-year period expired and there was still no movement from the secret room door, I should go find Junior Martial Uncle Qinglin and ask him to send someone to message him. Fortunately, Junior Martial Uncle, you have successfully emerged from your seclusion."

"Two years?"

Li Qinghe was slightly stunned. There is no sense of time in seclusion, and he actually didn't know that so much time had passed in the outside world.

"You've all worked hard."

Li Qinghe took the letter, his tone gentle.

"As your Junior Martial Uncle, I can't let your hard work go unrewarded. Inside the secret room, there is still some pure Spiritual Qi remaining that I couldn't fully absorb during my Breakthrough; it is currently at its densest."

"The five of you go in immediately, sit cross-legged and circulate your techniques, and absorb as much as you can. If you're lucky, it might help three of you break through to the Qi Ling First Layer in one go. As for Lin Luo and Youfu, it can also consolidate your Foundation and help you take a step toward the second layer."

"Thank you for the generous gift, Junior Martial Uncle!"

Hearing this, the faces of the five children instantly lit up with the light of surprise. After thanking him in unison, they immediately and orderly turned to enter the still-warm secret room.

When the stone door closed again, Li Qinghe moved slightly. Without needing to consciously drive it, the Taiyin True Essence in his body naturally circulated and lifted him, allowing him to float lightly up to the roof of the stone house and naturally sit cross-legged in the air.

The autumn day was crisp and high, and a gentle breeze blew through the New Town, bringing the scent of distant mountains and cooking smoke.

He took out a cigarette, lit it with a flick of his fingers, and took a deep breath. The soft smoke entered his lungs, bringing a sense of grounded satisfaction before he finally opened his Third Brother's letter.

[To my Fourth Brother, Qinghe: Seeing these words is like meeting in person.]

On the paper was Li Qingfeng's familiar and slightly hurried handwriting.

[When you read this letter, you must have already successfully refined Qi and caught a glimpse of the immortal path. Your brother offers his congratulations in advance! I never doubted your talent and Heart-Nature. This is a great blessing for our Li Family; the immortal path is promising!]

Seeing this, the corner of Li Qinghe's mouth couldn't help but curl up; he could imagine that Third Brother must have had a face full of gratification when he wrote this.

[I should have personally guarded the door for you, acted as your Protector, welcomed you out of seclusion, and celebrated this joy together. However, the world is fickle, the situation has suddenly tightened, and the arrow is on the string and must be released.]

Seeing the words "the situation," Li Qinghe's brow furrowed slightly, and his smoking pace slowed down.

[A month ago, Zhao Tianbao from the south sent a confidant galloping over with urgent military intelligence. According to what the scouts gathered, during the time you were in seclusion, the Barbarian Tribes in the north suddenly integrated on a large scale and headed south in unison, tearing up the contracts originally signed with several Immortal Cultivation Families and beginning a massive invasion.]

[This time they come with a menacing momentum, and their numbers are more than several times what they were in the past! Those Immortal Cultivation Families couldn't hold out and have already begun to ask for help from those of us further north. Zhao Tianbao and six or seven other Sect brothers have already responded to the call and taken people to provide support. In this time of chaos, I cannot stand idly by either.]

The handwriting on the letter seemed a bit more forceful here.

[Fortunately, I broke through to the Qi Refining Second Layer a month ago. Zhang Shitou is at the Qi Ling Fourth Layer, and your two martial nephews, Lin Luo and Youfu, have both reached Spirit Enlightenment. The remaining three have also reached Perfection in Qi nourishing and are fit for use.]

[The Qingxuan Guards have expanded to eight hundred after two years. The original fifty people selected, after rigorous training by Man En, have eight who broke through to the Blood Moving Second Layer, and the rest have all entered the Blood Moving First Layer. According to your original suggestion, we recruited young and strong members from the Li Family's side branches during the expansion, as well as a few promising youngsters from the direct line who were willing to endure hardship.]

[Eldest Brother, Second Brother, and our father, after I asked them, have also begun to Cultivate the Bloodline Body Tempering Method. It is worth mentioning that our Eldest Brother was praised by Man En for having great talent in this area! I personally took action and went into the mountains to hunt several tiger and leopard Yao Beasts with vigorous Qi and blood to lay their Foundations.]

[Eldest Brother is truly competitive and can endure hardship. In over a year, starting from nothing, he has stubbornly trained his way to the Blood Moving Third Layer! Second Brother is slightly behind, at the Blood Moving First Layer.]

[Father is getting old and cannot withstand overly aggressive essence blood, so he can only use gentle methods to slowly nourish himself, but his constitution has visibly become sturdier. His back, which used to be bent, is now much straighter!]

Reading this, scenes of Eldest Brother sweating profusely, Second Brother gritting his teeth in persistence, and Old Father's brow gradually relaxing seemed to appear before Li Qinghe's eyes. A warm current flowed through his heart, mixed with a faint regret for not being able to see it with his own eyes.

[There is another piece of good news. During your seclusion, Second Sister-in-law was diagnosed as pregnant and successfully gave birth to triplets last month—two boys and one girl. Both mother and children are safe. Father and Mother were overjoyed, and the family held another lively banquet.]

[Eldest Brother's Yuanzhu and Yuan Bao are now six years old. A few days ago, the whole family watched nervously as I personally tested their Spiritual Roots. The results were acceptable: Yuan Bao has no Spiritual Root, while Yuanzhu is Yellow Grade High Grade with 3.9 inches of spiritual light, only a hair's breadth away from Profound Grade Low Grade. Although it's a slight pity, it is already a fortunate event for our family.]

[The whole family has decided that Yuanzhu's future husband must marry into our Li Family; she will never be married off to another family.]

Reading to this point, a faint smile couldn't help but appear on Li Qinghe's lips; the warmth of the family seemed to penetrate through the paper.

The cigarette was about to burn out, and his gaze fell on the last paragraph, his expression becoming solemn.

[Fourth Brother, Black Mountain is in a remote location. Although the main force of the barbarian army is in the south, there's no guarantee that a branch or flanking force won't take a risk and attempt to cross the dangerous terrain of Black Mountain to bypass and attack our rear, cutting off our Foundation.]

[Therefore, of the eight hundred Qingxuan Guards, I am only taking five hundred. I am also only drawing half of the fifty Bloodline Cultivators. Tiezhu will accompany me to the southern border to provide support.]

[The family's Foundation, Father and Mother, the group of Juniors, and this fledgling Qingxuan New Town—I entrust them all to you! Under the desk in my study, there is a specially made Communication Jade Plate. If you encounter an extremely urgent situation, activate it immediately, and I will return with the army at any cost!]

[Your brother, Qingfeng, personally penned this]

The letter rustled softly between Li Qinghe's fingers. He sat in silence, taking one puff of smoke after another, his gaze cast toward the continuous silhouette of Black Mountain to the north.

The horizon there seemed a bit gloomier. The autumn wind blew, swirling a few withered leaves, carrying the chill of a coming mountain storm.

Inside the stone house beneath him, the subtle sounds of the youths' breathing as they worked to circulate their cycles and absorb Spiritual Qi could be faintly heard.

He stubbed out the cigarette, and the last trace of joy from breaking through his seclusion settled in his eyes, turning into a calm determination.

His figure flickered, and like a falling leaf, he silently glided down from the roof, heading toward Li Qingfeng's study with quick steps.

"Third Brother, go with peace of mind."

"The family has me."