Chapter 103: Chapter 89 Swordsmanship in the Mortal World
The family banquet was set up in the Mountain and River Courtyard.
Ladies of the various courtyards arrived in succession to offer congratulations to Li Tian Gang.
Outside the courtyard, there were also many other concubines and illegitimate children who had hurried over, clinging to the outside of the yard walls. They gazed eagerly inside, wanting to see what the youth with talents surpassing any in the history of the Li Family, actually looked like and whether he was as extraordinary as they imagined.
Li Hao’s name had thoroughly spread throughout the Li residence; the house servants and maids from all the courtyards, including the cooks in the various kitchens, were all discussing the incredible and powerful Young Master Li while chopping wood and cooking meals.
Hibernating in obscurity for fourteen years, he stirred the heavens and earth in a single day.
The news spread not only within the walls of the Li residence but also beyond its prestigious boundaries, flying over the eaves of thousands of households and drifting into the dark departments of intelligence of the major forces stationed in Qingzhou City.
Subsequently, like threads on a spider’s web, this intelligence was swiftly and secretly transmitted everywhere.
Forces far and wide, all those with their eyes on the land of Qingzhou, received this news and were shaken to their core.
The true dragon of the Li Family that had fallen fourteen years ago.
Now, after fourteen years, it seemed to have resurrected itself with even greater strength and a new posture!
And during this rapid spread of reputation, at the moment of family celebration within the courtyard, Li Hao, guided by Zhao, arrived before a quiet room deep in the inner courtyard.
He pushed open the door to see the neatly arranged paintings inside.
His spiritual thought swept over them, and Li Hao counted them; none were missing.
“Young Master, don’t be angry with the master anymore. Yu Xuan has followed the master for many years, sharing life and death on the battlefield. Plus, being an orphan, the master wants to protect him. It’s not that he really wants to get angry at you,” Zhao said in a low voice, sighing behind Li Hao.
An orphan, huh… Li Hao murmured to himself.
Even though he had parents, wasn’t he also like an orphan?
He sighed deeply in his heart, telling himself not to overthink it.
After all, he was the man who had been awaited for fourteen years, after all, he was the father in this life.
He wasn’t accepting it.
It was more like giving up.
“Young Master, now that you have revealed your cultivation level, everyone in the world will know your name, and nobody will ever underestimate or belittle you again,” Zhao said, trying to lighten the mood, thinking of Li Hao’s cultivation level, his own face couldn’t help showing a hint of excitement and flush.
Li Hao smiled and said, “When I was born, didn’t the whole world already know my name?”
Zhao was momentarily stunned, but then he thought about it and realized that it was true. Li Hao was the true dragon of the Li Family who had fallen, and Emperor Yu personally named him, announcing it to the world with an Imperial Edict.
“But after all, so many years have passed…” Zhao said with a sheepish smile, let alone that he was just a baby at that time—who would care? The world’s attention had all been focused on that peerless and outstanding ninth son of the Li Family at the time.
“That’s why I say, everything will pass,” Li Hao replied.
“In these long, endless years of heaven and earth, even a saint is nothing but a speck of dust within this expanse of time,” he continued.
Li Hao turned and walked out of the room, looking at the empty courtyard, where the starlight and moonbeams fell from the sky, in stark contrast to the bright lights of the front courtyard:
“Let’s go, let’s join the festivities too,” he said.
“Yes, Young Master,” replied Zhao with a sign of relief. After all, he had come to persuade Li Hao to attend the family banquet.
…
At the family banquet, with the arrival of Li Hao, the atmosphere became even more lively.
Li Wushuang and her siblings, along with the children of Lady Eight including Li Jiangying and Li Rumeng representing the third generation of the direct lineage, sat at one table.
The children of the other ladies had mostly not returned.
Their gazes immediately converged on Li Hao, with various expressions.
“Hao is amazing!”
The most excited was Li Yuanzhao, who had learned of Li Hao’s strength in Cangyu City and had been looking forward to this moment. Seeing the shocked faces of the others, he felt like he was eating ice in the heat of summer—thrilled to the core.
His eyes glanced triumphantly at Li Yun sitting next to him, showing a hint of smugness.
However, Li Yun and his sibling Li Zhining were too preoccupied to pay attention to Li Yuanzhao at the same table. Their gaze was extremely complex, reminiscent of how similar this scene was to the recent return of their elder sister, who was also the center of attention, only today’s event was even more lively and stirring.
“Hmph, it’s just the Fifteen Li Realm. What’s so great about that? It’s only when you step into the realm of a Grandmaster that you really have something to brag about,” Li Rumeng suddenly snorted from another corner of the banquet.
Li Yuanzhao was taken aback, not having expected to hear such discordant commentary. He turned his head and saw that it was the treasures of Lady Eight.
Since he was little, when he would go to pay his respects to the first lady, he had seen this pair of siblings, but they had never been very familiar.
Because after paying their respects, they would not speak more than a few words to him or to people like Li Yun, carrying themselves with extreme pride.
They usually kept to themselves, not coming out to play with them, and even at the practice field, they wouldn’t chat much, keeping a distance as if treating them as if they were illegitimate children.
This sibling pair did everything together—eating, practicing martial arts, almost forming a small world of their own, never interacting with outsiders.
And Lady Eight extremely doted on these children, indulging them greatly. Yuanzhao had seen as a child in the practice field, during a sparring session, an illegitimate child accidentally injured Li Jiangying.
It was only a small cut, and with the Li Family’s precious medicines, a bit of medicinal powder would have healed it by the next day.
However, Lady Eight rushed to the practice field, ordered the illegitimate child to be dragged out, and had his arm broken on the spot.
It was said that the illegitimate child had a decent talent, but the incident left him psychologically scarred, causing him to leave the practice field soon after.
His mother even wept and pleaded in Lady Eight’s courtyard for forgiveness.
This incident caused quite a stir at the time, providing a spectacle for these youngsters. Reportedly, it was only after the intervention of the first lady that the matter was settled.
Lady Eight was from a distinguished family background, surnamed Wang.
Having married into the family from afar, her temperament and character were considered among the ladies not to be trifled with.