"Exactly. The Old Ancestor need not worry. Senior Sun and Senior Mo have had a friendship with the Fu family spanning over a century. They will certainly arrive on schedule. Their current rise in status within the Demon Flame Sect is inseparable from our Fu family's strong support. Moreover, we've already married two of our clan's finest young women to them as concubines—how could they possibly not come!" Beside the white-faced middle-aged man stood a thin-browed elder in a brocade robe, who spoke with equal deference.
"It's not that I'm worried Senior Sun and Senior Mo won't come. It's that, for some reason, the closer we get to the birthday celebration, the more uneasy I feel—as though something momentous is about to happen. I truly am worried! Has our Fu family offended any powerful figures or larger sects recently?" The Fu family patriarch stroked his long beard, a cold glint flickering in his eyes. His earlier smile vanished without a trace.
Hearing these words, everyone in the hall exchanged uneasy glances.
After a long pause, the white-faced man finally replied cautiously: "Old Ancestor, as you well know! Over the years, our Fu family has grown prosperous and powerful, but we've also made countless enemies among other families and minor sects. The most hostile toward us are the Tan family and the Hu family. Could they be up to something?"
"It shouldn't be either of those two. They could once have competed with our Fu family, but they no longer have many high-level cultivators—they couldn't possibly stir up any real trouble." The Fu patriarch shook his head coldly, but after knitting his brow, he hesitated briefly and continued: "However, if those two families join forces—or ally with several other hostile minor sects—and launch a surprise attack at this opportunity, they could indeed deal a severe blow to our Fu family. After all, in order to curry favor with the Demon Flame Sect, our family killed quite a few cultivators from those two families who had advocated resisting the demonic path. Now the Tan and Hu families have been forced to abandon their bases and go into hiding. Their hatred for our Fu family runs bone-deep—this is not impossible." The Fu family patriarch's expression grew dark as storm clouds.
"Then what does the Old Ancestor propose?" the brocade-robed elder asked carefully.
"Appear relaxed on the outside, but tighten our guard within! Double the number of sentries at every post. The fortress protection formation must remain active around the clock—not a moment of downtime. Pay particular attention to any rogue cultivators of unknown identity; send extra people to watch them." In an instant, the Fu family patriarch tilted his head back and closed his eyes, yet his voice continued issuing a string of commands without the slightest hesitation.
"Yes, your grandson will see to it at once!" Having received his orders, the white-faced middle-aged man immediately left to make arrangements.
The other younger members of the Fu family who remained in the side hall could see that the patriarch was in a foul mood, and none of them dared so much as breathe loudly!
"Tianyun, go and fetch your Third Uncle. Have him put the Iron-Back Sacred Beast into the spirit beast pouch and accompany me to the birthday celebration. He's the only one who can command our Fu family's guardian sacred beast!" The patriarch suddenly spoke again.
"What? Didn't the Old Ancestor originally say that Third Uncle was at a critical stage of his cultivation and shouldn't be disturbed for this birthday celebration?" The brocade-robed elder blurted out in surprise.
"Hmph! Before was before, and now is now. We who walk the path of cultivation may not truly be able to seek fortune and avoid misfortune, or foresee the future without divination. But at times, the premonitions that arise in one's heart prove remarkably accurate. One must be cautious. I would rather be overly suspicious than have our Fu family face a true catastrophe." The old man let out a cold snort as he spoke.
"Yes, I'll go and bring Third Uncle out of seclusion at once." Seeing the patriarch on the verge of anger, the brocade-robed elder startled and hurried away with fawning assent.
The Fu family patriarch was not yet satisfied. Only after issuing several more commands in succession did he finally feel somewhat at ease.
In his mind, with so many contingency measures in place, they would be well prepared to handle whatever might come.
……
Three days later, on an open hillside outside the purple mists of Purple Dao Mountain, a sizable number of rogue cultivators had gathered—easily twenty or thirty of them.
They pointed at the purple mist and whispered among themselves, speculating about what lay within.
Han Li had also slipped into the crowd of cultivators, standing alone and quietly studying his surroundings—looking for all the world like an ordinary, reclusive rogue cultivator.
The fact that there were so many Foundation Establishment rogue cultivators in Yuanwu Country was somewhat beyond Han Li's expectations. Those who had come to wish the Fu family patriarch a happy birthday were surely only a small fraction of them.
Back in the day in the Yue Kingdom, outside of the Seven Sects, it was exceedingly rare for a rogue cultivator to reach Foundation Establishment. Yuanwu Country was somewhat larger than the Yue Kingdom, but it shouldn't have been all that different.
Now, after barely more than a century, this situation had come to pass, giving Han Li a profound sense of how much the world had changed. He quietly marveled at it.
What Han Li didn't know was that before the conflict between the righteous and demonic factions had erupted, the majority of Foundation Establishment Pills had been in the hands of various sects and families—making it naturally nearly impossible for rogue cultivators to achieve Foundation Establishment.
But once the upheaval of a century ago began, numerous sects and families were drawn into the conflict. Annihilations of entire clans, the severing of lineages and traditions—these events occurred with alarming frequency.
Thus, a massive number of Foundation Establishment Pills had found their way into circulation amid the chaos.