Chapter 26: Taking Action

"What is the meaning of this?" Li Shilian asked with a dark expression, while simultaneously sending a voice transmission to stop Li Shiting, who was about to step out.

"Attack!" Ignoring Li Shilian entirely, the three individuals decisively unleashed their spells, attempting to slay both Li Shilian and Li Zhirui on the spot.

"You take control of the spirit boat!" Li Shilian handed control over to Li Zhirui, facing the three Foundation Establishment cultivators alone.

Li Shilian's strength was not lacking, but facing three Foundation Establishment cultivators was somewhat overwhelming. Before long, he fell into a disadvantage, appearing somewhat disheveled.

At first, Li Zhirui did not understand why Li Shilian wouldn't call Li Shiting out, or even summon a spirit beast, choosing instead to fight the three men head-on by himself.

However, Li Zhirui soon guessed his purpose: Li Shilian intended to set a trap, using Li Shiting as a surprise force to find an opportunity to counter-kill the three.

But under the combined assault of his opponents, Li Shilian was momentarily stretched thin, having to exert his full strength just to ensure he remained uninjured.

This disheveled appearance also numbed the three attackers, making them feel they could easily take down Li Shilian.

"Vajra! Colossal Stone Torrent!"

Just as the three were pressing forward, focused solely on their attacks, Li Shilian suddenly let out a roar. The spirit beast pouch at his waist snapped open, and a massive ape flew out. Immediately, a vast amount of giant stones condensed in the air, forming a yellow torrent in the blink of an eye that roared toward the three men.

The spirit beast Li Shilian had contracted was a second-tier Stone Ape. It possessed immense strength and thick skin, and was skilled in earth-based spells, making it a standout among the second-tier spirit beasts raised by the Li family.

Under Li Shilian's meticulous cultivation, this Stone Ape's cultivation had also reached the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.

As the Vajra appeared, Li Shiting, who had been hiding in the cabin, also made her move.

A streak of green light shot out, bypassing the three men in a single breath, moving so fast that they could not even react.

The Green-Scaled Serpent, a second-tier spirit beast raised by Li Shiting, could fly through the air with speed comparable to lightning, and possessed a potent venom capable of dissolving spiritual power.

"Not good!"

The hearts of the three sank upon seeing Li Shiting appear. Even more terrifying was the fact that their opponents each had a Foundation Establishment spirit beast. The situation reversed instantly, leaving them in the weaker position.

Due to Li Shiting's sudden appearance and their own panic, the three failed to notice a small wound appearing on their bodies.

"Escape!"

In truth, no reminder was necessary; the moment this Foundation Establishment cultivator appeared, they knew the ambush had failed. Now, it depended on whether they possessed any means of escape.

"Thinking of fleeing?" Li Shilian gave a cold laugh. "Too late!"

Before his voice had even faded, he released a hand seal he had long prepared. The stone torrent condensed by the Stone Ape instantly changed shape, transforming into an airtight stone prison that trapped the three men firmly inside!

"Vajra, Stone Spears!" At Li Shilian's command, numerous hard and sharp stone spears suddenly sprouted from within the stone prison, forcing the three to focus entirely on defense.

As the three rapidly circulated their spiritual power, they also inadvertently activated the venom of the Green-Scaled Serpent. Before they could deal with the stone spears, they discovered in horror that their internal spiritual power had already dwindled to almost nothing!

"What is happening?" a cultivator from the Zheng family cried out in panic.

They had originally thought they could easily take down Li Shilian, but who could have imagined that in just half an hour, the situation would reverse, leaving them like fish on a chopping block.

Seeing this, Li Shilian knew the Green-Scaled Serpent's venom had already penetrated their bodies and they no longer had the strength to resist, so he moved to dispel the stone prison.

Li Shiting, who had remained idle, suddenly cast a spell. Several vines sprouted from thin air, binding the three men tightly before she reached out to pull them onto the spirit boat.

Li Shilian steered the spirit boat away at high speed, but he did not return to the family estate. Instead, he found a deserted island to moor the boat. Rather than interrogating the three cultivators immediately, he asked Li Zhirui for his thoughts on this battle.

"The coordination between you, Aunt Ting, and your spirit beasts was truly seamless!" This was Li Zhirui's deepest impression.

"That is one point," Li Shilian nodded, offering guidance. "As a family cultivator, you do not need to display individual prowess like a rogue cultivator. You must learn to cooperate with your clansmen to achieve the best results with the least amount of spiritual power!"

"Furthermore, why were Shiting and I so cautious? It was to prevent the opponents from causing us harm when they were driven into a corner."

Seeing that Li Zhirui had taken his words to heart, Li Shilian nodded inwardly. He turned to the three men, used his spiritual energy to form a massive hand, and tore away the black cloths covering their faces.

"Shiting, have you seen them before?" Li Shilian frowned slightly; he felt these three looked somewhat familiar.

Seeing Li Shiting shake her head, Li Shilian stopped asking. He directly took the storage bags from their waists and forcibly broke their divine sense to see if he could find anything identifying them.

"The Zheng family?" A flash of ferocity crossed Li Shilian's eyes. "You are cultivators from the Zheng family of Red杉 Island?!"

Li Zhirui was inwardly startled. Why would the Zheng family suddenly attack the Li family? Were those two also from the Zheng family?

"Are you two also from the Zheng family?" As soon as the words left his mouth, Li Shilian shook his head in negation. The Zheng family only had three Foundation Establishment cultivators in total; they couldn't possibly have sent them all at once.

Otherwise, if an accident were to occur, the Zheng family would likely face destruction in the vast ocean without a Foundation Establishment cultivator to guard them.

Li Shilian and Li Shiting worked together to open the remaining two storage bags. Upon seeing the markings of two other families, Li Shilian's face darkened like a storm cloud.

"The He family! The Zhang family!" Li Shilian lifted one of them with his spiritual power and demanded, "Why have your three families joined forces?"

If these three families had acted alone against the Li family, Li Shilian would not have been so tense, as their strength was inferior to the Li family's. But if the three families had formed an alliance, the Li family's situation had become extremely dire!

"Heh!" Seeing Li Shilian's grim expression, the man's mood suddenly improved, and he said fearlessly, "Why don't you guess?"

*Slap—*

The massive hand of spiritual energy slapped him directly, and Li Shilian threw him to the ground like a piece of trash.

"You two go to the market. I will return to Big Banyan Island to inform the Clan Leader of this matter." Li Shilian did not wish to conduct the interrogation in front of Li Zhirui, and since the matter was of great importance, he had to inform Li Qing as soon as possible.

Li Shiting nodded and said, "Alright, I will tell Shiren about this."

Li Zhirui, who had been relegated to the background, suddenly spoke up: "You saw that the Li family's business was flourishing and felt threatened, so you joined forces to set an ambush, didn't you?"

The expression of one of the men changed slightly; he had not expected a mere Qi Refining cultivator to strike at the heart of the matter with a single sentence.

"As I thought!" Seeing the opponent's reaction, Li Zhirui knew his guess was correct.

Ever since the news of the Yunshang Pavilion's booming business reached Big Banyan Island, Li Zhirui had worried that someone might become envious and target the Li family in secret.

However, this had only been Li Zhirui's speculation and concern, and it was difficult to tell the family directly, mainly because even Li Zhirui himself had felt it was unlikely.

He had mentioned it a few times while chatting with Li Shile, but the latter also felt that Li Zhirui was overthinking it; after all, before the Li family, there were plenty of other highly successful shops in the market.