Bai Xiaochun had already received the approval of the demigod patriarch, and was now just like the other devas, a prime elder of the sect. A single remark from him completely foiled Chen Hetian’s plan, a fact that Li Xiandao refused to believe the demigod patriarch didn’t realize. The fact that the patriarch had still not intervened went to show what was really going on.
“Well,” Li Xiandao thought, “this is probably the best opportunity to work things out with Bai Xiaochun.” He quickly performed an incantation gesture, causing a screen of light to spring out, covering the both of them and giving them a certain level of privacy. Then he patted his bag of holding to produce a jade pendant.
The surface of the pendant was carved with three dragons and six phoenixes, and possessed a remarkable aura. The dragons and phoenixes almost seemed alive, and caused a swirling mist to spring up in the area.
A single glance at the pendant would reveal that it was an extraordinary item. Furthermore, it seemed to pulse with the will of the heavens. It was obviously…. a devlevel magical item!
“Fellow Daoist Bai, is this your jade pendant? I happened to pick it up earlier, and just realized that, based on the fluctuations, it must belong to you.” Smiling, he waved his hand, sending the jade pendant flying over to Bai Xiaochun in a beam of bright light.
Although none of the lower-level cultivators could see what was happening, Bai Zhentian and Chen Hetian were able to observe easily. Bai Zhentian seemed slightly confused about it, but not Chen Hetian, whose eyes went wide.
Never could he have imagined that Li Xiandao would use this method to try to work things out with Bai Xiaochun. It actually caused his heart to sink even further.
“How could this Li Xiandao ignore propriety so brazenly!? I can’t believe he would do something so shameless!” As far as Chen Hetian was concerned, Li Xiandao was showing how much of a complete rogue he was!
Bai Xiaochun seemed surprised as he reached out to grab the pendant. Then he looked back suspiciously at Li Xiandao for a moment, before his eyes glittered.
“This old man isn’t that bad after all!” he thought. Giving gifts to resolve a situation was oftentimes a good method, but could easily come across as insincere. Thankfully, Li Xiandao had worded things perfectly, making the situation much more palatable.
Bai Xiaochun was starting to calm down quite a bit, and actually resolved to use this method himself in the future. Clearing his throat, he tossed the jade pendant into his bag of holding.
“Eee? What do you know, this is my jade pendant! I knew I dropped it somewhere. It turns out you found it, Fellow Daoist Li!” Laughing heartily, he decided to see if he could push the envelope a bit. “You know what, Fellow Daoist Li? I happen to remember that, back when I lost that jade pendant, I also happened to lose a flying sword. A really expensive flying sword.”
When Li Xiandao heard this, his expression turned a bit stiff. However, he patted his bag of holding to produce a small blue sword that sent intense frigid qi out in all directions. As it hovered there in midair, it began to turn translucent, as if it might disappear at any moment.
Feeling very pleased, Bai Xiaochun quickly said, “Hahaha! That sword is a family heirloom! Many thanks, Fellow Daoist Li!” He made a grasping motion, causing the sword to fly over to him. After fondling it admiringly for a moment, he put it into his bag of holding.
“Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Bai,” Li Xiandao said, chuckling. “At long last, your belongings have been returned to you. By the way, the elder who snatched your friends did it without permission, and had help from someone else from the junior generation. Don't worry, I’ll definitely provide compensation to make up for their mistake!” As far as Li Xiandao was concerned, material things, and even the two culprits, were not worth anything when compared to resolving the grievance with Bai Xiaochun.
By now, Bai Xiaochun realized that he couldn’t continue to cause problems. In fact, he was just about to say something more when his expression flickered. Then, he and Li Xiandao both looked down at the Li Clan ancestral mansion below.
There, Big Fatty Zhang and Xu Baocai had just stepped out into the open. Their faces both shone with healthy glows, and they wore sumptuous garments. Not a single wound or injury could be seen on either of them. They were escorted by a throng of Li Clan cultivators, who treated them with the utmost respect.
However, both of them had blank expressions on their faces, as if they had been caught completely unprepared by what was happening. Clearly, the Li Clan had scrambled to make all of this happen.
When Bai Xiaochun saw that Big Fatty Zhang and Xu Baocai were both in good condition, he breathed a sigh of relief. Smiling, he looked over at them, waved his hand, and called out a greeting.
Big Fatty Zhang looked back at him in shock, seemingly unwilling to believe his own eyes. As for Xu Baocai, when he caught sight of Bai Xiaochun, he gasped, and his eyes went wide in disbelief.
“Xiaochun!!”
“You’re not dead!!”
Bai Xiaochun cleared his throat, flicked his sleeve, and loudly said, “How could there possibly be anything in this heaven and earth that could lead Bai Xiaochun into death!?”
A strange expression appeared on Li Xiandao’s face. However, Xu Baocai and Big Fatty Zhang were used to Bai Xiaochun saying things like this. Therefore, it was at this point that the joy of being reunited with their old friend overtook their faces.
“You’re finally back, Xiaochun!!” Big Fatty Zhang rushed forward and embraced Bai Xiaochun. He had gained weight recently, and although he didn’t quite look like a mountain of flesh, he was still not thin by any means. In fact, his fat quivered with excitement as he hugged Bai Xiaochun.
When Xu Baocai recovered his composure, he hurried forward and instinctively began to offer some flattery.
“Junior Patriarch, you are definitely the most ultimate of chosen. Unmatched and unparalleled in the world! There is absolutely, positively nothing in this heaven and earth that could possibly lead Sect Uncle Bai into death. What’s so amazing about the Wildlands anyway?!”
When Bai Xiaochun heard the excitement in Big Fatty Zhang’s voice, and the flattery of Xu Baocai, warm happiness rose up inside of him. Back when he was out in the Wildlands, he had worried constantly about his friends Big Fatty Zhang and Xu Baocai, who he had left behind in the Starry Sky Dao Polarity Sect.
Clearing his throat, Li Xiandao interrupted Bai Xiaochun’s reunion to warmly say, “Your friends are back, Bai, old pal. Don’t worry, I’ll definitely provide you with handsome compensation for all of this!”
Big Fatty Zhang and Xu Baocai were both taken aback by what Li Xiandao had just said. After all, despite the many years they had spent in the Starry Sky Dao Polarity Sect, they hadn’t had many dealings with devas, and thus didn’t immediately recognize Li Xiandao.
However, they could tell that he was someone important. Otherwise, why would they have been escorted like royalty out of the Li Clan? Not only had they been given urgent treatment of their injuries, they had been treated with utmost respect. In fact, they had also been showered with gifts, along with pleas not to take their imprisonment to heart.
Neither of them could ever have imagined that they would be given so many gifts. However, when they realized that it was because Bai Xiaochun had used some unknown means to secure the help of someone extremely important in the sect, they were deeply shaken.
Bai Xiaochun glanced at Li Xiandao, then looked back at Big Fatty Zhang and Xu Baocai. Thumping his chest, he said, “Eldest Brother, Brother Baocai, what do you two think? You must have had it pretty bad off recently. If there’re any points of discontent you have, or anything in particular that you want, just say the word.”
Li Xiandao smiled wryly, but didn't say anything. Instead, he looked expectantly at Big Fatty Zhang and Xu Baocai.
All the other Li Clan cultivators also looked over nervously at Big Fatty Zhang and Xu Baocai, pleading looks in their eyes.
The two of them blinked awkwardly, and exchanged glances, simultaneously rubbing their bags of holding. After all, they already had been given copious amounts of treasure.
Then they thought back to their imprisonment. Although it had been somewhat humiliating, they hadn’t been in any mortal danger. It had only lasted for about a year, and in exchange, they had been given nearly a hundred years’ worth of cultivation resources.
With such thoughts on their minds, they looked back at Bai Xiaochun and shook their heads. Bai Xiaochun wasn’t inclined to let things go so easily, especially considering the weak position Li Xiandao was in. However, it didn't seem appropriate to push the matter. Nodding, he clasped hands to Li Xiandao, and then took Big Fatty Zhang and Xu Baocai with him as he left.
Afterward, the Li Clan cultivators finally breathed sighs of relief. At the same time, Li Xiandao’s expression turned very grim and cold.
“Bring Li Yuansheng and that elder over here immediately!” The rumbling thunder of his voice struck fear into the hearts of everyone in the clan. Obviously, the time had come to settle accounts. Furthermore, it wouldn’t just be Li Yuansheng who was punished for what had occurred, it would be his entire bloodline.
Considering how angry the patriarch was, no one dared to try to beg for mercy. Besides, nobody wanted to incur the further wrath of the most glorious figure in the sect right now, the deva patriarch, Bai Xiaochun!
After all, not even their own Li Clan patriarch had been able to stand up to him!