Follow the path of Dao from infancy

Hearing the war report, Li Tian Gang's furrowed brow remained unchanged as he simply nodded slightly.

Afterward, his gaze shifted toward the vast expanse of land beyond the black soil.

"These demons repeatedly harass us, testing our military strength in the eastern regions."

"With Fifth Brother holding down the western side, the demons have long since investigated and might attack from the north or the south..."

When he mentioned the south, his eyes narrowed.

In the south of Liangzhou lies Heavenly Gate Pass.

Thinking of that mountain pass, he pictured the stubborn, unyielding figure of the young man and those stubborn, cold eyes.

The wrinkles between his eyebrows deepened.

"Marshal, since the young master previously slew the Little Demon King in Dayue City, that Wanshan Old Demon King surely wouldn't let things rest easily."

Next to him, Li Fu expressed his concerns with a worried tone.

Looking at the wounded and maimed soldiers all around him, he thought of the young man at Heavenly Gate Pass, knowing full well how harsh the borderland winds and snows could be.

Li Tian Gang remained expressionless, saying, "That Little Demon King was exceptionally talented, and the Wanshan Old Demon King will not let this go. He might collude with other demons to invade our territory."

"Then..." Li Fu couldn't help but glance at him.

Li Tian Gang calmly said, "Hao Er has a Four Stands Realm martial artist secretly protecting him, an old friend of my second uncle, and there's also the Qilin from Tan Palace Academy. He should be safe."

"As I lead the troops to Liangzhou this time, all matters in the mansion are temporarily handed over to my sister-in-law to manage. With no one to watch over my second uncle, and no one able to restrain him, he's likely to be impatient and head for Heavenly Gate Pass."

"With them there, even if the Wanshan Old Demon King summons the other two Demon Kings outside Heavenly Gate Pass to attack, they should be capable of defending themselves. It will also provide an opportunity to sweep clean the Demon Kings outside the pass, leaving it to the Monster Suppression Department to gnaw at their remains. There will be no need to abandon Heavenly Gate Pass then."

The previously determined abandonment of Heavenly Gate Pass was a reluctant measure.

If it can be held, that is naturally for the best.

After all, this is a place founded by the former emperor and the ancestors of the Li Family, soaked with the blood of countless forbearers and soldiers.

Li Fu was momentarily stunned—if that were the case, wouldn't it mean they are using Li Hao to lure the Demon Kings outside the pass?

"Wouldn't the young master be in too much danger if he gets involved in a Four Stands Realm battle?" Li Fu couldn't help but express his concern.

"If he doesn't want to get involved, he should simply retreat obediently," Li Tian Gang said coldly. "If he lowers his head, the Divine General Mansion is always there for him to return to."

Li Tian Gang said in a cold voice, "The letter I sent him before was an opportunity for him to step down. He's too high-spirited and proud to admit any wrongdoing, not even sending a reply back!"

"Since that's the case, let those Demon Kings discipline him. Let him understand what cruelty is, what despair is. Once he has seen life and death, he will realize how ridiculous his defiance is!"

"But the young master is still young, and it's normal for him to have youthful impetuosity. Might this approach be too..."

"No need to say more."

Li Tian Gang cut him off with a wave of his hand, saying, "This is the Eastern Territory. Liangzhou could erupt into danger at any time. From the previous investigations, a figure from Longmen has appeared, and the Holy Palace from Northern Yan—an old comrade—intends to relocate, treating Liangzhou as a gap. This could be a fierce battle on a par with Northern Yan. Don't get distracted!"

Li Fu opened his mouth slightly, let out a bitter laugh, and said no more.

At that moment, a sparrow dived down, plunging from the clouds like an arrow.

Li Tian Gang looked up and raised his hand, the swiftly diving sparrow halted rapidly, perching on his forearm.

The sparrow puffed up its chest and spat out a scroll from its beak.

"It's the madame's skylark."

Li Fu recognized the little Bird Demon that served as a war message courier, specially bred by the Divine General Mansion.

Li Tian Gang took the scroll, unfolded it, and glanced at it, his expression changing ever so slightly.

"Marshal, could it be that Qingzhou is in trouble?" Li Fu couldn't help but ask.

Li Tian Gang's expression darkened, his fingers pinched the scroll, and it turned to ashes.

"The second favor..."

The fingers that had crushed the scroll clenched slightly into a fist.

He remembered when he was in Northern Yan, hearing about Li Hao's inability to cultivate, he had charged out of the military formation alone, slain an Immortal Great Demon, and transported its treasured blood back.

Now, the young man had sent the Nine Cauldrons Demon King's Treasured Blood, repaying that favor from the past.

Does that settle their debts?

An array of emotions, a mix of discomfort and anger, surged in Li Tian Gang's heart.

He could even visualize the young man's cold eyes when he returned the Demon King's treasured blood.

Moreover, the scroll mentioned that there were not three but four Demon Kings attacking Heavenly Gate Pass. Fortunately, with the help of Tianji Tower and the arrival of his second uncle to reinforce, the Demon Kings were driven away.

Four Demon Kings—it was such a formation that, even though Li Tian Gang was not in Heavenly Gate Pass, he could sense the dangers there.

Towards Tianji Tower and his second uncle who had gone to help, he felt expectantly relieved and yet harbored indescribable complex emotions.

He suddenly realized, with the young man's fame spreading far and wide, even without the connections of the Li Family, many would value him.

Trying to force him back by sheer strength would meet many obstacles.

And these people would all become the source of encouragement for the child's stubbornness and pride.

"So, is he planning to defend Heavenly Gate Pass for three years, and then cut ties?"

Li Tian Gang muttered to himself, a chill appearing in his eyes. He took a deep breath, calming his emotions, and refocused on the battlefield in Liangzhou.

He understood that with the child's stubbornness, he was certainly determined to see his path through to the end.

The great battle in Qingzhou had made the Li Family notorious throughout the land, but it was a name met with mockery.

After all, a father-son battle, though most people harshly criticized Li Hao, calling him unfilial, at the end of the day it was still about the Li Family.

He would not let such a scandal happen again.

Once the battle situation in Liangzhou was over, or once the situation in the Eastern Territory had stabilized, Li Tian Gang planned to personally go to Heavenly Gate Pass and drag the other party back!

That so-called agreement, he had never taken seriously to begin with, tearing it up wouldn't matter.

He would not let Li Hao exit the Li Family so easily.

...

...

Outside the long wall of black stone, in a swamp a thousand miles away.

The swamp stretched for hundreds of miles, with mud churning within, and occasionally burst bubbles of mud would appear.

Waves of foul stench emanated from the swamp, and suddenly, a stirring of mud in one area extended a huge figure, which turned out to be a Jiao dragon.

Its body meandering, coiling in the swamp, covered in scales smeared with mud, its emerald-green eyes seemed to hold a strong poison.

"Have you found them out? That Li Tian Gang is indeed stationed in the Eastern Territory."

"To the west is that Li Family's Fifth Brother, and to the East is Li Tian Gang. In Cangzhou, the trace of the Li Family's Eighth has already been revealed."

"Those two old fellows from the Li Family still need to sit tight in Qingzhou."

Several figures appeared above the murky swamp, draped in black robes, but the edges of the robes revealed the clothing inside, which was a dark gold color, the height of luxury.

"Right now, our people haven't started shifting towards Liangzhou yet, but the mere rumors have already startled the Li Family like a spooked bird."

One of the figures in black robes let out a strange laugh, occasionally sticking out a forked tongue to lick his own cheek and nose while speaking.

Another figure in black robes, upon seeing this subconscious gesture, furrowed his brow in displeasure, saying:

"Can you refrain from that disgusting habit? We are aiming for the tribulation to transform into dragons, striving to shed our Jiao form. You still keeping that serpentine nature is truly nauseating."

"That's you all. I have no plans to become a dragon. I will become a great snake!"

The aforementioned figure said with a sinister laugh.

In fact, he had truncated some of his thoughts, which was not only to become a great snake but also to become a snake that devoured dragons!

"Hmph!"

Upon hearing these words, several others snorted coldly, showing their dissatisfaction.

"Did you come here just to quarrel? Speak plainly. I still need to go back for some more sleep," said the Mud Jiao lazily in the swamp.

"The Elders said to have you occasionally gather some little ones to attack the Eastern Territory, tying down Li Tian Gang and keeping him there. Before long, the Holy Palace will come to take over this place."

"The Holy Palace and this Li Tian Gang are old foes, having fought from Northern Yan to here. They swore to flay and eat Li Tian Gang alive, and this time without the aid of the Saber Saint from Northern Yan or the favors from the Great Desert Sword Saint, let's see what Li Tian Gang can do to block!"

"The lands of Liangzhou are desolate, without producing any prominent heroes. Even if there were any, they are either dead or have long since vanished."

"Hmph, if it wasn't for the fact that I couldn't beat him, I would even want to go find trouble with this Li Tian Gang."

"Let's forget about it. This young rascal, Li Tian Gang, although not one of Li Family's older generation, is also at the peak of Three Immortals. I heard that in Northern Yan, he even slew over a dozen Immortal Great Demons, extremely terrifying!"

"Luckily, that ninth of the Li Family died in battle in Cangzhou, otherwise our Demon Race would have one more formidable enemy!"

"Enough idle talk, we still have to go up North to check things out."

"The North? That area borders Youzhou, defended by the Xia Family; it's somewhat tricky, and cannot be penetrated through that flank."

"Originally, breaking through from the South would have been best, but it turns out that Li Tian Gang's son is over there, guarded by Four Stands Realm protectors, forcing a change of route."

The figures in black robes chatted amongst themselves and waved to the Mud Jiao in the swamp, then flew off towards the North.

"That Xia Family, I've heard they're not on the best terms with the Li Family. Let's first go test the waters, see if the Xia Family will cross the border to help when we invade the North," said one of the figures in black robes.

...

...

Heavenly Gate Pass, Cangya City.

With the assistance of many Martial Artists, Cangya City was now nearly perfected.

An elder from the Heavenly Observatory, a Star Bureau Official, along with his few students, was busy setting up Arrays, working till they were covered in sweat.

Xia Xiang Lan wasn't as lively and playful as before, remaining quiet by her master's side, diligently assisting and simultaneously observing and learning earnestly.

Occasionally, when she looked up, her gaze would fall upon the location within the city, but all she could see was the silhouette of the walled courtyard.

Li Hao had written his modified and integrated Soul Refining Skill for Ren Qianqian, a method that could cultivate to a level close to that of the Imperial Family.

The Soul Refining Skill he practiced combined multiple methods, enabling him to surpass the Imperial Family's version.

While Ren Qianqian practiced in the camp, Li Hao grabbed the Dragon Soar Sword, tossed the Little White Fox onto the cool mat in the yard, and then left the mountain pass alone.

The three Demon Kings had fled, and he didn't know if he would still encounter them in their lair.

Li Hao urgently needed a Demon King to practice his skills on.