In the Li family meeting room in Guangnan City, the atmosphere was somber.
"Patriarch, the news that the Old Ancestor failed to break through to the Combined Realm has spread. What should we do?" a middle-aged man asked the man seated at the head of the table, his expression heavy.
"I told you before that finding outside martial doctors was unreliable. Those martial doctors might be connected to other first-rate forces and leak the Old Master's condition. And now it's happened."
"We already found them, so what's done is done? If we hadn't, the Old Master definitely wouldn't have survived. The end result would be the same!"
"But now that we have, the Old Master's condition cannot be treated."
"..."
The people in the meeting room bickered amongst themselves, the atmosphere best described as bleak.
"Alright, I've called everyone here not to complain, but to brainstorm how to overcome this difficult time!" the middle-aged man at the head of the table said sternly.
"The best solution is to heal the Old Master's injuries, but the injuries he sustained are Dao injuries. Even top physicians can only delay them, not cure them. Alas, otherwise, so many who failed to break through to the Combined Realm wouldn't have perished after suffering such severe Dao injuries!"
"If the Old Master cannot be healed, this matter will be troublesome. We completely offended the Wang family back then!"
"Patriarch, in my opinion, why don't we let thirteenth sister marry Wang Hantian as a concubine? Wang Hantian is less than fifty years old and has already broken through to the Nascent Soul Realm and become the head of the Wang family. With his talent, he might break through to the Void Refining Realm before he's a hundred. If we do this, I believe the Li family might be able to let go of the past grievances." someone tentatively suggested.
Everyone's gaze then turned to the middle-aged man seated at the head of the table.
Upon hearing this, the middle-aged man's expression darkened.
This middle-aged man was Li Xiuzhu's elder brother, twenty years her senior. Although he was somewhat displeased with his sister's actions back then, he couldn't bring himself to marry his sister off to the current head of the Wang family as a concubine.
If they did, what face would the Li family have left?
It was known that their lineage had always been the direct line of the Li family.
The incident of Li Xiuzhu escaping her marriage had indeed been a problem for the Li family, but it had already happened and couldn't be changed. The Wang family had been furious when they found out, but they had offered a choice: let Li Xiuzhu be a concubine, and the matter could be dropped.
However, Li Xiuzhu was from the direct lineage of the Li family and was the most talented among the younger generation. How could she be a concubine to someone from the Wang family?
Li Xiuzhu had been confined to her home all these years, and she wasn't entirely without freedom, just unable to leave the Li family. Even without any trials and tribulations, her cultivation had progressed steadily, and she had already reached the peak of the Nascent Soul Realm!
This demonstrated her extraordinary talent!
The Li family had given Li Xiuzhu a condition: if she could reach the Nascent Soul Realm before the age of fifty, she would be granted her freedom. But before she could break through to the Nascent Soul Realm, the Li family's Old Ancestor failed in his attempt to break through to the Combined Realm and suffered a backlash!
The Li family's Old Ancestor was the Li family's foremost expert!
A peak Void Refining Realm cultivator, he was now severely injured by the backlash and had little time left!
A Nascent Soul Realm cultivator lived for a thousand years, a Spirit Profound Realm cultivator for three thousand years, and a Void Refining Realm cultivator for five thousand years. If he hadn't suffered the backlash, the Li family's Old Ancestor would have had one or two thousand years of lifespan left. But with this backlash, it would be good if he could last ten to eight years, and it was even possible he wouldn't last much longer!
"Let's hear other suggestions besides this one!" Li Lei Qiang said sternly.
Knowing that the Patriarch would not agree, the others showed looks of disappointment.
"Lei Qiang, although this suggestion isn't ideal and would cause the Li family to lose face, it's not necessarily a bad approach! The Old Ancestor has lost his peak combat power after this failed breakthrough, and we won't be able to contend with the Wang family later." At this moment, an elder spoke up.
The speaker was one of the Li family's Void Refining Realm cultivators!
A hundred years ago, the Li family had eleven Void Refining Realm cultivators at its peak. But now, the Li family had only seven. Two had died of old age after reaching the end of their lifespans, and two had been killed while seeking opportunities to break through. None had been added!
The Wang family had one less Void Refining Realm cultivator than the Li family at its peak, with only ten. Over the years, two of the Li family's Void Refining Realm cultivators had died of old age, but the Wang family had produced one more Void Refining Realm cultivator, bringing their total to nine.
With this shift, the Wang family now had two more Void Refining Realm cultivators than the Li family.
Having two more Void Refining Realm cultivators didn't represent a significant overall strength gap.
Hearing the clan elder's words, Li Lei Qiang couldn't help but frown.
This was because the elder was his third uncle and one of the seven Void Refining Realm cultivators in the family. With the Old Ancestor on the brink of death after his failed attempt to break through to the Combined Realm, his suggestion, as one of the six remaining Void Refining Realm cultivators, carried significant weight.
"Li Huang, please state your opinion as well." the elder looked at another man who appeared to be middle-aged.
Li Huang was the most recent Li family member to break through to the Void Refining Realm. He was also the previous patriarch of the Li family and the father of both Li Lei Qiang and Li Xiuzhu!
"What if the Wang family doesn't accept?" Li Huang said in a deep voice.
Li Lei Qiang's expression soured at this. He hadn't expected his own father to agree.
"We can try. The conflict between us and the Wang family was very tense because of Xiuzhu's incident, and there have been many frictions over the years. Now, the Old Ancestor's condition is dire. If we don't try, once the Old Ancestor is gone, the Wang family will likely become even more unrestrained!" another Void Refining Realm cultivator spoke up.
"I fear they might pretend to agree and then attack our family when we are unprepared!"
"..."
The crowd began to argue again, as even doing this wouldn't necessarily mend the rift with the Wang family.
"I don't think this is necessary. Firstly, the Old Ancestor is still alive. Even if he cannot be cured, the Wang family might not dare to attack us! After all, with our family's backing, we don't fear the Wang family!" Li Lei Qiang interjected. "Besides, you all need to consider whether my sister, Xiuzhu, would commit suicide if we force her to do this!"
He naturally didn't want his sister to marry into the Wang family as a concubine. He understood his sister well, and if forced, she would either submit or take her own life, with the latter being more likely.
She had always been a stubborn person since childhood.
Hearing Li Lei Qiang's words, everyone's expression shifted slightly. They had indeed forgotten Li Xiuzhu's personality. If Li Lei Qiang was right, such a situation could indeed occur!