Li Yi and the other two, after severing one of Ancestral Dragon's claws from the East Sea, were about to taste the flesh of the first dragon in the world.
Suddenly, a voice echoed from the horizon, it was Qi Yi's. Upon hearing it, Qi Chen's face changed drastically, and he rushed towards Taiqing Peak.
Qi Chen arrived before the three of them, weeping, and asked Tongtian:
"Master, what happened to my father? Why did he expel me from the Qilin tribe? Why did he make a Heavenly Dao oath?"
Tongtian was momentarily at a loss for words and looked towards Li Yi for guidance.
Li Yi sighed and said to Qi Chen:
"Chen'er, calm yourself first. Senior Uncle will explain slowly."
Once Qi Chen's emotions stabilized, Li Yi immediately extracted the Heavenly Dao merit sealed within Qi Chen's body and cast it towards the sky. With a flick of his horsetail whisk, he dispersed the merit, causing it to vanish into the heavens and earth.
Qi Chen looked bewildered and asked:
"Senior Uncle, what are you doing?"
Li Yi, holding Qi Chen's hand, said to Tongtian and Yuanshi:
"Second Brother, Third Brother, let's take Chen'er to see fellow daoist Qi Yi!"
Tongtian and Yuanshi nodded. The three of them, with Qi Chen in tow, headed towards the East Sea.
Ancestral Dragon and Yuan Feng, upon hearing Qi Yi's Heavenly Dao oath, halted their actions and looked towards Qi Yi.
Seeing them looking at him, Qi Yi recalled their years of coexistence.
Unable to bear the thought of the Dragon and Phoenix tribes disappearing from existence, he spoke a warning:
"If you two do not wish for the Dragon and Phoenix tribes to vanish forever from this world, then like me, make a Heavenly Dao oath to atone for your tribes' karmic debts!"
After Qi Yi's reminder, Ancestral Dragon and Yuan Feng also realized the gravity of the situation. All three were heavily injured, and if they didn't take action, they would be failing their tribes.
Thus, Yuan Feng also made a Heavenly Dao oath:
"Heavenly Dao above, I am Yuan Feng, the patriarch of the Phoenix tribe. Today, I vow to eternally guard the Undying Volcano, to preserve the peace and stability of the Great Desolation!"
As soon as Yuan Feng made her oath, a Golden Cloud of merit gathered, descending to absolve the Phoenix tribe's karmic debts.
After the merit descended, Yuan Feng immediately ordered the Phoenix tribe members to return to the Undying Volcano.
Yuan Feng then transformed into a phoenix and flew towards the Undying Volcano.
Ancestral Dragon, witnessing this, sighed and also made a Heavenly Dao oath:
"Heavenly Dao above, I am Ancestral Dragon, the patriarch of the Dragon tribe. Today, I, Ancestral Dragon, vow to eternally fill the eye of the North Sea, to preserve the peace and stability of the Great Desolation!"
The moment Ancestral Dragon finished speaking, the Heavenly Dao descended with merit, absolving the Dragon tribe's karmic debts.
Seeing the merit descend, Ancestral Dragon also immediately ordered the remaining members of the Dragon tribe to return to the Four Seas. He then revealed his true form, an eight-clawed golden dragon, and headed towards the North Sea.
Shortly after Ancestral Dragon's departure, Li Yi and the other three arrived at the East Sea. Upon seeing Qi Yi, Qi Chen immediately ran towards him, crying:
"Father!"
"Father!"
Qi Yi embraced Qi Chen, his gaze filled with hope as he looked at Li Yi.
Li Yi, sensing Qi Yi's gaze, nodded gently.
Seeing Li Yi nod, Qi Yi felt a wave of relief and cast a grateful look his way.
Qi Chen, noticing Qi Yi's severe injuries, cried even harder.
Qi Yi comforted him:
"Be good, Chen'er. Father is alright!"
Qi Chen sobbed:
"Father, you're bleeding, and you say you're alright? Don't lie to me!"
He then ran to Li Yi, weeping, and pleaded:
"Senior Uncle, please save my father!"
Li Yi approached Qi Yi, examined his injuries, sighed, and shook his head, saying to Qi Chen:
"Chen'er, fellow daoist Qi Yi is too severely wounded. Senior Uncle is powerless to help."
Upon hearing this, Qi Chen exclaimed:
"Even Senior Uncle is powerless? Then Father..."
Qi Yi quickly comforted Qi Chen:
"Chen'er, do not be sad. It is enough for me to see you one last time!"
He then turned to Li Yi and the other two:
"Three fellow daoists, I feel that my end is near. My Qilin tribe is dwindling. I wish to relocate my tribe to Kunlun Mountain. I implore you three to grant this request. Qi Yi would be eternally grateful!"
Saying this, he struggled to support himself and bowed to the three of them.
Qi Chen also looked at Li Yi with hopeful eyes.
Qi Chen knew that Li Yi held considerable sway on Kunlun Mountain. If Li Yi agreed, his master and second senior uncle would likely not refuse.
Li Yi accepted Qi Yi's bow and, seeing Qi Chen's hopeful gaze, nodded:
"Fellow daoist, you are too polite. You have made a Heavenly Dao oath that the Qilin will only appear when auspiciousness arises. Moreover, Chen'er is under my third brother's tutelage and is our eldest disciple. I shall naturally agree!"
Yuanshi and Tongtian, seeing Li Yi agree and considering their own past acquaintanceship with Qi Yi, also consented.
Qi Yi, seeing Li Yi and the other two agree to his request, immediately ordered the remaining Qilin to return to Qilin Mountain to gather their belongings and then head to Kunlun Mountain.
The remaining Qilin, upon receiving Qi Yi's command, immediately set off for their tribe.
Qi Yi bowed to the three of them once more and said:
"I humbly request that you three escort me to Kunlun Mountain. Is that possible?"
Li Yi and the other two, seeing Qi Yi, a hero of his time, now needing assistance even to travel, could not refuse. Li Yi administered the Three-Light Divine Water to Qi Yi and then, with the father and son, proceeded towards Kunlun Mountain.
After Li Yi and the other two brought Qi Yi back to Kunlun Mountain, Qi Yi requested to see Qi Chen's living quarters.
The three of them readily agreed to Qi Yi's request.
Qi Yi arrived at Shangqing Peak. Tongtian, knowing Qi Yi was worried about Qi Chen, provided explanations one by one.
"This is where Chen'er usually resides, that is where he practices his sword, and over here is where he cultivates..."
Tongtian, with unflagging patience, guided Qi Yi throughout almost the entirety of Shangqing Peak.
Seeing that Qi Chen was well-situated on Kunlun Mountain, Qi Yi expressed his gratitude to the three:
"My son is ignorant. In the future, I will trouble the three of you."
After speaking, Qi Yi felt his time was drawing near. As a final burst of vitality, he went to a location on Shangqing Peak and transformed into a cliff.
Qi Chen, seeing Qi Yi right before him, broke down in tears. Tongtian, seeing Qi Chen's grief, felt his own heart ache and said to him:
"Chen'er, do not be sad. Life and death are ordained. Since fellow daoist Qi Yi has transformed into a cliff, this place shall henceforth be called Qilin Cliff. Your Qilin tribe shall reside here. Come here whenever you miss your father."
Although Qi Chen was heartbroken, he understood that Qi Yi had made this sacrifice for the Qilin tribe. Weeping, he nodded to Tongtian:
"Wuwu! Master, I understand!"
Li Yi, knowing Qi Chen's sorrow, was unsure how to comfort him. He summoned Jin Jiao, Yin Jiao, and Duo Bao to accompany Qi Chen.