Meng Zhang noticed the change in Li Xuan's expression and cast an inquiring gaze at him.
Li Xuan suppressed his temper and gritted his teeth as he said, "That treacherous old man is Li Nu, and the people behind him are his lackeys."
Meng Zhang had heard Li Xuan mention this person, Li Nu, before. If he had to describe him in one sentence, it would be "a deceitful man, a truly shameless one."
Originally, Li Nu and his group of cultivators were a gang of bandits who had fled from elsewhere and appeared in this area under the guise of ordinary loose cultivators. Over a decade ago, they spent a considerable amount of spirit stones to buy a First Rank spirit vein from Twin Success Valley, becoming a subordinate force of Twin Success Valley and settling down here.
The spirit vein where Li Nu and his group resided happened to be located near the Li family's Ancestral Ground.
However, Twin Success Valley didn't pay much attention to their meager strength, and they couldn't curry favor even if they wanted to. As a result, Li Nu and his men had no choice but to try their best to please and serve the Li family.
Li Nu was not his original name, and they were not surnamed Li either. To curry favor with the Li family, they all voluntarily changed their surname to Li, and this person went by the name Li Nu, meaning he would forever be a servant of the Li family.
Using various means, they finally managed to gain some favor with the Li family and became a peripheral force of the Li family. However, the Li family, knowing their true nature, never fully trusted them and only used them as tools to carry out tasks that the Li family couldn't do overtly.
With the presence of Foundation Building stage cultivators in the Li family, they could easily control these minions who had willingly come to serve them and had no fear of their schemes.
But two years ago, during the chaos of the sand monster incident, the Li family's Ancestral Ground was breached, and the Li family was annihilated.
After this happened, Li Nu and his group immediately turned against the Li family. They looted the Li family's wealth and slaughtered its cultivators while they were in turmoil. Even Li Xuan, who had managed to join Taiyi Sect in time, was almost victimized by these people's evil hands.
If Li Xuan had been killed, the mortals he had protected, including his family members, would have been sold into slavery by Li Nu and his group.
Therefore, Li Xuan hated Li Nu and his group to the core and wished to kill them.
Meng Zhang also held these despicable people in contempt. If the opportunity presented itself, he wouldn't mind helping Li Xuan vent his anger.
Amidst Li Xuan's resentful gaze, the group of people walked past and slowly approached Li Shengqi's side.
Li Nu wore a fawning smile as he took the initiative to approach Li Shengqi, nodding and bowing, trying his best to please him.
"Ever since Li Nu betrayed the Li family, he has completely fallen out with Li Shengqi and the other Li family cultivators. His current behavior must mean he has some ulterior motive regarding Li Shengqi," Li Xuan made his judgment as he observed Li Nu's actions.
"Don't you want to remind Li Shengqi? Although you've already left the Li family, you should still have some sentiment towards them," Meng Zhang casually asked.
"Sect Master, you're underestimating Li Shengqi. This old fox is cunning and not someone Li Nu can deceive easily."
"If Li Nu underestimates Li Shengqi, he's bound to suffer a big loss."
Li Xuan made his judgment based on his understanding of both parties.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Li Shengqi initially scolded Li Nu with a stern face. However, after a while, his expression eased, and he finally began to converse normally with Li Nu.
The banquet continued for a long time and didn't end until midnight. All the cultivators who attended the banquet returned to their lodgings, preparing to leave Linshan the next day.
Li Nu sent his subordinates back to their lodgings but secretly sneaked into the courtyard where the Zhao family cultivators resided.
Zhao Family cultivators were already waiting for him and brought him before Zhao Dong.
"Greetings, Brother Zhao. I wonder if Senior Jiudou has retired for the night?" Despite being much older and stronger than Zhao Dong in terms of cultivation base, Li Nu still behaved subserviently in front of him.
"Elder Jiudou has retired. Whatever you have to say to him, you can say to me," Zhao Dong replied coldly.
As a cultivator of the Zhao family, he looked down upon treacherous individuals like Li Nu. If it weren't for Zhao Jiudou's orders, he wouldn't even want to have any contact with such a person.
Ignoring Zhao Dong's cold demeanor, Li Nu continued to explain, "I tried my best, but I couldn't gain Li Shengqi's trust, that old bastard. However, he's now in a desperate situation with no one reliable by his side. He hasn't completely turned against me; he probably still thinks I can be of use to him."
"What nonsense! A treacherous man like you, who would trust you?" Zhao Dong reproached him without mincing his words.
"Remember, you must follow Li Shengqi closely and keep track of all his actions. If he shows any unusual behavior, report it immediately without delay."
"I'll remember. I won't let anything important slip through," Li Nu nodded repeatedly.
"As long as you handle things honestly, our Zhao Family won't mistreat you."
Considering that they still needed Li Nu's assistance, Zhao Dong decided to give him some incentives. After scolding him, he insincerely promised him some rewards.
"I am willing to devote myself to the Zhao Family and serve them wholeheartedly," Li Nu humbly replied.
"I have a request, can I make it?" he added.
Zhao Dong was in a good mood because of Li Nu's attitude, so he patiently asked, "What request do you have? Tell me."
"I want to change my surname to Zhao and be a servant of the Zhao Family for generations to come," Li Nu said with extraordinary humility.
"Damn it! What right do you have to be surnamed Zhao?" Zhao Dong retorted harshly. "Get lost! I feel sick just looking at you."
Zhao Dong was truly disgusted by this man and promptly drove him away.
After Li Nu left, Zhao Jiudou emerged from the back room.
"Elder Jiudou, this man is so disgusting. I don't ever want to see him again," Zhao Dong complained.
"Don't underestimate this man; he's a truly cunning person. Deceitful people often put up a good façade, you know?" Zhao Jiudou said pensively.
"So, you mean he was pretending just now?" Zhao Dong asked, feeling a little perplexed.
"When pretending to be genuine, he may actually be genuine; when pretending to be fake, he may actually be fake. Who knows?"
"In any case, this person is not simple and hard to fathom. If we had other options, I wouldn't have chosen to use him."
Zhao Jiudou's tone contained a hint of helplessness.
Li Shengqi carried a great secret, and Zhao Family cultivators had tried various means to uncover it, but all their efforts had been in vain. If they hadn't learned about Li Shengqi's resolute will and his consumption of the Heart-Locking Pill, which rendered him impervious to most mind-reading and soul-searching techniques, they probably would have captured him and interrogated him mercilessly.
With no other options left, Zhao Jiudou had to resort to indirect methods to gradually achieve their goal.
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