"Yes," Li Youran agreed, placing the Jade Coral gently before Li Shang. Then, with one hand steadily pressed against one side of the Jade Treasure, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and his entire body blazed with golden light—clearly pouring all his strength into circulating his Profound Art!

The Jade Coral gave a sharp zheng sound. Already crystal clear as jade, it now seemed on the verge of emitting a faint radiance. Wisps of blue energy, almost imperceptible to the naked eye, slowly rose from its surface. At the moment the blue energy ascended, the entire body of the Jade Coral turned a strange, ominous blue.

The time had come.

A flicker of deep longing crossed Li Shang’s aged eyes. He calmed his heart and slowly extended his withered right palm, resting it gently on the other side of the Jade Coral. The instant his flesh met the Jade Treasure, those minute currents of energy stirred up by Li Youran began to flow, visibly racing along Li Shang’s arm and seeping into his body, drop by drop.

As the blue energy entered his system, a genuine wave of joy finally broke through the formerly placid surface of Grand Tutor Li Shang’s face. He clearly felt his meridians instantly ease significantly. As the blue energy continued to pour in, growing in volume, Li Shang felt his body becoming lighter and lighter, almost as if his very soul was trembling with delight.

The injury in his Dantian, the spot blasted open years ago by Jun Zhantian’s punch, had long been numb. Now, a faint ache began to surface, only to be gently soothed by the blue energy. His shattered Dantian meridians were clearly beginning to mend at an exceedingly slow pace. Both men kept their eyes closed, keenly feeling the changes, brimming with joy. Neither noticed that, just as things reached this perfect juncture, the Jade Treasure abruptly changed color, transforming in an instant to pure white. Beneath the thin shroud of blue energy, another mass of white spiritual energy thrashed violently, surging left and right. The blue energy had been tightly enveloping it, leaving no room for escape. Though the white energy was wild and agile, it could not break out. However, as Li Youran urged the process and Li Shang absorbed the flow, the density of the blue energy grew steadily weaker, while the white energy appeared increasingly dense. In this inverse progression, the white energy was gradually gaining the upper hand—the Dantian was only one final step away from complete recovery!

Decades of old wounds, which had plagued the Grand Tutor for half his life, could not fail to incite excitement and delirious joy upon healing! Even Li Shang, a man accustomed to navigating great storms, felt his composure waver slightly. He rejoiced inwardly, his voice trembling slightly: "Youran, my Dantian should be restoring right now."

Li Youran shouted with sudden frenzy, "Grandfather, from now on, that curse Jun Zhantian the old rogue placed upon you can finally be removed! Our Li family will finally stand invincible! Hahaha!"

The grandfather and grandson shared a sincere smile, one filled with hope and anticipation!

It was precisely in this surge of delight that calamity struck. At the most critical moment when the Grand Tutor’s Dantian was about to heal, the distinct stream of Heaven and Earth spiritual energy that Jun Moxie had previously injected suddenly broke free from the blue energy’s restraint. Like a ferocious dragon suddenly snapping its shackles, it shot lightning-fast along the path carved by the blue energy, breaking through everything in its way!

A thread of extraordinarily violent and rapid energy, with a sharp zhi sound, ghost-like, darted into Li Shang’s recovering meridians. It bulldozed straight ahead, smashing ruthlessly into his Dantian, which was on the verge of full recovery!

Caught completely unaware, Li Shang felt a booming sound erupt in his Dantian. His face instantly turned deathly pale. The nearly healed Dantian shattered anew, as if a solid disk had been cracked open; fissures, like interwoven roots, rapidly spread toward the surrounding meridians. Li Shang spat out a mouthful of blood with a chi sound, instantly losing all consciousness. His body went limp and he tumbled backward onto the ground.

"Grandfather!" Li Youran cried out, his mind in chaos.

As Li Shang collapsed, the Jade Coral, unable to withstand the extreme entanglement and vibration of the two opposing spiritual energies, exploded without warning with a loud peng! Li Youran, leaning in close, anxious about his grandfather, was struck full in the face and head by fragments. A scream tore from him, his face instantly covered in blood. "What happened? Why? Why is this happening? Can someone tell me what’s going on?!"

Ah, Li Youran could maintain his composure no longer, roaring toward the heavens. In that instant, the usually steady and unshakable Li Youran was a vision of panic, helplessness, worry, and ferocity—a blood-splattered visage, like a vengeful ghost!

"The Jade Coral! The Jade Coral was definitely working, but why did it suddenly explode?! Master guaranteed it, he absolutely guaranteed it!" Li Youran disregarded the gashes on his face, tearing at his hair in madness!

As for this sudden turn of events, truthfully, even Jun Moxie himself was unaware of it. The young master never would have guessed that the stray current he injected so casually would achieve such spectacular results! The young master’s original intent was merely to cause some trouble, disgusted by the visage of someone like Li Zhen; at most, he had hoped that the spiritual energy would simply ruin the Jade Coral!

But Jun Moxie absolutely did not foresee that when his spiritual power merged with the Yuan Qi of this world, once triggered, it could unleash a power no less than that of a homemade landmine! This explosion utterly destroyed the Grand Tutor Li Shang’s hope of restoring his Profound Qi. Now, even if an immortal descended from the heavens, they probably couldn't restore his Dantian! Furthermore, Li Shang’s already weakened body suffered a devastating blow from this incident, nearly costing him his life!

Truly, intending to cultivate flowers yielded no bloom, but an accidental planting of a willow brought forth a grove! A transaction of infinite profit!

In addition to the infinite profit, there seemed to be a few extra bonuses. Li Youran’s once handsome and dashing face was marred by, well, not many, perhaps seven or eight scars! Yet, even these seven or eight marks amounted to disfigurement! If Li Youran hadn't instinctively closed his eyes, he might have ended up blind!

Even so, for a long period afterward, Li Youran consistently wore a veil, giving him an air of mystery, as if looking through a thick fog. This explosion truly felt somewhat... fated by the divine.

Where there is joy for some, there is sorrow for others.

Compared to the Li family’s alarm and cloud of misery, the Dugu Clan erupted like a volcano suddenly set alight, contrasting sharply with the excitement engulfing the Jun family.

Since Princess Lingmeng’s brief visit, followed by her swift departure under the arrangement of the Dugu family’s Old Madam, taking Dugu Xiaoyi with her, the Dugu Clan had been like a giant powder keg suddenly ignited!

Old Master Dugu Zongheng cursed Dugu Wudi’s face nonstop for a full hour, occasionally punctuated by furious kicks and punches. General Dugu Wudi winced and acted completely subservient, not daring to resist in the slightest. Truthfully, his internal frustration was no less than his father's.

"Are you a pig?! You useless bastard, you good-for-nothing scoundrel! I told you to watch your daughter, watch your daughter, and this is how you watch her? Huh? You wretched thing! You are a pig!" Old Master Dugu Zongheng’s fury reached the heavens. "Even if you were obsessed with a pig, it would be better than being obsessed with Jun Moxie! Damn it, that’s Jun Moxie! Are your eyes blind, you bastard?!"

Dugu Wudi’s face was covered in spittle, but he dared not wipe it off, managing only to mumble stammeringly, "This, I didn't know either, if I had known earlier..."

This single sentence provoked a new storm of fury.

"Pah! If you didn't know, who does? What else could you possibly know? You’re her own father!"

Old Master Dugu Zongheng was nearly driven mad: "That Jun Moxie is a notorious rake in the capital, the kind of fellow that good people flee three miles from, and villains flee six miles from! What decent family’s daughter would marry him? Let alone our little Yi?! Is your head stuffed with tofu paste, or is it filled with water? Or perhaps a donkey kicked you?! Utterly vile, impossibly dense thing! Idiot! How on earth did I manage to raise such a creature? All my lifetime of wisdom has been wasted on you, you pig!..."

Dugu Wudi passively endured the downpour of spittle, unable to keep his eyes open. "Father, please calm your anger... Xiaoyi's mental confusion has only just begun. I believe there hasn't been any substantial progress between them yet; there’s still time!" This single statement by Dugu Wudi completely stirred the hornet’s nest.

Old Master Dugu Zongheng instantly exploded in rage, delivering a flying kick that sent Dugu Wudi’s sturdy body soaring like a rubber ball. Stomping his foot, the old man roared: "You! Is that something a human should say?! What do you mean, no substantial progress? Do you want substantial progress? Must we wait until your daughter is visibly pregnant before it’s too late? Do you think that bastard Jun Moxie is incapable of doing such a thing?!" The angrier he became, the more Dugu Zongheng grabbed his son and unleashed another flurry of blows!

Usually, at a time like this, the Old Madam would have stepped in to mediate—but this time she stood by without moving. At this point, she even added fuel to the fire: "He deserves a beating!" "How could I have given birth to such a blind son?!"

After beating his son soundly, Old Master Dugu Zongheng finally vented some of his anger. His face dark, he commanded, "This matter must be settled immediately. While Xiaoyi is in the palace keeping the Princess company these few days, you will quickly resolve this issue for me! If I hear any similar news again, I'll break your legs! Go on now! Do I have to do it myself?!"

General Dugu Wudi, bruised and swollen, scrambled up from the ground and fled in disarray.

After being berated by the Old Master, Dugu Wudi returned to his separate courtyard and immediately caused an uproar. First, he unleashed his anger upon his several wives, and then he issued an order: Dugu Ying, Dugu Xiong, Dugu Hao, Dugu Jie, Dugu Chong, Dugu Shang, and Dugu Qian were immediately summoned back from the barracks outside the city! No excuses! Any delay would be met with military law and family punishment!

General Dugu decided he would make an example of Jun Moxie! The despicable brat dared to seduce my daughter, causing me to be thrashed by my own father! Does he think his life is so long that I won't dare touch him just because his grandfather protects him? Just for the beating I took today, I will skin that brat three layers deep, not to mention that he has also provoked my precious Xiaoyi! Hmph.

The seven men named by Dugu Wudi were the younger generation nephews of the Dugu Clan, their names chosen by Old Master Dugu Zongheng. The final characters of their names, when put together, spelled out: “Yīng Xióng Háo Jié Chōng Shàng Qián” (Heroes Brave and Valiant Charge Forth)! What an imposing sequence of names.