Spring turned to autumn.
The world, both within and without, was at peace and prosperity.
The war between the human and demon races had entered a period of calm within this past century.
The several Nascent Soul stage demon cultivators were indeed restraining their subordinates, halting their battles with humans.
Although there were still occasional skirmishes between low-level cultivators and demons beyond the Great Wall of the human race, there was truly nothing that could be done about it.
After all, even Nascent Soul stage cultivators could not control the thoughts of all demons.
The founding emperor of the Great Wei Dynasty, Cao He, grew increasingly frail.
It seemed he did not have many years left to live. It was said that in recent years, he even required assistance to walk.
Cao He's throne had been passed to his son, Cao Ma-yi, two years prior.
Cao Ma-yi proved himself quite capable, governing the entire realm with great peace.
However, upon hearing the news of Cao He's impending death, Li Qi also made his way to the capital of the Great Wei, wishing to see his old acquaintance one last time.
By the sickbed.
Li Qi, Cao Ma-yi, Dian Qi, and many others of high status stood, all with expressions of grief.
On the sickbed lay an elder whose face appeared extremely weak and aged.
Yet, it was this very elder who, through the efforts of more than half his life, had founded the Great Wei Dynasty.
Cao He closed his eyes, reminiscing about the glorious days of his youth, his spirit high, commanding millions of soldiers with a wave of his hand.
His former enemies and rivals had long since vanished into the dust of history, leaving only a brief sentence in the annals.
A faint smile appeared on his aged and frail face.
In the end, he was the victor.
Opening his eyes, Cao He looked at the individuals before him with a complex expression.
After a long moment, his gaze settled on Li Qi.
Truthfully, Li Qi was the person he had most desired to recruit in the past.
"A pity. If only I could have recruited you, sir, my path to unifying the realm would have been much smoother."
Li Qi shook his head slightly.
"Not smoother. If I had joined, your struggle for dominance over the realm would have been utterly meaningless."
If Li Qi had truly joined, it would have been an overwhelming display of raw power, potentially shortening Cao He's subsequent decades of warfare in the Three Kingdoms into mere days.
As if realizing this, Cao He's face also broke into a wry smile.
"Indeed."
Following this, Cao He shared what he needed to with the others by his bedside.
As if content, Cao He slowly closed his eyes.
The sound of weeping echoed throughout the imperial palace.
In the 31st year of the Great Wei calendar, Wei Gaozu Cao He, at the age of 107, passed away in the imperial palace.
After seeing Cao He off, Li Qi did not rush to leave the capital of the Great Wei. The current emperor, Cao Ma-yi, enthusiastically invited Li Qi to stay.
Li Qi agreed and resided in the capital for several years.
During these years, however, Li Qi found himself frequently visiting the residence of that old rascal, Dian Qi.
"Dian Qi, Dian Qi, I've come to visit you again! Add me to tonight's dinner!"
Li Qi swaggered towards Dian Qi's mansion. The two guards at the entrance dared not stop him.
"Damn it, that scoundrel is here to bother me again."
Upon hearing the voice outside, Dian Qi, who was enjoying tea in the main hall, suddenly trembled.
Although Dian Qi had been convinced of Li Qi's prowess after the incident at the Great Wall, the psychological shadow of their past encounters remained. Every time he heard Li Qi was at his residence, he would hastily flee.
As a result, Li Qi had visited Dian Qi's home dozens of times before managing to catch that old fellow only a few times.
"My lady, do not prepare dinner for me tonight. I am going to hide at someone else's place."
And so, Dian Qi, that old rascal, was once again preparing to escape towards the back courtyard.
But this time, Li Qi had somehow appeared in the back courtyard, waiting.
Dian Qi was caught red-handed.
"Dian Qi, you don't seem happy that I've come to visit."
Li Qi said with a hint of displeasure.
"How could that be? It is an honor for the Dian family to have you, Daoist friend Li,"
Dian Qi forced a smile, secretly cursing Li Qi a thousand times in his heart.
If he hadn't been unable to defeat Li Qi, he would have surely shown Li Qi how fiery flowers could be.
However, what Dian Qi didn't know was that after this particular meal, Li Qi departed the capital without anyone knowing.
As a result, for the next month, Dian Qi remained vigilant, expecting Li Qi's arrival, but his vigilance was in vain.
It was only later that he learned Li Qi had left.
For some reason, Dian Qi felt a sense of emptiness.
The acquaintances he had met decades or even a century ago seemed to have either died, gone into seclusion, or were otherwise occupied with their own matters.
This time, Dian Qi found himself actually missing his old acquaintance, Li Qi.
As for Li Qi, he had returned to his secluded mountain villa to continue his cultivation and recuperate, attempting to peacefully break through to the next realm and become a great master of the Nascent Soul stage as soon as possible.
And then, on a certain day while Li Qi was still engaged in his simple farming and pastoral life of cultivation.
An unexpected guest found Li Qi.
This person was none other than Zuo Shang.
However, Zuo Shang's visit to Li Qi was certainly not for a simple social call.
He also brought news concerning the inner circle of the cultivation world.