A Blind Swordsman's Sword Coffin

As an aside, how can Li Nanting ascend to the Immortal World and begin cultivating anew if he hasn’t died? Is he supposed to rely on that decrepit body of his?

A woman in red robes sat cross-legged, her striking eyes scanning the room with a sneer. “I mean... what exactly are we all even here for? Don’t tell me you actually think people like us can take down the Daxia Sword Sect.”

Her voice was full of disdain, and she counted herself among those she looked down on. Seven or eight people sat in the room, all of them having reached at least the mid Combined Body Realm.

The woman was Yu Hua, the Palace Master of Xiaoxiang Palace and a peak Combined Body Realm cultivator. The others were also leaders of various ancient clans and major sects.

A handsome man beside Yu Hua chuckled. “Heh heh. Now that everyone is here, shouldn’t Hall Master Zhao tell us why he called us together?”

Everyone turned toward the man standing beside the seat of honor. He wore extravagant red-and-gold robes but had yet to sit down. He was Zhao Pei, hall master of the Blood Blade Hall, an ancient sect.

Zhao Pei had a fierce face and dark skin, and his ornate robes looked oddly out of place on him. More notably, he was extremely short. Even standing straight, he only reached Yu Hua’s armpit. His face was square, with a hooked nose and narrow, triangular eyes. Most of the others looked at him with barely concealed mockery.

Yu Hua, however, regarded him with a hint of wariness. Zhao Pei might have been short and large-headed, but his strength was not to be underestimated. No more than three people in the room could last a hundred moves against him.

Zhao Pei stood beside the seat of honor, only half a head taller than the chair. A man most of those present didn’t know laughed at the sight. Every gaze turned to him, and an eerie silence fell over the hall.

The handsome man who had spoken first shot him a warning look. He had brought Guan Xing here because Guan Xing was the master of a sect allied with his own. “Guan Xing! Apologize to Hall Master Zhao immediately!”

Guan Xing swallowed hard and started to rise.

Boom!

A terrifying blood-red pressure flooded the hall. Everyone stiffened. Only Yu Hua seemed to have expected this.

Powerful fluctuations of vital force surged within three chi of her. She calmly raised her teacup, took a sip, and gave Guan Xing a sidelong glance. “Idiot.”

Whoosh!

Guan Xing’s expression changed. A long sword appeared in his hand, and he swept it hard behind him.

Clang!

Whoosh! Pfft!

An oddly shaped crescent saber knocked the sword aside. Zhao Pei lunged forward, a crazed, bloodthirsty gleam in his eyes. His blade came down and severed both of Guan Xing’s arms. Two sprays of blood followed almost at once, and the severed arms flew into the air.

Zhao Pei seized Guan Xing by the throat, his fingers digging deep enough to tear through the skin. The nearby tables and chairs erupted into splinters, and the green bricks beneath them shattered with a deafening crash.

Zhao Pei hurled Guan Xing into the air and slammed him to the floor. He drove the blood-red crescent saber into Guan Xing’s mouth, slicing it open from corner to ear.

Guan Xing’s eyes widened in terror. Zhao Pei planted a foot on his chest and crushed his ribs. “You like laughing?”

Zhao Pei rotated the crescent saber and swept it diagonally toward Guan Xing’s head.

“Ngh! Nghhh! Ngh! Uwaaaah!”

Guan Xing shook his head, his eyes fixed on Zhao Pei in a silent plea for mercy.

Yu Hua frowned. “Zhao Pei, don’t get blood and gore all over the room. It’s disgusting. If you have something to say, then say it. Otherwise, I’m going back to take a bath.”

Zhao Pei stood up and smiled. He raised his hand, and the crescent saber sliced through Guan Xing’s neck.

Pfft!

Blood sprayed everywhere like a fountain. Zhao Pei licked the blood from the blade, his expression one of pure enjoyment.

The handsome man lowered his head, not daring to look at Guan Xing’s corpse beside him. Guan Xing’s faction would likely have to swallow the humiliation. They certainly wouldn’t dare challenge Blood Blade Hall over his death.

Zhao Pei returned to the seat of honor and withdrew his pressure. He looked around the hall, his gaze sharp. “I called you here to discuss an opportunity. You’ve surely heard that Li Guanqi of the Daxia Sword Sect is still gravely injured. He’s lost both the Red Lotus Sword and his sword coffin. Sword Maniac Ye Feng has been gone for some time, and Cao Yan, Xiao Chen, and the others have been missing for nearly three years. The Daxia Sword Sect’s seven peaks and Eight Hundred Scenic Waters conceal places of immense fortune. That’s long been an open secret.”

Everyone listened quietly as Zhao Pei recounted what they already knew. None of them had dared entertain such thoughts, however.

Yu Hua spoke first. “Zhao Pei, don’t tell me you gathered us here to attack the Daxia Sword Sect. Heh. The sect has survived all these years for a reason. How many of its enemies came away without being killed or crippled? Even the ancient Lu and Zhu clans were wiped out. Look what happened to them. If you want to throw your life away, leave us out of it!”

With that, Yu Hua decided it was time to leave. She stood up and prepared to head out.

Zhao Pei lowered his gaze as he watched her get up, a trace of greed flashing in his eyes as he stared at her back. “Don’t tell me none of you covet the Daxia Sword Sect.”

Yu Hua looked back with a sneer. “Coveting it is one thing. Whether you’ll live to enjoy what you take is another. Li Guanqi fought a Mahayana Realm cultivator head-on with nothing but a single sword. Don’t tell me you didn’t see the power of that strike, Zhao Pei. I know you’re strong, but are you confident you could withstand even one strike from Li Guanqi? If he’d had the Red Lotus Sword in hand, that Mahayana Realm clone might not even have managed to take his sword coffin!”

She spoke coldly, with no regard for anyone’s pride. As far as she was concerned, Li Guanqi could slaughter everyone in the hall even if they joined forces.

Yu Hua turned around slowly. “You all think Li Guanqi has lost his strength and that the Daxia Sword Sect has no one left who can fight. But who among you can guarantee that none of the Eight Generals are secretly hiding there? Ye Xuan of the Nine Dragon Immortal Sect in the Ethereal Immortal Territory left a single strand of sword qi at the Daxia Sword Sect, and that alone is enough to kill us all! Zhao Pei, what exactly are you relying on to attack the Daxia Sword Sect?”

Yu Hua turned away, opened the door, and prepared to leave.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

An unfamiliar voice spoke slowly. “Wonderful. Yu Hua, was it? You’re very levelheaded.”

Yu Hua stood with her back to the door, her entire body rigid. The instant the man spoke, she sensed that the Blood Blade Hall’s entire domain had transformed beyond recognition.

Cold demonic qi surged through the air. A terrifying pressure erupted, its intensity already nearing the mid-to-late Mahayana Realm.