Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Li Guanqi trembled as he clenched his fists tightly. Li Sheng’an noticed Li Guanqi’s unusual agitation and knew something bad would happen, so he hurriedly said, “Don’t act rashly, Guanqi! Keep quiet, and it will pass.”

He believed that with Li Guanqi’s capabilities, he could surely secure a place in the Daxia Sword Sect. Acting rashly would be unwise.

Li Guanqi’s eyes remained fixed on Zhao Yuanlin onstage, biting his lip so hard that it bled.

Li Sheng’an watched in alarm as Li Guanqi’s eyes became bloodshot.

Boom!

“Quiet?” The stone tile beneath Li Guanqi’s feet shattered into fragments as he roared, saying, “Why would I keep quiet?!”

Li Guanqi shot off like a gust of wind. The crowd watched as he leaped up the dais using the common Wooden Pole Step Technique. Then, he threw his fist at Zhao Yuanlin, who was still spewing venomous lies about him.

Meng Linhai’s eyes narrowed. He was about to reach out to stop Li Guanqi, but Second Elder Xu Zhengjie of Heavenly Lightning Peak stopped him. “It is not clear yet who is telling the truth. Why would you believe only one side? Plus... it’s not like the kid can’t take a punch.”

When Zhao Yuanlin saw Li Guanqi coming, the corner of his lips curled into a smirk. A faint ripple of energy radiated from his body as he retaliated with a punch of his own.

Boom! Their fists collided with a thunderous impact.Li Guanqi felt his blood surge from the effort as he briefly leaned back, keeping his feet planted in the same spot.

On the other hand, Zhao Yuanlin was sent reeling backward, stumbling seven steps back before regaining his balance. A trickle of blood escaped the corner of his mouth as his arm hung limply by his side. “You blind idiot! You deserve to die!”

Zhao Yuanlin’s right arm was bent at a grotesque angle. White bone had pierced through his skin, with pieces of flesh hanging from it. Blood flowed from the wound.

The severity of his injury shook the crowd.

Moments earlier, Xu Zhengjie had considered intervening to stop Zhao Yuanlin from retaliating. After all, Zhao Yuanlin was at the peak of the Body Tempering Realm and had already started absorbing spirit qi.

Xu Zhengjie had never thought the blindfolded youth could defeat his opponent with pure physical strength.

The disparity between them was staggering.

Zhao Yuanlin’s face paled. He had not expected Li Guanqi to be so powerful.

“Li Guanqi! How dare you attack me in front of a group of elders?! Are you scared of me exposing your evil deeds to the world? You’re nothing but scum! You’re afraid! You’re afraid of me! Hahaha!”

As Zhao Yuanlin hurled insults at him, he twisted the narrative, portraying Li Guanqi as a villain who had lashed out because his misdeeds had been exposed.

Insults and criticism filled the whole plaza.

“Hmmph! The guy must feel guilty; that’s why he attacked!”

“Exactly! If this guy can sell his family off for money, he has terrible character.”

“I agree! Didn’t Senior Brother mention that character evaluation is part of the recruitment process? I think this guy has a terrible character! I wouldn’t want to be in the same sect as him.”

“I don’t want someone like that to join the sect! The thought of being his fellow disciple is embarrassing!”

Li Guanqi endured the insults silently, reacting only by clenching his fists tightly. He clearly wanted to attack again.

Xu Zhengjie frowned. He injected spirit power into his voice to shock the crowd. “Enough! Silence!”

The plaza fell to an immediate hush.

Standing in the crowd, Lin Dong clenched his teeth. He had been with Li Guanqi the whole way here, so they had become friendly. To him, Li Guanqi would never do such a thing.

Li Sheng’an quickly pulled him back in fright, his voice dropping to an anxious whisper. “What are you doing?! Have you also lost your mind?!

“Think about it—even if Guanqi is innocent, Zhao Yuanlin’s Heavenly Spirit Root guarantees him a place in the inner sect. He may even become some elder’s core disciple. Do you want to make an enemy of someone like that? Defending Guanqi now is just asking for trouble!”

Lin Dong gazed at Li Sheng’an for a long moment, his voice quiet but unyielding. “If we all choose to remain silent and close our eyes to injustice, can we still call ourselves true cultivators?!”.

Then, he shouted from the middle of the crowd, “I do not believe that he is that kind of person!”

The crowd separated slowly, revealing the tanned Lin Dong. He glared at Zhao Yuanlin, who was lying on the ground.

“How dare you make such accusations! Where’s your proof? Anyone can spew baseless, life-ruining slander! I can even say you fancy men! What will you do about it?”

The moment he said it, the crowd calmed down. Some people even laughed at Lin Dong’s remark. Li Guanqi had not expected Lin Dong to defend him in a moment like this. He raised his hand slightly to tell Lin Dong it was enough.

Then, Li Guanqi turned his head to “look” down at the one thousand candidates with a mocking smirk. Even blindfolded, he seemed to see every person in the crowd, making them feel guilty.

Without a flicker of emotion, Li Guanqi gently remarked, “When a dog barks in the village, the rest of the dogs bark too. However, they do not know why they are barking.

“The difference between humans and animals is that humans can think for themselves. But if a person isn’t even intelligent enough to distinguish between right and wrong... Hehe...”

Li Guanqi turned around and strode slowly toward Zhao Yuanlin. His footsteps were heavy and powerful, and the box on his back made him look extra menacing.

“What are you doing?!”

Zhao Yuanlin’s pitch grew higher subconsciously. His eyes flashed with anger. This anger... came from his fragile ego and arrogance.

He couldn’t believe that someone who once survived on his leftovers had struck him down with a single blow. Zhao Yuanlin could not accept this reality. After all, he had a Heavenly Spirit Root!

When Xu Zhengjie looked at Li Guanqi, his eyes lit up. It wasn’t the strange sword box or his peak body tempering foundation that caught his attention—it was Li Guanqi’s words, which revealed a mind that dared to think for itself.

As for his blindness... In Xu Zhengjie’s eyes, Li Guanqi could see better than anyone else.

Li Guanqi crouched down and slowly removed the strip of cloth around his eyes. Gasps echoed through the crowd as they noticed his pair of white eyes.

When Zhao Yuanlin looked at those eyes, he lost all hope.

Li Guanqi suppressed his anger as he boomed, “You’re right. I did take ten strings of coppers from Zhao Mansion! But do you dare tell the audience what this money was for?”

There was a flash of panic in Zhao Yuanlin’s eyes. “Like I said, you sold her—”

The crack of Li Guanqi’s palm against Zhao Yuanlin’s cheek cut through the air. “Shut your mouth! That money was compensation for my sister’s life! She died after barely a month of service in your estate—worked and starved to death!

“Even when she died... When your people tossed her body out, you were all so cheap that you wouldn’t even spare a scrap of cloth to cover her! Zhao Qing, your gatekeeper, even tried to pocket those ten strings of coppers! Deny it if you dare!”

At this point, Li Guanqi’s eyes were bloodshot, and his voice trembled slightly with barely contained rage. His killing intent was palpable.

His cheeks were puffed up from exertion, and a green vein pulsed from his forehead. His face was completely red.

“Yes, I’ve been a beggar since I was young. The Zhao Estate’s scraps were my lifeline. Ten strings of copper—that’s the price you put on a servant’s life. That’s all we’re worth to you! Just ill-fated scum, destined to grovel at your feet! You think we’ll always be beggars, so you treat us like dirt!”

Li Guanqi turned to look at the crowd. “Can it be said that I received ten strings of coppers in exchange for my sister’s life? Yes and no.

“Eight years ago, I was a six-year-old child. At the time, Zhao Qing tried to cheat me with four strings of copper. But I had only one thought—that the ten strings of coppers were my sister’s last shred of dignity! So I fought for what was owed! He had to pay!”

Slowly rising to his full height, Li Guanqi’s contempt-filled gaze bore down on Zhao Yuanlin. “That was what the ten strings of copper were for!”

Zhao Yuanlin’s face turned pale. He looked around and realized that everyone was looking at him differently now. Furious, he shouted, “So what? You’re just ill-fated scum! So what if you’re here to join the sect? I have a Heavenly Spirit Root! A Heavenly Spirit Root! And you? I don’t think you even have a spirit root!”

Xu Zhengjie’s face had long turned green. With a swift kick, he sent Zhao Yuanlin dozens of zhang back into the air. Then, he opened his palm, and a black Thunder Whip several zhang long appeared in his hand with a loud crackling sound.

He raised his arm, about to whip Zhao Yuanlin.

Meng Linhai looked torn. He opened his mouth but hesitated when he saw Xu Zhengjie’s furious expression. “Old Xu... He...”

However, the furious Xu Zhengjie pointed at Meng Linhai’s nose and yelled, “Shut your mouth, Meng Linhai! Will you break the sect’s rules over a mere Heavenly Spirit Root? If you stop me, I’ll whip you too!”