Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

After several days of practice, Li Guanqi’s cultivation had finally stabilized at the twelfth level of the Qi Refinement Realm. He spent his days immersed in cultivation, and in his free time, Li Nanting often shared stories of his experiences in the cultivation world. Though the tales varied, they left Li Guanqi with one clear impression—cultivation was rife with human treachery.

At that, Li Nanting smiled. “These are just a handful of the things I experienced in my youth.”

Li Guanqi replied with a small smile. “You’re not old at all, Master.”

“Hahaha! Don’t try to flatter me by saying I’m not old. I’m already two hundred and sixty-seven years old this year. If I were a mortal living down the mountain, I would’ve been buried twice over by now.”

Li Guanqi’s jaw dropped. “You are old.”

The old man slapped him in the head, laughing as he scolded, “You brat.”

He tapped his pipe and remarked, “That little girl, Yu Sui’an, has been sticking to you quite a bit lately.”

Li Guanqi rubbed his nose and smiled. “I like the kid a lot. She’s so sweet and well-behaved that it tugs at my heart. My courtyard is very empty since I’m staying there alone. It’d be nice if we could clean up a room for her and let her stay there.”

Li Nanting simply smiled. Then, he took out a jade slip and passed it to Li Guanqi. “Your aura has grown steadier. I suspect you’re hitting a bottleneck.

“As for why you haven’t broken through to the Foundation Building Realm... I’m sure you have your reasons. I will not rush you, but I’ve heard you’ve been practicing spells recently, so I’d like you to help me retrieve something.”Li Guanqi took the azure-colored jade slip and examined it. A carving of a temple was etched into its surface.

“Master, what do you need me to retrieve?”

Li Nanting smiled mysteriously. “It’s a lightning spell. Go to the temple on Dragon Duke Mountain and look for an old man named Ling Daoran. You just need to tell him that I sent you.”

“Master, should you be asking favors for me? I’m not sure I’m worthy of such a thing.”

Li Nanting took a long drag from his pipe, exhaling a cloud of smoke that momentarily obscured his face. “Of course you are! You’re my disciple! Why wouldn’t I pull some strings for your benefit?”

Then, Li Nanting held out a pill from his hand. “One more thing—keep this Foundation Building Pill with you. Just in case.”

Li Guanqi did not decline, taking the pill and the jade slip from Li Nanting.

He now had three Foundation Building Pills, roughly five hundred low-grade spirit stones, and twenty mid-grade spirit stones. Most of the mid-grade spirit stones were from the beast-taming sect master’s storage ring.

Li Nanting glanced at his hand and advised, “It’s best not to wear your storage ring in public. It’s too valuable. Use a storage pouch instead—it’ll save you a lot of trouble.”

Li Guanqi nodded and began preparing to descend the mountain.

***

The next morning, he planned to visit the Treasure Pavilion to buy a map of the Northern Territory. Since he’d be spending a significant amount of time outside the sect, a map would make traveling much easier.

“What?! A Northern Territory map costs a hundred high-grade spirit stones?! This is robbery!”

The female disciple at the counter covered her mouth and giggled. “Senior Li, you don’t know how big the Azure Cloud Continent’s Northern Territory is, do you? It’s more than ten million li wide...

“It’s so difficult to draw the map that only an array master of at least the Nascent Soul Realm can do it. So... a map of a one-million radius region should suffice. That one’s just five mid-grade spirit stones~”

Li Guanqi thought about the Lightning Dragon egg in his storage ring. “I still can’t afford it. Just give me a map of a one hundred thousand li radius. That’ll do.”

His request did not offend the female disciple at all. She took a payment of two mid-grade spirit stones and gave him a blue jade slip.

Li Guanqi walked out of the Treasure Pavilion with an aching heart. He turned his head and glanced at the smiling girl again, feeling like she was still eyeing him for more spirit stones.

His divine consciousness entered the jade slip, and a vast map unfolded in his mind. The Daxia Sword Sect lay at the center, with detailed terrain and major factions within a hundred-thousand-li radius marked clearly.

Various pieces of information appeared when he touched the names of different sects with his divine consciousness.

Seven Strings Sect. Renowned for its vast array of hidden weapons.

Sect Master: Cao Xinghua. Peak Mid-Nascent Soul Realm.

Li Guanqi muttered, “This is interesting. I can’t believe they can make a map as detailed as this. How powerful is the Intelligence Pavilion to produce maps like this for sale?”

He put the jade slip away and headed to the Mission Pavilion. While browsing the available tasks, he spotted a mission to investigate dynastic instability in a region under the Daxia Sword Sect’s jurisdiction.

The mission only required the assignee to investigate the situation, so the reward was modest.

To Li Guanqi, a small reward was better than nothing, so he accepted it.

This place was behind Dragon Duke Mountain, so it would not take much time for him to head over.

Afterward, Li Guanqi returned to his quarters to pack two sets of clothing.

Yu Sui’an peeked her head in from the doorway and asked softly, “Li Guanqi, where are you going?”

“I’ll be heading out for a while.”

“Oh... When will you be back?”

Li Guanqi packed up his clothes and ruffled her hair with a smile. “Don’t worry. It won’t be long. I’ll bring you something good to eat when I’m back.”

Yu Sui’an’s eyes lit up as she placed her hands on her hips, demanding, “Then I want the most delicious buns from the place you’re going! Four of them! No... six!”

Li Guanqi laughed and nodded. “Alright, alright. I will bring you six of the tastiest buns.”

Then, with the sword box on his back, he descended the mountain alone.

Along the way, many inner sect disciples stopped and bowed at him. Stories had spread across the sect to other peaks recently.

Although they did not know if those rumors were true, they still respected the Daxia Sword Sect’s number one prodigy.

He glanced at the map. His first stop was Port Serenity, a hundred li away. With his current leg strength, he could rush over in under two hours.

Adjusting his posture, he circulated his qi to use a sprint technique, then shot forward like a panther.

Before long, cloud boats of all sizes came into view, weaving through the sky. There was a large platform on a five-hundred-zhang-tall mountain peak with many buildings. This platform was a bustling hub, with countless people coming and going.

Seven or eight cloud boats were docked nearby, each a dozen zhang long. The people who came here were wealthy and aristocratic.

Li Guanqi went up to this platform and was instantly mesmerized by the crowds. While there was only one street on the platform, it was utterly packed with countless hawkers on both sides, their calls filling his ears.

Suddenly, Li Guanqi smirked and caught a hand around his waist in a death grip.

The thin man who’d been caught stiffened, then immediately forced out a fawning smile. “Easy there, Master. I was a fool today. I’ll kowtow to you in apology.”

Li Guanqi smiled and released his hand. He whispered, “You tried to steal from me. Try that again, and you can say goodbye to both your hands.”

Then, he shook the Daxia Sword Sect’s jade slip hanging around his waist in front of the man.

The man quickly kowtowed vigorously, shouting, “This is an important man! Anyone who dares lay a hand on him will regret it!”

He then led Li Guanqi to a luxurious cloud boat with an ingratiating smile.

Li Guanqi didn’t refuse and boarded the vessel. This cloud boat would stop at Moon Gazing City, the closest city to Dragon Duke Mountain.