Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

After Qin Xian left, Li Guanqi leaned against the stone wall. The three of them exchanged glances.

“Hahahahaha! Big Head’s fire spell was amazing!”

“Your sword attack was also amazing, Second Brother. But let’s be honest, Big Brother’s final move was the real showstopper.”

They laughed and praised each other—an instinctive attempt to lighten the weight of the ordeal they’d just survived.

Li Guanqi smiled bitterly. “We’ll need to be more cautious from now on.”

In truth, he had no idea what the Sword Spirit had done while controlling his body. He’d blacked out and only regained consciousness once he was already inside the cave.

Ye Feng swallowed and asked, “Boss, do you not remember anything from that last attack?”

When Li Guanqi shook his head, Ye Feng grew excited and insisted on showing him.

Ye Feng supported Li Guanqi and took to the air with him, only for Li Guanqi to go stiff with shock. He stared at the mountain cleaved clean in two.

Cao Yan and Li Guanqi nodded vigorously while Ye Feng described what happened. Li Guanqi listened, stunned, as he described the blinding sword light he’d unleashed.Ye Feng gesticulated with his hands, describing what happened. “Boss, you should’ve seen your eyes. That look… it was terrifying. You swung your sword like it was nothing, as if you were just taking a sip of water. Fang Yishan was so shocked that he froze. And just like that, he died.”

Li Guanqi looked at the cleaved mountain. Leaning his weight on Ye Feng, he said solemnly, “Listen. From now on, no matter what happens, never put your hopes on the move I used today.”

Li Guanqi spoke with grave seriousness, delivering a stern warning.

Ye Feng and Cao Yan were no idiots. Li Guanqi’s weakened state and dwindling life force were obvious. They knew that the price of that attack had been steep, so they nodded in acknowledgment.

They returned to the cave to continue tending to their injuries. Qin Xian had left them a large supply of healing pills, enough to stop their bleeding a long time ago. However, their meridians were still damaged and needed time to heal.

Once they’d reviewed the day’s events together again, Li Guanqi sat down and began cultivating. The cave soon fell into silence as all three focused on recovery.

By morning, one by one, they stirred from their cultivation.

Li Guanqi immediately called the others over. The three took turns analyzing their missteps during the battle. After hearing their thoughts, Li Guanqi also commented on his own performance.

They began discussing their strengths and how best to handle future battles against stronger foes.

The conversation proved enlightening.

Close brushes with death and brutal combat were the fastest way to grow, but constantly walking the edge of life and death wasn’t ideal. As such, Li Guanqi had them summarize their weaknesses and explain how they would respond if the same situation arose again, ensuring they wouldn’t repeat the same mistakes.

Ye Feng also told Li Guanqi about everything Cao Yan had done while his vital force was fading.

Li Guanqi fell silent for a long time, then turned to Cao Yan. “Do you know any arrays that can help people keep secrets?”

Cao Yan paused, then replied, “There is one, but it’s a bit inconvenient. Honestly, heavenly vows are more than enough for cultivators.”

Li Guanqi and Ye Feng asked together, “What’s a heavenly vow?”

Cao Yan gathered his thoughts and explained, “A heavenly vow is a kind of agreement between cultivators. The Dao itself bears witness. If you break the vow, you damage your divine soul. I’ve never heard of anyone undoing a heavenly vow.”

Li Guanqi tried calling out to Sword Spirit. “Sword Spirit? Are you there?”

There was no response, no matter how long he waited.

After a moment, he said, “Alright. Then both of you make a vow. After that, I’ll tell you a secret about myself. Since we’re brothers, I won’t keep it from you. I want us all to grow stronger together, and the secret could help.”

Ye Feng’s eyes lit up at the prospect of getting stronger. “Yes, yes! I swear! What do I need to do?”

Cao Yan gave Li Guanqi a long look before drawing a deep breath. He bit his finger and pressed a drop of blood between his brows.

Ye Feng followed suit, copying the gesture.

Then Cao Yan pointed to the sky and solemnly declared, “I, Cao Yan, swear a heavenly vow today! I will never, in any way, reveal the secret Li Guanqi is about to share.”

Ye Yeng did the same. “I, Ye Feng, swear a heavenly vow today! I will never, in any way, reveal the secret Li Guanqi is about to share!”

Buzz!

The blood on their foreheads trembled, then turned into crimson threads that rose toward the sky.

Sitting cross-legged, Li Guanqi suddenly felt something stir in his sea of consciousness. Two threads now floated there. He couldn’t see or touch them, but he could clearly sense which thread belonged to whom.

“If a thread breaks,” Cao Yan said, “it means someone broke their vow.”

Li Guanqi nodded and looked at them both. “I hope you don’t mind my caution. This is a serious matter. Without a way to ensure secrecy, I can’t bring myself to trust anyone.”

He turned to Ye Feng. “You were probably wondering where I hid Senior Brother Zhao Yang, weren’t you? And you likely questioned why I’d arrange for someone to bring him back in a few days. Why not just have Elder Qin bring him back?”

Ye Feng scratched his head. “Yeah… I’ve been wondering what kind of item can hold a living person, and also why you didn’t release him when Elder Qin arrived.”

“This is why I had you make heavenly vows…” Li Guanqi shook his head and smiled bitterly. “Long story short, I have a priceless treasure, and I was afraid Elder Qin would kill all of us for it.”

He asked them to relax and clear their heads. A ripple of strange energy spread through the cave, and in the blink of an eye, the three vanished.

The stone sword box suddenly turned into a speck of dust and levitated mid-air.