Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Watching from the side, Li Guanqi couldn’t help but offer his praise as well.

Coming out of his focused state, the young man found himself the object of countless stunned stares. He was, after all, just an unknown disciple from the outer sect.

The crowd erupted in thunderous applause.

The youth, Zhao Ting, gazed at his fellow sect members with reddened eyes. For the past two years, he had trained day and night, even though he knew his talent in the sword Dao was limited. He had always kept his head down, but it changed the moment he saw Li Guanqi swing a broadknife around. In that instant, his eyes lit up. He had found his path.

Li Guanqi also instinctively clapped for him. The boy had talent. He had only watched Li Guanqi demonstrate once, yet he managed to capture half the essence and even add a few insights of his own.

Overwhelmed, Zhao Ting tried to steady his breath. His eyes burned red as he bowed to Li Guanqi. “Thank you, Elder Li, for enlightening me.”

Li Guanqi smiled. “This broadknife is yours. I hope one day your name echoes across the region.”

Zhao Ting rose and gripped the knife with both hands, his eyes shining as he nodded hard.

After the first person stepped forward to change his weapon, a second and third naturally followed.

Li Guanqi looked at the disciples who stood up one by one and smiled. “One by one, tell me what weapons you guys think are suitable for you?”A young lady with a warrior-like aura looked up and stuttered, “I-I-I think I’m suited for the spear!”

Li Guanqi thought for a moment. “The spear... It’s on the heavier side, but it has its strengths. Come up. I’ll demonstrate once. Try to emulate it like Zhao Ting did.”

Whoosh!

As he finished speaking, a red-tasselled spear[1] appeared in Li Guanqi’s hand.

Lightning curled around the spear as he moved. Strength powered each motion. Every sweep produced a sharp whistling noise.

He swept out with a horizontal kick, flipped in midair, and thrust the spear forward.

Boom!

A loud crack rang out, and the space at the spear tip formed spiderweb cracks. Li Guanqi hadn’t used any vital force and was already suppressing his physical strength. If he had used his full strength, the entire summit of Heavenly Lightning Peak would be gone.

The girl’s breath quickened. Her eyes locked on the spear, and her cheeks turned red.

Li Guanqi handed her the spear, and the moment she gripped it, it vibrated faintly.

His eyebrows lifted. A quick scan with his divine consciousness gave him a rough guess.

“She has… half a spear in her spirit void? Interesting.”

The girl, who had first shut her eyes tight, opened them with a flash of light. She shot forward like a gust of wind. The spear let out a ringing cry like a roaring beast.

She spun like a tornado. Though her footwork was slightly unsteady, her movements were full of resolve.

Li Guanqi narrowed his eyes. He murmured, “Is she imagining an enemy?”

The girl twisted and turned, as if fighting an invisible foe. Her technique followed what Li Guanqi had shown, and she even added her own touches.

Suddenly, she bent backward. Instead of raising the spear, she stabbed the spear into the ground and pushed her entire body up, forming a beautiful arc in the air as she did a backflip.

When she landed, she kicked off again, shattering the tiles beneath her. She spun around the spear and thrust it backward over her shoulder.

Boom!

Another blast. A gust of wind swept across the platform.

Li Guanqi smiled. The disciples were surprising him far more than expected. Even Shen Lan stared in disbelief. The girl was from Heavenly Water Peak, yet Shen Lan barely recognized her.

On the roof, Ling Daoyan lay down lazily and downed a mouthful of wine. He laughed and mused, “The Daxia Sword Sect is in luck… Interesting, interesting…”

Li Nanting watched Li Guanqi in silence. Even he hadn’t known that Li Guanqi knew how to use so many weapons. With just his two past demonstrations alone, he would rank among the top fighters of his cultivation realm. The other peak masters compared themselves to him and quickly realized that if they faced him, they wouldn’t even have a ten percent chance of winning. And Li Guanqi was a sword cultivator.

Qin Xian fixed his gaze on Li Guanqi. He couldn’t help but send him a voice transmission. “Li Guanqi, if you and I fought, what would be my chances?”

Li Guanqi glanced his way and shrugged, transmitting back, “Do you want me to be honest?”

Qin Xian glared at him. “Of course.”

“Then the truth is… you wouldn’t even have a ten percent chance. If we fought at the same level and I intended to kill you, three sword moves would be enough.”

Qin Xian’s face darkened. He muttered, “Fuck. I walked right into that.”

He glared at Li Guanqi. “I should’ve beaten you up when I had the chance. Now I couldn’t do it even if I tried.”

Li Guanqi could not help but smile at Qin Xian’s grumbling.

The lecture ran from morning until night. He picked out nearly a hundred disciples who were better suited for weapons other than the sword.

Of course, not everyone was suited for the path they wanted. Many were lost, and Li Guanqi had to guide them.

Throughout the day, he showcased eighteen common weapons and a dozen niche ones, explaining their uses and what to watch for when facing people with them.

Though the lecture didn’t teach sword techniques or spirit spells, it thrilled the disciples and widened their horizons.

Li Guanqi handled nearly thirty weapons without effort, as if he had mastered them all, earning deep admiration from the crowd. By the end, their respect for him had grown, and even the seven peak masters started to ask him cultivation questions with no shame, which he answered with patience.

During this lecture, ‌the most skilled person present was clearly the teacher. There were no ranks, no elders or juniors. Since Li Guanqi stood onstage, he was everyone’s teacher.

1. A red-tasselled spear is a weapon from the Song Dynasty with a red tassel tied behind the spearhead. It’s meant to absorb blood and distract the opponent. See the Translator’s Note for an image. ☜

Doge & Char’s Thoughts

This is a red-tasseled spear. (红缨枪 Hongying Qiang)