Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Lightning spread across the stone walls of the trench, making them look like two walls of lightning. The phenomenon alarmed the highest echelons of the Great Profound Sword Sect.

The drunkard who had been standing at the edge of the abyss stared down before plunging downward.

Boom!

His aura surged, the pressure of an Illusory Refinement Realm cultivator bearing down like a mountain.

Two barriers of earth-yellow vital force covered the walls. He stared fiercely at the people below, his gaze as sharp as an eagle’s. “All disciples, leave the Sword Abyss immediately!”

Only now did they realize how strong the man actually was.

The disciples shot into the sky and retreated hundreds of zhang before coming to a halt. More disciples and elders arrived.

Wu Changfeng, in charge of the inner and outer sects, appeared in the Sword Abyss. “Lu Zhong, what happened? What’s going on?”

Lu Zhong did not answer the question. Still holding a gourd of wine, his eyes glinted. “Who’s the blind kid with the sword box on his back?”

Wu Changfeng narrowed his eyes and turned to look at the sword cut, which was spouting lightning. His eyes widened in surprise.“He did that…?”

Lu Zhong didn’t reply. Wu Changfeng paused for a moment and sighed. “He’s a friend He Yuning made when he was training outside. He’s from the Daxia Territory.”

Lu Zhong frowned. “The Daxia Territory?”

“That’s right. He’s an elder from the Daxia Sword Sect, the sect everyone’s been talking about lately. His name is Li Guanqi. He has a Lightning Saint Spirit Root, sword intent at the Sword Courage Realm, and a Heaven-Opening-tier sword spirit void.”

Wu Changfeng paused, then smiled. “He’s got great character. Righteous and uncorrupted. My investigation revealed that he made a powerful statement after one of his enemies hurt an innocent person.”

Lu Zhong’s grip on his wine gourd relaxed. He lowered his head slightly. “What did he say?”

Admiration flickered in Wu Changfeng’s eyes. When he’d heard the report from Heavenly Intelligence, he’d been shocked. He hadn’t expected someone so young to say such a thing.

“‘If there is no judge in this world, I’ll become King Yanluo myself.’ That’s why his sword intent is named Yanluo.”[1]

As they spoke, the lightning in the sword cut reached its peak.

Li Guanqi silently endured the powerful sword intent washing over his body. He hadn’t yet accepted the inheritance. Instead, he cleared his mind, focusing on the subtle shifts and nuances he felt.

An elder’s sigh drifted from the endless lightning, as if disappointed that Li Guanqi hadn’t accepted his sword intent.

But once his energy disappeared, the Cliff Drop Sword Intent would cease to exist in this world. As such, Li Guanqi decided to leave the seed of this sword intent.

The howling sword intent softened.

And then even more violent sword intent erupted, as if brazenly displaying its true, terrifying self.

Li Guanqi understood why. The ancestors wanted him to feel the true might of the Cliff Drop Sword Intent.

Boom!

He released his own sword intent to its full extent. If his sword intent was like a knife, the sword intent outside was a whetstone, sharpening his own.

Lu Zhong’s eyes reddened as he watched.

Wu Changfeng came to his side and patted his back. “If your master knew his Cliff Drop Sword Intent was being given to a young man like that, he would be proud. He deserves it.”

Lu Zhong knew that his master had chosen Li Guanqi. Otherwise, the Sword Abyss’s reaction wouldn’t have been so dramatic, especially with his master’s terrible temper. The old man was releasing all the energy he’d left behind in the Sword Abyss, which meant he had to be very satisfied with Li Guanqi.

Lu Zhong turned and looked at the dimming stone walls. He would never forget the way his master stood proudly when facing his heavenly tribulation. Even in death, he’d only thought about leaving something behind for the sect.

Zhao Ling had been close to receiving the Frost Sword Intent. But the powerful Cliff Drop Sword Intent caused the Frost Sword Intent to retract all its energy and go silent.

If it couldn’t find someone it approved of, the sword intent would rather disappear from the world than compromise its standards. Perhaps the consciousness left behind in the Frost Sword Intent had sensed the strange phenomenon in its surroundings.

Zhao Ling snapped out of his trance, looking like he’d lost his soul. He stared at the silent sword cut with empty eyes, his cheek twitching uncontrollably. His face contorted into a snarl. He’d executed assignments for six whole years without rest just to comprehend the Frost Sword Intent. Six years.

He’d accumulated multiple chances to come to the Sword Abyss after all that time, and he’d been so close.

“It’s all because of him… It’s all because of him!”

Zhao Ling shot to his feet, unsheathed his sword, and appeared at the sword cut where Li Guanqi stood. He swung at lightning speed.

Ignoring the lightning sword intent cutting through his skin, he unleashed powerful water vital force. Green veins bulged in his arm, and blue sword light flashed.

“Sapphire Water Slash!”

Boom!

A chill ran down Li Guanqi’s spine as the sword light approached his back.

He narrowed his eyes, keeping his sword intent firm as he swept the Red Lotus Sword behind him.

Boom! Boom boom!

The mountain trembled. A ray of powerful lightning sword light cut through the incoming attack and continued forward.

“Heavenly Destruction Sword Sutra, Crouching Demon!”

Li Guanqi made no attempt to hide his killing intent. Zhao Ling’s ambush had enraged him.

Boom!

Zhao Ling couldn’t even react. Within a single second, one of his arms and one of his legs had been severed.

Wu Changfeng pulled Zhao Ling away, glancing at the depths of the sword cut.

That sword attack had been fast, too fast. He’d only managed to yank Zhao Ling away at the last moment. Without that, Zhao Ling would have instantly died.

The sword light landed on the stone wall behind them, leaving a sword cut over sixty zhang deep.

Zhao Ling’s face went pale as he stared at the blur of flesh and blood where his arm and leg had been. His scream shook the skies.

“Ahhhh!! Ahhhhhh!!”

The lightning sword intent around Li Guanqi finally dissipated, and his Yanluo Sword Intent strengthened significantly once again. Even his cultivation had improved.

Cliff Drop Sword Intent… It was like a light guiding his path ahead. One day, he would reach that level too.

The sword intent in the sword cut had completely dissipated, and the lightning on the stone walls had died down.

Now… it was time for payback.

1. This is a callback to chapter 421. ☜