Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

During this time, Li Guanqi had endured endless public humiliation. And yet, a young woman he had never met before was showing unwavering trust in him.

Even He Yuanting was a little puzzled. He did not believe the saintess shared any history with Li Guanqi. They came from entirely different worlds, their stations as far apart as clouds from mud.

Ye Feng turned to Li Guanqi and asked through gritted teeth, “Boss, you know her?”

But Li Guanqi couldn’t hear anything. The only thing he could focus on was the girl bathed in light, standing before him with her hands up, intent on shielding him from He Yuanting.

“Wanshu...” he murmured.

A shiver ran through her.

“Is it really you?”

He Yuanting swept his hand through the air. “I don’t care if you’ve misunderstood the situation. Everyone saw him! He killed my son! Why do you think he’s innocent?”

Meng Wanshu took a deep breath and turned to Li Guanqi.

She’d become much more beautiful than he remembered. A grin spread across his face.“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I look a little pathetic right now.”

Meng Wanshu turned slowly. Ignoring the blood and dirt on him, she caressed his cheek, pain flashing in her eyes as she channeled pure vital force into him.

Taking a deep breath, she firmly stated, “I believe he’s innocent because... I knew him before the rumors.”

The world went silent as her confident declaration echoed across the skies.

Beside them, tears poured from Ye Feng’s eyes, though he muttered, “Boss, why do I feel like I’m not supposed to be here?”

Li Guanqi burst into laughter. Ignoring the pain of chains piercing his flesh, he straightened, his back like a blade, half a head taller than Meng Wanshu.

He looked down and kissed her roughly.

Li Changqing widened his eyes, waving his arms about as he cried, “Aiyo... Aiyo! Saintess... No... No! Tsk, not him! Aiyo... My goodness... T-t-this...”

Ye Feng gulped, eyeing them resentfully. “Hey, I’m still here...”

Meng Wanshu’s lips felt a little cold, though her breath remained warm.

A moment later, Li Guanqi gazed into her eyes, “My girl, I’ve suffered waiting for you all these years.”

He Yuanting’s face darkened. He couldn’t do much if Meng Wanshu was set on defending Li Guanqi. Setting aside her status as the Divine Treasure Territory Lord’s only daughter, the elder behind her, Li Changqing, was a powerful cultivator in his own right.

Li Guanqi bent down and whispered in her ear.

Her eyes hardened with resolve, and she gave a nearly imperceptible nod.

Li Changqing’s eyes narrowed. He slammed his foot into the space below. A terrifying spatial barrier sealed all the land within a hundred li.

Li Guanqi’s gaze sharpened. He courageously moved in front of Meng Wanshu to defend her.

Vital force surged through him. Strength flooded his body like a lion waking from slumber. “Peng Luo!”

Peng Luo, who had been pretending to be dead, snapped his eyes open.

The two halves of his body merged together. His limbs grew, and the purple patterns on his skin blazed brightly. Snarling viciously, Peng Luo slammed his palms together.

A broken finger appeared in front of him.

Peng Luo shone with purple light. The finger burst open, its remaining blood turning into a thread that shot into the crowd.

Li Guanqi narrowed his eyes and roared, “Cang Lu!”

Boom!

All his frustration and rage erupted at once.

The sword coffin trembled. Inside, Sword Spirit watched with growing disbelief.

The lid of the coffin burst open, and a piercing sword cry shook the heavens.

Every sword wielded by a sword cultivator within a thousand zhang let out a wail. Some of the magical treasure swords trembled and buzzed.

A pitch-black, four-chi sword shot out of the coffin.

Li Guanqi reached out and caught the blade as though he had become one with it.

His right arm’s muscles were taut, yet he showed no strain from the sword’s immense weight. “From today onward, your name is Yanluo!”

Screech!

The sword buzzed with a joyful cry.

Sword Spirit’s lips curved up into a smirk. She hadn’t expected the second sword to recognize him as its owner at a moment like this.

His sword spirit void buzzed. Sword Spirit released her energy brazenly, heedless of onlookers.

Buzz!!!

Li Guanqi stepped forward, gazing toward the sky.

He raised his hand. The Yanluo Sword, wreathed in heavenly flames, slashed the chains in half.

He grabbed the chains and tore them from his body. Vital force circulated through him, healing his wounds.

Meng Wanshu finally sensed Li Guanqi’s aura. He was only half a step into the Illusory Refinement Realm, but his aura was even more frightening than Ye Feng’s.

Li Guanqi walked forward. A projection stone appeared in a flash of light.

He channeled vital force into it. The stone broke, releasing a massive light screen spanning over fifty zhang.

The projection showed Cang Lu, disguised as Li Guanqi, forcing the Red Lotus Sword into He Yuning’s chest. Cang Lu had copied Li Guanqi’s sword intent, which was how it had been found in He Yuning’s body.

He Yuanting watched in silence. He didn’t understand.

“You could have proved your innocence. Why did you wait until now?”

Li Guanqi glanced at the red thread Peng Luo controlled. “So I could be absolutely certain I’d kill Cang Lu.”

The red thread, which had been wandering aimlessly, shot in a specific direction.

Cang Lu, hidden in the crowd, was already doing his best to suppress his aura. But Peng Luo’s technique didn’t belong to the Spirit World either.

Boom!

Cang Lu’s aura erupted. Realizing he couldn’t stay hidden, he stepped out of the crowd and rose into the sky.

He shed his black cloak slowly, then looked at the cultivators. A strange smile played on his face.

“Li Guanqi, you really are vicious. You risked your life just to test the waters and lure me out. Were you afraid I wouldn’t come for you?”

Rumble!

Thunder crashed above, and the crowd looked up. They hadn’t noticed the thick gray clouds that had gathered over Heavenly Cloud City.

Li Guanqi held his hand up and shattered thousands of spirit stones, swallowing the thick spirit qi mist like a whale.

He glanced at the brewing tribulation clouds and grinned. “I was willing to do anything to kill you.”

He looked at Cang Lu, who had calmly walked to his death. “You should never have touched the people close to me.”

Boom!

A bolt of lightning as thick as a water bucket descended from the sky.