Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Li Guanqi wasn’t sure how He Yuning would feel after waking up and learning what had happened. Perhaps he would resent his father’s actions. Li Guanqi believed He Yuning would understand his own.

As Li Guanqi patted He Yuning’s shoulder, a thread of subtle sword intent silently settled within his Heart of the Ancient Cave.

Among everyone Li Guanqi had known, He Yuning was the person most capable of embodying justice and fairness—the person most like himself he’d met. However, He Yuning had yet to face much hardship or see how malicious people could be.

He Yuning was more like a blank slate. He harbored great righteousness and could not bear the sight of the world’s misery. Yet, when facing troublesome matters, his sense of justice would cause him inner turmoil. Perhaps one day, after He Yuning journeyed through the Six Territories, Li Guanqi’s strand of sword intent would be of help to him.

This scene caught Meng Wanshu’s eye. Her beautiful eyes curved gently, like a crescent moon hanging high in the night sky.

Li Guanqi slowly rose to his feet. Boundless lightning power engulfed the entire grand hall.

Boom!

“Sword Prison, open!”

A terrifying domain of vital force unfolded at once.

He Yuanting frowned. “Li Guanqi! What are you trying to do now?!”The corner of Li Guanqi’s mouth lifted slightly as his icy killing intent spread through the domain. “What am I doing? Heh. Settling accounts, of course.”

The next moment, Li Guanqi’s expression twisted with ferocity. He glared at a man below and roared, “Liu Chuan! Come out and die!”

Boom!

His sword coffin slammed into the ground. The impact, centered on the coffin, shattered the bluestone tiles across dozens of zhang.

Bang!

The sword coffin opened, erupting with sword intent. The Red Lotus Sword and the Yanluo Sword flew straight into his hands. Lightning crackled around his body, and his heavenly flames coiled around both blades. In the span of a single breath, Li Guanqi’s aura surged straight to its peak.

Behind Liu Dongshi, Liu Chuan’s face drained of all color. He had already seen Li Guanqi’s strength, and he was no match. Even Liu Dongshi, seated calmly in his chair, visibly reacted to Li Guanqi’s aura.

He Yuanting still did not know what had happened between them. He had merely ordered people to monitor Li Guanqi, yet the latter was out for blood.

With a dark expression, He Yuanting asked, “What exactly happened?”

Li Guanqi said nothing. With both swords clenched in his hands, the blue bricks beneath his feet exploded. Many elders in the hall rose to their feet at once.

A cold gleam flashed through Meng Wanshu’s eyes. She raised her hand, and countless frost sword qi instantly froze everyone in place. She pressed her palm downward and icily said, “This is between him and them.”

Her ice-blue eyes seemed to look down on all living beings, as though apart from Li Guanqi, every soul was beneath her notice. Only then did the crowd realize she possessed strength at the peak of the mid Illusory Refinement Realm.

Meng Wanshu had the ice-element Saint Spirit Root and was at the mid-peak of the Illusory Refinement Realm.

This revelation shocked everyone. Moreover, the old man behind her, a formidable figure at the Combined Body Realm, had yet to make a move.

He Yuanting narrowed his eyes. Beside him, Chu Jingze watched him intently, ready to intervene at the slightest movement.

Clang!

A terrifying sword qi swept across the entire grand hall. The hall was cleaved horizontally in two, and a horrifying shockwave spread hundreds of zhang outward.

Liu Dongshi raised his sword to block. From that single strike, two deep notches had appeared on his blade. He locked eyes with Li Guanqi from just three inches away, the whites of his eyes practically overflowing with murderous intent. Sparks seemed to crackle between them as he stared. He knew that Liu Chuan was doomed if he fought Li Guanqi.

Liu Dongshi’s gaze dimmed. “Young Master Li, my son...”

“I know everything he’s done.”

Liu Dongshi’s voice faltered, a trace of bitterness appearing on his face. With a pleading tone, he continued, “May I ask Young Master Li for one thing?”

Seeing the resolve in the old man’s eyes, Li Guanqi sneered. “You want to die in his place?”

“No,” Li Guanqi continued calmly, rejecting Liu Dongshi’s request for a favor. His murderous gaze passed over Liu Dongshi and fixed upon Liu Chuan, who trembled visibly. “I said I would kill him. Even if you choose to kill yourself, I will still kill him!”

A shudder ran through Liu Dongshi’s heart. He clenched his teeth and said, “Please, can’t you spare him?! I’ve cultivated for over a thousand years and have only this son! I have accumulated a small fortune in my life. I’ll give it all to you! I’ll die in his place. You can cripple his cultivation, but please, just let him live out his life peacefully within the sect.”

Boom!

Li Guanqi knocked the old man back with both swords and murmured expressionlessly, “I can’t.”

Liu Dongshi’s eyes flashed with madness. Surging pressure erupted from his body. His robes flapped violently in the air, the crown holding his hair shattered, and his gray-and-white hair danced wildly in the wind. He gripped his sword and roared, “If that’s the case, then come and fight!”

A chill flickered in Meng Wanshu’s eyes. She stepped to Li Guanqi’s side and looked down at Liu Dongshi with disdain. She raised her hand, and a deep-blue longsword appeared in her grasp, radiating terrifying sword might. A devastating sword intent rose, threatening to freeze heaven and earth.

Meng Wanshu pointed her sword at Liu Dongshi and said coldly, “You want a fight? Come. I’ll give you one.”

However, Li Guanqi stepped forward and pushed her out of the Sword Prison.

“This is my fight,” he said gently. “How could I let you handle it?”

Immediately after, the Sword Prison closed in, engulfing Liu Chuan and Liu Dongshi.

Boom!

Throughout all of this, He Yuanting stood silently to the side, his face iron-blue. An outsider was about to slaughter his people, right in front of him, within his own sect.

Even after Liu Dongshi voluntarily offered to die just to leave Liu Chuan a way out, Li Guanqi refused without a moment’s hesitation, repaying his grievances to the fullest.

His response had shocked everyone. Inside the grand hall, no one dared even breathe loudly.

Buzz!

Eventually, space twisted slightly, and a blood-soaked Li Guanqi slowly emerged, his body covered in wounds. Both of his swords were still dripping with blood. And in his hands, he held two heads.

Boom!

Flames rose, and the two heads were instantly reduced to ashes. The sight made everyone shudder uncontrollably.

Li Guanqi expressionlessly raised his hand, and an image unfolded in the air. It was a recording of Liu Chuan’s actions while standing guard over Li Guanqi.

Li Guanqi changed into a white robe, then turned to Meng Wanshu and said, “Let’s go.”

With that, he turned away without looking back and walked out of the grand hall.