Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Li Guanqi immediately realized where he was. “Damn it… Brother Ye! Hurry up and open this lousy lid of yours!”

Ka!

“Hehe, Boss, you’re awake?”

Ye Feng and Xiao Chen stood there holding a huge basin and a ladle. Li Guanqi stared, speechless. “You guys aren’t actually planning to drink my bathwater, are you?”

The medicinal liquid grew thicker, and Ye Feng and Xiao Chen’s eyes lit up.

“Boss, you have no idea what’s in this medicinal bath! Tier-seven spirit herbs, crushed like nothing and tossed straight in…”

Li Guanqi’s expression turned strange. He put on his clothes, feeling a bit nauseated. “Wait… you two are really going to drink it?”

Xiao Chen hesitated with the bowl in his hands, glancing at Ye Feng with unease. “Little Fengfeng… are we really doing this?”

Ye Feng didn’t hesitate at all. This was nothing after everything he’d eaten in the Dungeon Abyss.

“Don’t say I didn’t think of you, alright? It’s not often you get the chance to catch Peng Luo and stew him. Miss this chance, and there won’t be another.”Under Li Guanqi’s stunned gaze, Ye Feng scooped a ladleful straight into the basin. Xiao Chen gritted his teeth. He looked at the radish fingers floating in the pot, then gave up all restraint and filled an entire basin.

Gulp gulp! Gulp!

Ye Feng drank with relish, eyes shining, while Xiao Chen shut his eyes, pinched his nose, and forced it down. Yet the more he drank, the more his tightly furrowed brows relaxed. It didn’t seem as bad as he’d imagined.

Li Guanqi shook his head repeatedly at the sight. He knew this pot of medicinal liquid was incredibly precious, but drinking bathwater was still too much for him.

Just as Ye Feng was starting on his second basin, Xiao Chen suddenly put his down and picked at the corner of his mouth. A single strand of hair was pinched between his fingers. The entire room fell deathly silent.

Li Guanqi coughed awkwardly and turned to leave.

Ye Feng and Xiao Chen exchanged glances, and a violent churn rose in their stomachs. They doubled over, retching.

The moment Li Guanqi stepped outside, he ran into Meng Wanshu, who had come looking for him.

“You’re alright now?”

Li Guanqi smiled. “Of course. Thanks to Father’s secret medicinal bath, I recovered really fast.”

Meng Wanshu nodded, then glanced at the duo retching behind him. “What’s wrong with them?”

Li Guanqi quickly wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Hah! Nothing, nothing. Probably drank too much water. Were you looking for me?”

Meng Wanshu smiled. “My mother stewed a young hen and asked me to call you over to eat.”

Li Guanqi’s eyes lit up. “Great! I’ve wanted to try Auntie Li’s cooking for years. I didn’t expect to finally get the chance today. Let’s go.”

Meng Wanshu pointed behind Li Guanqi. Xiao Chen and Ye Feng were still retching. “Are they not coming?”

Li Guanqi chuckled. “It’s fine. Once they’re done puking, they’ll come on their own.”

Whoosh!

Li Guanqi flew off through the air. Peng Luo was sleeping in the sword box space, so Li Guanqi didn’t need to worry about any quarrels involving him.

When the two arrived at the mountain valley, Li Guanqi smiled faintly at the imposing house before them, then descended with Meng Wanshu.

Meng Jiangchu sat on the doorstep in a luxurious robe, smoking a dry tobacco pipe. He smiled when he saw them. “Brat, you recovered pretty fast. I thought it’d take all night.”

Li Guanqi laughed. “All thanks to Father-in-law’s medicinal bath.”

Meng Jiangchu shot him a glance, stood up, and knocked the ash from his pipe. “Come inside. Dinner’s almost ready.”

As night fell, the four of them sat in the courtyard and ate heartily. Li Guanqi finished three big bowls of white rice with relish. They sat together, chatting and laughing like a family.

Li Guilan had heard what happened during the day. She spent the entire meal piling food into Li Guanqi’s bowl, her eyes red. When she looked at him, there was unmistakable tenderness and concern.

Once they were nearly done, Meng Jiangchu waved his hand and drew out a violet crystal wine jar. He turned to Li Guanqi and smiled. “Have a drink?”

Li Guanqi smiled. “Sure.”

Meng Jiangchu snorted, and his face darkened. “Oh? You’ve only been cultivating for a few years and you already know how to drink?”

Li Guanqi remained calm. “Uncle Meng, even though I haven’t cultivated for long, I’ve been through a lot. I used to think this spicy stuff was pointless. But after everything I’ve experienced, I realized it can ease sorrow, and when you’re happy, you can raise a cup with your brothers.”

Meng Jiangchu said nothing more. He noticed a trace of sadness deep in Li Guanqi’s eyes.

He had heard about the battle between the Purple Sun Pavilion and the Daxia Sword Sect. He had even obtained recordings.

Neither of them used vital force as they drank, as if competing cup for cup.

Li Guilan smiled softly and went to prepare some side dishes. As night deepened, a tipsy Li Guanqi slung an arm over Meng Jiangchu’s shoulder. “Uncle Meng… it’s not that I… I mean… Back then… in the village… you were the one I feared most…”

Meng Jiangchu’s eyes were red as well. He wrapped an arm around Li Guanqi. “Since you were little… I… damn it… I was always on guard against you…”

“It’s all… all wasted now…”

“When Long Hou… destroyed it… I knew it was because… because of you.”

Meng Wanshu, pouring wine beside them, widened her eyes. “Oh, so that’s it! Dad! No wonder you’ve been introducing young talents to me these past six months!”

Meng Jiangchu just chuckled without saying anything more.

Suddenly, a terrifying pressure descended upon the entire domain. Both Li Guanqi and Meng Jiangchu sobered up completely. Vital force surged through them, dispersing the haze of alcohol. A flash of light appeared at Meng Jiangchu’s wrist as a deep-blue longsword wreathed in flames materialized.

Li Guanqi frowned, sensing the aura. His expression grew puzzled. The void above the domain manifested countless golden steps stretching from the heavens to the courtyard outside the mountain residence.

At the end of the steps, a man clad in golden armor slowly appeared. His features were resolute, his gaze calm as still water, and he walked down the steps unhurriedly.

Meng Jiangchu sucked in a sharp breath. He sheathed his sword and bowed deeply. “Junior Meng Jiangchu greets Long Hou!”

Long Hou nodded slightly, then turned to Li Guanqi with a slight smile. “Mid Illusory Refinement Realm. Not bad.”

As he spoke, he casually lifted a finger and traced through the air. Li Guanqi’s eyes widened in shock. The trajectory matched the Mount Meru Immortal Runes.

Long Hou smiled faintly as the golden steps behind him slowly dissipated.