Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

—Pavilion Master, we’ve talked it over among ourselves. Should we meet? The Four Towers are still in ruins, and many are finding it hard to work this way. So… maybe we rebuild them.

A mocking smile crept onto Li Guanqi’s face. “Fine. Let’s meet at the Council Pavilion.”

With that, Li Guanqi stepped forward and vanished from the courtyard, heading straight for the White Tower. He wanted to see what exactly they were scheming.

They couldn’t even wait for seven days...

When he arrived at the Council Pavilion, the four of them were already seated. Not a single one stood up to greet him. Li Guanqi didn’t mind; he walked straight to the main seat.

Only the thinnest pretense remained between them now. They didn’t need to save face anymore.

Li Guanqi sneered inwardly as he walked. So they’re staging a coup...

The corners of Li Guanqi’s mouth curved upward as he surveyed the people before him. This was going to be entertaining. His gaze swept casually over Tu Yongsi and Yuan Hongyi, and his smile deepened. He already had his suspicions about Ji Yuchuan. Only when his eyes fell on Jiang Yi did his gaze change, holding both pity and mockery, though mostly mockery.

An indescribable feeling stirred in Li Guanqi’s chest. He felt that the tower masters were really putting on a spectacular show for him.

The moment Li Guanqi sat down, Jiang Yi impatiently leaned back in his chair and spoke softly, not even looking at him. “Pavilion Master, there’s really not much to say about today’s meeting. It’s just... we few old-timers have served the pavilion faithfully for a thousand years. Now that we’ve been left idle, we’re finding it rather hard to adjust!” Li Guanqi sneered and picked at his nails as he replied. “Oh? That sounds great. You’re all basically living out your retirement.”

Jiang Yi’s face twitched uncontrollably. Shouldn’t Li Guanqi be asking what I have in mind first? Why isn’t he following the script?

Jiang Yi cleared his throat twice and said, “Haha, what the four of us mean is... we hope to restore the Four Towers! You see... you’ve already had your chance to vent your anger, so it would be better to put things back the way they were.”

Li Guanqi leaned forward slightly, his lifeless eyes staring mockingly at Jiang Yi. “On what grounds? Hmm? I destroyed the Four Towers. That should tell you I have no intention of rebuilding them.”

He had rejected the proposal outright, with no regard for Jiang Yi’s dignity.

Yuan Hongyi sat off to the side with a cold expression, rolling two jade beads between his fingers. He sneered. “Old Jiang, why bother being polite with him at this point?”

He turned to Li Guanqi, his tone turning icy. “If you can’t live up to your position, you should get your ass off the main seat already. The Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion is in chaos now. If you can’t manage it, why bother?”

Li Guanqi sneered. “Oh? Since when does the Yellow Tower get to weigh in on Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion affairs? Don’t get ahead of yourself, fatty.”

Yuan Hongyi’s heart blazed with anger. The entire purpose of the meeting was to force Li Guanqi out. He shot to his feet and jabbed a finger at Li Guanqi. “Li Guanqi! Don’t refuse what’s good for you! Leave the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion now. This isn’t a place for you to meddle in. Otherwise—”

Li Guanqi’s left hand condensed a lightning dagger as he lunged from his seat and slashed through the air. Lightning flashed, and one of Yuan Hongyi’s fingers flew off. Li Guanqi flipped his wrist, reversed his grip, and plunged the dagger into the table.

Boom!

The table, more than twenty zhang long, split apart with countless cracks. Yuan Hongyi’s right hand burst into a bloody mess as lightning scorched it black. The dagger nailed his hand to the table.

“Ahhh! Li Guanqi! You must have a death wish!”

Tu Yongsi and Jiang Yi shot to their feet. Ji Yuchuan remained seated, though a breath later, he sighed and stood up too.

The atmosphere in the room turned oppressive. The men’s auras grated against one another.

Li Guanqi swept his cold gaze across the others. He sat back down, leaned into the chair with his arms crossed, and sneered. “Are you all of one mind?”

When no one spoke, his mocking voice grew louder. “Is this your coup?”

The others said nothing, only looking displeased.

Li Guanqi went on. “How pathetic... is this it? Did you really think you could pressure me by locking down your subordinates and keeping me in the dark?”

With a sneer, Li Guanqi raised his hand and released the true Heavenly Intelligence Map. The hundred-zhang scroll enveloped all four of them, layer upon layer of its images displaying everything held within the White Tower’s Heavenly Intelligence Map.

Li Guanqi scoffed. “Even if you don’t tell me, so what? Everything is under my control and surveillance. I can even override any order you issue. Frustrating, isn’t it? Didn’t expect that, did you?”

The tower masters’ expressions soured, as if they’d each swallowed a fly. They had expected their feigned compliance to leave Li Guanqi overwhelmed by the betrayal. That’s why they had rushed to stage the coup. If he backed down in the face of difficulty and relinquished power again, they naturally wouldn’t need to proceed to the next step. After all, if it came to that, they would be like arrows loosed from a bow, with no turning back.

But from the looks of it, Li Guanqi was watching them like clowns performing on a stage.

Li Guanqi sat without a trace of fear. It had come to this. He was done playing games with the old foxes.

If they were going to throw sand in his bowl, he couldn’t be blamed for smashing the pot. Since they didn’t want to play… nobody would play.

Li Guanqi’s icy gaze settled on Tu Yongsi. He spoke slowly. “You’ve hidden yourself quite well. Even Jiang Yi and Yuan Hongyi think you’re just a lackey tagging along behind them.”

The old man’s cloudy eyes stayed fixed on Li Guanqi as he said softly, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m just a minor figure. The position of pavilion master... any of the four tower masters may hold it. Except you. You may not.”

Li Guanqi burst out laughing, loud and unrestrained. Still laughing, he even clapped. “Good, good, good! A truly loyal elder, always looking out for the Heavenly Intelligence Pavilion.”

With that, he tossed evidence of Tu Yongsi’s privately built death warrior organization onto the table. “This isn’t particularly useful. You could always claim that training these death warriors was part of the Heavenly Intelligence Guard’s duties.”

Tu Yongsi’s expression didn’t change. He said softly, “That’s exactly what it is.”

Li Guanqi looked at the others, sneered, and turned to Jiang Yi. “Do you think you’re clever, Purple Tower Master? Do you think everything is under your control?”

The corners of Li Guanqi’s mouth curved upward slightly, his eyes brimming with mockery.