Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Clearly, the grand array was designed to force its victims into making choices against their will.

Li Guanqi had discerned the array’s purpose. The Red Lotus Sword slowly materialized in his hand, its terrifying power threatening to tear the entire illusory realm apart.

Tears clung to Ye Feng’s lashes. His hands froze midair as he stared at Li Guanqi through his disheveled hair, disbelief etched in his eyes.

“Boss… are you… going to kill me?” Ye Feng’s eyes brimmed with disbelief as he spoke, mixed with a rush of other emotions. His hands trembled.

Then a figure moved at unimaginable speed and appeared before Ye Feng. The Red Lotus Sword pierced straight through his body.

Li Guanqi pulled the illusory Ye Feng into his arms, his vision blurred by tears.

Ye Feng rested his head on Li Guanqi’s shoulder, his eyes reddening. Two trails of bloody tears ran down his cheeks as he wrapped his arms around Li Guanqi and held him tight with all the strength he had left.

His voice trembled. “Boss, dying by your hand… isn’t such a bad way to go.”

Li Guanqi’s emotions churned violently. He gently patted Ye Feng on the back and whispered, “Don’t cry. I still acknowledge you as my brother. It’s just… your illusion cannot remain in this illusory realm.”

His touch was gentle, like an elder comforting a grief-stricken junior who had suffered a grave injustice.Ye Feng slipped down from the pile of corpses. His legs gave way, and he sank to one knee in midair.

Li Guanqi knelt on one knee, cradling Ye Feng in his arms, whispering, “Wait for me. Wait for me to bring you home. No matter what unforgivable crimes you’ve committed, you’ll always be my brother.”

Bang!

Ye Feng’s body shattered into motes of spirit light, dispersing into heaven and earth.

Li Guanqi stared at the corpses covering the ground, momentarily lost. The illusion shattered, and he slowly found himself standing on the array platform once more. Slowly, a fiery-red jade slip formed in his hand.

Meng Wanshu finally breathed a sigh of relief. She had feared that Li Guanqi would be overcome by emotion and find himself unable to strike.

She hadn’t expected him to have already contemplated what might happen years into the future. He had even envisioned every fate that might befall Ye Feng, including the worst and most unbearable possibilities.

She had never realized how deep Li Guanqi’s bond with Ye Feng truly was. Her gaze briefly shifted to Peng Luo, only to find that he didn’t seem surprised by Li Guanqi’s decision at all.

A line of glowing text slowly formed in the air: Trial passed!

Li Guanqi remained standing on the array platform, his feelings in turmoil. But everyone could see that he had already found his answer.

Peng Luo murmured, “That’s Ye Feng we’re talking about… He’s one of Master’s closest brothers. So what if he’s made mistakes? Besides, none of this would have happened if not for Master.”

Li Guanqi’s chest rose and fell slightly. He slowly exhaled, then opened his eyes.

Buzz!

Meng Wanshu gasped in astonishment. “Why does it feel like his cultivation has improved again?”

She was right. Li Guanqi’s aura had now completely stabilized at the mid Combined Body Realm. With the burden in his heart finally lifted, his cultivation rose once more.

Li Guanqi opened his eyes and took out Ye Feng’s life jade slip. As he gently ran his fingers across it, he suddenly froze. The power of the demonic spirit within Ye Feng had somehow been suppressed.

Li Guanqi frowned. Did he suppress it himself?

He did not dwell on it. This was good news, after all. If the demonic qi ever covered half of the life jade slip, it would mean that the demonic spirit had seized control of half of Ye Feng’s divine soul. By then, Ye Feng would lose the ability to act of his own volition.

Meanwhile, in a mysterious bedchamber, Ye Feng casually tossed Song Zhi’ang into a black pool and sat at its edge, gnawing on the head of a demonic spirit. The spirit’s terrified screams echoed through the chamber as Ye Feng slowly refined and absorbed its power.

A sudden warmth had inexplicably spread through his heart just moments before. A faint smile touched his handsome face. He knew many people were worried about him, including his parents, his elders, and his brothers.

Each bite produced a chilling crunch that mingled with the demonic spirit’s screams. Yet Ye Feng continued to smile, a distant, nostalgic look in his eyes.

To the demonic spirit, that smile was utterly terrifying.

I wonder whether Gu Li and Eldest Brother have become sworn brothers yet. I wonder if Tang Ru is doing any better… I really wish I could drink with everyone again…

Li Guanqi stood in a daze on the trial platform for a long while. Eventually, he tightened his grip on the jade slip and gradually suppressed the emotions surging within him.

He looked up at Meng Wanshu and smiled faintly. “Be careful, Wanshu.”

He leaped down from the platform without saying anything to Nine Heavens.

As a member of the dragon race, Nine Heavens was essentially immune to the Trial of the True Self. Such illusions were no more than a minor nuisance to him.

Meng Wanshu smiled. Her long dress fluttered through the air as she flew onto the array platform.

Li Guanqi wondered what would happen. He had no idea what Meng Wanshu feared most or found hardest to confront. As far as he knew, she had never experienced any truly devastating upheaval. Even being taken back to the Divine Treasure Territory by Meng Jiangchu had ultimately been a good thing.

Meng Jiangchu truly loved Meng Wanshu’s mother, Li Guilan. And she could now be considered a cultivator herself, though she still enjoyed raising chickens, ducks, and other livestock.

Meng Wanshu closed her eyes, a slight smile gracing her lips. She, too, wondered what the trial would uncover. Soon, the array barrier surged and enclosed her.

However, just as Li Guanqi assumed her trial would proceed, flames erupted across the barrier. It was as though the array platform was rejecting Meng Wanshu’s presence in the realm, actively repelling her power.

Li Guanqi’s expression darkened.

Wave after wave of fiery storms swept in from beyond the mountains.

Rumble!

Roar!

The enormous Qilin hologram planted both claws atop the peaks surrounding the valley and lowered its massive head toward the woman standing on the array platform.

Nine Heavens was furious. He returned to his true form, his body stretching more than one hundred and eighty zhang from end to end. He coiled across the mountain peaks and unleashed a blast of lightning breath at the Qilin phantom. At the same time, his overwhelming draconic might swept through the Illusory Forest, knocking every demonic beast unconscious.

The Qilin hesitated briefly, but as a spirit body, it felt little fear. Moreover, the phantom had already crossed the boundary between the two regions.

An invisible barrier seemed to separate the two regions, heavily suppressing the Qilin’s strength.

For a time, the two colossal beasts clashed violently atop the mountains.

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