Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

When Wu Kun caught sight of Li Guanqi, he was startled. He hadn’t expected to see him. But he quickly brushed the thought aside, as his trip to Dongxiao City mattered far more, and he was determined to avoid trouble. Otherwise, with his temper, he would already have confronted Li Guanqi.

From the way Wu Kun treated Cang Lu, it was obvious he was an arrogant man who looked down on others. Since Wu Kun wasn’t causing trouble, Li Guanqi let it be and simply waited, eager for his hotpot to arrive.

Although he no longer needed food after stepping into the Golden Core Realm, he still had cravings. His years of cultivation were still few, and his mortal cravings lingered.

Meanwhile, in a towering pavilion at the back of the Phoenix Lightning Sect’s grounds, an old man in green robes sulked as a young girl reported back. Little Jiang Shan railed against Li Guanqi’s supposed crimes, her arms flailing.

“Master, you don’t understand! That guy may not look it, but he’s a pervert. There were nine dancers in that room with him—nine! He acts like he’s some big shot. And you sent your most beloved disciple to hand him an invitation in person, but he didn’t appreciate it one bit. Hmmph!”

Hands on her hips, Jiang Shan rattled off every fault she could think of, her face reddening when she described the dancers.

The white-bearded sect master of the Phoenix Lightning Sect just chuckled. “He was listening to music and watching a dance. That’s hardly a crime. Is it true that he’s very young?”

Jiang Shan nearly exploded when her master brushed it off, but after thinking a moment, she replied, “Yes, he looked very young. Sixteen, maybe seventeen. He did have… nice eyes.”

Then she suddenly looked up. “Master, why do you care so much about some nobody? Our sect has plenty of talent, and the surrounding three cities and eight towns are full of prodigies. Why give him special treatment?”

Her master had not told her the reason before she went down the mountain.Sect Master Chu Xingxian stroked his beard with a smile when he heard that Li Guanqi had accepted the jade slip. “Little Jiang Shan, do you know what his cultivation level is? Do you know who he is?”

Jiang Shan frowned and pursed her lips. “How strong could he be? And even if he’s on the Intelligence Pavilion’s Golden Core Leaderboard, so what? That’s not enough for you, a Divine Transformation Realm cultivator, to bow down and invite him personally, right?”

Jiang Shan couldn’t make sense of her master’s attitude. Chu Xingxian was known for his coldness, though he softened when alone with her.

But Chu Xingxian only laughed and leaned back in his rocking chair, tapping the armrest. “The Golden Core Leaderboard isn’t enough to warrant this. But what if… he’s already stepped into the Nascent Soul Realm?”

Jiang Shan’s eyes widened in disbelief. “N-n-nascent Soul Realm?!”

She was stunned. Clutching his arm, she cried out, “But he’s so young! How could he be some ancient Nascent Soul Realm monster?”

Then, covering her face in alarm, she blurted, “Unless… he’s actually a few-hundred-year-old monster in disguise!”

Chu Xingxian’s expression darkened. Flustered, Jiang Shan said, “Uh, I didn’t mean you, Master!”

The old man waved it off. “If that were all, I’d simply call him a very rare prodigy. But this is Li Guanqi we’re talking about. I want to see how lucky Old Lu was to take him on as a disciple.”

“Li Guanqi?” Jiang Shan repeated, bewildered. “So that’s his name? If you think so highly of him, I wonder what he’s really like.”

Chu Xingxian sighed. “In the Northern Territory, his name is very well-known. He’s Li Guanqi of the Daxia Sword Sect.”

Then, he said bitterly, “No, I need to talk to Old Lu, I want Li Guanqi to come teach a class for the Phoenix Lightning Sect’s brats.”

He rose to his feet and left.

Jiang Shan was very intrigued by his actions. She tossed out her green sword, then mounted it and flew off, intending to seek out her senior brothers and sisters for answers.

That night, Li Guanqi cultivated amongst mortal distractions again. Yet he found them meaningless now. He no longer had the urge to indulge, treating it only as an idle pastime.

Dongxiao City was still lively after dark. As he strolled through the streets, his eyes fell on a shadowy alley. At its entrance sat an old woman on a small wooden stool, gently fanning herself. She looked ordinary, yet he couldn’t gauge her cultivation level.

Interesting!

As he extended his divine consciousness, the old lady’s milky eyes suddenly lit up.

A voice slipped into his ears.

“Kid, this is a black market. If you want to play here, you’ll need a change of clothes.”

Li Guanqi’s eyes brightened. He hadn’t expected to find Dongxiao City’s black market. Since fate had placed it before him, why not take a look?

He had some money on hand now. Killing Cheng Yun, a Divine Transformation Realm cultivator, had earned him a lot of spirit stones.

I have nothing else to do. Might as well go check it out.

Buzz!

A dark shadow slipped through the busy street, unnoticed.

Once Li Guanqi vanished into the alley, the old woman murmured to herself, “The esteemed elder catches wind of things very quickly. This child truly is formidable… Should I report it?”

She closed her eyes, sending out a faint ripple of energy.

Meanwhile, back at the Phoenix Lightning Sect, Chu Xingxian clutched the jade slip and cursed, saying, “That old bastard isn’t answering me!”

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Even so, he wouldn’t deign to seek out someone so young in person, at least not yet. He decided to wait, seeing as Li Guanqi was still at Dongxiao City, right at the foot of the mountain. And if he didn’t come soon, Chu Xingxian would seek him out personally.

Li Guanqi, now wearing a hooded black cloak, slowly walked into a mansion. Inside was a simple courtyard with only ten seats.

Seven people were already seated, so he was the eighth.

Every cloaked figure turned to look at him as he entered.