Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Huff.. huff..

Li Guanqi calmly drew the broken blade from his palm. Vital force surged through his meridians, halting the bleeding and closing the wound before his eyes. His breath came rough and heavy, like the bellows of a forge.

Swish!

Lightning flared beneath his feet, carrying him back to the ground in an instant. The battlefield below was pitted with craters, the earth torn and smoking. He collapsed onto the soil, pain stabbing through every bone and muscle.

That old man’s fire wasn’t to be taken lightly.

Clenching his teeth, Li Guanqi tilted his head toward the sky and muttered, “Cunning old fox... to have stalked me so long… That flame domain was formidable indeed.”

His gaze shifted to the charred corpse. With a flick of his wrist, he stripped it of every artifact and trinket.

The ancient seal he recovered was cracked but not yet broken—usable, at least. Its defense had been incredible, dulling nearly thirty percent of his final strike.

He glanced down at the burns covering his body and gave a wry smile. The wounds were deep, but removing a hidden threat like that was worth every scar. Miao Rongchang had haunted him for more than a year, robbing him of sleep and peace. At last, that burden was gone.

Sitting cross-legged, he drew out spirit stones and started to replenish his drained dantian. His divine consciousness gradually steadied, his sea of consciousness humming as he erased the mark from the old man’s storage ring.When his divine consciousness slipped inside, Li Guanqi clicked his tongue in surprise. “Just how many people did this geezer rob? What a haul.”

The ring brimmed with wealth. There were over a hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones and over two hundred high-grade spirit stones. For a mere Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, such a fortune rivaled that of many impoverished Divine Transformation Realm cultivators.

With no time to sort through the miscellaneous items, Li Guanqi dumped them back into the ring. Then he set a spirit-gathering array beside him, embedding spirit stones into its grooves. Spirit qi spread outward at once, coiling around him like mist.

He closed his eyes and sank into cultivation, the Red Lotus Sword resting across his knees. Even in recovery, he dared not lower his guard.

Far away, three mysterious figures in black robes strode across the void, their destination unknown.

By the time Li Guanqi’s wounds had mostly healed, the crimson lines carved into his flesh by flame still refused to fade. He exhaled a long breath and opened his eyes.

Power roared within him, stronger than before. Yet he was still far from the late Nascent Soul Realm. The gap was vast.

Strength never came smoothly. Advancement required more than cultivation and accumulation of vital force. It demanded opportunity, insight, and even fate itself.

However, each training session consistently deepened his understanding, revealing insights into domains and the power of space. Each battle carved new truths into his mind, and his encounter with Miao Rongchang was no exception.

The old man’s mastery of domains had fused seamlessly with his spells, forcing Li Guanqi to reveal the defensive spell that Sword Spirit had taught him.

Its demand for lightning-rich spirit qi had been enormous. Fortunately, within his domain, lightning reigned supreme. What should’ve been mortal peril became nothing more than severe injury.

A sigh escaped him. Sword Spirit had guided him step by step, always with purpose: refining his swordsmanship, training him in the Hundred Prides Illusory Realm, leading him toward true sword intent, and more. Every lesson had been deliberate, paving his path forward.

And she held nothing back. She’d taught him lethal sword techniques, evasive techniques, body refinement methods, and even top-tier defensive spells.

Li Guanqi rose slowly, lifting his gaze to the jade pendant suspended in the air. His eyes hardened, a steely light flashing within. “If the future is uncertain, then I’ll stake everything on strength. I’ll become strong enough to shatter the Nine Heavens with my sword.”

Within the sword coffin, Sword Spirit heard his vow. Her beautiful eyes shimmered with a strange light, and her lips curved faintly.

She murmured, “Check the jade slips in that old man’s ring. You’ll find something useful there.”

Li Guanqi was about to open the door but paused at her words. He rifled through the storage ring and soon found the jade slip she meant. There was an ancient-looking crimson jade slip, its surface worn by the millennia. It glowed faintly, but its vitality was fading.

“What’s this?”

He hesitated briefly, then pressed his divine consciousness against it.

At once, the jade dissolved into fiery light and streamed into his brow.

“The Flame-Devouring Sutra!”

An ancient and obscure cultivation method blazed to life within his sea of consciousness. Characters of flame hovered there, vast and mysterious.

Li Guanqi frowned, scratching his head in embarrassment. “Uh, Sister Sword Spirit, it’s incomplete.”

Sword Spirit only smiled and drew his consciousness into the sword coffin’s space. “Show me.”

The fiery script unfurled in the air. Her expression grew solemn as she studied it.

Li Guanqi’s heart skipped. “What is it? Something wrong?”

She didn’t answer at first, but she stepped closer, her eyes fixed on the glowing text. After a long silence, she finally exhaled softly, admiration flickering in her gaze.

“The one who created this technique must have been a peerless genius. Astonishing... for someone from the mortal world to have such brilliance.”

Her words left Li Guanqi momentarily stunned. Even Heaven-tier techniques had never impressed her.

He murmured, “That’s the first time I’ve heard you praise anyone.”

Sword Spirit turned her gaze toward him and smiled faintly. “You’re remarkable too.”

Li Guanqi blinked, caught off guard, scratching his head with a sheepish grin.

Then Sword Spirit closed her eyes beneath the fiery script, and her aura shifted abruptly.