Chapter 82: A Narrow Encounter with an Old Foe

Li Xingjian waved his hand to the crowd, indicating there was no need for formalities, then turned his gaze toward Sword Burial Peak.

Had the gravity field of Sword Burial Peak changed?

The ten peaks of Shu Sword Mountain each possessed their own gravity field, subtly aligned with certain heavenly laws, enabling them to remain stable and suspended in the void. Yet now, the gravity field of Sword Burial Peak had become unstable.

There was no time for further contemplation. Li Xingjian swept his hand, and before him appeared a vast, ethereal Nine-Star Wheel. As the wheel rotated, various star sigils gradually rose upon its surface, mysterious and unfathomable.

He formed a seal with his hands, and a white sword gesture shot forth. The Nine-Star Wheel spun rapidly, causing countless starlight points to rise and coalesce in the void, forming a colossal ancient character for “weight,” which then merged into Sword Burial Peak.

The mountain’s collapse continued, but as the “weight” character fused in, the pace of destruction swiftly slowed, and the tremors gradually subsided.

Li Xingjian cast another seal, and with several more “weight” characters absorbed into the mountain, the collapse was finally halted.

He frowned—three layers of gravity were missing!

Li Xingjian’s silver brows rose; clearly, this was a grave matter. He scanned the surroundings, finally fixing his gaze on Qin Feng, who was dragging along Chongwu.

“He actually drew that strange sword!”

Li Xingjian knew of the Chongwu Sword, though he was unaware of its name or origin. This enigmatic heavy sword had existed in Shu Sword Mountain long before his arrival, rumored to be among the earliest swords stored on Sword Burial Peak. When Li Xingjian was young, he had tried to draw it himself, only to fail. Since the founding of Shu Sword Mountain, no one had ever succeeded in pulling out this sword.

Yet today, someone had managed to draw this treasured blade!

“Bring that disciple to me,” Li Xingjian ordered, pointing at Qin Feng and signaling the stewards to escort him.

“Yes, Master!” The broad-faced steward quickly responded, summoning his flying sword and heading straight to Qin Feng. Attempting to carry him, he found that as soon as Qin Feng, holding Chongwu, leapt onto the flying sword, it immediately plunged downward.

“As expected, that sword affects gravity!” Li Xingjian’s silver brows arched, silver light flickering between his fingers. With a sweep in the void ahead, a giant silver palm appeared, scooping up the falling Qin Feng and the broad-faced steward.

Once he had them in hand, Li Xingjian flashed across the sky, appearing atop Sword Burial Peak, where he set the two down. As he withdrew his palm, Chongwu was already in his grasp.

Qin Feng did not resist; he knew that if Li Xingjian truly intended to seize Chongwu, he would not do so in front of everyone.

“Thank you for saving us, Master!” The broad-faced cultivator, drenched in sweat, had been scared out of his wits.

Qin Feng bowed lightly, squinting at Li Xingjian—the leader of the righteous sects in Yunqi Kingdom, standing like a towering sword, radiating a natural authority that came from years of command. Truly extraordinary.

But when Qin Feng looked behind Li Xingjian, his eyes widened in shock.

Standing there was Li Haoran, Li Xingjian’s only son, cherished by his wife Qin Xin Yue like a precious gem. Yet Qin Feng recognized this so-called favored son!

He was the black-cloaked youth who, along with Ye Wuyin, had plotted to drug and assault Huo Siyen in the southern woods of Luoyang Town!

Those silver demonic brows were unmistakable.

The lecherous scoundrel Qin Feng had nearly beaten to death with a single punch turned out to be a disciple of Shu Sword Mountain—and the only son of its Sect Master!

If word of this got out, the entire cultivation world of Yunqi Kingdom would be shaken!

The critical issue was that this fiend had clearly suffered soul damage, yet here he stood before Qin Feng, looking perfectly normal. Impossible—unless he had used some rare medicine to restore his soul. Otherwise, such recovery in so short a time was unthinkable.

Qin Feng glanced at Li Xingjian and Qin Xin Yue, suddenly gaining a hint of understanding.

Li Haoran truly had a good father.

Qin Feng thought this sarcastically. The father is a righteous leader, while the son commits crimes outside. Injured, he returns home for his father to clean up the mess.

“If Li Xingjian knew about this, surely for the sake of his reputation, he would properly discipline his precious son.”

“Enemies truly do cross paths!” Qin Feng recognized Li Haoran, and the latter naturally recognized him.

At that moment, Li Haoran’s face turned deathly pale, as if he had seen a ghost. He stared at Qin Feng, nearly frightened out of his wits, shrinking behind his father.

How could he be here? Damn, this is unbelievable!

Li Haoran knew Qin Feng was a body cultivator. Why wasn’t he staying with his clan, but had come to Shu Sword Mountain?

The key issue was, Qin Feng knew his identity!

That night, Qin Feng’s terrifying punch haunted Li Haoran with nightmares for three days. Qin Feng’s fearsome face and massive fist—he would recognize them even if they turned to ashes.

“This Qin Feng must die!”

At that moment, Li Haoran saw Qin Feng as a demon from his nightmares; he could not rest until Qin Feng was dead. His mother, Qin Xin Yue, noticed his odd behavior and asked, “Haoran, what’s wrong?”

“Oh… nothing, nothing! I was just stunned by Father’s prowess. I didn’t expect his cultivation to have advanced so much.” Li Haoran forced a smile, quickly explaining to Qin Xin Yue.

“Mmm. Your father has been studying the Ten Cloud Sword of the Great Wilderness lately; he’s certainly gained much. It seems he might reach the third tier of Heavenly Gang within ten years.”

Qin Xin Yue doted on her son, oblivious to his evasiveness. To her, he was the best, a prodigy nurtured by her, already showing talent among his peers, and with her help, he had obtained the Sky Thunder Sword, one of Shu Sword Sect’s twin blades.

Her husband Li Xingjian was her pride, and her son Li Haotian even more so.

Li Xingjian glanced at his son, a hint of helplessness in his eyes. The saying goes that a loving mother spoils her child; his son was excellent in every respect, save for being too playful. With his mutated thunder spiritual root and diligence, he could have long surpassed Zhan Bai, the disciple with the earth profound root, and become the top among Shu Sword Mountain’s younger disciples.

Li Xingjian noticed nothing amiss, thanks to Qin Feng’s careful concealment.

Qin Feng was no fool; if he revealed anything, no one would believe him, especially in front of Li Xingjian and Qin Xin Yue without evidence—the only one to suffer would be himself.

Li Haoran understood this as well.

Thus, Qin Feng merely glanced at Li Haoran, then looked away as if he’d never seen him, but inwardly resolved that if that fellow caused him trouble, Qin Feng wouldn’t care who his parents were—he’d kill him without hesitation.

At worst, he could just leave and disappear.

From the moment he entered Shu Sword Mountain, everything he saw and heard, culminating with Li Haoran, had lowered his impression of Shu Sword Mountain to zero.

If not for the Chongwu Sword in Li Xingjian’s hand, Qin Feng might have turned and left already.

The demon’s words rang true—a pack of hypocrites!

“What is your name?” Li Xingjian, having shifted his gaze from Chongwu to Qin Feng, asked calmly.

Qin Feng leaned forward slightly, neither humble nor arrogant. “Master, disciple Qin Feng!” At this point, Qin Feng was not yet a formal disciple of Shu Sword Mountain and could only refer to himself as a junior.

“Surnamed Qin? From the Qin clan?” Li Xingjian raised his brow, somewhat surprised.

“Yes,” Qin Feng nodded. There was nothing to hide—before joining, Shu Sword Mountain would investigate his background, and Li Haoran knew he was from the Qin family.

Receiving confirmation, Li Xingjian fell silent, his expression grave as if pondering something.

After a long pause, he sighed softly and continued, “This mysterious heavy sword is not Shu Mountain’s strongest blade, but its significance to Shu Sword Mountain is immense. Forgive my caution—if the demonic sect were to infiltrate and obtain this sword, it would be disastrous for us. Since you drew the sword, it belongs to you. But you say you’re from the Qin clan—do you have proof?”

This made Qin Feng frown slightly.

“What does Li Xingjian mean by this?” Qin Feng quickly pondered the sect master’s words, analyzing his tone. The demon within him had vanished without a trace, likely hiding somewhere out of fear of discovery.

After consideration, Qin Feng felt Li Xingjian was not acting out of petty suspicion. After all, Zhan Bai was his disciple, and Qin Feng knew Zhan Bai’s character—his teacher should not be bad either. Thus, after brief hesitation, Qin Feng nodded, “Yes.”

He retrieved the letter his grandfather had given him before departure from his storage pouch, handing it to a nearby steward to deliver.

Li Xingjian took the letter, noting the words “For Luo Yuchan” on the envelope.

The signature read “Qin Tianzheng.”

Seeing these names, Li Xingjian’s face suddenly darkened. He snorted coldly and did not open the envelope, but stared at it, as if lost in recollection. Beside him, Qin Xin Yue glanced at the envelope, and upon seeing a certain name, her eyes flashed with killing intent—her gaze toward Qin Feng turned hostile.

“Uh…”

This time, Qin Feng was puzzled. It was just a letter—why such murderous looks? Could it be that his grandfather and Luo Yuchan…

Remembering his grandfather’s strange expression when handing him the letter, Qin Feng secretly felt uneasy.

“No way—so the old man was quite a romantic in his youth!” Qin Feng grumbled internally.

Meanwhile, Li Xingjian quickly regained composure and addressed Qin Feng in a calm tone, “I’ll deliver this letter for you. As for this sword…” Li Xingjian hesitated briefly, then tossed Chongwu to Qin Feng. “If you ever betray Shu Sword Mountain, I’ll pursue you to the ends of the earth to reclaim this sword. Do you understand?”

As he spoke, Li Xingjian’s eyes blazed, sharp as needles, and his aura intensified, almost suffocating Qin Feng.

“Yes, Master, I understand!” The feeling of being suppressed was unpleasant and stifling, but Qin Feng had no choice—in the face of overwhelming power, all resistance was futile. Thus, he chose to endure.

Li Xingjian’s act of tossing Chongwu to him signified acceptance of Qin Feng’s identity and allowed him to join Shu Sword Mountain. Accordingly, Qin Feng addressed him as “Master.”

“Good!” Li Xingjian was satisfied with Qin Feng’s response and turned to leave.

Qin Xin Yue glanced at Qin Feng, snorted coldly, her face full of displeasure. Li Haoran, having calmed down, cast a fierce, threatening look at Qin Feng, silently warning him against revealing anything.

Qin Feng smiled. Throughout his life, he had been threatened more than once—none of those people ended well.

He had no interest in spreading rumors, but if given the chance, he wouldn’t mind killing Li Haoran again.

With Chongwu in hand, Qin Feng gazed into the distance, faintly sensing that his trip to Shu Sword Mountain might have been a mistake.

The mountain was beautiful, but the hearts of men were far more treacherous…