Heart's Blood

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After the incident, Leng Fangxie managed to leave the Flowing Cloud Flying Palace smoothly. The shocking commotion had drawn the attention of the eldest senior brother.

“You’ve grown stronger in your cultivation,” the eldest senior brother teased, speaking truthfully. The sword strike that night, cleaving a mountain peak, had already revealed Leng Fangxie’s sharp and resolute sword intent, more refined than before. He also felt troubled by the uproar caused by Fu Heng and Leng Fangxie. “Next time you test your sword, don’t use the Sword Peak as your testing stone.”

Leng Fangxie opened his palm, and a small sword, no longer than a finger, hovered above it. The blade shimmered with a clear, rosy light, giving it an almost dreamlike quality. He savored the sword intent and absentmindedly responded to the eldest senior brother, clearly immersed in his cultivation and paying little attention to the other person in the room.

Seeing his pupils dilate and eyes gleaming with excitement, the eldest senior brother likened him to a child discovering a fascinating toy. Because of this, he guessed that Leng Fangxie was making a fuss as an excuse.

His junior brother disliked being forced to cultivate alongside the Fu Heng Saint Sovereign and wanted to escape the confinement. So, he stirred up trouble under the pretense of conflict to attract the sect’s attention and intervention. Was that the case?

The eldest senior brother’s thoughts flickered with faint suspicion as he recalled the Saint Sovereign who had not appeared since the incident.

Were the junior brother and the Saint Sovereign really just bickering like ordinary people?

Having somewhat covert control over the information flow within the Jiuchen Sect, the eldest senior brother sensed a discord from subtle clues but, unlike Li Lingchen, who had seen forbidden things, he could not formulate a concrete and reliable conjecture.

Yet, in his heart, he had grown somewhat disrespectful toward the Saint Sovereign who dominated an entire realm. After all, given his junior brother’s character, it was unlikely he would disdain his respected master, the one he once admired and loved.

Enough.

Gathering his thoughts, the eldest senior brother said, “The Qingshan Secret Realm will open soon. This time, you and Sister Wei will lead the team—it’s been your turn for a while, but you avoided it before out of anger.”

He smiled at Leng Fangxie, squinting knowingly, as if to say “Got you at last.”

Little did he know that everything was exactly as Leng Fangxie wished.

With a flick of his fingers, the spiritual sword was withdrawn. Leng Fangxie glanced at him with a faint look and nodded slightly after a moment.

The eldest senior brother laughed at his proud demeanor, as if he were the young boy who used to grind his teeth and swing his sword thousands of times daily.

“You, you…”

* * *

The Qingshan Secret Realm opens once every twenty years, allowing only cultivators below the Golden Core stage to enter. Discovered by the Supreme Sect Daoist over sixty cycles ago, it has since become a proving ground for the new generation of cultivators in the cultivation world. It is filled with many hardships and dangers, yet few are fatal. There are many rare flowers, exotic herbs, and hidden legacies, making it ideal for novices to hone their skills.

The year Li Lingchen joined Jiuchen coincided with the opening of the Qingshan Secret Realm. Having secured the top rank in the grand competition, he entered the inner sect, and within days broke through to the Foundation Establishment stage. Without further trials, he earned qualification for the secret realm.

Many envied his extraordinary luck in secret. Upon learning who would lead the team this year, their envy deepened.

Some joked with Li Lingchen, warning him to watch his step, lest jealous cultivators ambush him and throw a sack over his head.

Li Lingchen paid no mind and awaited the opening of the secret realm.

Then he would see his master again.

On a rare day of clear skies and gentle breezes, twenty-three disciples from both the inner and outer sects gathered before the Jade Dragon Gate, dressed uniformly in white robes embroidered with cloud patterns. Each was a prodigy of exceptional bearing, among whom Jiang Yanwen and Li Lingchen attracted the most attention.

After a brief wait, two beams of spiritual light shot out from the dense spiritual peaks and swiftly arrived at the Jade Dragon Gate. Everyone held their breath and straightened their backs, some discreetly tidying their hair and collars.

Two lights descended, one after the other. The first was a figure in scarlet robes, radiating a commanding aura—none other than the eagerly awaited Dao Lord Qing Hong. The second wore purple robes with a dark-patterned butterfly perched in their hair, their expression icy and aloof. This was Wei Yun, the fifth of the Ten True Disciples, also known as the Butterfly Dao Lord.

Both were renowned figures who had once dominated the scene. Compared to Leng Fangxie’s bloody and turbulent path, Wei Yun’s presence was more understated.

Though two led the team, it was clear that Leng Fangxie held the primary position. He casually swept his gaze over the crowd, confirming the identities of all disciples without much questioning. Once assured none were missing, he briefly outlined the precautions for leaving the sect, then waved his hand. A magnificent treasure ship appeared before the Jade Dragon Gate.

Pure white and grand in scale, the ship had five decks and soared high enough to block the sun. Upon closer inspection, its body was not rigid but seemed to flow, reflecting varying halos of light under the sun.

A disciple whispered, “Lan Yun Seat!”

Li Lingchen overheard this and understood the ship was the work of a swordsmith. Not only was it a rare flying spiritual device, but it could also gather clouds and capture the moon, containing spiritual mechanisms, making it endlessly useful for cultivation. It could even withstand a strike from a Nascent Soul master. Even within Jiuchen, only two or three such ships were available each year, usually reserved for cultivators above Nascent Soul stage.

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This time, they had the chance to witness the Lan Yun Seat’s splendor! Even Jiang Yanwen, from a prestigious family, showed a hint of excitement in his eyes.

The disciple’s words proved true. Once aboard, the scenery was breathtaking. Li Lingchen clasped his hands behind his back and gazed down at the myriad rivers and mountains beneath the Lan Yun Seat, intending to rest briefly before returning to his quarters to cultivate. His eyes subtly watched Leng Fangxie standing at the forefront with Wei Yun.

Within the white cloud ship, the figure in scarlet robes was even more striking.

Suddenly, the Lan Yun Seat halted. A clear rosy light burst forth from Leng Fangxie’s body, shooting downward and cutting through fierce winds. Li Lingchen and the other disciples focused their spiritual power on their eyes, barely catching sight of a brilliant streak of light, like a shooting star, smashing with immense force into something no larger than an ant on the ground.

From such a height, everything on the ground looked as tiny as dust. But that ant-sized creature was far more than an ant.

After a moment, the rosy light returned and sheathed itself.

“That was a demon!” A disciple held a recently crafted kaleidoscope from the Mechanism Hall. “It must be a crying infant type, slaughtering a small village. Had the Dao Lord not acted in time, the villagers would have been beheaded and devoured by demons.”

So while using spiritual power to maneuver the Lan Yun Seat, Leng Fangxie had casually slain a demon!

The disciple continued, “The villagers were astonished, believing a god had descended, and knelt in gratitude.”

“Calmly quelling the turbulent waves, slaying demons with a flick of the sleeve—that is how we should be!”

Yet Leng Fangxie spoke lightly of it, and without the kaleidoscope, none would know that moment of demon slaying.

Truly deserving of the title Dao Lord Qing Hong.

The disciples, no longer silent, began whispering excitedly. All were prodigies of Jiuchen’s new generation, yet they revered Dao Lord Qing Hong immensely. When speaking of the Dao Lord, there was no end to their tales. Li Lingchen heard many things that had happened before his joining the sect.

Among the most mentioned was the Breaking Demons of Baixue Pass.

At some unknown time, demons had run rampant in the world, especially in the extreme north. The three sects and six schools used Baixue Pass as a boundary to block them. Many powerful cultivators took turns guarding Baixue Pass.

Of all battles at Baixue Pass, the most thrilling was when Leng Fangxie was stationed there. It was a dark moon night, and the demons’ power surged. Inside the pass, schemers stirred the winds of change. At the time, there was a gap in rotation, and few high-level cultivators were present. Only three Golden Core cultivators, six Foundation Establishment cultivators, and a single Nascent Soul cultivator remained.

That night, snow blanketed the earth, the moonlight dimmed. Everywhere was white. The demons swarmed like clouds. Leng Fangxie and the remaining cultivators stood firm. On the brink of death, he attained enlightenment and breakthrough. Radiant light pierced the darkness, his sword sweeping away the demons into ashes.

The scene was recorded on a Memory Stone by a famous cultivator, worth a fortune.

A disciple from a noble family once saw it and whispered a description:

“Snow flew wildly, drifting down. The fierce wind swept the earth. The Dao Lord stood alone, sword in arms. His chestnut hair and lashes, scarlet robes were dusted with snowflakes that neither melted nor fell for a long time.

“That beam of rosy light burst forth from his sword, a slender streak instantly piercing the darkness, shattering the clouds, leaving only faint sunlight.

“The Dao Lord embraced his sword and left in the light, his robes heavy with dew.”

“That scene... no words can describe it. The Dao Lord’s...” He didn’t say the last two words but silently mouthed them.

The Dao Lord’s elegance.

Li Lingchen was deeply moved and resolved to buy a copy to admire in the future.

“I want one too!” someone silently shouted within the crowd.

Yet outwardly, she remained cold, discussing the recently slain demon with Leng Fangxie.

“The demons in the Fuyuan Realm are increasing, and we cannot trace their source. Killing them endlessly will only worsen matters,” Leng Fangxie spoke with genuine concern. The demon calamity was developing far faster than he had anticipated, diverging from the original course of events.

Wei Yun nodded. Taciturn as ever, she replied with only three words: “Cloud Gathering Meeting.”

This referred to a summit of the three sect leaders amidst layers of clouds, concerning the Fuyuan Realm. The paramount issue would be the demons. Surely, the three sects would devise new plans for this.

Leng Fangxie was less optimistic. In the original storyline, after Fu Heng’s ascension, no one could handle the demon calamity. Countless powerful cultivators of the three sects and six schools perished. Only with Li Lingchen’s sudden emergence was the disaster ended, and the path to enlightenment achieved.

Now, Li Lingchen was far from grown, demons were spreading, and he was still under Fu Heng’s control.

Truly—

Suppressing his frustration, Leng Fangxie fixed his gaze on a patch of green peeking from the clouds.

He must enter the Qingshan Secret Realm!

* * *

As its name suggests, the entrance to the Qingshan Secret Realm lies on a green mountain. When the Lan Yun Seat arrived, many sects and wandering cultivators had already gathered at the foot.

“It’s the Jiuchen Sect!”

“So grand! Just a few disciples traveling and they have the Lan Yun Seat. No wonder it’s Jiuchen...” someone jealously remarked.

Another laughed, “Don’t you know? The leader this time is Dao Lord Qing Hong. When a Dao Lord travels, even the Phoenix Seat is used—let alone a mere Lan Yun Seat.”

“A Dao Lord?!”

All eyes focused on the Nascent Soul Dao Lord leading the disciples, Leng Fangxie.

“That is truly Dao Lord Qing Hong, Leng Fangxie. Well-deserved.”

Leng Fangxie’s gaze swept over them faintly. Wherever it touched, people instinctively held their breath. The Dao Lord’s jade-like face was cold, proudly standing alone like a drawn blue steel sword, utterly indifferent to those around him.

Yet none felt anger or resentment; they all believed that Dao Lord Qing Hong ought to be so exalted.

“Leng Fangxie!” a red-haired Nascent Soul cultivator from the Blood Origin Sect challenged him, “Let’s have a duel! I want to see how much you’ve advanced!”

The cultivator’s robes were open and unrestrained. His shout was met with Leng Fangxie’s cold glare. A ripple of spiritual energy struck him back several meters.

“Still want to be hit by me?” Leng Fangxie sneered.

The red-haired cultivator grew even more excited, his face flushed, causing the disciples behind him to cover their faces in embarrassment.

A stern-faced youth approached quietly, gritting his teeth to remind, “Uncle Lie, didn’t you promise the sect leader something before leaving?”

Lie Sword, if you embarrass yourself again before Leng Fangxie and make the Blood Origin Sect a laughingstock, I’ll tell Dao Lord Qing Hong all your past humiliations! Let’s see if you still have the face to pursue him!

The sect leader’s furious roar still echoed in his ears.

Lie Sword clicked his tongue. He would have dismissed any other punishment, but not this one—

He simply could not lose face before Leng Fangxie.

He settled down, though still unwilling.

The Blood Origin Sect felt a great relief. One of the three great sects had almost lost face in front of the others.

Truly—

“Everyone has arrived. It seems we are just a bit late.”

As the matter ended, several beams of cold light streaked toward them.

The last of the three sects, the Supreme Sect, had arrived!