After Li Yundong and the others finished their lively dinner, each retired to their own room for cultivation.
As it neared midnight, Zhou Qin, sharing a room with Su Chan, quietly opened her eyes. She glanced at Su Chan sleeping opposite her. The usually spirited young girl was now sleeping soundly like an infant, curled up in her pink, lace-trimmed nightgown, clutching a pillow tightly as if guarding against anyone trying to take it. A soft, low snore emanated from her sinuses, making her look utterly adorable.
Although Zhou Qin felt a touch of jealousy that Su Chan received Li Yundong’s affection, she simply couldn't bring herself to harbor any ill will toward the innocent and lovely girl. She quietly slipped out of bed, gently pulled the covers up around Su Chan, and then tiptoed out the door. To avoid disturbing Su Chan, Zhou Qin deliberately left the door ajar instead of closing it completely.
But the moment Zhou Qin left, Su Chan secretly cracked open a slit of her eyes. She too got out of bed with the utmost quietness and crept to the gap in the doorway to peek out stealthily.
The little girl saw Zhou Qin lightly knock on Li Yundong’s door. Li Yundong’s magnetic voice drifted out from within, “Come in.” Zhou Qin pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Su Chan’s mouth immediately puffed out. Although she knew that Zhou Qin visiting Li Yundong’s room so late likely meant he was going to teach her cultivation, even knowing this, the little girl felt a pang of jealousy. She wanted to creep to the door and eavesdrop on what they might be discussing, but given the last time she was caught eavesdropping by Li Yundong, the moment the thought surfaced, the young girl dismissed the idea.
Su Chan gently closed the door, leaned back against it, and gazed longingly at the ceiling, sighing with a troubled expression: “Little lass, oh little lass, if you don’t start behaving, be careful your master truly grows tired of you!”
The little girl plopped herself down on the floor, propping her chin on one hand, her elbow resting on her knee, while the other hand curled its fingers. She muttered to herself, “Look, Sister Zhou Qin has taken the Renyuan Golden Pill again; she’s going to become very powerful. She also understands business, and her calligraphy is decent; she can help Li Yundong with so much. And Sister Zi Yuan, there’s no need to even mention her—she’s the most capable, practically knowing everything. Alas, what am I good at? Even the calligraphy I’m slightly decent at can’t compare to Sister Zi Yuan!”
The little girl sighed self-pityingly, her mouth pouting high, “Why is this little lass only good at causing trouble? Before, you could at least help Li Yundong cultivate, but now, you can’t help him at all!”
Su Chan pondered for a moment, then suddenly her spirits lifted: “No, I should go find Martial Aunt Cao Yi! I’ll ask her to teach me how to cook. If nothing else, I must be good at one thing!”
With this thought, the little girl jumped up, gently pulled the door open, and tiptoed out.
When the little girl reached the door of Cao Yi’s room, she was just about to knock when she suddenly recalled what had happened earlier at Mount Gezao. Martial Aunt Cao Yi might very well be Yan Hua who led them to Mount Gezao. Thinking of this, the little girl shivered instantly and turned to leave. But just as she lifted her foot, she heard a faint, indistinct noise coming from inside the room, like two women arguing, and the voices sounded vaguely familiar.
Su Chan leaned her ear against the door to listen, faintly catching snippets of Martial Aunt Cao Yi and another person arguing in low tones: “What are you doing here?”
“Can’t I come?”
“Hmph, I warn you, don’t get too arrogant, or else... hmph!”
“Or what? Hey, go expose me! At worst…”
Hearing this, Su Chan suddenly felt a chill run through her body, an icy feeling that made the hairs on her skin stand on end, as if someone were staring at her coldly through the door panel.
The little girl quickly straightened up. Just as she stood fully upright, the door was suddenly pulled open. Cao Yi peered at Su Chan with apprehension and asked in a deep voice, “Chan’er, it’s so late, is something the matter?”
The little girl’s gaze quickly swept past Cao Yi to look inside. She saw the window wide open, a cool breeze ruffling the gauze curtains, and the interior empty. Her eyes returned to Cao Yi, and just as she was about to speak, she acutely sensed a deep, hidden killing intent in Cao Yi’s gaze.
Su Chan gave a sudden, violent shudder. She opened her mouth but didn't know what to say. Just then, a loud buzzing sound suddenly rang out from Li Yundong’s room nearby.
The little girl’s mind raced, and she immediately said, “There’s a commotion in Yun Dong’s room. I wanted to call Martial Aunt Cao Yi to see what’s going on.”
Although deep suspicion remained in Cao Yi’s eyes, her killing intent finally began to recede bit by bit. She smiled and said, “That’s right, the Sect Master might be refining a magic artifact.”
The little girl feigned a look of sudden realization, slapped her forehead, and said, “Exactly! Martial Aunt Cao Yi, you are the smart one. I’m going back to sleep now!”
Saying this, the little girl scurried back to her room without looking back. The moment she closed the door, her heart hammered against her ribs as she leaned against the door, her eyes wide, muttering to herself: How did Martial Aunt Cao Yi know Yun Dong had a new magic artifact?
While the little girl was in a state of anxiety in her room, Zhou Qin and Li Yundong inside their room were completely unaware of what was happening outside.
When Zhou Qin first pushed open the door, she saw Li Yundong sitting cross-legged in the center of the room. Behind him was a floor-to-ceiling window with the curtains drawn back. Hung perfectly in the center of the window was a full moon, its light spilling over Li Yundong like water, as if draping him in a silver cassock.
In that instant, Zhou Qin suddenly felt an ineffable spiritual aura and transcendent detachment emanating from Li Yundong, as if he might ascend to immortality in the next moment.
Zhou Qin stood stunned at the doorway until Li Yundong smiled and said to her, “Why are you spacing out? Come in.”
Zhou Qin snapped back to reality as if waking from a dream, walked in, and once she was inside, without her seeing Li Yundong make any move, the door behind her softly clicked shut.
Zhou Qin looked at Li Yundong seated cross-legged in the room, took a deep breath, and also sat down cross-legged, saying respectfully, “Master, what are you teaching me today?”
Resting on Li Yundong’s knee was an antique-looking treasured sword. He lightly stroked the blade with his hand and said, “Do you recognize this sword?”
Zhou Qin recognized it immediately as the one Yan Hua had brought to the school previously. She nodded and said, “Yes, isn’t this Yan Hua’s ancestral sword?”
Li Yundong smiled slightly and said, “It is, and yet it isn’t. But you must be wondering why this sword is in my hands.”
Zhou Qin laughed, nodding somewhat sheepishly.
Li Yundong chuckled, “My time practicing cultivation is short, but yours is even shorter. So compared to you, I am considered well-traveled and experienced. Heh heh, do you remember what I told you about Mount Gezao a few days ago?”
Zhou Qin nodded. Li Yundong continued, “On Mount Gezao, I snatched the Renyuan Golden Pill and gave it to you. But there is one thing I didn’t tell you: I also obtained Yan Fang’s magic artifact, the liu e sword!”
As he spoke, Li Yundong drew the liu e sword with a sharp zheng sound. He stroked the blade lightly with his finger, and instantly the long sword began to emit soft, resonant hums, emitting a faint glow.
Li Yundong whispered, “I have completely expelled the true essence of the sword’s former owner. Afterward, it was struck fiercely by heavenly lightning. I originally thought it would be destroyed, but unexpectedly, this liu e sword was not only undamaged but actually absorbed some of the heavenly lightning’s power, becoming even stronger.”
Li Yundong sighed softly and said, “This is the main sword of the Eight Desolations Liu E Twin Swords, specifically designed for women. However, you haven't established your foundation yet, nor do you possess an inner core. Thus, you only have the Qi of Yuan Yin and Yuan Yang in your body, not true essence, so you cannot allow this treasured sword to recognize you as its master. That is why today I can only teach you how to make a magic artifact recognize its master—it’s what Zi Yuan taught me back then.”
Saying this, Li Yundong suddenly condensed his entire true essence into a ball, which surged to his fingertips in the blink of an eye, and then rapidly flooded toward the body of the liu e sword.
Zhou Qin watched Li Yundong with wide eyes. At first, she saw Li Yundong’s aura surging, every strand of his hair standing on end, and the hem of his clothes fluttering without wind. Sitting opposite him, she could feel a forceful wind rushing toward her face, as if trying to push her away.
In Zhou Qin’s view, the liu e sword remained motionless at first, Li Yundong’s true essence seemingly sinking into the sea without a ripple. But after a while, the sword suddenly gave a slight tremble, and the vibration quickly intensified. The liu e sword emitted a fierce, resonant cry.
This sound was like a dragon’s roar mixed with a phoenix’s call—clear, soaring, sonorous, and especially loud in the deep night.
After some time, the amplitude of the liu e sword’s vibration became so great that it seemed to Zhou Qin’s eyes that there were several liu e swords, with multiple afterimages along the blade, as if the long sword would fly out of Li Yundong’s grasp at any second.
Li Yundong suddenly roared, “Halt!”
His true essence rushed into the violently shaking liu e sword like a tidal wave. The sword instantly stilled, and the many afterimages merged into one in a flash.
In that instant, Zhou Qin saw the liu e sword suddenly release an intensely blinding white light. She instinctively covered her eyes. In that moment, the room was as bright as day, and then, just as quickly, the light vanished, plunging the entire room into darkness.
When Zhou Qin lowered her hand, she stared at the liu e sword with wide eyes. She saw the approximately one-meter-long treasured sword flowing with a faint silver radiance, exuding a mysterious and tranquil aura all over.
Li Yundong smiled and released his grip on the liu e sword. The sword did not fall; instead, it floated in mid-air, like a newborn infant, curiously and cautiously observing its surroundings. After a moment, it suddenly turned its blade toward Li Yundong, adopting a somewhat confrontational stance.
Zhou Qin felt the sword energy of the liu e sword was sharp and piercing. Although the edge wasn't aimed at her, she still felt a bone-chilling dread.
Seeing the tip of the liu e sword pointed at Li Yundong, Zhou Qin couldn't help but utter a worried soft cry, “Master, you…”
Li Yundong raised a hand, smiling, stopping her from continuing, and gently shook his head at her. He whispered, “It’s fine, it can’t hurt me.”
As if to affirm Li Yundong’s words, the liu e sword, after scrutinizing him for a while, suddenly leaped up and darted joyfully around the room.
Zhou Qin only heard the whistling sound of the long sword cutting through the air inside the room. The speed of the liu e sword was too fast for her naked eye to follow. She could only see several silver streaks rolling back and forth around her. After a short while, the liu e sword suddenly stopped, the silver streaks in the room vanished, and the gleaming, radiant treasured sword hummed as it stopped behind Li Yundong, looking down upon everything with unparalleled arrogance.
Li Yundong laughed, “Magic artifacts possess sentience, and among all magic artifacts, treasured swords are the most sentient. Don’t underestimate this long sword; it has its own thoughts, its own mind. Just now, it was judging whether I truly was its master.”
Zhou Qin was utterly astonished, speechless, and after a long pause, she exclaimed in awe, “So there really are Sword Immortals in this world, and the concept of flying swords killing people is real!”
Li Yundong chuckled, “Incredible, isn’t it? Wait until another day when I have Zi Yuan tell you the legends of the liu e sword, how these magic artifacts are crafted, and what principles they are based on.”
Zhou Qin smiled, “Master, I want you to teach me.”
Li Yundong looked surprised, “Zi Yuan knows much more than I do.”
Zhou Qin shook her head, “No matter how much she knows, she isn’t my Master.”
Li Yundong gave Zhou Qin a meaningful look, then nodded. “Alright, you should return to your room and sleep in a moment. Tomorrow, you won’t come with us to the shop; stay home and cultivate diligently.”
Zhou Qin opened her mouth as if to say something more, but Li Yundong raised his hand, stating sternly, “This is not up for discussion!”
Zhou Qin didn't press the matter further. She was a strong and dominating woman, but even the most dominant woman reveals a soft side when faced with the man she deeply loves. She smiled helplessly and said, “Alright then, Master, don’t overwork yourself.”
Li Yundong had indeed expended a considerable amount of true essence in making the liu e sword recognize him; his complexion looked somewhat pale now. He smiled faintly and said, “I’m fine, you go to sleep.”
After Zhou Qin left Li Yundong’s room and returned to her own, she secretly glanced at Su Chan,