He looked up. "You made this?"
Li Xun quickly nodded. Lin Ge gave a rare nod of approval. "To gain, one must first be willing to give. Well done."
This was the first time Li Xun had ever heard such open praise—it made his heart quietly leap with joy, though he made sure his face stayed composed.
Lin Ge drew the longsword fully from its sheath. With a flick of his finger, the blade hummed with a clear ring. His face showed a hint of nostalgia. "When Fourth One first got this sword, her mind went to the same technique—'Dragon Return Channel.' Our master praised her for that very thought…"
Li Xun felt a bit awkward—so this compliment came with some history behind it.
"But in the end, Fourth One didn't use the method. Our master thought her temperament was too fiery—she'd draw her sword at the drop of a hat. The 'Dragon Return Channel' suppresses a sword's spirit and stirs killing intent. It would've messed with her cultivation… But you're different."
Lin Ge ran his fingers slowly along the blood groove of the blade. "You're more like me. Even at a young age, you think things through before acting. You can endure what others can't. That's how you survived seven years atop Zuowang Peak…"
"Of course, Mingji has changed a lot too. She's sharp, thoughtful, even more than you or me ever were. But what's rare is that she remains focused on her cultivation, unmoved by outside distractions. I can't say I've done better. If you want a proper path forward—follow her example."
Li Xun nodded quickly, a little uneasy.
But those two lines Lin Ge had said—"plan before you act" and "endure what others cannot"—had his heart racing. Did his master… see through something?
Lin Ge didn't seem to notice anything strange. His gaze turned distant. "When I was young, I kept everything buried deep. Didn't speak, didn't let anyone see through me.
"It sounds noble—like I was bearing burdens alone. But really? It was just arrogance."
Seeing the awkward look on Li Xun's face, Lin Ge chuckled. "You're still young. You don't see the harm in that yet. At first, you think you can solve everything yourself, that you're always right. And then, slowly, it turns to stubborn pride. That's when problems start… Isn't that what happened before?"
A wind blew in from outside, stirring the curtains and casting dancing shadows across the room. For a moment, half of Lin Ge's face disappeared into darkness.
Li Xun wasn't sure why—but for that one instant, he saw a twisted, black shadow looming behind Lin Ge, surging into his chest with a silent roar.
He stumbled back a half step. Cold sweat poured down his spine.
Then the wind passed. The glow of the night pearl returned, soft as ever. But the man in front of him—Lin Ge—now felt completely unreadable.
Through the fog in his mind, he heard Lin Ge gently ask, "Want to hear about my past?"
Li Xun opened his mouth, wanting to say no—but didn't dare. So he just nodded.
Lin Ge looked at him and asked, "Do you think I was arrogant? Stubborn?"
Li Xun wanted to scream—how's a disciple supposed to answer that? Even hearing the story felt awkward enough. Now he had to pass judgment, to the man's face?
Worse still, with an elder who's always been stern, saying the wrong thing might actually be seen as disrespect.
But ignoring Lin Ge wasn't an option either. Li Xun thought fast, then said, "Your disciple… is not very experienced in matters of the heart."
He knew dodging the question wouldn't work forever, so he quickly added, "I've heard the seniors say—when it comes to emotions, even the smartest person can end up acting like a complete fool. All their cleverness flies out the window…"
"Like a fool, huh? Exactly like a fool!"
Lin Ge burst out laughing. Li Xun's heart sank—he couldn't read the emotion behind the laughter at all. Was Lin Ge angry? Was he amused? How was he supposed to respond?
Lin Ge laughed for a long while. Tears even welled up at the corners of his eyes. Then he pointed at Li Xun. "Tell me—who's the fool?"
I am! I'm the fool, for even listening to you talk! Li Xun cursed silently.
Of course, he couldn't say that. He forced a smile. "Your disciple doesn't know."
Lin Ge's smile slowly faded. He shook his head and returned to his usual languid state. "Forget it. Asking you was unfair. Let's not talk about it anymore. I only wanted you to understand how to carry yourself in the future. Remember—be like Fourth Sister. Don't be like me."
Li Xun had nothing to say—just nodded vaguely.
Lin Ge didn't push the topic. He sheathed the sword—Azure Jade—and handed it back. Then he picked up a jade box on the table.
Inside, to Li Xun's surprise, was a men's hairpin. Pale greenish-white, made of some kind of jade, with no unusual glow. But if you looked closely, a thread of blood-red ran through it from top to bottom—almost the same as the Dragon Return Channel on Azure Jade.
"Fourth One gave you a sword. If I don't give you something, I'd be embarrassed as your teacher." Lin Ge's smile was self-deprecating. He took out the hairpin and handed it over. "Funny thing is, this might be even more useful to you right now. What do you think? Like it?"
Li Xun accepted it with both hands and examined it closely. That blood-red thread really was a miniaturized version of the Dragon Return Channel. It even seemed to glow faintly with sealed spiritual energy.
Lin Ge explained, "This hairpin also seals its spirit with the Dragon Channel technique, but the symbols inside are a lot more refined than your simple one-line design. It has its uses—but you'll need to figure them out on your own. Got it?"
Li Xun knew this was the same method as Mingji's—to let him explore the secrets on his own. He had no objections. Happily, he bowed. "Thank you, Master!"
Lin Ge waved a hand. "I'm tired. Take the box and go. In a month, we head down the mountain. Start preparing."
Just moments ago, Lin Ge had been talking with such energy. Now he seemed exhausted again. The sudden shift left Li Xun uneasy. Still, this upcoming trip was something he'd long looked forward to. He thanked him again, took the box, and turned to leave.
Then Lin Ge said behind him, "The pin's called 'Phoenix-Feather Needle.' Do with it as you will."
His tone was odd—like he was contradicting himself. Li Xun glanced back. Lin Ge was staring straight at the jade box in his hands.
That look sent a chill down his spine.
Then the light from the night pearl faded. The room fell into dim shadow.
Li Xun's heart pounded. He rushed downstairs.
In the darkness, he thought he heard a strained breath—like something twisting in the air above, circling the upper floor like dark mist.
Who's the fool?
That question from Lin Ge carved itself into Li Xun's memory.
---
In the following months, Li Xun kept up with his daily cultivation as usual. But whenever he had the chance, he'd fly his sword over the mountain paths, darting between peaks and valleys.
This kind of enthusiasm was nothing unusual—every disciple who'd just learned to fly by sword went through it. The seniors didn't think much of it. Most just sighed—ever since this kid came down from Zuowang Peak, his luck's turned for the better.
He joined the main lineage, got praise from the masters, even inherited Fourth Uncle's famous sword.
Some folks didn't care. But Shan Zhi? He was definitely jealous.
Even if he held back well, every time he brought it up, his sour tone made Li Xun's ears itch.
Until Li Xun one day threw out a line:
"Back then, Senior Brother Shan Zhi learned to fly in just three months!"
His tone was dripping with envy—so obviously fake that Dan Zhi was instantly pleased. Of course! He was seven years ahead of this brat. His flying sword could travel a thousand miles in a blink. What's a cloud-chaser like Li Xun compared to that?
Feeling smug, Dan Zhi dropped the subject. He had his own closed-door training to focus on anyway—maybe Li Xun's recent progress was lighting a fire under him too.
Either way, Li Xun finally got some peace.
Truth be told, while he was excited about flying, that wasn't why he spent days out in the wilds.
He just needed a quiet place to cultivate his secret art—NetherYin Qi—a technique he couldn't let anyone find out about.
On Zhiguan Peak, every movement was under watch. The experts up there had terrifying cultivation. If they caught wind of what he was practicing… he'd be dead on the spot.
That's why he didn't dare carry the jade tablet containing the Netherworld Record, nor the Bi Yin Pill—he'd buried them in a hidden spot. Over the past few months, his practice had been disjointed, barely making any progress.
But now that he could fly, things had changed.
Lianxia Mountain stretched for thousands of miles. There were countless secret spots. Finding a hidden cave or valley? Too easy.
His interest in the Netherworld Record was no less than in the Lingxi Art. In fact, this kind of demonic, forbidden cultivation had a faster entry point.
Thanks to his solid foundation in Lingxi, he progressed rapidly. In just a few days of focused training, he brought the technique of Soul Shift Rebirth to full mastery.
With that, the very nature of his internal energy could shift at will.
The true breath formed by the Lingxi Art could now transform into rolling NetherYin Ghostflame—the advanced stage of Youming Qi.
From then on, his journey in this demonic path had truly begun.
Of course, he wasn't some dull-brained cultivation maniac who only cared about training all day. He'd been planning to reconnect with Mingji sooner or later anyway. Even if he didn't gain from her anything… well, getting close to a beauty like her was a pleasure in itself.
Unfortunately, Mingji was elusive as ever. Even within the sect, her whereabouts were a mystery. He'd gone looking for her a few times, but every trip ended in disappointment.
Word was, she had gone up to Zuowang Peak.
Now, seated cross-legged on his sword, high in the skies where the wind howled like thunder, Li Xun kept his inner breath steady, his qi perfectly in sync with his blade's. The bond between them was as firm as ever.
He found himself thinking—it's been months since he came down from Zuowang Peak. Maybe it was time to head back up and revisit some old memories?
With his current sword flight skills, his speed had shot up a hundredfold. He might not be able to make the trip in a single day and night, but a few days of flying? Totally doable.
Besides, wouldn't the journey itself be perfect training for sword flight? And if he could pull off the "feat" he never finished before, all the better.
Not to mention… there was that person. The one whose name alone made his heart skip a beat—Immortal Qingyin. He'd said he'd visit her when he had the chance, hadn't he? And now, he had plenty of good excuses.
After giving himself several convincing reasons, Li Xun felt his mood lift considerably.
Decision made, he resolved to go see Lin Ge today and ask for permission to return to the peak.