Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Li Guanqi pushed his way through the crowd and spotted a few tall, burly young men who were trampling on Li Shengan. He furrowed his brow at the sight, unsure whether he should step in or not.

Li Shengan, in his mind, was a shrewd type of individual. Compared to other disciples, he seemed more like a lackey. Even so, from their first meeting, Li Guanqi had always known that Li Shengan had a sharp mind.

Perhaps Lin Dong wouldn’t know why Li Shengan was approaching them, but Li Guanqi was clear about it. If it weren’t for the fact that the spiritual talismans they used in the entrance exam were only burned halfway, Li Shengan might not have approached them with any goodwill.

Li Shengan lay on the ground with blood smeared on his face, while a sturdy disciple firmly pressed down on his chest. The disciple raised his hand, brandishing a jade tablet mockingly and asked, “Shouldn’t you have shown me some respect and allowed me to take this task? Hmm? How did you manage to forget proper etiquette?”

Li Shengan remained surprisingly calm despite the curious glances from the onlookers. He managed a smile and said, “I’m sorry, Senior Wang. I didn’t know you wanted to take on a mission these past few days. If I had known, I would’ve gladly assisted you with it, sparing you all this trouble.”

The disciple called Senior Wang raised his foot, letting out a hearty laugh, and leaned down to pat Li Shengan’s face with force. The sound of the pats echoed, making Li Shengan’s flesh quiver, but he maintained his smile.

Observing Li Shengan’s composure, Li Guanqi’s expression remained stoic, and he refrained from speaking. However, at that moment, Li Shengan looked up and saw Li Guanqi’s arrival. His gaze instantly darkened, as if he were ashamed that someone he considered close was able to see his embarrassment.

Li Shengan’s gaze also drew the attention of the bystanders, who noticed the young man with pure white eyes. They began to talk amongst themselves.

“Isn’t that Li Guanqi from Thunder Peak?”

“Lower your voice! Haven’t you heard about the cafeteria incident yesterday?”

“What did I miss? Isn’t he making a scene due to his drop in cultivation?”

“Drop in cultivation? Haven’t you seen how badly that second layer Qi Refinement disciple from Golden Peak was beaten that day?”

“He was like a defenseless child!”

“Don’t mess with him. I heard he doesn’t let things slide easily.”

Senior Wang turned around and saw Li Guanqi. His expression brightened, and he respectfully greeted, “Senior Li.”

However, Li Guanqi didn’t respond, so Senior Wang quickly signaled those around him to leave. As he departed, he respectfully handed his mission token to Li Guanqi.

Li Guanqi chuckled and said, “This belongs to you, why are you giving it to me?”

Senior Wang glanced at Li Shengan, who was hesitating on the ground, and wasn’t sure what to say. In the end, he decided to keep the mission and hurriedly walked away.

The crowd left one by one, leaving only Li Shengan on the ground and Li Guanqi standing beside.

A bitter smile played on Li Shengan’s lips as he asked, “Why didn’t you accept that mission?”

“This is the third mission that Wang Dachun took from me,” Li Shengan continued.

Li Guanqi stood next to Li Sheng’an and crouched down slowly. His emotionless eyes were fixed on Li Sheng’an as he asked, “Are you complaining?”

Li Shengan’s voice finally held some anger. “Yes, I am complaining! I have nothing left. Can’t I vent a bit to a friend?”

But Li Guanqi didn’t agree with him. Instead, he said directly, “No.”

The chubby young man was slightly stunned and then asked, “Why?”

Li Guanqi slowly stood up, glanced at him, and said, “Why not?”

Li Shengan, lying on the ground, was frozen in place, not comprehending why Li Guanqi believed he had no right to complain.

Li Guanqi continued, “Haven’t you been prepared to act like a lackey for a while now?”

“Since this is the lifestyle that you chose, what gives you the qualification to complain?”

“You should see misfortune as a blessing. When others knock your teeth out, you should swallow it and greet them with a smile. Isn’t this what you asked for? Since it’s your choice, why complain to others?”

These calm words exploded like thunder in Li Shengan’s mind, leaving him stiff and speechless. As Li Guanqi walked toward the mission pavilion, he continued, “If you want to keep playing the role of an underdog, then stay right there, forever.”

“Even when you feel wronged, you should keep it to yourself and silently endure it. If you’ve had enough of this, then stand up and reason with your fists. No one can help you except yourself.”

After saying this, Li Guanqi turned and left.

Li Shengan, who had been sitting on the ground, felt his expression change several times and then quietly got up and left.

Meanwhile, Li Guanqi was able to find a decent mission at the pavilion. It was a task to investigate the appearance of vengeful spirits in a nearby town. The reward was quite good, equivalent to fifty merit points. The exchange rate between sect points and spirit stones was two to one, so this one task was almost worth close to a hundred spirit stones.

Reading more about the mission, the reward was this high because three disciples had previously failed before. As Li Guanqi left the mission pavilion, he began to hear some commotion. A chubby young man, his face covered in blood, stood at the entrance of the pavilion.

Li Shengan had a broken nose, swollen eye sockets, and several cuts on his lips. He greeted Li Guanqi with a crooked smile when he saw him and raised the mission jade tablet in his hand. Li Guanqi’s lips curled up slightly, revealing a hint of a smile as he patted the chubby young man’s shoulder.

Then, Li Guanqi made another trip to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, exchanged some inscriptions with his points, and set out on his journey down the mountain with his sword coffin.

His destination was the town of Xingyun, located in the southern region of the territory under the jurisdiction of the Great Xia Sword Sect.

For generations, the town had made a living through fabrics, with many dye and weaving workshops.

Recently, for some unknown reason, many men in the town had met untimely deaths, causing great unrest among the people. Even the traveling merchants dared not come to this place. Hearing about this, the mission pavilion of the Great Xia Sword Sect had issued this task after official evaluations.

This was Li Guanqi’s first mission as he descended from the mountain, and he felt excitement as he made his trek down. After all, he had never encountered a ghost before, and he was curious about what ghosts were really like. Were they truly as invisible and intangible as the folk tales suggested?

Li Guanqi didn’t waste any time and headed straight for the town of Xingyun. It was a journey of a hundred miles, and yet it would only take him a day and a night to reach his destination.