Lu Kangnian slowly opened his eyes. He looked at Li Guanqi, apology heavy in his voice. “Guanqi... the Daxia Sword Sect accepts the wager.”

Even as he spoke, his voice trembled. If he could, he would have stepped onto the life-or-death stage himself instead of standing back as sect master, forced to send his disciples up without knowing whether they would live or die. The helplessness made him despise himself.

Li Guanqi smiled and turned to Ye Feng, Cao Yan, and Xiao Chen beside him. There was no fear in their eyes; they met his gaze with steady resolve.

The three of them exchanged glances, grinned at each other, and stood up one by one.

Li Guanqi stood before them and said in a clear, measured voice, “Elder of Daxia Sword Sect, Li Guanqi, willing to fight for the sect!”

Ye Feng bowed. “Daxia Sword Sect, Heavenly Metal Peak, Ye Feng, willing to fight for the sect!”

Cao Yan rubbed his nose and clasped his fists with a grin. “However you look at it, I’m half a disciple of Pill Peak. I’m willing to fight for the sect!”

All eyes immediately turned to Xiao Chen. The handsome young man, with a face that was almost pretty, cursed under his breath. “Why are you all staring at me?!”

He looked up at Lu Kangnian’s hesitant expression and said sincerely, “I’ve at least taught a few classes here. Consider me a guest elder. I’m willing to fight alongside my brothers!”

Xiao Chen meant every word. Though he felt little attachment to the sect, he was willing tgo fight because of Li Guanqi. Even so, if Xiao Chen ever wanted an official position in the Daxia Sword Sect, Lu Kangnian would gladly give him one.

Lu Kangnian nodded. “Good. From this point on, every resource the Daxia Sword Sect possesses is available to all of you. Remember this: you are fighting for the sect. You can lose, but you must not die. Resources are only resources. If we lose them, we start over. Every one of you is someone I see as my own child, and I don’t want any of you dying on some mere martial stage. Your future lies above the nine heavens, ascending to the Immortal World!”

Lu Kangnian spoke with total sincerity, his eyes brimming with tears. He needed Li Guanqi and the others to understand that even if the Daxia Sword Sect lost, it could endure the loss. But he, Lu Kangnian, could not bear to lose a single one of them.

Every elder in the hall looked at the four young men with blazing eyes. They understood how dangerous the fight was going to be. And yet, they had no choice but to send the younger generation forward. How could they, as elders, bear it?

Li Nanting in particular kept glancing between Li Guanqi and Lu Kangnian, conflict written across his face. Shen Lan stood beside him and felt the same. Long ago, she had come to regard Li Guanqi as family. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Li Guanqi had a strange kind of magnetism. Every elder who spent time with him came away genuinely fond of him. It was not because of his strength, but because he returned their respect with equal sincerity. Sincerity for sincerity. Who could remain unmoved?

The same applied to Meng Jiangchu and Li Guilan. If Li Guanqi hadn’t been so sincere, how could he ever have allowed his daughter to be with him?

Lu Kangnian frowned. “We need five people. Wu Bing is only at the Divine Transformation Realm right now, and the others who have returned to the sect, even those young enough to qualify, simply aren’t strong enough. Setting Lu Wuhen and Lu Tao aside, the younger generation from the other branch families we saw today are no pushovers either.”

Li Guanqi smiled faintly. “Sect Master, don’t worry. I already have someone in mind.”

Ye Feng frowned slightly, sensing that he knew who it was. Li Guanqi had been up to quiet schemes lately.

With the decision made, Lu Kangnian announced that Jade Teapot Peak and the entire back mountain of the Three Thousand Strange Peaks were now off-limits. For the time being, only Li Guanqi’s group was permitted to approach it.

Meanwhile, Li Guanqi was quietly setting something important in motion. The sky above Jade Teapot Peak rippled and twisted, and a white-haired young man in black robes stepped out, reeking of wine. His features were striking: sword-sharp brows, star-bright eyes, and a deep, hazy gaze. A pitch-black sword rested at his waist. His robes were partly open, baring a chest covered in vicious scars.

Ye Feng’s eye twitched as he stared at the young man, then he turned to Li Guanqi, who sat with impeccable posture while pouring tea for everyone. “Boss... this guy wouldn’t happen to be your illusory spirit, would he?”

The white-haired young man let out a drunken, wine-scented belch and grinned at Ye Feng. “Fellow cultivator, got any wine? Hahaha! I’m Coward Li. Lend me some, I’ll put it on my tab.”

He pulled a calligraphy brush from somewhere, wet the tip with his tongue, and wrote across Ye Feng’s Daoist robe in sweeping, carefree strokes. On this day, Coward Li borrows one jar of wine from Fellow Daoist Ye Feng. Repayment shall be made in due course.

Ye Feng’s face twitched. He treasured his robes, and the man had just used his own spit for ink and scrawled all over them. Seated beside them, Cao Yan and Xiao Chen were thoroughly enjoying the show.

Despite his irritation, Ye Feng still handed over a jar of spirit wine.

Coward Li’s nose twitched the moment he saw the jar, and his eyes lit up. He took it, clapped Ye Feng on the shoulder, and laughed. “You’re a generous fellow! From today on, you’re my brother. Come, come, let’s swear an oath!”

He didn’t wait for an answer. Coward Li dropped to his knees with a thud—one hand wringing a chicken’s neck for blood, the other slashing his own palm and letting his blood drip into the wine—then dragged Ye Feng down to kowtow beside him. Dazed, Ye Feng heard Coward Li muttering something about an “eight hundred and ninety-second sworn brother.”

Coward Li grabbed the wine jar and planted himself at the table. Cao Yan laughed. “Boss, your illusory spirit is quite something. He’s no different from a real person, and I can tell you’re not controlling him. He’s his own being!”

Li Guanqi said nothing. Coward Li knocked the clay seal off the jar and tipped it back for a long swig. He brushed the white hair from his forehead, tore a strip of wood from the table, and stuck it through the hair at the back of his head.

He glanced at Li Guanqi. “What’s this? You want to merge?”

“Just in case,” Li Guanqi said quietly.

Coward Li lowered his head and drank.

Clang!

He flourished the Yanluo Sword. “Could you give me a little more time? I’m close to finding my sword Dao. The ancient clans have returned to the world, and with so many powerful cultivators around, I know I can find my own sword Dao if you just give me time. When that day comes, I’ll have no objections at all!”

He trailed off. Head still lowered, he looked up at the others around him, wistful envy creeping into his gaze. “Sometimes... I really do envy you humans...”

The moment those words left his mouth, a cold glint flashed through Ye Feng’s eyes. He fixed his gaze on Coward Li’s face, which closely resembled Li Guanqi’s, and his voice turned cold.

“Remember what you are. You are an illusory spirit!”

The warning was unmistakable. Ye Feng was telling him not to get any ideas.

Coward Li turned his head and laughed at Ye Feng. “What’s the matter? Are you afraid, or am ‘I’ the one who’s afraid?”