Li Guanqi bore only a few superficial wounds, appearing to have sustained mere minor scratches.
After extracting Zhang Qixuan's soul, he shoved it into the tower.
Li Guanqi frowned slightly; things were somewhat different from what he had envisioned.
Zhang Qixuan's memories were completely intact. Through them, Li Guanqi could even discern how to locate that person from the Upper Realm.
Li Guanqi first cupped his fists in a slight salute toward Qin Xiao, then flickered away, appearing within the Domain Lord's great hall.
Qin Xiao and Qin Wushang followed suit, while the other Qin clan powerhouses remained outside to guard the domain seal.
The Qin clan cultivators now looked upon Li Guanqi with immense respect—and perhaps even a trace of... dread.
Inside the Domain Lord's palace, Li Guanqi narrowed his eyes at the stone statue behind the throne.
Reaching out, he slowly laid a hand upon that inexplicable humanoid statue, his surging divine sense rippling outward.
As Li Guanqi closed his eyes to probe the statue, the expressions of Qin Wushang and Qin Xiao behind him shifted drastically.
For in their perception, the sheer strength of Li Guanqi's divine sense was terrifying!
It was no longer just surpassing the mid-Mahayana realm; in Qin Xiao's perception, Li Guanqi's divine sense was actually on par with his own!
One had to realize that Qin Xiao had stepped into the Mahayana realm millennia ago and currently possessed late-Mahayana cultivation.
His divine sense reserves were far beyond what ordinary cultivators could ever imagine.
Precisely because of this, Qin Xiao was so thoroughly shaken!
A sudden flash of insight crossed his mind. Turning to look at Qin Wushang, he seemed to suddenly understand something.
When Qin Wushang had returned to the Qin clan earlier, Qin Xiao had noticed that his son seemed like a completely different person.
The elevation of his sword intent and the growth of his divine sense were far too uncanny.
That was, until Qin Wushang took out an Ancient God Bead—something even Qin Xiao had never heard of before.
It was hard to imagine just how many Ancient God Beads Li Guanqi had absorbed in God Burial Valley.
Crack! Cra-crack!
The stone statue abruptly shattered into countless fragments. Li Guanqi took a deep breath and slowly opened his eyes.
He had perceived nothing, even though he had followed the method from Zhang Qixuan's memories.
Qin Xiao looked at Li Guanqi behind the throne and asked in a low voice, "Guanqi, killing a Domain Lord... that's a serious matter. Are you certain you'll be fine?"
Li Guanqi glanced at the worried man, cupped his fists, and said, "Rest assured, Uncle Qin. It's just a dead Domain Lord... someone else will naturally take his place.
"Not to mention, the one who died was Zhang Qixuan."
Qin Xiao did not understand the underlying meaning of this last sentence. In truth, Li Guanqi meant that even if his grandfather knew, he wouldn't say anything against it.
Looking back now, the shaking of mountains and rivers that night all those years ago—wasn't that grandfather striking at Zhang Qixuan and Uncle Meng?
The next morning, when Li Guanqi had been preparing to descend the mountain, Uncle Meng had already left Fulong Village with Aunt Li and Meng Wanshu.
Qin Wushang's brow furrowed pensively. Li Guanqi chuckled and gave him a playful punch on the shoulder.
"What's on your mind?"
Rubbing his chin, Qin Wushang muttered, "I was thinking that you're so damn strong now, I feel like I've been left way behind...
"No way. Since there's nothing pressing lately, I'm going into secluded cultivation too.
"Dad, what if I head to a forbidden zone as well?"
Qin Xiao's face darkened, and he smacked the back of Qin Wushang's head, snapping irritably, "Why do you think those places are called 'forbidden zones'?
"Even your old man wouldn't dare step into some of them! Who do you think you are—Guanqi?"
Having confirmed that Li Guanqi would not suffer severe repercussions for killing Zhang Qixuan, Qin Xiao decided to take Qin Wushang and depart.
Before leaving, Qin Wushang grinned. "Next time we meet, we spar first!"
Li Guanqi smiled and nodded, after which Qin Wushang turned and strode off with an easy air.
Li Guanqi harbored his own guesses; given Qin Wushang's proud nature, upon returning, he would surely exhaust every avenue to increase his strength.
Even his mention of a forbidden zone was likely not a joke—he might very well leave immediately after returning home.
Li Guanqi flickered into midair and raised his hand, unleashing three sword strikes that shattered the entire domain!
The void trembled. The cultivators lurking in the shadows all around were utterly astounded by the sight.
Surging with killing intent, Li Guanqi had now firmly stepped into the ranks of the world's supreme powerhouses.
The peerless prodigy of the past had vanished for six long years, yet upon his return, the very first thing he did was still slaughter an entire clan...
The name Yanluo was truly well-deserved.
Li Guanqi looked back at the crumbling domain behind him—pavilions collapsing, mountain peaks tumbling into the void.
Yet there was not the slightest thrill of vengeance in his heart.
There was only boundless emptiness and regret; even after killing Zhang Qixuan, he still possessed no power to revive his master.
Looking up into the pitch-black void of the heavens, he could faintly, intuitively sense the existence of the Immortal Realm.
He even knew how to mobilize the power of heaven and earth to summon the ascension emissary light!
Yet...
Beneath that faint sense of connection, there existed an invisible, intangible barrier.
This barrier separated the Human Spirit Realm from the Immortal Realm, forming the 'Human-Immortal Realm Barrier'!
If one forcefully invoked heaven and earth to summon ascension, they would die!
That feeling... was even more terrifying than a heavenly tribulation.
Even though you hadn't done anything yet, the moment the thought crossed your mind... you would perceive the presence of this force, along with the fatal consequences.
Li Guanqi exhaled a long breath. Perhaps all these mysteries would only be unraveled once he traveled to the Seventh Domain.
Li Guanqi stood in place, pondering for a long moment, before finally deciding to head to the Shenbao Domain first to visit his future in-laws.
Along the way, as Li Guanqi sped forward, he began refining and stabilizing his current cultivation realm.
His early Mahayana realm was now largely consolidated.
This was also thanks to his Ethereal Dao Body.
Now, he could clearly perceive every subtle shift in heaven-and-earth spiritual qi, augmented by the transformation of his spiritual root.
His current cultivation speed was incomparably faster than in the past, and his comprehension of heaven and earth flowed effortlessly with his thoughts.
In fact, because he sensed so much all at once, he even had to filter some of it out.
Though he didn't fully understand his constitution, Li Guanqi could dimly grasp a part of it.
"Spiritual Qi Resonance!"
Indeed, the Ethereal Dao Body could resonate with heaven-and-earth spiritual qi, making the qi he absorbed far purer and faster!
Moreover, when it came to cultivation arts, sword techniques, spells, and divine abilities, he grasped them instantly.
It could be said that he possessed top-tier comprehension!
Buzz!
Beside Li Guanqi, a woman clad in a red dress appeared silently.
The sword spirit looked at Li Guanqi with a smile and said softly, "The Ethereal Dao Body has finally broken its seal, hasn't it..."
Looking at the woman before him, Li Guanqi rubbed his nose somewhat awkwardly. He hadn't realized that the two of them hadn't seen each other in over six years.
Li Guanqi nodded and said softly, "Mm, it's unsealed.
"Right, how are Pengluo and Jiuxiao doing now?"
The sword spirit's beautiful eyes curved slightly, and she pursed her lips in a smile. "Now isn't quite the time, but it should be soon. Before long, both of them will likely break through their realms."
A flicker of pleasant surprise flashed in Li Guanqi's eyes. He hadn't expected both of them to be on the verge of breaking through!
"Uh... sounds like they've suffered quite a bit..."
With her hands clasped behind her back, the sword spirit walked through the void with closed eyes, murmuring softly, "If one wants to grow stronger, how could they not endure suffering?"
With that, she glanced back at Li Guanqi and said softly, "Just like you."
Chapter 1097