Qianqiusui...

Lu Kangnian froze for a moment upon hearing that. Even he was learning for the first time that Li Guanqi hailed from Beiliang City. "That place is rather remote and impoverished..." Li Guanqi did not deny it. After all, Beiliang City truly was poor. "When do you leave?" Li Guanqi thought for a moment before sighing softly. "In the next couple of days. "After all... once I take care of a few matters, I need to make a trip back to the Misty Immortal Domain, and after that, I must return to the Seven Domains." Lu Kangnian nodded slightly, a smile appearing on his face. "Rest easy. You don't have to worry about a single thing regarding the sect. "Our sect is in its prime right now. Nobody dares to provoke us, and we are resting and building our strength." Li Guanqi nodded quietly. By this point, Qin Xian had finished his errands and returned. Only four people remained in the hall. Li Guanqi suddenly scratched his head, looking somewhat sheepish. Seeing his bashful demeanor, Lu Kangnian stared in surprise. "What's gotten into you, boy?" Li Guanqi glanced at Qin Xian, then turned to Lu Kangnian. "Well... it's about Wanshu and me." Lu Kangnian and Qin Xian's eyes instantly lit up, and both spoke at once. "Are the two of you planning to get married?" "Hahahahaha! That's wonderful news!" Li Guanqi nodded softly and said in a low voice, "I was just thinking... when it comes time to propose marriage, could I ask you and Elder Qin to help me...? "I... don't have..." Lu Kangnian waved a broad hand, cutting off the rest of Li Guanqi's words. Li Guanqi had no living parents; he was entirely on his own. Only his grandfather was still around, but his grandfather was the Realm Lord of the Seventh Domain... Having Su Xuan propose to Meng Jiangchu on Li Guanqi's behalf? That would be somewhat awkward given their stations. With Lu Kangnian, however, the arrangement was far more fitting for both sides. Lu Kangnian let out a hearty laugh. "Rest easy, leave this entirely to me! I'll make sure it's handled splendidly! "You don't need to worry about the betrothal gifts either—the sect will cover everything! "The procession, the headcount, the etiquette, and all the rest—you won't have to lift a finger." Li Guanqi grinned. At moments like this, Lu Kangnian always gave him a profound sense of security and support. Lu Kangnian stood up from his chair in excitement, pacing back and forth. He muttered under his breath, his fingers constantly tallying and calculating. Seeing him like this, Li Guanqi smiled, then rose to his feet. "I'll head back to my courtyard on Tianlei Peak for a while. We'll talk again when I'm about to leave." Lu Kangnian waved his hand dismissively. "Go on, go on. Just let me know when you set off. "Once the exact date is settled, tell me right away so I can start preparing ahead of time." Li Guanqi smiled, bowed his head, and vanished from the hall in a flash. The moment Li Guanqi left, Lu Kangnian could hardly wait to pull out a jade slip, laughing heartily as he spoke into it. "Valley Master Yun, hahaha! Do you have a moment right now? "I'd like to place an order with your Feihua Valley for a batch of robes. As for the quantity... nine hundred and ninety-nine sets." The corner of Qin Xian's mouth twitched. It seemed the Sect Master was determined to make this grand display as extravagant as possible! Yet thinking it over, it made sense. Li Guanqi was, after all, the Grand Elder of the Great Xia Sword Sect. His status was extraordinary, and given all the contributions he had made to the sect over the years, such fanfare was only reasonable. Not to mention that Li Guanqi was now a powerhouse of the Tribulation Transcendence realm. If Ye Feng and the others broke through one after another during this period, the Great Xia Sword Sect's power and prestige would soar to unprecedented heights! Six Tribulation Transcendence cultivators in a single sect! With power like that, probably not a single clan or sect in the entire Human Spirit Realm could stand against them! *Creak...* Li Guanqi pushed open the door to his small courtyard on Tianlei Peak. Everything inside remained exactly as it had always been. That little bridge... He still remembered the moment Senior Sister Gu Ran had secretly wiped away tears, aching for him because he was blind. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly. Walking across the bridge, he came to the courtyard's reception hall. Here, he also held countless precious memories. Sitting down in the rocking chair, Li Guanqi closed his eyes, swaying gently. *Creak... creak...* *Rumble!* *Pitter-patter...* A drizzle began to fall from the sky. Li Guanqi opened his eyes, a complex look in his gaze. Drawing a blanket from his storage ring to drape over himself, he closed his eyes and listened to the rain outside, drifting off to sleep before he even realized it. By the time he woke, the sun was already setting. The room had grown somewhat dim. Looking out at the sinking sun, Li Guanqi felt a sudden pang of emptiness in his chest. He set the blanket on the rocking chair, stood up, and stretched his limbs. Taking to the air, he flew straight to the Guanyun Domain Boundary! *Hum!* The instant he stepped inside, cultivators in midair halted and dropped to one knee! "Greetings, Pavilion Master!" "Greetings, Pavilion Master!" Looking out over the cloud-draped expanse of the Guanyun Domain Boundary, Li Guanqi could not help but marvel. "Tsk, the Guanyun Pavilion really is wealthy now." Indeed, eight high-grade spirit veins were laid out across various locations throughout the domain boundary. Moreover, the pavilions and towers of the Guanyun Pavilion had expanded several times over from before. Earth-shattering changes had taken place across the entire domain boundary. Had the original buildings not remained untouched, he might not have even recognized the place. Li Guanqi clasped his hands behind his back and nodded slightly. "Rise. Return to your duties." Sweeping his divine sense outward, he vanished from the spot in an instant. Inside a spacious study, Ji Yuchuan sat behind a desk, busily working through a dense pile of jade slips. "You're back?" Ji Yuchuan did not turn around, remaining fully focused on the jade slip before him. Li Guanqi smiled, casually flipping through the jade slips on the shelf, every one of which had been neatly organized. "Yes. Everything outside is handled, so I thought I'd come back to see how things are and take care of matters at home." Ji Yuchuan set down his jade slip and finally stood up, letting out a long breath of relief. He turned to look at Li Guanqi. Their eyes met, and the two opened their arms to share a brief hug. Li Guanqi took a seat across the desk, pulling out a flagon of fine wine and pouring a cup for each of them. *Clink.* The cups met with a crisp chime. Neither said a word, simply drinking together in silence for a time. Li Guanqi sighed softly. "Over all these years, things really haven't been easy for the two of us..." A dazed look crossed Ji Yuchuan's eyes as he nodded in deep agreement. "Indeed. It truly hasn't been easy." After lingering in their shared memories for a moment, Li Guanqi held his wine cup and looked at Ji Yuchuan. "Brother Ji, tell me, what on earth happened? "Is it... Yu Hua?" Ji Yuchuan hesitated briefly, then shook his head. Li Guanqi's expression shifted slightly. Narrowing his eyes, he asked in a low voice, "Qianqiusui?" Seeing Ji Yuchuan nod, Li Guanqi closed his eyes and let out a sigh. "Tell me the details. What happened?" Ji Yuchuan kept his head lowered and uttered only one word. "Greed." Li Guanqi set down his cup, his brow furrowing. "Money?" Ji Yuchuan looked up at Li Guanqi, tucking his hands into his sleeves. "Money, power, all of it... "It couldn't be helped. Your cultivation and realm rose too high—so high you reached the heavens." Ji Yuchuan slowly pushed a jade slip toward Li Guanqi. Li Guanqi sighed, reaching out to take the jade slip and sweeping his divine sense inside. The more he read, the darker his face became!