Li Guanqi swept his divine sense outward and detected a familiar aura.
His lips curved upward in a faint smile, and in a flash, he vanished from where he stood.
Inside a bustling dining pavilion filled with swirling white steam, a long queue had formed.
A comely woman who appeared to be in her late thirties was bustling about behind the counter.
"Don't shove, don't push! These steamer baskets of buns are ready."
"You little brat, I was talking to him, not you, wasn't I?"
"Look how skinny you are—here, take an extra one."
Jiang Hui had never felt so relaxed and at ease. Watching the vibrant, energetic youths before her brought a deep sense of peace to her heart.
Over the past few days, she felt as if she were living in a dream.
She had already been an old woman with one foot in the grave, yet after swallowing that pill, her appearance had undergone an earth-shattering transformation.
"Sister Hui, five meat buns and two vegetable buns!"
"Sister Hui, do you really know the First Elder?"
"Sister Hui... you nag just like my mother, hahaha! How about we just start calling you Mother Hui?"
Jiang Hui rolled her eyes and rested her hands on her hips, scolding him with a grin.
"Piss off! I'm still young—I don't have a son as big as you!"
Though she scolded him, her crinkled eyes were brimming with joy.
Compared to those decrepit, gloom-ridden old fogies back in Beiliang City, being around these spirited young lads felt incomparably better.
And all of this was thanks to Li Guanqi.
She had originally assumed he was merely a consecrated elder or something similar in some small sect. Even if he could arrange something for her, she figured it would just be odd jobs in the outer sect or helping out in the kitchen.
She never imagined that the disciple who came would escort her back to the Great Xia Sword Sect with utmost deference.
It had also been her first time soaring through the skies, riding the wind.
The disciples sent by the Great Xia Sword Sect were all at the Nascent Soul realm, dressed in official sect robes with sect jade slips hanging at their waists, terrified that someone blind along the way might cross their path.
Just then, a sudden commotion broke out among the crowd.
"Ahhh! The First Elder!"
"The Sword Venerable actually came in person!"
"Heavens, I've been in the sect for two years, and I've finally seen the First Elder with my own eyes!"
"Tch, you've been here two years and still haven't broken through to Core Formation, having to eat in the mess hall—you clearly haven't been working hard enough..."
The bustling crowd quickly quieted down, and in an instant, over a hundred disciples bowed deeply in salute.
"Greetings, First Elder!"
"Greetings, First Elder!"
Stirred by fervent emotion, everyone shouted at the top of their lungs.
Li Guanqi stood with one hand clasped behind his back, dressed in white robes with his sword coffin strapped across his back.
His gaze swept gently over the crowd, and he said in a warm voice, "Rise, all of you.
"There is no need to be formal. If you cultivate diligently, you too can reach my realm."
At these words, light seemed to ignite in the eyes of every disciple.
Looking at these youthful faces, Li Guanqi could not help but recall himself and Ye Feng back in the old days.
"Years ago, I ate in this very hall, no different from any of you.
"The sect provides you with the best cultivation resources, and you must apply yourselves with equal diligence.
"No matter when, keep the sect creed engraved upon your hearts.
"Never bully the weak, nor ever let yourselves be trampled upon!
"The Great Xia Sword Sect of today is not what it once was. We have more than enough strength to back you up!"
Li Guanqi spoke these final words with ringing conviction.
The Great Xia Sword Sect of the past, and Lu Kangnian back then, had possessed the resolve to say such words to them.
Today, he had even greater authority to declare them to every disciple!
Without anyone noticing, more and more disciples had rushed over upon hearing the news, gathering outside the mess hall without stepping in.
Carried on waves of primal energy, those parting words echoed far into the distance...
The gathered disciples nodded fervently, clenching their fists as quiet resolve surged within their hearts.
The gazes they directed toward Li Guanqi were filled with sheer veneration.
They knew every legend of Li Guanqi's past in the sect by heart.
Back then, when the Great Xia Sword Sect had drawn its swords against Ziyang Palace, countless disciples had been left thoroughly impassioned, yearning to follow in those footsteps.
The crowd parted slowly to make way, and Li Guanqi walked forward at an unhurried pace.
Compared to when he had worn black robes, he now possessed an ethereal, transcendent grace akin to an immortal fallen from heaven.
Watching him approach, Jiang Hui could hardly believe that this was the little blind boy from before.
Li Guanqi stepped up to the counter and looked at the woman before him, her appearance overlapping with the memories of the past.
"Sister Hui, two meat buns, please."
Jiang Hui snapped out of her daze and smiled warmly.
"You rascal... it's good to see you..."
Taking the buns, Li Guanqi blinked and sent her a soft voice transmission.
"Isn't being here much better than staying in Beiliang City?"
Jiang Hui raised an eyebrow, leaned forward, and whispered back, "It's fantastic! Back in Beiliang City, all those old fogies talked about every day was where they wanted to be buried...
"Now, I feel like I could easily live another sixty years! Hahaha!"
By the end, Jiang Hui could not hold back a hearty burst of laughter.
Li Guanqi did not linger long. After a bit more pleasant banter, he turned and took his leave.
With his public appearance, Jiang Hui's days ahead would certainly not be difficult or neglected.
As for the future, everything would be left to heaven's will.
If she wished to cultivate, the sect would naturally take care of it.
A voice transmission from Lu Kangnian sounded by his ear. With a flash of thunder beneath his feet, Li Guanqi arrived at the main sect hall.
Those closest to him were all present.
Li Guanqi smiled. "Sect Master!"
Seated on the dais, Lu Kangnian nodded with a smile.
"I didn't expect you to bring someone back with you."
Li Guanqi asked casually, "Does Sister Hui want to cultivate?"
Lu Kangnian's eyes twinkled, as if he found the matter rather amusing.
"She doesn't."
Li Guanqi asked, surprised, "She doesn't?"
At this point, Qin Xian also nodded and spoke up.
"That's right. Both the Sect Master and I asked her, and she gave a clear answer that she will not cultivate.
"I also asked her why, and her reply caught me quite off guard..."
Hearing this, Li Guanqi asked curiously, "Oh? What did Sister Hui say? With the sect's present strength, piling up resources to push someone into the Core Formation realm would be effortless."
Lu Kangnian let out a sigh of deep emotion and said softly, "She said... she was merely an ordinary mortal in the first place, over sixty years old, already with one foot in the grave.
"Thanks to you, being able to experience a youthful body and appearance once more is already a tremendous blessing.
"As for pursuing the Dao and seeking longevity, she holds no attachment to it.
"She truly enjoys the life she has now, and she intends to keep living like this...
"Until... her life naturally reaches its end."
Silence fell over the hall. Everyone went quiet.
Just those few words and Jiang Hui's detachment toward life and death were enough to command the respect of everyone present.
Particularly when the opportunity was placed right before her—within arm's reach to grant her more than two centuries of additional life.
Yet her answer had remained unchanged.
Li Guanqi felt a wave of profound emotion.
Sixty years in the mortal world had long since taught her to look past many things.
Perhaps in Jiang Hui's eyes, endless lifespans were never what she sought.
Living well and happily was what truly mattered to her.
For the first half of her life, she had been trapped in Beiliang City.
For the second half, being able to live simply as Jiang Hui within the flourishing Great Xia Sword Sect was more than enough!
Chapter 1429