Li Guanqi remained vigilant throughout.
After all, he did not know whether He Yuning had truly come out of concern for him.
The two had only crossed paths by chance; offending the entire Black Armor Guard of Yuntian City on his behalf was hardly worth the trouble.
Hearing this, Guo Xuelin frowned slightly. First, he looked up at Li Guanqi opposite him, who held the lightning-clad scabbard.
Then he turned to the two men beside him and said softly, "We can certainly sit down and talk, Young Sect Master. But you must have him disperse that scabbard first."
Indeed, Guo Xuelin was a member of the Taixuan Sword Sect, and he dared not openly contradict the Young Sect Master before him.
Seeing this, the two beside him raised no objections either. After all, He Yuning had stepped forward personally.
The Young Sect Master of the Taixuan Sword Sect commanded respect—and they had to give him face whether they liked it or not!
Seeing that none of the three objected further, He Yuning finally let out a sigh of relief.
His expression softened slightly, and turning toward Li Guanqi, he transmitted his voice softly:
"Brother Ye, there must be some misunderstanding here. If you trust me, let's sit down and talk."
Li Guanqi pondered for a moment upon hearing this, then slowly dispersed the lightning in his hand.
If the three truly wanted to strike, even He Yuning's presence wouldn't help; their combined might would still be enough to trap and kill him here.
In truth, had He Yuning not arrived, even if he managed to gravely wound one of them, he would have undoubtedly met defeat.
Li Guanqi slid Red Lotus back into the sword coffin with a reverse grip, no longer concealing his true appearance.
Raising his hand, he retrieved the face-changing bug and revealed his genuine features.
The old man and his companions had long seen that Li Guanqi was disguised, but He Yuning's eyes went wide as he stared at him.
Besides, having used both the sword coffin and Red Lotus, news of it was bound to reach them soon.
After all, the stir he had caused in Mingchuan was quite substantial, and with the Lingxu Continent bordering the Taiqing Domain, word would spread quickly.
Disbelief filled He Yuning's eyes. He pointed at Li Guanqi, just about to say something,
when Li Guanqi beat him to it: "My apologies, Brother He. One must always exercise caution when traveling away from home. I had no intention to deceive you."
At this moment, Guo Xuelin stared intently at Li Guanqi, astonishment gleaming in his eyes as he murmured,
"The Great Xia Domain's Yanluo Sword, Li Guanqi!"
His finger trembling, He Yuning cried out in shock as well:
"You're actually Li Guanqi?! Good grief, I knew someone this formidable couldn't possibly be a nobody!"
"Tsk, tsk, I've heard of dragon riders, but this is the first time I've ever seen a dragon swordsman!"
"This dragon... is its bloodline pure?"
"Our Taixuan Sword Sect has two sect-guarding great demons that also carry the bloodline of true dragons."
"Whoa... is this your sword casket? Just how many swords can it hold?"
"I heard your Sword Ruins is of an extraordinarily high grade. Just now... did you activate its second stage?"
Listening to the youth babble on and on, Li Guanqi was suddenly reminded of Ye Feng.
Both were chatterboxes of the exact same breed.
It couldn't be helped; everything about Li Guanqi seemed to possess an inexplicable magnetism.
Any cultivator hailed as a top-tier genius within a domain was bound to be compared to Li Guanqi of the Great Xia Domain.
He Yuning had long admired this blind swordsman from afar, never expecting that the person he had met the other day was Li Guanqi himself.
And that youth's inner voice could not be heard at all by anyone lacking a heart filled with the Qi of Grandeur.
This was why He Yuning had said back then that within that range, probably only the two of them could hear it.
He Yuning only now snapped back to reality and hurriedly added, "Brother Li's character can absolutely be trusted! A few days ago, on my way back from traveling, I happened to hear the faithful prayers of a mortal.
"At that time, only Brother Li and I heard it. So Brother Li's actions in Yuntian City definitely held no malice!"
When the three opposite heard the words 'faithful prayers,' their expressions shifted.
Much of their suspicion that Li Guanqi was sent by some faction to test them was dispelled.
Still, they needed to hear the exact reason for themselves.
The white-haired elder said in a deep voice, "In that case, let us return to Yuntian City first."
Li Guanqi hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement.
However, before leaving, he used Pengluo to leave spatial coordinates behind.
That way, even if they intended to make a move against him, he could crush a teleportation scroll to escape.
This served as a contingency he left for himself.
As for spatial seals or the like, either Pengluo or Jiuxiao could easily break them.
If a Body Integration Realm powerhouse intervened, of course, no preparation on his part would make a difference.
Li Guanqi then accompanied them back to Yuntian City.
Tearing through space, the group arrived at a grand hall, where Black Armor Guards dashed and streaked about everywhere.
It seemed this was Yuntian City's City Defense Hall.
Upon entering the hall, everyone took their respective seats.
Only then did they quietly breathe a sigh of relief and begin swallowing pills to heal their injuries.
The man wielding frost power was the most aggrieved of all.
Had he known He Yuning knew him, why fight at all? In the end, he was the one who had suffered the most severe injuries.
After arriving here, He Yuning took a seat beside Li Guanqi. After all, Guo Xuelin held authority here;
he couldn't usurp the host's place.
The old man spoke softly, "Li Guanqi, was it? Speak. What in the world is going on?"
Li Guanqi directly took out his sect elder token, from which Lu Kangnian's furious roar faintly echoed:
"Cang Lu has betrayed the sect! Execute without mercy!"
Li Guanqi's eyes turned chillingly sharp as he stated plainly, "Cang Lu attempted to kill his master, and the one gravely wounded and on the brink of death is none other than my master!
"I pursued him all the way from the Great Xia Domain to this place. Earlier, I discovered his trail right here in Yuntian City.
"Unable to hold back, I struck.
"That bastard is extraordinarily adept at hiding. Having failed to capture him this time, it will be hard to track him down again..."
At this point, Li Guanqi could not help sighing.
He felt that Cang Lu, having sensed danger, was very likely to flee and go completely into hiding; the lead he had worked so hard to find had been severed just like that.
Hearing this, Guo Xuelin nodded slightly. Anyone would find it a headache if such a traitor emerged within their sect.
Not to mention that he had turned on his master—and that master was this young man's own teacher. The fury in his heart was completely understandable.
Recalling that when Li Guanqi made his move in Yuntian City, he had only incapacitated the Black Armor Guards without taking any lives,
the old man said softly, "So that was it... No lives were lost among the Black Armor Guards, so let this matter rest here."
Li Guanqi nodded slightly in gratitude upon hearing that.
Then he turned to the man in front of him who was still circulating primal energy, and said softly,
"Um... Senior, how about you wait a moment before healing yourself?"
The man was momentarily taken aback. Opening his eyes, he looked at him in confusion. "Why?"
Li Guanqi shrugged and said softly, "I attached Yinming Profound Flame inside Senior's meridians. If you keep healing like this, I'm afraid it will erupt within the time it takes an incense stick to burn."
Hearing this, the man's face drained of all color. His divine sense swept through his entire body, yet found nothing at all!
Cold sweat instantly streamed down his forehead.
Chapter 478