And so, along the way, what should have been the journey of a single stick of incense was dragged out by the elders of the Taixuan Sword Sect into a full two hours!
Yuntian City was heavily guarded now, with patrolling Black Armor Guards almost never resting for an instant.
Li Guanqi was bound thus at the highest point in the center of Yuntian City, suspended high above Yuntian Square!
At his side were Jiuxiao and Pengluo.
The sight completely ignited everyone's curiosity; after all, many people still had no idea what had happened.
Moreover, the colossal true dragon nearly thirty zhang long drew greedy looks from countless onlookers.
Yet with a full twelve Void Refining Realm experts standing guard, those ill-intentioned cultivators dared not show the slightest hint of covetousness.
Whoever moved would die!
And their objective today was simply to watch over Li Guanqi and ensure he did not escape.
Gradually, more and more people gathered.
In the end, after the twelve elders anchored the chains around Yuntian Square, only one elder was left behind to keep watch.
Some of the elders hurried back to the Taixuan Sword Sect, while the others remained in Yuntian City.
Tomorrow, that most important figure would arrive.
They still needed to hold the fort in Yuntian City; that was where their duty lay.
Once the others had departed, the slender man sat cross-legged at the center of the square. With a wave of his hand, he raised an earthen-yellow barrier formation, pushing all the onlookers a hundred zhang away.
By this time, having pieced together the cause and effect, the crowd erupted in a flurry of curses and condemnation.
The prestige of the Taixuan Sword Sect in Zhongzhou was no lesser than that of the Great Xia Sword Sect in the Northern Region.
Yet the Great Xia Sword Sect still had no idea that Li Guanqi had been captured.
Since last night, all news from this region had been blocked from traveling outside.
Even the Tianji Pavilion operatives stationed in Yuntian City were frantic with anxiety.
With a barrier sealing Zhongzhou, not a shred of information could get out, and none of their people could leave.
With the meager power of mere informants, they could not even get an audience with He Yuanting, let alone convince him to release Li Guanqi.
Meanwhile, Li Guanqi repeatedly attempted to communicate with the sword spirit...
At last, her halting voice echoed in his mind.
"I'm... here."
Hearing her voice brought a glimmer of relief to Li Guanqi's heart. In a deep voice, he asked, "Sword spirit, is there any way out of this?"
This time, the sword spirit remained silent for a long while, as if she had vanished once more.
Li Guanqi's expression gradually darkened. He did not know what he could do if even the sword spirit could not help.
His only remaining hope was to pray that He Yuning possessed some immense heaven-sent fortune that would allow him to survive.
Yet... given the current circumstances, hope was slim indeed...
Pengluo transmitted his voice: "*Hiss*... If it weren't... weren't for my natal... leaf..."
"That guy... would have died long ago."
"His heart was shredded... Unless... there's some supreme natural treasure... that can rebuild a heart..."
Pengluo bared his teeth in agony. His body, cleft in two, was skewered by separate chains and hung in midair.
Li Guanqi's vision was pitch-black; he could not even open his mind's eye.
Yet he could hear that Pengluo had grown far weaker.
The sword spirit's voice finally spoke again.
"There is... no other way..."
Hearing this, Li Guanqi felt his heart sink inch by inch.
Never before had he felt so utterly pessimistic.
Under the current circumstances, he could rely only on himself; all external aid had been rendered useless.
Yet both his primal energy and divine sense were completely sealed. He could not muster even a fraction of strength.
Red Lotus remained in He Yuanting's hands, and his storage ring was gone as well.
Amidst the crowd, a pair of eyes narrowed slightly, and the corners of a mouth beneath a black robe curved faintly upward.
Then, without a sound, the figure vanished into the throng.
As if sensing something, Li Guanqi turned his head toward the crowd, but he did not even have the strength left to open his mind's eye.
*Clatter, clang!*
Li Guanqi struggled slightly, but an instant later, a whip bristling with thorns lashed across his body!
*Crack!*
The man rose, narrowing his eyes as he glared at Li Guanqi, barking coldly, "Behave yourself!"
A bloody welt slowly rose as the white robe was torn to shreds by the whip.
Flesh turned outward along the jagged, ghastly wound.
Li Guanqi gasped in agony, his body trembling slightly as cold sweat poured down all at once.
Veins bulged along his neck. He gritted his teeth so hard they nearly cracked, yet not a single whimper escaped him.
The man in Yuntian Square narrowed his gaze, seemingly displeased by Li Guanqi's reaction.
To strike someone with a whip and not even hear a cry of pain gave him no sense of satisfaction.
A cold sneer played at the corner of his lips. Raising his arm, he lashed out several more times, each strike heavier than the last!
*Crack! Crack! Crack!*
After three lashes, Li Guanqi's chest and back were torn to ribbons, a mangled mess of blood and flesh.
His undergarments were already glued to the raw wounds.
Li Guanqi shuddered from the agonizing pain, having bitten off a chunk of flesh from his own lip.
Yet he laughed, letting the blood from his mouth drip into the air, and murmured in a voice as faint as a gossamer thread.
"Didn't... have breakfast?"
Hearing that, the man flared with rage. "You!"
As he spoke, he raised his hand to whip Li Guanqi again.
Yet an aged hand reached out and caught his arm.
Recognizing the newcomer, the man immediately bowed in greeting. "Elder Wu."
Indeed, the newcomer was none other than Wu Changfeng!
Li Guanqi tilted his ear slightly. He knew Wu Changfeng was standing right before him.
"Alive? Dead?"
He was asking about He Yuning's condition.
The old man's expression was grim. Squinting at Li Guanqi, he spoke in a level voice.
"Why did you kill Yuning?"
A bitter look surfaced on Li Guanqi's face. He slowly lifted his head toward the front.
"Even... even you... don't... believe me?"
Wu Changfeng suddenly flew into a fury, grabbing Li Guanqi by the collar as he fought with all his might to suppress the rage burning within him.
"Believe you?"
"How can I believe you?!"
"I saw it with my own eyes... You were the one who took Yuning away!"
"The sword that pierced Yuning's heart was your own blade!"
"Your sword intent and sword qi still linger inside Yuning's body! How do you expect me to believe you?!"
"Everyone saw that you were the one who struck him down!"
The old man spoke at a furious clip, standing extremely close.
Li Guanqi could even feel the old man's scorching breath against his face.
"No fewer than a hundred cultivators witnessed you striking Yuning down! The sword was yours! The sword intent was yours!"
Li Guanqi's dull, blind eyes looked straight at the elder. His voice was weak as he asked, "Why would I... kill him?"
"Was the person... you saw... really me?"
"Did they... see me kill Yuning... with their own eyes?"
"The scene from that shadow... shadow-casting stone... wasn't the complete picture, was it?"
Four questions in rapid succession left the old man stunned.
After a long silence, his eyes turned dazed, and he murmured, "True... You had no reason to do it..."
Yet what followed was an even longer silence.
The old man slowly released his grip and whispered in a low voice.
"Regardless of the truth, once Yuning dies..."
"The Sect Master will never spare you. Even if... you weren't the one who killed Yuning."
Chapter 498