Li Guanqi led the group through the void, covering a thousand li in the blink of an eye.
Soon, they returned to the Northern Region of the Qingyun Continent.
Drawing closer to the sect, Li Guanqi could not help feeling a surge of excitement.
His absence from the sect this time had not been brief either. He had set out all alone, never imagining that he would return accompanied by four others—five in total.
When he had left last time, he had been merely in the Soul Formation Realm. Now, upon his return, he had already broken through to the Void Refining Realm.
"Phew..."
Beside him, Ye Feng was also somewhat nervous, rubbing his hands together in a flustered manner.
"Boss, why do I feel so nervous?"
Li Guanqi smiled faintly. "What are you nervous about?"
"Nothing much... I just feel like I've been away for too long and haven't contacted home. I'm afraid my parents will be angry.
"I've been gone for years. I wonder how my dad and the others are doing."
Li Guanqi glanced at Ye Feng and gave him a smack on the head.
"Relax, your parents are doing just fine. When I came back before, I went to visit them."
"Huh? Boss, you even visited my parents?"
"Yeah. There was a little matter back then, so I sorted it out along the way."
Hearing this, Ye Feng lowered his head in silence for a moment. He wanted to say some words of thanks, but felt that would be too distant between brothers.
Scratching his head, he grinned. "Heh-heh, as expected of my boss. You really care about me.
"I wonder how my nominal master is doing, too."
Li Guanqi burst into hearty laughter upon hearing this.
"Elder Tu probably has no idea that the bargain disciple he picked up is now a great mighty figure of the Void Refining Realm."
Talking and laughing, the group soon entered the territory of the Great Xia Sword Sect!
The surrounding environment changed slightly, the concentration of spiritual energy rising noticeably.
Moreover, the birds and beasts around them had grown more numerous, with occasional roars of beasts drifting into their ears.
The cultivation of these demon beasts was not particularly high, and arrays and restrictions seemed to be embedded within the mountain ranges.
Steep peaks rose around like stone pillars.
Winding rivers lay scattered across the earth like a beauty's dark tresses, sparkling brilliantly in the sunlight.
As they flew deeper, the surrounding sights gradually became far more bustling and prosperous.
Sects of various sizes appeared to be situated atop the mountains great and small.
Li Guanqi frowned slightly. Even he had no idea when these sects had cropped up.
To establish sects so close to the Great Xia Sword Sect...
"Humph!"
Li Guanqi snorted coldly, unable to avoid a trace of worry in his heart.
He feared that during his absence, the sect had fallen into decline and was now being pushed around by others right at its doorstep.
Just then, an invisible barrier abruptly appeared before Li Guanqi and his companions!
Li Guanqi's brow furrowed at once. This perimeter... was at least a hundred li away from the sect.
How could his sect possess the financial power to sustain a no-fly boundary barrier spanning a hundred li?
In an instant, countless ominous thoughts flashed through Li Guanqi's mind.
Beside him, Ye Feng suddenly spoke up, "Boss, why not... try our identity tokens?"
Frowning, Li Guanqi retrieved a purple jade slip.
"Uh???? Boss, why does your jade slip look a bit different from mine?"
Looking at the jade slip in Ye Feng's hand, which by comparison could only be described as crude, Li Guanqi replied somewhat awkwardly,
"Ahem... Well, I'm an elder now, so our jade slips might be a bit different."
Ye Feng's eyes widened instantly. "Just how many things did you pull off when you came back last time?!
"You became an elder already?!"
Xiao Chen curled his lip. "Brother Ye, not that I'm lecturing you, but that attitude of yours won't do.
"You're clearly afraid your brother might suffer, but even more afraid he might do better than you..."
Meng Wanshu pursed her lips into a smile, finding them all to be like children who had yet to grow up.
Weng!
Li Guanqi slowly pressed his jade slip against the barrier, and the invisible space of the boundary abruptly erupted with waves of immense spatial power!
The array screen rippled as the light of the five elements flickered across it.
Immediately after, the array screen burst with radiant luminescence, snapping open to reveal a gap a hundred zhang wide!
The moment the array parted, Li Guanqi and the others froze in place!
A white jade path paved in midair stretched for hundreds of zhang.
The broad white jade path was fully thirty zhang wide, and numerous figures stood not far off.
Sect Master Lu Kangnian, Ling Daoyan, Qin Xian, Master, Mistress, the lords of the Eight Peaks...
All the elders of the Eight Peaks, the deacons of the inner and outer courts, and the consecrated elders were all present.
Behind them, densely lined up on both sides, were the disciples of the Great Xia Sword Sect!
After sensing their auras, Li Guanqi's eyes reddened slightly, and his nose felt a sudden sting.
Boom!
Lu Kangnian took a step forward and cupped his fists in salute!
Every disciple followed suit and bowed. With a beaming smile, Lu Kangnian bellowed at the top of his lungs:
"Welcome, Great Xia Sword Sect Elder Li Guanqi... through ten thousand li of wind and frost, back to the sect at last!"
In an instant, the thunderous voices merged into a single deafening roar that shook the heavens!
Within three hundred li of the Great Xia Sword Sect's territory, the sect masters and elders of every sect established nearby took to the air.
Hovering a hundred zhang lower, they joined in with resonant voices!
For a time, the shouts welcoming his return echoed ceaselessly through the mountains and rivers.
A tempest surged in Li Guanqi's chest, his emotions churning wildly.
Having been away for so long, though he wouldn't admit it aloud, in this moment he knew.
Wandering out in the world... he had missed home.
Li Guanqi broke into a grin, raising a hand alongside Ye Feng to change into their sect robes.
Looking down, they straightened their collars, primal energy surging to wash away the travel dust.
With solemn expressions, they stepped forward slowly, cupping their fists in the salute of disciples and bowing in return.
"Great Xia Sword Sect, Tianlei Peak disciple Li Guanqi, has returned to the sect!"
Ye Feng's eyes were red by now. Looking at one familiar face after another, the yearning in his heart erupted just the same.
Surging with emotion, he could not conceal his genuine feelings either.
"Great Xia Sword Sect, Tianjin Peak disciple Ye Feng, has returned to the sect!!"
At this moment, the disciples of the Great Xia Sword Sect numbered three thousand, virtually all of them at a realm capable of flying on swords!
Every single one of them gazed with fervent excitement at that figure up in the sky.
For he was the idol they all revered. Occasionally, they could hear bits of news about him from the sect elders.
Yet every word sounded like a fantasy to their ears.
A senior brother who had entered the sect only a few years before them had already become a colossus of supreme power!
Capable of turning the clouds into rain with a flip of his hand!
Even in other domains, he brandished his sword without restraint!
"Ah! Senior Brother Li is so handsome! I heard his cultivation is even stronger than the sect master's now!"
"Of course! They say Senior Brother Li just returned from the Shenbao Domain. Do you think that incident..."
"Hush! Mind your tongue."
Murmurs arose all around. Every disciple was thrilled to the extreme upon seeing Li Guanqi.
Listening to the legendary tales of Li Guanqi, their hearts were filled with boundless yearning and awe.
Lu Kangnian hurried forward to help the two to their feet. When he saw the companions behind Li Guanqi, his smile widened until his grin nearly reached his ears.
Winking at Li Guanqi, he laughed heartily. "Hahahaha! All right, let's head to the grand hall before we talk."
Chapter 569