Turbulence Over Qingyun!

The moment Li Guanqi rose to his feet, he merely glanced up at the heavy, dark clouds rolling across the heavens. An invisible pressure instantly surged outward in all directions! In the blink of an eye, the thick, brooding clouds vanished without a trace. Taking Meng Wanshu's hand, he gave it a reassuring squeeze, silently signaling to her not to worry. Stepping out of the Sect Cemetery, he found a crowd of people waiting outside. Warmth flooded Li Guanqi's heart. He chuckled softly and said, "I'm sorry to have worried all of you elders. I'm completely fine." Lu Kangnian's eyes flickered slightly, and the group soon made their way to the sect's main hall. *Hum!* Layer upon layer of spatial barriers enshrouded the entire grand hall. Sitting across from Li Guanqi with a solemn expression, Lu Kangnian asked in a deep voice, "Tell me the truth, brat. What on earth happened?" Li Guanqi gave it some thought and chose not to hide anything from them. He spoke truthfully, "My strength and realm progressed too rapidly, and I still haven't forged my void avatar to step into Void Refinement. Now, the divine soul within my origin spirit is trembling. It seems I can't suppress it any longer." Hearing this, everyone's expressions turned grim. Only then did Xiao Chen realize that Li Guanqi had not yet forged his void avatar! Lu Kangnian nodded gravely, waving his broad hand as he spoke in a heavy voice, "Don't worry about sect affairs. There's nothing here you need to fret over. Right now, your foremost priority is to enter secluded cultivation at once and forge your void avatar! The Void Returning Pill and spiritual body materials you need for your breakthrough will be prepared by the sect! In the meantime, keep your mind calm and consult Wanshu and the others on their breakthrough experiences. The Scripture Pavilion also has some records on the matter; I'll have Elder Ling fetch them for you shortly." Li Guanqi smiled and nodded, accepting the sect's goodwill without refusal. Even though his current wealth meant he was hardly lacking a single Void Returning Pill— In fact, if he so much as asked, Tianji Pavilion would surely come running to deliver one. Forget a single sixth-rank Void Returning Pill; even if it were a seventh- or eighth-rank pill, Gu Yong would do everything within his power to procure it for him. Yet he knew that only family never stood on ceremony with one another. Li Guanqi grinned. "Then Sect Master had better find me some top-notch stuff." Lu Kangnian rolled his eyes and replied testily, "You talk as if I'd ever shortchange you. Don't worry. If the materials for the void avatar aren't high enough in grade, we'll find another way. This is of paramount importance—there's absolutely no settling for less!" Meng Wanshu had remained silent, but listening to Lu Kangnian's words warmed her heart. It turned out that during the times she had not been by his side, the sect elders had treated him with such genuine care. Moreover, it was a sincere goodwill that asked for nothing in return, entirely independent of Li Guanqi's present strength and realm. Li Guanqi weighed this carefully as well. The time remaining to him was limited. Three months at most! If he was not ready to step into Void Refinement within three months, his origin spirit would reach its absolute limit and spontaneously split off a void avatar on its own. And should he fail in the breakthrough, he would suffer tremendous backlash: at best, severe injuries and a drop in realm; at worst, a shattered origin spirit and the permanent end to his path of cultivation. He had initially thought there was plenty of time, never expecting everything to arrive so abruptly. After pondering for a while, Li Guanqi made a swift, decisive call. "Starting tomorrow, I will hold a seven-day lecture for the sect! In this teaching session, the five of us in the Void Refining Realm will answer questions and dispel doubts for everyone." At those words, everyone present was astonished! Lu Kangnian's immediate reaction was not about how precious a lecture from five Void Refining cultivators would be to Soul Formation cultivators like themselves. Instead, he bluntly objected, "Out of the question! Condensing your void avatar and advancing is your top priority right now! The lectures can wait! You can do that whenever you want—we cannot let this delay you!" Li Guanqi chuckled. "Sect Master, the timing won't be an issue. But... you probably don't know Wanshu's identity yet, do you?" Hearing this, Lu Kangnian froze slightly, his weathered face filled with confusion. He knew that for Meng Wanshu to be so young yet possess such formidable cultivation, her background could not possibly be ordinary. Yet he had never given it too much thought. Whether in the past, the present, or the future, the Great Xia Sword Sect would never fear anyone because of their status or the factions behind them. Nor did they desire anything from others. Without desires or demands, they could treat everyone as an equal. Just like the current sect disciples: many of them had prominent backgrounds to some degree, but here, they had only one identity—disciples of the Great Xia Sword Sect! Li Guanqi naturally had not brought this up to flaunt Meng Wanshu's status. "Wanshu's father is the Domain Lord of the Shenbao Domain." He stated the young woman's identity calmly, yet the elders below were shaken to their core. Qin Xian's hand trembled as he held his teacup, spilling tea all over the floor... Even Ling Daoyan nearly spewed out the mouthful of wine he had just taken. Hearing this, Lu Kangnian swallowed hard, his eyes wide with shock. Clearly, he had never imagined that Meng Wanshu's status was so extraordinarily exalted! He even began to wonder whether he had been far too negligent in his treatment of her. Seeing this, Li Guanqi hurried to explain, "Wanshu is gentle by nature and has never cared for tedious superficial formalities. The reason I mentioned it was to assure you elders that you needn't worry about the materials I'll need for Void Refinement. It's just that it will take some time for the items to arrive." Lu Kangnian gave an enlightened nod and pressed the matter no further. He said in a deep voice, "Very well, we'll proceed according to your plans. Shortly, I'll pass down the order to construct a secluded cultivation retreat for you deep in the back mountains." Li Guanqi smiled and nodded, though he did not reveal his subsequent plans. Orders were soon dispatched one after another. When everyone learned that Li Guanqi and the other four Void Refining realm powerhouses would be conducting lectures for seven days starting tomorrow, nearly all disciples out on experiential training rushed madly back toward the Great Xia Sword Sect! Yet someone somehow leaked the news. In no time, powerhouses across the entire Qingyun Continent scrambled through every conceivable channel hoping to sit in and listen at the Great Xia Sword Sect. Virtually every dock heading toward the Northern Region was packed with dense clusters of cloud boats. The teleportation arrays flared continuously with blinding light as wave after wave of people stepped forth and dashed out in a frenzy. The guards watching over the arrays had no idea whom to even ask about what was happening. A guard clad in silver armor stood dumbfounded, cursing under his breath, "What in the hell is going on here?!" Almost every reputable sect across the Qingyun Continent had sent representatives. Sects that had once appeared aloof and unreachable in Li Guanqi's eyes now swallowed their pride, pleading with Lu Kangnian for special permission. Yet only upon arriving at the territory of the Great Xia Sword Sect did they discover that three successive heavenly flame barriers had barred everyone a hundred li away!