Great Xia Sword Sect Disciples Detained!

A seemingly casual gesture from Li Guanqi was something everyone took deeply to heart. At first, the disciples and elders who had returned to the sect had felt some sense of estrangement. After all, they had been away for decades, even centuries, yet now the sect had flourished tremendously because of Li Guanqi. They had once worried whether their return might be seen as nothing more than jumping on the bandwagon—merely adding flowers to brocade for an already thriving Great Xia Sword Sect. Some had even felt a pang of regret for not leaving alongside that other group. Yet when Lu Kangnian showcased the sect's present foundation and resources, they had chosen to stay. And now, Li Guanqi's gesture served as a reassurance to every single one of those who had returned! What he did today was to tell them all: no matter the time, as long as one's heart remained with the sect, the sect would always treat them with equal care! In an instant, everyone bowed deeply to Li Guanqi. Shen Zhirong was beyond thrilled. With just a brief glance, he discovered that the sword technique Li Guanqi had given him was, at the very least, a Heaven-rank manual! Not Xuan rank, not Earth rank—Heaven rank! If word got out to the cultivators of the outside world, a Heaven-rank sword technique like this would surely stir up a storm of blood! Facing the cheering crowd, Li Guanqi nodded with a smile, then turned to look at the void beside him. Cao Yan and Xiao Chen emerged ahead of schedule. The moment they appeared, they spotted Li Guanqi. But after looking all around without seeing Ye Feng, they rushed over to Li Guanqi's side with anxious expressions. "Eldest Brother, where's Second Brother? How is he?" Seeing the concern written across their faces, Li Guanqi felt a warmth in his heart. He patted their shoulders with a chuckle. "Don't worry, Ye Feng is fine. Refining that thing will just take a bit of time. Set your minds at ease." Looking behind them, Li Guanqi frowned. "What about the two of you? Why are you back alone?" Looking a bit bashful, Cao Yan said, "After I sealed that sect's abyss fissure, nothing else seemed to be happening. I was worried about Second Brother's condition, so I came back early. Fourth Brother was in the same boat, so the two of us returned together." Hearing this, Li Guanqi nodded, thinking it was no big deal. Just as he was about to tell them to head to the Purple Spirit Grotto-Heaven to look after Ye Feng, his body stiffened slightly. "All right, you two go into the Purple Spirit Grotto-Heaven and keep an eye on Ye Feng." Turning to Cao Yan, he added, "By the way, keep an eye on things if Sect Master needs help with anything. And while you're at it, find Pengluo later to get some essence set aside for Ye Feng." Sensing something amiss, Xiao Chen frowned and asked in a low voice, "Boss, did something happen to the people we brought?" Li Guanqi gave him a slap on the head and laughed. "What are you imagining? Nothing of the sort. Guanyun Pavilion just contacted me about some business. All right, I'll head over there." Only then did smiles return to their faces, and they turned to streak off toward the Purple Spirit Grotto-Heaven. Once the two had left, Li Guanqi's expression instantly darkened. Lightning flashed underfoot, tearing open the void before him in an instant. When he reemerged, he was already within Guanyun Pavilion's domain. At this moment, the domain was being prepared for its relocation into the Great Xia Sword Sect. Seeing Li Guanqi's grim countenance, Ji Yuchuan hurried over and bowed beside him. "The group led by Xiao Chen got into a conflict with the Ancient Clan. Those people... have been detained. For now, there are no casualties on our side!" Li Guanqi narrowed his eyes, a glint of cold light flickering within them. He had repeatedly instructed them to avoid conflict with the Ancient Clan, but in the end, it still could not be avoided. "What's the cultivation level of the strongest person in Fourth Brother's team?" Ji Yuchuan answered without hesitation, "Peak Soul Formation—Xu Li, former elder of Tianmu Peak!" "And which Ancient Clan did they clash with? What is their strength?" Li Guanqi inquired in a frosty voice, while reaching out to Lu Kangnian for Xu Li's transmission jade slip. Ji Yuchuan handed over a jade slip. "From what I've gathered, it's the Lu clan! Our investigation shows that this family wields immense power. Under them are eight subordinate Ancient Clan branches, all descendants of their Lu family." Having little concept of such things, Li Guanqi asked directly, "How does this Lu clan compare to the Sun clan from before?" Ji Yuchuan said with absolute certainty, "The Sun clan's power would likely only match one of the Lu clan's eight subordinate branches!" Li Guanqi frowned slightly. Such vast clan power was formidable indeed; this was the first time even he had encountered such a force. "Pavilion Master, there is more... The Lu clan definitely has Body Integration experts, perhaps even the Mahayana realm! Because among their eight branch lineages, of those I have managed to investigate, three branches already possess Body Integration cultivators!" Li Guanqi's brows knit tight as he muttered under his breath, "That's a bit troublesome... A force like this is outrageously strong. But no matter what, if they want to detain people from my Great Xia Sword Sect, they'd better see if they have the strength to back it up!" Before his voice finished echoing, his figure vanished from where he stood. Sensing the residual spatial ripples, Ji Yuchuan followed right behind Li Guanqi without a second thought. "Su You, Old Tang, I'm heading out with the Pavilion Master! I leave the pavilion's affairs to you two!" Looking at the map in his hand, Li Guanqi saw that the recorded Qianlin Sect was located in the Eastern Domain of the Qingyun Continent. He murmured, "Not bad. Not too far." Looking back, he frowned. "Why are you following along?" Ji Yuchuan's figure flashed as he bowed with a grin. "The Pavilion Master is taking the field in person—how could I not come along to attend to you and lend some pomp?" With that, light flashed in Ji Yuchuan's hand, and he handed a glittering golden runic talisman to Li Guanqi. Li Guanqi smiled. Once they affixed the talismans to their feet, their speed instantly multiplied several times over! Surprised, Li Guanqi looked at Ji Yuchuan and reached out his hand. "Give me some more." Ji Yuchuan roared with laughter. Far from stingy, he directly handed over most of the runic talismans he had on him. The sheer quantity made Li Guanqi click his tongue in awe. In less than the time it took an incense stick to burn, the two had arrived above the Qianlin Sect! Buzz! The instant Li Guanqi appeared, his gaze locked onto the imposing sect square below. All the people of the Great Xia Sword Sect were squatting on the ground, having suffered injuries to varying degrees. Surrounding them stood dozens of Ancient Clan disciples, holding golden inner armor in their hands that was clearly of extraordinary quality. Apart from the members of the Great Xia Sword Sect, several hundred cultivators clad in green robes lay battered on the ground. Many Ancient Clan cultivators were still rummaging through everything in the Qianlin Sect, gathering spoils like bandits. An old man knelt on the ground, desperately pleading with them. The bluestone pavers trembled as more than ten gigantic beasts resembling lions and tigers were confined in midair. Someone had already taken out a dagger and begun skinning the beasts alive, peeling away their hide and scales! Seeing this scene, Ji Yuchuan narrowed his eyes and said in a chill voice, "Those are bloodline descendants of the ancient great demon, the Scarlet Gold Earth Dragon—rank five great demons, Dark Gold Spirit Lions!"