Chapter 437: Past Affections

At the very moment before Duan Rong drew his blade, no one noticed—not even Duan Rong himself—that a tear slid down the corner of Lv Qingzhu's eye...

On her beautiful yet icy face, a single tear slid past, just like a shooting star falling in the dark of night.

Just as Lv Qingzhu's Sword Radiance was about to slice open Duan Rong's throat, a flash of white light appeared from the blade in Duan Rong's hand; Blade Radiance suddenly manifested!

Duan Rong's Blade Radiance and Lv Qingzhu's Sword Radiance intertwined!

Lv Qingzhu's cultivation was one minor realm higher than Duan Rong's. Duan Rong was at the Third Layer of the Origin Qi Realm, while Lv Qingzhu had already achieved the Fourth Layer of the Origin Qi Realm.

Although Duan Rong's Blade Radiance was much more erratic than the true Intent Blade Glow in the hands of a Qi Cyclone Realm Martial Artist, it was far more solid and dense than Lv Qingzhu's Sword Radiance.

Although Duan Rong was one minor realm weaker than Lv Qingzhu, with the advantage of his Blade Radiance, he actually managed to block Lv Qingzhu's attacks for a time!

Their figures were as fast as ghosts, moving back and forth at the edge of the dense forest! Every clash between the Blade Radiance and the Sword Radiance emitted a strange, piercing sound!

Suddenly, the *zzzt-zzzt-zzzt* of the air being torn apart became as dense as raindrops!

It was only then that Lu Geng and Wang Yue darted out from the dense forest.

As soon as the two emerged from the forest, they saw Duan Rong and Lv Qingzhu locked in combat and were instantly stunned.

Not far away, at the edge of the flames on the cliff wall, Wu Shidao walked to Fan Hongjiao's side. While watching Duan Rong and Lv Qingzhu fight, he said with a grave expression, "Senior Sister, is that... Blade Radiance?!"

Wu Shidao had always been deep-thinking and capable of keeping his cool in any situation, but at this moment, his voice actually trembled slightly.

Fan Hongjiao only let out a sound as soft as a mosquito's hum, but in truth, her heart was also churning with stormy waves at this moment.

Seeing Fan Hongjiao's calm reaction, Wu Shidao continued, "But the Disciple is only at the Third Layer of the Origin Qi Realm! How is this possible?!"

Fan Hongjiao looked at the flickering figures at the edge of the forest and said, "Do you recognize the woman fighting the Disciple?"

Wu Shidao shook his head and said, "Not really. I don't think I've seen her before."

Fan Hongjiao said, "That woman is also in the Origin Qi Realm, but she has likewise grasped Sword Intent. Although her Sword Radiance is not as dense as Duan Rong's Blade Radiance, it is already quite formidable."

Wu Shidao's eyes shifted, and he said, "This woman... she seems a bit like someone..."

Fan Hongjiao turned her head and said, "You noticed it too."

Six years ago, Lv Qingzhu was only fourteen years old, in the prime of her youth. At that time, she often wandered around the various peaks within the Sect.

Back then, both Wu Shidao and Fan Hongjiao had seen her.

However, she had not appeared since six years ago, and over these six years, both her appearance and temperament had changed.

Furthermore, Fan Hongjiao and Wu Shidao had initially been so shocked by Duan Rong suddenly unleashing Blade Radiance that they had no time to think carefully about the woman.

That Duan Rong could unleash Blade Radiance meant he had already grasped Blade Intent!

He had only advanced to the Origin Qi Realm a little over half a year ago!

When Fan Hongjiao and Wu Shidao had grasped Artistic Conception and advanced to the Qi Cyclone Realm back then, they didn't know how much hardship and frustration they had endured; it was incredibly difficult, and they had practically broken their heads before they could comprehend Artistic Conception and use its power to form a Qi Cyclone.

That was over ten years of bitter cultivation!

How could it be that for Duan Rong, it was as if it were effortless, and he had just casually grasped Blade Intent and unleashed Blade Radiance!

Half a year of time to achieve the Third Layer of the Origin Qi Realm was already shocking enough! Who would have thought that the Disciple had actually grasped Blade Intent as well!

What kind of freak is this!

One must know that although Lv Qingzhu also grasped Artistic Conception while in the Origin Qi Realm, her cultivation was personally guided by the Taiyi Sect Ancestor; even the cultivation technique she practiced was not chosen from the Scripture Repository, but was personally created by the Ancestor to suit her temperament.

Given this, Fan Hongjiao and Wu Shidao could understand her grasping Artistic Conception in the Origin Qi Realm.

But what about Duan Rong? Duan Rong practiced just like them. Who could know better than the two of them that for the past half year, no one had guided Duan Rong's cultivation.

In fact, Duan Rong had never even asked Fan Hongjiao any questions regarding cultivation.

Yet in these six months, he had quietly and successively achieved the First, Second, and Third Layers of the Origin Qi Realm, and had even grasped Blade Intent!

Such a monster!

Such a genius!

No wonder Master values him so much?!

The two fought for a while, and Duan Rong gradually began to fall into a disadvantage.

Although Duan Rong's Blade Intent surpassed Lv Qingzhu's Sword Intent, the gap in their cultivation realms was still somewhat large; Lv Qingzhu had been at the Fourth Layer of the Origin Qi Realm for over half a year, and was only half a step away from achieving Great Perfection of the Origin Qi Realm.

If the battle dragged on, Duan Rong would clearly be defeated!

The astonishing force generated by the clash of their Blade Radiance and Sword Radiance had gradually caused Duan Rong's hand to tremble uncontrollably. This was precisely because his cultivation realm was insufficient to suppress this massive recoil force.

The sword shadows in Lv Qingzhu's hand, however, were becoming faster and faster, while Duan Rong's Blade Radiance flickered as he stumbled backward.

Fan Hongjiao naturally saw the situation on the field; Duan Rong was clearly struggling to hold on. She channeled the Qi in her dantian and lashed out with the Python Whip in her hand.

The tip of the Python Whip in Fan Hongjiao's hand coiled around and wrapped itself around the sword in Lv Qingzhu's hand.

Fan Hongjiao was, after all, a powerhouse at the Third Layer of the Qi Cyclone Realm; no matter how formidable Lv Qingzhu was, how could she block this whip?

However, Fan Hongjiao was merely pulling on her weapon to prevent her from hurting anyone; she did not dare to truly harm Lv Qingzhu.

Who in the entire Sect did not know how much the Sect Ancestor doted on Lv Qingzhu?

As soon as Duan Rong saw Fan Hongjiao restrain Lv Qingzhu, he immediately jumped away.

Even after disengaging from the fight, Duan Rong's hand was still trembling.

Fan Hongjiao used the Python Whip to hold Lv Qingzhu's Long Sword and said with a smile, "Junior Sister Lv, I wonder how my Disciple offended you? Tell me, and I will discipline him for you. Seeing you two at each other's throats like this makes my heart jump with fear! If either of you gets hurt, I won't be able to answer for it!"

Duan Rong exhaled a breath of turbid air and looked at Fan Hongjiao.

This Senior Sister of his usually seemed to speak bluntly and act recklessly. But at this moment, the few sentences she said to Lv Qingzhu were flawless, soft yet firm, and the sense of propriety was perfectly handled.

It was evident that she was not incapable of doing so; she simply disdained to do it.

Lv Qingzhu looked at Duan Rong with an icy expression and asked, "Is he one of your Yunfu Peak people now?"

Fan Hongjiao smiled and said, "Yes. Our Master is very fond of the Disciple."

Lv Qingzhu said, "Go back and tell Zhu He! I am determined to kill this person!"

After Lv Qingzhu finished speaking, she gave her Long Sword a shake, and Fan Hongjiao very tactfully released the tip of the whip from the sword.

Lv Qingzhu sheathed her Long Sword, and without casting another glance at anyone on the field, she turned and walked into the dense forest.

Seeing Lv Qingzhu leave, Fan Hongjiao let out a long breath, turned her head to look at Duan Rong, and asked, "What did you do to offend Lv Qingzhu? Why is she so insistent on killing you?"

Duan Rong watched Lv Qingzhu's back disappear into the dense forest, his eyes slightly dazed, and only after hearing the question did he say, "That is a long story, Senior Sister. Let us leave here first."

Fan Hongjiao looked at Duan Rong deeply; she could tell that Duan Rong did not want to talk about it.

"Fine. Pack up the Origin Beast corpses, and we will leave."

Lv Qingzhu walked into the dense forest and arrived at the side of the five small elephant corpses. She picked up the cloth bag that had fallen there, slung it over her back, and then used her movement technique to leave the place.

Lv Qingzhu walked for a distance inside the dense forest before her figure suddenly faltered. She leaned against a tree trunk, panting heavily, and the cloth bag on her back fell to her feet.

At this moment, in the darkness, Lv Qingzhu's face was actually covered in tear tracks.

She held onto the tree trunk with one hand and could not help but sob quietly.

A moment ago, she had truly thought she was going to kill Duan Rong.

The moment the Sword Radiance in her hand was about to slice open Duan Rong's throat, the heart beneath her chest had ached severely, as if something had twisted it to shreds in an instant.

"Why am I like this?"

"I clearly hate him so much!"

"Why?..."

Lv Qingzhu's emotions calmed slightly. She stood in the darkness, murmuring to herself: "Why? Could it be that I cannot kill him?"

"No! Anyone who obstructs my Dao Heart, I must kill!" Lv Qingzhu's hand gripped the sword scabbard in her hand tightly.

For these past six years, whenever she reached a critical juncture in her cultivation, Duan Rong's shadow would always inexplicably appear in her heart. She had always thought that she could not let go of that matter and that she detested this person too much, which was why it was like this.

But today, when it truly came time to draw her sword and pierce his throat, she discovered that her strike did not seem to be aimed at Duan Rong, but rather, she had pierced through her own heart.

"Could it be that I do not detest him? If it is not detesting him, then what is it..."

"No! It is not like that!"

Lv Qingzhu stood alone in that Dark Forest for a long time...

Duan Rong and his group had already returned to the Cultivation Secret Chamber behind the Main Hall of Yunfu Peak, carrying the corpses of the two adult Red Fire Elephants and the five small elephant corpses.

Under Wang Yue's exquisite dissection technique, five piles of Beast Meat were quickly separated.

And Duan Rong's pile was almost the same size as Wu Shidao's pile.

Previously, Lu Geng and Wang Yue might have had some opinions about Duan Rong receiving the same amount of cultivation resources as Wu Shidao. But ever since Duan Rong unleashed his Blade Radiance, the two of them had been a bit timid and fearful whenever they saw Duan Rong.

After dividing the cultivation resources, the few of them each took their own Beast Meat and returned to their Cultivation Secret Chambers.

Duan Rong threw the large pile of meat he had been allocated into the Black Jade Pool. Because this portion was relatively large, the pile of meat bulged slightly above the Black Jade Pool, but looking at the wisps of visible cold air floating at the mouth of the Black Jade Pool, Duan Rong knew that even if it bulged slightly, it would soon be soaked through by the dense, cold Yin energy within the Black Jade Pool.

Duan Rong walked out, closed the narrow stone door, slowly walked to the side table, and sat there in a daze.

Not long after Wu Shidao entered his own Cultivation Secret Chamber, he came back out. After a while, a falcon flew out from the pavilion on Yunfu Peak; a black shadow flashed, and it charged into the churning clouds and mist, disappearing without a trace...

And at this moment, Duan Rong was still in the Cultivation Secret Chamber, looking at a handkerchief in his hand by the light of a Candle Lamp.

This handkerchief was covered in bloodstains, with a cold plum blossom embroidered on one corner. The bloodstains on this handkerchief were from six years ago, when Lv Qingzhu had used it to wipe the blood off A Mo's face.

Six years had passed, and Duan Rong had always kept this handkerchief. It was just that in these last two years, he had rarely taken it out to look at it.

He thought he had already forgotten Lv Qingzhu!

However, upon seeing her again, the past had all surged forth in an instant!

Everything in that dilapidated temple, and the decisiveness in Lv Qingzhu's departure!

Duan Rong held the handkerchief and murmured: "Although I still have lingering feelings for her, it is a pity, a pity that she wants to kill me!"

Duan Rong's gaze suddenly hardened, Qi surged and billowed in his palm, and the handkerchief instantly turned into powder...

That evening, Zhu He returned to the peak and called Wu Shidao over.

Zhu He looked at Wu Shidao and asked: "Are you certain it was Blade Radiance?"

Wu Shidao answered cautiously: "Master, Junior Disciple has indeed comprehended Blade Intent! Although it is not pure enough and the Blade Radiance is a bit erratic, it is absolutely true, it was Blade Radiance!"

Zhu He paced back and forth in the open space in front of the side table with his hands behind his back.

Zhu He was always calm and composed; this was the first time Wu Shidao had seen him show signs of agitation.

While pacing, Zhu He muttered to himself: "Qi Refining Realm?... Third Layer?... Blade Radiance... comprehended Artistic Conception?!"

As he spoke, he suddenly stopped, stared blankly at Wu Shidao, and asked: "Duan Rong is at the Third Layer of the Qi Refining Realm, right?"

"Ah... yes, it is the Third Layer."

Zhu He paced there for a long time before suddenly letting out a long breath.

Back then, his Disciple Gu Daoling had also comprehended Artistic Conception while in the Qi Refining Realm! It had caused a sensation in the Sect!

Who would have thought that two hundred years later, there would be a successor!

Moreover, Gu Daoling had comprehended Artistic Conception when he reached the Great Perfection of the Qi Refining Realm, having had a sudden, accidental realization.

Yet Duan Rong had actually comprehended Artistic Conception at the Third Layer of the Qi Refining Realm!

A genius!

A peerless genius!

Zhu He suddenly stood there and let out a burst of wild laughter.

That laughter made Wu Shidao feel a bit creeped out.

Zhu He laughed for a while before suddenly turning his head to look at Wu Shidao and asking: "You said that little girl Lv Qingzhu wants to kill Duan Rong?"

Wu Shidao was taken aback by Zhu He's erratic train of thought and said: "Yes. In the Dark Forest, Lv Qingzhu suddenly attacked Junior Disciple. If it were not for the fact that Junior Disciple had comprehended Artistic Conception, I fear he would have already fallen victim to her."

Upon hearing this, Zhu He's expression immediately turned somewhat ugly.

As for Lv Qingzhu's father, Zhu He did not care. He and Lv Zhongtang had never gotten along, and their competition for the next Sect Master had already become like fire and water.

What he worried about was the Sect Ancestor. The Ancestor was already over a thousand years old, and in these last few hundred years, he seemed to have become very indifferent toward his Lu family bloodline, showing little concern.

In these past few hundred years, the Ancestor had never intervened in the affairs of the Sect or the secular world for the sake of the Lu family bloodline.

This showed that after a thousand years of cultivation, the Ancestor had already grown indifferent to matters of bloodline.

However, ever since the Patriarch first saw three-year-old Lu Qingzhu seventeen years ago, he had doted on the girl and personally overseen her cultivation journey.

Although Zhu He did not understand the reason behind this, he was very clear about the position Lu Qingzhu held in the Patriarch's heart.

He wouldn't have feared this young girl regardless of who stood behind her, but the fact that it was the sect's Patriarch made Zhu He unable to act without hesitation.

(End of chapter)