Chapter 346: As the Sun at Zenith

Clouds churned and rolled.

Two figures clashed repeatedly atop the Yuntai.

Li Rui held a sheathed immortal blade, his attacks fierce and relentless; the hawk-nosed man was utterly on the defensive.

Finally.

The hawk-nosed man roared in fury.

His body began to mutate, two thick arms sprouting from behind him.

Demon God Technique!

This time, Li Rui did not trigger his ability to overcome demons, but fought the hawk-nosed man with his body and swordplay alone.

In an instant.

Dozens of strikes passed.

The monstrous hawk-nosed man roared continuously, retreating step by step, crushed by Li Rui until he had no chance to counter.

Li Rui raised his left hand.

He uttered softly.

"Subdue!"

A celestial palace descended from the ninth heavens, striking the hawk-nosed man with perfect precision.

With a crash.

The hawk-nosed man dissolved into wisps of mist, vanishing into nothingness.

"Not bad."

Li Rui's lips curled slightly.

Though the hawk-nosed man was also at the First Layer of Primordial, he had long since broken through and his foundation was solid; Li Rui, having just broken through, would never have slain him so easily.

He was not without prowess.

As a prodigy blessed with a perfect life, being invincible within one's realm was no empty boast.

Li Rui's combat strength was truly formidable.

'Pity I never saw Jiang's younger brother at the Fourth Rank in action—if I had, I'd have challenged him.'

He shook his head inwardly, only thinking it a shame.

He had seen many Primordial experts.

But few had ever fought him, leaving him without worthy opponents.

'Could this be the loneliness of a master?'

He suddenly understood why Yuan Dingting's eighth adopted son, Yuan Xiong, sought out duels everywhere.

Warriors indeed grow faster through battle.

On the martial roads, one often hears of martial maniacs who challenge every hall, even dying in the process—these men were not after mere combat for quick advancement.

In contrast, he had the Great Dream Immortal Travel, sparing him these troubles.

Li Rui slowly opened his eyes from bed.

He gazed at the dim light outside the window.

Another day.

He snatched up his outer robe from beside the bed, slipped it on, then went to the kitchen and scooped a gourd of warm water Wang Zhao had already prepared, washing his face.

Such conduct.

Among Fifth Rank officials, was truly rare.

Which official's residence didn't have seven or eight maidservants? Only Li Rui's courtyard was fresh, filled entirely with men.

For this, Cao Wei had mocked him often over wine.

But he had lived too long; many things had long been shed, and as his nature changed, only the pure desire for immortality remained.

Everyone says immortality is good.

Yet only Li Rui, who had once counted days waiting for death, truly understood the meaning of "immortality."

He stepped into the courtyard.

He closed his eyes, calmed his spirit, and began to nurture his essence and vigor.

A full quarter-hour passed.

Only then did he grasp the Immortal Blade to Sever the Dragon and begin practicing the Great Henglian.

His sword intent flowed freely, unrestrained.

Yuan Dingting once called him the foremost swordmaster of Yunzhou—not an idle boast.

With the Northern Heaven Gate and his extraordinary comprehension,

his sword art, even at the Primordial realm, was exceedingly powerful.

In the realm of techniques, one always leads ahead, no longer bound by forms—achieving formlessness surpassing form.

Now he had infused it with the true intent of the Thousand-Year Crane Great Henglian.

It gained even more sharpness.

Li Rui soon entered the state of sword and man as one; unconsciously, the Immortal Xuan Qi flowed with his blade's motion.

He sank into a state of utter absorption.

At that moment,

Wang Zhao awoke from bed, opened the door, and was struck by a blinding white light—he instantly raised his right arm to shield his eyes.

Only then did he dare squint toward the source.

Who had summoned the blazing sun into the mortal world?

In the courtyard's center, a radiant presence like the celestial sun illuminated the entire yard, as if challenging the sun in the sky.

Wang Zhao blinked, disbelieving.

He realized the source's core was his master, Li Rui!

"Master??"

He froze in shock.

Then he heard Tie Kuang's voice ring out.

"Go."

"Close the door."

Hearing Tie Kuang's voice, Wang Zhao numbly nodded, then ran to shut the main gate of the Assistant Regional Commander's residence.

The daylight was now bright.

So the effect was not obvious—but had it been night, it might have lit up the entire Assistant Regional Commander's residence.

Tie Kuang squinted at Li Rui, entranced: "Good lad. Thank heaven I'm not your peer—if I were, I'd be consumed by envy."

Though he had never mastered the Thousand-Year Crane Great Henglian, his high-level insight

still allowed him to recognize that the phenomenon before him was tied to the Thousand-Year Crane's cultivation method.

"Damn."

Tie Kuang cursed: "Just entered Primordial, and already he stirs heavenly phenomena—is this even fair?"

A full quarter-hour passed.

The strange phenomenon in the courtyard gradually faded.

Li Rui's figure reappeared before Tie Kuang and Wang Zhao.

"Achieved it?"

Li Rui felt it unreal.

He hadn't expected that after only a few days of practicing the Great Henglian, he had already glimpsed its threshold. Of course, he was nowhere near Thousand-Year Crane.

But if he persisted, he would one day reach Thousand-Year Crane's level.

He pondered deeply.

"It's the Immortal Xuan Qi."

He quickly understood.

The reason he could so swiftly draw forth heavenly phenomena was precisely due to the Immortal Xuan Qi's influence.

Li Rui was overjoyed.

The Immortal Xuan Qi had given him one surprise after another.

Tie Kuang walked over, clicking his tongue: "You brat—you're truly a monster."

The surprises, no—the astonishments—he had given Tie Kuang were too many.

As someone who had walked half the path of the Great Henglian himself, he could not even grasp a shred of its true intent; yet Li Rui had already entered its door.

Not a single word, phrase, or detail was wrong!

The beginning of any endeavor is hardest.

Cultivation is no different—especially a technique as high-threshold as the Great Henglian.

Simply entering its threshold is already an extraordinary feat.

How envious!

Tie Kuang's teeth ached with jealousy.

This boy Li Rui had too much talent.

"Elder, I feel I've made progress—why don't I demonstrate it again for you? Maybe you'll learn it."

Listen.

Tie Kuang rolled his eyes: "Get lost."

With that said.

Tie Kuang strode toward the back courtyard without looking back.

Li Rui blinked.

He truly wanted to teach Tie Kuang, so why wouldn't he believe him?

Zi Jin Palace.

Deep within the hall.

"Immortal Lord, we've confirmed that the one who sneaked into the palace that day was Song Shi, the Inspector of Qinghe."

"He's currently staying in Room Tian of Huacai Residence."

Blood Shadow Ancestor relayed the information: "Song Shi is from the Song family of the capital. Rumor has it he's been traveling the martial world for years and only recently took up the post of Inspector."

In just a few days, he had already sent his men to uncover every detail about Song Shi.

Qu Chengfeng's lips curled upward as he nodded: "Good."

"Keep watching him."

"Yes."

Blood Shadow Ancestor bowed and slowly withdrew.

Soon.

The grand hall was once again empty except for Qu Chengfeng, who murmured softly:

"So the Song family has secret guards too."

"Interesting."

He was well aware of the secret guards' existence.

Not only he, but nearly every exiled immortal in this world knew of them.

Their very purpose was to intimidate us—how could anyone not know?

Yet he had no fear that Zi Jin Palace would be discovered by the secret guards; in fact, he welcomed it.

As a subordinate sect of the mighty Wan Fadian, it could never hide in shadows.

It would be revealed to the world sooner or later.

Now was a perfect opportunity—to use the secret guards to spread this news to those who needed to know.

The Prefect of Qingzhou, Qu Chengfeng, is dead.

He died of a cold.

The imperial court suppressed the news; otherwise, a Top Graduate in civil service would not have died so quietly.

Qu Chengfeng took a deep breath of the cold, damp air in the hall.

The next instant.

His cheeks shifted from plump to sharp.

Qu Chengfeng had once been gentle-looking; now he carried an icy chill.

His aura had transformed utterly.

Fifteen minutes later, a tall, handsome, and sinister man, eight feet tall, appeared in the hall.

Qu Chengfeng no longer existed.

"Finally rid myself of this useless flesh."

The man stretched his shoulders with relief, his phoenix eyes flickering with deep revulsion.

His spiritual roots had strengthened, granting him more divine power.

He could now alter his form.

He rose slowly and walked toward the hall's exit.

This was his first time stepping outside since arriving in the Ten Thousand Mountains.

The guards outside the hall saw a stranger emerge and instantly tensed.

One guard shouted:

"Who are you? Why are you inside the hall?"

The moment he spoke.

Blood Shadow Ancestor's voice rang out: "You fool, get out!"

The guards saw Blood Shadow Ancestor appear.

They fell silent at once.

Blood Shadow Ancestor stared at the unfamiliar man before him, his voice trembling: "Are you… Immortal Lord?"

The man nodded.

"From now on, I am Si Feng."

Blood Shadow Ancestor's demeanor became utterly reverent, nearly bowing to the ground: "Yes."

Si Feng smiled faintly.

Even more sinister.

Blood Shadow Ancestor ventured cautiously: "Immortal Lord, are you going out?"

Si Feng narrowed his eyes:

"It's time to step out and take a look."

"Let me see which old friends have also come."

(End of Chapter)