Chapter 760

"Speaking, Yun Li let out another soft sigh: "…You must be thinking in your heart, Yun Li this girl is impulsive and unreasonable, right?""

"I just feel you're too obsessed with the demon sword."

"Really? Do I seem that obsessed? …Well, I indeed am."

"Speaking of the demon sword, Yun Li simply stopped hiding anything; after bringing Xing to a remote high place, she then explained all her past grudges with the demon sword."

"Remember, I explained to you earlier: the Lone Cloud presented at today's sword-giving ceremony is precisely a demon sword forged with Suiyang. And the craftsman who forged it, Han Guang, is my father."

"Besides my grandfather, I rarely mention the name Han Guang to outsiders, just as you guessed—I may have been avoiding talking about him, but as long as I'm still hunting demon swords, I can't avoid discussing it…" Yun Li paused, her expression complex as she lowered her head to look at Xing sitting beside her, "For some reason, facing you, I feel I can open my heart."

"I can't recall many details about Han Guang, but I remember that back then the Flame Wheel Smelting Palace had constant traffic, foreign travelers breaking through the threshold, seeking only a sword, they vied to praise Han Guang as the great axe-wielder after Yingxing."

"As a child, Yun Li stood on tiptoe, her eyes seeming to hold a star, she stared at her father without blinking."

"Although I don't know exactly what they discussed, I still remember Han Guang forging a peerless divine weapon, and the foreign sword-seekers would break into smiles—I once thought the craftsman's profession was to bring happiness to people."

"The weapons produced from the Flame Wheel Smelting Palace have fame across the Star Sea, their edge unstoppable, advantageous in all endeavors. Whoever obtains such a weapon, even a rustic wildsman, can cut iron like mud, advantageous in all endeavors."

"Han Guang, the craftsman obsessed with fame, constantly probed the edge of taboo, forging hundreds of demon swords that ought not exist; those twisted-desire sword-seekers swarmed like ants to mutton, coming and going without cease."

Solar Year

Molten Iron Sword Skeleton

Battle of the Twin Cities

"In a cavern laboratory beneath Zu'an, Xinjide was dripping a drop of extracted toxin into a boiling flask; the moment the liquid made contact, a small puff of purple smoke rose. He focused intently on the experiment before him, and did not turn to greet Zu'an's most powerful man."

""Hundreds of demon swords… This Han Guang really is talent, a pity he died too early, and even more a pity I never had the chance to meet him." Xieke said regretfully."

"Even if you obtain the demon sword, I wouldn't advise you to use it. If a weapon eventually deviates from the wielder's intent, even turning to control them, then no matter how great its power, it's unusable."

"Xinjide finally turned his head, holding a tube of glowing purple potion, examining it carefully under the lamp tube: 'Faint light is good. It's easy to control, it makes our children strong, it gives the upper city's law enforcers headaches… Isn't that enough?'"

""Of course not enough, professor." Xieke leaned in slightly and said lightly: "The upper city can shut down faint-light workshops, can arrest addicts; their masks and protective measures can completely block the effects of faint light. Professor, you forgot? They certainly fear trouble, but they are not afraid of trouble.""

True Lord of Borrowing Wind from Retaining Clouds

""I need them to be unable to stare it down." Xieke corrected, the lone remaining eye seeming to burn with something: "Just as ordinary people dare not stare at the sun. I need a weapon, not an army, not a plan, just to hand it to someone filled with enough hatred—perhaps the man whose wife was mistakenly killed by law enforcers, or a worker who inhaled toxic gas for twenty years in the mines, his lungs completely rotted into a rag… Even if this weapon consumes life, it doesn't matter, for human life is precisely the most abundant resource in the lower city.""

True Lord of Regulating Waters and Stacking Mountains

""However, grandfather once said, those who wield fine swords will surely be wounded by the sword.""

"The warm furnace-lit workshop scene shattered like broken glazed tiles, revealing the most unforgettable moment deep in her memory— in the girl's frightened gaze, a demon sword plunged deep into her father's chest, his eyes that always reflected the furnace fire, familiar, went out."

"Foreign travelers were like mud and sand flowing down—those who sought swords but didn't obtain them, those who obtained swords but didn't get what they wanted, or those simply looking to seize by trickery… In the chaos forged by Han Guang's own hands, a sword blade thrust toward him."

""All of this came so suddenly, in an instant all sounds seemed to be filtered out, only the cracking of bones and the pumping of blood were infinitely amplified—""

""I couldn't take a single step. Until my mother pushed me away from the slashing demon sword, I could only stumble into a run. Afterwards my memories grew hazy; I only recall the sound of my heartbeat, my ragged breaths, I heard the craftsmen of the Flame Wheel Smelting Palace constantly shouting 'Yun Li, run!' and countless screams.""

""I couldn't wipe away my tears, couldn't see anything clear, the more I panted the more urgent it became, and later I collapsed in a pool of blood… If it weren't for General Huaiyan arriving in time, I might not be able to talk to you today.""

Eight-Leaf Flame Wheel

General of the Immortal Vessel

I never expected this child's background to be so pitiful…

True Lord Liu Yun Jiefeng couldn't help but let out a soft sigh. As a firsthand witness of the Archon War, over these thousands of years she has witnessed countless parents and children parting in life and death. She had thought she had long grown accustomed to such scenes, but upon seeing that demonic sword pierce Han Guang's chest, she still couldn't help but draw a sharp breath.

No wonder Miss Yun Li hates demonic swords so much, but there are literally hundreds of them—can she really hunt them all alone?

Moreover, if each demonic sword contains a year yang, and its wielder possesses considerable martial skill, then it means Yun Li has already undergone multiple life‑and‑death battles—her combat experience… is probably not inferior to Yan Qing's.

At first, everyone present among the immortals couldn't help but feel they had misjudged her. They had all thought Yun Li was merely a talented young lady from a prominent clan, her grandfather being a general of the Astral Vessel, spoiled into an arrogant and willful nature. Who would have imagined that this young lady, in places they couldn't see, was actually engaged in such dangerous hunting.

The Eight Leaves of the Blazing Wheel… Indeed, only those who missee are mistaken; there are no mistaken nicknames. To become one of the eight esteemed talents on the Vermilion Bright Astral Vessel, the reason is likely exactly this.

"Heroes emerge from youth." Zhongli slowly sipped a mouthful of clear tea before speaking: "Miss Yun Li has a fiery temperament and extraordinary skill; we initially thought Yan Qing had hidden a sword technique he had comprehended from Jing Liu, keeping it undisclosed. But perhaps Yun Li also possesses a similar divine ability she learned from the general, which she simply hasn't used against Yan Qing."

"Could it be that the Emperor favors Yun Li more?" asked True Lord Carving Moon and Building Yang.

Zhongli set down his teacup and said lightly: "Speaking generally, Yun Li likely has more experience in martial contests, but the outcome of such matches often hinges on a split second, so it wouldn't be surprising if either of them won."

——

"After that, General Huai Yan adopted me, and we address each other as grandfather and grandchild. But to me, he is a hundred times better than that wicked father. Grandfather not only taught me casting arts, but also taught me swordsmanship."

Yun Li gazed at the distant Jade Boundary Gate and said solemnly: "Han Guang reaped what he sowed, but the hidden dangers he left behind cannot be ignored. According to the records, the total number of year yang demonic swords forged by Han Guang over the years is 1,308, of which 182 have a special form."

"From the moment I began training in the Blazing Wheel Forging Palace, I swore to hunt down every demonic sword. To this day I have taken 312 of them. And Lone Cloud is the 313rd. It will be like the other demonic swords—the year yang will be completely separated, the blade turned into molten iron and cast into the 'Molten Iron Sword Skeleton'."

"I've said all I needed to say; although I feel somewhat sorry toward Grandfather… I still have to melt this sword."

"At this moment, Xing, however, thought she should right now talk with General Huai Yan."

"You mean… Grandfather knows about the demonic sword matter, yet he still chose it as a prize, which would indicate it's not problematic?" Yun Li had just lowered her head in thought, then quickly denied, 'No way—no matter how you look at it, Grandfather is the problem. Do you remember? Regarding the sword‑giving ceremony, he didn't tell me a thing; he must be hiding something from me.'