Kong Yuan's Death

Filled with joy, Li Qing returned to the dormitory, locked the door, and turned on the light. The milky-white glow dispelled the silent darkness.

Li Qing crossed the room in a few strides to the desk by the window. The two curtains, separated for a day, embraced once more.

Sitting before the desk, a streak of light flashed from the storage ring on his finger. The shield immediately appeared atop the wooden table, glimmering with an eerie black light.

Afterward, Li Qing began a mental exchange with Ling Wu.

"Senior Ling Wu, what do you intend to do?"

Ling Wu's figure condensed within his Sea of Consciousness. "Release your martial soul first. Once you do, you'll know the answer."

"The Scythe of Judgment? Judgment..."

Li Qing muttered to himself, then suddenly slapped his forehead.

"How did I not think of that?"

"Since you already know, this old man shall take his leave."

With that, Ling Wu's smoky, illusory figure dispersed like mist and returned to the depths of Li Qing's Sea of Consciousness.

Li Qing released the Scythe of Judgment, realizing that he had overlooked an attribute of Judgment that had long gone unused.

Purification!

That was right—purification!

Ling Wu's martial soul was the Book of the Dead, and it had been upgraded through the influence of the sacred Golden Tree, gaining a trace of the Golden Tree's holy aura.

Before the sacred Golden Tree, all evil had nowhere to hide!

Thus, the Scythe of Judgment, which had absorbed both a branch of the Golden Tree and the Book of the Dead, naturally possessed the ability to purify evil!

Li Qing hurriedly circulated his Soul Power and began purifying the shield. Judgment emitted a brilliant golden radiance. When the Scythe of Judgment, brimming with light, approached the shield, visible wisps of black qi seeped out from it before dissipating.

About an hour later, the shield's purification was complete.

The purified shield seemed far more "obedient." When he held it, the inexplicable sense of resistance from before was gone.

After briefly regulating his breathing, Li Qing activated the Replication Eye and began analyzing the core formation inscribed upon it.

If Soul Tools were classified according to the maximum power they could unleash or the strongest attack they could withstand, this shield could barely block a full-force strike from a Spirit Saint. That placed this shield-shaped Soul Tool roughly among seventh-rank Soul Tools.

At Li Qing's current level, crafting a seventh-rank Soul Tool was utterly impossible.

After all, he was only a Soul Elder. His Soul Power was nowhere near enough to completely inscribe the core formation, and his Mental Power was insufficient as well.

Time passed second by second. Soon, ten hours had gone by. The moon hung slanted in the sky, and the campus was silent in the dead of night.

"Seventh-rank defensive formation. Analysis progress: 50%."

Glancing at the data in his mind, Li Qing closed his eyes to give his dry, aching eyes a brief rest.

Ten uninterrupted hours of high-intensity analysis had been utterly exhausting. His Soul Power was nearly depleted as well.

After taking out a Spirit Power Milk Bottle from his storage ring to replenish his Soul Power, Li Qing threw himself back into the analysis.

Time was tight. At daybreak, he would have to return the shield, and only seven hours remained until dawn...

Knock, knock, knock!

The knocking woke Li Qing, who had fallen asleep with his head on the desk.

He hurriedly got up and opened the door. Seeing Yan, he immediately understood why he had come. At the same time, he silently blamed himself for being so exhausted that he had actually fallen asleep. Fortunately, the analysis had been completed. Otherwise, he would have had nowhere to cry.

"I've already dispelled the evil qi from the shield. Is Hu Liena outside the dormitory?"

Yan nodded. "That's right. She can't enter the men's dormitory. I happened to come back to get something, so she asked me to check on you."

"Then let's go down."

"Mm."

Downstairs, Hu Liena stood on the small lawn in front of the dormitory entrance. The breeze stirred her lovely hair, as though it carried a faint fragrance with it.

When Hu Liena saw the two of them, she gave a calm smile and waved.

Yan immediately froze, and even a glistening trail appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Li Qing covered his face. He couldn't bear to watch.

After returning the shield, Yan suggested that since they were already on break, they should go get a meal together. Hu Liena agreed.

Li Qing considered it. Going to Gengxin City was not particularly urgent, so he said, "Forget eating out. How about I show you what I can do today?"

"Mm? Brother Qing, you can cook?"

"Of course! Today, I'll let you see the culinary skills of Douluo's Little Master Chef!"

Seeing Li Qing pat his chest with such confidence, Hu Liena and Yan both became deeply curious and expectant about his cooking.

An hour later.

Faced with a table full of Blue Star delicacies giving off enticing aromas, Hu Liena and Yan practically drooled all over the floor.

Li Qing untied his apron, picked up his chopsticks, and said, "Let's eat!"

The moment he finished speaking, Yan struck like lightning. With speed too fast for the eye to follow, he snatched up a piece of spicy diced chicken and stuffed it into his mouth, a blissful smile spreading across his face.

"So good! It's so delicious! It's truly amazing!" A string of simple words used to describe delicious food burst from Yan's mouth.

Meanwhile, Hu Liena, who had also eaten a piece of spicy diced chicken...

"Mm! The meat is tender but pleasantly chewy. Numbing without being dull, spicy without being harsh, leaving a lingering fragrance on the palate."

The difference in refinement between Hu Liena and Yan was immediately obvious.

Then, the two of them sampled the other dishes as well, such as braised chicken, sweet-and-sour ribs, black pepper steak...

They praised every dish endlessly, eating without pause and devouring an enormous amount.

By the end of the meal, Yan had eaten eighteen bowls of rice with the dishes. He had the same imposing air as Wu Song downing eighteen bowls of wine in Jingyang Ridge in one go.

And he still seemed unsatisfied. Li Qing guessed that if the dishes had not all been eaten, let alone eighteen bowls, even twenty-eight might have been possible!

The Rice King of Spirit Hall Academy! A title well deserved!

An hour later.

Li Qing arrived at the outermost edge of the Myriad Weapons Domain. He had come to find Mo Yu.

However, he found Mo Yu with disheveled hair, bloodshot eyes, and an utterly terrible mental state.

It was the first time Li Qing had ever seen Old Mo in such a state.

Something must have happened! Li Qing thought as he hurried forward.

"Grandpa Mo, what's wrong?" Li Qing asked, his voice full of concern.

Mo Yu slightly raised his brows, seeming to recover a little spirit at the sight of someone arriving.

"So it's Li, boy." Mo Yu bared his teeth in a smile uglier than crying. "Your Grandpa Mo is fine. Why have you come today?"

"Grandpa Mo, did you forget? A few days ago, you told me someone was looking for me and asked me to come today."

He had even forgotten something so recent. Li Qing knew that something major must have happened to Mo Yu—and that it was something heartbreaking.

"Oh... someone was looking... someone..." Mo Yu's voice grew weaker and weaker, until only he himself could hear his murmuring.

Li Qing shook his head. A flash of light came from the storage ring on his hand, and two bottles of liquor appeared in his hands.

"Grandpa Mo, can you tell me what happened?"

If someone kept all their sorrow buried inside, silently savoring its pain alone, the longer it was suppressed, the more likely it was to breed depression and anxiety. It could even change a person's personality.

Mo Yu was a good man. Li Qing did not want to see him become someone perpetually gloomy and despondent.

The moment he finished speaking, black light flashed before his eyes! A crisp clatter rang out beside his ears.

The two bottles of liquor in his hands had vanished, appearing in Mo Yu's arms instead.

Even with Li Qing's current cultivation, he had still failed to catch Mo Yu's movements!

Was this the power of a Spirit Saint?

Li Qing fell silent. The smugness and faint arrogance he had felt from his recent winning streak vanished like smoke.

Mo Yu opened one of the bottles and gulped down several large mouthfuls, the fragrance of liquor spreading through the air.

Then he looked at Li Qing and said solemnly, "Drinking is bad for children!"

Li Qing rubbed his nose.

Fine. He had actually been looked down upon for his age.

But what could he do?

He really was just a boy under twelve years old!

Taking out a chair, Li Qing decided to be a quiet listener for once...

That night, the moon shone brightly amid sparse stars.

Li Qing lay on the academy's clean lawn, his head resting on his arm. The scent of fresh grass lingered in his nose, mingled with a faint trace of alcohol.

The countless stars reflected in his eyes formed a breathtakingly beautiful scene.

He had just returned from Mo Yu's place, carrying with him a complete story—the story of Mo Yu and his friend, Kong Yuan, as well as the news of Kong Yuan's death...