Blade Patterns

Lu Feng pulled Ling Tian's long saber from the giant stone wall. The instant it landed in his hand, a surge of Nether Qi rushed straight at his face, stirring the Demonic Nature deep within him until it began to seethe faintly.

Once the aura settled, the hand gripping the hilt felt an indescribable warmth and gentleness wash over it. The restless Demonic Nature seemed to be suppressed by that warmth.

Lu Feng could not help marveling at the saber's material. Before he could inspect it closely, a sudden disturbance came from the Ancient Desolation Altar within the Kirin Ring.

It had actually whetted Heaven Nurturing Rare Essence's "appetite."

Lu Feng could not help smiling. That lump of black sludge had not shown any fondness for weapons in a long time, yet it had unexpectedly taken an interest in Ling Tian's long saber.

For this, Lu Feng could only be a hard-hearted master and turn a blind eye to its yearning.

After suppressing Heaven Nurturing Rare Essence's "craving," Lu Feng turned his gaze toward the hilt in his hand, now freed of its Black Cloth wrappings. He saw several intricate and bizarre patterns engraved upon it. They resembled formation markings, yet not quite.

With the thought of testing whether Ling Tian had left behind any clues, Lu Feng gathered a thread of spiritual energy and sent it into the patterns. Seeing no response, he tried probing them one by one with Five Elements Qi, but there was still no reaction whatsoever.

Only when his Soul Consciousness entered did the entire blade tremble lightly.

"These patterns... they can actually gather souls!"

Lu Feng exclaimed in amazement. He was certain that the Soul Consciousness he had just sent out had been drawn into those patterns. Moreover, during the process, he sensed an unfamiliar yet immensely powerful aura lingering within.

The feeling inexplicably reminded him of facing the Black Dragon Remnant Soul beneath the secret realm of Azure Dragon Town. Merely the lingering presence of a strand of Soul Power had been enough to leave him deeply shaken, causing his probing Soul Consciousness to collapse.

"Could this be..."

Doubt rose in Lu Feng's heart, and an absurd suspicion surfaced.

Back in Black Dragon Town, after drinking with Ling Tian and speaking freely, Lu Feng had heard Ling Tian mention that all of his saber techniques had been passed down by a formidable Blade Expert.

Lu Feng had also expressed his respect for that mysterious Blade Expert and his wish to meet him.

But Ling Tian had always regretfully declined, saying that he was very difficult to meet.

Lu Feng had originally thought it might be because of that Saber Wielder's identity, making a meeting inconvenient. After all, anyone capable of passing down saber arts like Demon Blade Slash, which carried a hint of Demonic Nature, was likely no decent person.

Since Ling Tian held that person in such esteem and admiration, Lu Feng had not dwelled on the matter too much.

But now, seeing that Ling Tian's seemingly ordinary long saber concealed such mysteries, he could not help wondering whether the Mysterious Saber Wielder Ling Tian had spoken of had been dwelling inside this saber's hilt all along.

Was that terrifying lingering Soul Power from that mysterious expert?

Was it because he existed as a soul body, coupled with the restrictions of those strange patterns, that Ling Tian had found it difficult to introduce him to the expert?

The more Lu Feng thought about it, the more reliable this explanation seemed compared with something as simple as identity.

After all, since the battle at Black Dragon Town, he and Ling Tian had become quite close. Ling Tian surely understood his character and would never have minded an identity such as a Heretical Cultivator or demonic cultivator.

"These patterns on the saber..." Jiang Ruoyun's hesitant voice suddenly sounded. "I think I've seen them in a Painting Scroll in the Love Tomb."

At the mention of the Painting Scroll, Jiang Ruoyun's expression grew more serious, faintly carrying a trace of displeasure.

As Lu Feng carried Jiang Ruoyun on his back and carefully followed the trail of battle ahead, he asked her about the Painting Scroll.

Jiang Ruoyun hesitated before saying, "It wasn't an ordinary Painting Scroll. It was specifically used to record faithless men. Red Jie and I once secretly looked through them out of curiosity. Among the Painting Scrolls piled on the highest-grade task shelf in the Love Tomb, I saw patterns like these."

"Other Painting Scrolls either recorded the faithless man's identity and background or directly painted his appearance. Only that one contained nothing but a drawing like a wooden stick. Thinking about it now, it should have been this saber's hilt. Because that Painting Scroll was so unusual, I deliberately looked at it a few more times, so I remember it very clearly."

Lu Feng's face showed a hint of awkwardness amid his astonishment. "How could Old Ling's saber be connected to the Love Tomb? He's a Blade Maniac immersed in cultivation. He never even has enough time to practice his saber—surely he wouldn't go around harming or betraying any women. There must be some misunderstanding."

Jiang Ruoyun rolled her eyes at Lu Feng with a touch of temper. "I wasn't even finished speaking, and you've already started defending him. Red Jie was right—men really do cover for one another like birds of a feather. If you ever do anything to betray me, Brother Tang and your Brother Ling will definitely help you deceive me!"

The more she spoke, the more aggrieved she became, like a little kitten whose food had been stolen. One more tease, and it seemed her tears might fall.

"How could that be?" Lu Feng hurriedly slowed his pace, set Jiang Ruoyun down from his back, and looked at her with burning sincerity. "Feng Gege swore an oath to you. For this life, I will never betray Yun'er."

"Hmph." Jiang Ruoyun lifted her delicate nose, looking as though she would let him off since he knew better, then continued what she had not finished saying.

"I saw that the scroll mounted around the Painting Scroll was already rather old. It probably wasn't about your Brother Ling, but about his saber."

"My guess is that perhaps someone from his parents' generation did something to betray a woman or man, which was why this commissioned Painting Scroll was left in the Love Tomb."

Lu Feng fell silent. He recalled how Ling Tian had once mentioned being abandoned at birth, wrapped in swaddling clothes with this black saber and left by the roadside at a stall entrance. He had been raised by the Chestnut-Selling Old Woman, then after her death, passed from place to place before being taken in by a group of Soul Hunters.

Now that he heard there might be news regarding Ling Tian's parents' generation, he could not help asking with concern, "Are there any more specific details? Do you know the identity of the person who commissioned that Painting Scroll?"

Jiang Ruoyun gave him a suspicious glance. "Why do you care so much? Are you trying to find out how the Love Tomb deals with faithless men, so you can prepare for a rainy day?"

"What are you thinking?" Lu Feng said helplessly, flicking Jiang Ruoyun's pert little nose before pulling her back onto his back. As he continued onward, he explained why he cared.

After hearing about Ling Tian's background, sympathy appeared on Jiang Ruoyun's face. She gently leaned against Lu Feng's back and whispered, "I never thought he was like us, never having seen his birth parents since childhood. When we return, I'll see if I can look through the registration records from those years. Perhaps there will be a record of the commissioner."

Lu Feng nodded and sighed softly. When it came to the words "parents," he might once have cared deeply, been curious, and desperately wanted answers. But after searching again and again without result, and after meeting Jiang Ruoyun, he had already learned to face it all calmly.

Or rather, the focus of his life had shifted. He was no longer fixated on his origins and past, but cherished what was before him.

Lu Feng raised a hand behind him and gently stroked Jiang Ruoyun's head resting against his back, as though conveying those feelings from his heart.

All of a sudden, as if she had sensed his low spirits, Jiang Ruoyun blurted out, "Feng Gege, our children must be well in the future."

"Uh..." Lu Feng froze. Even his footsteps halted in shock, while joy surged from within like a fountain and spread across his face.

Hearing Lu Feng's secretly delighted chuckle, Jiang Ruoyun's face instantly flushed crimson. Feeling that her words had been far too shy and abrupt, she buried her whole head against Lu Feng's back. Only a hood covering her head would have made it better.

At just that moment, Lu Feng replied in a tone half teasing and half doting, "Of course, of course. Our children will definitely be well. When we have children in the future, if it's a boy, Feng Gege will teach him swordsmanship, and Yun'er can teach him whip arts and hidden weapons. If it's a girl, Feng Gege will teach her formations, and Yun'er can teach her flower growing and dancing."

Hearing this behind him, Jiang Ruoyun's cheeks reddened even further. Yet beneath that blush, her eyes were full of warmth and longing. After savoring his words, she softly complained, "Why do you only teach one thing whether it's a boy or a girl, while I have to teach whip arts and pass down hidden weapons? That's not fair."

"Because my Yun'er is so capable."

Lu Feng teased her, instantly dissolving her coquettish complaint into nothingness and filling her eyes with sweetness.

At the end, Jiang Ruoyun softly added, "But Yun'er doesn't know how to dance."

"What do you mean?" Lu Feng praised. "When my Yun'er dances with her whip, as long as she doesn't use brute force, it looks far better than dancing."

Jiang Ruoyun was first embarrassed, then suddenly realized what he meant. "Feng Gege! Are you making fun of me for being strong!?"

As she spoke, she secretly reached her hand to Lu Feng's waist and gently used thirty percent of her strength.

With one twist—

Lu Feng suddenly let out a shriek and pleaded in pain, "Ow, ow, be gentler! If you twist my waist out of shape, won't that delay the birth of our child?"

Jiang Ruoyun stared blankly for several seconds. Once she understood, even her eyes seemed to take on a springlike allure from embarrassment, and her bashful charm was beyond words.

As the two laughed and played, the tense emotions brought on by the perilous environment eased considerably, and the pressure in their hearts loosened. They were truly finding joy amid hardship.

But before their laughter could spread, another thunderous boom came from afar.

This time, it was close enough that they could feel the earth beneath their feet shaking violently, while broken stones continuously rolled down from the surrounding mountainsides.

"F-Feng Gege, look..."

Jiang Ruoyun pointed ahead in alarm and solemnity. Her small hands wrapped around Lu Feng's shoulders tightened further. "Th-that... what is that? Why did the mountain suddenly move?"

Lu Feng looked ahead in shock. Six or seven hundred meters away stood three towering dark mountains side by side. The mountain in the middle, shaped like an enormous toad, suddenly "rose."

First, its mountain back slowly bulged upward. Then, two stone pillars resembling arms split from its sides and braced themselves atop the other two mountains.

From afar, it looked like a gigantic stone toad crouching upon the ground.

Then, an Azure Green radiance burst forth from the mountainside, as though an enormous mouth of exaggerated proportions had opened across its middle.

From a distance, it looked even more like a giant stone toad. It had only been a rough outline before, but now it even had a mouth.

Within that enormous mouth, strange Azure Green ghostly light swayed, as though a ball of green flame were burning.

Staring from afar at the enormous mountain shaped like a toad and its terrifying giant mouth of Azure Light, Lu Feng replied with utmost gravity:

"That isn't a mountain..."

"It's a vicious beast... the Azure Light Stone Toad!"