Enlightenment at the Sword Graveyard

In the distance, around the plaza, several maids who had been sweeping froze in place.

The lead maid in green crushed the broom in her hand with a sharp crack, a sound that rang out with startling clarity in the courtyard where everyone had been sitting in silent meditation on the sword.

"The Young Miss, she..." another maid gripped her rag tightly, her voice trembling, "actually took a man's hand?"

"What??"

Many Li Clan disciples who had been meditating on the sword snapped their eyes open. Following the line of sight, they stared in equal astonishment.

"We sword cultivators, how could we care about such trivial matters of romance..." one person in the crowd said with a calm expression, but the next moment, he jumped up abruptly: "But if it's the Young Miss, that's different! Where? Where is she?"

"Last year, the Chu Clan's young grandson offered an Emperor Weapon, and the Young Miss didn't even spare him a glance. She even slashed him just for stepping a few paces closer. Chu Qingyan had to come personally to mediate, but now, actually..."

The maids kept their eyes locked on those fingers intertwined together, their voices growing lower and lower.

Although the murmurs of the crowd were quiet, there were so many of them!

In an instant, the entire Li Clan seemed to grind to a halt—

Whether it was the disciples practicing their swords, the servants sweeping the floors, the rogue cultivators contemplating Sword Intent, or even the Spirit Cranes perched on the eaves, all turned in unison to look at that pair of figures with their fingers locked.

The level of shock was equivalent to seeing Qin Wudao walk into the Qin Clan with a smile on his face while holding a woman's hand.

Hearing the discussions behind him, Qin Wangchuan's lips curled upward. He looked at Li Qingluan with a gentle gaze: "You slashed someone just for getting close? You're really that heartless?"

"What else are they saying?" He tilted his head slightly, lowering his voice, "It's a bit far, I can't hear clearly. Why don't you... tell me?"

The young man's gentle voice carried a hint of a smile.

His intention had been to make this cold, aloof girl feel a bit shy so that she would let go of his hand.

Instead, he saw Li Qingluan's fingertips twitch slightly. Far from letting go, she actually tightened her grip.

"I heard them clearly enough." Her voice remained cold and clear, yet it held a hint of softness that was difficult to detect. "They said..." She paused, her voice dropping even lower: "I have never let a man get this close before."

"They also said... I am... exceptionally different toward you."

Although she had already accepted this fiancé, she had only been raising him like a younger brother and had no intention of crossing any lines for the time being.

Well, for the time being.

Having failed to tease her and ending up being teased in return, Qin Wangchuan walked on with a blank expression.

Not laughing.

Seeing Qin Wangchuan's composed appearance, Li Qingluan suddenly let out a soft laugh.

The sound was like an ice lake suddenly breaking, cold and melodious, yet it caused everyone present to gasp—the Li Clan's eldest daughter's smile was even rarer than her sword.

"What's wrong?" She tilted her head, the jade hairpin tassels in her hair swaying gently. Her eyes held a playfulness no outsider had ever seen, as if an older sister were teasing her younger brother: "The future Immortal Emperor of the Qin Clan can also be shy?"

"No."

"We've arrived." Qin Wangchuan stepped into the hall, his expression blank.

If he had known that uncovering her true identity would also tear away that mask of cold, self-restrained composure, he certainly would not have spoken so easily.

After a moment of thought, Qin Wangchuan paused, finally offering a low reminder:

"The Great Dao should not be so narrow."

"Our engagement is merely a matter of expediency. If you become obsessed with romance and let your cultivation fall behind mine, I fear you will lose your status as my fiancée..."

Before Qin Wangchuan could finish his sentence, he suddenly felt his wrist tighten.

Li Qingluan's fingers clamped onto his arm like iron pincers, yanking him back from the hall with a sudden force.

The sword-intent barrier at the hall entrance hummed and vibrated, agitated by her sudden movement.

The distance between the two closed instantly, near enough for him to see his own reflection in her eyes.

Li Qingluan stepped forward again, her expression as calm as ever, yet the moment her skirt brushed against the bluestone floor, it left behind hair-thin cracks—the result of the Sword Intent inadvertently overflowing from her body.

"The Great Dao is naturally vast." Her voice remained cold, yet as she lifted her gaze, her eyelashes trembled almost imperceptibly. "However..."

The wind chimes on the eaves suddenly went still.

"If we are talking about cultivation..." Li Qingluan suddenly turned her gaze, her tone excessively calm, "I will not lose to you."

Qin Wangchuan was stunned.

The Li Clan's eldest daughter, who appeared so indifferent and detached, now seemed strange to him in every way—

The tightly pressed corners of her lips, the overly deliberate calm, and the sword marks left behind by her skirt all betrayed the turmoil within her heart.

Is she jealous?

She looks just like a cat with its fur standing on end, trying to act aloof.

Qin Wangchuan thought to himself.

A crisp "clink" sounded from afar—a Li Clan sword cultivator stood frozen in place, only snapping back to reality when the sword in his hand slipped from his grip and hit the ground.

"Heavens... heavens..." His throat bobbed, his pupils contracted violently, and his finger, pointing toward the hall, trembled uncontrollably. "I must have suffered a cultivation deviation; I actually saw..."

Before he could finish, the person beside him clamped a hand over his mouth: "Keep your voice down! Do you want to be hacked to pieces by the Young Lady?"

Meanwhile, high upon the throne within the hall, the Li Clan's Heavenly Emperor, who was always known for his dignity, watched as the celadon teacup in his hand silently turned to powder.

"What a crafty Old Ghost of the Qin Clan!" His eye twitched. "It hasn't even been that long. Not only did he take the person away, but he even managed to hook her heart along with it?!"

After lingering for a moment longer.

The two stepped into the great hall, standing side by side. Where their sleeves overlapped, there was almost no distance to be seen.

Li Heavenly Emperor's gaze rested for a moment on that barely perceptible overlap of fabric, and he gave a light, deliberate cough.

Qin Wangchuan's fingertips twitched, but he felt a subtle resistance coming from his sleeve—

A wisp of sword energy was quietly coiled around his cuff.

It seemed that the previous remark had touched someone's sore spot.

Even when facing the Heavenly Emperor, she maintained her perfect poise.

It was just that her wide sleeve, which appeared to be hanging casually, was now as immovable as if cast in iron, locking the distance between the two in a range of just the right intimacy.

—The stubbornness of a sword cultivator was always this understated.

"Very well." Li Heavenly Emperor flicked his sleeve and turned around. The spiritual energy in the hall suddenly condensed into a screen of light. "As per our previous agreement, you may enter the Sword Graveyard to seek enlightenment."

He tapped his fingertip, and the screen of light revealed the myriad sword graves beneath that colossal Heavenly Sword.

As the light screen shimmered, the sound of shrill, mournful sword cries could be heard faintly.

"How long you can stay inside and how much you gain depends entirely on yourself."