"Grandpa Chu!"
Li Yaochi stood obediently on the eighth floor of the Sutra Pavilion, her dark eyes misty with emotion, a mix of reluctance, joy, and quiet satisfaction.
"Mm."
Chu Xun's heart softened at the sight of the little girl. He had been resting and recovering these past few days, and Xiaoyaochi hadn't come by for quite some time. Looking at her determined little face, he could imagine how hard her mother must have tried to persuade her to leave.
"I have to go," Li Yaochi said softly.
This corner of the Sutra Pavilion had become her small world, warm, familiar, unlike the cold, strict halls of her Daoist home where she was constantly monitored and pushed to train. Here, she felt at peace. Here, she could just be herself. And now, she had to say goodbye to Grandpa Chu.
"You're leaving?"
Chu Xun felt a faint ache in his chest. If not for her stubborn insistence on staying behind to see him punish the offenders, she would've returned long ago.
He took a moment and quietly examined her aura.
[Name: Li Yaochi]
[Age: 4 years old]
[Cultivation: Body Refining Realm]
[Luck: Deep Purple (Lotus Appears)]
Her fortune had clearly grown even stronger. There was no longer any need to worry about her safety.
He rose to his feet and smiled. "Remember what I said, Grandpa Chu promised to give you a gift before you left."
Li Yaochi's eyes lit up, the sadness fading into a hopeful glow.
With a quiet chuckle, Chu Xun stretched out his palm. A golden bracelet shimmered there, warm under the light.
"Do you like it?" he asked gently.
"I like it!"
Her eyes curved into a bright smile. Anything from Grandpa Chu was precious to her, it was the first gift she had ever received face-to-face, and from the person she trusted most.
She took off her own small bracelet and carefully replaced it with the gold one he'd given. Holding her wrist up proudly, she grinned.
"Does it look good?"
"It looks good," Chu Xun said with a nod.
Li Yaochi's smile lingered, though a shadow passed through her eyes. Once she left Donglin Sect, her life would return to monotony, constant supervision, endless lessons, no warmth. And worst of all, Grandpa Chu would be far away.
"Go on now," Chu Xun said, patting her head gently. "We'll see each other again."
"Really?" Her voice trembled, eyes suddenly bright again.
"Really," Chu Xun nodded firmly.
"Good! Goodbye, Grandpa Chu!"
She waved, her small hand reluctant to lower.
Chu Xun didn't go downstairs to see her off. He simply watched as the girl walked away, her figure growing smaller beside a woman in a phoenix robe. His heart felt heavy for a moment, then, calm returned.
The path of cultivation was long.
Everyone who met along the way was just passing through.
---
"Yaochi, who gave you that bracelet?" the woman asked softly, her gaze catching the glint of gold on the child's wrist. Her eyes flickered with surprise, she recognized it immediately.
Not long ago, two divine treasures had appeared at the Tianbao City auction.
The first: the Tai Xuan Sword, now known to rest within Donglin Sect.
The second: this golden bracelet.
A quasi-sacred artifact.
It wasn't suited for offense, but could withstand even a Saint's strike, a priceless defensive relic. Too costly for common cultivators, too limited for the mighty, it had fallen into obscurity, left to gather dust at an auction.
Still, it was undeniable, this was a treasure among treasures. And for a child's protection, it was perfection.
"Grandpa Chu gave it to me!"
The woman holding Li Yaochi froze for a breath. That old man had gifted her daughter something that had once sold for a sky-high price. Her expression softened.
Just for a moment, a quiet respect rose in her heart for the man she'd barely met.
---
Ding!
"Congratulations to the host for investing in the Destiny Villain!"
[Reward: Ten years of cultivation]
[Reward: Ten years of sword insight]
[Reward: Life Drop]
All three rewards related to cultivation. Chu Xun's eyes gleamed, he hadn't expected this, but with two powerful sects pressing down like mountains, the timing couldn't have been better.
"Absorb."
Boom!
Ten years of cultivation surged through him like a storm.
The Fifth Realm of the Human Emperor,
Peak of the Fifth,
Sixth,
Seventh,
Eighth Realm,
Only when he reached the mid-Eighth Realm of the Human Emperor did the energy finally settle.
All in less than a quarter of an hour.
If anyone saw this, the entire Eastern Region would be in an uproar.
"What a pity," Chu Xun sighed softly.
If only he had invested in Li Yaochi earlier, perhaps the Saint would never have needed to awaken. With his current cultivation, one sword would be enough to crush his enemies. Even Lu Nantian of Zhenwu Sect and Qin Yu of Immortal Dao Sect would not withstand it.
Still, it was fortune amidst misfortune.
The Saint could now return to seclusion, prolonging her fragile life. And when the next conflict came… there would be few left in the Eastern Region who could oppose Donglin Sect.
His gaze shifted to the next reward.
[Ten years of Sword Insight]
"Absorb."
At once, a vast ocean of sword comprehension flooded his mind.
Countless realizations, techniques, and philosophies spun in chaos. Even Chu Xun, with his immense foundation, nearly lost himself in the torrent.
But his will was firm.
He calmed his heart and began to comprehend.
One by one, the mysteries of the Great River Sword Intent unfolded before him, all the confusion of the past dissolving into sudden clarity.
Days passed.
Sword after sword, understanding after understanding, his progress was terrifying.
In just seven days, Chu Xun had absorbed ten years' worth of sword enlightenment.
The moonlight streaming through the window cast a pale glow on him, like a sword drawn from its sheath, his very presence gleamed with sharp brilliance.
Then,
He lifted his hand and flicked his sleeve.
Buzz!
A crescent of sword light burst forth, soaring into the sky like a moon split in half.
All across Donglin Sect, sword cultivators stirred. They felt the ripple of power, their hearts resonating.
"What domineering sword intent! If I can grasp even a fraction, my cultivation will soar!" someone whispered in awe.
At the sect's main hall, Xiao Rongyu opened her tired eyes and smiled, her exhaustion vanishing.
"Elder Chu has made another breakthrough!"
Elder Wang He and Elder Jiang, mid-game at their chessboard, froze and exchanged astonished looks.
"This sword intent carries the might of a Ninth Realm Emperor!"
"Ha! So soon after that battle, and already another breakthrough," Elder Wang of the forbidden area laughed in delight.
They all assumed Chu Xun had simply created a new sword technique.
But in the Sutra Pavilion,
Chu Xun opened his eyes slowly.
That crescent slash? It hadn't even drawn on his cultivation.
He hadn't used the Green Ivy Sword, nor the Great River Sword Intent, just a casual motion, a trace of newfound insight.
Through the window, the crescent blade shimmered across the night sky, like a sword that could slice the moon itself.
A faint smile crossed his face.
"Without even invoking the Great River Sword Intent," he murmured, "my power already rivals the Ninth Realm of the Human Emperor. If I combine it with the Great River and the Green Ivy Sword…"
His eyes glinted like cold steel.
"…then there will be no equal left in this realm."