Yunli didn't know how long she had been running; she only knew that her body was constantly breaking through its limits.
Due to the extreme tension in her spirit, Huaiyan and his Jeep had gradually distorted in Yunli's eyes into an alien and a monster, relentlessly chasing after her.
The opponent could make countless mistakes, but she couldn't afford even one.
Would Grandpa show her mercy? The emotional part of Yunli gave an affirmative answer: Grandpa had watched her grow up; how could he possibly harm her? He would definitely hold back.
But the rational part of Yunli held a different view: Huaiyan seemed to be having a great time right now. By the time he remembered how to write the words "family affection," she would probably already be in the clinic.
Yunli's gaze gradually changed: from initial terror and panic, it slowly turned to anger, and finally evolved into complete despair.
"Grandpa, I really can't do it..." Yunli said painfully.
"You idiot!"
Seeing this, Huaiyan immediately scolded: "Yunli, what's with that expression? And what's with the tears?"
"If you give up, can you defeat the Denizens of Abundance? Can you defend Zhuming?!"
"Answer me! Look me in the eyes!"
Yunli regretted it. She regretted why she had been so arrogant and ignorant as to take a master back then.
She also understood why Uncle Yingxing had defected.
Vroom! (Engine starting sound)
"Yunli, charge at the car!"
"Yunli, why are you dodging?!"
"Don't run!"
"...Oh no, Yunli, dodge quickly—the brakes are broken!"
Duang!
A few seconds later, Huaiyan strode forward meteorically, carrying Yunli straight to the clinic: "Yunli was hit because the brakes broke. I didn't expect this to happen!"
And so, on the thirty-first day of entry, Yunli once again happily obtained a month of sick leave.
...
The recollection ended here.
There were many more such torturous trainings, but Yunli remembered most of them not at all. It was said that the brain, to protect itself, would gradually delete painful memories from the mind, so Yunli only felt that the past memories were swirling around in her brain, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't grasp them.
But it was also thanks to this hellish training that Yunli, having faced death a hundred times (over a hundred near-death experiences), had honed this body of swordsmanship. With this as her sword, she could even fell the stars in the sky.
Originally, Yunli had planned to wander around the Luofu to relax, but she ran into an acquaintance on the road—Lingsha. During her days in Zhuming, Lingsha had always been her attending physician, and the two had an extremely close relationship, so when Lingsha invited her, she naturally followed.
It's just that... Lingsha didn't know what she had gone off to do, probably running into another "hero" again, which delayed her time.
"Miss!"
At this moment, a voice suddenly rang out not far away. Yunli looked toward the sound and saw a blond boy standing not far off, holding a familiar-style flying sword in his hand, waving at her.
...A very familiar flying sword.
Yunli slowly stood up from the eaves, flashing to Yanqing's side in an instant. "Little brother, something the matter?"
!
Yanqing instinctively widened his eyes. With his eyesight, he hadn't even kept up with Yunli's speed just now, so he immediately took a step back and presented the flying sword with both hands: "Teacher, earlier when you righteously intervened at Starskiff Haven, you left behind a flying sword. Yanqing followed the positioning on it and came to return it to you specifically."
After coming out of the Seat of Divine Foresight, he had immediately brought the flying sword to find the person.
Yunli didn't speak, indifferently taking the flying sword from Yanqing's hands. After fiddling with it casually for a bit, she tossed it back to Yanqing: "...It's a gift to you."
Yanqing abruptly raised his head in astonishment: A gift to him?
Could it be that she despised him? B-But, this sword had only passed through his hands temporarily; what was there to despise about it?
"Don't misunderstand, little brother." Yunli's voice was low: "You have an affinity with this sword. I can feel it."
Yanqing blinked his eyes. Although he didn't quite understand Yunli's words, thinking that this girl might very well be an expert, he obediently memorized those words in his heart.
Yunli sized Yanqing up and down, nodding from time to time. Yanqing felt somewhat uncomfortable under her gaze and hesitated for a moment before asking: "Teacher, may I ask what you're looking at..."
"Heh..."
Yunli didn't answer, merely letting out a low chuckle. Her small hand suddenly touched his neck, then his chest, limbs...
"You have great talent, little brother. Do you want to... take me as your master?" Yunli asked.
Yanqing: ?
This direct?
Yanqing gave a wry smile and said: "Sorry, Yanqing already has a master, and... and Yanqing has no money, so I can't take another master."
"You already have a teacher? What a pity." Yunli said indifferently: "By the way, little brother, in return for you specially running over to deliver the sword to me, I'll give you an opportunity. Do you dare to seize it?"
"May I ask, Teacher, what do you mean by opportunity...?"
The corner of Yunli's mouth lifted in a dangerous arc: "Have you heard that a person's potential only awakens in the most dangerous moments?"
"Looking back over the thousands of years of history of the Xianzhou's Cloud Knights, those who can claim the title of Sword Champion are few and far between. Countless Cloud Knights begin swinging their swords at dawn's first light and continue until the moon is high; their efforts cannot be denied, but in the end, they still lead mediocre lives."
"Only warriors tempered by war can stand out from the crowd of swordsmen, because only the threat of death can make a person break through the bottleneck of self."
"Little brother, I think highly of you, so do you want to... take a sword from me?"
"I see that your talent is rare, yet your current strength is still mediocre. There must be many reasons for this, so I grant you an opportunity of 'death' to lend you a hand."
"After this one sword, it's either the sword shatters and the person perishes, or a complete transformation."
Yunli's voice was as cold as the sword in her hand. "Decide for yourself."
...
At the same time, on the other side of the Alchemy Commission.
"...Her performance is only this much for now."
Jiaoqiu elegantly reported what he had seen earlier to the white-furred fox person in front of him, his attitude impeccable.
"...I understand."
The white-furred fox person's eyes narrowed slightly, his voice low and extremely oppressive. "She sounds like just a cub. For someone like this to shoulder the burden of the entire Luofu?"
"Is there no one left on the Luofu?"
Jiaoqiu reminded: "Gen... General, your old habit is flaring up again. On the Xianzhou, don't use Borisin speech patterns."
With Jiaoqiu's words, the identity of this white-furred fox person became obvious—Yaoqing Skystrike General, Feixiao.
It's just that this Feixiao's speech always carried a bit of Hoolay's flavor.
"It'll change back." Feixiao waved her hand carelessly: "Fine then, let me personally go see just what this Luofu general relied on to rise to her position... Hm? Such strong sword qi. There's actually someone fighting in the Alchemy Commission?"
Jiaoqiu immediately said: "Shall I go handle it?"
Feixiao immediately reached out to stop him: "No need. Fighting is a good thing. Only wolves that know slaughter are the ones that can survive. Go take a look at the situation. This sword intent isn't something ordinary people can have; at the very least, it requires facing death a hundred times."
"Could it be some hidden expert from the Luofu?"