Chapter 23: The Sword Qi Is Coming at Me?!

After an unknown amount of time had passed, Luo Xing felt himself finally come to a stop. Only then did he dare to slowly open his eyes...

The sky was dim and overcast, with thick, heavy storm clouds blanketing the land for hundreds of miles in every direction. There was not a single trace of wind, yet a low, mournful wailing echoed continuously through the surroundings, as if carried by something unseen.

Looking out into the distance, Luo Xing saw nothing but an endless grayish-brown wasteland stretching as far as the eye could see. This barren land had no grass, no trees—nothing living at all. There was only one thing present...

Swords...

Swords—countless swords...

They were densely embedded across the wasteland, forming something like a withered forest forged entirely from cold steel.

These thousands upon thousands of swords came in all shapes and sizes. Some were several meters long, standing upright like sheer cliffs, while others were as short as daggers, buried deep into the ground. Most of them were already covered in rust, layered with thick moss and dust. Their chipped blades and decayed hilts all seemed to silently recount the passage of time and the countless years they had endured...

“Th-this place is...?”

“The Sword Tomb—the resting place where ten thousand swords lie dormant...” Ye Li answered Luo Xing’s question first, then slowly lowered her head. Her tone was calm and indifferent as she added, “Are you planning to hang onto your master for the rest of your life?”

“Uh... ah!”

Only at that moment did Luo Xing realize that, without noticing, he had been holding onto Ye Li’s waist. “Master! Listen to me—I can explain! I... I didn’t mean—ah!”

Panicking, he released her waist as if shocked by electricity. The sudden movement caused him to lose his balance, and he immediately fell straight off the flying spirit sword.

Fortunately, Ye Li reacted quickly and grabbed him by the collar, lifting him up as easily as if she were holding a small chicken.

As for Luo Xing grabbing her waist, Ye Li did not really care. To her, the notion that men and women should avoid physical contact was simply a matter of whether she wanted to or not. If she truly minded, she would have thrown him off long ago—why would she have allowed him to hold onto her the entire way?

Besides, leaving aside the fact that Luo Xing was her direct disciple, at his age he was, at most, just a teenager. Meanwhile, she herself was no longer some young girl barely over one hundred years old.

However, while Ye Li thought this way, Luo Xing once again began to suspect whether he had somehow ended up in the wrong book...

Why had Ye Li suddenly become so easygoing lately?

And what about her supposed aversion to men?

According to the original story, Ye Li was completely indifferent toward the opposite sex—if not outright disgusted by them.

He clearly remembered that in the original plot, a young sect heir once recited a love poem to her in public. In response, she single-handedly destroyed his entire sect with just one sword, reducing it from a flourishing sect to nothing more than a “gate”...

But now...

Everything was wrong...

Not only had she accepted him—a male—as her disciple, but she also ate and lived with him, even doing something as intimate as massaging his feet. And now, even something like him holding her waist...

This was not right...

None of this was right...!

Just as Luo Xing was drowning in confusion, unable to make sense of anything, Ye Li suddenly tossed him onto the ground, causing his rear to collide forcefully with the earth in a rather intimate manner...

“Master...” Luo Xing stood up while rubbing his numb backside. “Why did you bring me here?”

In truth, he already had a vague guess about why Ye Li had brought him to the Sword Tomb, because this exact event existed in the original plot.

In the original story, Ye Li brought Luo Han here in order to forge a spirit sword suitable for her, allowing her to choose an appropriate sword embryo.

After all, her master was a sword cultivator, her senior uncle was a sword cultivator, and even her grandmaster was a sword cultivator—so naturally, she herself would also walk the path of the sword.

But the problem was that, in the original plot, Ye Li only prepared a spirit sword for Luo Han after she had reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment. Meanwhile, Luo Xing was currently only at the late stage of Qi Refinement.

This was far too early, wasn’t it?

In response to his question, Ye Li answered calmly, “To forge your Sword Heart.”

There was no helping it—this boy’s aptitude was simply too poor. Without using some special methods, he would only end up getting beaten during the sect competition.

“Uh... what?!” Luo Xing’s expression instantly filled with shock. “Sword... Sword Heart?”

As for what exactly a Sword Heart was...

Luo Xing himself was not entirely sure.

Even in the original story, it had only been mentioned vaguely. It was described as a method of cultivation for sword cultivators—something like planting a tree within one’s body, allowing both one’s cultivation and the Sword Heart to grow together over time.

And this Sword Heart did not have a fixed form. For example, Bai Li Qin Mo’s Sword Heart was called the “Righteous Sword”—unyielding against evil, protective toward the weak, and harmonious toward justice. In the original story, Luo Han possessed the “Compassion Sword,” characterized by mercy, a heart for all living beings, and a path of saving rather than killing—a true embodiment of saintly compassion.

As for Ye Li...

If things were the same as in the original story, then her Sword Heart should be the “Dominant Sword”...

The so-called Dominant Sword referred to a sword cultivator whose actions were overbearing and absolute—someone who acted entirely according to their own will, without reason or restraint.

It really did match Ye Li’s personality quite well...

But the real question was—why was she bringing him here to cultivate a Sword Heart?

Luo Xing did not know about others, but in the original story, Luo Han awakened her Sword Heart through repeated acts of kindness—not here in the Sword Tomb.

Looking at the endless “forest of swords,” Luo Xing suddenly felt an inexplicable sense of unease rising within him...

“Your aptitude is too poor. Relying solely on normal cultivation, you will achieve little,” Ye Li said, glancing at him. “Only by cultivating a Sword Heart in advance can you compensate for the deficiencies of your spiritual roots.”

Gulp...

The sense of unease grew even stronger as Luo Xing swallowed nervously. “So...”

Ye Li glanced at him, then curled her lips into a faint smile. Immediately after, she raised her hand and pointed toward the sky!

Boom!

A towering surge of sword intent shot upward, piercing through the heavens before spreading outward across the entire wasteland, centered on the two of them.

At the same time, the previously still and windless Sword Tomb suddenly erupted into violent motion. The mournful wails disappeared, replaced by a roaring chorus of sword cries that surged like ocean waves.

“There are two methods to forge a Sword Heart...” Ye Li said calmly as the Sword Tomb grew increasingly restless. “Inheritance, and comprehension.”

The former was fast, while the latter was slow. However, Ye Li’s Sword Heart was the “Dominant Sword.” Leaving aside whether Luo Xing’s temperament could withstand it, if he also cultivated the Dominant Sword, then sooner or later either master or disciple would end up dead...

Although Ye Li did not mind killing her disciple to pursue the Dao, if given a choice, she would still prefer that Luo Xing live.

As for her senior brother Bai Li Qin Mo’s “Righteous Sword,” to put it bluntly, she simply did not like it. That overly kind, good-natured Sword Heart was not to her taste.

As for comprehension, it required long-term accumulation through battles and cultivation, which would take far too much time. She did not have the patience to wait for Luo Xing to slowly realize it.

Thus, she came up with a method that balanced both approaches...

She brought Luo Xing to the Sword Tomb and used her “Dominant Sword” as a catalyst, allowing him to awaken a Sword Heart suited to himself from among the countless sword intents present here.

Every sword in the Sword Tomb possessed its own spirituality. Among these thousands of swords, there were swords meant for killing, swords meant for saving, swords meant for protecting one’s homeland, and swords meant for expanding territory. With so many swords and so many sword intents, she refused to believe that Luo Xing would not find one that suited him.

“Then...” As the disturbance in the Sword Tomb grew increasingly intense, Luo Xing became more and more frightened. “M-master... what... what should I do?”

Ye Li glanced at him, then raised her hand and lightly tapped his forehead, sealing a strand of “Dominant Sword” intent within him.

“It’s very simple...” Ye Li leaped back onto the giant sword and slowly rose into the air under Luo Xing’s astonished gaze. “Endure being cut.”

The moment Luo Xing heard this, alarm bells rang loudly in his mind!

She... what did she mean?

What did she mean by that?!

Explain it clearly, will you?!

But just as Luo Xing was about to press further, a series of sharp, piercing sword cries suddenly echoed in his ears...

Turning toward the source of the sound, he saw dozens of illusory sword shadows shooting into the sky before rapidly flying straight toward him!

Luo Xing: “...”

The sword qi is coming at me?!