Chapter 96: Sword Spirit

Perhaps it's because my memory is extraordinary, I never forget what I've heard? Li Yunji laughed dryly to cover it up. After speaking, he turned and walked up the steps to Li Jia's grave. He took out the gourd of wine from his waist and slowly poured it on the ground. "Old Li, your favorite spring wine from Zhixing Pavilion, I've brought it for you." "Enough to fill you up." In an instant, a faint wind rose, and the fragrance of wine spread everywhere. Li Yunji gently set down the gourd and walked to Zhao Yan's grave. Casually picking a few nameless small flowers, he placed them on the tombstone and remained silent. To this unfamiliar woman, Li Yunji's only impression was Li Jia's boasting before his death. Whether a bit true or false, Li Yunji had no idea. But the only thing certain was that the reputation of being the number one beauty in Great Qian wasn't fabricated by Li Jia. Li Yunji took a deep breath, sat before the steps, his gaze on the distant Beiling City, a complex emotion rising in his heart. Su Qingmeng stood quietly to the side, silent for a long while, then spoke slowly, "In this case, don't you want to investigate further?" Li Yunji turned his head to look at Su Qingmeng, first startled, then smiled bitterly, "Having followed me for so long, you've finally made some progress." Su Qingmeng sat down naturally and said unhappily, "Stop flattering yourself." "I just feel that once you arrived in Beiling City, you weren't as decisive as before." "According to your past temperament, you should be on the case now." Li Yunji was silent for half a moment and sighed helplessly, "You're right." "Are you afraid?" "It's not that I can't say I'm afraid." Li Yunji said in a deep voice, "I just feel that if this matter is really connected to my second uncle, we two might turn against each other and become enemies." "He hasn't been treating you well all along?" Su Qingmeng asked doubtfully, "He drove you out of Beiling, took your military power, and bullied your old subordinates." Li Yunji sighed lightly, "It's also strange to say, according to reason, I came to the capital alone, he should ignore me, let me fend for myself." "But instead, he raised me well, sending silver notes monthly, never treating me shabbily with food and drink." Su Qingmeng's straightforward personality clearly couldn't sense the complexity of human nature. Li Yunji's description of Li Yi's contradictory behavior left her feeling inexplicably puzzled. So she simply shut up. Li Yunji looked back at Li Jia's grave, then looked up at the horizon and exhaled a heavy breath. "If my second uncle's actions are really as I guessed..." "On the day the truth is revealed, the old Li family in Beiling will have only me left."

"What do you mean by as you guessed?" Su Qingmeng's brows furrowed instantly, "Do you have a lead?" Li Yunji nodded, tone heavy: "Yesterday at the dock, although I couldn't see their faces clearly." "But from their shapes and postures, there were traces of military training." "But didn't you say the Beiling army is divided into two factions?" Su Qingmeng continued asking: "How do you determine it's your second uncle's people?" Li Yunji's eyes sharpened, voice cold: "At first I couldn't decide either." "Zhou Jingzhi's framing of the Taihu Academy case benefits the Crown Prince." "So I naturally think that Zhou Li has already allied with the Crown Prince." "Then the people at the dock last night are more likely to be under Zhou Li's command." Li Yunji said, thoughts returning to last night, "But what I didn't expect was." "The first person to arrive at the Beiling Prince's Mansion when something happened at the dock turned out to be my second uncle." After the words fell, the breeze gradually stopped, the air seeming to solidify. Under the scorching sun, a layer of dryness rose around. Su Qingmeng's gaze sharp, pondered a moment: "So do you mean that the one bought by the Crown Prince is actually your second uncle?" Li Yunji shook his head, brows tightly locked: "No, my second uncle has a deep city, may not easily ally with anyone." "But it can be determined that he and the Crown Prince must be plotting something in secret." "What about Zhou Li?" A flash of surprise in Su Qingmeng's eyes, "If he hasn't allied with the Crown Prince, why would he allow Zhou Jingzhi to act for the Crown Prince?" Li Yunji's brows lifted slightly, deep voice: "This issue, probably only by asking him personally." After that, the two fell silent.

The breeze gradually picked up, bringing a few dark clouds, dispersing the dryness from before. "Haven't you smelled anything?" After a long silence, Li Yunji suddenly asked. Su Qingmeng sniffed the air, brows slightly furrowed, shook her head. Li Yunji looked around, murmured to himself: "This smell, why does it seem so familiar?" After the words fell, the sword at his waist suddenly trembled lightly, as if sensing something. Li Yunji became alert immediately, gripped the sword hilt, brows furrowed: "What's going on?!" Su Qingmeng stared carefully at the abnormal movement of the sword, low voice: "This sword seems to have sensed something." After that, the sword suddenly lost control and unsheathed itself on its own! "Can you control the sword with qi?" Su Qingmeng asked in surprise. Li Yunji shook his head frantically, raised both hands with an innocent face, "Absolutely not possible!"

Under the stunned gaze of the two, the sword seemed to be manipulated by someone, drawing several silver lights in the air. When he saw the moves and forms of the sword swinging out, Li Yunji found it even more unbelievable. Wasn't this the set of the invincible, unique sword technique of Old Li? "What is this?" Su Qingmeng's expression grave, murmured softly, "Sword spirit..." "What sword spirit?" Li Yunji was confused. Su Qingmeng took a deep breath, explained gently: "Those who train in swordsmanship must nurture the sword." "The so-called nurturing the sword is to nourish the sword body with one's own true qi." "Only after repeating day after day, year after year, is there a one in ten thousand chance to nurture a sword spirit." Su Qingmeng said, looking at the long sword in her hand, "Since I started training swords, this sword has always followed me, but until now there has been no sign of a sword spirit." Li Yunji was thoughtful, gaze turning to the sword: "No, I never nurtured it!" Su Qingmeng pondered: "Perhaps this sword was once blessed by a great expert." "The sword spirit is what he left behind." Li Yunji thought for a moment, low voice: "Old Li?" "Is this the sword of Prince Li?" Su Qingmeng asked with raised brows. Li Yunji nodded. "Then it makes sense." A flash of understanding in Su Qingmeng's eyes, "Prince Li was a second-rank swordsman in his lifetime, having a sword spirit isn't unusual." "But why did this sword spirit wake up at this time?" Li Yunji asked again. After that, the familiar scent became more intense, Li Yunji suddenly turned back. There on Li Jia's lonely grave, a wisp of ghostly light was slowly rising! Ghostly light like silk, slowly wrapping around the sword, the sword body humming lightly, actually pulsating like a heart! After a few breaths, countless silver white qi auras were continuously injected into the sword in the air. The sword instantly glowed brightly, completely restored as if reborn from a broken limb! Swish! The sword suddenly spun back, slashing out a sword qi straight towards the ninth heaven. In an instant, it tore through the sky's clouds, revealing a corner of deep blue...