Chapter 62 - 37: Will Never Return

Inside the room.

"My fists are itching again! How can the people of Lingxu Peak be so shameless?! Junior Sister, wait here. I’ll go beat them and chase them away!" Luo Mingyue clenched her fists.

Li Shuang had won, and they were happily celebrating her victory. Yet, just as they opened the wine, these annoying flies had suddenly shown up! Luo Mingyue shot to her feet.

"Eldest Senior Sister," Li Shuang said, tugging at her lightly.

Luo Mingyue said, "Little Frost, don’t be afraid of them. Even if everyone from Lingxu Peak teamed up, they still wouldn’t be a match for me alone."

Without Li Shuang, what did those few from Lingxu Peak even amount to? Ye Zhaozhao was technically the only one at the Nascent Soul Stage, but she didn’t even know how to use a sword. Why would Luo Mingyue be afraid of her?

A tiny smile curved the corners of Li Shuang’s lips. "Eldest Senior Sister," she said calmly, "let me handle this myself."

Ye Zhaozhao was making such a grand spectacle simply to use public opinion to force her into submission. If they knelt here pleading for help and were beaten away by the people of Heartless Peak... well, starting a rumor was easy, but stopping one was hard.

If they didn’t clear this matter up face-to-face, it wouldn’t really bother her personally, but she was afraid it would drag down Heartless Peak’s reputation. Li Shuang knew that Luo Mingyue and the others didn’t care about their reputation, but she did.

The Supreme Forget Emotion Technique allowed her to distinguish more clearly between true sincerity and false pretenses. And she was never willing to let down any sincere heart.

Seeing Li Shuang’s resolute expression, Luo Mingyue paused for a moment before stepping aside to clear a path. "Little Frost, these people have always been shameless, so don’t push yourself too hard. Just remember, we are all right here with you."

Liu Juncheng nodded. "Exactly. Right and wrong will always come to light one day. But silently swallowing your grievances and taking a loss? That is absolutely out of the question!"

Jiang Yi looked a bit nervous, but she still nodded vigorously.

A soft smile graced Li Shuang’s lips. "I understand. I won’t let myself be taken advantage of."

Li Shuang walked over and opened the door.

"Senior Sister Li! Senior Sister Li is coming out," someone shouted.

Joy surged in Ye Zhaozhao’s heart. Cradling the Dragon Roar Sword, she looked at Li Shuang through tear-blurred eyes. "Senior Sister Li, Long Yan is truly dying! Please, I’m begging you, save him. I know Long Yan is at fault too—he shouldn’t have harbored resentment because you abandoned him, nor should he have burned his Spiritual Body on the sect’s arena. But you two have been companions for so many years! He only did something so foolish because he cared about you too much! Now, he can’t maintain his physical form and is on the verge of Void Transformation. Senior Sister, please save him."

As Ye Zhaozhao spoke, she purposefully summoned Long Yan out.

The Sword Spirit Space had a certain healing effect on Sword Spirits. The moment he was summoned out of it, Long Yan’s Spiritual Body trembled, and his face grew even paler. He couldn’t even stand steadily and immediately collapsed onto the ground.

"Senior Sister, look at him! Long Yan’s condition is really terrible!" Ye Zhaozhao cried out. "You’ve always known he was born as a polluted Sword Spirit, and you were always the one who helped purge the Muddy Qi from his body. Now, no one else but you can save him. If the foul Muddy Qi can be expelled in time, Long Yan might still be able to keep his physical form. Otherwise, his Primordial Energy will be severely damaged, and he will undergo Void Transformation, never to possess a physical form again."

Having gone all out, Ye Zhaozhao continued kowtowing heavily as soon as she finished her tearful pleas. Everyone’s gaze turned toward Li Shuang.

Shen Yue’s eyes were filled with anticipation. He knew that they had disappointed their senior sister. That was why, even though he had come to Heartless Peak that day, he hadn’t had the face to see her. But no matter what, Senior Sister was a sword lover, just like him. She definitely wouldn’t just watch Long Yan undergo Void Transformation.

Li Shuang walked out calmly and glanced at Long Yan, who was slumped on the ground.

Long Yan’s face was deathly pale. He pursed his lips, looking up at Li Shuang.

Li Shuang said calmly, "I’m sorry, but I cannot help Long Yan."

Long Yan’s face instantly turned even paler. In a daze, he recalled that day on the Snow Mountain—it was he who had controlled the Dragon Roar Sword and pierced it into Li Shuang’s Dantian. Had he not suddenly fainted that day and failed to launch a second attack, Li Shuang would have already lost her life.

He thought, "She... must resent me, right? After thirteen years of companionship, I not only betrayed her but almost took her life. How could she not resent me?"

Yet at this moment, the depths of Li Shuang’s eyes were icy and detached. There was no hatred, no sorrow, and no fluctuation of emotion. She was like the perennial, unmelting snow on the Snow Mountain, holding no feelings for him whatsoever. No love. No hatred. No care. No emotion.

Long Yan’s body trembled slightly. For some unknown reason, in this moment, he actually wished that Li Shuang’s eyes were filled with hatred. At least that would prove she still cared about him, even just a little. But now... there was nothing. As she looked at him, as she looked at these people from Lingxu Peak, there was only a vast emptiness in the depths of her eyes.

"Senior Sister!" Shen Yue couldn’t help but say. "I misunderstood you regarding a few things before, and I can apologize to you for that. But this isn’t the time to act out of spite! Long Yan is your partner!"

Li Shuang looked at Shen Yue. "Shen Yue, I don’t need your apology. As for Long Yan, he is no longer my partner."

Shen Yue stared at Li Shuang in disbelief. "Senior Sister! Are you truly going to hold such a grudge? This is Long Yan, the Sword Spirit you worked so hard to nurture for so many years!"

"Senior Sister, you’ve already abandoned Long Yan once. Are you going to abandon him a second time?" Ye Zhaozhao said, her eyes red.

Li Shuang looked at Ye Zhaozhao and suddenly smiled. "Ye Zhaozhao, was it truly I who abandoned Long Yan?"

Ye Zhaozhao’s heart skipped a beat. Stared at by Li Shuang’s gaze, which seemed capable of seeing through everything, she was momentarily rendered speechless.

Li Shuang said calmly, "The Dragon Roar Sword followed me for thirteen years. From Core Formation to the Nascent Soul Stage, I exhausted all my efforts to nurture this treasure sword over the years. Because he was a Wasted Sword Spirit unable to awaken, I defied the heavens and changed his fate, finding the method of Sword Qi Washing Spirit for him. For forty-nine days and nights, I didn’t stop for a single moment, continuously converting my Spiritual Power into Sword Qi. My meridians were torn, and my Divine Thought was stretched to its absolute limit. When something went wrong halfway through, the Sword Qi nearly destroyed my Dantian."

Li Shuang stared intently at Long Yan. "But during those forty-nine days, I didn’t let you suffer the slightest bit of harm. I used every ounce of my strength to awaken you."

Long Yan’s body gave a violent tremble.

When he had first awakened, the very first person he saw upon opening his eyes was Li Shuang. That day, her face had been somewhat pale, yet the smile on her lips was incredibly gentle.

She had said, "Are you my Sword Spirit? I look forward to your guidance from now on."

She hadn’t breathed a single word about all the things she had done behind the scenes to awaken him.

So... during the days of his slumber, the few times he had occasionally woken up, he had seen her in the Book Collection Pavilion, in the workshop, in the Secret Realm... searching everywhere for various secret manuals. Was she looking for this method of Sword Qi Washing Spirit? Was it all just to... awaken him?

A surge of complex emotions welled up in Long Yan’s heart. He opened his mouth, unable to hold back the urge to say something. But then he felt that whatever he said would be futile.

From the moment he had controlled Dragon Roar to pierce Li Shuang’s Dantian... the Li Shuang who would exhaust her mind and body for his sake would never come back.