It was midsummer, and the scorching sun blazed overhead, its fiery rays beating down on Dan Peak, leaving the flowers, grass, and trees listless and wilted.
Yet, under this very sun, on the grassy shore of Sword Washing Lake, a beautiful woman in a red dress practiced her swordplay. Each of her strikes was powerful and precise, her footwork agile and swift—so fast that ordinary eyes could barely keep up. Her vibrant, energetic demeanor stood in stark contrast to the languid creatures around her, all withered by the relentless heat.
Her fiery phoenix-like figure had the convalescing soldiers on the opposite shore nearly dropping their jaws in awe.
Even while recovering from her injuries, Li Shiyin never ceased her contemplation of the sword.
"A sword practiced a thousand times reveals its essence."
Her master had told her that no matter how great one’s talent, without diligence to fully realize it, that talent would be wasted.
So she trained daily. Rain, thunder, snow, or frost—nothing could deter her. Unshakable as the thunder itself.
Her relentless effort stemmed partly from a refusal to squander her gifts, and partly because, within the Dao Sword Sect—or indeed, the entire Land of Immortal Legacy—every swordsman lived under the shadow of Lu Junxing. Until she surpassed him, there would be no end to her path in the sword.
She began by meticulously rehearsing the fundamental sword techniques—thrusts, slashes, points, and cuts—executing each with flawless precision. Only then did she move on to the few sword forms she had created herself.
Her master had said that no matter how intricate a sword technique might be—even if it were as complex as Lu Junxing’s single stroke painting mountains and rivers—or how mighty—whether reaching the heavens to pluck the moon or diving into the abyss to slay the Kunpeng—as long as it remained a sword technique, it could never escape the confines of the basic movements a sword could perform.
Swordplay had infinite variations, but all those variations were built upon the finite foundation of fundamental sword techniques.
Her master placed great emphasis on the basics. He said that to master profound swordplay, one must first master the fundamental techniques.
She heeded his words faithfully, always beginning her practice with a thorough drill of the basics.
The recent sect defense battles had given her two major fights—one a direct confrontation with the Nascent Soul cultivator Zhang Wei, and another where she led the sect’s Golden Core disciples against those of the Hengduan Mountain Alliance. Both battles had taught her much.
She had wanted to create new sword techniques based on these insights, but her master stopped her.
He said, "Better to master a few than to dabble in many."
What use was knowing a thousand sword techniques? In battle, the best choice was always the one you wielded with utmost skill.
A single foundational sword style, so long as it contained four key elements—a high-damage single-target strike, an area-of-effect attack, a technique targeting mana, and one targeting the soul—was more than enough.
She already had four self-created techniques. Rather than expending effort on new ones, it was better to refine the existing ones with her deepened understanding of the sword.
Though she suspected her master simply didn’t want to bother naming any more techniques and was using this reasoning to brush her off, she had no proof to refute him. So she followed his advice, polishing her existing forms.
The first was "Celestial Descent," her master’s so-called high-damage single-target strike. The second was "Sealed Dust, Severed Thought," a soul-slashing technique. The third, "Dreamlike Stars," was an AOE attack with devastating power but heavy mana consumption. The fourth, "Myriad Swords Return," was another AOE, but its mana cost was far more controlled.
From the first to the fourth, Li Shiyin practiced each with painstaking care.
When she finished, she sheathed her sword, closed her eyes, and stood still, absorbing the insights from her training.
But before she could fully digest them, someone suddenly wrapped their arms around her shoulders from behind, resting their chin on her shoulder and pressing their nose against her ear. Their breath was deep and slow—clearly savoring her scent—yet they remained silent.
She knew who it was. Ignoring him at first, she waited until she had fully absorbed her reflections before opening her eyes.
Her gaze was bright with amusement, her lips curled in a smile, yet her tone was exasperated as she said, "Sect Leader Qin, could you mind your image a little? There are plenty of people watching over there. Don’t corrupt the youngsters."
Dan Peak still housed many wounded, gathered by Sword Washing Lake near the medicinal herb greenhouses. Another makeshift shelter had been erected there, offering meager protection from sun and rain.
Today was clear, and many of the injured were strolling by the lake. Thus, they witnessed both the mesmerizing sword dance of the woman in red and the less dignified side of Dan Peak’s sect leader.
"What youngsters?" Qin Ran’s voice was lazy as he tightened his embrace, showing no intention of letting go. "Even if there were any, what’s wrong with hugging my own wife? I’m teaching them a valuable lesson—parents should be affectionate, and husbands should dote on their wives. That’s how you build a happy family. It’s lawful, and it’s righteous."
Li Shiyin was no match for his silver tongue.
She changed the subject, teasing, "Who’s your wife? I’m your disciple—is this really appropriate?"
"Disciple?" Qin Ran’s voice dropped, then heated up. "That just makes it more exciting."
"Ugh—!" Li Shiyin jabbed a finger backward into his ribs. "Sect Leader Qin, have you no shame at all?"
"Shame? Can shame fill your stomach?" Qin Ran retorted. "If I had any shame, I wouldn’t have shamelessly seduced my own disciple in the first place."
"Tch…"
The fearless Li Shiyin of her youth—who had dared to beat up a crown prince in the mortal world and even forced herself on her master at Dan Peak—had, as a married woman, grown a touch of bashfulness and feminine reserve.
Hearing Qin Ran’s brazen words, her cheeks flushed. She glanced across the lake at the many pairs of eyes watching them, then turned back and whispered, "Qin Ran, behave yourself!"
Where was the woman who once "defied the heavens" now?
Qin Ran tilted his head against her shoulder, admiring the blush on her face from behind—like delicate strokes of rouge on pristine porcelain. The sight of shyness and femininity on a tomboy like Li Shiyin only made her more enchanting.
His heart itched. Leaning in, he planted a kiss on her cheek.
"Oh? Blushing, are we?" he teased.
Li Shiyin huffed. "This sword immortal doesn’t blush!"
"Then turn around and let your master see." He released her, gripping her shoulders to spin her toward him.
Face to face now, under Qin Ran’s shameless gaze, Li Shiyin’s heart melted. She lowered her eyes, murmuring, "Shameless master…"
Then, her body softened, and she buried herself in his arms, unwilling to meet his eyes.
Qin Ran held his pliant wife close, smirking triumphantly at the onlookers across the lake before bending to whisper in her ear:
"Sweetheart, do you know what ‘daylight debauchery’ means?"
Li Shiyin didn’t answer, instead responding with a punch to his ribs.
Seemed she already knew.
Qin Ran endured the pain and pressed on, "Should we have a baby?"
"Really?" Li Shiyin immediately lifted her head, her eyes sparkling. "Are we having a baby?"
"That’s up to you…" Qin Ran reached out and gently pinched her nose.
"Of course we are!" Li Shiyin declared loudly.
"A boy or a girl?"
"A boy! I can teach him swordsmanship!"
"Can’t a girl learn swordsmanship too?" Qin Ran stared at her in surprise.
Li Shiyin grew shy again, avoiding his gaze. "Girls wielding swords aren’t very gentle…"
"Says who?" Qin Ran tapped her cheek playfully. "Her mother is plenty gentle!"
"Hmph!"
Li Shiyin couldn’t bring herself to admit she was gentle.
s the Eldest Princess, renowned for her cold and aloof detachment, became the most docile of lambs, obeying his every command without question. But when the final move was played on the chessboard, as Gu Chenghan seized everything and ascended on the verge of apotheosis, that very Princess suddenly embraced him from behind, her tone carrying a dependence never heard before: "Wait... you haven't yet... commanded me to love you forever." Gu Chenghan froze abruptly. She... hadn't been hypnotized?! ... [The Eldest Princess's Diary] [When my soul was extracted, becoming the sole spectator outside my own shell] [At first, there was overwhelming fury, until I saw] [How he used my sword to effortlessly shatter my inescapable doom] [How he wielded my authority to eradicate fatal conspiracies I had never even detected] [Like a deity, he rescued me from the deep mire I was trapped in] [If not for those annoying vixens, he and I would be a match made in heaven] [I think I am ill, gravely ill] [My deity should belong to me alone] ... "Hypnosis? Oh, it succeeded, my dear Master." "Only this time, it's my turn to hypnotize you."
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
e vast world of cultivation, where he becomes the master of the Heavenly Ruins Sacred Hall, a dying old man with barely a tenth of his former cultivation remaining. He is immediately confronted with a deadly crisis: his subordinates have rebelled, and his protectors are forcing him to abdicate. At the critical moment, the system descends from the heavens: [Ding! The host has been detected facing a life-or-death crisis. The system is now officially activated!] [As a gift, you have received the Supreme Beginner’s Pack and awakened the ultimate cheat: ten thousand years of pure cultivation essence every second!] Yin Tianjue: “Wait… ten thousand years of cultivation every second? That’s six hundred thousand years a minute, and in one day… I can’t even calculate it. Either way, I’m already invincible!” You’re a peerless prodigy rarely seen in ten thousand years? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re an undying ancestor who has guarded a sacred land for countless ages? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. You’re the strongest chosen one, blessed with heaven-defying destiny? Sorry, I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. From this day forth, I have only one thing to say: “I gain ten thousand years of cultivation every second. Now, how exactly are you supposed to deal with that?”
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
