Chapter 71: True Heart

  Time flies, and soon it was the New Disciple Conference. All disciples of Xuan Yang Sword Sect had to go through this procedure, only then could they be truly recognized by the sect. This is a tradition that has been passed down in Xuan Yang Sword Sect.

  Chang Qing Peak is the residence of the sect master, with a height of thousands of feet and the densest spiritual energy in Long Teng Mountain. Similarly, if there are any grand events to be held within the sect, they will generally take place here.

  At dawn, the sun had just risen, and more than a hundred disciples arrived at Changqing Peak through the teleportation array. Among them were new disciples of this generation, as well as senior brothers from previous generations who had not yet broken through to the Golden Dan stage. As for the elders, they did not arrive so quickly.

  "Fang Li, can you still remember me, Yan Mou?" A short and neckless young man suddenly appeared in front of Fang Li, saying with a playful tone.

  Fang Li arrived early at Changqing Peak today, because he had something on his mind. He quietly stood by with his sword in hand, not wanting to be disturbed, but was unexpectedly discovered by Yan Chongli, who furrowed his brow and didn't want to bother with him.

  "What, pretending not to know me? But I remember you, wait and see at the new disciple conference later!" Yan Chongli's voice couldn't help but turn somewhat chilly, probably thinking of being brutally beaten by Fang Li in the past.

  Fang Li looked at him calmly and said, "I'm waiting." Although the words were few, they carried a sense of pride. In fact, Fang Li's mind was now focused on how to get rid of Dong Hai Lao's calculations, and he didn't want to bother with Yan Chongli.

  Yan Chongli's eyebrows shot up at this, but was infuriated by Fang Li's calm tone. He suddenly shouted: "Fang Li, don't pretend to be calm! Last time I lost to you because I was too careless and fell into your trap. Now it's impossible for you to beat me again, I will return the humiliation you gave me last time tenfold, a hundredfold!" Yan Chongli was very agitated, if not for considering that this was the Sect Master's place, he might have taken action to teach Fang Li a lesson right now.

  "Is that all?" Compared with Yan Chongli's ups and downs, Fang Li's face remained calm, without a ripple.

  "Hey!" Seeing Fang Li's attitude, Yan Chongli was choked for a moment, and he didn't know why his heart felt suffocated. He had originally come to provoke Fang Li, wanting him to feel afraid and pressured, but Fang Li hadn't taken him seriously from start to finish. This feeling was like punching a cotton ball, extremely infuriating.

  "Toad, what are you doing? Daring to bully my friend? Be careful or I'll burst your dog head!" Just then, another person walked over, and it was none other than Liu Caiyu, who had not been seen for a long time. Liu Caiyu was still wearing a yellow cheongsam, looking elegant and refreshing, with her eyebrows tightly furrowed in disgust as she glared at Yan Chongli.

  Yan Chongli's anger flared up as soon as he heard the words "crazy toad", and he thought of only one person who would dare scold him like that - Liu Caiyu. As soon as this thought occurred to him, Yan Chongli suddenly turned his head and glared at the newcomer with a fierce gaze. But immediately afterwards, he was taken aback and asked in surprise: "You've broken through to the seventh level of Qi Refining?"

  Three months ago, Liu Caiyu was only around the late stage of Qi Refining Sixth Layer. If she were to break through to the peak of Qi Refining Sixth Layer in three months, that would be within reason. But now, she has actually broken through to Qi Refining Seventh Layer, which is truly unbelievable, and Yan Chongli couldn't help but feel a little skeptical.

  "Your eyesight is quite good, but last time you humiliated me for my low cultivation. Today, you must take a sword from me!" Liu Caiyu said coldly, suddenly letting out a loud cry, drawing her sword and stabbing.

  Yan Chongli was shocked, not expecting the woman in front of him to be so bold as to directly attack on the mountain head of the sect. Seeing Liu Caiyu's attack approaching quickly, he didn't dare hesitate and hurriedly drew out his long sword, wanting to block it.

  With a loud clang, the two swords collided, and Yan Chongli only felt a numbness in his hand, as if he had been electrocuted. Suddenly, a huge force surged through him, and the long sword in his hand flew out of his grasp!

  "Magic artifact!" Yan Chongli exclaimed, immediately discovering the quality of the long sword in Liu Caiyu's hand. Only a magic artifact could have such powerful might, and that feeling of being electrocuted was very clear.

  With one sword, Yan Chongli's weapon flew away, and Liu Caiyu stood up with a smile, "Are you afraid? My long sword is called 'Lei Yuan', although it only has the attribute of thunder, but it is a genuine mid-grade artifact. If you bow your head and admit your mistake now, I can let bygones be bygones. Otherwise, be careful of your toad head!"

  Yan Chongli's face suddenly turned bright red with anger, and he shouted: "Don't be too presumptuous!"

  Liu Caiyu was unhappy as soon as she heard it. She raised her slender eyebrows, wanting to make things difficult, but was stopped by Fang Li beside her.

  "Let him go." Fang Li pulled on Liu Caiyu's arm and said lightly. Due to the fight earlier, it had already attracted the attention of many people nearby, and Fang Li even sensed that several foundation-building cultivators were approaching this way. After all, they were in the Sect Master's mountain, if this matter was blown up big, Liu Caiyu would not end up well either.

  If it were someone else who stopped Liu Caiyu, Liu Caiyu would definitely not listen. But seeing that it was Fang Li speaking up, although reluctantly, she still said to Yan Chongli: "Scram! Don't let Miss see you again in the future!"

  Yan Chongli gritted his teeth and picked up his long sword, walking away with a gloomy expression.

  Seeing Yan Chongli's appearance, Liu Caiyu's eyes were even more disdainful. However, Fang Li frowned, feeling that something was not quite right. This person, although arrogant, knew when to yield and hide his true intentions, making him the most fearsome kind of person.

  Taking a glance at the careless Liu Caiyu, Fang Li suddenly had an idea to kill Yan Chongli. With Liu Caiyu's personality, she will definitely suffer losses at Yan Chongli's hands in the future.

  "Little brat, why are you staring at your sister like that? Are you scared of the sword I used to defeat Yan Chongli just now? Haha!" Liu Caiyu said with a sudden burst of loud laughter.

  Fang Li furrowed his brow and ignored her.

  Liu Caiyu saw this, and her smile disappeared. Her expression suddenly turned gloomy, and she said: "Are you angry with me? The three Longgui Tongqiao Dan I gave you last time were all thrown to the ground by you." As she spoke, Liu Caiyu took out a porcelain bottle, which was exactly the one Fang Li had discarded last time.

  Fang Li glanced at the porcelain vase and suddenly thought of the scene where Xuan Yun's fairy had grasped it tightly last time, his face turned cold instantly. After a long while, he said to Liu Caiyu: "If I don't keep this porcelain vase, Master Xuan Yun might draw her sword against me again."

  "Are you afraid of my master?" Liu Caiyu asked subconsciously. Xuan Xianzi had been very caring towards her and even gave her a medium-grade magic weapon, so she couldn't quite understand Fang Li's words.

  "I used to be afraid, but now I'm not." Fang Li's expression was firm, standing there like an unsheathed long sword. He continued, "A cultivator's life is at the mercy of heaven, so killing intent is constant. If one dares to defy heaven, why fear other cultivators?"

  Liu Caiyu was stunned and couldn't understand what he meant. But before she could think more, Fang Li suddenly turned his head to look at her and stretched out his hand: "Hand it over."

  "What did you bring?" Liu Caiyu was momentarily stunned.

  "The porcelain vase in your hand, if I'm not mistaken, is the gift you gave me as a friend." Fang Li smiled slightly, and for some reason, his heart felt a sudden sense of relief. Unbeknownst to him, his spiritual awareness had also strengthened ever so slightly because of this.

  Doing as one pleases, without being coerced by anyone, is the true self. Last time, because of being forced by Xuan Yun Xian Zi, he lost this porcelain bottle, and this matter has been a knot in Fang Li's heart. Today, he asked Liu Cai Yu for it again, wanting to get rid of this knot. If Xuan Yun Xian Zi would be unhappy about this, then let her be unhappy, what does it have to do with him? At worst, he can leave the Xuanyang Sword Sect and flee a thousand miles, see what she can do to him.

  Liu Caiyu stared blankly at Fang Li, feeling that the young man in front of her seemed to have changed a bit. However, seeing that Fang Li was not angry with her and even accepted her gift again, she felt somewhat delighted in her heart.

  "Hold on tight, don't drop it again. If you do, I'll get angry." Liu Caiyu said with feigned anger, while handing the porcelain bottle to Fang Li.

  Fang Li accepted with a smile, then calmly looked at Liu Caiyu and solemnly said: "You threw me a peach, I should repay you with a plum, but unfortunately my strength is weak and the difficulties are heavy. If we have another chance to meet in the future, I will definitely repay you."

  "You and I are both in the Xuan Yang Sword Sect, come visit me often later, why say it like we're parting ways forever." Liu Caiyu rolled her eyes, originally wanting to tease Fang Li a bit, but for some reason, she felt inexplicably annoyed in her heart.

  Fang Li didn't respond, but instead gazed into the distance and said calmly, "The elders have all arrived, it seems the new disciple conference is about to begin."

  As Fang Li's gaze swept over, Liu Caiyu immediately discovered that more than a dozen elders in the Yuan Ying period were approaching on their swords, and at the same time, the shadows of Jindan period cultivators began to appear in the array, including her master, Xuan Xianzi.

  "Haha, I've long heard that during this grand opening of the mountain gate, a phenomenon of fish leaping over the dragon gate would occur. Unexpectedly, three new disciples have reached the seventh level of Qi Refining, which is indeed a fortunate event for our Xuan Yang Sword Sect. Unfortunately, I already have a disciple and cannot take them on as students again."

  A cracked gong suddenly spoke up, and it was actually attracting everyone's attention.

  The speaker's name was Dao Luo, a rough and unkempt big man with thick eyebrows and large eyes, looking somewhat like a Jianghu ruffian from the mortal world. However, this person was actually the second most powerful expert under the Sect Master Dao Yan in the Xuan Yang Sword Sect.

  The Xuan Yang Sword Sect, including the sect master, has fourteen Yuan Ying period cultivators. However, there is a huge difference in strength among these people. For example, Dao Luo and Dao Yan, who is the sect master, are the oldest in terms of seniority and have been cultivating for the longest time. They are the top existence of the Xuan Yang Sword Sect. Sect Master Dao Yan reached the perfect Yuan Ying period boundary at a young age, while Dao Luo reached the late Yuan Ying period boundary.

  Apart from them, there were five old men of the Dongzi sect who were quite formidable. They were the same five old men who had brought Fang Li and others up to Huaiyu Peak. Their cultivation was all hovering around the middle stage of Yuan Ying. Fang Li's nominal master ancestor, Dong Hai, was also among them.

  The rest are just the initial realm of Yuanying, and few new disciples pay attention.

  Hush, hush, hush, the elders all fell on the chairman's head, standing in the middle was the master of Xuan Yang Jian Zong, Dao Yan, and closest to the master was actually Xuan Xian Xian Zi!

  It seemed that Liu Caiyu had noticed Fang Li's confusion, and suddenly spoke up: "My master is the sect leader's direct disciple. Yesterday she told me that when I become an inner door disciple, she will also help me ask our ancestor for a few more magical treasures."