Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman - Chapter 12 Void Spirit Root

Li Guanqi witnessed this scene through his inner eye and couldn’t find any meaning in the elder punishing Zhao Yuanlin.

However, he chose not to intervene, disregarding the question of whether it made sense or not. All that mattered to him was that he could thrash Zhao Yuanlin.

The thunder whip descended, causing Zhao Yuanlin’s body to instantaneously burst open, charring his flesh, and emitting thin tendrils of green smoke.

“Ah!!! Stop!!! Don’t…”

“Why!!! Why do you have the right to hit me!!!”

“Ah!!! Help, please… please don’t hit me anymore.”

The resounding cries filled the sky as Xu Zhengjie lashed at him.

“Zhao Yuanlin! So what if you possess a Spirit Root! With your improper conduct, my Great Xia Sword Sect will never extend an invitation to you!”

Zhao Yuanlin lay on the ground, his breath growing shallower, yet his gaze remained locked onto Li Guanqi.

Li Guanqi sensed something and suddenly broke his silence, stating, “In that case, why not allow me to undergo a Spirit Root test in the presence of all the elders?”

After uttering these words, the young man couldn’t help but direct his gaze towards Zhao Yuanlin, who lay on the ground like a lifeless dog, and added, “Aren’t you curious whether this beggar possesses any Spirit Root?”

His motivation for doing so was to completely obliterate Zhao Yuanlin’s pitiful sense of superiority.

As for calling himself a beggar…

Li Guanqi remained entirely unfazed by the exposure of these so-called ‘weaknesses.’ By disparaging himself, he left no room for others to insult him. Furthermore, in the world of cultivation, strength reigned supreme!

At this moment, Meng Linhai also fell silent. Heavenly Metal Peak had lost a disciple with incredible latent potential. Recalling the sect’s teachings, his countenance progressively darkened.

“With such a temperament, it’s better to forgo accepting him!”

Xu Zhengjie’s gaze fixed on the young man who met the crowd’s gaze with a smirk as he declared, “Alright! Proceed with the test!”

“Even if you possess a three element mixed spirit root, Heavenly Thunder Peak will welcome you!”

The young man smiled faintly and walked slowly towards the spirit root testing platform in front of a crowd of onlookers. Li Guanqi took a deep breath; he didn’t know what kind of spirit root he had. Over the years, he could feel that his grandfather, Su Xuan, was very powerful, incredibly powerful. If his Spirit Root was really bad, it wouldn’t have taken his grandfather so much effort to obtain so many herbs.

Many times he had seen the rare treasures his grandfather held emitting a fluorescent light. As he grasped the crystal ball in his palm, the entire square fell into a deep silence.

Zhao Yuanlin clenched his lips tightly, his eyes locked onto the transparent crystal ball.

The crystal ball emitted a constantly shifting radiance in myriad colors. This display would determine the type of Spirit Root being tested, with the final color and the intensity of the radiance representing the individual’s innate talent.

As everyone anxiously awaited the outcome, the radiance on the crystal ball gradually intensified.

Bang!

It suddenly exploded with a resounding crash! The shattering of the crystal ball left everyone in the square exchanging bewildered glances.

Zhao Yuanlin immediately pointed at Li Guanqi, his face twisted in madness, as he tauntingly exclaimed, “Hahaha! Useless! You’re nothing but trash!”

“The Spirit Root testing bead is shattered, and you probably aren’t even worthy of having a three element mixed spirit root!”

These words instantly fueled resentment among the crowd, especially those with three element mixed spirit roots. However, some individuals would still be selected based on their Spirit Root’s performance. Meng Linhai furrowed his brows, his impression of Zhao Yuanlin hitting rock bottom.

With a swift motion of his hand, a golden light shot out, instantly sealing Zhao Yuanlin’s mouth.

“Noisy!”

As the Spirit Root testing ball exploded, Li Guanqi also stood frozen, feeling somewhat embarrassed. He awkwardly scratched his head.

“Uh… this thing just exploded. I don’t have to pay for it, do I?”

Suddenly, the elders seemed to remember something and exchanged glances, each displaying an incredulous look in their eyes. Meng Linhai noticed their reactions and was momentarily taken aback, his throat subtly moving.

His voice was dry as he said, “You… you don’t mean what I think, do you?”

Lan He swiftly soared into the air and commanded, “Hurry! Go to the Heavenly Pillar Peak and fetch the Spirit Testing Monument!”

As the crowd observed the chaos among the elders of various peaks, no one knew what was going on.

At that moment, senior disciple Zhou Zhi murmured, “Could it be a King-Grade Spirit Root above the Heavenly Spirit Root?”

Jiang Su, too, wore a look of astonishment and murmured, “Could it be true? It feels like there was only one instance of a King-Grade Spirit Root appearing twelve years ago, right?”

Zhou Zhi nodded slightly and declared in a deep voice, “That person is senior brother Wu Bing. The Sect Master’s personal disciple.”

“They say senior brother Wu Bing is currently in seclusion, attempting to break through to the Golden Core stage!”

“If he manages to break through within three years, he’ll be a Golden Core cultivator in his twenties!”

In no time, four Foundation Establishment stage inner disciples arrived, carrying a jet-black stone monument that measured several yards in size to the Spirit Testing Platform. The massive stone monument weighed thousands of pounds, and numerous names were inscribed on its surface. Upon closer inspection, every single name was followed by the words:

“King-Grade Spirit Root!”

The top name was unfamiliar to everyone, but what followed that name wasn’t “King-Grade.”

This name hadn’t budged from its position for thousands of years. Li Guanqi naturally approached the stone monument, his hands coming to rest on the spot marked with a palm imprint.

Buzz!!!

The stone monument quivered, and in the blink of an eye, a shimmering, eight-colored halo materialized in the vast emptiness, spanning a hundred yards. Then, all the radiance gradually dissipated, leaving behind only a faint, colorless white light! This sight furrowed the brows of the elders from various peaks.

“Could there truly be no Spirit Root…? Then why did the Spirit Testing Stone explode?”

However, the halo continued to expand, shrouding the entire Great Xia Sword Sect until an immense halo, thousands of yards in diameter, loomed overhead! The jet-black stone monument was now entirely blanketed by the white halo, turning completely milky white.

A mysterious voice resonated within Li Guanqi’s mind.

“State your name.”

“Uh… I am Li Guanqi.”

Buzz!!

An invisible shockwave instantaneously rippled outward, reaching a radius of a hundred miles!

Following that, the heavens and earth underwent a rapid transformation, and innumerable streams of colorful radiance began to gracefully swirl around the Great Xia Sword Sect. These vibrant lights resembled countless ribbons, emanating various profound auras.

This celestial phenomenon thoroughly astonished everyone. Immediately, one protective sect formation after another surged into being to thwart outsiders harboring nefarious intentions.

Li Guanqi’s name suddenly appeared at the very bottom of the stone monument, then began its ascent, directly challenging the name of the person atop the monument!

Amid the elders’ shocked gazes, Li Guanqi’s name slowly surpassed that name, which hadn’t altered for thousands of years, and ascended to the very top!

A line of golden glowing small characters suddenly materialized. The voice of the Monument Spirit reverberated throughout the heavens!

“Li Guanqi possesses a Saint-Grade spirit root! A Void Spirit Root!”

This sudden twist left everyone flabbergasted, but it also sparked confusion among many.

“What’s this? A Void Spirit Root? Isn’t that akin to having no Spirit Root at all? How can it possibly be considered a Saint-Grade Spirit Root?”

However, amidst the buzzing discussions, Zhao Yuanlin stared blankly at the composed young man on the platform, his face turned ashen. Unperturbed by the others’ doubts, the elders from the eight peaks, disregarding their dignity, immediately encircled the young man.

They clamored, “Choose Fire! Choose Fire!! It boasts tremendous lethality, and I can instruct you in weapon forging! Alchemy too!”

Meng Linhai grew agitated and shoved aside an elder with long eyebrows, declaring, “Get lost! High killing power should belong to our Metal element! For sword cultivators, mastering Metal element spirit energy is like giving wings to a tiger!”

“Choose Water! My Heavenly Water Peak is filled with female disciples! Plenty of potential Dao companions!”

“Choose Earth! I… Earth… well, I’ll take you as a closed-door disciple! Monthly offerings will be tenfold!”

“Come to my Heavenly Wood Peak! I’ll have the Peak Master take you as a closed-door disciple!”

Suddenly!

A light cough echoed, and it was none other than Qin Xian, the Head Law Enforcer. With a stern expression, the old man declared, “I’m not incapable of accepting disciples.”

However, at this moment, the elders from the eight peaks paid no heed to whether he oversaw discipline or not. They retorted directly, “You haven’t taken in disciples for three to five hundred years, what can you teach!?”

“Uh… as the Head Law Enforcer, it’s not becoming of you to compete with us for disciples… Don’t bear a grudge and undermine us in the future.”

“Peak Master!! Peak Master, come quickly! Don’t return to seclusion!! A disciple with a Saint-Grade Spirit Root! We might lose out if you’re late by even a moment!”

“Big Brother!! Emerge from seclusion quickly!! Head to Heavenly Gate Cave and seize this disciple!”

“Hey! Stop berating me, hurry and come inspect this disciple with a Saint-Grade Spirit Vein!”

Immediately, numerous figures bathed in a rosy glow soared over from behind the Heavenly Sword Mountain.

Li Guanqi felt as though he were firmly grasped by countless colossal hands, tearing his clothing apart. However, just at that moment, a stern rebuke resonated!

Everyone promptly froze and stood at attention.

A man garbed in azure robes descended upon a rosy radiance. This newcomer exuded an ethereal air, with sharp brows, starry eyes, and a resolute visage. He was none other than the Sect Master of the Great Xia Sword Sect, a peak Nascent Soul cultivator, Lu Kangnian!