Chapter 183: Li Qing's Transformation

It was all thanks to Li Qing's painstaking efforts over the past year or so that Fang Xun's virtuous reputation had now spread throughout Dongshan Town.

With the Xuanhuang Qi of Heaven and Earth interweaving throughout the town, nearly every corner of Dongshan Town was now under Li Shun's control.

Even Li Qing himself had become one of the sources of Xuanhuang Qi.

After all, he had constantly witnessed Fang Xun's deeds of sacrificing himself to save the people, and had even personally written about them and spread the stories. After more than a year of this, Li Qing's admiration for Fang Xun was now no weaker than that of any ordinary townsman of Dongshan.

Of course, what he felt was mostly respect and admiration.

It was not quite the same as the "faith" held by the people of Dongshan Town.

At this moment, Li Qing stood before the memorial tablet of Fang Xun that he had placed inside his home. After respectfully offering a stick of incense and paying his respects, a look of bewilderment gradually surfaced on his face.

He sat blankly on the long bench, as though his soul had left his body, staring into space without knowing what he was thinking about.

It was only after nearly half a day that he finally seemed to awaken from a dream.

With a long sigh, he rummaged through a corner of the room and pulled out a wooden stick that had long since become covered in dust.

The moment the wooden stick entered his hand, a trace of sharpness finally returned to Li Qing's previously vacant eyes.

He first swung it through the air a few times, testing its weight and movement. Gradually, a hint of excitement appeared on his face.

Then he went into the courtyard.

Taking the stick as a sword, he began performing a sword technique.

His movements were somewhat stiff at first, but they soon became incredibly fluid.

It was as though Li Qing had already practiced this sword technique countless times.

His body moved like a wandering swan, while sword shadows drifted through the air.

The fierce momentum of his sword technique seemed to conjure an invisible storm within the courtyard, sweeping the surrounding furnishings aside as flowers, grass, and trees swayed and twisted violently in its wake.

Li Qing performed the entire sword technique ten times before finally stopping.

With his cultivation at the Spirit Resonance realm, completing ten sets of the sword technique left him drenched in sweat and breathing heavily.

Yet Li Qing did not feel relieved in the slightest.

Instead, he sank into an even deeper state of confusion.

He looked down at the wooden stick in his hand, then walked over to the pond in the courtyard and gazed at his reflection in the water.

His expression changed several times, as though he were engaged in an intense struggle within his heart.

More than half a day passed.

Night had already fallen before he finally made up his mind.

He entered the study and began writing a letter with utmost solemnity.

His brows remained tightly furrowed as he polished every word, as though putting his thoughts into writing was an excruciating task.

It took him a full half-hour before he finally managed to write a single sentence.

"To my elder brother. It has been many years since we last met, and I miss you dearly. Everything you instructed me to do before leaving has already been taken care of..."

Li Qing frowned as he stared at the single line on the white paper.

After a moment, it seemed as though he had suddenly figured something out.

His tightly knitted brows relaxed.

His expression became carefree, almost relieved.

Without hesitation, Li Qing tore the paper in his hand into pieces.

Then he began writing anew.

His brush swept across the paper with effortless grace, each stroke flowing into the next without pause.

"To my brother Shun."

"It has been more than a year since I last saw you. I really miss you, brother."

"I have already taken care of everything you instructed me to do before you left."

"So I think it is time for me to leave."

"Leave Dongshan Town..."

"And temporarily leave you, brother."

"When I was very young, you were taken away to Lengshan to serve as a laborer. Little Yuanzi and I depended on each other for survival. After Little Yuanzi died, it felt as though I had lost the only family I had left. I was alone in this world, with no one to rely on."

"Before you returned to Dongshan Town, the only pursuit and goal in my life was to follow Elder Wei's teachings and kill the Qian Emperor."

"But then, after disappearing for so many years, you suddenly came back."

"You simply appeared before me out of nowhere. At that moment, it felt like I was dreaming."

"Because you still looked exactly as you had in my memories, just as you did when you left all those years ago."

"Only that slap you gave me back then, with the burning pain still lingering on my face, kept reminding me that this was not a dream. Everything was real."

"I don't know what words could possibly describe the excitement and joy I felt at that moment."

"From that day onward, my life completely changed."

"It was as though I finally had someone to lean on. The missing pieces of my life began to fall into place."

"But... it also felt as though I had lost myself."

"I followed you all the way to Yunguan to rescue Feng Guan. I followed Senior Duan and helped resolve the criminal who had caused the Celestial Phenomena disturbance."

"You and I served as government officials in Shangyu County for more than two months. Wearing the grand official robes of Great Qian, we strutted around with authority, and no one dared provoke us. Although I hated those corrupt Great Qian officials to the bone, I have to admit, being an official really did feel good."

"Later, we returned to Dongshan Town."

"Your master, Fang Xun, sacrificed himself to protect the people of Dongshan Town. It truly was worthy of admiration. I also followed your instructions before you left and secretly spread his deeds so that he would not be forgotten."

"But what I really want to say is that I never needed to do any of that."

"The people of Dongshan Town have their own measure of right and wrong in their hearts. Fang Xun died to save them, so naturally, they would never forget him."

"The incense at Fang Xun's shrine burns so strongly, but in truth, it has very little to do with me. It is entirely the spontaneous choice of the people of Dongshan."

"Even if I did absolutely nothing, the shrine would still have no shortage of worshippers."

"I only came to understand this after spending more than a year managing affairs in Dongshan Town."

"And so, I became lost."

"I no longer understood what meaning there was in everything I was doing."

"I thought about it for a very long time, yet I still couldn't find an answer."

"It was not until I picked up once again the sword branch I used when practicing swordsmanship with Elder Wei."

"It had been far too long since I last practiced the sword. Even the sword branch had become covered in dust."

"Yet when I began swinging the sword once more, I discovered that... I had come alive again."

"It seemed that I had finally found the meaning of living."

"Before Elder Wei left, he once instructed me to travel the world, cultivate, and temper myself through experience."

"It's embarrassing to admit, but after all this time, I haven't even left Dongshan Town."

"I think it is time for me to do something for myself."

"The moment I once again held the sword branch in my hand, I could clearly feel my heart beating harder than it ever had before."

"That was when I knew."

"I cannot remain in Dongshan Town any longer."

"Brother, I'm leaving."

"Don't worry about me."

"Elder Wei once said that I possess great fortune and a resilient fate. I'm not so easy to kill."

"You are undergoing bitter cultivation in the Kong Family Grotto Heaven blessed land. I can't possibly let you leave me behind."

"Otherwise, one day you'll end up protecting me."

"If that really happened, I'm afraid I wouldn't even be able to sleep properly."

"And don't try to inquire about my whereabouts or come looking for me."

"I will return on my own eventually."

"Only, by the time that day comes, I will have surely become a renowned peerless swordsman under heaven."

"At that time, even if you want to kill the Qian Emperor, it will be nothing more than a single sentence!"

"Brother, I'm leaving."

"Take care!"

Tears fell from Li Qing's eyes, soaking the paper.

Yet his face was filled with relief and determination.

After sealing the letter and having Fang Han deliver it on his behalf, Li Qing left Dongshan Town without the slightest hesitation.

As his figure gradually disappeared into the distance, Li Shun discovered that the aura of Xuanhuang Qi surrounding Li Qing was growing weaker and weaker.

Eventually, he could no longer perceive it at all.