My Wife Is A Sword Immortal
Chapter 262 - 214: This Year’s Heavenly Thunder is No Good.

Chapter 262: Chapter 214: This Year’s Heavenly Thunder is No Good.

At dawn, the sky just began to show hints of daybreak.

Outside the southern gate of Taiching Four Mansions.

Zhao Rong, following Teacher Yan and his senior fellow disciples, embarked on the return journey to Linlu Academy.

Due to the delayed return of the teacher who was to replace Teacher Yan, Zhao Rong’s visit to the Taiching Four Mansions took ten days longer than the expected month.

When he first arrived, it was early autumn, but now the season had deepened, clothing the mountains outside the southern gate in a layer of pale yellow autumn clothes, with occasional touches of emerald green standing out vividly.

The morning light carried a chill that seeped into one’s bones, and Zhao Rong lowered his head to adjust his autumn clothes.

Today, as he was returning to the academy, he was not wearing the thin clothes of a student from days past, but instead, a thick Confucian robe made for him by Qing Jun, specifically choosing the best one in terms of material and craftsmanship.

It was now a quarter past the fourth watch, and it was still early. Outside the mansion gate, apart from a few scattered students with clothes damp from dew returning to the prefecture, there were hardly any pedestrians.

Zhao Rong tugged at his sleeves and could not help but look back at the gate once more. Aside from the prominent Taiching’s Talented List on the pure white stone walls, the surroundings were desolate.

He’s probably really angry... Come to think of it, I might have pinched a bit too hard at that moment...

He sighed softly, glanced at a hand still bearing teeth marks, and then turned to catch up with the group of senior brothers and leave.

Not long after Zhao Rong left,

a beautiful figure appeared inside the southern gate.

Lingfei Zhao gazed at the retreating figure of Brother Rong’er and the familiar robe he wore, and smiled slightly.

Once Zhao Rong disappeared from her sight, she furrowed her brows slightly but then let out a small sigh of relief.

Lingfei then turned to look at the Taiching’s Talented List inscribed on the side of the mountain rock, her eyes lingering on a name that had long been there. She frowned, turned, and went back inside the mansion.

That was the name of the fastest Golden Core student since the establishment of Taiching Four Mansions in Wangque Continent. In Lingfei’s eyes, the Taiching’s Talented List had only that one line of text, ever since her first entry into Taiching Four Mansions.

......

Zhao Rong and his companions journeyed southward on foot, resonating with the sounds of reading that echoed through the mountains and forests.

According to the rules of the academy, every day at the second quarter of the fourth watch, all scholars and students of the academy must engage in morning readings, even the teachers participate.

Accompanied by the hearty voice of Teacher Yan leading the way, Zhao Rong and his senior brothers recited the sage’s teachings aloud.

Amidst the vibrant sounds of reading, Zhao Rong’s mind suddenly revisited the words Teacher Yan had spoken in Fenglin Courtyard the other day.

If it were planted in our Linlu Academy, things would definitely not have turned out this way...

Zhao Rong pursed his lips, his resolve to adhere to Teacher Yan’s teachings on Classics and Confucianism solidified. Upon his return to Linlu Academy, he planned to carefully read the Confucian Thirteen Classics once more, meticulously parsing every word and phrase to lay a solid foundation.

As for the other art studies, while Zhao Rong had promised Teacher Yan to learn them, he did not intend to expend too much effort on them...

Suddenly, Zhao Rong came back to his senses, recalling last night’s incident. His recitation continued uninterrupted while he silently murmured in his Heart Lake.

"Old Gui, did you see Qing Jun’s Heart Lake clearly last night? What’s the condition of her Sword Heart now?"

After being turned away the night before, Zhao Rong hurried back to his place to rest and forgot to ask about the matter. For some reason, the Sword Spirit also did not take the initiative to speak up.

He frowned slightly.

After a moment of silence, just as Zhao Rong was about to ask again, Gui suddenly spoke.

"One piece of good news and one piece of bad news, which do you want to hear first?"

"The bad news," Zhao Rong quickly responded without hesitation.

"The bad news is that a Class A Flying Sword was destroyed and has irreversibly become a Mortal Grade one."

"Moreover, your wife’s Heart Lake is an extraordinary Lotus Pond. Such Heart Lake Phenomenons in Sword Cultivators, like top-grade Golden Core alchemy rooms, are rare wonders within the bodies of cultivators, incredibly scarce, purely a matter of Heaven’s grace; the gifts of the Dao within are profound beyond words..."

Gui paused for a moment.

"However, this Lotus Pond Heart Lake that nurtured a Class A Flying Sword is now half-ruined due to the loss of spiritual essence in the intimately connected damaged Flying Sword... Inside the Lotus Pond, the Spiritual Elegance Lotus still stands, but the sediment is too thick...

Actually, this isn’t too serious an issue. For a Lotus Pond, a bit more mud isn’t a big problem. The issue now is that the Lotus Pond lacks a source of running water to nourish it, unable to fulfill the grand vision of washing the silt without being seductive. It can only dry up, which is a pity. Just a key step short and this Lotus Pond would have come back to life, truly regrettable."

Zhao Rong’s voice trailed off to a whisper until only his lips moved.

He silently pondered, "What about the good news?"

Gui cleared its throat, "Lingfei has two Class A Flying Swords. One was destroyed, cough cough, and almost half of her rare Heart Lake Phenomenon is destroyed, which isn’t too serious. She still has one Class A Flying Sword left. With effort, there’s a chance she can still reach the pinnacle of Sword Dao, though perhaps not as swiftly as before. But...

That’s also uncertain, isn’t it? Owning two Class A Flying Swords certainly has its advantages, but for a pure Sword Cultivator, focusing on a single sword might even be better. Of course, if the divine abilities of her two Class A Flying Swords complemented and enhanced each other, then it truly is a massive loss. But who can say..."

As it spoke, the Sword Spirit’s voice grew quieter.

Zhao Rong’s face darkened. "Why do I feel like it’s all bad news?"

Gui wanted to nod in agreement, but considering certain events that had occurred, it firmly said:

"You have to think of it this way, the worst hasn’t happened. At least one Class A Flying Sword is still intact. That’s certainly enough for her to surpass most of her peers on the mountain. She’s probably one of the few top individuals within Taiching Prefecture in Wangque. This is already a stroke of fortune amidst misfortune. Zhao Rong, don’t be too greedy. Remember, you’re still a mediocrity, worrying about a monstrous genius’s affairs..."

"She’s not just anyone, Qing Jun is my wife, and if I don’t care about her matters, who will?"

Zhao Rong couldn’t help interrupting the Sword Spirit. He then pressed eagerly:

"Old Gui..."

"Try calling out one more time, see what happens," Gui replied, irritated.

"Okay, Old Gui... Gui, can restoring the destroyed Lifebound Flying Sword’s grade repair her Lotus Pond Heart Lake?"

Zhao Rong’s mind flashed with a certain possibility, and his tone was filled with hope.

Every time Zhao Rong thought about how Qing Jun’s Sword Heart shattered because of his emotional wound, ruining half of the rare and extraordinary Lotus Pond Phenomenon, he felt an unbearable heartache. That was a Class A Flying Sword, which might have complemented another flying sword’s Great Dao...

But now, it was all gone. Qing Jun’s Sword Dao talent had been trimmed significantly, though it didn’t affect her ultimate path to the peak, the added hardships she faced were undeniable. Her current bottleneck at the summit of the Vast Realm was proof of that.

The threshold Qing Jun should have easily crossed...

Zhao Rong’s brows furrowed deeply.

After pondering for a moment, Gui replied, "It’s possible."

It looked at the emotional colors of Zhao Rong’s Heart Lake and stated truthfully:

"In the Lotus Pond of Zhao Lingfei’s Heart Lake, that vibrant Qinglian lotus is still there, thanks to the merits of that surviving Class A Flying Sword. They are closely linked. Last night, I noticed some signs of recovery in the Lotus Pond, which are the effects of this Qinglian...

"As for the problem of deep silt, bringing in a stream of clear water would revive the Lotus Pond. Its original source of fresh water likely stemmed from the unique effect of what used to be her inferior Flying Sword..."

"Hence, Zhao Lingfei’s miraculous Lotus Pond is intricately connected to her two Lifebound Flying Swords. If we could restore the ranking of the degraded Flying Sword, there’s indeed a great chance to help her rebuild the Lotus Pond Phenomenon, and she might even surpass her previous level."

"I wouldn’t dare to hope for an elevation. If it could just be restored to its original state, I’d be content," Zhao Rong murmured to himself.

He then said solemnly, "Gui, I plan to give the Li Ji Sword Pill to Qing Jun."

"No, I do not agree," came the decisive response of the Sword Spirit.

Zhao Rong nodded to himself, "Okay, it’s settled then."

Gui: "......"

It exclaimed loudly, "Are you stupid? You’re a good-for-nothing, worrying about the talents of a favored daughter of heaven. Even if Zhao Lingfei’s Sword Dao talent is lesser, it’s still better than yours. Are you confident that when you enter the Vast Realm, you will manifest a Class A Flying Sword? I doubt you could even manage a Class C."

Gui’s tone was impatient.

"Don’t be foolish. Keep it for yourself and improve your own strength. That’s the most important thing. I see that you are definitely not a descendant of the elusive ancient Li Clan. The Sword Pill can only increase the ranking of a Lifebound Flying Sword by one class; it cannot gain you Emperor Li’s inheritance and direct ascension to Class A. But that would still be satisfying. If luck is on your side and your Lifebound Flying Sword manifests at a critical juncture between Class C and B, just a small promotion could make a huge difference."

It couldn’t help but add:

"Zhao Rong, I’m begging you, have you forgotten our Vow of the Vast? Stop playing the generous fool. Wasn’t gifting away the East Coming Purple Energy enough? I deliberately didn’t tell you its use, and yet you still gave it away. You really outdid yourself, Zhao Rong."

Gui felt somewhat grateful it had taken the Wuwei Purple Qi for itself; otherwise, it feared that upon awakening, both strains of East Coming Purple Energy would be gone.

Zhao Rong was silent for a moment, then shook his head, "Gui, what you’re saying is wrong. We can’t think like that... Qing Jun’s Sword Heart was destroyed because of me. Even though it was a misunderstanding between the two of us, I bear much of the responsibility. So even if Qing Jun doesn’t blame me, I have the duty to help her repair her Sword Heart and rebuild the Lotus Pond Heart Lake."

Gui wished it could lift Zhao Rong’s skull and scold him, "Zhao Rong Zhao Ziyu! Think carefully. Zhao Lingfei’s degraded Flying Sword is now a useless Mortal Grade piece. Upgrading it by one class with the Li Ji Sword Pill would at most achieve Class C. Instead of doing that, it would be more beneficial for you. If you were to ask for her opinion, Zhao Lingfei would definitely agree with me."

Zhao Rong remained silent because what the Sword Spirit said was indeed right; this wasn’t the maximization of benefits that cultivators sought.

Gui was frustrated by his obstinacy.

"Heh, if you want to compensate her, find another way. Don’t waste the Li Ji Sword Pill. You want to help Zhao Lingfei’s Lifebound Flying Sword return to Class A? That’s probably something she wouldn’t even dare to dream of, yet here you are, trying to show off..."

Gui paused slightly, then sneered after glancing at the color of Zhao Rong’s Heart Lake:

"Heh, don’t tell me you can conjure several more Sword Pills to help her improve step by step? Or are you hoping Zhao Lingfei has the legendary bloodline that can lead directly to Class A?"

There was silence above the Heart Lake for a while.

Zhao Rong softly spoke, "Gui, I don’t hope for any of that, I’m actually quite selfish, not a spendthrift... I just... feel guilty and must repay her."

At these words, Gui was momentarily choked up and let out a shout, "Foolish beyond counsel! Utterly unreasonable!"

Zhao Rong wasn’t one with a temper to be trifled with. There were some accounts between him and the Sword Spirit left unsettled, and he replied irritably:

"Are you expecting me to obey you? Last time you said that as long as I placed the Thunder and Rainbow Purple Gold Furnace at the mountain peak during a thunderstorm, a clattering strike of lightning would bring about Perfection of Dan Formation. I giddily ran up to try it out, hearing over a dozen, nearly twenty thunderous booms, almost going deaf, yet it was all for naught as the lunar essence at the bottom of the furnace couldn’t be retrieved!"

Amidst its annoyance, Gui was startled by this claim, "This..."

"What’s this? Am I wronging you somehow? If you don’t believe me, let’s go for another round of thundering and see how you’ll argue your way out of this," Zhao Rong interjected.

Gui was silenced by his retort, but as a being used to mocking others with sarcasm, it refused to appear at a disadvantage verbally.

"Tch."

It scoffed, self-righteously stating, "It’s because the Heavenly Thunder of this generation doesn’t work. What’s that got to do with me? The thunder in the Xuanhuang Realm when I was around was far more formidable. Hmmph."

Zhao Rong: "......"

——————

An hour later, Zhao Rong and his entourage arrived at Linlu Academy.

Zhao Rong had just had a big argument with the Sword Spirit, and in the end, neither party could sway the other’s view, resulting in a parting on bad terms.

However, since they were one and inseparable, they ended up in the current situation, ignoring each other and giving each other the cold shoulder.

After bidding farewell to Teacher Yan and his senior brothers, Zhao Rong was specially reminded by Teacher Yan to study diligently not only in the Classics but also the other Six Arts studies before leaving.

Zhao Rong simply nodded in silent agreement.

The group dispersed.

Zhao Rong walked towards the residences of the academy students to tidy up his belongings.

Today, he still had to report to the study hall for formal classes.