Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

In the Qingyun Continent, within the city of Beiliang, a young boy, aged only six or seven, huddled beside the stone lion guarding the Zhao family’s back door.

Amidst the icy, snowy landscape, he trembled in ill-fitting clothes.

What struck as unusual was the black cloth that concealed the young boy’s eyes.

With a creak, the back door of the Zhao residence swung open, followed immediately by a muffled thud.

A lifeless body was forcefully thrown out through the door, landing on the ground and carving a shallow pit in the snow.

Zhao Qing hesitated momentarily, reluctance flickering in his eyes, before leaving four copper coins behind and pocketing the rest within his sleeve.

The young boy swiftly rose to his feet, shaking off the snow that clung to his body. He wore a gentle smile and inquired, “Brother Qing, did they discard leftovers from the mansion just now?”

As he spoke, the smile remained on the young boy’s face as he squatted down and reached for something on the ground.

The grin still lingered, but as he extended his hand, it came into contact with a body that had long succumbed to the cold.

Li Guanqi’s hand froze in mid-air, his throat quivered, and his body trembled involuntarily.

After a brief pause, the young boy knelt on the ground, his trembling hands moving toward the girl’s face.

His quivering hand brushed against the girl’s chin but recoiled abruptly, as if shocked.

He had encountered a long scar inflicted by his father two years ago when he was intoxicated and gambling, which he had mercilessly inflicted on his sister.

“Sis…”

A somewhat mournful murmur escaped the young boy’s lips.

The smile had vanished from the young boy’s face long ago, replaced by tears that flowed uncontrollably down his cheeks.

Unmindful of the biting cold of the snow, the young boy removed his sole tattered linen garment and wrapped it around the girl’s frail form.

Her emaciated body bore the gruesome scars of her suffering, and the bruises on her back had yet to heal.

With chapped hands, he tenderly caressed the girl’s hair.

Lowering his head, the young boy hoarsely muttered, “Perhaps death is preferable, for living… living is torment.”

Disregarding the freezing snow, the young boy scoured the ground for four copper coins.

In his heart, a sudden wave of sadness washed over him.

He couldn’t fathom how even in death, his sister’s dignity had been stripped away.

Could one really so easily seize money from the deceased?

A cold wind swept by, causing Zhao Qing to instinctively tighten his sleeve. He gazed at the young boy and couldn’t help but say, “Your sister… endured a harsh fate. Take this money back.”

The young boy removed the cloth concealing his eyes, revealing a pair of pale orbs.

He turned toward the source of the voice and slowly extended his right hand, speaking softly, “When a servant dies, the master’s family must compensate with ten guan.”

“This money… represents my sister’s final dignity. You shouldn’t take it.”

Zhao Qing clenched his fists, and upon hearing the boy’s desire for the money, his sympathetic expression faded.

With a cold countenance, he retorted, “You blind brat, do you want these four guan or not? Get lost!”

Li Guanqi, a mere six-year-old with a frail body, displayed a glimmer of determination!

He swiftly ascended the stairs to the Zhao family’s residence, seized the man’s hand, and demanded, “Give me what’s rightfully mine!”

Zhao Qing, upon seeing Li Guanqi’s frostbitten hand reaching out to him, furrowed his brow.

A glint of coldness flickered in his eyes, and he grasped the boy’s hair before hurling him down the stairs.

A resounding thud echoed as the slender form was ruthlessly thrown onto the snowy ground, where even under the weight of heavy snow, the bluestone pavement lay beneath.

Such a fall would undoubtedly result in a grievous bruise, especially for a child flung several feet away.

Zhao Qing, his face wearing an icy demeanor, regarded the boy lying on the ground and harshly admonished, “You blind brat! Leave with the corpse immediately!”

“If not for my pity, I wouldn’t even spare you these four guan!”

As Zhao Qing turned to depart, his coat was unexpectedly tugged from behind.

Startled, Zhao Qing glanced back to find the boy had somehow caught up to him, clutching his coat firmly.

“Give me the money!!”

“This represents my sister’s lifeline!”

Zhao Qing was on the verge of anger, but when he peered down, he met those pale, sightless eyes that seemed to bore into his soul.

A chill crept up from the depths of Zhao Qing’s heart. He turned to look at the girl who had been worked to her demise.

In the end, Zhao Qing reluctantly lowered his raised fist and retrieved the remaining copper coins from his sleeve, stuffing them into the boy’s hand.

“Take it, take it; it’s truly ill-fated!”

Li Guanqi released his grip and numbly counted the coins in his hand.

With a thud, the mansion’s gate closed, followed by the sound of a slightly childish voice from within.

“Xiao Qing, where are you? Why haven’t you fed the birds yet?”

“Young Master Yuanlin, I’m coming, I’m coming.”

“Just now, where did you go?”

“…”

“It’s just the death of a servant girl, nothing significant. Hurry up and tell that blind kid to depart!”

Li Guanqi sat on the steps of the Zhao family, clutching the copper coins in his hand, and gazed up at the sky. He remained there for an extended period.

Eventually, he descended the steps, laboriously picked up the lifeless body, and turned to depart.

Creak… Creak…

The sounds of Li Guanqi’s footsteps in the snow were deliberate, despite the slowness.

All of this was observed by an elderly man seated in a nearby tavern, a dozen yards away.

The old man donned a gray robe, his hair white as snow.

His nose was prominent, his lips somewhat thin but not unkind.

There was no sign of weariness etched into his brows or eyes, and his gaze remained crystal clear.

Upon his table lay some modest dishes and a pot of warm wine.

As he watched the young boy fumbling along the wall, the old man suddenly halted his hand holding a wine glass.

A trace of subtle interest danced in the old man’s eyes as he observed the young boy and murmured softly, “I never anticipated that after centuries of searching, the candidate I would discover would turn out to be a young, blind boy…”

“Well, perhaps this is fate.”

Following this, the elderly man slowly rose and, in a gentle voice, requested, “Waiter, please bring the check!”

It was the heart of winter, a bone-chilling time of year with the North Wind’s icy grip.

For young Li Guanqi, the gusts of cold wind felt like sharp knives stabbing into him.

He took several breaks along the way, and by the time night fell, the young boy had placed the stiff corpse in front of a medical clinic.

The gray-clothed old man was dressed thinly as well, but when the snowstorm passed by him, it automatically veered away.

“The person has already passed away, and their three souls and seven spirits have entered the cycle of reincarnation. What brings you to this medical clinic?”

Before long, the young boy’s hands held a few herbs, and he laboriously carried the corpse forward.

Next, he arrived at a small shop adorned with white silk at the entrance.

Not long after, the young boy emerged holding a jar.

A piece of paper was affixed to it.

‘Li Cuimei.’

He wrapped it in the girl’s pink clothes, and throughout the process, the young boy’s face displayed little emotion.

On the way, the young boy even picked up two mantou* from a bakery door that were as hard as bricks.

At this point, a smile graced the young boy’s face.

This puzzled the elderly man who had been following him, as to why the young boy showed little emotional response to the death of his own sister but clung to the copper coins that the Zhao household’s servants owed him.

The boy with the ashes in hand didn’t show much expression either, but he laughed because he had picked up two unwanted mantou.

The old man’s curiosity was thoroughly piqued, and he continued to follow behind the young boy.

Suddenly!

In the midst of the snowstorm, the old man’s figure paused, and he looked up at the sky.

With a calm expression, he softly said, “Tsk tsk, all I did was dismantle a sect not long ago, and the Protector of the Nation from the North Liang Kingdom personally came to visit?”

“A mere nascent soul… It’s fine to meet, so both sides won’t be troubled.”

Swoosh!

The old man took a step forward, instantly traversing several dozen miles and appearing in a remote pavilion in the wilderness.

The embroidered-robed old man had already prepared warm wine and tea, appearing as if he had been waiting for a while.

Upon seeing the old man, the Protector of the Nation from the North Liang Kingdom quickly stood up and respectfully said, “Greetings to senior…”

In the southern part of Beiliang City, there was a dilapidated small courtyard that couldn’t even close its main gate.

The young boy hesitated at the door for a long time, but in the end, he took a deep breath, pushed the door open, and walked out of the house.

Creak…

Inside the pitch-black room, not even a lamp was lit. The room was empty, and even the window paper had many holes but no money to repair them.

On the ice-cold brick bed, there was a dark figure that moved slightly, followed by a weak voice.

“Guanchi… you’re back?”

The woman’s voice was very gentle but extremely weak.

The person who spoke was Li Guanqi’s mother, Song Wanrong.

As Song Wanrong got up, her face looked haggard, her cheeks sunken, but when she looked at the young boy, her eyes were full of tenderness.

Lit by the moonlight, Song Wanrong looked around and asked softly, “Where’s Cuimei?”

As Li Guanqi searched for candles in the drawer, his body suddenly stiffened. He lit the candle, illuminating the lonely clay pot by his side.

In a hoarse voice, he said, “Sister… she’s gone. The Zhao family compensated ten copper coins.”

“I’ve collected the money. Hide it and use it for mother’s treatment.”

After saying this, the young boy took out a slightly melted mantou from his chest pocket and handed it to Song Wanrong.

Reaching out, Song Wanrong lightly held Li Guanqi’s hand and placed the bun back in Li Guanqi’s hand.

She suppressed her tears and said, “Mother… Mother isn’t hungry, you eat.”

Dried hair covered most of the woman’s face, but Li Guanqi still heard a few drops of tears falling on the mat.

Bang!

The door was kicked open, and the biting cold wind suddenly rushed into the room. The young boy shivered, whether from the cold wind or fear, he didn’t know.

The person who had come was Li Guanqi’s distant uncle, Li Dashan.

Li Dashan was not tall, wearing a dark blue jacket, with protruding cheeks, triangular eyes, and a hooked nose.

His whole appearance looked fierce, and even before entering the house, his sinister voice had already echoed from a distance.

“The hell! Where’s the money?!”

*Mantou – Steamed buns

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