Chapter 230: Hua Xin Sword Intent – As long as the sword heart lives, the sword body endures…

The group was still bickering when Ye Minghe came over to call them for departure, finally putting an end to the chatter.

Despite the arguing, before Baili Que left, Xu Xianxing said to him, “When you get back, I’ll give you something good.”

Baili Que raised an eyebrow. “You’re giving me something? What is it?”

Xu Xianxing grinned. “You’ll see when you return. It looks amazing. I risked my life to bring it back for you. I’ve always seen you as a brother. Of course I wouldn’t leave you out when there’s something good.”

Lian Mu had already guessed what it was. Her gaze deepened as she patted Baili Que on the shoulder, gave him a cryptic look, then turned to follow Ye Minghe.

Baili Que grew even more curious. “It’s a deal.”

Xu Xianxing replied, “I won’t go back on it.”

The three of them exited the barrier. Outside, Mei Chengyu had already cleared a path. The horde of Demonic Creatures that had previously surrounded them had all been slain by her, leaving only a field of mangled corpses. It was a gruesome sight.

Waiting to receive them was an elder sword cultivator from the Returning Immortal Sect, surnamed Lu. Lian Mu had never seen him before.

Mei Chengyu asked, “Are you sure you can protect them?”

Elder Lu smiled. “Senior Mei, I may not be as strong as you, but surely I’m not that untrustworthy? Even disciples from the Azure Profound Sect can move freely in the Abyssal Circle. As their elder, do you really think I’d be any worse?”

Mei Chengyu glanced at Lian Mu and said gently, “If anything happens, you can still come to me.”

Elder Lu stepped in front of Lian Mu. “Senior Mei, thank you for escorting our sect’s disciples all this way. The Returning Immortal Sect will remember this favor. If there’s ever anything we can help with, just say the word.”

By framing the favor as a sect-level debt, he was clearly trying to cut off any personal leverage Mei Chengyu might have over the disciples.

Lian Mu remained silent, playing dead.

Seeing her say nothing, Mei Chengyu merely smiled faintly and turned to re-enter the barrier.

“No need to help me. The Returning Immortal Sect can’t do much for me anyway. If you come across any disciples from the Crimson Sky Sect on the way, bring them back too. And that Shen Wuxie from the Clear Thought Sect—bring him as well.”

Baili Que blinked. “…Shen Wuxie?”

“Yes. He may be a bit dim, but he’s Shen Minglu’s nephew. Shen Minglu and I go way back. I can’t just leave his family to fend for themselves.”

Elder Lu nodded in acknowledgment, then set off with the three Returning Immortal Sect disciples.

He held a map in his hand, marked with the locations of various sect teams. The positions updated in real time. It seemed to be a map specifically for elders.

“The team closest to us now is in the northern region, near the edge of the Flat Earth Circle. The other teams have already been picked up by their respective elders.”

“Flat Earth Circle? Ji Mingyue should be there too. Let’s bring them back as well,” Baili Que suggested.

Ye Minghe shook his head. “This map only covers the Abyssal Circle. Junior Sister Ji and her team have already entered the Flat Earth Circle. They’ll have to rely on the elders over there. We can’t reach them at the moment.”

Lian Mu frowned. “Isn’t that dangerous?”

Ye Minghe replied, “With Han Yu there, they should be fine for now. Honestly, I don’t understand why they went in so deep. If it’s just about claiming exploration rights, there’s no need to rush like that.”

A suspicion rose in Lian Mu’s heart, but she didn’t voice it in front of Ye Minghe and Elder Lu.

“Let’s hurry. The more we can bring back, the better.”

As sword cultivators, they naturally traveled by sword flight. But Lian Mu couldn’t fly a sword herself, so she shamelessly asked to ride with Ye Minghe. He didn’t mind, assuming she was just worried about keeping up.

New disciples were generally weaker than their senior brothers and elders, so their sword flight was slower.

Seeing this, Baili Que also came over. With three people standing on one sword, the scene looked a little crowded.

Baili Que offered, “I can use a talisman to boost Senior Brother’s speed.”

Ye Minghe replied, “It’s fine. I can carry you both.”

The two of them looked up at him sweetly. “Thank you, Senior Brother.”

Just as Ye Minghe stepped onto the sword, Baili Que said from behind, “Senior Brother Ye, brace yourself.”

Ye Minghe raised an eyebrow. “Shouldn’t I be the one saying that…”

He started channeling his spiritual energy, but before he could finish his sentence, the sword beneath them suddenly shot forward with a sharp whoosh.

Elder Lu turned to look, only to see a fading blur where the three had been.

He followed swiftly on his own sword, chuckling. “Ah, youth.”

High above, the wind howled past their ears, chaotic and wild.

Even Ye Minghe was startled by Baili Que’s so-called speed-boosting talisman. He immediately stabilized his footing and forcibly reined in the sword’s speed.

Baili Que said innocently, “Senior Brother, weren’t we trying to go faster?”

Ye Minghe smoothed down his wind-tousled robe, his usually gentle smile now a bit stiff. “…Senior Brother’s getting old. Can’t handle this kind of excitement anymore.”

They were flying so fast that the scenery blurred around them. At this speed, it would be easy to crash into flying Demonic Creatures.

Lian Mu commented, “Cultivators don’t really age. Some elders from other sects are hundreds of years old and still look like teenagers.”

Ye Minghe chuckled. “Alright, let’s fly at a normal pace. Be careful not to fall.”

Falling would be like serving themselves up to the flying Demonic Creatures below.

Lian Mu offered, “I can help clear out the flying Demonic Creatures. Senior Brother, just focus on flying.”

Baili Que added, “Me too.”

Ye Minghe replied, “The flying ones here are too troublesome. You two don’t have the experience to handle them. I’ll take care of it. Save your strength for the ones on the ground.”

Baili Que asked curiously, “But you’re using your sword to fly. How will you fight?”

Just then, Elder Lu caught up and called out, “Minghe, there’s a group of fifth-rank Demonic Creatures coming up behind us. They’re yours.”

Ye Minghe nodded. “Got it.”

As soon as he spoke, spiritual energy surged in his palm. The wind howled violently around them. A streak of green light emerged from his flying sword and merged with the energy in his hand, forming a blade of wind.

He leapt into the air, riding the wind straight toward the pursuing Demonic Creatures.

Lian Mu blinked in surprise. “That’s… a spirit blade?”

Just like her flame blade.

“That’s Sword Intent,” Elder Lu said calmly. “Born from the heart, turning illusion into reality.”

Baili Que was stunned. “The legendary Hua Xin Sword Intent? Senior Brother Ye actually…”

Lian Mu glanced down at the sword beneath her feet. It remained perfectly steady. Ye Minghe was simultaneously controlling both a physical sword and a Sword Intent.

His sword was called the Hua Xin Sword. Lian Mu had seen its image and history in the library pavilion.

It wasn’t forged by any artifact refiner. It had once been the personal sword of a mortal swordsman named Hua Xin. The sword held no spiritual energy. Though Hua Xin had no Spiritual Root and was never accepted into an Immortal Sect, he never looked down on himself for it. Instead, he devoted his entire life to mastering the way of the sword. With this humble blade at his side, he traveled the world, righting wrongs and punishing evil wherever he went.

After the swordsman died, a fragment of his soul remained bound to the sword. It was this lingering soul that earned the Hua Xin Sword its place among the Ten Great Famous Swords.

The Hua Xin Sword is the only renowned blade not forged using demonic beast materials. To wield it, one must possess an unwavering sword heart. Only then can its full power be unleashed.

“The intent of the Hua Xin Sword is born from the heart. As long as the sword heart lives, the sword itself remains unbroken,” said Baili Que. “For Senior Brother Ye to summon the Hua Xin Sword’s intent so effortlessly, he truly is worthy of becoming the next sect master.”

Lian Mu asked, “The sword remains unbroken… does that refer to the Sword Intent, or the sword itself?”

Baili Que replied, “Both. Each of the Ten Great Famous Swords has its own unique qualities. For the Hua Xin Sword to rank fifth, someone as powerful as Senior Brother Ye is more than capable of achieving that.”

Lian Mu fell silent.

She couldn’t help but recall how, when she had just joined the sect, Xu Xianxing had mentioned helping repair Ye Minghe’s sword.

Ye Minghe’s sword had once been shattered. So, had his sword heart wavered as well?

Lian Mu closed her eyes. A flash of blood-soaked imagery surged through her mind, leaving her inexplicably restless.

“Lian Mu, what’s wrong?” Elder Lu asked, noticing her pale expression.

At that moment, Ye Minghe returned. To him, fifth-rank Demonic Creatures were nothing more than ants, crushed with a flick of his hand. He hadn’t even needed much time.

“I’m fine,” Lian Mu said. “I just realized I might have a bit of a fear of heights.”

Baili Que blinked. “You… fear heights?”

Could she come up with a more ridiculous excuse?

Lian Mu added, “But it suddenly went away.”

Elder Lu assumed she had been frightened by the Demonic Creatures. “You still need more tempering. After this trip, once you’ve seen enough of them, you’ll get used to it.”

Lian Mu nodded in agreement. Out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly spotted a group moving across the ground in the distance. Though they were no more than specks, their silhouettes looked oddly familiar.

“There are people down there. Let’s go take a look.”

Baili Que said, “Wait, those yellow robes—they’re from the Clear Thought Sect!”

Lian Mu narrowed her eyes. “From the look of it, that might be Shen Wuxie.”

“You’re really going to fish him out?” Baili Que asked in disbelief.

Lian Mu replied, “Elder Mei did help us out, after all. If we can return the favor, we should. Besides, no one said we had to pamper him once we bring him up. We still need someone to scout ahead. If someone’s offering themselves up, we’d be fools not to take them.”

Baili Que understood. “Let’s go.”

Shen Wuxie was a talisman cultivator from the Bright Heart faction. What did that mean?

It meant they now had someone to bait the Demonic Creatures.

Ye Minghe was a principled man. Upon hearing that Shen Wuxie was someone Mei Chengyu had mentioned needing protection, he agreed to the rescue.

With Elder Lu’s nod, the four of them flew toward the yellow-robed figures in the distance.