Bai Lingzhou was home to bird demons. For Daniel Davis, it was the perfect place to create a Zoan-type Phantom Beast Devil Fruit inspired by the animals there. In the game version of this world, players would first deal with Bai Lingzhou before heading to the Chu State. But in the real Sword and Fairy world, there was no need to follow that sequence.
"Mr. Davis, I wonder if I could trouble you to look after Mr. Cloud in the future," Liu Mengli suddenly asked with a formal bow. She was preparing to return to the Qionghua Sect after everything was resolved, and her expression was solemn.
"Don't worry. Cloud and I are friends. If anything happens, I'll be there for him. And not just him—you too. If you need anything, feel free to come to me. I'll do everything I can to help you," Daniel replied.
Liu Mengli's words made Daniel realize she had likely recovered her past memories and now knew she was a member of the demon race, specifically from the Illusionary Nether Realm. Given the impending war between the Qionghua Sect and the Illusionary Nether Realm, Liu Mengli naturally couldn't reveal her identity to Cloud and the others, fearing it would put them in an impossible position.
The conflict between the Qionghua Sect and the Illusionary Nether Realm was inevitable. If Cloud and Han Lingsha learned of her true identity, they would undoubtedly try to stop the war, but that was simply beyond their ability. Worse yet, it might cause them to turn against the Qionghua Sect entirely.
Liu Mengli wasn't aware of the Qionghua Sect's Ascension Plan. To her, the conflict between the Qionghua Sect and the Illusionary Nether Realm was merely a battle between humans and demons.
"Don't think too much about it. Every problem has a solution," Daniel said as he summoned his flying sword. Liu Mengli followed close behind, and the two flew toward the Qionghua Sect.
"Don't worry. With me here, you won't have to wait a hundred years to see each other again," Daniel assured her.
In the original story, Liu Mengli reappeared only after a hundred years, but Daniel didn't know what caused such a long separation. However, he was determined to change that outcome. At worst, he could use secret techniques to open a portal to the Illusionary Nether Realm and bring Liu Mengli back, allowing her, Cloud, Han Lingsha, and the others to travel freely between the human world and the Illusionary Nether Realm without being separated.
"What's going on here?"
When Daniel and Liu Mengli returned to the Qionghua Sect, they noticed something was amiss. The disciples they encountered along the way all gave them strange looks. When greeted, they didn't respond but instead distanced themselves. The situation immediately raised Daniel's suspicions.
Among the four who had joined the Qionghua Sect, Cloud was the least well-liked due to his straightforward personality. Apart from Xuanji and Huaishuo, he didn't have good relations with most of the other disciples. But Daniel, Han Lingsha, and Liu Mengli had always been on good terms with others in the sect.
"You're back?" The familiar voices of Xuanji and Huaishuo greeted them. Unlike the other disciples who avoided them, these two approached Daniel and Liu Mengli directly.
"Huaishuo, Xuanji, what's going on?"
"It's those gossiping fools! They're saying Lingsha is a thief," Xuanji said indignantly, recounting what had happened after Cloud and Han Lingsha returned to the Qionghua Sect.
"So quick to burn bridges? That doesn't seem like Xuanxiao's style. It must be Suyao stirring up trouble. Even as sect leader, she's still so petty. No wonder Xuanxiao doesn't respect her," Daniel muttered.
In the game, Xuanxiao's plans weren't exposed this early. But in this version of events, Suyao seemed to have vented her frustrations about Su Yu onto Cloud and directly revealed all the scheming.
While Xuanxiao had deceived Cloud, he genuinely cared for him. Even in Han Lingsha's case, Xuanxiao had been contemplating a solution: once the entire Qionghua Sect ascended, Han Lingsha would also become an immortal, restoring the lifespan she had previously sacrificed.
"So, we've been expelled from the sect?"
Han Lingsha's past as a thief had been exposed, and Suyao used it as an excuse to expel Cloud and his friends from the Qionghua Sect. They were ordered to leave the mountain by the next day.
Even though Murong Ziying returned early to plead on their behalf, along with Xuanji and Huaishuo, Suyao was unmoved. In fact, their intercession seemed to make her even angrier.
"I see. We understand. Let's go find Cloud and the others," Daniel said.
"Liu, Daniel, I'm sorry. It's all my fault," Han Lingsha apologized as soon as Daniel and Liu Mengli entered Cloud's room. She believed her actions had caused the group to be expelled from the Qionghua Sect.
Suyao had multiple reasons for expelling them. Besides Han Lingsha's past as a thief, she was also accused of secretly reading books from the Qionghua Sect's library without permission. It was a well-constructed argument, leaving even Murong Ziying unable to refute it.
"What are you talking about? Didn't we already say we'd leave the Qionghua Sect? This just saves us the trouble," Daniel said with a smile.
"Exactly, Lingsha. This isn't your fault," Liu Mengli added.
In fact, Liu Mengli felt a sense of relief. With Cloud and the others expelled from the Qionghua Sect, they wouldn't be involved in the upcoming conflict between the Illusionary Nether Realm and the sect.
"It's not Lingsha's fault. It's that sect leader! We didn't want to stay here anyway. Once we see Big Brother tomorrow, we'll leave," Cloud declared. To him, Han Lingsha could do no wrong, so the blame had to lie with the sect leader.
"Then it's settled," Daniel agreed.
"You're all here? Good," Murong Ziying suddenly entered without knocking—a first for someone as polite as him.
"Ziying, about what happened in the Chu State—" Han Lingsha began, but Murong Ziying interrupted her.
"There's no need to dwell on that. The sect leader has made up her mind. You'll leave tomorrow. As your senior, I haven't taught you much," Murong Ziying said, retrieving four swords from the case on his back. One of them was actually a pair of twin swords.
"Cloud, since the sect leader has taken your Wangshu Sword, I'm giving you this one. My only request is that you treat it well," Murong Ziying said, handing Cloud a sword that resembled the Wangshu Sword—a blue blade with no guard.
"This sword looks just like the Wangshu Sword!" Han Lingsha exclaimed.
"It only looks similar. The materials used to forge the Wangshu Sword are rare and nearly impossible to find. Moreover, despite my lifelong dedication to swordsmithing, I'll never match the skill of Master Zonglian. How could I possibly recreate the Wangshu Sword?" Murong Ziying sighed.
"Don't say that. You're already amazing. Knowing you, you must have poured your heart into crafting these swords for your friends," Han Lingsha said. Noticing the other three swords, she continued, "These must be for us. Well, we won't hold back!"
Without waiting for Murong Ziying's response, Han Lingsha handed out the swords. It was easy to tell which sword was meant for whom based on their designs.
Han Lingsha's swords were a fiery red pair of twin blades. Liu Mengli's sword was a feminine blue blade, similar to Cloud's but designed for her. Although Liu Mengli didn't use swords in combat, she needed one for flying.
Daniel's sword was a black longsword.
Murong Ziying had clearly put great effort into crafting these swords. Despite the sect leader's orders preventing him from teaching them advanced techniques, he had supported them in every other way, including making these swords.
"What's this sword called?" Cloud asked, waving his new blade. A cold aura filled the room—it was an ice-element sword, just like the Wangshu Sword.
"I promise I won't use this sword for roasting meat," Cloud said, staring at the blade as if making a solemn decision.
The mention of "roasting meat" made Murong Ziying's brow twitch, while Han Lingsha and Liu Mengli couldn't help but laugh.
"Does this sword have a name?" Han Lingsha asked Murong Ziying, glancing at Cloud's weapon.
"The name should be chosen by the owner."
"Then I'll call it—"
"No! Don't name it something like 'This Is a Sword.' This sword carries Ziying's heartfelt efforts," Han Lingsha interrupted, recalling how Cloud had previously introduced his Wangshu Sword with a ridiculous name.
"Then I'll call it the Tianhe Sword. Is that okay?" Cloud finally said after some thought.
"Tianhe Sword. Not bad. Who would've thought you could be reliable when it counts? Does that mean my sword should be called the Lingsha Sword?" Han Lingsha mused, looking conflicted.
"That's a great name," Liu Mengli chimed in with a nod.
"Then Mengli's sword can be the Mengli Sword. It fits since we're using our names," Han Lingsha said with a smile.
"Your names work, but mine doesn't," Daniel objected.
The names Tianhe Sword, Lingsha Sword, and Mengli Sword all sounded fine. But "Daniel Sword" or "Davis Sword" didn't have the same ring to it. Reversing it to "Sword Daniel" didn't help either.
"Daniel Sword does sound odd," Han Lingsha muttered, shaking her head.
"What do you want to call it?"
"How about Purple Cloud Sword?" Daniel suggested after a moment of thought.
"Purple Cloud Sword… Purple for Ziying, Cloud for Tianhe. I like it!"
With the names decided, Murong Ziying reminded them to continue their training even after leaving the Qionghua Sect. Then he departed.
"No wonder Suyao is jealous. With such talent in both cultivation and swordsmithing, how can someone as mediocre as her measure up?" Daniel thought, examining his Purple Cloud Sword. It was the best sword he currently owned and one of the top-ranked swords in the Qionghua Sect—excluding legendary blades like the Yi He Sword and Wangshu Sword, which were on another level entirely.
Boom!
A deafening explosion shattered the night's silence, and the Qionghua Sect trembled. Daniel had just opened his eyes when he heard Cloud shouting frantically from the next room, "Lingsha! Lingsha!"
"What happened?" Daniel rushed into Cloud's room and saw Han Lingsha fainted in Cloud's arms, her face deathly pale.
"Lingsha suddenly collapsed! And earlier, Mengli said something about leaving and never coming back," Cloud stammered, clearly overwhelmed.
"What about Mengli?"
"She ran off!"
"So, it's starting," Daniel thought. He quickly instructed Cloud, "Leave Lingsha to me. You go after Mengli."
"Got it." After a brief hesitation, Cloud grabbed the Tianhe Sword and dashed out the door.
"What a coincidence. If we hadn't returned today, Xuanxiao and the others might've miscalculated," Daniel muttered. After giving Han Lingsha some water from the Fountain of Eternity, he stepped outside. Two massive beams of light, one blue and one red, pierced the sky above the Qionghua Sect.
The explosion had awakened the sect's disciples. Many were panicking, shouting that the demon realm had attacked. Higher-ranking disciples quickly organized the lower ranks to prepare for battle. But after a long wait, not a single demon appeared.
The current Illusionary Nether Realm wasn't the formidable force it had been 19 years ago. Severely weakened, it lacked the strength to launch an offensive against the Qionghua Sect and could only adopt a defensive posture.
"What happened to Cloud?" Daniel asked as Murong Ziying arrived, carrying an unconscious Cloud in his arms.
"He forced his way into the demon realm's portal and was injured by its power," Murong Ziying explained, entering the room and pausing when he saw Han Lingsha lying on the bed.
"What happened to Lingsha?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe Cloud knows."
"What's wrong with Cloud?" Han Lingsha had woken up before Cloud and immediately asked about him upon seeing his unconscious state.
"It's nothing serious, just some injuries. But what about you? How are you feeling?"
"I'm okay, just a little dizzy."
"Mengli!" Cloud cried out as he woke up, calling Liu Mengli's name.
"What happened to Mengli?" Han Lingsha asked anxiously.
"She went to the demon realm. She said she's from there," Cloud explained, recounting what Liu Mengli had told him.
"Mengli, from the demon realm? That's impossible! The sect leader, Master Xuanxiao, and Elders Qingyang and Chongguang have all met her. If she were from the demon realm, they would've noticed," Murong Ziying immediately refuted.
Demons naturally carried demonic energy. While it might go unnoticed by weaker cultivators, top experts like Xuanxiao, Qingyang, and Chongguang would undoubtedly detect it. Liu Mengli's power couldn't possibly surpass theirs to the extent of hiding her true nature.
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