Zhou Yan’s heart skipped a beat as he withdrew his distant gaze and stared at the lass’ captivating and charming eyes. He said, “You knew me?”

That lass nodded but she immediately shook her head and said, “Sooner or later, you’ll understand, but now… I think I might have made a huge mistake.”

“I told you, it’s not your fault. If you truly feel guilty, maybe you can repay me with your body. Trust me, it will make me happy,” chuckled Zhou Yan.

That maiden took a quick glance at Zhou Yan then sighed. “Now is not the right time but, under one condition, I may promise you that…

“There is still hope for your body. Within the Cavern of a million souls lies a pearl known as the Pearl of Yin and Yang. With this pearl, you may pair it with the Burning Blade’s Heart Ale while you’re having fun with a maiden. Then, half of that maiden’s skill and training experience will be infused within your body.”

Upon hearing what this lass said, Zhou Yan’s heart was slightly swayed.

However, he was merely teasing her and did not expect this young maiden to be this… naive.

This naive young lass had so casually suggested the idea of venturing to some place known as the Cavern of a million souls.

Zhou Yan had absolutely no idea what kind of place this ‘Cavern of a million souls’ was, and what kind of treasures that place held. Could it truly be spectacular?

“We shall discuss this matter later… you knew my mother? My father? Perhaps someone else from my Zhou family? You seem… wary of me?” questioned Zhou Yan seriously.

“You will know the truth… about this matter soon. Even if you know the truth now, there isn’t anything you can do with that knowledge due to your body’s current condition… On the other hand, my name is Feng Lingqing, and since you have lost all of your abilities, I… I, together with Silver Frost will integrate as one to protect you temporarily in the form of a blade.”

Zhou Yan was completely stunned and gobsmacked by what she said.

“Sigh… who told you infusing spirit crystals in your Qi column would completely destroy it? My Qi column has been mutated, and it’s completely fine.

“Who also told you that drinking the Burning Blade’s Heart Ale would ruin your body? My body is still fine, and there’s not a problem with me!”

Initially, Zhou Yan never wished to tell the lass any of that. However, judging from how far and selfless the lass would go in attempts to comfort him, was there even a reason he should be skeptical of her?

He never intended to charm this young maiden by his actions as he assumed this lass was one of the strong forces he was warned about.

However, this lass was obviously not related to the opposing forces mentioned by the Lady of the Snow-Jaded Palace. Even from the start, this lass had shown mercy in the name of the Lady of the Snow-Jaded Palace.

On a much deeper scale, this entire event was somehow tied so closely with Zhou Yan’s life.

Hence, Zhou Yan hesitated for a brief moment before telling her the whole situation.

After the young lad was done explaining, Feng Lingqing was dumbfounded. She stood rooted to the spot.

Still was not convinced by what he had told her, she proceeded to thoroughly sense everything from within the young lad’s body. She was still unable to detect the lad’s Qi Column, but this time, she could feel the burst of energy similar to the blade’s essence that was roaring and raging within Zhou Yan’s body. It felt like a blade’s spirit had been trapped in deep slumber within his body, and it would cause anyone to feel its immense pressure.

Her expression changed slightly, as there was an obvious sign of shock and awe from the look on her face. Once again, she took a quick glance at Zhou Yan, and she looked like she had been staring at some sort of abomination or monster. Her expression was entertaining, indeed.

After a good long while, she let out a long-winded sigh and said with a surprised tone, “You… truly are fine. I’m afraid this natural gift belonged to our ancestors. I never expect…This was not expected indeed…”

“It appears that you are quite familiar with my matters. Thus, why did you attack me before?”

Zhou Yan frowned slightly.

“I was ambushed and attacked by Qi Taichong of the Qi family. I was mortally wounded, and my life was fleeting as it reached its limits. I was unable to determine how bad my injuries were.

“He was confident that I would meet my end. Hence, he never hunted me down.

“Regarding you, though… It’s all because I don’t know you and had no idea what your business was. It was all because I am extremely close with the Lady of the Snow-Jaded Palace, and since we were little, we were best friends. If she had given you three life-preserving Blade’s Specters, you are obviously someone important to her. Hence, I did not kill you.

“However, I didn’t know you were Zhou Wangchen’s son, hence the earlier incident. It was only much later that I found out the truth of your identity…

“I am unclear about most things regarding your life, but I know some things about your mother… However, these things, though… sigh, please do yourself a favor. Don’t dwell on these thoughts too much. We’ll discuss this matter when you’ve ascended to the realm of the Blade’s Heart.

“… It looks like the circumstances are much more complicated than I’ve imagined.”

Zhou Yan took out the hand-carved effigy as he looked at the blade’s menace of the sword’s way of bond that was carved onto its surface. He then glanced over at the young lass and said, “Your bond is extremely strong… do you also practice the Sword’s Way of Bond?”

“Yes…”

The young lass never hid anything from him as she nodded.

Zhou Yan remained silent and sighed.

Judging from how things had progressed, it was now clear to the young lad that the Sword’s Way of Bond and Despair was not created by his mother, it was instead his mother’s own creation.

After a brief moment of contemplation, he said, “That Ji Taichong, who is he to Ji Taixu, who hails from the Wang Chuan Residences?”

“You know Ji Taixu? It’s true, Ji Taichong is Ji Taixu’s cousin, but he is known to be extremely hot-tempered and arrogant. He is very different from the elegant Ji Taixu. Although Ji Taixu never fancied bragging and boasting, he is inhumanly cunning and ruthless.

“Within the confines of his home, lies a forbidden ground. It is known to be a field of the damned. There are plenty of ancient graves on this ground. It’s basically a crypt.

“Ji Taichong would sleep in the crypts. He has a habit of sleeping amongst the ancient sarcophaguses, leaving only his head exposed.

“Sometimes, due to the weight of the sarcophagus that crushed his skull and restricted blood flow to his head, his face would turn purple. However, despite all that, he would remain calm and was able to recover back to normal.

“Thus, it’s no secret for every living soul to know how sinister and evil he is. Not a single soul dares to oppose him.

“…”

As Feng Lingqing told Zhou Yan about what kind of a man Ji Taichong was, Zhou Yan felt sick. He could feel his head gradually growing numb since a man like this was not normal. This man was the living embodiment of insanity.

It was baffling to know such evil existed in the Ji family. In addition to an unparalleled genius such as Ji Taixu, this meant that the Ji family was certainly no ordinary family.

Zhou Yan sighed as he was no longer pressured or intimidated by Ji Taixu. On the other hand, as for Ji Taichong, Zhou Yan felt that he would undoubtedly cross paths with him soon.

“I’m feeling better now. You better go ahead and rest to recover from your injuries, since I have something that requires my attention. When I groped you… that was because I thought you were attractive, and honestly, I was lusting for you. However, in my defense, that was a natural emotion for any normal human. Therefore, I sincerely apologize to you.”

Zhou Yan’s words sounded empty.

In the last couple of days, she was the only encounter he had besides the Twin Blade Fiends. Anyone else would be exceedingly powerful to the extent of him being unable to gauge which realm they resided in, which stressed him out.

It was only until he witnessed the huge difference in power that willed the lad to train harder.

However, at this moment, after knowing that they were his ally, he felt slightly guilty.

“It’s… it’s okay… it’s okay… all I have to do to heal is retreat back into the Blade’s realm. Please take me along. I promise I won’t be a bother.”

Feng Lingqing was slightly hesitant as she pleaded with him.

A goddess-like maiden like her actually lowered her own status to plead with him. It would be impossible for his heart to not be swayed by her.

His will was strong, and he did not change his mind because of her plea.

Before he could refuse her, he suddenly recalled that this young lass had some knowledge of his mysterious mother, and carrying another sword was not exactly that much of a hassle.

With that thought alone, his refusal faded away.

Thus, he agreed to her plea.

Oddly enough, even after he agreed to her plea, she was not excited at all. On the other hand, the Silver Frost blade emanated a joyous sparrow-like sound.

Upon witnessing such a scene, Feng Lingqing had a compassionate, gentle smile on her face. The lass said, “I need to recover inside your body, Silver Frost, so follow this man from now on. I’m glad to see that you react so happily to him. You have to listen to him and behave, alright?”

As the young lass spoke softly to the blade, it was as if she was talking to her own daughter. She was filled with kindness.

Zhou Yan was touched upon witnessing this scene.

Could this truly be ‘The Sword Way of Bond’? Was the sword truly alive and sentient?

Then, that would only mean that the Sword Way of Despair would be akin to a demon? This was because the only thing the sword was capable of was murder.

Zhou Yan remained silent as he pondered and reflected upon his Sorrow’s Breaker, as he would feel ecstatic whenever he murdered anyone…

After Feng Lingqing spoke to Silver Frost, that blade was like a child as it spiraled and danced around Zhou Yan’s body.

“You do not lack training, and with that, I can rest my worries. However, remember that you have to hurry and ascend to the realm of the Blade’s Menace before you are sixteen years of age. I’ll let you in on a little secret. If you have ascended to that realm, you will benefit greatly from Silver Frost, since you’ll be able to interact with Silver Frost even more,” said Feng Lingqing softly as she smiled.

Her smile alone was able to melt glaciers, and it was as if this smile was also able to bring back life to the dead.

As she spoke, she could not help but wonder to herself. “Sigh… in this world, he was the first person to have a stranger’s blade’s spirit take a liking to him. It’s uncertain if ‘she’ knew about his world-shattering natural gifts, but if so, what would her reaction be?”

…

As the skies slowly dimmed, the brisk fall’s breeze started to blow as it cooled down their surroundings.

The cold winds swept past the young lad as his sleeves fluttered in the winds.

As of now, Feng Lingqing retreated into the blade’s realm of Silver Frost to recover and heal, and she was in a deep slumber within that realm. Silver Frost, on the other hand, was carried on Zhou Yan’s back. It had even masked its God-tier blade status from detection.

The Silver Frost blade was as playful and adorable as a little girl. This blade seemed picky with people it liked as it would try to grow closer to that person… and that person happened to be Zhou Yan.

He flew the entire stretch of his journey across the plains on the back of his blade. The winds howled. At night, the plains were barren.

By the hour, night gradually crept deeper, as the stars filled the skies.

Under the shroud of darkness, glimmers of light had finally appeared.

This meant that he was closing in on his destination.

Thus, Zhou Yan withdrew his long blade and hung it from his waist as he walked forward.

At this point of time, waves of heavy footsteps could be heard approaching.

Four middle-aged men rode the back of four different pegasuses as it dragged along a beautifully intricate and luxurious carriage through these lands.

There were two maidens in white following close behind the carriage as they stood on the back of their flying swords, guarding this carriage. Even though the maidens seemed harmless, their bodies emanated a heavy aura of extremely cold blade’s essence.

These maidens were likely to have ascended to the realms of the Blade’s Essence. They seemed to be scholars of the Sword’s Way of Frost!