Chapter Sixteen: You Can Still Laugh?

During those endless, long years, this face was the most familiar presence to him.

The boy’s gaze gradually sharpened—anger, confusion, surprise, weariness, contemplation—all kinds of complex emotions intertwined within his heart, like undercurrents beneath a calm sea.

Yet, after a moment, Lin Fei closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, those tangled emotions seemed never to have existed; his eyes regained a calm and serenity beyond his years.

“I have calculated the fates of countless people. In the river of time, many will eventually return to dust, but your name—I never expected it to appear here.”

“Three thousand years ago, who else but you could have founded such a magnificent sect?”

“You didn’t like the sword when you were a child, did you? You always said sword cultivators should roam the heavens and earth, unrestrained.” Lin Fei recalled, a hint of puzzlement in his tone. “So why did you end up staying with the Sword Sect, even using your original sword energy to carve my words from back then onto the stone wall?”

“Were you trying to convey something to me?”

Lin Fei clasped his hands behind his back, gazing quietly at the statue, speaking softly. Thunder rumbled in the sky above, as if accompanying his words, while the torrential rain poured down, seemingly intent on cleansing all things in the world.

At dawn.

Inside a cave beside the Broken Sword Cliff, Xia Yi lay sprawled on the bed, immersed in sleep.

Since leaving Tianya Peak, she had been brought here by an elder of the Sword Sect.

She had deliberately chosen this cave nestled in the cliff’s hollow, perhaps because next to it was another vacant cave, as if waiting for someone’s arrival.

The clear chirping of birds from the distant forest broke the mountain’s quiet.

Suddenly, Xia Yi sprang up from the bed, full of energy. She hurried to the door and gently pushed open the stone gate.

The heavy rain had ceased, and sunlight streamed through the treetops, illuminating the cave’s entrance.

Xia Yi stretched lazily, about to speak, but suddenly froze.

“Zhenshu... huh? Lin Fei!?” she exclaimed with surprise and delight, looking at the boy standing at the stone gate.

His face was pale, his body soaked by rain, droplets falling from the tips of his hair with crisp sounds.

Despite this, his back remained straight and unyielding, like a sword drawn from its sheath.

Lin Fei said nothing, merely casting a faint glance at Xia Yi before walking into the cave.

Xia Yi watched him, her heart both excited and filled with questions.

After several months apart, she sensed a subtle sadness in Lin Fei’s demeanor—a novel discovery for someone used to his usual calm and composed nature.

Lin Fei entered the cave, found a chair to sit on, poured himself a cup of tea, and savored it quietly.

Xia Yi, like a lively fawn, bounced over and crouched before him, her eyes sparkling with curiosity, launching a rapid-fire series of questions.

“How did you know I was here?”

“By your aura.”

“You don’t look very happy.”

“I’m alright.”

“When did you arrive?”

“Last night.”

“Then why didn’t you find a place to stay last night?” Xia Yi tilted her head in puzzlement.

Upon hearing her words, Lin Fei’s expression finally shifted slightly. He pressed his lips together, opened his eyes, and said seriously, “I knocked on the door for half an hour last night. Did you know that?”

“Ah?” Xia Yi blinked in confusion, then tried to recall.

She usually slept very soundly. Last night, she vaguely heard knocking in a half-dream state but thought it was time for early morning practice and muffled her ears without paying attention.

Remembering the torrential rain from last night, Lin Fei had been knocking outside, soaked through all night...

Xia Yi finally understood the complex expression Lin Fei wore when he entered.

But thinking of Lin Fei’s usual cool composure, seeing him show such a pained look was rather amusing, making her lips and eyes involuntarily curve into a smile.

Lin Fei raised an eyebrow and raised his voice slightly, “You can still laugh?”

Xia Yi suddenly turned, pointing outside as if nothing had happened. “Lin Fei, look! The weather outside is wonderful!”

...

Inside the cave, Lin Fei closed his eyes, sitting cross-legged, regulating his breath.

His figure appeared especially serene in the dimness, as if isolated from the world.

Xia Yi came and went during this time, each time bringing some necessities.

She found a cave token and several sets of clean clothes for Lin Fei to change into.

After changing, Lin Fei asked directly, “When can we enter the Sword Tomb?”

There was an urgent need in his heart to retrieve the ancient Sword Wood Spirit as soon as possible.

The mysteries within the Sword Sect, and the secrets left from the great battle three thousand years ago, filled him with doubt.

“I’m not sure either,” Xia Yi replied. “Since coming here, every day we either practice swordsmanship or meditate. The disciples who arrived after me have already received guidance, but it feels as if we have been forgotten.”

She suddenly brightened. “However, when I returned just now, the Sword Sect’s steward said a special teacher would arrive in three days to instruct us and might even take us directly into the Sword Tomb to retrieve swords. What a coincidence—you just arrived, and this good fortune falls right into your lap. It’s almost as if...”

Lin Fei kept his eyes closed, his voice calm and indifferent: “As if they were deliberately waiting for me, right?”

Three days is but a fleeting moment to a cultivator.

Lin Fei maintained his habit of seclusion until the deadline approached, then emerged from the cave.

Xia Yi bounced alongside him as they walked the mountain path toward the Sword Discussion Hall.

Her steps were light and excited, while Lin Fei preserved his usual composure and calm.

After a period of anxiety, Xia Yi no longer worried about her identity being exposed.

Lin Fei observed everything silently.

Back on the mountaintop, Lin Fei had lightly tapped thrice with his fingers, secretly imparting three strands of pure original sword energy to her through a blessing, cloaking her with the sword’s power to mask the inadvertently revealed demon aura.

As for the sheer purity and grandeur of the original sword energy within Lin Fei’s innate sword embryo, only he truly knew.

As they stepped into the Sword Discussion Hall atop the cliff, Lin Fei surveyed the room: Zhao Xiuyuan, Li Yu, Zhang Yuqi, Zhang Lie, Wang Hai, Fang Zhenghua... more than forty outstanding disciples who had risen from the outer gates were assembled.

As the leisurely young Lin Fei entered their sight, the hall’s previously bustling voices fell abruptly silent.

In the eyes of the disciples from both Tengyun Peak and Tianya Peak these past two years, Lin Fei was undoubtedly a figure of great renown.

“Lin Fei!”