Chapter 261: Chapter 261: Detached Radiant Sword, Jian Ruyi

Inside the forest, a short distance away,

Ning Jianli, Ling Lin, and Jing Lu stood far off, watching the two figures who seemed on the verge of fighting.

“What happened? Why did Senior Sister suddenly start a fight with Senior Brother?”

Jing Lu couldn’t help but ask Ning Jianli.

Ling Lin also turned toward her, listening intently.

“…It’s complicated, but—”

Ning Jianli hesitated before briefly explaining the situation that had led to this….how Li Feng wanted to help regenerate Jian Ruyi’s arm through dual cultivation, and how Jian Ruyi had instead requested a spar.

… And her reason for doing so.

After hearing everything, both Ling Lin and Jing Lu showed looks of understanding as they glanced toward the two who were about to clash.

A conflicted expression appeared on their faces.

They knew Jian Ruyi was a little selfish, but they truly couldn’t entirely blame her after knowing about Jian Ruyi situation.

Even if Li Feng became angry, they wouldn’t be surprised.

The two girls exchanged a glance.

“It seems like we’ll have to soothe Senior Brother Li afterward.”

“Yes… I just hope Senior Brother won’t be too mad.”

They then pulled Ning Jianli closer and began whispering quietly, discussing how they might coax and please Li Feng later…..the only way they knew that could truly calm him down.

Meanwhile, Li Feng, completely unaware that the three were plotting to increase his nightly “enjoyment,” continued to stare ahead calmly.

Seeing the seriousness in Jian Ruyi’s gaze and the sharpness of her aura, even without an arm, Li Feng couldn’t help but feel that she was not someone to be underestimated.

He let out a soft sigh, recalling what they had discussed just moments ago.

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“Eh? Spar?”

Li Feng blinked in confusion when he heard her proposal. His gaze subconsciously drifted to her armless side before returning to her face, brows slightly raised.

“What do you mean?”

He was filled with questions.

’Is there some kind of tradition I don’t know about?’

Then he glanced at Ning Jianli, who is beside Jian Ruyi.

Seeing the equally puzzled look on her face, Li Feng guessed this was something personal rather than customary.

Jian Ruyi fell silent for a moment before speaking.

“Yes. It’s exactly as you heard. Please spar with me.”

“Hm…”

Li Feng studied her for a long while.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to spar.

….But the fact that a patient, the one who needed his help was making demands of him made him hesitate.

If this were the old him, or if he were dealing with a different woman, he would have simply turned and left.

It wasn’t as though he lacked women.

So he asked calmly,

“May I know why?”

He had changed, at least a little.

And he believe someone as rigid as Jian Ruyi, someone who seemed the embodiment of righteousness wouldn’t make such a request out of mere selfishness.

At his question, Jian Ruyi closed her eyes and let out a faint sigh.

For a brief moment, her usually sharp and unyielding expression softened.

Li Feng was slightly surprised.

It was perhaps the first time he had ever seen her face relax… even if only a little.

“Because it is a promise.”

She opened her eyes again, her gaze resolute.

“I made a promise to my mother. If there ever comes a day when a man claims my body, it must be someone who is able to defeat me.”

Her words and reason were simple.

But the atmosphere turned utterly silent.

Ning Jianli looked at the two of them, who seemed to be staring at each other in silence, and kept her mouth shut.

But inside, she couldn’t help thinking about Jian Ruyi’s situation and couldn’t stop herself from giving her a small, pitying look.

’No wonder… so it was a promise between her and her mother.’

Then she looked at Li Feng, seemingly giving him a pleading glance, hoping he wouldn’t be offended.

Even she knew it was a bit rude to ask for such a thing when Senior Brother Li only wanted to help.

It was like a rich man offering to cure a poor man’s disease, yet the poor man insisted on a luxurious treatment.

Even if the rich man were kind, he would still feel slightly unpleasant.

After all, he was only human, not some enlightened sage.

After a long moment passed, Li Feng calmly asked,

“…Then what if I refuse to spar?”

“Then I will remain armless.”

A determined reply came back without any hesitation.

“…If you remain armless, wouldn’t it hinder your hunt?”

Li Feng’s voice grew slightly cold. “And if you happen to meet that demonic cultivator who was responsible for making you like this, would you not become even more useless and die even faster because of that promise?”

A hint of hesitation flashed in her eyes when Li Feng said that.

But between the promise to her mother and her own conviction… she still chose to keep her oath.

So she answered in an unwavering tone,

“I will continue.”

Her voice did not tremble.

“I would rather die keeping my promise to my mother than live by breaking it.”

Her black eyes remained steady, sharp as an unsheathed blade.

“I have already lost my arms,” she continued calmly. “If I lose my oath as well… then what remains of Jian Ruyi?”

Silence fell once more, and the cave air seemed to grow heavy.

Ning Jianli felt it too and tried to soothe the strange tension.

“S-Senior brother, Senior sister, Please, there no need for this!”

But she didn’t realize that Li Feng wasn’t really mad at all.

Sure, Li Feng was only human and couldn’t help but feel a bit unpleasant at first but then he changed his mind.

….For the first time, Li Feng truly saw it clearly through those eyes and finally understood this woman.

It wasn’t arrogance.

It wasn’t stubborn pride.

It was simply a promise between a daughter and her mother.

At such a display of familial devotion, Li Feng’s eyes flickered, and he couldn’t help but be reminded of… something.

’A mother, huh…’

And for a brief moment—

He almost smiled, though that smile carried … a hint of self-deprecation.

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