Time flies quietly, and it has been nearly five years since then.

  Wingsnake Lake, Mingxin Island.

  Mingxin Island is the name given by Ji Ning to this island in the middle of the lake. The buildings on the island are magnificent, and what was once a desolate island now seems like a paradise on earth. Now that it's spring and summer, all kinds of flowers are also competing with each other in beauty, and after being carefully taken care of by some servants, they are even more breathtakingly beautiful.

  "Autumn Leaf Sister, Autumn Leaf Sister." A young man in a green robe was running and shouting.

  Just then, the autumn leaves sitting upright and boiling tea water turned their heads to look at him, smiling: "Qingshi, have you finished practicing archery? Has Master Muyu scolded you?"

  "This..." Qing Shi rubbed his head helplessly and said, "Can't I not be scolded? When practicing archery, Master Meng Yu always scolds me, and often compares me to my brother. What kind of genius is my brother? Can I compare?"

  "You must cherish it well." Akira looked at Qing Shi as if she was looking at her own younger brother, and said solemnly, "Young Master also said that although Master Meng Yu's dantian was broken, he is now even more skilled in archery... Now his archery skills have improved even further. Master Meng Yu, because he lives on Ming Xin Island, and Young Master spoke up for you, is willing to teach you. You must learn well, it's a unique skill."

  Qīng Shí nodded: "I understand."

  Qingshi had a great time on Mingxin Island, and Ji Ning completely treated him like a younger brother, addressing each other as brothers. The closeness of their relationship can be seen from the way they address each other, usually people would call each other "older brother" or "big brother", but only those who grew up together in childhood would call each other "brother".

  "Uh-huh." Akira smiled and nodded.

  "Where's Brother Ji Ning?" Qing Shi asked, "Is he practicing swordsmanship?"

  "Autumn leaves smiled and said: 'Not practicing sword.'"

  "Oh, then he's sleeping on the Winged Snake Lake." Qing Shi said with a smile. Having lived by the Winged Snake Lake for nearly five years, he was also very familiar with Ji Ning's habits. Nowadays, apart from practicing swordsmanship, Ji Ning would often sleep on a small boat drifting aimlessly on the lake.

  "Yes, I'm sleeping." Akira also turned her head towards the boundless lake.

  Qingshi couldn't help but say, "At first I asked Brother Jining why he always slept on the Winged Snake Lake, and he said... that he was cultivating. I didn't understand it then, how could sleeping on the Winged Snake Lake be considered cultivation? But Brother Jining's swordsmanship has indeed become more and more formidable, two years ago even Commander Ji had to admit defeat!"

  "Yes, the young master's swordsmanship has become even more extraordinary and unimaginable." Akira sighed, "I once saw the young master practicing his sword when a large number of water birds flew over to surround him and lingered for a long time without wanting to leave."

  "How can this be?" Qing Shi exclaimed in surprise.

  "Ji Tong led the way, and every year he would engage in a match with Gongzi. Two years ago, after acknowledging defeat, he stopped coming. Unfortunately, Gongzi doesn't allow me to watch, so I don't know what it's like when Ji Tong engages in a match with him." Qiu Ye had a hint of admiration, as Ji Tong's swordsmanship had long been legendary, and her own Gongzi's current level was even more profound and unfathomable.

  Ji Yichuan lived on Mingxin Island, but at the other end of Mingxin Island. He was usually cold and aloof, forbidding anyone from passing by, with no servants around. Only Ji Ning could occasionally go in to accompany her father.

  "I'm really curious, just how good is Brother's swordsmanship?" Qing Shi's eyes had a look of admiration.

  "Look." Akira suddenly looked towards the direction of the lake.

  "Huh?" Qing Shi also turned his head to look over.

  Only a ship appeared in the distance, Qing Shi first showed joy thinking it was Ji Ning's small boat for sleeping, but upon closer inspection...the ship was actually a large one, often ferrying people back and forth between the island and the shore. After all, there were many people living on Ming Xin Island now, with nearly a hundred servants, frequently needing to transport large quantities of grain to the island, and some outsiders came to visit, so naturally there would be a ferry boat.

  On the ferry.

  There was a group of young people on the boat, chatting and laughing with each other.

  "The Patriarch has us come to pay respects to Ji Ning." A tall and sturdy young man with a chest full of pride had a hint of resentment in his eyes, "We are the Ji Clan's main family, stronger than the other four families! We six are also the strongest among the younger generation of the Ji Clan. Letting us come to spar with Ji Ning is one thing, but saying we're here to 'pay respects' and have Ji Ning 'guide' us? And that we should be respectful?"

  "Shut up." A handsome young man spoke up, "The master has ordered that you must show respect and address him as Gongzi Ji Ning."

  "Alright, alright, Young Master Ji Ning." The tall youth couldn't help but say, "We'll stop here, Ji Mo. You're the absolute genius of our Ji clan's younger generation, entering the Pre-Heaven stage at just 15 years old, and our Ji clan's ancestral ultimate technique, 'Ten Thousand Swords Song', was already mastered long ago. As for Young Master Ji Ning... although he entered the Pre-Heaven stage a few years earlier than you, it's only a matter of sparring with each other, how could we let you go pay respects to him and be instructed by him?"

  "Ji Mo." A woman in black said, "What Tong Zhan said is not wrong. This time the patriarch's orders to us, on the surface no one dares to resist, but everyone is resentful at heart. We are the best of the young generation of the clan, and that Ji Ning... Ji Ning Gongzi is just from the Western Ji Manor. No matter how talented he is, he can only be slightly better than us, how can he have the qualifications to make us pay our respects?"

  "It's all right."

  The handsome young man's eyes were like water, and he swept his gaze around, causing the other five young men to quiet down.

  Ji Mo is the undisputed number one among the younger generation of the Ji family clan, and has been following Shadow Granny since childhood, making his position even more special... Many people have already acknowledged that Ji Mo will be the next master of the Ji family clan.

  "You also know, I'm following Shadow Grandma." Ji Mo said slowly.

  "Hmm." The eyes of the five young men all showed a look of admiration.

  Shadow Grandma...

  The Ji family has two figures standing at the pinnacle, one is the patriarch Ji Jiu Huo! The other is Ying Po Po! Ying Po Po is Ji Jiu Huo's younger sister, also an old lady who has lived for nearly four hundred years, and she has undoubtedly entered the Zifu repairman for three hundred years.

  They were two of Ji's publicly acknowledged Violet Palace cultivators.

  As for whether there are still Zifu cultivators, it's hard to say. A clan must hide some of its trump cards, being vague and real at the same time, in order to last long.

  "Ying Po taught me swordsmanship with her own hands." Ji Mo said lightly, "My swordsmanship is far inferior to Ying Po's. Do you know why the six of us were sent by the sect master to pay respects to Ji Ning at Winged Snake Lake?"

  "I heard that other Eastern and Northern Sects have sent over their young disciples to pay respects to Young Master Ji Ning, so our sect also dispatched the six of us."

  "Wrong."

  Ji Mo shook his head lightly.

  "Our ancestral house is the foundation of the Ji family. The clan leader and Shadow Granny are all part of our ancestral house," said Ji Mo, "Our ancestral house also occupies the largest territory, and the number of innate spirits far exceeds that of the other four houses. Even the Red Armor Guard is stationed in our ancestral house. Why should our ancestral house learn from the others?"

  "Why is that?" They looked at Ji Mo one by one.

  Ji Mo said lightly: "Because a year ago, Shadow Grandma came to Winged Snake Lake once."

  "Is the Shadow Lady coming to Winged Serpent Lake?" The other five young people suddenly had many thoughts arise in their minds.

  Ji Mo Dao: "The clan leader once highly praised Ji Ning, thinking that he would definitely become the number one person of our Ji family in the future! That's why Shadow Granny came to Winged Snake Lake to take a look at what kind of ability this Ji Ning actually has..."

  "How?"

  "What did Shadow Grandma say?" The five young men looked at Ji Mo with anticipation.

  Ji Mo's eyes had a hint of peculiar color, and he slowly said: "After Shadow Grandma came back, I asked her how I compared to Ji Ning young master. Shadow Grandma only said that it was not good to compare, not good to compare. I continued to ask what level Ji Ning young master's swordsmanship had reached, and Shadow Grandma only said one sentence - 'Deeply unfathomable!'"

  "Unfathomable!" The five young men were shocked. How could Shadow Granny utter such words? Just how terrifying was Ji Ning's swordsmanship?!

  "Gentlemen, it's time to disembark." a boatman shouted loudly.

  The six of them looked over and saw that the ferry was already approaching the shore. In the distance, building after building rose up, one after another, creating a breathtaking view. The six of them couldn't help but gasp in amazement, with Ji Mo's eyes shining brightly: "Is this really where Ji Ning lives?"