Xuanjian: I am the Sun Sword Immortal

The mother, Liu Qingyi, held Lou Linxian in her arms, softly humming an unknown lullaby. The baby's breathing gradually became steady, but the pale golden line between his brows never completely disappeared. Instead, it condensed into a tiny, faint golden dot, resting quietly on his brow, like an unformed mark.

"My husband," Liu Qingyi called softly.

Lou Mingyuan, who was meditating in the stone hut, opened his eyes upon hearing this. Liu Qingyi looked down at the baby in her arms, a hint of undisguised surprise in her eyes: "Look at the mark between his eyebrows—it wasn't so obvious when you held him just now, but after I took over holding him for a while, it became even brighter. And..."

She paused, then gently handed the child to Lou Mingyuan. The moment the baby fell into its father's arms, the golden dot between its brows dimmed slightly; though not completely gone, it was not as bright as it had been in its mother's arms.

"The mark faded when he was in your arms," ​​Liu Qingyi whispered.

Lou Mingyuan paused, holding the child and examining him closely. Indeed—the golden light between the child's brows had dimmed considerably, leaving only a faint trace. He looked up and exchanged a glance with his wife, both seeing the same confusion in each other's eyes.

"Feather Clan bloodline?" Lou Mingyuan asked tentatively.

Liu Qingyi is a half-feathered race. Although her cultivation is low, her bloodline contains a spiritual aura that is close to the Fire element. The golden light between her brows shines brighter when the child is in her arms, but dims when the child is in Lou Mingyuan's arms—this seems to indicate that the child's extraordinary phenomenon resonates with Liu Qingyi's bloodline in some way.

"It doesn't seem like a pure winged race affinity." Liu Qingyi shook her head. She looked down at her hands, then at the rising sun outside the window. "My bloodline is mixed, and even my wings have faded to a pale blue. How could I possibly have the ability to draw out golden light? This child... is probably born with a natural affinity for the sun."

"The sun?" Lou Mingyuan's voice tightened slightly.

Qiyan City is located west of the North Sea, adjacent to Jieyu Land, and is rich in fire-elemental spiritual energy. However, "being close to the fire element" and "being close to the sun" are two different things. The fire element is one of the five elements, and many cultivators practice it; the sun, on the other hand, is the first of the three yangs, the most "manifest" in the world—anything that comes into contact with the sun will have its power greatly enhanced. If this child is truly born close to the sun, then it is not just ordinary "good aptitude," but a rare talent worthy of aspiring to the Purple Mansion realm.

Liu Qingyi had clearly considered this as well. She was silent for a moment, then said softly, "When the sun is higher, take him outside to get some sun, and we'll know."

At noon. The sunlight of Qiyan City shone into the courtyard in front of the stone house, casting a faint golden hue on the ground. Lou Mingyuan carried the infant, Xuanfu, out of the house. The sunlight fell on the baby for a fleeting moment—

The golden dot between the baby's eyebrows suddenly lit up, like a spark being ignited. Then the entire mark slowly emerged, with pale golden light extending from the baby's eyebrows to both sides, vaguely outlining a very shallow and fine line, like a small sun that had not yet fully risen, embedded on the baby's forehead.

The baby seemed to sense something, a comfortable smile appearing on its sleeping face, and its little hand instinctively reached out from its swaddling clothes, as if touching the sunlight.

Lou Mingyuan looked down at the golden light between his son's eyebrows and remained silent for a long while.

"As expected," he said. His voice held both joy and heaviness.

Liu Qingyi walked to his side and gently touched the baby's forehead. When her fingertips touched that ray of golden light, she felt a very faint warmth—not scorching, but a gentle temperature, like the warm sun in spring.

"She is naturally drawn to the sun," she whispered. "If this child were to enter the path of spiritual practice, her future would be limitless."

"But this future also means trouble." Lou Mingyuan's voice lowered. "If that villain sees the mark between his brows... Beihai is not a kind place."

"Then let him enter the sect as soon as possible." Liu Qingyi interrupted him, her tone calm and firm. "The first manifestation of spiritual insight is after the age of six, but this child has extraordinary innate characteristics and probably won't live to see six. Rather than hiding him at home where he can be spied on, it's better to send him to Binghong Sect. The sect has its own rules; once you enter, you are a disciple, and others will have to think twice before trying to take advantage of you."

Lou Mingyuan thought for a moment and nodded: "Binghong Sect has always valued the talent of the Fire Virtue. When he is a little older, I will go and ask to see the sect's steward."

Liu Qingyi looked down at the baby in her arms, her gaze gentle.

"Xiufu." She murmured the name softly, "Hidden brilliance, trustworthy and reliable. A good name my husband gave him—but this 'Hidden Brilliance' will probably not be easy to achieve."

The baby stirred in her arms, the golden light between his brows flickering with each breath, as if responding to her words. He had fallen asleep again, but the pale golden line between his brows did not disappear once more; instead, it remained there quietly, like a small, yet-to-rise sun.

Two years have passed in the blink of an eye.

Fu was three years old. Unlike ordinary children, he spoke and walked much earlier than his peers—while other children were still babbling, he could already express himself in complete sentences. Lou Mingyuan was both surprised and delighted by this, attributing it to his innate intelligence; Liu Qingyi, however, vaguely felt that something was amiss—sometimes the things this child said didn't seem like something a three-year-old would think of.

For example, once, Lou Mingyuan returned from a magical duel, his face showing undisguised exhaustion. Sitting in his mother's lap, Xuanfu suddenly asked, "Father, were you harassed by someone today?"

Lou Mingyuan was taken aback, then laughed and said, "No, Father is just tired."

He didn't press further, but simply looked at him with those clear eyes, his gaze calmer than that of a three-year-old. Lou Mingyuan felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze and was about to change the subject when He looked away and lowered his head to continue fiddling with the small wooden sword in his hand.

Liu Qingyi witnessed this scene and secretly made a mental note of it.

On this day, Liu Qingyi took Lou Linxian to the market in Qiyan City. Although Qiyan City was a city of cultivators, cultivators still needed to trade spiritual items and purchase elixirs, making the market the most bustling place in the city. On the stalls set up along the street, Frostfire Stones gleamed with a mixture of cold and warm light under the sunlight, Desert Wind Spirit Grass was neatly bundled into small bundles, and occasionally one or two pieces of Fire Virtue Spirit Materials flowing from Jieyu Land could be seen, with prices that were astonishingly high.

Lou Linxian, hand in hand with his mother, kept his eyes scanning the surroundings. This was the first time he had truly seen the market of Qiyan City with his own eyes—the descriptions he had read in books in his previous life were ultimately different from the vivid scenes he witnessed firsthand. A faint aura of fire spirit permeated the air, intertwining with the icy aura emanating from the Cold Flame Stones, creating a unique, harmonious blend of ice and fire. Cultivators stopped to inquire about prices or hurried past; their cultivation levels varied, and the auras they exuded were also different.

He subconsciously activated [Illumination]. This was a habit he had developed over the years—although his body was still young and his spiritual apertures were not yet fully open, making it impossible for him to cultivate actively, [Illumination] seemed to be independent of his spiritual apertures. It was more like an intuition originating from his soul, a perception ability he naturally gained after becoming close to the Nine Luminaries, quite similar to Lu Jiangxian's [Surveying the Netherworld].

His gaze swept over the cultivators in the market. Most of them had normal bright yellow or light red Yang Fire, and the higher their cultivation level, the stronger their Yang Fire. But a few people had dark spots mixed in with their Yang Fire—marks left by old wounds, just like the dark mark in his father Lou Mingyuan's Yang Fire.

There was another person, whose yang fire was intertwined with wisps of black energy.

Lou Linxian paused slightly. There stood a cultivator in a greyish-blue Daoist robe, with an ordinary face and a cultivation level around mid-Foundation Establishment. He was haggling over prices at a stall selling Desert Wind Spirit Grass. His Yang Fire appeared no different from other cultivators, but under the [Illumination], strands of black silk were clearly visible coiled deep within the flames, like maggots constantly consuming the very essence of the Yang Fire.

Lou Linxian withdrew his gaze, not looking any longer. He knew what the black aura meant—deeply tainted by killing, or perhaps practicing some shady cultivation method. But this was not something a three-year-old child like him should concern himself with.

Just as he looked away, he felt a gaze upon him.

Someone is watching him.

This wasn't the casual, casual glance one might give a cute child in a marketplace; it was an extremely subtle and cautious observation. The other person concealed their gaze exceptionally well; if it weren't for Xu Fu possessing the [Shadow Reflection] and being exceptionally sensitive to fluctuations in Yang Fire, it would have been impossible for them to detect it.

He didn't turn around. A three-year-old child shouldn't have that kind of alertness.

The gaze came from the second floor of a teahouse diagonally opposite the market, from a window seat.

The second floor of the teahouse.

Master Binghong put down his teacup.

He appeared to be only in his early thirties, with a handsome face and an air of authority that suggested he had long held a high position. His crimson Taoist robe gleamed slightly in the shadows of the teahouse, and the collar was embroidered with a phoenix with outstretched wings, ready to take flight.

"Is it that child?" he asked.

"Yes." A gray-robed disciple beside him whispered, "Lou Mingyuan's son, named Yu Fu, has just turned three. His brow and spirit are already visible, with a faint golden mark appearing under the sunlight, indicating that he is naturally close to the sun."

Master Binghong remained silent, his gaze passing through the window and landing on the mother and child.

Three years old.

Ordinary children don't even have a spiritual aperture by the age of three—it's considered quite good if they can show one by six. To show such a clear mark at three is exceptional, not only for someone who has mastered the Daoist arts, but even within a grotto-heaven, they are considered remarkably gifted. Not to mention, this child can cultivate the sun!

The sun. The first of the three yangs, the most prominent in the world.

Several months ago, Jie Yu sent word that Bing Hongmen should keep a close watch and report any children who are gifted and close to the sun.

Master Binghong inquired through his connections within the cave and learned that the order came from a powerful figure. Master Binghong understood better than anyone what it meant for the master of the Tongxin Tree to personally pay attention to the child—this child had already gained the favor of a certain position, or perhaps was even the reincarnation of a powerful figure.

"Lou Mingyuan." He murmured the name to himself, "In the early stages of Foundation Establishment, he was a steward in charge of patrolling outside the city and collecting offerings..."

"Yes," the gray-robed disciple replied. "He was injured a few years ago, which damaged his foundation, making it difficult for him to make any further progress in his cultivation. His wife, Liu Qingyi, is of mixed Winged Clan blood, but her cultivation is only at the sixth level of the Nascent Soul stage. Her bloodline is mixed, and it is said that her wings have faded to a pale blue color. The couple has no powerful backing in the sect, and because they need to treat their injuries, they are not well-off."

"Pass on the message." He withdrew his gaze, picked up his teacup again, and said, "As for Lou Mingyuan, adjust his position within the sect and arrange a leisurely and pleasant one. When his son enters the sect in the future, he won't need to go through the usual selection process; he can be sent directly to me."

"Also," he paused, "tell them that this matter must not be publicized. All treatment of Lou Mingyuan's family should be arranged discreetly, without making a big fuss. If anyone asks, just say that Lou Mingyuan has been diligent over the years and is being treated well according to the family's custom."

The gray-robed disciple responded and left.

Master Binghong picked up his teacup and took a small sip. His gaze returned through the window to the small figure in the market. The child was holding his mother's hand, skipping and hopping out of the market. The afternoon sunlight fell on him, and the pale gold mark between his brows shone slightly in the sunlight, like a spark yet to be ignited.

He put down his teacup, got up, and left.