txolops Chapter 98 Broken Sword Drinks Blood, Judge Locks Up Prison
Chapter 98 Broken Sword Drinks Blood, Judge Locks Up Prison
I'm currently reading Chapter 98, "Broken Sword Drinks Blood, Judge Locks Up Prison," and I'm completely engrossed in it.
The sound of horses' hooves was like the sound of a sudden rainstorm.
The group arrived extremely quickly, led by a magnificent horse whose hooves pounded fire and whose nostrils emitted white smoke; it was clearly a fiery steed with demonic beast blood.
The man on horseback was dressed in the brocade robe of an inner sect deacon of the Flowing Cloud Sect, with a jade belt around his waist. His face was gloomy, and behind him were twelve black-clad law enforcement disciples, each with a fierce aura and a murderous intent.
Gu Yan stood in the middle of the road, his hands tucked into his sleeves, looking like an old farmer watching a commotion in the countryside.
"Whoa—"
The leader suddenly pulled on the reins, and the fiery steed reared up, creating a scorching wave that hurtled straight at Gu Yan's face.
Gu Yan raised his eyelids, and the air in front of him distorted. The heat wave disappeared without a trace, like a clay ox sinking into the sea.
"How dare you! You're here to handle matters for the Flowing Cloud Sect's Enforcement Hall, and you still haven't knelt down!"
The steward on horseback looked down at Gu Yan, his whip pointing at him in a shrill voice, not recognizing Gu Yan's identity.
His gaze swept across the area, lingering for a moment on Gu Yan's storage bag, a mixture of greed and suspicion flashing in his eyes.
The deathly aura of the Burial Dragon Mountain Range, accumulated over thousands of years, has dissipated in a single day, and the earth's veins are surging forth, inevitably indicating the birth of an extraordinary treasure.
Their team was on a mission nearby when they sensed the unusual phenomenon and rushed over, only to find that someone had gotten there first.
"Kneel down?"
Gu Yan smiled, slowly pulling a token from his sleeve and tossing it in his hand. "I am Gu Changsheng, Commander of the Demon Suppression Division of Changning County, the magistrate of this area. You bunch of江湖草莽 (jianghu cao mǎn mǎn, meaning roughnecks from the martial world), trespassing on the official road without permission, and you expect me to kneel?"
"Gu Yan?"
The steward frowned, as if remembering the name, and said disdainfully, "So you're that little commander who caused trouble in Changning County. You dare call yourself an inner disciple of my Flowing Cloud Sect? Hmph! Don't you know the government can control mortals but not my Flowing Cloud Sect? Be smart and hand over what you just brought out of the mountains, and I might spare your dog's life."
"thing?"
Gu Yan feigned surprise, then hesitated for a moment before asking, "What? I was just taking my colleagues for a stroll in the mountains and casually pulled up a weed. Does the Flowing Cloud Sect now even steal weeds?"
Stop pretending to be crazy!
The deacon sneered, unleashing the overwhelming pressure of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator that sent leaves rustling down from the surrounding trees. He coldly declared, "That golden light that shot into the sky just now was clearly an ancient dragon's relic! This belongs to my Flowing Cloud Sect; how dare you, an ant, lay a finger on it! Men, search it! Anyone who resists will be killed without mercy!"
"yes!"
The twelve disciples responded in unison, each unleashing their magical artifacts, which flashed with spiritual light, and surrounded the two.
"Wait a minute."
Xiao Chen, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke.
He took a step forward, his eyes as calm as a still spring.
He looked at the high-ranking deacon and asked in a hoarse voice, "Are you one of Zhao Wuji's men?"
The steward was taken aback, then recognized Xiao Chen, a mocking smile spreading across his face: "Oh, who do we have here? Isn't this Xiao Chen, our former genius of the Flowing Cloud Sect, now a stray dog? What's wrong? After spending eight years in that godforsaken Demon Suppression Division, you can't even afford a decent sword, and you dare to embarrass yourself with a piece of junk?"
He pointed at Xiao Chen and laughed loudly at his subordinates, "You may not know, but this Senior Brother Xiao was incredibly arrogant back then. If it weren't for the Grand Elder's mercy, his cultivation would have been crippled long ago. Who would have thought that he would be reduced to using a fire poker as a sword? Hahahaha."
Xiao Chen was not angry, and his expression remained calm.
He gently stroked the sword in his hand, as if soothing a restless old friend.
"Zhao Wuji was benevolent?"
Xiao Chen's lips curled into a cold smile. "Then today, I will use this sword to thank him for his mercy."
Before the words were finished, the sound of a sword ringing out rang out.
The sound was not the crispness of an ordinary sword, but rather a trembling like the low growl of an ancient behemoth.
Xiao Chen's figure disappeared.
fast.
So fast that it left no afterimage.
Before the deacon's smile could freeze, his pupils suddenly contracted, and a chill from the depths of his soul spread throughout his body—the residual dragon's might emanating from the sword.
He was about to activate his protective spirit shield when he realized that his movements were ridiculously slow.
A dull gray sword light, without any fancy moves, came straight down like a woodcutter chopping wood.
This sword strike cleaved through the wind, cleaved through the light, and also cleaved through the battle formation formed by the twelve disciples.
"Click."
That was the sound of a magical artifact shattering.
Immediately following was a series of dull thuds as people fell to the ground.
The magical weapons in the hands of the twelve disciples who had reached the peak of Qi Refining were all broken, and each of them had a deep wound on his chest that exposed the bone.
They hadn't even seen how Xiao Chen drew his sword before they were all rendered unable to fight.
Xiao Chen was already standing in front of the fiery steed.
The sword tip pointed to the ground, and a drop of blood slid down the spine of the sword and dripped into the dust.
"You've reached the Foundation Establishment stage?!"
The steward on horseback turned deathly pale, staring intently at Xiao Chen, his voice trembling: "And this sword intent... how is this possible! Your sword heart was clearly shattered!"
"Severing karma means severing cause and effect, cutting off karmic obstacles. Your actions of aiding and abetting evil and oppressing the good are the greatest karmic obstacles in Changning County."
"What an arrogant tone!"
The steward, being a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, initially panicked but later became enraged.
A flash of light appeared in his hand, and a crimson flying sword shot out, transforming into a fire dragon that hurtled straight at Xiao Chen's face. He roared, "So what if you've reached the Foundation Establishment stage! I'm a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator; killing you is as easy as slaughtering a dog!"
Seeing this, Gu Yan did not help. He believed that Xiao Chen's strength was not to be feared, as he was only at the late stage of Foundation Establishment. So he simply found a big rock to sit on and started cracking sunflower seeds.
"Senior brother, this guy is yours now. Don't kill him, I still have some questions to ask him," Gu Yan instructed.
"it is good."
Xiao Chen responded.
Instead of retreating, he advanced when faced with the roaring fire dragon.
With a slight tremor in his hand, the rust that had been re-covered on the blade began to pulsate like breathing as spiritual energy was poured into it.
"The first step is to examine your own heart."
Xiao Chen spoke softly, his sword blade slashing upwards.
This sword strike was not aimed at the enemy's physical body, but at their Dao heart.
The fierce fire dragon, upon touching the bronze sword's edge, crumbled into countless sparks as if encountering its natural enemy.
The sword's momentum remained undiminished, aimed directly at the deacon's brow.
The deacon's vision blurred, as if he saw countless wronged souls demanding his life, and his fellow disciples whom he had harmed in his pursuit of power were now wailing at him.
"ah!!!"
He let out a terrified scream, lost his senses, fell off his horse, and rolled on the ground in a sorry state.
"No! Don't come any closer! I didn't kill you! It was the Grand Elder! The Grand Elder ordered me to do it!"
Just one sword strike.
This late-stage Foundation Establishment expert's Dao heart developed cracks.
Xiao Chen sheathed his sword and did not pursue, but coldly watched the deacon who was making a complete fool of himself.
The Karma-Severing Sword can not only sever the physical body, but also ignite the karmic fire within people's hearts. For those with guilty consciences, it is the most terrifying instrument of torture.
"Tsk tsk tsk, that's some serious mental fortitude."
Gu Yan patted the sunflower seed shells off his hands, slowly walked over, stepped on the steward's chest, and with a little force, stopped the man from howling.
"Tell me, besides robbing them, what other purpose did Zhao Wuji have in sending you here?"
The deacon had by then broken free from his illusion. Looking into Gu Yan's smiling eyes, he felt they were even more terrifying than the sword from before.
He roared, his voice trembling with fear, "Gu Changsheng, how dare you touch me?! I am the younger brother of Luo Wen, the deputy head of the Law Enforcement Hall of the Flowing Cloud Sect! If you kill me, the Flowing Cloud Sect will raze the entire Changning County to the ground!"
"Rowan?"
Gu Yan thought for a moment and realized that he seemed to have seen this person before when he was in the Liuyun Sect. His murderous aura made him seem like a ruthless demonic cultivator.
"As for flattening Changning County?"
The smile on Gu Yan's face vanished, leaving only a condescending indifference.
He leaned down, staring into the deacon's eyes. He said, enunciating each word clearly, "You probably don't understand the situation yet. From today onwards, Changning County is my territory, Gu Changsheng's territory. Even if the Heavenly King himself came, he would have to obey the law."
"As for the Flowing Cloud Sect..."
Gu Yan straightened up, and the surrounding plants and trees withered rapidly as his mood changed. The "Withered Trees Grow Green" technique operated on its own.
"Your days of lording it over everyone in Changning County are over."
"By imperial decree, Yin and Yang shall judge the prison."
Gu Yan didn't ask any more questions and gave a low shout.
In the void behind him, the phantom of the Tower of Babel flashed by.
Immediately afterwards, countless black chains emerged from the ground; these were instruments of torture formed from pure Yin energy.
"Is this sorcery? Are you a demonic cultivator?!"
The deacon on the ground watched in horror as the chains coiled around his limbs like venomous snakes; the aura of death made his very soul tremble.
"Demonic cultivator?"
Gu Yan shook his head. "Superficial. This is the law."
"As I just said, I am the local official in charge. As an official, I must adjudicate cases."
"Steward Luo, within the territory of Changning County, you recklessly rode your horse and committed murder, attempting to rob an official appointed by the imperial court. Furthermore, you brutally killed my colleagues from the Demon Suppression Division. For these multiple crimes, I hereby sentence you..."
Gu Yan snapped his fingers.
"Exiled to the underworld for a period of one hundred years."
"Splash!"
The black chains tightened suddenly, but instead of harming his physical body, they hooked directly into his soul!
"No--!!!"
A heart-wrenching scream rang out.
The deacon's eyes slowly became empty, and his soul was forcibly dragged out of his body and pulled directly into the towering structure within Gu Yan's dantian.
There, tens of thousands of newly arrived guests, starving, would naturally be treated well to these wicked spirits who had come to their doorstep.
As for the twelve injured disciples, upon seeing this scene, they were terrified and scrambled to their knees, kowtowing and begging for mercy.
"My lord, spare us! My lord, spare us! We were just following orders!"
Gu Yan looked at these terrified disciples, a look of disgust flashing in his eyes.
If such wicked people who aid and abet evil are not killed today, they will commit further killings in the future, or cause trouble for themselves, which will lead to endless troubles.
With a soft sigh, Gu Yan waved his hand, and the twelve disciples turned into withered bones, buried in the earth, nourishing this land.
The mountain path was quiet again.
Only the rustling of the wind through the treetops and the restless snorting of the fiery steed could be heard.
Gu Yan walked to the fiery steed, not worried that the horse might expose him in the future.
After the paper-making shop was exposed, he became more cautious.
He possesses the transformative power of the "Withered Tree Grows Green" technique, which allows him to refine the bloodlines of high-level beings, repair his own foundation, and reshape his spiritual roots.
Gu Yan reached out and patted the horse's neck. This beast was originally fiery, but under the suppression of Gu Yan's divine and demonic aura, it became as docile as a cat.
In no time, the demonic beast bloodline became nourishment for Gu Yan to repair his foundation, and his appearance changed drastically. His fur turned blue, and the characteristics of the demonic beast were no longer obvious.
Gu Yan mounted his horse with a graceful and swift movement.
He turned to look at Xiao Chen, not forgetting to destroy the evidence, and pointed to the magical artifacts and storage bags left behind by the twelve people.
"Senior brother, thrift is a virtue. We don't want these junks, but we can sell them on the black market and buy some new equipment for our brothers in the Demon Suppression Division."
Xiao Chen shook his head helplessly, swung his long sword, swept up the spoils on the ground, and put them into his pocket.
Gu Yan, on horseback, had sunlight filtering through the leaves onto his face.
At this moment, in Xiao Chen's eyes, the commander who was somewhat timid when he first arrived in Changning County now seemed to have no more hesitation and had the aura of a local overlord.
"Back to the Demon Suppression Division?" Xiao Chen asked.
"Yeah. If we don't go back soon, that Senior Sister Song might tear down our dilapidated government office."
Gu Yan gazed at the outline of the county town in the distance, where the smoke from the chimneys was thicker than usual, and the air was filled with the joy of new life.
……
at the same time.
Tens of thousands of miles away, at the location of the Soul Hall of the Flowing Cloud Sect.
On a mountain peak that is shrouded in mist all year round and towers into the clouds.
The disciples guarding the hall were cleaning the altar as usual when suddenly, a crisp cracking sound rang out in the silent hall.
"Snap! Snap! Snap..."
The explosions came one after another, as dense as firecrackers.
The disciples guarding the hall looked up in horror, only to see that the row of soul lamps representing the elite disciples of the Enforcement Hall had all gone out in just a few breaths, and the jade lamps had shattered into powder!
At the very top, the main soul lamp representing Luo Lie, the younger brother of the deputy hall master and a deacon in the late Foundation Establishment stage, flickered violently a few times before suddenly exploding and dissipating into a wisp of green smoke.
"Something terrible has happened!"
The disciple, pale with fright, scrambled out of the main hall, his piercing shouts echoing through the heavens: "Utterly annihilated! The thirteen members of Deacon Luo Lie's unit in the Enforcement Hall have all had their soul lamps extinguished! Not a single one survived!!"
A moment later, a terrifying aura surged into the sky from the depths of the Flowing Cloud Sect.
"Who?! How dare they kill my own brother?!"
A middle-aged man dressed in a flowing cloud robe descended from the sky, his black hair dancing wildly, and a thick stench of blood swirling around him.
He is Luo Wen, the deputy head of the Enforcement Hall, known for his ruthless methods.
His eyes were bloodshot as he stared intently in the direction of Changning County, crushing a communication jade slip in his hand—a divine message sent back by Luo Lie before his death.
Deep within his consciousness, Luo Wen's divine sense, like a greedy vulture, swooped down on that fragment of a broken divine soul.
Those were Luo Lie's last words, and also the only clue.
The fragments are broken and scattered, like a painting scribbled haphazardly by a child.
There was only endless darkness and suffocating oppression.
At the edge of this chaotic vision, Rowan did not see the killer's face.
He only saw a figure from behind.
That figure stood between the vast天地 (heaven and earth), his clothes fluttering, seemingly blending into the surrounding mountains, rivers, and vegetation, carrying a sense of loneliness that transcended all living beings.
Behind that figure, however, lay two completely different worlds.
On the left side, golden light shone brightly, and auspicious energy flowed in thousands of strands. Faintly, there were gods and Buddhas with lowered eyes and reverent expressions, chanting scriptures with the sound of great bells and drums, solemn, sacred, and inviolable.
The right half is an endless abyss and darkness, where dark demonic energy surges like the sea, and countless wronged souls sink and wail within it, forming a black pagoda that reaches the heavens and the earth.
Gods and demons are one, good and evil are intertwined.
Half of it is sacred mercy, and half of it is the ultimate evil.
The two converged behind that person, transforming into a slowly rotating Tai Chi diagram, which was some kind of ineffable and unseen foundation of the Great Dao!
Luo Wen was greatly shocked and realized that something was wrong. He was about to turn back.
However, it was too late.
The owner of that figure seemed to sense something, and with a flash, across countless mountains and rivers, across the boundary between life and death, he blinked lightly.
"boom!"
That wasn't an impact of spiritual power, but rather a crushing force from a higher dimension regarding the Dao.
Rowan's demigod soul, caught in the storm, didn't even have time to utter a scream before it swayed precariously like a candle flame in the wind.
"puff!"
Above the Soul Palace, Luo Wen, who had been standing in mid-air with a fierce aura, suddenly raised his head and spat out a mouthful of blood essence, staining the white clouds in front of him red.
That unruly face was now ashen white, and wisps of black energy were faintly seeping from its seven orifices.
He clutched his chest, staggered, and nearly fell from the clouds.
Two lines of bloody tears slowly flowed down his cheeks, a shocking sight. The murderous intent and anger in his heart had long since dissipated, leaving only deep fear and apprehension.
"Backlash of the soul..."
He managed to squeeze out a few words, his voice broken.
A mere thought from afar damaged his foundation.
Who exactly is the person who did this?
Could it be some reclusive old monster?
When did such a terrifying existence hide in Changning County, that abandoned and desolate land?
The swirling clouds concealed Luo Wen's disheveled figure, but could not hide the unease hanging over the Flowing Cloud Sect.
The wind picked up even more.