Chapter 154: Story of the Gouchen Demon Blade

Gu Mo followed Zhuo Qingfeng out of the city. Under Zhuo Qingfeng's guidance, they walked further and further, eventually arriving at a remote, desolate mountain.

If an ordinary person had led the way like this, Gu Mo would have suspected foul play. However, since it was Zhuo Qingfeng leading, despite the increasingly secluded path, Gu Mo felt no suspicion at all.

Desolate weeds grew everywhere. As they reached the mountainside, a dilapidated ancient temple came into view. Its gates were ajar, the plaque above them hung precariously, and the characters were faded and illegible.

Zhuo Qingfeng, Gu Mo, and Gu Chudong stepped into the temple.

Inside, the temple was in ruins. The Buddha statue was missing an arm, and its gilded surface was peeling.

A thin, elderly monk in a coarse monastic robe was meticulously wiping the Buddha statue with a rag. The floor was swept spotlessly clean, a stark contrast to the surrounding decay.

The old monk had an ordinary appearance, with clear eyes and brows, and deep wrinkles etched onto his face, yet he exuded a sense of peace. Had one not known his identity, no one would have guessed he was Master Ding Chan, Qingzhou's foremost martial artist.

Gu Mo couldn't see him, but he could sense him.

However, when Gu Mo's perceptive consciousness tried to pinpoint Master Ding Chan, he was slightly startled. He found he couldn't lock onto him; in his perception, Master Ding Chan was as ethereal as a wisp of smoke, yet as still and peaceful as stagnant water.

He had previously met Qi Tianshu, the sect leader of the Canglan Sword Sect, a martial arts master at the same level as Master Ding Chan.

But the feeling was entirely different.

Qi Tianshu felt like a sword, a divine blade constantly displaying its sharpness.

Master Ding Chan, however, was different. He felt like an ordinary person, yet not ordinary at all—an elusive, profound sensation.

This didn't indicate who was stronger, Qi Tianshu or Master Ding Chan, but rather that they pursued different paths. Qi Tianshu focused on the true essence of martial arts, honing his will and spirit to their peak. Master Ding Chan, on the other hand, followed the most traditional route, prioritizing internal energy with techniques as secondary.

More simply put, he was a master of internal energy.

For a moment, Gu Mo felt a surge of joyful excitement. After spending so much time in the martial world, this was the first person he had encountered whose internal energy had reached such a profound level.

Master Ding Chan slowly turned around, pressed his palms together, and bowed to Gu Mo and Gu Chudong, saying, "Hero Gu, Heroine Gu."

Gu Mo cupped his hands and replied, "Master."

Gu Chudong also cupped her hands in return.

Zhuo Qingfeng, being familiar with Master Ding Chan, chuckled and joked, "Master, you're in fine spirits. Even this dilapidated temple in the wilderness is swept so clean."

Master Ding Chan replied, "My enlightenment is insufficient. Though I have practiced Buddhism for decades, I still cannot see through the illusions of the mortal world. I always feel that a temple, a pure land, should be spotless, so I can't help but clean. Yet, perhaps in the eyes of a Bodhisattva, whether covered in dust or spotlessly clean, all is the mundane world, and all is pure land. It is merely we ordinary monks who cannot see through it!"

Zhuo Qingfeng laughed, "Master, your understanding is already very profound. Anyway, I am not a monk, so I can't discuss scriptures with you. I've brought Hero Gu for you; please say whatever you wish to say."

Master Ding Chan looked at Gu Mo, smiled slightly, and said, "It appears I was too attached to superficial appearances. I had heard much about a grandmaster of internal energy, barely past his youth, emerging from Yunzhou, but I always harbored doubts. Only upon meeting Hero Gu today do I realize how narrow-minded I was. There truly is a grandmaster of internal energy of such a young age in this world."

It was no wonder Master Ding Chan had been skeptical. Most people in the martial world who hadn't personally met Gu Mo were largely doubtful about him being a grandmaster of internal energy.

After all, it was common knowledge that the path of internal energy required the most time and effort to cultivate, and such grandmasters were the rarest among all martial arts grandmasters.

While most grandmasters had formidable internal energy, very few attained their status solely through internal energy. Generally, internal energy served as a supplement, with the true essence of their chosen martial art being paramount.

Even Qi Tianshu, known in the martial world as the 'Seventh in Qian,' did not possess internal energy profound enough to be called a grandmaster's. His strength lay in the true essence of his swordsmanship, and it was through his swordsmanship that he became a grandmaster of the land.

Gu Mo cupped his hands and said, "Master, the profundity of your internal energy is truly unlike anything I've ever witnessed in my life, and it is not inferior to my own."

Master Ding Chan gently shook his head and said, "This humble monk is certainly not comparable to Hero Gu. I am eighty-two years old this year and began cultivating inner qi at the age of seven, meaning I have seventy-five years of cultivation, purely refined by time. How can I compare to Hero Gu's soaring talent? This humble monk can predict that within five years, Hero Gu will be able to contend for the title of the world's greatest. I only wonder if I will be fortunate enough to witness that day!"

Gu Mo replied, "It's too early to speak of me contending for the world's greatest title. However, Master, why do you say you might not live to see five years from now? With the profoundness of your internal energy, you should remain hale and hearty even in another two decades. Could it be that you harbor some hidden ailment?"

Normally, internal energy cannot extend one's lifespan, but there are always exceptions. Many Buddhist and Daoist internal cultivation methods are balanced and peaceful, nurturing the body and mind. The deeper one's internal energy becomes with age, the better its nourishing effect on the body, leading to a life free of illness and generally a very long lifespan.

Furthermore, given the profoundness of Master Ding Chan's internal energy, it would be quite normal for him to live to be over a hundred years old, unless he had a hidden ailment.

Master Ding Chan sighed softly and said, "This humble monk has no hidden ailments. However, recently I have occasionally perceived heavenly destiny, and a great tribulation is approaching. I have a premonition that I am very likely to not survive this tribulation."

Zhuo Qingfeng exclaimed in surprise, "You can predict this? A tribulation? Master, you're a monk, not a street fortune-teller. Why are you speaking so mysteriously?"

Master Ding Chan smiled faintly and said, "Centurion Zhuo, this humble monk is a monastic and does not speak falsehoods. You may ask Hero Gu if what I say is untrue."

Zhuo Qingfeng looked at Gu Mo incredulously and asked, "Brother Gu, can profound internal energy truly reach such a level?"

Gu Mo nodded slightly and said, "As the saying goes, 'cicadas sense the autumn wind before it stirs, and treachery strikes unaware.' This is the same principle. In the cultivation of internal energy, regardless of the specific method, all paths ultimately lead to the same destination: the pursuit of unity between heaven and man. Therefore, those with profound internal energy truly can have premonitions at certain moments."

Zhuo Qingfeng asked in surprise, "You've had premonitions too?"

Gu Mo nodded slightly again and said, "After the battle at Fengming Ford last year, I had initially planned to rest there for the night. However, I felt an inexplicable unease and decided to follow the various sects to Qiandeng Town.

As expected, the Demonic Sect launched a surprise attack. If I hadn't left with the other sects that day, it would have meant facing the Demonic Sect's ambush alone, and Fengming Ford's environment was particularly suitable for such an ambush.

Later, in Luoying Valley, when I fought against Ju Shanyin and he used his Thousand Mechanisms Box to launch a sneak attack, I had also had a premonition beforehand and struck first."

Zhuo Qingfeng exclaimed in surprise, "That's incredible! Doesn't that make you invincible?"

Gu Mo smiled faintly.

Master Ding Chan interjected, "Centurion Zhuo, masters of internal energy are still human, not divine. They merely possess a few more premonitions than ordinary people; it is not true foresight."

Zhuo Qingfeng nodded and said, "Then... Master Ding Chan, since you know a tribulation is approaching, why not hide?"

Master Ding Chan said, "In this life, whether one is a martial arts master, an ordinary person, or a high-ranking official or royal noble, everyone is, in truth, undergoing cultivation. Epidemics, love, hate, and separation are all tribulations. A minor tribulation might be stumbling and falling when leaving the house, while a major one might be a war that destroys a nation. Hiding at home might lead to enemies seeking you out, and wandering the world might bring danger in foreign lands—all are tribulations. Since it is a tribulation, it cannot be avoided; one can only face it and see if they can overcome it."

Zhuo Qingfeng chuckled and said, "Mysterious as ever, Master. Please, tell us the story of the Gouchen Demonic Blade. You invited Hero Gu here not to speak of cultivation."

Master Ding Chan nodded slightly and slowly said, "Hero Gu, I wonder if you have heard of the Nine Righteous Ones of Qingzhou?"

Gu Mo nodded, "I have heard of them. Master, you are Gu Huatong, the third among the Nine Righteous Ones."

"Indeed," Master Ding Chan affirmed.

Master Ding Chan nodded and continued, "Forty years ago, the nine of us, drawn together by shared aspirations, became sworn brothers. At that time, even our youngest, Qi Miaoxuan, was already a renowned martial hero in Qingzhou.

Naturally, when the nine of us gathered, our fame rapidly soared, overshadowing even the Rongshan Sect, which was then the leading school. Our eldest brother, Lu Canyang, the master of Righteous Qi Villa, was, by virtue of this momentum, directly honored by the martial world as a new grandmaster. We, the Nine Righteous Ones of Qingzhou, were seen as paragons of the righteous path, keeping the Rongshan Sect suppressed. At that time, each of us was full of youthful vigor and ambition.

Coincidentally, a major event occurred in Qingzhou around that time. A strange beast emerged from the depths of Broken Soul Cliff – a mythical fire qilin, which brought harm to humanity, leaving death and destruction in its wake, with not a blade of grass growing wherever it passed. After several failed attempts by the authorities to suppress it, many people sought help from us, the Nine Righteous Ones of Qingzhou. Believing ourselves to be the foremost figures of the righteous martial path, we naturally set out without hesitation to slay the demon. However, little did we know then that this very expedition would mark the beginning of the end for the Nine Righteous Ones of Qingzhou."

Zhuo Qingfeng said gravely, "Master, I've heard this story before. Was it truly a qilin?"

Gu Mo and Gu Chudong were also very curious.

Master Ding Chan remained silent for a moment, then said, "To be honest, this humble monk does not know if there truly was a qilin."

Zhuo Qingfeng asked doubtfully, "But wasn't it a qilin that you besieged? Rumor has it you even obtained the qilin's secret treasure, and wasn't Righteous Qi Villa destroyed because of it?"

Master Ding Chan gently shook his head and said, "We besieged a person, a person who had fallen into depravity. It was a person covered in flames and scales. He moved like a beast, crawling on the ground, and because his entire body was engulfed in flames and his hands and feet bore scales, people mistakenly spread rumors that he was a qilin."

Gu Chudong quickly interjected, "Then isn't it obvious? It was a person putting on a show. Why do you say you don't know if there was a qilin?"

Master Ding Chan slightly closed his eyes and said, "Because the qilin was false, but the qilin's secret treasure was real."

For a moment, all of them were puzzled.

Gu Chudong asked, "You don't know if the qilin was real, but its secret treasure is? Master, how does that not sound contradictory?"

Master Ding Chan nodded, saying, "It does sound somewhat contradictory, but it isn't, truly.

Back then, the nine of us went to Broken Soul Cliff to besiege the fire qilin. We staked out the area for seven days and seven nights until we finally found the fire qilin in a mountain cave, and a great battle ensued. That battle was the most coordinated and peak performance we, the Nine Righteous Ones of Qingzhou, had fought since becoming sworn brothers. Yet, we never imagined it would be our final, swansong battle."

After a moment of melancholy reflection, Master Ding Chan continued, "We successfully defeated the fire qilin. Our ninth brother, Qi Miaoxuan, used an Ice Soul to suppress the flames on its body.

To our shock, we discovered that the fire qilin was not a beast at all, but a person hidden within the raging flames. However, this person was delirious and extremely violent, covered in peculiar, never-before-seen scales.

Even to this day, I do not know that person's name. I only remember that as he died, his mind cleared for a brief moment. He revealed a smile of relief, as if finally unburdened, and uttered only one sentence before his last breath."

At this point, Master Ding Chan sighed softly, his gaze filled with complex emotions—regret, reminiscence, and perhaps internal struggle.

"What did he say?" Zhuo Qingfeng quickly pressed.

Master Ding Chan slowly replied, "He said, 'This is a curse that will not stop, it will never stop. You are next!'"

Master Ding Chan took a deep breath and continued, "After speaking, the person died, and his body burst into raging flames, quickly turning into a pile of ashes.

Among the ashes, we found two items: a palm-sized golden scale, almost transparent, appearing as if crafted from pure gold. Its surface was covered in intricate, delicate patterns, resembling runes, very complex.

Besides that, there was a thumb-sized drop of blood. This drop of blood was even stranger; though it was clearly blood, it remained coalesced, refusing to disperse, like a soft, blood-red amber with a wisp of flame perpetually burning within it.

Both the scale and the drop of blood were permeated with a unique power, so violent that one could feel its ferocity simply by looking at them.

In truth, we were all a little scared at the time, as the mysterious person's dying words had cast a shadow over our hearts. However, the scale and the drop of blood were so extraordinary that we all concluded they were undoubtedly invaluable treasures.

Driven by greed, we took the scale and the blood. Afterward, we named the scale "Qilin Armor" and the drop of blood "Qilin Sacred Blood." Upon returning to Righteous Qi Villa, we eagerly began to study them, unaware that from that moment on, the curse had already descended."

Zhuo Qingfeng's pupils constricted slightly. "You figured out how to use those two items, didn't you?"

"Yes," Master Ding Chan affirmed.

Master Ding Chan explained, "Our eldest brother, Lu Canyang, was a master blacksmith. Our sixth brother, Tie Zhu, was exceptionally gifted and deeply obsessed with weapon forging. Eldest brother had already taught him his forging scriptures when we became sworn brothers. By the time we acquired the Qilin Armor, Tie Zhu's forging skills had already surpassed our eldest brother's, making him a grandmaster of forging in his own right.

After much deliberation, Tie Zhu, by some unknown method, managed to grind the incredibly hard, fire- and water-resistant Qilin Armor into particles, each imbued with immense power.

Tie Zhu believed the Qilin Armor was the most suitable material in the world for forging weapons. He was convinced he could use it to create the world's most divine weapon, a true divine artifact. For this, we committed our first great mistake in life.

We all became consumed by greed, enchanted by Tie Zhu's vision of the ultimate divine weapon, and thus, we went astray. We began to secretly rob others of their divine weapons and sharp blades, causing much bloodshed and chaos. On the surface, we were the righteous Nine of Qingzhou, but in reality, we were nine villains who burned, killed, and plundered.

Finally, we gathered all the materials needed to forge the divine weapon: a total of one hundred and twenty-eight renowned divine weapons from the martial world. We melted them down one by one, then combined them with fragments of the Qilin Armor to form the Gouchen Demonic Blade!"

At this point, Master Ding Chan looked at Gu Mo and said, "Hero Gu, I wonder if you noticed or counted that the Gouchen Demonic Blade is composed of one hundred and twenty-eight irregular, scale-like pieces."

Gu Mo replied, "I didn't count, but the blade certainly appears to be pieced together from countless irregular black scales."

Master Ding Chan explained, "Those are the one hundred and twenty-eight renowned divine weapons from the martial world, melted down and forged. The reason there are one hundred and twenty-eight pieces is because the Qilin Armor yielded exactly one hundred and twenty-eight particles when ground."

Gu Mo nodded slightly.

Master Ding Chan continued, "Afterward, Tie Zhu, by some unknown method, melted the one hundred and twenty-eight Qilin Armor particles into a liquid, then dripped it onto each of the blade's scales. Originally, they were just one hundred and twenty-eight iron pieces, but after absorbing the liquid, all of them transformed into scales.

We were all overjoyed, thinking the divine weapon was complete. However, Tie Zhu told us that it was merely an ordinary, sharp blade, not a true divine weapon. To become a true divine weapon, it needed to be imbued with a soul.

He told us there were two methods. The first was sacrifice: killing a large number of people, preferably those with strong mental and spiritual wills, meaning martial arts masters. However, he wasn't sure of the exact number needed; it could be many or few.

The second method was to nurture it slowly. The divine weapon would gradually develop a soul on its own, but this would require a very long time and serendipitous chances—perhaps ten or eight years, perhaps thirty to fifty years, or even three to five hundred years; it was hard to say."

Gu Chudong asked, "So, what did you choose?"

Master Ding Chan replied, "We all chose the second method. Because, in order to forge the Gouchen Blade, we had already committed great evil by robbing so many weapons, causing widespread turmoil. To kill more people, we simply couldn't bring ourselves to do it. So, we left it to fate and decided to nurture it slowly.

However, we overlooked our eldest brother Lu Canyang's ambition, or perhaps, we forgot about the curse. We entrusted the Gouchen Blade to our eldest brother, Lu Canyang, whom we all respected and trusted.

Not long after that, martial arts masters began to be assassinated one after another throughout the jianghu. At first, we didn't pay much attention, as people die in the jianghu every day. But as the number of deaths increased, we finally realized something was amiss and went to confront our eldest brother.

But we never imagined that our eldest brother had already succumbed to depravity. By the time we arrived, he had actually massacred everyone in Righteous Qi Villa; not a single member of his family, old or young, survived. After we arrived, he directly attacked us as well.

He would not allow anyone to stop him from creating the world's most divine weapon, nor would he let us prevent him from becoming the world's greatest. He ruthlessly attacked us, disregarding our bond of brotherhood. Eldest brother had completely fallen into depravity; his mind had been corrupted by the Gouchen Demonic Blade.

That night, blood flowed like rivers. Second, Fourth, and Eighth brothers were killed, and the remaining five of us were all severely wounded, nearly killed. Fortunately, at the last moment, Tie Zhu found an opportunity to activate the contingency he had left on the Gouchen Blade. The blade's demonic energy backfired, piercing eldest brother's Shaoshang acupoint on his thumb and directly entering his heart meridians. Ninth brother's Ice Soul also helped eldest brother regain consciousness at a critical moment.

Finally, our eldest brother regained consciousness, saw the scene before him, and immediately went mad. He embraced the demonic blade and leaped into the forging furnace. Righteous Qi Villa's forging furnace connected to underground magma, so we had no way to investigate. From then on, the Gouchen Demonic Blade vanished along with our eldest brother."

Gu Mo asked doubtfully, "But the Gouchen Demonic Blade reappeared."

Master Ding Chan said, "That night, our eldest brother Lu Canyang, second brother Duan Changmei, fourth brother Chen Tong, and eighth brother Wang Dingtao all died. After the infighting, only five of the Nine Righteous Ones of Qingzhou remained. For a time, everyone was disheartened, and we disbanded.

I could never let it go. If we hadn't succumbed to greed in the first place, how could there have been so much bloodshed in the martial world afterward, and how could we have turned on each other? Thus, I shaved my head and entered the monastic life.

Fifth brother Yan Xianmei founded the Xuan Nü Palace, teaching and imparting knowledge. Sixth brother Tie Zhu retired from then on, no longer involving himself in worldly affairs. Ninth brother Qi Miaoxuan traveled the world, offering medical aid, and later earned the title of Medicine Saint. Seventh brother Bai Ying, disheartened, roamed the jianghu.

But that was merely the apparent outcome.

Sixth brother Tie Zhu was obsessed with forging; it was impossible for him to let go of the Gouchen Demonic Blade. He secretly hid in Righteous Qi Villa, creating ghost rumors that kept people away, and managed to retrieve the Gouchen Blade from the underground magma. He then secretly took it away and went into hiding, never giving up on nurturing the divine weapon.

As for fifth brother, after founding the Xuan Nü Palace, his ambition gradually grew. He provoked one martial arts conflict after another, eventually succeeding in replacing the Rongshan Sect and becoming one of the new Three Sects and Four Factions.

Seventh brother Bai Ying, however, fell into the demonic path, committing all manner of evil, burning, killing, and plundering. He was eventually hunted by the entire martial world and captured by fifth brother Yan Xianmei. Fifth brother, out of consideration for their sworn brotherhood, publicly crippled seventh brother's martial arts, but in reality, he saved his life. Yet, in the end, those who commit many wrongs will perish by their own hand, and seventh brother died beneath the Gouchen Demonic Blade."

Only ninth brother Qi Miaoxuan remained unchanged—no, that's not entirely accurate. He continued to offer medical aid, but his personality became eccentric; even in his fifties, he acted like a child. Now, in his twilight years, he has unexpectedly met with disaster."

Master Ding Chan's expression was one of profound melancholy.

After listening to Master Ding Chan, Gu Mo asked, "Then, Master, did you invite me here today merely to tell a story?"

Master Ding Chan replied, "This humble monk heard that the Gouchen Demonic Blade is now in your hands, Hero Gu, and I feel some concern, for this blade is inauspicious."

"Are you advising me to abandon this blade, Master?"

Master Ding Chan shook his head. "No. While this blade is inauspicious, it is also an unparalleled treasure of the martial world. It is most suitable in Hero Gu's hands; if it were to fall into the possession of an ambitious individual, it would surely bring widespread destruction.

However, this blade is extremely violent. This humble monk once obtained an ancient Buddha relic from the Great Bright Temple in Chu. It has been nourished by Buddhist light for a thousand years. For ordinary people, wearing it can ensure a lifetime free from illness and calamity. For martial artists, it can make cultivation twice as effective with half the effort. But its greatest function is to ward off evil and suppress demons. I wish to bestow this relic upon Hero Gu, to help you suppress the demonic blade's malevolent nature!"