“The Xuanji Hall Master has been beheaded again?!”
When that black sword pierced through her head, splattering holy blood across the sky, Yujing City could hardly keep anyone calm.
Twice she had stepped forward, and twice Xuanji had been slain!
This was right after she took office as the new Hall Master of the Shengshen Hall, a time when she was full of ambition and vigor.
A new official starts with three fires…
The first one burned herself—well, that’s something.
The second one also backfired spectacularly—what’s next?
“I don’t believe it, I still can’t believe it…”
“The information is overwhelming! Is the Xuanji Hall Master really that weak, or is Xu Xiaoshou truly that strong?”
“She’s Dao Xuanji! The sister of the Dao Hall Master! How could she be slain twice in one day by Xu Xiaoshou—this guy’s supposed to be a Ban Sheng?”
“Hush! Brother, keep your voice down—speaking the saint’s name directly is a grave disrespect…”
“I don’t give a damn about respecting her! I’ve lived in Yujing City for over thirty years and seen all kinds of storms. The Shengshen Hall has never lost face as much in a single day as with Dao Xuanji!”
“If the Dao Hall Master were still around, would Xu Xiaoshou dare act so brazenly? Does Guizhe Shengshan really have no one to deal with him?”
“Ah…”
“Dao Qiong Cang! Dao Qiong Cang!”
“Damn, brother, you’re serious? Stop shouting…”
“Dao… mmph, let go of me! I can’t stand this bird of a Xuanji anymore!”
The city plunged into doubt and frenzy.
After all, at the foot of Guizhe Shengshan, supporters of the Shengshen Hall were the mainstream.
Meanwhile, Xu Xiaoshou, seen by the world as the villain, though unpopular, was now filled with delight.
“Awesome!”
High in the sky on the ghostly qi throne, after witnessing the four swords shatter the illusions and pierce through Dao Xuanji’s skull,
Xu Xiaoshou felt a surge of unbridled satisfaction, finally released in full.
This illusion sword technique was his first time using it on a Ban Sheng without being detected.
“Even the eight Zun An would have to praise it as ‘exquisitely perfect’!” Xu Xiaoshou exclaimed in utter bliss.
It was undeniable—this was another sneak attack.
In the end, Dao Xuanji had still underestimated him.
In a life-or-death Dao-seizing battle, it’s nothing like a formal arena with rules of chivalry.
That’s utter nonsense!
Xu Xiaoshou had already learned from Dao Qiong Cang just how hard it is to kill a Tianji sorcerer.
Dealing with someone like that, you either strike decisively and kill them outright,
Or it turns into a prolonged stalemate, and you’ll end up falling into their rhythm.
Who knows what twists or variables might arise, letting Dao Xuanji turn the tables—and then Xu Xiaoshou would be the one in trouble.
But with the four fierce swords piercing her body, all variables were erased.
Unless, of course, Dao Xuanji was some ancient sword cultivator…
“Absolutely impossible!”
Xu Xiaoshou could tell at a glance that this old witch knew nothing of ancient sword arts—not even a trace of innate sword intent on her.
Sword through the body means certain death!
He leaned back on the peak of the ghostly qi throne, surveying all directions with a commanding presence, like a king overlooking his domain, unbeatable by thousands.
Calculating the time…
Ever since Xu Xiaoshou awoke and returned, battling the various saints and gaining insights into the Dao seed to comprehend the essence of life and contract the ghost beast,
Yujing City had been plunged into darkness, day and night indistinguishable, and he had been blocking the gate for over a day.
This “over a day” was no short time!
At the foot of Guizhe Shengshan, right at the gates of Yujing City,
The Shengshen Hall was being blocked by the so-called “dark forces” leader for over a day, and the new Hall Master had been slain twice…
If word got out, it would be a massive joke!
Even back when the Seven Sword Immortals’ leader, You Tu, stormed Shengshan and beheaded the previous Hall Master, it wasn’t this outrageous.
At least back then, they could suppress the scandal.
But now, with everyone watching and rumors flying everywhere, it would surely spread through the five domains, becoming idle chatter in streets and alleys.
Xu Xiaoshou swept his gaze coldly over the scene.
Yujing City trembled in fear.
No one dared meet his eyes!
Those veteran Ban Shengs were all panic-stricken, never imagining Xu Xiaoshou would go this far!
Truly…
Youthful recklessness doesn’t get more extreme than this!
Even the eight Zun An never killed their way to Yujing’s doorstep—Xu Xiaoshou was basically defecating on Dao Xuanji’s head.
How else to describe this scene but with the word “ruthless”?
“After blocking for so long, Guizhe Shengshan’s best are really just Yu, Zhong, and Fang San Sheng.”
“That matches what I thought—either Dao Xuanji doesn’t have the people’s support, or all the key figures have entered the Zhanshen Guan site.”
“Shengshan is vulnerable… Tsk, the timing’s all wrong. Lao Sang should have come out of the site sooner—I could have taken him away today.”
“Now, do I even need his little gifts? What a loss, what a loss…”
Xu Xiaoshou stared coldly at the distant face, distorted under the fierce swords, and shook his head inwardly.
His sister is so weak, not even half as capable as his brother!
If it had been Dao Qiong Cang, Xu Xiaoshou didn’t believe he’d fall for such a shallow trick—he wouldn’t even defend against the San Yan Tong, let alone miss the illusion sword technique.
In terms of combat awareness, Dao Xuanji was far behind her brother.
At the critical moment, she couldn’t even pull off a Tianji 36 Styles!
He recalled the scene from Long Xing’s transmission, where that flashy old Daoist could unleash a storm of Tianji techniques with a single thought.
Just by glancing at the crowd, a dignified Ban Sheng was forced to self-destruct for survival.
Now that’s real pressure!
But Dao Xuanji?
She’s just a sister!
Xu Xiaoshou felt she lacked practical experience, and her combat awareness probably hadn’t reached the third realm.
Whether it had reached the second was even questionable.
Twice she’d been utterly crushed by him—this proved plenty of issues, from carelessness to capability.
But then again, how could he expect too much?
The Ten Zun Seats and the sister of the Ten Zun Seats are completely different titles.
Setting aside her brother Dao Qiong Cang’s glory, she had barely made it to the Three Emperors position, and only after Yan Wuse’s death.
Compared to an ordinary Ban Sheng like Jiang Buyi, she might have a slight edge.
But to compare her to the peak forces of the world is just too forced!
Xu Xiaoshou looked at Yu, Zhong, and Fang San Sheng, feeling that any one of them in actual combat could crush Dao Xuanji.
As for Ye Xiaotian and Mei Siyi, no need to even compare.
Some people are really only fit for the shadows, because they die in the light…
“I overestimated you.”
On the ghostly qi throne, Xu Xiaoshou gazed remotely at Dao Xuanji, writhing in agony under the fierce demonic qi, barely clinging to life.
A sneer curled at his lips as he mocked:
“I overestimated you by more than a glance!”
“I thought, with Dao Qiong Cang’s excellence as a standard, his sister couldn’t be that far off.”
“Who would’ve thought, after the jewel comes… well.”
Glancing at Yu Zhiwen below in Yujing City, Xu Xiaoshou held back the rest, deciding that post-battle taunts weren’t necessary.
It might demean the enemy and lower his own stature, so better to keep some decorum.
“You’re not bad.”
Xu Xiaoshou forced a smile, for Yu Zhiwen’s sake.
Dao Xuanji felt nothing from the insults, but at this praise, she spat out a mouthful of blood.
“Received glare, passive value +1.”
“Received lock-on, passive value +1.”
The golden holy blood sprayed across the sky, only to be ignited by white flames and drained by the hanging Long Xing branches.
Xu Xiaoshou was meticulous.
He wouldn’t make any mistakes—he couldn’t let Dao Xuanji survive in any way.
Since the enemy wasn’t as strong as he’d imagined, he relaxed, and his thoughts started racing.
“Dao Xuanji, I have a question…”
In Yujing City, Yu Zhiwen stared blankly at the sky, her eyes unfocused.
Last time, when Xu Xiaoshou beheaded her master, he opened the Long Rong Realm and covered her eyes.
Yu Zhiwen knew his intention.
It was probably to spare her the dilemma.
This time, Xu Xiaoshou beheaded her master right in front of her, without any concealment.
No need to say it—Yu Zhiwen knew his intention now…
The path had reached this point!
The struggle for the Great Dao would only intensify!
Since he’d already said, “See you once, slay you once,” Xu Xiaoshou and her master could no longer coexist.
Facing reality, facing her stance—that’s what she needed to do.
Others couldn’t understand forever, and she didn’t need to keep deceiving herself.
“Master…”
Yu Zhiwen gazed dumbly at that figure in the sky.
The figure drenched in frenzied demonic qi, with holy blood dripping down.
Tears shimmered in her eyes. No matter how much she disliked her master’s temperament or the immense pressure it brought… in the end, she was still her master!
She had raised Yu Zhiwen from childhood, taught her Tianji techniques, and guided her life’s direction.
But… could she blame Xu Xiaoshou for that?
Under heavy pressure, extremes are born!
Dao Xuanji failed to mold Yu Zhiwen into someone as heartless as herself; instead, her disciple went to the opposite extreme.
Yu Zhiwen’s empathy was too strong.
Just by looking at her master’s current misery, she could feel the pain Xu Xiaoshou had endured that day in the Eight Palaces!
One pierced by swords, the other by arrows.
One infected with fierce demonic qi, the other with evil sin power.
In the end, both masters were helpless, at the mercy of others.
Lao Sang was also Xu Xiaoshou’s master!
To reach this step, how much effort had Xu Xiaoshou put in? It was plain for all to see…
“The struggle for the Great Dao…”
The Dao Hall Master, her master, Yu Grandpa, and all the seniors in the Dao Department—they could say a thousand things, but Yu Zhiwen felt it was all so distant.
Only now, experiencing it firsthand, did she understand why everyone said, “The Great Dao’s struggle is brutal, and Dao-seizing battles are bloody.”
Different stances, each on their own path, guarding their own…
Anyone who succeeds must be forged in storms of blood, not coddled in a greenhouse!
Yu Zhiwen had been protected too well.
Her life was all tests and training.
From Dongtian Wangcheng to Yunlun Mountains, from Sixiang Secret Realm to Qingyuan Mountains…
Even after taking on an important role and becoming the Dao Department’s head, feeling independent and grown,
Everything she did was arranged by the Dao Hall Master, avoiding the front lines and shielding her from major shocks.
Just setting up an array in Qingyuan Mountains, with unclear purpose and use, and later finding out it might not have needed her at all—just to give her a sense of involvement…
How could that cause any real shock?
Now, with the umbrella of protection gone, the Dao Hall Master departed, Yu Zhiwen had to face this bloody world head-on.
The undeniable shocks repeatedly shattered her psychological defenses, with no one to cover her eyes or block the blows.
Thus, the floodwaters dammed up for half a lifetime burst forth, devastating everything in their path.
Like a rootless duckweed, she was instantly tossed and torn apart.
Drowning, suffocation, oppression, collapse… all emotions, a mix of flavors, surged in.
Yu Zhiwen’s vision blurred, and she staggered, nearly collapsing.
“What’s wrong?”
Yu Lao appeared in a flash, steadying his great-granddaughter, and upon glancing back at the sky where Dao Xuanji and Xu Xiaoshou faced off, he vaguely understood.
“Don’t cry, don’t cry…”
The old man was at a loss, but the tears in his great-granddaughter’s eyes fell like broken pearls, wiped away only to fall again.
“I’m not crying!”
Yu Lao panicked at her words and quickly said:
“Xu Xiaoshou isn’t a good person, and your master isn’t exactly a saint either. Let them sort out their own mess.”
“You’re young—thinking too much and worrying too much will only hurt you. Their sins aren’t yours, their mistakes aren’t your fault.”
“The elders’ business is for the elders to handle…”
“Xu Xiaoshou isn’t much older than me!” Yu Zhiwen choked out, only daring to let her emotions run wild in front of her true family.
“Uh…”
Yu Lao was momentarily speechless.
He just remembered—Xu Xiaoshou wasn’t human.
While peers were still struggling with mental hurdles, this guy was already slaying Ban Shengs.
“Anyway, they’re both no good—staying away from Shengshan and them is the right choice. Afterward, Yu Grandpa will take you somewhere else to play, far from the continent.” Yu Lao’s thoughts shifted.
Yu Zhiwen wiped her tears but said nothing.
“How about it?” Yu Lao forced a smile.
“No.”
“Oh dear, you…”
To stay away?
Yu Zhiwen’s mind went blank.
She suddenly realized that with the Dao Hall Master gone, Yu Grandpa and her master were still there…
As long as she remained in their sight, she could never grow, let alone catch up to Xu Xiaoshou.
Only by truly disappearing, truly staying away…
“Okay.”
With that thought, Yu Zhiwen changed her answer.
Yu Lao was overjoyed.
He had no idea what was going through his great-granddaughter’s mind and just laughed heartily:
“Good that you’ve seen through it. Xu Xiaoshou and the Xuanji Hall Master have too many entanglements—you mustn’t get involved. I’m so glad you’ve figured this out, Yu Grandpa is thrilled…”
“What entanglements?” Zhuji Xing Tong trembled, and Yu Zhiwen paused, her hand stopping as she turned her head.
“Uh, uh, uh…”
Yu Lao shuddered, his eyes darting around three times, then he looked up and quickly pointed:
“Oh? Little Yu, look—Xu Xiaoshou has pulled out a person!”
In the high sky,
Facing the dying Dao Xuanji, Xu Xiaoshou had no intention of letting her go.
Before killing her last time, he had learned about the Dao siblings’ physical structure.
This time, he wanted to ask a question in front of the person involved.
“Long Xing!”
Without even lifting his head, he issued the command.
The space around the ghostly qi throne rippled, and in Xu Xiaoshou’s arms appeared a delicate figure.
It was a woman in a black skirt, with silver-white hair cascading over her shoulders, eyes tightly shut, lips pale—she was clearly unconscious.
“Dao Xuanji, you should know…”
“I have a junior sister.”
Xu Xiaoshou held the person in his arms, his face expressionless as he stood up from the ghostly qi throne and stepped forward firmly.
As he walked, a life Dao wheel unfolded beneath his feet, forming a life essence array diagram.
The void trembled, and everyone felt as if bathed in spring rain, with vibrant life force surging around.
Yet, that endless vitality converged wildly, unconsciously absorbed by the figure in Xu Xiaoshou’s arms.
The whole world fell silent.
Everyone sensed something was off and just watched respectfully, not daring to move.
In the quiet skies above Yujing City, only Xu Xiaoshou’s voice echoed slowly:
“Her name is Mu Zixi.”
“Of course, you might have heard—she has another name… Lei Xier.”
Presenting a long-lost Lei clan member right in front of Dao Xuanji,
At that moment, those below in Yujing City were still processing it, while the saints above felt a chill run down their spines, sensing disaster looming.
Fang Wenxin’s pupils dilated—he hadn’t been out for ages but knew about this.
Zhong Yuanzi stared wide-eyed—even this scholar had heard whispers of it.
Mei Siyi and Ye Xiaotian both took a deep breath, exchanging silent glances, knowing Yujing City wouldn’t calm down today.
The latter felt it even more deeply!
In Ye Xiaotian’s memory, Xu Xiaoshou and Mu Zixi, that pair of junior siblings, were still bustling around the Tiansang Spiritual Palace’s spiritual repository.
Racing around all day, blowing up furnaces nonstop, causing chaos endlessly.
Who could’ve thought…
In the blink of an eye, those two troublemakers from the palace had made their way to Yujing City’s skies!
And right to the face of the person involved, Dao Xuanji!
Back then, they were young and full of humiliation.
Now, returning, they vowed to wash away the shame.
“I have a very important, very serious question—for you to answer before you die.”
Xu Xiaoshou showed no sorrow or joy, cradling the gradually reviving Lei Xier in his arms as he approached Dao Xuanji.
“The Ultimate Life Demonic Body?!”
Dao Xuanji seemed to have a final burst of energy; her eyes flashed with light amid the surging demonic qi, recognizing in her hazy consciousness this deeply etched memory—the Ultimate Life Demonic Body!
“Ah, this…”
Below, Yu Lao pointed to the sky, suddenly wishing he hadn’t changed the topic.
The Ultimate Life Demonic Body?
Everyone was stunned!
“Dear little Yu, how about Yu Grandpa takes you to Nanming for fun?” Yu Lao hurriedly grabbed his great-granddaughter’s hand, trying to escape the storm’s center.
He couldn’t pull her away on the first try.
Not on the second either.
“Come on, this place isn’t safe!” Yu Lao grew anxious.
“I’m not leaving.”
Yu Zhiwen’s tone was flat but firm.
It was as if her feet had rooted into the ground, her body trembling slightly.
Zhuji Xing Tong quivered as she looked over, and in her mind flashed the heart-wrenching question from the Tianren Wushuai on Qingyuan Mountain.
“The sinner…”
“Who is the sinner?”
Yujing City wouldn’t calm down.
[22 seconds from now] Chapter 1548: Sang Lao's Cunning Scheme Departs, Storm Quietly Brews in the Forest
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