Dao Equaling the Heavens
Chapter 158 - 125: Billions of Spiritual Swords Chiming in Unison, Ascending to the Top Three of the Earthly Ranking

Chapter 158: Chapter 125: Billions of Spiritual Swords Chiming in Unison, Ascending to the Top Three of the Earthly Ranking

Chi Yu Zi and Jun Yan found themselves caught in the middle, suddenly snapping back to reality. To their left stood the majestic Taoist Heavenly Girl, Qingcang, and to their right stood Gu Wen, attempting to overpower numerous talents on his own.

They realized they might have a slight problem, but these two were clearly the biggest issues.

The Sanqing Taoist Sect was under universal condemnation, partly due to the fear of an Immortal who could freely traverse heaven and earth reemerging, and even more so for the sake of becoming an Immortal through the Immortality Pill. Now, with the Sanqing Taoist Sect blockaded at its own gates, it is likely that True Monarchs and Venerables involved occupy a large portion of the Cultivation World.

Enticed by the prospect of becoming an Immortal, all past relationships could be cast aside, as was evident when a Venerable from the Liuyun Sect demanded their due directly.

The Immortal Land should have been in a similar plight to that of the Daoist Sects, with Yu Hua and Gu Wen cautiously navigating the encirclement and interception by various forces. Yet, the reality was the opposite.

Boom!!!!

A thunderous sound rippled through the sky, an explosive torrent of wind sweeping down like monstrous waves, as the colossal dharma form of the Goddess shattered and descended slowly from the heavens, her body hundreds of feet tall, falling like upside-down mountains.

Gu Wen, shedding his usual calm demeanor, stood with a top-grade spiritual sword in hand, blocking the necessary path for all to leave.

"Brother Hongchen, why go to such lengths?"

Xu Liyan was the most astute. He was the first to flatter Gu Wen and also the first to make trouble.

He was also the most cunning, understanding calculations and operations better than the straightforward Sword Cultivators around him. Facing Xu Liyan, Gu Wen felt a sense of meeting his match at Dragon Bridge.

Slick and seasoned, every move reeked of opportunism.

He continued, "If you want back your spiritual sword, just say the word. I can’t use so many, so I only ask that Brother Hongchen doesn’t hold it against me."

With these words, the expressions of those around subtly shifted, indicating a change in public opinion.

In an instant, Gu Wen appeared to transform from a man of his word, a gentleman, into a double-dealer, a villain.

Immortal cultivators are human after all, where there’s a group, there’s public opinion, sociality unavoidably invites commentary, and one is influenced by unspoken rules arising from group differences.

But the distinction between altruism and self-interest is universal, as this classification can well protect oneself.

Walk comfortably with the altruistic, cautiously with the selfish; praise the former, denigrate the latter, then become a self-seeker. Afterward, bind them with the virtues of a gentleman, hence the saying that a gentleman can be deceived with propriety.

This is the behavior of most mediocrities and also a survival tactic.

If everyone were as rebellious as Chi Yu Zi and the others, there would be no semblance of order, especially since they lacked the strength to break the rules.

At this moment, Gu Wen seemed to face a dilemma; accepting the sword would lose people’s trust, but he couldn’t just kill them either.

Seeing Gu Wen speechless, Xu Liyan’s smile grew wider. He stepped across the traces of the True Sword Dao, "Brother Hongchen, you were forced into this, but we’re merely disciples of sects. Matters of the True Monarchs and Venerables shouldn’t involve us."

"How about this, we’ll return half the spiritual swords, after all, we were the ones who first asked for our treasures back."

He wasn’t foolish; he knew to give Gu Wen an out, else a total fallout would serve no one good. Now, with both Chi Yu Zi and Jun Yan standing with Gu Wen, they stood no chance in a conflict.

Gu Wen quietly waited for his performance to end, holding the remnants of the Immortal Sword, feeling as if he was watching a play from beneath the stage. Xu Liyan’s knack for intrigue reminded him of his former self.

The only difference was his compulsion, whereas Xu Liyan seemed to find enjoyment in the act.

People are diverse; today is not yesterday.

Gu Wen spoke indifferently, "Kneel, or die."

Now he was no longer the merchant of Dragon Bridge, nor someone who could only rely on scheming. Xu Liyan had the talents and background for cultivation, yet he squandered this power to transcend the mundane.

He was what Gu Wen had once longed for, but became the very sort of person Gu Wen found most contemptible.

Hence, Gu Wen was quite disgusted.

Xu Liyan was stunned, and before he could speak, the sharpness in the air tensed his body, with sweat breaking out and soaking his chest and armpits.

In front of him, Gu Wen’s figure seemed to stretch infinitely, as if the dome of the sky was his head, and the mountains his shoulders, his body like a pillar of heaven.

As their Sword Dao auras made contact, Xu Liyan was like a mayfly witnessing the bright sun and blue sky, hearing the words once spoken by Gu Wen.

If you master the True Sword Dao, even just halfway, you’ll see me as clear as the bright sun and blue sky.

If I were a Swordman, the sight of him would also be like bright sunlight.

"Ancestor, save me!!!!"

Xu Liyan chose not to defend the dignity of the Sword Cultivator or the heart of the Sword Dao but instead looked up and bellowed with all his might, his voice becoming a surge that shot into the sky.

Above the torn sky by the colossal Qingcang, a True Monarch instinctively glanced down, only for Yu Hua to notice in that instant.

With a single gesture to the sky, the True Monarch perished on the spot.

And Gu Wen swung his first sword, evolving the True Sword Dao into the Buddha, Tao, and Demon Sword, but with a plain and unadorned sword technique, only possessing extreme sword light.

No cunning, no trickery, simply an unsparing sword.

A good sword cuts through all, and one that can sever anything is an unparalleled sword.

Clang!

A sword swung out, a person cleaved in twain, blood staining the scene.

The crowd was stunned, not expecting Xu Liyan to perish so easily, with almost no capacity for resistance.

Xu Liyan’s Dao Foundation was at the Third Level of the Fifth Layer, the same perfection as Gu Wen’s Fourth Level. But those of the same level no longer had the right to stand before Gu Wen.

To be peerless within one’s class is logical; to kill above one’s class is the norm.