Chapter 363: Chapter 363: Mechanics and Values Coexist

Lü Yang sped through the Southern Border, his qi trace manifesting as a magnificent Sword Light that locked directly onto the Ten Thousand Poison Sect’s gates in the direction of the Insect Hive.

The two Perfected Persons from the Ten Thousand Poison Sect followed closely behind him.

“This man… is really courting death!”

Master Long Wu sneered. “If he weren’t a disciple of the Sword Pavilion, if he were some Loose Cultivator acting this brazenly in my Southern Border, I would have Refined him into a Human Gu long ago!”

Master Hui Gu, however, shook his head. “It’s normal for a disciple of a major sect who has just reached Foundation Establishment to be arrogant. In fact, the more arrogant he is, the better for us. I was worried about how to lure him deeper into the Southern Border, but now he’s doing it on his own. Saves us the trouble.”

“You’re right, senior brother.”

Master Long Wu scoffed. “After we trap him, we have to make him suffer a bit. Teach him a lesson that there’s always a bigger fish in the sea!”

Before long, Lü Yang had ventured deep into the Southern Border.

Looking back, the Sword Pavilion had vanished beyond the horizon. All he could see were dense mountains and forests, with a sinister miasma beginning to drift across the sky.

The next second, a sharp cry suddenly rang out.

“SCREECH!”

Following the cry, a creature with a dragon’s head and a centipede’s body crawled out from the clouds. Its colossal form stretched for miles, and it opened a pair of crimson eyes to look down at him.

Lü Yang made a quick calculation with his fingers and immediately discerned its origins. ’The Dragon Centipede Gu. It requires True Dragon Blood to nurture the Gu Species, which is then planted into one’s own Dao Foundation to incubate. When the Gu Insect emerges from its cocoon, it becomes a Life Gu, similar in nature to the Innate Ability of a normal Perfected Person…’

“Fiends from the Ten Thousand Poison Sect?”

As the words left his lips, Lü Yang flicked his finger. Instantly, the hum of swords rumbled all around, exploding between Heaven and Earth like muffled thunder rolling through the sky.

In that instant, the beasts in the mountains and forests below panicked.

“Where is the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons?”

Lü Yang maintained a magic formula, a glint of Sword Light swirling around his fingertip, and said coolly,

“I have come on the orders of my master, Demon-Vanquishing Perfected, to investigate the disappearance of civilians in the South. Does the Master of Ten Thousand Poisons not intend to come out and give me an explanation?”

Hearing this, Master Long Wu laughed in exasperation.

“How audacious!”

’The Ten Thousand Poison Sect dominates the Southern Border,’ he thought, ’and our Sect Leader is a Great Trueman at the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment. If you want him to grant an audience, you’d have to be Demon-Vanquishing Perfected himself!’

’A mere junior?’

’Who do you think you are? A Great Sword Cultivator at the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment?’

At this thought, Master Long Wu couldn’t be bothered with words. He abruptly opened his bloody maw and spat out a cloud of black gas that shot toward Lü Yang.

The Perfected Persons of the Ten Thousand Poison Sect used Gu Insects to devour and refine the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches. Thus, each of their Abilities was often a type of Gu. The black gas Master Long Wu had just spat out was one such example, called the Soul-Overturning Gu. It looked like a cloud of black gas, but in reality, it was a dense swarm of tiny black Gu Insects.

Once caught in the black gas, the Gu Insects would swarm in immediately.

At that point, no matter if you were protected by Mythical Light or had an indestructible Vajra body, these Gu Insects could slip through the tiniest openings to devour your flesh and blood, then drag out your very soul.

This was already Master Long Wu’s strongest technique.

It was clear that despite his dismissive words, he was by no means the type to underestimate his enemy. He struck with his full power, intending to destroy Lü Yang’s physical body and subdue him completely.

However, upon seeing this, Lü Yang was utterly unafraid. He laughed out loud instead.

“Excellent, excellent.”

“The Ten Thousand Poison Sect, faced with an inquiry from my Sword Pavilion, not only refuses to explain but dares to strike back. Their demonic nature clearly runs deep. These are no ordinary Demonic Cultivators…”

This calls for overwhelming force!

Before the words had even faded, the cry of a sword rang out!

The Sword Light in Lü Yang’s hand instantly multiplied—from one to a hundred, a hundred to a thousand, a thousand to ten thousand—transforming in a flash into countless, thread-like strands of Sword Qi!

This Sword Qi was so fine that it was nearly imperceptible even to Divine Sense. It met the black gas formed by the Soul-Overturning Gu, instantly wiping out the swarm of Gu Insects, then slashed toward Master Long Wu. This terrified him so much that he let out a strange cry, twisted his body, and fled in a plume of black smoke.

“Mid-phase of Foundation Establishment!?”

With that one move, empowered by two Sword Divine Techniques, Lü Yang’s Realm could no longer be concealed, and the two Perfected Persons of the Ten Thousand Poison Sect immediately saw the truth.

“This is bad…”

Master Hui Gu, who had been hiding in the shadows, instantly thought, ’This is bad.’ Their earlier confidence was based on the assumption that Lü Yang was, at most, in the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment.

The two of them were at the Mid-phase of Foundation Establishment, dealing with someone in the Early Stage.

Bullying someone weaker, it was naturally impossible to lose.

But now, it was obvious they were all in the same Realm. The situation was completely different. How could Cultivators like them possibly be a match for a Sword Cultivator of the same Realm!

“This is a lost cause. Let’s retreat first…”

Master Hui Gu appeared beside Master Long Wu and raised the Gu Insect in his palm.

This was his Life Gu, named Hui Gu.

As the saying goes: the morning mushroom knows not the turn of the month, and the summer cicada knows not the spring or autumn.

As its name implied, this Gu Insect could sever one’s connection to their Divine Sense, making it difficult to perceive changes in the outside world.

The moment Master Hui Gu released it, Heaven and Earth were plunged into a gloomy darkness. Only he, as the Gu Master, could see normally, unaffected by the Gu Insect.

“Now…”

Master Hui Gu had no intention of fighting. He was about to take Master Long Wu and retreat to plan their next move.

However, at that very moment, a cold voice drifted over. “Trying to leave?”

Master Hui Gu looked toward the sound and saw Lü Yang standing with his eyes shut tight, now holding a Magical Sword that shimmered with a rosy light.

The Minghe Changshi Sword of Righteousness!

This sword was born from his Dao Foundation; it was both his Magical Sword and his Ability!

“Sinking Intent!”

The next second, Master Hui Gu found himself still standing beside Master Long Wu.

The Hui Gu in his hand had not yet been released.

Everything that had just happened seemed to be an illusion, as if it had never occurred at all.

’What’s going on!?’

Master Hui Gu stood frozen on the spot. Lü Yang’s soft chuckle was his only answer.

This was the marvel of his Innate Ability, Sinking Intent. From the moment they had revealed themselves, Master Hui Gu and Master Long Wu had been drawn into his Ability.

Everything that happened from that point on would instantly become a meaningless illusion if it was disadvantageous to him. Only events that were advantageous to him could become true reality!

’That being said,’ Lü Yang thought, ’with my current Mana, I probably can’t use Sinking Intent too many times…’

To test his own combat strength, Lü Yang hadn’t directly used Fake Holding to assume the power of a Great Trueman and steamroll his opponents.

Therefore, although he had a complete advantage over Master Long Wu and Master Hui Gu, if they were determined to flee, it would still take some effort to stop them.

Fortunately, he had other means.

’Divination Lottery!’

With a thought from Lü Yang, his immense Fortune materialized before his eyes as three lottery slips.

[Event: Slay the two Perfected Persons, Master Long Wu and Master Hui Gu]

[Great Fortune: Your strength is overwhelmingly superior; you easily slay them both.]

[Xiaoji: Although your opponents are skilled at escaping, you expend some effort and still manage to slay them.]

[Moji: Your opponents are lucky and good at fleeing. You, however, are not at your best. After a long, fruitless battle, you become enraged by the embarrassment and directly use Fake Holding to assume the power of a Great Trueman, swatting them to death with a single palm strike.]

’The power gap is too great. It’s really hard to draw a bad fortune…’

With a thought, Lü Yang grasped the [Great Fortune] slip.

He had already secured this outcome in advance!

Combined with Sinking Intent, he could now turn this guaranteed victory into reality!

If this sword was not to be drawn, so be it. But once drawn, it was guaranteed to kill!

BOOM!

The next second, Lü Yang drew his sword. The brilliant Sword Light, as if divinely guided, flashed past Master Hui Gu and the adjacent Master Long Wu before the former could even release his Gu Insect.

Even at this moment, Master Hui Gu and Master Long Wu had not yet come to their senses.

Finally, they reached up to touch their own cheeks.

’Is my head still there?’

But their hands grasped at empty air.

Their heads were gone.

The Sword Light had been so fast that their bodies had perished and their souls had been extinguished long before their consciousness could even react.

But it was ultimately a consciousness without a source.

SHING!

The sword returned to its sheath.

Then, with a tremendous BOOM, the two headless Dharma Bodies exploded, dissolving into a sky-filling Spirit Tide!

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