In Linzi, the wind and rain were relentless. Every household had barred its doors, and the city’s garrison stood on high alert.

The Qi Royal Palace.

Duke Huan of Qi gazed calmly at the vast canopy overhead, which blotted out everything, and said,

“How magnificent…”

“To gather a power that shrouds the sky for ten thousand miles in just eighty-one days… He is truly a Great Virtue of this age.”

Beside him, Guan Zhong asked with a solemn expression,

“Your Majesty, may I ask the whereabouts of the Jade Void Immortal?”

“He is seated deep within the palace.”

Duke Huan of Qi calmly caressed the longsword in his hand and added,

“And the Upper Celestial Venerable has already given his word. If a true crisis arises, he will reach down with his hand from the West Pole Celestial Court and suppress all enemies for me.”

Guan Zhong let out a long sigh of relief.

“Then there is nothing to worry about.”

“However,” Duke Huan of Qi said with a smile, “such favors are finite. If possible, I would rather slay this enemy myself. If that fails, we can call upon the Jade Void Immortal from the inner palace. And if even that is not enough, the Upper Celestial Venerable will naturally intervene.”

With that, he sheathed his longsword, turned, and walked back into the grand hall, seating himself on the high throne.

“I shall wait here for this Lu Zi. I am quite curious to see just how mighty a Great Virtue truly is.”

Guan Zhong remained silent, then followed him into the hall and took his seat to the side.

The other Civil Servants had been sent home to avoid being caught in the crossfire, while the Military Generals were all stationed on the city walls.

Linzi had a million elite soldiers, plus its various high-ranking generals. Although they could not stop the enemy, Lu Zi shouldn’t expect an easy entry into the city.

…….

Outside the city.

A chariot led the way, with Kongzi’s carriage at its side. Behind them followed the seventy-two disciples, the Eighty-One Armors, the Mighty Hundred Riders, and a hundred thousand soldiers, their steps synchronized, their march a thunderous rumble.

The ten-thousand-mile canopy churned overhead, a vast and majestic power, its might overwhelming.

On and behind the city walls, a million soldiers nervously gripped their weapons. Over a hundred Earth Immortal commanders and a dozen True Immortal generals held their breath, their expressions tense.

The arrivals were the Ruler of the State of Qin and, more importantly, two Great Virtues of the current age!

To draw weapons against a Great Virtue… Without a doubt, regardless of the outcome, they would bear the condemnation of the entire Human World!

At this moment, the chariot arrived before the city gates.

Lu Xuan looked up and asked,

“I come bearing a great power. Why are the city gates not open?”

The True Immortal Grand Marshal of Qi said in a low voice,

“Please, Lu Zi, turn back…”

Lu Xuan shook his head, glanced at the terrifying formation that enveloped all of Linzi, and said calmly,

“I have come with a great power, the will of the people. Since I represent the will of the people, why would a great formation and city gates stand in my way? The formation should disperse, and the gates should be wide open.”

Beside them, Duke Mu of Qin said,

“Well said!”

As the two spoke in concert, the ten-thousand-mile canopy overhead churned.

Immediately, the terrifying formation covering Linzi slowly dissipated, and the heavy city gates, forged from Immortal Gold Divine Iron, abruptly swung open on their own!

On the city walls, the generals’ faces changed color.

Duke Mu of Qin then rose from his chariot and laughed heartily.

“Lu Zi, go on ahead! I shall lead the hundred-thousand-strong army to protect you!”

With that, he leaped from the chariot. Kongzi, who was beside it, boarded and sat with Lu Xuan.

Lu Xuan didn’t say much, only lowered his eyelids and murmured to himself,

‘Senior Brother, I am here.’

As he spoke, the chariot slowly moved forward, passed through the gates, and, under the silent gaze of countless soldiers behind the walls, proceeded along the main road toward the Qi Royal Palace.

Throughout this, no one dared to speak, and no one dared to block his path.

After the chariot had disappeared from view, Duke Mu of Qin grinned.

“You know what’s good for you.”

As soon as the words fell, he raised his arm, his eyes wide with fury.

“Kill!”

The seventy-two disciples, the Eighty-One Armors, and the Mighty Hundred Riders all surged forward. The general Dragon Abyss, who was beside them, also raised his long halberd high, pointing it toward his homeland and his former brothers-in-arms.

But now was not then.

The hundred thousand soldiers charged as well. Weapons clashed, and the sky shook with battle cries!

Meanwhile, inside the city.

The chariot moved slowly, the ten-thousand-mile canopy overhead churning ever more violently. All around was silent, save for the sound of wheels rolling over the stone slabs.

After a long while, they arrived before the Qi Royal Palace. Lu Xuan, holding the Keeper of the Records’ Token, stepped down from the chariot, with Confucius following behind him.

He walked straight ahead, into the Royal Palace, through its pavilions and halls, finally stopping before a great banner.

“Senior… Senior Brother Zhang.”

Gazing at the head impaled on the great banner, its eyes wide with fury, Lu Xuan’s own eyes began to turn red.

The Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword appeared in his hand.

“Senior Brother, I’ve brought your sword.”

As he spoke, he slashed lightly with the sword. The Qi Banner was severed and toppled, and the head fell into Lu Xuan’s arms.

“I’m here… I’m taking you home, Senior Brother. I’m taking you home!”

Lu Xuan walked out of the Royal Palace just like that and solemnly placed the head upon the main seat of the chariot.

“Senior Brother, the one you could not slay, I will slay for you.”

Looking at the familiar face that would never speak again, seeing his once-jovial Senior Brother Zhang now reduced to nothing but a furious, wide-eyed stare, Lu Xuan could finally no longer hold it in.

He bowed his head and wept.

He remembered the seven years of days and nights in the Keeper of the Records’ office. He remembered his senior brother’s wretched howls when he was being punished. He remembered the words his senior brother had said upon leaving Luoyang.

“Little Junior Brother, just you wait! Wait for your Senior Brother’s name to shake all of Luoyang City!”

Lu Xuan closed his eyes for a long time.

Beside him, Confucius let out a soft sigh, remaining silent.

After a long moment,

His ancient robes fluttered in the wind. The young man opened his eyes, which were bloodshot. The canopy of great power above grew even darker, gradually pressing down upon the entirety of Linzi City, creating a true scene of black clouds bearing down on the city!

The Keeper of the Records’ Token vibrated slightly, and within Lu Xuan’s body, his aura surged violently.

‘The Great Grade Realm, the Great Virtue Body…’

Lu Xuan held his sword horizontally at shoulder level. With an expression that was half-smile, half-sob, he looked back at the vast Royal Palace and roared,

“Qi Xiaobai, I have come to kill you!”

As his voice fell, his figure shot into the sky. The sprawling canopy also came crashing down, pouring entirely into the young man’s Physique!

The sight was like the black clouds of the nine heavens rolling down to earth!

The young man trod upon the sky, walking step by step toward the central grand hall of the Royal Palace, with the powerful, middle-aged man following close behind!

Inside the grand hall, Duke Huan of Qi grabbed his longsword and rose gracefully.

“Guan Zhong, I’ll leave that Confucius to you. How about it?”

Guan Zhong bowed.

“He has already achieved the Unity of Virtue and Conduct. I cannot defeat him… But he has only just become a Great Virtue. I can perhaps hold him off for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.”

“That is enough!”

Duke Huan of Qi laughed loudly, also striding out of the grand hall with his sword. He glanced at the severed and toppled Qi Banner to the side and grinned.

“Lu Zi, if I could slay your senior brother, I can slay you too!”

But the response he received was a single word.

“Kill!”

Lu Xuan brandished his sword, the might of the Grand Grade erupting from him. Virtue covered his body, and the great power of ten thousand miles churned within him!

This strike sundered the sky and shattered the Earth. It was not a profound Divine Technique, nor was it a surprising Killing Skill. It was just a single, simple thrust!

A thrust for his senior brother!

The Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword let out a hysterical cry, a sound like weeping—weeping for its master!

A million miles of layered clouds rolled and converged at this moment, all of it coiling around this one sword strike before crashing down toward the Royal Palace!

Duke Huan of Qi’s gaze sharpened. He was forced back three steps by the terrifying great power and Lu Xuan’s Virtue. Though he tried his utmost to restrain himself, not wanting to affect the entire city of Linzi,

those three steps still caused the surrounding hundred miles to shake violently!

The earth quaked and the mountains trembled.

“A fine sword… but nothing more!”

Duke Huan of Qi laughed boisterously.

He was the twelfth-generation descendant of Jiang Ziya, the pinnacle of the Grand Grade, and the foremost hegemon of the Spring and Autumn Period!

In the Human World today, among all the Dukes and heroes, he could be called the first!

The surging national fate of the Qi Kingdom empowered him. Duke Huan of Qi raised his sword to meet the attack. To the side, Confucius brought down his palm, his Unity of Virtue and Conduct pressing down on Guan Zhong!

The four of them clashed.

THUD!

It was Guan Zhong, slapped into the dirt by Confucius’s palm, which was filled with benevolence, righteousness, and Daoist Virtue.

VWOOM!!

It was Duke Huan of Qi, falling from the Celestial Vault, trailing a spray of Immortal Blood!

He crashed to the ground, the longsword in his hand shattered, his face a mask of shock and fury!

“How can this be…? Your control over your power is so weak! You are clearly not my equal!”

Lu Xuan stood in the sky, more ferocious than ever before.

“I am not your equal, but… you are not the equal of the people.”

“The one slaying you is not me. It is the wrath and resentment of the people gathered over eighty-one days, the souls of the hundred fallen cities, the vast, surging power of the world!”

As his voice faded, Lu Xuan once again raised the Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword in his right hand and flicked the blade with his left.

VWOOM!!

The sword’s cry, like a sob, echoed throughout the entire Qi Kingdom!

“This next strike is truly from me!”

He activated Mediation of Creation, Innate Thunder Light coiling around the blade. The Slaying Sword Form vibrated, and a faint flicker of Immortal Slaying Sword Qi shimmered within it.

Then came Dao Generating One, piercing through all threads of Cause and Effect!

And finally, the Five Directions Divine Connection Apertures all opened, granting him understanding of the true nature of all things!

“Go!”

The Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword, fully activated for the first time, reflected three profound Cosmoses and five raging Celestial Vaults as it came crashing down!

Duke Huan of Qi’s expression changed. Bolstered by the national fate of the Qi Kingdom, he unleashed his full power, manifesting all the hundreds of Great Slaughter Techniques he had ever learned. An incredibly domineering aura appeared around him!

“I am a descendant of Taigong, the number one hegemon of this age! I am invincible in the Human World!”

He discarded his broken sword, clenched his fists, and shot skyward. His immense might surged, and a mere ripple of its aftershock caused space to collapse, the sky to tremble, and Linzi City to teeter on the brink of ruin!

But what of Lu Xuan? He simply stood in the sky with his hands behind his back. The Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword continued to hum, and the great power gathered within his body roiled violently.

The sword’s cry grew louder and higher, actually causing all swords within the Qi Kingdom—Wooden Swords, Iron Swords, and Immortal Swords alike—to resonate and hum in unison!

A million strands of Sword Intent gathered from all directions, converging above Linzi City!

Outside the city, countless soldiers stopped fighting, staring dumbly at the Celestial Vault, at the young man in the sky.

CLANG!!!

Duke Huan of Qi’s fists, carrying a domineering power that could shake the past and present, shattered the five raging Celestial Vaults, smashed through the three profound Cosmoses, and annihilated the million strands of Sword Intent, crashing viciously against the Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword!

In the next instant, Lu Xuan gave a soft cry. His Unity of Virtue and Conduct and the great power attached themselves to the sword’s edge.

RIIIP!!

The Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword viciously severed both of Duke Huan of Qi’s fists, then slashed across his chest, drawing another spray of blood!

Duke Huan of Qi once again fell from the sky, crashing into his own bedchambers and collapsing the entire building!

He coughed up blood. His severed fists immediately grew back, and his expression was one of shock.

“Excellent, excellent… The Great Grade Realm, the Great Virtue Body, and on top of that, such a great power… to think it could be this mighty…”

Lu Xuan looked down from on high at the disheveled Ruler of the State of Qi and once again raised the Three-Five Evil-Slaying Sword.

But Duke Huan of Qi was not afraid. He continued to laugh.

“A pity! Your martial prowess is peerless, your great power is peerless, but… you still cannot compare to me!”

“I am the twelfth-generation descendant of Taigong!”

“Behind me stand the Immortal Gods! The Immortal Gods!”

Amidst his roars, Immortal Light shot toward the heavens, its violent might immense!

Duke Huan of Qi turned his head and bowed.

“We welcome the Upper Immortal of the Jade Void Guangcheng Palace! We welcome the venerable god of the year!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep