263: Chapter 262 Victory!!!

On the Sword Discussion Platform, smoke and dust filled the air.

The figures of Jiang Hanzhou and Han Qing collided within the haze, their blades and swords weaving a net of death. Every clash erupted with shocking energy waves, carving ravines into the stage as stone fragments flew and the defensive barrier trembled violently.

In the spectator stands, everyone held their breath.

In the Red Fire Peak stands, Zhou Lie gripped the armrests so hard his knuckles turned white. Liu Ningshuang's face was pale, her cold eyes fixed on the smoke at the center of the stage, her lips pressed into a thin line. Master Xue Mu sat at the very front, his face as calm as water, but his right hand unconsciously tightened around the crimson longsword at his waist.

In the Heavenly Sword Peak stands, Cold Frost Master's expression was dark. Beside him, the two Inner Sect Elders also looked grim. All three stared intently at the stage, an inscrutable glint flashing in their eyes.

In the Bibo Pool stands, Master Qingxuan frowned slightly. Teng Yuzhi remained expressionless, but her eyes were locked onto the stage, her fingers unconsciously clutching the hem of her clothes.

In the Tianji Peak stands, Grand Elder Great Elder Xuanjizi sat at the very front. A sharp light occasionally flickered in his deep eyes. He was watching—watching everyone. He watched Cold Frost Master, Master Xue Mu, Han Qing, and Jiang Hanzhou. He watched the invisible undercurrents behind this Sword Discussion Assembly.

On the stage, the smoke and dust gradually cleared.

Two figures stood ten zhang apart at the center of the stage, facing each other from a distance.

Jiang Hanzhou's black wetsuit was covered in blade marks, with a deep wound on his left arm that exposed the bone, blood dripping from his fingertips. His face was pale and his breathing ragged, but his eyes remained as calm as water—no fear, no excitement, only a quiet, unshakable resolve.

The tiger soul saber was held horizontally before him, its four-colored luster flickering. A blurred consciousness within the blade sent a wave of worry, as if asking, "Master, are you alright?" With a thought, he used his Divine Soul to soothe the blade's spirit, telling it, "I'm fine."

Han Qing stood at the other end of the stage, in an even more miserable state.

His pitch-black Daoist robes were in tatters, revealing skin covered in black patterns. These patterns moved like living things, crawling slowly beneath his skin, each movement releasing a wisp of sickly sweet aura from his pores. His face was as white as paper, black blood oozed from the corners of his mouth, and his eyes were bloodshot, pupils glinting with bloodlust.

His right hand gripped a pitch-black longsword, its blood-red patterns flowing frantically as the entire sword vibrated. Countless fine black tentacles emerged from the blade, wrapping around his arm, shoulder, and neck, even crawling up his cheeks.

Those tentacles were devouring his essence blood, eroding his Dao Heart, and defiling his Divine Soul.

His body was on the verge of collapse.

"Jiang Hanzhou..." Han Qing spoke, his voice raspy, like the simultaneous chirping of ten thousand insects. "You are strong... stronger than I expected..."

Jiang Hanzhou didn't speak, only watching him quietly.

Han Qing laughed, a hideous smile like a curse from the depths of Hell. "But do you think... you can win against me like this?"

He raised his left hand and thrust it violently into his own chest.

*Puchi—*

Blood sprayed out.

His fingers pierced through flesh, slowly pulling something out of his chest cavity.

It was a fist-sized, dark-red fleshy ball covered in dense black patterns. The ball throbbed, each beat releasing a wisp of sickly sweet aura. It was covered in fine black tentacles that danced frantically in the air like living things, letting out sharp screeches.

Sword Gu Mother Insect.

The Sword Gu Mother Insect, which Han Qing had nurtured with his own essence blood for seventeen years, was now forcibly pulled from his heart.

"You're crazy." Jiang Hanzhou's brow furrowed sharply. "If you pull out the Mother Insect, you'll—"

"Die?" Han Qing interrupted him, his smile even more gruesome. "I know. But even if I die, I'm taking you to Hell with me."

He gripped the Mother Insect, pouring all his remaining essence blood, True Intent, and Divine Soul power into it.

The Mother Insect swelled frantically, growing from the size of a fist to the size of a head. The black patterns became denser and deeper, eventually turning the entire Mother Insect ink-black. The Mother Insect opened its mouthparts, revealing rows of fine, sharp teeth, and let out a piercing screech.

The screeching sounded like ten thousand insects roaring at once, making the entire Sword Discussion Platform tremble.

The defensive barrier shook violently, nearly shattering.

In the stands, some covered their ears, some turned pale, and some couldn't help but gag.

"Sword Gu: Mutual Destruction."

Han Qing's voice was raspy, like a curse from the depths of Hell. "Jiang Hanzhou, I use my life as the catalyst for this move. You won't be able to stop it."

As the words fell, the Mother Insect suddenly exploded.

Countless fine black tentacles erupted from the Mother Insect's body, pouncing toward Jiang Hanzhou like ten thousand venomous snakes. The tentacles moved with extreme speed, leaving behind numerous black afterimages in the air.

Each tentacle contained the Sword Gu's Origin power. If even one tentacle touched him, the toxin would invade his Sea of Consciousness, devouring his Divine Soul, consuming his True Intent, and destroying his Dao Heart.

Jiang Hanzhou's pupils contracted sharply.

He didn't retreat, because he knew he couldn't.

There were too many tentacles, dense and layered, almost enveloping the entire stage. No matter where he retreated, the tentacles would catch up.

He took a deep breath and gripped the tiger soul saber.

Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the lake of divine soul suddenly boiled. The thick layer of Divine Soul Armor on the lake's surface erupted with a brilliant, lustrous white light. The light pierced through his Sea of Consciousness and his Physical Body, condensing into a semi-transparent barrier around him.

Divine Soul Armor, fully released.

Simultaneously, the four types of True Intent within him circulated at once. Tide as the foundation, Pure Yang as the fire, Metal Sharpness as the edge, and Heavenly Fire as the change—the four were perfectly harmonized and easy to control. Dragon-Slaying True Intent condensed at the blade's edge, turning into a simple and unadorned saber light.

He held the saber with both hands, and the four-colored luster on the blade suddenly retracted, transforming into a simple and unadorned saber light.

"Tidal Heaven-Burning Slash—Four Intents as One!"

He swung the saber.

That strike didn't have dazzling radiance or earth-shattering momentum. There was only a simple saber light that traced a perfect arc in front of him.

Wherever the saber light passed, the black tentacles snapped like paper. The severed tentacles let out shrill screeches as they were completely annihilated by the Dragon-Slaying True Intent within the light.

But there were too many tentacles.

Jiang Hanzhou cut through the first wave, the second, the third. The fourth, the fifth, the sixth...

With every strike, he severed hundreds of tentacles. But the number of tentacles wasn't in the hundreds, but in the tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands.

They surged from all directions, endless as a tide.

Jiang Hanzhou's breathing became more ragged, and his face grew paler. The four-colored luster on the tiger soul saber grew dimmer, and the emotions from the blade's spirit became increasingly anxious.

He was about to reach his limit.

Han Qing stood at the other end of the stage, watching Jiang Hanzhou struggle within the tentacles, a cruel smile curling on his lips.

"It's useless." His voice grew weaker, like a candle flickering in the wind. "My Sword Gu Mother Insect was nurtured with essence blood for seventeen years. Even if you have the Dragon-Slaying True Intent, you can't cut them all..."

His words came to an abrupt halt.

Because Jiang Hanzhou stopped.

He no longer swung his blade, but simply stood there with his eyes closed.

The black tentacles swarmed frantically, wrapping around his ankles, calves, thighs, waist, chest, and neck.

He allowed them to entwine him.

Han Qing's brow furrowed slightly. "Have you given up?"

Jiang Hanzhou didn't answer.

He just kept his eyes closed, feeling the Sword Gu's Origin power within the tentacles. That power was cold, sickly sweet, and violent, attempting to drill into his Sea of Consciousness and devour his Divine Soul.

But just then—

A sudden change occurred.

The tentacles that had drilled into his body suddenly stopped.

They weren't blocked; they were swallowed by something.

Within Jiang Hanzhou's body, the Thousand Tribulations Nirvana Gu Mother, which had been slumbering deep in his Dantian, suddenly opened its eyes.

Its body was only the size of a fingernail, dark gold all over, with fine blood-colored patterns flowing on its surface. It had been slumbering in Jiang Hanzhou's Dantian for several months, using his blood and Qi as nourishment to slowly transform and evolve.

But at this moment, it smelled the aura of its own kind.

The Sword Gu Mother Insect.

A kin that was stronger, more mature, and more bloodthirsty than itself.

The Thousand Tribulations Nirvana Gu Mother opened its mouthparts and took a deep breath.

An indescribable suction force erupted from within Jiang Hanzhou's body. The tentacles that had burrowed into him, along with the Sword Gu Origin power contained within them, were all pulled by that suction, frantically surging into his Dantian and into the mouth of the Thousand Tribulations Nirvana Gu Mother.

Han Qing's pupils shrank suddenly: "What?!"

He sensed it; he sensed that terrifying aura inside Jiang Hanzhou's body. It was a Gu, a type of Gu more Advanced, ancient, and terrifying than his Sword Gu.

The Thousand Tribulations Nirvana Gu.

The legendary closely guarded secret of the Ten Thousand Gu Sect, using a thousand types of venomous insects as a catalyst and Nirvana Rebirth as the core, a supreme Gu species that could only be formed after forty-nine years of refining.

"You... how could you have..." Han Qing's voice trembled, his eyes filled with horror.

Jiang Hanzhou opened his eyes, a cold glint flashing through them.

He did not answer, only gripping the tiger soul saber tightly and pouring all the power in his body into the blade.

Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the Heart Blade suddenly vibrated. The dark gold dragon patterns on the blade erupted with brilliant golden light, which penetrated the Sea of Consciousness, surged along his Meridians into the tiger soul saber, and perfectly fused with the four types of True Intent and the Dragon-Slaying True Intent.

"Heavenly Saber: God Slayer."

He swung the saber.

That strike was not aimed at Han Qing's Physical Body, nor at his Divine Soul, but at the symbiotic connection between the Sword Seed and Han Qing's Divine Soul.

The saber light silently vanished into Han Qing's body.

Han Qing's body suddenly froze.

He lowered his head and looked at his chest. There, a fine saber wound was slowly splitting open. No blood flowed from the wound; instead, countless fine black tentacles frantically swarmed out, letting out shrill screeches.

The symbiotic connection was severed.

The rope between the Sword Seed and the Divine Soul snapped inch by inch under Jiang Hanzhou's Divine Intent Heavenly Saber.

Han Qing's face was as pale as paper, his body swaying. The Sword Gu within him had lost control; the Intent-Devouring Gu slumbering in his flesh and blood rioted wildly, frantically devouring his essence blood, his True Intent, and his Divine Soul.

His cultivation base was falling rapidly.

Late Stage Dragon Fetus Realm, Middle Stage Dragon Fetus Realm, Early Stage Dragon Fetus Realm, Primal Form Realm...

It dropped all the way down.

He felt his power draining away, his life slipping by, and his consciousness blurring.

But he felt no fear.

He just stood there, looking at Jiang Hanzhou, a strange smile curling at the corners of his mouth.

"Jiang Hanzhou..." His voice grew weaker and weaker, like a flickering candle in the wind, "Do you think... you've won?"

He took out a stack of letters and several Jade Slips from his robes and held them high.

Those letters and Jade Slips were the secret correspondence between him and Cold Frost Master over the years, the evidence of his collusion with the Ten Thousand Gu Sect, and the ironclad proof of Heavenly Sword Peak's collusion with external enemies to frame their fellow Disciples.

"Cold Frost Master..." Han Qing's voice was hoarse, like a curse from the depths of Hell, "Everything you told me to do... I've done... Now... it's time for you to fulfill your promise..."

He tossed the letters and Jade Slips into the air.

Guided by spiritual power, the letters and Jade Slips turned into streaks of light, flying toward the viewing area.

Cold Frost Master's expression changed drastically: "Han Qing! You—"

He suddenly stood up, attempting to intercept the letters and Jade Slips. But Master Xue Mu was faster.

Master Xue Mu raised his hand, and a crimson-gold flame erupted from his palm, wrapping around and protecting the letters and Jade Slips layer by layer. The letters and Jade Slips within the flames remained undamaged, slowly landing in the center of the viewing area.

Everyone's eyes fell upon those letters and Jade Slips.

Grand Elder Great Elder Xuanjizi stood up, his aged face showing no expression. He raised his hand, and a letter flew out from the flames, landing in his hand.

He unfolded the letter, his gaze sweeping over the handwriting, and his expression grew increasingly grim.

"Cold Frost Master." His voice was calm, yet it contained an indescribable chill. "What else do you have to say?"

Cold Frost Master's face was as pale as paper, his lips trembling, unable to speak.

The two Inner Sect Elders beside him also had ashen faces and remained silent.

A dead silence fell over the Heavenly Sword Peak's viewing area.

On the arena, Han Qing's body slowly collapsed.

His eyes were wide open, looking at the sky, with that strange smile still on his lips. In those hollow eyes, there was no fear or regret, only an indescribable... liberation.

He was dead.

His breath had ceased.

Han Qing, the Chief Disciple of Heavenly Sword Peak, who had refined half a Sword Seed, cultivated the Sword Gu Secret Technique, and swallowed a blood gu pill to forcibly break through to the Late Stage of the Dragon Fetus Realm, had died on the Sword Discussion Platform.

He died under Jiang Hanzhou's blade.

Jiang Hanzhou sheathed his saber and stood in the center of the arena, looking at Han Qing's corpse, remaining silent for a long time.

Then, he turned around and looked toward the viewing area.

He looked at Cold Frost Master, at Grand Elder Great Elder Xuanjizi, at his Master Xue Mu, and at the envoys from various major powers in the East Sea.

His gaze was as calm as water, showing no emotion.

The entire place was dead silent.

That silence lasted for ten full breaths, and then—

"Whoosh—!"

A wave of discussion rose like a tide, nearly threatening to overturn the entire Sword Discussion Platform.

"Han Qing is dead! Han Qing, the Chief Disciple of Heavenly Sword Peak, is dead!"

"Jiang Hanzhou won! He won!"

"Those letters... Cold Frost Master colluding with the Ten Thousand Gu Sect... Good heavens..."

"Heavenly Sword Peak is finished... completely finished..."

Amidst the discussions, some were shocked, some were fearful, some were excited, and some were gloating.

But everyone's eyes were fixed on the figure in the center of the arena.

Jiang Hanzhou stood on the Sword Discussion Platform, tiger soul saber hanging at his waist, his expression as usual.

His body was covered in wounds, his aura was weak, and his face was pale.

But his eyes were as bright as the stars in the sky.

That was the light of a victor, the light of the strong, the martial will tempered by a Fisherman from Canglang Water Dock through countless life-and-death battles, countless interrogations of his Dao Heart, and countless instances of self-transcendence.

In the Red Fire Peak's viewing area, Master Xue Mu slowly stood up.

He looked at Jiang Hanzhou, a gratified smile curling at the corners of his mouth.

"You brat," he murmured, "well done."

Behind him, Zhou Lie jumped up from his seat in excitement, tears streaming down his face: "He won! Junior Brother Jiang won!"

Liu Ningshuang did not speak, but an indescribable light flashed in her cold eyes. It was gratification, pride, and an indescribable... relief.

In the Bibo Pool's viewing area, Master Qingxuan nodded slightly.

"Not bad," he said calmly, "this boy's potential is limitless."

Teng Yuzhi did not speak, she just looked at the figure in the center of the arena with a complex expression.

In the Tianji Peak's viewing area, Grand Elder Great Elder Xuanjizi sat at the very front.

His gaze fell on Jiang Hanzhou, and he remained silent for a long time.

Then, he slowly spoke, his voice as calm as water:

"In this battle, Jiang Hanzhou is the victor."

His voice was not loud, but with the enhancement of spiritual power, it clearly reached the ears of everyone present.

"The wager is now in effect. Heavenly Sword Peak shall no longer interfere in matters related to Blood Shark Island, and the Sect will immediately dispatch troops to wipe out Blood Shark Island."

He paused, turning his gaze toward Cold Frost Master: "As for the matter of Cold Frost Master colluding with external enemies and framing fellow Disciples, the Sect will investigate it thoroughly after the Sword Discussion Assembly concludes."

Cold Frost Master's face was as pale as paper, his body swaying.

The two Inner Sect Elders beside him also had ashen faces and remained silent.

A dead silence fell over the Heavenly Sword Peak's viewing area.

Those Heavenly Sword Peak Disciples, who had once been arrogant and overbearing, now lowered their heads one by one, not daring to look at the arena, at Jiang Hanzhou, or at anyone else.

They had lost.

They had lost completely.

It was not just a duel; they had lost the glory of Heavenly Sword Peak, the dignity of Heavenly Sword Peak, and the status of Heavenly Sword Peak within Dragon Abyss Palace.

From this day forward, Heavenly Sword Peak would never be able to hold its head high again.