126: Chapter 126 The Golden Core Perishes, Heaven and Earth Grieve

Crimson and snow-white, two brilliant beams of sword light converged in the dim world.

There was not the slightest hesitation.

Nor was there any surprise.

Golden Core Master Wu Yong's protective true essence, already shattered by the backlash of his own full-force strike, was as fragile as a withered yellow leaf in late autumn before the long-prepared fatal strikes from Gu Yan and Leng Yuechan.

"Puchi!"

The muffled sound of blades piercing flesh rang out with startling clarity above the wind-howling Gu Garden.

The crimson longsword in Gu Yan's hand, carrying the domineering high temperature of the Burning Sea Art capable of boiling rivers, pierced accurately and without error into Golden Core Master Wu Yong's Dantian Qi Sea.

At the same time.

The frost-white longsword in Leng Yuechan's hand, wrapped in the bone-chilling Sword Qi of the Cold Ice Art capable of freezing the Soul, pierced through Golden Core Master Wu Yong's nape without obstruction. The tip of the sword emerged from his throat, dripping with blood beads that froze before they could even congeal.

One in front, one behind.

One fire, one ice.

Two forces, diametrically opposed yet equally destructive, were unleashed without reservation within Golden Core Master Wu Yong's Golden Core Stage Physical Body...

Colliding!

"Urgh... Ah..."

The pupils in Golden Core Master Wu Yong's murky, aged eyes dilated violently.

He opened his mouth, wanting to roar, wanting to curse, and even wanting to... beg for mercy.

But the sword tip protruding from his throat had already severed all his vocal cords. He could only emit a murky, hoarse "he-he" sound, like a broken bellows pumping.

Excruciating pain?

No.

In the instant those two forces collided, his pain nerves were completely destroyed.

All he felt at this moment was a hair-raising sense of emptiness, as if his body was collapsing violently from within.

It was the sound of the Golden Core shattering.

"Crack—"

A faint, crisp sound that seemed to resonate deep within the Soul.

Within Golden Core Master Wu Yong's body, the round, flawless Golden Core that had condensed his life's cultivation showed countless fine cracks under the pincer attack of ice and fire.

Immediately after.

It exploded with a roar!

The violent torrent of Spiritual Qi, having lost its restraint, rampaged through his Meridians, flesh, and bones, causing frenzied destruction!

His skin began to swell, and veins bulged like winding earthworms. Crimson firelight and eerie white cold air flickered alternately on his skin, turning the Golden Core Master's Physical Body into a powder keg about to detonate.

Gu Yan's eyes were cold, without a hint of hesitation.

"Retreat!"

He shouted in a low voice, drew his sword, and retreated, his movements fluid as flowing water.

At the same time, he did not forget to reach out and pull the equally exhausted Leng Yuechan to his side. With a burst of true essence beneath his feet, his figure glided rapidly backward like a Great Roc.

Just as the two had retreated ten zhang away.

"BOOM!!!!!!"

The floating Golden Core Master Wu Yong exploded completely.

There was no disgusting scene of flesh and blood flying everywhere.

Under the interweaving of extreme heat and extreme cold, his flesh was instantly vaporized, turning into a brilliant yet tragic red and white mist that bloomed in the air before quickly dissipating.

Only a dilapidated skeleton, carrying the remaining power of the Golden Core that had not fully dispersed, fell powerlessly toward the ground like a bird with broken wings.

At this moment.

The dark clouds in the sky seemed to sense the fall of this powerful expert.

The drizzling rain suddenly stopped.

Replacing it was a sudden, faint, fishy-smelling...

Blood rain.

The Golden Core falls, and Heaven and Earth mourn.

This is a special celestial phenomenon triggered when a high-level Cultivator dies and their Dao vanishes, causing the massive Spiritual Qi within their body to return to Heaven and Earth, resonating with the surrounding environment.

The drizzling red raindrops fell onto the bluestone streets of Baifeng City, onto the scarred ruins of Gu Garden, and also onto...

The faces of millions of stunned commoners and Cultivators in the city.

In front of Gu Garden.

Gu Yan landed steadily, shielding the weak Leng Yuechan behind him.

He raised his head, letting the slightly warm blood rain fall onto his cheeks and slowly slide down.

His breathing was a bit rapid, his fingers gripping the sword were turning slightly white from overexertion, and the true essence within him was nearly exhausted.

But his spine remained straight.

Like an unshakeable mountain.

And not far in front of him.

With a muffled "thud" sound.

Golden Core Master Wu Yong's dilapidated skeleton fell heavily into the muddy water, splashing up a pool of murky blood.

The once high-and-mighty Golden Core Master, who viewed all living beings as ants and could decide the life and death of a city with a single word...

At this moment, was like a dead dog that no one cared about, lying quietly in front of the Gu Family gate, without a single sound left.

Dead.

Truly... dead.

[Beep—!]

[Congratulations, Host! You have achieved the Epic Achievement — [Defying the Golden Core]!]

[Battle settlement in progress...]

In his mind, the familiar voice of the System sounded once again.

This time, there was no usual playfulness, nor the previous absurd automatic replies.

Instead, it was a solemnity tinged with a bit of amazement, a bit of awe, and even a bit of... reflected glory.

[This is a miracle.]

[With the body of an Early Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator, to confront head-on and slay an Early Golden Core Stage powerhouse.]

[Host, you have proven with your actions that data... can sometimes be deceptive.]

[A 0.001% survival rate?]

[Heh... In front of a cheater, all probability theory is a joke!]

[Battle Performance Rating: SSS (Mythical)!]

[Applying to headquarters for the highest-tier battle reward... Application approved!]

[Rewards are being packaged and transmitted, please check them later, Host!]

Gu Yan ignored the System's chatter.

He exhaled a long, turbid breath, emptying all the Killing Intent that had been pent up in his chest for so long.

It was over.

This battle of total disparity, a fight for survival against all odds, had finally...

Ended.

He turned around slowly and looked behind him.

Inside Gu Garden, Shen Qingxue, Jin Feiyan, Zhao Feiyan... all his wives, children, and Family, all the servants and guards, were staring at him with a gaze like one looking at a deity.

In their eyes, there was still lingering fear, but more than that, there was the ecstasy of surviving a disaster, and toward the man before them...

A worship that had reached the point of fanaticism!

They won!

The Family Head... really won!

He not only blocked the Golden Core Master's attack, but in a desperate situation, he turned the tables and...

Slew that arrogant Devil Head right here!

"Old Ancestor..."

Steward Gu Zhong's knees went weak, and he knelt into the muddy water, already sobbing uncontrollably.

"Old Ancestor... Your Divine Might is unrivaled! Heaven bless the Gu Family! Heaven bless the Gu Family!"

Following his kneeling.

"Whoosh—"

The entire Gu Garden, from the wives and Young Misses to the menial servants and grooms, hundreds of people, knelt down in unison!

"Welcome back, Family Head!"

"The Family Head's Divine Might! Long live the Gu Family!"

This deafening cheer broke through the high walls of Gu Garden, reached the streets outside, and spread throughout the entire Baifeng City.

In the city.

Those commoners and Cultivators who were originally kneeling on the ground, waiting for the judgment of fate, woke up as if from a dream upon hearing the cheers.

They raised their heads tremblingly, looking at the black flying boat in the sky that had lost its master and was spinning in mid-air like a headless fly.

Then they looked at the miserable skeleton in front of the Gu Garden gate.

Finally, their gazes converged on that figure in a green robe stained with blood, who was still standing tall and unyielding.

An indescribable shock surged through everyone's spine like an electric current.

The sky has changed.

The sky over Baifeng City has completely changed.

From now on.

In this city, there will be no more Three Great Families, nor any City Lord's Mansion.

The only King.

The only God.

There is only one.

That is...

Gu Yan!