169: Chapter 169 Your sword isn't as hard as my bones.

" Boom! "

Answering Gu Yan was a deafening rumble of thunder.

The "Dragon-Slaying Sword" in Little Sword God Ye Gucheng's hand was no longer held back; the blade swelled to thirty zhang, wrapped in the Geng metal Sword Qi unique to Wan Jian Peak, like a silver angry Dragon, biting down directly at the man standing in front of the mountain gate picking his ear.

The air was torn apart with a shrill scream. This single sword strike was enough to level half a mountain.

The surrounding Law Enforcement Hall Disciples turned pale, subconsciously wanting to activate the defensive Formation.

Gu Yan didn't move.

He didn't even lift an eyelid; he simply lowered the little finger he had been using to pick his ear, then slowly raised his left arm.

No Qi protective shield, no Magic Treasure brilliance.

He just held an arm up, bare and exposed, across the top of his head.

" He's crazy! "

Someone in the crowd exclaimed. That was a top-grade Spiritual Artifact level Flying Sword; even an Early Golden Core Stage Cultivator wouldn't dare to take it head-on with their Physical Body!

" Clang — —! ! ! "

A massive sound of metal clashing exploded, and the sound waves spread out like ripples, shattering all the glass windows at the foot of the mountain.

There was no scene of flesh and blood flying everywhere.

That overbearing giant sword, the moment it touched Gu Yan's left arm, felt as if it had struck an eternal, unmelting piece of divine iron. Sparks flew, the blade bent violently and emitted a groan of unbearable stress, yet it could not cut into that thin layer of skin by even a fraction.

The sleeve of Gu Yan's left arm exploded into powder instantly, revealing the forearm covered in dark golden fish-scale patterns underneath.

Motionless.

" Is that it? "

Gu Yan looked up at the giant sword trembling above his head, and at Little Sword God Ye Gucheng, who was full of horror in mid-air.

" Didn't you eat? "

He opened the five fingers of his left hand abruptly and backhanded the sharp blade.

Creak.

A teeth-grinding friction sound rang out.

" Get ... down here! "

Gu Yan growled, and the dark golden patterns on his left arm suddenly lit up with red light. A monstrous, extreme brute force erupted, actually dragging that top-grade Flying Sword, along with Little Sword God Ye Gucheng who was holding it, and smashing them hard toward the ground like a whip.

Whoosh — — Bang!

Little Sword God Ye Gucheng couldn't control his body at all; he was pulled off balance by this immense strength and fell heavily onto the bluestone slab in front of the Gu Mansion gate.

The slab shattered, and a deep pit was smashed into the ground.

" Pfft! "

Little Sword God Ye Gucheng spat out a mouthful of blood. The Dragon-Slaying Sword in his hand flew out of his grasp and stuck into a stone lion in the distance, the blade still humming.

He struggled to climb up, but a black boot was already stepping on his chest.

" Cough, cough ... "

Little Sword God Ye Gucheng felt that at least three ribs were broken, and his lungs burned with pain. He stared fixedly at Gu Yan, who was looking down at him. The arrogance in his eyes had shattered into pieces, leaving only disbelief: " You ... your hand ... what kind of monster are you ... "

Taking a top-grade Spiritual Artifact head-on with a Physical Body? This was simply not something a Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator could do!

" Monster? "

Gu Yan bent down, wiped the non-existent dust from his snow-white Dao robe with his left hand, revealing the arm covered in dark golden scales.

" This is called 'Reason'. "

Gu Yan patted Little Sword God Ye Gucheng's cheek. The force was not great, but it was extremely insulting: " I have Reason, so I am harder than you. Do you understand? "

The whole scene was deathly silent.

Those Wan Jian Peak Disciples who had originally followed Little Sword God Ye Gucheng to "force the palace" were now like chickens with their necks strangled, the swords in their hands shaking.

Even their Senior Brother had been taken down in one move; were they going to go up and just offer themselves as a meal?

" Gu Yan! I am the Sect Master's own nephew! Do you dare to touch me?! " Little Sword God Ye Gucheng roared, his voice harsh but weak.

" Touch you? "

Gu Yan sneered and applied force with his toes, grinding Little Sword God Ye Gucheng's chest bones until they creaked: " Lin Canghai was even a Golden Core Elder, and by now the grass on his grave should already be sprouting. Do you think your head is harder than his? "

Little Sword God Ye Gucheng shut his mouth instantly, his Face turning deathly pale.

" However, I am a reasonable person. "

Gu Yan retracted his foot, casually snatched the Storage Pouch from Little Sword God Ye Gucheng's waist, and pointed to the Dragon-Slaying Sword stuck in the stone lion in the distance.

" Trespassing on private property, breaking my floor tiles, and scaring my people. These few things will serve as compensation for mental distress and repair costs. "

Gu Yan expertly wiped away the Divine Sense imprint on the Storage Pouch, hung it on his own waist, and then pointed to the road down the mountain:

" Now, take your people and get lost. "

" If you are still in my sight within ten breaths, I will peel off that white skin of yours and hang it on the flagpole. "

Little Sword God Ye Gucheng climbed up from the ground and looked at Gu Yan with venom, but he didn't even dare to utter a harsh word. Holding his chest, he beckoned to retrieve his Flying Sword and fled in a panic with a group of disheveled Disciples.

Not until that group of white-clothed people disappeared at the end of the sea of clouds did Gu Yan withdraw his gaze.

He lowered his head and looked at his left arm.

The dark golden scales slowly faded, returning to normal skin color.

" asura armguard, you really didn't disappoint me. "

Gu Yan clenched his fist. That sword strike just now was enough to kill an ordinary Late Stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator, but under the "Absolute Defense" of the armguard, he hadn't even felt much of a vibration.

" Congratulations to Elder Gu for your Divine Might! "

At this moment, Liu Meng, who had been hiding in the Formation watching the show, ran out with a team of Law Enforcement Hall Disciples, his Face full of sycophancy: " Even the Little Sword God has been tamed by you. From now on, in the Yunlan Sect inner Sect, who would dare not give our Qingyun Peak Face? "

" Stop the flattery. "

Gu Yan threw a Storage Pouch to him: " Fix the gate. Also, take that Flying Sword that Little Sword God Ye Gucheng paid as compensation and hang it in the black market to sell. Things with markers like this are trouble if kept in hand. "

" Black market? " Liu Meng was startled, " Elder Gu, the black market is a place where all kinds of people mix ... "

" It is precisely because all kinds of people mix there that it is good for selling stolen goods. "

Gu Yan turned and walked into the hall, his voice flat: " There is too much stuff left by the Lin family, some of which cannot see the light. Rather than letting it get moldy in the warehouse, it is better to exchange it for tangible resources. "

...

Night fell.

At the foot of the Yunlan Sect, there was a secret marketplace called the "Ghost Market".

This place was not under the jurisdiction of the Sect; it was a gray zone for Loose Cultivators, Demonic Cultivators, and Disciples from various major Sects to trade privately. As long as you paid the entrance fee and wore a mask, no one would ask about your identity or the origin of your goods.

Gu Yan had changed into a wide black robe and was wearing that ghost-Face mask he had used in the Fallen Demon Valley, weaving through the crowded stalls.

He was not in a hurry to sell the stolen goods, but was looking for something.

Ever since he swallowed the blood river bead, his perception of certain special auras had become exceptionally keen.

" It's right around here ... "

Gu Yan stopped in front of an inconspicuous stall.

The stall owner was an old man wrapped in a gray cloth headscarf, with a pile of scrap metal in front of him, which looked like defective products dug out from some ancient battlefields or ruins.

But Gu Yan's gaze was locked tightly on a piece of black iron in the corner of the stall.

The iron piece was only the size of a palm, covered in rust, stained with mud, and looked like it had no Qi fluctuations.

But in Gu Yan's perception, the asura armguard on his left arm was heating up slightly, conveying a sense of longing.

It was a resonance of the same origin.

" How much for this piece of scrap iron? " Gu Yan squatted down, picked up a broken sword from the side, and asked casually.

The old man raised his cloudy eyes, glanced at Gu Yan, and held up three fingers.

" Three hundred Spirit Stones? " Gu Yan frowned.

" Three thousand. " The old man's voice was hoarse, " Buy it or don't. "

" You want to sell a piece of broken iron for three thousand? "

Gu Yan sneered and was about to put it down.

" I'll take it. "

An abrupt voice came from behind.

A Cultivator wearing a red robe and a faceless mask pushed over and threw out a heavy bag of Spirit Stones: " Three thousand, this thing belongs to me. "

Gu Yan's eyes narrowed.

Not because he was being intercepted, but because he smelled an extremely disgusting scent on this person.

The smell of blood.

The kind of blood smell that had been refined through special Cultivation Techniques and deeply engraved into the bone marrow.

It was of the same origin as the blood river bead in his body.

" Someone from the Blood River Sect? "

Alarm bells rang in Gu Yan's heart.

The red-robed Cultivator didn't seem to notice Gu Yan's strangeness and reached out to take the iron piece.

Slap.

A hand wearing black brass knuckles pressed down on the iron piece first.

" Do you know the rules? "

Gu Yan turned his head, his eyes under the mask revealing a bone-chilling coldness: " First come, first served. I have taken a fancy to this thing. "

The red-robed Cultivator paused and turned to look at Gu Yan.

" Friend, some things will burn your hands if you take them. "

The red-robed Cultivator's voice was feminine and carried a threat: " I am acting on behalf of my master. If you are sensible and let go now, I can pretend that nothing happened. "

" Burn my hands? "

Gu Yan grinned, his left arm applied a little force, and the iron piece under the brass knuckles emitted a crisp metallic trembling sound.

" What a coincidence. "

" I am naturally cold-bodied, and I like things that burn my hands. "

" Want it? " Gu Yan pointed to the darkness outside the marketplace, " Then let's see if you have the life to come and take it. "

After saying that, he threw down three thousand Spirit Stones, grabbed the iron piece, and turned to leave.

The red-robed Cultivator stared at Gu Yan's back, the murderous intent in his eyes almost overflowing. He didn't act on the spot, but quietly crushed a communication Jade Slip in his sleeve.

" The fish has taken the bait. "