Lu Yuan, single blade and single sword, soared upon his sword. With the Sword Gate now facing trouble, his course was naturally set straight for it.

As he streaked across the void on his sword, the surrounding expanse was nothing but boundless starlight, countless stars flashing past.

After flying like this for a long time, Lu Yuan suddenly halted.

It was because his intuition screamed that danger lay ahead.

"Oh, you react quickly; you actually managed to avoid my inescapable net." A gentle voice sounded. Lu Yuan looked around, and who else could it be but that villain, Ling Qingyun.

Ling Qingyun was the quintessential hypocrite; on the surface, a refined and elegant young master, but in truth, nothing more than a complete fraud. Back in the Elemental Tower, he had attempted to ambush Lu Yuan but was wounded by a single move. However, he had prepared an escape route and fled immediately.

And now, he appeared here.

Lu Yuan couldn't help but be surprised: "That’s not right. You’re here? Aren't you afraid I’ll just cut you down?"

Ling Qingyun smiled faintly: "Naturally, I'm not afraid, because you lack the power to kill me."

"Oh, is that so?" Lu Yuan was in no hurry to move, sensing a profound danger where Ling Qingyun stood—an instinctual warning that kept Lu Yuan wary of making any rash move.

"Such keen intuition," Ling Qingyun praised, hands clasped behind his back. Numerous large nets materialized around him. "A pity. I prepared all these grand nets specifically to ensnare you; these are treasured artifacts I went to great lengths to acquire, yet you didn't fall for the trap. What a shame." He looked genuinely regretful.

Bang!

The tip of a spear pierced Lu Yuan's body.

Unbeknownst to him, a scholar in his early forties had appeared behind Lu Yuan. This scholar bore a seventy percent resemblance to Ling Qingyun, holding a long spear in hand, lending a strangely refined air to the sight of a scholar wielding a formidable lance. "This Lu Yuan isn't that strong, just so-so."

The middle-aged scholar’s expression shifted slightly. "Eh, something’s wrong. This is a fake."

"What you just saw was naturally an illusion. Unluckily for you, that was my Floating Life, Fleeting Dream." Not far away, an intact Lu Yuan reappeared. "Who are you?"

"Impressive for one so young, to evade my Gentleman's Spear," the middle-aged scholar stated calmly. His spear strike had been utterly venomous, yet he named it the Gentleman's Spear. This person was clearly cut from the same cloth as Ling Qingyun. "Right, my name is Ling Xiongtian, Ling Qingyun's father. As for why we are so determined to kill you, you needn't concern yourself with that."

Neither father nor son revealed the reason for their need to kill Lu Yuan.

Both father and son were treacherous schemers; how could they possibly disclose such vital information to Lu Yuan?

The truth was, this involved an event that transpired not long ago.

The Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization possessed a character vastly different from many other figures at the Civilization Realm. Many other Civilization Realm figures were ambitious warlords, cunning and sly, whereas the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization was intensely magnanimous and tragically noble. He founded the Confucian Civilization and protected it.

Originally, the Confucian Civilization had two Vice-Lords: the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization and the Vice-Lord of the Three Books Civilization. Recently, a third had emerged: the Vice-Lord of Integrity.

Because there were two other Vice-Lords besides himself, the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization did something truly shocking.

He traveled to the Lost Lands and challenged the Vice-Lord of the Demon Civilization, his enemy of many years.

The result of that battle was that the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization lost, falling into a near-death state—though a Vice-Lord’s near-death could last many years.

Sensing his time was short, the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization entrusted the strongest character in his foundational script, the character 'Ru' (Confucian), to the Vice-Lord of the Three Books Civilization, and the character 'Qi' (Spirit/Breath) to the Vice-Lord of Integrity. Simultaneously, he intended to select a successor to whom he would pass on all his learning and the final foundational character, 'Zheng' (True/Correct).

Without question, Ling Qingyun was the most outstanding individual among the current generation of young cultivators.

Ling Qingyun was highly likely to be the inheritor.

However, Ling Qingyun waited and waited but received no inheritance. Furthermore, he had subtly managed to learn that the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization seemed to favor the newly rising Lu Yuan, planning to pass the legacy to him instead.

Passing one's heritage to someone outside one's own civilization might be something other Vice-Lords couldn't stomach, but the Vice-Lord of the Confucian Civilization absolutely could—he was a generous and sorrowful figure; if he took a liking to Lu Yuan, he might very well grant him the character 'Zheng' and the entire legacy. Ling Qingyun grew anxious, and after the Elemental Tower incident, he became even more frantic. The better Lu Yuan performed, the smaller his own chances of obtaining the foundational character 'Zheng' became, driving him to desperation.

Thus, he and his father, Ling Xiongtian, came here to ambush and kill Lu Yuan.

And so, the scene from before unfolded.

Lu Yuan, originally rushing back to the Sword Gate, had instinctively dodged the net ahead and used Floating Life, Fleeting Dream to evade Ling Xiongtian’s lethally insidious spear thrust.

Even so, Lu Yuan dimly perceived that Ling Xiongtian was extraordinary. This father’s strength seemed immense, possessing at least the cultivation of the Fifth Heaven of the World Realm. In truth, Ling Xiongtian was indeed at the Fifth Heaven of the World Realm, while Ling Qingyun was currently at the Third Heaven of the World Realm.

Their actions were incredibly treacherous, meaning they could not draw upon significant forces from the Confucian Civilization; only the father and son could act.

They were well aware that Lu Yuan could attempt to break through to the Fourth Heaven of the World Realm, but if he did so now, his foundation would be unstable, preventing him from effortlessly defeating opponents across realm boundaries as he had before. Lu Yuan's cross-realm victories relied on two factors: supremely excellent swordsmanship and an incomparably deep and stable foundation. If Lu Yuan’s foundation became shaky, what did they have to fear?

Moreover, even if Lu Yuan reached the Fourth Heaven of the World Realm, Ling Xiongtian was confident he could still prevail—a self-assurance born from having deceived countless others.

The father and son, Ling Xiongtian and Ling Qingyun, stared at Lu Yuan, looking intent on slaying him then and there.

No, Ling Xiongtian immediately unleashed his spear technique, "Hundred Gentleman Strikes." Yes, the name of his spear technique was indeed Hundred Gentleman Strikes.

For instance, one move was "Gentleman's Broadness and Openness" (Junzi Tandaidangdang), a spear technique so malicious it defied description in its viciousness.

Another move was "Gentleman Strives Unceasingly for Self-Improvement" (Junzi Ziqiang Erbu Xi). This spear thrust was overwhelming, seemingly embodying the spirit of relentless self-improvement. But just as one moved to block, the spear shaft would violently shatter, and the inner spear would suddenly strike—this entire set of Hundred Gentleman Strikes was tailored to be as insidious as possible.

Facing the fierce and venomous Hundred Gentleman Strikes executed by Ling Xiongtian of the Fifth Heaven World Realm, Lu Yuan felt the situation was incredibly difficult to manage. Had it not been for Floating Life, Fleeting Dream, he would have died several times under the onslaught of this spear technique. But don't assume Floating Life, Fleeting Dream was invincible; Lu Yuan gradually realized that Ling Xiongtian, with his far superior cultivation, was beginning to see through the illusion, capable of using sheer mystic power to forcibly break the technique.

This is bad!

Lu Yuan instantly recognized the severity of the predicament.

Damn it!

Lu Yuan searched for a path to survival, but facing the Hundred Gentleman Strikes, he saw no opportunity whatsoever.

Wait! There was a chance!

Lu Yuan spotted a sliver of hope outside the official thoroughfare.

As previously mentioned, the Central Heavenly Dynasty was connected by official thoroughfares, and beyond these roads lay incredibly powerful monstrous beasts. These beasts were unimaginably enormous, often hundreds of thousands of zhang tall, or even tens of thousands of zhang, beasts comparable to stars that attacked without warning—how could anyone withstand that?

Therefore, generally, no one ventured beyond the official thoroughfare.

But now, the only element Ling Xiongtian’s Hundred Gentleman Strikes neglected was the area outside the official road, because a normal person would never rush outside to commit suicide. Lu Yuan, having no other recourse, didn't hesitate for a moment and plunged beyond the thoroughfare. As Lu Yuan dashed outside, Ling Xiongtian froze, and Ling Qingyun was equally stunned. They had never imagined Lu Yuan would dare to enter the region outside the official road.

The reason they didn't guard this area was that the territory beyond the road belonged to the immensely powerful monstrous beast known as the Gugu Beast. This Gugu Beast was notoriously troublesome and terrifying; even Ling Xiongtian and his son believed that venturing into the Gugu Beast's domain meant a nine-in-ten chance of death.

Now that Lu Yuan had entered, his chances were zero.

Furthermore, the Gugu Beast territory was known as the Gugu Forbidden Zone, possessing only a single entrance. If Lu Yuan miraculously managed to escape the Gugu Forbidden Zone, Ling Xiongtian and Ling Qingyun planned to ambush him at that sole exit—they were determined to kill Lu Yuan one way or another.

Ling Qingyun’s lips curled into a vicious smile: "We will weave our Heaven-Rattling Net right here and cast it over him when he emerges."

"Even if Lu Yuan doesn't die in the Gugu Forbidden Zone, he will be forced out quickly. The matter the Son of the Sword is causing at the Sword Gate demands haste, and Lu Yuan, given his personality, cares deeply for his sect. I know all his weaknesses," Ling Qingyun remarked with a touch of smugness.

Ling Xiongtian nodded: "Right, ensure the necessary arrangements are made after we kill Lu Yuan."

"Understood. The Son of the Sword and Lu Yuan are sworn enemies; framing the Son of the Sword for Lu Yuan’s death will be child's play," Ling Qingyun chuckled sinisterly. "What is the Son of the Sword? What is Lu Yuan? Even if their talent is supreme, without strategy, without pretending to be virtuous, and without knowing how to leverage power, how can they possibly contend with me?"

The top one hundred figures on the Genius Ranking all possessed formidable Destiny and talent. Ling Qingyun was already this difficult to deal with; the others would be no easier. They represented the most potentially dangerous and talented rising stars in the Central Heavenly Dynasty.

At this moment, Lu Yuan entered the Gugu Forbidden Zone—his first time venturing outside the official thoroughfare.

After traveling the official roads across the Central Heavenly Dynasty for so long, this was truly his first excursion beyond the road's boundary.

He wondered what the landscape looked like beyond the official roads of the Central Heavenly Dynasty.

Meanwhile, back at the Sword Gate.

"Ambush Lu Yuan?" The Son of the Sword shook his head. "It’s unnecessary. If anyone else ambushed Lu Yuan, his mighty Destiny would allow him to easily turn the tables, even giving him a chance to ascend through that struggle. Let Lu Yuan return to the Sword Gate; I will use my superior Destiny to directly extinguish his powerful Destiny, making him perish by my hand."

The Son of the Sword was, of course, unaware that while he didn't want anyone else to attack Lu Yuan—even informing the Ancient Wilderness Civilization and the Jian Civilization not to interfere—the Ling father and son of the Confucian Civilization were seizing the opportunity to strike.

(The third update is delivered; please subscribe! The confrontation with the Son of the Sword is close, and the path to the Dao is also near.)