Yes, I am the remaining four swords. But these remaining four swords are more than enough to slay the Right Blood King, Qi Dao, and the Left Blood King, Luo Wei.
If you two, the current highest leaders of the Blood Gate, refuse to concede defeat, then you shall die beneath my blade. In that scenario, the Blood Gate naturally loses, but if you two possess such noble sentiment, then I accept that outcome—this was Lu Yuan’s reasoning.
Conversely, if the two supreme leaders of the Blood Gate agree to surrender, this battle need not occur, and the final four swords will never be drawn. The Blood Gate will lose outright, but in return, the two current supreme leaders, Left Blood King and Right Blood King, will be permitted to live.
The choice was ceded to the opposition, testing whether their supreme leaders, the Left Blood King and Right Blood King, harbored such lofty ideals. Of course, Lu Yuan never believed they possessed such noble sentiments; it would be miraculous if such devilish practitioners held any true nobility.
Moreover, Lu Yuan had employed a tactic this time. He had targeted two individuals specifically: the Left Blood King Luo Wei and the Right Blood King Gan Dao.
If it were only one person bearing the stigma of conceding defeat in the Sect Ranking Battle, the pressure would be immense, inviting universal condemnation and suppression from rival factions. However, since it was two people, this pressure of surrender was distributed between the Left Blood King and the Right Blood King.
As they held the sect's supreme authority together, sharing the renown for proactively yielding was not an insurmountable burden. Easing their pressure slightly might prompt a swifter surrender.
It was not that he wished to spare them; for fiends of this nature, slaying them was certainly appropriate—his Immortal-Heroic Sword technique was not cultivated in vain for mere chivalry. However, he was no adolescent perpetually shouting about justice.
Survival must come first to better embody the duality of immortal and hero. Given the unfathomable number of grudges he had amassed in the Central Celestial Dynasty, strengthening himself was paramount to survival, which required entering the Sacred Land of Civilization.
Thus, he had to postpone eliminating the nefarious Blood Gate for the moment. Now?
He merely had to sit back and enjoy the spectacle. “Cough, cough!” As he waited for the show, he felt his previous injuries flare up, causing him to cough repeatedly.
This time, the wounds were unprecedentedly severe. Since his debut, he had never suffered such grievous harm.
How tragic. The youth in green wiped the corner of his lips; a streak of fresh crimson stained the cuff of his sleeve, yet his right hand still gripped his sword tightly, awaiting the decision of the Blood Gate’s two leaders.
The Right Blood King Gan Dao and the Left Blood King Luo Wei both turned their gaze toward Lu Yuan’s sword. That very blade had slain the Blood God King in six strikes.
They exchanged a look, and finally, both spoke in unison: “Very well. To preserve some strength for the Blood Gate and prevent more lives from being lost by your hand, we concede.” In truth, their primary motivation was self-preservation, but outwardly, they needed justifications, claiming the need to safeguard the Blood Gate’s remaining strength.
The Right Blood King and Left Blood King turned to the other members of the Blood Gate: “Do any of you object?” With the two Blood Kings leading the sect now, and seeing the glint of sharp resolve in their eyes, no one else dared to raise an objection; they could only nod, lest they be instantly eliminated by the two leaders should they refuse. Victory!
They had won just like that! The Sword Gate had triumphed over the Blood Gate!
It was expected that an underdog like the Sword Gate would lose against one of the Ten Strongest Sects, as proven by earlier eliminations like the Bamboo Joint Gate. Yet, the Sword Gate had engineered an astonishing reversal, defeating the Blood Gate.
A mere ordinary Supreme Great Sect overcoming the Blood Gate, one of the Ten Strongest Sects—it was almost unimaginable. Even more incredible was that this battle was fought almost entirely by Lu Yuan of the Sword Gate.
True, Ancestor Jian Mie had provided some support, and without him, Lu Yuan might not have won. Throughout the entire process, Lu Yuan broke the Blood God Drum, endured the Supreme Blood Essence Orb, and finally, while wounded, cleverly utilized the final ten sword strikes to secure the victory over the Blood Gate.
The entire sequence was layered with drama, deserving only the descriptor ‘spectacular,’ for this battle was truly brilliant and intricate, compelling admiration and awe. And the members of the Sword Gate were already beside themselves with emotion.
How long had it been since the Sword Gate ranked within the top ten? The top ten in the Sect War—the mere thought brought tears to their eyes.
Damn, was that easy? Ancestor Jian Mie felt the beginnings of tears welling up.
He had always been aware of his own limitations; he was incapable of expansion, let alone capable leadership. During his tenure, brilliant talents had emerged—the first was Yan Cangtian, but he was driven away by the Immortal Ancient Civilization.
The second was the Son of the Sword, but he was arrogant, domineering, and intolerant of dissent, demanding absolute obedience. Now, a third had appeared: Lu Yuan.
Lu Yuan was consistently humble, and his potential even eclipsed that of the Son of the Sword. As long as Lu Yuan survived, the Sword Gate was certain to flourish.
Lu Yuan finally exhaled, relieved. This battle had been arduous; the injuries were severe, but he had secured the opportunity to travel to the various domains of the Female Luminaries and, crucially, the Sacred Land of Civilization.
Few chances existed to enter that place; the Son of the Sword, dreaming of profiting from the Sacred Land, would have to abandon that hope now. Below, the audience erupted.
The Gambling Gate had made an absolute fortune. Wagers placed on the Sword Gate beating the Blood Gate were numerous, yet not a single person bet on the Sword Gate to win.
When Sikong Du accepted these odds, he was initially terrified; under normal circumstances, taking such a bet would require paying out vast sums. With the Sword Gate’s victory, however, the Gambling Gate soared financially, ranking among the top fifteen beneficiaries of the tournament—a list that included the ten sects advancing to the Sacred Land.
Imperial Scion Fa Qiang applauded vigorously. This was magnificent!
Lu Yuan grew more fascinating by the moment. Those final ten swords—the first six had been spectacular, but the unspoken threat of the final four had compelled the entire Blood Gate to surrender, an equally brilliant move.
Having personally cultivated such an individual filled him with undeniable pride. Imperial Scion Fa Qiang laughed heartily, thoroughly satisfied.
The frail, silver-haired young man seated within the Immortal Ancient Civilization area also showed a flicker of surprise. Interesting!
Fascinating! After a considerable pause, the clamor caused by the Sword Gate’s massive upset finally subsided.
Next came the remaining matches of the eighth round, divided into two bouts: Puppet Gate versus South Splendor Gate, and Young Sun Gate versus Gloomy Gate. All four of these sects belonged to the Ten Strongest Sects.
Undoubtedly, the clashes between these four represented the highest caliber of skill displayed so far. Puppet Gate versus South Splendor Gate: The Puppet Gate was bizarrely unpredictable.
A single figure could suddenly manifest several duplicates. You might kill your supposed opponent only to realize it was a mere puppet, an utterly frustrating experience.
The Puppet Gate was notorious for being a headache, as one could never discern the true body from the false ones. The South Splendor Gate, meanwhile, mastered the profound arts of celestial magic, elevating them to the pinnacle achievable by a Supreme Great Sect—truly textbook perfection.
The battle between Young Sun Gate and Gloomy Gate was equally riveting. The members of the Young Sun Gate activated their Young Sun Heart Method, resembling the breaking dawn, while those from the Gloomy Gate channeled their technique, manifesting the deep, pervasive gloom of the Nine Hells.
The clash between Young Sun energy and Nine Hells energy was mutually antagonistic and utterly brilliant. Both matches were spectacular, yet inexplicably, the audience felt they did not quite match the contest between the Sword Gate and the Blood Gate; that fight remained the most captivating.
The Puppet Gate and the Young Sun Gate emerged victorious from these two duels. Consequently, the current final eight were: Overlord Blade Gate, Sole Gate, Blooming Fragrance Gate, Arrow Gate, Long Spear Gate, Sword Gate, Puppet Gate, and Young Sun Gate.
The next event was the contest among the eight sects that lost in the round of sixteen to vie for the ninth and tenth positions. Having lost the Blood God Drum and the Blood God King, the Blood Gate was now incapable of competing with the Gloomy Gate or the South Splendor Gate for these spots.
Thus, the final top ten were: Overlord Blade Gate, Sole Gate, Blooming Fragrance Gate, Arrow Gate, Long Spear Gate, Sword Gate, Puppet Gate, Young Sun Gate, Gloomy Gate, and South Splendor Gate. Among these ten, nine were established, powerful sects, with the Sword Gate being the sole, dark horse that persevered to the very end.
With this outcome, the ten individuals heading to the Sacred Land of Civilization were largely determined: Heng Zhan, Master of the Overlord Blade Gate; Wei Yi Di, Master of the Sole Gate; Feng Xiao Tian, Master of the Arrow Gate; Bai Fang Hua, Mistress of the Blooming Fragrance Gate; Li Ru Shan, Master of the Long Spear Gate; Lu Yuan of the Sword Gate; Yi Wuxing, Master of the Puppet Gate; Emperor Chi, Master of the Young Sun Gate; You Wu Qiu, Master of the Gloomy Gate; and True Man Nan Yue, Master of the South Splendor Gate. Among them, Heng Zhan, Wei Yi Di, Li Ru Shan, and Emperor Chi—the masters of the Overlord Blade Gate, Sole Gate, Long Spear Gate, and Young Sun Gate—possessed World Realm Eighth Heaven cultivation, placing them in the top tier of the ten.
Bai Fang Hua, Yi Wuxing, You Wu Qiu, True Man Nan Yue, and Feng Xiao Tian—the masters of the Blooming Fragrance Gate, Puppet Gate, Gloomy Gate, South Splendor Gate, and Arrow Gate—were at World Realm Seventh Heaven, constituting the second tier in terms of magical power. Lu Yuan alone stood at World Realm Sixth Heaven in terms of cultivation, falling into the third tier based on magical power.
These ten entering the Sacred Land of Civilization were bound to gain tremendous benefits. But who among them would reap the greatest rewards remained uncertain.
Heng Zhan, Master of the Overlord Blade Gate, laughed robustly: “Lu Yuan, while we are in the Sacred Land, our blade and your sword must settle a score for the Supreme Great Sects. The people of Civilization currently pay absolutely no heed to us Supreme Great Sect cultivators.” Heng Zhan was from the Overlord Blade Gate, practicing the Supreme Overlord Blade technique; his title implied inherent dominance.
Lu Yuan also laughed, finding Heng Zhan immediately agreeable. Subsequently, Imperial Scion Wu Wang and Immortal Elder Nan Ji announced the other benefits for the top ten.
The Sword Gate received a massive influx of resource planets and various other boons. Ancestor Jian Mie and the others were ecstatic to find that the Sword Gate’s resource planets had increased by more than tenfold—a sudden elevation, indicating the true path to revival for the Sword Gate.