Chapter 42 - 40: Domineering Gu Qingyan, The Elder Backed Down

Chapter 42: Chapter 40: Domineering Gu Qingyan, The Elder Backed Down

In the boundless void, the young girl stood like a descended empress. Leading countless masked experts, she stood tall between heaven and earth, quietly awaiting the arrival of the myriad figures crossing over.

"It’s the Young Master of the Divine Pill Pavilion, Gu Qingyan."

"Heavens, I understand now. This is Jiang Hao’s true backing that gave him the audacity to execute Qi Tianyang."

"How is this possible? Even if he really obtained the mark of the Alchemy Stele, looking at the entire Sword Dynasty, there are countless regions comparable to the Eastern Domain. The Pill Masters who can obtain the mark number in the thousands, if not tens of thousands. What gives him the right to be treated like this by the Divine Pill Pavilion?"

"Could it be that Jiang Hao’s Alchemy Dao talent is even more terrifying than what we have seen? To the point that even the Divine Pill Pavilion is willing to fall out with the Celestial Sword Sect for him?"

Countless Cultivators of Xingyue City were greatly shaken as they watched this scene.

The force behind the young girl was especially staggering; the sheer number of towering figures was enough to sweep across all of Xingyue City. Only then did people realize just how vast the disparity between individuals could be. Seeing the countless masked experts radiating terrifying auras ahead, Zhao Wuji and the numerous Celestial Sword Sect disciples subconsciously halted. Even the countless furious figures of the Qi family paused slightly, caught completely off guard. As the two factions locked eyes, everyone’s brows were tightly furrowed.

"Little girl? What is the meaning of this?"

Standing at the forefront of the countless experts, Zhao Wuji was the first to speak. Although he had never seen Gu Qingyan, he had received news from the Qi family and naturally guessed the young girl’s identity. The person blocking his path at this moment was no ordinary individual; she was the beloved daughter of the Divine Pill Pavilion’s Pill Master, the future master of the Divine Pill Pavilion.

Gu Qingyan flashed a sweet smile in response to his voice.

"It is quite obvious. Can Elder Zhao not see it?

"Today, no one can kill Jiang Hao.

"I promised him that I would let him leave the Xingyue City Earth Realm safe and sound. This is my commitment to him."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone instantly understood her intentions. Zhao Wuji’s expression immediately darkened. "Girl, have you thought this through? Does the Divine Pill Pavilion wish to make an enemy of my Celestial Sword Sect?"

Clearly, with the situation being so urgent, Zhao Wuji directly brought out the Celestial Sword Sect to exert pressure. That figure was already flying out of Xingyue City, and the opportunity was fleeting. They were all smart people, so there was no pointless banter.

However, Gu Qingyan did not seem to place an Elder of a Celestial Sword Sect branch in her eyes at all. She smiled even more radiantly at his words. "What kind of talk is that, Elder Zhao? My Divine Pill Pavilion and the Celestial Sword Sect have seemingly never been friends, have we?"

Hearing this, Zhao Wuji immediately narrowed his eyes. "It seems you are determined to protect this boy?"

"Why shouldn’t I?" Gu Qingyan asked in return.

Zhao Wuji’s killing intent only grew thicker, but clearly hindered by her identity, he did not dare to easily take that step, even though he was burning with anxiety.

"Little brat, I know who you are.

"What? Do you want to attack me? Have you forgotten the rules of the Divine Pill Pavilion?"

Divine Pill Pavilion Cultivators were absolutely not to participate in the disputes between various parties, much less actively launch an attack against any faction. Obviously, Zhao Wuji was extremely clear about the founding creed of the Divine Pill Pavilion and wanted to use it to force the young girl before him to back down.

However, Gu Qingyan suddenly said, "Elder Zhao misunderstands. Today, I do not represent the Divine Pill Pavilion. I only represent my own stance."

"HAHAHAHA!" Zhao Wuji burst into loud laughter at her words, then coldly snorted. "Girl, since you don’t represent the Divine Pill Pavilion, do you think this loose sand behind you can block my path?"

Although the forces Gu Qingyan had hastily assembled near the Eastern Domain were enough to sweep across all of Xingyue City, they were indeed not enough in Zhao Wuji’s eyes.

Yet the moment he finished speaking, Gu Qingyan smiled sweetly, her tone incredibly soft.

"Elder Zhao is right. Relying solely on these uncles behind Qingyan, they are indeed no match for you, Senior.

"However, Senior needs to think it through clearly. Do you truly dare to take this step?

"I will stand right here and watch with my own eyes as Senior walks past me. As long as Senior dares, I will absolutely not stop you."

After speaking, Gu Qingyan even made an inviting gesture. But Zhao Wuji froze in place. He stared fixedly at her, utterly unsure of what she had up her sleeve. Seeing that Zhao Wuji did not respond immediately—or rather, not intending to give him the chance to respond—her expression suddenly changed, and her aura skyrocketed endlessly.

At the same time, an incredibly melodious yet extremely loud and majestic voice echoed throughout Xingyue City.

"Listen to me, all Cultivators of Xingyue City! I am Gu Qingyan, daughter of the Divine Pill Pavilion’s Pill Master.

"Today, speaking from a personal standpoint, Qingyan warns everyone: from this moment on, as long as I, Gu Qingyan, stand here, no one is allowed to take half a step past this place.

"If anyone thinks that Qingyan cannot kill them today and insists on ignoring the warning to cross the line, then I, Gu Qingyan, swear an oath right here that I will surely grind them into dust in the future."

Hearing this, Zhao Wuji abruptly raised his head, his heart greatly shaken. It was obvious that these words were not meant for the Cultivators of Xingyue City; they were clearly meant for him, an Elder of the Celestial Sword Sect.

However, before Zhao Wuji could fully process this, Gu Qingyan’s next words caused his expression to change drastically.

"If any peerless expert dares to walk past here to pursue and kill Jiang Hao, my Guardians will not attack him due to the founding creed of the Divine Pill Pavilion.

"But I guarantee that from now on, Qingyan will use her personal name to mobilize all connections and forces—excluding the Divine Pill Pavilion Cultivators—to hunt him down until there is no path to heaven and no door to the earth, continuing until he dies and his Dao vanishes."

BOOM!

Gu Qingyan’s words were like a shocking thunderbolt that turned Zhao Wuji’s mind upside down. Especially that last sentence—using her personal name to mobilize all connections and forces excluding the Divine Pill Pavilion Cultivators, hunting him down with no path to heaven and no door to the earth until he dies and his Dao vanishes. If anyone else had said this, they would undoubtedly be laughed at. But coming from the mouth of the Pill Master’s daughter, the weight of those words was palpable. She would not even need to take out a single Holy Pill to cause countless powerful figures to desperately curry favor with her and launch an assassination. The prestige of the Pill Master’s daughter was not just empty talk.

If things really came to that, let alone an Elder, even a Celestial Sword Sect Branch Sect Leader would have to cower within the main sect and not dare to show their face. For a moment, Zhao Wuji’s complexion was incredibly ugly, and his body felt as if it were filled with lead, unfathomably heavy.

"The Celestial Sword Sect Elder actually backed down?"

Countless Cultivators watched this scene from afar, their eyes filled with shock. With just a few words, she had actually forced an Elder of a dominant sect to publicly back down. What kind of sheer dominance was this?

However, although Zhao Wuji had retreated, the myriad experts of the Qi family had lost their minds. When Qi Yun Mountain arrived through the air, it thoroughly ignited this fire.

"Kill him! Celestial Yang is dead, and the hope of the Qi family is broken. Even if I die today, this old man will make him pay for Yang’Er’s life!"

Qi Yun Mountain’s eyes were bloodshot. Completely stripped of his reason, he charged like a madman toward the defense line set up by Gu Qingyan.

In an instant, shouts rang out.

"Kill him! Even if the experts of our Qi family are wiped out today, we will absolutely not let him leave the Xingyue City Earth Realm!"

"Avenge Yang’Er! Kill!"

Countless Qi family experts were seeing red. By losing Qi Tianyang, the Qi family had effectively lost everything. A Great Cultivation Race might not give birth to a Celestial Tier martial soul even once in several millennia. This was fatal to the Qi family. The myriad older generation experts, who did not have many years left to live anyway, were already completely engulfed by killing intent. Even with Gu Qingyan stepping forward, it was impossible to extinguish the wrath of the Qi family.

In a flash.

BOOM!!!

An earth-shattering battle broke out between the two factions. Countless terrifying figures crashed into the masked experts, and this part of the world instantly boiled over. Seeing the endless slaughter spread out like the flames of war, the innumerable Cultivators of Xingyue City were completely dumbfounded.

In just a short moment, quite a few Qi family experts forcibly endured heavy blows to break through the blockade, pursuing after Jiang Hao and the others. Even though the forces Gu Qingyan had mobilized were already extremely terrifying, they could not suppress a thoroughly enraged lion. After all, this was still the Xingyue City Earth Realm, and as the local hegemon, the Qi family’s foundation was inevitably fearsome.

As the slaughter reached a fever pitch, more and more old fogeys of the Qi family fought with their lives on the line. They fought until the heavens fractured and the earth rent, and the sun and moon lost their light, staining the void red with blood.

Meanwhile, an unwilling Zhao Wuji shot a glance at the numerous Celestial Sword Sect disciples. The Celestial Sword Sect disciples, each emanating a frightening aura, exchanged looks and silently bypassed the battlefield, sneaking toward the outskirts of Xingyue City.

Gu Qingyan naturally saw all of this, but she remained entirely unmoved. This was already within her expectations; in this world, no one could truly control the Cultivation Realm. Her purpose in appearing personally was to intimidate Zhao Wuji. As long as this peerless expert did not make a move, Jiang Hao would have a chance to escape.

Time ticked away second by second. Seeing more and more Qi family experts willing to suffer severe injuries to break out, the countless terrifying young figures within the Tea Pavilion could no longer sit still. One by one, they tore through the air.

"Miss Qingyan, although we are crossing this boundary, we will absolutely not attack the person Miss Qingyan wishes to protect. Please do not misunderstand, Miss Qingyan."

As dozens of favored children of heaven crossed the battlefield passing by Gu Qingyan, they all proactively stated their intentions. And when a beautiful figure wearing a bamboo hat brushed past her, the two of them exchanged a glance. Looking at the pair of beautiful eyes faintly visible beneath the hat, Gu Qingyan was slightly taken aback.

"Is it her?"

Obviously, Gu Qingyan had recognized the identity of the beautiful figure in the bamboo hat, but after a moment of mild surprise, she remained calm and collected. Although the slaughter in this area raged like fire and water, no one dared to touch Gu Qingyan or Bai Wufeng.

The latter looked at the Qi family experts, who had gone mad with bloodlust and were constantly breaking through, as well as those terrifying young figures flying away. He sighed deeply, his eyes revealing his worry as he muttered to himself.

"After this battle, the name Jiang Hao will probably resound throughout the entire Eastern Domain.

"I hope he can retreat in one piece."