Chapter 548 - 328: Bestowed with the "Sword Saint" Fate Grid, If I Cannot Become a Saint, Who Can?

Everyone saw the figure emerging from the clouds with perfect clarity. A torrential river surged from the distance, paving a path for him.

"Oh no, it’s Twelve Thrones Gangzhu! Why is he here?!"

"I remember him fighting Divine Distinct Bodhisattva over the western seas."

"Could it be that Divine Distinct Bodhisattva was defeated?!"

Cries of alarm spread among the Human Race Cultivators.

Divine Distinct Bodhisattva was one of the four great Bodhisattvas of the Buddhist Sect. His power was unfathomable, possessing combat strength at the Peak of the Thirteenth Realm. How could he have lost?

’Did Gangzhu break through to the Fourteenth Realm?’

The ranking of the Thrones doesn’t perfectly represent their strength.

Gangzhu was ranked twelfth, but that didn’t mean he was the weakest.

Great Demons also cultivate, and their strength grows. Thus, their power isn’t fixed; it fluctuates.

Take the Seventh Throne, Dragon Halberd, for example. Although he was ranked seventh, that was just his standing from a thousand years ago.

In reality, the potential of Dragon Halberd’s power was far greater than his rank as the Seventh Throne suggested.

He was the youngest and had less seniority, so he could only be ranked seventh.

The same was true for Gangzhu.

Even though he was last, he couldn’t be treated as the weakest.

Now that Gangzhu had defeated Divine Distinct Bodhisattva, it proved his strength was at least in the middle ranks of the Thrones.

Sure enough, a moment later...

A Bodhisattva with a full face, holding a Jade Purification Bottle and riding a Spiritual Tiger, slowly descended from the sky. His complexion was rather pale; he had clearly sustained considerable injuries.

"We welcome the Bodhisattva’s return."

"What happened to you..."

Seeing their Bodhisattva return with his Golden Body damaged, the Golden Monks of Wenshu Temple all gathered around, inquiring about his well-being and the situation.

"Gangzhu obtained a great Opportunity in the Grotto Heaven. I am indeed no match for him," Divine Distinct Bodhisattva said with a grave expression.

"This stream of water is..." a Golden Monk asked grimly, gazing at the new river in the sky.

"That is the Ruishui River," Divine Distinct Bodhisattva explained.

"The Ruishui River is an extremely special type of Divine Water from the Divine Beings. Nothing can float on it; even a feather will sink. At the same time, the Ruishui River possesses an astonishing corrosive power, said to be able to dissolve all things. During the Middle Ages, not even the Divine Beings dared to approach it."

"But Gangzhu has mastered this Divine Object. It can dissolve all techniques, and it can even devour Dharma Aspects and Merit Golden Bodies."

Yun Qinghe noticed the newcomer in the sky. After using her Storage Bracelet to collect the Corrupt Divine Flower, she didn’t get greedy and take everything else. Instead, she quickly retreated.

She was used to being arrogant, but she wasn’t blindly conceited.

She admitted to herself that she was no match for Gangzhu.

However, she was locked onto by a Divine Nail in the sky, from which it seemed Thunder would descend.

An overwhelming pressure swept down from above, forcing all living beings, no matter who they were, to their knees!

Gritting her teeth, Yun Qinghe threw out the Life-saving Talisman bestowed upon her by the Elder Celestial Master.

Azure Taoist Qi flowed into it, and the Talisman rapidly burned.

A projection of a doddering old man in a purple robe with wide, fluttering sleeves appeared between heaven and earth. Above his head, the Thunder of the Nine Heavens flickered.

A massive, aged hand, carrying world-ending might, struck out toward Gangzhu.

"The Celestial Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain?"

"What a small world for enemies."

Gangzhu sneered. He brandished the Nine-foot Divine Nail, and streams of black water appeared in his palm.

He flung it out.

The palm-sized trickle of water flowed out and instantly swelled into a raging, endless river.

Like a flood bursting from a dam, it rushed toward the Elder Celestial Master’s projection.

BOOM!

Thunder descended from the sky, but as soon as it hit the river, it vanished without a trace.

It dissolved upon contact with the water.

This was the unique property of the Ruishui River.

’Gangzhu’s strength has improved greatly compared to before.’

Even Lu Mingyuan, who was only observing, could see the difference.

’This Gangzhu character is really something.’

The Talisman left by the Elder Celestial Master didn’t last long, quickly dissipating at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Trying to leave? It won’t be that easy!"

Gangzhu locked onto the Corrupt Divine Flower’s location. He opened his massive mouth and inhaled like a hurricane. In an instant, a great wind rose, and many Cultivators were immediately swallowed into his belly, devoured in a single gulp.

Because of this, many Cultivators stopped fleeing and turned to face the Great Demon.

Yun Qinghe glanced back. Seeing these Cultivators stepping forward, she chose to fearlessly draw her sword.

The body of her sword coalesced into a sharp, massive, azure blade that shot toward the spot between Twelve Thrones Gangzhu’s eyebrows.

"A mantis trying to stop a chariot."

Gangzhu snorted. With a single slap, he batted away all her techniques, seized the Immortal Sword, and tossed it aside.

"You beast! I’ll fight you to the death!"

A Nascent Soul Qi Cultivator, knowing he could not escape and ready to die, let out a great shout and charged at Gangzhu.

A SIZZLING sound came from his Flesh Body as scorching flames erupted from his one hundred and eight thousand pores. Every inch of his skin turned gold, and he began to rapidly expand.

Even the surface of his Nascent Soul began to show cracks.

The destructive power generated by a Tenth Realm Nascent Soul self-destructing their Qi Sea was absolutely terrifying. The blast would affect everything within a thousand-mile radius, and even beings of the Upper Three Grades could be severely injured or killed if they were too close.

However, when it came to self-destructing a Qi Sea, the power couldn’t be judged by the Cultivator’s Dao Practice alone.

One also had to consider the concentration of Spiritual Qi within a hundred-mile radius.

The reason a Cultivator’s self-destruction could trigger a cataclysm hundreds of times more terrifying than their own Cultivation level was because the explosion could ignite the surrounding Spiritual Qi.

It would cause all the Spiritual Qi within a radius of a hundred, a thousand, or even ten thousand miles to run rampant and detonate completely.

"Oh no, he’s going to self-destruct his Qi Sea!"

Some nearby Cultivators noticed his actions, but it was already too late.

"Return."

Yun Qinghe extended her right hand, using Sword Pointing to recall her Immortal Sword. It transformed into a crystal-clear mirror that enveloped her Flesh Body.

BOOM.

After the Nascent Soul Cultivator self-destructed, the resulting Destructive Force surged out in all directions with astonishing might. Even sturdy, ancient mountain ranges collapsed in an instant, turning into flat ground. Many areas even melted into liquid droplets.

Any being that failed to deploy defensive measures in time—be they Human Race Cultivators or Demon Race experts—was sent flying by the impact. Some of the weaker ones died on the spot.

Several Demon Venerables from the Demon Race were too close and were obliterated, leaving only massive skeletons to fall from the sky.

The Destructive Force from the self-destruction gradually dissipated.

A disheveled Gangzhu emerged from the wasteland, covered in dirt. His hair and clothes were reduced to ash, leaving only a suit of Armor formed from the Ruishui River on his body.

His human form had dissipated, revealing a ferocious pig’s head with a mouth full of sharp teeth.

Because the Ruishui River had absorbed the explosion, Gangzhu was uninjured despite standing at the epicenter, appearing only slightly disheveled.

"Once I seize the Corrupt Divine Flower and the Ascension Platform, I will slaughter every last one of you from the Human Race."

He spat out the vicious threat, preparing to charge out again.

However, in that brief moment...

Yun Qinghe had already returned to the Great Yan formation.

She had been some distance from the explosion to begin with, and with the protection of her Immortal Sword, she had already escaped and handed the Corrupt Divine Flower to Lu Mingyuan.

The moment he took the Storage Bracelet...

A prompt appeared before Lu Mingyuan’s eyes.

[Gua Cheng. Minor fortune.]

[Promoted to Emperor Orange Fate Grid - Sword Saint]

[Emperor Orange Fate Grid - Sword Saint, Refinement Level increased to 10%]

[Emperor’s Orange Life Chart (Sword Saint): To raise my saber is to stir the winds and thunder; to lower my sleeves is to brighten the sun and moon. I stand guard with my cross saber at the Celestial Gate. Who dares to enter this Mortal World?]

[God Forger (Basic Level): Slaughter living beings to cultivate a Divine Body. Protected by the Sword Dao, Demon Fiends will be terrified and unable to approach.]

Lu Mingyuan looked over at Yun Qinghe. Seeing her face covered in dust and dirt, her body scarred, he sighed.

"How can I ever repay you?"

"Rest and heal well. Breaking through to become a Martial Saint will be the greatest reward for me," Yun Qinghe said seriously, staring into his eyes.

"With this Corrupt Divine Flower, can you break through to become a Martial Saint? Don’t let my efforts be for nothing."

Yun Qinghe gave him a deliberately skeptical look.

Lu Mingyuan said confidently, "If I cannot become a Saint, then who can?"

’A man can’t say he’s not up to the task.’

Then, he sent a soft voice transmission to someone behind him:

"Elder Qisheng, I’ll be entrusting the Great Yan Cultivators to you."

On the mountainside, the Chess Saint stroked his beard, his gaze profound. "This old man has also mostly recovered. While I can’t defeat Gangzhu, I have more than enough strength to stall him for a while. You can focus on your breakthrough without worry."

"Good!"

Lu Mingyuan nodded upon hearing this, his eyes resolute.

"It’s just the Martial Saint Realm. Act as my Protector!"

...

I’ve been planning to start a new book, a two-worlds genre story. I’ll make an announcement within two weeks, and I’ll be updating both books at the same time.