Chapter 17
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Oh no, Xu Shuangce has gone mad.
A chill shot straight to Gong Wei’s head, and he reflexively tried to struggle, but Xu Shuangce suddenly tightened his grip on his hand.
His ice-cold fingers exerted a terrifying force, like heavy shackles hanging on flesh, causing Gong Wei to wince in pain, unable to break free. Yuchi Xiao exclaimed in astonishment, “You… when did you know…”
Xu Shuangce didn’t answer, his eyes glanced past him, with a hint of mocking light flashing deep within, then he made a gesture. Instantly, Gong Wei felt an invisible force pressing down on the back of his neck, heavy as a mountain, forcing him to bend down—
A bow to heaven and earth!
The ground was littered with the faceless bodies of guests, and the Qiongqi’s massive crimson innards and bones splattered everywhere. Under the gloomy sky, the air was filled with a strong smell of rust. Xu Shuangce, clad in blood-stained “wedding attire,” pressed ahead with this ceremony with a dead man, a scene that was simply chilling.
Gong Wei struggled with all his might: “Xu…” But his throat choked up, forced to stay silent.
Xu Shuangce imposed silence.
“—He knew it from the beginning.” Suddenly, Meng Yunfei’s displeased voice sounded from behind.
His temper had always been good, rare was it for him to suppress his anger like this, as he said, “Sect Master Xu, you have always been awake, there was never any Mirror Technique involved!”
Xu Shuangce bowed to the lowest point, paused for a moment, then stood up straight and said blandly, “Oh?”
With this movement, Gong Wei felt the force pressing on the back of his neck disappear, and he immediately drew a breath and stood up, only to see Meng Yunfei’s face darken: “The ghost cultivator can only transcend time and space with the Thousand Mirror Realm artifact, so the moment you took that broken piece of mirror from its heart, you actually subdued it. Then you voluntarily entered the illusion, so your soul was never attached to the host from the beginning, resulting in two Master Xus appearing in the illusion, one real and one fake.”
“Wait, two?” Yuchi Xiao suddenly reacted and asked, “What about the other one?”
“Do you remember the bridal army that disappeared into the valley on the eve of the wedding feast?” Meng Yunfei said coldly, “He killed himself in the illusion and took his place.”
Yuchi Xiao looked at Xu Shuangce suddenly, unable to speak.
…
On the high platform of the shrine, Xu Shuangce looked at the two of them without changing his expression. After a while, the corners of his thin lips twitched slightly.
Although it wasn’t cold, a bone-chilling coldness rose from the hearts of both men.
“It’s time to end this, Sect Master Xu.” Meng Yunfei raised his hand, and a silver light flashed in his palm. A five-stringed ancient qin appeared in the air with that light: “As long as the host refuses to wake up, we cannot leave this village, but indulging in the illusion for too long may burn the golden core, which would be unimaginable for us juniors!”
He pressed his hands on the strings of the qin, sternly saying, “For us juniors, the consequences would be unbearable!”
A cold wind blew in from the surrounding mountains, gradually becoming icy, and tension filled the air on the shrine. Xu Shuangce glanced at the two juniors, and although there was no sign of anger on his face, Gong Wei saw through a gap in his veil that his thumb on the side holding the sword flicked slightly upwards, causing his heart to pound!
“You also said…” Xu Shuangce said slowly, “That was for you.”
Gong Wei exclaimed, “Run!”
Before the words had even landed, Xu Shuangce turned into a white light and appeared in front of Meng Yunfei—accompanied by a loud noise and a burst of air, No Way Out was blocked by the Gouchen Sword. Yuchi Xiao angrily said, “Sect Master Xu!!”
The sound of the qin reverberated, and the powerful spiritual power stabbed into their minds like sharp knives. Xu Shuangce raised his eyebrows, “Shunxian Qin.” Then, lightning-like, he forced Yuchi Xiao back, and with a palm poised to strike Meng Yunfei’s forehead, Suqing Sword blocked his side, and Meng Yunfei flew away just in time to avoid a deadly blow.
The Shunxian Qin’s sound was like waves sailing, causing the mind to whirl, and the Gouchen Sword’s intent was exceptionally fierce, resisting relentlessly. Neither of them was a match for the number one in the world, but when it came to life and death, they exerted all their strength, making it unexpectedly tricky for a moment. Xu Shuangce couldn’t help but click his tongue lightly, his sword intent suddenly changed, as if the sky was collapsing and the earth was cracking, first crashing horizontally into Yuchi Xiao’s chest, then slashing across Meng Yunfei’s waist towards the ancient qin!
In ancient times, Emperor Shun played the five-stringed qin and composed the “Song of the Southern Wind”, nurturing harmony and rectitude, and suppressing anger and evil intentions. Shunxian ancient qin was an ancient relic that had overwhelming restraint effects on all evil intentions, yet now it was about to be shattered by Xu Shuangce.
Meng Yunfei, with one hand on the qin and the other wielding a sword, retreated after three moves, crashing into a stone pillar in the temple with a clang. Just as he was about to face another attack—
At this critical moment, a streak of flowing fire flew over, snatching the Suqing Sword from his hand with a clang!
Suqing blocked the incoming attack in mid-air, forcing Xu Shuangce back half a step like lightning. Meng Yunfei looked closely and exclaimed, “Law Flower Immortal?!”
Law Flower Immortal’s wedding attire was bloodstained, and before he could even remove his veil, he had already fought Xu Shuangce for more than a dozen rounds. His moves were completely different from those of many famous immortal cultivators of the time, each step coming from the void, stepping on the sky, only showing cunning and sharpness at the slightest detail, completely opposite to Xu Shuangce’s rigorous and righteous sword intent. His robes fluttered, sleeves billowed, and every sword seemed to have opened large blood-red lotuses along the edge of No Way Out sword.
Even though the timing was off, Yuchi Xiao suddenly had a moment of dizziness, and a person popped into his mind—Xiang Xiaoyuan.
Immediately, he realized how absurd this thought was. How could he suddenly think of that little demon, when their appearances, temperament, cultivation, and status were so different?
Why would he suddenly remember a little demon with a sword, when he couldn’t even recall ever seeing Xiang Xiaoyuan holding a sword? Why did it feel familiar?
The sound of the Shunxian Qin suddenly pierced the sky, Meng Yunfei’s spiritual power surged, and the rolling rhythm, like millions of chains, trapped Xu Shuangce: “Yuanju!”
Yuchi Xiao immediately came to his senses, raising his sword to assist Gong Wei: “Senior, be careful!”
Xu Shuangce’s solid mental state finally revealed a flaw under the joint attack of the three. A crack suddenly appeared in the distant sky—a corner of the illusion collapsed!
Xu Shuangce frowned, showing obvious impatience on his face. Then, with a “clang,” he blocked the Suqing and Gouchen swords, and without looking back, he formed a seal with his left hand. Frost condensed on the five strings of the Shunxian Qin, freezing them with several crackling sounds. Before Yuchi Xiao could turn around to rescue him, Xu Shuangce’s slender, thin left hand pressed down on his Heavenly Spirit. The intense pain, like being engulfed in flames, instantly pierced through his entire body, causing him to spew out a mouthful of blood.
Xu Shuangce said lightly, “Behave like guests.”
Immediately after, with a clang, Gong Wei didn’t even see how he made his move. The Suqing Sword was forcibly knocked away and flew out, crashing through two or three stone walls before skewering into the ground at an angle!
Snap!
He felt a chill on the back of his neck as Xu Shuangce pressed down on it with his palm.
It seemed like Xu Shuangce’s hand contained an endless and overwhelming force, making it impossible for Gong Wei to even struggle. He was firmly pressed down, forced to bow towards the shrine along with him—
Second bow in the high hall!
The wind blew from the shattered black hole in the distant sky, sweeping across the heavens and earth, carrying the heavy smell of blood from the surrounding corpses, stirring up Xu Shuangce’s icy black hair.
“Don’t move,” he said lightly.
—Just as Gong Wei was about to lift the veil, he was preemptively caught by Xu Shuangce.
The thick stench of the Qiongqi’s blood flowed down the stone steps one by one, sticking to the soles of his shoes, an extremely uncomfortable feeling. Gong Wei’s frustration and anger suddenly surged to his head: “I’m already dead!”
Xu Shuangce fell silent for a moment before saying, “I know.”
“I’m dead!”
“So what?”
Gong Wei was speechless. He thought, well, Sect Master Xu was indeed a ruthless person who vented his anger on corpses. The phrase “once dead, debts cleared” probably didn’t exist in his dictionary.
“When I entered the illusion, I knew the Mirror Technique of the other party had failed the moment I opened my eyes, because it wasn’t actually the most terrifying experience of my life—although I had been hypnotizing myself that it was. Many people in this world also thought so.”
Xu Shuangce paused for a moment, unexpectedly calm: “It wasn’t until after you died that I gradually admitted to myself that what I feared most was what happened afterwards.”
Afterwards?
Gong Wei blinked his long eyelashes under the red veil, trying to recall what exactly happened after this absurd wedding.
Xu Shuangce’s rage shattered the entire Thousand Mirror Realm illusion, and then his soul returned to the Cangyang Sect. The first thing he did when he woke up was to take No Way Out, then he rushed to the Dai Mountain Immortal Alliance and split open the doors of the Punishment Hall in the dead of night, dragging the trembling Gong Wei out amid the earth-shattering tremors.
Sect Master Xu wanted to kill Gong Wei to avenge his wife. This incident shook half of Dai Mountain, and Ying Kai, who didn’t understand what had happened, hurriedly rushed over, trying to persuade Xu Shuangce to let go. But Xu Shuangce, filled with killing intent, couldn’t listen to anything, and Gong Wei was chased around the main hall in a heart-pounding panic. There were even a few times when he was forced behind the doorpost, probably the closest he had ever been to death.
In the end, he crouched in the corner with his head in his hands, too confused to remember exactly what happened, only recalling Xu Shuangce’s sword about to strike down on him, and his subconscious raising his hand to block—
—In that moment, the blade stopped abruptly in mid-air.
Xu Shuangce, who was still furious, suddenly spat out blood, his face pale. After standing still for a moment, he walked away without looking back.
So, was that actually the most frightening moment of Xu Shuangce’s life?
“…” Gong Wei stared at Xu Shuangce under the veil, suspecting that he had misheard.
The one who had been chased around and terrified for half the night was clearly himself. And after it was all over, Xu Shuangce said that was the most terrifying experience of his life. Did the big shot misunderstand the meaning of being scared?
“Gong Wei,” Xu Shuangce suddenly turned his head to look at him, and asked in a softer tone, “Why did you try to kill me sixteen years ago?”
As the veil fluttered in the gloomy, bloody wind, the huge wedding gown unfolded layer by layer, like a flower blooming under the canopy of the heavens.
Facing that familiar figure, Gong Wei tilted his head slightly, showing no reaction, like a stone statue.
After a while, Xu Shuangce sighed, “Forget it. You’re just an illusion.”
He raised his hand and pressed it against Gong Wei’s warm and slender neck. The force was irresistible, but his voice was clear and gentle, saying, “Let’s perform the marriage ceremony.”
Gong Wei felt like his whole body was about to explode. Cold shivers ran down his spine, one after another, straight to his scalp. But in his soul state, he had no resistance at all. He could see himself being gradually forced to bow down—
Just then, the distant sky suddenly shook violently, boom!
Boom!!
The heavens and earth seemed to be a goose egg being cracked by a hammer. The sky ruptured with a loud noise, and a huge rift appeared from the horizon, snaking rapidly with dense cracks covering the mountainside.
Then, countless huge black holes tore open in the sky, and hurricanes surged in while countless golden lights burst out from the void. It turned out to be a giant sword piercing through the illusion!
Yuchi Xiao turned his head in astonishment, “Uncle?”
The sword light that pierced through the heavens and earth was like a descending dragon, cutting through the seas and splitting the land, instantly shattering the illusion realm!
Everyone was lifted up by the tornado. Gong Wei felt as if he was being thrown into the air by an invisible giant hand, and then he rapidly plummeted down.
Thud!
His soul was heavily smashed into the ground, causing him to feel dizzy and see stars for a moment. It took him a while to crawl up from the ground, feeling nauseous and dizzy, and only then did he manage to see the surroundings clearly.
They had returned from the illusion to the real world. The surrounding area was a desolate inn that had been flattened, with smoke rising from the ruins. The shrine, mountain village, blood-red wedding gown, and scattered corpses had all disappeared like a receding tide. The true form of the Law Flower Immortal had also vanished, and he was back in Xiang Xiaoyuan’s body. In the middle of the ruins not far away, two sword blades were locked in a dead heat, emitting a sharp and terrifying friction—Xu Shuangce was standing with his back to him, while the other person was dressed in a brown arrow-sleeve robe with a deep golden armguard light armor. He had a handsome face and a majestic aura, but a fierce aura lingered between his eyebrows.
He was none other than the current Sword Sect Master, Yuchi Rui!
“Sect, Master, Xu,” Yuchi Xiao said each word deliberately.
Xu Shuangce’s expression couldn’t be discerned from his back, but suddenly he let out a short, hoarse laugh.
Only those familiar with him could understand what this laughter meant. Gong Wei’s eyes widened in an instant.
But just as the tension was about to explode, suddenly a figure soared through the air like an arrow, shouting sternly, “Changsheng! Stop!”
The man wore a deep blue cloak and a plain white inner garment, looking plain and unremarkable all over. No one would give him a second glance on the street because of his attire. But the inconspicuous gold hook on his waist belt silently identified his status, and as soon as he spoke, his momentum was extremely strong.
After landing, he sheathed his sword. It could be seen that the sword was slightly wider than ordinary ones, and the ancient and heavy bronze scabbard was carved with mountain and sea cloud patterns. There was no one in the world who didn’t recognize its illustrious reputation—
The divine sword “Mountain Ocean Order,” which was as famous as No Way Out.
The newcomer was none other than the leader of the Immortal Sect Alliance, Venerable Wuyuan, Ying Kai!
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