In that instant, countless leaves appeared out of thin air, as if a fierce autumn wind had swept up a storm of dead, yellow leaves—except, every single leaf was a sword.

A dense mass of leaves morphed into a terrifying tornado, surging straight toward Gu Zhan.

At once,

Gu Zhan stomped hard, and strands of golden light radiated from his body, instantly forming a massive Gang Qi barrier in front of him, blocking the tornado filled with swirling leaves.

In a flash, the open ground was swept by endless waves of qi, raising dust and sand fiercer than even the raging flames of the manor.

"Kill!"

At the same moment, accompanied by a murderous shout, thousands of Embroidered Uniform Guards charged forth. The Five Sects sprang into action as well, and in that instant, four or five Great Cultivators broke off and rushed at Gu Zhan.

As for elite forces,

The Embroidered Uniform Guard side lagged far behind—aside from the four Great Cultivators from the Gu Family, but the Five Sects had eight or nine, and though most were badly injured, they could still barely fight. Liu Ziyuan also brought two Great Cultivators from the Sub-Branch.

This created a huge disparity in elite strength,

But thankfully, the Embroidered Uniform Guards had the numbers, and many were charging on horseback, giving strong support. The Gu Family’s elite were nearly all out in force; the experts joined in coordinated battle arrays, giving them short-term leverage.

Still, there were four or five Great Cultivators closing in for the kill!

...

After a fierce clash,

Gu Zhan suddenly slashed out, cutting through the air, his attack wild and violent, quickly locking into combat with Liu Ziyuan,

Gu Zhan attacked with force, expansive and aggressive, while Liu Ziyuan’s swordsmanship was cunning, a dazzling array of tricks—flexible and nimble. They exchanged a dozen rounds in no time, neither gaining the upper hand. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

After another exchange, the two were knocked back several zhang, separating, just as the other six Great Cultivators circled around, surrounding them.

Liu Ziyuan’s pupils contracted; in a flash, Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi surged, and an invisible pressure descended, as if Mt. Tai weighed down upon them.

In that moment, the Great Cultivators standing beside Liu Ziyuan all tensed, feeling the pressure so strongly that some even retreated.

Yet, to Liu Ziyuan’s surprise, Gu Zhan remained astride his horse, completely unaffected—even the horse seemed untouched. A flicker of terror crossed his heart.

This wasn’t something ordinary Second Realm Great Cultivators could pull off; after all, he’d stirred Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi to the limit.

"Gu Zhan," Liu Ziyuan said coldly, "you’re young, yet already on the Celestial Pride List, your future is bright. I admire you, and so does the Eldest Young Master.

Let’s end this here—the Eldest Young Master will compensate you and give you an opportunity. You should know, with your talent, if you seize the chance he offers, your future will be boundless—far beyond anything this mere Pingyang Prefecture can offer."

"Heh!" Gu Zhan sneered.

Liu Ziyuan continued: "I won’t hide it: the Dragon King has made his decision—the successor is the Eldest Young Master. If you pledge allegiance now, you’ll have Beidou Bang’s protection for life, no need to fear Qi Baiyu’s vengeance, and your potential will be fully realized."

Gu Zhan gave a slight smile and said, "I’m stubborn to the bone, won’t bend my knees, and sure as hell won’t be anyone’s dog."

"Very good, very good, Gu Zhan!"

The six Great Cultivators boxed Gu Zhan in. Liu Ziyuan brandished his sword, his face dark: "I thought you were merely ungrateful, but I never imagined you’d be this reckless!"

Primordial Qi raged, sand swirling,

The tension pressed to the extreme.

Liu Ziyuan’s voice was icy: "Gu Zhan, this is your last chance—if you pledge allegiance and perform well enough, I might not require you to marry into the Liu Family."

Gu Zhan sneered, "The thing I despise most is your arrogant attitude. Honestly, where do you get off acting high and mighty before me? The Liu Family—never produced a Grandmaster—what qualifications do you have to throw me bones?"

"Originally, with your remarkable talent, I wanted to give you a chance. But giving chances to the ungrateful is pointless." Liu Ziyuan pointed at Mo Beiyan off in the distance: "So, what, you think just with Mo Beiyan, you can act with impunity?"

Gu Zhan raised his saber and said coldly, "Those who kill will themselves be killed. Maybe I’ll die someday, but definitely not by your hands, you bunch of worthless mutts!"

"Gu Zhan!" one Great Cultivator from the Five Sects roared, "On the edge of death and you still dare to be arrogant!"

"Arrogant?"

Gu Zhan’s voice was cold: "I was born to be arrogant. You lot, a handful of nobodies—what can you do to me? Hear me now: you Five Sects, I’ll wipe out every last one!"

"You think you’ll leave here alive?"

Liu Ziyuan swung his longsword and said coldly: "In the end, you’re just a Second Realm Great Cultivator. Kill!"

A Great Cultivator from the Five Sects bellowed: "With so many of us surrounding you, what right do you have to act superior!"

Suddenly, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi near the manor grew suffocating,

But though Liu Ziyuan acted as though Gu Zhan was merely a Second Realm Great Cultivator, he didn’t dare charge in alone—he united with the other Great Cultivators.

Even though Liu Ziyuan was a Fourth Realm Great Cultivator,

He feared a mishap, after all, Gu Zhan’s terrifying war record on Lingxi Mountain was well-known—he single-handedly took down Third Realm Peak Celestial Deformed Leg Yu Fengxing, then counter-slayed seven Great Cultivators in a siege. With such power, even as a Fourth Realm practitioner, he wouldn’t risk it.

Even when sparring words, he was really gathering momentum and playing mind games, hoping to spot Gu Zhan’s flaws.

"Kill!"

With Liu Ziyuan’s command, all the Great Cultivators made their move, attacking from every direction—all unleashing killing strikes.

They knew Gu Zhan’s Defensive Martial Arts were absurdly strong—Celestial Deformed Leg and seven Great Cultivators couldn’t break it in concert, so this time, they didn’t plan to give him any chance!

Seeing the Great Cultivators strike,

Gu Zhan narrowed his eyes, suddenly charging with his saber toward a Chen Family Great Cultivator. Horizontal Saber in hand, he swung—the world seemed to thunder like a raging sea,

Torrential Saber Qi merged instantly into a blade of light,

That blade of light poured down like the Milky Way from the Ninth Heavens,

It also roared like the Four Seas, finally condensing into a flowing stream,

Four Seas Unification Blade Technique,

He struck once,

A head flew,

Gu Zhan didn’t pause—he reversed his blade and slashed again, another head soared.

In that moment,

Everyone felt a sudden realization,

It seemed—not that they were surrounding Gu Zhan, but that Gu Zhan alone was surrounding all of them!