The second place is the Sword Son from Sword King City, the martial arts leader of Yunzhou Martial Arts, named Sword One, also a Fifth Realm Great Cultivator. Compared to Qi Baiyu, he’s only lacking in one point—he’s never killed a Grandmaster.

Then,

Gu Zhan only found his name at the very bottom.

Name: Gu Zhan

Nickname: God of Slaughter

Celestial Pride List Rank: Eighteenth

Cultivation: Mingzhi Realm

Weapon: Ordinary Horizontal Saber

Martial Arts: Sword and Saber Cross-Training and Diversified Cultivation.

He was ignorant of martial arts two years ago, suspected to have attained a stroke of fortune then. His cultivation soared by leaps and bounds, perhaps due to an ancient legacy, or the enlightenment granted by a Great Power.

Identity: Embroidered Uniform Guard Thousand Households of Pingyang Prefecture.

Besides these, there were also some short profiles about him above, but all rather vague, just simple narratives mainly focused on his battle at Lingxi Mountain.

Lastly, there were comments from several martial world veterans,

After a comprehensive assessment, Gu Zhan became the only one in nearly thirty years to make the Celestial Pride List with just Second Realm Great Cultivator cultivation.

There were also some evaluations on Gu Zhan’s personality, not wholly accurate, but about seventy to eighty percent correct.

...

Gu Fengwei stroked his beard and said, "You’ve made the Celestial Pride List, and from now on your name will resound through the martial world. In life, all we seek is fame and power, and you’ve already reached the pinnacle!"

Gu Zhan chuckled lightly, tossed that ranking sheet onto the table, and said, "I feel the most important thing a man pursues is personal strength. Everything—name, wealth, power—is built atop one’s fists!"

Actually, Gu Zhan’s exploits, compared to those on the Celestial Pride List, don’t stand out. Even the one ranked seventeenth has better achievements than Gu Zhan, and even the person Gu Zhan replaced had feats of dueling Fourth Realm Great Cultivators alone,

However, Gu Zhan got on the list for reasons most others can’t match, because his position was earned purely through a heap of corpses.

The ranking sheet mainly highlighted three feats,

First, purging all major gangs in Pingyang City, city plunged into silence; second, Lingxi Sword Sect annihilation, corpses everywhere; third, battle at Lingxi Mountain, rivers of blood.

This is what separates him from the other young heroes,

Gu Zhan killed too many people—so many that those veteran commentators described him as "killing as easily as breathing."

The only thing Gu Zhan paid attention to were those martial world rumor-mongers critiquing his martial arts, saying bluntly that his cultivation progressed too quickly. Still, Yunxi Martial World is vast, lots of young heroes, and there’s no shortage of those who fell off cliffs, survived calamities, then soared to the heavens after attaining a legendary legacy,

Although Gu Zhan’s cultivation speed is terrifying, it’s not wholly unbelievable. After all, there are legends out there about people getting enlightened by a Great Power and becoming Grandmasters in just a few days,

Also, it’s said that some scholars spent decades reading, then in a moment of clarity resonated with Heaven and Earth, ascending to legendary realms.

...

As Mo Beiyan, Gu Fengwei, and Gu Zhan discussed the Celestial Pride List, Embroidered Uniform Guard Hundred Households Zuo Yang walked in.

Zuo Yang’s cultivation isn’t high, only at the Initial Stage of Innate. When Mo Beiyan first joined the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he was nothing special, let alone now when the Gu Family have sent a large batch of disciples to join. Zuo Yang seems even more ordinary.

However, Zuo Yang still holds high status within the Embroidered Uniform Guard. Even Gu Family’s top brass treat Zuo Yang with respect, because everyone knows Zuo Yang is Gu Zhan’s confidant.

Many feel a sense of wonder,

Zuo Yang was mediocre his whole life, but with just one step, soared to heaven in his old age.

Zuo Yang’s pledge to Gu Zhan isn’t a secret—many know about that. When Gu Zhan first came to Pingyang City to purge the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s ranks, Zuo Yang was a step ahead of the others, actually walked that one step,

Gu Zhan smashed the doors of Gu Mansion,

When everyone hesitated, Zuo Yang was the first to stride forward,

Just that one step,

Like a carp leaping the Dragon Gate,

But what everyone loves to talk about even more is the Qingfeng Building battle in Pingyang City,

Zuo Yang, wounded, held an umbrella for Gu Zhan to the doorway,

In that fight, Zuo Yang only took part in the opening and finale, but earned a single promise from Gu Zhan:

"After tonight, in Pingyang City, only one steps above Zuo Yang!"

Just that one sentence,

And now in Pingyang Martial World, countless people covet it bitterly,

That one phrase,

Means that as long as Gu Zhan remains, Zuo Yang—this old man—will be untouchable in Pingyang Land,

Just that one phrase, and a new First-class Family may well arise!

Forget the others,

Even Gu Fengwei, Patriarch Gu, sighs every time he sees Zuo Yang. Life’s fortunes are truly unpredictable,

A man like Zuo Yang—plenty of his kind in the Gu Family, and even more inconspicuous in the Martial World—but because of one action, he leapt past nine out of ten in the world.

During this period,

Gu Family sent a large group of kin to Youyang area to help wrap things up, everyone saw Gu Zhan’s attitude towards Zuo Yang—on all matters Zuo Yang represents Gu Zhan entirely. A martial artist newly entered Innate, yet able to command this terrifying Embroidered Uniform Guard; many renowned martial world experts are now pledging to Zuo Yang.

Now, with this Celestial Pride List made public,

Gu Fengwei can already foresee that, with Gu Zhan’s promise—"in Pingyang City, only Zuo Yang steps below me"—with just this phrase, Zuo Yang can build a whole family!

"Sir."

Zuo Yang entered, cupped his hands, glanced at Gu Fengwei, and hesitated a bit.

Gu Fengwei was quick-witted, smiled faintly, and cupped his fists, "Gu Qianhu, there are some matters left for me to settle, so I’ll take my leave first!"

Gu Zhan nodded, "Take care."

Gu Fengwei cupped his hands and departed.

Zuo Yang didn’t mind Mo Beiyan’s presence. As Gu Zhan’s trusted confidant, he fully understood the relationship between Gu Zhan and Mo Beiyan. Once Gu Fengwei left, he pulled out a booklet from his sleeve and handed it to Gu Zhan, saying, "Sir, this is the Frost Ice Finger martial arts secret manual, obtained these last two days from a few Longfeng Valley disciples we interrogated."

Gu Zhan took the secret manual, a little surprised: "It’s complete?"

"Yes," Zuo Yang said, "It’s been checked multiple times, it’s complete. I didn’t expect they’d be so lucky, among the survivors we caught, one turned out to be Longfeng Valley’s Valley Master’s direct disciple, possessing the full Frost Ice Finger secret manual."

Gu Zhan raised his brow and asked, "What about the others?"

Zuo Yang shook his head, "Only this one. The rest had low rank in their sects, even if their cultivation was higher, they couldn’t access those absolute techniques. A bit of Profound or Yellow Tier martial arts isn’t much use for you, so I didn’t bother bringing them."

Gu Zhan nodded, "No matter. Anyway, with the Five Great Sects about to be annihilated, all these things will fall into our hands sooner or later."

Mo Beiyan, sipping tea to the side, chuckled, "Brother Gu, once things settle in Pingyang Prefecture, we’ll head to Canglan City. When we get there, I’ll find a way to rummage through my father’s storeroom. Who knows, maybe I can snag some Celestial Tier martial arts for you, heh heh!"

Gu Zhan laughed lightly, "Then I’ll thank you in advance, Brother Mo."

"Why all the courtesy," Mo Beiyan propped up his legs, looking carefree, "I’m relying on you to watch my back. As for the future—whether Canglan City is full of dark plots or straight-up swordplay—I’ll depend on you!"

Gu Zhan smiled a little, asking, "Any news from Canglan City?"

Mo Beiyan’s expression grew grim, "Got a letter from Ninth Sister yesterday. She went to see my father—seems there’s nothing off in Canglan City. My father said all’s well, everything seems normal,

But, just because things are too normal, it feels off. If nothing was wrong, Pingyang Sub-Branch wouldn’t have changed hands, my eldest brother wouldn’t dare or even get a chance to meddle in the Lower Three Sectors. The Lower Three Sectors have always been my father’s direct charge."

Gu Zhan asked gravely, "What’s your guess?"

Mo Beiyan spoke low, "Either my father’s being held captive—which is unlikely; or the second possibility, my father’s about to name his successor. But even that doesn’t make sense—if he wanted to do that, he’d just appoint my eldest brother directly. Why all the secrecy and scheming, letting the brothers fight endlessly?"

Gu Zhan asked, "Could it be someone in Beidou Bang is opposing the Dragon King’s decision? After all, in recent years your brothers have openly and secretly gathered many supporters."

"Impossible!"

Mo Beiyan said, "If my father set his mind on naming one as heir, nobody in Beidou Bang could oppose him. No one."

Gu Zhan narrowed his eyes, "That’s strange then. For now, we can’t figure it out or even investigate. Let’s just focus on the matters at hand."

With that, Gu Zhan looked to Zuo Yang and asked, "The whereabouts of the Five Great Sects should be confirmed by now, right? Go ask around. As soon as it’s confirmed, we strike and wipe them out in one sweep!"