Far away, Wu De and Duan Ren were so frightened their faces turned pale.

“What is that?!”

“It seems to be a Saint Weapon!”

“How does this kid get his hands on such a weapon?!”

Duan Ren’s voice trembled slightly. “Hidden trump cards, Saint Weapons... Just who are these youngsters?”

Wu De had already shot into the air. “Forget it! Let’s get out of here quickly. If we stay any longer, this would be our final resting place!”

“Go, go, go!”

Taking advantage of everyone’s distraction, they quietly slipped away.

***

Sensing the aura of the Saint Weapon, Zuo Yang and Gu Tian immediately arrived at Gu Han’s side.

Soon, the fiery dragon manifested once again. A wisp of dragon might descended as its eyes locked firmly onto Chu Kuang.

Zuo Yang appeared completely unperturbed. “Junior Brother, do what you want to do. I will cover for you.”

Gu Tian also said, “And... me!”

Gu Han smiled. “Alright.”

In a blinding flash, twenty-seven strands of the Great Evolution Sword Qi enveloped Chu Kuang and Yuan Gang.

The two men were thrown off. They dodged and blocked, managing to fend off all the sword qi. However, they seemed a bit disheveled. Gu Han had advanced immensely in the secret realm, while their cultivation had barely moved. Even one against two, he still had the upper hand.

Chu Kuang exhaled deeply, sounding unnaturally quiet. “Gu Han, I admit that I lost completely this time. But next time, I will be the winner.”

Gu Han slowly raised his sword. “You think there will be a next time?”

Instead of answering, Chu Kuang simply looked at his dagger. “Back in the day, I left a method in the Saint Weapon. If it self-destructs, the power rivals my peak strike at my full strength. How many of you here today do you think will survive?”

Everyone’s hearts sank. They had never witnessed a Saint Weapon self-destruct before, but the power definitely wouldn’t be small. No one would survive, not even Chu Kuang himself.

Zuo Yang scratched his head. “Trading so many lives for their two seems a bit cost-ineffective!”

Gu Han went silent, slowly lowering his sword.

Chu Kuang and Yuan Gang instantly breathed a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, having descended halfway, Gu Han’s sword instantly lifted again. A large swath of sword qi enveloped the two again.

The two roared in fury, “GU HAN!!!”

Caught off guard, several bone-deep wounds instantly appeared on them.

Chu Kuang fixed a deathly stare on Gu Han. “You actually dare...”

Gu Han smiled. “Now, now, my hand slipped...”

If not for Chu Kuang’s pride as a Saint realm expert, he would have cursed out loud right then and there. With extraordinary natural talent, coupled with resourcefulness and wit, Gu Han became the most troublesome opponent he had ever faced.

Chu Kuang instantly came to a realization. I must eliminate him no matter what!

It was no coincidence that Gu Han had also secretly decided Chu Kuang’s fate...

The smile on his face gradually faded. “Remember. Next time you lose, you will definitely die.”

Chu Kuang stared at him deeply, then prepared to leave with Yuan Gang. “Senior Brother, let’s go!”

They didn’t head to the Yuqing Sect because there was no point for them to stay there anymore.

After watching the two leave, Murong Yuan sighed. “Chu Kuang was such a promising seedling. What a pity he is not righteous. Who knows what chance encounter he had, to actually possess a Saint Weapon...”

Although dissatisfied with Chu Kuang’s actions, he still felt some regret for wasting talent.

Gu Han shook his head. “Senior, that Saint Weapon was originally his.”

He recounted Chu Kuang’s origins.

Possession? And a saint’s reincarnation? Everyone listened, secretly shocked.

Murong Yan suddenly understood. “No wonder! I wondered why this bastard always spoke like some old fart. Turns out he really is an old ghost clinging to life!”

Murong Yuan frowned deeply. “Such a vicious method...”

Anyone with a shred of decency would not harm the souls of unborn infants. Chu Kuang clearly had no bottom line.

Meanwhile, Gu Han considered asking the shadow later if there was any way to counter Chu Kuang’s Saint Weapon. If there was, he wouldn’t have to worry so much.

At this moment, Zuo Yang handed over that spirit seal. “Junior Brother, I officially hand over the Fengwu Court’s foundation to you. You travel outside often, and now have the additional threats of the Myriad Transformations Holy Land and Chu Kuang. You must have something to protect yourself.”

Gu Han didn’t accept it. “Senior Brother, if you give it to me, then you—”

Zuo Yang forcibly stuffed it into his hand. “Don’t worry. I don’t need it. Besides, who would have ill intentions toward a cook?”

Everyone was speechless. Cook? This cook sure doesn’t hold back when chopping people with his knife!

Zuo Yang patted Gu Han’s shoulder, saying earnestly, “Junior Brother, remember, unless it’s a life-and-death crisis, absolutely do not take this thing out.”

Gu Han’s expression turned odd. He felt like Zuo Yang was teaching him how to fish.

Suddenly, Gu Tian moved as if to leave.

Gu Han was taken aback. “Father, what are you going to do?”

“Pass... a tribulation,” said Gu Tian.

Having continuously devoured several people, his cultivation was becoming somewhat hard to suppress.

Murong Yuan’s mouth twitched. Pass a tribulation? Said so lightly and casually...

When he underwent tribulation, he was always extremely cautious, never daring to act unless fully prepared. Yet Gu Tian treated it as simply as eating or drinking. Murong Yuan found it a bit irksome.

Gu Han took out that Green Lotus Fruit. “Right. Father, you can use this!”

Gu Tian refused. “... No! I... don’t need this! You... keep it!”

Saying so, he had already soared into the air.

Gu Han anxiously shouted, “Father, please don’t get lost again!”

He had long understood that Gu Tian cultivated the Great Freedom Heavenly Demon Scripture. Passing a tribulation was easy for him, but finding his way was not. Often, while passing a tribulation, he would simply get lost.

Leaving these words behind, Gu Tian sped far away. “Try... my best!”

Zuo Yang comforted Gu Han. “Don’t worry. Fellow Daoist Gu has been to the Fengwu Court. He knows the way.”

That only worried Gu Han even more.

Murong Yuan sighed. “This time, we’ve thoroughly offended the Myriad Transformations Holy Land. The might of a Holy Land cannot be challenged. You must be careful afterwards.”

Murong Yan looked puzzled. “Old Ancestor, what was that holy emissary here for? He mentioned something about selecting some Holy Sons?”

Murong Yuan began to explain. “It’s an old tradition of theirs...”

There were many Holy Lands in the world, but most were obscure and hidden. People within Holy Lands, barring special circumstances, seldom enter the mortal world. However, the Myriad Transformations Holy Land was an exception. Every hundred years or so, they would descend to select a group of talented young people to compete for the Holy Son title.

Murong Yan frowned deeply. “That’s not right, is it? Would they be so kind as to give the Holy Son position to outsiders?”

Murong Yuan saw this matter very clearly. “It’s not that simple. In the end, they’re just using you all as stepping stones for their Holy Son candidates. In any case, records show that over the years, there has never been a precedent of an outsider becoming Holy Son. A hundred years ago, Jiang Xuan also suffered a crushing defeat in the competition.”

Murong Yan curled her lip. “Is that so? That’s because they hadn’t met Brother Gu. Brother Gu will definitely smash all those candidates to pieces!”

Murong Yuan smiled bitterly without speaking as it was too late to say these things now.

However, Zuo Yang appeared very composed. “Holy Son? It’s nothing special. Who isn’t a Holy Son?”

Instantly, everyone’s eyes widened.

Gu Han was stunned. “Senior Brother, you’re saying you are a Holy Son?”

Zuo Yang eyed him strangely. “That’s right. This Holy Son thing is actually quite meaningless. Back then, my dream was simply to be a cook, but they forced the Holy Son title onto me. I secretly ran away several times, but they always caught me and brought me back. If I hadn’t met Senior Sister...”

At this point, he appeared wistful. “...I’m afraid my dream of being a cook would never come true. Right, and Junior Sister too. I’ve never asked about her origins, but I imagine she should probably be a Holy Maiden or something similar.”

Silence fell upon everyone...