Chapter 306: I am the Sword Master of the Way

Chapter 306 I am the Sword Master of the Way

The white-robed man strolled casually for a while before arriving in front of the Heaven-Splitting Axe.

Zuo Yijian noticed his extraordinary aura and couldn’t help but give him a curious look.

The white-robed man smiled and asked, “I am Lü Xianyi. May I try my hand at the Heaven-Splitting Axe?”

The cultivators of this continent were too weak—there was no way any of them could inherit the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path’s legacy.

If he could do it, it would be a major opportunity for him.

Setting aside his identity, the Grand Cold Demon Sect was an unshakable behemoth even to someone at the Celestial Ascension Stage like him. For someone to have wiped them out effortlessly, Lü Xianyi suspected the Sword Sovereign’s strength might rival that of a Saint King.

“Go ahead. It can only be drawn once a day,” Zuo Yijian replied calmly. Over the years, he’d seen many powerful cultivators and had grown increasingly proud. In his eyes, the prestige of the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path outweighed even the prosperity of the entire Taixuan Sect.

Lü Xianyi gave a slight nod and shifted his gaze to the Heaven-Splitting Axe.

Meanwhile, Gu An stood in the crowd at a distance, watching the white-robed man and tossing out a Lifespan Perception.

[Lü Xianyi (Celestial Ascension Stage, Ninth Layer): 67,980 / 500,000 / 890,000]

An upper limit of 890,000 years of lifespan!

Who knows what kind of realm he could reach within his lifetime?

Gu An suspected that some cultivation stage would once again trigger a transformation in lifespan limits. But since his breakthroughs didn’t increase lifespan, he couldn’t pinpoint which stage it would be.

To him, every major realm before had felt like a complete rebirth.

As Gu An watched, Lü Xianyi gripped the handle of the Heaven-Splitting Axe. Just that grip caused his expression to shift slightly.

More and more eyes turned his way—anyone who saw Lü Xianyi would think he was no ordinary man.

Lü Xianyi began exerting force, and in that moment, the Heavenly Mending Platform slightly trembled, though the axe didn’t budge an inch.

Zuo Yijian’s expression changed. Being able to make the Heavenly Mending Platform shake proved that Lü Xianyi's cultivation was extremely profound. Not being able to pull the axe was perfectly normal—after all, the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path was invincible in the world.

At least, in Zuo Yijian’s heart, he truly believed the Sword Sovereign was unmatched.

Wait a minute!

That guy’s voice… it sounds a lot like the one who shouted earlier!

No, not just similar—it’s the exact same voice, just softer now, and the oppressive tone was reined in.

Realizing this, Zuo Yijian looked at Lü Xianyi with clear hostility.

That bastard actually wants to poach the Sword Sovereign? Outrageous!

The stir caused by Lü Xianyi drew the attention of everyone on the Heavenly Mending Platform. He didn’t try for long. After a few breaths, he let go.

He exhaled slowly, stepped back, and smiled. “The Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path truly lives up to the legend. I’m impressed.”

With that, he raised a hand in salute toward the Heaven-Splitting Axe, then turned and left.

Along the way, cultivators parted without hesitation, afraid of offending him. Just the tremor he caused earlier convinced everyone this was not someone to mess with.

Gu An, still among the crowd, also glanced in his direction.

Soon, Lü Xianyi disappeared from the platform, sparking a flurry of discussions among the onlookers.

Gu An headed off the platform as well—he figured he might as well wander around. Otherwise, Qie Wuxing and Nine-Fingered Divine Lord might get suspicious about him showing up just to see Lü Xianyi.

Of course, the biggest reason was that Gu An didn’t want to keep playing against Qie Wuxing.

Those guys were playing slower and slower, and Gu An knew exactly how devious they were being.

Sure enough, Qie Wuxing was still insisting their last game was a draw. No one believed him, but since he was firm on it, no one wanted to argue further—his cultivation was still intimidating.

Gu An stopped by the Alchemy Hall. Other than this year’s new disciples, almost everyone there knew him. His profits from the Medicine Valley ranked among the highest in all of Taixuan Sect, not to mention he was at the Core Formation Stage.

Even now, having reached the Divine Soul Lord level, Gu An still enjoyed chatting with people.

As for the Holy Court’s attempts to recruit him—he wasn’t interested.

Getting involved with the Holy Court could mean trouble, and he wasn’t looking for that. What if things got messy and he ended up clashing with them?

Sure, he’d destroyed the Nightshade Sect, the Seven Star Spirit Realm, and the Grand Cold Demon Sect, but at heart, Gu An was kind and peace-loving.

Yup. If he could avoid making enemies, he’d rather not.

By the time dusk fell, Gu An returned to the valley. Qie Wuxing had long since vanished.

In the days that followed, Gu An noticed that Lü Xianyi had no intention of leaving Taixuan Sect. He couldn’t help but pray that guy wouldn’t enter his Third Medicine Valley.

That place already had enough monsters and lunatics—no need to add another one.

Summer passed, and autumn arrived.

Under the old tree in the Third Medicine Valley, Gu An sat fanning himself with the Seven Star Mirror, looking leisurely and relaxed.

Across from him, Lü Xianyi had an ugly expression, the chess piece in his hand hovering mid-air, unable to drop.

Qie Wuxing and Nine-Fingered Divine Lord sat nearby, beaming with genuine joy.

Someone under seventy thousand years old, at the Ninth Layer of the Celestial Ascension Stage, was undoubtedly a top-tier genius. Even Qie Wuxing, who was at the same level, felt a sense of danger from Lü Xianyi. The day Lü Xianyi learned to play Go, he had immediately beaten Qie Wuxing.

After losing his title as the second-best Go player in the world, Qie Wuxing had been giving Lü Xianyi the side-eye ever since.

Today, he finally saw Lü Xianyi struggling!

Suddenly, Lü Xianyi looked up at Gu An and asked in a deep voice, “Impossible. Who exactly are you?”

Go was subtle and intricate, sure—but what really unsettled him was that Gu An had predicted his next move. That meant one thing: this guy's deduction abilities were stronger than his!

He might not be the best in the Holy Court, but he was definitely a genius.

He refused to believe Gu An had greater comprehension than him.

There was only one possibility.

This guy was hiding his cultivation!

Gu An grinned smugly. “If I told you I was the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path, would you believe me?”

Pfft. Can’t even recognize the Supreme Immortal Treasures on my head and in my hand, and you wanna see through my cultivation?

Hearing that, Lü Xianyi shot to his feet and quickly bowed with cupped fists toward Gu An.

Qie Wuxing, Nine-Fingered Divine Lord, and the others froze—then burst into laughter.

Lü Xianyi looked up in confusion. What was so funny?

Weren’t they afraid of offending the Sword Sovereign?

Nine-Fingered Divine Lord couldn’t help but chuckle. “Kid, you should go ask around. That guy’s just over two hundred years old. How could he possibly be the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path? The Sword Sovereign’s name spread more than a century ago.”

Lü Xianyi was stunned, staring at Gu An in disbelief.

There was no way Gu An was the Sword Sovereign. What could anyone accomplish in just two hundred years?

With his kind of talent, at most he could reach the Profound Mind Realm.

What was that before Nirvana? Nothing but ants!

Even if someone told him the Sword Sovereign was a hundred thousand years old, he wouldn’t believe it.

That person had to be far beyond the Free Soaring Immortal stage!

“You…” Lü Xianyi glared at Gu An, clearly pissed.

Gu An stood up and said, “Someone’s looking for me. You all carry on.”

And with that, he slipped away.

Lü Xianyi stared at his back, unable to calm down.

Good thing he hadn’t developed hostility toward Gu An. Otherwise, he'd already be dead by now.

Qie Wuxing immediately sat in Gu An’s seat. “Let’s go. I’ve figured out your strategy!”

Lü Xianyi took a deep breath and sat down.

He knew Gu An was the Valley Master—there was no escaping him. No way was he going to lose to some so-called 'mortal'!

Gu An wasn’t making excuses—someone really was looking for him.

He waited by his attic.

After a moment, a figure flew into the valley—it was Xuantian Yi.

“Big bro! Long time no see!” Gu An greeted him excitedly.

Xuantian Yi was just as high-spirited as ever. He clapped Gu An on the shoulder and looked him up and down, then said, “Look at you—finally know how to dress. Got a bit of my flair. But your cultivation’s still not up—makes me lose face.”

Hearing that, Lü Xianyi, who was still playing, dismissed his doubts.

How could someone like this be some hidden powerhouse? If you’re calling a low-level cultivator “big brother,” then you’re clearly not some enlightened master.

So this brat really did invent Go… guess he’s got a unique perspective after all.

Gu An brought Xuantian Yi upstairs to catch up.

Inside, Xuantian Yi started sharing his stories over the years—he’d also dealt with Divine Anomaly Wraiths and had been through quite a lot.

Gu An listened intently, occasionally showing shock, which made Xuantian Yi very pleased.

He loved talking with this little brother—he always reacted just right!

Xuantian Yi mentioned Li Ya and An Hao, especially An Hao. His tone was filled with admiration.

He finally understood what a true peerless genius was. Compared to An Hao, he felt downright average.

Especially when he’d heard that An Hao’s master was the Sword Sovereign of the Righteous Path.

“What?! His master is… No wonder! No wonder!” Gu An exclaimed.

There were sound-blocking formations in the room, so there was no worry about others overhearing. As for Qie Wuxing and the rest—even if they did overhear, so what? If they dared to scheme against An Hao, Gu An wouldn’t hold back just because they were Go buddies.

“After the Grand Cold Demon Sect fell, the seas turned chaotic. A bunch of factions had escaped, leaving behind a lot of ocean and land resources. Now the Starsea Sect Alliance is scrambling to claim them,” Xuantian Yi said with a sigh.

Even after all these years, that incident still fired him up.

The Sword Sovereign really made Taixuan Sect proud!

Even though Xuantian Yi was part of the Starsea Sect now, his heart had always belonged to Taixuan Sect.

The two chatted enthusiastically.

Meanwhile, after finally beating Qie Wuxing, Lü Xianyi got up and ignored his request for another round.

He wandered around the valley, and his attention was caught by Shen Xinzi.

“The Bitter Sea Buddhist Sect, huh…” Lü Xianyi seemed to recall something and quickly looked away—he had no intention of getting near Shen Xinzi.

He continued observing everyone in the valley.

This Third Medicine Valley was way too weird—either people were absurdly weak or secretly immortals. The gap was massive.

Suddenly—

His gaze locked onto someone again.

This time, his eyes froze.

Following his gaze, one would see Yang Jian, pulling weeds.

The gap in their cultivation was too vast—Yang Jian, with his back turned, hadn’t sensed anything.

Until a voice came from behind—

“What’s your name?”

Yang Jian instinctively stood up and turned around.

He’d seen Lü Xianyi from afar before and knew the man was no ordinary figure.

“I’m Yang Jian. May I ask what Senior needs?” Yang Jian cupped his fists respectfully—not groveling, but properly courteous.

“Yang Jian?” Lü Xianyi muttered thoughtfully. That name sounded familiar.

He remembered overhearing two Taixuan Sect disciples once debating whether Erlang Shen Yang Jian was stronger than the Great Sage Equal to Heaven—they’d even gotten into a fight about it.