Chapter 273 - 156: Sword Suppressing Eight Directions

He had deliberately taken the forest trails to avoid the prying eyes of other factions and prevent any unnecessary trouble.

The fact that Yue Hongshan could strike here, at this very moment, clearly meant he had excellent intel and was thoroughly prepared.

The only thing he’d miscalculated, it seemed, was that Wang Zhen’an’s own strength surpassed his.

"COUGH, COUGH!"

"Wang Zhen’an, you only beat me by a narrow margin. What right do you have to be so arrogant?" Yue Hongshan’s injuries were grievous. He clutched his chest as he spoke, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth before he broke into a violent coughing fit.

"If you won’t talk, then you can die!" Wang Zhen’an’s voice was grim, his tone so cold it seemed to make the surrounding air temperature drop.

Wang Zhen’an raised his longsword, which shimmered with a golden light, and slashed through the air. A blade of Sword Qi shot forth, soaring into the sky and flashing with a razor-sharp glint. Like a meteor falling from beyond the heavens, it tore through the void, hurtling toward Yue Hongshan for the kill!

"Lord Wang is truly formidable, crushing all who dare to oppose him!" a voice said from a distance. The speaker was a tall, slender man in a gray robe, his narrow eyes holding a sharp glint as he spoke with admiration.

"Indeed. A few pathetic rebels thought they could ambush and kill members of our Anchuan Royal Family?"

"How ridiculous..." someone beside him chimed in.

At that moment, watching from the central carriage of the convoy, Wang Zifan’s eyes lit up with excitement.

’Third Uncle is incredible. The title of ’Wang Family’s First Sword’ is no empty boast!’

"Brother Xiao, your predictions are uncanny."

"I insist. Once we’re back in Guangping City, I have to take you to appreciate the... unique sights at Cyan Jade Tower," Wang Zifan chuckled.

"Ah... Brother Wang, there’s no need. A man of my caliber can’t be so indulgent in the fairer sex," Gu Yun said righteously, lying back in the carriage with his hands laced behind his head.

"Heh, Brother Xiao, you just don’t understand the charm of a mature woman..."

"Especially one in her thirties..."

"A woman like that..."

"She’s a lady in the drawing room, a chef in the kitchen, and once the lamps are out... anything goes. She knows tricks you’ve never even dreamed of. Tell me, isn’t that intoxicating?!"

A wistful look appeared in Wang Zifan’s eyes, and a smile played on his lips as he boasted to Gu Yun.

Hearing this, Gu Yun sighed inwardly. ’As expected of the Love Saint of Anchuan. He certainly knows his stuff...’

He then turned his gaze back toward Yue Hongshan.

His eyes narrowed, a sharp glint flickering within their depths.

’Is it really going to be this simple?’

...

At this moment, Yue Hongshan gazed at the Sword Qi that seemed to be falling from beyond the heavens.

Yet his eyes showed not the slightest hint of panic in the face of death.

"Heh, Wang Zhen’an, do you really think you’ve won?" Yue Hongshan sneered.

Then, his expression twisted into a snarl as he roared, "What are you waiting for?! Make your move!"

The powerful roar instantly thundered through the canyon. Its deafening echo reverberated in the night, terrifying all who heard it.

At the same time,

Ripples spread through the empty air, and a figure emerged. He wore a black robe with a Black Lotus emblem on the chest and a Fierce Ghost Mask on his face.

In the next moment, a terrifying might radiated from the masked man. It crashed down like a boundless tidal wave, making the very heavens and earth seem to tremble violently.

This immense pressure directly crushed Wang Zhen’an’s Sword Qi to dust!

"Worthy of the title ’Wang Family’s First Sword’ of Anchuan. Far beyond what a few pieces of trash could ever hope to match." The man in the Fierce Ghost Mask hovered in mid-air, his robes fluttering. His voice was grim and laced with a biting chill.

Beneath the night sky, the bright moonlight cut through the darkness, casting a long shadow from the man’s form. Combined with the terrifying aura he radiated, he looked like a soul-reaping Death God, striking terror and unease into everyone’s hearts.

Hm?!

The sudden appearance of the masked man in black put Wang Zhen’an on high alert. He tensed from head to toe, his focus sharpening. The pressure this man exuded was simply too immense.

Staring at the black robe, the mask, and the Black Lotus emblem on the man’s chest, Wang Zhen’an’s pupils contracted. He cried out in shock,

"The All Living Beings Sect!!"

’A member of the All Living Beings Sect... To think Yue Hongshan actually colluded with them.’

’This is outright rebellion! Isn’t he afraid the Great Yuan will annihilate the entire Yue Family for this?!’

The All Living Beings Sect preached about rebirth in paradise and ultimate ascension. They spread heresy throughout the Great Yuan, bewitching the masses and inciting rebellion everywhere. They were the empire’s number one target for suppression!

"Oh? I’m surprised you were able to guess I’m from the Holy Sect," the masked man said with a hint of surprise, still hovering in the air.

Then he added, "Wang Zhen’an.

Have you considered joining our Holy Sect?"

"With your talent and strength, becoming an Altar Master would be a simple matter."

Hearing this, the eyes of Yue Hongshan—lying broken and bleeding on the ground below—widened in shock. He had joined the All Living Beings Sect long ago and had only managed to become a Vice Altar Master.

’On what grounds does Wang Zhen’an deserve that?!’ A torrent of indignation flooded Yue Hongshan’s heart.

"Heh, the infamous All Living Beings Sect? How could I possibly dare to join!" Wang Zhen’an refused without a moment’s thought, not showing the slightest hesitation.

"Sigh. What a pity."

The man in the black mask sighed in regret.

Then, his tone turned bone-chilling.

"Since you are unwilling, then you can die!"

In the next instant, the man’s True Martial Sixth Layer Cultivation erupted. An immense True Yuan, as deep as an abyssal ocean, surged outward in all directions. The canyon walls tore open, creating hideous fissures as huge swathes of rock shattered and collapsed.

A terrifying pressure descended upon the entire canyon, leaving the members of the Wang Family below gasping for breath, their eyes wide with panic.