Unfulfilled Ambition

The Lord of Mysteries couldn't hold out that long; he was completely defeated by the seventh Sword Qi. Although he could have lasted longer with his strength, there was no need for it.

When Wan Yebai and the other two launched their sword formation, the Lord of Mysteries realized that he was doomed to defeat. Since he couldn't win, he should try to retreat as soon as possible to preserve more of his Primal Qi. Otherwise, the longer he dragged it out, the less likely he would survive.

When Wan Ziqiu gathered the remaining power of the previous six swords and slashed at the Lord of Mysteries with even greater force, the Lord of Mysteries gave up resistance without hesitation, allowing the opponent to sever all his soft tentacles with One Sword strike and then plunge the sword into his chest, pouring all the power of thunder into him.

Unexpectedly, he succeeded in one fell swoop when it was his turn, and a smile appeared on Wan Ziqiu's face. Then he heard his father's anxious reminder from behind. "Quickly retreat!"

The Lord of Mysteries rapidly expanded like an inflating balloon, finally exploding with a loud "bang." Large amounts of black liquid splattered outwards. Several disciples reacted too slowly to dodge, and those who were touched by a few drops immediately succumbed to the poison and died.

"Everyone, do not stay where you are, retreat immediately!"

Zhou Anping brandished his sword, condensing his qi into a wall to block the black liquid, and ordered his disciples to stay away, since no one could guarantee that the substance wouldn't quickly evaporate into gas.

At the same time, a large number of jellyfish-like spirits flew out from the corpse of the Lord of Mysteries, rose into the air, and fled in all directions.

The reason why our predecessors did not kill the Lord of Mysteries but chose to seal him away was because of his method of splitting multiple Primordial Spirit.

If it were an ordinary Primordial Spirit projection, it wouldn't be difficult to intercept with proper precautions. However, the Lord of Mysteries sent out hundreds of Primordial Spirit projections at once. As long as one survived, it could be resurrected. Unfortunately, the Primordial Spirit projections were extremely fast, making it too difficult to destroy them all. Sealing them was a last resort.

"No one could kill you before because no one had mastered this move."

Wan Yebai, positioned at the rear, unleashed his full Cultivation Body, with Wan Ziqiu assisting him, elevating his Sword Intent to its peak. The instant he drew his sword, everything froze, and time itself stood still.

"All Evils Fall Silent, All Wickedness Perishes!"

Chapter 596 Unfulfilled Ambition

Evil-Slaying Sword Art was activated, a boundless killing intent suddenly erupted. The Sword Intent merged into nature, causing changes in the celestial phenomena. The clouds rubbed together, bursting forth with bolts of lightning and thunder. The breeze caressed the leaves, leaving sharp marks. The flowing water crossed the riverbed, smoothing the edges of the rocks. Fallen leaves drifted over the rocks, splashing out bursts of sparks.

When Heaven harbors murderous intent, the stars shift and the constellations change; when Earth harbors murderous intent, dragons and snakes rise from the land; when man harbors murderous intent, the world is turned upside down.

Although the Evil-Slaying Sword Art Daoist School, it is the most extreme form of killing. The killing Sword Intent intensify, and after reaching a peak, it suddenly disappears.

There was no sound, no smell, no light, no image, no emotion, not even the slightest fluctuation of consciousness; only the deepest void remained. Heaven and earth fell into deathly silence, and time and space froze at this moment.

Outside the range of the ultimate move, everything was normal, but within the range, everything and everyone was frozen in place, even the Primordial Spirit. The Lord of Mysteries had a total of eighty-one primordial Primordial Spirit sub-bodies, which was the number nine, and they remained motionless in the air, maintaining their frantic escape posture.

Within the entire sword domain, only Wan Yebai could move; anyone else who stepped inside would be immobilized.

He raised his longsword high and with a gentle swing, the invisible yet tangible air condensed into solid Sword Qi, which swept across with a chilling and annihilating Sword Intent. Everything it touched was annihilated. Whether it was the black liquid splattered by the Lord of Mysteries or his Primordial Spirit, they were all killed by the Sword Qi without exception.

The sword domain dissipated, the world shifted from static to dynamic, time resumed its flow, and everything remained unchanged except for the Lord of Mysteries, who was no longer present.

Wan Yebai swayed, his face turning pale, as his essence, energy, and spirit were severely depleted, and he was also suffering from the backlash of the Sword Intent. Fortunately, Zhou Anping and Wan Ziqiu were prepared and promptly channeled their energy to regulate his breathing, stopping the backlash. He recovered as usual after a short while.

"Let the disciples heal the wounded first. It's getting late, and we shouldn't travel any further. Let's camp out in the wilderness for the night and return to the mountain gate tomorrow," Wan Yebai commanded.

Wan Ziqiu said triumphantly, "Our predecessors had no choice but to seal away the Lord of Mysteries, but now he has perished at our hands. After today, let's see who dares to underestimate our Evil-Slaying Sword School!"

No wonder he harbored resentment. After the Evil-Slaying Sword School suffered its calamity, there were many more sarcastic and unsavory rumors circulating in the Eastern Martial World. Rumors such as "a tiger fallen into the plains," "the wheel of fortune turns," and "someone will take its place" were everywhere. Even his former "followers" had developed different thoughts. Although they didn't say it on the surface and remained respectful, Wan Ziqiu wasn't stupid and could naturally see their restless ambitions.

As fellow righteous individuals, instead of offering assistance and sharing the burden when their ally is in trouble, they harbor thoughts of gloating and kicking someone when they're down. This infuriated Wan Ziqiu, who privately cursed these guys as a bunch of ingrates who only saw the Evil-Slaying Sword School Sect's high position as the leader of the righteous path but failed to see the many sacrifices they made for the peace of the martial world.

If you want to wear the crown, you must first bear its weight. Without the corresponding strength, you will only have your neck broken by the crown.

"Alright, stop complaining. Few are willing to help in times of need, while many are willing to add to one's success. This is only human nature, nothing to worry about. Our sect's only unwavering goal is to eradicate evil; everything else is insignificant."

Looking at his son's unworthy behavior, Wan Yebai couldn't help but reflect on his own actions. Perhaps he should have been more ruthless and sent him out to gain experience instead of keeping him by his side. If he had experienced more dangers, he wouldn't be so immature now.

But he also understood that this was something he couldn't help. Born into the Eastern Martial World, with his father as the sect leader and his own outstanding talent, he had achieved the Nascent Spirit Transformation at a young age. Under such circumstances, the fact that Wan Ziqiu hadn't developed a spoiled and arrogant attitude was already the result of Wan Yebai's strict fatherly education and constant admonitions. If it were an ordinary person, they would have long been lost in the flattery of others and unable to extricate themselves.

Perhaps only when I am gone can he grow into a tree strong enough to support the sky; otherwise, as long as I stand in front of him, he will always be sheltered in the shadows.

"You must remember, whether it's the leader of the righteous path or the holy land of martial arts, these titles were not actively sought by our sect. They were bestowed upon us by others. They asked us to be their leaders, not the other way around. You must keep this distinction firmly in mind."

"Okay, okay."

Wan Ziqiu was practically sick of hearing similar words, and a wave of irritation washed over him. He knew what kind of image he held in his father's eyes, but looking at the offspring of other Grandmaster, how many of them could actually become Grandmaster?

Tiger father, dog son – that's the norm.

Grandmaster's disciple has a high probability of becoming Grandmaster, because his disciples are the best of the best selected from millions of people. However, their offspring are often incompetent. If they have the ability to maintain the status quo, that is a gift from heaven.

Although Wan Ziqiu's title of Grandmaster was somewhat exaggerated—he only broke through the limit by consuming a rare and heavenly materials and earthly treasures during a fortuitous encounter—he was still Grandmaster. Compared to those spoiled brats who only relied on their fathers' glory to show off, he was already quite outstanding. Yet, Wan Yebai never praised him once.

Zhou Anping noticed the tense atmosphere between the father and son and quickly interjected, "No matter what industry you're in, the leader is always envied. Those who are mediocre only see your success in front of others, but they don't see the effort you put in behind the scenes. They only attribute their success to their background and luck, making excuses for their own incompetence. In fact, even if they were given the same opportunities, they wouldn't be able to seize them."

After tonight, those who were hoping to see our sect make a fool of itself will give up their ambitions, obediently return to their seats, and continue to look up to us, because they know that even though our sect has suffered a calamity and is Primal Qi, it is still beyond their reach."

These passionate words naturally won unanimous praise from the disciples, who looked at Zhou Anping with admiration.

Wan Yebai knew that Zhou Anping's move was aimed at winning people's hearts, but he didn't care. The Evil-Slaying Sword School was not the private property of one family or clan, and he had no intention of playing any tricks of family rule. Since its founding, the position of sect leader of the Evil-Slaying Sword School has been held by the most capable person. There has never been a case of private succession or son inheriting his father's position.

Long ago, he told Wan Ziqiu that he would never pass on the position of sect leader to him. If Wan Ziqiu had any such thoughts, he should give them up as soon as possible and not have any expectations.

That evening, the father and son had a huge fight, and their relationship deteriorated from then on.

Wan Yebai has never regretted his decision. Not letting Wan Ziqiu inherit the position of sect leader was a form of protection for him. Otherwise, if he had set a precedent for father-son succession, others would have kept a close eye on Wan Ziqiu, and any small mistake he made would have been magnified. Since he lacked the corresponding talent, he would inevitably have ended up with a humiliating abdication. However, Wan Yebai couldn't help but reflect that if he had adopted a more tactful approach, perhaps the relationship between father and son wouldn't be so bad now.

Perhaps we should find an opportunity for a heart-to-heart talk between father and son. Right now, the Evil-Slaying Sword School Sect is at its lowest point in history, and we should work together to overcome this difficult time.

Just as Wan Yebai made his decision, a sudden scream came from his disciples.

"The Lord of Mysteries is alive! He still has avatars alive! Everyone, surround him! We can't let him escape!"

Wan Yebai and his two companions rushed toward the direction from which the sound came. When they arrived, they saw a strange man who looked very much like the Lord of Mysteries, but whose body was shrunk several times. He was charging around in the sword formation formed by seven disciples, but he was unable to break free.

"He's truly a cunning rabbit with three burrows! I didn't expect him to have left a clone outside. Luckily, we discovered him; we absolutely cannot let him escape!"