Sword Elder

Crack!

The harsh sound of metal clashing rang out repeatedly.

Gu Chen had lost count of how many times they'd exchanged blows.

His own sword had already sustained several nicks from their clashes.

But finally, with this strike, he severed Lei Chao's weapon.

Lei Chao's expression shifted slightly. Caught off guard, he held his broken sword, momentarily stunned.

He hadn't expected his battle saber, which was Low-grade Yellow Rank, to be cut down by Gu Chen's standard-issue sword!

Gu Chen seized this moment, delivering a powerful kick to Lei Chao's chest.

With a heavy thud, Lei Chao's body was sent flying backward, crashing into a towering tree with a pained groan.

Lei Chao spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes blazing red as he stared at Gu Chen.

"Last time in the barracks, you went easy on me?"

He truly couldn't comprehend how someone who had been utterly defenseless against him just seven days ago.

Could, in a mere few days, turn the tables, suppress, and even defeat him!

This was completely illogical!

Gu Chen smiled and shook his head, a flicker of killing intent in his eyes.

"A frog in a well, do you think everyone is as untalented and envious as you are?"

This wasn't Gu Chen belittling Lei Chao because of the sword-shaped pendant or his new identity as the so-called Sword Master.

It was because he had absolute confidence in his own talent.

In the Gu Family, as a collateral descendant, he received little resources and couldn't access the core teachings, so his cultivation speed was naturally slow.

But after arriving at the border, he found the most suitable training methods for a Martial Artist. Even without the Nine Heavens Immortal Sword Art, his growth was only a matter of time.

Gu Chen might not have been considered a prodigy from birth, otherwise the Gu Family wouldn't have ignored him.

Accumulating strength and maturing late – perhaps these were the most fitting descriptions for him.

Just then, the sword-shaped pendant's anxious voice suddenly echoed in Gu Chen's mind.

"Gu Chen, I sense someone rapidly approaching. Hurry and kill him!"

Gu Chen's heart tightened. He and Sword Elder were now in a situation where their fates were intertwined.

Sword Elder would never lie to him.

Gu Chen took a deep breath, raised his sword, and brought it down.

"If you have to blame someone, blame yourself for not discerning right from wrong and causing trouble for Li Xuan!"

In the woods, Guan Shan's heart flickered with hesitation as he saw Gu Chen intending to kill Lei Chao instead of trying to win him over.

If Gu Chen were also a spy from the enemy nation, he would undoubtedly try to recruit Lei Chao, aiming to weaken the Running Wolf Nation as much as possible.

Gu Chen's actions clearly didn't align with those of a competent spy.

If Gu Chen wasn't a spy, he couldn't just stand by and watch Lei Chao die here simply due to internal conflict.

However, Gu Chen's rapid advancement in strength was even less like that of a normal Gu Family disciple!

After suspecting Gu Han, Guan Shan had retrieved information about the Gu Family.

Wushan City was merely a minor city in the lower ranks of the entire Running Wolf Nation.

Although the Gu Family was one of the four major families in Wushan City, their influence was negligible in Guan Shan's eyes.

Even the direct descendants of the Gu Family couldn't exhibit the kind of progress Gu Chen was showing.

This seemed to suggest that Gu Chen and Gu Han were highly likely to be spies.

Despite his suspicions, Guan Shan still did not intervene.

This was a period of constant border skirmishes between the Running Wolf Nation and the Sword-toothed Country, with war potentially breaking out at any moment.

If Lei Chao's death could lead to a greater gain, it would be worth it!

At this moment, Guan Shan chose to gamble!

He gambled that Gu Chen was a spy for the Sword-toothed Country, and that there were bigger players behind him!

However, Lei Chao had not given up hope of survival.

He abruptly raised his left hand, blocking his chest!

The long sword pierced Lei Chao's arm, and he let out an agonizing cry.

"Ugh!!!"

Lei Chao was clearly trying to sever his arm to survive!

Gritting his teeth, he turned sideways, clamping Gu Chen's sword tightly with his arm, and rolled frantically on the ground, dodging Gu Chen's attacks.

But Gu Chen's attacks continued to land on Lei Chao relentlessly.

Lei Chao's miserable state caused even the iron-hearted Guan Shan to feel a flicker of pity.

But just then, Guan Shan suddenly noticed hurried footsteps approaching nearby.

The sound was extremely jarring to Guan Shan's ears, even making him break out in a cold sweat.

If this were on a battlefield, detecting footsteps at such close range could have put him in danger!

And he had actually let his guard down because of their fight just now!

"Did you think I'd come to find you alone?"

Although Lei Chao was in a sorry state, his mouth full of blood, he let out a sinister laugh at this moment.

"Gu Chen, today is your death day!"

Gu Chen was burning with rage, wishing he could smash Lei Chao's head in with a single punch, but Lei Chao was as slippery as a loach, giving him no such opportunity.

Sword Elder's voice urgently sounded in Gu Chen's ear.

"Gu Chen, forget about this guy, run! The enemy has surrounded you."

Gu Chen sighed inwardly and immediately intended to break free.

At this moment, Lei Chao's ruthlessness was once again evident.

His arms were limp, but he bit down hard on Gu Chen's pant leg with his teeth.

Gu Chen, with a grim expression, kicked him away, shattering his teeth, but also buying time for the newcomers.

A total of four people surrounded Gu Chen.

One of them, a young man in blue holding a long staff, sneered.

"This Lei Chao is really useless, he can't even deal with a recruit."

"And he dared to have the same reputation as me back then, what a waste."

"Stop the nonsense, let's hurry up and leave before we're discovered."

Three of them exchanged words and then grabbed their weapons, preparing to attack Gu Chen.

"Wait a moment."

However, the one who had remained silent suddenly spoke up to stop them.

He looked at Gu Chen, who was standing ready, with a dismissive gaze.

"I can make the decision to give you a chance. As long as you are willing to join the Sword-toothed Country and secretly recruit warriors in the Running Wolf Nation, you can live today. How about it?"

Guan Shan, hidden in the woods, trembled.

Here it comes, this is the true behavior of a spy!

But he never expected that the real spy wasn't the Gu Han brothers he had suspected these past few days.

It was the universally acknowledged strong but simple-minded Lei Chao!

And he had suspected the wrong person!

Among these four people, Guan Shan only had a vague impression of the one who spoke last.

This was because this person was ranked among the top three warriors of the same cohort as Lei Chao!

Xue Wen!

But Xue Wen had chosen to leave the army two years ago, and he never expected him to appear at this time.

It was likely that the Sword-toothed Country's spy had many plans!

At the same time, in Gu Chen's ear, Sword Elder sighed faintly.

"Since that's the case, there's no other way."

Just as Gu Chen thought Sword Elder would advise him to endure for now and save his life, Sword Elder suddenly said, "Gu Chen, release the restriction. Today, I will slay them for you!"

Because the sword-shaped pendant had already recognized him as its master through blood, Gu Chen knew that Sword Elder wasn't trying to control his body.

He truly wanted to personally deal with these people for him.

Gu Chen didn't hesitate at all. With his current strength, defeating Lei Chao was already extremely difficult.

It was impossible for him to defeat four enemies who were no less inferior, and even surpassed Lei Chao.

Just as Gu Chen was about to release the restriction, footsteps sounded again from not far away.