The Gu Clan sealed itself off

Chen Yang weighed many things, but ultimately chose not to pursue Gu Yuan.

First, the Gu Clan had a legacy stretching back ten thousand years and deep reserves of power. Gu Yuan had plenty of ways to save his own life, so even if Chen Yang gave chase, there was no guarantee he could catch him.

Second, he feared falling for a Lure the Tiger Away from the Mountain stratagem. If that happened, the losses would outweigh the gains.

No one could say whether another Gu Clan expert would arrive the moment he left to pursue Gu Yuan.

Besides, Chen Yang had plans of his own.

Now that he had displayed the strength of a Peak Nine-Star Dou Saint, the Gu Clan would inevitably be wary of him.

Unless they wanted to make a mortal enemy of an unaffiliated Peak Nine-Star Dou Saint, they would come to his door to apologize and seek peace once they realized their mistake.

When that happened, he could fleece them however he pleased.

"Phew!"

After fleeing more than a hundred miles, Gu Yuan looked back.

Seeing that Chen Yang had not pursued him relentlessly, he let out a long sigh of relief.

Conflict flickered in his eyes, but in the end, he dragged his grievously wounded body through space and returned to the Ancient Realm.

At the Ancient Realm's entrance, the Gu Clan's Black Annihilation Army stood fully armed and ready, weapons in hand and bristling with aggression. They were preparing to attack the Soul Hall in the Central Plains, hoping to draw out the Soul Clan through it.

When they saw their Clan Chief appear at the entrance in such a wretched state, the soldiers of the Black Annihilation Army could not hide their shock.

In their minds, their Clan Chief was an invincible existence.

Yet now, their invincible Clan Chief had a broken arm, and the Dou Qi throughout his body was in turmoil.

Black Annihilation King Gu Lie was equally shocked, staring in disbelief at Gu Yuan's broken arm as it hung limply at his side.

Their Clan Chief was a Peak Nine-Star Dou Saint, standing at the absolute pinnacle of power on the Dou Qi Continent. Who could have reduced him to such a miserable state?

An equally imposing figure immediately surfaced in Black Annihilation King Gu Lie's mind.

Could it have been the Soul Clan—Hun Tiandi?!

But hadn't Hun Tiandi gone into seclusion to recover after his battle with Xiao Xuan, never emerging since?

And if I remember correctly, the Clan Chief only ended up like this after visiting Wutan City in the Northwest Region.

Just what sort of gods and monsters lurked in Wutan City in the Northwest Region?

Upon his return, Gu Yuan was briefly taken aback to see the Black Annihilation Army assembled at the Ancient Realm's exit, ready to depart.

Then he issued an order to Black Annihilation King Gu Lie, who was leading them. "The situation has changed. Postpone the attack on the Soul Realm for now."

"Effective immediately, sever all contact between the Ancient Realm and the outside world. The Ancient Realm will seal itself off."

"Everything else can wait until I recover. Meanwhile, assign more men to protect the young lady in secret."

With that, Gu Yuan passed Black Annihilation King Gu Lie and returned to the Gu Clan, closing the Ancient Realm's exit behind him.

Although Gu Lie had no idea what had happened during Gu Yuan's trip to Wutan City in the Northwest Region, Gu Yuan was seriously injured. If the Soul Clan learned of it, they would undoubtedly launch a full-scale assault on the Ancient Realm, bringing catastrophe down upon the Gu Clan. Sealing off the Ancient Realm was the best course of action for now.

After careful consideration, Black Annihilation King Gu Lie dismissed the Black Annihilation Army and personally sealed every exit from the Ancient Realm.

Even after finishing all of this, Gu Lie remained deeply concerned about Gu Yuan's condition.

He therefore sought out Grand Elder Gu Dao, and together they went to the Clan Chief's residence to examine Gu Yuan's injuries and ask just what had happened during his trip to Wutan City in the Northwest Region.

Gu Lie and Gu Dao arrived outside the Clan Chief's residence with the clan's Healing Sacred Medicine. After receiving Gu Yuan's permission, they went straight inside.

"Clan Chief, what happened on this trip? Who injured you so badly?"

Grand Elder Gu Dao stepped forward, unable to hold back his questions.

Gu Lie's gaze likewise settled on Gu Yuan. He pricked up his ears, desperate to learn exactly what had happened.

Once the question had been asked, both men's gazes fell upon Gu Yuan's broken arm.

They were puzzled. With their Clan Chief's abilities, he could regrow an arm even if it had been severed.

Why hadn't he healed it, then?

Leaving it broken was not only unsightly, but inconvenient as well!

Gu Yuan wanted to heal his arm, too.

Only after returning, however, had he discovered that Chen Yang had left a powerful parting trap during their battle.

Chen Yang had secretly left the Power of Judgment from Yellow Springs Judgment in his arm.

The energy of the Power of Judgment was exceedingly violent, and he could not expel it on his own.

What made this judgment energy truly hateful was that it constantly damaged his essence and contaminated his Dou Qi.

For every bit he restored with his Dou Qi, the judgment energy immediately destroyed just as much.

The deadly problem was that this judgment energy was difficult for him to expel by himself.

And as long as it remained, his arm could not recover.

At that thought, Gu Yuan let out a long, frustrated sigh.

Seeing Gu Yuan remain silent and do nothing but sigh, Gu Dao furrowed his aged brows.

Puzzled, he reached out and placed his hand over the pulse in Gu Yuan's right arm.

The instant his fingers touched the arm, Gu Dao felt a violent, erratic surge of energy rush at him menacingly.

Gu Dao had never encountered such bizarre energy before, and his expression changed drastically.

He hastily withdrew his hand while circulating his Dou Qi to dispel the violent energy crawling up his fingers toward his body.

Noticing something was wrong, Gu Lie immediately flashed forward, circulated his Dou Qi, and laid his hand over the arm.

After stepping back and steadying himself, Gu Dao also flashed forward again.

Circulating his Dou Qi in concert with Gu Lie, the two stood on either side of Gu Yuan and helped him expel the judgment energy from his arm.

Two high-level Dou Sheng joined forces, adding their strength to Gu Yuan's own.

In an instant, four powerful energies became entangled within the broken arm, pulling and tearing at one another in a relentless struggle.

At last, through the combined efforts of Gu Lie, Gu Dao, and Gu Yuan, the judgment energy lingering in Gu Yuan's right arm was finally expelled.

With the judgment energy gone, Gu Yuan did not even need to actively circulate his Dou Qi.

The Dou Qi within his body surged of its own accord, repairing his injured arm.

The shattered bones knitted themselves together piece by piece, and the wounds on his arm healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Once his arm had recovered, Gu Yuan moved it around.

His slightly furrowed brows relaxed a little. His arm had healed.

For some reason, however, it had not returned to its peak condition.

Only after a meticulous examination did he finally confirm that his right arm was a full twenty percent weaker than it had been before the injury.

Gu Yuan did not understand what had caused this.

Unable to work out the reason, he simply attributed it to the severe damage to his own essential power.

Perhaps once he went into seclusion and restored his essence...

His arm would then return to its condition before the injury.

Expelling the Power of Judgment lingering in Gu Yuan's arm had cost Gu Lie and Gu Dao more than half their Dou Qi and energy, leaving them weakened.

They immediately took medicinal pills to replenish their Dou Qi and energy.

"Clan Chief, why were you injured so badly?"

"And this power is unlike anything I have ever seen in my life."

"What unforeseen change has occurred in Wutan City in the Northwest Region?"

Gu Lie asked three questions in succession.

(P.S. Here's a book recommendation: "Battle Through the Heavens: Choosing to Snag Medusa at the Start!" The female lead is Queen Medusa.)