Everlasting Immortal Firmament

Ji Dihong burst out from the Six Paths Immortal Firmament and flew rapidly along its outer edge.

Although he did not know where the Xuanyuan Sword was, he firmly believed that following the perimeter of the Six Paths Immortal Firmament would ultimately lead him to it.

His idea was correct.

Gu Hai and his companions were indeed on the outskirts of the Six Paths Immortal Firmament, at a location that Gu Hai had initially chosen.

It would be impossible for the true body to find the skeleton clone in the depths of the void. The only way to find the Xuanyuan Sword was to lure it to a specific location near the periphery of the Six Paths Immortal Firmament.

Furthermore, Gu Hai could not waste even a drop of noble spirit.

The calligraphy Dao once contained noble spirit, but that noble spirit was simply a person’s righteousness manifested through the calligraphy Dao’s laws. Even a holy Dao scripture would have limited Righteous Energy.

However, the Xuanyuan Sword’s Righteous Energy was formed by the belief of hundreds of billions of people. Over thousands of years, countless generations in the Huang Heavenly Dynasty contributed to this massive, ever-growing sea of Righteous Energy. Ji Dihong had even gathered many holy Dao scriptures to shape a body of righteousness for the Xuanyuan Sword, resulting in this vast sea of Righteous Energy.

Now, the Righteous Energy took liquid form and gushed into Gu Hai’s true body.

Rumble…!

The energy in Gu Hai’s body surged.

Although Ji Dihong was desperately searching for Gu Hai and his companions, the Six Paths Immortal Firmament’s perimeter was too vast to find them quickly. Furthermore, even his powerful vision was of little use in the void.

Two hours passed. Then four, then six…

Boom!

A loud explosion sounded from Gu Hai’s body, and a shock wave shot out in all directions.

A Righteous Energy core formed within his heavenly eye.

“A Righteous Energy core? The Upper Heavenly Palace Realm’s eighth layer!” Gu Hai’s true body’s eyes sparkled.

Kong Xuan, Gu Han, Long Wanqing, and others all showed delight, understanding that Gu Hai’s foundation was solid and his strength would multiply with each layer.

“It’s not over yet?” said the skeleton Gu Hai in surprise.

“Continue!” Gu Hai’s true body resumed absorbing Righteous Energy.

Rumble…!

Another two hours passed. The remaining Righteous Energy transformed into Divinity Destroying Light.

Now, Gu Hai’s heavenly eye stored another eight shots of Divinity Destroying Light.

Buzz!

The Xuanyuan Sword clone quivered, now entirely drained of Righteous Energy and reduced to the form of a golden sword.

“The Xuanyuan Sword!” Both Gu Hais’ eyes brightened.

Plundered of the body of righteousness, the Xuanyuan Sword’s once-radiant appearance was dim.

The skeleton Gu Hai withdrew the Life Killer Saber, ready to grab the sword.

Boom!

A sudden, massive rush of energy approached.

“Oh no! It’s Ji Dihong’s true body!” The skeleton Gu Hai’s face changed.

Kong Xuan, Gu Han, Shangguan Hen, the Mosquito Daoist, and others were instantly on guard.

In a flash, the skeleton Gu Hai waved, sending the Xuanyuan Sword shooting into the void like a golden rainbow.

Boom!

As the Xuanyuan Sword shot deeper into the void, Ji Dihong’s true body arrived, his aura blazing and his face twisted with rage.

After searching in vain for Gu Hai, Ji Dihong had nearly given up hope when he suddenly sensed a faint aura. Elated at the discovery, he had sped to the location.

Upon arrival, he saw the Xuanyuan Sword, only for Gu Hai to fling it further into the void.

Further into the void?

Ji Dihong immediately flew into a rage, stopping before the group. “Gu Hai, how dare you?!”

Gu Han, Kong Xuan, Shangguan Hen, the Mosquito Daoist, and Long Wanqing kept their guard up, appearing exceptionally tense.

The two Gu Hais remained calm, staring coldly at the nearby Ji Dihong.

“Ji Dihong, you’ve kept us waiting,” Gu Hai’s true body said with an icy smile.

Buzz!

Ji Dihong’s right hand, which he was thrusting forward to attack, immediately stopped.

His eyes narrowed. “I kept you waiting? You knew I was coming?”

“Don’t worry. It’s just us here. Ready to see who’s superior?” Gu Hai’s true body mocked.

“Just you few?” Ji Dihong’s face darkened.

“Exactly, just us few. You aren’t afraid, given your consummation-of-the-spiritual-souls strength, are you?” Gu Hai’s true body taunted.

Ji Dihong’s eyelids twitched wildly.

If Ji Dihong were certain this was true, he would definitely attack. However, Gu Hai knew Ji Dihong’s suspicious nature would give him pause; he would think over his decisions thrice before doing anything.

Being cautious was not wrong. Ji Dihong had his current achievements because of his care and caution.

Because of that, Gu Hai played it cool while his companions acted tense, leaving Ji Dihong uncertain.

The more uncertain Ji Dihong was, the more suspicious he became.

It was just like the Empty Fort Stratagem Gu Hai had read about on Earth. Sima Yi had been too smart for his own good, causing him to fall for Zhuge Liang’s usage of the Empty Fort Stratagem.

[TL Note: Sima Yi was a general and politician from the Three Kingdoms period of China. He held a position of eminent authority. Zhuge Liang—also known as Kong Ming—was a tactician from the same era. Zhuge Liang was known for not acting without having sufficient confidence, so when he employed the Empty Fort Stratagem, Sima Yi, who was a cautious person by nature, believed there would be an ambush and retreated. Here are the Wikipedia entries for the two: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sima_Yi and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhuge_Liang.]

Now, Gu Hai did the same.

The more relaxed Gu Hai appeared, the more anxious Ji Dihong grew. More importantly, two things heavily influenced Ji Dihong’s judgment.

The first was the recent news about Long Zhanguo. Ji Dihong wondered if Long Zhanguo was hiding nearby and if it was a trap deliberately set by Gu Hai.

Second, Gu Hai had shot the Xuanyuan Sword further into the void. If it continued to fly farther, even Ji Dihong wouldn’t be able to find it. If Ji Dihong did not retrieve the Xuanyuan Sword now, that might mean giving it up.

A wave of annoyance and anxiety swept over Ji Dihong.

I don’t fully understand what’s happening before me, and the Xuanyuan Sword is about to disappear.

“Humph! Gu Hai, we will return for you!” Ji Dihong said coldly.

Whoosh!

Ji Dihong turned and lunged into the void to chase the Xuanyuan Sword and vanished from sight.

“Let’s go!” Gu Hai’s true body said, inwardly feeling relief.

“Yes!”

Whoosh!

Everyone rushed towards the Six Paths Immortal Firmament.

That was close.

Although Gu Hai had many extraordinarily strong people on his side, even the skeleton Gu Hai was there—someone who could defeat the consummation-of-the-spiritual-souls Xuanyuan Sword clone alone—they knew nothing of Ji Dihong’s true strength.

Gu Hai did not think he had much of a chance of winning against Ji Dihong.

While he had defeated the Xuanyuan Sword clone, how could the Xuanyuan Sword clone compare to Ji Dihong’s true body?

The success of the Empty Fort Stratagem prompted Gu Hai to return quickly to the Six Paths Immortal Firmament.

Whoosh!

Everyone returned to the Six Paths Immortal Firmament.

This was the outer space above the Han Imperial Dynasty.

Here, Gu Hai felt at ease, for he could drive the power of his nation to fight Ji Dihong here.

Then they headed straight for Borderless Heavenly Capital.

Rumble…!

The blessings that had vanished from above Borderless Heavenly Capital returned once more, covering the sky.

“Roar!”

A twenty-thousand-kilometer-long golden blessings dragon flew out of the skeleton Gu Hai and entered the blessings cloud sea, growing thicker and stronger as the blessings cloud sea churned. It seemed to signal to Gu Hai that the blessings sufficed to advance to a heavenly dynasty.

The citizens of Borderless Heavenly Capital looked up at the blessings in the sky and resumed their tasks. Such a sight was nothing new in the Han Imperial Dynasty. Phenomena like the blessings disappearing—something that would be akin to the sky falling in other nations—were common in the Han Imperial Dynasty.

Gu Hai and his entourage landed at Soaring Palace Hall’s plaza.

“Husband, are you alright?” Chen Xianer asked, worried.

“I’m fine.” Gu Hai’s true body shook his head.

The skeleton Gu Hai, clad in black robes, remained hidden in the darkness.

There was no room for two suns in the sky, and no nation could have two rulers. Even though the two Gu Hais were of one consciousness, even with their thoughts synchronized, only one could officially rule the nation.

------

The void:

Ji Dihong lunged into the depths of the void. Before long, he spotted the Xuanyuan Sword, still in flight.

Bang!

Ji Dihong clamped his hand around the hilt of the Xuanyuan Sword and exhaled deeply in relief.

Thankfully, the Xuanyuan Sword was not lost.

However, the Xuanyuan Sword in Ji Dihong’s hand suddenly caused his face to fall.

“Where is the noble spirit?” Ji Dihong’s expression changed abruptly.

The Xuanyuan Sword’s Righteous Energy was gone; the sword even had cracks.

The sword’s Righteous Energy allowed it to reach the consummation of spiritual souls. Now that its body of righteousness was gone, its might was greatly diminished.

“Gu Hai! Gu Hai!” Ji Dihong shouted, his face distorted with hate.

Turning, Ji Dihong headed towards the Six Paths Immortal Firmament.

------

Xuanyuan City:

The instant the blessings cloud sea scattered, the people of Xuanyuan City panicked.

Fortunately, Cangjie and the officials swiftly suppressed the unrest, and no major chaos ensued.

However, the officials remained worried.

Half a day later:

“I have a report! Milord, Borderless Heavenly Capital’s blessings have returned!” an official came forward to announce.

“Borderless Heavenly Capital?” Cangjie turned to look.

“Mister Cangjie, Borderless Heavenly Capital’s blessings’ return means Gu Hai has also returned. Will His Holy Eminence…?” Emperor Kong voiced his concern.

“His Holy Eminence will surely be unharmed!” Cangjie responded in a deep voice.

“Yes!”

Just as the officials felt anxious, the scattered blessings suddenly reappeared out of nowhere. Their faces lit up with joy. The return of the blessings indicated their emperor was unharmed.

Boom!

A beam of light arrived and landed at Xuanyuan Palace Hall’s plaza.

“Your Holy Eminence!” The officials rushed forward to greet their emperor.

Ji Dihong nodded, holding the cracked Xuanyuan Sword, his face dark and solemn.

“What did the Xuanyuan Sword encounter, that it was stripped of its Righteous Energy by Gu Hai?” Ji Dihong slowly closed his eyes, gently operating the Xuanyuan Sword.

The consciousness inside the Xuanyuan Sword instantly synchronized with Ji Dihong’s.

Evil demon!

Villain!

Give me back my son’s life!

…

Endless shouts stormed into Ji Dihong’s mind. Everything in the Life Killer Illusion suddenly rushed into Ji Dihong’s mind, dazing him momentarily.

Ji Dihong jerked awake, his eyes wide open, staring at the Xuanyuan Sword in horror.

“So that’s it, so that’s it. Gu Hai, your methods are truly ruthless!” Ji Dihong’s face twisted with anger.ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ ɴovᴇl_Firᴇ.ɴet

This was not just about making the Xuanyuan Sword clone faint but about destroying its will. In the Xuanyuan Sword clone’s consciousness, nothing remained but despair and helplessness.