The Word of Heaven

Chapter 348 The Long Night Has Arrived
The wind rustles and the water becomes cold.

The trees were covered in fallen blossoms; no brave warriors were to be seen, only a young girl.

Unobstructed by dense clouds, starlight spills across the earth, making the petals appear like glistening snowflakes, drifting endlessly in the night breeze.

Lin Wanyi held the sword, and the chilling aura emanating from its blade washed over her Dao heart like water.

This feeling was incredibly pleasant, like a sip of chilled plum wine in the height of summer, and before that, I had eaten the spiciest Yizhou hot pot. All the discomfort completely disappeared the moment the wine entered my stomach.

As the current leader of the Yishui Sect, how could Wei Qingci not sense the emanation of the Qieman Sword Intent?

After a moment of silence, his eyes revealed a hint of self-mockery, then anger, and finally indifference.

This undisguised indifference actually calmed his tone, making it impossible to detect any emotion.

"To kill the Demon Lord, we must minimize the variables. Your arrival at the Yi River and your drawing of the sword Qieman are undoubtedly the most obvious variables."

Lin Wanyi asked, "What are you going to do?"

Wei Qingci did not answer the question, but said to himself, "The guest earlier brought me a method to break through to the next realm and ascend to immortality. Interestingly, this is the answer I have been seeking before."

"I didn't like this answer, but now it seems..."

He said blankly, "This is actually the most appropriate choice."

By the end of his sentence, Wei Qingci's gaze had fallen upon the edge of the sword.

His sharp, clear eyes, as cold as water, reflected his gray, desolate gaze with unmistakable clarity, revealing a deep loathing within them.

Lin Wanyi remained silent for a while before asking, "What choice?"

Wei Qingci suddenly laughed and uttered those two words.

"With a sword."

As the sound faded, he stretched out his right hand.

Her fingers were long and slender, and her palms were calloused. It was a hand perfectly suited to wielding a sword. Even without the hilt in her hand, it still gave Lin Wanyi a sense of gradually revealing her sharp edge.

However, the moment Wei Qingci began to close his five fingers, his sharpness did not become more intense, but rather subsided.

His right hand became a sword sheath.

At the same time, the night wind suddenly stopped, and the flowering trees did not sway.

Instead, a slight buzzing sound emanated from Lin Wanyi's hand.

This is neither joy nor fighting spirit.

But anger!
He was furious that Wei Qingci dared to have such an absurd idea as to refine it in order to enter the realm of ascension!

Lin Wanyi had a premonition, but when it actually happened, she still couldn't stay calm and couldn't help but feel that it was a decision that even an idiot couldn't accurately describe.

"No matter how much you claim to be wholeheartedly devoted to Yishui, Yishui needs a person at the Ascension Realm. The choice you are making now is digging a grave for Yishui."

She stared into Wei Qingci's eyes and said, "This is an act of betraying one's master and ancestors. If Senior Wang were alive, you would surely be expelled from Yishui."

Wei Qingci's smile remained unchanged, but became even more direct as he said, "Master is already dead. If you can get him to dig up his grave while sitting in that broken wheelchair, what does it matter if I'm expelled from Yishui or die by his sword?"

Lin Wanyi was stunned.

The next moment, Wei Qingci abruptly stopped smiling, his eyes filled with icy anger.

"If you can't do it, then shut up and learn to accept reality."

His voice was devoid of any emotion: "Or perhaps, you and Qieman will die together tonight."

Lin Wanyi gripped her hand tightly and remained silent.

Wei Qingci ignored it and indifferently recited the ascension technique recorded in Wang Jingshuo's secret letter. Sword energy flowed within his body, and his soul gradually underwent corresponding changes.

At the same time, he took a step forward, using his right hand, which had transformed into a scabbard, to conceal the sharp edge of the sword.

It doesn't matter if it becomes a withered tree or a piece of waste; the key is to make the most of it.

A sword is never as important as a person.

Wei Qingci's will was unwavering.

He has boundless confidence.

This is the Yi River.

No one can defy his will.

Moreover, Lin Wanyi is a junior.

However, Wei Qingci forgot one thing.

Resistance is never about strength or weakness, but about whether or not one wants to resist.

Clang!
A flash of sword light pierced the night, startling peach blossoms to fall to the ground!

Hold on before drawing your sword.

Lin Wanyi forgot about heaven and earth, forgot about her realm, forgot about life and death.

With the lone, straight sword in his hand, he pointed forward into the long night, yearning to glimpse the light of day!
Wei Qingci, expressionless, grasped the blade.

Countless sword lights burst forth from his palm, illuminating the entire island in the river!

The people on both banks of the Yi River were startled and sat up abruptly, looking toward the source of the sword light.

There was no sound at all; even the sound of the wind was cut off.

The world under the cover of night was so silent and terrifying.

……

……

Chen Chi was traveling on his sword.

His face was deathly pale, like a corpse that had been hanged for ten days and no one had noticed.

He was certain that he was on the right path, but he didn't know if he could deliver the most complete message to the Daoist sect before he died from exhaustion.

The pain has become so intense that it has been forgotten.

……

……

Gu Zhuo is about to face another battle.

While divine punishment failed to kill him, the injuries it inflicted were not to be underestimated.

His condition was very poor, which was reflected in the tattered black shirt and the fact that the balance between heaven and earth could no longer be maintained.

This was naturally done intentionally by the White Emperor.

If it weren't for the desire to break the balance of heaven and earth, why would he have risked injury to force down that starlight amidst the combined attack of the dawn and dusk bells and the Mirror of Destruction?
There are countless supernatural powers in the world, but the destiny of fishing remains one of the most unique.

With the initiative in the game, the White Emperor is virtually invincible.

The Weiyang Palace Incident is the best example.

Gu Zhuo was an exception.

Therefore, no matter how well the war progresses tonight, the White Emperor still resolutely chooses to advance step by step, unwilling to leave any chance to catch his breath, even if the price is to exchange wounds for wounds, and to exchange the lives of his subjects for Gu Zhuo's injuries.

……

……

During the storm, lightning and thunder continued incessantly.

The distance between the flying boat and the high platform had been shortened to less than ten miles. The military cultivators, like in a boarding action, rushed to Gu Zhuo's side one after another, trying to put an end to the unfinished war from a hundred years ago.

Blood splattered everywhere, but before it could stain the ground red, it was washed away by the rain.

The same applies to severed limbs.

Gu Zhuo faced the situation silently and calmly, sometimes wielding an invisible sword, sometimes casually picking up a spear, as he confronted the overwhelming attack.

His clothes gradually became soaked with rain, and he looked tired.

More attacks landed on him, and although they failed to break his physical body, the pain they caused was real.

Even amidst the fierce fighting, the cultivators from the Qin army would still shout and roar in celebration, believing that victory was drawing ever closer, perhaps even just ahead.

Gu Zhuo did not give any response.

He killed people quietly, his expression focused and serious.

He was even more serious than when he took Chu Jun out of the mountains that year.

At one moment, an arrow, concealed by the darkness and the sound of rain, reached Gu Zhuo's shoulder.

Blood flowers bloomed.

This arrow finally wounded the Demon Lord!
Sin Yee-shu opened her eyes wide, looking at this scene that was all too real, and tears instantly welled up in her eyes.

He was so excited that he could hear his own heartbeat, forgetting the intense pain in his arms from drawing the bow too hard, and shouted and cheered.

The sound of the downpour failed to bury it, allowing it to spread and spread further.

Sin Yee-shu was suddenly stunned.

A cruel truth entered his world.

The cheers went unanswered.

All his comrades are dead.

The Demon Lord stood atop the pile of corpses, silently watching him.

The arrow that had pierced his shoulder was pulled out, bringing with it a little blood, which made Gu Zhuo's hands look even paler.

Xian Yishu was bewildered and at a loss. The next moment, he finally came to his senses and recalled what had happened while he was focused on fighting the enemy.

One by one, his comrades died under that invisible sword, allowing him to draw his longbow more freely until only one person remained standing on the high platform, at which point he finally released that arrow.

Gu Zhuo lowered his eyes.

Rainwater streamed down my cheeks, bringing a refreshing coolness.

He rode the wind and flew for several miles to reach the flying boat.

Xian Yishu awoke from despair, drew his bow before the man in black, and released the string.

The arrow flew again, but Gu Zhuo caught it halfway through and stabbed it into his chest, piercing through the breastplate along with it.

All of this happened in an instant.

Xian Yishu lowered his head, looking at the arrow piercing his heart, then looked up again.

He looked at the Demon Lord, whom he had met twice in Yunmengze, and asked in bewilderment, "Are you really still human?"

Gu Zhuo did not answer.

The true energy burst forth from the arrow, directly shattering Xian Yishu's heart.

From then on, all the vanguard of the Qin army were killed in battle, with not a single one surviving.

Gu Zhuo returned to the high platform.

Boom boom boom!

Four flying ships, built at great expense of the Qin Dynasty's manpower and resources, crashed one after another on the desolate land.

A huge fire broke out, rising dozens of feet high, and even tonight's storm could not extinguish it.

Unbeknownst to them, the platform that was once level with the bright moon had now sunk to a height of over a hundred feet in the air.

Gu Zhuo waved his sleeve, summoning a fierce wind.

The blood and the corpses left behind by the soldiers were all swept away and swallowed by the raging flames.

He looked up, feeling the waves of fatigue washing over him, but he couldn't sit down to rest.

Despite the seemingly imminent arrival of both wind and rain, the will that the barbarians called the heavens had not yet fully descended, but was coldly watching him, waiting for the most crucial moment to arrive.

Gu Zhuo asked, "What time is it?"

Pei Jingge's voice did not come from afar.

Zhao Qi provided the answer.

Gu Zhuo remained silent.

The answer was that the night was half over.

Dawn was still far off.

As dawn breaks, he will still have to face another general of the Great Qin, as well as the Xuan Tie Heavy Cavalry of the entire Zhenbei Army.

This remains a dead end.

……

……

As Yi Shui looked at Lin Wanyi, her eyes gradually dimmed and lost their light.

But the sharp edge has lost its initial coolness, like a stream beginning to become turbid.

The sword lights, centered on the empty grave, drifted eerily through the peach blossom forest, preventing anyone from getting close.

Wei Qingci was among them, and the anger in his eyes was only half gone, the rest filled with joy.

He had clearly sensed the lofty threshold called ascension. The profound realm hidden behind the door had shed its veil of mystery and was revealing to him the things that people dream of most.

He was absolutely certain that he could break through, that he could live up to the reputation of the Yi River, and that he could become the person he dreamed of being.

At that time, he will do something.

That matter was killing the Demon Lord.

Lin Wanyi raised her head and looked into Wei Qingci's eyes, seeing the joy in them.

The girl did not despair because of this.

She simply gripped the sword more intently, letting the gaping wound on her hand split open and blood droplets trickle from the tiny cut.

Wait patiently for it to be refined.

Waiting for death to come.

……

……

At the border between the wasteland and the northern lands, a sword light streaked forward, seemingly on the verge of collapse.

Chen Chi began to doubt himself, unable to understand what was wrong with him, but he was unwilling to stop.

On the Central Plains, Chu Jun and Xie Yinglian were also running wildly in the night.

Baidi Mountain was still far away from them, but the pillar of light that reached straight to the sky had already come into view, giving them a strong premonition.

That premonition was ominous.

This is why the two are even more convinced that it is the right path.

Cihang Temple, on an ancient tree containing the remains of Buddha.

Guided by the lingering aura of the Mirror of Destiny, the Immaculate Monk gazed at the scene with a complex expression, looking at the invisible line called Destiny hanging around the necks of the two.

The young monk wanted to make another move, but the old abbot shook his head at him and stated an undeniable fact.

—You will die.

Yes, destroying the Mirror of Destruction held by the White Emperor was the limit that the Immaculate Monk could achieve.

Again.

The White Emperor is the being in the human realm who is closest to the heavens.

Even if the Buddha were to return from thousands of years of silence and be reborn, the number of enemies he could contend with would be only fifty-fifty.

The Immaculate Monk who now attempts to interfere in tonight's victory will only meet his end in death.

……

……

Above Xuandu.

The dust kicked up by the collapse of the Ancestral Hall has settled.

Yu Sheng's clothes were as clean as ever.

She stood on the edge of the cliff, gazing northward, taking in everything.

Lin Qianshui came to her side, mustered the greatest courage she had ever had in her life, and asked in a trembling voice, "If, if Gu Zhuo dies tonight, what will you do?"

Yu Sheng was silent for a moment, then said, "I will take care of myself."

Lin Qianshui was stunned.

Then she realized that this seemed to be the only option.

Regardless of who lives or dies tonight, it's an outcome Yu Sheng cannot accept.

What else can be done besides expressing condolences?
This is truly a sad fact.

……

……

On Baidi Mountain.

The end of a world disturbed by the tolling of bells is about to appear before the White Emperor's eyes.

His sideburns seemed to be stained with ash, the gray so striking it was almost blinding.

The burn marks on the emperor's robe were particularly noticeable.

As a result, the wrinkles on his face became deeper.

However, none of this could conceal his bright eyes.

That was the joy of reuniting with the morning and evening bells after a long separation.

A faint chime reached the ears of the White Emperor.

As the sound reached him, the crown he used to hold his hair shattered suddenly.

His long hair then fell loose over his shoulders, turning gray and aging at a visible speed.

Time is no longer invisible at this moment; it is crystal clear.

There was no fear in the eyes of the White Emperor.

The sound of the bell grew ever clearer.

A faint figure appeared beside the morning and evening bells, curling its fingers.

At this moment, the White Emperor suddenly sighed.

He opened his arms, letting his white hair dance wildly in the sudden wind, and spoke his first words to Gu Zhuo that night.

"This is the life I cherish."

(End of this chapter)