Yefutidaolu

Chapter 422 Next step

In an instant, the world turned upside down!

As the remnants of countless magical artifacts fell like iron filings, the battle situation had been completely reversed, and there was no longer any suspense.

Those elites from the Cangzhou aristocratic families at the eighth and ninth realms, whose strongest magical treasures were instantly annihilated and whose minds suffered backlash, were extremely weak and were thus killed by Gao Jian with a single strike.

With his profound cultivation as a tenth-level Qi Refiner, Shui Wuyai barely withstood the tidal wave of backlash, but his internal organs were displaced and his meridians were damaged. A mouthful of blood surged up to his throat, but he forced it back down. His face was as pale as paper, and his body swayed precariously.

He stared intently at Gao Jian, his expression filled with disbelief.

In fact, from the moment Gao Jian swallowed the Medicine King's Ginseng and his injuries were fully healed, the scales of victory had already begun to tip. When the divine intent of the Heart Lamp, containing the concepts of the birth and death of the world and transcendence, combined with the rusty blade, Gao Jian was already invincible. That level of power had already surpassed the comprehension of Shui Wuyai and the others.

At that time, Ruoshui Wuyai was decisive enough to abandon all hope and escape thousands of miles away with the escape technique of a tenth-level Qi cultivator. Gao Jian might really have had a hard time catching up.

Unfortunately, he was blinded by greed, anger, and the arrogance of the head of the aristocratic family, and chose to bet everything, attempting to use the "wealth" accumulated by the Cangzhou aristocratic family over many years—that vast torrent of magical treasures—to forcibly crush that seemingly insignificant rusty knife.

This was undoubtedly the most foolish choice. These trump cards, which he treasured and was so proud of, were as fragile as children's toys in front of the rusty knife, utterly worthless, and couldn't even make the blade generate a slight fluctuation in temperature.

Shui Wuyai's mind was connected to so many magical treasures, and when he controlled them, he was indeed very powerful, like a marshal commanding thousands of troops.

But when this "thousands of troops" were crushed into dust by an invisible force in the same instant, the backlash was like being pierced by a thousand arrows, almost completely destroying his combat ability.

However, Gao Jian's gaze was not entirely focused on Shui Wuyai, the seriously injured "chief culprit." Because the time allotted for one move had passed, and an even greater threat was rising from the lava lake.

He slowly turned around and looked at the boiling lake.

Wow——!
A fiery figure broke through the lava, carrying towering heat and still surging fighting spirit, and landed heavily on the shore. It was none other than Wang Gang, a tenth-realm martial artist!
He had obviously searched the bottom of the lake to no avail and was startled by the previous commotion. He rushed out of the lake and witnessed the final scene of the destruction of the treasures and the defeat of the crowd.

His blood and energy were still vigorous, but his eyes were unusually complicated. They swept over the mess on the ground and the seriously injured Shui Wuyai, and finally landed on Gao Jian, who was standing with his sword.

Upon seeing Wang Gang appear, Shui Wuyai grasped at a last straw and cried out hoarsely, "Wang Gang! This fiend is vicious and cannot be harmed by magic weapons! Let's join forces, quickly..."

His words stopped abruptly.

Because Wang Gang did not immediately attack Gao Jian as he had expected, but instead... slowly raised a hand and made a gesture that resembled "please go ahead" in Gao Jian's direction.

His resolute face was expressionless, except for a hint of indifference that flashed deep in his eyes.

Shui Wuyai's eyes widened in horror as he instantly understood Wang Gang's intention!

Seeing this scene, Gao Jian understood and couldn't help but sigh softly.

Everyone here is a smart person; at this point, Wang Gang's meaning couldn't be clearer.

The powerful families of Cangzhou, though outwardly united and sharing power over the state, were never truly a monolithic entity.

Mutual infighting and the struggle for interests are the norm. This is an inherent characteristic of aristocratic families, and also the result of the Divine Dynasty's indulgence and even deliberate cultivation over the years.

Wang Gang's scheme was quite simple.

Using Gao Jian as a "knife," we can eliminate our biggest competitor, Shui Wuyai!
With the death of the Shui family patriarch, the Shui family will inevitably suffer a severe blow and be leaderless.

At that time, the Wang family will be the sole ruler of Cangzhou! All resources and all power will belong to the Wang family!
As for Gao Jian? Wang Gang may still be wary, but compared to the huge benefits brought by annexing the Shui family, temporarily letting Gao Jian go, or even acknowledging his existence, is a worthwhile deal.

not to mention……

Wang Gang didn't think he would lose to Gao Jian.

"Fine...!" Shui Wuyai trembled with anger.

The insightful opinion was no longer hesitant.

There was no turning back now. He turned his gaze back to Shui Wuyai, raising his rusty knife once more.

Gao Jian no longer hesitated. The situation had reached a point where there was no room for maneuver. He turned his gaze back to Shui Wuyai, whose aura was weak but whose eyes still gleamed with calculation. He raised his rusty knife once more, and a chilling killing intent spread out as if it were a tangible thing.

Faced with this undisguised threat of death, Shui Wuyai, enduring the excruciating pain from his severe injuries and the backlash, spoke urgently, his voice hoarse yet carrying his usual tone of trying to control the situation: "Brilliant insight! Wait! You can reach an agreement with Wang Gang, why can't you cooperate with my Shui family?!"

He stared intently into Gao Jian's eyes, trying to catch any fluctuation in his emotions: "I know! You are the real mastermind behind Li Jun! I also know what you want to do in Cangzhou! We can talk! What Wang Gang can give you, my Shui family can give you even more! The Shui family has been operating in Cangzhou for hundreds of years, deeply rooted, and its control over various places is far beyond what the Wang family can match! Cooperating with us will only make your plans easier to implement, with less resistance, and the benefits... will be even greater!"

Using incentives to lure and divide, and then win over, is a negotiation tactic most familiar and frequently used by powerful families.

The world is bustling with activity, all driven by profit. People toil and struggle, the powerful vie for power, all for more resources, higher status, and greater authority. Any rational person will weigh the pros and cons and choose the option that maximizes their benefit. This is precisely the core logic behind how powerful families form vast groups and maintain their rule.

Upon hearing this, Gao Jian's raised blade indeed paused slightly, not immediately striking down. His face remained expressionless as he quietly gazed at Shui Wuyai, as if deep in thought.

Wang Gang, standing to the side, frowned, his blood surging slightly. But unexpectedly, he didn't interrupt or stop him. He just watched coldly, like a silent statue, wanting to see how Gao Jian would choose.

Seeing that Gao Jian seemed somewhat interested, Shui Wuyai felt a glimmer of hope and quickly pressed his advantage, his tone even carrying a hint of seduction: "Gao Jian, you are a smart man! You should know that those who achieve great things do not concern themselves with trifles! Those ordinary people will multiply as naturally as river water and sand, inexhaustible and ever-flowing! All you need to do is—"

"Pfft!"

A soft yet teeth-grinding sound of a sharp blade slicing into flesh interrupted Shui Wuyai's words.

Shui Wuyai's expression froze instantly, his pupils dilated, and he looked down incredulously at his chest—a rusty blade tip had somehow emerged from his back, barely stained with blood. Gao Jian's figure had appeared behind him, still in the stance of drawing his sword. He had originally wanted to hear what Shui Wuyai had to say, but he realized he had overestimated his own patience.

"Sigh, really." Takami sighed softly.
Shui Wuyai's body swayed, then split in two, falling to the left and right.

A Qi Refining Master at the Tenth Realm, the patriarch of the Shui family of Cangzhou, perished.
After swiftly and decisively slaying Shui Wuyai, Gao Jian flicked non-existent blood off his blade before turning to look at the silent Wang Gang, his tone slightly teasing: "Ancestor Wang, you wouldn't be planning to talk to me about cooperation and profit sharing, would you?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Gang's rugged face revealed an almost pure fighting spirit. He shook his head, his voice low and powerful: "It's not that bad. Leave the petty scheming and haggling to those incompetent guys below."

He cracked his neck, and his blood and qi began to rise slowly like an awakening volcano. His gaze was fixed intently on Gao Jian: "I just think that if you kill him first, you won't be able to escape."

He took a step forward, causing the ground to tremble slightly, and extended a hand towards Gao Jian, making a simple and direct gesture of challenge:
"Come on, now it's quiet. Let's settle this between you and me."

Gao Jian admitted that compared to Shui Wuyai, who was shrewd and always talking about self-interest, he was more used to dealing with straightforward martial artists like Wang Gang.

Although Wang Gang, as the patriarch of a powerful family, had no less blood on his hands and committed no less evil deeds than Shui Wuyai, he was still a pure martial artist at heart, retaining the magnanimity and respect for power that a tenth-realm martial artist should possess.

“Alright,” Gao Jian gripped the rusty knife in his hand, the newly formed inch-long edge of the blade gleaming with a ghostly light. “Then let’s set aside all those schemes and plots, and settle this final battle with the spirit of warriors!”

"Hmph, what's all this talk of pride!" Wang Gang sneered, his clenched fist crackling like popping beans, his aura erupting like crimson smoke, scattering the remaining fragments of magical artifacts around him. "Losing means death, winning means all, it's that simple! Fighting over pride is child's play. Today I'm going to beat you to death fair and square, and then everything else will naturally be my spoils!"

Before he finished speaking, he had already transformed into a crimson meteor that tore through space, without any fancy moves, only the ultimate power and speed, launching the most ferocious charge towards Gao Jian!
Fists! Knives! Clashed fiercely!
------------

After an unknown amount of time, the raging energy gradually subsided, and the dust and smoke slowly settled.

In the center of the ruins, a figure still stands tall.

That's a brilliant insight.

The rusty knife in his hand hung low, its tip touching the ground. What was originally only an inch of sharpness had now extended to seven inches!

A cold, eerie luster flowed across the mottled blade, as if it had drunk its fill of the blood of a powerful being, becoming more restrained and more dangerous.

His clothes were tattered, stained with dust and a few drops of solidified dark red, and his breathing was somewhat disordered, but his eyes were sharper, like tempered iron.

Beneath his feet lay Wang Gang's massive, lifeless body. This tenth-realm martial artist had ultimately died in the way he most admired, a hint of almost liberated smirk lingering on his face. Perhaps, in his final moments, he truly savored the thrill of fighting to the death against a powerful opponent.

The surrounding scenery is beyond description.

Centered on the point of their confrontation, the landscape within a radius of nearly a hundred miles underwent a dramatic transformation!
A massive lava lake, its surface completely overturned and churned up! The scorching lava surged outwards like a tsunami, completely engulfing and melting everything protruding from the shore! The lakebed was exposed, its depths unfathomable, emitting a ghostly black light, as if leading straight to the deepest abyss.

Beyond the lake shore, the already desolate wasteland is now as if it has been repeatedly plowed by a giant with a plowshare, with cracks dozens of feet deep and as wide as canyons crisscrossing it, like scars on the earth!

In many places, the strata were even completely overturned, exposing the rock strata of different ages and colors below!

In the sky, the dim red light was completely distorted, and space was like a shattered mirror, full of cracks that could not be healed for a long time!
Chaotic energy storms raged within, whipping up dust and rubble, forming terrifying tornadoes that connected heaven and earth!
Occasionally, fragments of laws that were not completely annihilated would fall like meteors, crashing to the ground and causing secondary explosions!

The air was filled with the smells of hot lava, scorched earth, ozone, and a strange, burnt smell from a space that had been torn apart.

The pervasive deathly aura of hell was largely dispelled by the aftershocks of this collision, which was extremely yang and powerful. However, what followed was an even more chilling, desolate silence, as if all things had returned to nothingness.

Gao Jian gently exhaled a breath of foul air, carrying the smell of blood, and felt a sense of coolness and satisfaction from the rusty knife.

Killing these top experts from aristocratic families who treated human life like dirt and regarded Cangzhou as their private property, especially finishing off the most powerful Wang Gang in such a head-on manner, did indeed bring an indescribable sense of satisfaction to my heart.

The rusty knife is already seven inches sharp; it should be able to withstand the attack on the Ghost King's place.

"Hoo..." He let out a long breath and looked around at the shattered world that had been completely reshaped by his battle with Wang Gang.

That's a really intense fight.

Then, the rest is quite simple.

Let's sort through the spoils of war—although most of the magical treasures have been destroyed, beings of Shui Wuyai and Wang Gang's caliber should still have some truly valuable items on them.

Gao Jian wasn't a miser, but he still needed to collect the necessary spoils. He quickly cleaned up the battlefield and pocketed any potentially useful items.

Then he looked into the distance.

Next... is the initial and most important goal of this trip.

Go find the Ghost King, Gāzā!
Using a rusty knife, one can directly read the vast amount of information and spirit left behind by the Iron House Ghost King!

There must be secrets about the hell system, methods of cultivation to a higher level, and even clues about earth-shattering secrets such as "the Ten Kings of Hell losing contact" and "the departure of the gods"!

"Let's go!" Gao Jian swung his sword, tucked it into his chest, and then quickly headed off into the distance.

This time, it only took four days to return.

As they approached Iron City once more, the ghosts and the sinful spirits around them continued to make those same sounds as always.

This colossal city on the edge of hell still exudes an aura that has remained unchanged since ancient times.

Gao Jian strode forward, heading straight for the Ghost King's iron house!
(End of this chapter)