Enlightenment: Beginning as a Disposable Warrior

Hiss—!

Staring down from high above, the 'Su Mu' who slayed the Tao Family's second ancestor with one sword closed his eyes, the demon eye at his brow slowly closing.

Su Mu slowly opened his eyes, returning to his usual gaze, but they suddenly contracted, unable to stop himself from gasping.

His whole body was torn inch by inch, the veins within covered with cracks, and within less than three breaths, his Qi Blood and Gang Force felt as though half had been drained.

The originally radiant, gem-like Gangjin Pill in his Dantian suddenly dimmed, dead and quiet, nearly losing all its luster, resembling a lamp running out of oil.

With the moment that the sealed Qi was interrupted, even Su Mu's resolute will couldn't prevent his body from instinctively convulsing.

An indescribable agony, reminiscent of the night the Little Doctor was taken, assaulted him like a tidal wave, violently tearing his body apart, the pain almost breaking his spirit in an instant.

"How is the old ancestor's sword?"

Su Mu opened his mouth to speak, but his face changed slightly, unable to make a sound.

"Kid, don't just stand there. Leave here quickly, the old ancestor will need to sleep for a while..."

The voice of the Sun Family Ancestor came from the Jade Pendant, sounding a bit weak at the end, soon falling silent, as the fish-shaped jade pendant fell back to his chest.

A terrifying pain enveloped his whole body.

Yet, Su Mu's eyes remained bright, even burning fervently, as he looked up at the scene before him—rolling dark clouds over the Commandery City had been sliced open completely by a single sword strike, leaving a sword pass stretching more than twenty li.

Golden fragments of sunlight streamed down through the sword pass, magnificently.

But there was no longer any sign of Tao Shengjiang.

That once untouchable, imposing Tao Family Great Cultivator who had suppressed Bai Jiao Mountain with wrathful accusation.

Now dead, not even the slightest trace remained, the Sumeru Ring was also obliterated without a trace by one sword strike.

"How powerful... The old ancestor really did cleave the Great Cultivator with one sword. This is the strength of a true powerhouse!"

"Victory might indeed be won by a single sword against the Upper Three Grades, this is how a real man should be!"

Su Mu's heart burned hotter, witnessing this stunning sword, though shocked, he felt no shame or dishonor, nor did his heart for Martial Dao waver a bit.

Instead, his resolve in Martial Dao intensified, possessing great confidence that he too could reach such heights one day, perhaps even surpass them!

Taking a deep breath.

"Hoo—!"

Exhaling, Su Mu silently mustered a breath to maintain the state of Jiao Tendons and Jade Bone fusion, looking down towards the White Flood Dragon Ancient Sword in his hand with seven and a half artifact patterns, the eighth condensing two-thirds of the way.

As an Artifact Refiner, he naturally understood what this meant, clearly a Half-Step Second-Grade Spirit Treasure.

"A Half-Step Second-Grade Spirit Treasure, the Li Family's depth is truly profound... Without this ancient sword, perhaps that strike couldn't have easily slain Tao Shengjiang."

Scrutinizing it intently, Su Mu released his grip without any reluctance, the White Flood Dragon Ancient Sword trembled lightly, seeming somewhat unwilling, hovering in place.

"Thank you for lending your sword, senior."

Bowing towards Bai Jiao Mountain, Su Mu finally glanced towards Commandery City, his Fire Sparrow Wings flaring behind him, transforming into a crimson glow and speeding away.

As he left, his deep-set eyes reflected the fractured image of the old ancestor's sword strike.

Below, in the alleys.

The person in red felt as though her brain was struck by a heavy hammer, completely frozen in place.

Without the sword pass extending over twenty li across the sky still visible, she could hardly believe what she just witnessed, everything seemed like a hallucination.

"I'm really curious what you plan to do next?"

"Kill."

"Kill who?"

"Anyone who wants to kill me... I'll kill them."

Not long ago, Wang Chan's words suddenly exploded in her mind like a thunderclap, shaking her whole body, leaving her speechless.

She simply lifted her gaze, fixated on the sun-drenched sword pass, the shock within her indescribable.

Commandery City plunged into silence again, only the drizzling rain remained between heaven and earth.

Soldiers on the city walls continued kneeling, their bodies trembling violently, each wide-eyed staring upwards; even those strong presences quietly observing from the shadows remained silent.

"Tao Family, Tao Shengjiang... dead?!"

"Slain by Wang Chan's sword?!"

Disbelief spread rapidly among the Great Cultivators who had lived for centuries, or even longer in Donglai County, accompanied by fear and deep dread.

The figures in the dark quietly watched Su Mu turn into a red glow and depart, no one attempting to stop him, nor daring to at that moment.

Tao Shengjiang had advanced to Dongxuan for over a decade, though his foundation paled against some present, he was definitely not weak.

Yet the power erupting from Wang Chan's body truly frightened them, knowing full well as Great Cultivators that such power didn't belong to Wang Chan.

But that wasn't the point, the point was that the opponent could slay Tao Shengjiang with a single sword, indicating that the opponent could also slay any one of them with a single sword.

Even though it was borrowed strength from the Li Family's Half-Step Second-Grade Spirit Treasure, it was enough to suggest that the entity within Wang Chan possessed a Realm and power beyond a common Third-Grade Martial Arts Grandmaster!

It's highly likely Wang Chan's mastery exceeds the Third Grade, even the Second-Grade Martial Arts Great Grandmaster, if not, it must be an astoundingly lethal Sword Dao Grandmaster!

Though the being within Wang Chan could barely strike out that sword, leaving Wang Chan himself almost spent.

Still…

Life is singular, Great Cultivators can die if killed, none dared bet their lives on whether Wang Chan could still manage a second sword strike.