Chapter 66: Rebirth as the Great Villain (4) |
The Gu Clan's Council of Elders consisted of twelve seats of real authority, each held by a Nirvana Realm Venerable. It was thanks to these twelve that the Gu Clan had managed to preserve even a shadow of its former saintly glory.
Gu Yixian sat with his eyes closed. Apart from Gu Hou, the other ten elders—along with the current clan leader, Gu Cang—all fixed their gazes on him. Some looked furious, others calm, and a few wore barely concealed glee.
For centuries, Gu Yixian had wielded the clan's penal authority with flawless caution, never once exposing a single flaw. Yet now he had committed such an egregious act.
"Gu Yixian, do you acknowledge your crime? You have brought a tremendous enemy upon our Gu Clan!"
Gu Yixian didn't so much as twitch an eyelid. He ignored their words completely, which only fueled the anger of several elders seated above.
At that moment, a voice rang clearly from outside the hall.
"Gu Yixian's grandson, Gu Chen, requests an audience."
The elders immediately began murmuring among themselves.
"Gu Chen? The Third Elder's grandson, that somewhat renowned genius within the clan. What is he doing here?"
"Let him enter."
Su Chen pushed open the heavy doors and stepped into the Elders' Hall under Gu Hou's guidance. As he surveyed the assembled Venerables, a thought crossed his mind.
'As expected—even a starved camel is still larger than a horse.'
Though the Gu Clan had declined, it still boasted twelve Nirvana Realm powerhouses and possessed a saint-grade artifact to deter lesser threats.
"Gu Chen, do you acknowledge your crime? This calamity arose because of you. It has led to heavy casualties among our clan members, offended numerous powers, and sown endless future troubles."
Su Chen lowered his head. "This clansman, Gu Chen, knows his fault. The entire matter originated from me alone and has nothing to do with Grandfather."
From the high seat, someone let out a soft chuckle. "How filial."
Su Chen remained silent for a moment before raising his head. "However, I discovered an item on Lin Zhan's person. I am willing to turn it over to the clan."
Gu Yixian opened his eyes. The gazes of everyone on the platform shifted toward Su Chen.
After a brief pause, the tall figure at the very center spoke indifferently. "What is it?"
Su Chen produced an ancient-looking jade slip. A large hand reached out and drew it into the air. The ten elders gathered around the clan leader, all curious about the contents.
"A method to forge the Sword Body? This is actually a technique for cultivating an acquired martial physique?"
One elder's voice carried unmistakable shock. Martial physiques were divided into innate and acquired. Innate physiques were born with the body, while acquired ones could be cultivated after birth.
Innate physiques were already rare; acquired ones were even rarer. Any method capable of transforming an ordinary mortal into a possessor of a special physique was ranked among the absolute pinnacle of secret arts. Not even the Gu Clan in its heyday had possessed such a thing—let alone now in its decline.
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"How is this possible?"
Another elder found it hard to believe. How could a technique of this caliber ever fall into the hands of a junior?
Gu Cang spoke gravely. "How can we verify whether this method is genuine? And where exactly did you obtain it?"
Su Chen's expression remained calm as he answered slowly. "This was one of the secrets Lin Zhan carried on his person—one of the reasons for his rapid growth. Whether the clan leader believes it or not can be confirmed with a single investigation."
Gu Cang glanced at the other elders. When they all nodded in agreement, he continued. "If this proves to be authentic, then you will be a great contributor to our Gu Clan, and this matter will be considered settled."
They all understood the implications. If the clan could master a method to turn ordinary people into geniuses with special physiques, the Gu Clan's strength would skyrocket. It might even allow them to truly restore the saintly glory of their ancestors.
Gu Yixian glanced at Su Chen. The two of them walked out of the Elders' Hall together.
After a long silence, Gu Yixian finally spoke slowly. "Chen'er… is the technique you presented genuine?"
Su Chen nodded. It was real, without any issues. In his previous life, he had personally cultivated it and even perfected the method. The only problem was that, aside from himself in that life, no one else had ever succeeded in cultivating the Imperial Sword Body. The success rate was absurdly low.
As for Lin Zhan, he perfectly matched every hallmark of someone who had suddenly acquired a special physique and skyrocketed to fame. Su Chen wasn't worried that the Gu Clan would bother investigating all the way to the Southern Barbarian Lands.
Just as he had expected, one month later, the technique was verified as authentic. Gu Yixian retained his authority over punishments, and everything appeared to return to normal.
Su Chen continued living the life of a privileged young master in the clan.
Time passed quickly. A full year slipped by.
When Su Chen opened his eyes, Lin Yue'er's voice came from outside the cave dwelling.
"My lord, the Gu Clan's youth competition among the younger generation begins in one week."
Su Chen recalled that the clan held a grand competition for the younger generation at regular intervals. All the rising prodigies participated. Their rankings were determined by strength, and the higher one placed on the Gu Clan's sequence list, the richer the resources they received.
Su Chen currently sat at fourth place—not too high, not too low.
"This time, I must claim first place on the sequence."
Determination hardened in his heart. The pressure on him was immense. He had let Lin Zhan escape into the outer starfield. Within the Northern Desert, the Gu Clan still held some standing, but beyond this world, among the myriad races of the stars, they barely qualified to sit at the edge of the table. Perhaps only a Saint could move freely and unchallenged in the outer starfield.
To avoid being reduced to mere experience fodder the next time he faced Lin Zhan, Su Chen had no choice but to cultivate with relentless madness. When they met again, he would find a way to end him for good.
Soon, the day of the Gu Clan's youth competition arrived.
Su Chen finally met the other four great geniuses of the clan—three men and one woman, each bearing a special physique. While he observed them, they naturally observed him in return. To them, the so-called geniuses scattered throughout the rest of the clan were insignificant. Only five of them were true rivals.
Along the way, Su Chen expended no real effort. Suppressing the others wasn't even a warm-up; he crushed them with ease. Before long, he faced one of the remaining four.
Gu Ziang.
Bearer of the Thunder Tribulation Physique—a muscular man wreathed in crackling lightning, his hair standing on end.
"Gu Chen, you should just forfeit now!"
Gu Ziang was brimming with arrogance. He was older than Su Chen, higher in cultivation, and possessed far deeper foundations.
Su Chen looked at him oddly. "Sorry, you stole my line."
Gu Ziang attacked.
The moment he struck, dense thunder rumbled across the sky. He manifested a Thunder Roc in his mind's eye. With wings spread wide, it dove toward Su Chen in a ferocious charge.
"Gu Chen, give yourself a few more years, and you might qualify to fight me—but not today!"
Su Chen was speechless.
Yin-Yang particles surged outward as he fully unleashed the Heavenly Origin Body. He simply clenched his fist and threw a single punch at the incoming Thunder Roc.
The roc shattered instantly under the force of the punch. The residual power continued forward without pause and slammed into Gu Ziang, blasting him straight out of the sky and into the ground. The specially reinforced battle platform cracked open with a deep crater.
Su Chen landed lightly beside him.
Gu Ziang struggled to speak through bloodied lips. "What… kind of martial technique was that?"
Su Chen replied calmly, "Normal punch."
Gu Ziang let out a hoarse laugh. "Great name!"
Then he passed out cold.
Su Chen fell into thoughtful silence. It really was just a normal punch…
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