Hu Wenxin's face was filled with flattery, but in his heart he was gnashing his teeth.
If it hadn't been for that yellow-haired brat somehow learning the Yijian Method, how could he have suffered such a humiliating loss?
Damn that Grand Dao Sword Palace, how could they fail to guard their own techniques properly?
Letting an outsider learn it for nothing!
Because of it, he, a dignified Fourth Stage cultivator, now had to bow and scrape to a mere Sixth Stage junior!
Unfortunately, most of the Grand Dao Sword Palace people were already dead. No matter how much Hu Wenxin hated them, he could only vent his fury by metaphorically flogging their corpses.
What made him truly despair was that even though the Yijian Method couldn't be activated outside the palace, if it had been successfully performed within the Grand Dao Sword Palace, and one of the parties carried Dao resonance, then its suppressive effect would still persist outside.
If Hu Wenxin could not find a way to undo it, he would be "Little Hu" for the rest of his life.
According to what he knew, there were only two ways to break the Yijian Method.
The first: the victor of the Yijian duel must die.
The second: the loser of the duel must obtain a sword of a higher grade than before, at which point the Yijian Method would recalculate and reestablish balance.
Outwardly respectful, Hu Wenxin was already scheming inside on how to kill this brat.
After all, within the Grand Dao Sword Palace, high-grade swords were plentiful. From his memory, there were at least three swords superior to the one he currently held.
However... he only knew the location of one of them.
When they had attacked the Grand Dao Sword Palace back then, the hardest part had been finding a way to stop the Yijian Method. He had gone undercover for decades, enduring humiliation, before finally destroying the altar.
He hadn't expected Gu Fangchen to simply restore it.
Hu Wenxin lowered his head, kneeling with a dark gleam in his eyes.
Then he would trick the boy into going to where that sword was kept... Its master still lived, none other than the palace's Sword Keeper.
That position oversaw the Hall of Sword Offering, which housed countless blades. Though not equal in rank to the palace master, its importance was beyond doubt.
Upon becoming the Sword Keeper, each generation abandoned their personal name. They were known only as "Sword Keeper."
The current Sword Keeper still served as a living seal at the heart of the Grand Dao Sword Palace, maintaining the defensive barrier and vowing to perish with all intruders.
Hu Wenxin and the Sword Keeper were old acquaintances. That man was a stubborn relic, fiercely proud of the Grand Dao Sword Palace.
If he were to learn that an outsider had mastered the Yijian Method, he would undoubtedly be enraged.
The sword in his hand was of divine grade.
No matter what, that brat's sword could never surpass it!
When that happened, without the ability to rely on the Yijian Method's trickery, the boy would be nothing more than a fat sheep waiting for slaughter!
Hu Wenxin still had one final escape technique, he would feign death first, then sit back and watch them tear each other apart.
Gu Fangchen paid him no mind. He explained to Xu Zhenguan what the Yijian Method was, then shook his head and said,
"It's just a pity. The sword I gave you will need to stay with me for a while."
Once the Yijian Method took effect, its binding became fixed and no longer required both participants to hold the original swords used in the judgment.
However, The Finest Stream was tied to "Poetry Immortal" Li Wangji. Keeping it with Xu Zhenguan might only bring him trouble.
Since the attention of the demonic sect had already shifted away, this was the perfect excuse to take it back...
The Finest Stream was somewhere between rare-grade and supreme-grade. Down here in the Sword Palace, there were plenty of swords of similar level.
He could easily pick out another one for his good brother later.
Xu Zhenguan didn't mind at all. Instead, he shook his head firmly, his expression resolute.
"Daoist, you gifting me this sword was already a tremendous favor. Now that it returns to its rightful owner, how can I feel regret?"
Sigh. Bro, you're too honest. You're making me feel guilty for the next time I have to scam you.
Gu Fangchen patted his shoulder.
"In this Grand Dao Sword Palace, everything may be lacking, but not swords. I'll find another one for you."
Xu Zhenguan pursed his lips and clasped his hands respectfully.
"I'll have to trouble you again, Daoist."
"Heh, meeting each other in this life is fate. How can that be called trouble?"
Gu Fangchen smiled brightly, then turned toward the distant palace buildings.
"Little Hu, you've lived in this Grand Dao Sword Palace for many years. You must be very familiar with it. Do you know where the sword vault of this palace is located?"
The question struck precisely where Hu Wenxin wanted it to. He hurriedly stood, bowing deeply.
"The Young Master asks well. This old servant knows this place like the back of his hand! Allow this old servant to guide the way!"
Gu Fangchen watched him leap ahead and curled his lips into a faint smile.
Xu Zhenguan, being only Seventh Stage and lacking strength, couldn't jump such distances. Gu Fangchen carried him along as they entered the palace.
...
"Young Master, we've arrived! That is the Hall of Sword Offering!"
Hu Wenxin pointed ahead at a towering, majestic structure, his face full of sycophancy.
Without ceremony, Gu Fangchen kicked him forward and sneered.
"Since we're here, hurry up and open the way for this Young Master!"
Hu Wenxin's face twisted with fury, curses raging silently in his mind.
Damn brat, you'll pay for this soon enough!
If he were a curse cultivator, he would have already made a doll and stabbed Gu Fangchen into a pincushion. Unfortunately, he was not.
Lowering his head, his eyes flickered with malice, but when he raised it again, his face was once more full of servile smiles.
"Young Master, rest assured. This old servant will handle everything perfectly for you!"
I'll clear the path for your trip to the underworld instead.
Just as Hu Wenxin neared the Hall of Sword Offering, the air before him rippled.
A white-robed elder's spirit form appeared.
The elder radiated the aura of a Fourth Stage cultivator. His expression was cold and grim, it was the Sword Keeper of the Grand Dao Sword Palace himself.
Recognizing Hu Wenxin, he let out a cold laugh.
"Blood Demon thief, you still haven't given up your evil thoughts?"
"You hid within my Sword Palace for years. I spared your life by not hunting you down, and yet you dare to come here of your own accord?"
Hu Wenxin snapped angrily,
"You think I wanted this? If your people hadn't leaked the Yijian Method, how would I have become someone's slave? You decrepit beast, die!"
"Yijian Method? Impossible!"
The Sword Keeper's brows furrowed, his eyes flashing with cold light as he abruptly turned his gaze toward Gu Fangchen.
Hu Wenxin deliberately added fuel to the fire.
"You've been sitting here guarding the Hall of Sword Offering, deaf and blind to everything, of course you wouldn't know what's been happening!"
With that, he lunged forward.
After exchanging dozens of moves, Hu Wenxin began to falter, retreating again and again. In one careless moment, the Sword Keeper's sword pinned him through the chest to the nearby wall. His aura faded instantly.
The Sword Keeper then turned his cold gaze toward Gu Fangchen.
"Bold little thief! You think yourself clever, daring to steal the secret art of my Sword Palace! Today you'll learn that those who commit too many evils will bring about their own destruction!"
As the Sword Keeper, his sword had naturally been tested and refined through the Grand Dao Sword Palace's strictest rules. It was a divine weapon among divine weapons.
This Sixth Stage thief could never possess a sword of higher grade.
Brimming with confidence, he raised his sword and pointed it toward Gu Fangchen, invoking the Yijian Method himself.
The spectral chessboard appeared once more.
The ancient ancestor's phantom pondered briefly, then extended a finger and tapped the Sword Keeper on the head, saying without a trace of emotion:
"You lost."
The Sword Keeper's expression froze. He blinked, then his face contorted in shock.
"How could this be?!"