Chapter 18: Impersonating Wutian, the Xuanming Elders

Ever since Wutian appeared, everyone's gaze had been drawn to him, especially to the Dragon-Slaying Saber.

Gu Hanyuan, who had seemed to radiate brilliance just moments before, suddenly became an invisible man, retreating back into the ranks of the Wu Dangpai before anyone even noticed.

If anyone had been paying attention to Gu Hanyuan at this moment, they would have noticed that he seemed distracted.

This was because Gu Hanyuan was busy controlling his puppet.

That's right, Wutian was Gu Hanyuan's puppet.

Since he had decided to be a great villain, he naturally needed a public identity. The more attention-grabbing this identity was, the deeper he could hide his true self. With the Puppet Technique, Gu Hanyuan had already planned out this scene today.

However, the puppet's current level was still too low. It required Gu Hanyuan's true self to control it throughout the entire process, from dialogue to action, demanding a massive amount of his energy to ensure no flaws were revealed.

That was why Gu Hanyuan appeared so unfocused right now.

In fact, before he began controlling the puppet, Kongwen had not only provided reputation but also a villain evaluation.

A-grade evaluation, 1200 villain points.

It wasn't a huge amount, but for Gu Hanyuan, it was a pleasant surprise.

It also verified one thing: villain points could indeed be farmed from supporting characters as well.

Although Kongwen had provided reputation, he was not at his peak period after all. In a few years, Kongwen would master eleven of the seventy-two Shaolin arts, reaching the Grandmaster Realm.

Kongwen's current realm was only Innate, and the injury he sustained was not worth mentioning—merely having his wrist pierced, at most a minor injury. The main impact was the blow to his reputation, which boosted Gu Hanyuan's fame; otherwise, it was debatable whether he would have received a villain evaluation at all.

However, these 1200 villain points had covered a flaw.

That flaw was Zhang Sanfeng.

As a master at the Earth Immortal Realm, Zhang Sanfeng's insight was terrifying.

The previously unstable identity of Wutian was now foolproof.

Gu Hanyuan spent 280 villain points to exchange for one hour of temporary Grandmaster strength for Wutian.

The counterfeit Dragon-Slaying Saber cost 200 villain points. Naturally, claiming it was seized from Xie Xun was a lie to deceive them; there hadn't been time to run to Ice Fire Island. Thus, this counterfeit saber only resembled the real one in form, not in essence.

He had consumed most of the villain points provided by Kongwen for the Asura Mask, which cost 1000 villain points. It would not be damaged, could not be removed, could simulate Qi, and carried a visual induction effect that focused people's attention on the mask.

Sure enough, Zhang Sanfeng was staring intently at the puppet, feeling as though it were shrouded in mist, impossible to see through.

The reason Yin Susu hadn't been able to find Gu Hanyuan for the past few days was precisely because he had gone to prepare Wutian's attire; the wide black robe was intended to conceal his physique. He had also gone to familiarize himself with the terrain of Mount Wudang.

Wutian suddenly looked toward the Heaven-Reliant Sword in Abbess Miejue's hand.

"Supreme of the Wu Lin, the precious saber Dragon-Slaying; if Heaven-Reliant does not appear, who can contend? This phrase has circulated in the Jianghu for 20 years. This seat is very curious: is the Dragon-Slaying Saber sharper, or is the Heaven-Reliant Sword keener?"

With that, Wutian raised the counterfeit Dragon-Slaying Saber and slashed toward Abbess Miejue.

Abbess Miejue hadn't expected Wutian to suddenly shift his target to her, and she subconsciously drew the Heaven-Reliant Sword to parry.

However, just as the blade and sword were about to collide, Abbess Miejue recalled the secret passed down by her founder.

If the Heaven-Reliant Sword and the Dragon-Slaying Saber were to collide with full internal force, they would both snap, revealing the secret manual hidden within.

With two Grandmaster-level experts clashing with the Heaven-Reliant Sword and the Dragon-Slaying Saber, there was a constant risk of both divine weapons snapping.

If the secret manual were exposed, Abbess Miejue had no confidence she could seize it.

At the critical moment, she withdrew the Heaven-Reliant Sword, narrowly turning to dodge the edge of Wutian's counterfeit Dragon-Slaying Saber, but she could not dodge Wutian's palm.

In her haste, Abbess Miejue could only raise her palm to block, but lacking sufficient force, she was knocked back several steps, nearly falling to the ground.

Ding Minjun and Bei Jinyi behind her hurriedly supported Abbess Miejue, looking at Wutian with hostility.

Abbess Miejue said Wutian's realm with a solemn expression:

"Grandmaster!"

The faces of the various sects were equally solemn.

Although the strength of the Ming Guo was relatively strong, Grandmasters were not exactly common on the streets.

Aside from the Wu Dangpai, only the leaders of a few major sects present were Grandmasters.

With Wutian at the Grandmaster Realm and wielding the Dragon-Slaying Saber, dealing with him would be no less troublesome than dealing with Xie Xun.

Even Zhang Cuishan calmed down significantly upon seeing this; after all, he was only at the peak of the Innate Realm and was no match for Wutian.

As for why Abbess Miejue didn't clash the Heaven-Reliant Sword with the Dragon-Slaying Saber, everyone merely guessed that the collision of divine weapons might cause damage, and if the Heaven-Reliant Sword were destroyed, Abbess Miejue would suffer a huge loss.

However, Abbess Miejue actually had one lingering doubt: although Wutian's cultivation was that of a Grandmaster, that palm strike just now had been ordinary. If she hadn't blocked it in such a rush, it wouldn't have been difficult to repel him. After thinking for a long time, she could only guess that the opponent wanted to hide his martial arts foundation, which was why he hadn't used exquisite moves.

In truth, Gu Hanyuan was also helpless; the only martial arts he knew were from the Wu Dangpai, and they were all at the introductory level.

The external martial arts moves that Grandmasters excelled in were usually at the mastery level.

Although Gu Hanyuan could use villain points to raise his cultivation, he didn't have enough to raise his move mastery realm.

Therefore, he still needed to find a way to harvest more villain points.

"I ask Master Kongwen to intervene and assist."

Abbess Miejue sought help from Kongwen, hoping to take Wutian down.

Although the grudge against her brother had been settled after Xie Xun's death, there was still the grudge against her senior brother Gu Hongzi to avenge.

The Ming Sect's Left Bright Envoy Yang Xiao, who had caused Gu Hongzi's death, was already at the late Grandmaster Realm. Even with the Heaven-Reliant Sword in hand, Abbess Miejue was no match for him; she could only pin her hopes on the secret manual inside the Heaven-Reliant Sword.

Therefore, the Dragon-Slaying Saber had to be seized.

Kongwen had already been enraged by what Wutian said upon his appearance, so he naturally wouldn't refuse Abbess Miejue's invitation.

However, just as the two were about to strike at Wutian, a boy's shout came from outside the gate.

"Father!"

"Wuji!"

"Wuji!"

Zhang Cuishan and Yin Susu recognized their son Zhang Wuji the moment they heard his voice and were about to rush outside the main hall gate.

Zhang Wuji's sudden shout also drew everyone's attention to the two figures pouncing behind Wutian.

The two were wearing black and white Daoist robes, their hair and beards white, appearing to be in their fifties. They were none other than the Xuanming Elders.

The Xuanming Elders had intended to ambush Wutian and seize his Dragon-Slaying Saber, but they hadn't expected Zhang Wuji, who had taken advantage of their negligence during the ambush to break free from his restraints, to expose their tracks.

After their tracks were exposed, the Xuanming Elders abandoned the ambush on Wutian and turned back, intending to capture Zhang Wuji and take him away.

It was clearly impossible to seize the Dragon-Slaying Saber after they had been exposed.

But Zhang Wuji's existence could be used to restrain the Wu Dangpai, and for the Prince Ruyang's Mansion, which intended to stir up chaos in the Ming Guo Jianghu, his importance was self-evident. ===== CHAPTER 20 =====