Chapter 542: A Single Decree Causes Panic in the Edo

This is a wasteland. Looking as far as the eye can see, it is desolate and filled with a deathly stillness. Apart from the black-brown earth, there is no other color here. Flowers, grass, trees, birds, and beasts are almost nowhere to be seen.

Yet, in the very center of this vast wasteland, a crude stone house stands alone. The stone house looks very old and very lonely, like an elderly person in the twilight of their years, watching the bustling world with cold eyes.

And the owner of the stone house seems just as old and lonely as the house itself.

His entire life, from beginning to end, has been accompanied by the sword.

The seven emotions and six desires of the human world, the grievances and hatreds, all seem to be separated from him by a natural chasm, far beyond reach.

Fortunately, his sword is a sword that is "unparalleled" under heaven.

And he himself is also a person who is "unparalleled" under heaven.

Once, relying on the sword in his hand, he attained the glory that all swordsmen dream of; he was the Sword Saint revered by ten thousand swords.

However, just as he climbed to the peak, just as he began to feel lonely, the great enemy of his life appeared. Thus, all his brilliance and glory became passing smoke.

In the end, he betrayed his sword, abandoned the sword, buried his name, and went into seclusion!

And now, the only things accompanying him are boundless loneliness and eternal desolation...

Yet today, even this final bit of loneliness and desolation seems about to be snatched away by the Heavens, ceasing to exist.

Boom—!

A dense sound came from the wilderness in the distance, a sound more intense than raindrops and more powerful than drums and gongs.

It was as if strings of muffled thunder were constantly exploding, actually making one feel a sense of breathlessness.

Not until they were close did one see seventy or eighty wild horses with flying manes galloping over.

These wild horses were robust in build, all with crazed expressions, as if influenced by some kind of drug, unable to control themselves as they charged toward that single stone house.

They came with great momentum, dust flying behind them, a rolling dragon of smoke obscuring the sky and sun. Judging by that posture, just the few wild horses in the lead could crush the stone house.

The two grew closer and closer. Just as the wild horses were about to collide with the stone house, an exceptionally low and slow sigh sounded from within.

The moment the sigh fell, those dozens of wild horses charging near the door suddenly burst with terrifying arrows of blood, spraying out from every joint.

Then, amidst continuous wailing, the dozens of large horses were already torn to pieces, as if sliced apart by a sharp sword in an instant. Fresh blood gushed like a spring, still steaming with heat, yet it did not scatter or flow away; instead, it was gathered by some mysterious power. On the open ground before the Stone Gate, it gathered into a huge blood sword about several zhang long.

"Sending out Sword Qi across the air, dismembering dozens of wild horses in the blink of an eye. Unexpectedly, after not seeing you for a period of time, Big Brother, your Sword Dao cultivation has improved once again."

Before the blood had even cooled, a figure had already appeared before the blood sword. The visitor had a broad forehead and deep-set eyes, carrying an overbearing aura, with a trace of sinister malice occasionally flashing in his eyes—is this not the Jia Dugu?

And the only one who could be called Big Brother by Dugu Yifang is the Sword Saint Dugu Jian, who went into seclusion after narrowly losing to the "Martial Arts Myth" Wuming.

It is just a pity that the person in the house never replied.

Silence, only silence.

Dugu Yifang pondered for a moment and smiled: "With Big Brother's shocking Sword Dao cultivation, it is hard to find opponents in the Edo. As long as Big Brother steps back into the Edo, let alone the mere World Association, even the entire Edo would be in the palm of our Wushuang City. It could also revitalize my Dugu clan and make Wushuang City truly unparalleled under heaven..."

A cold, stagnant voice like dead water finally sounded from inside the stone house, interrupting Dugu Yifang's chatter: "This old man long ago abandoned the sword and buried his name, ignoring the Edo. Anyone who wants this old man to re-enter the Edo must be able to make me walk out of this house. I have already told you this; why waste your breath?"

"I naturally understand this, little brother. But the reason I have come to find Big Brother this time is because you now have a reason that you must enter the Edo."

Dugu Yifang's expression was grave, carrying a hint of shame: "To tell you the truth, Big Brother, Wushuang City has now fallen into the hands of an outsider and has reached a moment of extreme crisis."

"Oh?" Hearing suddenly that Wushuang City had fallen into the hands of an outsider, the tone of the person in the house finally had a slight fluctuation.

Dugu Yifang lowered his head in shame: "Several days ago, a person entered Wushuang City and demanded that I hand it over to him. Wushuang City is the ancestral foundation of my Dugu clan; I, Dugu Yifang, naturally could not hand it over to others. But that person's martial arts are extremely high, and his methods are cruel and ruthless. After a series of actions, he tortured me until I could neither live nor die. I had no choice but to play along with him and temporarily follow his orders."

After speaking.

The wind in the sky suddenly went still.

Dugu Yifang could not help but feel it difficult to breathe, his whole body turning cold.

He only felt a sharp, peerless Sword Intent radiating from the stone house, giving him the feeling of having a sword held to his neck, as if he could be decapitated at any moment.

The pressure on the Jia Dugu grew greater and greater.

Clearly, the Sword Saint was dissatisfied with his actions.

To hand over Wushuang City to an outsider for the sake of his own life.

Cold sweat broke out on Dugu Yifang's forehead. Gritting his teeth, he finally spoke again: "Big Brother has abandoned the sword and gone into seclusion; even if Wushuang City were destroyed, I fear Big Brother might not take it to heart. But I have one thing that will surely make Big Brother step into the Edo again."

A cold snort came from inside the stone house.

Dugu Yifang hurriedly took a scroll of silk from his bosom: "This is something written by that person, titled—Fourteen Terrors."

"Fourteen Terrors?"

"Correct, it is indeed the Fourteen Terrors. That person said that Baixiaosheng's Twelve Terrors were merely empty names, and his Fourteen Terrors are enough to make the people of the world terrified. And among the Fourteen Terrors, Big Brother is also listed."

Amidst another cold laugh, the scroll of silk seemed to be held up by an invisible hand, floating toward the stone house from afar.

Beneath Dugu Yifang's lowered head, a smile of success finally appeared. With the Sword Saint's state of mind, not everything in the world could move him.

But that scroll of silk just now was written by Yu Liancheng himself—it was the manuscript of the Terror Ranking.

And in the final six characters, "Fourteenth Terror—Me," the Sword Intent was vibrant, containing an extremely profound sword move. When he first saw it, his eyes had actually shed tears of blood.

Without a doubt, that person is a supreme swordsman.

And for a Sword Saint who has retired from the Edo, what could be more likely to stir up a desire to fight than a supreme swordsman who has bullied his way to his door?

As for the information about Yu Liancheng, Dugu Yifang had also sent a copy to his master, Bu Baisuzhen.

When the time comes, with two supreme experts present, would there be any fear of not being able to deal with that person?

As for the Life and Death Talisman.

With his master's methods, it might not be impossible to remove it.

Furthermore, among the Six Great Demon Crossings created by his master Bu Baisuzhen, there is the "Rebirth Crossing" which allows for an alternative form of longevity. At worst, he could just discard this human incarnation.

"Fourteenth Terror—Me. Fourteenth Terror... Me, Fourteenth Terror—Me..." A moment later, a murmuring whisper sounded in the stone house. If not for the Jia Dugu's deep internal energy, he would never have heard it. However, the voice suddenly became high-pitched, as if fresh water had been poured into a dried-up pond.

"Good sword technique. A mere six characters actually contain six different Sword Dao artistic conceptions. Ethereal as an immortal, magnificent and ever-changing, devastatingly beautiful, soul-capturing, immovable as a mountain... and, slaughtering heaven and earth. This last character actually has some resonance with my Holy Spirit Sword Art... Besides that person, there is actually such a peerless swordsman in the world, hahaha."

Amidst the long laughter, the sharp, peerless Sword Qi surged out like a tidal wave. The stone house was instantly shredded and cut into residue and powder, drifting and scattering across the sky.

A figure stood amidst the residue and powder. Silver-white long hair fell messily over his face, and he kept his head lowered, making it impossible for people to see his face clearly.

"Let's go, go to Wushuang City, and meet that—'Me'."

And when this person raised his head, no one would ever pay attention to that wrinkled, aged face.

Because everyone would only notice that pair of eyes, bright as cold stars, as if radiating a captivating sword light. It could cut through heaven and earth, and dominate all things.

Jia Dugu's mouth twitched, revealing a slightly awkward smile: "That person... that person already left Wushuang City at dawn..." If not for that, he would not dare to come and face the Sword Saint so openly.

The Sword Saint's gaze swept over, sword light flickering in his eyes, as if they were two sharp swords ready to strike and kill at any moment.

Dugu Yifang's hair stood on end; he could not help but take two steps back and hurriedly said: "That person said he would return to Wushuang City in a month at most. Big Brother can wait a while in Wushuang City to nurture your energy."

The Sword Saint looked at the small house that had been cut to pieces, turned around, and left.

"Good."

The world as it is today.

The "Tianxia Hui" managed by Xiongba has the momentum to sweep through the martial arts world; only Wushuang City can stand against it.

Wushuang City has branch altars spread across more than three hundred locations in Shenzhou, and when such a colossal force wants to spread a piece of news, it can naturally spread throughout the entire Central Plains in no time.

What's more, this news was inherently shocking to the heart.

Soon, a Fourteen Terrors list appeared out of thin air and was circulated throughout the martial arts world.

This place was a branch altar of Wushuang City, where disciples of Wushuang City posted the Fourteen Terrors list on the city wall, immediately attracting a crowd of martial artists carrying sabers and swords to watch.

"Fourteen Terrors list? Could it be the Twelve Terrors written by Bai Xiaokuang Sheng back in the day?"

"Heh, I think the Twelve Terrors of that time were just a hollow reputation. Although Shaolin and Wudang are the pillars of the martial arts world, they have long since declined; have they produced a single expert in these years? And the swords forged by Baijian Villa have not been released even after decades. That person ranked last is even more of a charlatan. All of this goes to show that the so-called Twelve Terrors were just something made up by scholars and literati."

Although Bai Xiaokuang Sheng wrote of the martial arts world in its entirety back then, as time passed, those Twelve Terrors were no longer truly terrifying.

Amidst the discussion, everyone simultaneously swept their gaze toward the Fourteen Terrors list.

But soon, the discussion gradually died down. Looking at the "Terrors" one by one, the crowd could not help but breathe rapidly, and in the blink of an eye, their backs were soaked with cold sweat.

The Fourteen Terrors list; this time, it was the true Fourteen Terrors list.

Enough to make everyone feel both fearful and terrified.

"Terrors, terrors, it truly makes the world terrified."

"When experts fight, sometimes having one day or one hour more of cultivation than an opponent is enough to decide the outcome. But that Di Shitian and Xiao Sanxiao both have a thousand years of Internal Force. Just relying on such unfathomably powerful Internal Force, I fear every move they make has the power to split mountains and seas."

"Chang Sheng Bu Si Shen, Mo Zhu Bai Suzhen... does this world truly have such experts who are like gods and demons? And that Ten Strong Martial Artists, with a mere few decades of cultivation, surpassing Di Shitian's thousand years of Internal Force—what kind of brilliant talent is that?"

"Who is the Fourteenth Terror? Me? Could it be the person who wrote the Fourteen Terrors list? I don't know why, but these simple words actually make my eyes feel a stinging sensation."

Today, this Fourteen Terrors list is truly too shocking, almost giving people the feeling of listening to a Heavenly Book.

But the vast majority of people who saw the Fourteen Terrors list chose to believe it.

Because when Yu Liancheng wrote the Fourteen Terrors list, he had gathered wisps of divine intent at the tip of his brush.

Even now, after multiple printings, only a tiny shadow of that divine intent remained, yet it still subtly influenced everyone's thinking.

Of course, this also had much to do with Wushuang City.

As a top-tier force that could stand against the Tianxia Hui, there was no need to play these deceptive tricks, and it had no practical significance.

Among the crowd, there was no lack of deep-thinking people who muttered to themselves: "Terrors! Terrors! That 'me' who is the Fourteenth Terror truly has a grand design. These human gods and demons were originally living in seclusion, but now they are forced to appear before mortals, forced into the world; I fear this will stir up another bloody storm."

Tianshan, towering into the clouds, is the head of the mountain ranges in the Tianyin City region.

The main altar of the "Tianxia Hui," which is rising with the momentum of a comet, is located at the peak of this Tianshan. Built against the mountain, it is magnificent, towering, and grand, breathtaking to behold.

To this day, the Tianxia Hui has more than three hundred branch altars spread across the Central Plains, waiting only for its strength to grow further and for the time to be ripe to eradicate the equally powerful Wushuang City and swallow the martial arts world.

It is said that the gates of these three hundred branch altars are all built facing the main altar, like ten thousand subjects bowing to the Tianshan main altar and the Tianxia Diyi Lou on it.

This Tianxia Diyi Lou, three stories high and magnificent, stands at the highest point of Tianshan, piercing the clouds. If one were to stand within it, one could overlook the vast earth and rule over the world.

With such a stance, who among the ordinary masses of the world could match it?

——Xiongba!

The leader of the Tianxia Hui, Xiongba.

Only this person could match it.

This naturally domineering Gang Leader was standing by the railing of the Tianxia Diyi Lou, hands behind his back, overlooking the masses of the world. He wore a purple silk brocade robe, embroidered with nine swimming dragons in gold thread, baring their fangs and brandishing their claws, coiling around his body as if nine dragons were protecting him. His body was tall and burly, his face majestic, his long eyebrows like swords. Standing there, he gave off the feeling of an overlord.

It was as if this person was born to dominate the masses and rule the world.

"Jinling is not a thing of the pond; once it meets the wind and cloud, it will turn into a dragon. Ni Pusa, oh Ni Pusa, you said that as long as I meet the wind and cloud, I can turn into a dragon of the nine heavens, with the world trampled under my feet. But the wind is formless, and the cloud is inconstant; where are the wind and cloud?"

After admiring the Tianshan scenery for a moment, Xiongba turned and walked into the building to handle gang affairs.

Before handling the affairs, his gaze flicked to the Fourteen Terrors list that was causing such a stir in the martial arts world nearby.

Originally, he scoffed at such so-called martial arts rumors, but suddenly he became interested and casually unfolded the Fourteen Terrors list.

The first terror was none other than the Tianxia Hui.

Looking at the text description on the Fourteen Terrors list, a smile appeared on the corner of Xiongba's mouth.

But soon, the smile froze.

Not only did it freeze, but it was also covered in a layer of ice.

Ten years of great fortune; could it be that, just as the Fourteen Terrors list said, "Once ten years pass, the grand plans and hegemony will be nothing more than a handful of dirt."

Xiongba was instantly enraged, and with a "bang," he slammed his palm heavily onto the mahogany table, causing the table to shatter instantly.

"Gang Leader, calm your anger, Gang Leader, calm your anger... I do not know who has made the Gang Leader so furious?"

A man wearing yellow clothes and a high crown hurried inside.

He held a fan in his hand, wore rouge like a woman, and carried a comical and flattering smile; he was none other than Xiongba's personal attendant and the Great Steward of the Tianxia Hui—Wen Chou Chou.

"Get out!

"

Xiongba flicked his sleeve, and a powerful, violent force swept out.

Wen Chou Chou spat out a mouthful of blood and truly rolled away.

……

And Xiongba was not the only one enraged by the Fourteen Terrors list.

In an ice cavern, ten-thousand-year black ice was frozen solid.

A block of cold ice suddenly exploded, and a figure stepped out from within; an ice mask covered their face, and their aura was like that of a God or a Demon.

"Damn it!

Fourteenth Jinghuang! Do not let this seat find out who you are, or I will surely make you wish you were dead!"

This person was none other than the master of Heavenly Gate, Di Shitian.

This old monster, who had lived for over a thousand years, had originally intended to remain a hidden schemer, but now his trump cards and background were all known to the world.

Being known to the world was one thing; he was quite happy to be worshipped by others. But the Fourteen Terrors list had to go and say his martial arts were limited, and even wrote about the time he was defeated by Wu Wudi.

And the final six words, "ridiculous, pathetic, lamentable," had enraged him to the extreme, easily shattering the state of mind he had cultivated for a thousand years.

Di Shitian's expression shifted uncertainly.

He could be certain that the so-called Fourteenth Jinghuang, that "I," was the person who compiled this Fourteen Terrors list.

He was God.

If anyone dared to offend the majesty of God, they would have long since been killed by him or turned into a mindless "Divine Beast." But after his initial rage, Di Shitian hesitated.

Because the existence on that Fourteen Terrors list truly made even him feel terror.

It turned out there were so many experts in this world, especially that Xiao Sanxiao, who had lived even longer than him, which made his hair stand on end.

After all, longevity was his greatest asset.

And this asset was rendered non-existent in front of Xiao Sanxiao.

And that Fourteenth Jinghuang, that simple "I," was he also an old monster who had lived for a thousand years like Xiao Sanxiao, or was he a peerless martial artist with exceptional talent like Wu Wudi?

He chickened out.

Di Shitian chickened out.

But he hadn't truly chickened out.

"Bing Huang, go and find out for me who compiled the Fourteen Terrors list."