Nine Star Hegemon Body Arts

Up in the sky, a white-robed man with a sword on his back appeared. His face was fair and not bad-looking. He seemed like an untamable horse, like a sharp sword that would cut anyone who touched it. Just looking at him was painful.

The curious thing was he actually had a bandana covering his forehead.

This person was Jian Wuchen. WIth him standing there, everyone could vaguely see millions of streaks of sword-light slicing the void around him.

"You are Yue Zifeng? Hmph, come out and face your death. I'll show the entire world that the Heavenly Sword Gate is just a group of conceited incompetents." Jian Wuchen looked down at Yue Zifeng disdainfully with a trace of hatred.

Yue Zifeng slowly opened his eyes and stood. "A traitor also dares to say such words. If that senior of the Heavenly Sword Gate hadn't accepted you back in the day, you'd have long since starved in the streets. You don't know gratitude, but worse, you betrayed your sect, slaughtering your fellow disciples. Such a person is worse than a beast."

"Are you trying to make a joke? They accepted me because of my talent in the Sword Dao. Later on, they saw my talent surpassed them, making them jealous, and they refused to transmit the true divine arts of the Sword Dao to me. Why would I stay in such a narrow-hearted sect? The Heavenly Sword Sect is filled with sanctimonious experts. I'll expose you bit by bit, showing the world that even without the nurturing of the Heavenly Sword Sect, I can still walk to the peak of the Sword Dao. A pearl's light can't be covered up by weeds. Your blood will show the world just how blind the old fellows of the Heavenly Sword Gate were to miss a peerless genius like me. My path to sovereignty will be opened with your blood. I'll also show those old fellows what the true Sword Dao is." Jian Wuchen's white robes began to flutter in a nonexistent breeze. A sharp sword intent rose. The void rumbled as his aura rose bit by bit.

"Your path to sovereignty? You think wearing white can make you a Sovereign? White clothes won't cover up your black heart. You are the scum of sword cultivators. The seniors of the Heavenly Sword Gate at that time let you off, hoping you would change your ways, but you continued in your wrong ways. Today, I'll clean up the garbage of the Heavenly Sword Gate," said Yue Zifeng, his voice growing colder and colder. His hand slowly reached for the sword on his back, and an invisible power spread.

"Bullshit. You're all self-righteous idiots. I'll kill you." The space behind Jian Wuchen suddenly exploded, and his manifestation appeared. There was a giant sword in it.

That sword was covered in black qi and emitted an air of slaughter. The black qi spread, turning the sky dim.

A baleful aura of slaughter filled the world, causing heaven and earth to tremble.

"Heavens' soul manifestation, Devil Sword Pierces the Firmament!"

Someone let out a startled cry. A heavens' soul manifestation was much more terrifying than an ordinary Empyrean's manifestation. An ordinary Empyrean's manifestation absorbed the energy of the Heavenly Daos for their own use. It was a kind of support. But a heavens' soul manifestation was something that drew the very spirit of heaven and earth into the manifestation.

Divine light gathered around Jian Wuchen. He seemed possessed by the devil sword in his manifestation, and a sinister light appeared in his eyes.

"This Jian Wuchen has already deviated from the Sword Dao. He walks a kind of Devil Dao. His heart-devil is too strong. In pursuit of greater power, he has abandoned all morals. Although he awakened a heavens' soul manifestation, it is not the true Sword Dao. For him to become a Sovereign is an idiot's dream," said Long Chen.

"You are correct. The seniors of the Heavenly Sword Gate ordered him to stop cultivating and meditate because they saw this. However, he refused to listen to their advice and even assumed that they were jealous of his talent, causing him to feel resentful. In the end, he betrayed his sect and killed his martial brothers," said Nangong Zuiyue.

Long Chen saw through him accurately. Although he didn't know Jian Wuchen, just this first encounter was enough for him to see the latter's inner heart.

"It's too bad that the Sword Dao is different from other Daos. Everything depends on your own comprehension. If someone gives a genius too many pointers, it will only backfire and destroy them. So even though Jian Wuchen has a heart-devil, others were only able to vaguely warn him. If Jian Wuchen had recognized his own heart-devil, perhaps he wouldn't have betrayed his sect," said Beitang Rushuang.

"It's useless. Mountains and rivers may change, but people don't. You can cultivate your Dao, but you can't cultivate your character. Some people may appear to change, like a weak person who acts good until they act bad once they're strong. But their character didn't change, only the circumstances did." Long Chen didn't agree with Beitang Rushuang's view. The stronger someone was, the more they felt that they could do whatever they wanted.

Up in the sky, Jian Wuchen's aura was growing stronger. A suffocating feeling pressed down on the experts around.

Jian Wuchen didn't immediately attack. Instead, he slowly released his own power, using his aura to corrode Yue Zifeng's will.

He didn't just want to defeat Yue Zifeng. He wanted to kill him with absolute superiority, to show the world just how foolish a decision it had been for the Heavenly Sword Gate to expel him.

Yue Zifeng was like a boulder, unmoving in the face of Jian Wuchen's ever-rising aura. His hand was on his hilt, and in that moment, his aura vanished. It was like he had become one with heaven and earth.

"I heard Yue Zifeng is the same as Long Chen. He's not an Empyrean or even a Celestial. He can't summon any manifestation."

"What a freak. Even without the blessing of the Heavenly Daos, he's reached his current level."

"It's just unknown whether or not he can actually defeat Jian Wuchen. Jian Wuchen's heavens' soul manifestation hasn't even done anything yet. Just this aura is enough to crush a normal person's will."

People began to quietly discuss things as they watched the two people in the air. Many people frowned at Jian Wuchen because a master was to be respected. This was true in the human race, the ancient races, and amongst the Xuan Beasts.

Traitors weren't accepted in any race. They were extremely hated. So even though Jian Wuchen was a supreme genius from the ancient era, very few people acknowledged him. The Righteous path might acknowledge a powerful enemy but not a traitor.

In many people's hearts, they hoped for Yue Zifeng to defeat Jian Wuchen. But they knew that this hope was miniscule. After all, the eras were different. Yue Zifeng was just a titular disciple of the Heavenly Sword Gate, and his true status was the fourth captain of the Dragonblood Legion. Hence, he hadn't been constantly cultivating in the Heavenly Sword Gate. His fame and foundation were far too lacking compared to Jian Wuchen.

"If Yue Zifeng is defeated, will Long Chen make a move?"

"Impossible. Challenges between experts are fights to the death, and Yue Zifeng wants to clean up the name of his sect. Even if Yue Zifeng is killed right in front of Long Chen, he can't interfere. Experts have their own dignity that is more important than their lives. If Long Chen interferes, Yue Zifeng might prefer to have died."

"Sigh… that really is regretful."

BOOM!

Suddenly, the void shook intensely. The manifestation that had been growing larger the entire time finally stabilized. The devil sword's black qi covered the sky.

The manifestation was now over ten times larger than before. Space had frozen, and even time felt like it was close to stopping.

Even the experts outside the battlefield no longer felt comfortable at this distance and retreated further. Being within the range of this manifestation made them feel uneasy, as if within this range, Jian Wuchen's sword might land on their heads with a thought.

In the face of this terrifying manifestation, Yue Zifeng was still silent, simply holding his sword.

"You should thank me. Just now, through my manifestation, I displayed my Sword Dao to you. It's the first time I've displayed my Sword Dao so clearly since awakening my manifestation. How is it? Do you feel despair?" Jian Wuchen's hand also clenched over his sword hilt.

"I do feel despair and fear." Yue Zifeng nodded.

These words startled all the experts present. If Yue Zifeng felt fear and despair, it indicated that his mental state had already been affected by Jian Wuchen's manifestation. In that case, his will must have broken down, and he would be defeated and killed.

"Not just fear and despair. I can also sense your inner heart's greed and desire. You've always coveted the Sword God Dao Canon but were never able to obtain it. A selfish and narrow-minded person like you wouldn't be able to understand the Sword God Dao Canon even if it was given to you," said Yue Zifeng coldly.

"Bullshit! Is the Sword God Dao Canon so rare? Even without it, I could have walked the normal path. But now I've blazed an entirely new path, awakening the Devil Sword Pierces the Firmament manifestation! I'll show you, other than those undying fellows in the Heavenly Sword Gate, no one there can contend against me!"

Jian Wuchen's face twisted, and his sword suddenly came out of its sheath, unleashing sharp, cold rays of Sword Qi. A brilliant streak of light slashed toward Yue Zifeng.