First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 1772 - A Lesson

The Church of the Pure One.

Verdant pines and cypresses grew atop a plateau swathed in misty clouds.

The leaders of the Church of the Pure One, Church of Supreme Oneness, Church of the Exquisite Goddess, Church of Divine Flame, Profound Blue Daoist Sect, and Qianyuan Sword House were in the middle of a discussion.

“Word of our declaration of war has already spread throughout the Immortal Realm. Daoist Brother Qi Nie, do you think Su Yi will accept our challenge?” asked Sect Leader Xuan Zhong of the Church of Supreme Oneness.

“How could it possibly be so easy?” Qi Nie smiled and shook his head. “Prior to the Age of Fallen Immortals, everyone knew that Wang Ye feared no threats. As his reincarnation, I’m sure the same is true of Su Yi. That means that even with hostages, there’s no way Su Yi will just obediently show up to battle.”

He paused, then said, “But that's why I made the announcement public. My goal is to settle things with him once and for all. Even if he refuses our duel, there’s no way he’ll disregard the hostages’ lives!”

“In other words, he’ll have to take the initiative to negotiate with us!” someone said thoughtfully.

Sect Leader Nan Wujiu of the Church of Divine Flame asked, “Does that mean you’ve prepared countermeasures, Daoist Brother?”

Qi Nie inclined his head. “We can haggle with him when he begins negotiations, but no matter what, he has to agree to our duel!”

Sect Leader Tu Yun couldn’t help but smile. “I can see that you’ve already thought this through.”

Qi Nie sighed. “I most certainly don’t dare to get the least bit complacent. After all, Su Yi is the reincarnation of the Tyrant, the terrifying existence who dominated the Immortal Realm prior to the Age of Fallen Immortals. If we’re to contend with someone like him, we must be thoroughly prepared.”

The others agreed completely.

“By now, rumors that Su Yi is the reincarnation of the Tyrant have circulated throughout the Immortal Realm. Although they’ve yet to trigger much of a storm, this is a bad sign,” Nan Wujiu said with a frown. “If Su Yi reveals his identity at this juncture, it will be terrible for us.”

In the Immortal Realm, the leaders of prominent factions knew who Su Yi really was, but the masses were still in the dark.

Those in the know never revealed the truth for the simple reason that the Eternal Night Immortal Sovereign’s influence was far too great!

Countless years had passed, but his influence had barely waned. The sect leaders didn’t even need to think to know that if Su Yi announced his identity, it would cause enormous waves and lead to unpredictable danger.

Those who’d once served Wang Ye would rally around him. Those old monsters close to him would surely appear by his side, one after another!

With a single word or gesture, Su Yi could gather experts as numerous as the clouds!

That would be a disaster for his enemies!

“Relax. Su Yi will do no such thing,” Qi Nie said firmly. “If he reveals himself before he’s strong enough to fight us, he’ll bring disaster upon himself, too. Don’t forget that we aren’t his only irreconcilable enemies! The moment he reveals himself, he’ll find himself beset by winds and waves of unimaginable proportions!

“It’s true that he’ll be able to rally his old friends and subordinates, but doing so would only harm them. The more he stands out, the easier it will be to attack him. Making a bigger target out of himself won’t benefit him in any way! After all, he’s just one person, and that person is not the Tyrant himself. He might be able to withstand the consequences of all this on his own, but if he forms a group, he’ll only implicate his followers!

“A long time ago, my master said that Wang Ye was one of the most ruthless, tyrannical men around, but he valued personal loyalty above all else. If he could handle something on his own, there was no way he’d involve other people.”

Here, Qi Nie chuckled. “Ultimately, Su Yi just isn’t strong enough. That’s why he still doesn’t dare to reveal his identity. If he were at his former peak, what need would there be for any of this?”

The others smiled. All of them agreed with Qi Nie’s analysis.

“It’s precisely because he still isn’t as strong as he was in his past life that we need to work together to snuff him out now!” Sect Leader Tu Yun of the Church of the Exquisite Goddess said grimly. “If we wait, how could we possibly get another chance?”

But before anyone could respond, an elderly servant in gray rushed over.

He was the chief libationer of the Church of the Exquisite Goddess, a peak Immortal King. His face was ashen, and he was visibly overcome with grief!

He lowered his voice and transmitted to Tu Yun, “Sect Leader, something terrible has happened!”

Qi Nie and the others stopped their conversation to see what was going on. They couldn’t hear the transmitted conversation, but they could see Tu Yun’s eyes bulge and his hair and beard quiver. The skin of his face went taut, and his expression was as unsightly as if he’d swallowed a dead fly.

Irrepressible murderous intent surged around him.

Bang!

Tu Yun shattered the table, his eyes completely bloodshot.

His explosive rage startled his companions. All of them realized something big had happened.

“What happened, Fellow Daoist?” asked Qi Nie.

Tu Yun fell silent, his expression shifting and uncertain. After a while, he said hoarsely, “It’s already happened, so I couldn’t hide it even if I wanted to. Tell them.”

The old man in gray, the chief libationer, nodded. “Last night, Su Yi killed his way into the Church of the Exquisite Goddess and beheaded eight of our Immortal King libationers!”

Everyone present was stunned. The atmosphere was suddenly stifled and oppressive, and the very air itself seemed to freeze.

All of them exchanged glances.

It had only been a few days since they issued a joint proclamation and challenged Su Yi to a duel in the Gold Province’s Heaven-Scraping Ridge. Now, just last night, Su Yi fought his way into the Church of the Exquisite Goddess and killed eight Immortal Kings!

This was obviously intended as retribution. He was targeting them!

It was no wonder that Tu Yun’s expression was so hideous. Had their factions suffered such casualties, they'd have been just as furious too!

“The boy’s simply frenzied! Isn’t he afraid we’ll kill the hostages?” Nan Wujiu said with seething murderous intent.

Xuan Zhong’s expression darkened. “If Su Yi can kill his way into the Church of the Exquisite Goddess, can’t he do the same to our sects?”

All of them looked stricken. That was the point, wasn't it? If Su Yi targeted their sects, who knew how dire the consequences would be?

Someone murmured, “All we did was challenge him to a duel, only for him to turn around and attack. He doesn’t take us seriously at all!”

All of them looked grim. They’d anticipated numerous ways that Su Yi might respond before issuing their proclamation, but they’d never have guessed he’d be this ruthless!

“This is Wang Ye! He’s done this as a warning!” Qi Nie took a deep breath and said gravely, “If it’s as I suspect, everyone else in the Church of the Exquisite Goddess is alive and well. Am I right?”

The chief libationer nodded. “Su Yi snuck in undetected. Our defensive formations didn’t notice him at all. After killing the libationers, he simply left.”

He didn’t tell the other sect leaders that the statue of the Exquisite Divine Vinerate and the White Bone Divine Lamp had been destroyed, nor did he tell them that Su Yi emptied out the treasury they’d built up over countless years.

Such things were too humiliating to discuss out loud!

Someone couldn’t help but say, “Doesn’t that mean that Su Yi could have crushed the entire Church of the Exquisite Goddess last night if he’d wanted to?”

Both the chief libationer and Sect Leader Tu Yun fell silent. The crowd’s hearts shook as they realized they were right on the mark—if Su Yi hadn’t shown mercy last night, he could have crushed the Church of the Exquisite Goddess just as he’d crushed the Church of All Spirits.

But he did no such thing. Why?

Simple! It was just as Qi Nie said. Su Yi was planning to use his actions to teach them a lesson and issue a warning!

None of them were at all pleased. Who could have imagined that Su Yi would cause such a disturbance immediately after their six factions issued him a joint threat? He was so domineering that it seemed ridiculous!!

“Daoist Brother, I have a request I hope you can grant!” Tu Yun looked at Qi Nie.

Qi Nie’s eyes narrowed. “Do you want me to kill the hostages?”

“That’s right! He killed eight of our Immortal Kings. He isn’t at all afraid to see the hostages die, so why keep them?” Tu Yun gnashed his teeth. “We ought to give him a tooth for a tooth, and repay blood with blood!”

He was obviously overcome with fury and on the brink of madness.

“We can’t.” Qi Nie shook his head. “Please calm down and think it through, Daoist Brother. With the hostages around, Su Yi will at least have reservations. Forgive me if my words are grating to the ears, but if not for the hostages, he might have destroyed the entire Church of the Exquisite Goddess last night!”

Tu Yun froze, his expression all the more unsightly. How could he not realize that? He was just overcome with anger.

“Su Yi also gave me a message to deliver. Please, have a look, everyone.” The chief libationer took out a sealed message and passed it to Qi Nie.

After Qi Nie read its contents, his expression instantly darkened.

The message’s contents were simple. Su Yi agreed to duel them, but he’d chosen the Abyss of Dark Fog as the battlefield. If they didn’t show up within seven days, he wouldn’t play along any further. And if they dared threaten the hostages, he’d annihilate everyone in their factions, much like he’d done in the Church of the Exquisite Goddess!

After Qi Nie shared Su Yi’s message, the others were overcome with fury and alarm. None of them could remain seated.

The Abyss of Dark Fog!

It was one of the most perilous forbidden grounds in the Immortal Realm, and it hadn’t been long since a group of Immortal Kings had chased Su Yi inside, only to die there!

Now, Su Yi had chosen the abyss as his battlefield. He obviously had reason to be confident. Who could agree to such terms?

And Su Yi’s threats sent chills down their spine.

Just as Qi Nie had pointed out earlier, Su Yi was just one person. Even if he couldn’t beat them, he could hide if need be. But was that the case with them as well? Their forces were spread throughout the Immortal Realm! If Su Yi cast aside his reservations and went all out against them, they were sure to suffer massive losses!

The misfortune that had just struck the Church of the Exquisite Goddess was a vivid example. Su Yi was just one person, yet he’d simply strolled into their base as if no one was watching, killing eight of their Immortal Kings!

Should they focus all their efforts on guarding against him?

What a joke! Su Yi could focus all his energy on attacking them, but they couldn’t devote all their forces to defending against him forever. It just wasn’t feasible!

And all six factions had forces numbering in the tens of thousands at the very least. Some numbered in the hundreds of thousands. Moreover, they were distributed throughout the Immortal Realm’s territories.

Growing so large meant they had massive, widespread influence, but also numerous weaknesses to exploit. Su Yi could simply destroy their bases one by one!

It was no exaggeration to say that Su Yi’s threats hit them right where it hurt the most. They couldn’t help but question whether they could bear such dire consequences!