Chapter 11: Dire Tidings, Founding of the State, and the Grand Tournament

Lost!

For a time, almost everyone who heard the news fell into a stunned silence. Countless people were so shaken by the revelation that they were at a loss for words.

The clash of the blade and the spear.

In this world, this held a profound significance. It was a battle between the true peaks of martial power. One blade, one spear; one was the world's number one, the other the world's number two. They stood at the very pinnacle of the Cloud-Top Weapon Ranking. Their duel was, in reality, a struggle for the title of the world’s greatest.

But there was another, deeper reason: the blade belonged to the Guardian Alliance, while the spear belonged to the "Only-Me Righteous Sect." For countless ages, the blade had always suppressed the spear, serving as the bedrock of confidence for every righteous martial artist across the continent.

But now, the blade had lost by a single move. This news felt as if the sky itself had collapsed.

...

The Cloud-Top Weapon Ranking, first place: the Heart-Severing Blade.
"Dreams in the dust, the blade beyond the dream; severing love and intent, yet finding no peace. Tears in the wind, who suffers the pain? On the cloud-top, heartless, the snow caresses the flute." — The Heart-Severing Blade, Xue Fuxiao.

The Cloud-Top Weapon Ranking, second place: the Bone-Shattering Dream Spear.
"A lonely boat in a sea of blood, the bone spear amidst the bitter wind and rain, severing the setting sun. Piercing through thousands of mundane dreams, shattering into the fragrance of a single spear-tip petal." — The Bone-Shattering Dream Spear, Duan Xiyang.

...

It was said that this time, Duan Xiyang of the Bone Spear was the first to issue a challenge at the Peak of the Purple Moon. Xue Fuxiao refused to engage. Consequently, Duan Xiyang suddenly struck, slaughtering three border cities within three days and massacring over two million people.

"Xue Fuxiao, for every day you do not face me, I shall slaughter a city!"

Xue Fuxiao was forced to accept the challenge in fury. The two sides set the terms: if Duan Xiyang won, the Only-Me Righteous Sect would establish a nation, and the Guardians would not interfere. If Xue Fuxiao won, the Only-Me Righteous Sect would lie dormant for five hundred years—operating only in the shadows, forbidden from conducting sacrifices, slaughtering civilians, or engaging in terrorist activities across the continent.

This pact left Xue Fuxiao with no way out.

...

The Only-Me Righteous Sect had plotted to establish a nation countless times, constantly infiltrating various countries across the continent and building armies long in advance. Yet, every time, they had been crushed by the Guardian Alliance. The Heart-Severing Blade, Xue Fuxiao, stood high at the first rank of the Cloud-Top, overlooking the world and suppressing all defiance—including Duan Xiyang.

Four hundred years ago, the Only-Me Righteous Sect planned to found a nation and overthrow the Great Yong Dynasty. But the Guardian Alliance, prepared in advance, gathered countless experts to dismantle their plan. They took the opportunity to establish the Great Zhao Dynasty, extending the national destiny that once belonged to the Great Yong into the Great Zhao.

The three great empires and nine dynasties of the continent all belonged to the Guardian Alliance. Although the Only-Me Righteous Sect possessed immense power, they were not recognized as legitimate by the world. Without the suppression of national destiny, they remained a scattered force. Only another governing power could vie for the right to rule. If you lack a government, no matter how great your power, you are merely a roving bandit.

That was the logic. And so, what the Only-Me Righteous Sect lacked was a title—legitimacy. For years, they had fought a desperate battle for this, and finally, they had found their chance.

Xue Fuxiao met Duan Xiyang at Purple Moon Mountain. They fought for a day and a night. To his horror, Xue Fuxiao discovered that Duan Xiyang was no longer the man he once was; his old rival, whom he had suppressed for untold years, now possessed power that surpassed his own. In truth, with every clash over the years, Xue Fuxiao had felt Duan Xiyang closing the gap. He was improving every single time.

By their last encounter eighty years ago, Xue Fuxiao had already won by the narrowest of margins. That was why he had refused this duel: as long as he did not fight, he remained the world’s number one. The mountain in the hearts of billions of people would not collapse, and their faith would remain intact. But Duan Xiyang’s tactic of slaughtering a city a day had forced Xue Fuxiao into a corner. He had no choice but to fight.

And this battle went as expected. By the end, even after Xue Fuxiao had unleashed his full strength, he lost by a single move. The Bone-Shattering Dream Spear pierced his shoulder. Xue Fuxiao sighed in melancholy, feeling the pain of the spear piercing his body, yet it paled in comparison to the pain in his heart. He knew that from this day on, the sky had truly fallen.

Duan Xiyang slowly withdrew his spear and said indifferently, "You have lost. I return the favor of you sparing my life the first time."

Xue Fuxiao offered a bitter smile. "I did not spare you before out of mercy, but because of constraints. You owe me nothing."

"A debt is a debt." Duan Xiyang turned away. "Sooner or later, you will die under my spear, because we can use methods that you cannot—and never will!"

Xue Fuxiao replied, "If I were to act as you do, would I not become the same kind of person? What then would there be to fight for?"

From afar, a soft laugh came from Duan Xiyang: "That makes sense."

...

Xue Fuxiao defeated. The world was shaken. The first rank of the Cloud-Top Weapon Ranking had changed. From this moment on, the Bone-Shattering Dream Spear held the first rank, suppressing the world!

On the fourth day, the thirty-six sects under the Only-Me Righteous Sect, along with countless other organizations, held simultaneous sacrifices to heaven and their gods across the continent. The Sky Centipede God!

This day, the twenty-seventh of the seventh month, became known as the Blood-Red Day of the continent. Nineteen major cities, each with a population exceeding ten million, suffered horrific massacres. Belonging to different nations and dynasties, each city saw a thousand elderly couples, a thousand middle-aged couples, a thousand young couples, and a thousand pairs of young boys and girls—eight thousand people in total—kneeling before a secret statue of the Sky Centipede God, their throats slit.

The blood flowed freely, forming a river of gore that stretched for dozens of miles. It was a shocking sight. On that day, the heavens were sorrowful, the earth groaned, and the wind wailed in anger. In the super-cities alone, 152,000 lives were lost to these unnatural deaths. Across countless other places, similar, smaller-scale sacrifices were occurring simultaneously. On this day, the death toll reached hundreds of thousands.

The Only-Me Righteous Sect was sacrificing to their god. The entire continent trembled.

...

On the twenty-ninth of the seventh month, the Great Xuan Empire, formerly a member of the Guardian Alliance, erupted into war. Within a single day, blood flowed for a thousand miles. Below the monarch, all were beheaded. The Chancellor, Wang Zichen, led over a thousand civil officials out of the city gates to welcome the new emperor’s ascension. Inside the city, tens of thousands of civil and military officials and scholars committed suicide for their country. White mourning flags covered the city, and the sound of weeping shook the heavens.

Border generals were assassinated one after another. The old Marshal of the military department, Yang Tiefeng, fought to the death with the remnants of his troops. Finally besieged at the Imperial Tombs, fighting until his last soldier fell, the old Marshal knelt before the tombs of the ancestors of Great Xuan and took his own life with his sword.

The iron cavalry of the Only-Me Righteous Sect moved into the capital of Great Xuan, Xuanwu City. The new emperor, Chu Wuji, ascended the throne, announced the change of the nation's name to New Chu, employed the surrendered officials, and granted a general amnesty.

From then on, they began to recuperate. Although riots broke out along the borders of New Chu, the experts of the Only-Me Righteous Sect moved in all directions and suppressed them in a very short time. The fires of war across the land slowly returned to calm, and New Chu submitted peace treaties to the neighboring countries. It seemed as if the world were at peace.

But the whole world knew: this world had changed.

Undercurrents surged. No one knew when a national war would break out, but once it did, the flames would spread across the entire continent in a very short time. No place would be spared. No one would be spared. Because the Only-Me Righteous Sect had succeeded in something they had plotted for tens of thousands of years! They had established their own nation. Though it was only the first nation, the first dynasty, they now possessed national destiny!

In other words—legitimacy!

All disciples of the Only-Me Righteous Sect celebrated across the world. However, in the nations belonging to the Guardian Alliance, everyone was gripped by fear and shock. Before this, everyone knew the Only-Me Righteous Sect wanted to build a nation, but they had all assumed it would be a small, remote country. No one had expected that one of the three great empires, the Great Xuan Empire, would change its allegiance so easily!

The change of dynasty had been so effortless! The current New Chu now bordered the Great Zhao! The flames of war were nearly ready to ignite at a touch.

...

White Cloud Continent. White Cloud Martial Academy.
August 2nd. The freshman competition was held as scheduled. Tens of thousands of teachers and students stood in neat rows on the school’s main parade ground.

On the high platform, the Dean, Gao Qingyu, stood tall, his voice like thunder rolling across the sky above the parade ground. Looking down at the solemn students, his voice was calm, yet it reached the ears of every single person clearly.

"...I believe everyone has heard the news. In the battle between Master Xue and Duan Xiyang, he lost by a single move. The Only-Me Righteous Sect, which has been unable to step into the light for thousands of years, has officially established a dynasty and now possesses national destiny."

"I know the heaviness of your hearts! I am also clear about the crises of the future!"

The expressions on the faces of the students below grew even heavier. Suddenly, Gao Qingyu raised his voice, exploding like a lightning bolt.

"But those matters have nothing to do with you! They have nothing to do with you!"

"Even if you worry yourselves to death, the event has already occurred."

"Right now, six million troops at the border are standing ready. The Guardians are suppressing the world, the wardens are sorting out the order of the world, local officials are shepherding the people, and garrisoned troops are guarding the peace!"

"These are the things that have allowed you to stand here today!"

"Your worry and heaviness now are of no use! Only by deepening your cultivation and raising your own martial strength will you have the ability to face whatever the future holds!"

"Your distraction even betrays the protection that our predecessors are currently providing!"

"As the Dean of this school, I leave you with one sentence!"

Gao Qingyu’s voice transformed into a thunderclap on a clear day, vibrating with a tone of sudden enlightenment. He poured his heart, his strength, and his spirit into it. He was desperate to carve these words into the hearts of the tens of thousands of children below.

"Do not let the blood of your predecessors flow in vain! Do not let your youth and prime turn into sighs! Do not let this mortal world turn into a realm of demons!"

Below, all the students raised their arms and shouted in unison.

"Do not let the blood of your predecessors flow in vain! Do not let your youth and prime turn into sighs! Do not let this mortal world turn into a realm of demons!"

Tens of thousands of voices calling out as one created a momentum so vast it was like a thunderclap from the nine heavens, shaking the entire White Cloud Continent! Like young tigers roaring in the valley, causing all beasts to tremble in fear! The roar of the students was heard far and wide!

A moment later.

"The top one hundred freshmen, the competition begins."

"Those whose names I call, step up to the platform."

Gao Qingyu shouted, "First place, 299 points, Fang Che!"

Below, in the area where the second-year students were, a small group of people let out cries of surprise. They were friends and classmates of Fang Qingyun. They had never expected that his cousin would be the one with the highest points! They couldn't help but let their eyes shine.

Fang Qingyun was dumbfounded. He suddenly thought of his own ranking: in his grade, there were 7,500 people, and he was ranked 7,476th! A sudden wave of bitterness washed over him. A wave of discomfort. An urge to go and beat up his cousin suddenly rose within him.

*You are actually in first place! How am I supposed to live? Just tell me, how am I supposed to live? When I go home this time, if your uncle doesn't beat me to death, it will be considered a mercy of fatherly love!*

Under the gaze of the crowd, Fang Che, dressed in black, stood tall and slender. With a gold crown and jade hairpin, his hair drifting, he looked heroic and handsome as he walked up with composure. Step by step he walked, as if he had arrived gracefully from a fairy palace, bathed in a myriad of radiant colors.

He walked step by step onto the platform, step by step into everyone's eyes, and step by step, into everyone's hearts!

Amidst his graceful composure, his face had soft lines yet sharp contours, his brows and eyes were piercing, yet carried a hint of cold, ascetic aura.

"Wow..."

Below, such an involuntary sound suddenly rang out.

*Slap.*

A senior student whose appearance didn't quite measure up to the audience slapped his own face and muttered, "I... I want to go home and find my mom and dad!" A burst of laughter erupted nearby.

Fang Che had already reached the platform. Alone, facing tens of thousands of gazes, he remained calm and composed. There was not a hint of the restraint a young person might feel when suddenly faced with a large crowd. His face was light and airy, his entire demeanor poised and self-assured. Standing tall, his sleeves fluttering in the wind, even without wearing his signature black cloak with dark gold patterns, he possessed an otherworldly charisma.

On the podium, the Vice Dean, Huang Yifan, looked at Fang Che. In his eyes, there was confusion, regret, and endless uncertainty. This Fang Che... which side was he really on?

...

[Each chapter is too long; only thirty-some chapters in, and it's already nearly 120,000 words. Someone reminded me today to post 2,000 words per chapter, and I finally realized. But it's too late to change it now, so I have to ask everyone to give more votes and add it to your collections to give me some comfort. It's my first time writing a book, and I really have no experience. Sigh.]