Chapter 29: Funeral in a Rainy Night

The rain poured down in torrents.

The drenching rain lashed against Su Chen's face.

In the courtyard of the Library.

Strands of Longevity True Qi drifted outward. The blooming hibiscus tree grew against the wind, transforming from a small one-zhang sapling into a massive three-zhang tree in an instant—just the right size to make a coffin.

The coffin was finished.

Silver-hued hibiscus flowers filled the casket.

Clad in a blood-stained purple robe, the withered, skeletal remains of the old man remained upright even in death, a smile lingering on his lips, though his deep eyes had lost every trace of light.

"Zhang Gui is dead."

Su Chen felt somewhat dazed.

He had known for a long time that Zhang Gui would die.

Even if he could have saved him.

He was merely a practitioner of Longevity; he could not alter life and death.

Perhaps in the future, he would become accustomed to death and life, but he truly could not do it now.

"Oh, you..."

"I always thought you were so ambitious that you would eventually suffer a massive fall. That fall would have woken you up, making you abandon the dream of overturning the Great Liang..."

"I just didn't expect that waiting would take nine years, and the fall would be so hard that it would take your life along with it..."

The haze in Su Chen's eyes deepened.

It was as if he were seeing the moment he first met Zhang Gui.

Outside the Library.

A handsome, tall young man in a green robe, Zhang Gui, had walked in carrying roasted chicken and White Scholar wine, speaking to him with a beaming smile.

"You saved me. From now on, we are friends."

"I really don't know what you were thinking."

"Actually making me find a way to transfer you to this lonely and cold place called the Library."

The dream had ended.

The bright moon had vanished.

The darkness outside the Library was freezing. Faintly, the sound of howling winds, the galloping of horses, and the clashing of blades and armor began to rise slowly.

More and more auras of cultivators converged upon the courtyard!

The Grand Ancestor of Liang had acted!

The world was shaken! On this single night, over a dozen Minor Grandmasters fell!

The imperial power had won this round.

The Sha Wu Guards stationed in the Imperial City had arrived to clean up the battlefield!

"Zhang Gui, you treasonous eunuch dog! The Great Liang imperial clan has treated you well for three generations of emperors, granting you immense power and unparalleled wealth, yet you dared to harbor rebellious thoughts, colluding with underworld bandits to attempt a revolution that would change the heavens and earth!"

"The Grand Ancestor spoke personally! With a single palm strike from a Grandmaster, you are already heavily wounded!"

"Get out here immediately and accept your death!"

"We may still leave your corpse intact!"

A furious roar erupted.

Like rolling thunder, it exploded through the heavens and earth, intimidating all directions.

Boom!

The gates of the Library courtyard shattered.

Three thousand Sha Wu Guards gathered!

The Empress of Great Liang, Dugu Yue, commanded the three armies, staring coldly into the Library.

But they did not dare enter.

The name of Zhang Gui—the peak of the world and number one on the Martial Rankings—was too terrifying! Even if the Grand Ancestor had personally struck him, Zhang Gui was either crippled or broken. Though they had tracked him here, not a single person dared to step into the courtyard.

On this night, no one yet knew that the newly world-renowned number one on the Martial Rankings had quietly and silently died in the small courtyard of the Library.

Su Chen turned a deaf ear to everything outside the Library.

He gazed at the corpse in the purple robe.

And spoke.

"Since you hated the imperial clan that destroyed your nation and slaughtered your kin, I shall bury you in the Green Mountains outside the Imperial City, so that one day you may witness the downfall of Great Liang with your own eyes..."

"You once asked me why I lived in seclusion, why I did not crave power or cling to wealth. Now, I tell you..."

"I hate all troublesome matters."

"I do not wish to offend people."

"I do not wish to be tainted by any karmic tribulations of slaughter."

"But everything you did was a troublesome matter, a slaughter, an endless struggle. However, this time, they might demand that I hand over your remains..."

"I will not comply."

"If it is trouble, then let it be trouble. If it is a slaughter, then let it be a slaughter. If it is an endless struggle, then let it be an endless struggle!"

"In that case,"

"Tonight,"

"I shall be wild just once..."

Su Chen removed the Shura Ghost Mask and put on a brand-new red robe representing the Sixth Chief. He placed the corpse in the purple robe—the greatest traitor in the world—into the coffin, closed the lid, clasped his hands behind his back, and looked up at the sky, devoid of any joy or sorrow.

The Path of Qi, Fourth Grade, was called the Violent Qi Realm.

Upon entering this realm, the influence of the violent qi caused one to become manic and combative.

But Su Chen was the exact opposite. Having entered the fourth grade of Longevity, his heart was as still as water, his emotions indifferent, without joy or sorrow.

Boom!

At this moment, the three thousand Sha Wu Guards arrayed outside the Library could no longer restrain themselves. They smashed through the walls, drew their blades, notched their bows, and charged into the Library.

"Zhang Gui, face your death!"

A silver-robed general arrived on horseback, wielding a long spear.

His body radiated fierce, angry qi.

"Hmm?"

The tense atmosphere, tinged with a hint of fear, vanished instantly.

Everyone present saw the aged corpse in the purple robe inside the coffin!

"Hahaha!"

"Zhang Gui is dead! He is truly dead!"

Dugu Lie laughed wildly. He gripped his long spear, and the sweat on his palms instantly loosened.

He had gambled correctly.

Zhang Gui was truly dead.

Immense wealth and status were beckoning to him!

Just then.

An indifferent voice rang out.

"Su Chen, Chief of the Library. On this night, I am conducting a funeral for a friend. I hope you all will grant me some convenience..."

Clad in a red robe, Su Chen carried the coffin, facing the three thousand elite armored Sha Wu Guards and Empress Dugu. His expression remained unchanged as he spoke slowly.

Wait.

A red robe?

That was the attire of an Imperial Chief.

A Second-Grade expert!

"An Imperial Chief..."

Dugu Lie's heart tightened, and he instinctively moved his horse back half a step.

The other Sha Wu Guards also felt a chill in their hearts, their limbs turning cold.

Second Grade!

To surround and kill a Second-Grade expert! There was no telling how many people would die.

"What kind of Imperial Chief are you?"

"A low-born eunuch dog. What do you think you are!"

"The Sixth Chief of the Library? If it weren't for His Majesty's respect for Zhang Gui, how could you, a black-robed eunuch incapable of cultivation, have the right to wear the red robe reserved for Second-Grade experts?"

"Zhang Gui defied the imperial majesty and is the greatest traitor in the world; he deserves to be torn apart by five horses. Do you think you, Su Chen, can escape?"

"Conducting a funeral for him? Granting convenience? What kind of trash do you think you are?"

"Eunuch dog!"

"You are one of his followers, and you shall die too!"

"Heh!"

Empress Dugu spat out a single, cold word.

"Kill!"

In an instant.

Dugu Lie's eyes turned cold, a look of fury surfacing as he remembered the name Su Chen.

After all this, he was that "Sixth Chief"!

"I was almost fooled by you!"

"A cripple dares to intimidate me?"

"Do you truly think that by putting on this red robe, you become a Second-Grade expert?"

"Die!"

Dugu Lie roared, his qi dancing wildly as he channeled it into his long spear, thrusting it out amidst the pouring rain.

The rain.

It grew heavier and heavier.

"A eunuch dog who doesn't know his place."

"Truly thinks he is Second Grade?"

Empress Dugu shook her head with a mocking gaze, preparing to return to her carriage and depart.

This battle was already decided.

She needed to return to the palace to manage the grand situation.

"Sigh!"

Su Chen sighed.

In the courtyard, the torrential rain suddenly went silent.

He extended a single finger.

In the rainy night, thunder exploded.

The falling rain transformed into a sword, slashing horizontally in all directions.

"In the year of Heaven's Chaos, the second generation of the Purple Robe slashes a sword of snow and wind under the moon."

"I, too, have gained an insight."

"The insights gained over seven years—finally, on this night, I turn the rain in this courtyard into a single sword. I hope you all will offer your guidance!"

In an instant.

Su Chen took a step forward.

Blood-red flames soared to the heavens!

His bones and muscles resonated, and thunderous roars echoed!

The Third-Grade Marrow Cleansing Realm was no longer concealed.

"How is this possible?"

"Marrow Cleansing!"

"The Third Grade?"

"No! Aren't you incapable of cultivation? And this isn't an ordinary Third Grade. How can a Third-Grade Marrow Cleansing of the Path of Body slash out the Intent of Heaven and Earth that only a First-Grade Minor Grandmaster can comprehend..."

Dugu Lie's eyes widened in absolute terror. He screamed as if falling into an endless hell; by now, it was too late to retreat.

Kill!

He burned through his qi, turning it into a spear, attempting to block the strike.

But it was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot!

He could only watch with his own eyes as the torrential rain transformed into a ribbon of sword intent, slashing toward him.

True Intent!

It was truly the Intent of Heaven and Earth!

A sword of snow and wind! This was a killing move that only a First-Grade Minor Grandmaster, having broken through the profound barrier and attained heavenly perception, could touch by harnessing the power of heaven and earth.

Su Chen was only Third Grade, yet he could simulate three parts of its divine essence?

With three parts of that essence, killing him was as easy as killing a chicken or a dog.

Bang!

Blood exploded.

The head of the Dugu family, the commander of the Sha Wu Guards, exploded into a cloud of blood mist along with his mount.

The sword of wind and rain did not lose momentum, slashing through the three thousand Sha Wu Guards!

"Do not be afraid!"

"He is merely Third Grade! Have we not surrounded many such experts before?"

"Charge in formation! There is no survival!"

"Kill!"

"He is only Third Grade!"

The three thousand Sha Wu Guards roared, showing no panic. They charged in formation like a disciplined army.

Boom!

The sword dissipated.

Outside the Library, the three thousand sets of armor were annihilated. Broken armor and bloody remains were scattered everywhere.

One sword had broken three thousand armors!

"Third Grade?!"

Empress Dugu was struck with absolute horror.

If not for the presence of a true Red-Robed expert within her carriage, she too would have surely died under that single strike.

"You are a Third-Grade Marrow Cleansing expert?"

"How is this possible!"

"Aren't you incapable of cultivation?"

Empress Dugu demanded furiously.

To this.

Su Chen turned a deaf ear.

Clad in his red robe, he rose while carrying the coffin, stepping over the mountains of corpses and seas of blood in the courtyard, walking toward the exit of the Imperial City amidst the torrential rain.

"I ask Chief Wang to take action!"

Empress Dugu commanded the Imperial Red-Robed official sitting in the carriage.

In response.

Su Chen raised his eyes and met the gaze of the Second-Grade Chief in the carriage.

"The sword of wind and rain—can you block it?"

"Or rather,"

"How much lifespan do you have to wager against me!"

Inside the carriage.

There was a moment of silence.

The Second-Grade expert sighed, closed his eyes, and allowed Su Chen to pass.

Su Chen walked on, carrying the coffin.

The path was clear; no one blocked him.

Those who tried to block him were dead.

A funeral for a friend!

"No one expected that this cowardly, useless person hiding in the Library would actually be a Third-Grade Marrow Cleansing expert, capable of slashing a sword of wind and rain by borrowing the power of heaven and earth..."

"The world praises Zhang Gui's monstrous talent, unaware that he merely obtained a demonic technique that burned through his lifespan, a momentary flash in a desperate situation. Within the Imperial Palace, there truly is a monster, but it is not Zhang Gui; it is you, Zhang Gui's friend, the useless man of the Library, Su Chen."

Beneath the walls of the Imperial Palace stood an old man in a purple robe. He was aged and withered, looking quite decrepit. He watched Su Chen with great interest, stepping aside to open the palace gates, not obstructing Su Chen's path.

Seven years ago, on the night of Heaven's Chaos.

He had been here in this palace, turning snow and wind into a sword to strike down the then number one in the world, the peak First-Grade Daoist Ziwei of the Celestial Master Mansion! He had fought a staged battle with the original Purple Robe to bring back the "legitimate" Emperor Jianwu, allowing everything to return to its proper course...

Tonight.

Below the rank of Grandmaster, he was the strongest.

"Su Chen, if you insist on conducting a funeral for a traitor, you will be wanted by the entire world! In this vast land, there will be no place for you to hide! It would be better to abandon Zhang Gui, stay here, and become my disciple. At the Third Grade, you could obtain three parts of my snow and wind intent, and perhaps you could truly glimpse the Grandmaster Realm..."

This second-generation Purple Robe spoke with gentle persuasion.

To this.

Su Chen did not even look back. Without joy or sorrow, he stepped through the palace gates.

"Who cares!"

Tonight, the "useless" Su Chen of the Library stunned the world. He revealed his cultivation, broke through three thousand armors with a single sword, intimidated a Second-Grade Red-Robed expert, and fought his way through the Imperial Palace at the Third Grade to conduct a funeral for a friend, protecting the remains of the world's number one traitor as he departed.

The next day.

Emperor Jianwu was enraged. He struck Su Chen's name from the records and issued a nationwide manhunt, making him, instead of Zhang Gui, the number one traitor in the world!