Defeat the Sword Emperor Claim the Top Spot

Gu Qingfeng was astonished to discover that the thousands of divine swords condensed behind him were trembling, as if bowing in submission to the emperor before him.

Tap, tap, tap...

The young Sword Heavenly Emperor strode slowly toward Gu Qingfeng. With each step, his aura intensified, his figure seemingly towering infinitely.

Though his frame was slender, as the distance closed, he appeared to stand as tall as the heavens.

Buzz—!

The longswords behind Gu Qingfeng trembled and hummed before shattering violently, a testament to the overwhelming sword dao of the Sword Heavenly Emperor. Before him, all blades either submitted or perished.

Suddenly, the Sword Heavenly Emperor struck.

A simple thrust—plain and unremarkable at first glance—yet it carried the weight of a deity manipulating the very forces of heaven and earth.

The black-clad youth, with a mortal’s body, unleashed a sword aura so immense it leveraged the world’s momentum.

In that instant, Gu Qingfeng felt the surrounding space transform into an inescapable prison, locking him in place.

The sword’s movement was not fast, yet it felt impossible to evade. A single strike, yet it seemed to fill the sky with countless afterimages.

"To wield sword aura and move the world’s momentum—truly worthy of a young Heavenly Emperor," Gu Qingfeng mused, his eyes gleaming.

The Sword Heavenly Emperor’s cultivation was only at the peak of the Human Yuan realm, yet this strike carried the power of the Heavenly Yuan realm—a level where one could command the world’s momentum.

Though Gu Qingfeng spoke in admiration, his hands moved without hesitation. No matter how profound the Sword Heavenly Emperor’s sword dao, absolute power rendered all techniques meaningless.

Boom!

He threw a punch, unleashing force comparable to the Heavenly Human realm, meeting the Sword Heavenly Emperor’s strike head-on.

The next moment, the longsword shattered, and the Sword Heavenly Emperor was swallowed by the crushing force of the punch.

"Keh keh keh... Even a Heavenly Emperor cannot withstand a single punch from me!" Gu Qingfeng roared with laughter, his confidence soaring.

But as his voice faded, the heavens and earth trembled violently, as if on the verge of collapse. Blinding golden light erupted from the world itself.

Gu Qingfeng panicked. "Hey, hey! I was just joking—no need to take it so seriously!"

He wondered if the Sword Tower held some contingency left by the Sword Heavenly Emperor—or if the tower itself had taken offense to his mockery.

Either way, the situation seemed dire. He could bully a young Heavenly Emperor, but if the real deal had left a backup plan, he’d be in deep trouble.

Outside the tower, the tremors were not confined to its interior. The towering golden structure shook violently, sending tremors through the earth and the entire Sword Sect as if an earthquake had struck.

Endless golden light erupted from the stone monument.

"Ah! My eyes!"

"Use divine energy to shield your vision!"

"What in the world is happening?!"

Countless disciples cried out in panic.

The monument now resembled a fallen sun, dyeing the Sword Sect in radiant gold.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

From the depths of the sect, several overwhelming auras erupted. Figures shot into the sky, streaking toward the Sword Tower like meteors.

They were the seven peak chiefs—led by Dugu Wei himself.

Their expressions were grave as they scrutinized the anomalous Sword Tower and monument. Yet, even with their divine vision, they could not pierce through the golden radiance enveloping them.

"What has happened to the Sword Tower?" Dugu Wei demanded.

The other chiefs exchanged uneasy glances, equally clueless.

As they arrived, more high-ranking sect members descended like a meteor shower, drawn by the vast reach of the golden light. Nearly everyone in the Sword Sect, except those in seclusion, had noticed the disturbance.

"The Sword Tower has stood for ten thousand years—never has it shown such anomalies. Did someone trigger a taboo?" one chief muttered grimly.

Dugu Wei suddenly channeled divine energy, his voice booming across the sect: "All disciples, retreat ten miles from the Sword Tower immediately!"

The disciples obeyed, fleeing on beams of divine light—though none left entirely. Curiosity held them fast.

The Sword Tower’s anomaly had yet to show danger, and they were eager to uncover why this ancient structure had suddenly awakened.

Just as the disciples retreated, agonized screams echoed from within the tower.

Then, like puppets yanked by invisible strings, the disciples who had entered for trials were flung out one after another.

Dugu Wei’s expression darkened. With a flick of his sleeve, he summoned a gentle divine net, catching all the ejected disciples midair.

As they landed, they bowed hastily. "Our thanks, Sect Master!"

"Do any of you know what occurred inside?"

The disciples exchanged bewildered looks. They had been mid-battle when their projections vanished, replaced by golden light before an unseen force expelled them.

Dugu Wei frowned but remained silent, deep in thought.

At that moment, Nangong Xue and Ling Fei'er rushed forward urgently.

"Sect Master! Elder Gu is still inside the tower!"

"He wasn’t among those ejected!"

Dugu Wei’s face shifted slightly. Gu Qingfeng hadn’t emerged?

Could the tower’s anomaly be related to him?

"Everyone, we must act together. The Twin Sacred Physique cannot be lost."

The chiefs understood the gravity and prepared to intervene.

But then—

The golden light began to recede like a tide, vanishing completely within moments.

The crowd stood in stunned silence.

Then—

A majestic voice resonated from the Sword Tower.

"The Sword Heavenly Emperor’s legacy has awakened!"

"That’s... the tower’s artifact spirit!"

"What does it mean? The Sword Heavenly Emperor’s legacy?!"

Every face paled at those words. The Sword Heavenly Emperor’s legacy—such a concept carried unimaginable weight.

Though none understood the circumstances, this was the inheritance of a Heavenly Emperor! The strongest legacy in existence!

The artifact spirit’s voice continued:

"Disciple of the 14th generation of the Sword Sect, inheritor of the Sword Formation Dao from the Nili Peak lineage—Gu Qingfeng—has defeated the Sword Heavenly Emperor, ranked first on the Human Yuan Leaderboard. He meets the criteria and is hereby designated as the successor."

Silence.

Absolute, deafening silence.

Every mind reeled with a single, earth-shattering realization:

The Sword Heavenly Emperor... had been defeated?!

It felt like a cosmic joke. The first reaction was disbelief. The second was denial.

That was a Heavenly Emperor! A supreme existence!

Even in his youth, a Heavenly Emperor was invincible within the same realm!

The Heavenly Emperor’s supremacy was an unshakable truth in their hearts.

For ten thousand years, the Sword Gate has stood tall, and atop every stone tablet in the Sword Tower, the name at the pinnacle has always been the Sword Heavenly Emperor! Even ten thousand years after his death, this name still looms over all eras, unmatched and unrivaled.

Yet today, that undefeated legend was shattered!

From this moment onward, the name Gu Qingfeng resounded throughout the Sword Gate!

Dugu Wei and the other sect chiefs stood frozen like statues, rooted in place for a long time, clearly petrified by this earth-shattering revelation.

After what felt like an eternity, Dugu Wei trembled with excitement and exclaimed, "Heaven has blessed our Sword Gate!"

The other chiefs, too, snapped out of their daze, their faces alight with unrestrained joy, regardless of whether they fully believed it yet.

"A Heavenly Emperor's bearing! This is the true bearing of a Heavenly Emperor! If he can defeat the young Sword Heavenly Emperor, what else could it be but the mark of a future Heavenly Emperor?" one chief cried out, nearly dancing in exhilaration.

"From this day forth, our Sword Gate shall rise again! Since the calamity five thousand years ago, the title of 'Imperial Sword Immortal Sect' has long been hollow, but now—now begins the era of our resurgence!"

"If Junior Brother Gu does not meet an untimely end, he will undoubtedly become the Heavenly Emperor of this era! Then our Sword Gate will boast two Heavenly Emperors—what glory could surpass this?"

At this moment, no one cared about the Heavenly Emperor's legacy, for no inheritance, no matter how mighty, could compare to the sheer awe of defeating the Heavenly Emperor himself!

Lin, the Chief, was also trembling with emotion, feeling as though her very soul had been cleansed.

"My Sword Formation lineage has claimed the top spot! After today, who dares to say that Sword Formation practitioners are inferior to traditional swordsmen?"

The more she spoke, the more fervent she became, as if she had reached the pinnacle of her life. Yet she failed to notice how far she had strayed from her usual composure, consumed by vanity. Having far exceeded her goals, she did not free herself from the allure of fame—instead, she sank deeper, her pride swelling uncontrollably.

Among the seven chiefs, Meng Yan's heart was also roiling with shock. Though Gu Qingfeng had always been hailed as having the bearing of a Heavenly Emperor, ascending to such a throne was unimaginably difficult—even dual sacred constitutions only offered a glimmer of hope.

But now, defeating the young Sword Heavenly Emperor had irrefutably proven what true Heavenly Emperor potential looked like.

Meng Yan's heart burned with ambition. He resolved to turn Gu Qingfeng into a Human-Demon at all costs. With such a prodigy on their side, the Human-Demon faction would become unstoppable!

Thus, upon returning, he would redouble his efforts to be kind to Gu Qingfeng, striving to awaken the young man's innate goodness and virtue.

Meanwhile, Nangong Xue and Ling Fei'er were equally stunned, their eyes shimmering with amazement—though their thoughts diverged.

Nangong Xue was devoted to the sword. To her, the Sword Heavenly Emperor represented the zenith of swordsmanship, an unshakable faith. Indeed, all swordsmen revered him as their idol—this was an indisputable truth.

Now that this idol had been toppled, memories of her recent days spent personally instructing Gu Qingfeng replayed endlessly in her mind, impossible to shake off.

The image of the Sword Heavenly Emperor, once enshrined in her heart, gradually faded, replaced by Gu Qingfeng's visage.

If he defeated the Sword Heavenly Emperor… did I play some small part in that?

When a woman's heart becomes indelibly imprinted with a man's presence, her downfall is not far behind.

Compared to Nangong Xue's purity, Ling Fei'er's thoughts were far more… impure.

Since ancient times, beauties have adored heroes. The moment Ling Fei'er learned of Gu Qingfeng's triumph, she too reminisced about their shared moments.

Yet their memories were sparse—both were ascetics, spending their time together in cultivation, devoid of frivolities.

But now, whenever Ling Fei'er recalled how she had trained day and night with such a man, a scorching heat surged through her.

The humiliation she once felt had vanished, replaced by swelling pride.

She even wanted to shout to the world—Gu Qingfeng is my man!

Especially to Nangong Xue. No matter how strong or exceptional you are, what does it matter? My man is the future Heavenly Emperor!

A trace of demonic allure flickered in her eyes as she unconsciously licked her lips.

"A man this extraordinary… belongs to me alone. I will claim him!"