Chapter 80

【At the age of twenty-two, you have already reached the Second Rank realm, topping the Hidden Dragon List, and your name is known throughout the world.】

【You went to Jiangzhou City to retrieve the Shadow Thief's treasure, only to find that Su Qingzhi and others had vanished without a trace. You deduced that it must have been the Liu family's doing, so you went to Pingjun City and asked Chu Xiyue and Wu Xingyun for help.】

【The three of you joined forces and rescued Su Qingzhi and the others.】

【Afterward, you and Chu Xiyue traveled together. A few days later, a First Rank Lin family member arrived, but Chu Xiyue drove him away.】

【After Chu Xiyue recovered from her injuries, she challenged you. Within ten moves, she was defeated by your blade. After that, you sparred several times, and she was always defeated by you.】

【A year later, she bid you farewell and left gracefully.】

【Wu Xingyun invited you to the Imperial Capital, and you accepted. Through his introduction, you successfully joined the Martial Academy and became a professor.】

【Five years later, the Martial Academy's dean was embroiled in a political struggle and was imprisoned. Several professors were implicated, and you were on the list of those to be arrested.】

【Unwilling to be captured, you took Su Qingzhi and tried to leave the Imperial Capital. The head of the Internal Guard, Qi Liancheng, pursued you, and you were forced to fight. After fifty moves, you were defeated by him. Qi Liancheng, admiring your talent, did not kill you but gave you two choices: die or join the Internal Guard.】

【You became a member of the Internal Guard, with the code name Phoenix. You were received by the current Empress and given a mission. You changed your name and appearance and went to the Literary Academy to infiltrate. Su Qingzhi was held as a hostage in the palace.】

【Under the skillful hands of a royal physician, you underwent plastic surgery and changed your appearance. In a secret place, you received guidance from a Blade Saint and trained intensively for a year, mastering three more techniques of the "Nine Techniques to Destroy the Gods." Your blade skills greatly improved.】

【Afterward, you went to the Literary Academy, pretending to be a swordsman returning from a distant ocean, and successfully joined the academy.】

【With your exceptional skills, you became a prominent figure in the Literary Academy within a year.】

【One day, you finally received a mission to defeat the chief of the Literary Academy, Ye Lingbo. Completing this mission would allow you to leave with Su Qingzhi.】

【Soon, the opportunity arose, and you did not hesitate to act. After a few moves, you realized that the opponent's strength was actually above yours. However, the opponent's sword strikes were deadly, giving you no chance to catch your breath. You were in a difficult situation, and at a critical moment, you used the killing move, unleashing the strongest strike of your life, severely wounding the opponent. You died, at the age of thirty.】

Gu Yang was heartbroken after reading this life.

Spending 100,000 taels, he only lived to the age of thirty.

Actually, with his current strength, he could have taken Su Qingzhi and hidden with Ling Ling, living at least until the age of forty.

However, after careful consideration, he felt that staying at the Martial Academy would allow him to learn more.

Studying alone had its limits, and the vast martial library of the Martial Academy was more useful to him.

Not to mention, this time he had the unexpected pleasure of receiving guidance from a Blade Saint for a whole year, mastering three more techniques of the "Nine Techniques to Destroy the Gods."

Afterward, he spent a year at one of the six major schools, the Literary Academy.

It wasn't a complete loss.

Gu Yang consoled himself this way.

As for the chief disciple of the Literary Academy, Ye Lingbo, she ranked third on the Heavenly Pride List and was the youngest of the nine current Heavenly Prides, only sixteen years old.

At the same time, she was also third on the Beauty List, known as the "Fairy Descended."

According to Xu Ruomei, it was rumored that this woman might be the reincarnation of an ancient female immortal, possessing a divine appearance.

It was no wonder the Empress wanted to use his hands to eliminate this world-class Heavenly Pride, the "Fairy Descended."

After reaching the Second Rank, Gu Yang also had the qualifications to be involved in such high-level struggles. Unfortunately, in the eyes of those big shots, he was still just a pawn.

【Simulation ended. You can retain one of the following.】

【1. The martial realm at the age of thirty.】

【2. The martial experience at the age of thirty.】

【3. The wisdom of life at the age of thirty.】

"I choose the second."

As soon as Gu Yang spoke, various insights and experiences in martial arts flooded his mind, immersing him deeply.

...

It took Gu Yang half a day to exhale a long breath, his eyes reflecting a hint of joy.

The feeling of instantly advancing to a higher level of strength was truly wonderful.

The greatest gain was the guidance from the Blade Saint.

Being called a "Saint" meant being a powerful expert at the Divine Realm. That year of training raised his blade skills to a new level, allowing him to master three more techniques of the "Nine Techniques to Destroy the Gods."

"It's time to go save people."

Gu Yang stood up, gripped the Phoenix Feather Blade, and left.

...

Hundreds of miles away, two carriages were swaying on the road, with seven or eight riders surrounding them.

On the roadside, those with keen eyes could immediately recognize that this was the Liu family's convoy from Bazhou.

The Liu family of Bazhou was originally just a prominent family, but since the emergence of the Heavenly Pride Liu Zhe, their influence had grown, almost rivaling the Lin family.

It was clear to everyone that the Lin family, the dominant force in Jiangzhou, could no longer suppress the Liu family.

Once Liu Zhe grew up, whether Jiangzhou would still be under the Lin family's name was uncertain.

Of course, the Lin family was not to be underestimated. The main family was one of the nine great surnames in the world, and the outcome was still unknown.

From the luxury of the two carriages, it was evident that important figures of the Liu family were inside.

They were right; one of the carriages was occupied by the Liu family's Heavenly Pride, Liu Zhe.

Liu Zhe had a face like a jade crown, with an extraordinary demeanor, dressed in fine silk and brocade, just like a noble young master.

He let out a light hum, his expression somewhat displeased, "Uncle is getting old and senile!"

The old man sitting opposite him lowered his head, not daring to respond.

The uncle Liu Zhe was referring to was the head of the Liu family.

The old man, being the head steward of the Liu family, naturally dared not comment on the head of the family.

"There are many ways to make Su Qingzhi willingly serve the Fifth Prince, but Uncle chose the stupidest one, leading to this mess."

Liu Zhe was quite dissatisfied with this matter.

Previously, he had been in the East Sea, training under his master. It was only last month that he was allowed to travel.

His first stop was to return to the Liu family.

Upon arriving home, he heard about the Su Qingzhi incident.

In his view, forcing her and then killing her entire family was utterly foolish.

Do they really think that with their strength and background, they can act as they please in this world?

There are always people stronger and with more influence than you.

Not understanding this basic principle, they actually dared to challenge the Lin family? Do they want to die quickly?

Liu Zhe said, "Now that Su Qingzhi has hooked up with Gu Yang, who is ranked seventh on the Hidden Dragon List, a mysterious figure who jumped to seventh place upon joining, he is not to be underestimated. The only way now is to use Su Qingzhi as bait to lure him here and eliminate him to prevent future troubles."

"After eliminating him, send Xu Ruomei away and then kill Su Qingzhi."

Liu Zhe's tone was very calm, as if he were talking about something ordinary.

The steward's lips moved, about to say something, but a cold glance from Liu Zhe made him shiver, and he couldn't say a word.