Chapter 272: Just One Sword

“Unfilial descendant!”

“Unfilial descendant!”

“What sin have I committed to end up with such a wretched little beast like you?!”

“If I had known this would happen, I would’ve smashed my head against a wall and died long ago!”

On the rain-drenched main street, an old woman wailed at the top of her lungs.

Her hands and feet were already bound, while a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old boy was tightening the knots around her arms with a thick hemp rope.

That boy was none other than her grandson. Just a short while ago, when Zhou Zhongtian and the others were going through the streets and alleys tying people up, they had spotted this old woman sobbing as she prepared to hang herself from a crooked tree.

Upon seeing this, the boy had volunteered to subdue and restrain her.

Aside from Zhou Zhongtian, the other teenagers also had a deep impression of the old woman—after all, the village wasn’t that big. She was a kind-hearted granny who often made delicious food for them; how could they not remember her?

So when they saw her trying to hang herself, their hearts sank.

By this point, they had already witnessed far too many people—despite having their hands and feet bound—still trying everything they could, even biting off their own tongues, just to end their lives.

Rip!

After securing the ropes, the boy tore a strip of cloth from his sleeve, wrung out the rainwater, and carefully stuffed it into the old woman’s mouth.

Once everything was done, his bloodshot eyes filled with sorrow, he carried her into an open shop along the street, covered her with a cotton cloth, and then left without looking back.

“Brother Zhou, will my grandma be okay?” The boy turned to Zhou Zhongtian hesitantly.

Zhou Zhongtian nodded, forcing a grim smile. “She’ll be fine. As long as we all work together, we can get through this!”

“That evil flood dragon in the sky… is there anyone who can deal with it?” The boy asked expressionlessly.

Zhou Zhongtian lifted his head, about to respond, but then he saw—standing before the flood dragon—a lone figure suspended in midair.

At the same time, in East Corner Village, Feng Wei and her group—who had set up traps to “hunt” greedy villagers—also noticed the figure floating in the sky.

After a long silence of shock, Feng Wei suddenly murmured, “As expected… A man who can resist such beauty is certainly no ordinary person…”

“Unbelievable! Who would’ve thought our master values that Mr. Gu so highly—he actually took on his true form right from the start! That means he’s planning to fight with his full strength!” The cart-pulling man sighed as he gazed at the enormous figure looming in the sky.

“A rare sight indeed!” The butcher frowned and hesitated. “Just where did this Mr. Gu come from? For the master to treat him so seriously… could he really be an immortal?”

The plump woman interjected, “I’ve said it before—this man’s cultivation is unfathomable. But even I underestimated him. I thought I was already overestimating him back then… yet I still fell short. He actually forced the master to reveal his true form from the start…”

“Woo woo woo~” The young man in stage robes whined, “Call me pessimistic, but we’ve already lost our cultivation. If the master falls, we’re doomed too…”

The moment he spoke, the other three chang ghosts shot him annoyed looks.

It was fine to be a jinx on normal days, but saying something so ominous now was downright irritating.

“You lot should start thinking about whether you have any regrets left,” Temple Keeper Huang said, standing not far away with his arms crossed. “Not that you have much time to dwell on them, but at least you can still think about it.”

Hearing this, the plump woman’s brows furrowed slightly. “Daoist Huang, do you know where this Mr. Gu comes from? Can you tell us?”

“At this point, we have no way of influencing the battle anyway…”

“Live or die—it all depends on those two in the sky now…”

“You’re trying to get information out of me? You think I don’t know that you chang ghosts can share a mental connection with your master?” Temple Keeper Huang sneered. “But it doesn’t matter. In the face of absolute power, any schemes or tricks are nothing more than a joke…”

“Mr. Gu… is a hidden true immortal!”

The moment these words fell, the butcher was the first to scoff. “Ridiculous! Do you think true immortals are as common as cabbages on the street? What kind of true immortal would be so bored as to disguise himself as an External Agent and play along with us for so long?”

“Woo woo woo~ Yellow weasel, how foolish~ woo woo woo!”

The cart-pulling man added, “You yellow weasel, your cultivation isn’t bad, but your brain sure is slow. Do you really think just tossing out the words ‘true immortal’ will shake our master’s resolve?”

The plump woman said nothing, merely pondering deeply—was there any truth to Temple Keeper Huang’s words?

When she saw that yellow weasel actually shrugged, looking completely at ease, as if he had victory in hand and all the advantage on his side, she couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy.

Zheng!

A sword cry, sharp and clear, suddenly rang out, echoing through the heavens and earth!

In that instant, all other sounds seemed to vanish, leaving only the reverberating hum of a blade unsheathing, lingering in everyone’s ears.

Following the sound, they turned to look—

And saw Mr. Gu, clad in white, swinging his sword!

The frost-cold blade light, as brilliant as snow, seemed to tear a gaping hole in the pitch-black sky. Blinding sunlight spilled through the ever-widening rift, illuminating the world below!

Puchi!

A massive dragon’s head soared into the sky!

Thick, foul-smelling blood rained down, splattering onto the ground in a torrential downpour!

“ROAR!”

With an agonized, earth-shaking howl, the creature known as Hei Shui twisted its immense body, now left with only a single head, and fled into the distance at full speed!

Meanwhile, Gu Ning’an, gripping the Hongchen Sword, moved forward unhurriedly, stepping into the air as he followed Hei Shui’s retreating figure.

To the onlookers, he appeared to take a single step—

Yet in the next instant, his form had already crossed a thousand meters. And when he took another step, he vanished entirely from the skies above Four Corners Town!

Only after he had disappeared did the townspeople finally regain their senses—

And realize that beneath that single sword strike, the skies of Four Corners Town had cleared.

“Am I dreaming…?”

After a long silence, the plump woman muttered, her voice dazed and mechanical.

She knew all too well just how terrifyingly powerful Hei Shui was!

That was a naturally born two-headed black serpent, a thousand-year-old monster!

This creature, gifted with two heads, had already refined one and sprouted flood dragon horns—

And it had come here to seize the spiritual essence of Shengxian River in order to regrow the second head’s dragon horns!

Once both sets of horns had fully formed, even if Hei Shui hadn’t yet reached the realm of a true great demon, it would be incredibly close!

To put it plainly—no matter which path of cultivation one pursued, a two-headed Hei Shui should have been an invincible force among its peers!

After all, with two minds, its cultivation was twice as difficult as that of ordinary beings—

And if it succeeded, it would naturally surpass all other flood dragons in strength!

Yet now, with just one sword…

One of its heads had been cut clean off?

If this wasn’t a dream, then what was it?

“Ahaha! This head sure is heavy—wonder if it’ll make a good soup…”

Somehow, at some point, Temple Keeper Huang had retrieved the severed flood dragon head and casually tossed it in front of the four chang ghosts, a playful smile curling on his lips.