Ex-Wife is a Big Villainess
Chapter 688 - 341: Looking at You Getting Slapped in the Face?_2

Chapter 688: Chapter 341: Looking at You Getting Slapped in the Face?_2

This tower, open to outsiders, has undoubtedly become a holy land for Jianghu cultivators to practice.

But it also attracted the covetous eyes of many, leading to frequent theft and brawling incidents.

Thus, the Sect Leader ordered the tower to be sealed.

This decision naturally incited protests and anger from Jianghu cultivators, who flocked to demand an explanation.

Some even vented their frustration by seriously injuring several Zhenxuan Mountain disciples.

Such is human nature—after being accustomed to taking advantage for free, the moment someone denies them, they feel betrayed and start throwing tantrums and curses.

At that time, though Zhenxuan Mountain was a prominent sect, it wasn’t considered the undisputed leader of the Taoist world, so it didn’t command universal reverence from cultivators.

Faced with the disputes brought to its doors, this fourth-generation Sect Leader didn’t tolerate them and resolved the matter with sheer force.

Anyone who came to challenge—he beat them to submission.

He would fight until they dared not provoke again, leaving them toothless.

Later, people realized that this Sect Leader, who usually wore a harmless smile, was secretly the number one in the world.

From then on, no one dared to provoke him again.

And this Sect Leader ultimately ascended successfully, becoming the last person to ascend.

He was revered as the Taoist Ancestor.

From that moment onward, Zhenxuan Mountain firmly occupied the position of the orthodox sect in the Taoist world.

Before his ascension, the Taoist Ancestor transformed the Cultivation Technique Pavilion into a Treasure Pavilion. Apart from cultivation techniques, he placed magical artifacts and treasures there, inscribed it with the Heavenly Destiny Talisman, and installed six Sword Corpse Slaves as guardians.

This meant that no one could destroy the pavilion or sneak in to steal.

After the Taoist Ancestor ascended, the pagoda gained the charm of the great Tao, becoming the number one treasure tower in the world.

But later, circumstances shifted again.

The sixth-generation Sect Leader, Gu Chengxin, fell in love with a sword practicing woman. To pursue her, he transformed the pagoda, imbued with the great Tao’s charm, into the Sword Storage Tower.

He retained only sword-related cultivation techniques and weapons, relocating other treasures and cultivation techniques elsewhere.

Even going against sect rules, Gu Chengxin inscribed the Taoist Ancestor Sword Manual onto the top floor wall, allowing the woman to view it while prohibiting all other disciples and elders from entering.

This Sect Leader was undoubtedly a prime example of a lovesick fool.

With the enhancement of the great Tao’s charm, the woman’s swordsmanship naturally advanced by leaps and bounds.

But alas, after finishing her training with the Taoist Ancestor Sword Manual, the woman rejected the sixth-generation Sect Leader’s romantic pursuit, saying something along the lines of "You’re a good person, but we’re not suitable." Then, she left without a word.

Gu Chengxin’s mental state collapsed and he ultimately succumbed to inner demons.

In his frenzied state, he found the woman, defeated her, severed her tendons, and brought her to Famous Sword Villa’s Blood Pool, where he cruelly refined her into a Sword Corpse Slave.

Gu Chengxin placed the refined female Sword Corpse Slave on the top floor of the tower, tasking her with guarding the Taoist Ancestor Sword Manual.

From then onward, the Sword Storage Tower came to have a total of seven Sword Corpse Slaves.

Gu Chengxin passed the Sect Leader position to his junior brother Qi Tianjun and disappeared. Rumors suggested he might already be dead.

Upon ascending, Qi Tianjun considered releasing the female Sword Corpse Slave but, upon reading the letter Gu Chengxin left behind, ultimately decided against it. Instead, he repurposed the tower as a trial tower for the disciples.

To cultivate higher tier sword manuals and techniques, one must ascend the tower level by level, defeating the Sword Corpse Slaves.

With each higher floor, the strength of the Sword Corpse Slaves increased.

The strongest among them was the female Sword Corpse Slave on the top floor. Until now, only Yun Wuqing had been able to exchange a few moves with her but did not defeat her.

Thus, the Taoist Ancestor Sword Manual remains inaccessible to anyone for the time being.

After hearing the story, Jiang Shouzhong sighed and said, "The previous Sect Leader was truly ruthless."

Yelü Miaomiao curled her lips and remarked, "That woman deserved it. If you don’t like someone, then don’t climb the Sword Storage Tower to practice their sword manual. You took all the benefits and left scot-free—you reap the consequences of what you sow."

Jiang Shouzhong chuckled and chose not to comment.

Upon entering the Sword Storage Tower, there were many disciples observing sword manuals—among them was Ke Menghe, who had intentionally made things difficult for him on the mountain earlier, along with two show-off junior disciples.

On the first and second floors, all that was displayed were Zhenxuan Mountain’s ordinary sword manuals, freely available for anyone to observe and practice.

For better sword manuals, one had to ascend to the third floor and face the Sword Corpse Slaves.

"Young Master Jiang."

Upon seeing Jiang Shouzhong, Ke Menghe looked visibly awkward and tense. He cupped his hands and greeted him, asking, "Is Young Master Jiang here to watch Young Master Fang’s trial?"

"Fang Ziheng is undergoing a trial here?"

Jiang Shouzhong asked, surprised.

Ke Menghe, realizing that Jiang Shouzhong was unaware, paused briefly and then nodded with a smile:

"Young Master Fang came to observe sword manuals this morning. After learning about the rules of our Sword Storage Tower, he decided to give it a try. He’s already reached the sixth floor and hasn’t come down yet."

The sixth floor... which meant Fang Ziheng had battled the fourth Sword Corpse Slave.

Jiang Shouzhong silently assessed the strength levels of the Sword Corpse Slaves.

It seemed these sword corpses were indeed formidable.

He suddenly recalled the sword corpses within the Sword Cave of Famous Sword Villa—they, too, had been quite powerful.

It was just that those corpses hadn’t detected him, allowing him to take advantage of the situation.

As for this Sword Storage Tower...

Jiang Shouzhong’s eyes flickered, and he smiled, asking, "Taoist Ke, may I take the trial?"

Ke Menghe was momentarily stunned.

Recalling the flying sword technique Jiang Shouzhong had demonstrated earlier, Ke Menghe quickly said:

"Of course you can. Although the Sword Storage Tower’s rules only allow sect disciples to participate, my master has instructed that both Young Master Jiang and Young Master Fang are esteemed guests and may take the trial."

"Count me in—I’ll give it a try too."

Qu Hongling’s eyes lit up.

Yelü Miaomiao couldn’t be bothered to join the excitement. After all, Yan Rong City had a Xiuwu Pavilion established by the Empress Dowager, boasting twelve floors and far superior to Zhenxuan Mountain’s.

Under Ke Menghe’s lead, the three proceeded to the third floor.

At the entrance, Jiang Shouzhong noticed Fang Ziheng’s attendant was anxiously standing near the doorway, frequently glancing toward the staircase inside while muttering under his breath.

"Guo."

Jiang Shouzhong called out.

The attendant turned his head, his eyes lighting up upon seeing Jiang Shouzhong and the others.

The boy ran up and greeted everyone one by one: "Young Master Jiang, Sister Qu, Sister Miaomiao, are you all here to try the trial as well? My young master has already reached the sixth floor, but we don’t know if he succeeded yet..."

As he spoke, pride shone on his face, though he couldn’t completely mask the worry in his eyes.

Jiang Shouzhong ruffled the boy’s head with a smile and said:

"Don’t worry, even if he doesn’t succeed, your young master won’t be in any danger. The worst-case scenario is he could get injured. I’ve more or less understood the trial’s rules—there’s no risk of losing one’s life."

According to the rules Ke Menghe had mentioned, disciples entering the trial were protected by talismans.

Determining victory was straightforward.

One simply had to stab a Sword Corpse Slave in a fatal spot—like the throat or the heart—for it to count as success.

"My young master will definitely succeed!" the attendant declared loudly.

The surrounding disciples secretly shook their heads.

After being up there for so long, it was clear that Fang Ziheng had already reached his limit.

Nevertheless, managing to advance to the sixth floor was already quite impressive, surpassing ninety percent of Zhenxuan Mountain’s disciples.

Ke Menghe remarked, "The strength of the sixth-floor Sword Corpse Slave is roughly at the Initial Period of the Heaven Desolation Boundary, whereas Young Master Fang is in the Great Profound Sect Master’s realm—it’s a bit challenging."

Upon hearing this, the attendant’s expression fell.

"All right, Hong’er and I will head up first to check the situation."

Jiang Shouzhong turned to ask Yelü Miaomiao, "Aren’t you coming?"

Yelü Miaomiao lightly shook her head: "I’m not interested in sword cultivation. I’ll stay nearby and wait for you all. Take care—if you can’t beat it, just come down and don’t overexert yourselves."

Jiang Shouzhong found Yelü Miaomiao’s behavior somewhat peculiar but didn’t dwell on it, smiling: "Don’t worry, I’ll definitely reach the top floor. I’ll copy the Taoist Ancestor Sword Manual down for you all when I do."

"Braggart."

The attendant muttered under his breath.

Ke Menghe also smiled, softly reminding him:

"Young Master Jiang, even my master Yun Wuqing couldn’t defeat that female Sword Corpse Slave at the top. Her strength is likely at the Initial Feathered Transformation Realm, unless Master Dugu personally intervenes."

Ke Menghe acknowledged Jiang Shouzhong’s formidable skills but firmly believed he couldn’t reach the top floor.

And it wasn’t just Ke Menghe—the others present shared the same sentiment.

Since the opening of the Sword Storage Tower Trial, only the Sect Leaders had been able to overcome the challenges. Yun Wuqing and the four elders, including Chai Liuqi, had reached the top floors, but no others even came close.

This included Qu Hongling and Yelü Miaomiao—upon hearing of the Feathered Transformation Realm, their expressions shifted.

How many individuals in the world were at the Feathered Transformation Realm?

This female Sword Corpse Slave was remarkably strong.

"No problem. Since there’s no risk of death, even if it’s Heavenly Human Boundary, I’ll still puncture a hole in it."

Jiang Shouzhong said nonchalantly.

This blatant boast left everyone present speechless.

Fine, we’ll just watch you get proven wrong.