Sea City Martial Association Headquarters.

On the Practice Field, a few Martial Association Directors and a group of elite disciples were lying haphazardly on the ground, groaning in pain.

Guan Changyun stood alone with his sword, his proud stance set amidst the defeated. He looked around to find no one left to challenge him.

Outside the Practice Field, a crowd of Martial Association disciples surrounded the blood-covered Su Guobang, all with worried expressions on their faces. Su Guobang sat weakly in a large armchair, his body covered in multiple sword wounds that bled profusely. A female disciple, her eyes brimming with tears, was bandaging his injuries.

Although Guan Changyun had not struck to kill and none of the wounds were fatal, excessive blood loss could still be life-threatening.

Su Guobang stared at Guan Changyun on the Practice Field, his eyes filled with resentment, anger, and a deep sense of helplessness.

After Luo Xiu had cured his old injuries, he had reached the Grandmaster Great Perfection realm and had spent the last few days consolidating it. He had thought that this time, he would surely have the strength to fight Guan Changyun!

However, reality was cruel. When he faced Guan Changyun again, he was still utterly powerless—even more so than last time. Last time, he had at least been able to withstand five moves. This could only mean that Guan Changyun's strength had surpassed Grandmaster Great Perfection and reached that legendary realm.

On the Practice Field, Guan Changyun met Su Guobang's gaze with an indifferent expression. He smiled faintly and said, "I didn't expect the Martial Association to be filled with such a bunch of hopeless good-for-nothings."

Hearing this, Su Guobang was greatly aggravated. He clenched his teeth, ready to fight again, but several Martial Association disciples hurriedly held him back.

Just then, a playful voice came from the back of the crowd.

"Bullying young people who are weaker than you, then standing there all high and mighty calling them 'hopeless good-for-nothings.' I must say, Senior Guan, you're really one of a kind."

Hearing this, everyone turned to look. They found that the newcomers were Luo Xiu and Su Shanyue and immediately parted to make way.

Su Guobang was also surprised to see them, as he hadn't informed either Luo Xiu or Su Shanyue. Guan Changyun's display of strength this time far exceeded that of his last visit. Because of this, Su Guobang didn't want to drag Luo Xiu and Su Shanyue into it and hadn't notified them.

"Doctor Luo, Yueyue… how did you two get here?"

Su Shanyue rushed over to support Su Guobang, tears sparkling in her eyes. She gestured in sign language that a senior brother had called and told her to come.

Luo Xiu calmly walked over to Su Guobang's side. After a quick examination confirmed that Su Guobang was not seriously harmed, he breathed a sigh of relief. Then, with a half-smile, Luo Xiu looked toward Guan Changyun on the Practice Field.

"Senior Guan, if you look closely, your own foundation isn't that impressive either. If we really had to categorize, you'd barely make it into the ranks of the useless. I'm guessing at their age, you weren't even as good as them, right?"

Faced with Luo Xiu's ridicule, Guan Changyun remained unmoved and spoke slowly, "In the end, it doesn't matter if one's a genius or a waste. The one who lives to the end is the winner."

Luo Xiu shook his head. "A pity, then. You have at most one week left to live, so you're doomed to not be that winner."

Hearing this, Guan Changyun laughed scornfully. "Last time you said I had a month. Why is it only a week now?"

"Because you're too arrogant," Luo Xiu said as he walked leisurely towards the Practice Field.

"How does that saying go… 'Weakness and ignorance are not obstacles to survival, but arrogance is.'

"And because your arrogance has made you a fool, you can't listen to anyone's advice."

As he spoke, Luo Xiu came to a stop in front of Guan Changyun.

Guan Changyun's gaze suddenly sharpened. His sword-holding hand tightened slightly, and the blade trembled, bursting forth with a terrifying killing intent.

"Brat, your timing is perfect! This saves me the trouble of looking for you!"

"Doctor Luo, be careful! He's already reached that legendary…" Su Guobang yelled anxiously from outside the field, his face full of concern.

However, before he could finish, Guan Changyun had already thrust his sword at Luo Xiu.

This wasn't Guan Changyun's first time fighting Luo Xiu, so he knew how fast his opponent was. To avoid being caught off guard by another slap, he decided to strike first! Even though his power had surpassed the Grandmaster realm, he still didn't dare to underestimate Luo Xiu.

This unstoppable sword strike frightened everyone outside the field into closing their eyes, unable to bear watching.

In the next moment, however, his thrust came to a halt. No matter how much strength he exerted, it could not advance a single inch.

Luo Xiu had simply extended his hand, casually catching the blade between two fingers.

The tip of his sword was less than ten centimeters from Luo Xiu's chest, but that short distance had become an insurmountable chasm.

Witnessing this, the eyes of the Martial Association disciples lit up. A wave of amazement washed over them as they suddenly saw a glimmer of hope.

In the ensuing silence, Luo Xiu spoke. "There has been some progress. You're quite a bit stronger than last time. Senior Guan must have had a breakthrough, correct?"

Guan Changyun's eyes were sharp. He covertly mobilized the Spiritual Energy within his body, resolutely using his full power. Strangely, however, his sword remained perfectly still, unable to advance or be withdrawn.

Luo Xiu's two fingers were like a pair of towering mountains blocking his path.

Luo Xiu smiled. "Still, I can't figure out where you got the nerve to call yourself the 'Undefeated Sword Pride.' Is that a title given to you by all the people weaker than you?"

CRACK!

Suddenly, with just two fingers, Luo Xiu snapped the Three-Foot Sword that had accompanied Guan Changyun for many years.

Guan Changyun's eyes widened in shock. He stared at Luo Xiu in disbelief as his aged body began to tremble. The crisp sound of the breaking sword seemed to echo in his ears.

He staggered back several steps, nearly falling to the ground. He stared blankly at the broken sword in his hand, as if in a trance. In that moment, his proud and unyielding sword heart, like the weapon in his hand, was shattered to pieces.

Luo Xiu turned and walked away, leaving only a single sentence behind. "Whether you are a Grandmaster or have broken through to that so-called legendary realm, what difference does it make before me? Old man, a final piece of advice: go back and prepare for your funeral while you still have a few days left."

***

「Outside the Practice Field」

Su Guobang watched Luo Xiu approach, his eyes full of admiration.

Luo Xiu smiled and said, "Senior Su, it's all taken care of. I'll head back now. Yueyue, you stay here with your grandfather."

Su Shanyue also looked at Luo Xiu with admiring eyes, her own beautiful eyes shining as she nodded earnestly. For some reason, she suddenly felt very proud.

At that moment, a Martial Association Director, clutching his chest, staggered over. "President, what should we do about Guan Changyun? He injured you this badly! We can't let him off easily!"

Su Guobang glanced at Guan Changyun, who still stood dazed on the Practice Field. A look of pity crossed his face, and he sighed softly out of compassion.

"There's no need. He's actually hurt much worse than I am. My injuries are merely superficial."

He could tell that Luo Xiu had done it on purpose. Luo Xiu had mercilessly shattered Guan Changyun's sword heart! For the rest of his life, it would be difficult for Guan Changyun to ever recover. For a martial practitioner, this was akin to losing half one's life and becoming a walking corpse. This was even more terrifying than suffering a cultivation deviation!

***

「Quite some time later」

Guan Changyun walked out of the Martial Association's main gate with an unsteady gait. He returned to the Cao Family Courtyard and entered the quiet courtyard where he had previously secluded himself for his breakthrough.

He sat cross-legged on the ground, staring vacantly at the intersecting sword marks on the wall, recalling every technique and move of the swordsmanship that had been his life's pride.

Suddenly, an intense pain emanated from his body without warning. His meridians began to rupture, and his aura fell into chaos. The extreme pain nearly drove him to collapse. Gradually, blood began to seep from his seven orifices.

Yet he kept his gaze fixed on the sword marks on the wall, his eyes filled with unwillingness. He wanted to understand just where he had failed, why he had lost to a young man in his twenties.

He sat like that for two full days.

Two days later, he washed up, changed into clean clothes, and walked out of the small courtyard.

"Senior Guan, where are you going?" Cao Ende asked as he hurried over.

Guan Changyun glanced at Cao Ende with an expressionless face and said coldly, "Take this old man to find Luo Xiu."

"..."

***

*Apologies to all my dear readers. I've had a cold and fever for the past two days and have been on IV drips, so I was in no condition to write. That's why I didn't update for two days. Updates will resume today. I'd like to shamelessly ask for your votes~ Thank you.*

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.