News that Xue Ren of Extreme Sword Heaven invited fellow Daoists to sharpen his sword spread throughout the entire Myriad Heavens almost overnight.
As long as there were Void Cutters who could see outside events, it was inevitable for everyone to hear the news. The birth of a new Unified Dao powerhouse would be a major event that would shake the Myriad Heavens.
But after the initial surprise, people felt that this was to be expected.
Xue Ren had been called the "closest to the Thirteen Heavens" for many years. This in itself was enough to show that his realm was only one step away from that level.
There was nothing strange about him finally taking this step. It was only a matter of time.
Of course, since Xue Ren hadn't yet admitted it himself, there was still another possibility.
Xue Ren set the date of the spar for half a month later, but only two days had passed before rumors spread that the Star Ruler of Weapon Martial Heaven, one of the Thirteen Heavens, had gone to Void Grotto Heaven's Yu Lian to verify the truthfulness of the rumors.
Many people knew about the relationship between Xue Ren and Yu Lian of Void Grotto Heaven, so Yu Lian was naturally the most obvious choice to inquire about Xue Ren's situation.
However, Yu Lian's attitude was interesting—she didn't say anything, let alone give any indication of her position, and simply said three words.
"Wait and see."
...
Within Gu Nan's Divine Kingdom, the intense preparations for soldier production had reached the most critical stage.
After the Evil God Temple was upgraded to Level 2, Gu Nan was able to level up structures to Level 2. With the Divine Servant Institute, it could be leveled up twice, with more powerful soldier types.
For example, the earlier Dark Warriors and Ghouls could be upgraded into Dark Knights and Patchwork Monsters respectively, more than doubling their original strength.
Gu Nan had been preparing for Tier 7's advancement for two years and had long accumulated a large number of points. If he didn't sense that time was running out, he would've waited even longer.
Of course, it would still take some time to upgrade structures, manufacture soldiers, and convert these points into real combat power.
"My Lord, news spread like crazy in the Myriad Heavens. Lord Xue Ren of Extreme Sword Heaven will soon ascend to Unified Dao Realm, so he's sending out invitations far and wide to test his sword…"
On a rare occasion, Red Tail wasn't in White Bones Realm, but came to Gu Nan's side and personally reported the news.
She knew Gu Nan had some connection to Xue Ren and knew that this matter was so important that she had to come and speak to Gu Nan in person.
What she didn't expect was that, in response to what she saw as an earth-shattering event, Gu Nan merely revealed an odd smile. "Xue Ren? He's thinking of the same thing I am."
Red Tail didn't understand Gu Nan's meaning and could only ask, "Then should we…?"
"Did Xue Ren invite me?" Gu Nan asked after some thought.
"Yes, Elder Zhang Hui of the Sword Sect personally delivered the invitation." Red Tail hastily nodded; this was also one of the reasons she reported to Gu Nan in person.
"Accept the invitation and have him bring a message back—I'll be there, and also have Xue Ren help me invite another person."
"Who?"
"Rending Mountain Venerable of Mountain River World."
...
Mountain River World.
Mountain River World was only a small plane that couldn't even compare to those Realm Level astral worlds, much less… White Bones Realm.
That's right. As a Star Ruler who once fought with Daoist White Bones for the opportunity to ascend his astral world to a Realm Level plane, Rending Mountain Venerable had always compared himself against White Bones Realm.
Even if times were different now and White Bones Realm was already a top-tier Realm Level plane while his Mountain River World didn't advance but actually grew weaker, unable to even compare to its former glory.
But in Rending Mountain Venerable's heart, he never conceded defeat and was always thinking of turning the tide.
Unfortunately, others didn't see it that way. As the status of Daoist White Bones rose higher and higher, more Star Rulers were naturally willing to befriend him.
But on Rending Mountain Venerable's side, almost everyone who approached him were just bootlickers hoping to win some favors with flattery.
There wasn't much Rending Mountain Venerable could do about this besides sulk and curse at these people a few times in passing.
Until this day, he received an invitation from Extreme Sword Heaven and finally felt vindicated.
'The Sword Sect's Sect Master Xue Ren of Extreme Sword Heaven sent me an invitation to observe the ceremony!'
Although the invitation clearly wrote the phrase "sword watching," Rending Mountain Venerable didn't feel insulted in the slightest—in any case, even if Daoist White Bones received an invitation, it would still say "sword watching" at most.
"As expected of a big shot about to enter Unified Dao, he has good taste!" Rending Mountain Venerable exclaimed to the people around him with a laugh.
There were many bootlickers around Rending Mountain Venerable, but there were still people with discerning eyes among the Void Cutter subordinates.
"My Lord, that one from Extreme Sword Heaven has… no dealings with you. How come he suddenly thought of sending Your Lordship an invitation?" A middle-aged man dressed as a Confucian scholar next to him asked.
In fact, what the middle-aged Confucian scholar actually wanted to say was: "Just how high is Xue Ren's status? Why would he ever notice a small fry like you?"
But Rending Mountain Venerable didn't seem to understand what he was implying and replied with a smile, "Xue Ren must be very confident of taking that step, so he invited a large number of unrelated people to observe the ceremony. This is a show of extravagance!"
When he said the word "show," Rending Mountain Venerable practically had this is what a manly man is like written on his face.
The middle-aged Confucian scholar thought about it for a long time but still felt that something was wrong. However, he couldn't find the problem.
'Could it be that Xue Ren wants Mountain River World? But why would a powerhouse like Xue Ren be interested in a tiny Mountain River World…?'
...
Half a month passed in a flash. The time of Xue Ren's sword testing ceremony had arrived, and many Star Rulers gathered in Extreme Sword Heaven.
"Senior Gu Nan, please come with me," Gao Xiaowen said respectfully as he walked into Gu Nan's room.
With Gu Nan's current reputation, it was quite appropriate for Gao Xiaowen to call him "Senior."
But this was a little early. Gu Nan couldn't help but wonder, "The sword testing ceremony hasn't started yet, right? Does Xue Ren want to trade a couple blows with me first?"
Gao Xiaowen was shocked by Gu Nan's mysterious confidence, then managed to squeeze a smile onto his face. "Senior must be joking… Martial Uncle asked you to come over to discuss something."
Gu Nan nodded, then said to the Lan Si who came with him, "Inform Shana that she can make a move on that side."
Lan Si responded and left, but Gao Xiaowen looked confused. "What do you mean?"
Gu Nan flashed him a friendly smile. "I haven't slaughtered someone's entire family in a long time."
...
To host the sword testing ceremony, the Sword Sect purposely built a sword testing platform just for this event. Right now, the surrounding area was already filled with people, with countless Star Rulers among the spectators.
At the back of the sword testing platform, Gu Nan was meeting Xue Ren and the friend he brought along.
It was an old man with white hair and a wrinkled face, as if he could collapse at any moment.
"This is a venerable senior." Xue Ren introduced him to Gu Nan, "We usually call him Zi Luo Elder."
Gu Nan raised an eyebrow as his gaze instantly landed on this old man. He'd also heard of Zi Luo Elder's story.
An amiable smile emerged on Zi Luo Elder's face as he waved his hand. "This old man just came for a sip of hot tea. You guys discuss your matters."
Xue Ren also didn't care and nodded with a smile. He said to Gu Nan, "Originally, I just wanted to invite you to come for a stroll and help me put up a front when the time comes."
"But now it looks like you also have guests to entertain?"
"Mine's an enemy."
"Then you hold grudges for quite long." Xue Ren couldn't help laughing in spite of himself. He knew about Gu Nan's conflict with Rending Mountain Venerable, but that was just a trivial matter. He didn't expect Gu Nan to still remember it now.
Gu Nan thought for a moment and replied, "I have to find someone to kill. There's no other suitable candidate, so count him unlucky."