Gu Tianjun had always looked down on people from the Heavenspan Realm. Back before the body of the Arch-Sovereign collapsed, he had somewhat looked forward to the arrival of the Arch-Emperor Dynasty. But after the collapse, as more people from the Heavenspan Realm became part of the Saint-Emperor Dynasty, things changed.

As time progressed, he learned more and more about what had gone on in the Heavenspan Realm.

“Endless chaos and disorder. And they never even raised someone to the Mahayana Realm. Considering how late they are, they’re doomed to be little more than servants. Completely useless.” Gu Tianjun was the type of person who looked up to those who were more powerful than him, but at the same time, wanted to defeat them and take their place. That was something about him that not even the Saint-Emperor could find fault with.

After all... when it came to bloodlines, Gu Tianjun was also a direct descendant of the original Saint-Emperor.

As for people who were weaker than him, he viewed them like bugs. And there were plenty of bugs in the Saint-Emperor Dynasty. As for people from the Heavenspan Realm...

He placed them beneath the bugs.

A lot of people talked about their abilities with spirit enhancement, and although that was of slight interest to Gu Tianjun, he still viewed it as a mere skill, like pill concocting or equipment forging. With such skills, the people of Heavenspan still only qualified to serve the other two great powers in the lands.

They were doomed to be slaves!

As far as the people he was dealing with right now, they were just two Heavenspan people who didn’t even count as bugs. Due to some lucky break, they had managed to kidnap a celestial, but that did nothing to reduce the disdain that Gu Tianjun felt for them.

“They just want help from the Saint-Emperor Dynasty!” After a few breaths’ worth of time, Gu Tianjun began to get impatient at the fact that his words were still hanging in the air.

Taking a step forward, he completely ignored Bai Xiaochun and the Giant Ghost King, used his shocking sword qi to rip apart the defensive shield protecting the bone lizard battleship, and then landed on the deck in front of Gongsun Wan’er.

One reason for the ease with which he passed through the defenses was the fact that Gongsun Wan’er had already been sealed.

“Hello, Ghostmother,” he said, smiling. In contrast to the two Heavenspan cultivators, he was very interested in Ghostmother. Years ago, he had severed her arm, and this was his first time seeing her again since then. Although she was currently in a very weak state, since she was a celestial, he viewed her as being slightly above the other bugs in the world.

Bai Xiaochun stood there staring coldly and quietly at Gu Tianjun. As for the Giant Ghost King, considering how long he had lived, he could easily discern from the coldness being shown how this person looked down upon them. Furthermore, it was obvious that he had no intention of letting them into Saint-Emperor City to hand Ghostmother over.

From the look of things, the supposed blood tribute was turning out to be nothing more than a joke.

Struggling to control himself, he stepped forward, clasped hands, and bowed.

“Greetings, exalted Celestial. We plan to personally escort Ghostmother into--”

“Shut up!” Gu Tianjun said, waving his hand dismissively. “You want a reward, right? Well go back to where you came from and wait. Your reward will come eventually!”

With that, he reached out to grab Gongsun Wan’er. However, before he could, Bai Xiaochun suddenly started laughing coldly.

Inside, he was very nervous. After all, he could sense that Gu Tianjun was on a different level than Ghostmother. He was actually much stronger! But even if he were stronger, Bai Xiaochun would not tolerate him intruding and condescending in this way. And there was no way he would simply let Gongsun Wan’er be taken away.

He didn’t waste any time speaking. Blue light flashed as the Greatsword of the North appeared, unleashing heaven-shaking, earth-shattering pressure. Then, he blurred into motion, slashing the sword at Gu Tianjun!

Gu Tianjun’s expression flickered as he turned his head to see what was happening. When he saw the Greatsword of the North, his pupils constricted, and he swung his hand from Gongsun Wan’er toward the sword as if to grab it!

When the sword made contact with Gu Tianjun’s hand, a huge boom erupted out, along with a massive shockwave. Before Gu Tianjun knew what was happening, he staggered backward and off of the battleship!

Bai Xiaochun felt all of his qi and blood vibrating inside of him from the power of the sword. Any other demigod, and even an ordinary quasi-celestial, would have been seriously injured by it.

But Bai Xiaochun had his Undying Live Forever Technique, and could essentially recover from any injury in the blink of an eye. Therefore, he stood there on the battleship, staring up with a cold, grim expression at Gu Tianjun.

“What incredible gall!” Gu Tianjun said, eyes narrowing. Although he was shocked by Bai Xiaochun’s powers of regeneration, he also couldn’t help but look greedily at the huge sword he held.

As of this moment, the Giant Ghost King’s heart was in his throat. Off to the side, mixed emotions could be seen in Gongsun Wan’er’s eyes. Although Bai Xiaochun seemed to be standing there bravely, she knew that he was secretly nervous.

But at the same time, she also realized that he had changed. After all, she knew him better than the Giant Ghost King; in the past, whenever he faced an enemy more powerful than himself, he would try to resolve any tensions. But now, he simply drew his sword and attacked!

“Is he really going to take a stand...?” she thought. As of this moment, Bai Xiaochun seemed as lofty as a mountain as he stood there in front of her.

Bai Xiaochun held his tongue for a brief moment. He knew that this was a very critical moment, and that he only had one chance to succeed. Therefore, he drew on everything he had learned in the Wildlands to quell his nervousness.

“Gall?” he said loudly. “Your name is Gu Tianjun, right? Well let me tell you: you’re right. I do have gall!

“If I had no gall, how could I have left a swath of blood and death behind me as I left the Vile-Emperor Dynasty? If I had no gall, how could I possibly have kidnapped a celestial and several demigods?! If I had no gall, I would have just let you steal what is mine!

“So, yes. I have gall. However, you also have quite a bit of gall yourself!” As he spoke, his voice grew louder and louder until his words echoed like heavenly thunder.

𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Gu Tianjun’s expression flickered from the incisiveness of Bai Xiaochun’s words. The truth was, there was nothing he could say to refute what had just been said. Eyes glittering with coldness, he prepared to say something, but before he could, Bai Xiaochun spoke in an even louder voice than before.

“I brought this Vile-Emperor Dynasty celestial here, and you blocked my path. Why? Because you lack integrity, Gu Tianjun! Let me ask you a question. Do you serve the Saint-Emperor? Or the Vile-Emperor?!” Gu Tianjun’s eyes grew even colder, and yet before he could say anything, Bai Xiaochun continued in thunderous fashion.

“I favor the Saint-Emperor Dynasty, and came here to offer formal greetings. Not empty-handed, but with a gift. But you blocked my path at the front door, Gu Tianjun. And there is one word for that. Rude! Let me ask you another question. What logical basis do you have for your actions?!” With that, Bai Xiaochun took a step forward.

“I fought and killed my way here from the Vile-Emperor Dynasty, and now you want to steal my spoils of war? There is one word for that. Immoral! So now I’ll ask you a third question, Gu Tianjun. What right do you have to steal my gift?!” Bai Xiaochun took another step forward, taking him off of the battleship and up into the air, where he pointed out with the Greatsword of the North.

“I am the Arch-Ancestor of the Heavenspan Realm. Therefore, in the Eternal Lands, there are only two people who rank as high as me. The Vile-Emperor and the Saint-Emperor. How dare you try to boss me around, Gu Tianjun. There is one word for that. Disrespectful! Therefore, I will now ask you a fourth question. Considering that you are a rude, immoral, and disrespectful creature, and also lack integrity, were the hell did you get that gall of yours?!” As his words echoed out, blue light from the Greatsword of the North shone out to fill the area.

All of the demigods who had accompanied Gu Tianjun from the immortal domain were shaken, and even Gu Tianjun himself felt as if he had been stabbed to the heart by the words which had just been spoken.

“You!!” Never could Gu Tianjun have possibly imagined that this Heavenspan cultivator would have such a sharp tongue. There was literally nothing he could possibly say by way of retort. At this point, anything he said would come across as sounding like a flimsy excuse.

If he were in some remote location where no one was watching, he could simply shrug off what had just been said. But he was here, with many celestials paying attention. Furthermore, he had to consider the reputation of the Saint-Emperor Dynasty as a whole. Therefore, Bai Xiaochun’s tirade forced him into a passive position, and caused his face to flush red with embarrassment and anger. And the killing intent in his eyes grew even stronger.

As for the Giant Ghost King and Gongsun Wan’er, they were both staring at Bai Xiaochun, astonished at how domineering he was!

Ignoring Gu Tianjun, Bai Xiaochun swished his sleeve and looked in the direction of Saint-Emperor City. Sweeping his sword in grand fashion, he called out in a voice that boomed like the loudest thunder.

“Saint-Emperor, is this how you treat visitors who come to see you in good faith?!”

The truth was that he was more nervous than could possibly be expressed in words. In fact, he had already decided that, if necessary, he would unseal Gongsun Wan’er and try to flee on the battleship.

However, years of practice at this sort of thing ensured that not even a scrap of such feelings showed on his face. Instead, he looked confident and arrogant to the extreme.

A moment passed, and his anxiety mounted. His heart was pounding, and his scalp was tingling. Even as he prepared to turn and run, a warm, somber voice echoed out into heaven and earth.

“Forgive my negligence, Fellow Daoist Bai. Please, come in!!”