I Have A Sword

He was stunned. Ye Guan's mind went blank.

And he wasn't the only one. Even Little Pagoda and Zong Xin were dumbfounded.

This woman... was terrifying.

Sang Mei watched Ye Guan's stiff face and let out a soft, playful laugh. "Hahaha, I won't tease you anymore."

It was a graceful gesture, offering Ye Guan a way out, saving him from further embarrassment.

Just then, Ye Guan said, "I may not be able to do it myself, but I can pass a law. All men must practice monogamy. One man, one wife!"

Little Pagoda was left speechless.

"Shameless... So shameless..." muttered Zong Xin.

Sang Mei's smile also froze for a moment. Clearly, she hadn't expected this young swordsman to have such incredibly thick skin. She shook her head, chuckling softly. "Honestly, it's meaningless. No matter the civilization or culture, those with wealth and power will always enjoy privileges beyond the average person.

"Even if you make a law against it, they might follow the law publicly, but what about in secret?"

Ye Guan fell silent.

Sang Mei's tone softened. "Little swordsman, Ye Guan, don't overthink it. Your intentions are good, and that alone is rare in this vast expanse. There are some who desire to unify the vast expanse to enslave it and elevate themselves.

"But you genuinely wish to bring peace and hope to all living beings. That's extraordinarily rare. Furthermore, the vast expanse has been in chaos for countless years now. If you don't unify it, someone else eventually will. I'd rather place my hope in you than in others. You can marry a few more wives. At least, you won't exploit the vast expanse for your own profit."

Ye Guan had no words.

Sang Mei looked around at the scattered golden light and smiled. "Little swordsman, Ye Guan, I won't lie to you. I have a rather... unique identity. I've seen countless wonders in this vast expanse, encountered many strange individuals, but I've never met anyone quite like your aunt.

"I'm only seventy percent curious about her. I'd like to follow you around for a while. Don't worry, as I previously mentioned, I will not take advantage of you. With my knowledge, I should be able to help you quite a bit."

Ye Guan looked at her curiously. "What about the remaining thirty percent?"

Sang Mei met his gaze with a smile. "I'm curious about your idea of 'Order.' I've seen too many ambitious people end up becoming exactly the kind of people they once hated.

"I want to see if you'll become one of them, too."

"Miss Sang Mei, if you don't mind me asking... what did you used to do?"

Sang Mei thought for a moment. "I was—hmm,actually, I forgot."

Ye Guan narrowed his eyes.

She shrugged with a serious look. "Really, I forgot."

"I believe you." Ye Guan nodded slowly. "Let me ask a different question, then. Do you know the Great Daoist Brush Master?"

Sang Mei smiled. "I don't know him personally, but I've heard of him."

Ye Guan's face darkened instantly. He hadn't expected Sang Mei to even know of the Great Daoist Brush Master. That damned guy was really everywhere.

Sang Mei casually added, "In fact, I know something about him that most don't."

Ye Guan's interest was piqued.

Sang Mei smiled. "He has avatars scattered across the vast expanse, and each one of them is quite powerful."

Ye Guan frowned. "Avatars across the vast expanse?"

Sang Mei nodded. "He's a very unique existence, just like you. Both of you are incredibly hard to kill. And here's the funny thing, you two are probably the only ones in the vast expanse who can truly kill each other."

Ye Guan went silent. He knew the Great Daoist Brush Master was hard to kill, but he hadn't realized that he was the key to killing him. Clearly, he'd been going about it the wrong way.

It was time to do some research.

Their conflict was on hold for now, but Ye Guan knew it wasn't truly over. That man wouldn't let things go so easily.

Sang Mei added, "As for why he can't be killed, that's a matter of the Dao. It's not something easily explained. We can discuss it another time."

Ye Guan gathered his thoughts. "Sang Mei, do you know anything about the Divine Will?"

Sang Mei nodded. "I know a little. You both share some similar ideals. Though your views on 'order' still differ somewhat."

"What do you mean?"

"Let's leave that for another time," Sang Mei said with a smile

Ye Guan saw that she wasn't ready to elaborate and nodded. "Alright."

After chatting with Sang Mei for a while, Ye Guan left, arriving in a different starry domain.

Ahead stood over a dozen Divine Realm elites. They were the Heretic Region elites who had agreed to support him earlier.

The leader, a man in a black robe, looked at Ye Guan with guarded eyes.

Clearly, they heard that Ye Guan intended to join the Temple of the Gods.

Zong Xin had to have told them about it.

He smiled at the black-robed man. "Senior, you've heard that I'm joining the Temple of the Gods, and you still came here. That must mean you have something to say?"

The black-robed man replied in a low voice, "Lord Ye, a man must keep his word. You promised us... that you'd help overthrow the Temple of the Gods. Y-you can't go back on your word now!"

Ye Guan responded calmly, "Senior, do you really think that the Heretic Region is strong enough to overthrow them?"

The man shook his head. "No. But with you on our side, we might have a chance."

Ye Guan sighed. "To be honest, I've had way too many tough fights already. I'm just not in the mood for another uphill battle."

The black-robed man's face darkened.

Ye Guan grinned. "But if we want to overthrow someone powerful, there's another way without fighting them head-on."

The black-robed man looked puzzled. "What way?"

"Join them and dismantle them from the inside. When a force becomes too powerful to be toppled from the outside, the only way to bring it down is from within."

The black-robed man looked stunned.

Ye Guan continued, "Or... we take over them from within."

The black-robed warriors looked at one another. Strangely, it made sense.

Ye Guan said, "If we fight them head-on with our current strength, we'll be crushed. That would be foolish. Hence, I decided to infiltrate them."

He looked the leader in the eye. "If you're willing, come with me. If not, that's fine, too. No hard feelings. The choice is yours."

The group was silent.

In truth, they had no real choice. Ye Guan knew too much about them.

"We trust you, Young Master Ye." The black-robed leader replied.

Ye Guan nodded. "Soon, I'll be heading to the Temple of the Gods. This area is now under my control. The only real threat is the Boundary of Truth and Illusion. I'll need you to guard this place until my people are here to take over.

"Once they're here, I want you to follow their lead. Is that alright?"

The black-robed man nodded after a moment. "Understood."

"Good."

With that, Ye Guan turned and vanished into the starry void.

Once he was gone, a man behind the black-robed man asked, "Big Brother... do we really trust him?"

"We have no choice," he replied.

"Why?"

The black-robed man smiled bitterly. "He knows everything about us. If we don't trust him... what else can we do? Besides, he cultivates Order Dao, which means that he will eventually need to establish his Order. He will challenge the Divine Will in the end. We just have to wait until then."

***

Ye Guan was planning to wait for Sui Gujin, but when he learned that they would need over a month of travel time, he gave up waiting. Though the Great Daoist Brush Master was gone, the matter wasn't settled yet.

He'd surely return with surprises.

There was also the Divine Will and Sang Mei's karma...

But for now, none of these things mattered more than one goal—understanding the Order of the Divine Will.

The Divine Will was terrifying, yet it had earned the loyalty of many gods. There was definitely something unique about their order.

Sang Mei was correct; Ye Guan knew too little about the social sciences, cultures, and systems that held a civilization together. If he truly wanted to build a new Order, he couldn't afford to remain ignorant. He had to learn.

Some knowledge came from books, while some had to be gained through experience.

His current mission was simple—study at the Temple of the Gods. He wanted to learn their structure and understand their culture.

He had to keep a low profile, stay humble, and avoid becoming a target.

Just then, the spacetime in the distance trembled violently, breaking Ye Guan's chain of thought. He looked into the distance and saw a man rushing out of the rift.

Ye Guan's eyes widened in shock. The man was Gu Pan.

However, he wasn't in his true body.

Ye Guan was confused.

Gu Pan rushed forward with a wry smile. "Brother Ye, I need you to come with me."

"What's wrong?"

"My seal... got stronger," Gu Pan smiled bitterly

Ye Guan blinked. "Stronger?"

Gu Pan nodded. "Your aunt did it..."

Now, Ye Guan was even more confused.

Gu Pan grabbed Ye Guan and moved. "No time to explain. You need to come with me, now..."

With that, he dragged Ye Guan and disappeared into the distance.

"Brother Gu, that Mi Fo. Is he...?" Ye Guan asked along the way.

"My father," Gu Pan said coldly.

Ye Guan frowned. "Then, why did he seal you?"

Gu Pan's eyes darkened. "I'll kill him one day!"

Ye Guan turned to look at him.

"A cruel father deserves a son's blade. Tell me, am I wrong?" Gu Pan asked, staring ahead.

"Well..."