Ye Guan was excited as he stared at the sword in his hand. He actually couldn’t understand what Little Pagoda was talking about. However, he understood that he could become a swordsman.

A swordsman!

Nanzhou simply had too few swordsmen nowadays. Sword cultivation techniques were virtually extinct in Nanzhou, and there was only a slight chance that Guanxuan Academy and a few grand clans had sword cultivation techniques.

One thing was for sure—he would become an incredible figure once he became a swordsman.

Little Pagoda announced. “I’ll have you practice the Royal Sword Art!” 

Ye Guan nodded enthusiastically. “Okay! Okay!” 

A stream of knowledge entered his mind. 

"The sword is essentially just iron, but if you were to connect to its spirit, then it will move according to your heart, live with your blood, and it will die if you will it to die…

“The Royal Sword Art depends on your breathing. Your five senses have to unite, and everything must become one. That is the cycle, and it will continue to grow for eternity…"

Ye Guan sat down and started to cultivate. Under Little Pagoda’s guidance, he was cultivating at a rapid pace. 

A month later, Ye Guan’s clothes fluttered in the sea breeze as he sat on a boulder by the beach. All of a sudden, Ye Guan stretched a finger. “Rise!” 

Whoosh! 

The Path Sword soared into the sky and pierced the clouds. Ye Guan’s eyes narrowed, and he retracted his finger. A column of light appeared as the Path Sword split the clouds apart. 

Ye Guan smiled lightly. He gestured with his hand, and the Path Sword danced and streaked through the skies, leaving behind a brilliant light in its wake. 

Ye Guan stopped upon sensing that he was running out of spiritual energy. 

He exclaimed excitedly, “I succeeded, Master Pagoda!” 

Little Pagoda replied, “All right, you may leave. I need some time to recover.” 

Ye Guan frowned and asked, “Are you injured?” 

Little Pagoda confirmed. “Yes, I am. Otherwise, I wouldn’t need your nourishment. I need you to obtain rare spiritual crystals for me.”

Ye Guan still had a few burning questions, but his vision blurred. When he came to his senses, he found himself in the courtyard of his residence.

Ye Guan looked down at his hand. The Path Sword was still there. He then examined his cultivation and sighed in relief upon seeing that his cultivation was intact.

It wasn’t a dream…

Ye Guan looked around and saw a dull glow in the sky. Unbelievably, Master Pagoda didn’t lie to him—ten years in the pagoda was indeed equivalent to one day in the outside world. 

Ye Guan chuckled while staring at the sword in his hand. Not only had he recovered his cultivation, but he had also become a swordsman. It would be an understatement to say that he was pleasantly surprised.

An old man had emerged from out of nowhere and was walking over to him.

Ye Guan quickly put away the Path Sword. He couldn’t let the others know that he had become a swordsman, not to mention the existence of the Path Sword.

A spiritual sword had once appeared in Nanzhou, and it brought a calamity as many powerful clans vied for it. Guanxuan Academy even jumped into the fray and decided to vie for it as well. If news about how he had become a swordsman spread, a tragedy would surely befall him and the Ye Clan. 

The old man scampered over to Ye Guan and said, “Heir, Tutor Song Ci from Guanxuan Academy is here!”

Ye Guan was startled. He didn’t expect to receive any visitors, but he nodded calmly and replied, “All right!” 

With that, he followed the old man.

An old man in a long grey robe was standing in front of the Ye Residence. 

The old man looked at Ye Guan as if he was pitiful before saying, “Young Lord Ye, my apologies, but after a lengthy discussion, the Guanxuan Academy has decided to retract your admission offer into the academy.” 

Ye Guan was Ancient Desolate City’s greatest talent of all time. He had broken through the shackles of the physical body’s Nine Realms and reached the Xiantian Realm before he was six years old. 

When he was ten years old, he broke through the Xiantian Realm to reach the Nascent Divinity Realm and cultivate his Divine Infant. 

He made another breakthrough when he was sixteen years old and entered the Truth Realm, where he started mastering divine skills.

He was a rare talent, even in the entire Nanzhou. His talent was the reason Guanxuan Academy decided to give him special treatment. The academy offered to take him in without exams or practical tests. 

Furthermore, a top tutor of the academy directly took him under their wing. However, it seemed that the heavens were jealous of geniuses because the young man had lost his cultivation just over a month ago and had become nothing more than an ordinary person. 

Unfortunately, an ordinary person didn’t deserve to receive special treatment from Guanxuan Academy. The academy wouldn’t settle for mediocrity.

Surprise flashed across Ye Guan’s face upon hearing Song Ci’s words. He then asked, “Tutor Song Ci, there’s only a month until school starts, right?”

Song Ci nodded. “Yes.” 

Ye Guan replied hesitantly, “Tutor Song Ci, I’ve actually recove—” 

Song Ci cut him off. “I do not wish to hide the truth from you, but we have already handed over your placement slot to Young Lord Li Chuan of the Li Clan.” 

Ye Guan was stunned. Li Chuan was one of the top geniuses of the Li Clan. Of course, Li Chuan could only be considered ordinary compared to him. 

Song Ci stared at Ye Guan and said, “Young Lord Ye, the decennial martial contest is nigh. The academy needs a strong candidate for us to obtain more resources. You were the best candidate, but now…

“I apologize for being direct, but you will serve no purpose even if the academy were to accept you. It is the reality that you will have to face!”

With that, Song Ci extended his right arm and said, “Young Lord Ye, please return the Guanxuan Wood Token to me!” 

Ye Guan smiled coldly. “All right.” 

He retrieved the token and returned it to Song Ci. Song Ci had been so forthright with his words, and Ye Guan wouldn’t shamelessly beg him for a placement slot. 

Song Ci took the wooden token and immediately left. 

When Song Ci left, a hunchbacked disciple of the Ye Clan ran excitedly toward the middle hall of the clan. As he ran, he shouted enthusiastically, “Grand Elder! Heir Ye Guan was abandoned by the academy! His admission offer was rescinded! Haha…” 

Ye Guan was rendered speechless. 

Moments later, an old man ran out of the grand hall. The old man rushed toward Ye Guan and said, “Heir—Ye Guan, the Grand Elder has summoned all elders to the Ancestor Shrine for a clan meeting. You have been summoned as well!” 

Ye Guan responded calmly, “Does he want to take my heir status away?” 

The old man hesitated. “I’m not sure...” 

Ye Guan nodded slightly and headed toward the Ancestor Shrine of the Ye Residence. Ye Guan had just walked into the shrine when he saw Clan Leader Ye Xiao slamming his palm on the table.

“Strip Ye Guan off his title? I won’t accept that!” shouted Ye Xiao.

Ye Guan was stunned. He looked around and saw that the elders of the Ye Clan were in the shrine. Naturally, Ye Xiao was sitting on the main seat while the Grand Elder was seated on the left just below Ye Xiao. 

The elders’ eyes simultaneously turned to Ye Guan. Their eyes shone in complicated lights. How did such a genius become so useless?

Ye Guan bowed slightly toward Ye Xiao and exclaimed, “I greet the Clan Leader!” 

Ye Xiao nodded at Ye Guan. 

His expression grew much warmer as he said, “Sit down!” 

A servant brought forward a stool. 

Once Ye Guan had settled in his seat, the Grand Elder started speaking, “Clan Leader, what right does Ye Guan have to continue hogging the heir title of the Ye Clan?” 

Everyone turned toward the Grand Elder, and the Grand Elder stood up. 

He stared at Ye Guan and said, “I admit it, Ye Guan has worked hard to support the clan. He deserves credit for our clan’s thirty-six Spiritual Mines! However, he has lost his cultivation and has become nothing more than an ordinary man…

”Our clan would become the laughingstock of Ancient Desolate City if he were to remain the heir of the Ye Clan. The heir of the clan cannot be a mascot, and he must work hard for our clan. But can Ye Guan still contribute to the clan?”

The Grand Elder’s words echoed throughout the Ancestor Shrine and rendered everyone silent. 

Ye Guan glanced at the elders. He wanted to see who would treat him with goodwill, and he also wanted to see who would step on him now that he had lost his cultivation. Ye Guan was aware that a powerless man could sometimes see more than a powerful man.

He reckoned that the true colors of those who had been brown-nosing him would be revealed now that he had lost his glory and power.

Ye Xiao’s face turned pale, and he looked stiff as he said, “Grand Elder, you mentioned that Ye Guan must be given credit for the work he has done for our clan…

”The Guanxuan Academy has just rescinded their admission offer to him, so if our clan abandons him right away and kicks him while he’s down, then how are we different from beasts?” 

Ye Xiao looked at Ye Guan and instructed. “Ye Guan, take off your clothes!” 

Ye Guan met Ye Xiao’s gaze and took off his long robe, revealing his torso riddled with scars. Ye Xiao glared coldly at the elders. “He has a total of ninety-six scars. How did he get those scars? He got them as a result of toiling away for our Ye Clan!” 

The elders went silent as they stared at Ye Guan’s scars. 

The Grand Elder abruptly stood up. “I am not discounting Ye Guan’s contributions to our clan. However, the Ye Clan’s heart cannot be soft, and we also have to fight the other clans. The heir is the heart of the Ye Clan’s younger generation, and the heir must lead our clan’s disciples through hardships. Can Ye Guan fulfill that role?” 

An old man stood up and walked forward. He sighed deeply and said, “Clan Leader, I believe that Grand Elder is right. Ye Guan deserves credit for everything that he has done, but the clan isn’t a charity institution…

”So what if he deserves credit? Who among us doesn’t deserve credit? 

“We need resources, and we need an heir who can fight for resources against the other clans. He is no longer capable of fulfilling that role, so he should step down and give Ye Mian the role…

“I apologize for being blunt, but the clan has shown great kindness to him by treating him well even though his cultivation is no more.”

Ye Guan stared at the old man. The old man was the Third Elder, and Ye Guan could still remember that they were quite close to each other.

The rest of the elders looked at Ye Xiao, and they seemed to have gotten affected by the Third Elder’s words. 

Ye Xiao stared at the Grand Elder and asked, “You want your grandson, Ye Mian, to become the heir?” 

The Grand Elder’s expression didn’t change as he replied, “Ye Mian is capable enough!” 

Upon learning that the Guanxuan Academy had decided to abandon Ye Guan, the Grand Elder knew that the golden opportunity was here. If Ye Mian were to become the heir, then his status in the Ye Clan would rise sharply.

Ye Guan swept his gaze across everyone in the shrine before saying, “Elders!” 

All eyes turned to Ye Guan, but Ye Guan remained calm as he said, “Can you give me a month? If I don’t recover after a month, then I will willingly give up my status as the heir.” 

“No way!” The Third Elder said almost immediately, beating the Grand Elder to the chase. He stared at Ye Guan and said, “The position of heir is of utmost importance. We can’t delay the matter any further.” 

The Sixth Elder next to him also walked forward and said, “Third Elder is right. The position of heir is intricately tied to our clan’s interests, so we cannot delay the matter any further!” 

After saying that, the Sixth Elder looked at the Grand Elder and smiled. “Ye Mian is young and capable. I believe that he is up for the role.”

The elders were finally showing where they belonged. Moments later, two more elders stepped forward and supported the Grand Elder’s stance.

It was about time they picked sides…

Ye Guan had already lost his influence, so if they didn’t hurry up and choose who they would support, then they would be at a disadvantage once Ye Miao finally became the heir. 

The Grand Elder smiled seeing the elders pledging allegiance to him. He nodded slightly to express his acknowledgment. 

Then, he looked at the Second Elder. The Second Elder was in charge of a large number of clan assets, and he was an influential figure in the clan.

The Second Elder stared at the calm Ye Guan. A few moments later, the Second Elder wordlessly closed his eyes. The heir status wouldn’t affect his interests because his useless grandson wasn’t qualified to become the heir. 

He decided to let them duke it out, and he would be on the victor’s side.

The Grand Elder saw through the Second Elder’s intentions, but the latter’s disinterest didn’t affect him that much. He looked at Ye Guan and was about to say something when Ye Xiao stood up and glared at him. 

“Ye Kun, do you really need to go that far?!” exclaimed Ye Xiao. 

The Grand Elder—Ye Kun—kept a straight face as he called out. “Mian’er!” 

Moments later, Ye Mian walked into the Ancestor Shrine. 

Ye Mian bowed toward everyone present before staring at Ye Guan. He smiled and said, “According to the clan rules, I can challenge the heir. Ye Guan, I challenge you to a death match!”

The elders were taken aback. 

There were two types of challenges in the Ye Clan. The first type was a fair challenge that would only decide the winner and the loser, while the other was a death match. It was the type of challenge that would truly bring an end to any conflict.

Ye Xiao glared at Ye Kun, but Ye Kun ignored Ye Xiao and said calmly, “I dare you to change the clan rules, Clan Leader!” 

Ye Xiao was so furious that his expression turned as dark as raw iron. 

However, Ye Guan stood up with a smile and said, “I accept the challenge!” 

All eyes turned to Ye Guan, and Ye Guan turned to look at Ye Kun. 

“Ten days later, I will fight Ye Mian!” said Ye Guan.

“No way!” Ye Kun glared at Ye Guan and said, “Five days—no, tomorrow! The challenge must happen tomorrow!” 

Ye Guan stared deeply at Ye Kun before responding, “All right!” 

With that, he bowed toward Ye Xiao and turned around to leave. 

However, Ye Kun yelled, “No, wait! Right now—the challenge must happen right now!” 

Ye Guan’s calmness disturbed Ye Kun’s heart. I can’t give him any chances!

Ye Kun walked toward Ye Miao and exclaimed, “Kill him! You’ll become the heir, and you will live a glorious life!” 

Ye Guan said hesitantly, “Grand Elder, we’re family, so I don’t think there’s any need for us to go that far. It should be fine for us to just spar—” 

“Who’s your family? You’re adopted!” Grand Elder Ye Kun glared at Ye Guan before looking at Ye Miao. “Remember, you must have a ruthless heart; your heart must not be soft. Kindness to an enemy is cruelty to yourself, do you understand?”