When Gu Fangchen constructed the entire false Dragon Vein, he embedded three layers of formations within it.
The first layer was the outermost Mire Illusion Array, used to create the illusion of a false Dragon Vein.
The second layer was a formation Gu Yuye already knew about, because its original purpose was to bind the Dragon Vein to him.
Yes, Gu Yuye had been fully aware, and he entered the array willingly.
The formation was called the All Under Heaven Array. It had another purpose, to gather incense and faith into one person, in other words, to draw the power of national fortune.
Back in the era of Ancient Zhou, this was one of the methods by which the sacrificial cults condensed faith and fortune.
The Dragon Veins of mountains and rivers were the manifestation of a nation's destiny. Although there was no real Dragon Vein here, only an illusion, using the collective power of belief to shape it made the illusion far more convincing.
That was why, even knowing the truth, Gu Yuye still chose to enter.
At the time, this array posed no apparent harm to him.
Since the Dragon Vein they made was fake, the array would only serve to gather faith.
It might not compare to real national fortune, but it was close enough.
Gu Yuye even believed he could use it to ascend to Second Rank.
Originally, the binding formation was like a gun with no bullets, able to fire blanks, but never truly shoot.
But now, because Gu Fangchen had dragged up the Wrathful Dragon Vein, replacing the false one with the real, the formation once again had a true object to anchor upon.
At that moment, the array truly activated.
And the third layer, was the one hidden within the Mire Illusion Array, a locator formation that only activated when Gu Yuye proclaimed himself the rightful heir of Heaven's Mandate.
Gu Fangchen had tricked Gu Yuye into making a Heart Demon Oath: when the time came to receive Heaven's Mandate, he must do so with his true body.
Normally, with Gu Yuye's caution, he might have taken the risk, choosing to confront the Heart Demon directly.
After all, he was no longer in the Fourth Rank Tribulation Realm; the risk of confronting a Heart Demon had become far smaller. He would simply need a period of closed-door cultivation to fully stabilize.
But now, as he stood on the brink of breaking through to Second Rank, at the critical moment of the Demon Sect's grand plan, he could not afford even a moment of delay.
What was once a small risk had become, due to timing, utterly unacceptable.
Gu Yuye could not possibly miss such a once-in-a-lifetime chance, when heaven, earth, and man all aligned, to seize his destiny and rebel.
Thus, he really did appear in person to accept his Mandate.
However, when he swore his Heart Demon Oath, he had played a trick. He never specified which "Mandate of Heaven" he referred to.
The Demon Sect's plan to forge a Heaven's Mandate Child was one Mandate. His own destiny was another.
So, at the time, Gu Yuye only allowed his true body to appear for an instant, never truly entering the array itself.
As long as he didn't enter the formation, he would remain untouched by karma.
Besides, the Dragon Vein and the nation's fortune were both fake.
But he had not expected that at this very moment, he would become the true nexus of the formation, the one where the Dragon Vein and false national fortune converged.
Though both the Dragon Vein and the fortune were twisted fabrications, the karmic remnants of countless reincarnated dead were real.
They were monsters born of endless resentment and hatred toward the living, and how could such beings ever submit to someone trying to turn them into his tool?
The karmic backlash bound Gu Yuye's manifested body in that instant, shackled by the hatred of the dead.
And in that moment, the locator formation Gu Fangchen had laid in advance found the exact position of Gu Yuye's true body.
Gu Yuye finally understood everything. He lifted his head, veins bulging, eyes bloodshot.
"So that so-called Dao Lord 'Feiwei', it was you all along!"
His teeth ground audibly. With a snarl, he thrust his spear forward again, the tip piercing Gu Fangchen's heart and shattering Flower-Grasping.
But that was as far as he could go.
Gu Yuye's Dao Heart had already fractured. His life force drained rapidly as the Wrathful Dragon Vein turned on him, devouring him from within.
To be one with the Dragon Vein was to be the bearer of Heaven's Mandate.
But the Wrathful Dragon Vein was no gift of Heaven, it was a curse. When one was strong enough, one could subdue it. Once it sensed weakness, it would devour without mercy.
Gu Fangchen had deliberately waited until Gu Yuye's most triumphant, arrogant moment to utterly destroy him.
As brilliant as Gu Yuye's rise had been moments ago, the curses from the onlookers outside the pit were now just as vicious.
Those curses, amplified by the Wrathful Dragon Vein's malice, pierced straight into Gu Yuye's mind, shattering his will.
That instant was when he faltered, his weakest, most vulnerable moment.
Gu Fangchen's Slayer Blade had a 250% damage bonus against humanoid targets and could even heal him upon striking.
This strike was his full-force blow as a newly advanced Fourth Rank.
With the polished saber intent inherited from Cao Tianzhou, the blade pierced the weak point of Gu Yuye's manifested body, his heart.
Gu Fangchen knew the weaknesses of all three of Gu Yuye's incarnations. This attack, with a critical strike to the weak point, sealed his fate.
This body of Gu Yuye's was doomed beyond doubt.
After all that plotting, the outcome was that Gu Fangchen, though heavily wounded, had slain a Third Rank while still at Fourth Rank.
Gu Fangchen grinned.
"Yes, it was me. I told you already, didn't I? I'm Dao Lord 'Feiwei'. You insisted on believing otherwise, who's to blame for that?"
"Blame your ambition, it blinded you."
"Shhhk, "
He drew the Slayer Blade free and watched as the unwilling fury in Gu Yuye's eyes faded away. The man staggered back two steps and fell to his knees, his gaze still reflecting the blood-red sky and swirling black mist.
Everything he had ever dreamed of clutching in his hands shattered like illusions in mist.
To kill the body was one thing, but to destroy the heart was true death.
Gu Yuye growled with venom,
"You little beast! Come find me if you dare! I'll show you what it means to suffer worse than death!"
Gu Fangchen chuckled. He was already used to this, every boss's dying words followed the same pattern.
He took a long breath, endured his pain, and pulled White Steed from his back. With one clean stroke, he sliced through the crack forming across Gu Yuye's neck.
The head rolled.
Moments later, both body and head disintegrated into dust, scattered by the wind.
This time, he was truly dead.
When it came to Gu Yuye, finishing blows were always necessary.
...
Outside the pit, on both sides of the Jiangling River, all the people and cultivators of Jiangnan stood dumbstruck.
A moment ago, the heavens had been filled with golden light. Now, the Dragon Vein was a grotesque abomination of flesh and blood.
Every aristocratic clan of Jiangnan stared blankly as Gu Yuye was run through the heart, then decapitated by Gu Fangchen's sword.
Dead beyond doubt.
Of course, it was only one of Gu Yuye's incarnations.
But no one else knew that.
Gu Yuye's secrecy was impeccable, aside from his most trusted, none knew how many bodies he possessed.
His previous incarnations had all perished out of sight, so no one realized this was just another substitute.
Most people believed Gu Yuye was truly dead.
At once, their last shred of hope vanished. Shock turned to panic.
It was over.
Had Gu Yuye succeeded, they would have been subjects of the new dragon.
But not only had he failed, his Dragon Vein was fake, and he had died a clown's death. Now they were the fools who followed the fool. Their fate would be misery multiplied a hundredfold.
Gu Fangchen straightened, took a deep breath, and looked around. His voice thundered like a storm.
"Rebel chief Gu Yuye has been executed! Those who were deceived or coerced, step forth and name his accomplices! I, as the heir of the Northern Garrison Prince, swear to petition His Majesty for mercy and leniency!"
The crowd shuddered.
Yes, since Gu Yuye was dead, Gu Fangchen, as heir to the Northern Garrison Prince, would inherit the title and authority.
And with Emperor Yong'an's current favor, his standing would surpass even Gu Yuye's.
Of course, Gu Fangchen could not slaughter every great family in Jiangnan. His words were to force them to take sides.
The sharp-minded among them instantly realized, it was time to reshuffle Jiangnan's power.
Immediately, the clan whose patriarch had been killed by the Du Gu family's threats stepped out and shouted,
"Your Highness! The Du Gu clan harbored treacherous intent, conspiring with Gu Yuye for the throne! Their crimes are unforgivable!"
"Good!"
Gu Fangchen nodded.
"Well said. You'll be rewarded for this. Any others?"
Once the first spoke, the rest followed.
One after another, the families scrambled to denounce the Du Gu clan, accusing them of crimes both true and false.
Even the long-suppressed case of Du Gu Yue violating Cao Tianzhou's wife and daughter resurfaced.
Clearly, there had always been those who knew the truth, but they'd been too afraid or compromised to speak.
Jiangnan's web of clans was vast and tangled. Eradicating them outright was impossible, but dividing them against each other, that was feasible.
Families began exposing families, and the accusations turned into a frenzy.
They surged forward, capturing the remaining members of the Du Gu clan on the spot.
The Du Gu family had strength, but against a mob, even tigers had no claws.
Du Gu Xia fell to his knees, shouting,
"Chen'er! I'm your grand uncle! You can't be this heartless!"
Gu Fangchen tilted his head up and smiled faintly at the sky.
Where Lu Mingyuan had been standing moments ago, there was now only empty air.
Too bad. That one ran fast. Otherwise, he'd have been stripped bare too.
The 'Heart Sage's heart' was truly the heart of self-interest.
He coughed twice, clutching his chest. His face turned from pale to purple, sweat beading his brow.
He quickly pulled out a handful of pills, swallowing them like candy.
Through the torn fabric at his chest, the mark of Flower-Grasping was gone, replaced by a deep wound to the bone, where a blood-colored flower bloomed upon his beating heart.
Gu Yuye's spear had broken the Flower-Grasping seal, prematurely releasing the Heart-Poison Mark.
Fortunately, his current body was strong enough. He forcibly sealed his heart meridians, stopping the poison from spreading further.
But the bad news, he was gravely injured, his spiritual power drained. He would not last long.
"Chen'er!"
Ning Caiyong rushed to his side, supporting his arm.
Behind them, Ding Xingfeng approached slowly.
He had withdrawn earlier both to intensify Gu Yuye's downfall and, per Gu Fangchen's instructions, to protect Ning Caiyong and guard against Lu Mingyuan.
Though Lu Mingyuan was wounded, he was still a veteran Second Rank cultivator, not one to be taken lightly.
A thunderous crash shook the ground.
The Tower of Civil and Martial Trials finally collapsed completely, crumbling into a heap of ruins.
Amid the billowing dust, the little maid Xuexiang stumbled toward them, clutching her skirts.
Gu Fangchen's heart skipped when he saw her, then immediately sank.
On her forehead, besides three large bumps, was a bright red mole.
Damn it, that was the National Preceptor!
She hadn't left?!
"Gu Fangchen!"
Xuexiang ran up, seized him by the collar, her expression stern, about to speak.
Gu Fangchen, dizzy from exhaustion, forced himself alert when he saw the two figures battling above, one blue, one red.
The ancestral matron of the Sword Pavilion had gone completely mad. Even the Lord of the Four-Phase Calamity could not withstand her assault, retreating under pressure, gritting his teeth as he shouted across the air,
"Gu Fangchen! Where did you summon such an ancient powerhouse from?!"
"If you don't flee now, I won't save you again!"
Her strikes weren't meant to rescue Gu Fangchen, but to protect her own Wheel of the Sea of Calamity.
If Gu Fangchen died, her karmic thread would scatter, forcing her to start all over.
But now, even she hadn't expected this.
That Gu Fangchen could provoke an existence she herself couldn't overcome!
Moments ago, his life had hung by a thread, and so had hers. Luckily, he'd pulled through.
Now it was her turn to face death.
If Gu Fangchen didn't run, she would abandon him.
And she might not even have the chance to choose.
Seeing his greatest ally ready to withdraw, Gu Fangchen bit his tongue, took a deep breath, and quickly clamped his hand over Xuexiang's mouth.
"Duan Qicang! We agreed, if you couldn't stop me, that means I win again!"
Silence.
"This time, if you try to cheat, I'll tell the Sky-Eye Division that you're bald!"
A crack split open in the air beside them, a Dharma Body's face emerging with furious eyes.
"How did you know that?!"
Gu Fangchen inhaled sharply.
"Quick, the authorization!"
He had made a bet with the General of Thousand Roads. The second wager had been whether he could escape the Tower of Civil and Martial Trials.
Clearly, his mastery of teleportation formations had prevailed.
The General of Thousand Roads scowled, but raised his hand, granting Gu Fangchen the authority over Between the Weft and Warp.