When Gu Changting heard Gu Nan's words, he was not moved by her lack of resistance; he simply took out the Soul-Severing Sword.

He then thrust his sword into Gu Nan's heart. Gu Nan, who was stabbed in the heart, looked at his body slowly dissipating, but did not show any pain. He just smiled faintly.

“Brother Changqing, I don’t know what you’ve been through these past three years, but if killing me will improve your cultivation, I’ll be very happy. I hope I can be your sister again in the next life.”

Gu Changqing looked at Gu Nan, who was now just a head, and said expressionlessly:

"This sword is called Soul Severing. Anyone killed by this sword will cease to exist in their past, present, and future lives."

Gu Nan, however, had already turned into nourishment for the departed soul with a smile on her face, and it was unknown whether she had heard what Gu Changqing said afterward.

After retracting the Soul-Severing Technique and dispelling the domain, the radiance of the new moon shone upon Gu Changqing.

Looking around, Gu Changqing stood alone.

"Unfortunately, sects have imposed restrictions on their disciples, so soul searching can only yield useless information. Now, only Wu Fan remains to be dealt with."

"However, Gu Nan, the only one who knew about the year-long memory, is dead. So I have no worries about this trip. How foolish of me to give up my life for the sake of a sister."

Having said that, he left alone, and the light of the new moon gradually faded away from Gu Changqing as he stepped into the darkness.

Meanwhile, the two elders were discussing the grand competition with the sect leader in the hall at the summit.

The sect leader paused slightly, looked at the Grand Elder, and said with a smile:

“Old Sword, Changqing has already killed your personal disciple outside the Black Tower.”

The Grand Elder replied indifferently, "He was just a disciple. If he was killed by Wuxin, so be it. He was only at the late stage of the Golden Core realm. I am focused on pursuing the sword path. My disciple has only accompanied me for a few years."

"Old Sword is absolutely right, but what if Changqing wants to kill the other nine participating disciples?"

"That doesn't matter. As long as he makes it into the top ten, I'll even kill all the disciples of my Sword Peak when he goes back to the Falling Clouds Sect. Entering the Holy Land is of utmost importance."

After saying that, the two of them stopped paying attention to Xu Sheng's death.