Chapter 529 A Masterpiece Born to Craft Injustice (Seeking Monthly Tickets!)

In the study of the Xunyang Prince's Mansion, a long silence followed.

"I have indeed failed the Wang family and their children, and failed the people of Xunyang."

After a long silence, Li Xian finally spoke, his lips dry.

Ouyang Rong shook his head:

"The reason I didn't stop the prince from submitting his memorial that day was because of something the prince said."

"What did you say?" the prince of the Great Zhou Dynasty couldn't help but ask.

"I can't rest easy unless I write this down."

Li Xian stared at him in a daze.

Ouyang Rong remained calm and began to speak:

"The prince said at the time that he understood why I insisted on standing up to oppose him, even though Lin Cheng represented His Majesty's will and it was like an ant trying to shake a tree."

Ouyang Rong nodded and said:

"Therefore, I understand Your Highness."

"So even if I sensed some risks, I only offered advice but did not stop or hinder Your Highness."

"So I know that Your Highness and Eldest Brother have done your best."

"At least if I ask myself honestly, I have no regrets."

Li Guo'er and Xie Lingjiang stared blankly at the handsome young man with a serious expression.

Li Xian and Li Dalang exchanged a glance.

Li Dalang's voice choked with emotion: "Tanlang..."

Li Xian took a deep breath and asked:

"And what about Tanlang? Tanlang was so calm at the time. I thought that Tanlang was disheartened after what happened last time. I thought that Tanlang was also disappointed in us and felt that we had not kept our promise not to let those who carry firewood freeze to death in the wind and snow."

"I've been very afraid these past few days while my beloved hasn't come..."

"What are you afraid of?"

"I fear I will never see that passionate lover again, who never wavered in his love and always worked tirelessly for the people."

Ouyang Rong slowly shook his head and said:

"The prince and the eldest son did not let me freeze to death in the snow. The day they intercepted the memorial, weren't they also protecting me?"

"Though I do not say thank you, I will remember it in my heart."

Before the moved crowd could speak, he answered earnestly:

"Your Highness, Eldest Brother, the reason I calmly advised against it that day was because one of us must always remain sober. Just like when we drink together and return home drunk, there must be one or two people who are clear-headed and calm, so that we don't go astray."

“Last time, Your Highness and Eldest Brother were the ones who kept watch while they were awake. This time, it’s my turn.”

Li Guo'er suddenly asked, "Ouyang Lianghan, so you weren't actually as indifferent as you seemed to be about the Wang family's matter this time?"

Ouyang Rong did not answer, his expression remaining the calm look that had always been on his face since his demotion to Sima, his lips tightly pursed.

Soon, we got back to business.

"Senior Brother, Your Highness, Sister Guo'er, what do you say..."

Xie Lingjiang suddenly spoke.

"Is it possible that the Wang family incident was a trap set by Lin Cheng and the Wei family, hoping that the eldest brother would take the bait? They had a good plan, but they didn't expect to run into the eldest brother who remained unmoved and calm."

Everyone fell into thought.

Li Guo'er seemed to be deep in thought and said:

"Does Sister Xie mean that the Wang family matriarch and her third son, Wang Yu, were led there by someone? It wasn't an isolated incident; there's something fishy going on?"

Wei Mei also asked, "It's also possible that behind them it's not Lin Cheng and the Wei family, but the Kuangfu Army rebels."

Upon hearing this, everyone frowned.

"I don't quite agree with these speculations, at least I don't agree that Madam Wang and Wang Yu made these subjective assumptions."

Ouyang Rong shook his head and said:

"Perhaps they were used, or perhaps they were misled, but whatever the hidden story, it doesn't change the fact that we should respect them."

"Those two flames are undeniably real."

After a moment of silence in the study, we got back to business.

Li Guo'er frowned and said:

"Looking at it now, even the tragedy that caused the Wang family couldn't get Grandmother to dismiss Lin Cheng, which shows that the Buddha statue being built in Xingzifang has become Lin Cheng's get-out-of-jail-free card."

"This child cast a golden Buddha statue for his grandmother, and in return, he also has a golden statue. How can we break this?"

Everyone fell silent, their hopeful gazes mostly directed at Ouyang Rong.

Ouyang Rong remained silent for a long time.

A short while later, he stood up and strode away under everyone's gaze.

It's not that I'm stumped.

It's just too noisy.

...

Ouyang Rong recently found himself in a very strange state.

It probably started when he refused to obey the imperial edict in full view of everyone at Xunyang Ferry.

He could occasionally hear the faint sound of swords ringing in the distance.

The sound was like the incessant chirping of cicadas in summer.

If I had to describe it, it would be like the buzzing sound of thin wings flapping incessantly near a person's ear, but it's not dull; the tone is a bit sharp and crisp.

The sound of the sword sometimes rang out loudly, and sometimes softly.

It depends on the situation.

Just now, in the study of the Prince of Xunyang's mansion, surrounded by a group of people with worried expressions, Ouyang Rong felt as if a thousand cicadas were chirping in unison in his ears...

Ouyang Rong initially suspected that the symptoms might be a side effect of his Qi Refining process, caused by the one-third of the Transcendent Golden Pill of the Six-Winged Summer Cicada that he had swallowed.

But this possibility was quickly ruled out. How come it didn't exist before, and suddenly it appeared? I haven't been doing anything lately, and my cultivation progress has been stuck at the eighth rank.

The reason we've now determined it to be a sword's cry...

Dark clouds obscured the moon as Ouyang Rong pushed open the door and entered the master bedroom.

The first thing I saw was a small, curled-up figure sitting on the bed, hugging his knees and lost in thought. His silver hair was spread out on the vermilion sheets, like the white silk spun by a silkworm.

"Why aren't you asleep yet?" he asked, sounding surprised.

“I got up to pee in the middle of the night, but my beloved wasn’t there. I came back to lie down… but I can’t sleep.” She got out of bed, put on her shoes, and came to greet her.

“I have something to do tonight…” Ouyang Rong waved his hand.

“I know.”

Ye Weilai interrupted him, stood up, quickly pecked his thin cheek, turned and ran back, muttering "I'm sleepy," then snuggled into the covers, obediently closed her eyes, and didn't disturb him.

Did you hear that?

Ouyang Rong took off his coat and suddenly asked.

Ye Wei opened her blue eyes, looking puzzled: "Ah, what did you hear? Did Tanlang just say something?"

"It's alright now."

Ouyang Rong remained silent for a moment, then shook his head.

After soothing the little girl to sleep.

He turned back to the wardrobe and opened the door.

A young woman in Confucian robes and a Taoist priest's hat sat on a long, unused zither case, her hands supporting her chin, her short legs swaying slightly, seemingly drowsy.

"Why are you a night owl too?"

Ouyang Rong asked curiously, but his eyes were fixed on the violin case under her buttocks.

"Waiting for someone."

"Waiting for whom?"

"Who are you waiting for!"

Miao Si said irritably, "I was originally drowsy, but now I'm wide awake."

"Give it to me!"

She put on a stern face, devoid of emotion, and reached out to ask for it.

"Take what?" Ouyang Rong asked, puzzled.

Without saying a word, Miao Si bent down and rummaged through the small pouch in her sleeve to take out the IOU as evidence.

"Hey, how come I can find several high-quality Hanlei inksticks while walking at night? Check if they're yours. Be careful next time so you don't drop them again."

Ouyang Rong nodded in realization, and with a smile, took out seven Hanlei inksticks that he had taken from the Xunyang Prince's Mansion from his sleeve and handed them to her.

"That's more like it! Hehe."

Little Mo was happily munching on its midnight snack when it glanced over and noticed Ouyang Rong watching it intently as it ate. So, it shifted its rear end, turned 180 degrees, and faced away from him, continuing to eat its ink.

Ouyang Rong waited silently.

Fearing that it would arouse suspicion from Rong Zhen and his men, Ouyang Rong and others did not make it convenient to purchase Hanlei inksticks in a high-profile manner.

The Prince of Xunyang's residence and Junior Sister's side also make purchases regularly according to their needs.

So sometimes, Ouyang Rong wasn't intentionally short of Miaosi inksticks, but rather he simply couldn't get enough Hanlei inksticks to feed her.

A moment later, Miaosi let out a burp.

Ouyang Rong saw her take out a stack of small slips of paper from her sleeve. The top few slips were in his handwriting, with words such as "Tianyou Year 1" indicating the date of the missing ink stick.

Miao Si turned aside to avoid his gaze, walked to the side, lowered her head, counted on her fingers, pulled out two IOUs, and tore them up.

The other IOUs below are of unknown origin; it's unclear where they came from.

Ouyang Rong vaguely saw the words "Yixi Year 1" on one of the IOUs below. This was not a reign title used by the Daqian or Dazhou dynasties.

Putting away the stack of small, aged IOUs, the petty, vengeful Mo Jing clapped her white hands, turned around, glanced at Ouyang Rong who had withdrawn his gaze, and grumbled a weak compliment:

"It was worth raising Xiao Rongzi. He is the most filial son, without a doubt."

After speaking, the young woman in Confucian robes looked down at the zither case under her bottom.

"Ouyang Lianghan, is there some commotion going on here?"

She changed from sitting to lying on the violin case, crossed her legs, propped her chin on her hand, and asked curiously.

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips: "You heard that?"

"What did you hear? I didn't hear anything."

The naturally clever little girl shook her head, gently tapping her chin with her index finger, and said:

"It's a feeling, there's always something strange about it, something's not right."

Something's not right.

"How would I know? This is your sword, so worry about it yourself. But I'm reminding you, every unusual movement of the Mythical Cauldron Sword is not without reason, and you need to pay extra attention to it."

Ouyang Rong squinted, and after a short while, he also sent the little ink spirit with its strong sixth sense to sleep.

After closing the wardrobe, Ouyang Rong, carrying the sword case, went to the study.

Sit down in the dark.

He opened the sword case.

Two fingers twist out an arc from the middle.

A clear blue halo flowed across my fingertips like water.

A curved surface, as thin as a cicada's wing.

Like a dream.

At this moment, the [arc] is trembling slightly in the air.

The sound of swords ringing in Ouyang Rong's ears suddenly grew louder.

That's it, no doubt.

But Ouyang Rong didn't understand why.

Moreover, there's a strange point: when he calms down, the more agitated and restless the people around him are, the louder the sword's clang becomes in his ears.

If he attends a leisurely poetry gathering or elegant gathering, the surroundings become much quieter, and there is not even the sound of swords.

But if you were in the teahouse of that day, or the study of the Xunyang Prince's Mansion just now...

Li Xian, Junior Sister, and others surrounded him with varying emotions, and the sound of swords clashing around him grew louder.

Especially after the incident involving the Wang family mother and son.

Ouyang Rong interacted with them, even when he was very far away from the sword box.

Even though he was far away in the Prince's Palace, the sound of swords clashing could still be heard constantly.

It seems to have a lot to say.

Ouyang Rong felt that something was about to emerge from the sound of the swords.

However, it hasn't reached the point of being fully revealed or ready to be released.

This is also one of the reasons why Ouyang Rong rarely went to the Xunyang Prince's Mansion during this period, often arriving late and leaving early at the Jiangzhou main hall, indulging in poetry gatherings and elegant parties, and trying to stay away from official business and people.

It's too noisy; he wants to be alone.

A person who hears cicadas chirping in their ears is more likely to calm down and observe the joys and sorrows of the outside world.

Under the moonlight, Ouyang Rong examined his sword by lamplight, silently listening to the cicadas' murmurs:

"Did you sense that 'qi'? So, you're also indignant? Want to speak up..."

But how can a cauldron sword speak?

At one point, Ouyang Rong muttered to himself:

"Sword technique... sword technique..."

In a sense, the sword manual of the Dingjian is its "open words".

Ouyang Rong pursed his lips, and after a moment came back to his senses.

After glancing at the sky, he went to the Merit Pagoda first.

The merit points above the small wooden fish were still over eight thousand, not much more.

Ouyang Rong left the Pagoda of Merit and put away the [Craftsmanship] that had been malfunctioning for several days.

"A golden body..."

As if recalling the difficult question Li Guo'er had posed not long ago, Ouyang Rong pursed his lips.

After advancing to the eighth rank, his dantian capacity increased and his spiritual energy became more refined.

Facing the same seventh-rank enemy as before, Gui Qu Lai Xi's sword-laying time has been reduced by three breaths, requiring only twelve breaths... If it takes fifteen breaths, it can break through the protective true qi of a sixth-rank qi cultivator, endangering their life.

Therefore, if Lin Cheng is faced alone, as long as Ouyang Rong draws his sword, he can break through Lin Cheng's sixth-grade true qi and take his head.

However, Lin Cheng is cunning, and it's unlikely he'll get a chance to draw his sword. Besides, Lin Cheng won't fight Ouyang Rong one-on-one; he'll definitely call for reinforcements.

It's hard to say when the time will come, but Rongzhen will help him, since in her eyes, the owner of the Butterfly Love Flower is a common enemy.

However, there is one problem: his dantian spiritual energy is severely insufficient.

Because I've been stuck at the initial stage of the eighth grade.

This is because the complete sword manual is missing; he currently only roughly understands the craftsman's true meaning and cannot summarize the complete sword manual. As for the other new sword manuals, there are currently no clues to be found.

Therefore, he stopped progressing at the initial stage of the eighth rank.

Even with the sword technique, to further improve one's spiritual cultivation, one still needs to imitate the sorcerer lineage of the Jade Cup Fairy, arrange a strange sacrificial ritual, and collect mythical spirituality and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to break through these Qi refining barriers.

The sword technique and the ritual, two rigid conditions, effectively blocked his current cultivation level, causing his dantian spiritual energy to progress at a snail's pace.

Up to now, at most, an eighth-grade initial stage dantian, without using the merit purple mist, can only kill a sixth-grade qi cultivator in fifteen breaths of sword practice.

As for the divine power of the cauldron and sword in the [Craftsmanship], it arises from dependent origination and is empty in nature.

This is not Dagushan Mountain. The only thing that can be mobilized to the greatest extent is the poetic and literary atmosphere here, but even that is not very useful.

Because of a weakness in its own literary style, each poem is external, and it is slow to communicate with and mobilize them. It takes time to adapt and utilize the literary style of each poem.

For Bujian, the most pressing need is time.

Ideally, it should be a continuous fifteen breaths, so the spiritual energy in the dantian and the merit purple energy are the most convenient fuel for the cauldron sword.

Back in Huang Xuan's old courtyard, the reason he was able to use the petals of red leaves imbued with literary energy to instantly kill Yan Zhang and the others was precisely because they were all trapped in the Moonlit Pond Formation and couldn't disengage for the time being. They lacked the spiritual energy to hinder him wielding this deadly weapon...

Literary talent, like one's own sense of injustice, is only suitable as a last straw when all hope seems lost.

Finally, there is one more question.

Lin Cheng's "golden body" is not only due to his cultivation and defense in reality, and the help of his companions, but also to the favor and tolerance of the Empress of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

The latter is the most difficult to break...

The craftsman's work has been returned to its box.

The dark study was completely silent.

The young man at the table rested his chin on his hand, seemingly listening to the cicadas in silence.

The next day.

Ouyang Rong arrived at the main hall of Jiangzhou.

We hadn't even had a chance to sit down properly.

"Ouyang Lianghan, come out for a moment."

A cold, elegantly dressed young woman suddenly appeared and called him to come out.

Ouyang Rong glanced at the Lady Rongzhen, whose face was stern and whose eyes held a hint of melancholy that was hard to describe.

He silently followed them out.

Have you eaten?

"I...I didn't eat."

"Let's go get something to eat, at our usual spot."

"good."

Without exchanging any words, the two walked out one after the other.

(End of this chapter)