213. Raising the Sword, Sword Shape
Under the moonlight, on the roof.
Chen Ji looked at the Emei Spear in his own hand, then at the Emei Spear in the black-clad assassin's hand...
As early as when Yunyang and Jiaotu wanted to kill him, they said that there was a chivalrous man in the martial arts world who was good at using the Emei Spear and was determined to avenge Prince Jing.
Chen Ji took this matter to heart and planned to put the blame for General Wang's death on the owner of the Emei Spear. But he never expected that the other party would also come.
The black-clad assassin was not wearing a mask, and the black hat on his head fell off during the fight... It turned out to be a woman.
Chen Ji held his breath and looked over, only to see that the black-clad assassin was about thirty-six or thirty-seven years old. He had a handsome face but looked weathered, just like the Peony Stone Bridge on the Luo River, having experienced decades of wind and rain.
The other person's eyes were bloodshot, as if he had cried countless times, crying himself to sleep and waking up crying again.
On the long bluestone street, a black-clad assassin confronted more than a dozen thousand-year-old soldiers. The assassin moved to the left, and the soldiers also moved to the left together to form a net, attracting each other's energy and looking for each other's flaws.
Under the eaves, General Wang gritted his teeth and propped himself up. He didn't pull out the Emei spear from his shoulder socket, but drew the sword from his waist and said coldly, "Su Zhou, I understand that you want to avenge the prince, but why do you think I betrayed the prince? I have been loyal to the prince all these years. Where have I ever made a mistake?"
The female assassin named "Su Zhou" holds the Emei Spear in one hand.
Her tear-stained eyes slowly scanned each of the Qiansui Army soldiers. "The prince taught me that when judging a person, don't judge by what they say, but by what they do. The Qiansui Army is the prince's direct line. The prince is gone, and you're still doing fine. Isn't that enough to prove that you are traitors?"
General Wang's face turned grim and he tightened his grip on the hilt of the sword.
Su Zhou gently turned the Emei Spear in his hand upside down, bent down and raised it in front of him, like the barb on the arm of a mantis.
She sneered, "Wang Chongli, when you were shot in the back outside Liuzhou City, it was the prince who carried you into the city. He begged for mercy and finally found a hermit pharmacist to treat you. He then searched the world for you to learn the Qingyang Sword Technique. The sword in your hand was given to you by him when you were promoted to lieutenant general. When the prince was looking for someone to forge this sword, he went to great lengths to find meteorite iron from the inner court and visited the sword master of Cangzhou three times. Have you forgotten all this?"
"Wu Yong, when you were a foot soldier, the shoes the Quartermaster General gave you didn't fit. You wore your feet out after marching seventy miles. The prince gave you his shoes."
"Gou Lintao, you were just a nobody in the martial arts world back then. Your father's cultivation path was coveted by others and he was poisoned to death. The prince avenged you and took back the cultivation path, but now you are repaying kindness with hatred."
On the bluestone road, Su Zhou's words were loud and clear, and each word was as hard as iron.
She was actually acquaintances with the confidants of the thousand-year-old army. She called out their names one by one and knew their resumes like the back of her hand.
A soldier was silent for a long time before speaking: "Aunt Su, we didn't harm the prince."
Su Zhou asked in a deep voice, "I want you to kneel in the City God Temple and swear by your parents in blood that if you betray the prince, the City God will go to the underworld and take you away. Do you dare?"
The soldiers unconsciously clenched their swords, but no one dared to agree.
Chen Ji was lying on the roof listening in confusion. Was it because the people of Ning Dynasty were superstitious and therefore did not dare to swear, or was it that the blood oath in the City God Temple really worked?
At this time, General Wang said slowly, "The reason we are still alive is to remain useful to avenge him and wait for an opportunity to kill the eunuchs. We did not betray the prince, it was that bastard of the Chen family named Chen Ji who betrayed the prince."
Su Zhou sneered: "Do you really think I will believe you if you throw dirty water on a little apprentice? No matter, I want to kill you and him too. After killing you, I will kill him, all of them!"
General Wang gritted his teeth and said, "Crazy woman, are you crazy?"
Su Zhou's eyes were like the abyss: "I am indeed crazy."
General Wang glanced down at the Emei Spear on his shoulder, then flicked his right wrist slightly, causing the sword in his hand to clang. "Do you really think you can kill so many of us? I've let you go in the past because of the prince's face, but do you really think you're some great knight?"
Su Zhou's voice came out from between his teeth: "Try it."
As soon as she finished speaking, she rushed into the armored soldiers.
A soldier came over with a knife, but before the knife could hit her, she disappeared from sight.
The soldier felt a sharp pain in his leg and realized that his thigh had been pierced by the Emei Spear, and blood was gushing out.
Su Zhou used the Emei Spear to press against his neck, pulling him back from behind and escaping the encirclement. The other soldiers were hesitant to take action.
The next moment, Su Zhou stabbed the soldier's chest several times with the Emei Spear in her hand like lightning. Blood spurted out, staining her hands red. "I rushed from the capital for five days and five nights, and ran three horses to death, but I still didn't get to see the prince for the last time.
The first thing I did when I arrived in Luocheng was to ask someone what the Qiansui Army did when the prince was imprisoned. Someone told me that the Qiansui Army did nothing.
Su Zhou choked up and said, "I thought I had misheard, or that the person I asked was uninformed, so I kept asking again and again, afraid that I had wrongly accused you... Could it be that the friendship you shared during those years of fighting side by side, and the things you said while drinking together, were all lies?"
The soldier she held hostage slowly fell down, his eyes dull as he said, "Aunt Su, I'm sorry..."
Su Zhou's eyes flickered for a moment: "Go and apologize to the prince, and tell me what you are doing."
After saying this, she charged forward once more, her every move erratic and uncertain. As the saying goes, when the body moves, the waist moves first, the body follows the steps, the palms follow the body, the steps follow the palms, the upper and lower parts are connected, the whole body is one.
The Emei Spear in her hand matched her figure perfectly, like a fluttering leaf, appearing to disappear without a trace. Even with over a dozen soldiers surrounding her, they were unable to capture her.
Gradually, an invisible wind appeared beside Su Zhou, pulling the soldiers beside her to sway. The fallen leaves on the ground were swept by the air flow, slowly forming a yin-yang fish pattern.
Just when the Yin-Yang fish was about to take shape, General Wang found the right moment and slashed with his sword, cutting Su Zhou's right arm and breaking the Yin-Yang fish formation.
After General Wang succeeded in his attack, he didn't linger in the fight and quickly withdrew from the battle circle: "The prince actually asked that old man Cheng Tinghua to teach you the Eight Trigrams Bao Yuan technique for you."
After saying that, he waved his hand gently, signaling all the soldiers to gather around.
When a soldier passed by him, he grabbed the man's arm armor and whispered, "I wonder what level of Bagua Baoyuan she has reached now. You and I may not be her match. Go to the South City Gate and call the Luocheng Army to surround her! Quickly!"
The soldier nodded, and while Su Zhou was surrounded, he jumped on his horse and galloped towards the south gate.
Just as General Wang was about to draw his sword and fight back, he felt a slight numbness in his left arm.
His expression changed, and he lowered his head to tear open the clothes at his shoulder. The place where the Emei spear was nailed in the shoulder socket had turned black and purple, and black lines flowed along with the blood, like a terrifying spider web.
General Wang dipped his finger in the blood and sniffed it under his nose, his eyes slightly cold. "Three officials? When did you find the Three Officials from the Huangshan Dao Court's pharmacist?"
He ran towards Anxi Street with his sword in hand, but after taking two steps he remembered that Taiping Medical Clinic had also been sealed off along with Prince Jing's Mansion.
General Wang thought for two breaths and wanted to get on his horse.
But he clearly felt that the strength in his body was being drained away bit by bit. In just half an incense stick of time, he didn't even have the strength to get on the horse.
General Wang said hoarsely, "Su Zhou, where is the antidote for 'Sansi'?"
While dealing with the soldiers surrounding him, Su Zhou said coldly, "It's not like you haven't seen Sansi before. If you say there is an antidote, it's conscience."
The so-called "Three Departments" are poisons named by the Huangshan Dao Court after the Department of Rewarding Good, the Department of Punishing Evil, and the Department of Investigation. If one has no guilty conscience, the Three Departments are not only harmless but also a resource for cultivating strength and realm. If one has guilty conscience, they are the most powerful poison in the world.
General Wang pleaded in a low voice, "Su Zhou, I know the Huangshan Dao Court has the antidote. For the sake of the prince, give it to me, and I will avenge the prince with you! How can you seek revenge on that poisonous minister alone? He has the twelve zodiac animals, what do you have?"
Su Zhou's heart was as hard as iron: "No need!"
General Wang turned around and staggered into the dark alley behind him.
Su Zhou wanted to catch up, but was surrounded by soldiers and could not move for a while.
…
…
In the dim alley, only the sounds of Wang Chongli's footsteps and breathing were left. Black blood flowed from his shoulder, along his arm and robe, and fell drop by drop to the ground.
Blue bricks, gray tiles, white walls, the alleys are like a maze.
In a trance, he staggered along, holding onto the wall. It was as if he was back in Liuzhou City, with the young Prince Jing carrying him through the streets and alleys, asking loudly: "Is there a doctor? Is there a doctor? My brother has been wounded by an arrow. If there is a doctor who can treat him, I will reward him with a hundred taels of silver!"
He asked weakly on Prince Jing's back, "Prince, will I die?"
Prince Jing laughed heartily: "How can you die? We haven't killed all the bandits yet! Don't close your eyes. Once we have killed all the bandits, I will ask His Majesty for rewards for you all. I will make you all marquises!"
Wang Chongli murmured, "A title of nobility..."
He seemed to hear the battle song of the Qiansui Army again: "With ten thousand men united, even Mount Tai can be shaken. With loyalty and righteousness, our spirits can reach the heights of the Great Thousands. Report to the Emperor and save the people. Kill all the bandits and seek a title..."
Wang Chongli looked back and seemed to see his former comrades passing by him one by one in the alley. Someone patted his shoulder and said, "Let's go and kill the bandits!"
Then, those comrades disappeared one by one at the end of the alley.
Wang Chongli is shaking
I shook my head and rubbed my eyes hard to reduce the double images in my eyes and the fantasies in my mind.
I don’t know how long I walked until I could no longer hear the sound of fighting behind me.
He panted and leaned against the white wall of the alley, gritting his teeth to pull out the Emei Spear, but just when he had pulled it out halfway, a dark shadow fell from the eaves.
One hand pressed on the handle of the Emei Spear and pushed the Emei Spear back!
Wang Chongli felt pain and roared in anger.
He looked up at Chen Ji who had suddenly fallen from the sky. Just as he was about to get angry, he suddenly burst into tears: "Prince!"
Chen Ji was stunned.
Wang Chongli slowly sat down against the wall, snot and tears streaming down his face. "Your Highness! Your Highness, I'm so sorry. I can't face you again!"
Chen Ji remained silent and looked at the other person quietly.
Wang Chongli wiped away his tears with his trembling sleeves. "But there's nothing I can do. That Poisonous Minister sent Jiaotu and Yunyang to capture my entire family and cut off my mother's ten fingers. I can't just watch her die. If I don't agree to their request, who knows how many people in Qiansui's army will die. Your Majesty, please forgive us. I'll be your slave in my next life..."
Chen Ji whispered, "They also promised you great wealth, right?"
Wang Chongli murmured, "Yes, overwhelming wealth..."
Before he finished speaking, Wang Chongli's eyes suddenly became clear again.
He looked down at himself, then looked up at Chen Ji. His right hand suddenly shook, and the Qingyang Sword in his hand straightened the blade and stabbed towards Chen Ji.
But Chen Ji just turned his body slightly and easily avoided the sword.
In an instant, before Wang Chongli could change his sword moves, Chen Ji had already grabbed his right wrist and moved forward.
In a flash, Chen Ji pulled out the Emei Spear from Wang Chongli's shoulder socket and stabbed him several times. The last strike pierced his heart from under his ribs, causing blood that had already turned black to flow out.
Wang Chongli vomited a mouthful of blood and was breathing in more than out.
Chen Ji said softly, "Everyone makes mistakes. Just correct them in your next life."
"That makes sense," Wang Chongli smiled bitterly, his eyes becoming unfocused again.
He didn't look at Chen Ji again. His eyes passed over Chen Ji's shoulder and looked at the white wall behind Chen Ji, as if he really saw something.
After a few breaths, he murmured, "Kill all the bandits and get a title... You promised us that we would all be titles, but why can't we kill all the bandits..."
Chen Ji squatted in front of Wang Chongli, quietly observing the changes in the other's pupils until the pupils completely dilated. A stream of ice flowed out from Wang Chongli's heart and flowed into his dantian.
He was silent for a long time: "Wuyun, do you think what he just said was sincere?"
The dark clouds on the roof overhead meowed and replied, "I don't know."
Chen Ji suddenly felt.
Wang Chongli's loyalty when he followed Prince Jing that year was real, his laughter was real, his drunkenness was real, and the sunset and sunrise were also real.
But life is like this. No matter how beautiful something is, it will no longer be spectacular after a long time.
Chen Ji stood up and said softly, "Let's go home."
Just as he stood up to leave, he looked back in surprise.
In the alley, the Qingyang Sword in Wang Chongli's hand was burning and decayed inch by inch by the blazing flames.
The flames were like the blazing sun, lighting up the night sky inch by inch, and making the neighborhood as bright as day.
clang!
The sound of a sword being unsheathed.
The sound of a sword being unsheathed, as if it had been dormant for ten thousand years, resounded throughout heaven and earth. In the streets, hundreds of dogs barked and poultry took flight in fright, as if the king himself had arrived.
Chen Ji looked up in surprise. This sound was unexpected and Xuanyuan had never mentioned it before.
Looking down again, the Qingyang Sword was like a piece of wood burned to ashes, leaving only a ray of pure sword intent like the scorching sun bursting out, flying into Chen Ji's heart, and merging with the brilliant sword energy that had been nurtured in his body for a long time.
The sword energy that had been unable to take shape no matter what finally took the shape of a black sword!
Chen Ji recalled that Xuanyuan once said that the sword is the king of all weapons, and the purpose of sword cultivation is to conquer the world's sword will in order to fulfill oneself.
This is the first sword Chen Ji has ever won!
It turns out that to master the art of swordsmanship, one really has to kill people and seize the sword!
On the eaves, dark clouds meowed softly above his head. He hurriedly blew away the traces left by the Qingyang Sword, and then disappeared at the end of the alley.
A moment later, Su Zhou, bloodied and wounded, approached silently. She squatted down and examined the wounds on Wang Chongli's body, and was shocked to find that every wound on Wang Chongli was in the same exact position as the one she had stabbed the armored warrior before.
She frowned and looked around. Who came to kill Wang Chongli?
What was that martial arts sound just now?
As he pondered, he heard the sound of heavy horse hooves in the distance. The Luocheng Army was approaching. Su Zhou lightly jumped onto the roof and fled into the city.
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