Chapter 232 3v3 (Part 1)
Outer city, East Wind Sea, Beast bone ship.
This is a desolate sea. The tides have receded countless years ago, leaving only vast stretches of cracked earth and countless abandoned ships.
Countless colossal ships once sank in the East Wind Sea. Now, with the tides receding, these ships, lost a century ago, have been brought back to light. Standing as tall as city walls, they cast shadows on the ground under the glow of fireflies.
There was a giant ship that had been broken in half by the waves, splitting apart from the middle of the hull, with the bow and stern separated. The upturned bow made the mast much taller than the ships next to it.
The sails were already tattered, with only a few remnants still clinging to the mast, making the scene messy and eerie.
In the East Wind Sea lives a special kind of firefly called the sea firefly. It sleeps during the day in the cracks of the ground and awakens at night to search for food in the wreckage of ancient ships.
Sea fireflies are no different in size from ordinary fireflies, but the light they emit is not the faint green glow of ordinary fireflies, but a bright red glow, like sparks flying and dancing in the night.
Because of the dampness inside the ancient shipwreck, green plants will grow. Some of these plants are so lush that they have spread from inside the wreck to the outside, climbing up the masts and decorating the eerie giant ship. The large patches of climbing green vines add a sense of tranquility and seclusion.
Among the vast wreckage of giant ships, in the deepest part of the East Wind Sea, lies a colossal ship crafted from the bones of a pale white beast.
The bow of the ship is adorned with a massive tiger's head, the tiger roaring to the sky, revealing its sinister fangs. The hull resembles the bones of a whale from the sea, incredibly sturdy, and now bears many marks left by time, making it mottled and weathered.
Because of the invisible intimidation emanating from the beast-bone ship, Haiying dared not approach, only circling nearby. Large amounts of sparks flew, rising and falling, and suddenly, fierce flames ignited in the hollow eye sockets of the tiger's head.
Someone lit a fire inside the bone ship, and the flames seemed to shoot straight into the sky.
Yan Xiaochuan, who was tied to the bottom of the cabin, turned his face away and squinted to adjust to the sudden light of the fire in the darkness.
His hands were tied behind his back, and his belt had been pulled off, causing his outer garment to hang loosely on his body, making him look like he had been tortured.
Yan Xiaochuan gradually adapted to his surroundings, and could see the slightly damp cabin illuminated by the firelight. He could also see the floating dust in the air as the figure in front of him moved.
His wounds throbbed with pain, and Yan Xiaochuan couldn't help but recall what had happened an hour earlier:
A junior sister from the same academy said that she had encountered trouble in the outer city and was trapped there, unable to return to the academy. She asked him for help, and Yan Xiaochuan naturally agreed, going with other disciples from famous families to the rescue.
As soon as he arrived at the outer city, before he even entered the main road, he was blasted away from the crowd by a powerful force. In that instant, Yan Xiaochuan felt as if his internal organs had been displaced, and he was knocked unconscious. Out of the corner of his eye, he only managed to catch a glimpse of an unfamiliar black figure.
To resort to a sneak attack is utterly despicable, shameless, and vile.
Yan Xiaochuan regained his senses, and the dizziness in his head subsided considerably. He shook his head, his brows furrowed in pain, and looked at the man in the white robe standing in front of him.
The man's bald, shiny head was very eye-catching, and Yan Xiaochuan stared at him intently.
The other person turned around, and Yan Xiaochuan's dark pupils reflected Wenren Xu's scarlet eyes. The smiling face sent a shiver down Yan Xiaochuan's spine; a sense of crisis crept in, causing him to instinctively tense up.
The moment Yan Xiaochuan saw Wenren Xu, two words popped into his mind: monster.
It was neither human nor inhuman, and its whole body exuded an eerie aura.
This is the dungeon of the animal bone ship. Some of the compartments have broken bars and can no longer hold people, but this one is intact.
Wenren Xu smiled and squinted at Yan Xiaochuan: "Awake?"
"I don't feel quite lucid yet." Yan Xiaochuan said with a tense face and slight annoyance, "Where is this? Who are you? Why did you ambush and kidnap me?"
He glanced down at his disheveled clothes and became even angrier, saying fiercely, "You even took off my clothes, you're a real pervert!"
“You look young, but you have quite a temper. Fine, fine, I’ll tell you.” Wenren Xu, seeing that he wasn’t provoked, smiled and said to Yan Xiaochuan in a very good-natured manner, “I tied you up just to lure someone else over. Judging by the time, he should be arriving soon.”
Upon hearing this, Yan Xiaochuan's first thought was of his master, Mu Yong'an.
With his hands tied behind his back, Yan Xiaochuan quietly clenched into fists. His thoughts raced, but his face still showed an angry expression.
Yan Xiaochuan cursed, "If you want to lure my master out, you should just issue a challenge openly and fairly. To use such a despicable method is simply despicable!"
"Your master?" Wenren Xu stroked his chin, leaned back against the table, and stared at Yan Xiaochuan with interest, his tone intriguing.
"Indeed, if you want to find your master, you can just go to Taiyi Academy openly and honestly."
Not Master?
Yan Xiaochuan's mind raced, and he thought of Mei Liangyu. His heart skipped a beat, and he became even more wary of the person in front of him.
"Could it be that you..." Yan Xiaochuan had just opened his mouth when Wenren Xu put his index finger to his lips and said, "Shh."
When he smiled, the corners of his red eyes moved, making him appear even more alluring and enigmatic.
Wenren Xu gestured for him to turn his head: "You're here."
Yan Xiaochuan subconsciously looked in the direction he was looking. There was a large hole in the side of the cabin, and the opening was covered with green moss. Looking out of the hole, he found himself about two stories above the ground.
The firelight was dazzling, and even from a distance, Yan Xiaochuan recognized the figure walking on the ground as Mei Liangyu.
In the distance, swarms of sea fireflies swam, like clusters of flying fireballs, dispelling some of the darkness. But the young man emerged from the shadows, dodging the light of the sea fireflies, and walked on the ground, calmly approaching the largest bone ship.
The tiger-headed beast-bone ship spewed out a large number of fireballs. With the sound of sparks exploding, the huge fireballs flew towards the top of the beast-bone ship, like the sun in the night, illuminating the entire beast-bone ship and revealing Qin Chongxue standing on the mast.
The fire and wind blew countless sparks, which fell onto the mast and sails, igniting the remaining sails. When the flames reached the top, Qin Chongxue used his wind manipulation technique to dodge away and land on the tiger's head.
Qin Chongxue squinted and looked down at Mei Liangyu.
The young man was tall and slender, dressed in red robes and white gowns. His white outer robe was loose and made of the finest material. The untied, flowing fabric swayed in the night breeze, and combined with his figure, he looked like a white-robed immortal from afar.
Beneath the white robe, red fabric fluttered in the wind, and a dark gold belt with intricate patterns adorned the waist. Several strings of agate beads, vibrant in color and lustrous in luster, were tied to the left side of the waist, clearly of exceptional quality.
In the darkness and firelight, the young man seemed to sense something. He casually placed one hand on the hilt of his sword at his waist, and his sleeve slid back to reveal a section of his fair, slender, and powerful arm.
The flickering firelight in the distance was reflected in his dark pupils. His gaze fell on Qin Chongxue, who was standing on the tiger's head, and he looked at him without flinching.
The young man standing on the ground had sharp eyebrows and bright eyes. When he saw Qin Chongxue, the moment he raised his eyebrows, his youthful spirit was palpable, but the calmness in his eyes revealed that he was a man of deep and hidden talents.
Although they were threatened by the token, they showed no sign of panic or anger.
Qin Chongxue sized up the young man below. His face bore a striking resemblance to the man in the portrait, and the same aura emanating from him confirmed that this was the target he needed to deal with tonight.
The surroundings were quiet, and there was no one else in sight.
Did you come alone?
Qin Chongxue stared at Mei Liangyu and gripped the short knife tucked behind his waist with his other hand.
Mei Liangyu's Wind-Listening Ruler, hanging at his waist, gleamed. He picked it up, glanced at it, and then put it back inside his clothes.
"The news has been spread." Ren Gui said, "I'm not good at fighting, so I won't be going this time. Take care of yourself."
Mei Liangyu looked up at the man on the tiger's head and shouted, "The person you're looking for has arrived. Why don't you release that useless brat?"
They used their breath to produce sounds that shook the heavens and covered the entire bone ship.
Hearing this in the ship's cabin dungeon, Yan Xiaochuan was filled with mixed emotions, never expecting that Mei Liangyu would actually come.
Although he couldn't see Qin Chongxue outside, just by looking at Wenren Xu in front of him, he could guess that those lying in ambush here tonight must all be masters of the thirteenth realm.
These people at the thirteenth realm are going to kill us.
“Young man, you’re really strong.” Wenren Xu shook his head and sighed, pretending to cover his ears.
Yan Xiaochuan looked up at him fiercely: "Since you heard me, why don't you hurry up and do as my senior brother says?"
He twisted and turned his hands, which were tied behind his back, and cursed inwardly in frustration. These people had used magic to seal his five elements, preventing him from using the Nine Streams Technique, and they had tied him up so tightly that they didn't give him any room to move.
“Since you’re young, you should hone your patience more. What’s the rush?” Wenren Xu smiled and looked at Yan Xiaochuan, pointing towards the cave entrance. “If your senior brother wins, I will naturally let you go. If he loses, you won’t be able to leave.”
Yan Xiaochuan: "How can you be so shameless?"
Wenren Xu withdrew his outstretched hand and touched his face: "It's good to change your face often. If you keep the same face for too long, others will see through your weaknesses."
Yan Xiaochuan's thoughts were inevitably drawn to these words: "Could it be that you've disguised yourself? You despicable scoundrel who dares not show your true face!"
Wenren Xu was amused by his words and stepped towards Yan Xiaochuan. Yan Xiaochuan immediately shrank back warily: "What do you want to do?"
Just as he was about to approach him, a figure suddenly appeared at the cave entrance. Wenren Xu stopped in his tracks and turned to look.
Geng Hanfu stood in the firelight, stroking his black beard, and looked at the two people in front of him with a smile: "Fools cannot be taught, Lao Xu. This kid looks stupid. Even if you teach him these things, he will not be able to learn them."
Wenren Xu laughed and said, "I like to teach others, what harm is there in giving me a few pointers?"
Geng Hanfu turned to the side and looked ahead, gesturing for Wenren Xu to come over: "The kid that Bai Kou wanted to get rid of has arrived. He looks like he came alone. His courage is commendable."
Wenren Xu walked towards him, saying as he went, "Being too proud and arrogant can sometimes harm you."
The two stood at the cave entrance, looking down at Mei Liangyu.
Qin Chongxue remained standing on the tiger's head, his hand gripping the short knife in a reverse grip. A glint of light flashed in his cold eyes. He too imitated Mei Liangyu, using his breath to project his voice, a low, hoarse voice echoing throughout the entire beast-bone ship:
"If you commit suicide here, I will let him go."
Before Mei Liangyu could say anything, Yan Xiaochuan, who was in the dungeon, rolled his eyes and said angrily, "How dare you threaten him like this? Don't you know I'm not worthy!"
Wenren Xu: "..."
Geng Hanfu: "..."
Sure enough, Mei Liangyu below showed a hint of disdain on his face and said, "You think too highly of him."
Qin Chongxue was unaware of the secret relationship between Mei Liangyu and Yan Xiaochuan; he only knew that Mei Liangyu was a junior disciple of a renowned master whom he had recently been taking care of.
Given Mei Liangyu's past actions of killing Wei Kun for a junior brother, it seemed reasonable to capture Yan Xiaochuan to lure Mei Liangyu out of the academy.
All they need to do is send Mei Liangyu to the outer city.
Qin Chongxue asked, "Then it's okay for me to kill him right now in front of you?"
Mei Liangyu remained calm and composed: "Bring the man out here and try killing him in front of me."
Qin Chongxue stared at him, as if pondering whether Mei Liangyu truly didn't care or was merely pretending.
Mei Liangyu didn't give him much time to think. She stepped forward and said, "What, are you the only one at the thirteenth realm here? In such a vast place as Xuan Kui, you can't even gather three or five masters at the thirteenth realm?"
Qin Chongxue narrowed his eyes slightly.
This kid
"He knows?" Geng Hanfu was surprised that Mei Liangyu knew they were Xuan Kui's people.
Wenren Xu replied, "A smart person can guess that."
Mei Liangyu stared at Qin Chongxue, who was standing on the tiger's head, and said lazily, "Why don't we all come at once? I'm in a hurry."
"Why would it take two people to kill you?" Qin Chongxue said calmly.
As soon as he finished speaking, the five elements of energy surrounding him began to circulate rapidly, and several swirling gusts of wind could be vaguely seen exploding suddenly. Qin Chongxue's illusory figure flickered, arriving on the ground at a speed even faster than the Wind Control Technique, making it impossible for the naked eye to detect which direction he was attacking from.
Before the two sides even clashed, they had already activated their protective auras.
Mei Liangyu drew his sword faster than Qin Chongxue. A flash of white light, the blade was frosty and cold. He blocked with his sword, which collided with Qin Chongxue's sword, which had appeared before him in a flash.
Both men gripped the sword with their right hand, the tiger's mouth facing the hilt, a stance known as the Yin Hand Sword. This grip required exceptional skill in wielding the weapon; if one side was at a disadvantage in skill during the exchange, they were highly likely to have their weapon knocked away and their hand severed.
The moment the longsword and the short knife clashed, a piercing sound rang out, and the cold blades flashed. Both men gathered their energy in their upper bodies and exerted force. The hands holding the knives could feel the force rebounding, causing the swords to emit a low hum.
Mei Liangyu lifted her eyelids slightly and looked into Qin Chongxue's calm and unperturbed eyes.
With just one move, one can tell that the opponent is a master swordsman from the military school.
Qin Chongxue's sword energy solidified, transforming into sharp whirlwinds that struck the sword, unleashing an overwhelming force. Mei Liangyu reacted swiftly, advancing instead of retreating, feigning an attack while using the edge of the short blade to deflect both men's weapons.
The longsword and short knife hummed again, and the moment the weapons left their hands, both of them were forced back half a step by the rebound force.
Both sides reacted swiftly, without pausing for a moment while the swords were suspended in mid-air, and immediately attacked again.
Qin Chongxue's five fingers curled into a claw-like grip on his throat, but Mei Liangyu blocked it with a reverse wrist control, simultaneously striking down with his elbow. If this elbow strike, imbued with all the power of his upper body, had landed, that hand would have been crippled.
The physical duel between the two was filled with a sense of oppression in terms of strength and speed. Qin Chongxue ducked down to avoid the attack, and when Mei Liangyu saw that he dared to lower his body, he immediately launched a sweeping kick.
His long legs, hidden beneath his clothes, were brimming with power, muscles taut, effortlessly shifting his weight from his upper body to his lower body. If Qin Chongxue were to be struck by this sweeping kick imbued with sword energy, he would likely be decapitated on the spot.
Qin Chongxue blocked with his right arm bent, then smoothly changed the block into a grab, gathering his energy in his five fingers to grasp the enemy's powerful sweeping leg. Without pausing, he immediately changed his move, dodging to the side and then using the same move to strike back with an elbow, preparing to break Mei Liangyu's leg.
Mei Liangyu was caught mid-air while sweeping his leg, which meant Qin Chongxue had seized his vital point. However, he did not panic and reacted almost instantly to the change in events.
The moment he was grabbed, he twisted his waist and changed his stance, using the force of being grabbed by Qin Chongxue to leap into the air and turn around, switching legs to sweep and kick the outside of Qin Chongxue's elbow strike, thus dislocating the elbow strike, and Mei Liangyu was able to escape smoothly.
The swords that had been thrown back fell to the ground, their snow-white blades reflecting the distant firelight. The two men dodged and retrieved their weapons.
Qin Chongxue gripped the short knife, his gaze cold and fixed on the young man opposite him.
He knew about Mei Liangyu from what others had told him, and he didn't underestimate him when he came. Just the fact that Mei Liangyu could learn all sorts of martial arts would not make anyone lower their guard.
Now that I've personally faced it, I realize that just "hearing" about it isn't enough, not nearly enough.
In the instant he grabbed me, few people could react so quickly and successfully break free.
At least Qin Chongxue believed that this was not the kind of reaction a student at the Taiyi Tenth Realm should give.
The young man reacted swiftly and calmly, without the slightest panic or wishful thinking. This could only mean that he was experienced in combat, skilled in using his strength, and had absolute confidence in the development of the situation.
Mei Liangyu was much more serious than usual at this moment. Facing an opponent at the thirteenth level, he naturally wouldn't relax, nor would he adopt the attitude of competing and sparring with others in the academy.
At this moment, victory or defeat is equal to life or death.
Wenren Xu and Geng Hanfu, standing at the entrance to the dungeon in the ship's cabin, watched the fight between the two below with different expressions.
"Did you see that young man's quick thinking just now?" Geng Hanfu stroked his beard, his tone revealing neither joy nor anger. "Speed, experience, and strength are all indispensable. If there had been even the slightest mistake just now, his leg would have been ruined."
Wenren Xu squinted at the corners of his eyes, his smile intriguing: "I've long heard that he cultivates the arts of the Hundred Schools and Nine Schools. Although he is a disciple of the Ghost Dao School, it seems that his strength in the military school is not bad either."
With the two of them blocking the entrance, Mei Liangyu walked towards Tiger Head again. Yan Xiaochuan couldn't see what was happening outside, so he craned his neck and strained his ears to listen to their conversation.
When he heard them say that Mei Liangyu had almost lost a leg, he wished he could go out immediately and hack Qin Chongxue to death.
Geng Hanfu said, "Mei Liangyu's military skills are not bad, but I heard that he cannot summon the military sword spirit. Against our old Qin, his chances of winning are only 30% or 70%."
Wenren Xu waved his hand: "After seeing the real person, I feel that it is a bit too much to have the three of us attack together. Let's see how he fights with Lao Qin first. Even if he wins by chance, he will be exhausted and his Five Elements will be in reverse. We are not so bad that we can't even deal with a tenth-level student with reversed Five Elements, are we?"
He smiled at Geng Hanfu, seemingly extending an invitation, but the rules were already set, leaving no room for refusal.
Geng Hanfu chuckled and said, "I think Old Qin is enough on his own. Let's take a break for a while."
The two looked back down.
The sea fireflies were also watching from a distance, seemingly looking for an opportunity to enter the bone ship to forage.
Mei Liangyu glanced around and said nonchalantly, "There is a saying among military strategists: a general is the assistant to the state."
His dark eyes quietly scrutinized Qin Chongxue, but the words he uttered were like sharp knives: "I heard that you were once a military general in Binzhou Kingdom, a great general who assisted the king. You should know how despicable it is to use orchid poison on the battlefield."
"How come after the fall of Binzhou, you, the former Grand General of Binzhou, actually became a lackey of the Lan Du organization?"
"With such a 'good general' assisting the country, the loss of Binzhou was not entirely a loss."
The last sentence was full of sarcasm.
Qin Chongxue knew that Mei Liangyu was trying to distract him with words, but he was not affected in the slightest. This was not the first time he had heard such sarcastic remarks. Everyone who had once looked down on him and criticized him had eventually died at his hands.
After hearing Mei Liangyu's words, Qin Chongxue lowered his stance and became more casual. He asked, "Do you know who came to suppress the Binzhou Kingdom back then?"
Mei Liangyu narrowed his eyes: "The military strategist and war god of Qingyang?"
General Zhongli, Zhongli Ci.
"Exactly," Qin Chongxue said calmly. "Academy disciples like you have only ever seen battlefields in the form of armored formations in your entire life. What you have seen, killed, and destroyed are all puppet formations."
"No matter how well the military formation is recreated, it can't compare to experiencing it firsthand."
Qin Chongxue looked down at the hand holding the knife, his expression unchanged, his voice low and deep. He slowly raised his gaze from his palm to the young man opposite him: "The military books say that a few lines on paper are the tools that you military disciples who have never experienced anything love to use to complain and blame others."
A general is the pillar of a nation.
Even with the best advice and strategies, if the ruler does not listen, believe, or use them, what can a general do?
Mei Liangyu laughed and said, "When it comes to commanding troops on the battlefield, I am naturally inferior to you, but when it comes to entering and exiting enemy formations, I have done it far more often than you."
"You think I'm mocking you with military quotations because I'm young and naive? I suspect you've been poisoned by the Lan poison. I was talking about soldiers being reduced to Lan corpses, not how many years you've led troops into battle." The young man's already cold and sharp face became even more aggressive when he smiled. "It's a blessing that someone like you could be defeated by General Zhongli."
"Because you have never experienced a real battlefield, you cannot understand what it feels like to be pressured by Zhong Li Ci on the battlefield." Qin Chongxue's outstretched hand gripped the short knife again, his eyes sharp and cold. "It is because of Zhong Li Ci that I have been able to live until now."
Even if it means becoming one of the most despised people, one must live on.
Mei Liangyu was a little surprised: "You want to kill him?"
Qin Chongxue: "Who in the world doesn't want to kill Zhongli Ci?"
Mei Liangyu said, "I don't want to."
Qin Chongxue seemed silent for a moment, then suddenly a slight, enigmatic smile appeared on his lips: "It doesn't matter, you have no chance anyway, because you tonight..."
Before he could finish speaking, a loud noise came from the stern of the ship. Qin Chongxue frowned and glanced at the source of the noise, but he did not let his guard down and kept an eye on Mei Liangyu's movements.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a giant frost python lunging downwards, its target the dungeon entrance. The chilling aura spread rapidly, and Wenren Xu used his Wind Riding Technique to float in the air, dodging the frost python's attack as it charged up from the ground.
In the ship's cabin dungeon, Yan Xiaochuan looked up, his eyes reflecting the spiders hanging from the cracks in the roof. A scream was on the tip of his tongue, but when he saw a familiar figure and confirmed that it was one of his own farm spiders, he stopped howling and instead roared, "Senior Brother Cang! I'm afraid of spiders!"
Qin Chongxue frowned, but the young man standing opposite him just said "oh" and lazily said, "You didn't say I had to come alone, so I invited two more people with me. You don't mind, do you?"
[Author's Note]
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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