Marquis Liu Reborn
A Qiu said slowly, "That Young Master Fusu once inquired about a man named Duan Shaoan. Senior Brother, you must be careful. Perhaps Young Master Fusu is just reminiscing about someone, and you are the one who evoked his nostalgic thoughts, while that Young Master Duan is the one he truly misses."
Gongyi Xiu's body suddenly stiffened, then he angrily said, "You're the one who's worthless! You can't expect anything good to come out of a dog's mouth."
At this point, A Qiu was finally certain that the "Duan Shaoan" that Gongye Fusu had asked her about was Gongyi Xiu. She smiled and said, "Brother, you used many aliases and pseudonyms in the martial arts world back then, but I didn't know you had used the name 'Duan Shaoan'."
A shout rang out as the Xingfeng Hall disciples on the periphery rushed over upon hearing the noise, but Gongyi Xiu opened his folding fan and blocked all the attacks.
A panicked voice cried out, "Quickly, inform Left Envoy Xin!"
Mo Yimingyue was not in this hall at the moment. The highest-ranking people in the hall were Zuo Shixinyi and You Shi Yinshang, two of the Eight Steeds. However, Yinshang was on duty in the Divine Hound Camp all year round, while Xinyi's acupoints had been sealed by Gongyi Xiu and he was thrown into the same prison where A Qiu was originally imprisoned.
With Aqiu on his back, Gongyi Xiu remained calm and composed, standing tall and elegant. He opened his folding fan and said casually, "What, does this senior brother need to ask your Left Envoy Xin for permission to take someone from Xingfeng Hall?"
The disciples who had gathered around looked at each other, at a loss for what to do.
One of the straightforward members of the Xingfeng Hall immediately said, "The Xingfeng Hall is in charge of punishments and interrogations, and is extremely discerning. No prisoner brought here shall be released without the order of Hall Master Moyi. Even Hall Master Yiyan cannot disobey the hall rules!"
Mo Yimingyue, who was in charge of the Xingfeng Hall, was always extremely strict with his subordinates. His style was "better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free." All personnel had to follow the rules when entering and leaving, and all handovers had to be documented. This was quite different from the carefree and easygoing atmosphere of Gongyixiu's one-man rule.
Therefore, after this hall member finished speaking, the others shared the same sentiment and said in unison, "Please, Hall Master Yi Yan, release the prisoner and go to Hall Master Mo Yi to accept your punishment for trespassing in the forbidden area!"
A series of crisp sounds of weapons clashing rang out as the disciples of Xingfeng Hall had already formed their positions and were determined to stop Gongyi Xiu.
Ah Qiu was filled with indescribable emotions.
The three halls of Lanling have always had a clear hierarchy, well-defined roles, and excellent teamwork. However, today, Gongyi Xiu's attempt to save her has severely violated the hall rules and angered Mo Yimingyue's subordinates from another hall. This action will undoubtedly cause an uproar within Lanling Hall.
Not to mention the furious reaction of Master Wanqiqing when he learned of this.
She never imagined that her eldest brother, Gongyi Xiu, who always respected their master the most, would do such a rebellious thing because of her.
But upon hearing Gongyi Xiu chuckle, she felt figures sway before her eyes, the wind howled, the scenery receded, and the sounds of swords and blades clashed incessantly.
Gongyi Xiu was carrying her on his back, and he fought his way out while continuing to fight, which shows how confident he was in his skills.
This also shows that "Marquis of Lanling" was truly capable, far more than just theoretical talk and witty banter. Xingfeng Hall was the most disciplined of the three halls, and its "Seven Killings Formation" was well-trained in advance and retreat, specifically designed to deal with martial arts masters. Even A Qiu in his prime would have to be careful when facing it, let alone Gongyi Xiu, who was carrying someone on his back at the moment.
But Gongyi Xiu remained calm and composed, fighting as he moved, constantly causing the entire formation to shift outwards. During this movement, there were occasional flaws, which he would break through and escape from the formation.
A few moments later, they arrived at the mountain gate. Once they left this gate, they would no longer be under the jurisdiction of Xingfeng Hall, and Aqiu and Gongyi Xiu could be considered to have successfully escaped.
Gongyi Xiu, who had been using his superb agility to dash left and right, making it difficult for the group to defend themselves, suddenly heard someone in the group shout: "Hall Master Yiyan, we have refrained from killing you because you are the senior brother of our hall. But if you take just one more step, you will escape the territory of Xingfeng Hall. If you refuse to release the criminals, we will have no choice but to kill you in accordance with the hall rules."
The man's voice was solemn, and he was transmitting his voice steadily with his internal energy, so he was not afraid that Gongyi Xiu in front of the mountain gate would not hear it.
A Qiu knew this man was telling the truth. The rules of Xingfeng Hall were extremely strict, even harsh. Gongyi Xiu's ability to leave so easily was partly due to the strict rules of Mo Yimingyue, which prevented the members from defying their superiors. But now, with Gongyi Xiu about to leave the mountain gate, any further leniency would be dereliction of duty. Given Mo Yimingyue's strict discipline, the members of Xingfeng Hall would never dare to so blatantly let him escape.
Gongyi Xiu finally suppressed his smile, stood solemnly, and said, "Is the one speaking Zhu Zuosi, the leader of Xing Feng's 'Eight Steeds'?"
A man stepped forward from the crowd. He had a black turban on his head, and his eyes were bright and intimidating. He carried an iron bow on his back. He clasped his hands in a fist salute to Gongyi Xiu and said without any politeness, "I was on duty in the outer hall when I received an urgent report that something had happened in the prison. Who would have thought that it was the Hall Master 'Marquis Liu' here?"
He pressed closer and said coldly, "You have always been on good terms with Master Moyi. Why are you in such a hurry to turn your fellow disciples against each other?"
A Qiu thought to herself that she had often heard that Zhu Zuosi was the top general under Mo Yimingyue, a man of both literary and military talent, and resourceful. Whenever Mo Yimingyue was away, he would be in charge of Xingfeng Hall. Gongyi Xiu's actions this time were extremely swift. He broke into the prison in the blink of an eye, knocked out the Left Envoy Xin Yi in charge of the prison with a hidden weapon, and immediately carried her out. Such a method of attack was to take the enemy by surprise.
But now that Zhu Zuosi, who was in charge of the overall situation, had arrived, it meant that Xingfeng Hall had already formed a complete encirclement, and would not allow Gongyi Xiu to leave this place with her today.
The Xingfeng Hall's motto, "Better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free," still holds true. If Gongyi Xiu were to perish here, even if Mo Yimingyue and Wan Qiqing found out afterward, they would not hold anyone in the Xingfeng Hall accountable. This was, in fact, the rule of the Lanling Hall.
Knowing the gravity of the matter, she finally spoke, "Senior Brother, thank you for risking your life to save me. Why don't you put me down? I... will find a way out."
Gongyi Xiu's blatant defiance of his master's will by rescuing someone from the Xingfeng Hall prison might be considered a lesser crime than hers, but it would still greatly anger his master. She had already been severely punished by his master in the three halls; if Gongyi Xiu were implicated, it would only escalate the situation further, making it even harder to appease his master's rage.
She had just finished speaking and was about to get off his back when Gongyi Xiu whispered a warning: "Don't move!"
He added, "Everyone only knows that you are the number one on the Lanling Golden List, even surpassing me, your senior brother. But do you know that I have always been letting you win?"
A-Qiu stared in disbelief for a moment before saying, "I don't believe it."
Given Gongyi Xiu's peacock-like demeanor, if he could win her over, why would he have swallowed his pride and remained below her on the Lanling Ranking for so many years?
Gongyi Xiu didn't turn around, as if he hadn't heard, and said, "Do you think that if you were in charge of the Seven Killings Formation, which is presided over by a master like Xingfeng Hall, you wouldn't be able to escape with one person?"
After a moment's thought, A Qiu pondered, "If it were just me alone, I would be absolutely certain. But if I were to bring someone along, it would be much more difficult."
She said this because she had once held out for most of the day with only half her power against the thirteen shadow warriors of her own sect. In terms of the intensity and sharpness of killing intent, the Seven Kill Formation of Xingfeng Hall should not be as good as the thirteen shadow warriors of Shenbing Hall, so she was confident that she could escape.
But killing is easy, saving lives is difficult. Carrying someone like this, escaping the encirclement unharmed is as difficult as climbing to heaven.
Unexpectedly, Gongyi Xiu said, "I am confident of victory today and will take you away from this place."
A Qiu was stunned again, staring at the Xingfeng Hall members who were closing in from all four corners. He still couldn't believe it, but hearing Gongyi Xiu's resolute promise, he felt a warmth in his heart and whispered, "Alright, Senior Brother, I won't come down. If we really can't escape this calamity today, we'll die together."
Upon hearing Zhu Zuosi's command from within the formation, dozens of swords, spears, and halberds immediately surged forth, rushing towards Gongyi Xiu like a tidal wave.
Faced with such a formidable enemy, Gongyi Xiu remained calm and composed, letting out a clear whistle towards the sky.
The whistling sound consisted of two long and one short notes, starting slowly and then accelerating, with a rhythmic pattern. It was the "Lanling Whistle" used by the people of Lanling Hall to call for help.
A Qiu was puzzled, thinking that he was already being besieged by the people of Lanling, so who could come to his aid? But then he heard a whistling sound coming from afar, and judging from the direction of the sound, the other party was rushing towards this place at an astonishing speed.
Gongyi Xiu did not sit idly by and wait for death. After he let out a whistling sound, his eyes flashed with a sharp light, and his expression became extremely solemn, a stark contrast to his usual carefree demeanor.
At the same time, a jade flute named "Snow Dragon's Roar" slid out from inside the left sleeve, and the folding fan in the right hand snapped open fully.
He first swept his fan horizontally, deflecting the heavy killing intent and tidal wave of attacks from the other side. At the same time, a hidden mechanism inside the fan was activated, and silver nails shot out like a waterfall, instantly knocking down a large number of people on the other side.
Instead of taking the opportunity to escape, he closed in, pointing his jade flute at Zhu Zuosi, the commander of the formation.
Ah Qiu finally witnessed the true strength of his senior brother, "Jade-faced Marquis Liu".
The saying goes, "To catch the thief, first catch the king." It seems that Gongyi Xiu not only wants to take her away from this place, but also wants to break this Seven Killings Formation in order to save face as the senior disciple of Lanling Hall.
If word gets out that he successfully kidnapped the person, but was chased by Zhu Zuosi like a stray dog, waiting for someone to rescue him, he will lose face.
Zhu Zuosi was originally in charge of the formation. According to his estimation, Gongyi Xiu would most likely try his best to escape from the formation and capture him. He never expected that Gongyi Xiu would be one step away from success, but instead of escaping, he turned around and charged into the encirclement, directly targeting him, the leader of the formation, as if he completely disregarded his own safety.
Although this turn of events was completely unexpected, Zhu Zuosi was, after all, a first-rate assassin of the Xingfeng Hall. After taking a deep breath, he decisively threw down the flag he used to command the advance and retreat of the formation, took the iron bow from his back, and aimed at Gongyi Xiu, firing three arrows in quick succession.
Given Gongyi Xiu's exceptional agility, these three arrows would naturally miss him, but they would slow his approach.
After Zhu Zuosi released those three arrows, he quickly retreated.
His commander abandoned his flag and retreated, causing the Seven Kill Formation, which had already been partially destroyed by Gongyi Xiu, to fall apart and become riddled with flaws.
Seeing that his "one move affects the whole body" strategy had succeeded, Gongyi Xiu laughed and turned around, carrying A Qiu on his back, and walked slowly toward the mountain gate, saying leisurely, "Thank you for seeing me off, Venerable Zhu."
Given A Qiu's extensive experience in combat and his resourcefulness, one has to admire Gongyi Xiu's strategy.
His victory in this battle was due to his superior strategy. First, he seized the mountain gate, making the enemy think he was trying to escape, forcing them to hastily set up an encirclement. Then, just as the formation was about to be completed, he launched a surprise attack, causing the enemy to lose a number of elite troops and become wary, so they dared not rush forward to launch a relentless attack. Taking advantage of this opportunity, he took a break to attack Zhu Zuosi, who was in the main formation. This caused the enemy to panic and had to retreat to save their lives, making the already chaotic formation even more disordered. The Seven Kill Formation collapsed before it could even unleash half of its original power.
Among the three heroes of Lanling, if judged by strategy and tactics, Marquis Liu Gongyi Xiu is truly the best of the three.
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