Chapter 19 Please Apologize
Today marks the ninth year since Song Honghua inherited the Golden Inlaid Knife.
If they can maintain this record for another year, they will surpass the previous president's record.
There used to be an unwritten rule in the business: whoever had the ability to kill the guild leader could take his place.
However, since Song Honghua took power, he abolished this rule and changed it to allow Jin Cuodao to do one thing as long as the chairman is defeated.
Nevertheless, thanks to its reputation as the number one in the world, a steady stream of people still came to challenge it, hoping to gain fame and status.
So Song Honghua, annoyed by this, added another rule: all losers must leave their lives on the Golden Inlaid Knife.
This brought about peace for most of the days.
Now, Song Honghua sits lazily in his armchair, wiping his knife, and proudly recounts his past glorious achievements.
He wiped the blade until it was as clear as water, reflecting his arrogant eyes, and then Song Honghua blew on the spotless blade with satisfaction.
Another hair fell before the blade. As Song Honghua swung his sword, he saw the soft strand of hair cleanly severed. He first smiled with satisfaction, then sighed in despair.
"There is not a single person in the world who can rival me."
I couldn't help but feel a pretentious, arrogant loneliness, but this loneliness didn't last long. The next second, there was a knock on the door, and the butler asked for instructions from outside:
"My lord, someone wants to challenge you today."
"Oh," Song Honghua suddenly became interested, but it was only a lazy interest. He continued to casually stroke the scabbard and nodded.
"Enter--"
After saying that, the door creaked open, and footsteps slowly approached, then stopped leisurely.
Song Honghua looked up and saw a person in front of him dressed in white, with a slender and upright waist, and an indescribable elegance.
He unconsciously rose from the armchair, his gaze slowly sliding down to the face of the newcomer.
Unfortunately, the person who came was wearing an ordinary cloud mask, which concealed nine-tenths of their true appearance.
It was like a peerless painting unfolded before him, its beauty clearly visible yet veiled by a layer of white gauze. Song Honghua concealed his disappointment, his hands behind his back, gripping his sword.
"Young man, you're the one who should challenge me."
He spoke with his chin slightly raised and his eyes narrowed, revealing an undisguised arrogance.
Su Yunyu immediately deduced that this person had not been severely beaten.
Beneath the mask, he smiled, and to conceal his identity, he retrieved a low-grade sword from his spatial storage. Drawing the sword, he moved with an air of nonchalance.
"I'd like to ask you for advice."
"Heh," Song Honghua chuckled softly, taking the initiative by lightly stepping forward and swinging his sword—
A knife is different from a sword. It only has one edge and its power is only suitable for slashing and chopping. For example, the blade he swung out right now was aimed directly at his face, which was extremely vicious.
Although Song Honghua had not yet won, he was already extremely pleased with himself, simply because he saw that the person in front of him seemed young and impetuous, a mediocre fellow.
Thus, this first strike, though ruthless, was also tinged with a moment of carelessness. Just as he was about to hear the cry of pain as he had heard countless times before, a flash of light appeared before his eyes, followed by a clang like the sound of a jade bell—
Boom! A violent tremor spread from the blade all the way to his arm, so strong that Song Honghua's hand almost trembled and he almost lost his grip on the knife.
But his years of experience quickly helped him adjust his mindset, and he jumped back with a look of astonishment in his eyes.
Song Honghua gripped his numb arm and looked at Su Yunyu again. Strange, this person's strength was unfathomable, yet for some reason, she did not take the initiative to attack.
Moreover... he seemed distracted and full of doubts.
Despite being in the midst of a storm, he was trying to do two things at once.
This is utterly disrespectful to the competition!
Song Honghua was quite annoyed, so he channeled his inner energy into his sword, let out a loud shout, and slashed down diagonally—
The sound was still deafening. Su Yunyu dodged and raised her sword to block, her brows furrowed with unspoken hesitation.
Xiao Shuying just said that it will only end when it's a fight to the death.
Does he really have to kill the man in front of him?
But… Su Yunyu tightened her grip on her sword, her mind in turmoil. This expression, seen by Song Honghua who had taken a few steps back, only fueled his anger.
"Young man, since you've decided to take on this challenge, give it your all!"
Having said that, he once again wielded his sword like the wind, slicing through the dust, exerting all his strength, risking his life for the sake of survival.
As the words fell and the blade pressed closer once more, Su Yunyu gripped the scabbard tightly, her eyes briefly closing before snapping open:
"Take this!"
Although he had not yet made up his mind to kill the person in front of him, he had already made up his mind to settle the matter as soon as possible.
Although it's said to be a decisive battle, in reality, judging from Su Yunyu's swordsmanship, there was no actual decisive process. However, as seen:
Its sword's cry is like the rushing sound of a spring, its blade shines like the sun and moon, its sword intent is overwhelming and ever-changing, impossible to grasp with the eye, and leaving the heart trembling and unable to defend itself.
Clang—the sound of the knife hitting the ground was crisp and clear.
Su Yunyu still held her sword sheath; the outcome of the battle was already decided.
Just as Su Yunyu was still struggling with whether to fight to the death, Song Honghua froze for a second, then recalled the sword intent he had just witnessed. Unable to hold back his tears, he knelt down, his knees trembling, and shouted:
"A master, a true master!"
As he spoke, he spread his arms wide, clearly intending to pledge allegiance, which startled Su Yunyu, causing her to take a step back. She then saw Song Honghua's eyes filled with longing, his excitement barely concealed.
"If you want this esteemed guild master, you can have it. I only ask that you teach me the sword technique you just used!"
Turns out he's a martial arts fanatic.
Su Yunyu silently took another step back, and calmly said:
"I don't want to be the president, I just want you to do me one thing."
Song Honghua was still immersed in the shock of the sword intent he had just been struck by. He remained kneeling on the ground and instead crawled forward a few steps on his knees.
"You're too kind, sir. I could help with ten things!"
With a creak, the closed door opened, and the scarred butler and Xiao Shuying unfortunately witnessed the scene before them.
Putting aside the shock in the butler's eyes at seeing that the president had actually been defeated, Xiao Shuying's eyes flashed as she looked at the president who was still unharmed.
Why didn't Su Yunyu kill him?
Didn't they clearly imply that killing the chairman was the only way?
Why not kill them? Have they truly become compassionate?
Heh, he won't believe it.
The steward went over to help Song Honghua up, but Song Honghua finally realized his lapse in composure. He wasn't angry, though, and simply coughed awkwardly.
"I wonder what the master wants our Golden Inlaid Knives for?"
Such skillful movements and refined elegance suggest that the matter they seek must be of great importance.
Su Yunyu sheathed her sword and said calmly:
"Help me post a bounty: kill 500 Nightmares before midnight tomorrow. There's no upper limit, the more the better, but a minimum of 500."
"..."
Song Honghua was stunned.
"..."
The deacon was also stunned.
The main point is that this task, although somewhat complicated, is really not anything particularly important or difficult.
Xiao Shuying's gaze swept over the demeanor of the people before her, suppressing a slight, unexpected annoyance. She stepped forward and tugged at Su Yunyu's sleeve.
"Brother, I knew you would win."
It's a pity that Song Honghua wasn't killed; it's truly a regrettable shortcoming.
If we could sever Jin Cuodao's financial ties with the Xiao family...
As he finished speaking, Song Honghua noticed Xiao Shuying and heard him call him "Brother Master," so he immediately assumed that the two were from the same school and must be equally skilled.
Then, interest ignited in his eyes, and he raised his knife and slashed at Xiao Shuying, wanting to test his skill level.
As Xiao Shuying was deep in thought, she suddenly felt a gust of wind rushing towards her. When she came to her senses, she only saw the blade falling straight down. Oh no—
His pupils suddenly contracted, his gaze fixed on the falling blade. In that instant, a continuous stream of power seemed to surge through his meridians.
At that very moment, when no one expected Song Honghua to suddenly draw his sword, Song Honghua suddenly felt an extremely terrifying pressure coming towards him!
His body felt as if it were nailed to the ground, unable to move. His internal organs ached slightly. Time seemed to stand still for a moment. When everything returned to normal, Su Yunyu, her face ashen, had already blocked his blade with her sword and angrily asked:
What do you want to do?
Song Honghua trembled violently, whether from the shock of being blocked by Su Yunyu's sword or from the lingering power of that inexplicable pressure, he felt his limbs go weak, his sword fell to the ground, and he collapsed, muttering:
"How strange, how strange."
Although the slash did not cause any real damage, it severed a strand of hair that was loose in front of Xiao Shuying.
Her hair fell in a rustling sound, like autumn maple leaves falling to the ground. Xiao Shuying lowered her eyes and stared at the hair on the ground, lost in thought.
Strange, the fluctuations in this power are becoming increasingly unpredictable.
"I'm so sorry," Song Honghua stood up and bowed to Su Yunyu and the other person, clasping his hands in a respectful gesture.
"I only wanted to see if the master's younger brother also possessed such supernatural abilities. I apologize for the intrusion."
Su Yunyu remained expressionless, though she was somewhat terrified.
He was never quick enough to react. If Song Honghua had actually struck him with his sword, Xiao Shuying wouldn't have died, but he would have been held responsible.
Xiao Shuying wasn't angry; she simply said to Su Yunyu:
"It's alright, brother. We need to focus on important matters."
He picked up the stray hairs from the ground and carefully tucked them inside his clothes.
This tactic has been used too many times, but unfortunately Su Yunyu never understood that it's called "retreating to advance".
Upon hearing this, he felt a pang of self-reproach and spoke coldly to Song Honghua:
"Please apologize!"
Xiao Shuying paused slightly upon hearing this, not expecting Su Yunyu to defend her so much.
Whether it was the first life or the ninety-eight lives that followed, this feeling of being protected was always novel.
Unfortunately, he was not used to this feeling at all, and it made him somewhat irritable.
Rather than feigning affection, let's get down to business.
Although Song Honghua was arrogant about his martial arts skills, he had great respect for anyone who could defeat him, so upon hearing this, he obediently apologized.
"I'm very sorry, it was my mistake."
"Regarding the bounty I just mentioned..."
Su Yunyu was somewhat anxious, as the deadline for posting the results was tomorrow at noon, and he really didn't have any extra time.
Therefore, Song Honghua quickly instructed his attendants:
"Go, give the order: tell everyone else to put aside what they're doing and go get this bounty on immediately!"
“Yes,” the scarred-faced butler glanced at Su Yunyu and the other person with a complicated expression before leaving.
Song Honghua removed the jade pendant from his waist, stopping Su Yunyu from leaving immediately.
“Master, even if you don’t become the president of this association, please accept this jade pendant. If you have any important matters in the future, you can always give orders to Jin Cuodao.”
Su Yunyu thought it would be entirely beneficial and without any harm, so she accepted the jade pendant and was about to return with Xiao Shuying when Xiao Shuying stopped and turned to Song Honghua, saying:
"When my brother and I came here, we followed the elders of the Xiao family and learned by chance that we were delivering goods to your place. There's something I'm not sure if I should say..."
Hesitant to speak, Su Yunyu, who had already left the room, stopped outside the door upon hearing this. She turned back to look, puzzled but not stopping him.
Song Honghua, naturally, extended his admiration for the master to the person he admired, and immediately said in a nonchalant manner:
"Please feel free to speak your mind."
With her back to Su Yunyu, Xiao Shuying smiled.
"I heard that they are dissatisfied with Jin Cuodao's aggressive price-cutting and have made many slanderous remarks. They have also been traveling slowly and sluggishly. Although I do not know the actual interests between you and the Xiao family, I have great respect for you, Chairman, so I am telling you the truth."
After saying that, he ran towards Su Yunyu, looked up and laughed:
"Brother, don't blame me for taking the liberty of making this decision, let's go back."
Whether he's angry or not, Su Yunyu won't retaliate against him anyway.
Whether it was out of sincerity or pretense, how could Master blame him?
As for the idea that Jin Cuodao and the Xiao family would cease all business dealings based on just a few words, that's unrealistic.
However, if Situ Kou's poison takes effect, Jin Cuodao will not receive the goods for a long time, and if he thinks about what he said, a rift will surely arise.
Although Su Yunyu felt he had grasped some clue from Long Aotian's words, his greatest flaw was laziness, and he thought Long Aotian was still young and couldn't possibly have any bad intentions. So he simply patted his head and quickly withdrew his hand.
"It's okay, let's go back."
A note from the author:
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The list is now complete! I'll update again the day after tomorrow. Thanks for reading! [Sprinkling flowers][Sprinkling flowers]
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