Chapter 352: Beating Up the Old Man

Slaying demons and exterminating evils?

Of course not.

If the Zi Jin Palace hadn't killed Song Shi to protect their own official caps, how could they have so swiftly chosen to fight alongside Liu Qing?

The crowd dispersed that day.

Li Rui used his own channels to write a letter to Xia Xiaotang.

Negotiations of this sort.

It's impossible to start with official-to-official talks; everything must be settled before sitting down at the table, so when it surfaces, it's already a done deal.

The Zi Jin Palace is still on Wu Kingdom's territory.

It's bound to become a menace sooner or later.

With Yu Kingdom sending troops to help suppress it, Wu Kingdom has no reason to refuse.

So Li Rui was very confident about this matter.

Of course, outwardly he still acted as if the matter was extremely difficult and hard to handle, still searching for solutions.

At this moment.

In the courtyard of the Military Advisor's Office.

"Did your disciple leave?"

In the back courtyard.

Tie Kuang watched Li Rui squatting in the corner with his disciple, smoking a pipe together.

"Left. Left yesterday."

"What, Master, are you missing the kid?"

Li Rui said.

"Sort of. That boy's gone, and now every bowl of porridge tastes worse. Every time I eat it now, I remember him—how could I not miss him?"

Li Rui fell silent.

True enough.

Previously, Wang Zhao had cooked the porridge; now that Wang Zhao was gone, the task naturally fell to the only young man in the courtyard, Liu Tiezhu.

Liu Tiezhu had spent his whole life in the blacksmith's shop.

He was excellent at forging iron, but as for cooking porridge, he was woefully inadequate.

Li Rui: "Master, shall I find a cook, or have Zui Xian Pavilion send over meals daily?"

Tie Kuang waved his hand:

"No need for such trouble. Let Tiezhu keep doing it."

He was a Grand Elder of the Divine Weapon Mountain Villa—what rare delicacies hadn't he tasted? After eating so much, he'd grown to prefer this simple, homely flavor.

Wang Zhao suited him perfectly.

Now he'd just have to make do—it's still edible, after all.

Li Rui chuckled.

He hadn't expected that sending Wang Zhao to Wu Kingdom would trouble Tie Kuang the most.

Tie Kuang smoked steadily, and soon the blackened tobacco in the brass pipe ran out.

He didn't refill it.

Instead, he turned to Li Rui: "You've improved a lot, boy. That Nie kid's a top-tier expert in the Primordial Realm—I admit I'm no match for him. You lasted over twenty rounds with him? Very good."

Li Rui: "Master saw that?"

Tie Kuang rolled his eyes: "With all that commotion between you two, do you think I couldn't see?"

"That Nie Siming has always been arrogant."

"Keep training. Beat him!"

Li Rui fell silent.

To defeat Nie Siming, he'd still need many years.

The Primordial Realm isn't easily broken through.

Tie Kuang rubbed his hands: "Come on, let's spar."

Li Rui was surprised: "Master, didn't you say you wouldn't train anymore?"

He'd suggested this before—asking Tie Kuang to suppress his power and spar with him.

But every time, Tie Kuang refused.

Why the sudden interest today?

Tie Kuang: "Enough talk. Train, or don't."

Watching Li Rui fight Nie Siming had stirred his hunger for combat—he'd been eager to test himself against Li Rui for days.

Today, he'd fully restored his spirit and energy, determined to give it his all.

A veteran of the Primordial Realm for nearly a hundred years—if he let himself be bested by accident, he'd be utterly humiliated.

This couldn't happen.

Li Rui didn't hesitate.

For sparring, he never turned anyone down.

Immediately,

the two went to the training ground.

Tie Kuang didn't draw weapons—only fists and palms.

Unlike his fight with Nie Siming, Li Rui chose not to use the Immortal Blade: Slashing the Dragon.

One reason: Tie Kuang had helped him greatly—these were debts of gratitude.

As a junior, he should show proper respect.

Another reason: although Tie Kuang was unmatched in forging weapons, his martial realm wasn't Soul Transformation like Nie Siming's—it was the second stage, Mind Refinement.

Only one minor realm above Li Rui's, and far less pressure than Nie Siming's, so he dared this.

Li Rui watched Tie Kuang's fist hurtling toward him, a faint smile on his lips.

In Great Dream Immortal Path, here was another perfect sparring partner—he no longer had to endure the boring sight of the hook-nosed man.

The combination of Tie Kuang and Nie Siming would keep him training for a long time.

While others struggled to find sparring partners, he'd already trained thousands of times—and his partners never complained.

In the blink of an eye,

their fists and palms collided.

As a weaponsmith, Tie Kuang's external cultivation was formidable; though not as purely external as He Qianian, his external strength still outweighed his internal.

Li Rui countered with the Great Unyielding Art and the Dragon-Elephant True Qi Power.

For a time, they matched blow for blow.

One punched, the other kicked.

Like two humanoid beasts, pure brute force and aesthetics.

Tie Kuang seemed to dominate, but grew more and more alarmed.

Li Rui's breakthrough had been under his own eyes.

Only a year had passed, yet his foundation was terrifyingly solid—even a veteran Primordial Realm martialist like himself found it difficult.

The young generation is formidable. Truly astonishing.

Tie Kuang had initially planned to hold back, but as the fight went on, he unconsciously unleashed his full strength.

Finally,

on the two hundred and thirty-first move,

Tie Kuang spotted an opening and punched Li Rui to the ground.

Seeing Li Rui sprawled helplessly, he finally smiled.

'Close call.'

Tie Kuang stared at the defeated Li Rui—if he couldn't bring him down within three hundred moves, his face would be completely lost.

Remember, he'd used his full power.

He chuckled: "Still got it, Li boy. You've got a long way to go!"

Li Rui laughed as he got up: "Master's martial skill is beyond my reach—how could a hundred years of cultivation be ordinary?"

!

Tie Kuang knew Li Rui was flattery, but he still found it deeply pleasing.

He crossed his arms: "Keep training. I'll test you again in a few days."

His face was stern, but inside he was delighted.

Li Rui was an excellent sparring partner—after reviewing the fight, he'd discovered many flaws in himself.

After returning and digesting it,

his strength would surely improve.

Wasn't this exactly the goal of sparring?

Thinking this, his steps quickened.

'No forging today.'

Watching Tie Kuang leave, Li Rui smiled faintly.

Lost?

Of course I lost—I crossed a minor realm boundary, and didn't even use my trump cards. Of course I lost.

Each minor advancement in the Primordial Realm brings a qualitative leap, greatly boosting one's strength.

He already used nine-tenths of his strength.

Of course, if I used all my trump cards, my chances of victory might reach three tenths.

To defeat an opponent across a realm boundary in the Primordial Realm—three tenths is already extraordinary.

If any Primordial cultivator heard this thought, they'd be stunned speechless.

To win a cross-realm challenge, especially in the Primordial Realm, is exceedingly rare.

Those who can do it are all true prodigies.

Li Rui stood in the training ground.

He reviewed the details of his battle with Tie Kuang today.

As a strong warrior of Divine Weapon Manor, Tie Kuang had much to teach.

Especially after fighting him, Li Rui realized just how formidable Tie Kuang was.

He was indeed a formidable opponent.

Li Rui had exceptional insight.

His ability to infer broader principles from limited examples and identify his own weaknesses was top-tier; perhaps next time he faced Tie Kuang, the situation would be vastly different.

He could hardly wait to face Tie Kuang again on the Dream Cloud Platform.

"Elder, I've received your letter. I asked my master—he had no objections, but the Witch Kingdom must also send personnel to join the operation."

Li Rui gazed at the reply from Xia Xiaotang.

Just as he had expected.

The Witch Kingdom agreed without hesitation.

As is well known, the new Witch King has little experience; the real power lies with the Grand Witch.

Unlike Yu Kingdom.

Even outside this unusual period, the Grand Witch holds nearly equal authority to the Witch Emperor.

If the Grand Witch says yes, there's no turning back.

As for the Witch Kingdom sending personnel, it was already within Li Rui's expectations.

After all, the Witch Kingdom is no small state. Even now, amid turmoil, the royal dignity remains. Letting Yu Kingdom send troops unilaterally would be an affront to their honor. Sending their own forces makes the mission legitimate and allows for oversight.

People's true intentions are hidden within their chests.

Who knows what other schemes Yu Kingdom might harbor?

As the chief officer of Anning Guard, Li Rui already had the authority to handle diplomatic matters.

By the rules.

He could have simply sent a formal document to the Witch Kingdom himself, and the matter would be settled.

But now, his immediate superiors in Qinghe still had two others.

Naturally, he first went to Nie Siming and Liu Qing, explained everything in full, and handed the decision to his superiors—showing not the slightest hint of overstepping.

Upon hearing the news, Liu Qing readily agreed.

She had not the slightest objection to the Witch Kingdom sending troops.

The matter was thus smoothly resolved.

With approval granted, Li Rui retrieved the Assistant Military Commissioner's seal, drafted the official document, and handed it to the envoy to deliver to the Witch Kingdom.

Now, all that remained was to wait for the Witch Kingdom's reply.

One day.

Li Rui was practicing in the courtyard when Tan Hu burst in, grinning: "Big Brother, that idiot girl from the Witch Kingdom is here—says she wants to see you."

The Witch Kingdom's "idiot girl"? Without thinking, it had to be Xia Xiaotang.

Tan Hu had been by Li Rui's side for years—he'd met Xia Xiaotang before, so he spoke this way.

Li Rui: "Quickly, show her in."

Not long after.

Xia Xiaotang appeared before Li Rui, smiling brightly: "Elder, since we parted in the capital, I've missed you terribly—I never expected to see you again so soon."

Li Rui chuckled: "Young Miss Xia, your grace remains unchanged—I'm relieved."

Xia Xiaotang pouted:

"Elder, Third Sister is truly a good person—why won't you believe her?"

She couldn't miss that Li Rui was referring to Princess San—or rather, Fourth Imperial Prince's Consort, Xia Yun.

Li Rui said nothing on the matter of Xia Yun, brushing it aside, and asked instead about Xia Xiaotang's recent days.

Xia Xiaotang spilled everything.

"Young Miss Xia, are you leading this mission?"

Xia Xiaotang shook her head:

"Of course not—General Pu Xin is leading the troops. I came on my own."

Li Rui was startled:

"You mean the Sky Mountain Eagle, Pu Xin?"

(End of Chapter)