Chapter 64: Duel with the British Knight

Before the Yin Mansion.

Twelve Knights riding British thoroughbreds lined up, blocking the main gate of the Yin Family.

They wore ornate knightly attire, Western swords at their waists, and their gazes were indifferent; they looked like they were there to cause trouble, drawing passing commoners to gather and watch.

"What's going on? Why are these foreigners blocking the Yin Family's gate?"

"Looks like they're up to no good."

"Sigh, it seems the Yin Family is in for a disaster. What a pity for such a kind-hearted family."

The commoners discussed it among themselves, their eyes filled with regret.

In Shaoxing Prefecture, the Yin Family enjoyed high prestige among the people, because Yin Chengtao was keen on charity, gave out porridge year-round, and always prioritized poor families when hiring workers.

They also wanted to stand up for the Yin Family, but facing the foreigners, they could only watch, powerless.

Creak!

As the gate opened, Yin Qi strode out, followed by quite a few people.

However, to avoid worrying his parents, he had them stay hidden for the time being.

Yin Qi's expression was cold and stern; he swept his gaze over the Knights and cupped his hands, saying, "I don't know what reason you have for blocking my gate."

"You are Yin Qi?"

A Knight rode out from the group, looking down at Yin Qi from his horse: "My name is Michael, a Silver Knight of the Great British Empire. I heard your martial arts are decent, so I have come specifically to challenge you."

As he finished speaking, the other Knights turned their horses to drive away the surrounding commoners, clearing a large space.

Yin Qi's expression changed slightly; he had assumed they would inquire about the killing of the foreigners at the Church and the Prefecture Office, and he had already prepared fluent answers, but he had not expected them to come to challenge him.

Of course, he did not believe they were here just for a challenge; he had no fame in the martial arts world.

It was likely that they knew they couldn't find any evidence but didn't want to let him, the suspect, go, so they used the pretext of a challenge; if there were death or injury during the duel, it would be considered normal.

Thinking of this, Yin Qi shook his head and said, "You have the wrong person. I am just a merchant, and practicing martial arts is merely my hobby. If you wish to challenge someone, there are many martial arts schools in this city; you are welcome to go there."

Michael gave a cold laugh and said, looking down, "What if I insist? You must understand, we possess Extraterritoriality. Even if we charged in and killed your family, the government could do nothing to us."

Yin Qi's expression sank instantly, murderous intent flickering in his eyes.

Michael didn't care at all and continued, "Not only that, I can kill you, but if you dare to kill us, your government will never let you off. Do you believe that if you kill even one of us, your government will wipe out your entire clan?"

"Foreign ghosts, you are shameless!"

The Yin Family members behind Yin Qi were furious, glaring at them.

The surrounding commoners were also in an uproar, many cursing the foreigners in the crowd.

They hadn't expected these foreigners to be so shameless, using the lives of the Yin Family to force Yin Qi to fight, but who in the crowd didn't know that Yin Qi was just a young man who didn't study or practice properly? How could he beat these foreigners on their tall horses?

"How do you want to compete?"

Yin Qi's gaze was icy.

He had no way out and could only accept the challenge.

Yet he felt immense humiliation in his heart, and even more hatred for the Manchu Qing Imperial Court.

If not for the incompetence of the Imperial Court, how could these foreigners be allowed to run wild on this land!

Michael was about to speak when he heard a series of hoofbeats approaching.

And someone shouting loudly: "Move aside, everyone move aside."

Yin Qi also turned to look and saw Nalan Yuanshu riding over.

He was flanked by a group of soldiers running, dispersing the onlookers and clearing a path.

Nalan Yuanshu arrived in the center, a polite smile on his face: "So it is Mr. Michael, long time no see."

Michael's expression was ugly, his eyes showing deep wariness.

"Nalan, what are you doing here?"

Nalan Yuanshu smiled faintly: "This is within the territory of my Qing Dynasty; where can I not go? As for Mr. Michael, Shanyin is not a treaty port, and you are not a missionary; you shouldn't be here."

It was clear that the two knew each other.

And this Michael had likely suffered at the hands of Nalan Yuanshu before.

Michael snorted coldly: "People from our Great British Empire were killed here by thugs. I am here under the orders of the Consul to investigate the situation, and I also heard that Yin Qi is a martial arts expert, so I came to challenge him. This is a battle between Knights, and he has already agreed; I hope you will not interfere."

Nalan Yuanshu sneered, looking at Yin Qi: "Yin Qi, did you agree?"

Yin Qi cupped his hands and said, "Yes, sir."

Nalan Yuanshu wore a smile at the corners of his mouth and said, "Since that is the case, let me act as the referee. I wonder, Mr. Michael, do you intend for this to be a fight to the death, or just a friendly spar?"

Michael's initial thought was, of course, to kill Yin Qi head-on to intimidate the people of Shaoxing Prefecture.

But now that Nalan Yuanshu had arrived, and was clearly biased toward protecting Yin Qi, his goal would likely not be achieved, because without a deep grudge, how could both sides start with a fight to the death?

Thinking of this, he could only say, "I came here only for a friendly spar."

"Good!"

Nalan Yuanshu nodded, turned his horse, and moved to the edge of the field.

Seeing that Michael had no intention of dismounting, Yin Qi said to Yin Hai, "Yin Hai, go into the courtyard and bring me my great spear."

"Understood, Young Master!"

Yin Hai nodded hurriedly and turned to run into the mansion.

A few minutes later, before the Yin Mansion.

Michael wanted to fight on horseback, so to provide enough space, the onlookers retreated again and again, clearing a space of more than fifty meters.

Yin Qi held his great spear, coldly watching his opponent.

Their eyes met, and an extremely oppressive atmosphere began to permeate the air.

At a certain moment.

"Kill!"

Michael shouted fiercely, squeezed his legs against the horse's belly, and the thoroughbred horse between his legs began to gallop wildly.

His horsemanship was superb; he and the horse had already become one.

It would only take two or three breaths for him to charge in front of Yin Qi.

At the same time, he had already drawn the Western Sword from his waist and raised it high.

The English thoroughbred is world-renowned for its high speed over short distances; the shortest record for 1000 meters is actually only 53.7 seconds, which shows how fast the speed it can burst out over a short distance is.

The two were only thirty meters apart, which could be said to be reached in the blink of an eye.

This English thoroughbred was already tall and large, and coupled with its violent explosive power, with the rider borrowing the horse's momentum, the combat power would soar to a very terrifying height.

If one were struck by his sword, the person would be split directly into two halves.

This was also the reason why Yin Qi wanted to take the long spear.

If he were empty-handed, even with his cultivation of Hidden Energy, he would likely be in grave danger.

Bang!

Just as Michael started, Yin Qi loosened his grip on the long spear in his hand, and it plunged deeply into the gap of the bluestone floor; then he gave it a fierce flick, and two bluestone slabs flew up, smashing toward Michael's face.

Michael's eyes were cold and sharp; he swung the Sword in his hand, and the two bluestone slabs were actually split in two and flew off to both sides.

This process was very short, less than one second.

But it was precisely this second that allowed the bluestone slabs to block Michael's line of sight, giving Yin Qi the chance for his next move; he quickly shifted more than three meters to the left, then turned his waist, and the long spear struck at the horse's legs with a sweeping momentum.

(End of this chapter)