Chapter 168

"Let's go, out of the city!"

A cold, clear female voice rang out from the sedan.

"Yes, Miss."

Several sedan bearers smiled broadly and carried it onto Zhu Que Avenue.

They were in an exceptionally good mood; they had just started their business today and had already received a lucrative job, which could be called a stroke of good luck.

A full ten taels of silver to deliver her outside the city to Wang Family Village. And she was a light and frail young lady, which was extremely easy for them.

But after getting into the sedan, this young lady spoke up, asking them to carry her to the Chenghuangmiao first, saying she wanted to burn some incense before returning to her maiden home.

However, who knew what had happened at the Chenghuangmiao; soldiers were guarding the street and wouldn't let anyone in, so they could save some time.

After leaving Chang'an City, the population gradually became sparse.

The head sedan bearer thought of the graceful figure of the young lady in the sedan and couldn't help but feel a heat in his heart, laughing, "Young lady, why are you returning to your maiden home alone? Isn't your husband accompanying you?"

There was silence inside the sedan, and the voice became soft and charming, no longer as cold as before, "My husband has already passed away."

"Oh my, excuse me, excuse me."

The head sedan bearer sighed again, "Then someone in the family should accompany you; it's the New Year, and the wind is strong and the road is slippery."

The woman in the sedan said sorrowfully, "Now there is only one person left in the family, living alone in Chang'an, with no one to rely on, and my maiden family doesn't welcome me..."

The head sedan bearer's heart fluttered; he turned his head and gave a wink, then said, "Young lady, the road ahead is slippery, I'm afraid it might be a bit bumpy, please bear with it."

Several of the assistants immediately understood and began to twist their waists and swing their legs.

In opera, this is called "carrying the flower sedan," accompanied by the suona, moving back and forth; the sedan bearers twist, and the actors follow, looking festive.

But that was just for show, without even a sedan.

Changing to a real sedan chair, it was a real ordeal.

The sedan swayed left and right, the cloth curtains swung back and forth, and several sedan bearers twisted their waists and slacked off, making faces at each other.

They knew what their leader meant.

If they played this trick normally, it meant they thought the reward was too low; if you want to sit comfortably, you have to pay more.

Of course, they also judged people by their appearance.

This young lady was lonely and helpless; if she couldn't hold it and got out of the sedan, and they teased her a bit, their leader could achieve a good deed.

Inside the sedan, the concubine in white was jolted up and down, but her bottom was stuck firmly to the seat, and her body didn't move at all.

A cold sneer appeared at the corners of her mouth, and killing intent gradually grew in her eyes.

Finally, the sedan bearers also began to notice something was wrong.

They themselves were jolted until their shoulders ached and their legs were weak, but the person in the sedan didn't make a sound; there was probably a problem.

Thinking of this, the head sedan bearer gave a wink, and several people immediately carried the sedan properly, saying at the same time, "Young lady, the road is peaceful now; we will arrive at Wang Family Fort by noon."

"No need, just stop here."

The woman in the sedan suddenly spoke up.

"Ah, here..."

The head sedan bearer was just about to speak when he saw a few people walk out of the woods nearby, including a fat man who looked like a squire and a swordsman with a ferocious face.

The leader was even more scarred, like an evil ghost.

"Run!"

The head sedan bearer's scalp exploded, and he turned to run.

Ptooey!

Just as he turned, a soft sword stretched out from inside the curtain, piercing his neck directly.

The remaining three sedan bearers didn't escape either.

I don't know when, but an old man also appeared in the rear, wearing a sheepskin jacket and a dog-skin hat, with thin features, sinister eyes, and a hooked nose.

It was none other than Long Sanjiu, the leader of the Old Dragon Stronghold on Ox Back Ridge.

He held a long saber in his hand, not even looking, sweeping left and right; when he sheathed the saber, the three corpses also fell to the ground with a thud.

At the same time, the concubine in white also slowly got out of the sedan and gave a graceful bow to Long Sanjiu, "Greetings, Brother Long."

However, Long Sanjiu's eyes were very dissatisfied, "Hualian, although you come from the Yan Sect's demon black, you must also have rules; don't provoke trouble at will."

"What is the situation in the city?"

"Brother Long, don't blame me."

The concubine in white, Hualian, first apologized, then said, "The Sect Leader has already been locked in the Chenghuangmiao; looking at their layout, they just want to lure us to save him."

At this moment, another group of people also walked over.

The scarred youth in the lead was none other than the Fire Ghost who killed Zhou Pan with firearms; he had a ferocious expression and said in a deep voice, "The Sect Leader was captured to cover for us; no matter what, we must save him!"

"Brother Fire Ghost, don't be anxious."

Manager Wu of the Jin Bao Gambling House in Xianyang City nearby advised, "Of course we must save him, but it's clearly a trap; we must think of a safe way."

"Hmph!"

As soon as Fire Ghost heard this, he exploded, turning around and scolding, "The Sect Leader is in imminent danger, yet you are hesitant; could it be you have ulterior motives!"

Manager Wu was stunned, and fire rose in his eyes, "Fire Ghost, don't bite people indiscriminately; everyone here is an old member, which one of them didn't join the sect earlier than you?!"

"So what if you joined earlier?"

Fire Ghost sneered, "The Sect Leader sent people to Chang'an to cause trouble and attract attention; why did that Bai Ruoxu detain the people and not take action?"

"If it weren't for him, how could the Sect Leader have been captured!"

Manager Wu was speechless, not knowing what to say.

The Maitreya Sect members near Guanzhong were all that remained of them.

Although they were all under Dugu Gan's jurisdiction, they were divided into three groups.

The first group was the leader of the Old Dragon Stronghold on Ox Back Ridge, Long Sanjiu, who was originally a ruthless character in the Guanzhong martial world and one of the participants when the Maitreya uprising began; later, he escaped a disaster, became a bandit in the mountains, and waited for the opportunity...

The second group was them.

Led by the hall master of the tooth-brokerage, Bai Ruoxu, they used the power of gangs to lurk in cities like Chang'an and Xianyang, raising funds and collecting intelligence.

The third group was Fire Ghost and the concubine in white, Hualian; both were saved by Dugu Gan personally, and they followed him to handle matters out of gratitude.

With Dugu Gan in trouble, the contradictions between them were hard to hide.

"Stop arguing!"

Long Sanjiu, who had the most seniority, scolded, then looked at Manager Wu and said in a deep voice, "Brother Wu, although Brother Fire Ghost has a violent temper, he is not wrong. What exactly does that kid Bai Ruoxu mean?"

Manager Wu said hurriedly, "I have already asked about this; it really isn't White Tangzhu Bai's fault."

"Before this, he accidentally obtained some clues, saying that the subordinates of the traitor Zhao Changsheng were lurking in Guodu Town, so he used a method to lure several Mystic Sect sorcerers to go there, and it was indeed Zhao Changsheng's dark hall."

"No one knows what this traitor wants to do; we must be careful."

"In addition, because of the Drum King Assembly in the city, many experts have come; if we act recklessly, we will only be wiped out in one go."

"Oh."

After hearing this, Long Sanjiu's expression remained unchanged, and he said lightly, "Since that's the case, it's understandable. Why not have Manager Wu enter the city to notify Bai Ruoxu and have him come outside the city tonight to meet us, how about that?"

Manager Wu's heart skipped a beat, and he cupped his hands, "I will follow Brother Long's instructions."

He knew this was a test...

…………

"I heard the Law Enforcement Hall people are back?"

Just after returning to the small courtyard, Sha Lifei hurriedly stepped forward to ask.

Li Yan was stunned, "Aren't you at home tinkering with those things? How come your news is so well-informed?"

Sha Lifei's expression was awkward, and he touched his head, "That, you didn't let me go to the black market to buy gunpowder, so I went to find someone to buy 'medicine-fired puppets', and just happened to hear about this."

Li Yan laughed in spite of himself, "It seems Uncle Sha is suffocating."

"Medicine-fired puppets" have been passed down since the Song Dynasty and are a "Wase skill" that integrates fireworks, weaving, paper-cutting, carving, painting, puppetry, and drama. This object contains quite a bit of gunpowder.

Although it's a bit expensive, with the Lantern Festival approaching, buying some "medicine-fired puppets" won't attract attention.

"Just be careful."

Li Yan didn't pursue it further, called Wang Daoxuan who happened to be going out, returned to the room, and recounted the cause and effect of the matter.

He could not tell others, but these two partners with whom he had shared life-and-death experiences had to know, to avoid trouble in the future.

"So that's how it is..."

Sha Lifei suddenly realized, "No wonder when you were competing for the Xianyang Shenquan Association presidency, your father ran to Chang'an to take on jobs."

"Damn it, this Zhao Changsheng is a bit eerie; it makes my scalp tingle. Little Brother Yan, you must absolutely not do anything stupid."

"That goes without saying."

Li Yan nodded, "The Profound Heaven Sect is troubled by such a person; how could I possibly deal with him? Even if he is a Reincarnator, I'm afraid it's hard to get close."

Wang Daoxuan also stroked his beard, "Once this person's roots are exposed, the imperial court will inevitably attach great importance to it; how could they let him remain at large?"

!.

"What I am worried about is another matter. The Law Enforcement Hall captured the Grave Snake; they inevitably want to lure the Maitreya accomplices to appear. I'm afraid it won't be safe these days."

"Hmm."

Li Yan said thoughtfully, "Daoist is right. It's best to be careful these two days; it's best not to get close to that area of Guangde Ward..."

Just as he was speaking, he suddenly frowned and looked outside.

At the same time, a knock on the door sounded.

After leaving the room, Sha Lifei opened the door and immediately smiled, "Sister Hong, I was just preparing to visit you."

The visitor was none other than Red Yecha.

Accompanying her was the proprietress, Feng Feiyan.

"Happy New Year to you all."

Red Yecha smiled heartily, then shook her head, "Sorry, I've been practicing my sect's secret techniques recently, and only now have I come to pay a New Year's visit."

"Sister Hong is too polite; we should have been the ones to go."

Li Yan said a polite phrase, then asked with interest, "Sister Hong, have you mastered it? Can you let us see it?"

What he was referring to was Red Yecha's Zi-Wu Demon-Slaying Sword.

Before, when they were fighting the Fire Bear Gang, it was for this magic artifact; Red Yecha had been practicing hard day and night after getting it back, and Li Yan was very curious about its power.

"That goes without saying."

Red Yecha didn't act coy and drew the long sword directly from behind her back.

This Demon-Slaying Sword was not small; the blade was a full palm wide and half a foot longer than an ordinary precious sword, but in the hands of the tall Red Yecha, it was just right.

On the hilt was a small circular Taiji diagram; looking at it, both ends were connected, not just for decoration.

Zi is the most yin time of the day, and Wu is the most yang.

So Zi-Wu also has the meaning of yin and yang.

"My sect's Demon-Slaying Sword has two unique features."

With the precious sword in hand, Red Yecha's momentum changed abruptly, her eyes filled with solemn killing intent, and she said in a deep voice, "The first is the Yang-Gang Qi Demon-Slaying!"

As she spoke, she held the sword in her right hand, pinched a spell with her left, stepped on the gang-steps, and brandished the long sword in her hand.

Hu~

The sword light flickered like lightning, and a fierce wind suddenly rose around her.

Snow and fallen leaves were swept up together, which was quite a sight.

"Good!"

After seeing this, Li Yan's eyes immediately lit up.

He could smell that the precious sword in Red Yecha's hand had scorching Gang-Qi rising, even carrying a hint of incense-god Gang.

The flying snow and fallen leaves around were caused by the flow of Gang-Qi, and had no real power.

But this precious sword, combined with the unique sword technique, had vaguely formed a certain "momentum," similar to the blessing of his Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coin, but clearly with greater power.

Yin objects and demons would likely dissipate with a single strike.

Red Yecha performed a sword flower, wiped the blade with her sword finger, and it made a buzzing sound, "This is the Yang Sword; the Gang-Qi is connected, and ordinary demons and zombies can be suppressed and killed with one sword!"

"Of course, the real killing move is the Yin Sword!"

Having said that, she flicked her arm, and the sword pointed to the southern sky.

Qiang!

A dragon's roar rang out.

But then, the middle section of this Zi-Wu sword turned into a small sword and whistled out, accompanied by cold sword light, and with a thud, it pierced into a stone stool in the courtyard.

It was somewhat similar to a rope dart, but not that simple.

The blade gathered yin-evil energy, and the chill was intense.

"The Yin Sword can sever souls!"

Red Yecha said a sentence, then pulled it abruptly.

Weng weng weng!

The Taiji diagram on the hilt rotated rapidly; it was a clever mechanism, and there was a thin thread connected to the small sword, which directly retracted it, and with a clatter, it returned to the scabbard.

"Good treasure!"

Li Yan couldn't help but praise.

The Yang Sword is good at slaying demons, and the Yin Sword's yin-evil energy is good at destroying souls.

If practiced purely, it is indeed a sharp weapon for slaying demons.

Not only that, this sword is a close-combat magic artifact, and the mechanism inside is also extremely exquisite; he couldn't even see how it operated.

The cost of refining this precious sword was absolutely not small.

No wonder it could become the inherited magic artifact of a demon-catcher.

Sha Lifei also widened his eyes and flattered, "Sister Hong, amazing; could this be the legendary flying sword?"

Red Yecha laughed in spite of herself, "A flying sword is not like this."

Li Yan heard the nuance, "Sister Hong, have you seen a flying sword?"

Red Yecha sheathed the sword and pondered for a moment, saying, "Have you seen the 'swallowing iron swords' and 'swallowing iron balls' of Jianghu performers?"

"That I have naturally seen." Li Yan nodded in reply.

This kind of thing is often played by juggling performers; some use mechanism swords and ancient color tricks to deceive people, but some are real skills.

In his past and present lives, he had seen real skills; an iron ball the size of a walnut is swallowed, stuck in the esophagus, and then, relying on the power of the chest and abdominal diaphragm, it is forcefully spat out two meters high.

Of course, practicing this thing is very miserable, and it is also very common in juggling, just to make a living.

"A real flying sword is somewhat similar..."

A trace of nostalgia flashed in Red Yecha's eyes, "When my master was alive, he once took me to walk the Jianghu, and once we took a job to go to a village in Shuzhong to suppress a corpse demon."

"We set a trap, and while that evil object was attacking people in the middle of the night, we seriously wounded it, but didn't kill it, and it escaped into the big mountains of Shuzhong..."

"My master and I tracked it all the way and finally found its trail, but that corpse demon had already gained intelligence and was very cunning."

"Just as it was about to escape, a Daoist appeared on a distant mountain peak, spitting out an iron ball that turned into a small sword, turning like a piece of silk, and that corpse demon, along with the big tree behind it, was directly broken into two halves!"

"After the Daoist slew the demon, he left directly. My master and I knew we had met a high-level expert, so we searched bitterly in the mountains for several months, but didn't see his trail, so we had to return to Chang'an helplessly..."

"After returning, when we told people about this, they all said my master and I were dazzled. Since then, my master was somewhat absent-minded, often leaving alone, and every time he left, it would be for several months, and finally, something happened..."

Hearing her recount this, everyone looked at each other in dismay.

"Are there really sword immortals?"

Sha Lifei was dumbfounded, his face full of disbelief.

Li Yan shook his head, "Perhaps it's some secret inheritance; there are many high-level experts in the world, it's just that our knowledge is insufficient."

When he said this, he had already thought of a type of person:

God-Ascenders!

Feng Feiyan, who was on the side, was absent-minded, and suddenly saw the "medicine-fired puppets" that had been dismantled in the distance, puzzled:

"Eh, the puppets were fine, why were they dismantled?"

(End of chapter)