Chapter 15: An Old Married Couple

Gongsun Lan is a very conceited person.

Her sword technique is likewise worthy of her conceit.

In her view, she could even rival the two swordsmen Ximen Chuixue and Ye Gucheng. Yet Yu Liancheng, with just one strike, left her in a wretched state.

Gongsun Lan could not believe it; the sword light danced again, two short swords flickering to and fro. As brilliant and magnificent as ever, the sword light was chilling; even the bright moon in the sky seemed to have been forced to lose its color by this captivating sword light.

Yu Liancheng struck back with his sword, pushing his sword momentum to the extreme; the air hummed, as if a strong man were wielding a Hammer. Yet the sword light rampaged wantonly, like a soaring God-dragon, carrying wind and wrapping thunder, with ten thousand variations.

Only two crisp sounds were heard, and Gongsun Lan suddenly felt a vast, peerless, and terrifying force transmitted from her two short swords. Her web between thumb and index finger shook, and she could no longer hold on; the short swords flew out of her hands, and with two more "thud" and "thud" sounds, they were nailed into a large tree nearby.

Gongsun Daniang's face revealed a look of astonishment, unable to believe it. Her reaction, however, was extremely fast; knowing she was no match, her lithe body floated into the air, like a graceful fairy crossing the waves. As her long skirt fluttered, a pair of Red Shoes could be clearly seen.

The bright moon was in the sky, and the Red Shoes appeared in the moonlight; she had already swept five zhang away.

Yu Liancheng, of course, would not let her leave like this; he flicked his arm, and his figure rose slowly like a blue cloud, already chasing after the figure of Gongsun Daniang.

Gongsun Daniang's lightness skill was unexpectedly brilliant, not a bit inferior to her sword technique. Flower gardens, pavilions, and towers retreated beneath her feet as if she were flying. Even if she could not compare to the "King of Thieves" Sikong Zhaixing, I fear it was not much different.

But she had already discovered that shaking off this person behind her was truly not an easy matter.

Even though she was one step ahead of Yu Liancheng, the gap between the two was getting closer and closer, now no more than one zhang apart.

Moreover, he still seemed to have energy to spare, his gaze carrying a playful smile, as if a cat, before eating a mouse, would always tease it thoroughly, and only when the mouse was exhausted would it swallow it into its belly slowly.

Gongsun Daniang was naturally not a mouse; she was far more terrifying than a mouse. Her sleeves suddenly rolled out like flowing clouds, and amidst a series of loud clattering sounds, the roof tiles were swept up as if by a typhoon, striking toward him head-on.

Yu Liancheng threw a punch, like wind and thunder rolling; the space trembled suddenly, and the violent fist wind swept in from all directions, shattering the tiles one after another.

On the street ahead, the lights were brilliant; it was not yet too late, and the bustle of this street had only just begun.

On the street, there were not only taverns and teahouses, but also various stalls set up along the side, selling needles, thread, and face powder, as well as fish congee and roast goose.

Gongsun Daniang even suddenly descended, landing on the street, and immediately began to shout loudly: "Help, help..."

She shouted as she ran into a tavern.

Imagine, an old woman shouting for help, and a young, strong man chasing behind; this is something no one can stand to see.

In this tavern, Gongsun Daniang saw several young men wearing sabers and swords. Such young men like to show off, and they would never stand by and do nothing. There were also some street heroes who loved to champion the weak and could not bear to see such things.

These people were, of course, no match for Yu Liancheng, but as long as they could block him for a moment, it would suffice.

Only, what surprised Gongsun Lan was that while the eyes of the crowd in the tavern did indeed look over, they did not rush down in righteous indignation, but instead revealed a strange expression, making her feel baffled.

Has the human heart become this cold now?

"Old woman, I just said a few words to you, telling you not to gossip about others all day long, and you run out to throw a tantrum and act crazy. Hurry up and come back with me, don't make a spectacle of yourself."

An aged voice sounded from behind Gongsun Lan. She could not help but look back, and what met her eyes was a hunched-over old man with a bent back, his face full of wrinkles, his hair and beard gray, and a look of helplessness on his face.

If not for the fact that his eyebrows and eyes vaguely resembled Yu Liancheng's, Gongsun Lan would have been deceived.

"At such an age, how can your temper still be like a child's? You have no shame." Gongsun Lan sensed something was wrong and was about to continue fleeing. The old man's palm had already grabbed toward her; his speed was clearly not fast, yet she could not dodge it no matter what.

That withered hand had just touched Gongsun Lan's hand when his five fingers tapped, pressed, and hooked.

These three seemingly simple movements contained three different martial arts.

The moment his fingers touched Gongsun Lan, he used a technique similar to the Stick to Clothes Eighteen Falls; no matter who was stuck, it would be very difficult to shake him off.

Next, his fingers pressed down with a slight force, very cleverly using a certain grappling technique to lock her pulse gate. Once the pulse gate was locked, not only could she not use her True Qi, but her whole body felt limp.

The final hook made Gongsun Lan follow his footsteps out of the inn involuntarily. This was a certain external martial art; it looked unremarkable, yet it made Gongsun Lan let him manipulate her, and others could not see a single flaw.

The old man pulled Gongsun Lan and quickly walked out of the inn, and not a single person blocked them.

Everyone could see that this was an old married couple having a conflict. Even an honest official finds it hard to settle family disputes; no hero was willing to get involved in such matters, as they might end up causing a pile of trouble.

Gongsun Lan's whole body felt limp, and she followed Yu Liancheng away unconsciously.

Although she could speak, she knew it was useless, because whatever she said would only be considered a husband and wife quarrel, with the wife throwing a tantrum.

What's more, her pulse gate had already been locked, and her life and death were in the hands of another; if she truly angered the other party, she might perish and die.

Yu Liancheng brought Gongsun Lan to a secluded alley.

"Half-master, so you are here." Before he could speak, Xue'er also found them, looking at Gongsun Lan curiously: "Is this the person who ambushed us? An old woman actually has such martial arts."

"It is her, and it is not her," Yu Liancheng said indifferently.

"Half-master, what riddles are you speaking in?" Shangguan Xueer blinked her eyes, somewhat puzzled.

Gongsun Lan's pair of lively and spirited eyes flashed, but she did not say much.

"She is only one of the people who ambushed us, and the person who truly fired the hidden weapons is someone else."

"Someone else?"

"Correct."

"Then who is it?"

"You!"

Yu Liancheng's palm reached out and suddenly grabbed toward Shangguan Xueer.

Shangguan Xueer let out a cry of surprise. This claw strike, while appearing plain and unremarkable, was already exquisite to the extreme; the momentum was compelling, the variations were inexhaustible, and the energy covered all directions. Even if she pushed her movement technique to the limit, she still could not dodge it.

But this claw did not take Shangguan Xueer's life; it merely brushed across her face, yet her whole person seemed to have undergone a heaven-shaking change, transforming from a twelve or thirteen-year-old girl into a young woman with exquisite features, a sweet smile, well-proportioned flesh and bone, and a tall figure.

"Half-disciple, you come out too; you've learned to play hide-and-seek with me."

……