Chapter 164: Hongying and Lvliu, Two Old Dogs

A bolt of lightning flew out from the green-robed old man's sleeve.

It was incomparably fast.

This was, of course, not lightning, but sword light.

Yet it was far more agile and swift than lightning.

The Sword Qi was sharp and fierce, having already enveloped every living thing within a radius of ten zhang.

Feng Siniang and Ningshui also felt a piercing chill in their hearts, as if that sharp Sword Qi had already pierced through their chests and into their hearts.

The sword light flew several zhang, dancing and twisting in the twilight like a divine dragon, as if it were a miracle.

Feng Siniang had spent no small amount of time walking the Edo; not only was her own martial arts quite good, but she was also well-traveled and knowledgeable.

The number of top-tier experts and top-tier swordsmen she knew was second to none.

But at this moment, she could not help but cry out in surprise.

Sword light flying several zhang was not a rare thing. But it was usually the person following the sword, the person and sword as one.

Yet the green-robed old man had not even moved, and the sword light had already flown out; could it be that he possessed the legendary Sword Technique of controlling swords from afar?

Controlling a sword with Qi, taking a person's head from a thousand miles away, just like the Sword Immortal in myths.

Clang!

With a crisp sound, just as the sword light was about to pierce into Yu Liancheng's chest, he flicked his finger and shattered this streak of sword light.

And it was at this moment that Feng Siniang finally saw clearly that it was a short sword radiating brilliant light.

It was at most seven inches long, already the essence of a sword, its sharpness like that of a God.

And tied to the short sword was a shimmering black thread, the other end of which was in the green-robed old man's hand.

Feng Siniang let out a long sigh of relief.

So it was not controlling a sword with Qi.

It was "controlling a thread with Qi, and controlling a sword with a thread."

But even so, it was unheard of and unseen.

Who exactly were these two old men?

Yu Liancheng looked at them, his expression slightly heavy, and said slowly: "Hongying and Lvliu, killers from beyond the heavens. When the two swords unite, they are invincible under heaven."

"They are actually Hongying and Lvliu?"

Feng Siniang covered her small mouth in surprise, clearly having heard this name before.

Hongying and Lvliu were killer swordsmen who had become famous under heaven twenty years ago. Their sword skills were unfathomable, and they were known for killing; they once made the entire Edo dark and sunless with their slaughter.

But at the height of their fame, they suddenly disappeared without a trace, and there was no more news of them.

Yet even after more than twenty years, at the mere mention of their names, countless people in the Edo could not help but tremble.

The red-robed old man said coldly: "That's right, I am Li Hongying."

The green-robed old man said: "I am Yang Lvliu."

The red-robed old man suddenly let out a long sigh: "After so many years, there is finally someone who still remembers us two old useless things."

The green-robed old man also said: "Since you know us, then cripple your own martial arts and come with us."

The red-robed old man said: "Although we haven't killed anyone for many years, we haven't forgotten the methods of killing."

Yu Liancheng looked at them strangely: "Have you been locked in Wanyou Shanzhuang for so long that your brains have gone dull? How could you say such idiotic things?"

Feng Siniang was terrified, hurriedly tugging at his sleeve, and urged: "Yu Liancheng, you blockhead, I told you to be careful with your words."

However, Hongying and Lvliu did not get angry, but instead said in surprise: "You actually know about Wanyou Shanzhuang?"

Yu Liancheng said: "I not only know about Wanyou Shanzhuang, I also know that Young Master Tian regards the experts of the world as dolls, and you two are the most exquisite and special of those dolls."

Yang Lvliu's eyes sharpened as he said: "It seems you really do know a lot."

Li Hongying said: "The more you know, the faster you will naturally die."

"Whether I die or not is another matter, but there are a few things I want to ask you," Yu Liancheng said indifferently.

The red-robed old man said: "I know what you want to say. Based on that one finger of yours earlier, with your martial arts, in the world today, there is no fourth person who is your match, and we are two of them."

The green-robed old man said: "But the two of us combined are not his match."

The red-robed old man's lips trembled: "There is absolutely no one in the world who can withstand thirty moves from him."

The green-robed old man said: "You might be able to withstand twenty moves from him."

The red-robed old man said: "There is absolutely no one in the world who is his match, and absolutely no one who can kill him. Even if the three of us joined forces, we would absolutely not be his match."

Yu Liancheng did not speak, looking at Hongying and Lvliu carefully for a long while, a look of disappointment appearing on his face.

But he still refused to give up, and said again: "He let you come out to catch me, did you never think of escaping?"

Hongying and Lvliu looked at each other and shook their heads heavily.

The red-robed old man had a desolate smile on his lips and sighed: "We are already too old; we no longer have the courage to escape."

The green-robed old man smiled even more desolately: "In the past, we also tried. But no matter how we escaped, as soon as we stopped, we would find that he was already there waiting for us."

The red-robed old man sighed: "We are already getting old, and we are about to die. Our only revenge against him, perhaps, is that after he dies and has no other opponents to seek, he will surely feel very lonely."

The look of disappointment on Yu Liancheng's face became even more intense and profound.

The green-robed old man looked at him: "The reason we said so much is because you are the first person to dare to challenge him, and also because your martial arts are sufficient."

The red-robed old man said: "But you had best surrender now, otherwise you have no other outcome but death."

His hand retracted and extended from his sleeve, and a shimmering short sword had already appeared in his palm.

"The two of you, wait a moment," Yu Liancheng beckoned to Ningshui and whispered a few words in her ear.

"Understood, Young Master," Ningshui nodded, then unfolded her movement technique, flitting away as gracefully as a Heavenly Maiden.

This little maid's light-body technique was by no means inferior to those so-called First-class Experts.

Feng Siniang could not help but ask: "What did you send Ningshui to do?"

Yu Liancheng said, "You will know very soon."

The green-robed old man sneered, "No matter what, you will either die, or return to Wanyou Shanzhuang with us to become a doll at the mercy of others."

The red-robed old man also sneered, "That's right, there is no other choice."

There seemed to be a sense of schadenfreude on their faces as well.

Being a doll oneself, and watching others become dolls, it is inevitable to have this strange pleasure.

Especially when this person is still very young, yet their martial arts are already very brilliant.

Ning Shui returned very quickly as expected; she held a package of oil paper in her hand, not knowing what was inside.

Yu Liancheng took the oil paper and opened it, revealing three steaming buns.

He asked, "Are these meat buns?"

"Yes," Ning Shui nodded, "They are indeed meat buns."

Feng Siniang, Hongying, and Lvliu could not help but feel a bit curious.

Could it be that Yu Liancheng was hungry and wanted to fill his stomach before fighting the two old men?

But Yu Liancheng did not eat the buns; instead, amidst the astonished gazes of everyone, he threw the meat buns at Hongying and Lvliu.

Hongying and Lvliu could not help but darken their faces, and with a wave of their sleeves, the buns were brushed back, they said angrily, "What exactly are you trying to do?"

"I just wanted to verify a saying," Yu Liancheng shrugged, "As the saying goes, 'a meat bun hitting a dog, it goes and never returns.' It seems this saying is also problematic; didn't this bun come back?"

"You! Say! What!"

These four words were spoken by Hongying and Lvliu simultaneously.

The earth and the firmament seemed to become filled with killing intent and chill because of this one sentence.

The bodies of Hongying and Lvliu trembled slightly, and anger rose in their eyes.

Clearly, these two assassins from beyond the heavens were angry to the extreme.

Feng Siniang and Ning Shui also seemed to feel the cold wind piercing their bones and could not help but shiver.

Yet a smile remained on Yu Liancheng's face, and he said indifferently, "If you hadn't been trained into two old dogs by Young Master Tian, how would you be so willing to listen to his words? I even suspect whether he has put two dog chains around your necks."

When this sentence was spoken.

There was no longer any need to say anything else.

Because Hongying and Lvliu had been provoked.

Thoroughly provoked.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Hongying and Lvliu's complexions were extremely gloomy, but the swords in their hands were as bright as moonlight, as bright as lightning.

Amidst a shout, the short swords in their hands flew out simultaneously, like divine dragons crossing shears, like lightning striking; with a flash of sword light, they stabbed at Yu Liancheng's throat and chest, two vital points, respectively.

Clang!

The Duoqing Sword had already left its sheath.

With a flash of sword light, only hearing "ding," "ding," the two short swords had already been knocked away.

Hongying and Lvliu's expressions did not change; using Qi to control the threads, the two short swords flew to stab at Yu Liancheng like maggots on a bone.

"Duoqing, oh Duoqing, usually you kill mostly martial arts experts, heroes, and overlords; today you have to kill two old dogs, it really wrongs you."

Yu Liancheng remained as steady as a mountain, and even had the leisure to mock Hongying and Lvliu.

And the Duoqing Sword in his palm stabbed out continuously, the sword light turning into thousands of phantoms, enveloping them layer by layer, continuously knocking the two short swords away.

Hongying and Lvliu frowned slightly; they had already realized that this 'Tian Setting Seeds's' martial arts were even more brilliant than imagined, so they each settled their minds and exerted their Flying Sword Technique with all their might.

In an instant, Sword Qi poured out, sweeping back and forth like a ribbon of silk.

The red-robed old man's sword light was as fierce as a gale and rain, splitting like thunder and lightning.

The green-robed old man's sword light was as agile and changing as a dragon, as nimble and ethereal as clouds.

The two's sword momentum densely covered the void, merging and complementing each other, seamless; the thread-like Sword Qi spread out densely, forming an offensive that poured like mercury and penetrated everywhere; the three-zhang space around Yu Liancheng had been completely locked by the sword light.

These two had actually formed a sword array.

And in terms of power, it far surpassed the sect-protecting sword array of the Diancang Seven...

Furthermore, they were both "using threads to control swords," with the threads in their palms reaching two zhang in length; although the swords launched a continuous offensive, the people were still far away. Even if they were not a match for Yu Liancheng, they could still retreat calmly.

Yu Liancheng's Duoqing Sword flowed wantonly in his palm, like a Heavenly Horse galloping through the skies.

And his eyesight was even more extraordinary; often, every sword strike he made was aimed at the weak points of the sword array, breaking that continuous sword array.

Hongying and Lvliu's expressions became increasingly grave; the strength of the person before them was likely only second to Young Master Tian.

And they had already exerted their True Qi to the fullest, bringing out the essence of their lifelong martial arts; the short swords shuttled back and forth, turning like lightning, with countless sword lights pouring out, like ribbons falling from the long sky, and also like streaks of lightning splitting the sky.

However, Yu Liancheng's figure remained unmoved, his defense was watertight, and his moves were extremely heavy; even when striking the swords, the force transmitted through the swords to the threads, and then to their palms, still made them feel shocked by this surging, massive power.

"Watch the move!"

Suddenly, a bun in Yu Liancheng's hand flew out, crashing into the sword light of Hongying and Lvliu.

The sword light was layered and stacked, as if thousands of sharp swords were intertwined; let alone a bun, even refined Iron would be shredded.

Bang!

Amidst a muffled sound, the bun was indeed shredded into bun filling by the sharp Sword Qi, but that sword light also collapsed with a boom.

Not only because the bun hit the weak point of the sword array, but also because the bun contained massive, surging power, held back and not released, only exploding like thunder when it hit the sword light.

Yu Liancheng certainly would not let this opportunity pass; with a flick of his wrist, another bun flew out, crashing toward the red-robed old man with an extremely swift speed.

And he himself merged with his sword, transforming into a streak of sword light that pierced through, stabbing toward the green-robed old man.

The green-robed old man snorted coldly, and the short sword in his hand flew out once again.

One inch longer, one inch stronger.

One inch shorter, one inch more dangerous.

His two-zhang Flying Sword—naturally, there is no weapon longer than this in the world.

Before Yu Liancheng could stab him, his sword was about to stab Yu Liancheng.

Anyone who isn't a fool should know to retreat and dodge right now.

But Yu Liancheng did not.

And his Duoqing Sword carried a kind of indomitable sword momentum, swearing not to return until death.

The green-robed old man's heart skipped a beat.

Why does he not dodge?

Has his external martial arts already reached the point of being impervious to blades and spears?

Or does he want to perish together with me?

At this moment, the green-robed old man's mind began to waver.

And it was in this split second of wavering that Yu Liancheng's left hand moved, and the third bun—the very last bun—flew out, striking the green-robed old man's short sword and knocking it off course.

The sword light flashed once more, and the Duoqing Sword had already pierced the green-robed old man's throat.

The sword was pulled out.

Fresh blood sprayed out like a blood-arrow.

The green-robed old man had already fallen, his eyes still filled with unwillingness.

If his mind had not wavered for that split second, would he still have died under Yu Liancheng's sword?

Just at this moment, the red-robed old man's sword had already stabbed over.

Yu Liancheng twisted his body.

One hand reached out with two fingers and lightly pinched.

This move was plain and simple, without much ingenuity.

But the cold light congealed, the sword also congealed, and the sword tip was suddenly pinched by Yu Liancheng.

It was clearly still "using Qi to control the thread, using the thread to control the sword."

It was clearly still a move of world-defying danger.

But it suddenly lost its power.

Because the red-robed old man was already afraid; his confidence had vanished along with the fall of the green-robed old man.

He suddenly let go, vaulted backward through the air, and retreated several zhang.

When faced with a life-or-death crisis, his lightness skill had actually improved by another notch.

He was confident that no matter who it was, they could not catch up to him.

Yu Liancheng did not pursue.

He simply held the red-robed old man's short sword, and his hand suddenly flicked.

The short sword flew out.

It carved out a peerless, silvery-bright radiance.

Whistling as it pierced through the sky.

Fast as an aurora, fast as lightning.

Suddenly.

The red-robed old man's dragon-like, agile figure stopped abruptly and plummeted.

He had fallen completely.

And stuck in his chest was a short sword—his own short sword.

"Hongying and Lvliu, assassins from beyond the heavens."

Yu Liancheng looked at these two corpses and suddenly gave a soft sigh, filled with unspeakable lament: "Hongying and Lvliu, two old dogs."

Peerless swordsmen.

Peerless sword moves.

There should have been a brilliant and magnificent battle.

And having defeated such opponents, he should have been very satisfied and very excited.

But he only felt a sigh.

Because Hongying and Lvliu had been imprisoned by Young Master Tian for too long; they had lost the sharpness of a swordsman and had become two puppets to be manipulated, two snarling, barking guard dogs.