Chapter 417: Sword One to Sword Nine (Seeking Monthly Votes)

Yu Liancheng stood with his hands behind his back, yet an endless, boundless killing intent erupted from him, like a bursting river, surging and continuous.

The earth and the firmament seemed to be stained with the color of blood at this moment, filled with killing intent and chilling cold.

Struck by this murderous aura, the young man felt a chill rise up; his face turned deathly pale, cold sweat poured down, and his heart was filled with terror, not to mention what kind of sharp, piercing edge his servant Lao Huang, who bore the brunt of it, would have to endure.

Lao Huang's iconic, gap-toothed, honest smile suddenly froze, and the tattered cloth strips behind him emitted a buzzing, humming sound—not ear-piercing, yet soul-shaking.

The cloth strips suddenly tore apart, turning into fragments that filled the sky and drifted away like butterflies, revealing a long, Sandalwood Sword Box.

The young Prince, whose real name was Xu Fengnian, had a deep impression of this wooden box.

Over this journey of nearly three thousand li, he had wanted to pry into the wooden box countless times, but Lao Huang would rather die than let him see the Xuanji hidden inside.

Every time he tried to trick Lao Huang into opening the box, the old groom would only shake his head and smile foolishly, leaving Xu Fengnian to grumble, "It's not like I'm asking your wife to strip naked for me to see."

Back in Qinghe County, Xu Fengnian had tried to study it while Lao Huang was off relieving himself, but he found no way in, feeling only that the box was ice-cold to the touch.

Afterward, whether it was retribution or not, he caught a cold the very next day, which in turn caused the victim, Lao Huang, a great deal of trouble.

From then on, the Prince surnamed Xu never again harbored any thieving designs on the box, though he couldn't help but wonder when he might one day learn its little secret.

And now, Xu Fengnian finally knew what was hidden inside the box.

—A sword.

The top section of the Sandalwood Sword Box opened, and a long sword shot out.

The sword light darted and thrust, twisting and changing like a divine dragon, moving like thunder and lightning, drifting like a clear breeze and flowing clouds. The mystery of its changes could no longer be described by any pen or ink.

Reflected in the dragon-like sword light, Xu Fengnian's eyes seemed dazzled; the gap-toothed Lao Huang was no longer honest or foolish, replaced instead by an indescribable quality, making the old servant, who had always been as immovable as a mountain, seem more domineering and impressive than any martial arts hero he had met along the way.

One of the three great plaques at Tingchao Pavilion read "Qi Charging the Dipper and Ox," referring to that supreme Sword Qi which existed only in ancient texts as a void, yet this Sword Qi was clearly manifesting before his eyes.

The one wielding this Sword Qi was none other than his servant Lao Huang, who had accompanied him for nearly six thousand li.

This scene was truly worthy of drinking three large cups of wine.

Damn it all to hell.

"So it was him, Jian Jiu Huang."

Nangong Pushe's heart stirred; her Peach Blossom eyes fixed on the dragon-like sword light, and her red lips parted slightly to murmur: "Sword One: Dragon and Snake."

As the sword light thrust toward him, Yu Liancheng remained calm and composed, his left hand suddenly reaching out and grabbing.

This reach and grab was truly like a divine dragon extending its claw—firm, fierce, and yet filled with an indescribable Xuanji—directly seizing the sword blade.

The thrusting sword light was instantly like a venomous snake with its seven inches pinched; no matter how it writhed, it lost all its threat.

Xu Fengnian, a layman, was so annoyed he almost wanted to kill someone.

He knew this was a duel between the top-tier experts of the Edo, yet he couldn't see how either of them made their moves at all.

The only two things he could see were that Yu Liancheng had caught the Flying Sword, and that two more swords had flown out of Lao Huang's Sandalwood Sword Box.

One sword was like a continuous drizzle, the sword light never ceasing.

One sword was like a thunderbolt, swift and violent.

Although the sword momentum of the two swords was different, they merged together seamlessly.

The sword light spread out densely, sweeping back and forth like a silk ribbon, as if a net had been woven out of thin air, completely locking down the space for several dozen zhang around Yu Liancheng, leaving one with no path to the heavens and no door to the earth.

Nangong Pushe's Peach Blossom eyes shimmered with brilliance, and she murmured again: "Sword Two: Twin Lotuses."

Yu Liancheng's right sleeve billowed, his internal energy surging and emitting a roar like crashing waves, as if the entire world were being submerged by an endless tsunami.

It was the sea gathering all rivers; the so-called drizzle and thunder were all rendered formless under the sweeping force of his sleeve-sea.

Lao Huang's third sword was unleashed in the blink of an eye; this sword was grand and imposing, heavy to the extreme.

The speed of the sword was not slow, but it gave one the illusion that the long sword was advancing inch by inch, with the sword momentum increasing by a fraction with every inch gained.

By the end, the sword momentum was as heavy as a mountain, causing the void to tremble.

Nangong Pushe said: "Sword Three: Three Jin."

It is said that the One gives birth to the Two, the Two to the Three, and the Three to all things.

The Sword Qi on the sword weighed three jin.

But the "three jin" mentioned could hardly be described by a mere three jin.

Thirty jin, three hundred jin—it was far more than that.

Yu Liancheng clenched his right hand into a fist, the fist as heavy as a mountain, cutting across the firmament.

Boom!!

The collision between the fist and the long sword produced a roar like a great bell, deafening and soul-shaking.

Xu Fengnian, who had never seen experts clash, sat on the ground and clapped his hands, laughing foolishly: "Well deserved, well deserved, it's all top-tier craftsmanship, damn it."

What followed was a scene of sword light filling the sky; Xu Fengnian couldn't see it clearly, only hearing the white-robed beauty beside him murmuring softly, though it was vague and unclear.

Vaguely, it was "Sword Four: Four Clouds," "Sword Five: Sending Guanyin," "Sword Six..."

Xu Fengnian felt dizzy watching, thinking to himself: This Lao Huang is truly an expert, but his naming sense is just too poor—what "Three Jin," "Four Clouds," it lacks the style of an expert.

In the blink of an eye, it reached Sword Nine.

Beside him, White Fox Face's beautiful eyes were shining; though she didn't know the name of this ninth sword, she saw the Sword Qi was vast and righteous, shooting straight into the clouds—it was a supreme sword technique of the world.

"Good sword technique."

Yu Liancheng, who had been fighting with one hand and remained calm and composed, finally spoke.

A look of praise appeared on his face, yet he still extended only one hand, possessing a terrifying aura that seemed to cover the sky and sun, still using his bare palm to meet the ninth sword.

A single touch and it retracted; the smoke and clouds dissipated.

Yu Liancheng still stood in his original spot, his gaze looking at his own sleeve, where a tear had appeared silently and soundlessly.

Lao Huang staggered back two steps, his face pale.

"Lao Huang, are you alright?" Xu Fengnian hurriedly supported Lao Huang, full of concern.

Lao Huang grinned foolishly, his fingers moved, and the long swords all returned to the box.

"Stop laughing, so what if you're missing your front teeth." Xu Fengnian couldn't help but chuckle as well, patting his servant on the shoulder: "You really got me, Lao Huang, you've deceived me so bitterly along this journey."

Facing his young master, Lao Huang just chuckled foolishly. Then he turned his head to look at Yu Liancheng, standing on tiptoes and gesturing with his hands to indicate that the other party's cultivation was truly very high.

Yu Liancheng glanced at Jian Jiu Huang and asked a question that left Xu Fengnian completely baffled: "Are you going to Wudi City to retrieve 'Huang Lu'?"

Lao Huang nodded with a simple, honest smile.

"You will die." Yu Liancheng stood with his hands behind his back and said indifferently: "It is only a pity that the world will lose another master who knows how to use the sword."

PS: Shamelessly asking for monthly tickets. I forgot if it's double monthly tickets, but there's still hope to break a thousand. Setting a flag: I will try my best not to be a slacker during the double monthly ticket period, at least eight thousand words every day.