Chapter 77: Progress (Bonus Chapter for 4000 Recommendation Votes)

The Tang Sect is not only formidable for its poisons, but its hidden weapons are also peerless under heaven.

Every Tang Sect disciple is highly proficient in hidden weapons and poisons, and they are all existences that ordinary martial artists dare not provoke.

Tang Tianrong is the Second Young Master of the Tang Sect; it is said that whether in hidden weapon technique or speed of execution, he has already surpassed the First Young Master, Tang Tianyi. Aside from Tang Laoyezi and the youngest disciple, Tang Tianzong, he is already the most formidable expert in the Tang Sect.

But starting from today, he is no longer that person.

He will never be again.

Because Ye Gucheng's sword has pierced through the shoulder blades of Tang Tianrong's left and right shoulders.

At the very moment they were pierced, Tang Tianzong's tears flowed down along with the fresh blood.

For the rest of his life, he will never again be able to launch a hidden weapon.

From now on, he is no longer the third-ranked expert of the Tang Sect; even a stone thrown by a random child would be more skillful than this cripple.

For a Tang Sect disciple, this sort of thing is clearly more terrifying and cruel than death.

Almost everyone at Chunhua Lou appeared incomparably horrified.

Although they had already been able to guess the outcome.

They had not expected that Tang Tianrong would be stabbed by Ye Gucheng before he even had time to launch a hidden weapon.

No one could describe the brilliance and splendor of this sword, nor could anyone describe the speed of this sword.

Ye Gucheng's elegant figure had already been gone for a long time before the crowd gradually came back to their senses, filled with excitement, running about in all directions to convey what had happened at Chunhua Lou to their fellow martial artists.

Ye Gucheng was not poisoned.

Ye Gucheng's sword was still as brilliant and swift as ever.

Du Tongxuan looked at Li Yanbei and suddenly revealed a cruel smile: "You should know by now why I changed my mind." He smiled as he stood up: "Because I don't want you to die; dead men cannot pay their debts—gambling debts."

He also went downstairs, leaving behind only the dejected and desperate Li Yanbei and the bewildered Lu Xiaofeng.

"Half-Master, I want to bet my entire fortune on Ye Gucheng." Shangguan Xueer's eyes were sparkling, but she discovered that Yu Liancheng was not paying her any attention at all; instead, he was frowning, motionless like a statue, as if he were thinking about something.

"Half-Master, Half-Master, what are you thinking about?" Shangguan Xueer leaned in and waved her hand in front of Yu Liancheng.

Yu Liancheng finally came back to his senses, looked at Shangguan Xueer, and said earnestly: "Do you think my sword technique is higher, or is Ye Gucheng's sword technique more formidable?"

Shangguan Xueer replied without hesitation: "Of course it is you, Master."

Back in Wuyang City, the two had already fought once, and Yu Liancheng had bested Ye Gucheng by a margin.

Furthermore, even if Half-Master were not Ye Gucheng's match, one still had to say the Master's sword technique was higher, otherwise, she would be beaten again.

Yu Liancheng nodded: "You saw just now when Ye Gucheng made his entrance, there were actually four beauties scattering flowers to form a carpet; it was full of style. Therefore..."

Shangguan Xueer asked in confusion: "Therefore?"

Yu Liancheng said solemnly: "Therefore, have your sister and the others prepare; next time I go out, I want the people from Red Shoes to come out as flower-scattering maidens. They are all great beauties, and there are eight of them; the number is exactly double that of Ye Gucheng's people."

Shangguan Xueer also doubled.

—Doubled her eyes (rolled her eyes).

"I have something to attend to and must leave for a while; you go back first." Yu Liancheng rose to his full height, his figure skimming lightly as he flew off in the direction Ye Gucheng had previously departed.

Quite a few people at Chunhua Lou saw this scene, their eyes flickering, clearly guessing that Yu Liancheng had gone to find Ye Gucheng.

When these two peerless swordsmen met, perhaps there would also be an extremely spectacular exchange.

However, no one followed; for one thing, Yu Liancheng's merciless display on the long street had already intimidated the vast majority of the martial arts crowd.

Secondly, Yu Liancheng's lightness skill was truly too high; in the blink of an eye, he had already vanished from sight.

"Stinky Master, I didn't bring any silver." Shangguan Xueer stomped her foot, then suddenly her eyes shifted, and she walked quickly to Lu Xiaofeng, saying with a grin: "Little Cousin, it's been a long time since we last met."

Lu Xiaofeng laughed: "A moment ago I was a little nephew, now I've become a little cousin."

……

…………

On a patch of forest land stood a man in white; his clothes were whiter than snow, aloof and cold, as if he were a piece of pristine white cloud at the edge of the sky—it was none other than Ye Gucheng, who had left Chunhua Lou.

Yu Liancheng had already skimmed over from the distance, elegant and agile, like a flying immortal.

Clang!

Suddenly, a dragon's roar.

Ye Gucheng's hand moved, and the sword light flew up, piercing toward Yu Liancheng like lightning.

This was no longer a sword, but the wrath of the God of Thunder, a strike of lightning; no words could describe the splendor of this sword.

Even though the world was full of experts, those who could receive this sword could be counted on one's fingers.

Yet Yu Liancheng seemed to have anticipated it; the Duoqing Sword left its sheath, meeting the strike like a collapsing mountain.

Amidst the "clang" of the collision, a spark exploded.

Immediately, two figures, one black and one white, merged into the sword light, unfolding an extremely spectacular exchange.

The two long swords changed to the extreme, the sword light seeming to transform into lightning tearing through the sky, aurora piercing the dark night; it was dazzling, and both heaven and earth seemed to dim, all the brilliance concentrated on these two swords.

Fierce and Broken Sword Qi scattered in all directions, carving sword marks into the ground, leaving the surroundings in a mess.

Clang!

Clang!

Two sword rings pierced the air, the black and white figures crossed paths, the fierce energy dissipated into nothingness, and the two Divine Swords were sheathed almost simultaneously.

Ye Gucheng's face was slightly pale as he said in a tone of astonishment: "Your sword technique has actually improved again?"

He had always been one to keep his emotions hidden, but at this moment, the look of surprise was not fake in the slightest.

Once sword technique reached their level, every step forward became extremely difficult.

Part of the reason Ye Gucheng had participated in the plot to rebel and usurp the throne was that he wanted to attempt to further elevate his state of mind by completing the great task of usurpation, thereby using his spirit to nourish his Sword Dao.

Yu Liancheng shrugged and laughed: "During this period, I have fought with many experts, including two top-tier swordsmen. Moreover, I have collected several manuals of miraculous arts to further verify my own martial arts. If you wish to see these secret manuals, I can send someone to deliver them to you."

Ye Gucheng shook his head: "You have a very broad range of study in the path of martial arts; your palms, fists, fingers, and legs have all reached a very high realm, which is why you can verify them against one another. As for me, I am single-mindedly devoted to studying sword technique; if I were to see other exquisite martial arts manuals, I would inevitably become distracted. At this critical moment, not the slightest mistake can be made."

"As you wish." Yu Liancheng shrugged and asked, "How is the plan proceeding?"

Ye Gucheng's expression turned solemn, and he said coldly, "The young prince has already arrived in the Capital, and the people inside the palace are also prepared. Everything is arranged properly, waiting only for the fifteenth of the ninth lunar month."

Yu Liancheng nodded, his gaze looking into the distance with a faraway expression: "The fifteenth of the ninth lunar month, the Forbidden City. A sword comes from the west, a Flying Immortal from Beyond the Heavens."