Chapter 94: 103, 104 Overturning the Table, Laying Out My Chessboard (Big Chapter, Please Subscribe)

Song Cheng did not kill the visitors from the Five-and-a-Half Hall.

They were small fry; killing them was meaningless.

But Song Cheng took their identity tokens.

Then, on the way back, he made a detour to Zhao Zhai.

Zhao Hua was reading.

A copper candlestick with connected branches held the light, and the orange flame burned softly without flickering or jumping, illuminating the man who possessed a rather refined and elegant air, like a graceful young gentleman.

The man had not yet slept and was focused on his reading.

His books were quite eclectic, ranging from military treatises to miscellaneous texts on training dogs and hunting.

What was mind-boggling was that in this Zhao Zhai, apart from servants and maids, there was not even a single concubine.

Song Cheng glanced at Zhao Hua's "100" favorability rating, pondered for a moment, and appeared from the dimness while wrapped in mud and stone.

The door opened, the candlelight gave a flutter, and the room alternated between light and dark.

Clang! Zhao Hua's eyebrows jumped, and he drew his blade abruptly.

The black shadow that came from outside was extremely fast; before he could startle and before his long blade could leave its sheath, it pressed down on his shoulder, then placed the three "Beixue Zhou Five-and-a-Half Hall Disciple Tokens" he was carrying onto the table in front of him.

Zhao Hua took a subconscious glance with his peripheral vision, and upon seeing the intruding black shadow, he could not help but gasp, then looked at the mud-and-stone giant beside him in astonishment and panic.

What is this thing? What kind of monster?

It was a strange, giant shape composed of grains of sand and dust; this sand was not static but flowing, as if a land of quicksand had taken human form.

The giant scanned the tabletop, raised a hand, and controlled the sand to form a strange, complex symbol directly on the table.

This symbol was a "secret code" between Song Cheng and Zhao Hua, known only to the two of them.

Both were meticulous people, so they had naturally agreed upon such a thing long ago.

Zhao Hua looked at the symbol, his gaze sweeping over its composition—where it closed, where it opened, and how wide—all of which they had discussed. It contained many traps; even if an outsider looked at it, as long as they missed one detail, both would immediately know the other was a fake.

Yet now, this symbol was exactly the same.

Zhao Hua turned his head blankly, looking at the mud-and-stone giant.

The giant raised a hand, controlling the mud and dust to leave words on the table to communicate.

Soon, the first line of text appeared on the desk under the candlelight: Why not take in a concubine? Such long-winded words—the kind of thing you might only hear from a few people in your entire life—made Zhao Hua call out hesitantly: "Big Brother?"

The sand-and-earth words appeared: "Huazi, it's me."

The surprise in Zhao Hua's eyes instantly turned into fanaticism.

In his eyes, Song Cheng had always been full of mystery.

He had long since sworn to follow in this big brother's footsteps. A man should live his life to the fullest; he did not want to live in mediocrity, and as long as he followed such a big brother, life would surely be spectacular.

Song Cheng quickly explained the situation.

Zhao Hua understood instantly and muttered: "The Five-and-a-Half Hall disciples want to spread rumors and stir up trouble; they must have entered the city with fake identities and then displayed their identity tokens to command some local gangs to act.

But having lost their real identity tokens and been knocked unconscious, they certainly won't dare to proceed.

In this way, if they advance, they fear being watched; if they retreat, the sect still has missions; if they do nothing, they fear being killed by the attacker... They might confess their identities, go to the government office, and say their tokens were lost.

Then, if the government asks why they came, they can take the opportunity to clarify the matter regarding Big Brother and the Ghost, saying they came to investigate.

Moving from the shadows into the light is not a bad idea.

And once they reveal their identities, their lives will also be guaranteed.

Does Big Brother want me to handle this?"

Song Cheng wrote: "Once they move from the shadows to the light, they become controllable, but they are only the vanguard and may not have much. However, those who come are not kind, and those who are kind do not come; this matter may involve a lot, so be careful."

Zhao Hua nodded heavily.

The next instant, the mud-and-stone giant pushed the door and went out; the mud and sand suddenly fell with a rustle, collapsing into a small mound, while the formless Soul had already flown into the sky and fled far away.

Song Cheng flew and flew and flew in the sky, and only after carefully patrolling a large area and confirming that only those three had infiltrated the Prefecture City for the time being did he breathe a slight sigh of relief.

At least he confirmed that no matter what kind of plan it was, it had only just begun.

He returned quickly.

His body, which sat on the stone stool like a dark, ancient statue of mist and clouds, immediately had its Soul return, then he yawned, preparing to return to his room.

There were four rooms, each housing one of the four women.

Song Cheng thought for a moment and went to Ying'er's side, exchanging a few words with the chambermaid in the dark: "Young Master?" "It's me," and then he rustled as he took off his clothes, trousers, and shoes, and after getting on the bed, he patiently "battled" with Ying'er.

After a long time, Ying'er had become limp.

Song Cheng lay flat on his back.

The softness of the bedding and the softness of his wife beside him came at the same time, comfortably surrounding him.

At this moment, he was exceptionally relaxed.

Ying'er had a tall figure, and because she practiced martial arts, her skin had more elasticity and vitality, which was different from the other three women.

Tong Niangzi was petite, An Jie was dignified and cold with a bit of a "domineering female CEO" feel, and Xiao Cha was soft and sweet—even when Su Huxian possessed her, she only developed in a charming direction. With the four women there, Song Cheng could live comfortably every night.

And this time, although the matter was big, he did not want to disturb his pregnant wife.

He glanced at his panel: 【Name: Song Cheng】

【Talent: Chang Sheng Bu Lao】

【Add Points: 1134 points】

【Realm: Yellow Grade Grade A】

【Cultivation Arts】

Xuanwu True Form (Nine Forms) (Completion) (Deduction probability 1.28%) (5 points per deduction) Mountain Spirit Blade Qi Secret Canon (Completion)

Nine Poisons Secret Canon (Yellow Grade Grade A) (Not Yet Initiated (0/16)) Xuanwu Body (Perfect). I must say, the deduction probability is extremely difficult to increase; it was fine when at a low level, but now, even though Song Cheng has tried every method, it will not increase by even a tiny bit.

But thinking about it carefully, it is actually not strange.

This kind of "extreme difficulty" is actually based on a "short period of time."

But does the talent of "Chang Sheng Bu Lao" require you to be "this or that in a short time"? Song Cheng is Chang Sheng Bu Lao; if it were in a peaceful era, a hundred years of time would pass as if in the snap of a finger.

And one hundred years is over 250,000 points; even if the deduction probability is low, it doesn't matter.

Never mind a hundred years; a thousand or ten thousand years are nothing to "infinite Chang Sheng Bu Lao."

What technique cannot be deduced?

Therefore, "low deduction probability, and the higher the level, the harder it is to improve" is relative.

For one who is "Chang Sheng Bu Lao," this is actually not difficult at all.

It is just that the environment Song Cheng is currently in is treacherous and full of endless trouble, and it even leans towards an apocalyptic catastrophe, which is why it is "difficult."

And if one truly wants to improve quickly, the only way is not to "close the door and build a cart, slowly waiting for points to increase," but to go to higher-level sects, seek powerful techniques, and then quickly achieve them through Add Points.

"Heaven Earth Profound Yellow, Grade A B C D." The Yellow Grade still looks like it can be deduced.

But if one goes further up, I fear this situation will be even more obvious.

You either wait patiently, live your life well, wait a hundred, a thousand, or ten thousand years, and then success will come naturally.

Or you explore the world, make contact with sects, obtain techniques, and reach the goal in one step.

How to choose? That is up to you.

Song Cheng is also speechless.

He certainly hopes for the former.

Since one is already Chang Sheng Bu Lao, who would still want to fight to the death? Isn't it good to enjoy life properly? One never tires of eating delicacies, never tires of drinking good wine, and never tires of loving beauties; anyone who says they would get bored is just a fox who cannot reach the grapes and calls them sour.

Longevity is just so great. After a flurry of random thoughts, he hugged Ying'er at his side again.

"Young Master, I... I will go call Ling'er." Although Ying'er's legs were trembling, she still gritted her teeth, wanting to fight, but then realized she was already exhausted. Before, she was shy about "sharing the bed with Ling'er," but now she only thought about that good comrade-in-arms being able to share the burden for her.

It was still too arrogant of her to want to fight the Young Master alone.

Song Cheng said, "You sleep, I will go sit in the courtyard for a while."

"Young Master! Ying'er is useless!"

The bedchamber maid blamed herself.

Song Cheng was stunned for a moment, couldn't help but laugh, then rubbed the little maid's head and said, "What are you thinking? Sleep!"

Having said that, he stepped over Ying'er's body, put on a loose robe, and walked outside the door.

"《Xuanwu Nine Forms》, deduce, one hundred and seventy-eight times, until success."

The deduction probability is 1.28%; calculating the success rate requires an inverse algorithm. The probability of success in one hundred deductions is about 72.4%, and one hundred and seventy-eight times is 90%.

If this still fails to deduce, then Song Cheng will directly add the remaining points to the 《Nine Poisons Secret Canon》 to cultivate it to Completion.

In an instant, infinite sensations surged into his heart.

《Xuanwu Nine Forms》 is definitely not an ordinary Qi Realm technique.

Because things like the 《Body-Breaking Mountain Spirit Blade Qi Secret Canon》 and the 《Nine Poisons Secret Canon》 are all one strength and one form, while his 《Xuanwu Nine Forms》 is based on a hundred strengths and over ten forms... The Qi Realm technique obtained through such deduction naturally rises with the tide.

It is precisely because of this that Song Cheng is willing to spend a large number of points to deduce it.

In an instant, countless profound sensations surged into his heart.

The youth threw punches, practiced strength, and performed forms; the Gang Qi crisscrossed on the surface of his body, rising and falling.

The dense Gang Qi surged in his body like ocean currents.

Every time he attacked, he could bring forth immense power, but wanting to use this to release Qi externally was quite difficult.

Fortunately, he had already learned the 《Body-Breaking Mountain Spirit Blade Qi Secret Canon》, so he understood the "Body-Breaking" trick, and it was precisely this understanding that increased the deduction probability by twofold.

This trick is "Concentration."

Gang Qi covering the whole body is uniform distribution.

And "Concentration" is using the method to move the Gang Qi, gather it at one point, and then guide it out, which naturally allows for breaking the body.

Blade Qi is invisible and can reach over ten zhang; those below Form Realm Completion have no qualification to even block a single strike.

As for the ultimate application of the Qi Realm, it is the "Phantom Image."

"Phantom Image" is the extreme of "Concentration," belonging to the typical "holding one's breath and fighting with one's life"; once it fails, one will definitely fall into a relatively weak state afterward.

It belongs to forced improvement and rapid attack.

Therefore, the third style of the 《Body-Breaking Mountain Spirit Blade Qi Secret Canon》, "Giant Spirit," is not used until the very end.

People like "Big Hall Master" Tie Zhenyi and "Manor Master" Ouyang Sha have all mastered "Phantom Image" by now; what they do daily is, first, to hone themselves and maintain their peak, and second, to swallow Pills and gnaw on Demon Beast Meat in an attempt to strengthen the Qi within their bodies.

But how difficult is it to improve Qi? You either expose a flaw when attacking, or you bet everything on one breath.

However, the youth's Gang Qi had already reached an ultimate state of near Completion.

If one says the Big Hall Master and Manor Master's Qi is half a bottle of water, his... is almost full.

Concentration, guidance, striking—the youth shed sweat, bitterly contemplating it again and again.

Thus, an unknown amount of time passed.

Finally, at one point, he successfully found that sliver of opportunity.

The saying that sincerity can move heaven and earth is nothing more than this.

"The one hundred and twenty-sixth time, deduction successful."

Song Cheng scanned the panel: The 【Technique】 column finally had a new piece of information: Xuanwu True Qi (Nine Qi) (Yellow Grade Grade A) (Not Yet Initiated (0/16)). He scanned the remaining points again: there were actually 504 points left.

Song Cheng let out a long sigh of relief.

Not bad; this time wasn't lucky, but it wasn't too unlucky either; it's acceptable.

And deducing a "Yellow Grade Grade A" technique to Completion requires 240 points, and adding the corresponding combat technique requires 480 points.

Song Cheng scanned the "Nine Qi" of 《Xuanwu True Qi》, then looked at the 《Nine Poisons Secret Canon》.

The latter is clearly "One Qi."

Then. "Xuanwu True Qi, 240 points, cultivate."

Numerous profound sensations surged up.

The youth followed that sliver of opportunity, practicing diligently and bitterly, finally obtaining Qi throughout his body that swelled like the sea; he unleashed a blade strike with this surging Qi, the blade Qi traveling rapidly for several tens of zhang, and his entire body remained filled with surging Qi currents, without any flaws.

Perform "Giant Spirit" again.

The original "Giant Spirit" of about one zhang directly became over two zhang, and the density of the Qi current's power increased by much.

Xuanwu True Qi, Completion!

And following that, new information appeared: 【Deduce corresponding combat technique, probability 10%】

【Each deduction costs 5 points】

Song Cheng silently calculated in his heart: 264 points remaining; if he were to deduce, he could deduce 26 times, with a success rate of about 94%.

"Deduce, combat technique."

Very quickly, the result was displayed: the combat technique succeeded on the seventh deduction; Heaven finally let him have a normal moment. And the success rate for seven times was 52%.

After a long, long time, and a bout of tinkering.

The points he had painstakingly accumulated were not left in the slightest.

The final panel was therefore settled:

【Cultivation Method】

Xuanwu True Qi (Nine Qi) (Completion) 【Skill】

Xuanwu Six Forms (Yellow Grade Grade A) (Blade and Shield) (Form One Shadowless, Form Two Flood Dragon Mountain, Form Three Immovable Honored One, Form Four Nightmare Dream, Form Five Cloud Follow, Form Six Xuanwu True Shadow) (Great Accomplishment (117/128))

"The combat technique was not replaced with a new one, but two forms were added."

"Cloud Follow."

"Xuanwu True Shadow."

Scanning his strength data again, it changed directly from "290~580" to "374~728".

He thought about Su Huxian's "0 (435)~0 (870)".

Perhaps if he really faced Su Huxian's true body, he would still be defeated, but at least he now had the power to fight.

What's more, people of great families like Su Huxian are mostly buried underground due to lifespan reasons, hidden in some Ice Coffin that delays aging.

Song Cheng thought seriously again about the strength of the strongest person in Hanping Prefecture.

Tie Zhenyi's strength is: 160~292.

"Big Senior Brother can no longer break through my defense at all."

"Since that Big Senior Brother can become an overlord of Hanping Prefecture, if I add a little more to the Five-and-a-Half Hall of Beixue Zhou, it shouldn't be too much, right?"

"Then it's better to just make a move."

"There are never coincidences in this world."

"A Qi Realm Ghost servant attacked me, the Five-and-a-Half Hall of Beixue Zhou wants to spread rumors, Su Huxian led the heavy cavalry and hasn't returned yet, Lady Zhushan went to the barbarian lands but didn't bring the Skull Double Fish Pendant, and decades ago there was an instigator between Su Huxian and Lady Zhushan..."

"Then, I will just assume the Qi Realm Ghost servant was arranged by the Five-and-a-Half Hall."

"And the instigator between Su Huxian and Lady Zhushan is also the Five-and-a-Half Hall."

Song Cheng rested his chin on his hand and thought seriously.

"Hmm, although there is no evidence."

"But, let's just settle it like this?"

If you want to break the situation, if you don't want to be led by the nose, then... just be proactive.

Even if it's framing someone, so what? Anyway, you all have a connection.

If there's no connection, why didn't these things happen at different times?

The strong... if they say you have it, you have it.

You don't?

You come and provide the proof. Who has time to go around in circles with you? The next day.

Those three disciples of the Five-and-a-Half Hall who were knocked unconscious and lost their identity tokens went to report to the government office in extreme panic, just as expected.

Not long after, it was almost one after another.

In the afternoon, a Hall Master of the Five-and-a-Half Hall led people directly into the city and charged straight to the government office.

The prefecture and the government office have a superior-subordinate relationship.

It is normal for the Five-and-a-Half Hall Master to go directly to the government office upon hearing that his disciples were injured.

That was a man in green clothes with a tall horse, stern brows, and glaring eyes, who looked very dignified.

As soon as the Prefect saw him, he immediately welcomed him with a smiling face, then hurriedly went to report this matter to the Mountain and River Martial Arts Hall.

Big Hall Master had actually already heard about the Five-and-a-Half Hall disciples' affair and was just thinking about it; hearing the Prefect's report, he also frowned.

"Who came?" Tie Zhenyi frowned; he hadn't figured out the ins and outs yet.

"'Booming Thunder' Cao Sujun." The Prefect still had a good eye for things.

Tie Zhenyi rubbed his forehead and muttered: "The third-in-command of the Five-and-a-Half Hall... I haven't dealt with him for a long time. What is he here for? The Ghost Tide is about to erupt, and he leaves Zhoucheng now and rashly comes to my territory; what does he want to do?"

The Prefect shook his head, then suddenly said: "Could it be related to the Little Martial Uncle?"

Tie Zhenyi said: "Song Cheng is not a Ghost. Anyone who wants to say he is a Ghost is just looking for trouble."

The Prefect gave a bitter smile.

Even if they are looking for trouble, Hanping Prefecture has to take it and has to suffer in silence; everything is so passive, and everything is as if in a fog.

One cannot see anything clearly at all.

"Hall Master, I'm afraid this matter will cause quite a stir."

The Prefect sighed.

Tie Zhenyi said: "Let's go take a look first, take it one step at a time, and figure out what they are actually trying to do before saying anything else. That's all we can do."

Immediately, the two of them led a few martial arts hall disciples and rode their horses quickly toward the prefectural government office.

And just as they arrived at the prefectural office, the two of them heard a noisy clamor from afar.

Looking again, they saw that a large crowd had gathered.

Among them were disciples of White Camel Manor and medicine men from Zhushan Temple; Tie Zhenyi was startled and quickened his pace to go forward.

The crowd parted in two, letting the Big Hall Master pass through.

Tie Zhenyi hurried into the government office.

He looked again.

Good heavens, "Heaven-Shattering Thunder" Cao Sujun was kneeling halfway on the ground, looking up at the youth sitting in front of him.

The youth held a book in his hands, reading it page by page.

"Forty years ago, the Five-and-a-Half Hall enticed evil spirits, defrauded the Zhushan Chamber of Commerce, and plotted to kill all of Lady Zhushan's relatives; is this matter true?"

Cao Sujun gritted his teeth, wanting to say "bullshit," but the youth's terrifying, extreme aura was enveloping him; it was a gaze from a higher power looking down.

When he came, he had many plans; he wanted to stir up trouble, to make this so-called "North Land Blade King" exhausted and in a sorry state, but he had never imagined the current scene.

He hadn't even said a single word, and this madman of a North Land Blade King had easily beaten him down, then started reading some terrifying, soul-crushing articles, demanding he admit to them.

He was crazy if he admitted to that!

Song Cheng asked: "Do you admit it or not?"

As the three words fell, Cao Sujun's face turned deathly pale, and even breathing became difficult.

Even though both were in the Qi Realm, the gap between the two was far, far too great.

Cao Sujun was fundamentally unable to generate any thought of defiance; he opened his mouth to refute, but his teeth chattered, and he couldn't produce any sound of resistance at all.

"Fine, let's not talk about this one first."

Song Cheng again put down the book in a formal manner, took out another scroll of documents, and said: "Several days ago, I encountered a Ghost servant attack outside the city. That Ghost servant has already confessed, saying that you all created it and then came to assassinate me, all just to poke a hole in the defensive Great Wall of the North Land.

Good, very good.

I never expected that in this day and age, there would still be human traitors!"

His voice had been calm at the beginning, but the more he spoke, the more severe it became; by the time he said the words "human traitor," Cao Sujun felt his heart was about to crack, and he collapsed directly onto the ground.

Song Cheng suddenly raised his hand, slammed the book down in front of him, and said: "Why do this? Why be a human traitor? Speak!"

More and more people gathered outside.

More and more people were watching.

Cao Sujun was resisting with his will almost every moment, but after a long time, his will was finally worn away; in a daze, his mind in chaos, he just said like a madman: "It wasn't me, it was the Great Hall Master, it was the Great Hall Master who made me do it."

After saying this, he was terrified to the extreme.

"Lock him up, investigate strictly!"

Song Cheng waved his hand.

Immediately, disciples dragged all the people from the Five-and-a-Half Hall away.

Tie Zhenyi was dumbfounded, but after thinking carefully, his mind spinning like lightning, he suddenly said: "Issue a manifesto, announce this matter to the world! I want everyone to know the good deeds the Five-and-a-Half Hall did forty years ago! Let everyone know the Five-and-a-Half Hall colluded with Ghost servants and harbored evil designs!"

Song Cheng looked up in surprise and glanced at the Big Hall Master.

This was the first time he had looked squarely at this hegemon of Hanping Prefecture.

The efficiency of Hanping Prefecture was extremely high.

The manifesto, the evidence, everything was being prepared rapidly.

Tie Zhenyi, however, was in the depths of his own mansion with Song Cheng, the original Ouyang Sha, and Zhao Hua, who originally had no qualifications to participate but had come here because of Song Cheng's recommendation and Ouyang Sha's tacit approval.

The four of them were at one table.

Tie Zhenyi said: "Junior brother, what medicine are you selling in your gourd? Is what you said true?"

Song Cheng said: "It might be true."

The other three all fell silent.

None of the three were mediocre people, and each had their own calculations in their minds.

With such a commotion, plus the interrogation of the Five-and-a-Half Hall in the prison, they actually all had an idea of what the other side was coming to do.

Zhao Hua said: "Second Brother makes sense; they came to cause trouble with impure motives from the start."

Ouyang Sha didn't know what kind of love potion Zhao Hua had fed him, but he always looked at Zhao Hua with quite a bit of appreciation; this kid, who was previously only treated as a "sidekick to Song Cheng" by him, was slowly being taken seriously.

Thus, he said gloomily: "Third Brother is right, Second Brother makes sense."

Tie Zhenyi: Immediately, Song Cheng dissected the matter of "Lady Zhushan and Su Huxian," and also said "Lady Zhushan didn't even bring the Skull Double Fish Pendant when she went to the barbarian lands."

Once the three heard this, they understood even more.

Tie Zhenyi said: "There is indeed a problem, and that is the Five-and-a-Half Hall's problem. Who told them to jump out at this time? What about the Prefecture City? Strike first to gain the advantage; whoever speaks first has the moral high ground!"

Song Cheng said: "I'm worried the Five-and-a-Half Hall is causing trouble just to muddy the waters."

Zhao Hua added: "When the water is muddy, it's easy to catch fish, and also easy to loot a burning house."

Ouyang Sha remained gloomy and didn't speak.

Hanping Prefecture was also his power, and with these relationships at this time, the three major giants had a feeling of having already unified, advancing and retreating together, and sharing interests.

If outsiders wanted to mess with Song Cheng, then that was no different from messing with him!

Song Cheng said again: "Then what are they looting?"

Zhao Hua didn't know; he scratched his hair, a childlike action he only showed in front of his brother and sister-in-law.

Song Cheng said: "Huazi, you have the lowest seniority here, you tell me, what do they want to loot?"

Zhao Hua understood in a second.

Big Brother wanted him to find a reason.

Thus, he thought for a moment and said: "There must be Ghost Servants mixed into the upper echelons of the Five-and-a-Half Hall! So, what they naturally want to rob is the lives of everyone in the North Land!"

Tie Zhenyi made the final decision: "Good, send it out!"

Song Cheng thought for a moment and said: "Senior Brother, where are the two children sent by the great Barbarian King now?"

Tie Zhenyi said: "Well-fed and well-housed, they haven't been mistreated."

Song Cheng said: "I see that those two children have good aptitude, and I want to take them as disciples."

Ouyang Sha was stunned.

See? Good aptitude?

Second Brother, have you met those two children? Tie Zhenyi made the final decision: "Good! Those two children are indeed good! Only Junior Brother can teach them! Today is a good day, let's take advantage of today to have them acknowledge Junior Brother as their master! I will have this news sent out together!"

Zhao Hua nodded repeatedly, his expression normal, expressing deep agreement, and then added: "If it weren't for the Five-and-a-Half Hall, the people of the North Land wouldn't be suffering so much; it is all the fault of the Five-and-a-Half Hall."

Ouyang Sha:???

He really did not understand this.

"Third Brother, why do you say that?"

Zhao Hua said: "Eldest Brother, isn't it obvious?

The Five-and-a-Half Hall cooperates with Ghosts, and since Ghosts are the source of all disasters, then the Five-and-a-Half Hall is also the source of all disasters.

How many people among the North Land populace have died, and even how many among the Barbarian people have died? Aren't these all caused by Ghosts? Then that is equivalent to being caused by the Five-and-a-Half Hall."

Song Cheng praised: "Third Brother, what you say makes a lot of sense."

Sense?

Where is the sense?!

Ouyang Sha's lips moved; he wanted to refute, but thinking about how one doesn't refute their own family, he closed his mouth again.

Of the four people present, although "Laoduwu" used poison.

Perhaps... he was the person with the purest heart.

Several days later, piece after piece of information was spread everywhere by the frantically operating Hanping Prefecture.

And because of personal connections, after the Six Towns learned the news, they also tacitly accepted it, and even felt it made sense.

The entire North Land was shocked.

The upper echelons of the Beixue Zhou Five-and-a-Half Hall had Ghost Servants, and in order to destroy the North Land, they actually sent an extremely terrifying invisible Ghost Servant to assassinate the North Land Blade King.

Forty years ago, the family and relatives of Lady Zhushan of Zhushan Temple were also brutally murdered by them, and now they still wanted to sow discord.

The sudden rise of the Ghost Tide was also secretly caused by the Five-and-a-Half Hall.

Scholars and literati launched verbal and written attacks.

Among them, the confession of the Five-and-a-Half Hall Master, "Booming Thunder" Cao Sujun, further "set the tone" for this matter.

Song Cheng did not care how chaotic it was outside.

He came before a young boy and a young girl.

The boy looked weak and sickly, making it hard for people to imagine that this was actually the offspring of the great Barbarian King, yet this was undeniably true.

The girl, however, looked sharp-tongued and unruly at first glance, overbearing and arrogant, wearing red horse boots and a crimson martial outfit; when Song Cheng called for her, she was still riding a horse and shooting arrows.

These two people were precisely the hostages sent by the Barbarian King.

The former had not yet entered the Jin Realm, while the latter had already just entered the Form Realm.

"Greetings, Blade King."

"You are the Blade King? So young!"

"Biye, do not be rude."

"You mind your own business; in our family, you're the only one who is weak and sickly, right?"

As soon as the boy and girl spoke, they began to argue.

Song Cheng looked at the two, and slowly, slowly, strands of Qi diffused from his body; that thick aura supported a phantom image of an armored giant over two zhang tall in mid-air.

The terrifying pressure caused the insects in the courtyard to fall silent, and the boy and girl were also instantly struck dumb.

But after just one press, it dissipated.

"The two of you have a connection with me; are you willing to acknowledge me as your master?" Song Cheng said.

The girl looked up at the tall giant phantom, shocked in her heart: How could it... how could it seem even larger than the phantom of Father's Nine-Headed Golden Lion? She retorted stubbornly: "Yours is just big..."

Song Cheng scanned the distance and suddenly waved his hand casually.

A terrifying blade Qi shot out violently, passing through the hall and rooms, and accurately smashed into a target dozens of zhang away.

Boom! The target shattered!

Boom, boom, boom! Behind the target, the rockery, the courtyard wall, everything was shattered.

And the ground was like delicate skin crawled over by a centipede, leaving behind deep, pitted tracks; the surrounding houses seemed to have suffered an earthquake, also shaking violently, with the rafters and pillars creaking and rattling.

The girl:... After a long while, her overbearing and unruly nature was tucked away, and she said softly: "Yuan Biye greets Master."

On the other side, the weak, white-clad boy smiled: "Yuan Shouyu greets Master."

As hostages, where would they have the power to be picky?

Furthermore, he had long been full of curiosity about this North Land Blade King who was almost the same age as him.

Seeing him today, he really was powerful.

At this time.

The North Barbarian camp.

Lady Zhushan, wrapped in heavy robes, had originally been full of gloom, but at this moment, the gloom on her face had dissipated slightly.

Half a month ago, she received a letter from Tong Jia.

The letter explained the matter of "Su Huxian".

She did not know why, but she was suddenly enraged, feeling only that Tong Jia had betrayed her, and Song Cheng had betrayed her.

"Su Huxian" harmed her entire family; how could there be any misunderstanding in this? It was a blood feud, irreconcilable.

She had even persuaded the Barbarian King, preparing to lead some troops to Hanping Prefecture to make Tong Jia and Song Cheng wake up, and at the same time to seek out the released "Su Huxian" to settle things.

But at this moment, the information that came from outside inexplicably, yet sounded so certain, made her pause her steps.

"Five-and-a-Half Hall?"

Lady Zhushan fell into deep thought.

This information, added to what she knew of "Su Huxian leading a thousand riders to carry a coffin out of the city," was forcibly pressed onto the other side of her mental scale, slowly leveling out her original impression.

"Clear it up first before deciding."

Lady Zhushan had intended to set out, but now she calmed down.

The Six Towns.

These are Shenwu Town, Xuanming Zhen, Dahuang Town, Jinye Zhen, Shuofang Town, and Rouyu Zhen, where sects stand in great numbers, the good and the bad are mixed, everyone harbors their own ulterior motives, the identities of those within are extremely complex, and all kinds of existences are present; furthermore, due to the tempering of war and the bitter cold of the North Land, they have become like evil Ghosts in purgatory.

At this moment, these people were actually gathered around a table because of this matter.

Dark silhouettes, faces that could not be seen clearly, and the powerful pressure of Martial Artists.

The sound of whispering finally settled.

"I agree."

"I also agree; the chaotic times have arrived, why should we still guard the Six Towns?"

"Does our strength not deserve a better life?"

"The Zhoucheng, with abundant grain and beauties like flowers—that is where we should be."

"This old man knows that the matter of the Barbarian negotiations was handled by the Five-and-a-Half Hall. Since the Five-and-a-Half Hall has colluded with Ghost servants, then we might as well take this opportunity to settle the score."

"Then let's topple the Five-and-a-Half Hall! Occupy the Beixue Zhou city. After so many years, it is time for us to change where we live."

(End of chapter)