Chapter 119: I Have Not Seen the Phoenix, But the Phoenix Has Seen Me

The Six Void Unified Divine Art was created five hundred years ago by the aged Duke Chen when his cultivation reached its peak, and later refined continuously by generations of masters; it excels at dissolving foreign Qi within the body, but Sima Deqing's aura was not obviously detectable—though extremely pure, its quantity was insufficient.

After being discovered, he lunged left and right, yet still was consumed by Li Guanyi's internal Qi.

Li Guanyi refined it according to the circulation method of this divine art.

After a full incense stick's time, the hidden internal Qi within Li Guanyi vanished; he leapt to his feet—his internal Qi quantity showed no change. He thought for a moment, stepped out of the room, and entered the courtyard.

The large stone in his courtyard was replaced daily.

Xue Laoyezi would smash the stone and use it as paving material.

The old man would lay these fragments on muddy roads in poor villages, turning them into gravel paths, then collect a symbolic fee so the people would not regard the Xue family as saints.

Sometimes they even thought road-building was just an excuse to collect money and cursed the Xue family.

The Xue family, though immensely wealthy, was also frugal.

Li Guanyi clenched his fist and stared at the hard boulder; he struck it with the Xue family's Shattered Jade Fist. His physique was formidable, his aura abundant—this blow produced a sharp crack, and the entire boulder shattered, shards clattering across the ground.

The Xue family's Shattered Jade Fist specializes in explosive damage.

When enemy warriors closed in on Xue family archers without arrows.

They would face fists no inferior to those of Jianghu Sect Sect.

For the Xue family's divine bow, close combat was considered the second stage; General Xue Shen's path featured a divine bow at long range, a halberd at mid-range, Wu Badao at close quarters, and fists and feet for melee—excluding the current Yao Guang, General Xue Shen had no weaknesses.

Though Li Guanyi had not fully mastered this fist art, his formidable physique allowed him to wield it with power no less than a perfected form; he paused again, activated the Six Void Unified Divine Art, followed the Shattered Jade Fist's pattern, and struck downward.

This time, the stone showed not a single mark.

Yet Li Guanyi's eyes held unusual color; he murmured: "Such a sinister aura."

He extended one finger and lightly prodded the stone—the same rock hard enough for paving, yet without any effort from the youth, it yielded like quicksand, silently dissolving into fine sand that trickled down.

This was the nature of the single thread of aura casually released by Sima Deqing, the tenth-ranked assassin in the world.

"Cold and tyrannical, silent and invisible—fine, I'll call it Yin Rou Jing."

Li Guanyi suspected that if Sima Deqing struck directly, he would ignore defenses entirely, annihilating meridians and internal organs; even warriors with Diamond Dragon Elephant-level physiques could not match the resilience of their organs to their muscles and bones—this aura entering his body was not strong.

But once Li Guanyi cultivated the Second Floor method.

Whether it was the orthodox nine-orifice system of Central Plains martial arts.

Or the seven-chakra system of Western Region martial arts.

Anyone cultivating the Second Floor must be extremely cautious; should this aura stir, Li Guanyi would likely have his internal organs and meridians shattered, his martial arts ruined—and he could blame Yue Qianfeng, or even Chen Chengbi, who recommended the cultivation method to him.

Li Guanyi thought of Chen Chengbi's attitude and pondered briefly.

"Not killing me, but crippling me—to escalate the conflict."

"Is it the Crown Prince's faction…"

"Or a secret imperial agent hidden within the Crown Prince's faction, deliberately provoking both sides to slaughter each other?"

"The captured assassin claimed Dan Tai Xianming was responsible—was it truly him, or was it the Emperor, merely using Dan Tai Xianming's name? Or did Dan Tai Xianming indeed order it, but the Emperor gave Sima Deqing a separate command?"

Li Guanyi felt the situation before him was murky and confusing.

Even Xue Laoyezi, his own, was a cunning old fox.

He decided to find a way to warn Xue Laoyezi—this battle of wits between old foxes, he, a young man, would not join; compared to such scheming, martial skill was more reliable. He clenched his fist and tried to fathom the subtleties of the Six Void Unified Divine Art.

Void, Unity—these captured the true essence of Daoist martial arts.

Yet they placed "I" as sovereign, like an emperor commanding ministers, to control all manner of Qi.

Even enemies could be turned to my use.

Beneath the Daoist exterior lay the true essence of Imperial martial arts.

Clearly, this reflected Duke Chen's mindset; Li Guanyi observed the man through his martial art and suspected that had General Xue Shen not been lurking beside Duke Chen, the Duke would have already rebelled.

Now, Li Guanyi could switch between the Jade Arm Divine Bow Scripture and the absorbed Sima Deqing aura; after lying low for several days until truly safe, he would then cultivate the Crimson Dragon Qi—when he struck, three layers of aura would emerge.

Bai Hu breaks defenses, Crimson Dragon burns meridians, the hidden aura seeps into lungs and organs.

Exceedingly mysterious.

The Six Void Unified Divine Art seemed less like an internal art and more like a secret technique.

Li Guanyi struck the boulder with Shattered Jade Fist—either starting with the tyrannical aura, then the Yin Rou Jing; or beginning with Yin Rou Jing's corrosion, then a tyrannical punch to pierce through—constantly shifting. One single Shattered Jade Fist, yet now, due to changes in internal Qi, produced different effects.

Finally, Li Guanyi pressed his palm against the boulder.

With a flick of his wrist, the boulder shattered completely into individual grains.

Li Guanyi used his hand as a weapon and suddenly swept it.

He forcibly summoned the Rolling Wave technique—vortex Qi erupted, using 【Yin Rou Jing】; the shattered stones became countless fine powders, swirling and churning. Li Guanyi stepped forward and punched—like shattering mountains and severing peaks—he struck forth.

【Shatter Mountain】!

The Rolling Wave vortex shattered, yet unleashed even stronger tearing force.

After conversing with the old man, Li Guanyi gained insight from his guidance, deepening his understanding of these two supreme techniques.

Now he could wield them with his bare hands—though inferior to a divine weapon's full-power strike, they were still formidable methods; combining both supreme techniques with internal Qi support, they produced wondrous variations and greater power.

The vortex shattered; the massive boulder had been reduced entirely to dust.

Li Guanyi's palm skin remained smooth, without a single scar.

He reflected on the sensation of his internal art's circulation: "Using external foreign Qi as my own—that is 【Void】. The true subtlety of this art must lie in 【Unity】 at its highest level…"

"Yet this must be the core of Duke Chen's divine art."

"Chen Chengbi, the elder, dared not teach me."

Li Guanyi felt regret, yet even the first level of the Six Void Unified Divine Art could command three distinct internal auras with myriad variations—even an ordinary punch, enhanced by these three layered auras in succession, became an upper-tier martial art.

This must be what is called a Jianghu Divine Art—once cultivated, every casual move becomes a supreme technique.

Li Guanyi was far from this level, yet the underlying principle was largely the same.

When Li Guanyi met Xue Laoyezi that day, he said he felt something suspicious about Si Qing in the library, but he could not specify what exactly—it was merely a feeling of unease, a sense of danger.

So when I returned, I checked using the cultivation method Master Chen Chengbi taught me.

I discovered an alien true qi within my body.

Only Yan Daiqing had ever touched me.

Xue Lao's smiling face grew stiff; he told Li Guanyi to demonstrate the force. Li Guanyi extended his hand and lightly pressed it onto the table. When he lifted his hand, a palm-shaped imprint appeared on the table—the hard redwood had turned to powder and trickled down.

Xue Lao's eyes narrowed as he stared at the internal force, remaining silent for a long while.

He said: "Stay away from Yan Daiqing from now on."

"I'll handle this matter."

Li Guanyi's heart settled at once; now he truly understood the saying that an elder in the family is a treasure. He exhaled in relief and said: "With you here, Xue Lao, I feel at ease."

The old man looked at Li Guanyi and sighed with a smile: "It's me who should be saying that."

"You always stumble upon things of great value to my Xue family. Strange—every time you run into trouble, you somehow come out with gains."

"I truly don't know whether to say you're incredibly lucky or incredibly unlucky."

Li Guanyi said: "Isn't it because my family and theirs are already enemies? They dare not move against you, Xue Lao, or against my aunt—but now, among the younger generation of the Xue family, only I've risen. They dare not touch you—do they dare not touch me?"

The old man sighed deeply.

Li Guanyi said: "But, Xue Lao, my body has nearly recovered—when can I return to duty at the Jinwu Guard?"

Xue Lao looked at Li Guanyi, stroked his chin, and said:

"Didn't you take something from Hou Zhongyu?"

Li Guanyi nodded awkwardly.

These elders had too much street wisdom—everything I planned was spotted at a glance.

Xue Daoyong burst into loud laughter and said cheerfully: "Hah! What's that? Who among seasoned warriors hasn't looted corpses? Fine—since Chen Chengbi's old man will cover for you, going back won't be a problem."

"I'll arrange it for you—go back today."

"If you can't find a chance to retrieve it, come find me."

"I'll go 'retrieve' it for you—but you'll have to split it with me."

The old man wore a teasing smile:

"Seven to three, how about it?"

Li Guanyi asked cautiously: "You get three, I get seven?"

Xue Daoyong shook his head, smiled, pointed at himself, then pointed at Li Guanyi: "I get seven, you get three."

Li Guanyi stared, dumbfounded; the boy growled angrily: "Greedy merchant!"

Xue Daoyong rarely saw such an expression on Li Guanyi's face.

The old man was delighted and roared with laughter.

News of Li Guanyi's return to the Jinwu Guard reached Ye Buyi and the others quickly. Having just returned, Li Guanyi didn't plan to immediately retrieve the item near the Fire Qilin Palace—he intended to serve his duties properly for a few days. That same day, Zhou Liu pulled him aside, insisting on throwing a welcome feast.

They shed their armor, donned civilian clothes, mounted swift horses, and rode down the main street.

They went to the largest brothel in Jiangzhou. Zhou Liu leapt off his horse with a fluid motion, tossed the reins to a nearby servant, and moved with perfect ease. Li Guanyi didn't want to go, but Ye Buyi said: "This isn't an ordinary brothel or pleasure house."

"We cultivators aspire to the world and the Dao. Before reaching the Third Layer, we preserve our purity."

"We come here only to drink and listen to music."

"Like old Zhou—he steals good wine and gets beaten by his father. But if he broke his purity, his father wouldn't scold him—he'd simply pretend he had no son."

Ye Buyi watched Zhou Liu swagger into the tavern and murmured:

"He'd disown him."

"We are not those drunken wastrels. When we drink, we drink the fiercest liquor in the world; when we ride, we ride the swiftest horses; when we fight, we wield the sharpest blades and spears—to battle across the land. Romantic entanglements aren't worth the future of men like us."

"Even old Zhou trains with extreme diligence every day."

Zhou Liu turned around, laughing: "How's that, brother?"

"I told you—my old man's medicinal wine works, right?!"

"Come on, bring out the Flower Queen, Miss Meng! Today my brother has recovered from his injuries and been promoted three ranks—have her play the qin." But the brothel owner's face showed regret: "Miss Meng… she's currently occupied—she'll need to wait a while."

Zhou Liu flung a silver note onto the table and laughed loudly:

"No problem, no problem—we'll wait our turn. I've never heard the Flower Queen's music."

Suddenly, a scoff rang out: "Typical brute warrior."

Zhou Liu raised his eyebrows and roared: "Who's talking shit?!"

He looked up and saw a group of elegantly dressed youths on the second floor. Their leader, Li Guanyi had seen before beside the Crown Prince. The young man carried an air of aristocratic pride, his gaze sweeping over Li Guanyi, and said bluntly:

"Ye Buyi, Zhou Liu—your fathers and brothers are famed generals of the realm, yet you sink to associating with merchants."

He lightly fanned his nose with his folding fan and said coolly: "Stinks. Unbearably foul."

Zhou Liu flew into rage: "Yan Daiqing, what are you spouting?!"

The civil and military factions had always been at odds—especially since the Crown Prince's clan and Li Guanyi's maternal relatives were natural enemies. Yan Daiqing replied calmly: "I'm merely stating facts. Besides, what do you think this place is? To meet the Flower Queen, it's not silver that matters—it's talent."

"What do you know of music, chess, calligraphy, painting?"

"Only how to swing swords and spears."

Zhou Liu was furious, ready to strike. Li Guanyi didn't care—but Yan Daiqing clearly disliked him. The youth lacked the courtly restraint of seasoned officials; seeing a peer from an opposing faction, he couldn't suppress his anger.

If not my friend, then my enemy!

Yan Daiqing and Zhou Liu engaged in a poetic duel, and within a few lines, he shattered Zhou Liu's composure.

The commotion outside grew loud, even disturbing the Flower Queen's quarters. When asked the cause, the Flower Queen, accustomed to such scenes, said: "It happens often." The young man inside her chamber smiled: "It seems Miss Meng's grace is truly unmatched—everyone adores her."

The speaking youth wore brocade robes, held a folding fan, bore a red vertical mark on his brow, and had sharp phoenix eyes brimming with vitality. Miss Meng sighed, her slender fingers pouring tea for him: "Young Master, don't tease me."

"If you were to dress as a woman, who wouldn't be enchanted? Even heroes of the world would bow their heads."

Li Li Zhaowen smiled carefree, pointed to her brow, and said calmly:

"I don't need to change into women's clothes to make the heroes of the world bow their heads."

The top courtesan smiled faintly.

No one knew what the young girl before them looked like in red.

Yet no one knew that the second young master of the Duke's residence far away in the State of Ying actually owned an establishment like the First Flower Tower in Jiangzhou City of the State of Chen. Li Li Zhaowen said: "Changsun Wuchou truly has talent and means, playing both sides, yet he built this Changfeng Tower right here in Jiangzhou City."

"On the surface there are two shopkeepers, and there's royal backing behind it — a fox has three burrows."

"It's just been hard on you all."

The top courtesan said softly: "We were originally bought and sold on the black market, our lives and deaths not our own to decide. Lord Changsun taking us in is already more than we could ever repay."

Here there were martial artists to protect them, and they didn't have to sell themselves. The men and women who had been rescued could leave if they wished and go elsewhere, or if they wanted to repay the kindness, there were three places they could choose. This Changfeng Tower was merely one end of it.

Changsun Wuchou's only request was that they live well.

If they happened to hear any interesting news from the dignitaries who came here, they could share it with him.

Besides that, he taught them Wu Gong, taught them swordsmanship, taught them music, chess, calligraphy, painting, and the foundations of standing on their own. Having seen the darkness of human nature in this world, they would cling to this single ray of light with all their might. Changsun Wuchou was extraordinarily handsome and elegant, his mastery of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting unmatched under heaven — one could not count how many women in the tower were smitten with him.

Li Li Zhaowen sipped her tea and said: "After three years, you may leave here and go to the State of Ying."

"Beyond the pass the wind and sand are harsh, not as nice as Jiangnan, but there is enough freedom."

Gongsun Meng said softly: "To be able to play the qin before the young master is enough for me."

"Your heart is even softer than Lord Changsun's."

Li Li Zhaowen said nothing in reply, but heard the commotion outside growing louder, so she rose and said with a smile: "It seems if I stay any longer, they'll start fighting out there. Miss Meng, until another day."

The top courtesan said: "Take care on your way, young master."

Li Li Zhaowen waved her hand. She looked out from the second floor of this secluded courtyard, and suddenly gave a slight start.

"Hm? That's…"

She saw a youth sitting alone there, and Li Li Zhaowen smiled faintly.

In her phoenix eyes, a flicker of keen interest glimmered deep within.

"A pharmacist?"