Chapter 55: One Sword Equals a Million Troops

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Ning Emei, wielding a halberd, led one hundred light cavalry from the Phoenix Battalion, continuing to follow the Prince. As they passed Chen Zhibao, who was dressed in white, Ning Emei remained silent. Although he was a top-tier warrior skilled in charging enemy lines, Ning Emei was not keen on advancing his rank within the Northern Liang army, giving him a somewhat slow-witted impression. Today, the "Little Butcher" had led over three hundred heavily armored cavalry, riding dozens of miles to see someone off, creating quite a spectacle. After Ning Emei passed the striking, bright white figure, he couldn't help but frown. Even with his delayed realization, he noticed the Prince's gaze towards him had lost its previous friendliness. Ning Emei gripped his crescent halberd, a weapon whose weight was second only to Wang Tongshan's, the top general under King Yan Ci. He turned to see most of the hundred-plus Phoenix Battalion guards behind him repeatedly looking back, admiring Chen Zhibao's appearance and demeanor. Ning Emei fell into thought.

Among the Four Fangs of Northern Liang, Dian Xiongchu commanded the 6,000 Iron Buddha heavy cavalry, the second most elite unit in Northern Liang, while Wei Fucheng managed one-third of Northern Liang's "White Crossbow Feathered Forest." Both were trusted generals personally groomed by Chen Zhibao. At this moment, they stood solemnly behind, holding their whips. Ning Emei was not close or familiar with these two powerful young generals, who shared his renown in Northern Liang. Their interaction was limited to skillful coordination on the battlefield. Regarding military prestige, Ning Emei believed he was in no way inferior. However, when it came to the actual power of their commands, the disparity was far greater than a mere three ranks in official position. Ning Emei gave a self-deprecating smile, lifted his halberd, and slowed his cavalry unit, maintaining the half-mile distance requested by the Prince.

Dian Xiongchu, with hair like a lion's mane, turned his head and spat on the ground, contemptuously saying, "General, is His Highness perhaps scared witless? He doesn't even dare to let us escort him properly. Old Dian isn't keen on flattering someone who gives him the cold shoulder. Every one of our Iron Buddhas is a brave man who uses the heads of Northern Mang barbarians as chamber pots; we won't put up with such disrespect!"

Wei Fucheng, who resembled a tutor teaching children to read and write in a private school, was much more subtle. He chuckled lightly, "Four years ago, when His Highness traveled, he only took an old stableman with him. This time, he's finally making up for it and is in high spirits. Naturally, he dislikes our intrusion. Old Dian, you old ruffian who only knows how to kill, how could you understand His Highness's romantic pursuits?"

The 6,000 Iron Buddha heavy cavalry ranked second among Northern Liang's cavalry, which were renowned throughout the world, surpassed only by Xu Xiao's personal command, the Great Snow Dragon Riders. One black and one white, these two forces struck terror into the hearts of Northern Mang's 350,000 border troops. During the Spring and Autumn Wars, Xu Xiao, the "Human Butcher," taught the world a bloody truth: victory on the battlefield was never simply a contest of the number of armored soldiers, nor even the rate of armor-wearing. Instead, it depended on troop combination, the simultaneous application of both orthodox and unconventional tactics, and finally, the decisive blow delivered by the most elite forces during a stalemate. At Xilei Wall, the undying bravery of the Fish Drum Battalion, foremost in deadly combat, carved a clear, bloody path for the 3,000 Great Snow Dragon Riders—the best cavalry—directly into the heart of Ye Baikai's halberd army. Chen Zhibao commanded the central army, strategizing meticulously. The Queen herself beat the drums. Xu Xiao discarded his helmet and led the charge with his spear, as 3,000 white horses and white-armored riders thundered forward. Among them lay the bodies of over a thousand comrades from the Fish Drum Battalion. Since the scholars of Western Chu boasted that there would be no Western Chu after Xilei Wall, Xu Xiao ensured that Western Chu was utterly annihilated.

The Nine Kingdoms' Spring and Autumn era, a time of golden spears, iron horses, and a succession of famous generals, was the most brilliant age for warriors. Dian Xiongchu and Wei Fucheng were young generals who rose from this very war. Their reputations and achievements were built upon the bones of numerous Spring and Autumn generals. They possessed an indescribable arrogance and ruthless spirit. How could they possibly respect pampered noble sons who merely played with falcons and fought dogs? What if you are the Prince? The Northern Liang army prioritized military merit above all else. Every year, so many young scions from Liang lands were sent to the border by their fathers; which one among them wasn't drilled so hard they were half-dead, lacking even the strength to cry? Which one didn't eventually forget their entire ancestry, remembering only their military superiors? What do you, Xu Fengnian, have besides the title of Prince?

Dian Xiongchu spat again and sneered, "To hell with his romantic pursuits! The year before last, I led six hundred cavalry deep into Northern Mang, riding eight hundred li. I captured a prefect's daughter, stripped her naked on horseback, and when I was done, I stabbed her to death and hung her on a spear. That's my romantic pursuit!"

Wei Fucheng bent down to stroke his beloved horse's mane and teased, "And then you were hung on the barracks fence by the Grand Pillar General for a whole night, freezing. I heard that 'thing' of yours was so frozen it disappeared! Can you still use it now?"

Dian Xiongchu slapped his belly and laughed heartily, "It works fine, rough or gentle! Old Dian is unparalleled both on horseback and in bed. Master Wei, if you don't believe me, lend me your daughter for a try; I guarantee you'll be convinced!"

Wei Fucheng's head throbbed. He said, "You dare to harbor thoughts about my daughter? Believe it or not, my White Crossbow Feathered Forest will annihilate your six thousand Iron Buddhas!"

Dian Xiongchu curled his lip, "Master is spouting nonsense again! If you've got the guts, let's each send a hundred men to the training grounds to fight it out and see whose brats end up crying for their mothers on the ground!"

From beginning to end, Chen Zhibao, the "Little Butcher," whose reputation alone outweighed that of all four "Fangs of Northern Liang" combined, did not interrupt. He neither warned his close subordinates to speak carefully nor joined in mocking the unpopular Prince. His expression remained indifferent. His adoptive father, the Grand Pillar General, was about to travel to the capital for an audience with the Emperor, and thus would temporarily not be at the Northern Liang-Northern Mang border, where the two armies were interlocked. All military affairs would be entrusted to Chen Zhibao. Northern Liang's 300,000 iron cavalry had long been accustomed to this. The "Little Butcher" was not only the Grand Pillar General's eldest adoptive son but also a renowned general excelling in both strategy and martial arts. Everyone knew that if this man in white had not personally refused the Emperor's offer to lead an army independently in the south, he would long since have become a powerful provincial governor ruling over the southern lands. Why else would the ten barbarian tribes of the south be so unruly?

Wei Fucheng smiled faintly, "General Ning, with this difficult assignment, will probably be so vexed he won't be able to sleep for days."

Dian Xiongchu gloated, "Ning Iron Halberd isn't a bad fellow. He's ruthless when he kills, and strong in both mounted and foot combat. Old Dian is his equal; I respect him. As for you, Master Wei, frankly, you're a bit inferior."

Master Wei didn't mind. That fellow Dian Xiongchu was always blunt; trying to explain grand strategies of warfare to him was like talking to a brick wall.

Chen Zhibao looked up at the sky and murmured, "The weather is changing."

Yu Youwei awkwardly insisted on riding a horse alone. Xu Fengnian, unable to dissuade her, simply gave her the white horse and got into the carriage himself. Inside the carriage, the cross-eyed old man finally put on his boots and craned his neck to peer at the secret manual held by Jiang Ni. Jiang Ni, squatting in the corner, was incredibly stingy. She held up the cover, silently reading to herself. The two were thus locked in a standoff, a test of patience. When the old man saw the Prince enter the carriage, he looked rather impatient, his nose turned up and eyes wide, not giving him a pleasant look at all.

After Xu Fengnian sat down, he took off his twin blades, Xiu Dong and Chun Lei, and placed them on his lap. The unadorned Chun Lei was beneath, with the exquisite Xiu Dong on top. The two blades, one long and one short, lay crossed, forming a pleasing sight. Even Jiang Ni couldn't help but glance at them twice. She had personally witnessed the "White Fox Face" wield twin blades on the frozen Listening Tide Lake, sending up drifts of snow. This deepened her dislike for Xu Fengnian. "Only a woman of such beauty deserves these twin blades," she thought. "No matter how diligent you are in practicing with the blades, Xu Fengnian, you're merely an incompetent fool; you'll only disgrace these twin blades." Xu Fengnian, who had come to listen to reading, automatically ignored the old man in the sheepskin robe. He closed his eyes and instructed, "Read that book, 'The Compendium of A Thousand Swords'."

Jiang Ni opened the book box at her feet, which was stuffed with secret manuals and classics. With some difficulty, she found "The Compendium of A Thousand Swords," with its ancient seal script cover, and began to read. In recent days, not only had she earned money by reading, but she had also been forced to learn nearly a hundred obscure characters, at the painful cost of ten copper coins per character. Every time Jiang Ni encountered a character for the second time, she would emphasize it particularly, truly a little mud doll who hated evil as much as she did. Xu Fengnian listened to her voice, which was far more pleasant than her initial reading. His breathing subtly changed with the literary style of "A Thousand Swords." When scholars ascended high places to compose poetry, it was always with heartfelt emotion; the deeper the emotion, the more moving the reading. The same principle applied to warriors writing. What they wrote was completely different from Buddhist or Taoist classics. "The Compendium of A Thousand Swords" was truly forceful in every word. No wonder "White Fox Face" highly recommended it, saying it was one of the top three books among the rich collection on the second floor.

Xu Fengnian listened intently.

But he was interrupted: "That's all nonsense."

Jiang Ni, whose rhythm was broken, poked her head out from behind the book and glared.

The old man was quite disrespectful to the Prince, deliberately aloof, but he showed favor to Jiang Ni. He squeezed out a smile and proactively explained, "I mean, this book is full of absurdities and misleads young people."

Xu Fengnian opened his eyes and smiled slightly, "How do you mean?"

Regardless of his skill, the old man certainly had a rare bad temper. He rolled his eyes and scoffed, "If I were to explain the Way of the Sword to you, word by word, wouldn't it be like playing a lute to a cow?"

Xu Fengnian was helpless. This old monster, according to Xu Xiao, seemed to be no younger than Wang Xianzhi, so he could only endure it.

Jiang Ni clearly enjoyed seeing Xu Fengnian being dismissed. Although she didn't feel particularly close to this eccentric old man, her favor towards him surged upwards at that moment. The old man, seeing Jiang Ni's change in expression, was in high spirits and spared no effort in disparaging Xu Fengnian: "You, an amateur who uses blades, shouldn't profane 'The Compendium of A Thousand Swords.' No matter how much rambling nonsense this book contains, you are incapable of grasping its essence. If you're deceived by the title, truly thinking it explains various sword moves and techniques, then I'd truly die of laughter! Little do you know that Du Sicong, who only grasped the rudiments of the Way of the Sword in his fifties, was indeed skilled in tricky sword moves, but he had already been reprimanded by me. That's why this book, 'The Compendium of A Thousand Grass Swords,' was created, deriving sword intent from sword moves. But young Du, after all, only had half a bucket of water; he sloshed it around, and only a few splashes spilled outside the bucket. The funny thing is that later generations can't even discern that these splashes are the only remaining valuable parts."

Xu Fengnian exclaimed in shock, "Du Sicong, who wrote 'A Thousand Swords,' sought your guidance?"

The old man held up three fingers and said as if it were obvious, "He stood in the snow for three days and three nights before I reluctantly gave him three pieces of advice."

Xu Fengnian was inwardly astonished.

Jiang Ni, however, was a hundred times more perceptive than the Prince, with a mischievous expression that said, "Believe you, and I'm a fool." She said neither too lightly nor too heavily, "You're certainly good at bragging. If you're so capable, why don't you write a classic that can be placed in the martial arts library?"

"Comparison kills," as the saying goes. The old man always wore a scowl for Xu Fengnian, but towards Jiang Ni, he had a benevolent expression. "Little girl," he said, "I'm used to being a lone wolf. The myriad insights in my mind are not worth putting down on paper. Besides, only five or six books in the Listening Tide Pavilion could even catch my eye; it's not a remarkable place at all."

Jiang Ni's eyes widened. "Still bragging? Is there no end to it?"

The old man was taken aback for a moment. Instead of getting angry, he burst into hearty laughter.

Xu Fengnian, feeling somewhat superfluous, had his interest in "Thousand Grass" spoiled by the old man. He asked Jiang Ni to switch to another manual, but after reading less than a thousand characters, he was again interrupted by the old man's arrogant comments. He changed to yet another, and as expected, it was again criticized as worthless. Xu Fengnian merely felt greatly enlightened, but Jiang Ni was on the verge of going mad. Reading to earn money was already hard physical labor, especially when it was blood money earned by serving her enemy, Xu Fengnian. Yet, the old man was there, pretending to be a master, critiquing everything. Jiang Ni had initially tolerated him repeatedly due to his advanced age. But after several times, she simply couldn't take it anymore. Jiang Ni threw the book down, her face flushed with anger, and yelled, "Shut up!"

Look at that, "bad company corrupts good character." She's getting more and more fluent at picking up the Prince's catchphrases.

Xu Fengnian ignored Jiang Ni's outburst and asked with a chuckle, "How about I go practice with Lu Qiantang and you can guide me from the side?"

The old man stretched, lying comfortably inside the carriage, and grumbled, "I'd be happy to say a few words about the original owner of those two blades you carry, but you? Forget it. Your comprehension is mediocre, perhaps half of what mine was when I was young. It's a pity you started practicing blades too late, and your internal energy isn't even truly your own. I doubt you'll achieve anything significant."

Jiang Ni, her eyes full of laughter, added insult to injury, "Now that's truly honest."

Xu Fengnian lowered his head and ran a finger along the sheath of the Xiu Dong blade.

Half his comprehension?

Jiang Ni seemed to remember something and snorted coldly, "Is that person the Little Butcher Chen Zhibao? He looks much more like a prince than you do."

Xu Fengnian looked up and chuckled, "That's just 'looks like,' nothing more."

Jiang Ni actually seemed angry at his lack of ambition, perhaps indignant that her archenemy was so unimpressive, disgracing her and the Divine Talisman. She said fiercely, "Don't you know how to suppress Chen Zhibao's limelight? You just turned around and ran; aren't you afraid of being laughed at?"

Xu Fengnian was dumbfounded, "Or should I have fought Chen Zhibao?"

Jiang Ni said bitterly, "Whether you could win or not is one thing; whether you fight or not is another."

The old man tugged at his sheepskin robe and chuckled, "Little girl, you don't know everything. This Prince right before us has mediocre blade skills, but his cunning mind and schemes are truly Xu Xiao's authentic legacy. However, that 'Little Butcher' Chen, surnamed Chen, probably already knows this and isn't easily fooled. It's those brainless Northern Liang brutes behind him, all brawn and no brains, who most likely haven't figured it out."

Xu Fengnian pretended not to hear.

Jiang Ni seemed thoughtful.

The old man revealed a profound secret in one sentence, "Little girl, when it comes to cunning, you'll probably never surpass this sinister fellow in your lifetime. Or, if I teach you some martial arts, you still have a chance to compete. Even if he masters the entire 'Great Yellow Court,' as long as he hasn't truly touched the threshold of martial arts, you can still defeat him with a single sword stroke. Who says a woman cannot single-handedly oppose a million soldiers with one sword? This boy's mother was one of the only three grandmasters of the Way of the Sword I have ever seen in my life."

Xu Fengnian remained silent, his left hand gripping Chun Lei.

The old man squinted at the twin blades and chuckled, "So, you're accustomed to using the left hand for blades. Little girl, you see? I told you this fellow is very cunning."

Xu Fengnian smiled, relaxed his grip on the blades, stood up, and slowly said, "I won't be listening to reading today."

After Xu Fengnian left the carriage, Jiang Ni stared blankly, a little annoyed.

The old man asked, "Little girl surnamed Jiang, how about it? Do you want to learn some real skills from me?"

Unexpectedly, Jiang Ni said without hesitation, "Learn what?"

The old man wondered, "Why not learn? Back then, the fools who begged me to take them as disciples could form a line from Northern Liang all the way to the East Sea."

Jiang Ni said coldly, "If I learned from you, Xu Fengnian would have already had me killed."

The old man raised a sparse eyebrow. "He dares?"

Jiang Ni put the book back into the box and sighed, "Besides, you're only good with your mouth. There's no great future in learning from you."

The old man burst into roaring laughter, practically rolling around in the carriage.

Jiang Ni said angrily, "What's so funny?"

The old man sat upright and whispered mysteriously, "Do you know who I am?"

Jiang Ni said with a calm expression, "Why should I care who you are?"

The old man rubbed his chin, lay down in the carriage, crossed his legs, and murmured to himself, "That's true. Even I've almost forgotten who I am. Who else would remember Mu Manyu?"

My QT room is now open. Fenghuo Xizhu Hou Official QT Room Number [1655].

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