Chapter 669: Waiting for the Dragon Robe

This was undoubtedly a spectacular scene, one destined to be widely circulated and remembered in the martial arts world for a long time.

Sui Xingu was instantly suppressed by tens of thousands of flying swords. A moment before, spectators outside Danzhongping had only seen black clouds obscuring the sky. The next moment, these "black clouds" descended upon the human world, filling the entire Danzhongping. The sheer number of flying swords arriving through the air was so immense that they piled up densely, layer upon layer. Soon, Sui Xingu vanished from everyone's sight, replaced by nothing but swords. The young Prince of Northern Liang, as if wielding an immortal's power to move mountains and overturn seas, had conjured a magnificent and imposing mountain of swords out of thin air.

At first, the sword mountain visibly swayed, but its tremors gradually diminished. As sword after sword was added without end, the mountain grew taller and more stable, until the entire "peak" became completely motionless.

Everyone outside Danzhongping was dumbfounded. They had seen fights before, but never one like this.

At this moment, anyone who had still been unwilling to accept Xu Fengnian's sudden rise to become the world's foremost martial artist was finally convinced. Even pessimists who had lost all hope for the impending war between Liang and Mang wondered if they could, for once, place their trust in Xu Fengnian.

Shudao, a renowned sword, was the last to descend, as if carelessly tossed onto the summit of the sword mountain.

The sword mountain, which had shown signs of loosening again, completely lost its "life." Occasionally, one or two slanted flying swords would slide off the mountain and fall outside Danzhongping.

A tall woman, standing far off under the eaves of a distant street, curled her lips. She glanced at the sword peak, over thirty zhang high, and sneered, "I told you to leave, but you wouldn't. A hundred years of fame, ruined in an instant."

Xu Fengnian was not standing at the foot of the mountain, nor had he returned to his carriage. Instead, he quietly appeared under the same eaves. The woman, slightly taller than him, looked at him. Xu Fengnian's face was pale, yet his eyes shone with vigor. This seemed contradictory, but it wasn't. For Tantai Pingjing, it was perfectly natural. Her master, too, had been like this: not physically robust, more like a frail scholar, yet her master's eyes had always been as clear as the young man's eyes before her now. So clear, in fact, that the first time her master pointed out the river boa to her, she forgot to admire the hundred-zhang white boa undergoing transformation; all she saw was her slender master's gaze.

Even after several decades, her master's catchphrase still seemed to echo in her ears.

"Oh, you big oaf."

Tantai Pingjing, staring at Xu Fengnian, smiled, like a little girl who had gone through immense hardship to find a beloved item.

Xu Fengnian, not understanding, instead felt a shiver down his spine.

For an aged woman, especially one over a hundred years old, to suddenly display such childlike behavior was something even Xu Fengnian, with his thick skin and sharp mind, found hard to endure.

Xu Fengnian, who had intended to exchange a few words, quickly swallowed his words back. Tantai Pingjing's momentary lapse soon vanished, and she reverted to the serene demeanor of the Southern Qi Practitioner's chief grandmaster. Shifting her gaze, she calmly asked, "What is this sword move called? Does it have a name?"

Xu Fengnian chuckled, "Giving a martial move a flashy name, isn't that something only common folk do? Does Senior Tantai also have such a vulgar habit?"

She replied, "I also eat, drink, relieve myself, and sleep. I burp and pass gas. How am I not common?"

Back then, Xu Fengnian had advised Wen Hua not to be overly infatuated with those seemingly unattainable female heroes and immortal maidens of the martial world, reminding him that they too had to relieve themselves. Could they possibly produce a flower when they did?

This self-deprecating remark from Tantai Pingjing had a similar ring to it.

However, that was a resentful remark from the beggar Xu back in his days of hardship. Now, it was difficult for him to have that same spirit of finding joy amidst suffering.

Xu Fengnian's mouth twitched, and he gave an an awkward laugh. "It's different. When others say it, it's unbearably vulgar, but when Senior Tantai says it, it still carries an air of immortality."

Tantai Pingjing's gaze swept over the crowd, which showed no signs of dispersing, towards the mountain of tens of thousands of swords. She sighed, "Congratulations, Prince of Northern Liang, on returning to the Celestial Realm."

Xu Fengnian lowered his voice and said, "If one day..."

She interrupted Xu Fengnian, giving a direct answer: "I can lend it to you."

Xu Fengnian pursed his lips. Talking to intelligent people was certainly convenient, but truly uninteresting.

He drew up his sleeves and, with Tantai Pingjing, gazed at the magnificent sword mountain that only the co-master of all swords in the world should have been able to summon, recalling some past events.

A long, long time ago, he enjoyed wearing swords and blades but was a mere "embroidered pillow" (all show, no substance), and she, despite possessing a divine talisman, wasn't much better off.

Xu Fengnian couldn't help but sigh.

Tantai Pingjing asked, "When will you head to Liangzhou's border to oversee the war?"

Xu Fengnian slowly replied, "It'll be in the next few days. First, I'm waiting for the Brocade Weaving Bureau to deliver the new king's python robe."

Liangzhou City, with Danzhongping at its center, was completely gridlocked. Because the battle ended so swiftly and unexpectedly, many people from outside who had only witnessed the scene of flying swords falling like locusts and rain didn't know the contest was over. They were still pressing towards Danzhongping, making it impossible for a large portion of the spectators at the center to leave. It could be said that more than half of Liangzhou's residents were either already present or on their way to watch the battle, creating a commotion far greater than the New Year's celebrations. Northern Liang was typically not like Tai'an City, which often saw streets emptied for public events. However, this particular spectacle was a rare occurrence, perhaps once in a century. Northern Liang's martial artists had long been suppressed by the military, and now that the Prince of Northern Liang himself had personally engaged in a duel, especially with the title of "world's foremost" martial artist, even the most composed Liangzhou residents couldn't help but be stirred.

Amidst the vast crowd, about half a *li* from Danzhongping, stood a pair of women with completely opposite personalities but both of extraordinary status. They exchanged glances. These were Song Huangmei, the only daughter of Song Yan, Assistant Prefect of Lingzhou, and Li Fuzhen, daughter of Lord Li Gongde, the Commissioner of Military Affairs. Li Fuzhen initially had no desire to join the excitement, but she simply couldn't withstand the persistent pestering of Song Huangmei, who loved wielding swords, and reluctantly came along. As a result, their carriage got stuck halfway. With Song Huangmei's lively and impulsive nature, she immediately leaped onto the carriage roof, while Li Fuzhen stood behind the coachman, at least not missing the sight of the flying swords descending.

Song Huangmei, standing on the carriage roof, waited a long time, but the tens of thousands of swords on the mountain didn't scatter or spring away as she expected. Both amazed and disappointed, she jumped down next to Li Fuzhen, her face full of lingering excitement. She clicked her tongue and said, "Well, wasn't it worth coming? Simply breathtaking! You'd regret it forever if you hadn't come!"

Li Fuzhen's expression remained indifferent.

Song Huangmei was used to this. Clenching her fist, she slammed it into the palm of her other hand and muttered to herself, "No, I must become that person's disciple and learn from him! Even if I have to serve him tea and water every day, it doesn't matter. Not making such a top-tier master my teacher would be an absolute waste of a heavenly gift!"

Li Fuzhen started to speak, then stopped. Song Huangmei looked at her pitifully and pleaded, "Sister Fuzhen, my dear sister, I know you and that person are childhood sweethearts. Your words carry more weight than mine. Why don't you put in a good word for me?"

Li Fuzhen glared. "I advise you to give up that idea!"

Li Fuzhen slightly turned her head, her tone cold. "He and I have never seen eye to eye..."

Song Huangmei said with a cheeky grin, "It's better to resolve enmities than to hold grudges, isn't it? Besides, for a man and woman to become 'enemies' already suggests a connection."

Li Fuzhen snorted. "That's a fated disaster then."

Song Huangmei rolled her eyes. Seeing this path was a dead end, she decided to rely on herself, racking her brains to figure out how to sneak into the Prince's Manor on Qingliang Mountain. For the sake of practicing swords with him, feminine modesty and ladylike propriety could all be thrown to the wind.

At that moment, Li Fuzhen's mind was miles away, preoccupied.

The situation in Northern Liang was currently undergoing rapid changes. With Song Dongming's irregular appointment as Deputy Commissioner of Military Affairs, everyone in Northern Liang's officialdom knew that this year was likely Li Gongde's last as the highest-ranking civil official. Moreover, during the military and political changes in Lingzhou, Lord Commissioner Li Gongde's performance had been less than satisfactory. Although he had a capable son who maintained close ties with the Xu family, the rule of "a new emperor, new officials" had been ancient custom. Furthermore, the present was not a time for peacefully serving a term as a civilian official. Lord Li, with his mediocre reputation, might not be able to retain his position with a million Northern Mang troops on the border. Consequently, the Commissioner's Residence in Lingzhou, once bustling, had become increasingly deserted, far quieter than in previous years. Both new and old officials were flocking to Prefect Xu Beizhi and Assistant Prefect Song Yan to curry favor. Li Fuzhen had always been indifferent to the ebb and flow of officialdom, but as her father grew older, and with no grandchildren to dote on, he spent his days idle at home, tending to plants and insects. Li Fuzhen couldn't understand if her father had suddenly lost his ambition for office or if he had simply resigned himself to his fate. Yet, Li Fuzhen was more accustomed to the father who daily exchanged polite pleasantries and played mind games with officials big and small, who was always spirited and knew who to meet and what to say each day, rather than the one now passing his days idly as a wealthy recluse.

Li Fuzhen felt an inexplicable impulse.

If, for once, I were to ask you a truly extraordinary favor, would you agree to let my father serve a few more years as the Commissioner of Military Affairs for Northern Liang?

Li Fuzhen chuckled self-deprecatingly and shook her head. "Li Fuzhen, oh Li Fuzhen, why do you have such absurd and ridiculous thoughts?"

Song Huangmei understood her elder sister Fuzhen's personality: once stubborn, even nine oxen and two tigers couldn't pull her back. So, she gave up the idea of asking her to make the introduction.

Song Huangmei chuckled, leaning closer to Li Fuzhen. "Sister Fuzhen, I've always been curious, how did Lord Commissioner give you such a strange name? It's even more unusual than mine. What 'fu' is it, and what 'zhen'?"

Li Fuzhen paused, genuinely stumped by the question. She had never deeply pondered her own name, always assuming "fu" might mean "long-renowned" and "zhen" might mean "innocent and pure," perhaps her father wishing his daughter a carefree life.

Seeing her silent, Song Huangmei didn't bother to press for an answer. She murmured to herself, "I used to hear that guy once summoned the Great Emperor Zhenwu on Spring God Lake and, with a single punch, destroyed the founding patriarch of Longhu Mountain, who was summoned by the Young Celestial Master Zhao Ningshen. Before, I thought there were no immortals in the world, but now, it's really hard to say."

At this point, Song Huangmei burst into laughter. "Sister Fuzhen, there's also a 'zhen' in Great Emperor Zhenwu!"

Zhenwu?

Li Fuzhen smiled.

Then, abruptly, she could no longer smile.

There's a word called "gufu" (to let down, to fail, to disappoint).