I am a prince in Zhutian Films

Chapter 573: If heaven had not given birth to me, Li Chungang, the art of swordsmanship would be as long as the night

The rain was pouring down, with raindrops the size of soybeans pounding rapidly against the reeds and bushes, creating a tremendous cacophony.

Just as everyone was preparing to set off, the ground suddenly shook, and Zhao Heng led a troop of heavily armored cavalry galloping towards them.

Xu Fengnian, who had just chopped off Han Shengxuan's head, stood still, quietly waiting for the other party to arrive.

Ning Emei led a group of people and rushed off, their swords and spears drawn.

Looking at the Phoenix Battalion, which was ready for battle, Zhao Heng laughed and said, "Your thirty-odd light cavalry can't stop my iron cavalry?"

"Whether we can stop it or not, we'll only know after we try." Xu Fengnian kicked the mangled corpse aside and said cheerfully, "I'm confident that I can take Uncle Jing'an to the Western Paradise with me. We can even chat about Buddhism on the way to the Yellow Springs. Who knows, Uncle Jing'an might fall into Avici Hell with me."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Heng's smile remained largely unchanged.

"Feng Nian, are you holding a grudge against Uncle Wang?"

Xu Fengnian's smile remained unchanged, but his tone became more sarcastic.

"If Uncle Jing'an has no other gifts, I will not hold a grudge."

"Uncle Wang really did prepare a gift for you." Zhao Heng said, taking a long brocade package off his horse. It was slightly cool to the touch, but the chill emanating from the package was terrifying, as if it would pierce the skin.

Zhou Chengan had told Xu Fengnian the story of Old Wang next door before.

So Zhao Heng kept calling him "Uncle Wang," which he found quite tiresome.

However, since they were there to give gifts, they were still very polite on the surface.

"This sword box contains half an ancient sword and a sword manual, both of which Uncle Wang obtained from Wudi City. Feng Nian, you can use the sword manual to practice swordsmanship. As for the half ancient sword, let me be frank, its original intention was to give it to the old sword god Li after you leave."

"A wooden horse and a cow?" Xu Fengnian exclaimed in surprise.

Zhao Heng did not answer, but asked with a half-smile, "Feng Nian, do you believe that in this world, I am the only one who can persuade that person to leave Wudi City?"

Xu Fengnian chuckled and pointed to the carriage that originally belonged to the Jing'an Prince's Mansion: "Uncle Jing'an Prince, do you believe it or not, if you give my brother a few more days, those old monsters Wang and Cao Guanzi will be nothing but a handful of blows."

Zhao Heng naturally saw the mess around him that didn't seem to be caused by human hands, and he also saw Han Shengxuan's head, which was lying in Xu Fengnian's hand with its eyes wide open in death.

He fell silent for a moment.

"Speaking of which, did Uncle Jing'an forget to give my brother a gift?" Xu Fengnian said, then suddenly remembered something and laughed, "Forgot, forgot, Uncle Jing'an gave him all his favorite things."

The one she truly loved was none other than Princess Pei Nanwei, the wife of Prince Jing'an.

Zhao Heng didn't respond, but continued the previous topic: "The sword manual is the only secret manual that person has left in the world. The manual is nameless, but that person defeated countless masters in his life, so you can imagine how important this sword manual is."

"Feng Nian, if Zhao Xun ever has the opportunity to leave Qingzhou, whether he goes to Beiliang or returns to that city, I hope you won't forget this small gift from today."

"Whether it's me or Xu Xiao, we're both getting old. From now on, it will definitely be up to you to lead the way. The feud between Uncle Wang and your father is now completely settled."

"Going against the tide is like drinking wine, while going with the tide is like pouring tea. Feng Nian, don't you agree?"

Xu Fengnian reached out and took the sword box containing the sword manual and half of the wooden horse and ox, holding it in his hand without saying a word.

Seeing that he had accepted the gift, Zhao Heng smiled while still on his horse, and without saying anything more, led his heavily armored cavalry back to the city.

Xu Fengnian stood there for a moment before carrying the sword box and the severed head back to the carriage.

Two horse-drawn carriages.

One of the cars was brought out by Pei Nanwei from Prince Jing'an, and Zhou Cheng'an and Pei Nanwei were sitting in it.

The other car belonged to Li Chungang and Jiang Ni.

Upon seeing Xu Fengnian approach, Li Chungang immediately mocked, "You guys, one moment you're drawing your swords against each other, the next you're shaking hands and making peace, you really have nerves of steel."

Xu Fengnian didn't care. As he opened the sword box, he said, "Anyway, we won't lose out. I'll take a look at this sword manual first, and then give it to Cheng'an. Once he learns it, he can go and beat up that old monster Wang."

"Learn swordsmanship? Didn't you see what Master Zhou's swordplay was like just now?!"

Li Chungang cursed irritably, glanced at the sword manual in the sword box, and then changed the subject: "However, it's alright to take a look at Wang Xianzhi's sword manual."

Xu Fengnian picked up the sword manual, saw the half of the wooden horse and ox sword in the sword box, and suddenly asked, "Senior, is Cheng'an a good match for the Great Liang Dragon Sparrow?"

“It’s definitely a perfect match, otherwise the Great Liang Dragon Sparrow wouldn’t have let out a joyful cry.” Li Chungang said, noticing Xu Fengnian’s hesitation, and couldn’t help but laugh and scold, “What’s there to hesitate about? Even if you give him that sword, he won’t want it. You should keep it for yourself.”

"That's right, let's look at the sword manual, let's look at the sword manual!"

at dusk.

The heavy rain hadn't stopped, so the group found a village to stay in.

Xu Fengnian brought the sword manual to Zhou Cheng'an and deliberately said in front of Pei Nanwei, "Cheng'an, do you know that Zhao Xun is keeping a woman who looks seven or eight parts similar to Princess Pei?"

"so what?"

Xu Fengnian choked for a moment, then grinned mischievously, "Don't worry, I definitely won't eavesdrop on you tonight."

Zhou Chengan paused in his movement of flipping through the sword manual.

"Itchy skin?"

Xu Fengnian smiled weakly, then said seriously, "Alright, let's get down to business. I'm planning to send Shu Xiu to the Jing'an Prince's Mansion. What do you think?"

"Then you should ask Shu Xiu, why are you asking me?"

"I just wanted to hear your thoughts."

"I have no idea, you can get out."

Xu Fengnian is gone.

Zhou Cheng'an gave Pei Nanwei a smile: "Miss Pei, that boy likes to talk nonsense, don't take it to heart. If you want to go back to the Jing'an Prince's Mansion..."

Before he could finish speaking, Pei Nanwei interrupted, "I'm not going back."

"Do you have somewhere to go? I'll arrange for someone to take you."

Pei Nanwei was born into the Pei clan, one of the ten most powerful clans in the Spring and Autumn Period. After the family was destroyed by Xu Xiao's army, they became orphans and were forced to marry Prince Jing'an, Zhao Heng, as a concubine. However, her life in the Prince Jing'an's mansion was not easy.

Leaving the Jing'an Prince's Mansion was certainly a happy thing, but she was also very clear about one thing: if no one protected her, her fate after leaving would definitely be worse than when she was in the Jing'an Prince's Mansion.

For the wealthy and powerful, being beautiful is a highly aggressive form of showing off.

But for someone like her, beauty is a fatal curse.

Pei Nanwei felt a pang of sorrow: "The world is so vast, yet there is nowhere for me to find refuge."

"Then you'll come with me first?" Zhou Chengan asked tentatively.

"Thank you, Master Zhou!"

Zhou Chengan shook his head slightly, indicating that there was no need to be polite, and went inside while flipping through the sword manual.

Pei Nanwei stood there, stunned, lost in thought.

the other side.

Xu Fengnian found Shu Xiu and told her about wanting her to pretend to be a princess to get close to Zhao Xun.

Finally, he promised, "It's up to you whether you go or not. If you don't want to go, I'll give you money and a secret manual, and I'll let you leave."

After a moment's thought, Shu Xiu said, "Your Highness, could you have Master Zhou act as guarantor?"

Xu Fengnian was taken aback, then laughed and said, "Everyone says big breasts mean no brains, but I didn't expect you to be an exception, Aunt Shu. But it's probably best not to bother him right now."

"Because of that princess?"

Xu Fengnian chuckled and gave Shu Xiu a knowing look.

The next day, the group continued their journey.

Xu Fengnian took Shu Xiu to find Zhou Chengan and explained what had happened.

Zhou Cheng'an remained calm, returned the sword manual to Xu Fengnian, and then looked at Shu Xiu, saying, "If you don't harm innocent people in the future, I will vouch for you. However, I have a question: are you doing this voluntarily?"

Shu Xiu bowed respectfully to Zhou Cheng'an before smiling and saying, "It's voluntary. I also want to experience what it's like to be a princess."

Xu Fengnian, standing to the side, laughed heartily and gave a thumbs up, showering him with praise.

"Aunt Shu, you have ambition!" Three days later, Shu Xiu left the group.

As for her whereabouts, everyone remained tight-lipped about it.

……

Tai'an City.

Xu Xiao and Liu Yanbing, who had not yet been granted the surname Xu, entered the Imperial Observatory, only to find that Empress Zhao Zhi and Princess Sui Zhu had been waiting for them for a long time.

Zhao Zhi did not lead him to the Tongtiantai, where officials of the Imperial Observatory were gathered, but instead to the Altar of the Land and Grain, which was covered with soil of five colors: east green, south red, west white, north black, and center yellow.

"Han Shengxuan is dead."

Xu Xiao spoke calmly, but his gaze was fixed on the five-colored soil of the Altar of the State.

Nowadays, all these precious tribute soils come from the territory under the jurisdiction of Prince Zhao Yi of Guangling. Zhao Yi is criticized by the court as a greedy and insatiable glutton, but he dares not even take a small handful of these tribute soils for himself.

As is well known, the Liyang Dynasty had a rule that eunuchs were not allowed to leave the palace.

In recent years, only two eunuchs have left the palace. One was an old eunuch who went to Beiliang with Princess Suizhu, and he eventually died at the hands of Han Shengxuan.

The other one is Han Shengxuan.

Although only three or four days had passed since the battle outside Xiangfan, the details had already reached Tai'an City. Xu Xiao knew about it, and Empress Zhao Zhi naturally knew as well.

"That old dog used up most of His Majesty's affection for him by leaving the palace once to find that bastard. It's no wonder he died out there."

Compared to Han Shengxuan, Zhao Kai is not yet worthy of their attention.

Xu Xiao scoffed and said, "If no one supported him, would Han Shengxuan dare to leave the palace? Would Zhao Heng dare to cause trouble for Feng Nian?"

"General..."

"Alright, Zhao Zhi!" Xu Xiao coldly interrupted Zhao Zhi, "What happened back then, you are the ones who wronged us!"

In the end, Zhao Zhi and Xu Xiao parted on bad terms.

……

Under the cover of night, on the hillside.

The carriages and horses that had already left the Xiangfan area came to a stop.

Ning Emei lit a bonfire, which shone brightly in the night.

Xu Fengnian lay on the grass at the top of the hill, staring blankly at the dazzling Milky Way.

Li Chungang sat down next to him, plucked a licorice root and put it in his mouth, and sighed, "The sky is like a dome, covering the vast wilderness, and all the people there are frogs at the bottom of a well."

Xu Fengnian was taken aback, then turned his head and laughed, "This doesn't sound like something you would say."

Li Chungang smiled faintly: "In front of Jiang girl, of course I need to always put on the airs of a master, otherwise how can I trick her into learning swordsmanship from me?"

Xu Fengnian's smile grew even brighter. He imitated Li Chungang by pulling out a licorice root, brushing off the dirt, and chewing it slowly. He mumbled, "It's sweet. I used to sleep in this godforsaken place with Lao Huang and Cheng'an. There were no beds or blankets. I would curse all the time. When I was really exhausted, Lao Huang would hand me this licorice root."

Li Chungang glanced at Xu Fengnian and slowly said, "When I first heard you mention the tenth sword of the Yellow Formation Diagram, which you learned from half of the Cloud Sword Song by the unknown Master Zhou, I was actually a little skeptical."

"Although I have never fought Huang Zhentu and have never seen his sword moves, I know that anyone who can withstand a few moves from Wang Xianzhi is no ordinary person."

"One move of swordsmanship can save his life from Wang Xianzhi's hands. This move is extraordinary."

"At that time, I wondered who this Master Zhou was, that he had such abilities."

"It wasn't until I first saw him at Qingyang Palace that I knew there might be someone in this world just like Qi Xuanzhen."

"Today, the mighty thunder rolled down from the heavens, proving my thoughts to be true."

Li Chungang took a breath and said with a look of reminiscence, "Back then, Qi Xuanzhen's swordsmanship and Taoist arts were unparalleled in the world. Longhu Mountain became even more famous because of him. In the end, Qi Xuanzhen ascended to heaven in broad daylight, which is even more legendary."

"Now, Zhou Cheng'an has appeared in the world as the leader of Qingcheng Mountain. I can see that he has entered the martial world this time to suppress the world with his thunderous power and make Qingcheng Mountain return to the three great lineages of the Heavenly Dao."

"For thousands of years, the Taoist school has revered the Dragon Tiger and Wudang schools."

"It seems that it won't be long before we have to add Qingcheng Mountain to the list."

At this point, Li Chungang sighed and laughed, "To be honest, I'm really having a run of bad luck."

"When I was young, there was a guy named Qi Xuanzhen in the martial arts world. In the end, I was fooled by Qi Xuanzhen and lost my sword heart."

"Now that I've returned to the martial world, I've run into Zhou Cheng'an again. It's truly a bitter pill to swallow."

At this moment, Zhou Chengan's voice suddenly rang out.

"Old man Li, why be so dejected? If Heaven had not given birth to you, Li Chungang, the way of the sword would have been shrouded in eternal darkness."

As soon as he finished speaking, his figure slowly appeared beside Li Chungang.

Li Chungang didn't get up, and said to Xu Fengnian on the other side, "Xu boy, did you see that? Master Zhou's elusive method is truly amazing. He's right next to us, and we didn't even know."

Zhou Cheng'an ignored Li Chungang's sarcastic remarks and sat down cross-legged.

Li Chungang pulled out a licorice root and handed it to him. "Master Zhou, what did you just say? If Heaven had not given birth to me, Li Chungang, the way of the sword would have been shrouded in eternal darkness?"

Zhou Chengan, with a licorice root in his mouth, joked, "What, do you think you can't handle this?"

"What's there to be ashamed of? Master Zhou has excellent judgment!"

A smile blossomed on Li Chungang's face as he proudly declared, "That's right! If Heaven hadn't given birth to me, Li Chungang, the way of the sword would have remained in eternal darkness!"

Xu Fengnian said from the side, "Old man Li, take it easy. Didn't you just say that Qi Xuanzhen tricked you back then and messed up your sword heart? Now Cheng'an is obviously tricking you, so you have to be careful and don't mess up your sword heart again."

Li Chungang stood up and kicked away Xu Fengnian's crossed leg: "You brat, you just can't stand people telling the truth."

"Come, come, tonight I'll show you my swordsmanship!"

Xu Fengnian was taken aback for a moment, then asked in confusion, "Senior Li, are you going to teach me superior swordsmanship?"

"Just a moment ago you were Old Man Li, and now you're a senior?" Li Chungang laughed and scolded, "You good-for-nothing, hurry up!"

Xu Fengnian quickly turned over and got up.

Zhou Chengan sat to the side without moving, watching Li Chungang teach Xu Fengnian to practice swordsmanship.

It was supposed to be sword practice, but in reality, Xu Fengnian was getting beaten up the whole time.

In no time, Xu Fengnian's fine clothes were reduced to tatters.

Xu Fengnian had no choice but to run to Zhou Chengan and shout, "Chengan, you have to judge for your brother! Old Man Li said he was teaching me swordsmanship, but how can he teach like this? I was the one being beaten from beginning to end, and I couldn't even run away."

Li Chungang glared and puffed out his beard: "Fool, what's the point of explaining all those grand principles to you? Do you think my signature skills are so easy to learn?"

Xu Fengnian hid behind Zhou Chengan and retorted, "I think you're just lazy, don't want to talk, and are petty. You took the opportunity of teaching me swordsmanship to deliberately beat me up."

Li Chungang chuckled: "You're quite clever, kid. The 'Two Sleeves Green Serpent' is said to be two sleeves, not to mention the sword energy, there are sixty-six sword moves. If I were to explain them to you one by one, how much breath and energy would I have to waste? It's much more satisfying to be direct like this."

Xu Fengnian looked at Zhou Chengan with a wronged expression and said, "Chengan, this old man is so unreasonable, let's attack him together."

Zhou Chengan shook his head and smiled: "If you want to hit someone, you have to learn how to take a hit first."

"I think the old swordsman taught well."

"It's a blessing that he can personally guide you."

Upon hearing this, Xu Fengnian was completely distraught.

Upon hearing this, Li Chungang burst into laughter.

"Master Zhou is absolutely right!"

"Young Xu, did you hear that? It's your good fortune that I'm personally guiding you; people would pray to Buddha for that!"

Before he finished speaking, Li Chungang flashed and appeared behind Xu Fengnian, then raised his big foot and kicked Xu Fengnian in the butt.

Then came another round of beatings...

(End of this chapter)