Liver into a martial arts legend: starting with Embroidered Spring Blade

Chapter 63: Returning to Beijing to meet Li Dingan again, Rama's body? [Second update, please subscribe]

Cao Tian was determined to capture Zhou Huaian and others, make amends for his sins, and inherit Cao Shaoqin's position as the second-in-command of the East Factory.

So the border troops were mobilized overnight and searched along the border area.

He also personally led people to chase through the secret passage of Longmen Inn.

But it was still too late.

This secret passage leads directly to the back mountain pass.

Once you get out of the customs, you will be surrounded by hills and wastelands with extremely complex terrain.

By the time the army found the exit of the secret passage, Zhou Huaian and others had already disappeared without a trace.

Outside the Great Wall is the Western Regions, where the situation is chaotic.

The army did not dare to go too far out of the border.

In the end, they only searched for about 10 to 20 miles around the exit of the secret passage and returned empty-handed.

Cao Tian's face was terrifyingly gloomy.

The dream of inheriting the position of head of the company was also shattered.

The loss this time is so huge. If it is not handled properly, I am afraid that even he will be punished when he returns.

After all, he is the only trusted and beloved general of Cao Shaoqin who is still alive.

In order to shirk responsibility, he finally had no choice but to go to the border army to investigate Xu Hu, preparing to use Xu Hu as a scapegoat to reduce his own responsibility.

The results of the investigation did not disappoint him.

They found a large amount of money and some correspondence between Xu Hu and Jin Xiangyu in Xu Hu's residence.

It records many incidents in which the two men conspired to release wanted criminals for profit, as well as robbed and extorted passing caravans.

Even several of Xu Hu's trusted generals were involved.

Combined with the confessions of other soldiers in the Qianhu Division, there is solid evidence that Xu Hu colluded with Jin Xiangyu, the proprietress of the Longmen Inn, to murder Cao Shaoqin!

Although Xu Hu was not directly involved in this matter.

But the evidence at present is enough to convict him.

If he had not deliberately let them go, how could the rebels at Longmen Inn dare to collude with Zhou Huaian and others?

With the evidence, Cao Tian ordered the arrest of several people under Xu Hu who were involved in the incident without hesitation. He then took the bodies of Cao Shaoqin, Xu Hu and others and prepared to return to Beijing to report.

The journey took nearly four months, but ultimately failed, and even the main general Cao Shaoqin and others died.

On the way back, the team's morale was very low.

Everyone was in a state of panic, worried that they would be punished after returning to Beijing.

Xu Longqing, Lu Jianxing and others followed Jiang Xuan. They didn't know the truth of the matter and felt a little heavy-hearted.

Looking at Jiang Xuan beside him, Xu Longqing couldn't help but whisper, "Sir, this time Zhou Huaian and the others weren't caught, and Eunuch Cao is dead. Will we also be implicated and punished by the higher-ups when we return?"

Ding Xiu, who was behind him, twitched his mouth. Are you so panicked just because of this?

If you knew what he did, wouldn't you be shocked?
"We are just following orders. What is there to be afraid of?"

Jiang Xuan's expression was very calm.

He didn't leave any loopholes in this matter, so he was not worried.

As for whether he will be implicated?
Of course there will be, but most of the time it will just be some verbal reprimands and punishments.

After all, they were not the culprits who caused the mission failure and Cao Shaoqin's death. They were just following orders. It was impossible for the higher-ups to cause trouble for them.

However, this action was indeed a bit risky, and no practical gains were achieved.

But if you think about it carefully, with Cao Shaoqin's violent and overbearing personality, even if he successfully completes the mission, there will probably be no actual reward.

In Cao Shaoqin's eyes, including Cao Tian and others, they were just a few dogs that were somewhat useful.

This is what happened in the original drama. In order to get rid of his biggest threat Zhou Huaian, he even ordered his own people to be shot, and would rather kill the wrong person than let him go.

If I perform better in this operation and get noticed by him, I will definitely encounter similar troubles in the future and he will definitely send me out to die again.

If you complete the mission and survive by chance, he might give you a couple of bones as a reward if he is happy. But if you fail the mission or it blocks his way, he will never treat you as a human being and will not show mercy when it is time to kill you.

So, for myself.

Getting rid of Cao Shaoqin once and for all is the biggest gain of this trip.

This can save you from all the troubles that may arise in the future.

Of course, apart from this, it is not all without gain.

At least during this trip, I was able to complete the "Invisible Divine Needle".

The power of this hidden weapon was fully demonstrated in the battle to kill Cao Shaoqin.

It was launched silently, killing people invisibly, and even Cao Shaoqin couldn't detect it with his strength.

If there had not been the help of the poisonous needle of the 'Invisible Divine Needle' in this battle, it would have been difficult for Zhou Huaian and others to kill Cao Shaoqin so easily.

Therefore, this hidden weapon can be used as a life-saving trump card in the future.

As for Zhou Huaian, Qiu Moyan and others.

The same thing goes, just leave yourself a way out.

After all, they are both quite strong and not the kind of people who are ungrateful. Maybe they will be of use in the future.

……

There were no other tasks on the way back to Beijing, so everyone traveled very quickly.

In just three days, they left Longxi and entered Yunzhou Prefecture.

During the break, Jiang Xuan continued to practice diligently.

Now, the martial arts skills he has mastered, the Wind Chasing Step and the Shadowless Divine Needle, have been perfected and cannot be improved. His archery skills are sufficient for the time being, and without the longbow, his progress is slow, so there is no need to practice anymore.

His major was the Xiuchun Sword Technique, but his progress was extremely slow.

At this moment, Jiang Xuan already understood that to reach the level of "momentum" in swordsmanship, one must cultivate momentum and fight with others in life and death, which is the fastest way to improve.

Simply practicing with a sword will only give you the form and it will be difficult to improve.

Of course, the most important thing is that his physical fitness, including muscles, bones, qi, blood, and energy, has almost reached its limit and is no longer sufficient to support him to continue training.

Because I want to improve my Xiuchun sword technique by practicing with the sword, I have to mobilize my qi, blood and energy and give it my all every time I practice, as if I were really experiencing a fight on the battlefield.

This kind of training method is very harmful to the body. Without the nourishment of internal strength, it is easy to damage the meridians.

This is exactly what martial artists often say, "Too much is as bad as too little."

This is also one of the main reasons why there are so few top masters in the world.

For most martial artists, by the time they reach first-rate level, their bodies have already been honed to the pinnacle of the acquired realm.

There are even fewer people who can go a step further and develop "momentum" through basic external skills.

"After returning to Beijing, I must find a way to quickly find an internal skill to break through the Xiantian realm."

Jiang Xuan secretly made up his mind.

At present, he can open the Ren and Du meridians through physical strength and convert physical strength into internal force.

However, without the right internal skills, one will not be able to use internal energy, strengthen the body, and continue to improve strength.

Simply relying on practicing external skills to enhance Qi and blood will always have its limits.

Of course, he currently has a simple breathing technique.

It is the Three Talents Sword obtained from Tang Pei before, which includes the corresponding breathing techniques and luck methods.

However, this internal skill is a combination of internal and external cultivation, and cannot be practiced alone. It must be practiced together with sword moves to improve internal strength.

Jiang Xuan mainly practiced swordsmanship, so he had never considered swordsmanship.

But if you can't find the right internal martial arts technique, you can only choose the Three Talents Sword. The worst that can happen is that you just have to spend more time practicing another sword technique.

In addition, there are the Kuangfeng sword technique and Duanyun body technique obtained from killing Tian Boguang.

Both of these martial arts are second-rate and cannot be practiced to perfection in the acquired realm. Without internal force to refine the body, the best they can achieve is great success.

However, if you practice second-rate martial arts to perfection, you can be comparable to first-rate masters.

Moreover, with his current physical strength, it should be enough to support him to practice these two martial arts to perfection.

It is currently impossible to break through the innate level, but you can practice in advance.

So, taking advantage of the free time on the way back to Beijing, Jiang Xuan began to practice the Kuangfeng Sword Technique and Dieyun Body Technique.

With the experience gained from the 'Shi'-level Embroidered Spring Sword Technique and the Perfect Wind Chasing Step, he was able to practice these two second-rate martial arts very quickly.

Although his physical fitness didn't improve much, his proficiency improved rapidly.

Almost every time I practiced, I could improve by two or three points, and the speed was more than doubled.

In less than seven days, Jiang Xuan had mastered both martial arts to the minor success level.

"Hmm... the progress required to master a second-rate martial art is indeed five hundred more than that required to master a basic martial art. However, at this rate, it won't take more than a month to master both martial arts. As for perfection, I'll probably have to break through to the Xiantian realm before I can even consider it..."

Jiang Xuan pondered secretly.

On this day, the team left Yunzhou Prefecture and arrived at Pingzhou.

As the sky grew darker, Cao Tian still decided to rest in Pingzhou City for one night and leave tomorrow.

After dinner, Jiang Xuan wanted to continue practicing, but suddenly he remembered that when he passed through Pingzhou City before, Xu Longqing specifically came to him to mention the "Broken Blade" Li Ding'an.

Jiang Xuan's eyes flickered. "I don't know when I'll have the chance to come out again after returning to the capital. I might as well take this opportunity to contact Li Ding'an. Besides, this place is not far from Guangling County..."

Thinking of this, Jiang Xuan immediately made up his mind and rode out of the city at night, heading towards Guangling County.

……

Guangling County.

Four months ago, a major event occurred here that shocked the entire county.

In order to dominate Guangling County, the local tyrant 'Skull' was not only so bold as to eliminate the government of Guangling County, but also invited the bandit leader 'Flying Dragon' from the border area to attack another major force in the city, the knife foundry 'Lianfenghao' in the west of the city.

This Feilong is a well-known second-rate master with a brutal and vicious temperament. He has been wandering around the martial arts world for more than 20 years and has recruited many second-rate masters under his command. He makes a living by riding a horse and plundering.

Over the years, he has killed countless masters. It is said that he has even killed several top masters.

Although Xiang Qiezheng, the leader of Lianfeng, is quite powerful, he is only at the second-rate level and has several top-notch disciples under his command.

However, facing the siege of the two major bandit forces, "Skull" and "Flying Dragon", they were ultimately powerless.

After a battle between the two sides, the Sword Factory suffered heavy casualties. The leader Xiang Qiezheng was defeated by Feilong and was seriously injured, and was in critical condition.

At this critical moment, the Blade Factory's long-missing senior disciple, Li Ding'an, suddenly reappeared and, with half a broken blade, slew the bandit Feilong, turning the tide. He then led the Blade Factory in exterminating the local tyrant, Skull, and instantly became famous.

He is known as the 'Broken Blade' in the underworld.

The people of Guangling County were all grateful for this. It is said that even the Yunzhou government office ordered commendations and rewards. Now the Yunzhou government has re-dispatched officials to garrison in Guangling County.

But at this time, Li Ding'an, a hero of Guangling County, did not inherit the position of head of the knife foundry as people expected, nor did he accept commendation from the court. Instead, he suddenly disappeared.

No one knows where he went.

……

into the night.

On the side of a mountain road next to an unnamed small town ten miles southeast of Guangling County, a small wooden house that had been burned down was rebuilt at some point.

Although the room is small, it looks very warm.

Even the land next to the wooden house has been renovated and planted with corn.

As night falls, the seedlings sway gently in the breeze, and everything is full of hope.

Under the big tree in front of the wooden house, a shirtless, one-armed man was still practicing swordplay in the moonlight.

Although only one arm was left and even the knife was broken, the man wielded it with great vigor. Each move was smooth and full of sinister murderous intent.

It turned out that he had reached the state of perfection!

At the door, a smaller, dark figure sat on the threshold, one hand resting on his chin, watching the man practicing with a sword out of boredom, almost falling asleep.

The law——

Just then, a burst of hurried horse hooves sounds suddenly rang out, startling the two of them.

"Ding'an, Ding'an! The horse thieves are coming! The horse thieves are coming!"

Heitou stood up in panic and ran to Li Dingan.

Li Ding'an's eyes were cold, he gripped the broken knife tightly, protected Heitou behind him, and stared at the figure rushing towards him from a distance, with murderous intent in his eyes.

This damn world, why is it always so difficult for poor people to survive?!
But when the figure approached, Li Dingan was stunned.

"You are back here again." Looking at Li Dingan under the tree, a smile appeared on Jiang Xuan's face.

"My benefactor, it's you!"

The tension in Li Ding'an's eyes disappeared, replaced by gratitude and joy. He quickly put away his knife and went forward to meet the enemy.

Jiang Xuan dismounted, glanced at the black-headed man behind him, and then looked at Li Ding'an again, smiling, "I've heard all about you. You mastered your swordplay after just a few months, and you've killed the horse thief Feilong and the Guangling County local tyrant 'Skull' in quick succession. You've truly lived up to my expectations."

"It all depends on your help!"

Li Ding'an's eyes were filled with excitement. "If it weren't for your help that day, I would have died at the hands of the bandits. And if it weren't for your guidance, I wouldn't have thought that there was a half-brochure of swordsmanship left in this wooden house, which allowed me to practice the one-armed sword technique."

"These are all your opportunities. Even without my guidance, you will find them sooner or later." Jiang Xuan shook his head.

Li Ding'an was very determined.

In his eyes, Jiang Xuan was a demigod, and it was Jiang Xuan who changed his destiny.

Otherwise, how could Jiang Xuan know his situation and guide him to find the sword manual when they had never met?
Seeing this, Jiang Xuan didn't dwell on it any further. He took two casual steps and asked, "Why? Are you planning to stay here forever?"

Hearing this, a look of confusion flashed across Li Ding'an's eyes, and he shook his head and said, "I don't know either."

"Before, my goal was revenge."

"But now that revenge has been taken, I don't know what to do next."

Jiang Xuan asked, "Have you ever thought about doing something in this world?"

Li Dingan was stunned for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I don't understand what you mean, benefactor."

Jiang Xuan was silent for a moment, then got straight to the point. "I'm actually a captain of the Imperial Guards in the capital. The last time I passed by here, I was also on a case. I hope you can go to the capital to help me."

"Jinyiwei?"

Li Ding'an's expression changed slightly, and then he fell silent.

Although he grew up in this chaotic border area, how could he not know the name of the Ming Dynasty's Jinyiwei?

"My benefactor, I don't know how to be an official."

After a moment of silence, Li Dingan shook his head. Afraid that Jiang Xuan might misunderstand him, he continued, "It's not that I don't want to help you, my benefactor. What I mean is that I don't know how to investigate or handle the case."

Jiang Xuan smiled faintly and said, "It's okay. I understand what you mean. You are not suitable for being a Jinyiwei. However, there are more ways to help me than just joining the Jinyiwei."

"Then what does my benefactor need me to do?" Li Dingan asked in confusion.

"No rush, you can take your time to think about it."

Jiang Xuan waved his hand and said, "Anyway, if you leave here, your fate will be different from what it is now. Think it over carefully and come to the capital to find me again."

After saying that, Jiang Xuan told him his address in the capital, said nothing more, turned around, mounted his horse and left.

"Beijing..."

Looking at Jiang Xuan's receding figure, Li Ding'an frowned and said nothing.

……

the other side.

Jiang Xuan galloped on his horse, but he was also thinking in his mind whether his choice was right or wrong.

Just as he said to Li Ding'an.

Now that I'm here, I have to do something in this world.

His current identity is Jinyiwei.

But he didn't want to bet everything on this position.

Mainly due to the current situation in the Ming Dynasty, being a Jinyiwei may not necessarily be a stable job.

Now that the eunuch party is in power, if he does not choose to rely on the eunuch party, his position as a centurion would most likely have ended.

But if you stand on the wrong side, you may die without a burial place if the situation changes at any time, and your life and death are not in the hands of God.

This is also one of the reasons why he chose to help Zhou Huaian, Qiu Moyan and others when he left Beijing this time.

It's always good to have multiple back-up plans.

If you want to survive in this dangerous world, you need not only sufficient martial arts skills but also power and influence.

Therefore, in addition to constantly improving his martial arts skills and status in the court, Jiang Xuan also wanted to secretly establish a force that only he could control.

In this way, if you can't survive in the capital in the future, you won't be too passive and have no way out.

This was the idea that suddenly came to his mind when he thought of looking for Li Dingan tonight.

As for what to do, Jiang Xuan hasn't decided yet.

But even if you do nothing, you still have to have a power that belongs only to you.

Just like Lu Wenzhao, Ding Baiying and others before.

One is light and the other is dark, complementing each other.

Of course, it’s just a simple idea at the moment.

Coming to look for Li Dingan tonight is just a preliminary attempt.

If it doesn’t work, then forget it.

If it works, then think about how to develop next.

Shaking his head, Jiang Xuan was too lazy to think about it anymore.

Everything that should be done has been done. Whether it will succeed depends on Li Dingan's choice.

Soon, Jiang Xuan rushed back to Pingzhou City.

Although it was late at night, he was able to enter the city smoothly with the Jinyiwei badge in hand, and then returned to the government office quietly without attracting the attention of the East Factory.

……

The next day.

The team continues on its journey.

Although the situation in the Ming Dynasty is chaotic now, there are bandits and robbers everywhere causing trouble, and various fights in the martial arts world occur from time to time.

But with the flags of the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard flying, no one was so blind as to dare to cause trouble.

Three days later, the team finally arrived in the capital.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the huge outline of the capital.

Even though I was only away for three or four months, it felt like a lifetime ago.

But when they thought about the situation they would face next, they became more nervous.

Cao Tian, ​​in particular, was extremely nervous.

Although a scapegoat was found and brought back, the mission failed after all, and even Cao Shaoqin died.

If the factory manager gets angry and blames him, he really doesn't know what to do.

Thinking of this, he turned around and looked at Jiang Xuan, only to see that the latter had a calm expression, in stark contrast to him.

Cao Tian became even more upset when he saw this. Do you think it has nothing to do with you?

With a cold snort, he rode his horse straight towards the capital.

Jiang Xuan had no idea what was wrong with him and was too lazy to pay attention to him. He rode his horse slowly and followed behind him, behaving properly and not overstepping the boundaries at all.

But when they arrived at the city gate, everyone was stunned.

There was a long queue of people entering the city at the city gate, and they were being carefully checked by the city guards. Even the number of officers and soldiers guarding the city was several times more than before, and the defense was extremely tight.

What's the situation?
Everyone was puzzled, but they didn't think much about it and rode their horses straight to the city gate.

Although the city gates were heavily guarded, they naturally did not dare to intercept the troops from the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard. They all stood to one side to make room for the two groups to enter the city, not even daring to look up. Their behavior was exactly the same as that of the people queuing up to enter the city.

Just before entering the city, Jiang Xuan couldn't help but stop and ask, "What happened in the capital? Why is the defense so tight?"

The guards nearby were stunned for a moment, looking around. After confirming that Jiang Xuan was speaking to him, they quickly bowed and replied, "Your Excellency, a few days ago, the family of the former Prime Minister, Zhang Haiduan, was murdered. The higher-ups have ordered a city-wide search for the murderer, so the security has been tightened recently."

Former cabinet chief minister Zhang Haiduan?
Jiang Xuan frowned, feeling that the name sounded familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before.

Moreover, how could such an important official be killed along with his entire family for no reason?

Then Jiang Xuan's face changed as he suddenly thought of something.

Rain of swords, Rama's body?
(End of this chapter)