Travel through the heavens

Lu Zhang once again exchanged glances with the four elders Xi, Song, Wu, and Chen, and hurriedly called out, "Mr. Fang, please stay for a while."

Fang Muye turned around and asked, "I wonder if Elder Lu has anything else to say?"

Lu Zhang's face was solemn. He first bowed to Fang Muye and said, "Mr. Fang..." Then he clasped his fists and greeted Mr. Tan, Mrs. Tan, Zhao Qiansun, Master Zhiguang, Shan Zheng, and the five Shan brothers one by one, calling them in order.

Then he said, "Elder Xu, Elder Bai, Captain Quan, and Madam Ma have done something wrong. The Beggars' Sect will definitely deal with them according to the rules. However, I, Lu, have the audacity to make an unreasonable request. Regarding what these people have done, I hope that all the seniors and friends will cherish the reputation of the Beggars' Sect and not disclose it to others. Our sect will be grateful to you all!"

After saying this, he bowed, and the four elders, Xi, Song, Wu, and Chen, also bowed and begged.

Master Zhiguang and his companions understood that this was a matter of great importance to the honor and disgrace of the Beggars' Sect, so they naturally agreed. Fang Muye also nodded in agreement indifferently.

Lu Zhang and the other four immediately expressed their gratitude profusely, thanking everyone for their noble character and virtue.

After Wu Changfeng thanked him, he walked towards Xiao Feng, clasped his fists and said, "Boss, the gang is going through a big change now. Please stay and continue to take charge of the situation."

As soon as he said this, he received an immediate response from everyone. The vast majority of the beggars had the same idea as him, and dozens of people immediately shouted in agreement.

"Boss, please don't abandon your brothers!"

"Boss, don't leave. The brothers still need your leadership!"

"Even if the leader is a Khitan, he is still a hero. We are willing to continue to follow him!"

"Yes, yes, whoever becomes the gang leader will kill me and I will not accept it."

……

Xiao Feng raised his hands and said loudly: "My brothers, please listen to what Xiao Feng has to say." The beggars immediately stopped talking and looked at him.

Xiao Feng clasped his fists and said, "Thank you all for your kindness, but I am a Khitan. I am determined not to be the leader of the Beggars' Sect. Let's say goodbye now. If we meet again in the future, if you brothers don't mind my Khitan identity, we can drink and chat happily again."

Wu Changfeng was about to persuade: "Boss..."

Xiao Feng said, "Elder Wu, please don't say anything more. Xiao Feng has made up his mind. Take care." Then he looked at Fang Muye and said, "Master, let's go."

Fang Muye smiled, but did not respond or move. Instead, he looked towards the northwest corner.

Xiao Feng was puzzled when he suddenly heard a man in the northwest corner of the apricot forest say sinisterly, "The Beggars' Sect made an appointment to meet at Huishan, but they broke the agreement and didn't show up. It turns out they were hiding here secretly. Hehehe, this is ridiculous."

The sound was sharp and piercing, with inaccurate pronunciation, and it sounded like a big tongue and a blocked nose, making it extremely uncomfortable to listen to.

The leader Jiang of the Dayi branch and the leader Fang of the Dayong branch exclaimed in unison, "Oh my god! We missed our appointment, and the enemy is here to find us!"

Xiao Feng naturally knew what this appointment was about.

According to a letter from Yi Dabiao, a brother of the Beggar Gang in Xixia, the leader of the Xixia Kingdom's martial arts school "Yipintang" is Prince Helian Tieshu, who is granted the title of General Zhengdong. Recently, he led the warriors of the hall to a diplomatic mission to Bianliang, nominally to meet the Empress Dowager and the Emperor of Song, but his real intention was to spy on the strength of Song.

Yipintang knows that the Beggars' Sect is a major pillar of the Song Dynasty's martial arts world, and wants to destroy it in one fell swoop, first to establish its prestige, and then lead its troops to advance straight ahead.

After leaving Bianliang, Helian Tieshu went to the headquarters of the Beggars' Sect in Luoyang. It happened that at that time Xiao Feng led his gang members to Jiangnan to avenge Deputy Gang Leader Ma. After failing to get revenge at Yipintang, he decided to go all out and rushed to Jiangnan, where he finally made an appointment with Xiao Feng.

Yesterday, a disciple of the Beggar Gang reported to Xiao Feng that the other party had agreed to meet in the pavilion on Huishan Mountain early this morning. Although Xiao Feng felt that it was too hasty at the time, he agreed after knowing that the other party had mocked the change of date.

However, there were sudden changes and twists and turns afterwards, and Xiao Feng had forgotten about the matter long ago. It was only when he heard the other party's mocking words that he suddenly woke up.

I didn't expect that the other party would find this place just after the hour of Mao.

Although Xiao Feng had accepted the appointment, he had already resigned from the position of leader and was no longer a member of the Beggars' Sect, so he did not want to overstep his authority and get involved in the sect's affairs.

Suddenly, with a whoosh, a man flew out from behind the apricot tree and fell to the ground, motionless. His face was bloody and his throat had been cut, and he had been dead for a long time. The Beggars' Clan recognized him as Deputy Leader Xie of the Dayi Branch of their own Clan.

Captain Jiang was shocked and angry, and said, "Brother Xie was sent by me to change the date earlier, but he fell into their hands."

The sinister voice sounded again, saying, "Why change the date for no reason? Since we have already made an appointment, how can we postpone it for three or four days? Even half an hour is not acceptable."

Wu Changfeng said to Xiao Feng: "Boss, a powerful enemy is attacking us now. Please wait and take charge of the situation." Several other elders also spoke up to persuade him.

Xiao Feng thought about it and felt guilty for leaving at this critical moment, so he looked at Fang Muye and said, "Master..."

Fang Muye smiled and said, "Just do as you please. I have no objection."

Xiao Feng immediately said loudly to the forest: "As the saying goes, 'When two countries are at war, envoys are not killed'. My gang sent someone to change the meeting date. If you don't want to agree, just refuse. Why hurt his life?"

The sinister voice said, "This man is arrogant and rude. He refused to kneel before my general. How can we let him live?"

When the beggars heard this, they immediately became furious and many of them started shouting and cursing.

Wu Changfeng shouted, "You clown, you are hiding secretly, why don't you dare to show yourself?"

The man laughed loudly and said, "Who is hiding in the apricot forest? Who is the troublemaker...ah!"

Before the man could finish his words, he suddenly let out a scream, and then there was the sound of a heavy object falling.

It turned out that while that person was speaking, Xiao Feng had already heard the voice and located his position, so he suddenly snatched the ghost-head knife from Wu Changfeng's hand and threw it out with all his strength.

The ghost-head knife suddenly shot out, swiftly passed through the gaps between the apricot trees, and then stabbed fiercely into a bush of dense branches and leaves several feet away, taking the life of the man who was cowering inside.

The beggars understood what was going on and immediately cheered: "Master, you are so powerful!"

Before the cheers had ended, a horn was suddenly heard in the distance, followed by the faint sound of a large group of horse hooves coming from several miles away.

After a while, the sound of horse hooves approached, and suddenly a horn sounded three times. Eight horsemen split into two lines and rushed into the forest. The riders on the eight horses all held spears with a small flag tied to the spear head. The spear head was shining. The four small flags on the left were embroidered with two white characters "Xixia", and the four small flags on the right were embroidered with two white characters "Helian". There were also complex Xixia characters on the flags. Then another eight horsemen split into two lines and galloped into the forest. Four of the riders blew the horn and four beat the drum.

Everyone frowned secretly: "This is nothing more than a battle of troops, how can it be a gathering of heroes?"

After the trumpeters and drummers, eight Xixia warriors came in and stood on either side. A horse slowly walked into the apricot forest. The rider on the horse was wearing a bright red brocade robe, about thirty-four or thirty-five years old, with a hooked nose and a mustache, followed by a group of Xixia warriors.

The warrior at the front, who was tall and strong and holding a copper hammer in each hand, shouted loudly as he entered the forest: "The general of the Western Xia Kingdom has arrived. The leader of the Beggars' Sect comes forward to greet him."

Lu Zhang looked at Helian Tieshu who was on horseback and said, "If you are meeting me as a general, we in the Beggars' Sect are all ruffians and cannot reach our height. Please go and pay a visit to the court of the Great Song Dynasty. If you are meeting me as a fellow martial artist, please dismount and greet our leader." These words were neither arrogant nor humble. They neither offended the other party nor gave the Beggars' Sect any respect.

Helian Tieshu laughed loudly, got off his horse, looked at Xiao Feng, clasped his fists and said, "I guess you must be the leader of the Qiao Gang, Qiao Feng. I have long heard of your great name. It is an honor to meet you today."

Xiao Feng clasped his fists in return and said, "General Helian's reputation is well known. I have long been looking forward to meeting him. I wanted to go to Huishan to meet him, but my gang was delayed by some urgent matters. I am sorry to trouble you to come."

Helian Tieshu laughed again and said, "It's okay, it's okay."

Xiao Feng asked, "I wonder why the general has made an appointment with our gang?"

Helian Tieshu smiled and said, "When I was in Xixia, I had heard of the reputation of the Beggars' Sect in the Central Plains for a long time. I learned that the Beggars' Sect has two unique skills, one is the Dog Beating Stick Technique, and the other is the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms. It just so happens that I am on this diplomatic mission to the Song Dynasty, so I have specially sought them out. I hope your sect will teach us so that we Xixia people can see them for ourselves."