Gu Long's World: Starting with the Legend of Chu Liuxiang

Chu Liuxiang laughed and asked, "Who is Chu Liuxiang?"

Wu Hua smiled and said, "Under the whole world, besides Brother Chu, who else could come to my side so quietly?"

Chu Liuxiang wiped off his disguise and threw it into the lake.

Wu Hua said, "Such exquisite masks are hard to find, Brother Chu, why go to such lengths?"

Chu Liuxiang laughed loudly, "This mask has already been seen through by four people, what use is it now?"

Wu Hua smiled and said, "Brother Chu's disguise skills are superb. I was only able to see through it by a trick. But I wonder who the other three are?"

Chu Liuxiang said, "The first one is 'killing without shedding blood, leaving only a single red dot under the sword.'"

Wu Hua frowned, then suddenly sank the seven-stringed zither in front of him into the water.

Chu Liuxiang asked curiously, "This zither is far more valuable than my mask, so why did you throw it into the lake?"

Wu Hua said, "The moment you mention that name, the zither is tainted with blood, and it will be difficult for it to produce any ethereal sound."

Wuhua washed her hands in the lake water, took out a silk handkerchief, and dried them.

Chu Liuxiang said, "Do you think this lake water is clean?"

Wu Hua said, "Man can pollute water, but water cannot pollute man. It flows to and fro, yet its essence remains pure."

Chu Liuxiang sighed, "No wonder you want to be a monk. Someone like you, if you don't become a monk, you probably won't even be able to survive a single day in the mortal world."

Wu Hua smiled slightly and asked, "And who's the second one?"

Chu Liuxiang smiled wryly and said, "Although the second person recognized me, I did not recognize him. I only know that his lightness skill is not bad, his hidden weapons are insidious and vicious, and he has also learned 'ninjutsu'."

Wu Hua was moved and asked, "'Ninjutsu'?"

Jiang Fengyue caught up and surfaced on the water, saying, "It is the Japanese 'ninjutsu'."

Wu Hua asked, "Brother Chu, who is this gentleman?"

Chu Liuxiang laughed heartily and said, "This is the third person to recognize me, Young Master Jiang Fengyue. That day in Beijing, I thought the Jade Beauty was already in my grasp, but I didn't expect that there was someone like Young Master Jiang in Beijing whose lightness skill was comparable to mine."

Jiang Fengyue said, "Brother Chu, you flatter me."

Chu Liuxiang then turned to Wuhua and said, "Just now, Young Master Jiang recognized me at a glance and even came to help me capture that black-clad man who knows 'ninjutsu'. That man had nowhere to escape, but unfortunately, we were careless for a moment and were blinded by the sleeping gas he threw out."

Jiang Fengyue said, "The word 'ninjutsu' sounds mysterious, but it is actually just a mixture of lightness skills, hidden weapons, sleeping pills, and disguise techniques. When our martial arts were introduced to Japan during the Tang Dynasty, I never expected that they would make slight changes and turn our dignified martial arts into something so despicable and shameless."

Wu Hua smiled and said, "Brother Jiang has quite a good understanding of 'ninjutsu'."

Jiang Fengyue smiled at Wuhua and said, "Of course, I hate two kinds of people the most in my life. One is the bald monk who kills innocent people under the guise of compassion, and the other is the despicable Japanese martial artist who only knows how to use underhanded tricks."

Jiang Fengyue continued, "Fortunately, Master Wuhua is neither a Japanese nor does he kill the innocent."

Although Wu Hua still wore a smile, a hint of anger flashed across his face for a moment, which was difficult for others to detect. Jiang Fengyue and Chu Liuxiang could clearly catch this intriguing expression.

Seeing the tense atmosphere, Chu Liuxiang said, "Master Wuhua is a man of pure heart, so of course he cannot bear even the slightest trace of blood."

Wu Hua said, "Amitabha, it is reasonable for a chivalrous person like you to dislike all kinds of people."

Chu Liuxiang said, "I only have one question: who was it that used 'ninjutsu' on this lake today?"

Jiang Fengyue said, "Twenty years ago, Tianfeng Shijiro crossed the sea and lived in the Minnan area for three years. The Japanese are narrow-minded and naturally would not pass on their unique skills to others. Therefore, the most likely people to learn 'ninjutsu' are his descendants."

Chu Liuxiang asked, "Who is Tianfeng Shisi Lang? Where are his descendants now?"

Jiang Fengyue laughed and said, "Though far away, it's right before our eyes. The one who just escaped from our grasp might be his descendant. I'm just hearing about it secondhand. The real reason is something Brother Chu should investigate."

As they spoke, Jiang Fengyue kept staring at Wuhua, her smile growing ever brighter, making Wuhua feel extremely uncomfortable.

Wu Hua frowned and chuckled lightly, "On such a beautiful night, you two are only talking about mundane matters. Aren't you afraid of wasting the clear breeze and bright moon?"

Chu Liuxiang said, "I am an ordinary person, especially at this moment. I have no interest in anything other than these mundane matters."

Jiang Fengyue said, "Master Wuhua is not interested in worldly affairs, and discussing Zen and playing chess are not my forte. I have no choice but to take my leave now."

After saying that, Jiang Fengyue plunged into the water and swam towards the shore.

Watching Jiang Fengyue's departing figure, Wuhua murmured, "Your friend is quite interesting."

Chu Liuxiang laughed heartily and said, "If Wuhua is a wonderful monk, then Jiang Fengyue must be a wonderful person."

He stood up and said, "I have no intention of discussing Zen or playing chess anymore. Next time we meet, I just want to have a good drink."

Amidst laughter, he leaped into the lake and chased after Jiang Fengyue.

Wu Hua watched the two depart, his expression growing increasingly gloomy.

Chu Liuxiang swam back to shore, where Jiang Fengyue was already waiting. Yidianhong was nowhere to be seen.

Chu Liuxiang asked, "Where's Yidianhong?"

Jiang Fengyue laughed and said, "I hid him. I know he would never want anyone to see him in such a disheveled state when he woke up."

Chu Liuxiang sighed, "Young Master Jiang, you've gone to so much trouble."

Jiang Fengyue said, "Brother Chu is a few years older than me and entered the martial world before me, so you can just call me Little Jiang from now on."

Chu Liuxiang smiled and said, "Little Jiang, farewell, I must return to the city first."

Jiang Fengyue said, "Brother Chu, please wait."

After saying goodbye, Chu Liuxiang strode into the city and left.

Jiang Fengyue returned to the carriage, where the coachman was still waiting. However, Jiang Fengyue had not returned for a long time, and he had fallen asleep leaning against the horse, still tightly gripping the reins.

Jiang Fengyue sighed, took out ten taels of silver and gently placed it in the coachman's arms, then lightly slipped into the carriage.

As soon as it was light, after the carriage entered the city, Jiang Fengyue found an inn. When she woke up, it was already dusk.

Jiang Fengyue felt regretful because she needed to catch up on sleep after expending a lot of energy, while Chu Liuxiang could go for many days without rest or sleep. This made it impossible for Jiang Fengyue to intervene in some things.

Jiang Fengyue went to a weapons shop and bought a handy iron sword, because both Zhongyuan Yidianhong's swordsmanship and Wuhua's Fengfeng Yidaozhan required the use of a sword.

Night had fallen in Jinan. In the darkness, Jiang Fengyue used his lightness skill to search for Chu Liuxiang.

With such lifelike lightness skills, coupled with the white-clad divine hearing, Jiang Fengyue could find any kind of person she wanted without difficulty.

Chu Liuxiang was in a casino at the moment, and Yidianhong was standing opposite him, holding a letter in her hand.

Yidianhong coldly replied, "If you want this letter, you'll have to defeat my sword first."

Chu Liuxiang sighed, "I've already said I don't want to fight you, why are you forcing me?"

Yidianhong said, "If you could fight that boy just now, why can't you fight me?"

Chu Liuxiang thought for a moment and said, "Even if we're going to take action, can we wait until I've read the letter first?"

Yidianhong coldly said, "If I die after we make our move, you may take this letter. If you die, I will take this letter with me to the grave."

Jiang Fengyue landed gracefully between the two of them, and said with a smile, "My martial arts are not as good as Brother Chu's, but I know a little about swordsmanship."

He looked at Yidianhong, drew his sword from his waist, and said, "I will be your opponent. If you lose to me, you must never trouble Brother Chu again, how about it?"

Yidianhong said, "Since you dare to challenge me to a sword duel so openly, why shouldn't I agree?"

Jiang Fengyue said, "Take this!"

Jiang Fengyue struck first, delivering five quick and vicious stabs.

Yidianhong moved swiftly, knowing that she had encountered a formidable enemy today. Her spirits soared, and all the muscles in her body were engaged as she thrust her sword at Jiang Fengyue with all her might.

Jiang Fengyue did not use his sword to block. Instead, he used his lightness skill to circle around behind Yidianhong. He knew that with Yidianhong's current swordsmanship, he could easily break the iron sword in his hand. Therefore, he could not block, but only dodge!

The two men's swords flashed, each strike a deadly move, their swordplay reaching its peak.

Because their swordsmanship originated from the same source, they fought fiercely and were evenly matched for a time, so Chu Liuxiang, watching from the sidelines, could not tell who was winning.

After 150 moves, Jiang Fengyue suddenly found himself at a disadvantage, as he was preoccupied with the thought of his sword breaking and was distracted by it.

Yidianhong's attacks grew fiercer, and her movements became faster and faster. At that moment, the letter that Chu Liuxiang cared about flew out of the air.

Chu Liuxiang exclaimed in alarm, "Be careful of the letter!"

Yidianhong drew her sword to try and retrieve the letter, and Jiang Fengyue also drew her sword at that moment to snatch the letter.

Swords clashed, and two astonishing sword auras soared into the sky.

Jiang Fengyue's sword and Yidianhong's sword finally made their first and last contact.

With a clang, both swords broke at the same time.

The sword that Yidianhong cherished as if it were her own life had been broken in two.

The letter was also reduced to dust by the astonishing force of the sword.

Jiang Fengyue said, "In today's battle, I was already at a disadvantage, but because of the change in this letter, I was able to barely manage a draw with you."

Yidianhong stammered, "No..."

He then said with a wry smile, "I have lost. You broke my precious sword with ordinary iron. How can I accept it as a draw?"

Yidianhong calmly said, "If I ever cause trouble for Chu Liuxiang again in my lifetime, I will have this sword."

The broken sword flew out of his hand and embedded itself in the beam with a loud "thud," the sound lingering for a long time.

Chu Liuxiang walked towards the two and said, "What excellent swordsmanship! Heroes throughout history would probably all shed tears upon witnessing this broken sword today."

He then asked, "Where is that letter? Can it be returned to me?"

Although Chu Liuxiang could clearly see the two men's sword moves, he had no time to pay attention to the whereabouts of the letter.

Jiang Fengyue and Yidianhong were both speechless, and looked at the pile of powder on the ground at the same time.

Chu Liuxiang looked down and understood what it meant. He sighed and said with a wry smile, "It seems I'm destined not to see the contents of the letter."

Just then, a voice came from outside the window. The person said coldly, "It's just a letter. Is it worth your life and death?"