Young Song: The Hidden Sword God, Han Yi and Her Child Arrive at the Door.

The carriage left Snowmoon City and headed north along the official road.

The journey was far from peaceful.

Although Su Changqing and his group did not deliberately make a fuss, the luxurious carriage pulled by four Jade Lions was itself the most eye-catching signboard.

Add to that Lei Wujie's loud voice, which seemed to thrive on chaos, and the number of bandits and highway robbers they encountered along the way was more than the wildflowers by the roadside.

However, these henchmen didn't even need Lei Wujie and Wushuang to make a move. Just Xiao Se sitting on the carriage shaft, giving them a look as if they were looking at an idiot, and adding a cold "Get lost," was enough to scare most people into running away with their tails between their legs.

After all, although Xiao Se cannot easily resort to violence now, his aura of being in a high position for a long time, as well as the "cunning merchant" temperament he has developed from being an accountant at Changqing Tower for so long, are enough to intimidate these petty thieves who have never seen the world.

Of course, there were also a few fools who insisted on coming up to their deaths.

"Robbery! This mountain is mine, these trees are mine..."

A burly bandit leader, carrying a rusty axe, blocked the road with a dozen or so henchmen, spitting as he spoke.

"well……"

Lei Wujie sighed, jumped down from the carriage, and stretched his wrists. "Hey uncle, can't you guys come up with a different line? I've heard it eight hundred times on this trip, my ears are calloused."

"Enough talk! Leave your toll!"

The bandit leader, his eyes wide, saw Lei Wujie dressed in red and mistook him for a theatrical performer. "Pretty boy, hand over all your valuables, and I might consider sparing your life!"

"Something valuable?"

Lei Wujie thought for a moment, then pulled out the book "The Art of Wind God Legs and Carrying Trays" from his pocket. "Does this count? It's a priceless treasure, a secret manual personally passed down by my brother-in-law!"

"A secret manual?!"

The bandit leader's eyes lit up, and he reached out to snatch it.

"Want it? Come and get it if you can!"

Lei Wujie chuckled, his figure flashed, and he instantly transformed into a red afterimage, weaving through the dozen or so bandits.

"Clap clap clap clap clap!"

A series of crisp slaps rang out.

When Lei Wujie returned to the original spot, the dozen or so bandits were all lying on the ground, groaning and covering their faces. Each of them had a bright red handprint on their face, symmetrical and neat.

"Too weak, too weak."

Lei Wujie shook his head, stuffed the manual back into his pocket, and said, "You can't even keep up with 30% of my speed when I'm carrying plates, and you want to rob me? Go home and practice some more!"

Inside the train carriage.

Su Changqing listened to the commotion outside and shook his head helplessly.

"This kid, why does he love to play just like Nuonuo?"

Little Nuomi was sleeping in his arms when she heard the noise. She whimpered softly, turned over, and fell asleep again.

Li Hanyi was peeling grapes for Su Changqing when she heard this and laughed, "He's been cooped up for so long. He's been serving dishes in the tavern for so long, and now that he's finally out for some fresh air, he's bound to have some fun."

"Too."

Su Changqing took the grape and ate it, savoring the sweetness spreading in his mouth. "But this is good too. There will be plenty of trouble on the way to Tianqi. Letting him practice more is a good way to hone his skills before the battle."

"Apocalypse..."

Li Hanyi's eyes narrowed slightly. "Are you really planning to just charge in?"

"Charge in?"

Su Changqing raised an eyebrow. "Am I the kind of person who resorts to violence? I'm here to reason with them and collect a debt. If they obediently return the money and explain what happened back then, I don't necessarily have to resort to violence."

"But what if they're unreasonable?"

Li Hanyi asked.

"Then beat them until they start to reason."

Su Changqing said calmly, as if he were talking about what to eat for dinner, "In this world, there is nothing that cannot be solved with one punch. If there is, then two punches will do."

Li Hanyi looked at him, a hint of admiration flashing in her eyes.

This is the man she truly loves.

No matter what kind of enemy they face, no matter how great the difficulties, they are always so confident and so composed.

"By the way, there's something I've been wanting to ask you."

Li Hanyi suddenly remembered something, "Although Xiao Se's hidden meridians have been opened, his internal energy doesn't seem to have fully recovered? And I've noticed he's been practicing some kind of mental arithmetic method lately. Is that helpful for his martial arts?"

"Of course."

Su Changqing explained, "His hidden meridians have been damaged for too long, and his meridians have atrophied somewhat. If we directly inject strong internal energy, it will only backfire and may even cause him to explode and die. So I had him practice mental arithmetic to temper his soul and teach him to use the least amount of internal energy to achieve the greatest effect."

"It's like... using one tael of silver to buy something worth ten taels of silver."

"Moreover, this cultivation method allows him to comprehend the mysteries of the Divine Realm ahead of time. Once his meridians are fully nourished, his breakthrough will be phenomenal, potentially even allowing him to directly transcend the Free and Unfettered Realm and touch the threshold of the Divine Realm."

"A journey through a mystical realm?!"

Li Hanyi was startled. Having been stuck at the half-step Divine Travel stage for so many years, she knew all too well how difficult it was to break through that barrier. She never expected Su Changqing to have a way to help Xiao Se skip that step so easily?

"Then why didn't you just help him?" Li Hanyi asked, puzzled. With Su Changqing's abilities, curing Xiao Se should be a piece of cake, right?

"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."

Su Changqing shook his head. "I can help him once, but I can't help him forever. If he can't even overcome this little difficulty, how will he face those old foxes in Tianqi City? How will he secure his position?"

"That seat..."

Li Hanyi fell silent. She knew what Su Changqing was talking about.

The throne.

That supreme position, yet filled with bloodshed and coldness.

"Actually, I don't want him to sit in that seat."

Li Hanyi sighed, "Being an emperor is too tiring. Not only do you have to worry about the affairs of the world, but you also have to guard against the scheming of your own family. How can it compare to the carefree life in the martial arts world?"

"That depends on his own choice."

Su Changqing looked out the window at Xiao Se, who was arguing with Lei Wujie, his gaze deep. "Everyone has their own path to walk. All we can do is lend a hand when they fall and point them in the right direction when they are lost. As for where they end up, that depends on them."

……

The carriage continued on its way.

As they got closer to Apocalypse City, the surrounding scenery gradually changed.

The forests gradually thinned out, replaced by smooth official roads and bustling towns. The number of pedestrians on the roads also increased, including not only peddlers and laborers, but also many young men from noble families dressed in brocade robes and riding tall horses.

It was dusk on this day.

The carriage arrived at a small town called "Sunset City".

This is the last stop before entering Tianqi City, and also a place where all sorts of people gather.

"Let's stay here tonight."

Su Changqing instructed, "Let everyone take a shower and change into clean clothes. We're going to Tianqi to collect debts; we can't look like refugees."

"Okay!"

Lei Wujie cheered and drove the carriage into an inn that looked fairly clean.

"Gentlemen, are you here for a meal or to stay the night?"

The waiter greeted us warmly.

"I need a hotel! The best room! And the best food and drinks!"

Lei Wujie waved his hand dismissively, displaying the arrogance of a nouveau riche. Since Xiao Se had been paying for all the expenses along the way (keeping track of the bills), he didn't care.

"Alright! Please come upstairs, everyone!"

The group went up to the second floor and found a seat by the window.

By this time, the inn was already quite full of people, mostly martial arts practitioners, who were engaged in lively discussions.

"Have you heard? Su Changqing is coming to Tianqi!"

"Nonsense! Who in the entire martial arts world doesn't know? It's said he brought his whole family, including that demoted Prince Yong'an, Xiao Chuhe, and they fought their way here!"

"They're coming to kill us? That's a bit much, isn't it? I heard they're here on vacation, and they even brought a three-year-old toddler with them."

"Tourism? Do you believe that? Bringing the Snow Moon Sword Immortal, the young master of Lei Family Fortress, the young master of Wushuang City, and the Prince of Yong'an on a tour? This is clearly a trip to seize the throne!"

"Shh! Keep your voice down! You can't just say things like that! You'll lose your head!"

Hearing the surrounding chatter, Xiao Se's expression didn't change much. He simply picked up his teacup, took a sip, and a cold smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

"It seems our whereabouts have been exposed long ago."

"So what if it's exposed? I wasn't trying to hide it anyway."

Wushuang was peeling an apple with her flying sword (it was a habit), and upon hearing this, she said nonchalantly, "It's best to let them all know we're here, so we don't have to go and notify them one by one, it's too much trouble."

"That being said, we must also be wary of being attacked from the shadows."

Xiao Se said in a deep voice, "I know the Crimson King. He's like a mad dog, willing to do anything to achieve his goals. Since the medicine man failed, he must have other tricks up his sleeve."

"A backup plan?"

Lei Wujie mumbled between bites of chicken leg, "What other tricks could he possibly have up his sleeve? Does he think he can summon a deity?"

Just then.

"when--"

A melodious bell suddenly rang out in the city.

The bell wasn't loud, but it was extremely penetrating, as if striking directly into the depths of one's soul.

Everyone in the inn instinctively stopped what they were doing, their faces showing a blank expression.

"What is that sound?"

"It seems to be coming from that ancient temple in the west of the city?"

"An ancient temple? Wasn't that temple abandoned long ago? How could it be ringing a bell?"

Su Changqing was picking fish bones out of Xiao Nuomi when he heard the bell, and his chopsticks paused slightly.

His eyes instantly became deep, his gaze piercing through the walls of the inn and looking towards the west of the city.

"That's interesting."

Su Changqing's lips curled into a playful smile. "I didn't expect to encounter a mental power expert of this level here."

"Mental power?" Li Hanyi was taken aback.

"Yes. The sound of this bell contains an extremely powerful spiritual fluctuation that can subtly influence a person's mind."

Su Changqing explained, "If someone with a weak mind hears this bell, they might hallucinate or even be controlled."

"Being controlled?!"

Xiao Se's expression changed drastically. "Could it be... a soul-capturing spell?!"

He recalled a terrifying opponent he had encountered in Tianqi City years ago, the heartless monk known as "Heart Demon Guide." But the sound of this bell felt even more eerie and sinister than Heart Demon Guide!

"It doesn't seem like a soul-capturing spell; it's more like... a summoning."

Su Changqing shook his head. "Someone is summoning something."

"call?"

Just as everyone was puzzled.

Sudden.

"roar--!!!"

A piercing roar came from the street.

Immediately following were screams and cries of alarm.

"Monster! There's a monster!"

"Help! Murder!"

Lei Wujie suddenly stood up, rushed to the window and looked down, and immediately gasped.

"Hiss—what...what the hell is this?!"

Suddenly, a group of hunched-over monsters covered in black hair appeared on the once quiet street!

They resemble humans, but walk on all fours, with claws as sharp as knives, and eyes that gleam with an eerie green light. They tear through the crowd with astonishing speed, each pounce taking a life!

"This is... a ghoul?!"

Xiao Se's face turned extremely ugly when he saw these monsters.

"Corpse demons? What are those?" Wushuang asked.

"That's a kind of evil magic from the Southern Manual!"

Xiao Se said in a deep voice, "Using living people's bodies to refine them, injecting them with corpse poison and Gu worms, turning them into monsters that only know how to kill! This kind of thing has long been listed as a forbidden technique, I didn't expect it to still appear!"

"Nan Jue?"

A murderous glint flashed in Li Hanyi's eyes. "It seems those Southern envoys were merely pawns used to probe the enemy. This is their real killing move!"

"The Crimson King... he actually colluded with Nan Jue to refine this evil creature within the territory of Bei Li?!" Lei Wujie trembled with rage. "Is he even human?!"

"He's not human, he's insane."

Xiao Se said coldly, "He's capable of anything for the throne."

At this moment, the screams downstairs grew louder and louder, and the ghouls had rushed into the inn and started killing in the lobby.

"Help! Hero, help me!"

The innkeeper and his staff were so frightened they ran upstairs as fast as they could.

"We can't let them get up here!"

Lei Wujie drew his terrifying sword, "Brother-in-law! I'm going to slaughter these beasts!"

"etc."

Su Changqing stopped him.

He glanced at the rampaging ghouls, then looked in the direction of the ancient temple in the west of the city.

"These are just puppets; killing them won't help. As long as the person controlling them lives, they will keep popping up."

"What should we do then?" Lei Wujie asked anxiously.

"To catch the thief, first catch the king."

Su Changqing stood up, handed Xiao Nuomi to Li Hanyi, and said, "You two stay here and keep watch, don't let these filthy things come up. I'm going to meet the person who rang the bell."

"I'm going too!" Xiao Se said. "This might be related to the Crimson King, I have to go and see."

"I'm going too!" Wushuang chimed in, "I've never slain a monster like this before, it'll be a good opportunity to test my skills!"

Su Changqing glanced at them and nodded.

"Alright, let's go together then. Lei Wujie, you stay here to protect your sister and Nuonuo."

"Huh? Why me again?" Lei Wujie asked, looking unwilling.

"Because you have a loud voice, you can scare ghosts." Su Changqing casually made up a story, then his figure flashed and he jumped directly out of the window.

Xiao Se and Wushuang followed closely behind.

The three of them, like three streaks of light, streaked through the night and headed straight for the ancient temple in the west of the city.

The streets were filled with panicked crowds fleeing and frantically chasing ghouls. Su Changqing didn't stop; he simply waved his sword and shattered all the ghouls blocking his path.

His target was clear—the manipulator lurking in the shadows!

Soon, they arrived at the ancient temple.

This was a long-abandoned earth god temple, dilapidated and in ruins, with half of its gate collapsed. But at this moment, an eerie green light shone from inside the temple, and the melodious sound of the bell was coming from here.

"It's inside."

Su Changqing stopped and looked at the dark door, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Playing tricks."

He raised his hand and made a grasping motion towards the door.

"Get out here!"

boom!

A tremendous suction force suddenly appeared out of nowhere, tearing the broken door to shreds!

Immediately afterwards, a gaunt old man dressed in a black robe and holding a small bronze bell was sucked out, staggering, and fell to the ground.

"Ouch! Who?! Who dares to ruin my good time?!"

The old man got up and roared angrily.

He was extremely ugly, his face was covered with pustules, and the small bronze bell in his hand was still vibrating slightly, emitting an unsettling aura.

"Is it you?"

Upon seeing the old man, Xiao Se's eyes flashed with surprise. "The junior brother of the Southern Imperial Preceptor, the Ghost Doctor Night Raven?!"

"Oh? Someone actually recognizes me?"

The raven cawed eerily, its murky eyes sweeping over Xiao Se before suddenly gleaming with greed. "This aura... is it the aura of a true dragon? You're that deposed Prince Yong'an?!"

"Hahaha! It's like finding a needle in a haystack! His Highness the Crimson King was just looking for you, but you've delivered yourself right to his doorstep!"

"If I capture you and refine you into the strongest medicine man, His Highness the Crimson King will surely reward me handsomely!"

"To become a medicine man?"

Xiao Se's eyes turned cold, and he gripped the Wuji Staff even tighter. "With your inhuman, ghost-like appearance?"

"Hmph! Sharp-tongued brat!"

Night Crow snorted coldly and shook the small bronze bell in his hand violently.

"when--"

The bell rang.

The ground around them suddenly began to shake violently, and rotting hands emerged from the ground!

"Come out, my darlings!"

Night Raven laughed wildly, "Let them see what a 'sea of ​​corpses' tactic really looks like!"

Countless ghouls crawled out from the ground, densely packed and overwhelming, instantly surrounding the three of them!

These ghouls were much stronger than those in the city, and they were even wearing tattered armor, clearly "elite monsters" that had been carefully crafted!

"So many..." Wushuang looked at the densely packed monsters and felt a chill run down her spine.

"Mr. Su, what should we do?" Xiao Se looked at Su Changqing.

Su Changqing frowned even more as he looked at the disgusting ghouls.

"I don't like this dirty stuff."

He said it calmly, then slowly raised his right hand.

"Since you enjoy playing with corpses, I'll send you to keep them company."

Before he could finish speaking...

A dazzling sword light burst forth from Su Changqing's fingertips!

That wasn't ordinary sword energy, but...

Righteousness and integrity!

It is the ultimate weapon against all evil spirits!

"The Third Form of the Myriad Gods' Calamity - Demon Slayer!"

boom!

The sword light burst forth like a blazing sun, instantly illuminating the entire night sky!

Those originally ferocious corpses turned to ashes the moment they came into contact with the sword light, like ice and snow meeting the scorching sun. They didn't even have time to scream before they turned to dust!

It only lasted for a moment.

Within a radius of 100 meters, all the corpses and demons were reduced to ashes!

Along with that ancient temple filled with evil energy, it was also razed to the ground by this sword!

"puff--!!!"

The small bronze bell in Night Raven's hand shattered instantly. He was struck by the backlash of the sword energy, spitting out a mouthful of black blood. He flew backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily to the ground, barely alive.

"What...what kind of swordsmanship is this?!"

Night Raven stared in horror at the man standing in the center of the sword light, feeling as if he were seeing a god descend to earth!

"The sword technique that will kill you."

Su Changqing walked up to him, looking down at him. "Go back and tell Xiao Yu to wash his neck and wait. I want his life."

After saying that, he stomped down.

"Snapped!"

The raven's head shattered like a watermelon.

Thus, a legendary healer fell from grace.

"Let's go back to sleep."

Su Changqing clapped his hands, turned and left, as if he had only done a trivial thing.

Xiao Se and Wu Shuang exchanged a glance, both seeing the shock in each other's eyes.

too strong!

Is this Mr. Su's true strength?

One sword vanquishes demons, and all evil cannot invade!

With someone like that around, Apocalypse City... doesn't seem so scary anymore.

……

The carriage set off again the next morning.

After last night's incident, the people of Sunset City were filled with awe and gratitude towards this team. If it weren't for their intervention, the entire city would likely have suffered last night.

"Mr. Su, thank you so much for saving my life!"

"Take care, Mr. Su!"

Amidst the cheers of the people, the carriage slowly drove out of the city gate.

Ahead lies the territory of Apocalypse City.

Su Changqing sat in the carriage, looking at the distant, faintly visible giant city, a hint of anticipation flashing in his eyes.

"Apocalypse, I'm coming."

"I wonder if the roast duck there is really as delicious as the legends say?"