All Heavens: A Role-Playing System Starting from Tianlong

Zhong Ling hid outside the martial arts hall, peeking inside cautiously for a while.

Taking advantage of everyone's attention being on the arena, he leaped silently onto the roof beam.

Their movements were as light as a swallow, and none of the dozens of people in the hall noticed.

Zhong Ling sat horizontally on the roof beam, her legs dangling in the air, looking down at the arena.

On the fighting stage, a middle-aged man and a young disciple were engaged in a fierce battle.

The sword flashed, and the clanging sound was incessant.

Zhong Ling glanced at it a few times and then pouted.

No wonder my parents said that the Wuliang Sword Sect was overrated, and the so-called martial arts masters they invited were mostly empty names.

No one even noticed me sneaking onto the roof beam. With skills like that, I think I could become a "master" in the Yunnan martial arts world, yay!

Just as she was thinking this, the leather pouch at her waist suddenly began to tremble.

She quickly lowered her head and whispered soothingly to the skin:

"Shh—quiet down. If we get caught now, we won't get to see the rest of the show."

The contents of the bag seemed to understand human speech, and the commotion gradually subsided.

Zhong Ling breathed a sigh of relief and turned her attention back to the arena.

The competition on the field had already ended.

During the competition, the victorious middle-aged man's comical moves caused a young man in a blue robe in the audience to burst into laughter.

Now that the outcome is decided, the two actually started arguing in public.

The young man looked like a scholar, speaking in a refined and scholarly manner. Before long, he had angered the other party so much that he turned red in the face and drew his sword.

Chung Ling watched with great interest from the beam.

Seeing that the man remained calm and composed even when a sword was pointed at him, she naturally matched him with the "pretending to be weak to catch a tiger" master her parents had described.

She thought to herself: This person must be hiding his true abilities. He will definitely show off a special skill later and amaze everyone.

Unexpectedly, the two actually started fighting. The man slapped the young master so hard that he stumbled and fell to the ground with a thud, his left cheek quickly swelling up.

Zhong Ling watched in disbelief from the beam.

"Tsk, this guy doesn't know any martial arts and yet he's so arrogant..." she muttered under her breath, "What an idiot."

She watched from the beam for a while longer, and saw that the Wuliang Sword Sect members had given the bookworm a beating, but they were still not letting it go.

The bookworm, however, remained defiant and refused to back down, eventually losing his temper.

Oh well, I'm just a kind-hearted girl who can't stand seeing others bully the weak.

Unfortunately, even though I got up this early today, I still missed the rest of the show.

She reached out and touched the leather pouch at her waist, about to make a move, when the tip of her ear suddenly twitched.

Huh? What's that sound...? It sounds like a horse is charging at us? But the sound is a little soft.

Just as she was wondering what was going on, the voice reached outside the martial arts hall.

next moment--

"Bang--!"

"You scoundrel, release that scholar!"

The two heavy wooden doors of the martial arts hall were violently smashed open from the outside by a tremendous force.

Wood chips flew everywhere, and the door hinges groaned under the strain.

A dark shadow swept into the hall like a whirlwind!

Everyone in the hall was startled and turned to look at the scene.

A magnificent black horse suddenly charged into the hall, its hooves barely making a sound as it moved at an astonishing speed.

A man and a woman, both dressed in black, rode on horseback.

The man was burly and imposing; the woman, her face veiled in black, leaned against him with a graceful figure.

The two men and one horse suddenly burst into the martial arts hall.

The room was completely silent.

Zhong Ling, perched on the beam, had her small mouth slightly open and her eyes wide open.

She rubbed her eyes, then rubbed them again.

"Am I...am I hallucinating because I didn't sleep in today?"

She murmured to herself, "Why do I see Sister Mu leaning against a man's arms?"

The man and woman who stormed in were naturally Zhang Cheng and Mu Wanqing.

They set off from Bixi Town yesterday afternoon. Because Zhang Cheng had given Yue Laosan the [Iron Cavalry Follows] buff, Black Rose's speed was greatly reduced.

The three of them rode at breakneck speed all the way, and only just arrived at Wuliang Mountain.

However, Yue Laosan's injuries have mostly healed, and he is fine as long as he doesn't face a skilled opponent of the same level.

Just before heading up the mountain, Zhang Cheng took the reins again. "Black Rose" was already a magnificent steed, and with his riding skills enhanced, it charged straight up the stone steps.

The servants and disciples outside couldn't stop them.

Zhang Cheng first asked Yue Laosan to wait outside the martial arts hall to prevent the little cutie from affecting the aura of "Master Zhang" on his first appearance.

Next, he discussed with Mu Wanqing the question of "who should sit in the front," and was eventually persuaded by Mu Wanqing on the grounds that she would appear more imposing in the front.

As they approached the martial arts hall, Zhang Cheng could already hear the sounds coming from inside.

He discerned the conversation in the hall, seized the opportune moment, and thus created the scene that had him taking the lead.

But when he rushed in, he was dumbfounded.

Where is Duan Yu? Where did my elegant, bookish Duan Yu go? And who is that guy in the green clothes in the middle of the field?

Because Zhang Cheng had just barged in and disrupted things, most of the people in the hall were already hostile towards him.

At this moment, everyone was intimidated by his military might. The few disciples who had no hostility dared not speak since the sect leader and elders had not spoken.

Fortunately, the awkward atmosphere didn't last long.

"despair."

With a soft sound, Zhong Ling gracefully leaped down from the beam.

Only then did everyone in the hall realize that someone had been hiding on the beam all along.

After landing, she casually pulled the idiot to his feet, then waved to Zhang Cheng and the other man, her eyes crinkling with a smile:

"Sister Mu, it's been so long!"

Mu Wanqing was slightly taken aback when she saw Zhong Ling.

"Zhong Ling? What are you doing here?"

She knew her close friend's personality very well, and knew that she had little interest in practicing martial arts.

Even though Wanjie Valley is near Wuliang Mountain, they would never make a special trip to watch any sect competition.

"I heard there was something interesting happening here, so I came to check it out."

Zhong Ling approached with a grin, her gaze shifting between Zhang Cheng and Mu Wanqing, a sly glint in her eyes:

"Sister Mu, who is this young man? Why have I never heard you mention him before?"

She was fairly familiar with Mu Wanqing and knew that this woman was never one to give men the time of day.

Now that she's leaning against a man's chest, it's only natural that we should tease her a bit.

Upon hearing this, Mu Wanqing glared fiercely at Zhong Ling.

She knew that Zhang Cheng valued this "public display of power" very much.

Although she didn't understand why Zhang Cheng, with his martial arts skills, needed to care about the opinions of these small fry on the mountain, she was willing to cooperate.

Therefore, she simply glared at Zhong Ling without replying, leaving the entire scene to Zhang Cheng beside her.

Zhang Cheng sat upright on his horse, surveying the crowd in the hall from his elevated position.

He cleared his throat, preparing to say something polite.

But then, from below the stage, the green-clad Duan Yu, whom Zhong Ling had helped up, suddenly cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, his tone sincere:

"Thank you for your help. However, my interaction with this brother from the Wuliang Sword Sect was merely a friendly exchange of ideas and discussions, not a real fight."

"There must be some misunderstanding that has led to this brave man barging in like this."

Zhang Cheng: "..."

His lips twitched, and the way he looked at Duan Yu was as if he were looking at a fool.

Brother, the bright red handprint on your face is still fresh, and your left cheek is swollen like a steamed bun. You call this "exchanging ideas and discussing philosophy"?

When Mu Wanqing saw that the idiot in the room suddenly spoke up and ruined Zhang Cheng's long-awaited "performance" with just one sentence, her face immediately darkened.

Zhong Ling, who was standing to the side, also looked shocked.

She didn't expect that this fool, who had been bullied so badly by the Wuliang Sword people before, would now be pleading for Wuliang Sword when someone was clearly backing him up.

Moreover, Zhong Ling was adept at reading people's expressions. She had already noticed that her hot-tempered sister Mu's expression was off, and she was really afraid that this bookworm would be stabbed through by a sword at any moment.

Fortunately, Zhang Cheng spoke up before Mu Wanqing could erupt.