I am a prince in Zhutian Films

Chapter 523 Four Years in the Blink of an Eye
evening.

Qiu Jian Ge.

Several months later, Zhou Chengan met his mother, who was extremely prone to tears.

Judging from his red eyes, he had indeed cried a lot.

"mother."

Zhou Chengan called out and then greeted Zhao Yutai.

"Master Zhao."

Upon hearing this title, Wu Ning immediately became unhappy.

"You brat, what's your name, Master Zhao?"

The word "brat" completely destroyed the authority Zhou Cheng'an had built up over the winter, but Zhou Cheng'an had no choice but to change the way he addressed him.

"Aunt Zhao."

Zhao Yutai couldn't help but smile: "Sect Leader, there's no need for that."

It was clear that although Zhao Yutai still addressed him as "Master," his attitude was noticeably more friendly, as if he were treating him like a nephew.

They are the kind of successful nephews and nieces.

“No need for that. Since he is my son, he should call you Aunt. You don’t need to call him Headmaster. Call him whatever you like.”

Wu Ning was from a branch of the Wu family's sword tomb; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to leave the Wu family's sword tomb and marry Zhou Hongwen, who was then a prince of Ningguo and traveling the martial arts world.

Her status within the Wu family's sword tomb was not high, perhaps even lower than that of Zhao Yutai, Wu Su's sword attendant. However, she had a very good relationship with Wu Su since childhood, and naturally, she was also like a sister to Zhao Yutai.

“Miss Ning, etiquette cannot be disregarded.” Zhao Yutai shook his head and smiled: “Since I am a member of Qingyang Palace, I should address Young Master An as Sect Leader.”

"You're still so stubborn."

Wu Ning sighed helplessly and turned to look at his son, Zhou Cheng'an.

Zhou Cheng'an knew without her even having to say anything that she wanted him to make a statement.

“Aunt Zhao, you and my mother are like sisters, so there’s no need to call me Sect Leader. Call me whatever you like.”

"Yes, Master."

Zhou Chengan spread his hands, indicating his helplessness.

Wu Ning didn't dwell on the issue anymore. He simply held Zhao Yutai's hand with one hand and stroked the hideous scars on her face with the other, saying with heartache, "You used to be such a beautiful girl, how did you end up like this?"

As she spoke, tears welled up in her eyes again, as if they were about to fall at any moment.

Zhao Yutai was clearly well aware of Wu Ning's tendency to cry easily, and quickly offered words of comfort.

As for Zhou Cheng'an, it's obvious what his mother was planning.

"Mom, don't worry, I've recently finished making a batch of scar removal ointment. I guarantee that Aunt Zhao will recover completely after using it."

The Wu Family Sword Tomb is a mysterious place in the martial arts world, where they claim to have the best swordsmanship in the world.

The descendants of the Wu family are all swordsmen. In each generation, a swordsman will travel the world and emerge to compete for the title of the best swordsman. Each swordsman will also be accompanied by a sword attendant.

The previous generation of Wu family swordsmen was Wu Su, the princess of Beiliang, and Zhao Yutai was her sword attendant.

Although Zhao Yutai was a tall and strong woman, she was also very spirited and had many admirers when she was young.

Although Zhao Yutai was Wu Su's sword attendant, these non-family members chosen by the Wu family from childhood grew up with the sword master and accompanied him throughout his life. They were already very close, and Zhao Yutai and Wu Su were like sisters.

Back then, Wu Su broke with the Wu family's Sword Tomb for Xu Xiao's sake, and Zhao Yutai also chose to leave the Sword Tomb. During the fight, his face was slashed by eighteen swords, leaving him with scars all over his face, and he has been wearing a bronze mask ever since.

Afterwards, Wu Su went to Liaodong to Beiliang, and Zhao Yutai stayed by his side without ever abandoning him.

During the Spring and Autumn Period war in which Xu Xiao conquered six states, Zhao Yutai, who was outstanding in swordsmanship, repeatedly charged into battle and was seriously wounded many times. Zhao Changling, Li Yishan, and the Xu family army at the time all admired her greatly.

After Xu Xiao was enfeoffed as the King of Northern Liang, Zhao Yutai followed Wu Su to Northern Liang.

Wu Su once took the young Xu Fengnian and Zhao Yutai on an outing. When Zhao Yutai took off his mask to drink water, his ugly and ferocious face terrified Xu Fengnian and made him cry.

Therefore, Princess Wu Su of Beiliang was angry with Xu Fengnian for the first time and punished him by making him face the wall and not allowing him to eat.

However, Zhao Yutai didn't blame him; instead, she stayed with him. But Xu Fengnian was extremely ungrateful and kicked her.

This made Wu Su even angrier, but instead of punishing Xu Fengnian, Wu Su told Xu Fengnian the story of Zhao Yutai.

Upon hearing this, the young Xu Fengnian personally picked a handful of mulberries and gave them to Zhao Yutai.

From then on, Xu Fengnian never looked down on Zhao Yutai's appearance again and always treated her as his closest aunt.

Of course, besides Xu Fengnian, Xu Weixiong, Xu Zhihu, and Xu Longxiang of the Xu family also treated Zhao Yutai as their own aunt.

In short, after Xu Fengnian picked mulberries for her, Zhao Yutai no longer cared much about her appearance.

However, if there were a scar-removing ointment, Zhao Yutai would still hope to restore his appearance.

Ultimately, Zhao Yutai was also a woman, and what woman in the world wouldn't care about her appearance?

So she smiled and said, "Then thank you very much, Master."

"Aunt Zhao, you're too kind. It's getting late, let's go eat first. After we eat, I'll make the scar removal ointment tonight."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yutai rarely showed a smile: "Sect Leader, there's no need to be in such a hurry. So many years have passed, what's a little more time?"

“Aunt Zhao, you’re not in a hurry, but some people are.”

Zhou Chengan jokingly remarked, his words carrying a hidden meaning.

"Hmph, it's good that you know it."

Wu Ning gave a soft hum like a little girl, and pulled Zhao Yutai toward Lingzhi Garden.

Zhou Chengan was a man of his word. After the whole family had dinner, he worked through the night to make a batch of scar removal ointment.

However, scar removal is not something that can be done overnight; it takes time.

It wasn't until more than half a year later that the hideous scars on Zhao Yutai's face completely disappeared. Not only did his appearance fully recover, but he also looked several years younger.

……

Spring and autumn have passed, and another winter has arrived.

A year has passed since Zhou Chengan took over Qingyang Palace.

A female Taoist priest who had a romantic relationship with Wu Shizhen gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl, for him.

The son was named Wu Mian, and the daughter was named Wu Jing.

Wu Shizhen, who died last winter, was a father of both a son and a daughter.

From the moment the two children became visible, Zhou Chengan found himself in a situation where he was pressured to get married.

After he was born, Wu Ning would say something like that with every meal.

“Look at your Aunt Zhao, she’s already holding her grandchildren, and I haven’t even seen a glimpse of my daughter-in-law yet. When are you going to get married and have children? You’re the only son in your Zhou family.”

Otherwise, it's something like, "My son is so good-looking, his children will definitely be better-looking than Yutai's grandchildren. It's a pity that some people can't even find a wife."

Zhou Cheng'an was speechless and helpless about this, so he simply moved out of Lingzhi Garden and found a place to practice his skills in seclusion.

This seclusion lasted for a month.

Not long after he left the pass, Wu Lingsu received a summons from the Emperor of Liyang.

Before leaving, Wu Lingsu came to see Zhou Chengan once.

Zhou Cheng'an didn't give any instructions, but only told him to bring along the 108 Hunyuan Wuji Shenxiao Sword Formation Daoists.

The Divine Firmament Sword Formation possesses its own brilliance, which will surely illuminate the entire capital!
The so-called Hunyuan Wuji Shenxiao Sword Formation is an improved version of the Shenxiao Sword Formation.

During this year, in addition to the addition of one hundred Blood-Clad Guards, Qingyang Palace also recruited some new disciples.

Zhou Cheng'an improved both the Divine Firmament Sword Formation and the Jade Firmament Sword Formation. The Divine Firmament Sword Formation, which consisted of 36 people, was further strengthened into the Primordial Chaos Divine Firmament Sword Formation, which consisted of 108 people.

Then, he created the Crimson Sky Sword Formation, which consists of three people, and above it, the Azure Sky Sword Formation, which consists of six people, and the Green Sky Sword Formation, which consists of nine people.

In other words, the Shenxiao lineage now has five major sword formations.

They are Chixiao, Bixiao, Qingxiao, Yuxiao, and the Hunyuan Wuji Shenxiao Sword Formation composed of 108 people.

In addition, Zhou Cheng'an also specifically passed down a Taoist Qi cultivation method called "Shenxiao Thunder Control Technique" for the disciples of the Shenxiao lineage to practice. Therefore, all the disciples of Shenxiao knew that there was an old ancestor surnamed Zhou, who was a master of creation, presiding over Qingyang Palace.

Nowadays, the atmosphere at Qingyang Palace has changed drastically. While practicing martial arts and cultivating internal energy, the disciples of Shenxiao Palace have not neglected to study Taoist scriptures.

Wu Lingsu also played a significant role in making these changes.

More importantly, he was extremely dedicated to his work, leaving no room for criticism.

But only he knows the extent of the pain of losing his son that has left a shadow in his heart, and how much hatred is hidden in his soul.

However, Zhou Chengan believed that after visiting Liyang Capital, Wu Lingsu's hidden hatred would be greatly reduced.

After Wu Lingsu left, the mountain became even quieter.

Zhou Cheng'an did not go into seclusion again, but he continued to cultivate without interruption. However, in order to avoid being pressured to get married, he rarely returned to Lingzhi Garden, either teaching his two disciples or giving lectures to Hu Kui and Xiao You.

As for the miscellaneous matters of Qingcheng Mountain, they were all handed over to Zhao Huaien to handle.

As one of Zhou Cheng'an's most capable subordinates, Zhao Huai'en had the most extensive experience in managing affairs. Under his management, not only were all the affairs of Qingcheng Mountain handled in an orderly manner, but many Taoist priests from the Nine Pecks of Rice sect also returned.

Zhou Cheng'an didn't need to worry about worldly affairs at all; he only needed to focus on cultivation.

……

Time flies when you're practicing meditation in the mountains; three years have passed in the blink of an eye.

Zhou Cheng'an has been in charge of Qingyang Palace for four years. While Qingyang Palace has undergone changes, his cultivation has also made great strides.

The progress bar for reaching the strongest Vajra Realm has reached 95%, and Zhou Cheng'an can clearly feel the difference in the final 5% compared to before.

If the first 95 percent is a smooth road, then the last 5 percent is like climbing mountains and crossing valleys; the difficulty of the two is on completely different levels.

Moreover, it will become more and more difficult as you go on.

However, Zhou Chengan was not in a hurry.

Firstly, he still had some Dragon Essence left to consume.

Furthermore, spiritual practice is not something that can be rushed.

On this sunny day, Zhou Cheng'an, as usual, took Xiao Shanzha and Xiao Que'er, along with the siblings Wu Mian and Wu Jing, to the mountains to preach to Hu Kui.

Four years have passed, and the children have grown up quite a bit.

For example, Xiao Shanzha has grown rapidly in the past four years. Although she is only twelve years old, she is already approaching 1.7 meters tall.

Little Sparrow is almost ten years old now, and the young lady is growing more and more beautiful.

These two children became Zhou Cheng'an's golden boy and jade girl, holding a transcendent status in the Qingyang Palace.

Besides the two of them, there are also Wu Mian and Wu Jing, two three-year-old babies.

Under Zhao Yutai's personal guidance, the brother and sister were already very sensible at a young age.

My older brother has a cheerful personality, but he's a bit unreliable.

My younger sister is introverted, but a little mischievous.

Among everyone in Qingyang Palace, the brother and sister liked Zhou Cheng'an, their sect leader uncle, the most.

In addition, because they aspire to become chivalrous heroes, they now spend almost all their time cultivating with Zhou Cheng'an.

They can endure hardship and fatigue.

This often makes Wu Lingsu, the grandfather, feel that his two children did not inherit his fear of hardship and fatigue, but at the same time he is very gratified.

It's also worth mentioning that Wu Lingsu practically lives at Qiujiange now, so he can see his two children more often. No matter how much Zhao Yutai tries to urge him to leave, he just won't budge, which has actually improved the relationship between the nominal couple.

Deep in the mountains.

As usual, Zhou Cheng'an led his four children to preach to Hu Kui Xiaoyou.

Two years ago, the Fire Qilin would have appeared.

However, in the last two years, the Fire Kirin has entered another stage of evolution and has been taken into the space that the system specially created for it by Zhou Cheng'an.

Once this evolution is complete, the Fire Kirin will be able to stay in the outside world for a long time.

at the same time.

Liangzhou.

Qingliang Mountain, the Northern Liang King's Palace, in the Tingchao Pavilion.

A small old man with slightly graying temples, not tall, unremarkable in appearance, slightly lame in middle age, and a slight hunchback, but dressed in fine clothes and with eyes as sharp as an eagle, walked up to the eighth floor.

This person is none other than the famous King of Northern Liang – Xu Xiao.

He joined the army at the age of ten and killed people. He killed the Xiongnu in Jinzhou in the northeast, destroyed six large and small states in the south, massacred more than seventy cities, and then suppressed sixteen barbarian tribes in the southwest. During the Spring and Autumn Period, he successively destroyed the six states of Later Sui, Later Song, Northern Han, Great Wei, Western Shu and Western Chu.

After the fall of Western Chu, he was granted the title of Grand Pillar of State, and the next day he was granted the title of King of Northern Liang.

After Li Yang unified the land, he roamed the martial world, and from then on, no one in the martial world dared to use martial arts to disrupt the laws.

He guarded the northwest gateway and ruled over the three northwestern states. During his lifetime, the Northern Barbarians dared not set foot in the Central Plains!

From six hundred old soldiers who left Liaodong to command three hundred thousand iron cavalry of Beiliang, he spent his life on the battlefield, achieving numerous military exploits. He single-handedly destroyed six kingdoms and established an unparalleled foundation for the Liyang Dynasty. He was Xu Xiao, one of the three great demons of the Spring and Autumn Period.

Bamboo slips and ancient books were scattered all over the building. On a rosewood table, there was a dim, flickering candle. In the corner, there was a green gourd filled with wine, with a red rope tied to the mouth of the gourd and the withered arm of a person.

The man sat on the ground, his hair disheveled, his face as pale as snow, with a faint red mark between his brows that, upon closer inspection, resembled an inverted phoenix eye.

He was dressed in hemp clothing, barefoot and cross-legged, and his pen flew across the paper.

Xu Xiao picked up the dozen or so bamboo slips from the ground, arranged them neatly, and then found a place to sit down.

"I made it in time, but I forgot to bring the wine."

The disheveled man remained silent, as if he hadn't heard a word, and continued writing rapidly.

Xu Xiao was used to this and said to himself, "Feng Nian is leaving, and I'm going to the capital too. There won't be anyone to keep you company for a while."

"It's strange, but even after several years of investigation, the secret agents were unable to uncover my nephew's past."

"In the past few years, Yutai has sent back messages from time to time, so we have gained some understanding of that sect leader."

"Three years ago, Wu Lingsu led 108 Shenxiao Taoists into the capital. Before the emperor, he used the 108 Shenxiao Thunder Lightning to illuminate the capital. It is said that he could easily trap and kill Zhixuan, and even celestial phenomena might be killed."

"Yishan, do you think my sect leader's nephew is really a terrestrial immortal?"

The withered, ghost-like man spoke, his voice like the crack of metal.

"I've never seen it, so it's hard to say."

Xu Xiao clicked his tongue twice and looked out the window towards Mount Qingcheng.

"Judging by the days, Feng Nian should be arriving at Qingcheng Mountain by now."

The sickly man didn't speak this time. He picked up the wine gourd and poured it out, but no wine came out. He felt bored and stopped writing, his eyes glazed over.

Xu Xiao stood up, turned to look at a painting of an immortal on the south wall, and said with his hands behind his back, "Yishan, do you think the martial world is about to be in turmoil again?"

The sickly man glanced at him and said calmly, "A favorable wind is just the right time to set sail."

Upon hearing this, Xu Xiao smiled faintly: "It seems that you also consider my nephew to be a friend rather than an enemy."

"Zhao Yutai does have good judgment, but I trust the Princess more."

This means that someone who can be regarded as a sister by the Queen of Northern Liang must be exceptional, and her son would not be an enemy of Northern Liang.

Xu Xiao naturally understood Li Yishan's implied meaning, and thinking of Princess Wu Su of Beiliang, he couldn't help but laugh.

"Yes, her taste is never bad."

As the only remaining non-royal king of the Liyang Dynasty, Xu Xiao, the King of Beiliang, was both praised and criticized in the imperial court and the martial arts world. As a meritorious military official, he had obtained everything except the emperor's throne. In the three northwestern states, he was the undisputed ruler, wielding absolute power and manipulating events at will.

Those in the court who disagreed with him on political matters cursed him behind his back as "Xu the Cripple" or "Xu the Barbarian," and some even went so far as to maliciously label him as a "second emperor."

But Xu Xiao didn't care about any of that. What he cared about, and what worried him the most, was whether the Northern Liang dynasty would continue to exist after his death, and whether his children would live in peace.

Therefore, he sent his son Xu Fengnian out into the world to gain experience.

The place he personally designated for Xu Fengnian to go was Qingcheng Mountain!
(End of this chapter)