The First Sword of the Universe

Chapter 351 Xu Xingchen: The Emperor's Sheep-Leading Ceremony - How Tragic!
Lin'an, the Imperial Palace.

Under the watchful eyes of thousands, Xu Xingchen walked on clouds, traversing a distance of dozens of feet between the rooftops and the palace walls.

With each step, a cloud of white mist, about a foot in size, would bloom from the sole of each foot, swirling and churning for a moment before dissipating.

Before they dissipated, Xu Xingchen had already used them as a fulcrum to appear in the air three zhang away.

After taking a dozen or so steps, he arrived above the city wall, several feet above the heads of the Song soldiers.

Squeak squeak!

Accompanied by the sounds of the machine pulling and turning, clusters of arrows, reflecting a cold light under the surrounding torches, all pointed upwards, aimed at the "arrogant and outrageous" figure in the sky.

Anger flashed in the eyes of the soldiers on the city wall. They were just waiting for the general above to give the order to fire the arrows from their powerful bows and crossbows, turning the man in the sky into a hedgehog!
These battle-hardened veterans, who had fought against the Jin Dynasty on the frontier, were completely bewildered and couldn't understand what was going on when they were recalled.

However, as more and more martial arts figures gathered in Lin'an City, some rumors inevitably reached their ears.

They were all instantly enraged.

When did these江湖人士 (jianghu figures) dare to challenge the majesty of the Song Dynasty's imperial power? Offend the face of the Song Dynasty's emperor? Disregard the power of the Song court?
Simply incredible!

Absolutely unforgivable!

In their view, martial arts practitioners are all idle and crude martial artists who like to work alone, believe in the survival of the fittest, and have their own set of so-called martial arts rules.

The two originally kept to themselves, each going their own way.

Even though some of these so-called "knights-errant" often fought alongside them against the Jin army, sometimes those "knights-errant" would use the guise of chivalry to assassinate some government officials.

Therefore, the Song Dynasty court had very complex feelings towards people from the martial arts world.

Rejection outweighs intimacy!
They believed that whether it was chivalrous heroes in the martial arts world, mountain bandits roaming the forests, or river bandits running rampant on the rivers, they were all unstable factors.

These Song soldiers guarding the walls of the imperial city should have been on the front lines confronting and fighting against the Jin army, but now they have been recalled by the emperor.
The purpose was not to exterminate these martial arts figures who dared to act recklessly in Lin'an City, but to defend the imperial city and prevent too many martial arts figures from breaking into the palace and causing greater damage.
The "weak" behavior of the emperor and his ministers fueled the anger of the soldiers guarding the city walls.

Now, seeing someone actually force their way into the palace...
Although it demonstrated the incredible miracle of walking on clouds.

But these soldiers couldn't resist the urge to fire their arrows and teach the man above them a lesson.

Compared to the anger of the soldiers below, the nearby generals could better appreciate the unfathomable martial arts skills of the person above them.

They knew that even if they gave the order and their soldiers unleashed a volley of arrows, it would not cause the man any harm.

In addition, there were repeated instructions from the officials, so he could only suppress his dissatisfaction and impulse and remain inactive.

Xu Xingchen had sneaked into the palace several times before; this was the first time she had climbed over the wall in front of thousands of people, and she was already prepared to be attacked by the soldiers on the wall.

If those people don't attack, then everyone is happy.

Otherwise, even if he were only defending, the soldiers on the wall would probably suffer heavy casualties!
Fortunately, the worst did not happen.

Xu Xingchen entered the imperial city safely, landing on the roof of a palace.

Then, he leaped up and quickly traversed the palaces, rapidly approaching the tallest, largest, and widest palace in the center.

Halfway there, a dozen or so figures with flowing robes suddenly darted up from the courtyard below.

Those figures
They may be tall and strong, or slender, or have a strong rouge-like complexion, or have a bewitching face.

His aura surged and flowed, demonstrating his exceptional lightness skill.

Regardless of their appearance or height, these people all have one thing in common.

His face was pale and beardless, and his eyes were cold, as if he hadn't seen the sun for a long time. Upon seeing him, one could feel a chilling aura emanating from him.

These people rushed onto the roof and tried to quickly surround Xu Xingchen from all directions.

Each figure flashed and leaped like lightning, leaving a trail of spiraling afterimages in the moonlight.

Xu Xingchen glanced at the figures that quickly gathered around and knew that they were all eunuchs from the imperial palace.

He had seen many people there during his previous visits to the palace, including quite a few "acquaintances".

At the time, he only went into the palace to explore its secrets and did not fight with these people; now it seems that these people all have the shadow of the Nine Yin Manual.

"The emperor of the Great Song Dynasty is quite generous, willing to entrust the Nine Yin Manual, this martial arts classic, to these eunuchs for study."

"However, lacking the content of those Sanskrit general principles, the yin energy emanating from these eunuchs was incredibly dense; even more sinister and eerie than that emanating from Mei Chaofeng and Chen Xuanfeng."

"However, it makes sense. These eunuchs weren't virgins to begin with; their yin and yang energies were severely imbalanced, so even without practicing the martial arts from the Nine Yin Manual, they still had an effeminate appearance."

"If one cultivates the martial arts from the Nine Yin Manual, wouldn't that be adding yin to yin, making it utterly cunning?!"

As the eunuchs drew closer, Xu Xingchen moved swiftly, increasing his speed, and immediately broke free from their encirclement.

Even when the distance between some palaces was too long, he crossed them by leaping across the sky, and halfway across, he stepped out of a swirling white cloud, which then sent his body to the top of the palace on the other side.

It wasn't until it had traveled on clouds three times in a row, traversing a distance of several dozen feet, and landed on the roof ridge of the highest and largest palace in the center, that it finally stopped.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
Figures gathered from all directions and landed on the nearby rooftops.

All the killing intent was locked onto Xu Xingchen.

The gazes directed at them were filled with barely concealed murderous intent. A middle-aged eunuch stepped forward and shouted in a shrill voice, "Who goes there? State your name!"

Xu Xingchen stood tall, his arms wrapped around the Dragon-Slaying Sword, unmoving.

Upon hearing the middle-aged eunuch's question, he remained silent for a moment, then, feeling that he should still give the Song Dynasty some face, he said, "I am Xu Xingchen, the Immortal of Cloud Stepping!"

Although the middle-aged eunuch had already noticed something amiss from Xu Xingchen's agility in scaling the wall, he still feigned sudden realization: "So, you are none other than the legendary Immortal Xu, who once wreaked havoc in the capital of the Great Jin Kingdom."

Then, frowning, he said, "Why aren't you causing trouble in the capital of the Great Jin Kingdom? What are you doing here in the palace of our Great Song Dynasty? Do you know how angry the Emperor is about tonight's events? Can you bear the consequences?"

Xu Xingchen looked up at the bright moon and said in a tone that could infuriate anyone, "What can the Emperor do to us if he's angry? There are ministers in the court who are secretly colluding with the powerful and influential of the Jin Kingdom, and generals who are having secret dealings with the Jin people."

"He can't even manage these things, how could he possibly manage us martial arts masters?!"

The middle-aged eunuch flew into a rage and shouted, "Insolence! It's none of your business how the Emperor acts!"

Xu Xingchen sneered and said sarcastically, "It's not our place to judge, who is?"

"Oh, right, isn't he the master of the Great Jin Kingdom?"

"I remember that two emperors of our Great Song Dynasty, along with their women, were captured by the Great Jin Dynasty. They were then made to wear sheepskins and crawl on the ground in a sheep-leading ceremony."

"Oh my goodness, that outcome was truly tragic."

"presumptuous!"

"shut up!"

Loud shouts came from the surrounding eunuchs.

One after another, figures rushed forward, leaving afterimages, determined to take down this outspoken scoundrel in one fell swoop.

The actions of those two emperors of the Song Dynasty were a disgrace to the entire Song Dynasty and a grave taboo for the government and the entire court.

This person dares to wantonly humiliate the ancestors of the Emperor in the capital of the Song Dynasty, which is a great act of disrespect.

They had to take action and capture him; otherwise, they would have no way to explain themselves to the authorities.

These eunuchs knew that they were practicing the most extraordinary martial art in the world: the Nine Yin Manual; therefore, they were very confident in their martial arts skills.

On ordinary days, apart from practicing on their own and sparring with each other, they have no opportunity to use their skills.

During this time, upon hearing that someone dared to hold the so-called "Number One Martial Arts Tournament in the World" on the roof of the palace, they were not only furious but also secretly delighted and excited.
They had been waiting for this moment, for these martial arts masters who had broken into the palace at night to arrive, so that they could display their prowess and capture them all in one fell swoop.

In this way, the arrogance of the martial arts world was curbed, the majesty of the Song Dynasty was demonstrated, and these people were allowed to show off.

This is a win-win-win situation!

However, these eunuchs were not without their own minds.

After the previous chase, they already knew that the person in front of them was probably more skilled than all of them.

Therefore, they never considered fighting alone; once they found an opportunity to attack, they immediately attacked as a group, swarming forward.

They moved with lightning speed, instantly closing in on Xu Xingchen within a few feet of him.

Some people curl their fingers into claws, their claws sharp and vicious.

Someone threw a punch, its power unmatched.

Some people possess a hidden inner strength in their palm strikes, capable of striking an ox across a mountain.

Someone drew out a long whip, which flew through the air like a nimble snake.

Each person's martial arts moves are ruthless, vicious, swift, and fierce.

He looked ferocious, as if he wanted to rip Xu Xingchen apart, tear his head apart, and break his spine.

Xu Xingchen's purpose in coming here was to provoke the Song Dynasty emperor, hoping to spur them to action and strive for greater strength.
Therefore, they try their best to put on a cold, aloof, and sarcastic attitude.

Faced with terrifying attacks from all sides, a disdainful sneer appeared on his lips.

Choking!

Amidst the clear, resonant sound of a longsword being drawn from its sheath.

A sharp and unparalleled sword light rose around him, traversing all directions and moving swiftly.

Wherever they went.
All of these points to the flaws in the eunuchs' martial arts techniques.

Dugu Nine Swords!

A superior sword technique that can defeat all martial arts techniques in the world!
Facing a martial arts master of the same level, one might have to endure a fierce battle.

But against those whose martial arts level is lower than his, it's an absolutely crushing defeat.

If you show mercy, I'll defeat the enemy with a single sword strike!
If you're ruthless, then it's like killing someone with a single sword strike!
The group of eunuchs who rushed over all changed their expressions drastically, their eyes filled with horror. They wanted to dodge, defend, and change their moves, but unfortunately they were in mid-air, and the speed of the opponent's sword light was too fast.
There is no place to hide, no way to avoid it!
They could only watch helplessly as the terrifying sword light passed through the flaws in their martial arts moves, slicing across their bodies one by one.

(End of this chapter)