The First Sword of the Universe

Chapter 353 If you want to play, play big
The fifteenth of August, a night of full moon.

A low, mournful sound of a flute drifted over, instantly paralyzing the defenses of one section of the imperial city wall.

Many martial arts masters took the opportunity to scale the city walls and enter the imperial city.

Of course, there were also some unlucky ones who were intercepted by the recovered Song army generals, had their pressure points pressed, and were then handed over to their men to be tied up with ropes.

As for how to handle it, we'll leave that for another time!
However, true masters of the martial arts world are few and far between.

The vast majority of martial arts practitioners remained on the streets and rooftops outside the city walls, watching with envy the figures of the masters who climbed over the walls and scaled the walls.

Someone cheered loudly!

Someone shouted excitedly!

Some people even cheered and encouraged those people!
The martial arts masters who entered the imperial city were initially very happy and excited; but when they saw the eunuchs and imperial guards standing on the rooftops of the palaces, their hearts sank.

Compare the number of people.
The number of experts inside the imperial city was significantly greater than the number of these martial arts masters who had forcibly entered.

If a conflict or battle really breaks out, these people will probably be in deep trouble!
The eunuchs and imperial guards on the palace rooftops swiftly surrounded the area, their figures flashing and leaping. They didn't attack immediately, but instead coldly shouted, "Do not make a move within the imperial city, or you will be killed without mercy!"

Then he said, "Come with me!"

He led these bewildered martial arts masters to the rooftops of a dozen or so nearby palaces, left them with the words, "Stay here and watch the fight, no need to wander around," and then turned and left.

These martial arts masters who managed to break in all held very high positions in the martial arts world.

Normally, how could they possibly obey someone else's orders? That would be a tremendous humiliation for them.

But now, standing in the imperial city of the Song Dynasty, surrounded by so many powerful figures coldly watching him, he suddenly felt immense pressure.
Almost everyone involuntarily suppressed their arrogant demeanor.

However, there are exceptions.
Qiu Qianren, the Iron Palm Water-Walking Master, was completely unaffected by the eunuchs and imperial guards' attempts to stop him. He simply shouted, "Get out of my way!"

He continued to leap forward, and if anyone tried to stop him, he would knock them away with a single palm strike.

The pursuit continued until the eunuchs and imperial guards, who had been chasing and blocking the way, realized the vast difference in strength between the two sides and gave up.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
One figure after another landed on the tallest, largest, and most extensive palace in the center of the imperial city.

The old eunuch turned his head and looked around, his brows furrowed and a hint of anxiety flashing in his eyes as he looked at the figures whose auras were no weaker than his own.
Upon seeing the newcomers, Xu Xingchen laughed heartily, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "Senior Hong, Island Master Huang, Senior Ouyang, and Qiu Qianren, it's a pleasure to meet you all!"

Leaning on his jade bamboo cane, Hong Qigong took a step and appeared beside Xu Xingchen: "Not all the people who should have come have arrived yet, but there is an extra person who shouldn't have come. Who is this brother with a unique appearance?"

Xu Xingchen followed Hong Qigong's gaze and couldn't help but laugh, "Senior Hong, this is the leader of the Iron Palm Clan, Iron Palm Water-Walking: Qiu Qianren. His martial arts skills are not much weaker than yours or mine."

The short and stocky Qiu Qianren snorted coldly, staring defiantly at Hong Qigong, and provocatively said, "Hong Qigong, I came here tonight to challenge you; let's see if your Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms are more powerful, or my Iron Sand Palm! Let's see whose palm technique is the most powerful and fierce in the world!"

Hong Qigong narrowed his eyes and laughed heartily, "You have great ambition, sir. Let's have a good match later!"

Ouyang Feng gripped his Ghost Head Serpent Staff, standing motionless on a corner of a flying eave. Only his eyes gleamed with a sharp light, like knives and swords. Whoever his eyes swept over would feel their hair stand on end and become wary.

Huang Yaoshi, dressed in a blue robe, stood on the eaves of another roof corner, holding a long flute in his hand, his hands behind his back, looking up at the round moon in the sky, his expression lonely, his eyes dim, as if he was recalling something.
Suddenly, several chaotic sounds came from the distant horizon.

Everyone turned to look and saw eight figures leaping down from the top of the imperial city wall one after another, leaving only the generals on the top, cursing loudly.

The eunuchs and imperial guards below the city wall immediately surrounded them, preparing to stop the eight people.

A voice shouted, "You can't stop me! I'm going over there to play! Hahahaha, hehehehehe!"

As he spoke, he darted and leaped, quickly breaking free from the encirclement of eunuchs and imperial guards.

"Uncle-Master! Wait for us!"

"Uncle-Master! Slow down!"

The seven men behind shouted loudly, brandishing their long swords and forming an exquisite sword formation. The sword light flashed and danced, changing in an unpredictable manner, forcing back all the eunuchs and imperial guards who had gathered around.

Then, they followed closely behind the figure in front, flying towards the central palace.

The bright moon hangs overhead, its silvery light spreading like snow.

The people on the roof of the central palace complex were all highly skilled, and they could clearly see the appearances of those people at a glance.

Who else could that plump, loud, white-haired old man in front be but the Old Mischievous Boy Zhou Botong?!
The seven people behind them.
There were six men and one woman, all dressed in blue Taoist robes, and they were around forty or fifty years old.

Each of them was agile and sharp-eyed, their movements swift and graceful, like golden geese soaring through the sky.

Xu Xingchen recognized Qiu Chuji, Ma Yu, and Wang Chuyi among the seven people, and knew that all seven disciples of Quanzhen had arrived!

"Hahahaha, Old Eccentric, Old Beggar, Old Poison, I, the Old Urchin, have arrived!"

Zhou Botong descended from the sky and came to Xu Xingchen's side, greeting everyone with a grin.

Then, turning to Xu Xingchen, he said, "Young man, I'm not late, am I? You guys haven't started yet, have you?"

Xu Xingchen said with a smile, "Zhou Botong, you've finally arrived! That's right, we haven't even started yet, we've been waiting for you!"

"Uncle-Master." "Huang Yaoshi"

"Ouyang Feng"

Hong Qigong

"Brother Xu"

"The Seven Masters of Quanzhen greet you all!"

The Seven Masters of Quanzhen, who arrived later, sheathed their swords and greeted the familiar figures on the rooftops and eaves.

Ouyang Feng and Huang Yaoshi ignored the seven of them.

Hong Qigong asked curiously, "Why are you seven here too?"

Ma Yu said solemnly, "Hong Qigong, although our martial arts skills are inferior to yours, we have the Heavenly Dipper Formation taught by our master; the seven of us working together are enough to withstand any one of you."

Xu Xingchen asked, puzzled, "So what? This time we're competing to see who is the best in the world! It's a bit inappropriate for the seven of you to use formations to fight?"

Qiu Chuji spoke up: "If our Quanzhen Sect doesn't send someone to this grand martial arts competition to determine the best in the world, it would tarnish the reputation of my master, the Central Divine."

What he meant was that anyone who didn't understand the situation would be completely confused.

Although Zhou Botong was Wang Chongyang's junior brother and the senior uncle of the Seven Masters of Quanzhen, he was not considered a member of the Quanzhen Sect.

Therefore, Zhou Botong's participation in this grand event does not represent the Quanzhen Sect.
At this moment, Ouyang Feng, who had been silent all along, finally spoke, but his tone was very disdainful: "Your Quanzhen Sect has lost Wang Chongyang, yet you still dare to parade around and participate in this grand event?!"

"Hmph! In a moment, I will test your Heavenly Dipper Formation and see how much of Wang Chongyang's martial arts you Seven Masters of Quanzhen have inherited."

"By the way, I'll kill a few of you to vent my anger!"

Qiu Chuji, with the most fiery temperament, stared intently at Ouyang Feng atop the eaves and shouted, "Ouyang Feng, back then, our master was able to break your Toad Skill. Today, we, the Seven Masters of Quanzhen, can also break your Toad Skill!"

Ouyang Feng sneered: "How arrogant!"

at this time
The old eunuch spoke too, his voice soft and high-pitched, yet flowing like water into everyone's ears: "Gentlemen, please hear me say a few words."

"The Emperor is furious at your blasphemous behavior."

"How dare they come to the imperial palace to hold some kind of martial arts tournament?!"

"This is a crime deserving the execution of nine generations of one's family."

"The Emperor said that if you leave today, all will be well; but if you refuse to leave, and any one of you is injured or defeated in this contest, then we will find an opportunity to arrest you, and don't blame us for the ruthlessness of the law!"

Among experts, there is a sense of connection, so everyone had to take the old eunuch's words with utmost caution.

Hong Qi laughed openly, "You old codger, you're still alive! A few years ago, I sneaked into the palace to find something to eat, but you chased me for a long way."

The old eunuch glanced at Hong Qigong and sneered, "So, you're the thief who always steals food from the imperial kitchen?! No wonder I could always smell your poverty on the wind when I was chasing you."

Hong Qigong shook his head and joked, "I'm a beggar. I don't smell of poverty, I only smell of sourness, hahaha!"

The old eunuch ignored Hong Qigong, glanced at the others, and said indifferently, "I have already told you what the Emperor said; if you are still stubborn and insist on going your own way, then please leave!"

As soon as he finished speaking, his figure swayed slightly and disappeared.

Upon witnessing the old eunuch's astonishing lightness skill, Zhou Botong exclaimed in surprise, "This person has actually cultivated the Nine Yin Manual? And his skill is profound!"

Hong Qigong laughed and said, "Old rascal, what's so surprising about that? The Nine Yin Manual that your senior brother stole back then was a handwritten copy that circulated from the Song Dynasty imperial palace."

The old rascal scratched the back of his head, looking troubled and frustrated: "That's right; I was just thinking that the Nine Yin Manual is out there, and we martial arts practitioners are fighting over it like crazy."

"Yet within this imperial city, it became a martial art that every eunuch could learn."

"I wonder what my senior brother would think if he found out about this?!"

Ouyang Feng watched the old eunuch's figure disappear onto the roof of the palace not far away, a strange glint flashing in his eyes.

If we were to say who among the people present had the deepest obsession with the Nine Yin Manual, it would undoubtedly be Ouyang Feng, the Western Poison!

For this reason, he once rushed up Zhongnan Mountain to seize the Nine Yin Manual when Wang Chongyang faked his death.
Now, seeing that all the eunuchs in this palace can practice the Nine Yin Manual, this extraordinary book, my feelings are truly complex and hard to describe.

不甘
懊恼
Rage
Ouyang Feng couldn't help but coldly retort, "Alright, everyone who's supposed to be here is here now. Since Brother Duan hasn't arrived yet, he must have given up on this competition."

"Young Master Xu, how should this competition proceed?"

At this point, he couldn't help but sneer: "You're not suggesting that we compete in pairs and then advance through the ranks, are you?"

Xu Xingchen shook his head and said, "Of course not, that kind of competition method is too bland and not exciting at all."

"Let's go big this time."

(End of this chapter)