The First Sword of the Universe

Chapter 36: Part . Brother Lao, long time no see
After packing two sets of clothes as his luggage and carrying his sword, Xu Xingchen said goodbye to his master, his mistress, his fellow brothers and sisters one by one and left Mount Huashan.

I drove slowly along the way, enjoying the scenery along the way, and my mood was as bright as the weather at that time.

It was a hot summer day, the scorching heat of July.

The mountains and plains are full of lush forests and grasses, and all the animals and plants on the earth are expressing their extremely vigorous vitality.

When Xu Xingchen had made some progress in his internal strength and was no longer afraid of cold or heat, he began to like such long summer days and such vibrant scenes.

After walking for a few days, Xu Xingchen had a deep understanding of the current environment.

In such an ancient dynasty with inconvenient transportation, even in periods of social peace, ordinary people were still only suitable to live and work in peace and were not suitable for traveling far.

Just as he left Huashan, Xu Xingchen encountered robbers blocking the road.

They were all fat and strong, with unkempt hair and dirty faces, grinning ferociously, and waving the big knives in their hands with a whirring sound.

"Boy, leave all your money behind, kowtow three times to me, and I will spare your life!"

"No money! No kowtow!"

"Then kill you and use you as dry food for a few days!"

After a simple and rough question and answer, the robbers ignored the sword in Xu Xingchen's hand and pounced on him with a strange laugh.

Xu Xingchen did not draw his sword. He just used the scabbard to lightly tap the robbers' foreheads. He walked forward and killed one robber after another. In a blink of an eye, more than a dozen rough robbers were lying on the ground, dead with peaceful looks on their faces.

After checking the body, nothing was found except those broken blades, but Xu Xingchen still nodded with satisfaction.

"It only damaged some of the robbers' brain nerves, and there was no bleeding on their facial organs."

"Well, my control over Jin-do is getting more and more sophisticated!"

Leaving the grove and continuing on his way, he began to reflect on what had just happened.

It was not until he arrived at a market place, stayed in an inn for the night, and saw himself in the bronze mirror that he suddenly realized what was going on.

He looked too young, and his figure was thin when he was dressed. Coupled with the quiet temperament that he had developed from years of reading and practicing qigong, he looked like a weak scholar who was well-read in poetry and books, and looked like someone who was "very easy to bully".

With this image, walking on the mountain road, even if holding a long sword in his hand, the robbers will still regard it as a prop for bluffing and ignore it.

".Would you like to add some beard to your chin and cheeks?"

"And draw a cross scar on your cheek?"

"And put a patch over one eye?"

After thinking for a while, Xu Xingchen quickly gave up the idea and thought: "Since I look like a weak scholar, I'll pretend to be one. It's a good opportunity to lure those robbers and villains into being punished!"

So when he left the market the next day, he stuffed his sword into the package, and broke off a straight branch on the way to use as a walking stick.

After a few days, he didn't know whether it was a psychological effect or some other reason, but he actually felt that this straight and smooth walking stick was more handy than his own sword, and he was reluctant to part with it.

It’s a pity that he is still a long way from reaching the realm of Dugu Qiubai, who “is not bound by things and can use grass, wood, bamboo and stone as swords”.

Along the way, everything turned out just as he expected.

Seeing a weak scholar traveling alone, many tigers living in the mountains and dragons passing by the river had evil intentions towards him. Then, in the innocent and pitying eyes of the "weak scholar", they were knocked to the ground with a stick, and surrendered their lives and all the money on their bodies.

Since Xu Xingchen acts in secret and uses shady methods, and strictly implements the philosophy of "eradicating all evil", no one knows about his chivalrous deeds until now.

However, when he arrived in Xi'an, some gossip had already begun to spread in nearby areas. After entering Xi'an, with plenty of money on him, Xu Xingchen went straight to a famous restaurant in the city.

I sat down at a wooden table near the window in a classic location on the second floor, ordered a pot of tea, and some meat and vegetable dishes. While waiting, I heard martial artists from the tables next to me, who were dressed in tight clothes and carrying weapons, talking to each other in a lively atmosphere.

"Have you heard? The Eight Evils of Huilong Mountain were killed!"

"I heard that where they died, there were only traces of their weapons being wielded, while the opponents who killed them did not leave any trace at all."

"I also heard that the Eight Evils of Huilong had no injuries on their bodies and no one knew how they died."

"Hiss, is it so weird?"

"I don't know who did it."

"Hehe, your information is outdated. Not only do I know that the Eight Evils of Huilong are dead, but I also know that the Three Tigers of Evil Mountain, the Two Brothers of Baihe, One Incense of Xiling, and the Thirteen Sons of Yinlin were all killed. It seems that the one who did it was the same person, because there are no visible wounds on their bodies."

The martial arts masters at those tables gasped, looking surprised and bewildered, and then began to sigh. Another powerful figure appeared in the martial arts world. They hoped that they would not be unlucky enough to meet him.
Tea and dishes were served on the table. Xu Xingchen ate and drank while listening to their conversation. He felt that the dead people they were talking about should be the evil people who died at the hands of his own men.

It was just that when he was eliminating the evil, some people reported their names and some did not, so he was not sure whether he had killed all those people.

Halfway through the meal, someone came up to the second floor with a thump, looked around, and when he saw Xu Xingchen's face, he hesitated for a moment, then walked over.

After drinking the tea and putting down the cup, Xu Xingchen turned around and saw the man was about fifty years old, with a familiar, wrinkled and honest face. He couldn't help but exclaimed in surprise, "So it's Senior Brother Er Lao?!"

Lao Denuo came up to him and sat down opposite him without waiting for his master's consent. His old face was still smiling like it was on the mountain before. He said, "Junior brother, I haven't seen you for more than two years. You have grown a lot taller than before. I almost didn't recognize you!"

Xu Xingchen laughed and said, "Brother Lao, I haven't seen you for more than two years. I hope you are doing well!"

Lao Denuo's face immediately turned sad, he shook his head and sighed: "How can I be safe? Ever since my master drove me down the mountain, I have been miserable and helpless, living in fear all day long. The pain I have gone through is really hard to describe in words."

"Brother Lao has suffered so much." Xu Xingchen showed sympathy, and then asked knowingly, "But, why was Brother Lao driven down the mountain by Master? Master once told us that you, Brother Lao, joined the Songshan Sect?"

Lao Denuo sighed to the sky, his old face looked even more vicissitudes and decadent, with a sad look of unbearable past: "The matter here is extremely complicated, and there is no point in saying more. Junior brother, are you willing to treat me, your senior brother, to a cup of tea?"

"Please excuse me, Senior Brother. Of course I am willing to do so!"

Xu Xingchen called the waiter over, and he brought a set of bowls and chopsticks, a teacup, and added two side dishes.

After eating, drinking and chatting for a while, Lao Denuo said with nostalgia in his eyes: "I have been down the mountain for two years, and I have always been worried about my fellow apprentices on the mountain. I wonder if my eldest brother still likes to drink like before."

"Is Third Junior Brother still a man of few words?"

"Fourth Junior Brother's ideas are always bizarre."

"Fifth Junior Brother is too honest and simple, which makes people worry about him."

"Sixth Junior Brother, do you still like playing with monkeys?"

"Seventh Junior Sister should have grown up by now, right?!"

"Eighth Junior Brother is kind-hearted"

Lao Denuo kept talking, mentioning his fellow apprentices on the mountain one by one. Finally, he stared at Xu Xingchen strangely with cloudy eyes and whispered softly: "Little apprentice brother, you surprised me the most."

"We have been in the same mountain for many years, but I, Senior Brother, never knew that your martial arts skills are actually the most powerful among our brothers."

Hearing this, Xu Xingchen showed a trace of nostalgia on his face and sighed softly!
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(End of this chapter)