Starting from the imperial palace guards, his clones spread all over the world.

Chapter 541 Sword Monument
Before dusk had completely faded, Shen Wanshi's vanguard arrived like a shooting star, and a visiting card embroidered with cloud patterns in gold thread was presented to Liang Jin.

After reading the visiting card, Liang Jin finally uttered a single word:

"please."

As Shen Wanshi's convoy snaked its way in like a golden python, the twilight was completely replaced by lights.

Soon, the two convoys met up.

This made everyone at Qingyi Tower even more aware of the extravagance of Shen Wanshi's life.

His caravan included ten carriages specifically for carrying various delicacies.

The chefs slaughtered the Mihu suckling pigs on site; these pigs were fed with cow's milk.

The tableware that Shen Wanshi used was priceless: the bowls and plates were specially supplied, each of which went through hundreds of processes, and his exclusive emblem was painted on the bottom of the bowl in pure gold; the chopsticks were made from the shell of a thousand-year-old tortoise from the East China Sea, which was not only warm and smooth, but could also be used to test for poison.

The convoy was also equipped with twenty doctors, whose medicine kits contained pills made from precious medicinal materials such as thousand-year-old ginseng and Tian Shan snow lotus, all to ensure that Shen Wanshi's health was in perfect condition.

But Shen Wanshi was also generous.

He waved his hand and ordered a large open-air banquet to be set up on the roadside:

"I, Shen, have prepared a simple banquet and hope you will all do me the honor of attending!"

Clearly, he was going to host a banquet for everyone at the Qingyi Tower.

Muzzarra and many others looked disdainful.

With their power and status, how could anyone simply invite them to dinner?

Especially since they are all martial artists, they prefer to associate with other martial artists and therefore harbor some dislike for merchants.

In the Western Desert, merchants are nothing more than fat pigs waiting to be slaughtered by martial artists.

Liang Jin, however, did not seem to care about this.

He calmly took his seat, and the rest of the Qingyilou people could only follow suit.

"Isn't Chief Shen staying in Yongzhou City perfectly fine? How did we end up meeting on the way here?"

After a few rounds of drinks, Liang Jin asked a question.

Shen Wanshi started his business in the south by trading silk and cloth. He was respected in the industry as the "head of the cloth trade," meaning the industry leader of the silk and cloth business.

Although he had spent money to buy official positions and held some minor titles, he almost never wore official robes and always presented himself as a businessman.

That's why everyone is more used to calling him the "Head of the Group".

Shen Wanshi said bitterly:

"Shen only went there to join in the fun, but found it really boring, so he had already planned to leave."

"I just happened to see your faction leave, which solidified my idea."

"So, two days after your sect left, I, Shen, also left. I never expected to catch up with Master Meng here."

He spoke casually, but Shen Wanshi felt utterly helpless.

His real purpose in attending the martial arts tournament was to make friends with some of the top figures in the martial arts world.

His target was a third-rank martial artist, and not just any ordinary third-rank martial artist, but a third-rank martial artist from a prestigious sect with status and position.

Therefore, he had already prepared to spend lavishly.

Unfortunately, despite spending the money, he was largely ignored by others.

Some people even sent people to deliver hints, implying that they wanted money.

The agents from the Criminal Investigation Bureau went even further, demanding twenty million taels of silver with a single request.

Shen Wanshi took out the money, but no one else even gave him a second glance.

Several key figures he wanted to befriend refused to even meet with him, clearly showing their contempt for him.

So, feeling disheartened, he had no choice but to leave.

However, Shen Wanshi also noticed that only Qingyi Tower had never asked him for money, and the owner of that tower seemed to be an easy person to get along with.

So Shen Wanshi ordered the caravan to speed up its journey and specifically chase after Liang Jin.

At this moment, Shen Wanshi seized the opportunity to ask:
"May I ask, Master Meng, where do you intend to go on this journey?"

"If it's on the way... I'm taking the liberty of saying that I feel an instant connection with Master Meng and hope to have the honor of traveling with him."

Liang Jin listened, smiled faintly, and did not give an immediate reply.

Mr. Ding, standing beside him, stroked his beard and asked Shen Wanshi in return:

"Where does Chief Shen intend to go?"

Shen Wanshi hurriedly bowed to Mr. Ding and then replied:
"Senior Ding, actually, I came out this time to enjoy the scenery, relax, and join in the fun."

"They rise to prominence and fall to ruin, with no clear destination in mind."

Upon hearing this, Mu Zheluo curled his lip and said:

"These rich people are so idle, spending all their time traveling and sightseeing."

"That makes sense. With so much money, Chief Shen has more than enough to travel and enjoy life to the fullest."

Mu Zheluo already disliked Shen Wanshi, so his words were full of sarcasm.

Upon hearing this, Shen Wanshi smiled helplessly:

"When you have a lot of money, it's no longer yours."

"Shen is just making money for others and managing their money."

"Furthermore, Mr. Shen cannot lose his ability to make money, nor does he dare to stop and retire, otherwise he would be nothing more than a worn-out shoe."

At this point, Shen Wanshi suddenly bowed to everyone in apology:

"I'm so sorry, I had a couple of drinks earlier, which led me to say some unpleasant things."

"Let's not talk about this anymore, let's not talk about it anymore."

"I have heard that your esteemed Green Robe Pavilion possesses a deadly weapon called Golden Silkworm Silk. Its fine spider silk is incredibly tough and sharp, capable of cutting through gold and stone?"

"It just so happens that Mr. Shen usually enjoys all sorts of strange and unusual stories, and especially likes to collect some strange and unusual gadgets."

"I wonder if I, Shen, would have the honor of witnessing it firsthand?"

Shen Wanshi made the request, and Liang Jin did not refuse.

Golden Silkworm Silk was originally the unique weapon of Black Eagle, the Right Demon Envoy of Star Demon Sea. After Black Eagle's death, the method of making Golden Silkworm Silk fell into Liang Jin's hands.

Liang Jin also had some experts from the Green Robe Pavilion train him on how to use the Golden Silkworm Silk, so he ordered one of them to demonstrate.

Shen Wanshi praised it repeatedly.

But clearly his purpose was not the golden silkworm silk; he was merely using it as a starting point to open up the conversation.

Shen Wanshi then showed off some of his rare treasures and occasionally expressed his curiosity about some of the special weapons of the Green Robe Pavilion, thus giving the two more topics to talk about.

Shen Wanshi had been secretly observing Liang Jin's reaction. When he found that Liang Jin was not interested in his rare treasures, he immediately ordered his men to replace them with the next batch.

No one knew how many rare treasures he possessed, as they were rapidly being brought up in batches, all of which were things that the people of Qingyi Tower had never heard of or seen before, leaving everyone in awe.

at last.

Shen Wanshi noticed that Liang Jin's gaze had finally become focused.

Liang Jin's gaze suddenly fell on a large, dilapidated stone tablet.

He stretched out his hand and pointed to the stone tablet:
"Bring this thing closer."

Shen Wanshi immediately waved his hand.

Twelve shirtless, burly men roared in unison, their muscular arms bulging with veins, and slowly lifted the stone tablet, weighing several thousand kilograms, and carried it directly to Liang Jin's front.

When the people from Qingyi Tower saw that Liang Jin was paying attention to something, they couldn't help but curiously come forward to take a look.

But after looking at it for a long time, they still couldn't figure it out.

The large stone tablet looked unremarkable, without a single inscription, and was covered with scars. No one could tell what value it held.

Shen Wanshi, however, laughed and said:
"Master Meng truly lives up to his reputation as a chivalrous hero; he has an excellent eye!"

"Shen had shown this treasure to many people, but none of them could see its secrets."

His praise only made the people at Qingyi Tower more puzzled.

Mu Zheluo stared at the large stone tablet for a while, then scratched his head and asked Mr. Ding beside him:
"Mr. Ding, can you recognize this treasure?"

Mr. Ding reached out and touched the scars on the large stone tablet, saying:

"This is a sword mark."

"And... they are all sword marks left by top swordsmen!"

Everyone was taken aback upon hearing this.

Everyone knows that Mr. Ding is proficient in many martial arts techniques, among which his swordsmanship is equally exquisite. Anyone whom he calls a top-notch swordsman is probably no ordinary person.

Only Mujah dared to question Mr. Ding:

"real or fake?"

Seeing this, Shen Wanshi no longer intended to keep him in suspense and smiled as he spoke:
"Senior Ding has an excellent eye too!"

“That’s right, each of the nine sword marks on this stone tablet was left by a peerless swordsman.”

"This stone tablet was originally a treasured heirloom of Mingjian Manor, which I, Shen, acquired last year at great expense."

"Its name is the Sword Stele."

As he spoke, Shen Wanshi began to recount the origin of the sword stele.

The earliest origin of the sword monument is unknown, and even its original owner, the Famous Sword Manor, is unclear about it.

All that is known is that in ancient times, after the ancestor of the Famous Sword Manor became the strongest swordsman in the world, he left a sword mark on this stone tablet.

To commemorate their ancestors, the descendants moved the stone tablet back to the mountain villa.

Later, a peerless swordsman visited the Famous Sword Manor. Upon seeing the sword mark left by the manor's ancestor on the stone tablet, he seemed to gain some insight and drew his sword, leaving a sword mark on the stone tablet as well.

Later, over the centuries, top swordsmen from various generations couldn't help but leave their own sword marks on this stone tablet when they saw it.

To date, the Sword Stele bears the marks of nine top swordsmen.

"This stone tablet was originally worthless, but because nine peerless swordsmen left sword marks on it, it has become a unique treasure in the world."

"Nine sword marks reveal the true essence of swordsmanship from nine generations of peerless swordsmen!"

"There was a rumor that anyone who had reached a certain level in swordsmanship only needed to come to the stone tablet to observe the nine sword marks and appreciate the style of the predecessors to gain insights and help in the practice of swordsmanship."

"The Famous Sword Manor regards it as its most prized possession and never shows it to others lightly."

At this point, Shen Wanshi's tone became filled with emotion:

"Unfortunately, things are unpredictable. The once glorious Mingjian Manor has long since declined."

"In order to make a living, the owner of the manor had no choice but to come to me for help."

"In the end, Mr. Shen was fortunate enough to reach a deal with the manor lord and obtain this sword tablet."

Shen Wanshi seemed to be lamenting the decline of Mingjian Villa, and also seemed to be lamenting his own future.

The people of Qingyi Tower were all amazed when they heard about the origin of the sword tablet.

Mingjian Villa was a renowned and prestigious sect in ancient times, and at its peak, it produced the world's number one swordsman and the world's number one master.

At that time, Mingjian Manor was arguably the number one sect in the world.

Unfortunately, with the changing times, Mingjian Manor has long since declined into a third-rate sect, its former glory gone.

The swordsmen in the Green Robe Tower couldn't help but lean forward slightly, focusing their gaze on the sword inscription to examine the sword marks, as if they wanted to see if they could gain any insights.

The sword marks in the twilight resembled lurking silver snakes, flickering in and out of the light of the campfire.

Shen Wanshi then laughed and said:

"Unfortunately, I am just a businessman with no talent for martial arts and know nothing about martial arts."

"Now that Master Meng has a connection with this sword stele, I, Shen, am willing to take this opportunity to present it to Master Meng."

"I hope that Master Meng will not find it offensive and will accept it."

The people at Qingyi Tower were somewhat surprised to hear this.

They originally thought Shen Wanshi only wanted to lend the sword tablet to Liang Jin for observation, but they never expected that he would actually give this priceless treasure to Liang Jin.

This made everyone at Qingyi Tower sigh in admiration; truly worthy of being the richest man in the Great Qian Dynasty, his generosity was astounding.

At the same time, the disciples of Qingyi Tower all showed expressions of pride.

Even the richest man in the Great Qian Dynasty has to fawn over his own landlord like this, which shows that the landlord's reputation is highly respected even in the Great Qian Dynasty.

Liang Jin was about to speak.

suddenly!

At that moment, a voice rang out:

"Wait a minute!"

"I'll take this sword tablet!"

The sound exploded close to everyone's ears, startling the horses in Shen Wanshi's convoy into a chorus of neighs.

It is evident that the visitor is a person with profound internal strength.

As soon as the sound rang out, everyone in the Green Robe Pavilion became alert, knowing that an uninvited guest had arrived.

Muzhaluo's wolf fur coat swelled instantly, and his scimitar was already drawn.

Mr. Ding grabbed him and whispered:

"Don't worry."

"The hosts of the banquet haven't said anything yet, so let's take this opportunity to see what Shen Wanshi is really made of."

"not to mention……"

At this point, Mr. Ding looked in Liang Jin's direction:

"Since even the host hasn't spoken, let's remain calm."

Mu Zheluo followed Mr. Ding's gaze and saw that Liang Jin seemed to have no interest in the arrival of the uninvited guest, and continued to look at the sword monument in front of him.

This prompted Muzhaluo to sit down again.

Just as Mr. Ding had predicted.

From within Shen Wanshi's convoy, an aged voice rang out, clearly a response to the uninvited guest:

"This is a banquet hosted by Head Shen. No outsiders have been invited. Please do not disturb my master's enjoyment."

"If you are willing to give me this face, I, 'Thunderbolt Hand' Cen Ruifeng, will definitely return the favor with gifts in the future!"

Clearly, this old man who called himself Cen Ruifeng was the one who had been protecting Shen Wanshi's safety.

Although Cen Ruifeng's voice was old, it was still loud and clear. When he spoke, the effect was no less than that of the uninvited guest.

Shen Wanshi explained to the people of Qingyi Tower:

"Old Cen was once the leader of the Fenglei Gang. After passing the leadership to his son, he retired to enjoy his old age."

"Later, Mr. Shen visited Cen many times and finally moved him with his sincerity, and invited Cen to come out of retirement to serve as a retainer of the Shen family."

The Green Robe Tower has been gathering a lot of intelligence on the martial arts world of the Great Qian Dynasty lately, and naturally they are also aware of the Wind and Thunder Gang.

The Fenglei Gang is a gang in the south that started with the Grand Canal and wielded considerable power.

As the former leader of the Fenglei Gang, he naturally had a wide influence in both the legitimate and criminal worlds, and could indeed solve many problems for Shen Wanshi.

Mu Zheluo curled his lip in disdain and said to Mr. Ding beside him:
"He's just a third-rank martial artist."

"No wonder Shen Wanshi is always being extorted for money; it turns out his backer is just this kind of ordinary person."

Mr. Ding listened but could only smile helplessly.

Mu Zheluo himself was only a third-rank martial artist.
Moreover, Mu Zheluo might not be much more powerful than Cen Ruifeng of Fenglei Tower.

Ever since Mu Zheluo fought Zhen Lei, the leader of the Four Great Constables, he seems to look down on ordinary third-rank martial artists.

However, third-rank martial artists are extremely rare in this world.

For a merchant like Shen Wanshi to be able to hire a third-rank martial artist for protection is already quite remarkable, and he has enough reason to be proud.

Just when everyone thought that the uninvited guest would surely retreat after Cen Ruifeng spoke,

But then the uninvited guest's voice continued, and this time it seemed even closer:

“Cen Ruifeng, now that you have stepped down, you should enjoy your retirement in peace and not interfere in my affairs, or you may ruin your reputation in your old age.”

"Others might give you face, but I, Yu Zhuoqun, won't!"

Accompanied by this sound, a slender figure fell from the night sky like an eagle.

This man was slender as a pine tree, with white hair at his temples. When he landed, he created spiderweb-like cracks on the ground, raising dust as he displayed his domineering aura.

The people of Qingyi Tower naturally recognized this person; he was none other than Yu Zhuoqun, the elder of Xuanyuan Sect, who had visited them in Yongzhou City a few days ago!

Within the convoy, Cen Ruifeng's voice also revealed surprise:

"Yu Zhuoqun of the Xuanyuan Sect!"

"You...you are supposed to be an elder of a prestigious family, how dare you use your power to oppress others like this?"

(End of this chapter)