Sword from the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 58 Cixi Stream

The words "Zhou Tianshi" were uttered by Li Mi and entered Zhao Tuo's ears.

It was truly like a thunderbolt!
While others might need a moment to process the name "Master Zhou," this martial arts enthusiast instantly recognized who it was.

Beside that inconspicuous haystack, a green shadow suddenly darted and attacked!
Zhao Tuo and Li Mi were locked in a fierce battle of internal energy, with no way to avoid it.

Although Li Mi was a regional hegemon, he had not fully recovered from the injury he suffered at the hands of Zhang Xutuo.

Therefore, when Li Mi suddenly attacked him with the Earthly Fiend Technique, he was able to break free from that force with his own strength.

Zhao Tuo's mind raced.

"As long as I can withstand this man's attack, I can use his force to break free from Li Mi's Earthly Fiend Palm. Even if it means getting injured, the Prefect's Mansion and You Hongda's men will press in instantly, and the situation will immediately reverse."

'This person possesses a valuable book, but his skill is still immature.'

"I've cultivated my Taiyue Protective Qi for over forty years; its energy flows through my skin, muscles, and bones."

That's right!

He wants to break through my protective aura? That will be extremely difficult!
With a thought, Zhao Tuo puffed out his neck again, this time using the Toad Stance to defend himself, allowing his protective energy to flow rapidly!
Zhou Yi then placed two fingers together on his lower back!

It is the Mingmen acupoint on the Du meridian!
Zhao Tuo's external martial arts skills were incredibly powerful, and Zhou Yi's attack was like hitting a piece of iron.

But the Frost Condensation Technique, carrying his true energy, burst out directly from the Shaoshang acupoint and struck the protective energy fiercely!

The true energy was like a sword, and Zhao Tuo felt a chill.

This secret method of Quanxing cannot be removed even by Zhou Yi's "Dou Zhuan Xing Yi" technique.

Although Zhao Tuo's aura was strong, it was impenetrable.

But Zhou Yi broke through the surface with a single point, suddenly unleashing his power!

That true qi cold sword, as if piercing through a thin layer of window paper, directly penetrated the protective qi of Taiyue!

Zhao Tuo's eyes widened, his face filled with surprise.
He focused intently on sensing the energy that had invaded his body.

The protective aura has been broken!

how can that be!

He froze, shivering from the cold air, because his true energy was flowing rapidly as he and Li Mi exchanged blows.

The cold air invaded, flowing along with the true energy within his body.

In an instant, the blood flowed from the Mingmen point through the Ren and Du meridians, causing the entire body to stiffen!

A chill that penetrates to the very core
Done
The cold cleared Zhao Tuo's mind, and he seemed to realize something, then, in a low voice, he said:
"Is this... the Taiping Hongbao?"

"Excellent, truly a treasure of a book."

A flash of madness and greed crossed his eyes, and then he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Uh~!"

Li Mi smiled coldly and struck Zhao Tuo with a palm, deliberately misdirecting his heart meridian so as not to kill him.

This mouthful of blood splattered all over Li Mi.

But he didn't mind at all, and instead picked Zhao Tuo up and moved him to his side.

His long sword was knocked away by Zhao Tuo, so he took out the precious blade given to him by Zhou Yi from his bosom and held it directly to Zhao Tuo's throat.

Zhou Yi felt a slight chill run down his spine when he saw the precious blade.

Zhao Tuo was being held hostage by Li Mi, his head tilted to the side, his chest and mouth covered in blood, and a sharp blade held to his neck.

He should have been in despair, but surprisingly, he remained remarkably calm.

A pair of eyes were fixed intently on Zhou Yi.

Ignoring Li Mi behind him, he spoke weakly to Zhou Yi:
“Master Zhou, I’ve been looking for you for so long, but I never expected you to walk right into my trap.”

“This Taiping Hongbao is truly amazing; it actually managed to pierce through my protective aura. Give me the book, and I, Zhao, will spare your life.”

Zhou Yi felt he had gone mad: "Prefect Zhao, do you even have the life to practice your skills?"

Zhao Tuo wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth: "Don't worry, I won't lose my life."

"If Li Mi kills me, will he be able to walk out on his own?"

As soon as Zhao Tuo finished speaking, thousands upon thousands of torches shone in front of him!
"Release the governor!" shouted the governor's guards.

The experts from Pushan Public Camp retreated to the campfire near Li Mi's side, where they confronted the experts from the Prefect's Mansion at the entrance of the teahouse.

You Hongda shouted:
"All the Huaiyang troops are to advance, while the rest of the troops surround the perimeter. The cavalry will patrol the outer perimeter, ensuring that not even a fly escapes!"

"Yes!"

All the surrounding soldiers and generals obeyed the order.

The situation seemed to be at a stalemate, and Zhou Yi glanced at Li Mi.

This guy got himself involved and designed such a huge trap; it's absolutely impossible for him not to have a backup plan.

Zhao Tuo was too happy too soon.

At this moment, the surrounding armies pressed forward, putting pressure on Pushan Public Camp.

Trying to break through the army is extremely difficult.

"Release the prefect!" shouted the experts from the Huaiyang Prefecture Prefectural Governor's Office as they advanced.

Li Mi remained silent, only pressing the blade against Zhao Tuo's throat.

The people from the prefect's mansion, who had been advancing towards him, suddenly hesitated to act rashly.

At that moment, several whooshing sounds rang out!

There were also experts hiding behind the teahouse; six or seven of them appeared at once!

All these newly arrived experts ended up working for Li Mi.

"Master Mi!"

They shouted in unison.

As soon as these people appeared, they surrounded and protected Li Mi and Zhou Yi.

Zhou Yi saw an old acquaintance, Ma Shouyi.

"Old Ma, I didn't expect to see you here too."

Ma Shouyi's old face was long and gloomy; I didn't really want to see him.

Hearing "Old Ma" made me feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Master Zhou, are we that close?"

“We know each other very well,” Zhou Yi leaned closer to him. “We’re old friends from Yongqiu.”

Old Ma chuckled coldly, stopped talking, and took a few steps away from him.

A fragrant breeze wafted by, and Zhou Yi saw a beautiful woman in white, with long hair cascading over her shoulders and a graceful figure.

Especially his eyes, even now, surrounded by thousands of troops, remained exceptionally calm and fearless.

It was Shen Luoyan, the chief strategist of Pushan Public Army.

Beside her was another person, also dressed in white, tall and imposing.

That was Wang Bodang, the White-Clad Divine Arrow.

"Luo Yan, this is the legendary Celestial Master Zhou. This is the first time I've ever seen him."

Wang Bodang laughed and said, "No wonder he misses Sigui so much; he is indeed a handsome man." Prefect Zhao on the other side nodded in agreement: "He is indeed more handsome than the portrait I have seen."

After he finished speaking, he said to Zhou Yi:

"Master Zhou, if you give me the Taiping Hongbao, I can not only guarantee your survival, but also capture this beauty in white for you to enjoy. How about it?"

Zhou Yi said, "Prefect Zhao, do you even know how to write the word 'death'?"

Zhao Tuo looked around and saw that they were all his own men.

Even though we've been tricked, what's there to be afraid of?

Zhou Yi replied to Wang Bodang: "I haven't seen Brother Sigui. I suppose he's preparing a surprise for Prefect Zhao."

Shen Luoyan smiled mysteriously: "Seeing is believing. Master Zhou is so clever, even I can't compare."

She approached Zhou Yi and whispered:

"Is Master Zhou here today to collect a debt from Master Mi, or to enter my Pushan public camp? Master Zhou's methods of collecting debts are truly ruthless. Whenever Luo Yan thinks about it, she can hardly sleep at night."

"Don't worry, strategist."

Zhou Yi spoke frankly: "I hit it off with Lord Mi at first sight, and it felt like we had known each other for ages. Since this Prefect Zhao wanted to harm Lord Mi, I didn't hesitate to take action."

“Words can’t compare to actions; I have proven everything.”

Those who understand the times are wise, and Zhou Yi can only speak against his conscience for now.

Zhao Tuo scoffed, "That's true. If you hadn't launched a sneak attack, Li Mi would have been delusional to think he could defeat me while he was injured."

"As expected of the overlord of Huaiyang County, he remains unfazed even now."

Shen Luoyan moved her feet lightly: "Prefect Zhao, the chaos in the world has been settled. With your abilities, why bother guarding the small territory of Huaiyang?"

"If we join forces, Yingchuan and Runan will be within our grasp. Why must we fight to the death?"

“Master Zhou is also one of our Pushan public officials. At that time, we will all be on the same side. If you want to learn from Taiping Hongbao, what difficulty will there be?”

Zhou Yi said casually, "The strategist said he would give you the Taiping Hongbao, so naturally I will."

The men in the Huaiyang Prefectural Government were all stunned upon hearing this.

You Hongda, who was outside, was greatly surprised.

Now he's an outsider.

"Prefect Zhao, are you also going to rebel?!"

You Hongda loudly reminded them: "General Zhang's troops are not far from Huaiyang County!"

These words immediately brought many people with troubled minds to their senses.

Once the rebellion begins, Zhang Xutuo will arrive.

Who can stop them?

Zhao Tuo was not fooled: "Commander You, she is trying to sow discord. How could I be a traitor?"

"Oh?"

Shen Luoyan countered with a question:

"Zhao Ke, the cousin of Prefect Zhao, followed Hao Xiaode of Pingyuan County. He had a martial arts school called Keyuan Martial Arts School under his command. Many of the experts who died here today were from Keyuan Martial Arts School."

"In that case, wouldn't Prefect Zhao be colluding with Hao Xiaode?"

"Captain You, who scattered the 40,000 troops that Hao Xiaode recruited after his rebellion?"

You Hongda said sternly, "Of course it's General Zhang."

Shen Luoyan's words were sharp: "Huaiyang County has long become the private territory of Prefect Zhao. He can do whatever he wants. Rebellion is only a matter of time."

The soldiers of Huaiyang County and the experts of the Prefect's Office were immediately thrown into chaos.

The torchlight flickered up and down, and people's hearts were changing.

You Hongda sensed something was wrong and quickly reminded Zhao Tuo:

"Prefect Zhao, if you uphold your integrity and sacrifice yourself for the Sui Dynasty, I will go to the Eastern Capital to report to His Majesty!"

You Hongda could only shout this, but dared not give the order to charge.

Because Shen Luoyan is right.

The soldiers of Huaiyang Commandery, the experts of the Prefect's Office, only listened to Zhao Tuo.

You Hongda has absolutely no authority over him.

Once the order is given, with people's hearts divided, chaos is inevitable!
Zhao Tuo understood the key point and turned to Li Mi: "Li Mi, I, Zhao, am not afraid of death. Don't even think about disrupting the morale of the army."

"At worst, we'll all perish together."

He then looked at Zhou Yi and said, "Master Zhou will also die. On the road to the Yellow Springs, I can still obtain the precious book from you."

You Hongda watched from a distance.

Zhou Yi shook his head indifferently: "Prefect Zhao, this is mostly just wishful thinking on your part."

You Hongda had only just heard him finish speaking.
suddenly!

A loud bang came from the mountains, followed by a rumbling sound like muffled thunder!
It looks like a large army is charging in!

"What's going on? What's that sound?!" The army formation became increasingly chaotic.

It was the sound of a large rock rolling down.

And there's the sound of water!

Zhou Yi heard it; it sounded like a flash flood!

The rocks rolled and the mud and sand rushed down.

Along with this came the strange sounds of trees snapping and breaking.

The rumbling sound was terrifying in the darkness, like a wild beast that was about to devour its prey, getting closer and closer!
People's hearts are inherently unstable, and with this change, chaos immediately ensues!

Zhou Yi looked towards the mountain stream and saw Li Mi's smile.

In an instant, he realized the strange thing about this teahouse: it was built across a mountain stream!
The ravines that flashed through my mind, and the silt marks left by the impact of the water flow.

This teahouse was actually built by Li Mi's men.

The Cixi River is flooded!
This is a huge trap that was laid long ago!

A voice kept shouting in the darkness:

"Water, a huge flood!"

"Run!"

"Run!"

"..."

The chaos had already begun. Zhou Yi's eyes narrowed, and he glanced at Wang Bodang and the bow and arrow in his hand.

He swayed slightly and took a half-step towards the old horse.

This is the moment I get close to Ma Shouyi.
Zhou Yi, with his keen senses, captured an unbelievable scene!
Old Ma's gaze drifted away from himself and flew towards Li Mi.

The fleeting malice in the old man's eyes chilled Zhou Yi to the bone.
……

(End of this chapter)