Cursed Mountains and Seas

Chapter 215 Marriage Alliance? The sword light splits, a veto!
Evening, at the Jinghai Prince's temporary palace, Litang Hall.

clang!clang!clang!
Two incomparably sharp sword lights, one gold and one red, roamed the courtyard, chasing and entangled, sometimes on the left and sometimes on the right. Each collision was like positive and negative electrodes colliding, exploding into dazzling sparks.

The sword light was sharp and cold, its intent as cold as frost, shattering the grass and trees in the courtyard, causing the pear tree branches and leaves to fall in a rustling sound.

The onlookers standing close to the palace gates couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat on the back of their necks, and some whispered anxiously to their companions:
"The princess and Prince Jinghai are of noble status. Will something happen to them while they are fighting? Should we try to stop them?"

"Among our delegation, the princess is the most senior. She came here on the royal mission to the Donghai Kingdom. When she saw that the Prince of Jinghai was also using a sword, she took the initiative to challenge him. Who can stop her?"

Then he continued in a lower voice:

"It is said, just said, that our King Wu intends to form a marriage alliance with King Jinghai, so that the Wang family can become our ally in our counterattack against the traitorous Han family."

The princess is exceptionally talented, a genius with the potential to break through to the upper three ranks. Perhaps she wants to test whether Prince Jinghai is strong enough to be her husband?

The group that traveled from the ancient port of Nanyang was not only a group of top-notch deliverymen, but also a small, unorganized mission.

Considering that traveling by boat was too slow, they directly rode a group of tamed monster birds of prey, traveling day and night, and arrived at Pinghu Port in just two days.

The chief envoy of the delegation was none other than Princess Jiashan, the youngest daughter of Prince Zhu Yaozhai of Wu, who was not yet married.

Her maiden name was Zhu Suzhen. At the young age of twenty, she was already a sixth-rank Taoist priest.

He forged a hundred-step flying sword, the "Ten Thousand Mile Rainbow Sword," and his swordsmanship was extremely high, making him virtually unmatched among sixth-rank swordsmen.

Suddenly, a line of crimson sword light appeared in the field, like the afterglow of the setting sun, surging wave after wave into every corner of the courtyard, nine-tenths of it was an illusion, and one-tenth was real.

Suddenly, the image of the sunset reflected against the white clouds appeared before everyone's eyes.

Like a wisp of true crimson light, it constantly refracts, reflects, and scatters between the sky and the sea, concealing endless variations that leave opponents bewildered, unsure of where to defend or how to defend.

His swordsmanship has clearly reached a high level, and he has achieved a level where his sword intent has become powerful and his inner vision has become outward.

He can use his swordsmanship to develop his own understanding of the "Tao".

The Five Emperors' Golden Coin Sword on the other side was equally formidable.

The "Heavenly Roundness" is so well-preserved that no matter how bright the sunset glow, it cannot escape the vast sky; the "Earthly Place" advances like fire, with great expansiveness and force.

"Harmony with others" unites the two, and within a radius of three zhang and three fen, lies Wang Cheng's heavenly rule and earthly order!

Within this area, my rules are the rules, strict and absolute.

Even celestial beings must follow the rules when they come to my territory.

Before long, the clusters of rosy light that were meant to deceive people collapsed one after another, revealing the true form of the [Ten Thousand Mile Rainbow Sword] in the middle.

Just as they were about to be completely encircled by the round sky and square earth, the crimson sword light suddenly flashed.

Princess Jiashan, hiding in the rosy clouds, shouted: "A rainbow pierces the sun!"

Man and sword became one, suddenly transforming into a stunning sword rainbow two zhang long, slashing towards Wang Chengfei.

A gasp of surprise rippled through the crowd:

"It's the princess's sword technique, 'Sword Light Transforms into Rainbow'! The princess is going to win!"

Like Yu Zhifu's sword light splitting technique, the sword light turning into a rainbow is an advanced technique of the Hundred Steps Flying Sword. When used in sword fighting, it can always be the decisive blow.

It is said that the length and power of the sword rainbow formed by the flying sword depend mainly on the quality of the flying sword and the level of one's own cultivation. One can tell this by looking at the flickering colors of the sword rainbow. Princess Jiashan is also a beginner and has not yet mastered it thoroughly.

Just when the Old Port Pacification Commissioner's delegation thought the situation was settled.

Amidst the golden sword light, Wang Cheng, following Princess Jiashan's cry of "Rainbow Piercing the Sun," chuckled and added, "Veto!"

The sword light suddenly trembled, emitting a piercing explosion as if the air was being torn apart. The Five Emperors' Golden Coin Sword split into five in an instant.

Extra threads of warp and weft intertwine between the rules of heaven and earth, forming the framework.

"What? You actually mastered sword light splitting? How old are you?"

The girl in the red dress, hidden within the sword rainbow, changed her expression drastically.

In a flash, she suddenly saw Wang Cheng's sword intent take on a different form once again:
Beneath the sky, he found himself lying on a huge round dining table. Outside the table stood five imposing kings, men and women, old and young, all bearing the face of Wang Cheng.

The five kings each held a towering sword, which they slashed fiercely at themselves.

For some reason, upon seeing this scene, a sentence suddenly popped into her mind:

"If you're not at the table, you're definitely on the menu."

The title of "Water Balance Commandant" is more suitable than "Chao Feng Lang" for the "Five Emperors' Golden Coin Sword" technique, a secret and orthodox method modified by Wang Cheng using the currencies of the five great empires.

After he learned the sword techniques in the "Sword Classic", he was able to wield the flying sword with even greater ease, as if it were his own arm. Even as a beginner, he was able to transform one sword into five.

Drawing on his insights into sea power theory and international rules, Wang Cheng named this move "Five Good People, One Veto"!
In the self-imposed rules and regulations, all enemies will be served on the table, their existence negated by guns and swords, and then they will be devoured.

"Princess, you flatter me."

When Princess Jiashan came to her senses again, all the illusions before her eyes had vanished.

Five sharp sword lights easily sliced ​​through the sword rainbow and then merged back together, knocking the [Ten Thousand Mile Rainbow Sword] from her hand and placing it squarely against her neck.

If Wang Cheng hadn't sheathed his sword in time, the beautiful woman's head would probably have shot into the sky along with the scalding blood from her neck.

Zhu Suzhen's back was covered in cold sweat, almost soaking her horse-face skirt.

However, this princess, skilled in swordsmanship, was also cheerful and magnanimous. She raised her hand to recall her flying sword and bowed to Wang Cheng with clasped hands.
"Your Highness's swordsmanship is superb; I have lost, and I am completely convinced."

Please forgive Jia Shan's impetuousness.

"Your Highness, my father and all my ancestors have always been obsessed with returning to the Central Plains and reclaiming the throne that belongs to the Zhu family. Please don't take what he said in the official letter to heart." As the protagonist of a political marriage, she spoke of this matter with a calm expression, without the shyness of an ordinary woman.

"If you are content with ruling nine domains and one island, then it doesn't matter."

However, I have read "The Influence of Sea Power" and know that you have great ambitions. If you want to continue to expand and advance, then openly forming an alliance with my Zhu family will not bring much benefit.

One wrong move and you might anger the ruler of the Han family, causing the Donghai Kingdom to be attacked from both sides.

In short, Suzhen only wanted to say one thing on behalf of her father: You should decide this matter yourself. Even if the deal falls through, we will still be family friends and can enjoy drinks together. Farewell!

Without further ado, he turned and left with his men.

Wang Cheng watched Zhu Suzhen's retreating figure and shook his head inwardly:

"This Miss Zhu is not only beautiful, but also has a surprisingly good personality."

It's a pity he didn't live many more years.

In this world, any force that aspires to the throne of the Great Zhao Dynasty will covet the small portion of the imperial mandate held by the Zhu family.

Even if the King of Wu were to publicly seek a son-in-law, revealing even the slightest possibility of allowing someone of a different surname to have a chance, many powerful forces would fight tooth and nail to get him.

Wang Cheng, however, only wanted to keep his distance.

Throughout the reception, the delegation maintained only basic politeness and never showed excessive enthusiasm towards Zhu Suzhen, lest some members of the delegation have unnecessary speculations.

"Strictly speaking, as a political marriage partner, this Zhu family sister is of very high quality."

His cultivation level is sixth grade. Although he is far inferior to 'Ghosts and Gods Jealous' and not as good as Shen Yueye of the same age, he can still be called a little genius.

Their status was also noble.

That Uncle Zhu was not Xu Weixue, the "Peddler of a Thousand Pieces of Gold." He had more than thirty daughters, but only two of them survived to adulthood. This youngest daughter was not his legitimate daughter, but she was better than a legitimate daughter.

But he sent his daughter with the intention of making her the principal wife of Prince Jinghai. I have no chance of getting rid of her by just making her a concubine.

But this position is meant for Sister Yunxiao or Senior Sister Shen Yueye; it's already taken.

Wang Cheng doesn't consider himself a purely political creature capable of completely excluding emotions and making choices based on weighing pros and cons.

Besides, just as Zhu Suzhen said, it's still uncertain whether a marriage alliance with the Zhu family will be beneficial or detrimental.

I glanced at the rare and valuable item that was Princess Jiashan:

Lifespan: 24 years.

These glaring words are painful to the eye.

Although the two were not close, he was exceptionally perceptive in judging the other's situation, even knowing that the other had less than four years left to live.

This makes it even less likely that you should choose this option.

"The Han family used the 'One-Eyed Stone Man' to disrupt the fates of the Zhu and Han families."

They also locked each other's fates together.

They carry a stronger sense of 'destiny' than others, or rather, it has become a fixed fate!

Illnesses can be cured, but defying fate is easier said than done.

The only thing Wang Cheng could think of was the "Four Seas Coin" in his hand that could buy his life.

If it were A-Xiao or Shen Yueye who wanted to change their fate, he would definitely do so without the slightest hesitation, but his relationship with the Zhu family was far from enough to make him reveal his ultimate trump card.

"Should we save her life? We'll see later."

Just now, Wang Cheng used his "liver flower" and "kidney flower" to exchange for the "spleen flower" and "lung flower" in the Zhu family's hands, thus completing the agreed transaction between the two parties.

He took out the spleen flower from the box and took a deep breath of the Dao Qi contained within it.

Back when he was merging with the Dharma position, he was only one step away from opening the Spleen Temple. With that one bite, a crisp "snap" was heard, and he easily opened another temple.

Next, all you need to do is take a breath of lung flower every other day, and after six more days you can refine the last "lung temple" and meet the requirements for advancing to the fifth rank.

"The ritual of embracing all rivers remains unchanged. Given my current wealth, status, and the favor I receive from the Water Official, I might be promoted on the spot when all five temples are gathered together."

In addition, the mobilization and preparation time for the Nine Domains War was not short. From the time Ōtomo Yoshishige issued the order to prepare food and supplies, complete the assembly, and advance by land and water, it would take at least a month.

"After my promotion, I should have enough time to train a dedicated force of temple-based ghost soldiers!"

Wang Cheng was in a great mood and didn't notice.

After leaving Pinghu Port with her people, Zhu Suzhen casually lit the Tongtian Ruyi Incense and contacted someone, but it was not her father, Zhu Yaozhai.

To address him respectfully:
"Master Zhang."

"So? Is it better to see someone than to hear about them, or better to hear about them than to see them? Haha."

“Master Zhang, I fought with that Prince Jinghai, and I lost. My assessment of him is that he is both scholarly and martial, and his spirit surpasses even that of my father.”

You've been traveling in Southeast Asia for several years now, would you like to come to Yingzhou to see him?

The man opposite, "Master Zhang," chuckled.
May we be like-minded companions, following the excellent example of good conduct. Just as a trickle of water can flow into the vast ocean, and a single basket of earth can form a mountain.

I desire a group of like-minded individuals to transform the world, but this dragon-slaying skill cannot be sold cheaply. Let's discuss this matter again when he has reached the bustling South Seas.

(End of this chapter)