Starting with the divine power of the Great Vajra, he traversed the heavens.

Chapter 410 The Sword of Defeat
After deciding to split into two groups, the three notorious villains went to a farmer's house and stole three fat ducks to celebrate before leaving.

Amidst shouts of "Catch the duck thieves!" from the villagers, the three men fled in disarray as they were pursued by those wielding pitchforks and rakes.

Fortunately, they were all quite skilled in light-footed martial arts and eventually escaped the villagers' clutches.

After confirming that Hongxiu had thrown the silver into the duck's nest, the three of them were in high spirits.

Slaughtering, scalding, plucking, roasting the duck—it's a whole process.

Ding'an's duck-making skills were superb, and Shaoyang and the little beggar ate with gusto.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Ding'an and the little beggar drove their donkey cart northward in search of the legendary ancient city of Loulan.

Ren Shaoyang patted his stomach, found the nearest ferry, and prepared to board the boat.

Where to go?

It's naturally Baijian Manor!
In the world of martial arts, divine weapons hold a very important place. And the places where weapons are forged hold an especially high status in this world.

The two most famous places are Baijian Manor and Tiexin Island.

Both are holy sites for forging, but they are different from each other.

Sword Worship Manor only forges swords and never creates other weapons, which is why swordsmen all over the world regard it as a sacred place.

Ironheart Island is different. It welcomes all comers, has no rules about weapons, and produces armor, crossbows, hidden weapons, and even mechanisms. It is all-encompassing and has a wide range of businesses, making it more popular with the public.

As he was lost in thought, a small boat arrived at the shore. Ren Shaoyang smiled, boarded the boat, and sat cross-legged.

The wooden boat slowly left the ferry dock, the wind was just right.

The boat sails on the river, with lush greenery on both banks.

As the small boat swayed gently on the gentle waves, Ren Shaoyang smiled leisurely, stretched out his long legs and placed them on the edge of the boat, lying there lazily with his eyes half-closed, gazing at the scenery on the riverbank.

"Young master, are you going to the Sword Worship Manor to seek a sword?" the old boatman suddenly asked.

"I don't ask for anything," Ren Shaoyang said with a light laugh.

"Hey, that's strange!" the boatman laughed. "This is the first time I've seen a swordsman who goes to the Sword Worship Manor without asking for a sword."

“Old man, when I say ‘I don’t ask,’ it doesn’t mean I won’t take.”

"Hiss, I don't understand."

"Three steps: enter the door, take the sword, and leave."

"Huh? This is just stealing!"

“It wasn’t stealing, it wasn’t stealing.” Ren Shaoyang twirled her finger. “I did it honestly and openly.”

The old boatman was stunned: "You can do that? Isn't that robbery?"

“Robbing is too vulgar. It lacks any skill,” Ren Shaoyang said with a smile. “I’ll go openly and honestly, and they’ll have to hand it over themselves. Only then can I demonstrate my style.”

"Isn't your action, sir, a loss of face for the Sword Worship Manor?"

"What face do they have?"

Hearing Ren Shaoyang say that, the old boatman curled his lip and spat inwardly, "Pah! Swordsmen just love to show off!" He glanced at him again, "The one in white is the worst!"

Ren Shaoyang didn't know what he was thinking, and even if he did, it didn't matter.

Lying on the boat, watching the clouds in the sky.

At this moment, the wispy clouds, like feathers, change shape with the wind and drift slowly.

As he watched, he felt slightly sleepy, so he yawned and prepared to take a nap.

Just as I was about to doze off, I suddenly heard the mournful sound of a huqin (a two-stringed bowed instrument) coming from afar, so plaintive and poignant that it broke my heart.

Ren Shaoyang was a connoisseur of music, and finding the zither music exquisite and the melody melodious, he slightly opened his eyes and looked into the distance.

A small boat came speeding across the river, and on it stood a beautiful woman, dressed in a pale yellow brocade robe, her hair styled in a high bun, her appearance magnificent, graceful and elegant, as if she were riding the wind.

The woman held a zither in her left hand and a bow in her right, her eyes slightly closed, seemingly oblivious to her surroundings. A lone boat floated upstream on the vast river, making her appear like a fairy.

Because the erhu was playing so mournfully, the two boats passed each other by. The old boatman suddenly grimaced, as if his parents had died (he really had lost his parents), his expression was bitter, his brows furrowed, and he began to sob.

Ren Shaoyang's gaze followed the lone boat, meeting the woman's beautiful eyes briefly before looking away. He thought to himself, "This woman's erhu playing is truly exquisite, deserving of the description 'melancholy and captivating beauty'."

This phrase comes from the "Letter to Emperor Wen of Wei" from the Three Kingdoms period, which describes the musical performance of the Northern Barbarians. It uses the phrase "so poignant it penetrates the liver and spleen, so sorrowful it moves the soul" to describe the song as deeply moving and exquisitely poignant.

As the two small boats drifted further apart, the sound of the erhu seemed to grow even more mournful.

As Ren Shaoyang listened, he seemed to see the jade-like beauty grow old, the magnificent palaces collapse, the world change, and everything vanish like smoke. Every stroke and release was contained within the woman's bowstring.

The song ended, and then silence fell over the river.

The old boatman kept turning his head to look at the woman, clicking his tongue in disapproval.

"Boatman, are you old in years but young at heart, seeking pleasure in your old age?"

"Hey, the guest is quite young, and his words resonate with this old man." The old boatman chuckled, then said seriously, "Just look at this woman and that's it. Don't get involved. Even if you do, you won't be able to control yourself."

Ren Shaoyang glanced at him and laughed, "Old man, you really know a lot."

The old boatman chuckled, "Having experienced many hardships in my youth, I've naturally come to understand some things." He then said earnestly, "Sir, that woman is beautiful, but she seems inhuman. It's as if her face is covered by a layer of ice. Do you know what that means?"

Ren Shaoyang sat up, cupped his hands, and said, "Please speak."

The old boatman, with an air of mystery, chuckled and said, "A chance encounter, eyes sparkling with affection—how beautiful that sounds. Even the expression on her face is so flawless, like a goddess in a dream."

Ren Shaoyang laughed and said, "If everything is too perfect, that can only mean..."

"Hehe, that means this woman came specifically for you!"

The old boatman revealed the secret in a single sentence.

Ren Shaoyang laughed heartily, cupped his hands in thanks, and said, "Thank you!"

"No need to thank me, no need to thank me!" The old boatman waved his hand. "Let me say a few more words." "Please go ahead."

"We who travel the world must be careful with our words and actions. You shouldn't always say arrogant things, or you'll suffer a great loss."

Ren Shaoyang laughed loudly, flicked his sleeves and stood up, saying in a clear voice, "Understood!" Seeing the ferry crossing in the distance, he suddenly rolled up his long robe and flew away.

The old boatman was taken aback and blurted out, "No way, it's still a long way off!"

Ren Shaoyang was surrounded by white mist, as if he were riding the clouds. Suddenly, he spread his sleeves in mid-air, waved them three times, and transformed into a wisp of white smoke, which then shot up ten feet into the sky.

As it fell, it floated lightly down to the ferry crossing, like a human-shaped paper kite.

Upon seeing this, the old boatman suddenly slumped onto the boat, his mind reeling with astonishment: "My goodness! This kid truly possesses unparalleled skills!"

Ren Shaoyang walked with his hands behind his back, passing through dense forests, waterfalls, and small lakes. Before long, he arrived in front of a magnificent castle.

Five zhang (approximately 10 meters) from the castle gate, there is a huge, ancient stone tablet with four powerful characters on its surface:

"Baijian Manor!"

Ren Shaoyang stood before the monument, his whole body seemingly radiating light. After a long while of contemplation, he finally smiled and uttered two words: "Worth seeing."

The four large characters "Baijian Villa" were written by our ancestor Ao Ri. The characters encapsulate the essence of his life's swordsmanship. If an ordinary person were to observe and learn from them, they would surely soar to great heights.

But in Ren Shaoyang's eyes, it was nothing more than "visible".

Ren Shaoyang looked at the grand and imposing castle in the distance, its gate towers towering high and magnificent, its doors tightly closed.

Unexpectedly, the once renowned and powerful "Sword Worship Manor" is now so deserted and desolate.

Ren Shaoyang looked up and saw the sun high in the sky, shining brightly, and the surrounding walls towering about five zhang high.

This time he didn't want to jump in, so he walked lightly to the foot of the city wall and casually waved his hand.

Click!
The bricks surged like waves, cracking open one after another. As he strode through the wall, the bricks behind him automatically plugged the hole, fitting together perfectly without any flaws.

With a sudden flash of light and darkness, Ren Shaoyang seemed to have passed through walls and entered the "Sword Worship Manor".

He looked left and right, as if on a leisurely stroll, and walked smoothly around the houses and artificial hills. He did not shy away from the patrolling guards, servants and maids, and walked towards them without flinching.

These people ignored him and were completely oblivious to his presence.

People came and went around him, but Ren Shaoyang walked leisurely as if he were in a deserted place, strolling towards the back mountain as if he were taking a leisurely walk.

Once he reached the top of the mountain, he looked down.

Then you see a stone building, resembling the Athens Stadium, standing at the foot of the mountain.

Flames surged in the arena, and a giant black sword, about three zhang tall, stood above the fire pool, held by eight thick iron chains.

The surrounding hills were covered with thousands of swords, all identical to the enormous, peerless sword, making one feel as if they were in hell—a hell of swords!
This building is the core of the Sword Worship Manor – the Sword Pool.

For a century, all the swordsmiths at Baijian Manor have been forging unparalleled swords here, and the clanging sounds have never ceased.

Ren Shaoyang glanced at it, then looked away.

The sword may be exceptionally good, but it is not yet ready to be unleashed.

However, the Sword Worship Manor possesses a divine weapon that is absolutely no less than the best sword in the world, namely the "Sword of Defeat".

This sword is made of the same material as the peerless sword. It was once attempted to be forged by Ao Ri, the ancestor of the Sword Worship Manor. However, due to its powerful and catastrophic aura, it killed nine great swordsmiths during the forging process and was thus hidden away.

The hidden location is in Aori's Tomb on the mountaintop.

"It is said that both Defeat and Peerlessness were forged by 'Black Frost,' which can absorb all the power in the world and transform it into its own power."

Ren Shaoyang thought to himself, "This kind of powerful devouring ability is even better than the 'Ruthless Blade' in the third part. It's just that the author often forgets about this skill, which makes the peerless swordsmanship a 50/50 match."

"Sigh, some superpowers were really cool when they were created, but in order not to break the balance, they had to be relegated to the sidelines. I understand that feeling."

The journey was smooth and unobstructed, and Ren Shaoyang strolled along until he reached a stone tomb.

The stone tomb was shaped like a tortoise shell, with a high, rounded dome, but the tombstone was completely blank.

What's even stranger is that this Sword Worship Manor is filled with exotic flowers and rare herbs, shady trees, and spring-like weather all year round.

However, nothing grows around this stone tomb; it has become a dead land.

"What a vicious sword!" Ren Shaoyang bent down and touched the ground. "Is the sword of defeat here? It's been a hundred years, and its sharpness still gathers here. Its ominous aura is enough to kill someone instantly."

"Nothing"

Ren Shaoyang stood up, clapped his hands, and smiled, "How could we, as dragon hunters, stoop so low?"

Damn!
A dazzling sword blade shot out from the sleeve, arriving in the blink of an eye and gently touching the stone tomb.

A sound like the trembling of a sword blade emanated from within, as if an evil being had issued an invitation to a duel!
"boom!"

But then a deafening explosion was heard, like a bolt from the blue.

The stone tomb suddenly split in two, and then hundreds of flowing sword shadows flew out abruptly, shooting straight towards the Dragon-Capturing Sword!

At the same time, the bright sunshine suddenly turned pitch black, and dark clouds loomed over the city, hanging low as if they could shatter the entire earth.

A malevolent aura stretched for hundreds of miles, causing the people in the surrounding villages and cities to shudder with fear and look at each other in terror.

Faced with the provocation of the incoming sword.

With a resounding clang, the dragon-capturing vessel trembled slightly, like the afterglow of a setting sun or the lingering waves of the Milky Way.

With a few clangs, the sword shadows were shattered.

Just then, the soil and stones inside the stone tomb surged like waves, as if two huge waves had been separated, and in the blink of an eye, a stone coffin was revealed.

With a rumble, the stone coffin opened by itself.

bass!
A ray of sword light shot out, and a fierce and evil aura erupted from the sky!
It is the sword of defeat!

(End of this chapter)