Gu Long's World: Starting with the Legend of Chu Liuxiang

Hu Tiehua said, "Why are you scaring her? How could Shi Guanyin possibly be in her house? If Shi Guanyin were hiding by the side of the King of Kucha, killing him would be a piece of cake. Why go to all this trouble?"

Jiang Fengyue only smiled slightly and did not answer.

Bored, Hu Tiehua took out the "Star of Bliss" from his pouch again, looking at it from left to right, treasuring it greatly.

Jiang Fengyue asked, "You like it that much?"

Hu Tiehua said, "I risked my life to get this back."

Jiang Fengyue said, "If you like it, then this stone will soon be yours."

Hu Tiehua retorted angrily, "What nonsense are you talking about? This was bought by the King of Kucha for five thousand taels of gold. How could he give it to someone else? Besides, I wouldn't want something like this even if you gave it to me."

Jiang Fengyue sighed, "When the true secret of this stone is revealed, it will be worthless in the eyes of the King of Kucha."

While we were chatting, we suddenly heard the sound of camel bells coming from afar.

Princess Pipa was overjoyed and exclaimed, "Let's go take a look!"

The group set off immediately. When they arrived, the camel caravan had already stopped, with dozens of camels forming a circle, and they had begun to set up camp.

There was no sound around. Several burly men were patrolling outside. When they saw someone coming, their faces immediately turned wary.

Hu Tiehua asked, "Could these be the troops of the traitors from Kucha?"

Princess Pipa said, "Absolutely not. There are more than a dozen tribes of all sizes in this desert. You may think they are all the same, but I can tell the difference between them at a glance."

Ji Bingyan asked in a deep voice, "Should we still go over there?"

Jiang Fengyue laughed and said, "Even if they are bandits, dealing with them shouldn't be too difficult for us, right?"

Jiang Fengyue thought to himself that with the martial arts skills of the nine of them, they could handle even if the opponent had ninety people.

Upon hearing this, the group slowly walked towards their tent. As soon as they got close, the men nocked their bows and drew their swords.

Jiang Fengyue looked into the distance and spotted a familiar figure in the crowd.

Jiang Fengyue shouted, "Black Pearl, aren't you going to welcome our old friend?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Black Pearl stepped out from the crowd. Upon seeing Jiang Fengyue and his group, she immediately ordered her men to lay down their weapons.

Before setting off for the desert, Chu Liuxiang had already informed Black Pearl of the truth about her father's death and had also given her his remains. It now appears that Black Pearl has brought the remains back to the desert.

Just then, the sound of horses' hooves was heard, and three people and three horses approached from afar. The one in the lead was none other than the King of Kucha.

Princess Pipa exclaimed in surprise, "It's my father!"

As soon as the King of Kucha dismounted, Black Pearl's men rushed forward to welcome him.

Upon discovering Jiang Fengyue and the others, the King of Kucha quickly pushed through the crowd and approached Jiang Fengyue.

The King of Kucha grasped Jiang Fengyue's hand and said excitedly, "Brave warrior, you're here too! That's wonderful! Now my life is completely safe."

Princess Pipa pouted and said with dissatisfaction, "Father, didn't you even notice your daughter was here? I almost didn't make it back to see you alive."

The King of Kucha smiled and said, "Good, my precious daughter is very lucky. I am so happy to see everyone here."

Black Pearl stepped forward and said, "You two actually know each other?"

Chu Liuxiang asked, "Why are your people so enthusiastic towards the King of Kucha?"

Black Pearl said, "It's only because he's our employer, with piles of silver in front of you, how could you not be enthusiastic?"

Jiang Fengyue asked, "Why has Your Highness come?"

The King of Kucha sighed, "It's only because..."

Before he could finish speaking, another clatter of hooves sounded, thunderous and deafening, indicating that there were at least five hundred people approaching.

Black Pearl's men nocked their bows, drew the strings, and pulled out their swords.

The sound of horses' hooves grew closer and closer, and soon everyone was surrounded.

Suddenly, a rider rushed forward and shouted, "We are the Grand General Min, the commander-in-chief of the army of the Kingdom of Kucha. The man who has fled here is a serious criminal of our country. We hope that your army will hand him over."

The King of Kucha patted Jiang Fengyue on the shoulder and said, "Can you escort the young king out?"

Jiang Fengyue smiled and said, "Of course."

Several horses led the way, and Jiang Fengyue and Chu Liuxiang, one on horseback each, escorted the King of Kucha out. With these two by his side, no one in the world could harm the King of Kucha.

The King of Kucha, looking refreshed and radiant, saw the man who had been calling out to him in the enemy ranks and said in a deep voice, "Go and summon Min Hongkui and Hong Xuehan to see me!"

Upon seeing the former king, the warrior who had shouted the order blushed and dared not flaunt his power any longer. He pulled hard on the reins, turned his horse around, and rode away. A moment later, several horses came galloping towards them, led by three men: General Min, Minister Hong, and Wu Juxuan.

Upon seeing Jiang Fengyue and Chu Liuxiang, Wu Juxuan immediately tensed up. He couldn't believe anyone had managed to escape from Shi Guanyin's clutches. Wu Juxuan gripped the reins tightly, preparing to turn and flee, but then he glanced at the army behind him and instantly regained his composure.

The King of Kucha, his face grave, said sternly, "Min Hongkui and Hong Xuehan, when have I ever mistreated you? Why do you dare to rebel?"

Hong Xiangong laughed loudly, "Royal power is not bestowed by heaven, but naturally belongs to the virtuous. If you obediently surrender and come with me now, I will definitely speak well of you to the prince and have him spare your life and grant you a good place to live out the rest of your days in peace."

The King of Kucha was furious and said, "There cannot be two suns in the sky, nor two rulers in a country. Who else dares to claim the title of king besides myself?"

Hong Xiangong laughed and said, "That makes sense. There can't be two suns in the sky, and there can't be two rulers in a country. Now that the new king has ascended the throne, why don't you quickly bow down and submit to him?"

The King of Kucha laughed loudly, "A new king? Do you know where your new king is right now?"

Hong Xiangong laughed and said, "Of course, you'll be waiting in the palace for me to take you back."

The King of Kucha laughed loudly, "Take a look at what this is first."

Black Pearl handed over a sandalwood box, which the King of Kucha took and threw to him forcefully.

When Master Hong opened the box, his expression changed drastically, and he could no longer hold it, letting it fall to the ground.

A human head immediately rolled out of the box. Black Pearl leaped up, flew over first, and used her long sword to lift the head high into the air.

The King of Kucha roared, "The traitor Andeshan has been executed, and his head is right here. Those who were forced to submit to this villain in the past, if they surrender now, I will forgive and forget them."

The three armies immediately became agitated, and some had already realized that the head was none other than Andeshan's.

Seeing the situation spiraling out of control, Wu Juxuan shouted, "He's trying to demoralize the army! Don't fall for his trick! This foolish king is too busy trying to escape to do something like this!"

The King of Kucha laughed loudly, "Do you really think I was only concerned with escaping for my life? I had already secretly launched five armies, and the restoration of my kingdom was accomplished three days ago."

General Min shouted sternly, "Where are the Ironclad Army? Seize this tyrannical king!"

At this moment, no one listened to him anymore; only a few of his close bodyguards rode out on horseback.

Jiang Fengyue said, "It's our turn to make a move."

Hu Tiehua was the first to rush out, and Ji Bingyan and Yidianhong followed suit. A few assassins were no match for them.

Seeing that things were not going well, Wu Hua, who was disguised as Wu Juxuan, tried to escape in the chaos. He pulled hard on the reins and turned his horse around.

Jiang Fengyue shouted, "Brother Chu, go after him! I'll take care of things here. You must bring Wuhua back!"

Chu Liuxiang had been keeping a close eye on Wuhua. As soon as Wuhua's horse went out, Chu Liuxiang spurred his horse and galloped off in pursuit.

When General Min and Minister Hong saw that all the assassins were gone, they sensed something was wrong and were about to pull on the reins when Jiang Fengyue flew in front of their horses.

Jiang Fengyue stretched out her hands and gently pulled the two of them off the horse. The horse was startled and ran off uncontrollably.

Jiang Fengyue sneered, "Still thinking of escaping?"

Hong Xiangong knelt down and begged for mercy, saying, "If you spare me, I can give you 100,000 taels of gold."

Jiang Fengyue said, "Even a million taels wouldn't be of any use."

After speaking, Jiang Fengyue picked up the two of them like chicks and brought them back to the King of Kucha.

The King of Kucha proclaimed, "I have been restored to the throne, and the traitors have fallen. Those who lay down their swords live, and those who rebel are executed."

Upon hearing this, the enemy soldiers lost all will to fight and put down their swords.

……

The King of Kucha has already prepared a victory banquet.

Inside the tent, everyone was drinking and reveling, celebrating their hard-won victory.

Hu Tiehua, who usually eagerly drank, was absent-minded.

Jiang Fengyue came to his side, patted him on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Don't worry, Wuhua alone can't harm Brother Chu in the slightest."

Hu Tiehua sighed, "But he hasn't come back for so long. Could it be that he's run into that Stone Guanyin again?"

Jiang Fengyue said, "Brother Chu will never encounter Shi Guanyin. I guess it's just that Wuhua, that bald monk, has too many tricks and underhanded methods, and Brother Chu is temporarily entangled with him. But even so, Wuhua will definitely be defeated in the end. Brother Chu knows Wuhua too well."

Hu Tiehua said, "Alright, I'll believe you. Your guesses have never been wrong."

Jiang Fengyue was sweating profusely. If he hadn't known what would happen in the future, how could he have made such an accurate prediction?

Hu Tiehua seemed to have thought of something else, took out the "Star of Bliss" and smiled at Jiang Fengyue: "Aside from this matter, I think the 'Star of Bliss' must be a precious treasure of the King of Kucha."

Hu Tiehua stepped forward, intending to return the "Star of Bliss" to the King of Kucha.

Hu Tiehua said, "I have not failed Your Highness's trust and have brought the treasure back. Please accept it, Your Highness."

The King of Kucha laughed and said, "You have performed a great service and do not ask for any reward. You can keep this gem as a memento."

Hu Tiehua exclaimed in surprise, "If Your Highness thinks I have made a contribution, it would be fine to reward me with a few jugs of wine, but I absolutely cannot accept this 'Star of Bliss.' How could I, a poor boy, sleep at night if I had something so precious on my person?"

The King of Kucha smiled and said, "Two or three days ago, its value would have been immeasurable, but now, I don't know how many more gems like this I have in my treasury. You can rest assured and accept it."

Hu Tiehua said, "Isn't there a great secret hidden inside this gemstone?"

The King of Kucha laughed loudly and said, "There is no secret. It's just a rumor I spread to make them focus all their attention on this gem so that I can take the opportunity to gather my troops and restore my kingdom."

He added, "In your Central Plains parlance, this is called 'openly repairing the plank road while secretly crossing the Chencang pass.'"

Hu Tiehua secretly admired her, then lowered her head dejectedly and walked back to Jiang Fengyue's side.

Hu Tiehua said dejectedly, "I'm truly impressed by you now; you've guessed everything correctly."