Wandering Sword Seller's Life in the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 216 The Legend of the Divine Sword, The Reincarnation of Yin and Yang!

"It's so lively!"

Xu Qing held a long sword, his robes fluttering gently in the cool mountain breeze.

He stood on a blue stone, his gaze sweeping over the scattered figures and mottled bloodstains in the woods below. His tone was neither mocking nor sentimental; he let out a sigh and then vanished into the howling mountain wind.

He simply felt that Mount Tai was a good power, and that as the first sword after becoming a fourth-level swordsmith, he should find a good place to forge it. However, he did not expect that the commotion during the forging of the sword would be much greater than he imagined, attracting so many people and causing such a big commotion.

Xu Qing had previously achieved the fourth-order sword.

Neither the "Xuan Shu Sword" nor the "Ling Shuang Sword" caused such a commotion.

Now Xu Qing realizes that he has been negligent.

A sword made by taking advantage of favorable timing and location will undoubtedly have a much greater impact than a sword made by taking advantage of favorable human factors. Of course, this is also related to the special nature of Mount Tai itself.

As a famous mountain and river, although no sects have taken root here, it does not mean that the entire mountain is deserted. On the contrary, there are quite a few people surrounding this mountain.

"This sword is quite powerful!"

Putting aside his inner musings, Xu Qing looked at the sword in his hand again.

This sword was forged by him from scratch, reaching the fourth rank, without the aid of any external force.

This sword is different from the previous two fourth-tier swords. The Xuan Shu Sword achieved its fourth-tier status thanks to the power of Chu Nan Gong, while the Ling Shuang Sword was achieved through Bai Yi Fei's "sacrifice." This sword is different; no master used their powerful skills to "baptize" it, nor did anyone perform a "sacrifice." It was forged using the "right time" and "right place." Furthermore, because the sword was created with great fanfare, even the swordsmith Xu Qing was unsure of its true power.

Now, it's confirmed.

The fourth-tier sword is indeed a comprehensive upgrade in power compared to the third-tier sword.

This sword, even among fourth-tier swords, would be considered quite remarkable.

In his assessment, its power was far greater than that of the former "Frostbite Sword".

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, Xu Qing flicked his wrist, and the longsword drew a silver arc in the air.

With a deafening roar, the makeshift sword-forging furnace not far away was instantly cleaved into pieces by the sword energy, sparks flying everywhere, before being extinguished by the mountain wind.

After doing all this, he lightly touched the bluestone with his toes and his figure floated down like a willow catkin to Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai.

The two sisters were pale-faced. Xiaobai was carefully supporting the injured Xiaohei. When they saw Xu Qing coming over, both of them showed a relieved look in their eyes.

Xu Qing didn't offer any words of comfort, but simply said in a calm tone, "We should go!"

Xiao Bai nodded silently and helped Xiao Hei slowly get up.

The three of them walked down the stone path in the mountain, and no one stopped them along the way.

Those who had previously tried to seize the sword either fell to Xu Qing's sword, or, though they survived by chance, had their courage shattered by the earth-shattering sword energy. Now they only dared to hide in the shadows, not even having the courage to look up.

The turmoil on Mount Tai, like a pebble thrown into a lake, quickly spread outwards at an astonishing speed.

Besides the surviving witnesses spreading the word, the "storytellers" that Xu Qing had specially trained also came in very handy at this moment.

In fact, Xu Qing did not want to make such a big fuss, but since things had come to this point, covering it up would only arouse suspicion. It would be better to go with the flow and let people spread the word. The content of the wording would still be closely related to the "fairy island at sea" that he had previously laid out.

"Listen up, everyone! On that overseas immortal island, there is a descendant of a sword immortal who has recently been forging a sword at Mount Tai!"

"On the day the sword was forged, the wind and clouds changed color, the sun and moon lost their light, and the spiritual energy in the mountains gathered into rivers, attracting heroes from all over the world to believe that a rare treasure had been born, and they all gathered at Mount Tai. But who would have thought that the successor of the sword immortal would only swing his sword once, causing heavy casualties among everyone. As the saying goes, 'One sword's light chills fourteen provinces, reflecting thousands of years of history!'"

"Speaking of that sword, it is truly a rare find in this world! It is said to have been forged according to a manual left behind by an ancient sword immortal. You can see the ring-like patterns on the blade, and holding it gives you a sense of vicissitude. Moreover, such a sword is not uncommon on the overseas immortal islands. Although it is not ubiquitous, there are quite a few!"

In the storyteller's tale, Xu Qing deliberately downplayed his existence with the Shao Siming sisters, focusing all his attention on the sword.

What he wanted was to reignite the world's curiosity about "overseas fairy islands" and "peerless swords".

Previously, the rumors about the overseas fairy islands had gradually cooled down, but with the publicity surrounding the sword-forging at Mount Tai, the hype quickly rose again.

Xu Qing stayed in the Prime Minister's residence and could feel his "reputation value" steadily increasing every day. He couldn't help but think that occasionally "showing off his abilities in front of others" might not be such a bad thing.

He knew very well that when a fourth-tier sword was formed under certain conditions, it would cause strange phenomena in the heavens and earth. If more people could see these phenomena, and if they were further embellished and mythologized by storytellers, it would be of great benefit to him in making a name for himself.

In the study of the Prime Minister's residence, Xu Qing was examining the newly forged sword alone.

The sword gleamed with a warm luster under the candlelight, and the tiny growth rings seemed to come alive, faintly emanating a subtle spiritual energy.

He gently stroked the sword's blade and slowly uttered two words: "Spring and Autumn Annals".

This is the name of this sword.

Meanwhile, in the marketplace of Qi, a woman dressed in gorgeous clothes was walking slowly by.

The woman was stunningly beautiful, with skin as white as snow, but her eyes were like ice and snow in the dead of winter, exuding a cold aura that kept strangers at bay.

When passersby saw her face, many of them had greedy looks in their eyes and wanted to go up and chat with her. But whenever they got close and met the woman's cold eyes, they would be instantly sobered up as if they had been doused with ice water, and their steps would stop involuntarily.

The woman paid no attention to the reactions of those around her, and simply walked forward while mentally processing the various rumors she had heard since arriving in the State of Qi.

In the eyes of the Yin-Yang School, Mount Tai already held an extraordinary position, and could be called an "ancient sacred mountain." Naturally, she paid special attention to the news of the sword-making on Mount Tai, which had spread like wildfire.

It was precisely because of this attention that she was able to glean a crucial piece of information from the chaotic rumors: in the matter of forging the sword at Mount Tai, there were two protectors who not only came from the Yin-Yang School and used the Yin-Yang School's unique "Ten Thousand Leaves Flying Flower Flow," but were also two girls with identical appearances.

Almost instantly upon hearing this information, the woman confirmed their identities—Shao ​​Siming!

In order to find the whereabouts of Yun Zhongjun, the Eastern Emperor specially sent Shao Siming to the State of Qi. However, Shao Siming and Xu Fu disappeared without a trace.

Xu Fu has now returned to the Yin-Yang School, but the whereabouts of Shao Siming remain a mystery.

Her primary purpose in coming to the State of Qi was to find out the truth about what happened in Qi back then, but she never expected to receive such a pleasant surprise as soon as she arrived.

The whereabouts of Shao Siming have finally been revealed.

But this also raises more questions.

Who exactly forged the sword on Mount Tai? Why did Shao Siming help that person? Has she already betrayed the Yin Yang School?

With these questions in mind, the woman traveled all the way to Linzi, the capital of the State of Qi.

In her opinion, compared to finding Shao Siming's whereabouts, there was someone easier to find: the person known as "Master Qing" who was hiding in Hou Sheng Mansion.

This person is definitely a key figure.

If he hadn't targeted Xu Fu in the first place, none of the subsequent events would have occurred.

Leaving aside the two mysterious people Xu Fu later encountered, we must not let this "Mr. Qing" go easily.

On her first day in Linzi, the woman did not rush into action, but instead secretly investigated Hou Sheng's situation through her own means.

To her surprise, Hou Sheng had a very good reputation in Linzi City. When people talked about him, they mostly described him as "treating the virtuous with courtesy" and "knowing how to use people well," making him seem like a "wise prime minister" and "capable minister."

This was, of course, the result of Hou Sheng's deliberate embellishment, which is also the biggest difference between him and Ji Wuye of South Korea.

Ji Wuye was powerful and domineering, and acted recklessly. Everyone with eyes could see that he was a treacherous minister, but they dared not speak out because of his power. Hou Sheng was different. Although he was also a treacherous minister, he knew how to use the reputation of "wisdom" to package himself and eliminate the resistance of the people.

Even the mediocre King Jian of Qi was hailed as a "wise ruler" by the people, thanks to this trend.

After learning about these circumstances, the woman felt it was all rather absurd.

The world today is a time of great contention. The Qin state is eyeing the other six states with covetous intent, and the Han state has already been destroyed. The remaining states are all in a state of fear and are actively preparing for war.

But what about the State of Qi? Its ruler and ministers were mediocre and indifferent to the general trend of the world, yet they still enjoyed the reputation of being "wise rulers and virtuous ministers" among the people.

However, upon further reflection, she felt that this was reasonable. Perhaps in the eyes of other countries, King Jian of Qi and Queen Sheng were incompetent rulers and treacherous ministers, but for the people of Qi, they could indeed enable them to live and work in peace and contentment. Qi had not suffered from the ravages of war for many years, so the people were naturally grateful to them.

The woman had no interest in judging whether King Jian of Qi or Hou Sheng was good or bad. Her investigation of Hou Sheng was only to find out the background of that "Mr. Qing".

But the results of the investigation were once again beyond her expectations.

According to Xu Fu, the "Mr. Qing" held an extraordinary position in front of Hou Sheng, so in any investigation of Hou Sheng's situation, it would be impossible to avoid him.

However, the truth is that there are many anecdotes about Hou Shengmenke circulating outside, but very few rumors about this "Mr. Qing".

"Was it deliberately concealed?" the woman wondered to herself.

If she hadn't learned about the unusual nature of this "Mr. Qing" from Xu Fu beforehand, she probably wouldn't have come to such a guess.

This conjecture made her increasingly aware that this "Mr. Qing" was no ordinary person, and that his significance far exceeded her expectations.

However, the woman did not choose to rashly sneak into Hou Sheng's residence to cause trouble for him.

She knew very well that Yun Zhongjun and Xu Fu had both been killed by the other party, and Shao Siming's disappearance might also be related to the other party. If she acted rashly, she would only bring trouble upon herself.

The next day, the woman continued to secretly investigate the situation of the retainers in the Hou Sheng Mansion, and gained a deeper understanding of the internal structure and personnel relationships of the Hou Sheng Mansion.

On the third day, she finally found an opportunity. A retainer of Hou Sheng went out alone. The woman saw him and immediately followed him. In a secluded alley, she easily subdued him.

With her strength, the retainer had no chance to fight back and became her prisoner.

The woman led the man to a secluded spot and immediately used the secret techniques of the Yin-Yang School to interrogate him.

Soon, she learned more about "Mr. Qing" from the other party.

Although both were retainers of Hou Sheng, their statuses were worlds apart.

That "Mr. Qing" had a separate courtyard in Hou Sheng's mansion, and he also had a maidservant to serve him personally. Hou Sheng treated him with great courtesy, almost to the point of obeying his every word.

The retainers in the manor privately referred to "Master Qing" as "the Hidden Prime Minister." Although a few people spoke ill of him out of jealousy, most of the retainers greatly admired him, believing that he was exceptionally talented, knowledgeable and proficient in astronomy, geography, medicine, divination, and martial arts—truly a polymath.

"As expected, he's not simple!" The woman's gaze grew increasingly serious.

The reason she felt that the other party was not simple was not only because of the high praise he received from Hou Sheng's retainers, but also because of his extraordinary status in Hou Sheng's household. He was known as the "Hidden Prime Minister" but did not arouse Hou Sheng's suspicion, which was by no means easy.

Either his talent was so great that Hou Sheng was willing to suppress all his dissatisfaction and suspicion; or he used other unknown means.

There is no evidence yet as to what the specific reason is, but the woman has a vague feeling about it.

Perhaps she was familiar with the methods the other party used.

So, on the fourth day, the woman set her sights on Gokatsu himself.

As the prime minister of Qi, Hou Sheng could not stay in his residence all the time. He had to attend court and govern every day. Even though he was accompanied by many guards when he went out, there would always be times when he made mistakes.

The woman waited patiently, and finally, at dusk, she found a gap during a guard shift change and quietly approached Hou Sheng's carriage.

She did not have direct contact with Hou Sheng, but only observed his aura from a distance through the gauze curtain of the carriage.

"!!!"

The woman's heart skipped a beat, and a look of understanding appeared in her eyes.

She finally understood why Hou Sheng listened to and trusted that "Mr. Qing" so much.

Because she sensed an extremely faint trace of Yin-Yang magic within it. If she hadn't cultivated Yin-Yang magic to an extremely high level and been proficient in "Astrological Laws," and was extremely skilled in astrology and divination, she probably wouldn't have been able to detect this subtle anomaly at all.

Even ordinary Yin-Yang masters might not be able to detect the clues.