The sun was at its brightest, and the willows swaying in the wind dropped their leaves, which fell to the second floor of the tavern. There was a lot of noise and clamor, with people laughing, scolding, and shouting. Bold, big, or short and nimble figures came up to the second floor with their disciples, bowed to people, and the words "I've heard a lot about you" and "Nice to meet you" were heard from time to time.
There were also taciturn knights huddled in corners with arrogant and cold eyes, or drinking and talking with people they knew, mostly about the competition.
"... Before the future Chang'an, I had never heard of Master Yuwen. Is he that powerful?"
"You are ignorant. Grand Tutor Yuwen was a great martial artist. It is said that he went into the grasslands alone and killed a lot of Turks. No more, no less, exactly 80,000!"
Some heroic people stood up, clapped their hands and shouted, "Well done!"
There were also questioning voices nearby, and a man with a knife on his back turned around holding a wine bowl.
"Eighty thousand? You are just bragging. Didn't the imperial court say that it was the northern army that killed them? How can one person kill eighty thousand? Killing eighty thousand sheep would tire a person to death."
Most of the people on the second floor are men from the underworld, and there are also a few old men and women among them. These people may seem ordinary, but they are able to travel in the underworld and are more difficult to provoke than ordinary outlaws. There is often a haughty look in their eyes, and when they hear about the so-called one man killing 80,000 people, most of them just snort and sneer, and continue talking and drinking tea.
Seeing their expressions of disbelief, the man from the martial arts world who had just praised Grand Tutor Yuwen, picked up his bowl, stood up and walked between the tables, gestured with his hands, and lowered his voice to the people around him.
"I know you don't believe me, but do you know that Master Yuwen is no ordinary man? He not only possesses peerless martial arts, but also profound mystical techniques and magical weapons. What's so special about killing those 80,000 Turkic soldiers? I have a sworn brother who abandoned the Green Forest and joined the army. He happened to see it with his own eyes. The sword pierced the sky and fell from the sky. Before it fell, the 80,000 Turkic people on the ground were like burning straw, catching fire piece by piece and turning into flying ashes."
A heroic woman raised her face.
"Where's your brother? Is he here today?"
"Dead." The man shrugged. "He died in the battle against Tuyuhun a few years ago."
There was a burst of booing all around, and everyone went back to talking about their own things. However, that man was also impatient, and took a sip of his drink with a smile, and continued to walk around, tapping on a table next to him with his fingers.
"Don't shush. I'm telling you, this Yuwen Grand Master is not that powerful. How could he be invited by Yuwen Shaoqing to take charge? Also, you should know that Yuwen Grand Master is not alone. Rumor has it that he has fellow apprentices. The eldest senior apprentice is said to be an old man in his seventies or eighties with poor eyesight. But think about it. Yuwen Grand Master is so powerful. Being his senior apprentice must be stronger than him."
People who practice martial arts are naturally unruly and it is not easy for them to be subdued. A scholar wearing a silk scarf held up his cup and chuckled, "You said it so clearly, I'm afraid you made it up on purpose to confuse us."
Everyone knew the name of this scholar, that is, 'Four Symbols Sword' Huang Shouyi, but no one knew if it was his real name. The Four Symbols sword technique he practiced combined with his name just fits the meaning of 'Four Symbols Return to One'. He was a rare rising star in the green forest.
After hearing what he said, he felt it made sense and stopped taking the man's words seriously. The latter looked around, tactfully put down his wine bowl and sat back.
"I was just speaking in a nice way. Why did it upset you? This is the truth. Grand Master Yuwen is the disciple of the current imperial master. Believe it or not."
No one among the green forest knights around paid any attention to him.
After all, everyone came to Chang'an this time aiming for the title of the best in the world. The other party is just sitting there and will not leave easily. Why should they care about such a person? They gathered in the capital at this time. If they go on the martial arts competition arena, they may not win the first place, but at least they can make a name for themselves. Maybe they can even become a military officer. At worst, if they have some fame, they can return to their hometown to open a martial arts school and make some living.
The man and woman sitting at the banquet behind the screen listened to the outlaws' remarks, shook their heads and continued to eat. The girl sitting opposite the man was a little worried.
"Brother Jing, you'd better not go up. You just heard that man say no. Yuwen Tuo is so powerful, how could he snatch the Xuanyuan Sword from him?"
Chen Jing ate the rice in silence, occasionally picking up dishes with his chopsticks and putting them into his mouth, chewing them in big mouthfuls, and whispered while wrapping his food around his food:
"There will always be a way."
He raised his eyes and scanned the face of the woman opposite him, then looked at the street outside the fence and the arena being built in the open space in the distance.
"National hatred and family feuds... must be avenged. Only by obtaining the Xuanyuan Sword can we rush into the palace and kill the emperor."
"Why do you have to get the Xuanyuan Sword?"
Hearing the woman's concerns, Chen Jing swallowed the food in his mouth, wiped a grain of rice from the corner of his mouth, and turned around: "Because there is a Mr. Lu beside the emperor... He is Yuwen Tuo's master... As long as I get the Xuanyuan Sword, plus the Six Dings and Six Jias Yin Yang Tiantong Technique that I have practiced for many years, I will definitely be able to kill this dog emperor."
As he said that, he put down his chopsticks and held the woman's hand. "Xue, don't worry. When I fulfill my wish and make the common people of the world no longer enslaved by the emperor, I will retire to the mountains with you and no longer care about worldly affairs. If you like to go to the northern frontier to ride horses and herd cattle and sheep, we can raise a large herd together."
Feeling the man's warmth, the woman blushed, nodded and said "hmm", and felt that time had become very long.
Not long after, the sun set and rose again. On the fifteenth day of May, Yiningfang became very lively. It was filled with people from the city who had come here. Looking around, it was all a sea of people, pointing and talking at the huge stage in the middle.
"I've heard for a while that there was a martial arts competition between people from the underworld, but I didn't expect it to be true."
"How can this be false? It was organized by Yuwen Shaoqing."
"So there's going to be a good show to watch. I wonder if it's as described by the gangsters and storytellers in the teahouses, with flying over eaves and walls and fighting with all the noise and laughter."
"You'll know once you see it. The band of outlaws are just ahead."
Some people in the crowd stood on tiptoe and stretched their necks to look around. Sure enough, around the huge stage, there were several circles of people from the martial arts world wearing different clothes and holding weapons, who took turns to press their fingerprints on the old man who signed the signature.
In a restaurant farther away, Yuwen Wenji, dressed in official robes, and Yuwen Chengdu, dressed as a warrior, sat down with Yuwen Tuo and looked down at the wooden platform below. Then Yuwen Wenji nodded to the officials below.
After a while, an old man in official uniform walked to the middle and talked about some rules that no one else was interested in. Then someone pressed a red handprint, picked up a stick, and jumped onto the stage.
The old man in the audience raised the paper with the signature on it and turned around: "The life and death agreement has been signed!" Then there was no more words. The old man on the stage turned in one direction and shouted loudly: "Anyone who wants to challenge me?!"
"I'll do it!"
A man holding a knife took off his hat, supported himself on the table with his hands, flipped over diagonally, and then started fighting with the opponent.
Amid the sound of ping-pong.
Chen Jing stood in the audience and watched all this. He occasionally looked up and saw the distant sky covered with dark clouds and rumbling thunder drifting towards this side.
…
After the sun covered the clouds, in the Wanshou Temple in Furong Pond, Lu Liangsheng walked out of the mountain gate with a skinny young boy and a child carrying a bag on his back.
There was a faint rumble of thunder in the sky, and people thought it was going to rain, so Lu Liangsheng cast a spell to protect the three of them from the rain and walked onto the street.
"Mingyue, we'll say goodbye here. Be careful not to take the wrong path."
When they arrived at the street, Lu Liangsheng gave some instructions to the boy following him. The boy nodded, shook the bag on his shoulder, bowed, turned around, spread his legs, and ran excitedly.
Watching the little boy disappear in the crowd, Lu Liangsheng turned his head and spoke softly to the skinny boy.
"Yuanba, let's go and see how the competition is going over there."
The master and the disciple turned around and headed for Yiningfang. In less than a moment, a drizzle fell in the city.