Header Background Image

    Edict of Peace 150

    Read Advanced Chapters on Patreon: patreon.com/fantasystories797

    Chapter 150: Go forth and slay the bandit!

    Confucian Heart Sword, attacks the heart with the heart. Open and honest, without a single trace of concealment. Gongyang Suwang, the Palace Master of the world, his brilliance is magnificent. Using such a sword, he is invincible under heaven. Xu Huiyang, too, possesses a sincere heart in the way of the sword; a pure heart, without a single speck of impurity, like a brilliantly polished gemstone.

    He had once used the Heart Sword to defeat martial artists of higher realms than himself.

    But now he discovered that he was not the only one with such a heart. His opponent’s resolve was stronger than his own. There was no superior or inferior between their hearts, only firmness and weakness.

    In an instant, during the clash of minds, Xu Huiyang found that the traces of fracturing appeared on his sword. He raised his hand, blocking his sword; the clash of the two swords was a collision of the two men’s hearts.

    Who is the truly sincere swordsman, devoted to the sword since childhood? Or whose heart is stronger, having endured ten years of hardship and seen the suffering of the world?

    Xu Huiyang’s sword shattered.

    He voluntarily withdrew from the Heart Sword clash.

    In the outer arena, it seemed like only a moment’s clash. People saw the young Sword Saint take a half-step back, raising his left hand to cover his mouth and nose, blood flowing continuously. Li Guanyi, however, held his weapon firmly, as Xu Huiyang retreated.

    The Qi around Li Guanyi circulated rapidly.

    The roar of a White Tiger surged. He gripped his halberd and leaped, abandoning all defense. The power of his physique, considered the best among his peers throughout history, exploded to its limit. He gripped the halberd with both hands and brought it down with ferocity.

    Only dominance!

    Pure strength!

    Pure courage!

    Tu Shengyuan, a guest of the Number One Tower in the World, suddenly rose, his eyes flashing: “This is… Golden Muscles and Jade Bones, Dragon Sinews and Tiger Marrow?! Or the Buddhist Glass Diamond Physique?! No wonder, no wonder…” He seemed to understand.

    A martial artist’s physique takes more than a decade to refine.

    “He’s a body-cultivation expert?!”

    The others lacked the discerning eye of the Number One Tower in the World. They were simply stunned by the instantaneous clash. Xu Huiyang was wounded in his primordial spirit, but he unleashed his sword energy regardless, his jade hairpin snapping, his black hair flying. In an instant, pure strength and sword energy erupted in a violent struggle, sending out shockwaves.

    Xu Huiyang propped himself up with his sword, his eyes fixed on Li Guanyi.

    “You!”

    Li Guanyi said: “Are you sincere in your swordsmanship?”

    He paused, then calmly replied:

    “But, isn’t the reason you used the Heart Sword because you felt that your own sword couldn’t defeat me, so you used a mental technique as a shortcut?”

    “You weren’t at the end of your rope back then.”

    “Using the Heart Sword—was it a shortcut, or did you truly believe that Gongyang Suwang’s Heart Sword was stronger than your own swordsmanship?”

    Xu Huiyang’s face slowly turned pale.

    His inner energy erupted, but Li Guanyi’s physique was too strong.

    The two instantly pulled apart.

    Li Guanyi’s physical energy was heavily depleted, his blood surging. A normal person would not be able to withstand this level of exertion, leading to dizziness, sore arms, muscle tears, and other negative effects; they might even die from exceeding their limits.

    But he showed none of these symptoms; instead, his blood was like a dragon, growing stronger with each battle.

    Dragon Sinews and Tiger Marrow allowed him to reach the theoretical limit of explosive power that only a second-rank martial artist could normally achieve with a burst of energy with each strike.

    And this burst was sustained.

    The Glass Physique greatly reduced the damage of sword energy to him.

    The Ancient Moon Immortal Body allowed his blood to surge rapidly, his heart beating strongly, reducing the strain and damage to his internal organs to zero. The martial arts he cultivated lacked the exquisite peak swordsmanship of Xu Huiyang; they were not techniques that could attack the heart and kill the body.

    But combined, they allowed Li Guanyi, despite having fought for a long time, to seem as if he was still at his peak.

    Xu Huiyang breathed heavily.

    Dust and smoke filled the air, and the young warrior in battle armor held his halberd diagonally.

    He slowly stepped forward.

    He raised his hand and brushed his sleeve.

    The dust and smoke cleared. Although there were traces of residual sword energy on him, he remained composed. As he walked forward, the sharp edge of his halberd scraped against the ground, making a chilling sound.

    Each step seemed to land on Xu Huiyang’s heart.

    An overwhelmingly strong sense of pressure was felt even by those around them.

    Xu Huiyang closed his eyes, thinking about Li Guanyi’s words. He had subconsciously felt that the Heart Sword would solve the battle, that Gongyang Suwang’s Heart Sword was stronger. Thinking about the scene he had witnessed in the clash of minds, the young Sword Saint opened his eyes. He sighed, raised his sword, and then let it go.

    “I concede.”

    The sword used in the martial arts competition fell to the ground.

    BOOM!!!

    The entire arena instantly shattered and collapsed.

    The bluestone crumbled and shattered into large pieces. The huge arena, having been smashed by the heavy halberd and torn apart by the sword energy, was completely destroyed. The crowd looked at Li Guanyi. A second-rank martial artist could have such destructive power?

    And—

    What did Xu Huiyang say?

    Not that he had lost.

    But—”I concede”?!

    Xu Huiyang ignored the surrounding noise. He looked at Li Guanyi and said, “I admire your path, but—”

    The young Sword Saint fell silent, then smiled slightly: “I will not abandon mine.”

    He turned, waved to Li Guanyi, and stepped down from the stage.

    Li Guanyi let out a breath, and his violently surging blood began to calm down. He turned his weapon over and thrust it into the ground. The high-quality five-hundred-forged weapon shattered completely under this action, turning to dust.

    Li Guanyi sensed killing intent.

    Not just one; one from Yu Wen Lie, and one from—

    Chen Yu Yun.

    Chen Yu Yun’s expression twitched. He stared at Li Guanyi, clenching his fist. A flame of jealousy burned in his heart. He was unwilling. He knew that, as the final competitor, his performance would inevitably be overshadowed by this battle.

    The offspring of a Sword Saint, the struggle between the crown prince and the powerful relatives. Gongyang Suwang’s unparalleled Heart Sword. The young Sword Saint’s surrender and concession. A second-rank martial artist defeating a third-rank one, shattering the entire arena to dust and breaking his weapon—the scale of the event could be heard in the approving cheers of the onlookers. Chen Yu Yun clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking.

    Why?

    Why do you have to oppose me!

    Why, why do you have to steal my limelight?!

    Chen Yu Yun knew it was because of his opponent’s strength, and that the battle was indeed amazing; but reason was useless. It only fueled the nameless fire of jealousy in his heart.

    He knew he shouldn’t be jealous.

    But the more he tried to control it, the more it felt like damming up the fire, causing it to burn even more intensely in his chest.

    He held the jade disc, enraged: “Aren’t you a treasure?”

    “Why?! Why haven’t you been used once in the past ten years!”

    “Such inferior jade!”

    “Useless trash, what a filthy treasure!”

    He squeezed the jade disc tightly, wishing he could smash it on the ground and grind it to pieces with his feet. After entertaining this destructive thought, he felt much better.

    He then released the jade disc, his expression still the same as before.

    He applauded approvingly, a warm, gentle smile on his face:

    “Truly amazing.”

    “You have brought glory to our Chen Kingdom.”

    Li Guanyi did not respond to him, walking past Chen Yu Yun as if he hadn’t seen him. Then he extended his hand to Zhou Liuyang and Ye Buyong, bumping fists with them. Chen Yu Yun’s gentle smile froze slightly, and malice surged in his heart.

    Yu Wen Lie watched Li Guanyi’s back, his killing intent surging once more.

    People in the martial world look at individual duels; only a general like him knew where a physique like Li Guanyi’s truly belonged.

    The battlefield.

    Only the battlefield.

    Such a man, clad in heavy armor, riding a strange beast, even if only at the fourth rank.

    As long as he wasn’t targeted and surrounded by experts, he could easily fight among thousands of troops.

    Killing is very energy-consuming, and even third-rank generals cannot fight endlessly. Injuries and battles will lead to a decline in condition.

    Such a man, who would not tire, could always maintain peak physical strength and blood, and is skilled in using long-handled heavy weapons, would represent the morale of an army on the battlefield.

    Maintaining his own morale and destroying the enemy’s morale.

    He should be killed.

    But as Yu Wen Lie thought this, he saw a white-haired elder, an elder of the Xue family, laughing loudly. He raised his teacup to Yu Wen Lie, smiling, but his eyes were like those of a tiger, locked on the two people behind Yu Wen Lie.

    So Yu Wen Lie slowly withdrew his gaze.

    “Hahaha, amazing, boss!” Zhou Liuyang, bound like a mummy, laughed and waved his arms, which looked like tied chicken legs, saying: “I thought our Imperial Guards were going to be completely wiped out this time, but I never expected it, never expected it, boss, you made it to the end.”

    “If we encounter Yu Wen Hua or that… Goshu Yin,”

    “We will avenge our brothers!”

    Ye Buyong nodded: “Congratulations.”

    Someone quickly repaired the martial arts stage, preparing for the last battle of the day. As everyone could predict, Chen Yu Yun, even as the final competitor, even with his skillful use of both blades and swords, winning beautifully.

    Those around were still talking about the first great battle of the day, their voices filled with excitement.

    Tu Shengyuan, the guest of the Number One Tower in the World, used a carving knife to cut off a bamboo slip,

    stuffed it into his mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it.

    He was thinking.

    The martial artists around stared in astonishment.

    Tu Shengyuan rolled his eyes. As a martial artist who had achieved cultivation, refining his mouth and internal organs was nothing; eating a simple bamboo slip was no problem at all.

    It was just a little bit of a toothache.

    “Li Guanyi won against Xu Huiyang, but this one battle alone made him famous; he’ll be on the list.”

    “Of course, his first ranking won’t be very high, hmm.”

    “What kind of title should we give him…”

    After the final battle, Emperor Chen invited the four winners to come forward. After a series of grand speeches, he bestowed rewards: a high-grade weapon and high-grade pills, which was considered quite good.

    This high-grade weapon could be used by fourth-rank martial artists.

    The musician’s mechanical hand was also made with materials that allowed for the flow of inner energy.

    Li Guanyi chose a halberd.

    Its body was light silver, its texture as smooth as stars. The halberd’s blade was chillingly sharp, named “Frostbite.” The most important part of the halberd, the blade, was made of cold iron. During battle, it could tear the opponent’s wounds, hindering the flow of their blood and causing cold poison.

    It was also quite heavy.

    Possessing such abilities, it already had some of the special properties of a magic weapon.

    Goshu Yin took a saber, Yu Wen Hua casually took a sword.

    Chen Yu Yun took a hand crossbow.

    The hand crossbow was equipped with three bolts. The bolts seemed to possess the power of thunder, capable of extremely high speed and penetration. They could also paralyze the opponent’s body, making it a good weapon.

    After receiving their rewards, Emperor Chen asked Chancellor Dantai Xianming to draw lots to determine the semi-final pairings. Dantai Xianming looked at Li Guanyi. The elder, who was older than Chen Chengbi and Zu Wenyuan, said gently, “Truly, the younger generation is awe-inspiring.”

    He shook the lot, and the results were obtained.

    Just as Po Jun had predicted.

    “The first match: Chen Yu Yun of the Great Chen Imperial Army versus Yu Wen Hua of Ying Country.”

    “The second match: Li Guanyi of the Great Chen Imperial Guards versus Goshu Yin of the Turks.”

    The Seven Kings laughed: “Ahaha, Goshu, this Imperial Guard is your great enemy! Fight with all your might; don’t disgrace the name of our grassland warriors.”

    “Yes.”

    Goshu Yin looked at Li Guanyi, his eyes burning like fire.

    Li Guanyi returned the courtesy.

    The day’s competition ended like this. All of Li Guanyi’s acquaintances came to congratulate him. The young lady, before returning to the palace with Empress Xue, specially came to praise Li Guanyi’s martial arts: “You’re already very strong.”

    “You made it to the top four, not bad, not bad.”

    Li Guanyi smiled, “Didn’t you want me to win, young miss?”

    “Ah?”

    Xue Shuangtao blinked and said, “Yes, that’s what I said…”

    “But that Turkic Iron Cavalry Junior Officer seems very powerful, anyway.”

    “Be careful, winning or losing is not important, there’s always tomorrow.”

    The girl smiled. She tiptoed, reached out, and gently patted Li Guanyi’s messy hair, “You’re already so much taller than me now.”

    Then she noticed the marks on Li Guanyi’s arm, torn by sword energy.

    The young lady thought for a moment, took off the headband from her forehead, and said:

    “Hold out your hand.”

    Li Guanyi held out his hand.

    The girl tied her headband to the torn part of the young man’s battle robe. On the black robe, the red headband swayed slightly. Xue Shuangtao nodded in satisfaction:

    “Okay.”

    “I’m going back!” Empress Xue sent someone to call her, so the young lady waved, turned, and ran back, her skirt swaying slightly in the sunlight. Her black hair cascaded down her back, her jade ornaments jingling, her hair swaying like the wind.

    Li Guanyi reached out and touched the headband tied to his left arm, his lips unconsciously curling upward.

    Then, as if sensing a gaze, he slightly raised his Frostbite halberd.

    The halberd blocked the young lady’s back from the gaze.

    In the reflection of the halberd’s blade, Li Guanyi saw a pair of resentful and malicious eyes. He slowly raised his head and saw Chen Yu Yun’s gaze. He walked over, his expression gentle, his lips moving, murmuring: “You must win against Goshu Yin, Li Guanyi.”

    “In the final, I will defeat you in front of everyone!”

    “And then, I will request from my father… the Emperor, to grant me marriage to the Xue family’s young lady, you have to come and drink a cup at our wedding feast.”

    Li Guanyi looked at him, a slight smile reappearing on his lips, and softly said:

    “What are you barking about?”

    Chen Yu Yun’s expression froze.

    He seemed to realize that the young man was not easy to bully.

    Turning around, the young Imperial Guard carried his halberd and left with his friends, laughing. Only Chen Yu Yun’s eyes were filled with intense killing intent. He squeezed the jade disc with his thumb, almost crushing it, his finger bones turning white.

    Li Guanyi celebrated with his friends today, drinking alcohol. Then Ye Buyong reminded him to prepare well for the next day’s competition, and they left. When he returned, a light rain began to fall. Po Jun and the Seven Kings went to a banquet, and the Sixth Grandmaster also attended as the leader of the martial world.

    Li Guanyi took a bath, looking at the darkening sky.

    He looked at the piece of paper Po Jun had given him, which contained information about Chen Yu Yun’s residence, habits, and the patrolling routes of the night watchmen, calculating a blank period of time.

    Only a moment’s opportunity.

    Li Guanyi extended his hand, transforming his Crimson Dragon inner energy into fire, burning the information and map Po Jun had given him.

    Then he changed into black clothes.

    The young man let out a breath, drawing his Autumn Water Sword. This sword was seamless in killing; infused with inner energy, it could change shape, injecting Si Tu De Qing’s inner energy into Chen Yu Yun’s body.

    He thought for a moment and took out a dark gold face mask.

    The young man gently stroked the mask.

    He fastened the mask onto his face, his breath instantly disappearing. He walked into the rain.

    His figure gradually disappeared into the wind and rain.

    Dark night, high wind, heavy rain.

    Night of assassination!
    (End of Chapter)

    Previous Chapter | TOC |

    0 Comments

    Heads up! Your comment will be invisible to other guests and subscribers (except for replies), including you after a grace period. But if you submit an email address and toggle the bell icon, you will be sent replies until you cancel.
    Note