Edict of Peace 83
Chapter 83: The Tiger’s Roar Bone Forging Technique!
Yaoguang watched the young man sitting on the cliff face.
Li Guanyi leaped down. Before his body forging, he would never jump from such a height. Even martial artists with internal energy would injure their muscles and bones by jumping like this. But after body forging, with internal energy circulating, his physique exceeded that of a normal person, so jumping from this height was nothing.
Li Guanyi saw the steamed buns Yaoguang was roasting.
He reached out, took one, and sat cross-legged in front of the bonfire, holding a bag containing various snacks. These were the kinds Yaoguang ate most often. Yaoguang blinked, her voice calm: “I…”
Li Guanyi said: “The Stargazing School is known for its simple living, right?”
“So consider this me forcing you to eat them.”
Yaoguang held the snacks, quietly kneeling before the bonfire, taking small bites. After finishing one, she looked at Li Guanyi calmly, saying, “Did you seek me out because you need help?”
Li Guanyi said: “No.”
“Although I’ve broken through, I planned to test my skills against General Xue, but I intended to come a few days later.”
“I don’t know why, but I suddenly felt like coming here today.”
“Maybe the scenery is beautiful today, and I suddenly thought of you, so I came to see you.”
Yaoguang looked at him.
Then she thought.
She felt her incantation might have worked.
However, the Stargazing lineage is only one of the Three Sects Outside the World, capable of glimpsing a corner of fate. But how this fate is achieved, they cannot determine. Yaoguang carefully wrapped the remaining snacks and put them in a black jar to prevent insects.
Standing up, she patted the dust off her knees, her voice calm: “You’re going to the secret realm.”
“Please, let me lead the way.”
Li Guanyi walked forward, saying: “You don’t have to use such formal language with me every time.”
“It’s too distant.”
Yaoguang shook her head, her voice quiet:
“The Eastern Continent’s Stargazing School has recorded certain principles. Among the three unbreakable taboos—’Do not disturb the mortal world,’ ‘Do not bring calamity to the people,’ and ‘Do not use the incantations of the stars for profit’—is the way to address the Grandmaster of the White Tiger Sect.”
“This rule was left by the Grandmaster of the White Tiger Sect eight hundred years ago.”
“And reaffirmed five hundred years ago.”
“Although I don’t understand the reason, since such intelligent predecessors left it, there must be a reason.”
Li Guanyi was puzzled: “Why?”
The silver-haired girl said: “I don’t know.”
“My teacher said that those in the Stargazing lineage must have hearts as still as water in a mountain stream. Only then can they reflect the starlight in the heavens. Eight hundred years ago, during a crucial stargazing session, the Yaoguang of that generation had ripples in her heart, scattering the starlight.”
“Stargazing practitioners cannot see their own fate. If the heart is disturbed, they will see wrongly.”
“And the price of Yaoguang seeing wrongly is always heavy.”
Li Guanyi laughed, shaking his head in disbelief: “It’s just a name and a title. How could it have such power?”
Yaoguang turned to look at him, thinking for a moment.
The silver-haired girl took a half-step forward and grasped Li Guanyi’s hand. Her voice softened, her gaze like the spring breeze, and she softly said:
“Guanyi Gege (Older Brother Guanyi)?”
Li Guanyi’s body stiffened.
Then Yaoguang stepped back, withdrawing her hand.
Her gaze remained calm as the stars, her exquisitely beautiful face, which seemed too delicate to be human, showed no expression. She nodded, noting this, her voice calm and without ripples: “Indeed, just as the writings of Yaoguang five hundred years ago said.”
“This title will work on the Grandmaster of the White Tiger Sect.”
“Your heart was disturbed for a moment. Language has magic. In ancient times, people believed that souls leaving the body could be called back by their names, and all incantations must be chanted. The way we address each other is the initial connection.”
“I will follow the ancient agreement to prevent past tragedies from repeating themselves.”
Yaoguang used starlight to open the path forward.
Li Guanyi let out a breath, feeling sweat on his forehead. He muttered:
“Really, she’s always so quiet. That form of address startled me.”
Li Guanyi stepped into the water, and Yaoguang opened a path with starlight. They arrived at the secret realm once more. As usual, Yaoguang went to search for the techniques of stargazing practiced by the predecessors of the Stargazing School five hundred years ago, while Li Guanyi raised his halberd to face General Xue.
General Xue issued a challenge.
Li Guanyi responded with a single action.
He gave him the middle finger.
General Xue smirked, raised his halberd, and smashed it down at Li Guanyi. Li Guanyi responded with standard moves, but General Xue’s experience far surpassed his. Moreover, Li Guanyi’s halberd was created by this General, making it impossible to break through his techniques.
Finally, Li Guanyi gasped, “Tell me, what’s the point of me winning against you?! That so-called place, the hidden armory of the eight-hundred-year-old overlord, I don’t care about it!”
General Xue raised an eyebrow: “Wouldn’t sparring with me be beneficial?”
Li Guanyi couldn’t refute that.
Being able to fight and spar with the number one general in the world.
This was a temptation that no martial artist could resist.
Li Guanyi said: “Isn’t there something… more specific?”
General Xue laughed: “There is. If you can defeat me in one move, then you can dismantle this secret realm.”
Li Guanyi said: “Dismantle it?”
General Xue smiled slightly: “Yes, dismantle it, and take it away.”
“In your era, the world should be on the verge of conflict, or perhaps already in chaos, but the final upheaval hasn’t fully erupted. This secret realm was established by Yaoguang, so, as long as we allow it, and you find the Yaoguang of this generation of the Eastern Continent’s Stargazing School,”
“She can dismantle this secret realm and use the Jade Pivot Imprint.”
“Anywhere, as long as the Jade Pivot is reassembled, this secret realm will reappear.”
“Wouldn’t the personal guidance of the world’s number one general be considered a benefit?”
Li Guanyi said: “So, this secret realm is the third key to your so-called ‘Overlord’s Hidden Treasure’? Even if someone else has the destiny of the Grandmaster of the White Tiger Sect and takes your weapon, if they haven’t met Yaoguang, they won’t be able to obtain the treasures of the hidden treasure.”
General Xue smiled slightly: “If I said no, would you believe me?”
He stretched his body and said calmly: “Come on.”
“You just need to hit me once, and I’ll let you take this secret realm away.”
Li Guanyi said: “Even if I’m not from the Xue family?”
General Xue said: “Yaoguang wouldn’t recognize an evil person. Even if you’re not from the Xue family, I’ll give you the opportunity and power to pacify the chaos. Would you feel indebted to my Xue family?”
“In times of chaos, descendants lacking virtue possessing such power is not good for the family or the world.”
Li Guanyi said: “You really love to gamble.”
General Xue smiled slightly: “A bet that spans centuries, betting on the peace of the world, that’s not gambling.” He raised his halberd, paused, then suddenly slashed down. Li Guanyi exhaled, rising again. The halberd in his hand constantly clashed with General Xue’s weapon.
General Xue’s eyebrows soared, he held the halberd with one hand, suppressing Li Guanyi. The corner of his mouth slightly curled up, saying:
“This is what we call heritage!”
Weapons collided, the energy surged, and the roar of the White Tiger was about to shake the heavens.
Li Guanyi’s grip on the halberd suddenly loosened.
Then, his wrist turned slightly.
General Xue’s pupils constricted, the halberd rotated slightly, the crescent blade pointing upwards. Concentrated internal energy erupted, and like the eye of a storm, it tore outwards. The internal energy explosion turned into a raging tide, spinning upwards in a violent burst!
[Rolling Tide]!
The instantaneously exploding spiral energy was Li Guanyi’s limit to date!
General Xue’s weapon was swept aside.
Li Guanyi took a deep breath.
He channeled the power of the [Jade Arm Divine Bow Technique] again, forcefully erupting with power no less than his previous move. Grasping his halberd, the halberd’s point, like a spear, pushed forward, the energy connecting, as heavy as a mountain.
Then the mountain collapsed.
Rocks tumbled down from the heights.
[Crushing Mountain].
Boom!!!!
One move collided with the other; [Rolling Tide] to break the defense, to disarm; [Crushing Mountain] to attack and break the enemy.
Two ultimate techniques connected simultaneously.
This was Li Guanyi’s strongest posture and move at this moment.
Yet, at that moment, General Xue tapped his weapon downwards slightly. Li Guanyi’s Crushing Mountain suddenly became more violent, its power increased by General Xue, but it lost its original aim, scraping past General Xue and stabbing in another direction.
General Xue leaped upwards gracefully, like a crane soaring into the sky.
The tip of his halberd lightly touched the young man’s back.
Then it lightly landed behind Li Guanyi.
Li Guanyi’s powerful move pushed horizontally, directly smashing into a magically formed stone pillar the size of a person’s embrace, breaking it in half. The pillar crashed to the ground, turning into starlight. Li Guanyi gasped, stood up, grabbed his halberd, using his arm and body to hold the end, stabilizing the weapon, intending to sweep back.
General Xue already had his fingers pointed at his back of his head.
Li Guanyi’s movements instantly stopped.
General Xue smiled slightly: “Before a real fight, you deliberately lost once, feigning defeat, and only then using your ultimate techniques in the second round, showing weakness to the enemy, and then instantly attacking with full power; a cunning and ferocious battle tactic. How did you become so cunning?”
“I wonder who taught you that.”
Li Guanyi dejectedly released his weapon: “Besides you, who else?”
General Xue laughed.
He had Li Guanyi sit cross-legged, then picked up a brush and wrote a check mark on Li Guanyi’s forehead, smugly saying: “Another one added today.”
Li Guanyi wasn’t annoyed.
This second battle today was also a feigned defeat.
When the [Tiger’s Roar Bone Forging Technique] was completed and he could use his Law Physique, that would be the time for a real showdown. Li Guanyi sensed that the Rolling Tide and Crushing Mountain techniques, relying only on his body and weapon, could not unleash their full power.
If he could incorporate the power of the White Tiger’s Divine Soldier to break the enemy into Rolling Tide.
If he could incorporate the power of the Red Dragon’s Burning Mountain into Crushing Mountain.
How much greater would the combined power of these two techniques be?
At that time, taking advantage of General Xue’s carelessness, he might actually be able to defeat him in one move.
Show weakness to reveal strength.
Li Guanyi suddenly felt that he was slowly understanding the knowledge that he had once only boasted about, and naturally applying it to his battles and clashes. Defeated again today, Li Guanyi gained a new understanding of his strength, and left the secret realm with Yaoguang.
He looked at the secret realm, then at General Xue’s triumphant smile, and couldn’t help but feel angry.
He picked up a stone and threw it into the mountain stream, splashing water, saying: “One day, I will defeat you!”
Yaoguang remained quiet.
Li Guanyi felt a little embarrassed, saying:
“If I win, will you dismantle this secret realm?”
Yaoguang nodded.
Li Guanyi hesitated, his gaze dropping slightly, then mustered his courage, solemnly saying: “This secret realm is supposedly for me, if you dismantle it…”
The silver-haired girl tilted her head and understood the implication of Li Guanyi’s words. Her voice was calm, “I will abide by our agreement. No matter where you go, to the ends of the earth or into the midst of chaos, I will be with you.”
“I will recreate the secret realm for you.”
Li Guanyi said: “The old pact didn’t say that.”
Yaoguang replied: “This is a new agreement.”
“It’s not the ancient pact; it’s a new agreement between you and me.”
Somehow, Li Guanyi’s mood suddenly improved. He stretched out his hand, his eyebrows raised, saying:
“Then I’ll also prepare all sorts of delicious food for you: lamb with leek sauce from the Northern Regions, various dried fruits and sweets from the Western Regions, even fish from distant lands, noodles from the Central Plains; the world is vast, I can assure you, you won’t get tired of eating!”
“Do you plan to go to such distant places?”
Yaoguang looked at Li Guanyi’s outstretched finger.
This is something children in the Central Plains like to do: hooking fingers to make a promise about the future. They are children, who don’t understand the ruthlessness of the world, who think that connected fingers mean an unbroken promise for the rest of their lives. Li Guanyi had played with those children before, and in his excitement, he hadn’t paid attention; making this gesture to someone who truly understands fate, he felt a little embarrassed and wanted to retract his hand.
“You also have this childish side.”
Yaoguang thought for a moment, but still extended her finger and hooked it with the young man’s.
Finger hooked to finger.
“But since it is your invitation, I will not refuse.”
…
In the following days, among the children of the martial nobility, the son of a general committed suicide, and several others were strictly controlled. Because of the Yu Qianfeng incident, the court suddenly began to strictly investigate the past actions of these noble children.
Those actions were insignificant in the past, but before the Chen Kingdom’s Grand Festival, everything became more serious, especially with the involvement of Yu Qianfeng. They were thoroughly investigated.
It was said that the court was furious.
Those noble children were either sent to the army or beaten half to death, their martial arts skills abolished. Even their fathers suffered greatly, their situation quite miserable. The two surviving noble children were beaten half to death by their fathers upon returning home.
Li Guanyi hadn’t even arrived in the capital yet, but he already had the reputation of “Li the Murderous Star” amongst the noble children. Their first reaction was that this man is like a fierce tiger, extremely difficult to deal with.
Some were eager to test the waters, ready to provoke the tiger’s whiskers.
Li Guanyi, on the other hand, inexplicably gained more merits.
The merits these noble martial children provided were enough to fill a year’s worth of his official reports.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere in the capital became more serious day by day.
Even the atmosphere in Guan Yi City had changed.
Among the guests at the inns, many foreign faces appeared. Commerce became more prosperous. In the taverns, there were Western Region beauties who had come to Chen State with the opportunity, their Hu Xuan dance perfectly complementing the Central Plains’ music. Literati and young martial artists were intoxicated by the sight of the Western beauties.
In contrast, defense became increasingly strict.
Martial artists from the Jianghu (martial world) increased day by day.
The vortex of the Chen Kingdom’s Grand Festival finally began to radiate its influence to the nearby border cities.
Li Guanyi only practiced breathing and cultivation every day.
He tried to adjust and control the White Tiger and Red Dragon Law Physiques, to maintain a balance, preventing their energies from clashing. This unconsciously honed his own energy, as if he were constantly facing a powerful enemy.
His energy became increasingly refined.
Less than a month before the Chen Kingdom’s Grand Festival, someone from the capital rode a fast horse to the Xue family.
After the palace sent messages to the Xue family for the third time, Li Guanyi finally saw that old man—who had a poor alcohol tolerance, often got drunk, but loved drinking—in his usual old tavern.
Li Guanyi walked over and sat beside the old man, ordering a pot of wine and a few dishes.
“Old predecessor, how are things going?”
Si Ming glanced at him sideways, saying:
“What did you just call me?”
Li Guanyi thought for a moment, “Old man?”
Then the old man burst into laughter, pointing at Li Guanyi.
He tilted his head and took a drink, quite spirited:
“Mission accomplished!”
Li Guanyi’s tense spirit, caused by the approaching Grand Festival, finally relaxed slightly.
Si Ming, returned.
The [Tiger’s Roar Bone Forging Technique], the foundation of golden muscles and jade bones, dragon tendons and tiger marrow, was about to begin.
(End of Chapter)
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