Volume 8: The Jianghu Chapter 369: Cutting the Deer
Towards the end of the year, heavy snow fell.
As the Tianxia Alliance leader, Li Muchan, and several other sword masters, including Sword God Xie Xiaofeng, battled on Cuiyun Peak, a diverse cast of figures had already gathered outside Jinling City. Not only were there renowned martial arts masters from both the underworld and underworld, but also veterans from all walks of life, as well as many rising stars – a truly diverse gathering of talented individuals.
In the snow, there was an old man with disheveled hair, tattered clothes, holding a bamboo stick in his hand, and walking on the road among the crowd.
The man had white hair like snow and walked unsteadily. He was holding a swaddled baby in his arms. Not only did he walk very fast, but his whole body was filled with a foul stench, which filled the faces of those who passed by with disgust and made them all retreat away from him.
Just as they were about to enter the city, they suddenly saw two people appear among the people coming and going, with cold brows and murderous eyes, blocking their way.
The old man was startled and subconsciously tightened the swaddling clothes in his arms. As he stopped, his eyes rolled and he shouted hurriedly, "Deer-cutting knife!"
The others were waiting to enter the city to watch the battle. When they suddenly heard these three words, there was a brief silence, and then everyone was in an uproar.
"Deer-cutting knife?"
"That peerless divine sword?"
"Where is the knife?"
…
Without thinking, the old man took off a wooden box from his back and threw it to the two people who were blocking his way.
The rest of the people were looking around for it, and when they saw the wooden box was empty, their eyes turned red and they rushed forward.
It is said that this magic sword is a divine weapon comparable to the Tear Sword and is the supreme sword. It was forged by Xu Luzi, a descendant of Mrs. Xu during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. It is hard to come by.
More importantly, it is rumored that this magic sword can break the magic of wedding dress.
There are also rumors that although Li Muchan has extraordinary skills and is invincible in the world, he will eventually be defeated by this magic sword.
Whether the rumor is true or not is not the point for now, but the sword is so famous that it has already made its mark in the martial arts world before it even appeared in the world, and has caused several murders.
Taking advantage of the chaotic scene, the old man turned around and ran without thinking, with a vigorous step and moving like the wind. In the blink of an eye, he had slipped into the vast snow forest.
What quick skills.
It is said that the old man ran for more than ten miles in one breath before hiding behind a big tree.
The old man suppressed the surging breath in his dantian, a trace of pain appearing on his wrinkled face. Looking at the sleeping baby in his arms, he murmured, "We have done what we should do. Whether we can survive depends entirely on our fate."
"Old man, if you know what's best for you, hand over the deer-cutting knife. Otherwise, I guarantee you'll be neither alive nor dead today."
In the cold wind and flying snow, a middle-aged scholar was seen flying out on the road they came from, searching for traces along the way.
The old man's heart trembled. Seeing that the other party was still far away, he immediately stood up and ran away again.
The middle-aged scholar heard the noise, quickened his pace, and sneered, "A dying struggle."
The wind and snow were blowing in his face. Perhaps due to his age and the continuous running for days, the old man's originally swift movements gradually slowed down, and a thick layer of frost formed on his beard and brow, as if he had no more strength to move forward.
Seeing the pursuers getting closer and closer, the old man suddenly shouted, "Don't be complacent. This is Jinling territory. I have already sent a message to give the Deer-Cutting Knife to the leader of the Tianxia Alliance. If you try to take the knife, you will be an enemy of the Tianxia Alliance."
Hearing the words "World Alliance," the middle-aged scholar was startled at first, then sneered, "Haha, Li Muchan is in danger right now, and it's uncertain whether he can make it down from Cuiyun Peak alive. Besides, even if he does show up for a while, I'm no pushover. Do you really think I'm going to break into his Jinling City alone?"
One of them was running away while the other was chasing. The distance between them was getting closer and closer.
The old man sneered in response, "I know you're not alone. In the entire world, there's only one person who has the guts to be an enemy of the Tianxia Alliance and that Li Muchan."
The man's words were full of hidden meaning. He paused for a moment before speaking in a focused voice, "Apart from the current emperor, who else would dare to challenge the Tianxia Alliance? Haha, if you weren't afraid of Li Muchan , why would you massacre 137 members of my Xiao family to seize the Deer-Slaying Knife?"
It turned out that this knife was used to deal with Li Muchan.
Seeing his thoughts exposed, the middle-aged scholar simply stopped trying to hide them and said coldly, "It's all your fault for being so stupid to trust . You deserve to be wiped out. Besides, your Xiao family spent generations forging this peerless divine sword, wasn't it just to counter the Wedding Dress Divine Art? Since you are determined to become an enemy of the Zhu family, then you deserve to die."
The old man was heartbroken upon hearing this, tears welling up in his eyes. He hissed, "You, a beast in human form, will never have a good ending. You will definitely be punished."
He thought that the Xiao family had not been concerned with worldly affairs for many years and had always been hidden in Kunlun. The family members all lived and worked in peace and contentment, had no interest in disputes in the martial arts world, and had never had the desire to compete for supremacy.
But I didn't expect that in the end, my entire clan would be wiped out and everyone would die.
The culprit behind all this is the middle-aged scholar behind him.
This man, also a member of the Zhu family, had journeyed to Kunlun alone five years earlier, ostensibly seeking a rare medicinal herb, but secretly seeking to gain access to the Xiao family. However, the Xiao family's strict rules made it difficult to approach them openly. Using sweet talk and a series of self-torture, he deceived a Xiao clan member into falling in love with him, and settled in Kunlun as his son-in-law.
This is also where the disaster began.
This man acted very harmless at first, but on the day of the wedding, when the whole family was celebrating together, he put a strange poison into the wine, which dissipated all the power of the people.
Even though the Xiao family had a strong foundation, the incident happened suddenly, and this person secretly sent dozens of masters. With the help of both inside and outside forces, the Xiao family was brutally slaughtered.
In the end, several elders of the clan fought to the death to protect the young master and his wife, and only then did they manage to escape to the Central Plains.
But the pursuit along the way never stopped. The young master lured the enemy to his death, and the young mistress also died in childbirth on the way. In the end, only the child in his arms was left, the last bloodline of the Xiao family.
"Retribution? You're considered a veteran in the martial arts world, yet you actually believe in it." The middle-aged scholar scoffed and said calmly, "Haven't you heard that good people don't live long, while evil deeds last for a thousand years? If retribution really existed in this world, why would there be so many disasters? And where would the Azure Dragon Society even exist?"
The middle-aged scholar followed the old man at a leisurely pace, like a cat chasing a mouse, neither rushing to take action. "Think about Li Muchan, who was bullied and humiliated when he was a good person. Only after he turned to evil did he finally feel proud. In this vast world of martial arts, there are so many heroes and heroes. They appear to be so great in public, but behind the scenes, they are all thieves and whores. A good person? Humph, what a joke."
The old man cursed angrily, "Bullshit! Even if the leader of the Tianxia Alliance was evil and wicked, he still believed in the principles of the underworld. Unlike you, you are so heartless that you can even kill your own wife and children."
The middle-aged scholar did not get angry, but said quietly: "To accomplish great things, there must always be sacrifices."
Suddenly, the old man stopped and his dark face suddenly turned pale.
Because in front of him, a plump, friendly-looking man was coming out from under an old tree.
The man was dressed in gorgeous clothes, covered with jewels and precious stones, and had a slight beard, looking like a wealthy man.
Seeing this, the old man's expression changed drastically. He changed his direction and was about to escape to the left, but when he turned around, he saw someone else appearing and walking out from his left. He turned to the right again, but there was someone on the right as well.
Now there is really no way to go up to heaven and no way to enter the earth.
"Hand over the things." The rich man said with a smile.
The old man retreated step by step, despair in his eyes, until his back was against a big tree. He suddenly turned his hand and a dagger came out of his sleeve.
The middle-aged scholar laughed and said, "Haha, at this point, are you still planning to resist stubbornly?"
Unexpectedly, the old man had a cold face and put the dagger on the child's neck without saying a word.
The middle-aged scholar and the wealthy man were both stunned and seemed unable to react.
Then the old man said slowly, "If you take one more step forward, I will kill this child and then commit suicide on the spot."
The wealthy man's smile faded a bit, and he said, "I think you've really lost your mind. You're actually threatening us with the lives of your own people?"
The old man sneered and said, "I have hidden the Deer-Cutting Knife in advance. When we are all dead, no one will know where the sacred knife is hidden. I wonder how you will explain it to your master when you return."
He said that and made a move to take action.
The middle-aged scholar hurriedly said, "No, no, no, don't be impulsive. Hey, there's room for easing the situation. Let's calm down and talk slowly."
The wealthy man quickly chimed in, "That's right. How about this: you tell us the whereabouts of the deer-cutting knife, and we'll let you two go. We'll just pretend we don't know each other. How about that?"
The old man sneered repeatedly, but did not respond. Instead, he shouted coldly: "You guys step back first."
The middle-aged scholar and the wealthy man exchanged a glance, then exchanged a look. Seeing the old man's sword hanging high, he immediately laughed and said, "You almost scared me. This man is the last bloodline of the Xiao family. If you kill him, I'll see how you explain it to his parents in the afterlife. You've failed to live up to their trust and broken your promise."
The old man opened his eyes wide, his eyes bloodshot, "It's better for me to kill him than to fall into your hands and suffer a fate worse than death."
The wealthy man laughed strangely and said, "You old man are really hypocritical. No matter how bad we are, we would never be cruel to a child. It's okay if you are afraid of death, but you have to use the child as a shield. How despicable and shameless."
"you……"
The old man was so angry at these words that his heart was broken. His old face turned blue and white alternately, and finally turned red with bloodshot, as if he had drunk strong liquor, and his eyes were about to spit fire.
But just as he was distracted and angry, he suddenly saw a caltrop flying through the air in the wind and snow.
The old man couldn't avoid it in time, but felt a sharp pain on the back of his hand, and the dagger slipped out of his hand in an instant.
He was shocked and was about to move when he didn't expect a soft palm to rest on his left shoulder.
Bone-dissolving palm.
In an instant, the old man was struck by lightning and was detained on the spot.
"You old..." The middle-aged scholar was about to speak with a smile, but his expression suddenly changed. He screamed strangely and retreated while shouting, "Who?"
But in the wind and snow, a black knife fell from the sky and landed behind the old man.
This sword is ancient, dull, and without any luster. However, the murderous intent it exudes is no less than that of the Crescent Moon Saber of that time, and may even surpass it.
This is a magical knife.
The Bai family's magic sword.
In the snow, a figure was stepping with his left foot and dragging his right foot, entering everyone's sight in a strange posture.
This kind of walking posture is ridiculous to anyone, but no one can laugh when facing this person.
The pale right hand had already grasped the hilt of the knife. The man walked to the old man, rubbed his shoulder, and then stopped.
The middle-aged scholar's face instantly darkened, "Fu Hongxue!"
Fu Hongxue glanced at the ambushes on all sides and said simply and coldly, "Retreat."
The middle-aged scholar sighed, "Since you intend to retire from society, why do you have to wade into this muddy water?"
Fu Hongxue said expressionlessly, "I want to, but there are always people who are annoying."
The wealthy man smiled and said, "It's said in the martial arts world that your swordsmanship is almost divine. Do you really think you have reached the level of a saint?"
Fu Hongxue said calmly, "If the rumor spreads that you're a fool, do you have to believe that you're a fool too?"
The rich man finally couldn't laugh anymore.
But just after Fu Hongxue appeared, suddenly, many footsteps were heard from all directions in the forest, as dense as drumbeats and coming with great momentum.
The middle-aged scholar said coldly, "Hand over that old man, and we'll pretend nothing happened."
Seeing Fu Hongxue remained indifferent, the wealthy man immediately gave the order: "Go!"
Suddenly, a murderous atmosphere arose in the snow forest. Human figures were seen moving like ghosts, shuttling back and forth between the trees, floating unpredictably in the snow, forming a killing formation.
In a split second, flashes of swords and shadows appeared in the snow. There were killers everywhere, front, back, left and right. Even above his head, there was murderous intent descending from the sky, surrounding and killing Fu Hongxue with the force of a dragnet.
Fu Hongxue's expression remained unchanged, his eyes moved slightly. There was no shadow of the knife, no blade, no knife energy, but he was already putting away the knife.
The knife was sheathed. A streak of blood suddenly emerged from beneath the pristine white snow, like a streak of ink, winding and undulating, circling between heaven and earth. Then, blood rapidly spread, splashing between heaven and earth, blooming together in a poignant and moving scene.
Amidst the blood-stained atmosphere, figures in snow-white cloaks were seen falling from the sky and dying on the ground.
All expression disappeared from the middle-aged scholar's face.
This knife, this mysterious and unpredictable knife, is brighter and faster than lightning, enough to shock the heavens and the earth and make ghosts and gods weep.
He had never seen such a sword technique before. It was as if the black sword had become a part of the person in front of him, integrated with him, without any flaws.
Then, the middle-aged scholar's eyes suddenly opened wide and he fell down in disbelief.
His upper body had fallen, but his lower body was still standing there, with blood gushing out from the broken wound like a roar.
He was beheaded on the spot.
The rich man's cheeks trembled, cold sweat broke out on his forehead. While forcing a smile, he said in a hoarse voice: "Do you know who wants this knife?"
Fu Hongxue didn't even look at the other person, but instead looked at the sleeping baby in the cradle and said indifferently: "I only saw the person, not the knife."
The old man was stunned for a long while, and finally came to his senses. He cried with joy, "Thank you very much."
"Hand over the deer-cutting knife, and I'll let you go."
Suddenly, a voice was heard from the snow. It sounded extremely calm, but it also contained a sense of majesty and arrogance.
More footsteps emerged from the forest.
In the snow not far away, one can vaguely see a person sitting on a big chair with a canopy above his head, which is unfathomable.
Fu Hongxue looked at the other person from a distance.
He knew who the other party was.
After the decisive battle between Li Muchan and Tan Wushuang years ago, the emperor was left with a hidden illness and died in Leopard Pavilion the following year.
And the person in front of him must be the new emperor.
"hehe!"
However, just when the situation became tense, a light laugh was heard in the flying snow.
"Well, what you say counts? What you say doesn't count!"
