Fufeng's Book Guardian Wang Anfeng reerges in the Jianghu.
News that had been accumulating for quite so ti finally spread throughout the entire Jianghu of the Great Qin.
Two years ago, the Book Guardian ranked on the Great Qin's Constellation Ranking List. After several battles, he was considered capable of rivaling the mightiest on the Earthly Fiend List. When he disappeared without a trace, many lanted his absence, believing that with just a bit more similar combat achievents, his ranking could have risen even higher.
However, so martial arts masters in Fufeng were quite optimistic.
They believed that after two years of experience, this young man could possibly secure a place on the Heavenly Gang List upon his return to the Jianghu.
They were wrong.
"They say that Wang Anfeng stord through the hundred floors of the Fu Character Tower, at that ti a rainbow filled the sky..."
"The crowd below was listening intently as Young Master Wang shouted out for Xue Family's Qinshuang, asking if she was well. Ah, truly a mont that touches Heaven and Earth, such genuine emotion that one can't help but shed tears. If one were to..."
In an inn, a stage was set up on the second floor.
An old man clad in gray clothes sat upon it, with the wrist of a narrator. When he reached climactic parts, he was still animated with flying brows and spittle, but the audience below didn't mind and cheered loudly.
He was telling the biggest recent event in the Jianghu of Fufeng.
As soon as the news ca out, the storytelling script was written overnight. Unexpectedly, not only did n enjoy listening to it, but many young ladies also found it interesting, earning the old man a good sum of drink money. After finishing a section and moistening his throat with a sip of tea, the old man raised his eyes to scan the audience, then the startling wooden block thudded down as he continued:
"Do all of you distinguished guests know the identity of this Miss Qinshuang of the Xue Family?"
"She is originally a young lady from a wealthy family. She and the Book Guardian t by chance at a lantern festival. They were a fine match, both delighted upon first eting and set a secret rendezvous. They say that there was a bright moon that night, which was..."
Hong Feibai glanced at Wang Anfeng sitting in front of the table. His heart, which had been quiet for seven or eight days, finally relaxed a bit, his face showing a rare hint of a smile. Although the smile was so faint it was almost imperceptible, it was still a good sign as he said:
"Won't you stop him from talking nonsense?"
When Wang Anfeng first t him, he didn't expect that he would stir up such a big incident in such a short ti, using his real na. Over this period, the two of them had been heading towards the direction of the Heavenly Sword Sect, not too hurriedly, needing supplies and rest in inns of nearby cities.
In places like taverns and teahouses, where all kinds linger and news travels fast, even if they didn't try to find out, such a big event was hard to ignore.
Therefore, he had guessed Wang Anfeng's identity but did not point it out, still addressing him as "Master."
Wang Anfeng closed his eyes, focusing on his own thoughts, staring at the tea in his cup, then shook his head and said:
"This old man is just trying to make a living. I doubt anyone would take the tale to be true."
"It's nothing to be concerned about."
Hong Feibai paused for a mont, his gaze landing on Wang Anfeng.
The latter was no longer in the original blue shirt; instead, he had changed into a cyan vigorous attire. On the very day the news broke out, Wang Anfeng hastily swapped clothes at a linen shop and sohow bought a zither. He threw his wooden sword into the zither case and carried it on his back.
Even the jade hairpin that held up his hair was gone. His jet-black hair hung behind him, tied at the end with a length of rope.
With his current appearance, he looked more like a scholar than a newly ascended expert in the Jianghu and was very different from the 'Book Guardian's portrait' now circulating in the Jianghu of Fufeng.
For those unacquainted, even if they scrutinized Wang Anfeng with the portrait that cost a silver or two in their hands, it would take them so ti to confirm the identity of the young man before them, and even then, they'd be hesitant to believe it.
Hong Feibai, looking at the calm-faced young man, suddenly very much wanted to ask a question.
Didn't you say you didn't care?
"Honored guests, your ordered dishes are ready."
With a shout, an inn servant, about sixteen or seventeen, draped in a white cloth over his shoulder, carrying a wooden plate in one hand, placed each dish on the table one by one. After removing the plate, he said, "Enjoy your al," before turning to leave.
Wang Anfeng picked up his chopsticks and said:
"Let's eat, Feibai, we need to be full for the journey ahead."
This disruption made Hong Feibai reluctantly set aside the thought in his mind and lifted his chopsticks.
"Hmm."
They had been traveling from Fengyue City for half a month.
The distance from Fengyue City to the Heavenly Sword Sect was two to three thousand miles, but this was only a more direct distance. Being a person of Jianghu with martial arts training, Hong Feibai's skills at his age were comndable: solid Inner Strength and swordsmanship.
Having honed his martial arts, he would naturally not stick to traveling by carriage when wanderlng the Jianghu.
After all, how could being jolted in a carriage compare to the joy of using Qinggong?
As a result, a misconstrued notion arose because of oversight; the distance he spoke of was a completely different concept compared to that covered by horse-drawn carriages. They had traveled this way, covering less than a third of the total distance. Although they had yet to detect the odor associated with decomposing bodies, they obviously couldn't linger for long.
Every day they extended their traveling hours to eight, and sotis they would travel through the night.
As martial artists with abundant energy and the practice of ditating to rejuvenate, it wasn't much of an issue.
Two n, both male, journeyed together every day. Although Hong Feibai usually remained silent like the green rocks on the mountain, when he did occasionally speak up, he would talk about that incident—his words fragnted, lacking coherence.
Up until now, Hong Feibai still refused to recall the entire sequence of events.
The matter was branded in his heart like a scar.
So naïve people in the world believe that ti can dilute everything, but that scar remained, unable to fade or be erased, aching sharply at the slightest touch. To deliberately ask about it was akin to stabbing it with a dagger once more, under the guise of well-intentioned comfort.
Perhaps unintentionally, or perhaps deliberately, most people during their attempts to console would ask about what had happened.
It was as if the dagger was not content rely to penetrate but also needed to twist violently a few tis.
But having heard the fragnted stories nurous tis, Wang Anfeng had managed to piece together a rough outline of the events. They seed rather commonplace for affairs of Jianghu, which typically revolved around the pursuit of treasure and murder for wealth and beauty.
It was probably after he had parted ways with Hong Feibai that his Master took them out to travel, to a senior's residence in Fufeng County City, to retrieve a treasure that rightfully belonged to their lineage within the Heavenly Sword Sect.
Due to a certain agreent made more than ten years ago, they had been venerating a fake on the mountain all this while, and only now the real treasure could be brought back to the Sect.
Unexpectedly, they were ambushed while resting at a Taoist temple.
With nurous enemies confronting them, not even his Master could break out with all his disciples. Left with no choice, Hong Feibai volunteered to be the sacrifice, breaking out through a so-called secret tunnel while holding the decoy to lure the enemies' attention, creating a chance for his Master and junior brothers and sisters to survive.
Then, his Master would confront the enemy head-on, creating chaos and an opportunity for the youngest sister to bring the genuine treasure back to the Sect.
Co what may, the treasure had to be delivered.
Only Hong Feibai and his Master were privy to this plan.
Latter, Hong Feibai returned to that Taoist temple, where the Taoists were still alive. They told him that because a number of them were lured away, his Master, despite being wounded by nurous swords, managed to defeat the attackers with his disciples and returned to the Sect after recuperating for several days.
But who knew that a man who was fully prepared to die ended up surviving?
And the young girl, who should have survived, died alone sowhere far away—such is the unpredictable nature of life.
Wang Anfeng truly did not know what to make of it all.
However, he did have so strong words in his heart for that Elder of the Heavenly Sword Sect who treated his own chief disciple as a pawn to be sacrificed.
How could such a person be called a Master?
As for why that girl appeared in Fengyue City so far away from the Heavenly Sword Sect, and what the treasure was, these were not things Wang Anfeng could deduce.
It was deep winter at this ti, and after several days of dry weather, it finally began to snow. Looking out, both sides of the official road were blanketed with snow. The spinning snowflakes enshrouded the entire world, vast and boundless. In this expanse of whiteness, a black carriage continued its lonely trek.
Wang Anfeng's eyes slightly widened as he let go of the clutter in his mind, leaned on the shaft of the carriage, exhaled a breath of white air, and said,
"Such heavy snow..."
Hong Feibai gazed at the snowy landscape, dazed and lost in thought.
Gloriously heavy snowfall in Jianghu.
In the third year of the Great Yuan Era under the Great Qin, on the thirteenth day of the eleventh lunar month, a vast expanse of snow enveloped everything. Wang Anfeng and Hong Feibai had been traveling for over ten days, and they were only two or three days' journey from the Heavenly Sword Sect's gate.
anwhile, within Fufeng County City.
"Wang Anfeng!!"
"You're good, very good!"
"You're the first, no, the second to dare stand up since I was born!"
After loitering around for a while, Li Changxing, who had been waiting like a log outside the wooden hut for more than ten days, finally had to leave Fufeng. Wang Anfeng had successfully 'stood up His Highness for half a month.' At this mont, Li Changxing, devoid of his royal dignity, was nearly jumping with rage outside the wooden hut like any ordinary youngster who felt aggrieved.
Finally, unable to contain his anger, he kicked the wooden door fiercely.
Wearing a pair of thin-soled shoes, he had kicked too hard, and his big toe struck a piece of Qingyan stone.
In that mont, his tender toe experienced what it ant to be severely punished by nature. The facial expression of the eleven-year-old Imperial Grandson of Dian Xi changed to purplish-red, his eyes brimming with tears, but he held back from crying out loud. He gave the wooden hut a death stare and gritted his teeth, saying,
"Wang... An... Feng!!"
Three hundred ters away, the ever-smiling Laughing Tiger turned to the middle-aged Master beside him, his face beaming with delight.
"Quick, quick."
"Did you get that mont on paper?"
PS: Today's second update is here...
Thank you to Light and Dark 0516 for the generous reward, very grateful...
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