In the early morning of February, the air was still a little chilly. In the open space in the courtyard of the inn, a group of people were training. On this side, Ning Yi was practicing boxing while chatting with Zhu Biao, who was brandishing his spear. On the steps in front of them, Xiaochan sat with Ning Xi in her arms. She looked over with a smile and whispered something to the child.
"… Speaking of Jiangning, Qinhuai River is quite famous. If you want to go there, Zhu Biao, I can find someone to take you there … Speaking of which, I heard that you met a few girls from the Wang family and they left a good impression on you. If I call you out like this, won't I ruin your marriage?"
Grasping the Bird's Tail, Raising the Hand, Single Whip … Ning Yi slowly and leisurely practiced Taiji Fist, looking quite a bit like a grandmaster. As for Zhu Biao on the other side, he was waving his spear vigorously, looking a bit like a cameo.
"A man can't let love get in the way of his business. Brother Ning, I am curious about Qinhuai River, but do you think there are some powerful masters in the south this time?"
"You're full of muscles. Zhu Biao, don't always say things that only supporting characters say … In Jiangning, there may be some lowly street masters, but if you want to talk about the truly powerful ones, the masters in the Land of Rising Peace are all government servants. Those who want to try their luck have all been involved in the chaos caused by Fang La. A year ago, when you went to Hangzhou, a few of them could beat you to a pulp, but now … Tsk. "
"Those who practice martial arts should fight with experts in order to improve themselves. I am not afraid! " The young man raised his chin. "But Brother Ning, you saw those masters when you were trapped in Hangzhou. Are they really that powerful?"
"Of course. The Seven Buddhas under Fang La were Chen Fan's disciples. The other four Marshals, such as Shi Bao, Deng Yuanjue, Li Tianrun and Si Xingfang, started out in the martial world before joining the army. Their martial arts skills are better than Chen Fan's. And Minister Wang Yin, I have never seen him fight, but I heard that he is as good as Fang La, mainly because he is smart and has many tricks up his sleeves. The rest of the Eight Cavalrymen, Twelve Gods and Twenty-Four Generals might not be as good on the battlefield, but they are all good at martial arts. Until now, it's really … Shua — — gone. "
Ning Yi heaved a sigh and felt emotional as he recalled what happened in Hangzhou. Of course, that was also because he was still doing well even though those people were defeated. The uprising of Fang La in Jiangnan, compared to the hundred or so ringleaders on Liangshan, was much more powerful. Not to mention the elites of the Lulin Forest, at least half of the Lulin Forest in the south was affected.
Some of the Eight Cavalrymen, Twelve Gods and Twenty-Four Generals had been tricked by him, but there were only a few gang leaders in Liang Shan who were more powerful than them. When he was dealing with Liangshan last year, such a huge force had already crashed into the beach like a wave and then shattered into snowflakes all over the sky.
"… Shi Bao was defeated and surrounded after he left Hangzhou. Li Tianrun died in the battle, and Si Xingfang was killed by Xin Xingzong. Wang Yin is skilled in both literature and martial arts, but like Deng Yuanjue, he has no leadership ability. After the battle, the two disappeared. I guess they are either dead or disabled. Fang Baihua was the only one left. Although she was considered an outstanding heroine, she was still a woman. If her brothers and family were all dead, she wouldn't have any motivation … Even if we really wanted to help Wenren Bu 'er and the others, you wouldn't be able to see any experts. Of course, you may see Fang Qifu, but I heard that he is disabled … "
While Ning Yi was talking, other people who were exercising not far away were also listening. They were all guards or servants of the Office of Secret Investigations. After returning from Liang Shan, Ning Yi had arranged more than forty people who could be used. This time in Muyuan County, there were more than twenty people. A small part of them were the original family guards of the Su family, some were trustworthy Jianghu people who worked for money, and the others were the people Qin Siyuan assigned to him from the Office of Secret Investigations. In addition, there were many people he could mobilize, but they were usually working in other places.
For a mere advisor to gather more than 50 guards for the safety of the people around him, it was quite easy for people to criticize him. After all, even if Qin Siyuan was the Right Chief Minister, he usually only had more than ten guards when he went out. But Ning Yi's situation really could not be helped. After the name of the Inner Demon spread, even in the capital, within a few months, people came to find him. Even if most of them were small fries who wanted to be famous, who knew if a master would suddenly come. Just like the Cloud-swallowing Monk who had a grudge against him and was still alive, he had to be prepared.
It took a lot of effort to gather these people, mainly because he had money to spend, but Ning Yi did not arrange it casually. The original family guards of the Su family could be trusted. Among the Jianghu people, he tried to choose the stupidest and the more honest. He also selected and filtered the reliability. As for the people from the Office of Secret Investigations, all of them had worked with Ning Yi before.
After they were recruited, Ning Yi treated them well. Most of them were treated like family, and he also arranged masters like Yan Qing, Lu Junyi, and Zhu Biao to train with them. On the other hand, although Ning Yi treated them well in all aspects, the rules and regulations that they really had to pay attention to were quite strict. This kind of management method was originally Ning Yi's strong point. Because most of these people knew what Ning Yi had done, no one dared to look down on him in the slightest.
The name of the Inner Demon had spread in the martial arts world. He was a really powerful devil. Everyone had heard about what happened in Hangzhou, and many people had participated in the process of the destruction of Liangshan. When Ning Yi was friendly, he could make everyone feel warm, but he was always dignified. No one wanted to see this scholar when he was really angry. What's more, he had the great master Lu Hongti behind him.
On the one hand, they worked under Ning Yi. On the other hand, they could train and win over people at any time. This was the team that Ning Yi would arrange to be around him in the future. However, although their loyalty was more or less trustworthy, they could not be of much help in the matter of Fang Qifo. Even the bold Zhu Biao could not be asked by Ning Yi to help rescue Fang Qifo. This was also the reason why Ning Yi refused Chen Fan — he didn't have people who could participate in this matter. Of course, it didn't matter if it was just to meet them.
If it was really possible for them to listen to Ning Yi's order to save the rebels like Fang Qifo, it would at least be three to five years later, when Ning Yi's control completely penetrated into every part of this interest group …
At this time, he was pointing out these things. Zhu Biao occasionally asked about the lineup under Fang La's command, and he sighed a little about the situation where these masters had all withered and disappeared. However, this kind of sigh of the young man naturally didn't need to be taken too seriously. After a while, Zhu Biao had already pulled himself together, waving the steel spear in his hand like a dragon, whistling wildly.
This kind of performance made Xiaoning Xi, who was under the eaves not far away, very happy. She even waved her little hands and clapped when she saw Zhu Biao. He didn't know many pronunciations now, so he laughed and shouted randomly, "Ah ah … Ba Ba …" Ning Yi stopped the Tai Chi stance and came over to hug him rather unhappily. "You can clap, but you can't call him daddy. I taught you for so long, but you still can't say it properly, brat …"
He picked up Ning Xi. Seeing his father coming over, the child, who was now very good at recognizing people, waved her hands even more happily. Her little mouth touched Ning Yi's face and smeared her saliva on it. "Ba Ba Ba … Ba Ba!" This made Ning Yi laugh again.
While they were training, many people softly discussed the current situation in Jiangnan. Some people also smiled and told Zhu Biao that the reputation of the inner demon in the Green Forest was enough to be mentioned in the same breath as Sheng Gong and the others. If they really put it out, it could also scare a lot of people. Zhu Biao also smiled and echoed. In fact, this was not fantasy. There were many people in the Office of Secret Investigations who had contact with the people of Jianghu. After the fall of Liangshan, the name of the inner demon in the Green Forest was indeed a huge deterrent.
Some people would put the inner demon in the category of the evil sect, but the people in the Office of Secret Investigations didn't care. In fact, many people deliberately spread the word that the background of the inner demon was the high-ranking officials of the imperial court, and even directly responsible for them. With the battle record of destroying Liangshan and the deep background of the imperial court, this title in the hearts of the people of the Green Forest was vaguely more ferocious than the chief constables of the Ministry of Justice.
While everyone was chatting and laughing, the morning training actually came to an end. Not long after, Ning Yi also went over with the child in his arms to chat with them. He smiled and said, "My martial arts skills are low, the title of the inner demon is fake. If I could, I don't want it either. Everyone knows my character, those people really shouldn't vilify me … Also, look, Xiao Xi is so cute, so it's possible that she is a little devil, right Xiao Xi? "
At this time, his martial arts skills were actually not low, and of course, not the top, but many people who had witnessed Ning Yi's deeds were thinking, "Even Fang La in Hangzhou was tricked, Liangshan was reversed when it had the most advantage, and tens of thousands of people died without knowing why, and most of them were killed by their own people. Song Jiang was cut open in front of the battle. In terms of horror, it's not a slander to say that you are a devil … Of course, it's also his charm that you can be so amiable in daily life."
These people's martial arts skills had been trained by first-class experts for half a year, so they had a solid foundation. After half a year of practice, they had also dealt with several assassination attempts, so they could more or less be called experts. At this time, they were also quite confident. After a short rest, they were called to have breakfast. For this trip south to Jiangning, everyone actually didn't worry much. It was a simple trip, and even if someone really wanted to provoke them, they could easily deal with it.
And probably at the same time, hundreds of miles away, the camp formed by the troops who were escorting Fang Qifo to the north seemed a little lively and chaotic. At this time, they were gathering towards the camp. There were the dead, the injured, more than a dozen captives who had been brought over, and all kinds of jingling weapons that had been collected after the battle.
The morning wind was slightly cold, and there was fog in the mountains. When Zong Feixiao saw the group of captives pass by, he also turned his head to look at Fang Qifo, who seemed to be asleep in the prison cart.
But naturally, he was not asleep.
This was the second group of captives after midnight. The first group was still at night, and they were the first captives that were captured after the soldiers surrounded them. As for the second group of more than a dozen people, most of them were masters. The people who escorted them over were not soldiers, but the two sides had just done a handover at the entrance of the camp.
In the prison cart, Fang Qifo's hair was disheveled, but he should still be paying attention to the whole situation. The capture of this group of people meant that more than half of those who came to rescue him had been destroyed. But at this time, Zong Feixiao did not come over to remind him of this matter to show off, nor did Tie Tianying. The two gathered together, frowned, and whispered a few words.
"… She wants to see Fang Qifo."
"… Not all of them have been captured."
"… I heard that it's about time. Only a few dozen people escaped, and Fang Baihua is already seriously injured … They pay more attention than us, and will not let the last few people go …"
"… I have not dealt with her before, if she has other ideas …"
"… We just have to be careful. It's hard to say what their background is now. If they fall out with each other, who knows what will happen …"
The cry of a cuckoo pierced through the mist in the valley in the early morning, and the surrounding sounds all entered the prison cart. The movements in the camp, the movements in the wind, and the movements in the entire world seemed to be felt in the small prison cart. Fang Qifo sat there, silently feeling these things, and also quietly feeling the strange situation of the other party. Not long after, Tie Tianying and Zong Feixiao gathered their masters as if they were facing a great enemy, and surrounded the prison cart. Only then did he know that someone was coming.
That's right, the other party could really disperse Baihua and the others, because someone more powerful had intervened … He opened his eyes slightly in the prison cart. Not long after, a small green sedan came from the other side of his field of vision. It seemed to be moving slowly, but it was actually very fast, and it seemed very quiet in this world.
Someone opened the curtain.
Inside the prison cart, Fang Qifo's slightly narrowed eyes, as if everything was outside of his body, trembled slightly.
After a long time, a sigh disturbed the air in the morning mist.
"Ah …"
*****
The morning wind blew through the cliff and ironed on the loose robe. He stood on the cliff and looked down at the mountains and people below.
"Devil Buddha" Lin Eechan, as someone who had returned after more than ten years of silence, still looked solemn and silent at this time. However, his fat body was shrouded in the aura of a grandmaster. Right now, he was the new hierarch of the Mani Sect.
Generally speaking, the peak period of an ordinary person's body usually arrived at around thirty years old.
However, for a warrior, at the age of thirty, their own outlook on life and philosophy had just matured, and they had just begun to look at the world with a deeper perspective. The peak period of an internal master usually arrived between forty and fifty years old. At this time, they were omnipotent.
After that, even an expert like Zhou Dong, who could continuously push his cultivation to new heights, couldn't help but have his body's quality decline uncontrollably. Even though Zhou Dong at this time was even more terrifying than when he was fifty years old, every punch he threw contained the strength of his life.
Lin Eechan was forty-seven years old this year.
Before the Mani Sect split and before Fang La and the others rebelled, he had already been a protector of the Mani Sect and one of the top figures in the Jianghu. However, at that time, Fang La and the others were like the sun at high noon, and they had the power of heaven and earth. At that time, Fang Qifo and Fang Baihua were already quite skilled in martial arts. Since Fang La and the others had a wide circle of friends, they were surrounded by a large group of masters, including Deng Yuanjue, Shi Bao, Bao Daoyi, Liu Dabiao, who was the number one in Saber Taoism at that time, and the entire Tyrannical Saber Manor. Although Liu Dabiao, who was comparable to masters like Sikong Nan and Zhou Dong, did not make a move during that chaos, the Tyrannical Saber Manor still displayed a great deterrent force behind Fang La.
In that kind of situation, no matter how skilled Lin Eechan was, he could only retreat.
In the beginning, Fang La and the others had been on guard against their comeback. However, as Sikong Nan had said, if Fang La had been successful all the way, they would never have appeared. Even though Fang La had focused on rebelling all these years, and Lin Eechan had focused on his martial arts, as long as Fang La was still in control of the situation, they would never have appeared.
Even if Zhou Dong had ten iron arms, he would not have been able to kill his way out of Fang La's army. There were simply too many masters under him.
However, the heavens were still fair. When Lin Eechan's martial arts were at their peak, the small force of the Mani Sect that had been hiding underground could finally come out. The heavens probably wanted him to do something.
While he was looking at the scenery below, someone walked over from behind. It was Wang Nantuo. His arm was wrapped in bandages, and he walked to the edge of the cliff at the side. After standing for a while, he turned around and spoke.
"Cult Master, what should we do next?"
Wang Nantuo's voice was a little rough, but this was the first time he had asked Lin Eechan like this. There was a hint of joy in his tone. Lin Eechan glanced at him.
"How's your injury?"
"It's just a scratch. It's nothing." Wang Nantuo raised his head. "Of course, I'm just asking casually. If you've made a secret with Eldest Senior Sister, you don't have to tell me. "
"There's no secret." Lin Eechan put his hands behind his back. "Fang La and the others have already destroyed most of the Mani Sect. We've already made an agreement with that lord that we'll clean up the mess. As long as they're still alive, they shouldn't die anymore. Eldest Senior Sister, you, and I are all members of the sect, and we don't want to see the inheritance that has lasted for hundreds of years end just like that. "
Wang Nantuo looked into the distance and did not say anything. He had not been involved in the affairs of the sect for many years, but since he had asked, Lin Eechan, who was already the cult master, would definitely answer. He paused for a moment. "However, we still have to repay our debts. The most important thing now is naturally to kill the last few dozen people. After that, we'll reorganize the scattered cult members. I want to do a few things to restore the prestige of the Mani Sect. Of course, we can't use the word 'Mani' on the surface. "
Wang Nantuo nodded, and Lin Eechan's sleeves fluttered in the wind. "Of course, I want to challenge Zhou Dong."
He put his hands behind his back, and his figure was like a mountain. Although his words were simple, Wang Nantuo still turned his head to look at him. The two of them did not speak for a long time. After this silence, Lin Eechan smiled.
"I'll send out the letter of challenge soon. His body is no longer at its peak, so I won't bully him. We'll decide the victor within ten moves. "Before that, you and I can visit some old friends. After the matter with Hundred Flowers is settled, there are still some things … The account book that's causing a commotion in the south now needs our help … There's a group of heroes over at Chi Qiugang, and I want to meet them. I'm also interested in meeting Tian Hu … Recently, that heart demon that appeared in the martial world has caused the martial artists of the Land of Qilu to suffer a great loss. If I have the time to head north, I'll deal with it, and the martial artists of the Land of Qilu will naturally submit … These are all small matters …"
Amidst the strong wind, he casually told Wang Nantuo about his plan. His tone was calm, but after a moment, he looked at the world in front of him and sighed.
"The Mani Sect has existed for so many years, and even though we can't take over the world now, we can't lose our reputation … We still need the Underworld …"
He had been in the Mani Sect for so many years, and when it was at its peak, he had not been the cult master. Now that he had reached the peak, his entire stance had fallen apart, and he could only put it away a little. For the rest of his life, he would just be the number one person in the Underworld. His huge body stood proudly in the wind. He closed his eyes, and as he sighed, he felt rather lonely.
*****
The small green sedan chair walked away in the slight morning mist, but that smear of green still seemed to be reflected in his vision.
Not many people knew what Fang Qibo was thinking about as he sat in the prison carriage. However, the experts of the Ministry of Justice who were originally guarding the surroundings finally heaved a sigh of relief. Then, it was time to break camp. A carriage of swords and sabers passed by him, and the cloth covering them fell off. Among the swords and sabers, the most conspicuous one was a huge steel blade.
Fang Qibo's gaze swept over it, and then stopped.
Tie Tianying, who was walking beside him, bent down to pick up the cloth. He noticed Fang Qibo's gaze and also looked at it. Then, he smiled slightly.
"Fo Shuai, what are you looking at?"
…
"I guess it's the Tyrannical Blade."
…
"Don't think about it. The blade is here, so of course, the person is already dead."
…
"The corpse is in the carriage over there, but the corpse of the person who died has been stripped naked. That's a woman. Fo Shuai, it's not good for you to look at it. "
…
"It's all like this, don't think too much. I think Fo Shuai, you've gotten over it these days. That's good … It's good to have nothing on your mind. "
…
He threw the cloth into the carriage, but did not cover the weapon. He just followed the carriage forward and instructed the people beside him, "There's no need to cover it. Whose weapon is on it? Most of them can recognize it … It's good to take a look."
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