Chapter 657: Calmness…

“Qin Qing of Lingxiao Palace has stepped down, and now her sister Qin Yun has taken over as the palace master. That woman, Qin Qing, was forced into this situation by Kai Xin.”
Meng Yun smiled slightly in the main hall of the council:
“Although the Mu family’s prestige has soared, making it the undisputed number one gang in the Central Plains, Kai Xin has also sown trouble for them. He failed to take the opportunity to fully control all the cities along the southern coast that belong to Lingxiao Palace…”
“Heh.”
Xue Yi also showed a cold smile:
“That opponent, Kai Xin, is indeed difficult to deal with. But when it comes to dealing with women, he lacks the ruthlessness. Well, what I mean is, Lingxiao Palace hates the Mu family deeply. Qin Qing must be filled with resentment. When the time comes, she could become a serious threat to the Mu family.”
“…” Meng Yun’s expression softened slightly as she nodded:
“Perhaps this confrontation at ‘Top of Mount Tai’ will be a turning point for the Mu family!” After a pause, she added with narrowed eyes, “If Kai Xin wins, the Mu family’s prestige will grow even more, and for at least half a year, no one will be able to shake their position as number one in the Central Plains! But if he loses to that emperor… Hmph! How are things on your end?” Her tone suddenly changed at the end.
“Everything is going smoothly.”
Xue Yi smiled upon hearing this:
“Coincidentally, I’m currently taking care of Kai Xin’s woman. She shares the same surname as that girl, and the two of them are now sisters, getting along extremely well. I’m often invited to Kai Xin’s place.”
“Oh.”
A look of surprise flashed in Meng Yun’s eyes.
“Is Kai Xin’s woman very beautiful?”
“She’s pretty good.”
“Is there any way to make Kai Xin drive her away and replace her with your person?”
“That’s a bit difficult. I heard that his woman is one of the veterans on the Nanhua Jianghu List. They’re business partners, and there seems to be some romantic tension between them.”
“Weren’t you saying your person is quite attractive?” Meng Yun looked at Xue Yi strangely. The latter explained with a wry smile, “It’s not that I don’t want to. From what she said, the two of them had some conflicts before, which made things awkward. Kai Xin has prejudice against her, and there’s some distance between them. If it weren’t for that woman, I still couldn’t get close to Kai Xin. So, it’s impossible for now…”
Meng Yun said, “What a pity,” frowning slightly before saying nothing more.
“By the way, Meng, there’s been no news of Huang Sha lately. Where on earth has that guy gone?”
“Persia.”

Meng Yun said without hiding anything, “Don’t you remember? Back in the time of the Ming Sect, we received a mission item here, but the trigger point for the mission was too far away. At that time, I didn’t think about activating it. But later, Zhou Yu reminded me that although Persia was a barbarian land, it was after all the birthplace of the Ming Sect, filled with countless experts. If we could obtain something like the ‘Great Heaven and Earth Shift’ or the Ming Sect’s Sacred Flame Token after going there, we might have a chance to see a huge boost in strength.”

“Persia…”

A hint of joy flashed across Blood-Clothed’s face.

He remembered that in The Legend of the Condor Heroes, several messengers carrying the Sacred Flame Token from Persia had trapped Zhang Wuji and Xie Xun for a long time, proving that there were indeed some extremely powerful individuals abroad.

Moreover, recently, several outstanding swordsmen seemed to have appeared in Goryeo as well. It was said they came from the Yi Sword Gate and entered the Central Plains martial world following the plot missions of “The Legend of the Two Dragons”!

Together with the masters of concealment techniques who had entered the Central Plains long ago, the martial arts experts from the small southwestern countries like Abu, and the many masters in the Central Plains martial world, they were gradually paying more attention to these experts from abroad…

…

The adjustments made by the Wind and Rain Alliance, the change of leadership in the Lingxiao Palace, and the unusually calm and honest behavior of the First-Class Hall all made it clear to all martial artists that the actions taken by the Mu Family and Happy had proven effective—not only in stabilizing the situation in the south in a short time but also in forcing the Lingxiao Palace to compromise to the greatest extent possible! All these things further enhanced the prestige of the Mu Family and Happy, as well as increasing understanding among the martial artists of the Central Plains and those from abroad.

The martial world returned to peace once again…

But beneath the surface, turmoil still raged!

Because since the martial arts conference at the Hero’s Villa, the “One Emperor,” who had mastered the sixth sword on the arena, disappeared after claiming second place and never reappeared in the martial world.

No one knew where the One Emperor had gone!

Yet countless martial artists speculated that he had hidden himself because he failed to overcome Linghu Chong in the Dragon and Tiger Arena and was bitter about not becoming the number one in the world. He might be focusing entirely on mastering the seventh sword or practicing even more powerful martial arts in preparation for the showdown at the top of Mount Tai.

However…

Even if the One Emperor’s strength hadn’t improved, that stunning final sword strike in the Dragon and Tiger Arena, which could even seriously injure Linghu Chong, was enough to make countless martial artists eagerly anticipate that battle!

The showdown at the top of Mount Tai would truly reveal who the true number one in the world was…

The greatest master of the Central Plains!!

As time passed, everyone looked forward to the showdown between “Happy” and “Yi Di” atop Mount Tai. Many even arrived at Mount Tai in advance, sacrificing their rapid cultivation progress just to witness the clash between the strongest warriors in the Central Plains!
……
That day!
With only three days left before the duel, the restaurants at the foot of Mount Tai were packed, and numerous martial artists from nearby cities and sects had gathered there, creating a sea of people.
……
But the martial artists had no idea…
While they were waiting there, Happy was drawn away by an unexpected system message to a powerful northern clan hundreds of miles away.
The northern clan!
One of the eight great families! A prominent family in the Central Plains martial world, renowned for its finely crafted weapons that commanded respect throughout the martial world. It possessed immense wealth, a multitude of skilled warriors, extensive connections across the land, and an astonishing foundation.
……
Unfortunately,
while Happy was fully preparing for the duel at Mount Tai, he received a message from four abandoned disciples of the Sword Sect, stating that the repair of the Heavenly Crystal was nearing completion!
And the situation was quite delicate…
Although the Nangong family was desperate to obtain the item belonging to their former patriarch and hoped to seize the Heavenly Crystal to restore the glory of the Nangong family, the Sword Sect’s sect leader had spent years working hard for it. Along with a group of elders, he personally supervised the sword-forging pool where the Heavenly Crystal was being repaired, never resting for even a moment.
Moreover!
The most astonishing part was that during the repair process, most of the northern clan’s skilled warriors were deployed in the vicinity. It seemed they too sensed the extraordinary quality and power of this divine weapon through its mystique and grew covetous of it.
With these three forces, each harboring similar intentions, they all held their breath, ready to strike at the moment the Heavenly Crystal was fully repaired!