Chapter 544: The Six-Vessel Divine Sword
When Happy returned to the seating area of the Murong family and was about to head back down to the arena, she was surprised to find a man in black-trimmed brocade robes standing not far from Miss Murong. He was tall and straight-backed, like a sword drawn from its sheath, standing out sharply even among a group of martial arts masters.
The Emperor!
“You’ve come.”
The man turned slightly and smiled at Happy. “I was right. You’re probably the only one in ‘Jianghu’ who can force me to draw my fifth sword.”
“Are you so sure?”
“You must have experienced Silver Fox’s REP, right?” The Emperor remained calm, asking instead of answering, seemingly knowing more about Happy than she did herself.
“Yes.”
“That’s great.” The Emperor spoke calmly. “Actually, I’ve experienced REP from those who have fought against you—Zhou Yu and Huang Sha provided them to me…”
Hearing this, Happy didn’t show much surprise. “…I have many REPs. My techniques and strategies aren’t secrets.”
“That’s why I fought Silver Fox, so you could understand my swordsmanship.” The Emperor spoke as if discussing something unrelated to him. “But I didn’t expect Silver Fox to be the first to force me to draw my fourth sword. Now I’m even more convinced that you can make me draw my fifth sword…”
At that moment, Happy couldn’t help but show a hint of astonishment. She stared at his calm profile with an unreadable expression. “Are you that confident you can beat me?”
“I’m different from you,” said the Emperor. “If I weren’t confident, I’d likely be dead many times over. So, no matter who I face, I’m fearless. I believe my enemy will fall before me…” He paused before adding, “That’s my principle in life.”
Happy remained silent for a few seconds before fixing her gaze on the Emperor and saying firmly, word by word, “No matter who my opponent is, I’ll give it my all.”
“Very good.”
The Emperor smiled broadly. “That’s exactly what I was waiting for. But don’t worry—I don’t intend to interfere in your feud with Yipin Hall. I’ll wait until the end of the martial arts tournament to fight you. In the meantime, you can work hard to become the best in martial arts… But I hope you won’t disappoint me by this time tomorrow.”
With that, the Emperor turned and left.
Happy watched his figure silently for a long time before taking her eyes away.
Suddenly, she realized that the Emperor didn’t seem as cold as she had thought in her past life…
…
In the days that followed, Happy hardly stepped onto the arena again.
Standing quietly behind the spectator seats outside the arena, I watched the exciting battles on the Dragon and Tiger Arena—duels between top martial arts experts and battles between players and those experts. Those who could make it onto the Dragon and Tiger Arena were all top-notch fighters! He Shiyi failed to advance to that arena, but Xiao Yuluo, Yin Hu, Lei Zhan, Lin Xiao, Hong Chen, Mo Feng, Feng Ling, Gu Feng, and others managed to get in through relentless effort. By the 24th hour of the martial arts conference, the number of players had finally exceeded fifty. Players took turns stepping onto the stage to showcase their skills, but the pressure of fighting against experts at the Wuwei realm was immense; most couldn’t withstand even two rounds and were defeated, forced to remain as spectators. However, two people, just like Kai Xin, managed to pass all three rounds! Lu Mingyue. After several months, her mastery of the Sunflower Manual had become even more refined. Every move of hers reflected the elegance of Dongfang Bubai. Though she no longer laughed in a feminine manner, her actions exuded a unique charm and a subtle authority that made it hard for others to look directly at her. On the arena, with every gesture, she used flying needles, acupoint pressure techniques, and palm strikes—her techniques were endless and dazzling, leaving opponents caught off guard. “This Lu Mingyue…” Kai Xin frowned, feeling a faint threat from her for the first time. Although Lu Mingyue was still just an ordinary gang leader controlling a not-so-large area along the Yangtze River, it seemed that after several defeats, she had grasped certain principles. She was now calmer, and her strength had improved dramatically—she was no longer the same as before! The Sunflower Manual truly was one of the greatest books of our time… As Kai Xin thought to himself, he realized that Lu Mingyue’s achievements were also due to his own repeated attacks, which had spurred her to rise again with renewed determination. During this time, she had had plenty of time to recover. Now, she probably intended to use the martial arts conference to regroup and fight for a share of power in the Central Plains. But! While gaining fame wasn’t difficult, trying to snatch a piece of the pie from the four top gangs was nothing but delusion. Lu Mingyue’s individual skills were good, but her overall strategic vision wasn’t strong. The Cold Moon Palace had already missed its best period for development, and now trying to compete with those four top gangs for resources was practically impossible…
Even the resource points controlled by some smaller gangs were connected to the four major gangs, with alliances among them. To offend the interests of these gangs, big or small, was equivalent to infringing on the vital interests of the four major gangs. The Cold Moon Palace might be able to grow slightly, but achieving a qualitative change was not something that could be accomplished in a short time.
Lu Mingyue was not worth fearing.
Another person, however, was quite beyond expectations…
“Haotian,” the successor of Duan Yu who had followed the royal family of Dali, shocked everyone upon taking the stage with his “Six Pulse Divine Sword”! Unlike Duan Yu’s half-baked version of the sword technique in his youth, Haotian could now shoot out three layers of sword energy from his fingertips—purple, yellow, and blue—each layer being fierce and powerful. Even three experts at the Wuwei realm were no match for him, and they were utterly defeated by Haotian.
When Haotian left the stage, he glanced at Kai Xin with a meaningful look before departing. Kai Xin became alert and quickly understood what was going on. Since he had succeeded in defeating three people, Haotian would now challenge three in return. This time, it seemed someone intended to compete with him on the Dragon and Tiger Arena!
“…”
Kai Xin smiled slightly. The Six Pulse Divine Sword, with its ability to break through barriers, was indeed the best sword technique in the world, only comparable to the Nine Swords of Dugu and the Combined Fingers. But to try to dominate the world relying solely on the Six Pulse Divine Sword was a sign of underestimating the entire martial world!
Duan Yu, despite possessing the Northern Sea Divine Skill and the Six Pulse Divine Sword, as well as being immune to poisons, still remained low-key in Dali. Yet here was a successor who had inherited three sword techniques, daring to think he was invincible at a gathering of martial arts masters.
Kai Xin shook his head in secret…
He took such provocation completely lightly. Although the Six Pulse Divine Sword was extremely fast, for experts who could sense wind directions and move swiftly, avoiding its sword energy was not entirely impossible. But!
While Kai Xin could endure it, it seemed someone else was particularly interested in the Six Pulse Divine Sword—“One Emperor,” who had stood quietly in a secluded corner without paying much attention to the players on the stage, now showed interest in Haotian as he left.