“Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards)?”
Zuo Lishan put down his teacup and frowned.
“How many people?”
“Two, one male and one female. The male wore official boots and a Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) waist token. The female was dressed in a martial arts style, not looking like an official personage.”
“How are their martial arts?”
“Far superior to mine, at least first-rate in the martial world,” Fei Junxuan replied.
Zuo Lishan pondered silently.
Although the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) was an official organization, it did have some noble scions who were just coasting along, but anyone with first-rate martial arts would certainly be able to secure a rank.
It was just that when the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) came knocking, they usually acted swiftly and lethally. For them to come alone and cause a ruckus without stating their intentions and then leaving, it felt more like street thugs smashing a place or seizing territory, which was perplexing.
“How old is that woman?”
“Around twenty-something, she uses a sword, but she didn’t make many moves, so I couldn’t tell her background.”
“A first-rate master in her twenties cannot be without a lineage… Describe her appearance.”
Fei Junxuan described her. After all, he was a martial artist from a young age, not a constable, so he could only give broad descriptions like “willow-leaf eyebrows” and “apricot-shaped eyes.”
But the more Zuo Lishan listened, the more familiar it sounded: “Why does it sound like… that Mei Qinghe from the Mount Hua Sect?”
It had been almost half a month since Zhao Ying visited the Mount Tai Sword Sect. Zuo Lishan had also sent people to confirm Mei Qinghe’s identity, so he naturally had an idea of her appearance.
If it were anyone else, Fei Junxuan’s description could easily fit seventy or eighty people.
However, first-rate masters in their twenties were extremely rare, each one an inner disciple of a major sect, the very root of their sect’s legacy.
With the age, weapon, and appearance matching, and a female master who had recently appeared in the Qi-Lu Region, it would be difficult to find a second one.
“How did she get mixed up with the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards)?”
“The Mount Hua Sect… found a backer?”
“Is this… the backer showing up to seek trouble for their subordinate?”
Zuo Lishan had indeed been planning to integrate the Five Mountains Sword Sect and always intended to make the Mount Hua Sect the sacrifice.
When Zhao Ying came, he planned to use this matter as an excuse to pressure the Mount Hua Sect at this Five Mountains Alliance Meeting, at least to accuse them of improper conduct, which would make his future actions more legitimate and require less effort.
But if the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) were involved… he couldn’t afford to be anything but cautious.
As for Zhao Ying, he didn’t care.
He had indeed promised Zhao Ying to uphold justice and had already arranged for people to collect the benefits.
The Tiger Might Escort Agency was already about to become one of the Mount Tai Sect’s properties.
But what justice could there be for a third-rate force whose leader had died? The martial world ultimately spoke with martial arts. Zhao Ying herself lacked sufficient experience and couldn’t command the trust of her subordinates, and her swordplay had been crippled, leaving her with only a tenth of her martial arts. The Tiger Might Escort Agency was already on the verge of collapse, seemingly unable to hold on.
The Mount Tai Sect taking over the Tiger Might Escort Agency would be beneficial, not harmful, to the agency’s escorts. Not only would they have more confidence when escorting, but other forces would also show some deference to the Mount Tai Sword Sect, and they would even receive more money than before.
Even if Zhao Ying rallied the Tiger Might Escort Agency, she would only be met with an awkward silence.
This matter was already set in stone; regardless of whether Zuo Lishan broke his promise, Zhao Ying was powerless to change it.
“That Jinyi (Embroidered Clothing) said he’s coming again tomorrow?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll go back with you.”
“Ah?”
Fei Junxuan was stunned.
He had originally thought of explaining the situation to Zuo Lishan and sending a few masters down the mountain. Who would have thought Zuo Lishan would personally intervene?
Zuo Lishan’s personality was like that; he disliked back-and-forth haggling, which was time-consuming and laborious. His most accustomed method was to strike fast, pushing all his chips forward directly, turning all calculations into a muddled mess.
Since he achieved success in martial arts, he had rarely found an opponent among his peers, and after the age of thirty-five, it was even harder to find situations that required his intervention. With his martial arts, he believed he could resolve all of the opponent’s schemes.
Once Zuo Lishan made a decision, he no longer hesitated, directly rose, took his saber, and descended the mountain with Fei Junxuan.
As the sun set in the west and rose in the east, it was now noon the next day.
The main gate of the Mount Tai Sect was open, the main hall cleared of all items, and a table was placed in the center.
Zuo Lishan sat upright at the table, his saber leaning against the chair, and wine and dishes prepared on the table.
All other Mount Tai Sect disciples had already left, only Fei Junxuan stood to the side, his gaze fixed on the outside of the door.
The time had come.
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Li Miao did not break his promise and entered the door with Mei Qinghe.
Li Miao looked intently into the room, his gaze falling on Zuo Lishan’s face. He sized him up and down, then chuckled, “I thought it would take a few days of trouble before I could meet the real person.”
“Is Master Zuo so idle?”
Zuo Lishan was also sizing up Li Miao.
At the level of a peak master, one could somewhat sense the flow of internal energy within the opponent’s body, and even without engaging, one could discern the circulation of their power, thereby judging the extent of their martial arts.
However, at present, Zuo Lishan observed Li Miao closely, but could not detect his martial arts at all, as if the person opposite him was an ordinary person who had never practiced martial arts.
“His breath… why is it so light, so short?”
For masters who had achieved success in internal arts, a steady and long breath was preferred.
During a fight, no matter how good one’s martial arts were, one still needed to breathe. The longer the breath, the fewer vulnerabilities there were when breathing during a fight. With Li Miao’s breath, he would need to breathe within one or two moves; even a disciple who had just entered the initial stages of martial arts wouldn’t have such a short breath.
Then he looked at his exposed hands. A martial artist’s hands always bore traces. Those who practiced fist arts had calluses on their knuckles. Those who practiced palm arts had calluses on their palms. Those who practiced finger techniques had middle fingers shorter than average. Even those who practiced advanced soft arts would leave marks on their fingernails.
But Li Miao’s hands were more like those of a pampered young master who never did manual labor; not a single trace could be seen.
Not to mention the internal energy and power within his body; there was no sensation of it at all.
Something abnormal must indicate something strange.
Zuo Lishan only thought that this person practiced an unusual martial art, different from those in the Central Plains Martial World. He secretly became wary, but showed no unusual expression on his face.
He wouldn’t doubt that Fei Junxuan would lie; Li Miao must have martial arts. But no matter what, as long as he was present, he wasn’t afraid of the other party causing any trouble.
“He’s just putting on airs, relying on his Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) identity and his unusual martial arts,” Zuo Lishan thought.
How could he have imagined that the so-called “return to simplicity” and “imperishable body” would actually appear before his eyes?
The more accomplished a person was in their field, the harder it was for them to break free from the limitations of their own concepts, and Zuo Lishan was no exception.
Li Miao walked to the table and sat down, picking up the wine pot to pour himself a cup: “Master Zuo, do you have something to ask?”