Chapter 18: Chapter 17: Provoking a Quarrel at the Door
Translator: 549690339
Half a month had passed since Pei Xuanjing had chased away the Liu family’s people, and no one from the Liu family had come to visit since.
Then, Shen Xiang had promised to handle the matter, so Pei Xuanjing had focused all his attention on refining skills and accumulating Taoyun.
Perhaps it was difficult to integrate two martial arts into his current “Yi Wood and Li Fire Skill” in half a month, but Pei Xuanjing’s practice of the ‘Water Swordsmanship’ was progressing by leaps and bounds.
As the proverb goes, once a technique is mastered, all techniques can be mastered.
He had already mastered the ‘Yin Wood Sword Skill’, which was blending and comprehending the realm, so his understanding of swordsmanship far surpassed that of same-realm martial artists. Therefore, when he began to practice this medium-level martial art, he encountered few problems. In just half a month’s time, he had practiced this Sword Skill to the point of proficiency.
One day, as Pei Xuanjing was practicing ‘Water Swordsmanship’ in the courtyard, he heard a clamor of curses coming from outside the door.
He sheathed his Pine Pattern Ancient Sword and came to the door, finding a group of people led by a magnificently dressed young man blocking the entrance to his courtyard.
“Why are you here again?” Pei Xuanjing asked with a frown.
He didn’t recognize the leader, the magnificently dressed young man, but the few people next to him were familiar; they were from the Liu family who had caused trouble before.
The magnificently dressed young man took a look at Pei Xuanjing and saw nothing special about him, “I don’t care who you are, nor want to bother knowing who you are. As long as you vacate this courtyard today and leave on your own, I will let you off the hook and won’t trouble you.”
Pei Xuanjing smirked, “On what basis?”
The magnificently dressed young man sneered, “On the basis that my surname is Liu, and my name is Liu Ruilong.”
A person’s name carries their reputation.
Liu Ruilong, the direct descendant of the Liu family in Anping Prefecture, was already a Seventh-grade Martial Artist at the age of twenty-five. Even among the young martial artists in the entire Northwest Dao, he could be considered outstanding.
Even those who were dissatisfied with him and thought he was domineering could not deny his strength.
Upon hearing the man introducing himself, Pei Xuanjing remembered what Shen Xiang had told him about Liu Ruilong.
However, Pei Xuanjing was not concerned; He asked back, “What if I refuse?”
Liu Ruilong’s face turned cold, and a shadow appeared in his eyes. He didn’t respond.
He swiftly turned and, before others could react, withdrew the treasured sword that the page was carrying.
Clink!
As soon as the sword was drawn, it emitted a piercing cold light and was directly hacked towards Pei Xuanjing.
In public, he unsheathed his sword and attempted to kill over a single disagreement. Pei Xuanjing had a clear understanding of the arrogance of Liu family.
Anger flickered in his eyes and he pulled out the Pine Pattern Ancient Sword, striking back even before Liu Ruilong could bring down his sword.
Stab, point, lift.
Clang!
Liu Ruilong hadn’t even reacted yet, only felt a pain in his right wrist, and the treasured sword fell from his grasp onto the ground.
“You’re so ruthless,” Liu Ruilong clutched his wrist, glared venomously at Pei Xuanjing, wishing he could tear Pei Xuanjing to pieces.
Pei Xuanjing said coldly, “Compared to young Master Liu, I am much kinder.”
Just now, Liu Ruilong aimed to kill him, and all he did was sever Liu Ruilong’s wrist tendons, which was showing mercy.
If he didn’t have to consider the skilled fighters of the Liu family, and if it wasn’t time to openly oppose them yet, he wouldn’t have been so lenient; he would have directly beheaded Liu Ruilong.
Although Liu Ruilong was arrogant, he was not foolish enough to understand that he had suffered a loss today. To his followers behind, he said, “Let’s go.”
Looking at the sword on the ground, which was deliberately or unintentionally stepped on by Pei Xuanjing, Liu Ruilong thought to himself that he would just leave it here for the time being and come back later to collect it together with Pei Xuanjing’s head.
Watching Liu Ruilong’s receding figure, Pei Xuanjing’s face darkened.
Indeed, Shen’s Business Association couldn’t be relied upon.
Almost immediately after Pei Xuanjing returned to the courtyard, Shen Xiang came over.
“Brother Pei, I heard that the people from the Liu family caused some trouble just now,” said Shen Xiang without any preamble.
Pei Xuanjing nodded, “Yes, it was Liu Ruilong who brought the people.”
“So, they’ve left?” Shen Xiang was a bit puzzled. Did Liu Ruilong just leave so easily?
He had rushed over as soon as he heard the news.
“When Liu Ruilong attacked, I rendered one of his hands useless, and then he left,” Pei Xuanjing calmly stated, as if he was discussing something irrelevant.
“You say… you disabled one of Liu Ruilong’s hands.” Shen Xiang looked shocked.
Pei Xuanjing asked calmly, “Is there a problem?”
“No problem.” Shen Xiang twitched the corners of his mouth and waved his hand dismissively.
But in his heart, he was greatly pleased. Liu Ruilong was one of the distinguished geniuses of the Liu family. Being able to disable one of his hands was definitely beneficial and harmless to Shen’s Business Association, so naturally, he was happy to see it.
However, he felt a bit wary of Pei Xuanjing. He knew that Liu Ruilong, a Seventh-grade Martial Artist, wouldn’t be able to cause much trouble for Pei Xuanjing, a Sixth Grade Martial Artist.
But the fact that Pei Xuanjing acted so decisively to directly disable Liu Ruilong’s hand revealed a ruthlessness that surprised him and made him question whether his elder brother’s strategy of dealing with Pei Xuanjing was right or wrong.
Thinking of this, he decided he needed to inform his elder brother, Shen Mei, as soon as possible about what had happened today. Therefore, he rose from his seat and said, “Brother Pei, there are some issues that need my attention, so I won’t stay for long. But don’t worry, we will definitely give you an explanation for today’s incident.”
Pei Xuanjing remained reticent about that.
Originally, he thought Shen’s Business Association would be a reliable partner, but it appeared they were not as he expected.
After all, they had already promised to deal with the Liu family, but still allowed Liu Ruilong to come and provoke him. This negligence, whether a display of contempt or tolerance, displeased Pei Xuanjing.
Shen Xiang left in a hurry, intending to inform his elder brother, Shen Mei, about the incident in order to revise their strategy for dealing with Pei Xuanjing.
Meanwhile, the news that Liu Ruilong, the genius of the Liu family, had his wrist severed by a single sword stroke quickly spread among the major powers in the city. Based on this fresh information, all the forces were aware of the Sixth Grade Martial Artist named Pei Xuanjing living in their midst.
Although each major power in Anping Prefecture had Fourth-grade Martial Artists as their Sea-stabilizing Divine Needle, most of the time, they only served as a deterrent and rarely acted directly. More often than not, the Fifth Rank and Sixth Grade Martial Artists were the main forces.
Therefore, a Sixth Grade Martial Artist was enough to cause minor pediments in Anping Prefecture and bring some serious trouble to the major powers.
