758 Return (2/2)
”The body's terribly rotten, and yet someone still managed to recognize it.” Fang Wenshi didn't know about the details, but it had caused a serious disturbance and the Court Attendants Army decided to add Shulitu and Mo Lin's names to the list of sacrifices.
A large number of common soldiers, who were loyal to Shulitu and discontent with the domineering attitudes of the Court Attendants soldiers, gathered around and wanted to save the two by force. There was a conflict between the two sides, and the Court Attendants Army had numerical superiority. Thus, not only did they refuse to hand over the hostages, but they also surrounded the common soldiers, which was why the kung fu competition had been canceled. Liu Qingpu and the rest of the Qingcheng Sect were also trapped in the army camp.
”Alas, what a shame,” Fang Wenshi languished as he shook his head repeatedly. ”Fortunately you have come back, Dragon King. Just go play another conjuring trick or two, and call the divine bird back too. These are probably the only two methods I can think of that might work on the Court Attendants Army.”
”Who do the bodies outside the camp belong to?” Gu Shenwei asked.
”The Qingcheng Sect came for their sect leader and the Court Attendants troops started shooting arrows at them without saying a word, which was yet another nuisance.”
The two were still talking when there was a quarrel took place outside the tent. Then a man came in uninvited, the Sect Leader of the Qingcheng Sect, Liu Qingpu. ”Dragon King, all the sects and schools of the Central Plains have come here for the kung fu competition because we had faith in your commitment. And yet, what is this? There's no competition, and you're even holding us hostage.”
Gu Shenwei saw at first sight that Liu Qingpu was holding his saber and sword. He took a step forward and said, ”Lü Mian and Deng Yuanlei are dead.”
”What?” Liu Qingpu took a step backwards involuntarily. ”Uh, that's good. They were traitors of our sect… The Dragon King killed them?”
Gu Shenwei nodded. The look on Liu Qingpu's face changed slightly – he knew how powerful Lü Mian's swordsmanship was, and he didn't expect that Lü Mian would actually be killed by the Dragon King.
”That saber and the sword are mine.”
”You haven't been carefully enough. They were ditch-”
”Sect Leader Liu should be more careful. I found a guy who claimed to be your son.”
The look on Liu Qingpu's face changed yet again. Liu Fangsheng was his only son, and he had gone missing along with Deng Yuanlei two nights ago. He had been searching for him frantically yet still hadn't found any clues. ”My son did indeed go missing. Dragon King… Is he okay?”
”As okay as my saber and my sword are.”
Liu Qingpu instantly lost his momentum. After hesitating for a while, he handed the saber and the sword over to Dragon King and said, ”Now that they've returned to their owner. I'm hoping to have a fair kung fu competition with the Dragon King, without any personal grudges.”
”It's best that way,” Gu Shenwei said as he took the saber and the sword back calmly. ”Your son has very good prospects, and you have an excellent heir. Congratulations, Sect Leader Liu.”
Liu Qingpu gave an awkward laugh, knowing that his son had been spared.
The Court Attendants Army's hostility towards the Dragon King had been greatly reduced due to the previous event, and Han Wuxian and the other two reached the camp without meeting any trouble. Nie Zeng and Tie Linglong entered the tent, and Gu Shenwei returned the narrow saber that he had borrowed.
Shangguan Fei and Chu Nanping also entered the tent together, and the latter stared at Tie Linglong with a limpid look in his eyes, seemingly expecting something. Yet Tie Linglong turned her head sideways, her lips clamped tightly together.
”I'm sorry that the kung fu competition has been delayed for such a long time, but fortunately it's not too late. Let's start right now,” said Gu Shenwei.
”Now?” Liu Qingpu was surprised.
”Dragon King, the Court Attendants Army…” Fang Wenshi was also surprised – the issue of Court Attendants Army was a hundred times more important than the Qingcheng Sect.
Raising his hand, Gu Shenwei stopped him from speaking. Then he asked Chu Nanping, ”You can wield two swords again, right?”
Chu Nanping thought for a while and then said, ”I think so.”
Gu Shenwei handed him the Dragon Head Sword, ”If you lose, return it to me; win, and it's yours.”
Chu Nanping was indifferent to the incentive. He received the Dragon Head Sword and lowered his head, seemingly contemplating the methods of dual-wielding swords.
”Isn't the Dragon King the one I'm supposed to fight?” Liu Qingpu asked as he blushed, feeling belittled.
”I'm not good at kung fu competitions.” After giving a response, Gu Shenwei took the Five Peaks Saber and left the tent. From this day, he would never use a sword again.
The sword used to be the ferry, yet now he believed that he was already on 'the opposite side' of the Death Scripture, so he wouldn't need to depend on his tools anymore.
The tent was plenty spacious. All Nie Zeng and the others had to do was move the tables and chairs aside to make some room. Even Tie Linglong stayed in the tent out of curiosity, wondering if Chu Nanping had really made any progress in his swordsmanship after forsaking her.
The look on Liu Qingpu's face was shifting violently. The Dragon King had addressed the matter of the kung fu competition as if Liu Qingpu were just one of his servants, without even discussing the bet. Yet Liu Qingpu didn't reject immediately, and now the Dragon King was gone, along with Liu Qingpu's best chance of refusing.
There was still a trace of childishness in the look of the swordsman who was dual-wielding swords, which made this kung fu competition even more humiliating.
More and more kung fu practitioners poured into the tent. Liu Qingpu unsheathed his sword – only by defeating the teenager before him could he force the Dragon King into fighting with him.
Fang Wenshi shook his head slightly, wondering why even the Dragon King had so much faith in Little Chu. Yet he was in no mood to watch the fight, so he merely nodded at Long Fanyun, who had just come in, to tell him to maintain order, and then left the tent to chase after the Dragon King.
Where was the Dragon King leading the Court Attendants Army by playing all these conjuring tricks? Fang Wenshi had no idea at all – it seemed that the Dragon King's tactics were not quite conventionally following what he had read in strategy and war books.
As a military counselor and a member of the army's think tank, Fang Wenshi finally acknowledged that he had been flustered when dealing with unexpected events, which made him even more dearly miss the days when he had been making all kinds of visionary suggestions and talking about war and military tactics.
In the army camp, the confrontation between soldiers of two sides was still on-going and Shulitu, Mo Lin , and several dozen officers were still under the jurisdiction of the Court Attendants Army.
Gu Shenwei had a plan in mind. He turned his head and glanced at Han Fen who had been walking by his side, wondering if it would be stupid of him to assign such an important task to her.