Chapter 164
Chapter 164
At the time, Sword King Li Qianqiu and his wife were unable to have children. Then one day, Li Qianqiu happened to find a young girl. The couple cherished the child and adopted her as their daughter. The girl was a natural prodigy in the martial arts, so the couple unhesitatingly named her their successor and intended for her to marry Tang Yan. Although the girl was five years older than Tang Yan, there was an old saying that a wife three years older brings good fortune, and one five years older is as fierce as a tiger. It was believed she would keep Tang Yan in line, so the age difference didn't matter much to them. The girl stayed with Li Qianqiu and his wife for ten years. They treated her as if she were their own flesh and blood.
But the girl was a venomous snake, oblivious to the kindness they had shown her. Using the trust Li Qianqiu and his wife had placed in her, she successfully stole the secret manual. Then, while Li Qianqiu and Tang Yan were away traveling, she poisoned her adoptive mother, Li Qianqiu's wife. When Li Qianqiu returned from his travels, he found his wife's body and appearance ruined, and her mind afflicted as well. And his adoptive daughter, the one behind it all, was nowhere to be found.
In that moment, Li Qianqiu was consumed by rage, wanting to scour the world, find the girl, and tear her to pieces. But in the end, he could not find his adoptive daughter. Li Qianqiu's wife shrieked madly day after day, blaming her husband for bringing a venomous snake into their home.
Eventually, he learned of Shen Lang, a man who knew the entirety of the Meteor from Beyond the Heavens sword style, and brought him here. Hearing Li Qianqiu's words, the woman suddenly rushed forward and spoke in a hoarse voice.
“Impossible, absolutely impossible. No one in this world can counter the *Meteor from Beyond the Heavens*. If you dare lie to me, I'll kill you, I'll kill you...”
No light entered the mountain cave; a few luminous pearls were embedded in the walls. In their glow, Shen Lang saw the woman's face and body. It was enough to make him nauseous. Have you ever seen a human-sized toad? Every inch of the woman's skin was like a toad's. She looked like a hideous demon. That adoptive daughter was truly vicious, to use such a potent poison on her adoptive mother.
Li Qianqiu said to her.
“My wife, if this young man writes down the entire *Meteor from Beyond the Heavens* from memory, will you come outside with me?”
“I don't believe it, I don't believe it...”
Li Qianqiu turned to Shen Lang and said.
“Young Master Shen, I'm counting on you.”
Shen Lang bowed and replied.
“It would be wrong of me to refuse!”
Then, Shen Lang left the cave, took up a brush, and began transcribing the *Meteor from Beyond the Heavens* manual from his memory, page by page. It was over two hundred pages long. It took Shen Lang two days and two nights to copy the entire manual. When Li Qianqiu returned to Shen Lang and saw the completed manual, his joy was immeasurable. Because of this sword style, he could not have children, and his wife had suffered a terrible calamity. Shen Lang could also see that he, more than anyone, despised and loathed the Meteor from Beyond the Heavens style itself. That must be why he hadn't used it for over a decade.
Li Qianqiu took the newly written manual and hurried back to the mountain cave. Even under the faint glow of the luminous pearls, his wife could clearly examine the manual. She quickly flipped through the book to the very last section. She was checking the part that described the counter-style to *Meteor from Beyond the Heavens*—the techniques that opposed the Yang sword style. The toad-like woman trembled with emotion, sobbing so hard she couldn't speak.
“My manual, my manual has returned. It's back. The sword style passed down by my ancestors will not be lost in my hands.”
She was overcome with a sense of release, deliriously happy. Sword King Li Qianqiu said to her.
“My wife, now, let's go outside. It's not good for your health to stay in this cave.”
“No, I'm not going out. I've become so hideous I'm scared to look at my own face. To others, I must look like a ghost. I'm not going, I'm not going...”
Li Qianqiu tried to soothe her.
“There's no one on our sword island. Just me, Yan'er, and the blind man. Yan'er is a fool, what would he know?”
“It's all her fault. That bitch blinded Uncle Xia, too. I'll find her, kill her, and skin her alive!”
Li Qianqiu comforted her.
“Alright, I will find her and kill her! My wife, please, won't you come outside with me? If you won't leave, then I'll live in this cave with you.”
“No. The cave is filled with yin energy. You've already injured your blood meridians, you can't stay here.”
“Then come outside with me.”
“No. I will never go out. I can't face the light.”
“Then what if we go out at night? My wife, you've been in here for over ten years, and we've lived apart for over ten years. How can you bear to be separated from me?”
“Let's talk about it later, later. I'm not going out. I can't be bothered. Go away, just go away...”
“Alright, I'll go. But when Uncle Xia brings food later, you must eat.”
“I know, stop nagging and go, just go. Don't look at my hideous face!”
***
The Autumn Wind Pavilion was a mysterious assassin organization in the State of Yue. Once they accepted a contract, there was no target they couldn't kill. Behind the Autumn Wind Pavilion was the South Sea Sword Sect, the Xue Clan, and even the Third Prince of Yue. Viscount Zhu Nanjing sought out the master of the Autumn Wind Pavilion.
“How much to kill Shen Lang?”
The master of the Autumn Wind Pavilion thought for a moment, then shook his head.
“We won't take the contract!”
Zhu Nanjing's voice was choked with emotion.
“He's just the live-in son-in-law of a count's estate. The Count of Xuanwu's Estate is on the brink of ruin, and you can't even kill one son-in-law?”
“It's not that he's a forbidden target, but he rarely leaves the count's estate and is always surrounded by warriors, even protected by three masters. The price to kill him is too high, and the chance of failure is too great.”
“No, Shen Lang is not at the Count of Xuanwu's Estate right now. He's hundreds of miles away. He's alone, without the protection of any masters. There's only an old coachman with him.”
“Is that true?”
“Of course. My subordinate saw him clearly. I've been tailing and watching him this whole time. He is my sworn enemy; we cannot live under the same sky. Even as a ghost, I would not let him rest. Surely he isn't someone the Autumn Wind Pavilion dares not kill?”
“We do have a list of people who must not be killed. But a live-in son-in-law like Shen Lang is not on it.”
Viscount Zhu Nanjing took out a map.
“This is the route Shen Lang took south. He'll take the same path on his return north. If you ambush him here, you can kill him in one fell swoop. To be safe, you must send many masters.”
“You need not worry about that. There is no one the Autumn Wind Pavilion has set out to kill and failed.”
“How much will it cost?”
“Ten thousand gold taels.”
Viscount Zhu Nanjing was shocked.
“That expensive? Are you insane?”
“If you don't pay, the contract will not be carried out.”
“I'll pay. I'll pay ten thousand gold taels! But the Autumn Wind Pavilion must deliver Shen Lang's corpse to me. I will skin him, pull out his tendons, break his bones, and burn him to ashes before feeding him to the dogs. Only then can I quench the hatred in my heart.”
“As you wish.”
***
Li Qianqiu was heading north, escorting Shen Lang back to the count's estate. He maintained his cold expression, saying nothing and meditating daily. This handsome man with his terrifying martial prowess still didn't eat or bathe. Yet, he didn't sweat a single drop. But now, if Shen Lang were to meet him again, he would feel no fear. Only a deep sense of admiration.
‘The rumors of the martial world are truly harmful. Everyone said he was a vicious man who killed his wife, but it turns out he's a deeply devoted man, possessed by his love for her. That's right! This man does not bring shame upon us live-in sons-in-law.’
“Senior Sword King, did you ever find the adoptive daughter you took in back then?”
Sword King Li Qianqiu thought for a moment, then nodded. Shen Lang was puzzled. Why hadn't a man with martial arts as profound as Li Qianqiu's killed her for revenge?
“She has the antidote. My wife must take it once a year. Otherwise, she will die.”
Shen Lang remained silent. He had wanted to help with the detoxification, but it was a poison from this world, and Shen Lang couldn't create an antidote for it yet.
“Who is she?”
“Yan Nanfei's daughter, Xue Xue!”
Everything became clear. One mountain cannot house two tigers. There were two supreme masters in the South Sea. One was the sect master of the South Sea Sword Sect, and the other was the Sword King of the South Sea. Yan Nanfei had sought out Li Qianqiu for a duel but was defeated. Subsequently, he devised a scheme to disguise his daughter, who had never appeared in public, as an orphan, having her infiltrate the Sword King's household as their adoptive daughter.
After obtaining the manual, Yan Nanfei's daughter immediately poisoned the Sword King's wife and fled. Yan Nanfei then deciphered the counter to the Meteor from Beyond the Heavens style. For that reason, Li Qianqiu abandoned the Meteor from Beyond the Heavens style and began practicing another sword art, Starfall. The Xue Clan had acted as viciously as a viper.
Li Qianqiu continued.
“That woman is soon to become the Third Prince's second wife.”
Shen Lang was even more astounded. Was the Xue Clan that powerful? The Count of Xuanwu's hundred-year ally had suddenly departed down the path of power and influence. It suddenly made sense why they had completely disregarded the Count of Xuanwu's Estate and sought to sever all ties.
“Young Master Shen, I am in your debt. If you ever need help in the future, send a letter to my Sword Island in the South Sea. No matter how difficult the task, I will help you.”
This was a great promise, and its value was immense.
“Young Master Shen, someone is following us!”
***
Dozens of miles ahead, a warrior from the Zhu Clan came galloping madly and said.
“My lord, I've spotted Shen Lang. He's a few dozen miles behind us. The man we sent is still watching him!”
Viscount Zhu Nanjing, overjoyed, asked.
“Are there any masters with him?”
“No other masters, just the same old man driving the carriage, who looks like he could drop dead at any moment.”
An assassin from the Autumn Wind Pavilion standing nearby spoke.
“I saw him clearly. The coachman's face does not belong to any master I know.”
Viscount Zhu Nanjing was ecstatic.
“Forsaking the easy path, you come seeking death. Shen Lang, this time I will tear you to shreds and feed you to the dogs. I'll make you regret crossing me even in hell.”
Zhu Nanjing looked at the master of the Autumn Wind Pavilion and asked.
“Are you all ready?”
“The Autumn Wind Pavilion has never failed to kill its target. In two hours, I will deliver the corpse to you.”
The master of the Autumn Wind Pavilion knew that the Jin Clan was behind Shen Lang, and that the Jin Clan was a hundred-year ally of his own masters, the Xue Clan. But the current Count of Xuanwu's Estate was nothing. Who would know if a dog died out here in the wilderness? The moment the assassin master waved his hand, dozens of assassins charged fiercely in Shen Lang's direction without hesitation.
As the Autumn Wind Pavilion's assassins rushed toward Shen Lang, Viscount Zhu Nanjing also mounted his horse, intending to ride along. At this, the master of the Autumn Wind Pavilion frowned and said.
“Won't your presence be an inconvenience?”
Under normal circumstances, when the Autumn Wind Pavilion carried out an assassination, the client was not to be present at the scene. But in a situation like this, how could Viscount Zhu Nanjing possibly wait idly by? He and Shen Lang were mortal enemies, one of whom had to die. Now that Shen Lang was finally alone, Zhu Nanjing naturally wanted to witness his death with his own eyes. If possible, he wanted to be the one to cut off Shen Lang's head. What in the world could be more satisfying than killing one's own enemy with one's own hands?
“I'll pay more. I'll add another thousand gold taels.”