Volume 1: The Jianghu is the main thing, who is the guest? Chapter 54: April 9th
April 9th.
The sunset is about to fade away, the dusk is getting thicker, and the setting sun on the horizon is emitting its last light and heat. The red clouds are connected into pieces, and from a distance it looks like they are stained with a ball of bright red blood, like a shocking bloody wound, adding a solemn and murderous look between heaven and earth.
The afterglow slanted in from the hole in the roof, fell into the old ancestral hall, and also fell on a pale and clear face.
His face was pale, but his robe was pitch black, and his scabbard was also pitch black.
Li Muchan slowly opened his eyes, let out a long breath, and glanced sideways at the blood-red setting sun outside the roof.
It’s the ninth day of April.
In fact, not much time had passed. Only three days had passed since the ambush that night, but the world outside had been turned upside down.
Along with "Excalibur Villa", the other three families that are part of the "Four Great Families" of Jiangnan martial arts have all come together; there is also the Huashan Sect, as well as dozens of large and small families, gangs, and green forest forces that have intermarried with the Xie family, and a number of swordsmanship masters who have become famous in the martial arts world in recent years. All of these people have entered "Excalibur Villa" to ask for famous swords and borrow sword manuals, and now they are all here.
In addition to this, there is the "Evil Cult" watching covetously, the "Green Dragon Society" lurking around, and the "Money Gang" that has gone from being open to being secret is adding fuel to the flames.
It's another catastrophe. Who will be the winner?
He had never left here in the past few days, as if nothing had happened. He practiced sword skills as usual, ate as usual, and never got impatient or worried.
Nowadays, people outside say that this "Ghost Prince" is an unforgivable evil person, and even the descendant of the "Ghost Group of Ghosts" who once wreaked havoc on the world and were so arrogant.
The Xie family vowed to find him and pay for their blood debt with blood; people in the white world were also looking for him, wanting to kill him and gain fame; there were also many young heroes and rising stars looking for him all over Nanjing, intending to act as a hero, uphold justice, and eliminate evil and promote good.
Even on the "Weapons List" that reappeared in the martial arts world, he was actually ranked, although only ninth.
If it were someone else, they might have been eager to come out and clarify the matter, or they might have been worried and unable to sleep or eat.
But after so many years of frustration and struggling in the market, Li Muchan has long since developed a calm and composed heart; this heart has been tempered through thousands of trials and tribulations, and has unparalleled endurance, tenacious perseverance, and unshakable determination.
For him, he doesn't care whether it is a good reputation or a bad reputation, he just wants to be famous.
If a person cares about his own reputation in everything and wants to protect it all the time, then this kind of person will either be exhausted to death by his reputation or dragged to death by his reputation.
In the past, "Old Man Tianji" Sun Baifa was unrivaled in the martial arts world with his stick, but his energy and blood declined as he got older, and he cared more about his own reputation, the reputation of "the best in the world"; precisely because he cared, he seldom took action after he became famous, so he made no progress in martial arts, and became depressed. He was hesitant when he should have taken action, and he did not dare to take action against Shangguan Jinhong several times. In the end, he was defeated by the "Dragon and Phoenix Double Rings".
In Li Muchan's opinion, it is better to attack than to defend. Being the best in the world is certainly a matter of enduring unimaginable pressure, but the moment Sun Baifa thought of maintaining his title, he was doomed to trap himself.
Because this person is afraid of losing and even more afraid of failure, and fear will make people retreat.
Although Li Muchan is not Sun Baifa, and he is not the "best in the world", the principle is the same. Fame and wealth can move people's hearts, and fame can also trap people's hearts.
Besides, what's good about having a good reputation? Good people are often bullied. Good people are the most tired and the first to die. Just like the heroes throughout history, how many of them had a good ending?
So, there's nothing strange about it.
Master Wei Ba is a powerful figure in Hebei and has a very high prestige. He is respected by everyone, and he is also a member of the "Qinglong Society"; "Shenjian Villa" has always prided itself on being a famous and righteous family, but now it has also developed the ambition to rule the world.
Li Muchan looked at the horizon and said with a mocking smile: "Everyone is so hypocritical."
In contrast, Shangguan Xiaoxian, who was always scheming against him, never concealed his ambition, murderous intent, and scheming. His evil was pure and decisive.
Whether good or evil, this is the person who accomplishes great things.
How can you dream of ruling the world of martial arts when you even try to hide your true intentions?
Gradually, the last ray of sunset glow finally dimmed and disappeared in Li Muchan's eyes.
His eyes had become dim. He stood up, lifted the hood of his black robe, took out a mask from his arms, and floated away. Like a ghost, he blended into the dark night.
※※※
Once upon a time, the Qinglong Society had twelve hall masters, corresponding to the twelve months. Above them was the most mysterious "Qinglong Boss", and below them were 365 branch temples.
Today, the twelve hall masters have long become a thing of the past, but the 365 branch halls have never disappeared and have always existed.
These branch altars are spread across the entire Central Plains and the Chinese martial arts world like stars in the sky, covering both the black and white paths, the good and evil paths, the green forest path, and even various sects, gangs, forces, and religions, which have long been spread all over the world.
Some of the "Green Dragon Society" disciples have even become famous figures like Master Wei Ba, some can play an important role in a sect, and some are famous in the world and have become giants in the white world.
It is like the roots of a towering tree. Although it cannot be seen by the naked eye, it has actually penetrated everywhere and is omnipresent.
The seven dragon heads, or to be more precise, the six people other than the "big dragon head", have the power to mobilize these unknown branch altars.
But these people have never belonged to them, nor will they be loyal to them. What they are loyal to is always the mask on their faces.
So when Li Muchan was ambushed that day, he was not in a hurry to reveal his identity. It was meaningless to him and would expose himself.
These altars are not randomly visible, not in a fixed location, but in a certain direction. For example, on the ninth day of the first lunar month, you have to go north, and in the middle of the month, you have to go south. You have to go through mountains and rivers, cross bridges and turn alleys. There is no fixed location. You may see it after walking a few steps, or you may have to walk for several hours. This is to prevent accidents.
Moreover, there are secret agents along the way to transmit messages. If there is any mistake, they will immediately scatter and disappear.
Of course, if you have absolute confidence, you can also display it openly like the heir of the Sun family.
A bright moon hangs high over the Qinhuai River.
Tonight, of course, they were full of confidence. On a seven-story exquisite ship, a large flag . The flagpole alone held up the sky, and the snow-white flag fluttered in the wind, like a blazing white flame, vibrating under the moon; and in that flame, a dark green dragon with bared fangs and claws seemed to have become a living creature, overlooking the earth below, looking down on all living things.
The man holding the flag was a man as thin as a monkey, wearing a monkey mask on his face. He had already placed three armchairs on the top floor, which were enough to overlook the lights of thousands of homes on the Qinhuai River.
And below and in front of the big chairs, disciples of the "Qinglong Society" had already arrived, gathering here from all directions, and were extremely respectful towards the three big chairs.
The three big chairs indicate that this operation will be presided over by three dragon leaders.
"Haha, why did you choose here?" Everyone was shocked and saw a black shadow separated from the night like a ghost. The black robe turned in the sky like a dark cloud and appeared in front of them. He sat down leisurely. "I heard that the elder of the demon sect is also on the Qinhuai River. He is a difficult person."
Li Muchan was covered in a black robe, with his face hidden by a dragon head, his hands hidden deep in his wide sleeves, and even his voice was deliberately changed to become low and hoarse.
The flag bearer smiled and said, "Seven Dragon Leaders, that person has no time to deal with us now. I heard that 'Divine Sword Villa' couldn't find the 'Ghost Prince', so they can only hunt down the Demon Cult members all over Jinling. The two sides are already at loggerheads, and have fought several times in the past few days, with both sides winning and losing."
Just as the conversation was about to begin and end, someone had already sat down on the remaining two large chairs.
One of them was as fast as lightning. He stepped on the duckweed and water from the shore, jumped up, flew like a fly, and circled in the sky like a swallow, then glided straight down and sat on the big chair. The other person walked silently and ethereally. His figure changed without reason and it was difficult to tell the real from the fake. Before you could see him clearly, he had already sat down.
The former was full of nobility, wearing brocade and gorgeous clothes, looking very young, with a vigorous and powerful aura, showing that he was very ambitious. The other one was wearing a green robe with a standing collar, the corners of the robe dragged on the ground, the sleeves were wide, and there was almost no skin exposed on his body, he was very well hidden.
Li Muchan had seen the former twice, which had six dragon heads, and the latter had five dragon heads.
Seeing the familiar green robe, Li Muchan's eyelids drooped.
The Six Dragon Heads at the side suddenly whispered, "Have you two made any arrangements?"
Li Muchan said leisurely: "Oh, let's use fire attack. Since they are hiding in the mountain, let's force them out first."
"Fire attack alone won't work," the five dragon heads said coldly, their voices rapid and hoarse, "Excalibur Villa is surrounded by water on all sides and backed by cliffs, so it's hard to spread fire. In my opinion, it's better to use poison attack first, use poisonous smoke to drive away the enemy, and then use fire attack after landing on the island to capture them all in one fell swoop."
Li Muchan raised his eyebrows and said, "Okay, it's settled."
The six dragon heads stood up, their eyes flickering, and they glanced at the disciples of the Azure Dragon Society below them, and waved their hands: "Move!"
