Chapter 91: Chapter 87 King Ming_2
"I don’t know where he borrowed the silver taels from, making boastful claims that if anyone can withstand ten strokes of his knife technique without falling, he’ll reward them with five thousand taels of silver."
"Who would be so generous as to lend him so much silver?"
"I heard he and Li Cangqing, of the Li Family, have a deep friendship that transcends age."
"In the past, it was a gift of a blade. Now it goes straight to rewarding with silver. Let’s go see."
Surrounding them, bursts of discussion could be heard, and a crowd began to move in a certain direction.
An expression crossed Lu Yan’s face.
"Let’s go see as well."
Lu Yan said.
Shen Yinuo nodded in agreement.
They followed the crowd to an open space where a figure was stationed on a simple stage holding a knife. If not Wang Dao, who else could it be?
"It seems that Wang Dao has yet to reach the Unity of Man and Martial Arts."
Lu Yan pondered.
Indeed, he initially only performed one knife technique, even though it revealed the charm of the Unity of Man and Martial Arts, expecting to reach such a level through this alone was challenging.
Lu Yan felt somewhat guilty. He had promised to spar with Wang Dao when he had spare time, but with all the events happening recently, he nearly forgot.
"Is there anyone who would join the fight? As long as you can withstand ten strokes of my knife technique, I will reward five thousand taels of silver."
Wang Dao shouted loudly.
But no one stepped forward.
Earlier, people had tried.
Under the conditions of not using their Qi-blood, just relying on knife technique, few could withstand five strokes, let alone ten.
Most of the crowd came for the spectacle.
After a moment, no one stepped forward and disappointment showed on Wang Dao’s face.
"Could this guy be trying to find me?"
Lu Yan speculated.
"Let’s go."
Lu Yan and Shen Yinuo turned to leave.
"Do you know that person?"
Shen Yinuo asked.
"We’ve met once. He’s a martial arts-obsessed individual, fascinated with the knife."
Lu Yan simply explained.
Returning home and resting for a bit, Lu Yan went out alone. In a desolate alley, he used his shape-shifting technique to change into a muscular man in his forties, the same appearance as when he had met Wang Dao last time.
Then, he headed towards Wang Dao’s home.
Wang Dao’s door was open, and when Lu Yan walked in, he found that Wang Dao had already returned and was practicing with his sword in the yard. His eyes showed even more confusion than before.
He was so focused on his sword practice that he didn’t notice Lu Yan’s entry.
"Brother Wang."
Lu Yan called out.
Only then did Wang Dao react. After turning around to take a look at Lu Yan, he froze, then beamed with joy, "Brother, good brother, finally you are here. I’ve missed you."
"I apologize, Brother Wang. I’ve had matters to attend to lately and couldn’t get away."
Lu Yan said.
"No matter, come, accompany me for a few moves."
Wang Dao hurriedly returned to his room to grab an iron blade and handed it to Lu Yan.
Lu Yan came with the purpose of offering advice, so he took the blade without hesitation and began sparring with Wang Dao.
After a few strokes, Wang Dao fell into contemplation.
"Brother, after the knife technique reaches a transcendent level, how should one cultivate to..."
Wang Dao asked several questions that had troubled him for many years.
Lu Yan had a good impression of Wang Dao. He was a man of his word. He readily gifted the divine weapon, Red Blood Blade.
The Red Blood Blade had provided Lu Yan with significant assistance in the Liu Family’s Blood Land Vein battle.
Therefore, Lu Yan didn’t hold back. He imparted his years of painstaking cultivation and understanding of knife technique.
Wang Dao was thrilled as he listened, his eyes glowing with excitement, seeming dazed.
Knowing that this was more than enough for Wang Dao to digest for a while, Lu Yan took his leave, promising to return after a while.
In the following days, Lu Yan kept a close watch on the developments in Changfeng City.
Li Quan, Cao Hu and others were continuously in contact with their members scattered across various places. Every few days, they would update Lu Yan with the latest news.
This was the advantage of having connections.
If one were alone, they would be in the dark. Even if they received news, it would mostly be outdated.
In recent days, news about the Ancestor of the Liu Family becoming an Inner Strength Master had spread far and wide, rapidly sweeping across all directions.
Baicao City wasn’t far from Changfeng City, and the news had already diffused throughout Baicao City.
A feudal lord with a grandmaster in residence could already be considered a grandmaster level feudal lord. After all, there was now a lion lying next to the bed of the Li Family.
Baicao City couldn’t help but take notice.
So when they investigated the news, it wasn’t complicated.
Just as Lu Yan anticipated, the Wei Family promptly took action.
The fact that the Ancestor of the Liu Family has become a grandmaster is like a sharp blade aimed at the Wei Family’s back, causing them great discomfort.
The Wei Family was already at war with the Qiu Family of Da’an County. This situation felt like being caught between two enemies, unable to fully focus on either front.
To address external issues, they must first secure their homeland.
Immediately, the Wei Family ceased their war with Qiu Family, pulled back their line of defense to focus on defense, and then dispatched a squad of martial soldiers, led by a grandmaster, to attack the Liu Family.
This battle caught the attention of dozens of feudal lords, both big and small.
Especially those feudal lords closer to Changfeng City, they were particularly restless.
If the Liu Family wasn’t wiped out, the political landscape of Li’an County would undergo seismic changes.
What should the feudal lords at the martial marquis level near Changfeng City do?
Would they be able to continue paying tribute to the Wei Family, maintaining their current independent status?
Certainly not.
The Liu Family wouldn’t allow this. By then, the feudal lords at the martial marquis level near Changfeng City would either be annexed by the Liu Family, or they would join the Liu Family, giving them tributes year after year, and breaking off relations with the Wei Family.
The Liu Family was also well prepared, gathering forces to welcome the enemy.
Half a month after the war between the Liu Family and the Wu Family commenced,
A great battle erupted outside Changfeng City.
The result of the battle took everyone by surprise.
The Ancestor of the Liu Family, despite only recently becoming a grandmaster, had an extraordinarily terrifying power. He stood toe-to-toe with the grandmaster of the Wei Family outside Changfeng City, and in the end, no victor was decided. The grandmaster of Wei Family led his troops to retreat several dozen miles away to rest.
This news rendered many people speechless.
A newly promoted grandmaster was able to match an established grandmaster in battle. The strength of the Ancestor of the Liu Family was beyond expectation.
The martial marquis feudal lords around Changfeng City were even more frantic, considering their options.
Choosing the wrong side could spell their doom.
If they chose the Liu Family, they feared that the Liu Family wouldn’t withstand the Wei Family’s counterattack.
But if they didn’t choose the Liu Family, the Liu Family could wipe them out right now.
They were torn and hesitant, but most of them continued to wait and see.
The Wei Family couldn’t simply retreat.
If another grandmaster was summoned, the two grandmasters combined would surely defeat the Ancestor of the Liu Family.
Soon, however, news spread that the Qiu Family from the north had seized the opportunity to mobilize a large army to attack the Wei Family, leaving the Wei Family unable to deploy another grandmaster to attack the Liu Family.
The Wei Family and the Liu Family were at a standoff momentarily.
The Liu Family took the opportunity to send people to the martial marquis feudal lords nearby, forcing them to make a decision with a strong posture.
These feudal lords, with no other options, had no choice but to separate from the Wei Family, join the Liu Family, and send their best fighters to join the Liu Family’s army in resistance to the Wei Family.
This caused the Liu Family’s strength to surge rapidly.
