radicalducati Page 128
Page 128
Even after the Mongol Yuan Empire entered and ruled the Central Plains, they referred to their hometown as "beyond the Great Wall".
Luke smiled slightly and said, "I received news that Li Xunhuan has entered the pass."
In fact, the location of Yujian Villa is on the border between the Northeast and the Central Plains. It does not even belong to the Ming Dynasty, but to a country that should have perished long ago, the ancient Shu Kingdom.
However, thanks to the support of the Imperial Sword Manor, the ancient Shu Kingdom has never been destroyed. Although it covers an area of only a little over a thousand miles, it is still a country.
However, in this country, the king is merely a figurehead, and the actual affairs are handled by the Imperial Sword Manor, which can be seen as a constitutional monarchy.
Of course, the ancient Shu Kingdom was located in a remote area, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and had extremely low strategic value. For the surrounding countries, it had no value to conquer and no one would bother to conquer it. That is why the Imperial Sword Manor was able to stand here for more than 500 years and hold great power, yet no one dared to covet it.
Of course, the phrase "no one dares to covet" refers to various countries. There are quite a few martial arts forces that covet the status of Yujian Manor. Yujian Manor has fallen into decline several times in history, but each time it declined, an unparalleled genius would emerge and revive Yujian Manor.
Without a doubt, Yin Zhong was the one who caused all of this.
Because of the power and long history of the Imperial Sword Manor, it is inevitable that it would have its own intelligence department.
Long ago, Luke had been curious about one thing: was Li Xunhuan's throwing knife truly accurate every time?
Even if he were to hit every time, would the throwing knife still be effective against his seemingly indestructible body and powerful protective inner energy?
So Luke ordered the intelligence agents of the Imperial Sword Manor to find out Li Xunhuan's whereabouts, wanting to test the effectiveness of Little Li's Flying Dagger.
However, although the order was issued, no results were seen.
Just before they left the capital, Luke received news from his scouts that Li Xunhuan had entered the pass and passed through the territory of the Imperial Sword Manor, heading towards Jiangnan.
Sure enough, Luke also headed towards Jiangnan.
After all, Little Li's Flying Dagger is practically a guaranteed hit, and even Luke, with his current level of skill, can't help but want to figure out how it works.
Curiosity is always the ladder of human progress. Whether it is science or martial arts, progress is essentially driven by curiosity.
Zhao Yun didn't ask any further questions, climbed into the carriage, and continued practicing his skills.
That's right, to make it easier for Zhao Yun to practice his skills, Luke is now the one driving the carriage.
Luke had no objection to this. It was his own fault for not being able to hold back, and since he couldn't, he should bear the consequences.
Although Zhao Yun only practiced a simplified version of the Heaven and Earth True Scripture, the only requirement for cultivation was to have a clear mind. A clear mind is all about one's state of mind and has nothing to do with the environment. Therefore, even in a swaying carriage, he could still practice his skills.
Zhao Yun was essentially someone who admired strength, but while attaching himself to a strong person was good, how could it compare to becoming strong himself?
Therefore, she would never let go of any opportunity to become stronger.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
It was the dead of winter, with snow falling heavily, and even walking on the pipes, the road surface was inevitably covered with snow.
The carriage traversed the snow, leaving deep ruts and hoofprints, and making a crunching sound.
Luke had long since reached a state of invulnerability to water and fire, so naturally he was not afraid of the severe cold.
As for Zhao Yun, although his skills had improved, he had not yet completed his training and had not yet achieved full mastery, so he remained curled up in the carriage and refused to show his face.
The carriage sped along and soon encountered another carriage on the official road.
The carriage was slightly simpler than theirs, its body as black as ink, exuding a calm and dignified aura.
The driver was a burly man, tall and strong, with vigorous blood and energy. Luke could tell at a glance that the man must have practiced martial arts such as the Golden Bell Cover Iron Shirt or the Thirteen Taibao Horizontal Training.
The burly man's eyes were piercing and sharp, like those of a hawk, constantly scanning his surroundings with a sense of vigilance and composure.
He drove the carriage at a leisurely pace, as if everything was under his control.
Inside the carriage, a figure could be vaguely seen. Although the face was not visible, the calm aura of the man driving the carriage complemented the figure perfectly, revealing an unfathomable quality.
His muscles were clearly defined, every inch of them seemingly containing explosive power. Even in the dead of winter, he wore only a thin linen jacket, his bare arms and shoulders covered with a thin layer of white mist—the heat generated by the surging blood and qi in his body as it fought against the cold.
What's even more astonishing is that the snow around him was dispersed by an invisible force, and the falling snowflakes melted into water droplets three inches away from his skin, evaporating into light smoke-like water vapor.
This level of skill clearly surpasses that of ordinary external martial arts masters, reaching the level of "from the outside in".
Such profound external martial arts skills could never have been achieved without a certain level of external martial arts training and a strong physical body and blood.
The two carriages passed each other. Luke glanced sideways, his gaze sweeping over the burly man before quickly moving to the interior of the carriage.
Through the half-drawn curtains, one could vaguely see a middle-aged scholar sitting inside, wearing a gray robe, with a thin face and a hint of weariness between his brows, but his eyes were as sharp as a knife.
Even from a distance, Luke could still feel the oppressive aura emanating from the man—an aura that could only be acquired through long trials and tribulations, through life and death.
Chapter 234: Martial Arts Chronicle: The road is wide open, let each go their own way, why should you care where I go?
The burly man seemed quite wary of the carriage beside him, deliberately slowing down as if he wanted Luke to go first.
However, according to normal experience in the martial arts world, this cannot be said to be wrong; it is always better to be in the back than in the front.
If a carriage is in front, it might at most block the way, but if a carriage is behind, and the other party has malicious intent, then you might be met with an ambush.
He doesn't have eyes in the back of his head!
But Luke seemed to have read his mind. The burly man slowed down his carriage, and Luke slowed down his carriage in return. The burly man sped up his carriage, trying to overtake him, and Luke sped up as well, always maintaining a parallel speed to the burly man.
At this point, even a fool could see that Luke was doing it on purpose.
"Bah!"
"Are you doing this on purpose, kid?"
The burly man roared, his hair and beard bristling, his voice like thunder, shaking the snow off the carriage.
Luke, however, seemed not to hear, his face calm and composed, a faint smile playing on his lips, as if everything was under his control.
"Why do you say that, sir? I just noticed that you were walking in a hurry, as if you had something urgent to attend to, so I thought I would like to travel with you, sir, so that we can look out for each other."
Luke cupped his hands in greeting, his words sincere and his expression composed.
Upon hearing this, the burly man's anger subsided slightly, but he still frowned, his eyes blazing as he stared intently at Luke, as if trying to see right through him.
"Hmph, that's easy to say! If you had no intention of staying by my side, why are you following me so closely, never leaving my side?"
Luke smiled slightly and said, "You misunderstand. I simply admire your imposing stature and extraordinary aura, and thus wish to make friends with you. Besides, this desolate wilderness is teeming with powerful figures, and traveling together would be a good way to have someone to rely on."
Luke was obviously making this up, because he had already recognized who the burly man driving the car was.
Along with news of Li Xunhuan, two portraits, both drawn by professional artists, also arrived.
One of them was naturally Li Xunhuan's, and the other was Li Xunhuan's loyal servant, Tie Chuanjia.
Tie Chuanjia was tall and imposing, with a fierce physique and a full beard. He possessed immense strength and had mastered the Iron Shirt technique, an extremely dangerous skill that made him impervious to swords and spears.
Tie Chuanjia did all this to repay Li Xunhuan (cbdd) and his father for the kindness of being taken in by them after years of fleeing, because they had become enemies due to a case eighteen years ago!
Eighteen years ago, Weng Tianjie secretly became a bandit because of his chivalrous nature. Tie Chuanjia's friend was in charge of investigating the matter. Tie Chuanjia deliberately befriended Boss Weng, waiting to make his move after finding out the truth.
However, out of gratitude for Weng Tianjie's friendship, when faced with the suspicion of the "Eight Righteous Men of the Central Plains" that she had colluded with outsiders to betray Weng Tianjie, she refused to tell the truth and preferred to be hunted down and flee by the "Eight Righteous Men of the Central Plains".
Because he accepted the kindness of Li Xunhuan and his son, Tie Chuanjia willingly became their servant.
When Li Xunhuan gave away all his wealth and went beyond the Great Wall, Tie Chuanjia advised him to leave behind a large amount of money that he could use in the future.
Tie Chuanjia certainly didn't believe Luke's words. He may have a rough appearance, but that didn't mean he was stupid. Tie Chuanjia was very smart; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to find out about Weng Tianjie's affairs.
"Don't block the way, move aside."
Ironclad's words thundered like spring thunder, showing no sign of yielding.
Luke smiled slightly and said, "There are many paths to take, and we can each go our own way. Since you are unwilling to travel together, I will not force you. However, this road is not yours, so why should I care where I go?"
Luke's words made perfect sense, and even Ironclad Armor had nothing to say in response.
Although Tie Chuanjia's attitude was bad just now, he is a genuinely good person. If he wasn't a good person, why would he be misunderstood and wronged by the Eight Righteous Men of the Central Plains and be hunted down for more than ten years without revealing the truth?
Would a bad person be willing to become a slave because of the kindness shown to the Li family father and son?
A good person obviously wouldn't resort to violence over a few words, so Tie Chuanjia could only suppress his anger and remain silent.
"Brother, please stop teasing my brother. He's a very honest man and can't take a joke."
"Cough cough cough cough!"
At this moment, a gentle and refined voice came from the carriage behind Tie Chuanjia, but after speaking, a series of violent coughs followed.
The owner of that voice was none other than Li Xunhuan.
Upon hearing the sound, Tie Chuanjia looked anxiously into the carriage, only feeling relieved after receiving confirmation that everything was alright.
A glint of light flashed in Luke's eyes as he drove the carriage and said with a smile.
"The road ahead is long, and I was just joking because I had nothing else to do. I hope you will forgive me if I offended you."
Inside the carriage, Li Xunhuan drew back the curtain and said with a smile, "It's alright."
Only then did Luke see Li Xunhuan's true face.
Without a doubt, Li Xunhuan was a handsome man. Even though he was middle-aged at this time, he could still be called a handsome uncle.
It's worth noting that Li Xunhuan was once a third-ranked scholar in the imperial examinations.
The Tan Hua was one of the top three in the palace examination, but the problem is that although the Tan Hua ranked third, his third place did not necessarily mean that he ranked third in terms of talent.
There's an unspoken rule about the title of "Tanhua" (探花): only the most handsome among the top three in the imperial examination is called Tanhua.
Even if you have the talent of a top scholar, if you are handsome enough, you might still be awarded the title of third-ranked scholar by the emperor.
After all, the so-called palace examination was ultimately just a matter of judging the emperor and his ministers.
"This gentleman is exceptionally handsome, a rare find in this world. If you would do me the honor, how about we have a drink together?"
When Li Xunhuan meets a young person he admires, he always wants to treat them to a drink, because he feels that this is the thing he is most proud of.
Clearly, he admires Luke.
Luke tilted his head and said with a smile, "Drinking is fine, but we can't exactly drink while driving the carriage, can we?"
It's not that it's impossible, it's just a bit strange.
Li Xunhuan chuckled and said, "Do I need to pick and choose where to drink? It's my treat, please continue."
As soon as he finished speaking, Li Xunhuan picked up a jar of wine from the carriage and threw it to Luke through the window.
Luke reached out and scooped it up in his hand, then placed it aside.
Luke simply tapped the wine jar lightly, and the mud seal on it came off naturally. There was no sign of him using any force, yet he had already demonstrated his profound internal martial arts skills.
Then, a strange sight unfolded before everyone's eyes: the wine in the jar seemed to come alive, transforming into a crystal-clear silver thread that rose from the jar, swirling and coiling, before finally leaping precisely into Luke's slightly open mouth.