Master of Kaidan
Chapter 272: Yan State Sightings (Urgent)

Chapter 272: Chapter 272: Yan State Sightings (Urgent)

"Sparring..." said the waiter as he heard the question, his expression becoming slightly more serious,

"Since you asked, you must also know that private fights are prohibited in Yan State, right?"

Not only did the Escort Leader nod, but so did the merchant father and son, because Yan State itself frontlines the resistance against the Demon Sect’s evildoers, naturally prohibiting internal private duels. However...

"I remember there was a Sword Testing Platform last year when I came," the Escort Leader furrowed his brows, "When we passed through Yumen before, the Sword Testing Platform there was still there..."

"Yes, that is still available, right in Jining City, and there are quite a few of them. Mystical Lord and the Elders from various major sects also occasionally release some resources for the younger generation to compete for," replied the waiter. The Escort Leader then frowned and asked,

"Are you saying they are gone everywhere else?"

"Yes," the waiter nodded, "Mainly because since the ’Mystical Lord Secret Scripture’ has been circulated, not all martial artists in Yan State are Grandmasters anymore. Many newcomers cannot control themselves, and even on the platforms, accidents can easily occur. Jining has several elders from the Hundred Herbs Hall and Medical Officers from the Taiyi Bureau who come to learn the ’Ganoderama Life Extension Method,’ so even if accidents occur, there are timely rescues."

Hearing this, the Escort Leader did not ask further. The old merchant, being sharp-witted, immediately said,

"Since our destination is Jining City anyway, if the Escort Leader feels an itch to fight, he might as well give it a try."

"That’s exactly what I had in mind," the Escort Leader nodded. They then inquired about some changes in Yan State, and once everyone beneath had eaten their fill, they set off on their journey again.

This year, Yan State seemed much quieter than in previous years; at least they didn’t encounter any surprise Demon Sect attackers on the road. In past years at least a third of the servants would have been lost; this year, not one was missing, a clear indication of the changes in Yan State.

After three days of travel, Jining City finally came into view, with its towering city walls and soldiers prepared for combat, but today’s Jining was also not quite the same as before.

The city gates, which should have been desolate and mostly closed, were now wide open without the need for strict inspections. Every so often, one could see martial artists in yellow robes entering and exiting. Although it wasn’t as bustling as the capitals of the inner Nine States, it appeared somewhat revitalized.

The old merchant stepped down from the middle section of the caravan and, escorted by two Darts Masters, approached the front to hand over the travel lead and merchant credentials as usual to negotiate with the officers from the Demon Extermination Department guarding the gate when he heard them say in an excited tone,

"Silk is currently in great demand. You’ve come at just the right time! Do you have familiar shops? Do you need the government to help contact buyers to bid?"

"No, no need!" Surprised by the words of the Demon Extermination Department guardsman, the old merchant was momentarily disoriented,

"So, we can just go in? No inspection needed?"

Hearing the old merchant’s question, the Demon Extermination Department officer smiled and said,

"Nowadays, no detailed inspections by Medical Officers are needed! Martial Artists who have cultivated the ’Demon Capturing Evil Heart Skill’ have a more reliable sense of demonic Qi compared to external checking by Medical Officers. Since they haven’t detected any demonic Qi on you, there’s not much more a Medical Officer can do. Of course, once inside the city, it’s still the same old rules, understand?"

"Of course, of course!" the old merchant nodded and immediately signalled the caravan to enter the city, and news of the large amount of silk arriving spread through the city almost instantly. Before the caravan had even finished unloading, they were already surrounded by people from Jianghu and distributors waving silver notes.

Seeing that the Demon Extermination Department officers were maintaining order, not needing the Darts Masters for the moment, the Escort Leader greeted the boss and, following his memory and directions from passersby, made his way to a Sword Testing Platform.

At that moment, a young man around twenty-eight or twenty-nine stood on the platform, dressed in a pale yellow silk cape with a hood, his face handsome, and his skin as white as jade. Placed in Jianghu, even if his Kung Fu were mediocre, he would still earn the moniker "Jade-faced Young Master." However, these days, the Escort Leader had seen many of such appearances; the ’Mystical Lord Secret Scripture’ seemed to improve the practitioner’s appearance much like the ’Guanghan Palace’s Virgin Heart Method.’

Being an old hand in Jianghu, the Escort Leader didn’t jump into the ring immediately but rather listened intently, catching an interesting piece of news—

"It seems the owner of the ’Heavenly Demon Hand’ has already been decided!"

"Heavenly Demon Hand?" The Escort Leader stepped forward curiously,

"Friend, I’ve just arrived in Yan State. What is this ’Heavenly Demon Hand’? Is there a prize for this platform too?"

Hearing his question, that passerby also came to life, as it’s human nature to love playing teacher. Seeing someone from out of town, he naturally slid into the pride of a local:

"The Sword Testing Platform of Yan State has always had prizes as an old tradition; anyone who becomes the champion and wins ten consecutive matches can take the prize. But this time, it’s a bit different."

"Oh?" The Escort Leader timely put on a curious expression, and the local chuckled,

"You know about Mystical Lord, right? Legend has it he was a descendant from the Mechanical Palace centuries ago. He initially made his mark with a suit of Iron Armor he forged himself, venturing in and out of Qing Province seven times, leaving no demon spawn alive, thus establishing a significant reputation and founding a sect in Jining City. This ’Heavenly Demon Hand’ is a pair of gauntlets he crafted. Don’t think of it as an ordinary weapon; every weapon forged by Mystical Lord possesses Spiritual qualities, and calling it a Divine Weapon wouldn’t be an exaggeration!"

"Are there any requirements to enter this platform?" The Escort Leader immediately showed interest, as the pursuit of Divine Weapons was ingrained in every martial artist’s bones. Some would even abandon the weapons they had initially trained with just for a superior weapon, not to mention his proficiency was fundamentally in hand-to-hand combat.

Hearing this, the local just shook his head,

"The Sword Testing Platform used to have no specific rules, but because there are many novices this year, they’ve specially divided the platform into Xuan and Huang categories.

"The Huang platform bars Grandmasters; it’s for novices to spar and test their skills, and the prizes are generally not very valuable—mostly cultivation resources.

"This one here is the Xuan platform, theoretically anyone can challenge, but if you’re not at least at the Grandmaster level, it’s probably just humiliation.

"Of course, if a young generation wants to seek guidance from a Grandmaster, that’s not forbidden, but such challenges don’t count as defending the platform.

"After all, neither the referees nor the audience are blind. Whether one has exerted full effort or played tricks is visible to all. Should anyone try to cheat for the prize, they might as well forget living down in Jining City."

The Escort Leader, of course, caught the caution in the local’s words, but he didn’t mind at all. His gaze was fixed on the platform above, and as the referee inquired, "Does anyone else challenge?" he immediately sprang onto the platform energetically, smiling as he announced,

"I’m here!"