The Blade-Wielding Legend
Chapter 268 - 182 Hua Mountain Roadblocker_2

Chapter 268: Chapter 182 Hua Mountain Roadblocker_2

"Esteemed scholar, I am Sha Lifei."

Li Yan noticed right away that Sha Lifei wanted to make connections again, so he no longer objected and nodded, saying, "Very well, the road on the mountain is slippery, we can look out for each other."

With that, he continued to walk briskly.

Meanwhile, Sha Lifei quickly started a conversation with Yan Jiuling.

"Sir, you’re so young and already a scholar, I admire you, you are sure to be a top achiever in the future."

"You flatter me, great hero, I merely had good luck."

"Luck alone doesn’t make one a scholar. Sir Yan, where is your family from?"

"Ezhou."

"Oh, Ezhou is a nice place..."

Sha Lifei was eloquent and full of compliments, and he soon engaged Yan Jiuling in a lively discussion.

His goal was simple, since the founding of the Great Xuan Dynasty, those who could pass the scholar exams were certainly no ordinary figures, at the very least, they were influential elites locally.

Along the way, he could gather some intelligence, maybe even get a lead on a job or make a business connection.

After all, they caused too much commotion in Chang’an, it would be difficult to stay in the Guanzhong region in the future.

After the trip to Hua Mountain, they would leave.

Although Lv San was already familiar with the trio, he felt uncomfortable with a stranger in the group, so he whispered, "I’ll go ahead to scout the road."

Seeing Li Yan nod, he quickly sped up and left.

"Hey!"

Seeing this, Sha Lifei got a little anxious, "Why did Lv San run off again? Hua Mountain is so big, what if we get separated?"

"Hahaha..." Yan Jiuling laughed beside him, saying, "Don’t worry, Hero Sha is from Guanzhong, haven’t you heard, there’s only one road on Hua Mountain since ancient times?"

"What’s the story behind this?"

"It’s not much of a story, although people have worshiped Hua Mountain through generations, the steep terrain kept most activities at the mountain’s base. It wasn’t until more hermit cultivators appeared in the Tang Dynasty that they started exploring risky paths, thus only one path leads up the mountain..."

"That’s... not quite right."

"How so?"

"Earlier, the Daoist mentioned that Emperor Xuan Yuan once met there with immortals, did they fly up?"

"That... might be it, but others have been up there before."

"Who?"

"During King Zhao’s time, he ordered craftsmen to use hooked ladders to climb and worship, unfortunately, it was more about rivalry than building a path."

"Rivalry with whom?"

"King Wu Ling of Zhao ordered craftsmen to hoist hooked ladders up Bowu Mountain, carving a giant footprint and inscribing nearby, ’Lord Zhao’s father once visited here.’"

"When King Zhao heard, he couldn’t stand it; it was too boastful, so he also had craftsmen climb the mountain, using pine core material made into a huge chessboard, inscribing, ’King Zhao once played chess with the Heavenly God here...’"

"Hahaha, these old men are quite amusing."

"To be honest, I once made a great vow, to set foot on the Three Mountains and Five Sacred Mountains, inscribing ’Yan Jiuling from Ezhou was here’ on the peaks..."

Yan Jiuling was quite scholarly and eloquent, referencing classics and speaking in depth, even Wang Daoxuan listened intently, making the uphill journey less tedious.

But as they walked on, he also grew silent.

The reason was simple: it was cold in the mountains, the snow had not melted, the stone paths were often covered with ice, and after slipping several times, Yan Jiuling sat rubbing his backside.

Reaching this location, they were the last travelers on the mountain.

The towering mountain ranges on both sides were silent and deserted, occasionally the cries of monkeys echoed, sounding like mourning spirits in the mountains.

Just then, they suddenly heard quarreling ahead.

"It’s Lv San!"

Li Yan hissed softly, immediately speeding up.

He had been accommodating the group earlier, but now he used his full power, his hidden energy erupted, dashing and leaping, and in the blink of an eye, he disappeared from sight.

Seeing this, the others hurriedly increased their pace.

Li Yan quickly reached the scene, seeing by the side of the mountain path a pond, where a cold waterfall cascaded down, in the pool, huge rocks were scattered, creating an awe-inspiring scene.

Lv San stood by the pool, holding a Bone Flower, his face vigilant.

Around him were four Daoists, all wearing the Taixuan Orthodox Sect’s typical black Daoist robes, their long swords drawn, surrounding Lv San closely.

"They have accomplices!"

Before Li Yan figured out the situation, the leading Daoist glared with wide eyes and angrily shouted, "Carrying a Magic Artifact, clearly side door magicians, you’ve indeed come to Hua Mountain to cause trouble!"

"Seize him!"

At the command, two Daoists immediately attacked with swords.

"What’s the hurry? Let’s clear things up first!"

Seeing Lv San about to swing his Bone Flower to smash someone, Li Yan hurriedly shook his head, signaling him not to act rashly, while stepping back and inquiring to the Daoists.

Unexpectedly, the leading Daoist rudely shouted, "No nonsense, surrender first!"

Clang! Clang!

Two sword lights came swiftly.

Seeing this, Li Yan felt a rising anger.

The Taixuan Orthodox Sect Daoists he had encountered, though varied in character, mostly acted properly, but this kind of domineering behavior was a first.

He decided to drop the politeness.

The attacking pair of Daoists were young, though only at the Ming Jin Peak, they had not reached the Hidden Energy stage, but their swordsmanship was truly remarkable.

The two demonstrated a nimble movement technique, their swords flitting with agility, like birds in the mountain sky, not blocking nor meeting, the sword flowers quivering, aiming directly at vital points.

The storied name of Hua Mountain’s swordsmanship, Li Yan had heard Luo Mingzi speak of it.

They belonged to the Taixuan Orthodox Sect’s Chunyang Institute lineage, practicing Cultivation Techniques from Lu Dongbin and Chen Tuan’s school, which emphasized martial arts as primary, spells as secondary, with many people in the Law Enforcement Hall.

They mainly practiced the Pure Yang Fist and the Pure Yang Sword.

Simple in name, but extremely profound Taoist martial arts.

A poet from ancient times described their swordsmanship: "Turning over the sky, startling birds in flight, rolling on the ground, leaving no dust, a release and the whole body is a hand, only sword light is seen, not the person."

Truly, the reputation was no falsehood.

These two looked like mere Daoist apprentices, but their swordsmanship was quite exceptional, and their collaboration flawless.

Of course, their power was far from enough.

Li Yan simply took a step back, and as their sword momentum weakened, he suddenly erupted with hidden energy, stepping forward, instantly closing in on one side of the two.

In the others’ eyes, he seemed to shrink the ground into an inch, traversing several meters in a single stride, stepping into close range with the two Daoists.

This was a trick Li Yan learned secretly.

During the Divine Fist Association’s year-end gathering in Chang’an, when Zhang Shitong was being teased by a senior from Ezhou, someone stepped in to mediate, their movement appearing mundane but like shrinking the ground into an inch trick.

It’s a clever technique, where during movement, the ankle drags backwards with hidden energy exerted, while the body remains unchanged.

When used properly, it can create an optical illusion.

Like the legendary shrinking ground into an inch.

Red Fist emphasizes "transforming into wonder," coordinating side-switching body movements, left not left, right not right, retreating advances, advancing retreats, changing with extraordinary speed.

Such a trick was well-suited to Red Fist, hence Li Yan, upon seeing it, practiced secretly, incorporating it into his movement technique, adding layers of complexity.

The two Daoists were taken aback, unable to react.

Li Yan sidestepped, threading between them, grabbing them by the wrists, with a wrenching spin, they were sent spinning to the ground.

"How dare you!"

The leading Daoist, with sharp features, glared angrily, attacking with a sword immediately.

His swordsmanship was obviously superior by much.

Having no choice, Li Yan drew his long blade to counter.

His blade technique relied on speed, combined with military techniques passed down by his grandfather, hidden energy bursting forth, faster than the Daoist’s sword strikes.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A rapid series of blade and sword clashes ensued, dazzling everyone watching.

However, Li Yan was inwardly alarmed.

His attacks all employed hidden energy, continuous and forceful, aiming to deflect the opponent’s sword.

Yet every time, it felt like cutting into cotton.

This wasn’t just due to swordsmanship, but also advanced force-dissipating techniques.

No wonder this Daoist was so domineering, turns out, like him, he stood at the peak of the Dark Realm, and had touched on the threshold of Force Transformation.

The Daoist was somewhat surprised, but indifferent, giving a cold laugh, his right hand wielded the sword, while his left hand performed a mantra change.

It was Thunder Technique!

Li Yan sensed something amiss, his left hand also performing a mantra.

Boom!

Taking advantage of the gap created by their clashing blade and sword, they both struck with their left palms simultaneously, a muffled sound echoing.

Li Yan felt a surge of mighty Gang Qi撞袭, his aura destabilized instantly, he stepped back repeatedly, squinting slightly as he spoke,

"Palm Thunder?"

The Daoist was likewise dizzy and staggering, his hair standing on end, his beard crackling with sparks, stepping back, he gazed at Li Yan in disbelief.

"Yin Thunder Palm?"