The Blade-Wielding Legend
Chapter 326 - 209 Exotic Beasts

Chapter 326: Chapter 209 Exotic Beasts

Hu Guang was a land with many barbarian descendants.

But what were called barbarians were also the Ancient Times’ clans of the Divine State.

For example, in ancient Jing Chu, there were Miao barbarians, rumored to be descendants of Chi You and Jiuli. Later, Yu pacified the three Miao and labeled them as the Four Sins.

In the "Classic of Mountains and Seas," it is mentioned: In the Southwest, there is the Kingdom of Ba. Taihao gave birth to the Xian Bird, who gave birth to Chengli, who produced Houzhao, who was the first Ba person.

The "Banshu Man" among the ancient Ba people participated in King Wu’s expedition against Zhou, and joined the battle during the Han Revival that destroyed Qin.

Another important group, the "Lin Jun Man," was exterminated by Qin, then Ba County was established with the Ba Clan as barbarian chiefs, who continued marrying Qin women for generations.

Both the "Banshu Man" and the "Lin Jun Man" became important components of the Tu Clan today...

Ba and Chu have always been inseparable.

Li Yan was from a previous life, so he naturally did not care about these things.

He was just puzzled, wondering how these two groups got mixed together.

It’s important to know that the Tusi system was still in place. Various local minorities all had Tusi and local officials leading autonomous territories.

This was the so-called "Han do not enter the caves, barbarians do not exit the borders."

Of course, with the development of the times, it was no longer so strict.

He was in Shangjin City, buying things at a grocery store run by an elderly Tu man, and in Yunyang City, many Tu people lived outside of caves.

But these two groups coming together was definitely not simple.

Li Yan gave a signal with his eyes, and everyone hid more cautiously.

The barbarian with disheveled hair and tattoos covering his face was clearly the leader. Just as he walked into the forest, he yelled harshly,

"Bring him up!"

Immediately, someone was pushed out from the crowd.

This person was dressed peculiarly, wearing a black hunting suit and covered with a red Daoist robe embroidered with Eight Trigrams outside.

He was a Meishan Sect Magician!

Upon seeing him, everyone suddenly understood.

This Meishan Sect magician had a face full of a shaggy beard, looked strong, and should have been a formidable man, but was in complete disarray at the moment.

Not only were his clothes messy, but he was also covered in bloodstains, stumbling to the ground after being pushed out.

"Have you thought it through?"

The barbarian magician asked coldly.

The man from Meishan Sect didn’t answer, spitting out a mouthful of bloody spit fiercely.

"Hmph!"

The barbarian magician snorted coldly, "You Meishan lineage also count as Jiuli descendants. Why are you so stubborn? Could it be that during the Song Dynasty ’opening of Mei Mountain,’ your kneecaps were already broken?"

"Pah!"

The Meishan Sect magician shouted angrily, "Evil spirits, stop pretending to be kind here. Kill or flay as you please!"

Just then, a Han man holding a sharp blade sighed and shook his head, saying, "Mister Tian, you’re so confused."

"The current court is tyrannical, corrupt officials run rampant, and the people have no livelihood. We are Han people as well, yet we are forced to hide in the mountains."

"Even still, the court won’t let us go."

"We now have no way out. If you help us, and with the Heavenly Saint Lord’s resurrection, deities descend to the Human World, we can certainly overthrow the court’s tyranny..."

"Pah!"

The Meishan Sect magician’s mouth was full of blood. He cursed angrily, "Do you think I don’t know the nature of your Heavenly Saint Sect?"

"Those mountain people, hiding in the mountains, can’t guarantee their lives, subjected to your exploitation, more so than the court. Nowadays, the Heavenly Saint Sect has become nothing but a place to harbor vice!"

"I know what you’re afraid of."

"The court establishes Yunyang Prefecture, treating the mountain people with patience. Anyone can see, you spread rumors in the mountains, defame more, and even lead the rebellion, all because you fear losing your foundation!"

"And you, don’t think I don’t know you’re the Tusi’s lackeys. The conversion from tusi to direct imperial rule, unifying the Divine State, is inevitable. You just fear losing your power!"

"Once the chaos begins, how many commoners will be displaced?"

"In the divide of Han and barbarian, righteousness and evil cannot be mixed!"

Good man!

Seeing this, Li Yan secretly admired him in his heart.

Hearing these words, how could he not understand the cause and effect?

It was indeed related to the current chaos in Yunyang.

Hu Guang, not just at the heart of the Divine State, but also a major grain-producing province, was a region of extremely complex dynamics.

The conversion from tusi to direct rule and gathering mountain people were all court policies.

Only with stability here could the Divine State be stabilized.

But these two policies undoubtedly affected many people’s interests, causing various upheavals.

The Heavenly Saint Sect and those Tusi had obviously colluded.

By their words, they even wanted to resurrect the Heavenly Saint Lord?

Did they plan to return him to life?

But it seemed more complicated than that...

At that moment, Lin Yu behind him tugged at his clothes.

Turning his head, Li Yan saw the plump man already brimming with tears, eyes full of determination. He cupped his hands and whispered beseechingly, "Rescue them!"

Looking at the others, they all nodded solemnly.

Whether it was Wang Daoxuan, Sha Lifei, or Lv San, although they were from the pugilistic world and reluctant to get entangled with the court, all were moved by the Meishan Sect man’s righteous spirit.

Li Yan didn’t waste words, nodded slightly, and whispered,

"Wait for the opportunity!"

On the opposite side, those men were obviously infuriated by the Meishan Sect man’s words and kicked him to the ground.

One barbarian picked up a curved blade, saying viciously, "This man doesn’t know what’s good for him. Let’s just kill him!"

The leading barbarian magician hesitated for a moment but nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, Li Yan knew he could not wait any longer.

Although using traps was the easiest way to kill, to save someone, he had no choice but to reveal himself early.

"I’ll lure the enemy, you guys flank from the side!"

After giving instructions, Li Yan leaped out.

"Who is it?!"

Hearing the rustle, those people immediately became alert.

Out of the shadowy woods emerged a black-clad youth. In the moonlight, he strode boldly with long blades in hand and a fair complexion.

Li Yan used the Illusion Body Technique, appearing as if he shrunk distances with his steps, drawing his long blade with a clang while coldly saying, "All of you smarten up, let the man go, spare me from being splattered with blood!"

"Where did this brat come from!"

One of the Heavenly Saint Sect’s men shouted and leaped at Li Yan.

The others just watched coldly, evidently confident in their fellow’s abilities.

This man indeed had formidable skills, his feet swift like the wind, like lightning, his right shoulder jolted before getting close and a spear swept out with a fierce roar.

"Yang Family’s Pear Blossom Spear?"

Li Yan’s expression remained unchanged, his steps unyielding.

This Yang Family’s Pear Blossom Spear had nothing to do with the Yang Family Generals. It was created by Yang Miaozhen, the wife of Red Coat Army leader Li Quan during the late Southern Song.

The spear’s reputation was vast, aggressive in advancing, swift in retreat, its momentum dangerous, its rhythm short, steady as a mountain, spread widely across the Qi Lu land.

Wielding the spear at its base, the man wielded it with long reaches, moving like a thunderclap. This strike caught Li Yan off guard, being the spear’s signature move.

Once obstructed, it was as if a torrential storm of pear blossoms would shower.

Clearly, he saw that Li Yan wielded a long blade, intending to exploit his spear’s length to overwhelm Li Yan’s shorter weapon, wanting to end the fight in a few moves.

The man did have some skill, having stepped into the Hidden Energy realm.

But that was far from sufficient against Li Yan!

Facing the terrifying spear thrust, Li Yan’s body flashed, surging Hidden Energy from beneath, while sidestepping and shifting his position.

Whiz!

The spear’s sharp edge cut through the air three inches in front of his chest.

Li Yan already moved closer in a swift step.

Not good!

The man’s scalp tingled in fear, trying to sidestep and withdraw his spear.

However, it was too late.

Li Yan swept his blade horizontally, not even looking back, and continued walking forward.

Behind him, the man’s neck was nearly severed, his head hanging to the side as blood spurted, and he collapsed to the ground.

"The target is tricky, get him together!"

Seeing this, those people shouted fiercely.

Immediately, five or six people leaped out, brandishing blades or wielding swords, surrounding Li Yan from all directions.

To be dispatched on a secret mission there, they were undoubtedly selected elite, mostly having stepped into Hidden Energy.

Naturally, to outnumber one, forming an encirclement was the strategy.

Buzzing!

However, before they could make a move, the fluttering sound surrounded them as a swarm of Poison Bees buzzed in.

"Ah—!"

Several people screamed in agony as they were stung.

These Poison Bees, bred from a demon gourd, were not spiritual insects, lacking Dao power but carrying some demonic energy. The potency of their venom was substantial.

Being stung would be unbearable even for the robust.

What encirclement? All plans turned into a joke.

Li Yan naturally seized the opportunity, feet swift as wind, blade light flickering, cutting down left, sweeping right, taking down three men at once.

"They still have people!"

"We’ll block them first, quickly summon the corpse!"

In panic, some shouted.

A barbarian magician untied a bell and drum from his waist, shaking his head, chanting spells, and fiercely pounding it.

The drumbeat held a peculiar rhythm and an ancient allure.

The Poison Bees fluttered up and down, disrupted by the sound.

Simultaneously, two men guarded the leading barbarian magician who hurried and stumbled toward the burial site of the Zombie.

Upon arrival, the barbarian magician cast handfuls of Yellow Talismans, shook the Soul Suppressing Bell, stepped the Astral Step, and chanted spells incessantly.

Was it the Xiangxi lineage?

Li Yan frowned slightly, regretting in his heart.

Perhaps he had met too many masters in Hua Mountain, leading to over-caution and using gunpowder traps.

Unexpectedly, these people were so incompetent. Had he known, he would have directly confronted them.

Or it was his rapid skill improvement that those in usual pugilistic world disputes couldn’t compare to masters...

Indeed, the Xiangxi magician shouted fiercely, but his mind was in disarray. Shaking the bell produced no effect and, in fluster, he exclaimed, "How could this be?"

He hurried forward, fumbling to brush away the dead foliage.

Seeing the Zombie’s neck severed, his eyes filled with grief as he lifted its head for inspection.

This ancient Zombie was a treasure passed down his lineage.

But as soon as he picked up the head, he sensed something wrong.

Boom!

Amid the blaze, the forest exploded with sound.

Dirt flew, stones scattered, and the magician, along with the two guards, were blown away, faces embedded with iron fragments, motionless.

"Well done!"

Sha Lifei felt thrilled seeing it.

Adding coal spirit had indeed enhanced the gunpowder’s potency, even though it couldn’t match the court’s new gunpowder, it was more than sufficient against pugilistic world fighters.

"They must be court officers!"

With the use of gunpowder, those people were more frightened.

Ignoring their companions, they turned to flee.

Li Yan was not content to let them go, swiftly drawing a Flying Blade from his waist and hurling it into the back of one’s head.

At this moment, only three opponents were left.

One, panicking, held a blade to the Meishan Sect magician’s throat, barking, "Don’t come closer, or I’ll kill him!"

The other two were already running into the forest.

Li Yan was about to chase when a sudden realization made him halt, eyes flickering with suspicion, looking ahead.

He smelled a scent, rising from the ground.

Ferocious, bloody, overwhelmingly powerful.

Boom!

In front of the two men’s path, the ground burst upward and a scaly-headed creature emerged, jaws opening wide with fangs.

Crunch!

One man was bitten in half, while the other hadn’t time to react before a giant scaly tail whipped from the earth, striking him directly in the chest.

With a crisp bone-crack, the man flew seven or eight meters away, crashed into a tree, and fell heavily, lifeless.