Qin Shi Ambitious

Page 195

If Qin general Li Xin had led an army of 400,000 to be outmaneuvered this time, 200,000 would have been far too conservative.

"The Qin army has not suffered a single defeat since it destroyed Han five years ago. This plan by Lord Changping is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Every person in the six states will be inspired by this victory. If no one leads them to rise up in resistance, wouldn't it be a waste of a golden opportunity!"

*Thud!* The composed Xiang Yan slammed her hand on the table...

Lord Changping, far from Xianyang and already in Chenying, received news of Li Xin's army's departure and the setbacks in the Shouchun plan. With a helpless sigh, he wrote a reply to Xiang Yan, the gist of which was clear:

Now, the war in Chu is imminent and cannot be delayed. Li Xin's strength should not be underestimated, even though he only has 200,000 troops, which is relatively small compared to the Chu army.

However, if underestimating this general led to the defeat of the Chu state despite his own defection, then discussing the northern uprisings would become a joke.

There's no need to worry too much about things in the north. As long as the Chu army can decisively defeat the 200,000 Qin troops and repel any subsequent retaliatory attacks from the Qin army, the people of the Three Jin and Yan states, whose hearts are not yet with the people, will naturally develop different ideas.

The Qin state's dominance depended on its military capabilities; victory on the battlefield was the fundamental factor.

Before the war has even begun, Xiang Yan and Yan Dan are only thinking about how to promote the restoration of the northern states after they win. This is simply the arrogance of the weak!

If we don't change our mindset and be realistic, this battle will only end in defeat.

He ordered his assassins to deliver the letter to Shouchun. As Xiong Qi paced back and forth, a deep sense of disappointment suddenly welled up within him.

Xiang Yan and Yan Dan were considered outstanding talents among the six states, but they became impatient simply because the peasants did not cooperate. Compared with the many talents in the Qin court, they were far inferior.

Especially Yan Dan, who used to have the air of a powerful ruler, has become increasingly timid.

Was it because he betrayed the Yan army and the people of Jicheng in previous years that he inevitably felt guilty?

Ultimately, it can be summarized as the psychological shadow of too many failures.

The Qin state was too strong; the people of the other six states desperately needed a victory.

However, after the fall of Wei, the border between Qin and Qi expanded further, and even the King of Qi would inevitably feel uneasy.

Compared to the farmers, inspiring the Qi state's confidence in resisting Qin was more important!

Chapter 218 Searching for Identity

"Let's all fight side by side! There's no need to talk about chivalry when dealing with these kinds of people!"

"Kill!"

Lu Wei, amused, watched the bandits charging towards him from his horse: These people were clearly highway robbers, yet they were shouting slogans of justice!

It's hard to put into words.

With a gentle exhale, he drew his sword and instantly killed the strongest among them and the leader. He did not pursue the remaining thieves who were fleeing in terror.

Ten years have passed since he first killed someone at the age of thirteen. During these ten years, the sect leader has lost many lives by his sword. There may be no clear distinction between good and bad among them, but those he has killed must all be people who did not meet his expectations.

Over the years, when faced with bandits he encountered on his travels across the country, he would sometimes eliminate only the ringleaders and sometimes kill them all, his judgment depending solely on his mood at the time.

During this trip to Chu, he spent most of his time thinking about the upcoming itinerary, so he had little interest in wasting time on those skinny bandits.

Geographically speaking, Lu Wei was currently in the Chu region, about three days' journey from Shouchun.

The reason he listened to the words of the second Sun-Covering Sword and actually came to Chu was very simple: when he was dodging the Sea-Swallowing Sword, the opponent used the Starry Sky Steps.

Judging from Yan Ri's other subtle actions during the encounter, the true identity behind that simple mask is Tian Guang.

A face can be masked, but martial arts skills are hard to conceal. For years, Zhou Wen, disguised as Tian Meng, had only engaged in a mock fight with Lu Tang in a play of about thirty rounds; he had essentially never sparred with any family or friends familiar with Tian Meng's martial arts.

Looking back now, the location of the forest that Yan Ri chose itself demonstrated his familiarity with Daze Mountain, which further confirmed Lu Wei's guess.

The interesting point about 'Tian Guang obtained the Sun-Covering Sword' is that Tian Guang was definitely not given the Sun-Covering Sword by Zhao Gao!

The same principle applies: controlling powerful sect leaders like Tian Guang, Six-Fingered Black Knight, and Fu Nian means controlling the various schools of thought under their command.

If Tian Guang wants to gain the trust of Zhao Gao, the actual controller of the Luo Wang organization, he must send the farmers out and hand them over to the Luo Wang organization for use.

Regardless of whether Tian Guang's relentless efforts to develop the Farmer's Family over the years were intended to use it as leverage to make him a dog for the Luo Net, Lu Wei was still clear about whether the Farmer's Family was currently under the control of outsiders.

As a veteran martial arts leader with decades of experience, Tian Guang's value clearly lies not in his individual strength or wisdom, but in the fact that even without Gonggong Hall, he still possesses an entire martial arts sect with 100,000 disciples.

Therefore, Tian Guang was able to obtain the Hidden Sun Sword only because the real Hidden Sun lent it to him!

Furthermore, Zhao Gao, who was in Xianyang, was unaware of this matter.

Therefore, the attitude of this person who conceals the sun is very worthy of scrutiny.

According to Xinghun, the Luo Wang leadership was originally composed of several top martial arts masters, but Zhao Gao ultimately won due to a power struggle.

All the other elders of the Luo Wang organization were eliminated, including Xing Hun's father, Gan Luo. As a result, Xing Hun's entire family was wiped out, forcing him to become Xing Hun.

Yan Ri was special because, firstly, he had not yet reached the top level of the Luo Wang (a powerful organization), and secondly, he had long been lurking among the high-ranking members of a certain school of thought among the Hundred Schools of Thought, and was not in Xianyang.

Therefore, although Yan Ri appears to be a killer for Luo Wang and has always worked for Luo Wang, considering his unauthorized collusion with Tian Guang, it's clear that Luo Wang harbors disloyalty towards Qin, and Yan Ri also harbors disloyalty towards Luo Wang...

As the hidden agent, Tian Guang, the second agent of the Hidden Sun, must know the true identity of the Hidden Sun. Moreover, he secretly gave Lu Wei some hints that night, allowing Lu Wei to narrow down the possible candidates to a few limited spots.

His identity is that of a high-ranking member of the Hundred Schools of Thought, but his power is not as absolute as that of the leaders of the Mohist and Confucian schools, which prevented the Net of Law from completely infiltrating... so he is probably a Taoist.

Heavenly Sect's Red Pine Master! Human Sect's Carefree Master!

These two Taoist sect leaders have always had excellent reputations in the martial arts world, so it's hard to believe that they would be associated with the bloodthirsty assassins of the Luo Wang organization.

However, from another perspective, it is precisely because it is hard to convince people that it has remained hidden!

Moreover, the relationship between this "sun-covering" and "net" is something that deserves further consideration...

Speaking of which, the Taoist Heaven and Man Sword Competition is taking place this year, and it is probably for this reason that the Hidden Sun Sword was given to Tian Guang to use first.

Not long ago, before returning home, Chen Ping invited Lu Wei to visit Mount Taiyi together. However, since Mount Taiyi was located in Guanzhong, the stronghold of the Qin State and Luo Wang, and the benefits of watching the Heavenly Sword Competition were relatively low, the timid hall master only said that he would definitely do it next time.

Besides these two from the Taoist school, there are several other candidates from other sects in the martial arts world, though their chances are lower, we still need to be careful.

"Tian Guang sent me to the State of Chu because he believed that participating in the affairs of the State of Chu would benefit the farmers. This benefit should still be related to the Azure Dragon Plan."

After deducing several suspects related to the obscuring sun from the information provided by Tian Guang and Xinghun, Lu Wei turned his attention back to the Chu Kingdom:

This is the big stage for the next few years!

...

The impending war between Qin and Chu at Mount Taiyi had virtually no impact on this place of cultivation located in the Qin state.

Almost all the Taoist disciples were focused on the upcoming Heavenly Sword Debate, but Xiaomeng was different.

Since Xiaomeng joined the Taoist school, her cultivation speed has increased by leaps and bounds.

She might not understand the Dao as well as those white-bearded elders, but when it came to swordsmanship, she felt that the so-called Daoists were actually quite ordinary.

Xiaomeng's rapid progress in swordsmanship and internal strength stemmed from the constraints imposed on her by the floods in Daliang City and the fire in an unknown town. As time passed, these constraints gradually developed into a belief in revenge.

With such a mindset, one is likely to go astray in cultivating the Dao of the Heavenly Sect.

After realizing this, Bei Mingzi sighed softly and carefully taught his closed-door disciple a lesson on 'The Dream of the Butterfly'.

In the vastness of the universe, revenge is but a drop in the ocean; hatred originates from death and will also end in death.

When Xiaomeng watched in her dream that another 'me' with the same beliefs died on the path of revenge, she had an epiphany.

The shackles of revenge have vanished.

Slowly opening his eyes again, the Autumn Sword, gleaming with a sharp light, went straight into his eye socket.

Wild horses are like dust, and living things blow them with their breath.

The sword that greatly inspired Zhuangzi's creation of the "Free and Easy Wandering" series thus became her possession.

"You can go into seclusion now."

The course concluded successfully, and Bei Mingzi's satisfied, ethereal voice echoed. Xiao Meng's shackles of revenge were broken, and from then on, her cultivation would flow like a mighty river, unstoppable.

"Qiu...Li?"

Holding this unparalleled artifact in her hand, Xiaomeng blinked and walked out of the 'Dream Entry' hall.

At the entrance, the female disciple who was waiting saw her come out, holding the famous sword Qiu Li, which resembled a whisk, and happily told Xiaomeng that this sword was ranked ninth in Feng Hu Zi's sword manual.

The swords that make it into the top ten of the sword manual all have their own unique characteristics. Qiu Li's slender and elegant shape is obviously a good match for Xiao Meng.

"Ninth..." Xiaomeng, who had just finished her enlightenment, naturally didn't care about the ranking of the sword in her hand... even though just a few months ago she was outside the sword hall in Daliang City, eagerly hoping that she could obtain a famous sword from the sword hall when she grew up.

Now that her childhood wish has come true, the wish itself has lost its meaning, and she doesn't feel particularly happy.

The reason she mentioned 'Ninth' was because she was reminded of another sword: "Is there a famous sword called 'Swallowing the Sea' in the Feng Hu Zi Sword Manual?"

Upon hearing Xiaomeng, who was young but of high seniority, ask such a question, the female disciple pondered carefully and replied, "There is no sword named Devouring the Sea among the top ten."

Immediately, the disciple added, "However, since it has a name, it should be possible to find it in the sword manual."

Upon hearing this, Xiaomeng paused slightly, as if recalling something. She nodded with a cool expression and walked away without saying anything more.

Later that evening, she went to the Tianzong Library and found last year's edition of Feng Hu Zi's complete sword manual.

Xiaomeng brushed her bangs aside and began searching earnestly from the top of the sword manual rankings, her finger tracing over the ninth-ranked 'Qiuli' without pausing for a moment.

Feng Hu Zi's sword manual ranks three hundredth overall, but Tun Hai's name never appears until the very end.

"That person was very strong. The technique he suddenly disappeared with was very similar to Master's 'Harmony with the World,' and the sword he wielded couldn't possibly be one that wasn't even listed in the sword manual..."

Biting her lip gently, Xiaomeng reluctantly took out the outer chapter of the Feng Hu Zi Sword Manual.

The supplementary chapters of Feng Hu Zi also record some famous swords. These swords were included in the supplementary chapters because they were not included in the sword manual for various reasons.

For example, Shark Tooth was considered a demonic sword because it was too ferocious.

The appearance of the name "Swallowing the Sea Sword" at the end of this list caused a glint in Xiaomeng's eyes, who had just attained enlightenment.

"The sword of regret, swallowing the sea."

Reading the text aloud, even though it didn't directly mention the sword master's name, one could still deduce some useful information.

According to Feng Hu Zi, the object of this regretful sword is Feng Hu Zi himself.

He first encountered this sword in Sanghai City of Qi State, but the first time he was to appraise it was in Daze Mountain.

However, due to unforeseen circumstances, the goal was not achieved.

Later, Feng Hu Zi heard that the sword was in the State of Yan, so he went to Ji City, but he was too late, as the sword's owner had gone to the State of Wei.

Over the years, Feng Hu Zi kept missing the sword. Every time he heard news of its appearance and rushed there, the sword would always be somewhere else...

Ultimately, feeling that this might be fate, Feng Hu Zi sighed and gave up on deliberately pursuing it, only regarding it as his regret, thus calling it the 'Sword of Regret'.

Over the decades, Feng Hu Zi has recorded many unique stories like this regarding sword appraisal. Although these stories are widely discussed, no one really cares much about the swords outside of these sword manuals.