Chapter 200 The Top of Qingcheng
The fourteenth month of the lunar calendar is almost round.
The moon hangs in the sky, like a bright white jade plate, piercing the night sky and spreading its light.
At the beginning of the lanterns, under the moonlight, the Guanqi Building in the middle of Qingcheng was brightly lit, and there were tinkling sounds from all around.
As the most famous place for making weapons in Qingcheng, once the fire is turned on, they don't have an early rest there.
The Guanqi Tower has four floors and is four to five feet high. It looks like an octagonal tower and has extraordinary momentum.
Fortunately, this area is the most prosperous place in Qingcheng. There are mansions such as the Governor's Mansion nearby, and the three or four-story attic is not too out of the ordinary.
No, standing on the top floor, you can still vaguely see the landmark building of the Governor's Mansion - Guanyue Tower, which is less than a mile away.
There is only one word difference between the two pavilions, Guanqi Tower and Guanyue Tower, but they are very different in terms of scale and height.
As the tallest building in Qingcheng, Guanyue Tower has eight floors and is about ten feet high. Located among them, it really stands out from the crowd.
Within a radius of one or two miles, as long as the field of view is wide enough, you can see the Moon Viewing Tower.
At night, the Guanyue Tower lights up. When the lights are bright, it is like a lighthouse in the dark, extremely dazzling.
Tonight, in the Moon Viewing Tower, the lights were not turned on, and one could only vaguely see an outline in the moonlight.
Standing on the top of the Guanqi Tower, leaning on the railing, Xu Lingfeng looked away from the Moon Guan Tower in the distance and looked up at the sky. The moonlight was filled with heat, making people sweat all over their bodies.
However, Xu Lingfeng's heart felt cold.
"There's still one day left, Chu Tang...it's time for us to settle accounts." Xu Lingfeng murmured to himself.
Half a month ago, under the guidance of his master, he found a loophole in the Xunwu Order targeting the imperial warriors.
At that time, Xu Lingfeng was very excited and felt that this was a challenge that Chu Tang could not refuse.
However, his master Luo Changying was a little hesitant, thinking that victory was not worth the effort. Even if he won, he would have to serve in the court, and the gain would not be worth the loss.
But Xu Lingfeng was sure of this. His actual words were: "Master, the inner demon has arisen. Is there any way to turn back?"
Luo Changying was silent.
Inner demons are something that depends entirely on how people treat them.
Xu Lingfeng's inner demon now is Chu Tang. As long as the other person lives well in the world, he will be a demon that he can't get rid of.
Luo Changying knows better than anyone how terrifying the inner demon is, because he also has an inner demon - the Swordsman of the East China Sea.
The Swordsman of the East China Sea only defeated him two or three times, but it has been his lingering inner demon for more than twenty years.
This also resulted in him being unable to break through to the Nine Realms.
More than 20 years ago, he was a master of the Eighth Realm, and everyone believed that he could become a master of the Nine Realms in just a few years.
What about the facts?
Twenty years have passed, and he is still at the peak of the Eighth Realm, unable to break through to the Ninth Realm.
In fact, Luo Changying had long sensed that he had accumulated enough skills, which was no different from the Nine Realms. However, the realm was standing still and unable to make any progress, as if there was an obstacle that could not be broken.
And this obstacle is the swordsman of the East China Sea who has been suppressing him.
As long as the swordsman of the East China Sea is alive for one day, or if he fails to defeat the swordsman of the East China Sea in a fair and just manner, this barrier will be like an iron curtain that cannot be lifted.
And once the swordsman of the East China Sea is gone, or he defeats the opponent head-on, the obstacle is like a cicada's wings, he can crush it at any time and remove it in one fell swoop.
This is the bondage of inner demons!
Knowing the horror of the inner demon, Luo Changying did not want his disciples to follow in his footsteps, so he could not refuse Xu Lingfeng's move to get rid of the inner demon.
Therefore, after giving instructions on the Xunwu Order, Luo Changying went to the Valley Master of Luoshen Valley and asked him to coordinate various matters.
Faced with the request of the great elder Luo Changying, the Valley Master of Luoshen Valley could only agree despite not wanting to cause trouble.
For this reason, they asked the Guanqi Tower in Qingcheng to take action on this matter.
Guanqilou is a major force under Luoshen Valley, which is a well-known fact in Liangzhou.
Guanqi Building is also the most powerful place for weapon training in Liangzhou. It only has stations in Yuncheng and Qingcheng. It is open for business and builds weapons for others as long as they pay money.
In addition, he is also responsible for information collection and transfer, and is the eyes and ears of Luoshen Valley placed in these two places.
After issuing the martial arts order, Xu Lingfeng said goodbye to Luo Changying, came to Qingcheng alone, and moved into Guanqi Building.
During these days, he would go to the top of the building every night and overlook the Moon Viewing Tower of the Governor's Mansion.
"On a full moon night, the top of Qingcheng."
Xu Lingfeng couldn't understand why Chu Tang chose to do it at night, let alone why he chose Guanyue Tower.
He had already gone to Guanyue Tower to inquire about it. Although the roof of the building was large, the wooden structure of the floor was indeed not suitable for fighting by warriors like them who could transform inner energy into energy.
He even couldn't figure out why the governor Shen Zuo would allow them to go wild in Guanyue Tower.
However, no matter what, Xu Lingfeng only had one thought in his mind: kill Chu Tang!
Not only to avenge his junior brother Shi Ziqian, but also to eradicate his inner demon——
Chu Tang must die!
For this reason, every time he looked at Guanyue Tower from a distance, Xu Lingfeng imagined the scene of his duel with Chu Tang in his mind.
He has imagined the Lingbo Weistep, the sword-drawing technique, and the Quanzhen swordsmanship, and simulated it countless times in his mind——
Yes, he has not been idle these days. He has inquired about Chu Tang's deeds through many channels, and among them, he has even thought more about the other party's martial arts.
Now, everything is ready, waiting for the duel time tomorrow night!
Swish, swish, swish!
While Xu Lingfeng was deep in thought, the evening breeze brought a sound of footsteps, awakening him from his reverie. When he looked up, he saw a burly old man in his fifties walking towards him.
"Uncle Huang." Xu Lingfeng greeted the other party.
The old man is not young, but he is very strong, with a dark face and good energy. His hair and beard are still black, and he does not look old.
This person is Huang Changfeng, the master of the Guanqi Building, who is a disciple of the Luoshen Valley along with Master Xu Lingfeng, Luo Changying.
Xu Lingfeng called him Uncle Master. During these days, he stayed at Guanqi Building and received a lot of care from him, so he was very grateful and respectful to him.
Huang Changfeng walked next to Xu Lingfeng, turned around and glanced at Guanyue Tower in the distance, and said: "Changfeng, you are looking at that building here again. It is just a tall building, there is nothing interesting to see, you might as well take a rest if you have time. Relax. Look at you, you are so skinny. Where is your former grace?"
He was not polite. As he saw with his own eyes, Xu Lingfeng was getting thinner and more haggard these days, just like a man and woman who are in love, not thinking about food and tea, and become haggard.
Xu Lingfeng in the past was really like a handsome young man.
Now he looks as haggard as a middle-aged man.
Huang Changfeng saw it in his eyes and was anxious in his heart, fearing that Xu Lingfeng would not be able to wait for the day of the duel and would fall first.
At first, he thought that Xu Lingfeng was worried about the duel, and gave him a few words of comfort. Later, he saw that although Xu Lingfeng was getting thinner and thinner, his energy was becoming more and more energetic, like an unsheathed sword, with its sharp edge exposed and radiant.
Huang Changfeng was even more puzzled by such a contrasting situation, and hurried to Xinluoshen Valley to ask his senior brother Luo Changying.
Luo Changying bluntly said that Xu Lingfeng had inner demons, and the incarnation of the inner demons was Chu Tang, who was about to duel. Chu Tang is immortal, and the inner demons are hard to get rid of.
Once a person has inner demons, the state of being tortured day and night is truly unimaginable.
Huang Changfeng had seen Luo Changying back then. He was obviously just a middle-aged man. Within a few years, he looked like an old man in his seventies. It was only because he had improved a lot in his self-cultivation in the past few years that his condition gradually recovered.
Luo Changying also told Huang Changfeng to keep an eye on Xu Lingfeng before and after the duel and not to let him make any mistakes again.
He had already lost one apprentice and didn't want to lose another one.
Huang Changfeng has always respected Luo Changying, and he also treats Xu Lingfeng as his nephew. These days, he cares for her very much.
Xu Lingfeng was bored, so he chatted with him to relieve his boredom and relieve his worries.
Xu Lingfeng wanted to move his hands and feet, so he acted as a sparring partner, using the Nine Heavens Falling River Sword Technique to fill in his gaps.
It was the same tonight. I saw Xu Lingfeng going up to the roof. He followed after a while and said what he just said.
"Uncle Master, you don't have to worry about me. After tomorrow night, everything will be back on track." Xu Lingfeng forced himself to smile.
Huang Changfeng was angry and said: "That's natural! With your martial arts, Chu Tang is not at your mercy!"
Xu Lingfeng shook his head slowly and said: "Don't speak too slowly. These days, I have been thinking about the knife he used to kill Junior Brother Zi Qian. Zi Qian, who is perfect in the fifth realm, has no power to fight back. People in the sixth realm face that One knife, if you're not careful, I'm afraid you'll get hit too."
Huang Changfeng said solemnly, "Is it the sword-drawing technique?"
Being in Qingcheng, and being an elder of the Luoshen Valley, Huang Changfeng's ears were calloused these days when he heard about Chu Tang's sword skills that killed the disciples of the Luoshen Valley.
In addition, he also inquired about some things about the Cheng family in the east of the city, and knew that the destruction of the Cheng family was closely related to Chu Tang.
It is said that the sword-drawing technique caused the Cheng family to suffer a lot, and then the Su family wiped out their century-old enemy in one fell swoop.
Therefore, it was difficult for Huang Changfeng not to know the reputation of the sword-drawing technique.
Glancing at the nervous Huang Changfeng, Xu Lingfeng asked: "Uncle Master, what did that Chu Tang do today?"
Huang Changfeng looked serious and said, "I heard that he was reading a book in the morning and sharpened his magic weapon for a while in the afternoon."
"It's very leisurely!" Xu Lingfeng said calmly, but his attitude could not be discerned.
It is said that if you know yourself and the enemy, you can win a hundred battles. Since Xu Lingfeng issued a challenge, he would not be so arrogant as to think that he could kill Chu Tang without any effort.
He needs to understand Chu Tang thoroughly, not only to respect his opponent, but also to respect himself.
Fortunately, Guanqilou was originally responsible for inquiring about information for Luoshen Valley, and with careful attention, he quickly figured out some of Chu Tang's methods.
Xu Lingfeng got information about the other party about his life and his martial arts.
To be honest, Xu Lingfeng was very surprised by Chu Tang's experience. Three or four years ago, the other party was just an ordinary little detective, but in the past three years, he suddenly rose to prominence.
In just three years, Chu Tang's level of martial arts has improved by leaps and bounds, and his number of martial arts skills has also increased inexplicably.
These powerful martial arts that no one else had ever heard of, even Luoshen Valley couldn't figure out how to find out, and they had no idea who taught him.
He only knew that according to what he said, it was taught by the two heroes Jin Daxia and Gu Daxia. However, let alone Xu Lingfeng, even his master Luo Changying, an old fellow, had never heard of such two masters in Liangzhou!
Faced with this situation, Xu Lingfeng was also a little confused.
Fortunately, his master told him that no matter how strange or powerful his opponent's martial arts were, he just had to bring out the power of the Nine Heavens Luohe Sword.
No matter how many ways you come, I only go one way!
"The sky falls on the river, shining like the sun, the stars are brilliant, the sword is invincible; there is a long river in my heart, like the sky falling, urging everything."
Xu Lingfeng kept in mind the teachings of his master, and he had a deep understanding of the Jiutian Luohe Sword.
In addition to finding out Chu Tang's previous experiences, their Guanqi Building also inquired and reported daily on what Chu Tang had done in Wutong Academy these days.
Xu Lingfeng knows Chu Tang's actions every day!
"Tao Ying won't fight with him?" Xu Lingfeng was concerned about this point.
Huang Changfeng replied: "They also practiced yesterday. Ling Feng, this point is more important. Tao Ying understands the potential and uses it to feed Chu Tang every day. I'm afraid the person named Chu is no stranger to the potential. you……"
"How can Haoran's Qigong be compared with our Nine Heavens Luohe Sword!" Xu Lingfeng sneered proudly.
The implication is that the power exerted by Haoran Yiqigong is incomparable to the power of Jiutian Luohe Sword!
Huang Changfeng was deeply convinced and said: "Ling Feng, when you go up tomorrow night, you will use your special move. Don't mess with the opponent, and definitely don't give Chu Tang the opportunity. His sword drawing skills are the fastest, but as long as you suppress him in advance, If he cannot bring out the essence of his sharp sword, there will be nothing he can do."
Xu Lingfeng nodded, this was his strategy.
Looking up at the sky, Xu Lingfeng said: "Uncle, let's go downstairs and rest."
Huang Changfeng nodded repeatedly and said that the war was coming, so he should take a good rest and recharge his batteries before fighting in a battle.
When going down the stairs, Xu Lingfeng looked back and glanced outside the building. The Moon Viewing Tower in the distance was looming under the moonlight, and in the end only a silhouette remained.
Tomorrow, he will kill Chu Tang with his sword at the top of Guanyue Tower!
"Chu Tang, don't blame me for bullying the small. I really can't allow you to live anymore..." There was only one thought lingering in Xu Lingfeng's heart.
…………
In fact, at this moment, where Xu Lingfeng could not see, Chu Tang was on the top floor of Guanyue Tower.
Along with him, besides Tao Ying, there was also Shen Ya.
The purpose of coming here is to get familiar with the place.
Chu Tang is not stupid. He decided the location. It would be too funny if he was not even familiar with it.
It is not necessary to know every board and tree, but at least to have a general grasp of the size of the place and the height of the terrain.
When masters compete, sometimes the grasp of details can often become the key to victory or defeat.
"This place isn't big enough!" Chu Tang took a few steps and found that the entire building was only seven or eight feet long and wide, and the roof was even smaller, so there wasn't much room to move around.
Tao Ying, who was standing nearby, couldn't help but complain after hearing this: "Didn't you decide to be here? I don't know how much I spent to convince Governor Shen to agree to your execution here!"
"That's right! I begged my second uncle for a long time before he let go!" Shen Ya, holding a lantern, also agreed.
Who would have thought that Chu Tang would have to duel with someone at the highest point in Qingcheng!
In other words, Shen Zuo might feel guilty for not being able to stop the martial arts order, otherwise he would never have agreed to let the warriors fight here.
Chu Tang smiled bitterly. Could he say that he was just trying to show off by casually saying "The Top of Qingcheng"?
I thought the highest point in Qingcheng was a city wall or some kind of high platform, but who would have thought it was a wooden building!
A few days later, he discovered that he had made an mistake. The location of the duel had been circulated for a long time, and he was too embarrassed to change it, so he had to admit it.
The only good thing is that this building used to be for observation and later for moon viewing. After the renovation, the top floor is not the top of the building, but a platform. The space is relatively large and can accommodate dozens of people standing at the same time. It is barely suitable for martial arts competitions. Fight.
If the roof was a tile shed like other buildings, there wouldn't even be much room to stand on it, so why not fight with a hammer?
While Chu Tang was walking to measure the number of steps, Tao Ying looked up and saw the bright moon hanging high in the sky. The moonlight was clear and pleasant, and the surrounding area was faintly shining, giving it a unique artistic conception.
She couldn't help but sigh: "On a full moon night, on the top of Qingcheng, from a high place, looking down at all living beings, masters of martial arts, having peak duels... it's a good place!"
Like many others, she began to look forward to this night!