After more than ten days.
Ning Chen had already left Qi Land and arrived at Yan Land. Autumn was getting deeper and the weather was getting colder.
In front of him was a vast and desolate plain. The sky was covered with thick dark clouds, and the bone-piercing cold wind blew fiercely.
With his perfect ice and snow attributes, even if he wore thin clothes, he would not feel cold. Instead, he would feel very comfortable.
" The environment in Yanzhao is harsh. Only by doing so can one sharpen their willpower. This might be one of the reasons why there are so many swordsmen in Yanzhao..."
Ning Chen thought to himself as he led the donkey.
He walked forward slowly, disregarding the time. He walked from day to night before he finally walked out of the vast plain that stretched across Yan and Qi.
A large road appeared in front of him. Beside the road, there was an empty tavern. There was light inside and a few horses were tied to the side.
Ning Chen walked to the side of the tavern. He could see a few wooden tables inside. There were few people inside. A few people wrapped in thick clothes with swords or sabers at their waists sat at the table, drinking steaming hot liquor.
Ning Chen glanced at the empty red wine gourd on the donkey's back. He rubbed his hungry stomach and walked towards the tavern.
After tying the donkey to the horses, Ning Chen pushed open the door of the tavern.
A bone-piercing cold wind blew into the tavern, and the three Jianghu people in the tavern raised their heads in dissatisfaction.
When they saw Ning Chen, who was dressed in thin clothes and had a sword at his waist, they were all stunned.
The old shopkeeper, who was warming the wine, heard the commotion and looked up. When he saw Ning Chen, he was also stunned for a moment. He could not help but ask,"Little brother, aren't you cold wearing so little on such a cold day?”
"It's alright."
Ning Chen said as he closed the door of the tavern, then walked to an empty wooden table and sat down. "Please bring me a pot of hot wine and a few side dishes.”
Her voice was gentle and clear, but calm and indifferent.
"Alright, I'll give it to you, little brother.”
After a short while, the innkeeper quickly brought a pot of hot liquor and three plates of side dishes. When he brought him a bowl and chopsticks, he said enthusiastically,
"It's better to wear more on such a cold day. Otherwise, your legs will be frozen. When you get old, you'll suffer.”
"I see that you're carrying a sword, little brother. Are you also from the martial world?”
Ning Chen picked up the wine pot and poured a cup into the wine bowl. He smiled lightly and said,"What's wrong? Doesn't look like it?"
"It doesn't look like it at all. I've been running a tavern here for half my life, and I've seen so many Jianghu people. Some of them are full of bandit aura, some of them are bold and generous, some of them are unrestrained, some of them are full of chivalry, and some of them are unpredictable and terrifying…But you don't have any of those on you, little brother.”The old shopkeeper, who called himself Old Huang, stood beside Ning Chen and said with great interest.
Beside a wooden table, a middle-aged man with a rough face and a sword scar at the corner of his eye laughed and said,"Old Shopkeeper Huang, I didn't expect you to know this…the art of reading people apart from warming wine.”
"That's right. Otherwise, do you think this old man has lived his life like a dog? I know a lot about the martial world.”
Old Shopkeeper Huang chuckled.
"Oh, then I'll have to ask for advice.”Beside another wooden table, a young swordsman with a long sword on the table drank the wine in his bowl.
"May I ask who has the best swordsmanship in this world? The most worthy challenge?"
He put down his wine cup and asked Old Shopkeeper Huang with a sharp gaze.
Ning Chen could not help but raise his eyebrows.
A mere second-rate swordsman wanted to challenge the person with the highest swordsmanship in the world?
Was he living in a dream?
He picked up the bowl filled with boiling liquor and took a sip.
As expected, it was not as good as Peach Blossom Wine. After getting used to good wine, drinking such inferior wine really did not have any taste.
It's just to quench my thirst.
Ning Chen didn't say anything, but someone else did.
The third person sitting by the window, wearing a thick straw raincoat and a bamboo hat, sneered,
"Challenge the highest swordsman in the world? Humph, a mere second-rate swordsman dared to say such big words. Was he trying to make people laugh their heads off?”
"In the land of Yanzhao alone, there are dozens of swordsmen above the first-class realm, and there are more than one palm of swordsmen at the top realm.”
The young swordsman's face turned red. With the help of the strong alcohol, he grabbed the long sword on the table.
"What's wrong? You still want to fight?" The man wearing the bamboo hat mocked.
"Sir, you insulted me, so why can't I attack? I'm Zhang Yuannan. Please tell me your name.”
The young swordsman, who was already slightly drunk from the alcohol, pulled out his sword and pointed it at the man, saying,
The man wearing the bamboo hat slowly stood up. He was also holding a long sword in his hand. Clearly, he was also a swordsman.
"If you want to fight, then fight.”
"If you want to fight, go out and fight." The middle-aged man with a sword scar on his face said in a deep voice," Don't mess up the things in this shop.”
The two of them looked at each other and walked out.
Not long after, the sound of swords clashing came from outside the room, but there was only one sound.
After a while, the man in the bamboo hat dragged the legs of the young swordsman who had been knocked out back to the tavern like he was dragging trash.
"He lost. When he wakes up, tell him that I took his sword and my wine money is his.”The bamboo hat swordsman looked at Old Shopkeeper Huang and said.
"Alright."
Old Shopkeeper Huang nodded.
Then, the bamboo hat swordsman pushed open the door and walked out with two swords. A horse neighed outside the door, followed by the sound of hooves, and gradually disappeared into the distance.
The middle-aged man looked at Old Shopkeeper Huang and said with a smile,""If my guess is correct, the swordsman with the bamboo hat is the left-handed swordsman who has been looking for a swordsman to challenge in Yan Land, right?”
" I don't know much." Shopkeeper Huang shook his head and smiled." He's only drunk here a few times."”
The middle-aged man finished the wine in his bowl and turned to look at Ning Chen at the other table. He smiled and said,"Little brother, the sword beside you is not bad. Can you give me a look?”
"I can't." Ning Chen said without looking up as he ate the side dishes in the bowl.
"If you let me take a look, I'll treat you to this meal. How about it?”
The middle-aged man laughed heartily.
Ning Chen raised his head and looked at him with a faint smile.
"If I show it to you, I'm afraid I won't be able to get it back. The hand under your table doesn't seem to mean that.”
The middle-aged man's expression changed slightly. His left hand under the table could not help but clench the hidden weapons in his palm.
"How did you find out?"
The middle-aged man narrowed his eyes and looked at Ning Chen.
"Naturally, I see with my eyes."
Ning Chen put down his chopsticks, picked up the wine pot and poured it into the wine bowl. It was steaming hot.
"Good eyesight." The middle-aged man narrowed his eyes slightly. Then, he quickly raised his left hand under the table and threw the hidden weapon at Ning Chen.
In the next second, a scene that made his heart tremble appeared in front of him.
The three sharp metal leaves stopped in the air a foot away from the blue-robed youth. A light blue internal strength froze them in the air.
" First, first tier realm…"
Ning Chen put down the wine pot unhurriedly.
Swoosh!
The three hidden weapons flew out at an even faster speed, directly piercing through the middle-aged man's head under his incomparably terrified gaze.
"A mere second-rate cultivator dares to have designs on money. He's really courting death.”
Ning Chen stood up and glanced at him. Then, he grabbed the Bai Li sword by the table and walked out of the room under the shocked gaze of the old shopkeeper.
"I'll have to trouble the shopkeeper to deal with the corpse. The belongings on his body will be used as remuneration and wine money.”After leaving the house, Ning Chen's clear and childish voice echoed back into the tavern.
Old Shopkeeper Huang looked at the middle-aged man's corpse on the ground, then looked at the blue-robed youth outside the house, leading the donkey as he slowly walked away on the first snow of the year. He muttered,
"I was wrong, I was wrong.”
2500-word chapters, five chapters today
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