The light of the sword is like the moon reflecting on Kyushu

Chapter 2030 So what if I know? Do I even have a choice?

How majestic is Mount Tai? Its verdant peaks stretch endlessly across Qi and Lu.

Nature bestows its most wondrous beauty, dividing day and night with yin and yang.

My heart swells with the rising clouds, my eyes follow the returning birds.

It will be the top of the list, and the mountains are small.

Standing atop the mountain offers a panoramic view, which broadens one's mind and brings a sense of peace and joy.

Standing on high ground and looking down from above gives one the feeling of looking down on all living beings.

Wang Sheng muttered to himself: Why is the emperor's dragon throne set so high? Isn't it to demonstrate imperial authority and majesty? Its height allows the emperor to look down upon his ministers, strengthening the ruler's intimidating presence and creating a sense of psychological oppression among the officials! Furthermore, the high position makes it easy for the emperor to observe the movements of his ministers, maintaining a solemn demeanor. Everyone is within the emperor's sight, and every subtle expression and movement is under his control! The most practical reason, of course, is to reinforce the difference in rank. The significant height difference between the dragon throne and ordinary seats symbolizes the hierarchical division between imperial power and subjects. This spatial layout highlights the sanctity of imperial power while also reflecting the norms of etiquette between ruler and subject!

From a certain perspective, aren't I standing at the pinnacle right now?
Seizing the high ground means gaining a geographical advantage!
First, there is the advantage of visibility. Occupying a high point allows one to overlook the enemy's movements, making it easier to formulate tactics and prepare defenses in advance.

Secondly, there is a defensive advantage. The defenders can use the mountains to cover themselves on high ground and cover the enemy with a hail of arrows, severely damaging the enemy while reducing their own casualties.

Finally, there is traffic control. Controlling high ground often means controlling key transportation routes, which can cut off enemy supply lines or slow down their advance.

From the perspective of the attacking side at the foot of the mountain, their disadvantage in attacking uphill is obvious—they have to look up when attacking, without any cover, and are completely exposed to enemy fire, resulting in extremely high casualties.

Therefore, in a battle between two armies, seizing the high ground is of great significance!
As Wang Sheng watched the figure grow larger in his field of vision, he muttered to himself: "I have the advantage of being high up, waiting for the rabbit to run into the tree stump, and taking advantage of the situation. How can you possibly win?"

As the figures gradually stepped into his pre-set fifty-zhang defensive circle, Wang Sheng suddenly shouted, "Draw your sword!"

A roar—the sound of a dragon!
With a flash of lightning, the flying sword Qing Shuang was drawn from its sheath and shot straight into the sky!
Wang Sheng joined his index and middle fingers together like a sword, pointing it at a person below the mountain from afar, and shouted, "Break!"

The Azure Frost Sword suddenly drew a large arc from the sky, like a meteor streaking across the heavens, descending from the celestial canopy! With the force of wind and thunder, it tore through the void, whistling as it swept past! Sangtu Gongzheng, from the Bilin Cave in western Sichuan, was crawling forward when he suddenly felt a whooshing sound above him. Sensing danger, he immediately rolled over, completing three rolls before lying on his back. He saw a sword flying from the sky towards him, its trajectory indicating it would strike him about ten feet away. Thinking the danger was over, he breathed a sigh of relief. Unexpectedly, the sword suddenly changed direction, its speed like lightning, and with a soft thud, it pierced his chest!
The flying sword pierced through itself and penetrated deep into the earth, then burst out of the ground several feet away, soaring straight into the sky, like a dragon swimming in the sky!

Sang Tugong felt all the blood rushing to his chest and back, his true energy leaking out at the same time, and his whole body quickly became weak and powerless. "Shushan Flying Sword?" Before he could finish speaking, his eyes widened like goldfish, and he died!

The skilled men around him immediately slowed down and became more vigilant!

"Damn! The experts from the Shu Mountain Sect have arrived too!"

"Yes! Judging from the power of this flying sword, it's probably from a ninth-realm expert!"

"Then we're all doomed?"

"Should we... give up?"

"Give up? We're in a bind now! Do you think the Shu Mountain masters will let us live if you back down?"

"How about we give it a try?"

"Brother, people die for money, birds die for food! What did we come all this way for? Are you going back now? Do you still want to go back to your old, mediocre life? Don't you want to make something of yourself? Don't you want to become famous?"

"Brother Liu, it's not that I don't want to make something of myself, but if a person dies, he has nothing left, so what's the point of talking about making something of himself?"

Brother Liu's face was sinister. "Fine, Brother Zhang, everyone has their own ambitions. I won't force you. You can leave if you want!"

Brother Zhang laughed and said, "Thank you for your understanding, Brother Liu!" He greeted the several experts who were watching him and began to crawl backward. Just as he looked down at his next footing, he suddenly felt a golden blade cutting through the air and immediately sensed something was wrong. Just as he was about to draw his sword, a sharp pain shot through his left arm, and a cold sensation pierced his chest from his left arm!

His expression changed drastically as he looked at Brother Liu, only to see that Brother Liu had already pulled his hand back, drawing his long sword, and blood was gushing from his left neck!

Brother Zhang pointed at Brother Liu angrily and said, "You actually ambushed me?" His lungs had been punctured, and a large amount of blood rushed in. He could no longer breathe, and his face had turned purplish-red. Pfft—the blood in his lungs was filled with nowhere to go and gushed out from his mouth and nose!

He didn't say another word, his right hand pointing at Brother Liu, and suddenly he stopped moving! He died with his eyes wide open!

The experts nearby all frowned, expressing their disapproval of Brother Liu's approach!
Brother Liu seemed to have anticipated everyone's dissatisfaction with him, so he said, "Deserting in the face of battle deserves to die! We can only succeed if we are united in our hatred of the enemy and of one mind! If everyone harbors disloyal thoughts, then we will be wiped out!"

Some people think it makes sense, while others think it's just sophistry! This so-called Brother Liu and Brother Zhang are clearly not from the same sect. Even if they were from the same sect, they shouldn't be so quick to purge each other. Besides, they've only met by chance. What right does he have to dictate someone else's fate? If he can kill Brother Zhang now, will he be able to kill Brother Li and Brother Wang later?
Many people quietly moved away, just to get away from Brother Liu!
A cold smile appeared on Wang Sheng's lips. "To be able to talk about selfishness in such a refined and righteous way, you're definitely not from a prestigious sect. I wonder who this Brother Liu is. Well then, this second sword strike is for you, Brother Liu! Break!"

The Azure Frost Sword roamed the sky, then suddenly changed direction and once again slashed through the void, shooting straight at the earth!
At this moment, Brother Liu had at least 80% of his energy focused on defending against the flying sword. He turned his head to look at the sky and noticed the flying sword coming. Instantly, he stuck out his buttocks and landed on all fours like a frog, with his two hind legs already taut!

He waited for the flying sword to enter the five-zhang defensive circle before unleashing his power to charge forward! He was certain that even if the sword changed direction five zhang away from him, it could only adjust by a small angle, as it could not turn at a large angle due to inertia!
Twenty zhang...

Ten feet...

Five zhang! Brother Liu exerted his strength instantly, and his whole body shot out like an arrow!
On the mountaintop, Wang Sheng sneered!
The flying sword Qing Shuang seemed to plunge another three zhang due to inertia. Brother Liu looked back and immediately sneered: "The flying swords of Shu Mountain are nothing special!"
He was just about to enjoy the spectacle of the flying sword piercing the earth when, before it even touched the ground, when it was still three feet away from the ground, the flying sword suddenly changed from straight to horizontal, and its flight trajectory changed to fly close to the ground, heading straight for Brother Liu!

Brother Liu's eyes widened in disbelief. Before he could react, the Frost Sword had already pierced through his perineum and emerged from his crown chakra. Then, it flew several feet close to the ground before suddenly soaring into the sky, straight up into the heavens!
Several martial arts masters nearby couldn't help but feel a tightness in their anuses!
That's disgusting! The Shu Mountain flying sword actually went into his buttocks? Looks like this Shu Mountain swordsman isn't exactly a hygienic person!

Brother Liu looked at the flying sword swirling in the sky, pointed to the heavens, and cursed, "Damn it..." *Pfft*—he spat out a mouthful of blood and died!
Those who kill will always be killed!
Many martial arts masters looked at each other in bewilderment and even considered giving up!
"Brother Zhang is absolutely right. If you're dead, what's the point of talking about making a name for yourself?"

"That's right, why don't we retreat first and then pick up the leftovers after they've divided up all the treasures!"

Suddenly a shrill voice said, "Brothers, could you please hear me out?"

When everyone looked over, they saw a man with a pointed mouth and monkey-like cheeks.

"What do you think!"

The man with the pointed snout and monkey-like face laughed and said, "Now we're surrounded by heroes, it's like we're fighting with hundreds or even thousands of heroes for food, you can imagine how difficult it is! In my opinion, brother, it would be better to retreat in order to advance!"

"What's the meaning?"

"Let's pretend to back down and leave this dangerous place first, letting those various gangs fight amongst themselves. In the end, whoever manages to seize the treasure of the ferocious beast will be at their last gasp! Once they have the treasure in hand, we'll wait for the right moment to strike, taking them by surprise and catching them off guard. Then, won't this treasure be yours, brothers?"

"Fuck!"

"Fuck!"

A gasp of amazement erupted!

"You're quite the sly one, guys. What do you think of this kid's opinion?"

"I think it's okay!"

"I think it's a good idea too!" "Since everyone thinks it's a good idea, let's head out first! But we've got a deal: whoever breaks their promise at the end will be cursed by heaven and earth!"

Everyone present raised their right palms and swore: "I, Tao Liren, hereby swear that if I break this oath, may I be struck down by heaven and earth!"

The others followed suit, and I, Zhang, Li, and Wang all swore oaths of "May I be struck by lightning," "May I be struck by five thunderbolts," and "May I die without a complete corpse," each one more ruthless than the last!

The man with the pointed mouth and monkey-like cheeks finally swore an oath: "I, Hou Junji, hereby swear that if I break this oath, may I be torn to pieces by a flurry of swords!"

"You're also called Hou Junji?"

"What? You have a friend also named Hou Junji?"

"No, it's not that. Your name is the same as that of a famous general from the Tang Dynasty!"

"A famous general of the Tang Dynasty?"

"Judging by your appearance, you probably haven't had much schooling!"

"Yes, my family was poor, haha, I never went to school. I never imagined I would share a name with a famous general from the Tang Dynasty! Was that Hou Junji very famous?"

Boss Liu sneered, "That's right! He's one of the twenty-four meritorious officials of Lingyan Pavilion!"

"Then it seems he's very skilled in martial arts and has great intelligence!"

"Bullshit! He was a bit of a show-off when he was young. He couldn't even learn how to use a bow and arrow. He just bragged all day about how brave he was."

"Then how did he achieve such success?"

"He was lucky! He met Prince Qin, Li Shimin! Sometimes, choices are more important than efforts! This guy may be good at bragging, but he was really lucky. He somehow got lucky and joined Prince Qin's mansion. He followed Li Shimin in his campaigns and actually made military achievements. Later, through a series of coincidences, he continued to accumulate military merits. He probably just happened to do a few things and gradually gained Li Shimin's appreciation. He was able to participate in the planning of various affairs and was later appointed as the Left Commander of the Guards and General of Chariots and Cavalry, and was enfeoffed as the Viscount of Quanjiao County."

"Holy crap, the chosen one!"

"Bullshit! Li Shimin is the chosen one!"

"What happened to him in the end? I heard that the emperor loved to kill meritorious officials, and these officials usually didn't have a good ending. I wonder what happened to him!"

"Hey, you're not so stupid after all. You know the principle of 'discarding the bow after the birds are all gone.' This Hou Junji completely brought this upon himself! When he was fighting, he was like a god of war, invincible. When he was attacking Tuyuhun, he served as Li Jing's deputy, overcoming difficulties and pursuing Fuyun for more than 2,000 li. He successively defeated Fuyun's army at Luozhen Valley, Hanku Mountain, Xingxiu River, Baihai and other places, and won a lot of battles. Then he pursued them to Jiyu Mountain, and only when he saw the source of the river did he turn back to meet Li Jing at Dafei River and return to the capital."

Everyone agreed: "Amazing!"

"Hou Junji later destroyed the Kingdom of Gaochang, and his fame was unparalleled! Unfortunately, he became complacent and exiled some innocent people without reporting to Li Shimin. He also privately seized the treasures of the Kingdom of Gaochang. After returning to the capital, the judicial officials imprisoned Hou Junji!"

"Oh dear, that's rather foolish!"

"Hmph, this is nothing! One year, Zhang Liang was sent to Luoyang as governor. Hou Junji asked him, 'Why were you ostracized?' Zhang Liang replied, 'If being an official on duty in the capital is considered ostracism, then who is the most wronged?' To put it bluntly, Zhang Liang was loyal to the emperor and loved his country, and he didn't take being sent to Luoyang seriously! But Hou Junji said, 'I pacified a country, and when I returned to the capital, I angered the emperor. Isn't that ostracism?' This guy, to his dismay, actually rolled up his sleeves and said, 'If this continues, I can't live anymore. Can you rebel? If you can, I'll rebel with you!'"

"Fuck!"

"Fuck!"

Rebellion is a common phrase; who wouldn't be "fucked"?
"Hou Junji never expected that Zhang Liang would tell Li Shimin about his treasonous words. Li Shimin, as expected of the Heavenly Khan, had a magnanimous mind. He said to Zhang Liang: 'You and Hou Junji are both meritorious officials. Hou Junji only told you these words. When he denies it, you can't do anything about it. Let's just let it go.' Not only did Li Shimin not pursue the matter, but he treated Hou Junji the same as before. Later, Li Shimin ordered Yan Liben to paint portraits of twenty-four meritorious officials and place them in the Lingyan Pavilion. Hou Junji was surprisingly ranked seventeenth."

"Fuck!"

"Fuck!"

"He's still not dead? What on earth did this kid do to deserve this?"

"Hmph! How could he not die after acting like this? Li Shimin's son, Li Chengqian, was worried about being deposed as crown prince. Knowing that Hou Junji often complained, he used Hou Junji's son-in-law, Helan Chushi, to lure Hou Junji into the Eastern Palace for secret discussions. Hou Junji thought Li Chengqian was incompetent and was worried about repeating the tragedy of Li Jiancheng, so he advised Li Chengqian to rebel."

"Holy crap! They dare to rebel against Li Shimin! Awesome!"

"Hou Junji, well, you can't deny his incompetence. As he grew older and his luck ran out, everything went wrong. After plotting with Li Chengqian, he was terrified, constantly worried about the plan being leaked, and often couldn't sleep at night. His wife found this very strange and reminded him: 'You're a high-ranking official; if you're like this every night, something's definitely wrong! If you've done something to offend the emperor, go and plead guilty immediately; that might save you!' Unfortunately, Hou Junji wouldn't listen! Later, Li Chengqian's rebellion was indeed exposed, and he was punished and dismissed. Helan Chushi, Hou Junji's son-in-law, then told Li Shimin about Hou Junji's secret plot with Li Chengqian. At this time, Li Shimin still felt that Hou Junji had rendered meritorious service in stabilizing the country and didn't want to execute him. However, the ministers pleaded with him to the death, and Li Shimin had no choice but to execute Hou Junji. Before his execution, Hou Junji requested that his wife and son be pardoned so they could observe mourning for him. Li Shimin was truly shrewd; he exiled his wife and children to Lingnan, but didn't kill them!"

"Fuck!"

"Fuck!"

"They really are asking for trouble!"

"Alright, guys, let's get moving!"

Suddenly, the flying sword appeared out of thin air in front of everyone, hovering about a foot above the ground!
Everyone was shocked!

The flying sword, like a calligraphy brush, began to write characters on the ground in a needle-like motion!
The sword tip flew across the rock surface beneath the thin snow, writing with sharp, iron-like strokes and sparks flying. In an instant, a line of words appeared before everyone!

"It is fate that we have met you all. I would like to give one of you a rare treasure! You may make friends through martial arts, and the winner will be the one destined to meet you!"

What the hell!

Brother Liu couldn't help but sneer!
What a clever scheme to kill someone with a borrowed knife! There's an old story of two peaches killing three warriors; you actually think you can kill ten masters with a piece of meat! That's incredibly cunning! No way! Only a fool would fall for your trick!

puff--

Brother Liu suddenly felt a chill in his abdomen, and his face changed drastically. He slowly looked down at his abdomen and saw that a long spear had already pierced through it. The cold weather had made the weapons cold as well. Why was the spearhead so cold? It felt as if his stomach had frozen solid!

His eyes widened as he glared at Chen Qingzhi, the silver-spear-wielding white-horse rider, who had somehow appeared before him. "You... how dare you ambush me?"

Chen Qingzhi said coldly, "We had already agreed to attack the mountain together, but you broke your oath and attacked passively. Brother Zhang was clearly trying to persuade you to stop, but you didn't stop. You even ambushed and killed Brother Zhang. Now you want to incite everyone to go down the mountain, retreat in order to advance, and rob the winner. Do you even deserve to do that?"

Brother Liu clutched his abdomen, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, and chuckled coldly, "I was just about to say which idiot would believe that guy on the mountain's nonsense, and you jumped out first. Don't you know the story of 'Two Peaches Kill Three Warriors'?"

Chen Qingzhi sneered: "So what if we know? Do we have a choice? Do you think we still have a chance to choose?"

Brother Liu's face was ashen!
Yes!

On the surface, it seems like someone is using a scheme to make everyone kill each other, but can you really back out? The flying sword hovers right in front of them, clearly warning them not to have any illusions. They're being told to choose one person, and that's it—there's no such thing as "the law doesn't punish the masses" here! Anyone who tries to escape will die! The flying sword is even slowly circling, the light reflecting off its blade sweeping across everyone's eyes! The warning couldn't be clearer!
Looking at Brother Zhang's body, Brother Liu sighed deeply, "Brother, I've come to join you!" *Pfft*—he spat out another mouthful of blood and passed away suddenly!
Thank you for your strong support and encouragement from Yudong!