I became a prince in a martial arts world.

"Judging from your expression, you don't seem quite convinced?" Li Yunxiu asked with a smile.

The old woodcutter's voice changed; though still weathered, it carried a sinister undertone. "Please enlighten me, Miss Scholar, so that I may die knowing the truth. Where exactly did I slip up?"

"You borrowed the owner's courtyard here, and with the help of that child, you made us lower our guard with non-poisonous cured meat porridge and bread. You even anticipated that we would give snacks to that child, so that the child took the opportunity to bring over some sweet soup."

Li Yunxiu commented, "You did all of this very naturally, but unfortunately there are still some minor details that you didn't handle well."

"What subtle details?" the old woodcutter asked.

"First, the dog." Li Yunxiu raised her index finger. "No matter how old or sensible a dog is, it will come out to see a stranger, but not only did it not come out, it didn't even finish its dinner."

"As its daily companion, you should know how much it eats in one meal. Why would you make half a bowl more than necessary?" Li Yunxiu said. "Either it was sick and couldn't eat, or it died halfway through its meal."

"Secondly, the child," Li Yunxiu continued, "I didn't expect you to have a child with you to cover for you. It's a pity he's a boy. The rocking horse and rattle drum are one thing, but the wooden comb and rag doll are more for girls."

Li Yunxiu said quietly, "Either you are an introverted girl, or the original owner of this house was a girl, but you killed her."

"Third, firewood." Li Yunxiu held up her third finger. "You said the imperial court's restrictions meant there were no problems with the price of firewood in the market town, but you don't know that the original owner didn't sell firewood in Lujiaji."

The old woodcutter couldn't help but ask, "Why?"

"If he went to Lujiaji to sell firewood, there wouldn't be so much firewood piled up in his woodshed." Li Yunxiu pointed to the woodshed. "The original owner was old and frail, and had a granddaughter to take care of, so he would accumulate firewood and sell it to passing firewood collectors."

"If you tell me this, you're either just making things up, or you've already killed the original owner and are using their courtyard as a disguise to ambush us."

Li Yunxiu looked at the old woodcutter and said, "One question might be a coincidence, two questions might be an accident, but three questions are definitely not a coincidence, especially since the child brought over sugar water that could mask the sweetness of the poison."

The three slender, white fingers, which Wang Yu found exquisite and beautiful, resembled the fangs of a demon to the old woodcutter.

The old woodcutter's face twitched, and he finally sighed, "As expected of the world-renowned female scholar, I deserve to die. I only beg the female scholar to spare my little grandson. I promise he will leave the martial world and never dare to offend me again."

Li Yunxiu said calmly, "Since he really is your grandson, you shouldn't have brought him into the martial world."

As soon as she finished speaking, Li Yunxiu poured a bowl of sweet water into the old woodcutter's mouth, then waved to Ziling.

Seeing this, Zi Ling took the last bowl of sugar water and poured it into the child's mouth.

"Li Yunxiu! You will die a horrible death!" the old woodcutter hissed.

Li Yunxiu did not answer, but casually pressed the old woodcutter's acupoint to silence him, watching as the faces of the grandfather and grandson began to turn bluish-black, and finally blood spilled from the corners of their mouths, and they ceased to live.

Wang Yu was not pretending to be a saint; he had already begun to get used to this world and to death.

Zi Ling couldn't help but ask, "The original owner of this courtyard..."

Li Yunxiu sighed, "He doesn't have much time to prepare. Let's look around the neighborhood, hopefully..."

"No need to look anymore, it's in the cellar behind the main house," a voice suddenly said. "And don't even bother hoping, the grandfather and grandson are both dead."

Li Yunxiu and Wang Yu suddenly turned their heads and saw a man in black standing under a tree on the side of the main house.

Wang Yu was speechless. "One after another, and who are you?"

"The one who killed you." The man in black spoke directly, "I didn't dare to fight against the Twin Swords of the South Sea, and after seeing Old Man Yan make a move, I was ready to give up. I never expected that Old Man Su could poison him."

"Without Old Man Yan, and only a female top scholar, I'm still pretty confident," the man in black chuckled.

Li Yunxiu's expression finally changed.

The black-clad man's silent appearance indicated that he was no weakling in martial arts. At this time, Elder Yan was already dead, and the Imperial Guards, including Song Yong, had low martial arts skills. Only he himself could withstand this black-clad man.

The man in black looked Li Yunxiu up and down, his eyes revealing an expression of admiration, but the lewdness hidden in that admiration was impossible for Li Yunxiu to hide.

Li Yunxiu trembled slightly and couldn't help but take a small step back, but still stood in front of Wang Yu. "We don't know how much the bounty is for killing my husband, but we are willing to pay you two times, no, three times. Please, sir, show mercy."

"Without Old Man Yan, can the top female scholar no longer be confident?"

The man in black chuckled coldly, slowly approaching and drawing his long sword from his waist. "I'm not short of money, but if the female scholar is willing to spend a night with me, I wouldn't mind letting your incompetent husband go."

"Isn't that right? The arrogant Prince of Zhenxi who was so domineering when his father was alive, but fell silent after his father's passing?" The man in black looked at Wang Yu and teased, "Where did your imposing manner from the capital go?"

"My husband..."

Before Li Yunxiu could finish speaking, Wang Yu had already pushed her away.

"I never thought that even a nobody who wasn't even allowed to toast me before would dare to bark at me like that."

Suddenly, a piece of firewood appeared in Wang Yu's hand, which he was playing with.

He didn't know if Li Yunxiu was genuinely panicked or deliberately feigning weakness, but since the man in black had mentioned him, he shouldn't continue to cower in the back given his public image.

If one's persona is ruined, both the man in black in front of them and the guards at the door will begin to suspect that they may have been exposed.

I'm going to become the King of Zhenxi and enjoy life!

Moreover, Wang Yu had witnessed the martial arts of Elder Yan and the Twin Swords of the South China Sea, and now he also possessed a small amount of internal energy. He had expectations in mind and had made some preparations.

Wang Yu, holding a bundle of firewood in his right hand and his left hand hanging naturally, half-hidden in his sleeve, strolled forward and said, "You use a sword?"

The man in black stared at the firewood in Wang Yu's hand, both amused and annoyed. "You're not planning to use this firewood as a sword, are you?"

"Since you have this question, it means you don't understand swords." Wang Yu held the firewood across his chest, his expression calm. "Relying on the sharpness of the sword and its edge is merely the most basic way to use a sword."

The man in black narrowed his eyes slightly. The other party's father was a Grandmaster of the Innate Realm. Although his reputation as a playboy was well-known in the capital and his martial arts skills were said to be average, he rarely made a move, and no one knew his true strength.

Although judging from his performance along the way, he was probably not as good as Li Yunxiu, the man in black hesitated because of his calm and composed demeanor.

Moreover, the other party's father is a Grandmaster of the Innate Realm, who must have unique insights into martial arts. Since the other party wants to talk, I don't mind listening, and I can also test him out.

"What other uses does that sword have?" the man in black asked.

"Curve and straight as you please, adapt to the curve and stretch accordingly." Wang Yu said calmly, "You can start with a soft sword. Only when you can reach the point where the sword is your hand and your hand is your sword can you be considered to have achieved this stage and can move on to the next stage."

The man in black tightened his grip on his sword. He hadn't reached that stage yet, and besides...

"Is there a next stage?"

"A heavy sword has no edge, and great skill is without artifice." Wang Yu casually waved the firewood in his hand. "As the saying goes, softness cannot be maintained and hardness cannot last long. Therefore, after practicing the soft sword, one must practice the heavy sword. When the heavy sword is practiced to the point that it is as easy as one's own arm, this stage is considered complete, and one can glimpse the highest realm of swordsmanship."

The man in black's gaze was extremely solemn. He felt that Wang Yu's ability to express such profound truths in two simple sentences was indeed worthy of the legacy of a Grandmaster of the Innate Realm. Hearing Wang Yu speak at the most brilliant point, he couldn't help but ask, "What is the highest realm of swordsmanship?"

"Nature itself, including grass, trees, bamboo, and rocks, can all be used as swords."

Wang Yu raised the firewood in his hand, "With this mere firewood, I can demonstrate both the flexibility and agility of a soft sword, as well as the effortless skill of a heavy sword. Only then can I say that my sword is complete."

The man in black stared at the firewood in Wang Yu's hand, a glint of longing flashing in his eyes. He then immediately realized what was happening and said sarcastically, "You're not trying to say that you've reached the point where grass, trees, bamboo, and stones can all be used as swords, are you?"

"Of course not," Wang Yu said calmly with a smile. "I'm just holding this piece of firewood to make a show of it."

Wang Yu was smiling, but the man in black was not.

He didn't know whether Wang Yu was bluffing or playing a trick of feigning strength. Even if Wang Yu hadn't reached the point where grass, trees, bamboo, and rocks could all be used as swords, as long as he reached the point where he could bend and straighten at will, and stretch and bend with ease, he would definitely not be his match.

As for the essence of swordsmanship, he didn't even consider the possibility of mastering it.

If Wang Yu were to become a master of the Innate Realm, why would he waste words with me? He could simply stab me to death with a stick.

"Didn't you want to kill me and sleep with my wife?" Wang Yu toyed with the firewood in his hand. "Come on, try stabbing me with your sword. Maybe I'll die with one stab."

The man in black had already stopped in his tracks, his hand gripping the longsword was sweating, and for a moment he didn't know whether to advance or retreat.

He suddenly regretted why he had been so confident and arrogant in revealing himself. It would have been better if he had hidden himself and launched a sneak attack.

But if he launched a sneak attack, he wouldn't be able to hear such profound swordsmanship theories.

Li Yunxiu also looked at Wang Yu in surprise. She had several golden needles hidden in her hand. She took two steps to the side, revealing half of her body, ready to strike at any time, but her face still showed a weak and pitiful expression.

"If you don't come, I'm going to go over there." Wang Yu smiled and walked towards the man in black.

The man in black glanced at Li Yunxiu, who seemed hesitant to step forward, and a thought struck him. He immediately raised his sword, gathered his inner strength at the tip, and flicked at the firewood in Wang Yu's hand.

"Sizzle—"

When the longsword touched the firewood, to the man's surprise, the firewood was not imbued with any internal energy. It shattered into dust the moment it was touched by the longsword, which he had infused with internal energy.

The man in black was stunned.

He considered all sorts of possibilities, even the idea that Wang Yu was really powerful enough to make him abandon his sword and flee, but he never imagined that Wang Yu was so weak that he had almost no internal energy.

Even if you are weak, as the son of a Grandmaster of the Innate Realm, you shouldn't be this weak. Didn't you seriously injure Liu, the Commander of the Capital Guard?

The man in black nearly lost his strength and looked at Wang Yu in surprise. Then he saw Wang Yu raise his left hand, which had been hanging down naturally, and a gust of wind condensed from his internal energy blew the flying dust into his face.

The two were too close at the moment, and the man in black was almost entirely focused on the firewood in Wang Yu's hand. He had no time to react and was blown all over his face by the flying ash, which went into his eyes.