I became a prince in a martial arts world.

Chapter 83 A Little Interlude and the Blooming of the Snow Lotus

Above us, the sky was filled with a dazzling array of stars, and all around us were boundless snow-covered mountains and rivers.

The group lit a bonfire and sat around it. Xin Yilong was cooking a lamb leg over the bonfire.

Wang Yu did not take away all the prey that the snow leopard had risked its life to capture; he only cut off the argali sheep's four legs and then returned the torso to the snow leopard.

"I saved your life, so I'll give you half of my prey. That's reasonable, isn't it?" Wang Yu said to the snow leopard.

The snow leopard didn't answer, dragging half a argali sheep away, huffing and puffing. Wang Yu waved to it from afar, "Since you're not saying anything, I'll take that as a yes!"

Alde, holding Li Yunxiu's hand, laughed so hard she bent over, "I never knew his personality was so interesting!"

Li Yunxiu glanced at Wang Yu, "Sometimes I don't know what he's thinking either."

Qianqian said with a grin, "Because Brother Yu is kind!"

Li Yunxiu couldn't help but glance at Qianqian sideways. She didn't know how to describe the demonic cult woman praising someone else's kindness.

Xin Yilong, having spent a long time outside the Great Wall, carried a small knife and salt with him. He skillfully bled and removed the hair from the lamb legs, skinned them, and marinated them. Then he skewered them with tree branches and roasted them over the campfire. Everyone sat on the ground, chatting and roasting over the campfire.

Alde chattered on and on about life in the Baiqiang tribe, her words filled with the vividness and beauty of the grasslands in spring and summer, the gentleness and cuteness of the animals, and the warmth and kindness of the herdsmen.

In her tone, it seemed as if the whole world was sunny and bright.

Alde knew of the Black Qiang's ambitions, the terror of the White Plague on the grasslands, and the unscrupulous merchants from the Central Plains heading north, but she chose to face the sunlight.

Li Yunxiu was also infected by her, and with a smile, she told a few interesting stories about the Central Plains, all of which were about cracking down on corrupt officials and punishing local bullies.

Fang Shaobai, Xin Yilong, and even Leng Jiangzhu shared some interesting stories about their chivalrous deeds.

Not long after, Xin Yilong finished roasting the lamb leg and cut it off with a knife to distribute to everyone.

Fang Shaobai laughed and said, "It seems Brother Xin is not planning to go back either."

Xin Yilong laughed heartily, "How could I possibly take advantage of Junior Sister Leng!"

The new generation of disciples of the Tianshan Sect was led by Xin Yilong. At this time, he had not yet traveled to the Central Plains, but he had already made a name for himself as the Divine Dragon of Tianshan outside Yumen Pass. He and his three junior brothers were known as the Three Steeds of One Dragon, and were the outstanding figures of the Tianshan Sect in this generation.

The disciples of the seven major sword sects in the Central Plains had been secretly probing each other in the days leading up to the trip up the mountain.

Leaving aside the other four who are of the acquired level, they may be from prestigious families and could put up a fight against some unorthodox masters or those who accidentally advanced to the innate level, but they would definitely be no match for Xin Yilong, who inherited the Sword Demon lineage.

Xin Yilong was quite certain that he couldn't beat Fang Shaobai, his internal strength was slightly inferior to Liu Wuchen's, but slightly better than Leng Jiangzhu's, and he should be about equal to these two.

Now, Leng Jiangzhu is going to spend the night with Sun Wenzhu in the wild waiting for the snow lotus to bloom. Xin Yilong, a proud man from the Northwest, is unwilling and disdainful of taking advantage of this situation.

"Good!" Fang Shaobai exclaimed and drank the wine in the bowl in one gulp.

Xin Yilong glared at him and said urgently, "I think you just want an excuse to drink. We didn't bring much alcohol tonight, so save some for me!"

Everyone laughed.

Fang Shaobai clicked his tongue and explained, "You've wronged me. Ever since I discussed wine with Brother Zhao, I've become very particular about what I drink. I won't drink if the taste isn't right, if the wine vessel isn't suitable, or if my mood isn't right."

"With good friends around, I'm in the right mood!" Fang Shaobai poured himself another drink.

Xin Yilong snatched the sheepskin bag and poured himself half a bowl. "Not much left, not much left. Be careful, be careful."

Wang Yu laughed and said, "Brother Xin, show some of the straightforwardness of a man from the Northwest."

Xin Yilong took a sip of wine. "Without wine, people are shivering from the cold. How can anyone be hearty and cheerful?"

Everyone burst into laughter again.

Alde nodded understandingly, "It was indeed freezing cold during the White Disaster. Inside the tent, we could burn cow dung, but when we were out and about, we relied on burning liquor and mare's milk to keep warm."

The group chatted for a while longer, and even Sun Wenzhu was infected by Alde's enthusiasm, occasionally revealing a smile.

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None of them felt sleepy, and they chatted from the previous night until the next morning. A sliver of sunlight gradually appeared on the eastern horizon, illuminating the nearby cliffs and the snow lotus buds on the cliff face.

Sun Wenzhu looked up. "It's about to bloom."

The Tianshan snow lotus can sense the first ray of sunlight between heaven and earth, and it will bloom under the illumination of this sunlight.

Just then, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly rang out, approaching from afar and soon arriving not far from the group. The other party had obviously also seen the Tianshan snow lotus blooming under the sunlight.

"Snow lotus from the Tianshan Mountains?"

"It is indeed a Tian Shan snow lotus, and what good fortune is that it is a Tian Shan snow lotus in full bloom!"

"I just bought a warhorse and came to Tianshan to try my luck. I didn't expect to be so lucky; I just witnessed the snow lotus blooming?"

"Hahaha, this shows that our Red Lotus Sect is blessed by Heaven, and Heaven has foretold that our wishes will come true!"

The sound carried by the cold wind reached everyone's ears as three fast horses arrived together.

"There are people at the bottom of the cliff!"

At this moment, the sunlight shone down, and the sky was clear. The other party naturally noticed the group of people below the cliff, as well as the extinguished campfire, the two tents, and the horses not far away.

"It seems they've been waiting here since last night?" The man in blue on the left frowned.

"If someone wants it, someone wants it. The Tian Shan Snow Lotus is ownerless; it belongs to the virtuous. There's no rule about who comes first!"

The man in red on the right laughed.

"They might be from the Tianshan Sect," the man in blue warned. "The Tianshan Sect is located on Lingxiao Peak in the east."

"What is the Tianshan Sect?" the man in red snorted. "Many people have found Tianshan Snow Lotus near the Tianshan Sect. How could they possibly manage them all? Besides, they don't even know who we are. We'll just take the Tianshan Snow Lotus and leave. Where are they going to find us?"

The green-clad man in the center glanced at the crowd and, seeing that they were all young people, paid them no mind. "No need to get entangled with them. Take the snow lotus and leave. Go back and present it to the World Honored One."

The man in red nodded, then suddenly leaped from his horse and charged towards the group, a long sword flashing in his hand. "My third brother and I will hold them off. Eldest brother, you go and get the snow lotus!"

Hearing his elder brother's instructions, the man in blue, though still somewhat worried, stopped thinking about it and drew his long sword to follow the man in red.

Although they were very confident, the group of young people in front of them were carrying weapons, and as seasoned veterans, they would not be careless.

Then they saw the young people's gazes, some indifferent, some curious, some teasing, and some pitying.

Fang Shaobai hefted the sheepskin bag, which was now empty of wine, and asked with a smile, "Who's coming?"

Xin Yilong chuckled, "Of course I'll do it!"

The group possessed exceptional martial arts skills and, following the wind, clearly heard what the other party was saying. Their words showed disrespect for the Tianshan Sect, and Xin Yilong, being not only a disciple of Tianshan but also the host, naturally had no choice but to take responsibility.

The next moment, the man in red and the man in blue flew over, while the man in green ignored everything and headed straight for the cliff closest to the snow lotus.

Then they heard a sharp, clear sword sound.

"choke--"

Xin Yilong's internal energy surged, and as he drew his longsword, it collided repeatedly with the scabbard, producing a clear and lasting sword cry that penetrated directly into the minds of the three opponents, maximizing its intimidating power.

The man in red and the man in blue were startled. They saw Xin Yilong stop in his tracks, his long sword flashing, stirring up thousands of snowflakes, sweeping over like a snow dragon.

Before anyone even arrived, an endless chill emanated from the air, as if a divine dragon had opened its massive jaws.

The man in green, still on horseback, exclaimed in horror, "A master of the Innate Realm!"

The pupils of the men in red and blue shrank sharply, and before they could even launch an attack, they immediately retreated to protect themselves.

Xin Yilong sneered, his longsword sweeping like a blizzard, the endless snow and wind resembling boundless sword light, almost blinding the two men.

The two of them thought to themselves, "Our lives are over!"

"Please show mercy!" the man in green shouted, leaping off his horse and flashing his longsword, narrowly catching Xin Yilong's blizzard attack.

The man in green grunted, already injured in a single move. The men in red and blue followed up with a sword and a saber, respectively. With the combined strength of the three, they barely managed to stop Xin Yilong.

"Are you a swordsman from the Tianshan Sect?" The man in green, not having time to catch his breath, hurriedly shouted, "This is a misunderstanding. Please stop and allow me to explain."

"I heard it clearly, what misunderstanding!" Xin Yilong's eyes widened, and the long sword in his hand became faster and faster, like a blizzard swirling around the three of them, actually surrounding all three of them by himself.

Fang Shaobai praised, "The Seventy-Two Styles of Wind and Snow are swift, fierce, and unpredictable. Back then, the Sword Demon used them to fight against the seven major sword sects. They are indeed the best sword techniques in the world."

The three opponents were all top-notch experts, which was why they were able to fight three against one and temporarily block Xin Yilong's swordsmanship, but they obviously couldn't withstand more than a few moves.

"what!"

The man in red had the crudest swordsmanship and spoke disrespectfully to the Tianshan Sect. Xin Yilong had been watching him closely. With a slash of his longsword, he opened a deep gash on the man's arm, exposing the bone. The man in red cried out in pain, and his longsword slipped from his hand.

"Ding! Ding!"

With two soft sounds, the longswords of the blue-clad and green-clad men were knocked away one after another. Standing next to the red-clad man, their faces were pale and their hands trembled slightly. It was unclear whether they were frozen by Xin Yilong's internal force or shaken by the knocked-away swords.

Xin Yilong chuckled coldly, "Now you know what the Tianshan Sect is?"

The man in green trembled as he cupped his hands in greeting, "I understand—I understand. Second brother, you spoke without thinking. Thank you for your mercy."

The man in blue trembled, and he also wanted to cup his hands in greeting, but his movements were much slower than the man in green. Then he heard the man in red beside him making a "crunching" sound. When he turned around, he found that his second brother's face was as pale as paper and his lips had turned blue.

The Heavenly Mountain Divine Skill is terrifyingly powerful!

The man in blue was terrified. He reached out and pulled the man in red closer, quickly sending a surge of internal energy into him to help him expel the cold.

Xin Yilong sneered. Of the three, only the man in green was skilled. The man in red, after being slashed by his sword, couldn't withstand the Jade Snow True Qi that followed. He would inevitably fall seriously ill when he returned.

He didn't bother to ask the three men their origins or names, simply sheathing his sword and casually waving his hand. "You're all over fifty years old, and you don't even understand the principle of 'the devil is in the details'? Get lost!"

The man in green felt as if he had been granted a pardon. He pulled the men in blue and red aside and turned to leave. When they reached their mounts, he and the man in blue helped the man in red onto the horse. Then they mounted their horses and galloped away.

After the brief incident, everyone turned around and saw that the Tian Shan snow lotus on the cliff had already bloomed in full glory under the sunlight, and the lotus leaves closest to the pistil had also opened.

Sun Wenzhu leaped up and climbed upwards.

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