Wandering Swordsman |

"Your Majesty the Divine Emperor." Oda knelt on one knee, his voice low and respectful, yet unable to conceal the sharpness in his bones. "The main force of the Southwest Righteous Alliance has firmly tied down the Martial Alliance's westward-deployed troops. I left Wei Honglian and Situ Changkong to oversee the operations, ensuring that their main force cannot return to provide reinforcements. This gave me the opportunity to personally lead the elite 'Special Assault Battalion' to travel day and night to provide support."

He slowly raised his head, his eyes flashing with a sharp light, like a cold star falling to earth: "Tomorrow morning, if we launch a direct assault! The Martial Alliance is outwardly strong but inwardly weak, with no reinforcements within. If we catch them off guard and break through the city in one fell swoop, the Central Plains martial arts world can be secured!"

Jianzhen slowly opened her eyes.

In that instant, the tent seemed to fall into complete silence.

His eyes held no sorrow, no joy, no anger, no resentment, only the deep pool of an ancient well, reflecting no emotion whatsoever, yet sending chills down one's spine, as if falling into an ice cave.

He did not answer, but only slightly turned his head, as if gesturing for someone else to speak.

From the shadows beside the tent, a figure emerged slowly—it was Toyotomi, leader of the "Kamikaze" (divine wind) unit. He stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sharp as a knife, sweeping over Oda, a soft laugh escaping his lips, his tone gentle as jade, yet every word dripping with venom:

"Oda, you're too late." His voice wasn't loud, but it was as sharp as an ice pick. "The Emperor has already adopted the Huangfu family's plan."

Oda frowned, a sinister glint in his eyes. Suppressing the surging doubts in his heart, he asked in a deep voice, "What plan is it?"

Toyotomi stopped looking at him, and said in a leisurely, almost mocking tone, "You'll know tomorrow..."

Before he finished speaking, he had already turned and retreated to the side of the tent, as if he had never been there.

Oda knelt on the spot, his fingertips clenching slightly, his nails almost digging into his palms. He looked at Jianzhen, who had already closed his eyes again, his prayer beads turning gently, as if all the things in the world were insignificant.

......

As dawn broke, the morning light, like blood, stained the city walls of Nanjing red.

The standoff continued throughout the night. Banners fluttered in the enemy camp below the city, and the murderous aura lingered. Meanwhile, the martial arts alliance disciples on the city walls were already exhausted, but they still maintained their fighting spirit, their eyes fixed intently on the city below.

Just then, a figure slowly emerged and stopped directly beneath the city gate. He wore a white and gold patterned robe, the hem fluttering lightly in the cold wind. His face was so handsome it was almost otherworldly, but his eyes were like a bottomless, icy pool—it was none other than the Japanese "God Emperor" Kenjin.

Oda followed closely behind, his gaze sweeping across the city tower like a hawk's, and soon locked onto the figure standing with his hands behind his back, dressed in black as iron—Situ Dengfeng.

Situ Dengfeng also looked down at the city below, his gaze falling on Jianzhen, but his brows involuntarily furrowed slightly.

The leader of the overseas heretical cultivators... is so young?

His heart was filled with surprise and doubt. As the leader of the martial arts alliance, he had seen countless people, including heroes of the martial arts world and reclusive masters.

But the person in front of him, who looked to be only in his early twenties, had no internal energy leaking out at all, and not even a slight fluctuation of his aura could be detected—not that there was none, but that he was too unfathomable, and even he, the leading figure in the Central Plains, could not fathom his depth!

"If this child had been born in the Central Plains, he would surely be a once-in-a-century genius in our martial arts world!" Situ Dengfeng felt a pang of regret, but it was quickly suppressed by his anger: Unfortunately, he is an evil cultivator from Japan, a jackal who has come to destroy the martial arts world of the Central Plains!

However, Situ Dengfeng was unaware that Shen Mo, who had once stood in the courtyard and had his inner strength tested by him, had already surpassed the level of Jianzhen. It was just that Shen Mo kept a low profile, so even someone like Situ Dengfeng only regarded him as a "rising star with extraordinary talent," unaware that Shen Mo had already stood at the pinnacle of martial arts, looking down upon all living beings.

At this moment, Jianzhen slowly raised his head, his gaze sharp as a knife, sweeping over the crowd on the city wall, and finally landing on the Huangfu family elder beside Situ Dengfeng, who was wearing a gray-blue robe and had a calm expression.

Their eyes met, but only for a moment.

Jianzhen's lips twitched slightly upwards, a smile as fleeting as the cracking of thin ice, yet enough to ignite a secret smugness in Elder Huangfu's eyes. The secret message had been delivered, the plan was complete, and today was the day the Huangfu family would rise to power.

Immediately, Jianzhen took a deep breath, and the internal energy in his dantian surged like a river, creating a powerful sound. It wasn't a roar, but a clear, resonant sound like a bell, as clear as chanting, yet carrying an irresistible pressure that echoed throughout the entire city of Nanjing.

"Heroes of the Central Plains martial arts world, listen to what I have to say."

The sound was like an invisible giant wave, shaking the banners on the city walls so that they fluttered loudly, and even causing the snow on the eaves of distant houses to slide down in a soft rustling sound.

"I, the Divine Emperor Jianzhen, have no intention of staining the Central Plains with blood, nor do I wish to see the people suffer."

He paused, his gaze slowly shifting to the elegant figure in white beside Situ Dengfeng—Situ Meng. Jianzhen's voice suddenly softened, like a spring breeze caressing willows, yet every word was like poison:

"I have long heard of the most beautiful woman in the Central Plains—Miss Situ Meng, whose beauty is unparalleled, whose temperament is gentle, and whose talent and virtue are both outstanding, making her famous throughout the martial arts world. If I could marry her, I would be united with Alliance Leader Situ, jointly ruling the martial arts world and governing the Jianghu together. Why would we need to fight and cause unnecessary casualties?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire city fell silent.

On the city wall, countless disciples looked at each other, some with glaring eyes, others with wavering expressions; below the city wall, overseas martial artists chuckled in unison, their eyes filled with mockery and anticipation.

This is hardly a marriage proposal; it's clearly using the guise of a beautiful woman to commit humiliation!

Each word was like a needle, piercing the most sensitive string of dignity in the hearts of everyone in the Martial Arts Alliance.

Those seemingly gentle words were actually laced with poison, testing Situ Dengfeng's bottom line while simultaneously pushing Situ Meng onto the altar in front of everyone—if she agreed, the alliance leader would lose face and the righteous path would be disgraced; if she refused, she would appear "unwise" and give others ammunition to criticize her.

What's even more alarming is that Jianzhen was able to use his internal energy to amplify his voice and spread it throughout the entire city of Nanjing!

The sound was not a roar, but rather like a celestial bell falling from the heavens, clear, steady, and reaching far and wide. The people in the streets and alleys turned pale upon hearing it, the snow piled on the eaves was shaken off, and even the withered trees three miles outside the city seemed to tremble slightly.

On the city wall, Mr. Wang, the headmaster of the Elite Academy, stood beside the crenellations, his plain robe fluttering in the wind, his brows furrowed. He stared at the young Japanese man before him. Though barely twenty, he could command the entire city with his voice—such a level of skill transcended the label of "master," he had likely already glimpsed the realm of the celestial! His heart churned, his eyes filled with a mixture of astonishment and disbelief: he never imagined that such a figure existed among the martial artists overseas!

Situ Dengfeng stood in the center of the city tower, his face ashen like cold iron, his eyes burning with long-suppressed rage.

He didn't utter a single word, yet his resolve was more profound than a thousand words.

He strode toward the weapon rack and drew out an unsharpened ceremonial sword—a heavy, black sword originally used for the alliance's ceremonial procession.

He gripped the sword with both hands, his inner energy surging like a volcano, his bones and muscles throbbing, his robes fluttering even without wind. The next instant, he roared and hurled the sword like a meteor!

"Buzz—!"

The sword's cry tore through the sky, carrying the force of a thunderbolt, and went straight for Jianzhen's heart!

This throw is not for killing the enemy, but to speak with the sword—this is the answer from the martial arts alliance! We would rather die than be dishonored, we would rather fight than surrender!

The entire city held its breath, all eyes were on them.

However, Jianzhen stood still, without moving an inch. He didn't even raise his eyes, but slowly extended his right index finger when the sword was three inches from his chest.

"bite--"

With a clear, jade-like sound, the heavy sword, which had been moving with the force of a thunderbolt, was steadily stopped by his finger and suspended in mid-air. The sword vibrated and hummed, but could not advance any further!