Wandering Sword Seller's Life in the Qin Dynasty

What I saw in anime in my past life doesn't count.

The copper box, though small, felt quite heavy, and I wondered what was hidden inside.

Xu Qing tried to open the lid of the box, but found it difficult to open.

The entire box appears to have been cast in one piece, with no clear gaps between the lid and the body.

He tried to inject his inner force into the box, but to no avail. The box was made of a very special material; it looked like bronze, but it was not. It could block the intrusion of any foreign force.

"I wonder if it can be destroyed!"

Xu Qing couldn't help but think about it again.

"If we destroy it, will the contents inside also be destroyed?"

After this idea came to him, he immediately began to try it out.

Under Jing Ni's gaze, a deep blue light appeared on Xu Qing's empty palm. The light swayed like flames, and even just looking at it, Jing Ni felt a terrifying destructive power emanating from it.

Immediately afterwards, Xu Qing flipped his palm, and the blue flame condensed into a ball, landing on the bronze box.

Surprisingly.

The power landed on the bronze box, as if it had been absorbed by something.

The blue flames disappeared, but the bronze box remained unharmed.

"It seems that it will be difficult to open the copper box by force," Xu Qing couldn't help but sigh.

Hearing Xu Qing's sigh, Jing Ni also spoke up: "The legend of this object has been circulating throughout the world for thousands of years, passing through the hands of countless people. Yet, very few have been able to decipher its secrets. During this time, many have probably tried to crack the bronze box using brute force, but to no avail!"

Jingni was deeply moved when she said these words.

The power contained in Xu Qing's previous attack was self-evident, yet it couldn't even leave a mark on the bronze box.

This shows that the sturdiness of the bronze box is beyond imagination.

I wonder what's hidden inside this bronze box.

After further inspection of the copper box, they discovered that conventional methods were simply ineffective in opening it.

If it were a matter of Yin-Yang magic, it would be even more impossible to open the bronze box.

If it were truly possible to open it using Yin-Yang techniques, the Yin-Yang School in the original work would have already deciphered the secret of the Azure Dragon Seven Mansions, and wouldn't have needed to go to such lengths to find the Illusionary Sound Box.

Thinking of this, Xu Qing flipped his palm, and the copper box instantly disappeared.

Seeing Xu Qing's ability to conceal objects out of thin air once again, Jing Ni was filled with admiration.

Then Xu Qing walked up to Guo Kai and asked him, "How did you get this bronze box?"

Because of Xu Qing's illusions, Guo Kai's mind was completely manipulated by Xu Qing, who could answer any question he asked.

"I exchanged it from the royal palace..."

Guo Kai spoke in a flat, emotionless voice, as he recounted the origins of the bronze box.

The legend of the Azure Dragon's Seven Mansions is known to many.

Guo Kai was naturally aware of this legend.

Furthermore, according to legend, the once weak state of Zheng became powerful only after unlocking the secret of the Azure Dragon Seven Mansions. This suggests that it is possible that the Azure Dragon Seven Mansions do not necessarily require collecting all seven bronze boxes to unlock their secrets.

Perhaps a simple copper box would also suffice.

Guo Kai was an extremely greedy man. Before the King of Zhao died and Zhao Qian succeeded to the throne, he immediately had his eye on this thing.

Thanks to his relationship with Zhao Qian, he successfully saw the bronze box hidden in the Zhao state. Then, a deeper ambition grew, and he developed a lust for the Azure Dragon Seven Mansions. So, he had someone forge a fake bronze box, and then, when the opportunity arose, he replaced it.

This is why the bronze box ended up in Guo Kai's hands.

"The process of obtaining the copper box sounds easy, but upon closer inspection, you're quite something!"

After Guo Kai finished speaking, Xu Qing looked at the person in front of him and sighed again.

The bronze box containing the Azure Dragon Seven Mansions was passed down through generations of the Zhao royal family. As the inheritor of this object, Zhao Qian must have studied it frequently. In other words, Zhao Qian was absolutely familiar with many details of the Azure Dragon Seven Mansions bronze box.

However, Guo Kai was able to order someone to make a copy, and most importantly, Zhao Qian did not notice anything amiss with the copied bronze box.

This suggests that Guo Kai may have already brought out the genuine article before this.

The subsequent replacements were simply returning the fakes as if they were real.

Thinking of this, Xu Qing asked Guo Kai a few more questions.

Just as he suspected, that was indeed the case.

Zhao Qian trusted Guo Kai far too much. He wanted to unravel the secret of the Azure Dragon Seven Mansions, but he felt that his own wisdom was insufficient. In Zhao Qian's mind, Prime Minister Guo Kai was the first-rate sage of Zhao. Usually, Zhao Qian relied on Guo Kai to give him advice and make decisions on matters big and small.

Therefore, regarding the matter of the Seven Mansions of the Azure Dragon, he also chose to have Guo Kai help him comprehend the Seven Mansions of the Azure Dragon.

This also gave Guo Kai the opportunity to have his men replicate the copper box.

"Zhao Qian really trusts you!"

"So it seems you still have some value..."

Xu Qing said calmly.

This time, although they plundered the wealth of Guo Kai's mansion.

However, the treasures in Guo Kai's mansion were only a part of the many treasures in Handan City; another part was hidden in the palace.

The royal palace of Zhao was different from that of Han. The royal palace of Han was expanded from the former cold palace of Zheng, so it had many flaws and unknown secret passages that led directly to the royal palace.

The state of Zhao was different.

Handan is a city that has existed for quite some time.

The kings of Zhao continuously renovated the palace, making it a formidable fortress.

Of course, if Xu Qing were allowed to explore slowly, he could still find a way to enter the palace.

But why go through all that trouble?

Now that Guo Kai has been manipulated by illusion, we can simply have Guo Kai take him into the palace.

……

The turmoil at Guo Kai's residence continues.

The atmosphere throughout the manor was incredibly solemn.

Until the lost treasures are found, everyone in the manor must be searched, and entry is permitted but exit is not.

Of course, this has nothing to do with Xu Qing and Jing Ni, because after coming into contact with Guo Kai, he had already become Guo Kai's confidant in a very short period of time.

Of course, this method of forcibly manipulating Guo Kai will inevitably reveal its flaws if it goes on for too long.

So, not long after that, Guo Kai left the mansion and headed back to the palace.

The closure of the manor cannot isolate Guo Kai, the person involved.

Xu Qing and Jing Ni also took this opportunity to leave the manor with Guo Kai and successfully infiltrate the palace.

The next part of the process was simply Xu Qing wandering around the palace.

In a short period of time, he visited the royal treasury.

Naturally, some of the treasures hidden there all fell into his hands.

The loss of treasures cannot be hidden.

Before long, the royal palace was also plunged into chaos.

Upon realizing what had happened, Zhao Qian's first thought was of his own safety.

If the royal treasury was robbed, and the thieves could steal these treasures silently, they could also take his life.

This matter must be investigated.

After becoming panicked, Zhao Qian immediately informed Guo Kai about the matter.

At this moment, Guo Kai regained consciousness.

It's simply because Xu Qing and Jing Ni have already left.

Naturally, before leaving, Xu Qing used violence to erase part of Guo Kai's memory.

Guo Kai also developed headaches as a result. He thought it was because he was anxious about the loss of his treasures and that this headache was caused by his anxiety. Little did he know that this headache would accompany him forever because Xu Qing had erased his memories and damaged his soul.

However, Guo Kai had no time to worry about his headache. After learning that the palace had also been burglarized, he immediately thought of the theft at his own residence.

He thought that by sealing off the mansion immediately, he had imprisoned the thieves inside.

By simply investigating everyone in the manor, the mastermind behind it all can be found naturally.

But now he realizes that the bandits have probably already fled his manor.

They even secretly sneaked into the palace and looted it.

These are no ordinary bandits.

Only the most skilled thieves in the world can accomplish such a feat.

Guo Kai immediately had potential candidates selected.

"Could this be the work of Zhuang Qiao?"

Guo Kai's retainers were a diverse group of people. Some were ignorant and incompetent, gaining Guo Kai's trust through theft and deception, while others were truly talented and learned. Because of their complicated backgrounds, they also knew many secrets.

Immediately, someone came up with the first suspect.

The Xunzi (a Chinese classic) records that "when Zhuang Qiao rose up, Chu was divided into three or four states." This man initially launched a rebellion within the territory of Chu. Due to the large scale of his activities and the impact on the rule of Chu, he was regarded as a "great bandit" by the King of Chu.

"No, that's not right, it shouldn't be Zhuang Qiao."

Another person raised an objection: "Zhuang Qiao was a figure from many years ago. Even if he is not dead, he is an old man. This method of stealing things quietly without leaving a trace and without alerting the guards seems more like the work of someone else."

"Who?"

"Have you ever heard of the King of Thieves?"

"The King of Thieves? The one known as Robber Zhi?" There is no doubt that someone has heard of the title "King of Thieves." If no one had heard of it, such a title could not have spread throughout the world.

"Dao Zhi was a notorious thief during the Spring and Autumn Period. This king of thieves used the other's name but only did petty theft, which is truly despicable. However, it must be said that his ability to steal is indeed first-rate, which is why he has such a reputation."

"This person had previously appeared in the border area of ​​our Zhao state; his methods were truly unpredictable and elusive..."