41: Chapter 41: Is General Ling Luoshi truly dead?

"The Yi family of the Famous Sword Manor possesses a sword-control technique called 'Eight Swords Soaring Together,' rated as a Heaven Rank Martial Skill. I wonder what kind of sight that must be!"

Zhao Fang controlled the sword again, flying it over a dozen zhang away to wash in a small stream.

This soft sword had been inside the venomous python's belly for a long time, soaked in its poisonous blood, and naturally carried potent toxins.

Although Zhao Fang currently had no fear of snake venom, the foul, fishy smell clinging to the sword was still an unpleasant thought.

As he was cleaning the sword, the Golden-Crested Immortal Crane circled and descended.

"little crane, open wide!"

Zhao Fang took out two bottles of lesser reverting pills, crushed the porcelain vials, and the Medicinal Pills inside flew out one by one, landing in the crane's mouth.

"Coo, coo..."

In the distance, the Divine Eagle, who was picking at the snake corpse and preparing to eat the snake gall to heal its wounds, saw this scene. Glancing at its own snake gall, it suddenly felt a bit shabby.

Both are birds, yet one gets Medicinal Pills, while the other eats... this? No comparison, no pain.

Its eyes shifted, and it scurried over in a flash.

Its running posture, with its head bobbing and peering around, was somewhat comical. Upon drawing near, it placed the snake gall before Zhao Fang as if presenting a treasure.

"Coo, coo!"

"You want to trade the snake gall for lesser reverting pills?"

"Coo, coo!"

Seeing it nod, Zhao Fang burst into hearty laughter.

He directly pulled out ten bottles of lesser reverting pills and said, "No need to trade. If you hadn't held back that venomous python, I would have inevitably been distracted. Consider these a thank you!"

Right now, he didn't have much of other things, but he had plenty of lesser reverting pills.

For humans, eating two or three bottles of these pills would see their effectiveness greatly diminish. However, rare birds and exotic beasts have larger bodies; they might need to consume over ten bottles before developing a tolerance.

The Divine Eagle stared at the pills, its eyes wide and fixed. It swallowed them all in one gulp, let out a satisfied burp, squinted its large eyes, and wore an expression of utter bliss!

It glanced at Zhao Fang, finding him more and more agreeable the more it looked: This guy is reliable, actually gives out medicine when he has it, a real wealthy man!

No wonder that ugly bird is willing to follow him!

The Divine Eagle pondered: Should it consider changing masters?

But changing masters for just a few Medicinal Pills felt a bit shameless, like abandoning someone after taking advantage.

Wait! If I follow him, I might be able to enter that place.

The Divine Eagle pondered for a moment, then looked up at Zhao Fang and let out two "coo, coo" calls.

"Hmm? You want me to go somewhere with you?" Zhao Fang said. It wasn't that he was fluent in bird language, but the Divine Eagle was intelligent, its actions and expressions almost human-like, allowing Zhao Fang to understand its meaning from its gestures.

"Could it be... Senior Dugu's tomb?" Zhao Fang asked.

The Divine Eagle gave him a sidelong glance.

Zhao Fang was astonished and said, "Are you saying Senior Dugu is still alive? Sealed away in a death retreat somewhere nearby?"

Unrivaled in Solitude isn't dead? Zhao Fang was utterly stunned!

The Divine Eagle nodded, then shook its head.

Zhao Fang slightly furrowed his brow. What did this mean?

He suddenly said, "You're saying he entered a death retreat, but he hasn't appeared for a hundred years, and you don't know if he's still alive?"

The Divine Eagle nodded.

Zhao Fang drew in a sharp breath of cold air.

If the Dugu Sword Demon, who once swept through the swordsmen masters of Dragon State, was still alive, it would likely cause a massive uproar in Dragon State.

A hundred years ago, the Dugu Sword Demon, who fought his way across Dragon State seeking only a single defeat, was already at the second Grandmaster Realm—the Heavenly Human Realm, also known as the Great Grandmaster Realm. He buried his sword and entered a death retreat, presumably to step into that Martial Immortal Realm.

Zhao Fang couldn't help but say, "I would truly like to witness Senior Dugu's illustrious bearing. Brother Eagle, lead the way!"

...

At dusk, the evening clouds at the horizon churned in layers, dyed a bloody, exceptionally poignant and brilliant red.

Inside Xiangyang city, at the courier station of the Ten-Mile Pavilion.

"Has the Terrifying General Ling Luoshi truly died?"

"Did the Twelve Light-Robe Swords also perish together?"

Even the usually steady Cheng Yayu's face was now filled with astonishment.

Ever since meeting [Iron Hand] Tie Youxia in Suzhou, he had been rushing towards Xiangyang.

But he was, after all, physically disabled.

Although he had the palanquin he crafted himself, named [Red Beauty], and the wheelchair designed by Zhuge Zhengwo, called [Swallow's Nest], the effects of his leg ailment were always present.

Therefore, his travel speed wasn't fast, and he failed to catch up with the fight against Ling Luoshi.

At the moment, the courier station wasn't allowing outsiders in.

But Cheng Yayu was one of the new Four Great Constables, a government official, not an outsider. The Xiangyang constables and deputies couldn't stop him at all.

Wang Yuyan didn't order anyone to block him either, allowing him to pace back and forth in the main hall.

Cheng Yayu was so shocked because he knew that [Life Chaser] Cui Lüeshang and [Cold Blood] Leng Lingqi were lying in ambish under Ling Luoshi's command.

Zhuge Zhengwo had always been highly vigilant against Cai Jing's faction, especially Ling Luoshi.

This man had once stirred up considerable turmoil in the Jianghu, causing the deaths of many heroes and stalwarts.

For someone like him to enter the court as an official was likely anything but a blessing for the common people.

But who could have imagined that the Terrifying General, famous for many years, would die in such an obscure courier station?

And moreover, die at the hands of a young man who had just entered the Jianghu not long ago?

"Ling Luoshi was momentarily careless. First, Your Highness's punch shattered his heart meridian, then he was killed by the Twelve Light-Robe Swords."

"The original target of the Twelve Light-Robe Swords was likely also Your Highness. But upon realizing they couldn't defeat Your Highness, they chose to silence the witness by eliminating Ling Luoshi."

"However, before his death, Ling Luoshi still managed to cry out the two words 'Cai Jing'."

Liang Qing recounted the course of events in detail to [Ruthless] Cheng Yayu.

Liang Qing was an informant planted by the Six Doors within the Imperial City Directorate, tasked with cooperating with [Iron Hand] to investigate that major case.

Of course, the Imperial City Directorate undoubtedly also had informants within the Six Doors. This was something both sides understood clearly without needing to say it aloud.

Cheng Yayu's brow was tightly furrowed. He had originally thought the opponents Zhao Fang might encounter would be some masters from the Jianghu.

He never expected that the first to strike would be a general from the imperial court, and one acting under the direction of the current Minister of Revenue, Cai Jing.

"What was Your Highness's reaction?" Cheng Yayu asked curiously.

Liang Qing spread his hands: "No particular reaction. Your Highness said it was merely Ling Luoshi's attempt to sow discord with his dying breath."

"Presumably, on the surface, the case will be closed with explanations like Ling Luoshi believing Jianghu rumors and coveting Your Highness's Secret Manuals or similar reasons!"

Although Cheng Yayu hadn't personally experienced all this, he could already sense an undercurrent stirring.

The current Great Song Emperor was a vigorous young man who had just reclaimed power from Empress Gao. He was not broad-minded.

He vigorously promoted members of the New Faction, suppressed the Old Faction, and purged those who disagreed with him.

Nowadays, as long as one stood with the New Faction, people like Cai Jing and Ling Luoshi could gain appointments.

As Cheng Yayu was pondering, ripples appeared on the surface of the teacup on the table.

"No fewer than a hundred men on horseback are approaching."

Cheng Yayu couldn't help but be startled.