Volume 1: South Sea ? Blood War Volume Chapter 2: Ancient Zither Thunderclap Several People Heard

  The sky had completely darkened, and the three of them returned to the back inn for a while. As it was approaching Mid-Autumn Festival, the moonlight in the sky began to brighten up. The old man went back to his room first, but at this time Chen Xin and Luo Zhihan heard a loud neigh from the horse trough by the back door, which sounded like a dragon's roar.

  Chen Xin busy walked over to the horse trough and took a look, discovering that there were four more horses inside than this afternoon. Two of them were relatively short but sturdy, looking like they would be good at hauling goods. Another horse had long legs and large hooves, its strength was evident at first glance, with shiny hair roots, it was a rare fine horse in this small town of Tian Nan.

  He turned his eyes to look at his junior brother, but found that his junior brother was staring at another horse. He also looked carefully and found that this horse was obviously different from the others.

  This horse didn't have a halter, its entire body was as black as coal, its fur was smooth and shiny like it had just been brushed, its mane was pitch-black and glossy. The other three horses were huddled together, seemingly not daring to get close to this horse, only this horse stood alone, different from the others, its eyes gleaming brightly as it stared at its master and brothers, yet still hadn't closed its eyes.

  It seems that the horse that made a sound just now was this one, and his own and Shifu's and Shidi's mounts were already asleep due to their exhaustion every day.

  That horse stared at Luo Zhihan and Chen Xin, its eyes unmoving, but it no longer whinnied. Luo Zhihan and Chen Xin also stopped paying attention to it. Chen Xin said, "Let's go up, Master is waiting for us upstairs! Tomorrow we need to pay our respects to the Diancang Sect, so we should prepare!"

  The two of them turned around and walked back to their second-floor guest room together.

  The three masters and disciples traveled the world, needing to stay in a hotel when they arrived at their destination. Luo Zhihan and his senior fellow apprentice had always stayed in the same room for safety reasons. As soon as the two returned to their own room, they let out a sigh of relief and were about to strike the flint to light the lamp when suddenly they heard their master's voice ringing in their ears: "Don't light the lamp!"

  Luò Zhǐ was startled and turned around, his eyes slowly adjusting to the darkness in the room. With the moonlight from outside, he saw his master sitting properly at the tea table in his own room, looking at him and his senior brother.

  "Master, what's wrong?" Luo Zhihan asked.

  "Just now, I raised my head to observe the celestial phenomenon, and tonight there is actually a bloody evil spirit!" The old man said slowly, he returned to the house and sighed that thirty years have passed, things have changed, but he himself has not achieved anything. He had been standing in the dark of the guest room, looking out at the starry sky outside, when he heard the sound of his disciple's footsteps coming up the stairs. As he looked out into the bright moonlight, apart from his disciple coming up, there was also a shadowy figure flashing by outside the wall and quickly walking away in the opposite direction."

  This man is obviously spying on the two disciples, and his intentions are far from good!

  The old man knew that his two disciples had always been good at lightness skills, especially the second disciple who was also clever. Since this person could spy on his two disciples without being discovered, he must be a high-ranking martial artist with excellent lightness skills.

  "Master, please forgive me for my incompetence. I didn't even know I was being followed. Master, could it be the owner of those four new horses in the stable?" Luo Zhihan said slowly, suddenly remembering the extraordinary fine horses that had been added to the stable and asking the old man again.

  "No! You didn't notice, but I saw clearly that at dusk, three people checked into the inn. Two were riding horses and one was driving a horse-drawn carriage. You just ate without investigating, but I didn't want to see more strangers, so I just took a glance from afar..."

  He took a glance at those people, although he couldn't see very clearly, but the horse in front was recognizable as the breed "Black Cloud Colt", which is one of the best breeds of horses, rarely found even outside the Great Wall. In the Central Plains, this horse would be worth at least a thousand gold coins. It's truly fortunate to encounter it in this small town. However, someone who can match such a fine horse must be a hero of the times. How could our three disciples and I be plotted against by heroes?" The old man was also perplexed, unable to think of any leads, but as a lifelong chivalrous person, he didn't want to wrongly accuse others without reason.

  "How can you judge a horse's owner by just looking at the horse? Maybe someone stole this precious horse?" Chen Xin asked, not quite believing his master's words.

  "It's said that a fine horse can pick out its master with an eye keener than any young girl picking out her lover. In this world, it's only the girls who get deceived - have you ever heard of a fine horse mistakenly choosing a hero? It's often said that a famous horse is paired with a heroic figure." The old man glanced at his big disciple, seemingly very dissatisfied, and lectured him. In fact, in his heart, he was equally dependent on both disciples, without any distinction.

  "Perhaps it's just in time! Master, my junior brother's swordsmanship has made rapid progress, and he is already familiar with the Southern Ocean Sword Style, which is powerful and extraordinary. If someone comes to cause trouble tonight, it would be a good opportunity for him to test his skills!" Chen Xin said, having been running around with his master in vain these past few days, feeling frustrated, and not yet satisfied from teaching the villain a lesson earlier.

  He didn't take his master's words to heart, because he had followed the old man for a longer time and knew that his master treated him like one of his own, without any dislike, only with concern.

  That old man also smiled slightly and said: "Not bad, your junior brother's bones are extraordinary. In the future, our South Sea Sect will still have to rely on him!"

  He paused for a moment, but his worries resurfaced, and he continued: "It's just that Han'er is still too young, and his internal skills and mental methods are not yet mature enough. He hasn't received the true transmission of my South Sea Swordsmanship and internal skills. At present, he can only be considered a mediocre expert in the jianghu. Tonight, however, it seems that those who come with ill intentions have arrived, while those with good intentions have not!"

  Luo Zhi said hastily: "Master and brother are too kind to me, if not for Master's saving my life, I would have starved to death in the wilderness. Being able to follow Master and serve him is all I desire, getting Master's teaching of martial arts makes me even more grateful!"

  The old man listened to Luo Zhihan's words and was also delighted, but after a moment he became even more worried. He fell silent for a while before saying: "So it seems that something will definitely happen tonight. Judging from the lightness of the footsteps of the person who was eavesdropping on you, their kung fu is far superior to yours, and they are not easy to deal with. I just don't know if they're coming for us or not. Let's have all three of us rest in this room tonight, it will be more convenient to fight back."

  Luozhi Han followed his master and senior brother out of the Jianghu for many years. His master had always been calm and composed, even in the midst of difficulties and hardships, he never showed any worry. Luozhi Han had never seen his master's face so solemn and serious before, he knew that tonight's opponent was not going to be easy, and his heart was racing with anticipation.

  Then the three masters and apprentices decided to take turns keeping watch and sleeping. As soon as something unusual happened, they would immediately wake everyone up.

  Chen Xin was sleeping soundly when he was suddenly pushed awake by someone, and with a start, he opened his eyes to see that his younger brother had already woken up and was sitting on the edge of the bed...

  The moonlight poured in through the window lattice, filling the room with a white glow. The master stood motionless at the foot of the bed, his hands clasped behind his back.

  "Junior brother, what's wrong?"

  But all he saw was his junior brother not speaking, only using his mouth to nod towards the door and window, yet seeing a puff of white smoke drifting in from the gaps between the door and window, and after taking just a slight breath into his chest, he felt drowsy and sleepy, undoubtedly.

  Chen Xin hastily took out a "Xuanbing Pill" from his body, which was made from the rare underground ice of Leng Yue Island in the South China Sea, the hundred-year-old wild ginseng root of Changbai Mountain, the summer night lotus of Jiangnan Lotus Pond, and bitter apricot kernel. It was an antidote to demonic smoke, with the effect of clearing and detoxifying the mind. The preparation was difficult, extremely precious, but also remarkably effective.

  As expected, the "Xuan Bing Wan" was very effective. Chen Xin felt a coolness in his mouth as soon as he took it, and his mind suddenly cleared up. When he looked at his master and fellow disciple, they were also each holding one in their mouths, concentrating their spirits to defend against the smoke, which didn't pose much harm to the three people inside the house for the time being.

  About half a moment later, a sudden noise came from outside the house. It sounded like several people had broken in through the back door of the inn and were standing about twenty or thirty steps away in the middle of the backyard, not moving any further forward.

  Then, he heard someone say: "It's late at night, and I'm afraid it's a bit of a disturbance. Please come out and meet 'Yin Feng Jian' Zhao Yin Feng, the great hero of the South Sea Sword Sect, and his two senior disciples." Although the voice was not very loud, each word was clear and entered the ear, showing that his internal strength was very strong.

  Three people in the house trembled at the same time, and the old man's face changed slightly, taking a deep breath, because he was actually from the South Sea Sword Sect, hiding his identity for nearly twenty years, but more than twenty years ago, known in Jianghu as "Yin Feng Jian" Zhao Yin Feng.

  Luozhi Han's ears perked up, listening carefully to the left and right rooms, which were now completely quiet. Only then did he understand that when the person outside had released the smoke earlier, they must have known that there was a spiritual medicine called "Xuanbing Pill" in this room. The smoke had no effect on the three of them, so it wasn't meant to deal with his master and fellow disciples. Instead, its purpose was to knock out everyone else inside the inn first, before coming out to challenge his master and fellow disciples to come out of the house.

  The newcomer can accurately call out the origin, name and situation of his own master and fellow disciples, and unknowingly turn a bustling inn into a quiet place. He already has a deep understanding of our sect and has been planning for a long time. Moreover, he must have understood the three of us very clearly. Tonight, there is no way to avoid it, we can only go out for a while, 90% chance of being killed.

  Late-night visitors are never good intentions, let alone breaking in and knocking out all the irrelevant people around, truly coming is not good, good is not coming.

  The old man sighed softly and said: "Indeed, we three master and disciples must be careful!"

  "Haha, I sincerely invite Zhao Da Xia and the two young heroes to come out. If not, don't blame me for being rude! In the future, if there are idle gossip and rumors in Jianghu, I won't take it seriously, haha......"

  Note: It seems like you provided additional context after the original text, but as per your request, I only translated the original text without including the additional part.

  The newcomer deliberately showed off, "haha" two words dragged on and on, leisurely without end, seemingly absolutely not taking...

  Three people indoors and everyone in the hostel are on their minds.

  Among the loud laughter, before the words had fallen, a door on the second floor of the inn creaked open, and one person stepped forward, with two others standing behind him. They were none other than Zhao Yin Feng, the "Whispering Wind Sword" of the Nanhai Sword Sect, and his two disciples Chen Xin and Luo Zhi Han. Seeing that they could no longer avoid it, after a brief moment of consideration, they had no choice but to step forward.

  When he came down to the courtyard, Luo Zhihan had already invited six people. All of them were wearing night-traveling clothes, with only a pair of eyes exposed outside. One person was exceptionally tall and stood at the front, obviously the one who spoke first. The other five stood in a row behind him, four holding knives in their hands, and one with his back to the sword, not yet drawn. Under the moonlight, each of their eyes shone brightly, especially the one with the sword on his back, which seemed particularly spirited. Apparently, they were all skilled in martial arts.

  "'Wind Chanting Sword' Zhao Daxia is indeed a hero of the current era, no need to trouble us brothers to go upstairs and invite him, he's really a sensible person. Such a beautiful night, tonight the moonlight is quite bright, why stay in the house so boringly?" The tall black-clothed man leading the way laughed, his eyes gleaming from within his night-traveling clothes, proud and arrogant, yet without a hint of invitation or respect.

  "This old man has grown senile with age, now merely struggling to survive in the jianghu. The name 'Yinfeng Sword' hasn't been used for decades, and I've slowly forgotten it too. Didn't think anyone would mention it today... truly feels like a past life..."

  The old man, Zhao Yin, said lightly, his eyes casually looking at the black-clothed person, his face expressionless, but in his heart he was calculating what kind of powerful being the other party was, and why they had come to challenge him tonight.

  "Zhang Da Xia, why be so humble? In the past, 'Yin Feng Jian' and your senior brother came from Nan Hai, all the way to defeat various schools and factions in the Central Plains, defeated 17 famous swordsmen of Liang Guang, killed the four ghosts of Xiang Jiang, and the six tigers of Ai Lao Mountain. Unfortunately, I had no chance to meet you back then, but unexpectedly tonight, I have the fortune to see a former superior, it's really not a wasted trip." The black-clothed man leading the group intentionally emphasized the two words "former", with a very obvious tone of mockery, without any color of fortunate encounter.

  Zhao Yunfeng wondered what kind of thinking these six people had, seeing that they were all dressed in night-traveling attire and didn't want to show their true faces. Since there weren't many people he knew around Dali, it was natural that these people came from afar to cause trouble for him. However, having spent nearly thirty years drifting through the Jianghu, searching for his sect's important objects, without any enemies, he had no idea what intention these few people had in challenging him.

  "So he retorted with a smile: 'What virtue and ability does this old man have, that there are still people who recognize him in this small town at the end of the world? Is it not just because his humble name is still remembered from years ago? I only wonder if you gentlemen have come from afar just to ask me to come down and appreciate the moon with you?'"

  He, however, was unmoved by the masked man's words about his past with his senior fellow disciple, from the Southern Sea school: "From the Southern Sea, they traveled to the Central Plains, defeating seventeen famous swordsmen of Guangdong and Guangxi provinces, and later beheading the Four Ghosts of Xiangjiang River and the Six Tigers of Ailao Mountain." These thirty years of drifting in the martial arts world had long since worn away the heart of the former Jade-Faced Young Master, leaving him only an old man.

  At this time, another person floated down from the rooftop of the inn, slender and dressed in night-traveling attire, with swift movements, landing almost silently, with light footsteps yet taking huge strides, only three or four steps away before returning to the side of the black-clad leader, carrying a long sword on his back, nodding towards the black-clad leader before falling back into line with the others...

  People with swords stand in the same row.

  Luo Zhi's heart skipped a beat as he realized that this agile and swift person was the one his master had seen following him and his fellow disciples. There were seven of them in total, with two swords, four knives, and the leader wearing black clothes. Each of them looked like they possessed formidable martial arts skills, but Luo Zhi didn't know why they held a grudge against their school.

  "Zhao Daxia is indeed a straightforward person, so I'll get straight to the point. Please hand over the 'Jing Tian Qu Mo, Demon Curse Heart Scripture' and the Fen Guang Cheng Ying Snake Sword!" The lead black-clad man sneered.

  Zhao Yunfeng was shocked and exclaimed: "You... how did you know about the 'Jing Tian Qu Mo, Mo Zhou Xin Jing' and the Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Jian?"

  It is rare for the disciples of the South China Sea Sword Sect to set foot in the Central Plains, and the Split Light Shadow Snake Pointing Sword is the sect's gatekeeper sword. The "Pure Heaven Demon-Expelling Curse" is also the highest sword technique that can only be practiced by those who possess the Split Light Shadow Snake Pointing Sword, but it has been lost for nearly thirty years since the disappearance of the sect leader and his brother.

  In the past few decades, it's likely that very few people in Jianghu know about "Jing Tian Qu Mo" and "Fen Guang Cheng Ying She Zhi Jian". Even among the new disciples who have joined our sect in the past decade or so, very few have heard of these names.