Chapter 7: The Terror of Zhao Heng

  Two specially-made wooden knives clashed rapidly in mid-air, like a gust of wind sweeping away fallen leaves. The "clang clang" sound was incessant, and the battle was far more intense than Lu Meng's earlier fight. Zhao Heng gritted his teeth and fought with all his might against the middle-aged man, while Lu Meng held two meat buns and watched the show, occasionally shouting out an encouragement.

  He waited with bated breath to see the joke: "Fighting with Brother Heng, hum!"

  A middle-aged man's body moved like a dragon and snake, suddenly left and right, sweeping horizontally and chopping vertically. After Zhao Heng had been chopped and hacked more than 300 times without stopping, he finally felt the pain and pressure. At this time, Zhao Heng was like a dragon raising its head, his eyes wide open, and a tremor gathered again from his dantian.

  Zhao Heng's shoulders quickly puffed up.

  The white-clothed man's face changed slightly, and this Zhao Heng was a freak who appeared once in a hundred years. He had taught Zhao Heng how to breathe and how to use his strength, but he never thought that he would finally condense a tyrannical power out of nowhere. Both he and Lu Meng had witnessed it with their own eyes - when Zhao Heng released this trembling power from the wooden sword, it was earth-shattering.

  Eight years ago, a tree broke!

  Six years ago, a half-meter-high stone cracked.

  Three years ago, a 600-pound wild boar was blown away!

  A year ago, it took Wind Uncle, who had always thought of himself as superior, seven parts of his strength to block it, and also made Lu Meng despise him for half a month. Although Wind Uncle emphasized that playing with knives was just his sideline, his true expertise was his exquisite swordsmanship, but at the time, he was sweating and looking surprised, which was an undeniable fact.

  But today, I don't know if seven parts of strength can still hold it back.

  Zhao Heng's right hand slightly trembled, and a powerful aura instantly spread throughout the courtyard. Lu Meng, who knew the severity of the situation, grabbed two buns and quickly distanced himself from the scene, hiding at the edge of the wall while shouting: "Feng Shu, you're done for! I told you not to pretend to be tough, but you didn't listen. Now you'll be chopped by Heng Ge."

  The man in white clothes had a playful and irreverent look on his face, but then he suddenly hooked up a rare and faint smile. He took the initiative to launch a surprise attack, and Zhao Heng also let out a low shout. The power of the wooden knife was unleashed, and it merged with the heavens! Bang! The two wooden knives collided violently, producing a loud crashing sound that sent a wave of stinging wind through the air.

  The thick fog in the courtyard dispersed, and the two figures suddenly became clear.

  The white-clothed man was forced to retreat five steps in a row by Zhao Heng's swift and powerful slash, his footsteps staggering, almost falling. He flashed a look of astonishment that he couldn't hide, not expecting that he had to use 80% of his strength to block the young man's attack. What kind of power was this? It seemed that his title as the number one swordsman in Huaxia should be removed.

  Zhao Heng's knife almost slipped out of his hand, and a streak of blood seeped from the hilt.

  Ginger is still spicy after all!

  Zhao Heng's eyes revealed a hint of approval, but he quickly put on a posture for another battle.

  "Slowly, slowly, today's training is over."

  A middle-aged man, taking advantage of his half-master and half-friend privilege, panted heavily while loudly declaring, "Zhao Heng, I got drunk and slept with a stiff neck last night, it's really not convenient for me to fight today." He then quickly threw the wooden sword on the ground.

  Lu Meng suddenly stood up, biting his bun and snorting: "Feng Shu, are you not capable? Not enough for Ge to smoke and admit defeat. Considering the many A-level films I've watched with you, I'll help you beg for mercy. Otherwise, today's five-hour intense training must continue, and I really want to see your begging appearance."

  "How dare you! Do you speak to your master like this?"

  A middle-aged man drank seriously, then changed to a smiling face and looked at Zhao Heng: "However, it must be admitted that Zhao Heng has already surpassed his master. Awesome! Zhao Heng, you no longer need intense training, what you need now is actual combat, in other words, Uncle Feng doesn't have much left to teach you."

  "Feng Shu, you're too modest, this is a proud achievement, no good, come on, let's have another match!"

  Zhao Heng held up his wooden sword and shouted loudly, with a look of great reluctance on his face. He thought back to twelve years ago when he was deceived by this strange uncle's Bone Skeleton Technique into becoming his apprentice, and since then had been living a life of darkness and despair every day - running wildly, standing at attention, squatting in horse-riding stance, slaughtering pigs and wolves, moving rocks and chopping down big trees. What kind of life is this?!

  The life of cattle and horses.

  "No, let's just have some buns instead!"

  The man in white clothes firmly rejected Zhao Heng's request, although the words were very pleasant to hear, but he had never relaxed his vigilance and guard against Zhao Heng. He knew this disciple best, that behind those slightly humble eyes and brilliant smile, was hidden a kind of unruliness and cunning.

  "Zhao Heng had long since translated the famous classical works 'Zhan's Art of War', 'Thick and Black Learning' and 'Hua's Spring and Autumn Annals' into tattered and worn-out versions. Even the profound and abstruse 'Warring States World' was ground down, with its plots and schemes committed to memory. If he were to continue fighting today, he would certainly end up rolling around on the ground in shame."

  "Zhao Heng, you are my pride."

  Feng Shu looked at Zhao Heng, who had already calmed down, and a hint of relief flashed in his eyes: "Your current strength is already considered top-notch. As long as you let your body be tempered by actual combat a few more times, and unleash the explosive power within you, it won't take three years for even the four major families to weigh the risks before dealing with you."

  The man in white let out a long sigh, with a hint of pride on his face, and said: "Under this sky, only a rare talent like you, Zhao Heng, can make me speechless within twelve years. You're a prodigy! Go out and explore the world, it's vast and brilliant, and you'll eventually find your place."

  "Of course, don't mention me to anyone."

  A man in white clothes patted Zhao Heng's shoulder: "Uncle is very low-key, doesn't want to be disturbed by outsiders." Then he remembered something and added a few sentences: "You will eventually shine in Huaxia, and it will be inevitable to deal with the four major families. Uncle has one sentence for you: don't be fooled by their smiles."

  "The four big families are best at hiding a knife in a smile."

  Lu's mouth curled up in disdain, and he snorted: "What's the big deal about hiding a knife behind a smile? What's the big deal about the four major families? In front of Brother Heng, they can only bow their heads and be his dogs! Moreover, Brother Heng will eventually take down that heavenly Northern family's young lady, and when that happens, he can use this stepping stone to take over the Northern family!"

  In Lu Meng's eyes, women are just stepping stones for climbing up!

  Feng Shu looked at Zhao Heng, who was calm and smiling, and said: "Having the ambition to win a beauty is quite good, but that kind of renowned family's daughter, purely personal excellence can't enter their eyes. When ordinary people are calling for equality, the four big families are still sticking to their door-to-door opposition."

  He patted Zhao Heng's shoulder and smiled meaningfully: "If you want to win Bei Ruyan's heart, the key is to enter the Bei family's field of vision. To make the Bei family look up to you, you must have your own achievements and your own foundation. Otherwise, what can you use as a betrothal gift? A sincere heart? It doesn't make any sense!"

  Zhao Heng's body shook slightly, as if he had caught something.

  Lu Mang, however, after finishing half a cup of soy milk, furrowed his brow and asked: "What is this 'hegemony'? What 'foundation'? To deal with a woman, do you have to be so troublesome? Moreover, with the Four Great Families' overwhelming power, what can still enter their eyes? Gold, silver, wealth? A woman's territory? Or some kind of spiritual elixir?"

  Zhao Heng also raised doubts, looking at the old cunning Wind Uncle!

  Uncle Feng stroked his non-existent beard, raised his finger and explained: "Indeed, there are not many things under the sky that can enter the eyes of the four major families, but there are still things that can move them. There is a place that they have not obtained and most want to obtain. That piece of land is quite important. Once it falls into anyone's hands..."

  "The balance of power among the four major families will now be broken."

  His expression revealed a hint of solemnity: "After the balance is broken, it may not take a few years to become three major families, two major families or even one family dominating, there are too many twists and turns involved, it's hard to explain to you for the time being, simply put, whoever gets which territory will be like a tiger gaining wings!"

  Four tigers of equal strength, whoever adds a pair of wings will be invincible.

  Lu Meng looked at Feng Bo with dissatisfaction: "Which piece of land is this?"

  Hua Hai

  Feng Shu's face flashed a hint of a smile, and his gaze fell on Zhao Heng's face again as he added: "It was Zhao Heng who wanted to go to university in Huahai City. Huahai has an advantageous geographical location, and the four major families have been eyeing it for a long time. However, under the circumstances of the game, no one dared to make a move, and of course, the neutrality of the Du family in Huahai was also a factor."

  "So these years Haiyue has never belonged to the four major families."

  Lu Mang suddenly nodded, finishing the soy milk in his cup: "To put it bluntly, Huahai is just a delicious cookie, and once Brother Heng takes it down, all four major families will come to curry favor with him. At that time, whether it's Nan Luoli or Xi Yujie, they'll all be at Brother Heng's beck and call, and Bei Ruyan won't be an exception either, right?"

  "Your words are very rude."

  Feng Shu let out a hearty laugh, then slowly spoke up: "It's quite superficial, and things may not necessarily be so optimistic, but the reasoning is roughly correct. As long as Zhao Heng can take down this territory of Huahai, he'll have something to talk about with the Northern House and some chips to bargain with. Bei Ruyan won't dare put on that 'thousand-gold-miss' airs anymore."

  "Power is forever the greatest charm of men!"

  Lu Meng rushed to Zhao Heng's side, putting his arm around his shoulder: "Brother, let's do it!"

  Zhao Heng smiled silently, but in his heart he agreed with Feng Shu's words earlier. Power is forever a man's greatest charm. Even if he wasn't fighting for Bei Ruoyan to build an empire as a dowry, he should leave behind a gleam of sword light for himself, so that when he passes away, he won't be left with empty tears.

  At this moment, Zhao Heng's blood was boiling.

  "That's all I have to say."

  Uncle Feng chuckled twice, with a hint of faint melancholy, and sighed: "In a few days, I'll be going out to travel the world again, leaving Lü Zhuang for a while. You two don't need to think about me or look for me, but you can't forget your daily intense training. People, after all, can only rely on their own bodies."

  "This small yard is left for you all to mess around with, as long as you don't burn it down."

  The white-clothed man goes out every autumn, and Zhao Heng and Lu Meng have already known this habit of his, so they are not surprised that he wants to travel in the clouds. It's just that over the past decade or more, no matter how hard Lu Meng and Zhao Heng asked him, the white-clothed man refused to tell them what he was doing, only smiling and talking about his pure touring and sightseeing.

  "Uncle Feng, what did you go out for?"

  Zhao Heng habitually threw out a sentence, and he didn't expect an answer, but he heard different responses:

  "Go to a desert, go see a person, go drink a bowl of wine."

  As he turned back into the house, his lips barely audible sighed: "Let's have another round of sword fighting."

  However, this year we still have to kill another Guan Yu.