King of Hundred Victories Saber

Chapter 105: Chapter 76: Cyan Simurgh Palace Turmoil: Crisis and Schemes

Shi Feiyang lay on his back on the bed, his hands resting behind his head, eyes fixed on the ceiling, while his mind was racing, meticulously analyzing Liu Yanran’s personality and behavior patterns.

Thanks to Gong Simeng’s constant introductions, Shi Feiyang was thoroughly familiar with the situation at Divine Water Palace. Divine Water Palace was located beside the Liaodong Celestial Pool, surrounded by ancient dense forests, with clouds and mist swirling around it all year round, appearing from afar as a secluded Immortal Realm.

The layout of the buildings inside the palace was exquisite and well-arranged, all made from cold ice jade stone.

These buildings were crystal clear, shining with a cold luster under the sunlight, and emitted a faint chill, creating a mysterious and unpredictable atmosphere as soon as one stepped inside.

Inside the palace, streams flowed gently, clear to the bottom, with exotic flowers and rare herbs growing in every corner, and rare spirit beasts leisurely roaming around, adding vitality and life to this mysterious place.

Although Shi Feiyang was confident in his martial arts skills, he dared not be reckless in facing the complex environment and powerful opponents at Divine Water Palace. He knew very well that if he rashly intruded into Divine Water Palace and got trapped inside, it would be extremely difficult to escape.

To successfully rescue Wu Wei, brute force alone was insufficient; ingenuity was essential.

Moreover, Liu Yanran was deeply scheming and might not have imprisoned Wu Wei inside Divine Water Palace; it’s possible that she had long since transferred him to another hidden place.

After all, Liu Yanran had roamed Jianghu for many years, almost undefeated in Liaodong Martial Arts. Numerous Jianghu factions, seeking self-preservation, submitted to Divine Water Palace, offering wealth and talent, including handsome men and beautiful women, which was precisely her core motivation for participating in Martial Arts rivalry.

Since Liu Yanran became the Divine Water Palace Master, due to her masculine appearance but feminine personality, most members she trained at Divine Water Palace also resembled her appearance features.

The samurai, fascinated by the mystery of Divine Water Palace from a young age, were required to dress in female attire since childhood. When they grew up, they exhibited neither male nor female characteristics, instead exuding a bizarre aura.

Apart from Liu Yanran’s personal maid Gong Simeng, Qingyi, and over thirty other real women, the rest of the members were people with ambiguous genders.

But do not underestimate them; each of these people possessed exceptional martial arts skills, specializing in Divine Water Swordsmanship, formidable in strength.

The geographical location of Divine Water Palace was exceptionally unique, with only one main gate for personnel entry and exit.

If anyone attempted to enter through other means, they would have to leap into the Celestial Pool and dive in. However, this was nearly impossible because giant monsters resided in the Celestial Pool, possessing unimaginably immense power, far beyond human capability to contend with.

After hundreds of years of winds and rains, Divine Water Palace still stood tall. Although the exterior of the buildings appeared somewhat aged, no one had ever succeeded in swimming through the Celestial Pool to infiltrate it.

Because of this, Liu Yanran, despite her many misdeeds in Liaodong Martial Arts and being pursued by unparalleled masters, always managed to retreat to Divine Water Palace, closing off for training. Only when she mastered swordsmanship and Inner Power Heart Method capable of defeating opponents did she emerge to do evil again, leaving the righteous members of Liaodong Martial Arts helpless against her.

”Flying Eagle Detective” Xie Wen quietly returned to Cyan Simurgh Palace, hurriedly reporting his investigation of Divine Water Palace to Shi Feiyang. What Xie Wen said matched almost perfectly with what Gong Simeng had previously provided.

But Xie Wen expressed his helplessness, stating that he couldn’t delve deeply into the interior of Divine Water Palace. Firstly because of its tight defenses, making it impossible for him to enter; secondly, his prominent physical features made him conspicuous near Divine Water Palace, easily recognized, and difficult to disguise and infiltrate. For him to infiltrate Divine Water Palace’s interior, someone at its main gate would need to create an incident to distract the high-martial-artists there.

After listening, Shi Feiyang slightly frowned, pondered for a moment, and then asked, ”What about the patrol situation around Divine Water Palace? Have the guard’s shift patterns been ascertained?” Xie Wen quickly responded, ”Reporting to the Grand Squad Leader, patrol around Divine Water Palace is extremely tight, and the guard shifts are irregular, with each one being highly vigilant. However, I observed that early every morning at 5:00 AM, a batch of supplies is delivered through the main gate, possibly causing the guards’ attention to slightly disperse at that time.”

Shi Feiyang nodded slightly, a gleam of contemplation in his eyes, ”This is a clue, though still far from enough. We need more detailed information, the internal layout of Divine Water Palace, the distribution of traps and hidden weapons, all of these are crucial.”

Xie Wen looked troubled, ”Grand Squad Leader, this is extremely challenging, the interior of Divine Water Palace is like a maze, outsiders cannot easily spy on it.”

Shi Feiyang patted Xie Wen’s shoulder, ”I know this is difficult, but we must find a way. You rest first, and after I discuss with everyone, we’ll decide on our action.”

Shi Feiyang instructed Xie Wen to rest first and wait for the opportunity to act, striving to successfully rescue Wu Wei and bring glory to the Heroic Sakura Association.

Then, he donned his cloak and slowly stepped outside, pacing in the courtyard, pondering how to deal with the many traps set by Divine Water Palace Master Liu Yanran.

The situation seemed far from optimistic; knowing full well Liu Yanran’s cunning and vicious nature, Gong Simeng, after a brief rest, encountered a nightmare.

She awoke abruptly from the nightmare, her clothes soaked with cold sweat, and without a moment’s hesitation, hurriedly sought out Shi Feiyang.

Upon seeing Shi Feiyang, she anxiously said, ”Brother, I just had a nightmare where you were ambushed by Liu Yanran and wounded by her swordsmanship called ’Reflection of a Thousand Rivers,’ learned from Qilu Black Wind Stronghold, your body covered in blood...”

Gong Simeng’s description caused Shi Feiyang’s expression to instantly become grave.

Shi Feiyang had read about this swordsmanship in the Nine Yin Scripture, naturally understanding the formidable nature of ’Reflection of a Thousand Rivers’ swordsmanship.

This swordsmanship is exquisite, emphasizing the perfect fusion of body techniques and sword intent. Once executed, the sword shadows flicker like a thousand rivers reflecting the moonlight, making it difficult to distinguish reality from illusion and leaving opponents defenseless.

Moreover, Gong Simeng’s words might not be baseless; she might be subtly reminding him to be cautious.

Shi Feiyang quickly reassured Gong Simeng, telling her not to be overly alarmed. Dreams don’t necessarily foretell reality, but they indeed need to be well-prepared to prevent any unforeseen dangers.

Seeing Shi Feiyang’s calm and decisive demeanor, the unease in Gong Simeng’s heart slightly diminished.

The moonlight was like water, spilling into the courtyard. Gong Simeng, dressed in a Qingyi, stood gracefully, appearing extraordinarily beautiful and enchanting under the moonlight, like a fairy in the moonlight.

She stood beside Shi Feiyang, with complex emotions of determination and worry interwoven in her eyes. The gentle breeze lightly caressed, causing the Qingyi to sway gently, adding an ethereal beauty.

Gong Simeng softly said, ”Big brother, no matter how perilous the road ahead, I will fight alongside you and face it together.” Upon hearing this, warmth surged in Shi Feiyang’s heart, and he excitedly opened his arms to hug her tightly.

The two embraced tightly, feeling each other’s heartbeat clearly.

Shi Feiyang whispered in Gong Simeng’s ear, ”Sister, with you by my side, I fear nothing. No matter what traps Liu Yanran sets, we can overcome them one by one.”

Gong Simeng nodded slightly, eyes sparkling with trust and determination, and instinctively kissed Shi Feiyang’s lips. Shi Feiyang, touched by this sudden tenderness, was overwhelmed with emotion and instinctively kissed Gong Simeng back.

”Ahem!” Suddenly, a cough broke the sweetness. Wu Zhong walked over slowly from a distance to report the situation to Shi Feiyang.

Gong Simeng was abruptly awakened, her face instantly flushed with red, embarrassingly and quickly distancing herself from Shi Feiyang, stepping back a few paces.

Wu Zhong stepped forward, saluted with fists, and solemnly reported in a low voice to Shi Feiyang, ”Grand Squad Leader, according to the scouts, several subsidiary squads of the Divine Water Palace are heading this way. It is expected that the battle will take place at the Cyan Simurgh Palace, not the Divine Water Palace. It is anticipated that Liu Yanran will lead the attack in person. I am now leading the troops to ambush the bandits at the foot of the mountain.” After speaking, he turned and left quickly.

The moonlight was like water, still spilling over Shi Feiyang and Gong Simeng, casting a mysterious and romantic glow over the lovers.

In this serene and beautiful night, their hearts were tightly linked, as if the entire world stood still. The night deepened, and the moonlight, like water, filled the entire courtyard. Shi Feiyang and Gong Simeng stood side by side, quietly waiting for Liu Yanran’s arrival.

After discussing briefly, the two began to take action separately.

After the Vajra Stronghold was completely destroyed by Shi Feiyang, and Qingfeng Pavilion sided with Shi Feiyang, it was initially thought that Qiu Yanhong could easily defeat Shi Feiyang, but unexpectedly, Qiu Yanhong was injured under Shi Feiyang’s blade.

This enraged Liu Yanran, intensifying the hatred in her heart.

Half a year ago, Liu Yanran was about to dominate the Liaodong Martial Arts, but Shi Feiyang suddenly emerged, sweeping through swiftly, destroying the subsidiary institutions of the Divine Water Palace, Snow Eagle Castle, and Martial Hall, and turned the Cyan Simurgh Palace into a branch of the Heroic Sakura Association. The bandits of the Vajra Stronghold became disciples of the Heroic Sakura Association.

Currently, the Heroic Sakura Association has successfully established multiple branches in Liaodong, causing a drastic change in Liu Yanran’s fate.

To maintain the dominance of the Divine Water Palace in the Liaodong Jianghu, Liu Yanran led a group of Martial Arts experts to secretly infiltrate the Cyan Simurgh Palace and heavily ambushed the cold pool last night.

Qiu Yanhong’s failure strengthened Liu Yanran’s resolve to eliminate Shi Feiyang. Her eyes shone with a determined light, silently vowing in her heart to make Shi Feiyang pay a heavy price for his actions, no matter the cost.

While Liu Yanran was preparing for the ambush, a subordinate hurriedly arrived, reporting nervously that the Divine Water Palace’s branch, Youlan Palace, was suddenly attacked by an unknown force, and the situation was extremely critical.

Upon hearing this, Liu Yanran’s brow furrowed instantly. She secretly pondered that this might be Shi Feiyang’s strategy to distract her attention. Her eyes were filled with resentment and anger, yet her mind was made up to prioritize ambushing Shi Feiyang, ignoring the affairs of Youlan Palace for now.

Thus, Liu Yanran sped up the pace of setting up mechanisms and hidden weapons in the cold pool, every move being crisp and decisive.

Around the cold pool, the chilly mist lingered, adding a mysterious aura to the tense night. Liu Yanran personally inspected each mechanism, ensuring everything was flawless.

Her movements were swift and decisive; years of Martial Arts experience made her knowledgeable about setting up mechanisms.

Just as everything was ready, intense fighting sounds suddenly echoed from afar.

Liu Yanran’s heart tightened; could it be that Shi Feiyang had already discovered their ambush?

She immediately ordered her subordinates to strengthen vigilance and herself crouched down, quietly approaching the source of the sound, preparing to respond to any unforeseen situation.