Flower Stealing Master

Chapter 966: Reunion with Xiao Longnu

Yin Zhiping replied, “The Jin Dynasty and the Song Dynasty have become enemy nations. How can we, the people of the Song Dynasty, accept titles from the Jin Dynasty? Please return, and we shall meet again on the battlefield another day.” His words were delivered with great conviction, and many of the daoists in the hall immediately cheered loudly.

The reaction from Chongyang Palace was already anticipated by Song Qingshu. The reason he allowed them time to deliberate was twofold: first, to delay until the guards arrived at the mountain; second, to see if internal strife would occur within the Chongyang Sect, as it did in the original story. If that were the case, it would save him a lot of trouble.

Unfortunately, from the current situation, it seemed that things were not developing as he had hoped. It appeared he had previously underestimated Zhao Zhijing; only he had the ability to turn the tide. With his death, Chongyang Palace had instead become a united front.

However, Song Qingshu did not regret killing Zhao Zhijing for Xiao Longnu. After all, for a smile from a beautiful woman, killing just one Zhao Zhijing was worth it.

“Daoist, you are mistaken. Chongyang Palace is now within the territory of the Jin Dynasty; you are naturally subjects of the Jin Dynasty, not of the Song Dynasty,” Pucha Qiucao stepped forward and said.

Yin Zhiping replied calmly, “Guan Gong may be in Cao’s camp but his heart is with Han. We may not dare to compare ourselves to Guan Gong, but we do have some spirit.” As if to echo his words, the daoists around him raised their swords, subtly surrounding Pucha Qiucao and his group.

Song Qingshu nodded secretly; Yin Zhiping was indeed a person of substance. In the original story, aside from the unforgivable act of tarnishing Xiao Longnu, he was a remarkable character. In this world, due to the butterfly effect, Yin Zhiping had only drugged Xiao Longnu under Zhao Zhijing’s instigation but had not succeeded. Therefore, Song Qingshu found him much more agreeable.

Facing the sharp blade of Pucha Qiucao, he showed no fear and sneered, “You all act recklessly today, failing to recognize the gravity of the situation. The great foundation of the Quanzhen Sect is on the verge of destruction; what a pity!”

Yin Zhiping said, “The rivers and mountains of the Central Plains are already shattered; what worth is there in our mere sect? If the lady does not leave quickly, should anyone be disrespectful, I may not be able to restrain myself.”

Qiu Qianren, already impatient, suddenly interjected coldly, “What disrespect? I would like to see for myself!”

Having allied with Song Qingshu for so long, he had achieved almost no merit, and his sense of crisis was growing stronger. Originally, he had a hard-won opportunity to capture a fleeing assassin, but who knew that the opponent was Yang Miaozhen, who wielded a pear blossom spear and was unbeatable in the Central Plains? Not only did he fail to capture her, but he almost fell into the ambush set by her men, leaving him humiliated. He would not let this opportunity for merit slip away again.

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly stretched out his long arm and attacked Yin Zhiping. He had realized that Yin Zhiping was the core figure; as long as he captured him, the Quanzhen Sect would control half of the situation.

The disciples standing beside Yin Zhiping were all fellow disciples of Qiu Chuji. Wang Zhitang and Qi Zhicheng quickly raised their swords to meet the attack.

Qiu Qianren let out a sinister laugh, grabbing one sword with his left hand and another with his right, easily snatching the long swords from Wang Zhitang and Song Defang. With a swift motion, he thrust the sword in his right hand towards Li Zhichang. Li Zhichang raised his sword to block, only to feel a slight numbness in his arm. He quickly circulated his internal energy to resist, but with a clang, his sword broke into two pieces.

Qiu Qianren seized the swords and struck with incredible speed, defeating seven Quanzhen masters in an instant. The hundreds of daoists in the hall were all astonished, unable to believe that this seemingly ordinary old man possessed such formidable martial arts.

However, at this moment, Yin Zhiping had already launched an attack. This move, “The Yangtze River Flows East,” was one of the most fierce techniques in the Quanzhen swordsmanship. The sword blade sliced through the air with a hissing sound, directly aimed at Qiu Qianren’s chest.

Qiu Qianren raised an eyebrow and met the attack with his left-hand sword. The blades clashed, and both swords were instantly shattered into four pieces. It turned out that after repelling the seven Quanzhen masters, Qiu Qianren’s True Qi had inevitably become somewhat muddled, while Yin Zhiping had timed his strike perfectly, resulting in a stalemate.

Qiu Qianren was slightly taken aback and could not help but praise, “Qiu Chuji has indeed found a good disciple!”

As he attempted to advance again, Li Zhichang and Wang Zhitang had already exchanged swords with their companions and summoned the remaining five disciples to form the Heavenly Big Dipper Formation, surrounding him completely. Although Qiu Qianren’s martial arts were strong, once this formation was activated, its power was immense, and the seven disciples’ skills were not comparable to those of the fourth and fifth generation disciples on the mountainside, making it difficult for Qiu Qianren to seize the position of the North Star. The formation shifted, with the seven Quanzhen daoists weaving in and out, creating an illusion that dazzled the eyes.

Pucha Qiucao had retreated to a corner of the hall. Seeing that the situation was not right, he did not wait for Song Qingshu’s consent and hurriedly took out a horn from his bosom, blowing it loudly. Two daoists rushed forward to snatch the horn, but were blocked by Song Qingshu’s hand, which effortlessly pushed them back, and the sound of the horn quickly spread out.

Yin Zhiping knew he was calling for reinforcements, and in the face of danger, he felt invigorated. He shouted, “Senior Brother Yu Daoxian, Senior Brother Wang Zhijin, you take three brothers to the back mountain’s Yuxu Cave to help protect Master Sun, to prevent external enemies from disturbing the five masters’ meditation. Junior Brother Chen Zhiyi, you take six people to defend the front mountain; Junior Brother Fang Zhiqi, you take six people to defend the left mountain; Junior Brother Liu Daoning, you take six people to defend the right mountain.”

The disciples defending the front, back, left, and right were all fellow disciples of Qiu Chuji. The one guarding Yuxu Cave, Yu Daoxian, was a disciple of Liu Chuxuan, while Wang Zhijin was a disciple of Hao Datong. Both Liu Chuxuan and Hao Datong were meditating in Yuxu Cave. Both Wang and Yu were highly skilled and upright, and even if they had ulterior motives, they would never harm their own masters.

In a moment, Yin Zhiping had organized everything neatly, with guards at all key locations, and they were ready to respond to each other. Even if a large army arrived, it would be difficult to attack successfully. The disciples saw his gaze like lightning, commanding with authority, and his orders carried a certain dignity that no one dared to defy, each one obeying and heading out.

Song Qingshu smiled nonchalantly, allowing Yin Zhiping to act freely. After all, the defensive forces along the way up the mountain had already been destroyed, and the dozens of guards accompanying them were holding their ground. How could the daoists of Chongyang Palace easily reclaim it? It would take three thousand troops to reach the mountain.

However, he did not want to cause unnecessary bloodshed. It would be best if everything could be resolved before the Jin Dynasty’s army arrived.

As he moved with intention, everyone in the hall felt a blur before their eyes, and Song Qingshu had already stood beside Yin Zhiping. Yin Zhiping was greatly startled and was about to draw his sword for self-defense when he felt a hand press down on his shoulder, rendering him unable to muster any True Qi.

“Listen, people of the Quanzhen Sect, if you do not lay down your weapons, your leader will soon lose his life,” Song Qingshu said in a deep voice.

Suddenly, a woman’s voice, cold as ice, said, “Wait, do not make a move. This person is to be killed by me!”