stonecrandall Chapter 1160: Discussing Cooperation with Gu Jian and Deposing Emperor Qing!
Chapter 1160: Discussing Cooperation with Gu Jian and Deposing Emperor Qing!
A fist meets a circle.
Time seemed to stand still.
One breath, two breaths, three breaths.
"Click——"
A faint cracking sound rang out, and a crack appeared on the invisible circle. Then, the crack spread like a spider web, instantly covering the entire surface of the circle.
The circle broke.
Instead of exploding, it dissipated into countless specks of light, vanishing into the air. Si Gu Jian's wooden sword shattered inch by inch, crumbling into powder from tip to hilt. He was left holding only the bare hilt.
Gao Yao's punch had reached its end. He stood there, the dark golden light on his fist gradually fading. Blood seeped from the white mark on his chest—although the circle was shattered, the remaining sword intent had still wounded him.
Ninety-eight moves.
The two stood three zhang apart, silently gazing at each other.
Si Gu Jian looked at the hilt of his sword and suddenly laughed: "This is the first time someone has destroyed my sword."
Gao Yao wiped the blood from his chest and smiled, "It's been so long, finally someone has made me bleed again."
"Shall we continue?" Si Gu Jian asked.
"Shall we continue?" Gao Yao asked rhetorically.
They both laughed at the same time.
Amidst laughter, the disciples outside the Sword Pavilion finally breathed a sigh of relief. They knew the duel was over. Continuing would no longer be a mere sparring match, but a true duel.
Si Gu Jian's gaze lingered on Gao Yao for a moment, a barely perceptible glint flashing in his eyes, which had been as calm as an ancient well. He spoke slowly, his voice carrying seven parts certainty and three parts probing: "Presumably, Mr. Gao is the Grandmaster who broke through in the capital of Qing Kingdom?"
Gao Yao paused in adjusting his robes, a faint smile playing on his lips. He didn't deny it, simply nodding. He had come to the Sword Pavilion in Dongyi City today specifically to witness the true strength of the legendary Si Gu Jian, who was said to "defend a city with a single sword."
Gao Yao has been at the Grandmaster level for some time now, but has never truly fought against a powerhouse of the same level. Ku He is far away in Northern Qi, burdened with the responsibility of protecting the royal family; Ye Liuyun, though in Qing Kingdom, is a royal retainer, and his whereabouts are unpredictable. More importantly, these two Grandmasters represent not only themselves, but also the national powers behind them—Northern Qi and Southern Qing.
Getting too entangled with either of these two individuals would mean being drawn into the undercurrents between the two countries.
Gao Yao was not afraid, but found it troublesome. In contrast, the situation in Siyi City was much simpler—this trading city, independent of various countries, was guarded by Si Gu Jian alone. Although it had intricate connections with various forces, it maintained a delicate independence.
This is why Gao Yao makes no attempt to conceal his true identity and shows himself directly. In this city, the status of a Grandmaster serves as an invisible deterrent.
"You came specifically to see me, not just for a sparring match, right?" Si Gu Jian had already returned to the bamboo chair, sat down again, took out two celadon teacups, and calmly poured tea into them. The aroma of tea filled the air, intertwining with the lingering sword energy to create a peculiar atmosphere.
Gao Yao walked over to him, sat down without any hesitation, and took a sip of tea. The tea was a fine Yunwu tea, slightly bitter at first, with a long-lasting sweet aftertaste.
“I want to cooperate with Dongyi City,” Gao Yao said, putting down his teacup and getting straight to the point.
Si Gu Jian raised an eyebrow, his expression unchanged: "Cooperation? I'm no longer involved in the affairs of Dongyi City. If you have any ideas, you can go directly to Yun Zhilan."
Gao Yao naturally knew that this was just an excuse. In name, Si Gu Jian had indeed retired behind the scenes and handed over the management of Dongyi City to his eldest disciple, Yun Zhilan, but everyone knew that as long as this Grandmaster was still in Jianlu, he would still be the real person in charge of Dongyi City.
“You’ve misunderstood.” Gao Yao shook his head, his eyes sharp. “The cooperation I’m talking about is beyond Yun Zhilan’s capabilities. My purpose in coming to you is simple—I want to cooperate with you to cripple someone.”
Si Gu Jian's hand, which was holding a teacup, paused in mid-air for a moment before returning to normal: "Who?"
"Emperor Qing".
The air seemed to freeze for a moment. Outside the sword hut, the wind rustled through the bamboo forest; inside, only the soft sound of tea being poured from the teapot into the cup could be heard. Si Gu Jian put down the teapot and let out an almost inaudible bitter laugh.
“Mr. Gao may have misunderstood,” Si Gu Jian said slowly. “Besides, Emperor Qing is not so easy to deal with.”
"Is that so?" Gao Yao leaned forward slightly, lowering his voice. "What if I told you that this matter is related to Ye Qingmei?"
The atmosphere inside the sword pavilion changed abruptly as soon as he finished speaking.
Gao Yao could clearly sense the change in Si Gu Jian's aura—it wasn't a deliberate release of pressure, but a natural reaction triggered by an emotional fluctuation from within. The originally peaceful aura of a Grandmaster was suddenly mixed with a sharp, sword-like edge, and Si Gu Jian's eyes also became fierce, like two unsheathed swords piercing straight at Gao Yao.
"Who are you, and how do you know about her?"
Faced with this sudden oppressive aura, Gao Yao remained unfazed, simply drinking the tea in his cup in one gulp, letting the invisible sword intent flow and dissipate around him.
"Does it matter?" Gao Yao countered, then changed the subject, "But you do owe her a favor, don't you? With Dongyi City's intelligence network, they must know that Fan Xian, who is now making a name for himself in Nanqing, is Ye Qingmei's son."
Si Gu Jian's eyes flickered slightly, but he did not respond.
Gao Yao continued, "And the person behind Ye Qingmei's death was actually Emperor Qing himself. As for the reason, I think you should know very well."
He didn't fully explain the reason, because he knew it wasn't necessary. In the world of younger generations, the name Ye Qingmei was like a pebble thrown into a lake, stirring ripples in the hearts of many, and Si Gu Jian was one of them. This grandmaster of Dongyi City shared an indescribably complex relationship with the woman from the temple.
Gao Yao clearly remembered that in the original plot, Princess Li Yunrui used this point to incite the three grandmasters, Si Gu Jian, Ku He, and Ye Liuyun, to join forces against Emperor Qing. The most crucial trigger was the death of Ye Qingmei back then—these people who stood at the pinnacle of martial arts all owed her a favor to some extent and wanted to repay it.
Little did they know, it was actually a trap set by Emperor Qing. In the battle of Mount Da Dong, several Grandmasters first turned on each other, and were ultimately reaped one by one by Emperor Qing. If it weren't for the intervention of Fan Xian and others, Emperor Qing would have almost completed the purge of the world's martial arts elite.
Gao Yao absolutely refused to believe that with Si Gu Jian's abilities and the intelligence accumulated by Dongyi City over so many years, he would be completely unaware of the truth behind Ye Qingmei's death and would not have any suspects of his own.
Ultimately, Si Gu Jian's feelings for Ye Qingmei were a regret of unrequited love, or a deep admiration, or at least a sense of guilt. This was precisely the extent of Ye Qingmei's influence back then—Xiao En, Ku He, Si Gu Jian, Ye Liuyun, these grandmasters from different standpoints and countries, were all more or less influenced by her, incurring debts of gratitude that were difficult to repay.