Chapter 4: The High Hand Who Refuses to Show Himself

  Gu Qing, a person who has no presence in the Hou Mansion, has attracted all of Nian Wu Sheng's attention, this great Sword Saint!

  Others can't see it, but Nian Wusheng, who has actually reached the peak of the ninth layer of the airway, can see it clearly!

  At this moment, every move of Gu Qing in the courtyard looks chaotic and disorderly, but the coordination between each move and his body has already reached the limit that humans can achieve. Moreover, after each move, the heaven and earth's primordial energy in the courtyard will have a small range of flow. Although he cannot determine whether the flow of this heaven and earth's primordial energy is due to the person in front of him practicing boxing with his current cultivation, he knows that it must be related to him.

  Mobilize the primordial energy of heaven and earth!

  This is indeed the wonderful state that only a strong Dan Dao practitioner can achieve!

  From the aura on his body, this young man in front of him seems to have not yet reached the point of contending for the top spot in the alchemy path, but as for the realm of comprehension, he is absolutely one step higher than this Sword Saint who has risen to the pinnacle of the ninth layer of the Qi Dao and is known as one of the three great masters of the younger generation of Great Qi!

  "Unexpectedly, the Wuwei Hou's mansion has such a master. It seems that today's trip is not in vain... Master once said that there are countless hidden masters in this world, and even those who have cultivated their bodies to the peak of the ninth layer of Qi in just over a decade are not uncommon. They just hide outside, pursue the great way of Golden Elixir, and don't ask about worldly affairs. I didn't believe it before, but now...". Thinking of this, Nian Wusheng immediately asked: "Gǔ Shǎoyé (Young Master Gu), who is this young genius in front of us?"

  "Young and promising?" Gu Ding's eyebrows furrowed slightly, although he was somewhat skeptical of Nian Wusheng calling Gu Qing "young and promising". However, considering that this might be a polite phrase from Nian Wusheng, he responded: "This person is named Gu Qing, the seventh son of my father... should be considered my seventh younger brother... however, he..."

  "Gu Qing..." muttered to himself, his eyes lighting up slightly in front of him: "Is it that gentleman who was chosen by Miss Xi Bing Ning, the daughter of General Xu, one of our three beauties?"

  Gu Ding's mouth corners twitched slightly, but he still patiently replied: "That's right, he is indeed the husband chosen by Xu Bingning!"

  "Miss Xu was indeed a heroine among women, and on that day, she ultimately failed to marry Ning Tianqi, a master of the airway, but instead married a young master named Gu Qing from a noble family. I still feel some regret, how many people can match Miss Xu's worth? But now it seems that Miss Xu really has an eye for talent!"

  "Hmm..." Gu Dingzhong, this master with seven layers of Qi suddenly found that his brain seemed to be a bit... stuck.

  What...

  How come this Sword Saint seems to hold his seventh brother, who doesn't have any outstanding qualities, in high esteem?

  Finally, Su Fangyu, the junior sister who had been watching without a word, couldn't help but ask: "Senior brother, you praise Gu Qing so much, is there something special about him?" As she spoke, she took another close look at Gu Qing, who was practicing his punches in the courtyard: "His movements and actions don't seem to reveal any true energy or aura, it's clear that he's just an ordinary cultivator who hasn't yet advanced to the sixth level of Qi Refining and hasn't cultivated true energy. Such cultivators are not uncommon in our Great Qi Dynasty, are they?"

  His gaze remained on the ancient Qing in the courtyard: "That's not necessarily true, as far as I know, some practitioners of the airway realm have cultivated their true energy to the extreme, and can control every bit of true energy, one strike will not leak out even a little, only when it hits the target, it will burst out instantly, severely injuring the opponent."

  "This is going to make the true energy cultivation reach such a level of perfection, how many people in the entire Daci Dynasty can achieve this...” At this time, Su Fangyu seemed to have heard the implicit meaning behind Nian Wusheng's words, and exclaimed: "Master brother, you wouldn't be saying that this young man is one of those who has already reached the state of perfection in controlling his true energy, would you? He..."

  "A master who can control their inner energy to the point where not a single move is wasted... even if an ordinary qigong master were to spend decades of hard work, they may still not be able to reach this level...”

  Just as Nian Wusheng was about to say something, a loud laughter echoed from the corridor outside the courtyard, and soon a tall and majestic young man appeared, saying in a loud voice: "Haha, Nian Wusheng, you're really making me search all over for you! I didn't expect you'd be staying in the Wuwei Marquis's residence, looking quite leisurely too!"

  He nodded slightly at the young man: "So it's the Second Prince, Ning Tianqi!"

  "What's with the 'Your Highness' and 'not Your Highness'?" Ning Tianqi waved his hand: "If Brother Wú looks down on me, then just call me Tianqi."

  He involuntarily furrowed his brow, but this hint of emotion was quickly covered up, and his face still maintained the composure from before: "It's an honor for me." He didn't directly address Ning Tianqi by name, clearly not wanting to accept the invitation from this Second Prince. That sentence was just a polite phrase after all.

  The Second Prince, as one of the most outstanding princes of the Great Qi Dynasty, could hear his thoughts from his words. Although he was displeased in his heart, he did not reveal it in front of the Sword Saint, who had a higher reputation, strength, and swordsmanship than him: "I'm glad that Nian Wusheng can leave Wanjianshan and come to our Great Qi capital to attend my father's birthday banquet. If Father knew, he would be very happy! Since there is still one day before the birthday banquet, why don't I take you on a tour of the scenic spots in the capital, so as not to make Father blame me for neglecting our esteemed guest?"

  "...". Nian Wu Sheng hesitated for a moment, seeing that this young master who was almost as famous as him had invited him with one hand, and finally nodded: "Then I'll have to trouble the Second Prince!"

  "Haha, I'm honored to have invited Sword Saint Nian Wusheng to accompany me on this trip! Nian Wusheng, please come this way!" Ning Tianqi said with a slight bowing gesture, leading him out of the courtyard. From start to finish, he didn't exchange a single word with Gu Dingzhong, the young master of the Wuwei Hou Mansion.

  His attitude made Gu Dingzhong very dissatisfied, but considering the other's identity and his own strong strength, he could only suppress this dissatisfaction in his heart!

  "Master Gu, I've troubled you enough for today, I'll come visit again another day."

  "I'll come again another day...". Gu Dingzhong was slightly taken aback, and a hint of surprise immediately appeared on his face: "The Wuwei Marquis Manor welcomes your esteemed presence at any time, Nian Wusheng."

  Just now, he was still wondering if he would have the chance to invite Nian Wusheng, this young and handsome genius, into the Hou Mansion again and make friends with him. Now, unexpectedly, he heard him say that he would visit again another day, even if it might just be a polite phrase, it still made him feel somewhat honored and surprised.

  Nian Wusheng nodded and followed the Second Prince Ning Tianqi out of the Wuwei Hou Mansion, heading directly to the capital's famous scenic spots for a tour.

  Nian Wusheng took a step forward, but Gu Dingzhong suddenly turned around and his gaze fell on Gu Qing who was practicing boxing in the courtyard: "Nian Wusheng's praise for Gu Qing must have some reason... Could it be that, as Su Fangyu said, he is actually a hidden master?"

  As soon as this idea emerged, it was immediately vetoed by him.

  Three years ago, he still remembered clearly that his seventh brother was beaten by an ordinary expert with six meridians when he was causing trouble outside, and he lost face. Since then, he has been hiding in the Hou Mansion and dare not take a step out of the mansion unless it is a big deal.

  If someone as timid and afraid of trouble as him can cultivate to the state where thoughts are not born, which is highly esteemed by this master of the ninth rank of Qi Dao, he wouldn't believe it no matter what!

  It was just that the image of Wu Sheng in Gu Ding's mind was too high and great, every move seemed to reveal a mystery. Thinking of this, he still decided to report this matter to Hou Ye, who was his father, and let his father decide for himself.