The Fifth Set of Opening the Plains Chapter 9: The Gathering Storm (Part 2)

  "Although I don't know why, it's probably for Lu Ding, and only Lu Ding has that value, to sacrifice a nameless wanderer of the world at Jingling Lake!" said Mr. Jiu Fen.

  "Sacrifice? Ha! What's the meaning of sacrifice, are we, the young and talented ones from Ning Wang Fu, not worthy of her Qing Ling?! If it's really for Lu Ding, then that's a different story!"

  "The four major holy lands of martial arts are closely related, especially the Jingling Lake and the Dalai Temple, which have an extraordinary relationship. Now that Jingling Lake wants to plot against Lu Ding, what about the other few martial arts holy lands?"

  "I'm worried not about the Martial Sacred Land, but about the Fourteenth Young Master!" said Mr. Jiu Fen, "Although this engagement was agreed to by Qing Ling herself, it can't be said that there wasn't any coercion involved. I'm afraid it will lead to rumors and someone might use this as an excuse to make a move against the Fourteenth Young Master!"

  "This kid can even get his hands on the women of Jingling Lake, such a small thing, he won't be able to fool around!" Wang Bicheng said nonchalantly, but soon, he seemed to have thought of something and said, "However, his cultivation is indeed lower than expected, dealing with those guys might be a bit difficult, Wang Fu, Wang Fu!!"

  "Your Highness, what are your orders?" Wang Fu, who had been standing outside the door, entered at once and asked with a bow.

  "I remember, there seems to be a knife in the secret room that hasn't been used for a long time, do you still remember?!"

  Wang Fu looked embarrassed, "Prince Wang, there are several knives in the secret warehouse, which one are you referring to?"

  "That's the long sword with the scabbard, that very ancient one!" Wang Bicheng gestured, "I remember it seemed to be a low-grade spiritual artifact, do you have any impression?!"

  "Oh, I see!" Wang Fu's expression changed to one of sudden understanding, and he backed away.

  "Low-grade spiritual equipment?!" Wang Fu did not express any opinion, but the expressions of several elders changed. That was a spiritual artifact, not a magic tool. To know that in the Wang Manor, even magic tools were scarce, let alone spiritual artifacts. Hearing Wang Bi Cheng's meaning, he actually wanted to directly give one of the spiritual artifacts from the secret warehouse to Wang Guan Lan, which made these old guys somewhat reluctant to part with it.

  "It's just a low-grade spiritual artifact!" Wang Bi Cheng said, "Don't forget, my future daughter-in-law is the Heavenly Wanderer of Jingling Lake, and that Flying Rhinoceros Sword on her body is one of the most famous top-grade spiritual artifacts in the world! If Little Fourteenth doesn't have a spiritual artifact by his side, he'll probably be too ashamed to stand up straight in front of her!!"

  As soon as this was said, everyone suddenly understood. Yes, Qingling is the heavenly walker of the Wulin Holy Land, and his identity is not inferior to that of Wang Guanlan. Wang Guanlan is just a humble son of the royal family, enjoying limited resources from the royal family, while Qingling is the heavenly walker, also known as the legitimate heir of this generation's Jingling Lake, with countless favors bestowed upon him, carrying the top-grade spiritual instrument, Fei Xian Sword, wherever he goes. In comparison, Wang Guanlan seems much more humble.

  If the two of them had no intersection, it would be fine. But now, who knows what kind of messy tricks Wang Guanlan used to defeat Teacher Father with a single chaotic punch, and actually brought down the martial arts saint's painstakingly cultivated heavenly walking technique. As a result, he even set up an engagement, so this young master of the Wang Manor naturally couldn't be too different from Qingling.

  Of course, the gap in martial arts cultivation is difficult to make up for in a short period of time. In that case, the only thing that can be made up for is equipment.

  Thinking of Wang Guanlan's possible encounter, a low-grade spiritual artifact is actually nothing.

  ……

  ……

  The news of Qingling's engagement to Wang Guanlan, the 14th son of King Ning, spread like wings in an extremely short period of time, causing a sensation throughout the world.

  Jingling Lake does not prohibit marriage, and this sacred place of martial arts will not interfere with the marriages of its disciples. However, as a representative of Jingling Lake who travels the world and is born to be in the spotlight, they represent the face of this sacred place and cannot help but attract attention from all sides.

  "What's going on with Jingling Lake? Has this old thing Gu Liu gone mad?"

  A furious roar echoed from the depths of the palace, several small eunuchs walking in the palace all shrank their heads, with a silent and fearful appearance, not one dared to approach the deep and mysterious palace to investigate what was happening. Inside that deep and mysterious palace, the master of the Great Qi Dynasty tore apart the silk handkerchief in his hand, roaring furiously, "Even if he wants the deer tripod, tell me and I will give it to him! Can I still stop him?!"

  "Your Majesty, calm down. I think Gu Liu's goal is not the Deer Cauldron!!" A pair of slender hands gently supported this slightly thin middle-aged man, "If it were really for the Deer Cauldron, Jingling Lake would not have done it so obviously!"

  "What did he say, then?!" The middle-aged man turned around, revealing a delicate and slightly feminine face. This was the ruler of the Great Qi Empire, Emperor Jiang Ying. "Don't speak up for him just because you're from Jingling Lake and he's your uncle!"

  "I dare not!!" The woman said softly, not shaken at all by the thunderous anger of Emperor Qi. "This matter has nothing to do with Jingling Lake, I think something unexpected happened to Qingling in Yicheng, which led to this situation!"

  "Did something unexpected happen?!" Jiang Ying smiled lightly, "What kind of unexpected event could she encounter, she can even defeat a martial arts master, in a small city like Yicheng, what unexpected event could occur? Don't forget, that Ning Wang's illegitimate son is only at the third layer of Qi Refining, he can threaten her, what a joke!"

  "It's not necessarily coercion!" The woman sighed softly, "There may be other factors at play here. Qingling is indeed the most outstanding successor of Jingling Lake in a hundred years, but after all, she's still young, and that Wang Bizheng is an old fox... Alas, it was wrong to let her go alone to the three southwestern states!!"

  The woman's sigh was filled with regret, "It was I who suggested she go to the three southwestern states, and I didn't expect it to end up like this, I was wrong!"

  "Han Yue, it's not about who's right or wrong now, but how to deal with this matter. Do you think others will believe that this alliance is just a coincidence?!" Jiang Ying broke through the key point of the matter, "This incident has only conveyed one message, which is that Jingling Lake must obtain the Lu Ding at all costs, even if it means sacrificing the current generation's control over the world. On another level, it also confirms the authenticity of the news about the existence of Lu Ding in the Wudu Secret Realm, completely breaking through my previous deployment!"

  "Perhaps this is not a bad thing, only when the water is stirred enough, the fish in the water will jump out one by one!" Han Yue looked at Jiang Yuan and said, "Isn't this what Your Majesty wants?"

  "What I want is absolute control. Although unexpected things are inevitable, too many unexpected things will make the whole situation out of control!" Suddenly, he raised his head sharply, "Who?!"

  Outside the gate, hurried footsteps were heard. Upon hearing the shout from within the palace, a soft and mysterious voice replied, "Reporting to Your Majesty, Seventh Prince, Seventh Prince he..."

  Your Highnesses????

  The two of them simultaneously felt a pang in their hearts, for they knew this son of theirs all too well - he was a prodigy with exceptional talent, but also one who was arrogant and looked down on others. Moreover, he was stubborn; once he had set his mind on something, not even nine oxen could drag him back. Ever since he had caught sight of Qingling, Xiaowu's thoughts had all been focused on her, and now, unexpectedly, such news had arrived - how could he possibly remain calm?

  "Don't panic, speak quickly, what's wrong with Little Seven?!"

  "Your Highness, His Highness has forcibly taken away the Minghe Sword from the treasury and left the palace!"

  "This kid is too impulsive!" Han Yue's expression changed, the Minghe Sword was a top-grade spiritual artifact, on par with Qingling's Feixi Sword. Taking it away at this time and sneaking out of the palace in the middle of the night, even if one thought about it with their butt, they would know what he was up to.

  "How long have you been walking?!"

  "Your Highness has just left the palace, and a report has already come from the Jade Flower Palace, in less than half an hour!"

  "Half an hour, there's still time!"

  "No good, he's rushing to the Beast Tamer's place!" Suddenly, Han Yue's expression changed greatly, "He's going to use the Substitute Spirit Beast!"

  "Three southwestern states are tens of thousands of miles away from the capital, how can he rush here in a short time without using a substitute spirit beast? And how can he stop Qingling and that son's engagement?! " Jiang Ying coldly smiled, "Hu Lin, inform the Nine Gates Commander Wanqing, tell him that if Xiaoqi leaves the capital today, his position as the Nine Gates Commander will be gone."

  "Done!"

  "Yes, Your Majesty!!" Hu Lin was startled and quickly took orders and left.

  "Your Majesty, let Wanqing go, is this not——?!"

  "Who else to find but Wan Qing? Xiao Qi broke through the 7th layer of Lianqi half a month ago and has an upper-grade spiritual artifact in hand. To bring him back without hurting him, and not making too much noise, only Wan Qing is suitable!" Jiang Yun said lightly, "Could it be that you want me to personally go and bring him back?!"

  "How dare I!!"

  "Xiao Qi is your son, and he has been practicing the Xinhu Sword Manual with you since he was young. This matter will be a great blow to him, so you must be more careful in the future. I don't want his heart to bear irreparable scars!"

  "I understand!" Han Yue let out a soft sigh. "After we return, I will make sure to keep this child in check and guarantee that he won't cause any big trouble!"

  At the same time, in another corner of the imperial city, there was also a group of people who couldn't sleep, trying to make sense of this sudden and discordant news.

  "Your Majesty, I understand Qing Ling, since she made this decision, she must have her reasons. It seems that Wang Guanlan is not as despicable as everyone thinks!!"

  In a very simple study, about ten people gathered around a young man of about twenty years old. They were now discussing the core of the rumors that had been circulating recently.

  "Hmph, sister-in-law, you're too kind to that Wang Guanlan. His behavior can't be described as just shameless, it's downright despicable! He actually used Qingling's kindness to indirectly force her into marriage. It's really detestable!!" The speaker was a large man with a pair of massive fists, and from his tone, it was clear that he was also a supporter of Qingling. Whenever Wang Guanlan was mentioned, he seemed to grit his teeth in anger, as if he wanted to tear him apart with his words.

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