Chapter 36: Heir of the Fire Dragon

When Pei Min said those words, he sounded listless and entirely devoid of any overbearing aura. Yet precisely because of this, it instead incited the anger of the people surrounding him.

His expression was far too resolute, completely conveying the feeling that he did not hold them in his eyes at all—it was not driven by impulse, but by absolute confidence.

In truth, Pei Min genuinely did not hold them in his eyes. Although age could not determine everything, among his peers, aside from the Gongsun sisters, there was truly not a third person who could catch his eye.

What pugilistic martial artists valued most was not their lives, but their pride. Those senior figures with long-standing reputations in the martial world might be somewhat more slippery, understanding how to retreat in order to advance, possessing profound depths of worldly wisdom. However, those who came today were all young juniors, each brimming with the fearless spirit of newborn calves, how could they endure such disdain? Anger flashed in everyone's eyes, and a clamor instantly arose.

Pang Yi, the azure-robed swordsman, had already drawn his sword from its scabbard and said, "Brother Wu, if you don't step up, this brother of yours will!"

Wu Yuan's saber also left its scabbard as he spoke with contained fury, "Commissioner Pei, please draw your sword!"

"Against you, there is no need!" Pei Min was not a man of the martial world, nor did he care to abide by their pugilistic rules. Looking at these hotheads before him, he had also figured things out. Martial artists placed great importance on seniority, and at his current age, he belonged to the younger generation. The older generation of martial artists might be immensely disdainful of his title as the peerless under heaven, but they were even more disdainful of bullying the young with their seniority. If he wanted to achieve the goal of sparring with truly formidable experts, he must first prove his true talent and learning, letting the world know that he possessed strength transcending his age and seniority. Otherwise, those who came to challenge him would forever be mere shrimp soldiers rather than true masters! The moment his voice fell, he struck out, delivering a palm strike directly to Wu Yuan's chest. All of Pei Min's martial arts prowess lay in swordsmanship; his bare-handed combat skills were mediocre. However, day and night, he practiced the blood-circulating and breathing techniques passed down by Sun Simiao to temper his tendons and bones. His strength, speed, and agility all surpassed ordinary people. Striking with lightning speed, Wu Yuan was caught completely off guard.

He staggered back five consecutive steps, a sharp pain gripping his chest.

"Despicable!" "Shameless!" "Base!" Cries of angry condemnation echoed from all around. None of them expected that Pei Min would resort to such a sneak attack in broad daylight, and every single one of them was filled with righteous indignation.

Pei Min raised his voice and said, "I said it before, I am not a man of the martial world, so pugilistic rules do not apply to me. If you all attack together, it won't be considered breaking the rules!" At this moment, he harbored the sole intention of establishing his prestige, to let the world know that anyone wanting to strip him of the title "peerless under heaven" must be formidable figures, not a rabble of shrimp soldiers and crabs. As soon as his words finished, the Qin Emperor Sword in his hand thrust toward Pang Yi, the one who had just claimed he would step up. His sword had not been drawn from its scabbard; instead, it lunged forward together with the scabbard.

Pang Yi had already prepared himself and shouted, "Here it—" Before the word "comes" could leave his lips, he felt a twisting force at his wrist, and his long sword actually slipped from his grip and fell. Amidst his shock, his chest took a blow from the sword, and much like Wu Yuan, he was sent stumbling backward. His expression was one of absolute terror, as if trapped in a dream, completely clueless as to how he had been defeated. Little did he know that all martial arts techniques in the world had flaws, and even the most marvelous moves depended on the skill level of the user. Back then, before Pei Min learned the Yue Maiden Sword technique from Gongsun Xi, he had roamed the world relying entirely on a set of basic swordsmanship, mastering those fundamentals to the point of absolute precision.

Pang Yi hailed from a prestigious school, but he remained constrained within the realm of forms, failing to truly achieve flexible application and remaining ignorant of how to conceal the flaws inherent in his own swordsmanship. Encountering a master like Pei Min, the moment he made a move, an opportunity was instantly seized.

The Qin Emperor Sword struck straight down the center, twisting fluidly to instantly disarm him.

If Pei Min's attack on Wu Yuan could be called a sneak attack, his confrontation with Pang Yi was completely upright and open. Everyone around them could never have imagined that a sneak attack was just one move, and an upright frontal assault was also just a single move.

Pang Yi was not a local of Chang'an; he was a swordsman who had traveled far to Chang'an to hone his skills. Over the past half year in Chang'an, he had sparred and competed with the younger generation, rarely tasting defeat, and had earned the fine reputation of the "Azure-Robed Swordsman." Never had he expected to be defeated in a single move here.

Only then did the crowd realize that Pei Min's martial prowess was vastly greater than they had anticipated.

While they still hesitated, they saw Pei Min strike down three more people with a wave of his hand and a shift of his feet. He completely disregarded friend or foe; anyone who dared to block his path here was treated as an enemy. Whether they were willing or not, whether they were mere bystanders or those looking to meddle, he struck them all the same. Charging forward, he was completely unstoppable.

Originally, Pei Min's arrogance and disdain for everyone had already provoked public outrage, and seeing him completely ignore friend and foe while laying about indiscriminately only added fuel to the fire.

Recalling Pei Min's words—"I am not a man of the martial world, so pugilistic rules do not apply to me"—one person shouted angrily, "Let's swarm him together... With so many of us here, if we are defeated by a single person, we won't have the face to show ourselves in the pugilistic world anymore." Another echoed in agreement, "He was the one who provoked us first, so if anyone gets bruised or battered, tough luck... At worst, we'll just become wanderers in the rivers and lakes."

Wandering the rivers and lakes was the justification martial artists used to defy imperial law. Given the vastness of the world, it was no easy task to capture a martial artist gifted with special skills. If push came to shove, they could always flee to Nanzhao or Tibet; as long as one possessed a skill to protect themselves, every path in life led to survival.

Those with the boldest hearts had already prepared to make their move.

Pei Min let out a clear whistle, wielding his sword to thrust, slash, and cleave. Darting back and forth erratically, lunging left and breaking right, his movements followed no fixed pattern and left no traces, denying his opponents any opportunity to surround him. His attacks were lightning-fast yet entirely non-lethal; whenever he encountered anyone, one or two moves were enough to knock the opponent down. Like a ferocious tiger entering a flock of sheep, he brought down over a dozen people in the blink of an eye.

The young martial heroes gathered around were terrified at the sight, not daring to step forward. They hurriedly retreated and fled, looking at Pei Min's eyes with dread. Whatever cries of "Despicable!", "Shameless!", or "Base!" had vanished; they dared not utter them again. Whether it was a sneak attack or a frontal strike, both ended in just a move or two. Even the most oblivious person could recognize Pei Min's terrifying power.

Whether Pei Min was truly peerless under heaven, they did not know, but that he was vastly superior to them was an absolute certainty.

The martial world was a place where the strong spoke. As long as one's strength was sufficient, it could make everyone else fall silent.

Suddenly, a crisp "clang" rang out!

Pei Min's long sword was actually intercepted and blocked. A middle-aged man dressed in coarse hemp garments had appeared before him at some unknown moment, holding an unnameable black sword that steadily and firmly parried his strike. The middle-aged man possessed a tall and sturdy build, standing half a head taller than Pei Min. His facial features were austere, his expression calm, yet his eyes shone with a brilliant light.

"Senior Brother!" Ye Gu cried out in alarm as he stepped forward, his eye sockets turning red. Though he had studied under a renowned master and knew his own talent was mediocre—unable to master the Quanzhen sect's most formidable swordsmanship—he was still no weakling. Yet facing Pei Min, he had not even been able to withstand a single move.

The middle-aged man glanced at his junior brother and shook his head; with a temperament so unstable, how could one ever cultivate the Dao and practice martial arts?

"Who are you?" The middle-aged man's appearance had been completely unexpected. With Pei Min's sharp eyesight, he had still failed to catch how the man had arrived. Feeling a jolt of shock, he ceased his attacks.

The middle-aged man smiled and said, "This humble one, Luo Liesheng of Mount Zhongnan, pays his respects to Commissioner Pei." As soon as he stated his name, a wave of gasps swept through the surroundings, and the young martial heroes cast gazes filled with deep reverence toward him.

Taking in the reactions of the crowd, Pei Min knew this was a genuine master. With a smile, he asked, "Why do you block me?"

Luo Lie nodded and said, "The Commissioner's swordsmanship is peerless; why lower yourself to bickering with juniors?"

Pei Min smiled and replied, "If not them, that works too. You can be my opponent. Win or lose, I will consider today's events as having never happened. Otherwise, ambushing and attacking a court-appointed official is no minor crime. While there's no immediate danger to your life, you'll be spending a few years in prison at the very least... just waiting for an imperial amnesty."

Seeing that Pei Min was not bluffing and realizing that the matter would be difficult to settle otherwise, Luo Lie could only say, "This humble one will obey!"

"Let's go! Follow me back to the manor!" Pei Min had no desire to exchange blows with Luo Lie in the middle of this bustling crowd, lest it draw interference or cause unnecessary trouble. He mounted his little dapple horse and headed toward his residence.

Luo Lie followed closely behind with steady footsteps.

Wu Yuan had been the first to withdraw from the battle circle and also the one who had witnessed Pei Min's swordsmanship most clearly from the start. Bitterness filled his heart; Pei Min was even younger than him, yet his swordsmanship had reached such a realm. In seeking to challenge him, he had merely been a frog at the bottom of a well, inviting ridicule upon himself.

Pang Yi felt much the same. Coming up beside Wu Yuan, he let out a long sigh and said, "There is always someone better than you, and a heaven beyond the heavens—every word of it is true. I used to doubt it, but today I have no choice but to believe."

Wu Yuan nodded silently. Looking at the two figures receding into the distance, he asked, "Tell me, between the two of them, who will actually win?"

Before Pang Yi could answer, someone else chimed in eagerly, "Of course it will be Luo Lie. His Tiger-Slaying Swordsmanship is one of the ultimate arts of the Quanzhen Sect—a supremely fierce swordsmanship handed down by the ancient immortal Han Zhongli. How could Pei Min possibly match that?" When he spoke of Pei Min, he did so through clenched teeth; a red welt marred his face, left precisely by the sweep of Pei Min's sword scabbard.

Pang Yi, however, shook his head and said, "Who can say? The Heaven-Escaping Swordsmanship and Tiger-Slaying Swordsmanship passed down by Zhongli Quan of the Quanzhen Sect are both claimed to be the most formidable swordsmanship in the world, but how many people have truly witnessed them? Pei Min's sword, on the other hand, is something we experienced firsthand. He surpasses us by far more than just a single notch."

The martial arena that Pei Min had specifically commissioned for dueling with martial experts had not yet been fully renovated, so he invited Luo Lie to the backyard drill ground instead.

Gazing intently at Pei Min, Luo Lie said, "Before we spar, I have a question stuck in my throat that I must spit out!"

"Speak!" Pei Min was in a very good mood right now, and his condition was at its peak.

Luo Lie asked, "Was that the Yue Maiden Sword technique you displayed earlier?"

Pei Min answered readily, "Consider it so. However, after my modifications, while it retains the piercing viciousness of the Yue Maiden Sword, its form is entirely different."

Luo Lie nodded in agreement and said, "I could tell. You transformed softness into unrestrained grace and changed coquette charm into ethereal fluidity. The Commissioner is truly remarkable—something my master failed to achieve, you actually accomplished. If that old man of mine were to find out, he'd probably be so furious his beard and eyebrows would twitch!" With that, he burst into hearty laughter, as though imagining his master's anger was a vastly entertaining thought. Pausing for a moment, he continued, "Since you know the Yue Maiden Sword technique, you must be acquainted with the Gongsun sisters, right? In this day and age, aside from the Gongsun sisters, no one else should know the Yue Maiden Sword technique, which has been lost for three hundred years. I wonder if the Commissioner might inform me of their whereabouts..."

With a trace of vigilance, Pei Min retorted, "If you don't know their whereabouts, why do you know so much about their affairs?"

Seeing that Pei Min's guard was up, Luo Lie hurriedly explained, "Commissioner, please do not misunderstand; I harbor no malicious intent. It's simply that my esteemed master, the Fire Dragon Daoist, has been searching for them for many years. In fact, the manual for the Yue Maiden Sword technique was a gift given to the Gongsun sisters by my master."