Su Xin ranked sixth on the Ren Bang,while Yan Dongchen ranked eighth,but to other martial artists,the difference between them wasn't that significant.
Ranked sixth on the Ren Bang was"Thousand-Faced Witch"Yin Xixue,but disciples of the Illusion Devil Sect were never adept at straightforward,head-on battles,so her presence could almost be disregarded.
However,as the fight unfolded,Yan Dongchen found himself in a suppressed position.
Yan Dongchen's Seven Killings Spear was fierce and violent,but Su Xin's Intangible Sword Qi was even stronger.
Endless Sword Qi directly pressed Yan Dongchen,making it difficult for him to lift his head.With a shout of rage,a terrifying purple light erupted from the tip of Yan Dongchen's golden spear,and in an instant,its might exploded,piercing through the clouds!
Facing this piercing strike,Su Xin pointed a finger as white as jade.Radiance gathered within it,piercing through the endless energy,and touched the tip of the spear.Instantly,the purple light dissipated,and Yan Dongchen's golden spear emitted a mournful cry!
Three-Fingered Sky Dart!
"Clang!"
With a crisp sound,Su Xin pointed again.Beneath the astonishment,everything shattered like a dream,dispersing into fragments!
Yan Dongchen's golden spear emitted a series of mournful cries,almost on the verge of breaking!
Withdrawing his spear,Yan Dongchen felt somewhat lost."I've lost.Sixth place on the Ren Bang is well-deserved."
Su Xin didn't modestly decline any praise either.Winning was winning.What use was there in being modest?
However,the onlookers from the Eastern Jin martial artists were whispering in private,calling Yan Dongchen worthless,bringing shame to Eastern Jin,and so on,which furrowed Su Xin's brow.
The regionalism among Eastern Jin martial artists seemed a bit too strong.His challenge with Yan Dongchen was normal,not a matter of life and death regarding face.Just because he was from Da Zhou and Yan Dongchen was from Eastern Jin,people called him worthless,which was a bit too much.
Such scenes were unheard of in Da Zhou.For Da Zhou,the martial world was just that,regardless of national borders,except for those foreign martial artists from the Golden Tent Khanate and the thirty-six Western Regions countries.
Yan Dongchen reluctantly bowed to Su Xin and then turned away.Though he had ventured through the Central Plains martial world before,today he understood what it meant for there to be another sky beyond the sky.
The time he spent on the Ren Bang could be said to be longer than Su Xin's martial arts practice time,yet today he still lost.
After Yan Dongchen left,Su Xin also prepared to return to the inn.After his fight with Yan Dongchen,he roughly understood his current strength,which was definitely several times stronger than when he fought He Xiu.
When he fought He Xiu,Su Xin was only at the peak of the Divine Palace Realm,not even stepping into the Half-Step Divine Realm.Now,he was a genuine Half-Step Divine Realm martial artist,which greatly increased his strength.
If Su Xin were to fight He Xiu now,he wouldn't dare say he could definitely win,but at least he wouldn't be so thoroughly suppressed.
Just as Su Xin was about to return to the inn,a person behind him,carrying a long knife on his back,walked toward him.
He was a young man in his thirties with a very ordinary appearance and a gentle aura about him.
But this was just superficial.Su Xin felt a breath,a breath that belonged only to a strong individual!
The young man cupped his hands towards Su Xin."I am Chen Jing."
Su Xin narrowed his eyes.Chen Jing was a common name,and there were probably dozens or even hundreds of people called Chen Jing in the martial world.However,there was only one Chen Jing in the entire martial world who matched the person in front of him,and that was Chen Jing,fifth on the Ren Bang,known as the"Great Luo Sky Saber"Chen Jing!
A look of puzzlement appeared in Su Xin's eyes.What was happening in Xiaoyang City?The top ten of the Ren Bang appeared one after another.
Seeing Su Xin recognize his identity,Chen Jing suddenly made a gesture,which made Su Xin pause.
Because the gesture Chen Jing made was a secret language understood only by the agents of the Six Fan Gates.
"Brother Su,shall we go to the tavern for a drink?"Chen Jing smiled.
Su Xin also smiled."Please."
The two walked together towards the largest tavern in Xiaoyang City,attracting quite a few stares along the way.
However,Ren Bang martial artists didn't need to compete with each other as soon as they met.They were both martial artists from Da Zhou,so it was normal for them to gather together in a place like Xiaoyang City.
Inside the largest tavern in Xiaoyang City,Chen Jing and Su Xin sat in a corner,blocking their voices with inner energy.After ordering food and drink,Su Xin asked,"Brother Chen,what's the matter?"
Chen Jing smiled."It's simple.General Tie should have told you that after you arrived in Xiaoyang City,the secret agents of the Six Fan Gates would contact you.And I am that agent.
Now,let me reintroduce myself.My other identity is the Chief Catcher of the Six Fan Gates,Chen Jing."
Although Su Xin had long guessed this,hearing it directly from Chen Jing still made him somewhat incredulous.
Chen Jing,fifth on the Ren Bang as the"Great Luo Sky Saber,"unexpectedly turned out to be an undercover agent for the Six Fan Gates.Moreover,he held the position of Chief Catcher,parallel to Su Xin's role as the Chief Catcher of Jiangnan Dao.This made Su Xin feel somewhat out of place.
Seeing Su Xin's expression,Chen Jing couldn't help but smile and said,"Actually,you don't need to be surprised.You also come from the world of wandering cultivators and know how tough it is for us.In this martial world,if you don't have a powerful backing or force behind you,how many people can truly stand out?The Luo Tian Sect,where I come from,is just a second-rate small sect.Although my master is in the Divine Transformation Realm,he's already old and doesn't have many years left.Even if I were to break through to the Divine Transformation Realm in the future,becoming the leader of the Luo Tian Sect would still just mean being the head of a small sect.If I want to go further,I need to find a better patron.However,switching to another sect is equivalent to betraying my master and sect,which would earn me a bad reputation.But even if it's just a bad reputation,I doubt those big sects would tolerate me.After all,no one wants to trust someone who can easily betray their own sect.So,I chose to join the Six Fan Gates.Fortunately,the resources and authority given to me by the Six Fan Gates are high enough.The position of Chief Catcher is similar to your position as Chief Catcher of Jiangnan Dao.Only martial artists in the Divine Transformation Realm can hold this position,but they've entrusted this position to me,which shows that they trust me enough."
Su Xin nodded understandingly.Chen Jing's choice wasn't wrong.After all,one needs to aim high.If he were to stay in the small sect of the Luo Tian Sect for his whole life,his achievements would probably be limited to that.He wouldn't become one of the top ten Ren Bang martial artists.
But now,the entire top twenty of the Ren Bang had become interesting.Almost every one of those martial artists from so-called wandering cultivators or small factions had another identity.
Su Xin didn't need to mention himself.His previous identity as Yue Qingping,a remnant of the Wu Kingdom,naturally had the help of the former Wu Kingdom royal family and the White Lotus Sect.
And now,Chen Jing wasn't from a small sect but rather the Chief Catcher of the Six Fan Gates.
In the entire top twenty of the Ren Bang,only Shen Jin was truly a wandering cultivator,practicing diligently until now.
Thinking about those figures who were considered inspirational idols by the entire martial world,only to have another identity,it was truly ironic.
Su Xin asked,"But since you're here,why did General Tie send me here?Can't you deliver the items yourself?"
Chen Jing shook his head."I have other tasks here and need to stay for a while.Recently,all the spies in Eastern Jin are in distress,so General Tie sent you here.I'm here because part of the business of the Luo Tian Sect is trading with people from Eastern Jin.So,I came here when I received the invitation to the Sword Appreciation Conference.I might have to stay in Eastern Jin for a while longer,so you can give the map to the spies of Da Zhou."
Taking the opportunity,Chen Jing passed a map made of high-quality deer skin under the table to Su Xin.Su Xin immediately put it into his mustard seed bag,with lightning speed that others couldn't even notice.
The tasks of the Six Fan Gates were relatively simple,just incidental,but the real challenge lay ahead in the competition for the Dragon's Song and Phoenix's Blood Sword.
However,at this moment,Chen Jing suddenly said,"Are you interested in teaming up for a private job?"
Su Xin remained calm and asked,"What do you mean?"
Instead of directly answering,Chen Jing said,"Do you think Prince Cheng Zhao Yuandian's invitation to the young heroes of the martial world for the Sword Appreciation Conference is really just to reward them with a spiritual weapon and some outdated ancient sword classics?"
Su Xin replied indifferently,"If Prince Cheng isn't an idiot,then things definitely aren't that simple."
According to Su Xin's information,Zhao Yuandian was almost as foolish as an idiot.With poor martial talent himself,he went madly to befriend so-called martial world figures,being taken advantage of as a fool.It was normal for such an idiot to do anything.
But now,hearing Chen Jing say so,could there be some hidden secrets involved?
Chen Jing whispered,"My responsibility as the Chief Catcher of the Six Fan Gates is to handle intelligence on this side of Eastern Jin.So,I know much more about Eastern Jin's secrets than ordinary martial artists.Currently,the Emperor of Eastern Jin,Zhao Yuanxi,is Zhao Yuandian's older brother,but it seems that the Emperor of the Zhao family has never been physically strong.So,Zhao Yuanxi is only in his fifties,but he's already on the brink of collapse.Even with spiritual pills and elixirs,it's still the same.So now,the actual ruler of Eastern Jin is Empress Dowager Li.Zhao Yuandian and Zhao Yuanxi are brothers born to the same mother.Due to Zhao Yuanxi's weak constitution,he has few children,only two or three,and he hasn't had time to appoint a crown prince.Some people are tempted.After all,the throne of Eastern Jin belongs to their Zhao family.Who it's passed to doesn't matter,as long as it's within the family.Such incidents of older brothers being surpassed by younger ones have happened in history.Moreover,although Zhao Yuanxi's sons have the right,they are unfortunately too young and have limited power.Moreover,for Empress Dowager Li,her son is naturally closer to her than her grandson.So now,the court of Eastern Jin is in turmoil,and the throne is even less stable than that of Da Zhou."
