Chapter 87

Although Su Xin knew that Xin'er had a great talent for swordsmanship, he never expected that she would be so highly regarded by Xie Zhiyan.

The disciples of the Yi Jian Sect naturally had keen eyes. If Xie Zhiyan said Xin'er had a natural sword heart, then she must have a natural sword heart.

But Su Xin still shook his head and refused, "I appreciate your kindness, Miss Xie, but I will not let Xin'er join any other sect."

Xin'er was now the only relative Su Xin had. As long as he had the ability to protect her, he would never entrust her to others, even if it was the Yi Jian Sect, one of the Five Sword Sects.

Xin'er also pulled on Su Xin's arm and said, "Yes, I won't be separated from my brother."

Although the big sister in front of her looked kind and beautiful, Xin'er still didn't want to be separated from her brother.

Seeing the attitude of these two siblings, Xie Zhiyan didn't say much more. She sighed and gave up.

She didn't like to force people, and besides, if the other party wasn't willing, the disciple she would receive would not be a disciple but an enemy.

Although it was a pity that a natural sword heart didn't join the Yi Jian Sect, as one of the Five Sword Sects, what kind of talent haven't they seen? Although Xin'er had a natural sword heart, it wasn't enough to make her, a direct disciple of the Yi Jian Sect, beg persistently.

"Teach Xin'er swordsmanship well. Don't waste her talent. As long as nothing happens to her, with her talent, she will definitely have a place on the Human List in ten years," Xie Zhiyan advised.

Su Xin nodded. Even if Xin'er didn't join the Yi Jian Sect, it didn't matter. He had the Great Villain System, which contained countless powerful sword techniques, not inferior to those of the Yi Jian Sect.

At this moment, the innkeeper of Shenglong Tower had already served the dishes. Su Xin waited for Xie Zhiyan and the others to finish eating before returning to the headquarters of the Flying Eagle Gang to discuss further.

Xie Zhiyan and her group had traveled from the Central Plains' Jian Nan Dao to Changning Prefecture, which took them three months.

Xie Zhiyan was fine, as she was a先天武者 (先天武者 means a martial artist with innate abilities) and had been traveling in the world for over a year. This hardship was nothing to her.

But her junior disciples were different. This was their first time traveling in the world, and the journey was monotonous and tiring, with nothing interesting along the way. They had long been suffering.

So as soon as they returned to Jin Yue Fang, Su Xin arranged for them to rest at the inn, which made these young men and women cheer with joy.

After they all left, Su Xin asked Xie Zhiyan, "Miss Xie, since you want me to help you find clues, you must first tell me all the clues you have."

"Although the three top sects of the Central Plains and the three major families of Xiangnan sent young disciples to Changning Prefecture, I don't believe you just came because of a rumor. There must be something important behind it."

Xie Zhiyan nodded, "That's right. We did get some important clues. Do you know about the life of Mad Lion Du Yuansheng?"

Su Xin nodded. He had just heard Tie Wuchen give him a detailed account.

Xie Zhiyan said, "Although Mad Lion Du Yuansheng helped the Great Zhou Dynasty establish its supreme empire, the Xiangnan Martial Arts Alliance he founded was an independent alliance, in a cooperative relationship with the Great Zhou Dynasty."

"Now, the most common speculation in the martial world is that the Great Zhou Emperor feared Du Yuansheng's power and was afraid that the Xiangnan Martial Arts Alliance would become too powerful to control, so he secretly eliminated him."

"However, Du Yuansheng was always wary of the Great Zhou Emperor. He hid the treasures he plundered during the attack on Dongjin, and this place is most likely the Longxing Place of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Changning Prefecture."

Xie Zhiyan took out a strange token and placed it on the table.

"After Du Yuansheng's death, the Xiangnan Martial Arts Alliance fell apart. These tokens were obtained from his former confidants and are the keys to the treasure."

"However, there should be five keys. The Yi Jian Sect, Qingcheng Sect, Nian Gang Jiangling, and the Xiangnan families each have one, and the last one is missing. But recently, we received news that this key had appeared in Changning Prefecture, so we came here."

Su Xin frowned and thought for a moment, "There's something wrong here. You all came because you heard that the last key appeared in Changning Prefecture, but you all entered the city today?"

Xie Zhiyan nodded, "Perhaps a few hours apart, but we all arrived in Changning Prefecture today."

Su Xin tapped the table, "The problem is right here. Your Yi Jian Sect is in Jian Nan Dao, Qingcheng Sect in Chuan Nan Dao, and Nian Gang in Jiang Nan Dao. The distance between these three is thousands of miles. It's impossible for you to arrive at the same time after receiving the news."

"Moreover, the three major families of Xiangnan are closest to Changning Prefecture. If they came, they could have arrived in ten days, but now they arrived with you."

Hearing Su Xin's words, Xie Zhiyan also felt the suspicion.

"You mean someone deliberately gave us the news and even timed it to make us all arrive in Changning Prefecture at the same time?"

Su Xin nodded, "Exactly. The possibility is very high. If there is such a black hand, he must also be after Du Yuansheng's treasure. He will likely appear when the treasure is found."

Just guessing was meaningless. Su Xin took out a piece of paper and drew the shape of the key, preparing to have his subordinates inquire about it.

Similarly, he needed to inquire about some of Du Yuansheng's past deeds. Perhaps through these things, he could deduce where the treasure was.

Although Du Yuansheng had been dead for over ten years, some of the elders in Changning Prefecture must have heard some news or legends about him, which might contain useful information.

Seeing Su Xin's well-organized arrangements, Xie Zhiyan felt reassured. After bidding farewell to Su Xin, she also returned to the inn to rest.

At the same time, the other sects were not idle. People from other major sects also approached them.

Three Heroes Assembly.

Meng Changhe and two others personally welcomed three young people into the hall, treating them with utmost respect.

They were the representatives of the three major families of Xiangnan: Ruan, Zhang, and Jiang—Ruan Mingyue, Zhang Qingfang, and Jiang Yuandong.

The three major families of Xiangnan were one of the largest forces in the southern barbarian region. The Three Heroes Assembly, being the strongest gang in Changning Prefecture, had interacted with them before and knew the terror of these three families.

Similarly, these three families were very familiar with the forces in Changning Prefecture, so they chose the strongest Three Heroes Assembly as their ally.

Nian Gang Jiangling, upon entering Changning Prefecture, happened to encounter the Iron Knife Gang's members, so he directly chose the Iron Knife Gang to help him.

Although He Tian was arrogant, he had heard of the reputation of the Nian Gang among the seven major gangs and did not dare to be disrespectful.

Fang Dongting of the Qingcheng Sect arrived the latest. By the time he reached Changning Prefecture, the other gangs had already chosen their allies, leaving only the Blood Robe Gang and the Divine Wind Gang.

Initially, Fang Dongting wanted to choose Su Xin's Flying Eagle Gang.

The Flying Eagle Gang was currently at its peak in Changning Prefecture. Although most people knew that the strongest gang in Changning Prefecture was the Three Heroes Assembly, outsiders only knew the Flying Eagle Gang's reputation, and Su Xin was the leader of the gang alliance in Changning Prefecture.

Since he wanted to find someone to gather information, Fang Dongting naturally wanted to choose the strongest gang. However, Xie Zhiyan coincidentally met Su Xin at Shenglong Tower, and Fang Dongting was a step late, so he could only harbor resentment.

The relationship between the Qingcheng Sect and the Yi Jian Sect was not good. In fact, as one of the Five Sword Sects, their relationships were not very good.

As the saying goes, there is no first in literature, but there is a second in martial arts.

The title of the number one sword sect in the world was something everyone wanted.

With two options left, Fang Dongting directly chose the Divine Wind Gang.

The Blood Robe Gang was naturally stronger than the Divine Wind Gang, but Fang Dongting would not choose it because the Blood Robe Gang was backed by the Blood Robe Tower, one of the Eight Left-Path Sects.

The Qingcheng Sect, as a prestigious sect, did not want to be associated with a killer organization like the Blood Robe Tower.

Moreover, the Blood Robe Tower was one of the strongest forces in the world, and Fang Dongting couldn't just command them. So, he had to choose the Divine Wind Gang.

Fang Dongting, dressed in a light blue Taoist robe, was tall and handsome, and his sword was carried by a subordinate.

Gong Qingfeng served him carefully, not daring to be the slightest bit negligent.

Although Gong Qingfeng was a local lord in Changning Prefecture and the youngest gang leader besides Su Xin, he was incomparably inferior to Fang Dongting, the son of an elder of the Qingcheng Sect, who had reached the innate realm at the age of twenty and was on the Human List.

Fang Dongting said indifferently, "Gang Leader Gong, I asked you to draw the key and have your subordinates search the entire Changning Prefecture. Have you done it?"

Gong Qingfeng hurriedly replied, "Young Master Fang, rest assured. I have had the key's appearance engraved on tens of thousands of pieces, and each of my subordinates has one, and they are all out searching."

"How long will it take to search the entire Changning Prefecture?"

Gong Qingfeng considered for a moment and said, "At least seven days."

"Seven days?" Fang Dongting frowned, "Seven days is too long. Three days."

Gong Qingfeng looked distressed, "Young Master Fang, three days is really impossible. I only have ten thousand subordinates, and even if they don't sleep, they can't search the entire Changning Prefecture in three days."

Fang Dongting snorted, "Gong Qingfeng, are you playing with me? I gave you the first three techniques of the Qingcheng Sect's Chasing Wind Seven Swords as a reward, and now you tell me it's impossible?"

"The Yi Jian Sect and the Nian Gang are also looking for the key. In seven days, they will have the treasure!"

Gong Qingfeng's eyes flickered, "Young Master Fang, three days is really impossible. How about this, you can ask other gangs in Changning Prefecture for help. With your reputation, they won't dare to offend you."

Fang Dongting glanced at him indifferently, "Which gang in Changning Prefecture has the most people?"

"The Flying Eagle Gang! Su Xin's Flying Eagle Gang has the most people, over thirty thousand, three times that of my Divine Wind Gang, and Su Xin is the leader of the gang alliance in Changning Prefecture."

A glint of cunning flashed in Gong Qingfeng's eyes. He knew that the Three Heroes Assembly had over fifty thousand members, but he said the Flying Eagle Gang had the most people.

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