Chapter 27

"Quite bold! To dare steal secret manuals from the imperial palace!" A voice that was neither male nor female echoed. Luo Fan, who was flipping through a book, suddenly looked up and saw a figure standing at the doorway, dressed in a red silk robe and wearing a tall hat. The face was shrouded in darkness, making it hard to see clearly, but from the voice, it was evident that this person was a eunuch. What was more alarming was that he had approached within five meters without Luo Fan noticing. When did such a formidable expert appear in the Divine Carving?

A fierce battle is about to ensue! Luo Fan reluctantly closed the secret manual in his hand, then stomped his foot, leaving an indentation on the floor. He shot toward the doorway like a cannonball. As he approached, Luo Fan swiftly drew his long sword, the cold light reflecting off the blade instantly striking the eunuch's eyes. Luo Fan felt a surge of joy and swung his sword toward the eunuch's neck.

The eunuch closed his eyes and tilted his body, striking Luo Fan's waist with a backhand. Suddenly, a red glow appeared on Luo Fan's waist. Although the eunuch's palm hit Luo Fan, he was unexpectedly repelled by the Nine Yang Divine Skill, and both let out a muffled groan as they passed each other, neither gaining an advantage.

"Such overwhelming internal strength!" The voice, neither male nor female, was clearly surprised. When he turned around, Luo Fan finally saw the eunuch's face clearly. It was heavily made up, making it impossible to tell if it was male or female. The red robe made Luo Fan think of one person: Dongfang Bubai!

"Damn! Isn't Dongfang Bubai in 'The Smiling, Proud Wanderer'?"

Before Luo Fan could think further, the red-robed figure attacked. In that instant, Luo Fan confirmed that this person was not Dongfang Bubai, as he held a sword! Yes, a flexible sword, moving at an incredible speed. In just a short moment, he had already attacked over a dozen times, and Luo Fan had blocked each one.

Seeing that he couldn't defeat the black-clad figure, the red-robed eunuch suddenly split into several figures, each wielding a flexible sword from different angles, the flashing sword light making Luo Fan's eyes dazzle.

"This is... the Invincible Sword Technique!" Luo Fan was startled. He held his long sword vertically in front of his chest, and with a "ding," he successfully blocked the eunuch's sword.

The red-robed figure retracted his flexible sword and then transformed into several sword shadows, attacking Luo Fan again.

"Left!"

"Right!"

"Left!"

Relying on his familiarity with the Invincible Sword Technique, Luo Fan managed to block the rapid attacks. However, the eunuch's sword speed continued to increase, putting more and more pressure on Luo Fan. Despite this, he managed to hold his ground. Suddenly, a sword light pierced through the dense sword shadows. Luo Fan swung his sword to block it, but to his surprise, the sword light passed right through his blade!

"Fake!" Luo Fan was startled. He suddenly felt a cold chill behind him and quickly bent forward. A flexible sword almost grazed his back, cutting a few strands of hair! As he turned around, the flexible sword struck his chest like a whip, forcing him to retreat several steps, a trickle of blood appearing at the corner of his mouth.

"Not the Invincible Sword Technique!" Luo Fan suddenly realized that this sword technique, while similar to the Invincible Sword Technique, was even more advanced! "Could it be..." Luo Fan thought of a possibility.

The red-robed figure, holding a flower in his hand, revealed a smile that was neither genuine nor fake. "You are the first to escape with your life from my Sunflower Illusion."

"Is that so?" Luo Fan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. He thought that even if this person wasn't using the Sunflower Manual, it must be closely related. He couldn't afford to tangle with him for long; otherwise, he would be surrounded by the imperial guards and have no chance of escape!

Luo Fan now held his sword with both hands, vertically in front of his right chest. He then took a large step forward, raised his sword high, and in an instant, covered several meters to stand before the red-robed figure. The eunuch felt himself locked in by a powerful aura and realized that even if he used his lightness skill, he couldn't escape! Therefore, he could only retreat rapidly, waiting for the moment when Luo Fan's sword would strike to block it.

After retreating several steps, he found that Luo Fan's sword had not yet struck. A cold smile appeared on his lips, and he horizontally slashed with his flexible sword. At that moment, Luo Fan suddenly pushed off with his toes and flew over the eunuch's head. Before the eunuch could turn around, Luo Fan, like a swallow, suddenly changed direction in mid-air, reversing his grip on the sword and flying back!

The eunuch had just turned to look up when he saw this and hurriedly extended his flexible sword to intercept. However, in his haste, he was slightly off, and the two swords clashed, producing a shower of sparks. Although he didn't block Luo Fan's sword, he managed to deflect it slightly, allowing it to graze his waist, leaving a shallow wound.

The eunuch's forehead was now dripping with cold sweat!

Luo Fan sheathed his sword and turned, saying calmly, "You are the first to see my Swallow Return and survive!"

"Looking for death!" The eunuch's left hand pinched a fine needle, and with a circular motion of his wrist, he suddenly released it, sending the needle flying at incredible speed!

"Damn, it really is the Sunflower Manual!" Luo Fan quickly blocked the needle with his sword. Then, the eunuch produced several more needles, pinching them between his fingers and firing them all at once.

These flying needles were extremely fast and powerful. Blocking one was already difficult, let alone several. Luo Fan quickly bent backward to dodge, and behind him, he heard several cries of pain. He turned to see that many imperial guards had arrived!

Luo Fan's mind raced. Even if he used the genuine Nine Swords of Dugu, he might not have a chance against this eunuch. The only reason he managed to injure him was because his moves were unexpected and the eunuch had underestimated him. Using the same move again would be ineffective. "It's time!" Dodging several needles, Luo Fan suddenly sheathed his sword and shouted, "Iaijutsu: City Slaughter!" His sword, carrying the immense power of the Nine Yang Divine Skill, swept horizontally, instantly knocking back the surrounding guards and deflecting the flying needles. It also momentarily halted the eunuch. With a light step, Luo Fan flew away like a large bird.

A voice, neither male nor female, screamed, "Pursue!"

"Yes!"

Luo Fan was extremely fast, and in a few leaps, he reached the palace wall. Using his lightness skill, he leaped to escape the palace. The pursuers could not catch up, but the eunuch remained calm. He extended his right hand, and someone handed him a large bow and a giant arrow. The eunuch drew the bow, almost to full draw, and then released the arrow, which flew toward Luo Fan at incredible speed!

In mid-air, Luo Fan had no place to borrow force and could only block the arrow with his sword. The immense power of the arrow instantly shattered his sword. Luo Fan quickly twisted his body, and the arrow, with its tremendous force, pierced through his waist and carried him out of the palace wall.

"Order the city to be placed under martial law!"

"Yes!"

"Stealing chickens and losing the rice! Cough! Cough!" Luo Fan coughed up a mouthful of blood and staggered down a path outside the palace. Although the wound wasn't fatal, it was still severe, and he needed to find a place to heal quickly.

"Report!" Inside the palace, the red-robed eunuch sat in a chair, sipping tea, and asked calmly, "What was lost in the palace?"

"Report to the eunuch, nothing was lost, but a line of small characters was found in the armory."

"Oh? What does it say?"

"Admirer of the Japanese Demon Sword, Xie Yunliu. It must have been left by the black-clad figure."

"Such audacity!" The eunuch slammed his hand on the table and shouted, "From his sword technique, he seems to be from Japan. This must be his signature. These Japanese dare to spy on our imperial secrets and leave their names so arrogantly. Do they think we have no one in the Song Dynasty? Search thoroughly! He was hit by my arrow and won't get far!"

"Yes!"

Lin'an was not far from the sea, so it was normal for a few foreign swordsmen to visit. However, such audacity was unprecedented for the red-robed eunuch.

In the darkness, Luo Fan suppressed his injuries, evaded several pursuers, and "bought" a set of clothes (stole the clothes but left the money). There were four rivers in the city, and Luo Fan found one to clean his wound. He then tore strips from his clothes to bandage the wound thickly. Wearing the "bought" clothes, Luo Fan transformed into an ordinary young man.

The giant arrow was pulled out by cutting off the tail, so it didn't worsen the wound. However, the severe wound required Luo Fan to spend 1000 points to buy a bottle of special wound medicine from the system to stop the bleeding. He didn't dare use the red medicine, as a small bottle of life potion cost 5000 points. This trip to the palace had only earned him 4000 points, and he had to spend 1000 more, healing only half the wound. If he used a medium life potion, it would be a waste of time.

He waited until dawn, using his superior lightness skill to evade the guards' searches multiple times. However, he couldn't find a chance to leave the city, and the intensity of the search suggested that Yang Guo, who was staying at an inn, might also be in danger!

"What should I do?" Luo Fan was anxious. If he weren't injured, he could fly over the city wall and deliberately let the guards see him, making them stop searching the city. Then, he could easily take Yang Guo away. But now, with his severe injuries, he couldn't even reach the top of the wall, making this plan impossible.

Moreover, with the guards searching everywhere, he couldn't focus on healing. He could only rely on the Nine Yang Divine Skill to slowly nurture his wound, which would take much longer than active healing. If he actively healed, he could recover enough to climb the wall in a few days. But now, if he didn't heal, it might take ten or even dozens of days to recover.

"Damn eunuch!" Luo Fan cursed in his heart. At that moment, the guards had already reached the inn where Yang Guo was staying.

Yang Guo was pacing anxiously in his room, beads of sweat on his forehead. He thought, "Master went out last night, and now the city is under martial law. They must be looking for Master. But Master hasn't returned yet. What should I do?"

...

...

Congratulations to Da Qin Ruishi for guessing correctly, it is indeed the Sunflower Manual.

Thank you to everyone who votes for Xiao Ye every day!

Thank you to Da Qin Ruishi for pointing out the bug. The capital of the Southern Song Dynasty is Lin'an. Xiao Ye has made the necessary changes. If there are any remaining issues, please let me know. Please forgive Xiao Ye, whose history was taught by a physical education teacher.

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