Chapter 86: Western Venom Ouyang Feng, A Sword Like Blooming Peach Blossoms
“Zhou Yan’s kick was truly vicious.”
“Indeed. I think Brother Cui will be relying on Cui Changshun for his old age.”
“Heh, Cui Changshun’s greatest affection is for a woman’s belly.”
“Speak carefully.”
Cui Qingshan felt a heart-piercing pain spread from his lower body, making his breathing ragged and every sinew feel like it was twitching. He heard the conversation of several close escorts outside his room, his facial features contorting as he gritted his teeth.
“Zhou Yan, if I don’t avenge this, I’m no gentleman. We’ll see.”
Suddenly, a shout rang out from outside.
“The Head Escort is here.”
“How is Brother Cui?”
“He was still unconscious a moment ago.”
“Let’s all go in and see. I have something to say.”
“Alright.”
Cui Qingshan endured the pain and struggled to get up.
“Creak!” The door was pushed open, and the burly Shi Xiangui walked in. Cui Qingshan gasped, “Head Escort, I am not reconciled. I hate him so much!”
Shi Xiangui patted Cui Qingshan’s shoulder. “I know.”
“Head Escort, what did the Boss say?”
Shi Xiangui’s eyes grew dim. Those humiliating scenes and conversations resurfaced.
“Boss, I have no face to remain in the Escort Bureau. The Boss said Escort Zhou was not at fault, and you are reasonable. I understand that. But I am a Head Escort, with a group of escorts under me. Beyond reason, I also value loyalty. Otherwise, in these chaotic times, when facing thieves robbing the escort, why would the escorts and runners risk their lives? I also have my pride. But now Zhou Yan has ruined my pride, and I cannot pacify Escort Cui’s resentment for him. Therefore, I can only leave the Escort Bureau and seek another path.”
“Everyone has their own aspirations. Since the Head Escort feels this way, I will not force you. The Head Escort has worked diligently for the Escort Bureau, and I will send you off with a generous sum. If you wish to establish your own escort agency, Fu’an will offer its full support.”
“Whoosh,” Shi Xiangui shook his head, suppressing those humiliating dialogues. He said in a low voice, “I cannot seek justice for Brother Cui from the Boss. I can only leave the Escort Bureau. Are my brothers willing to follow me?”
Upon hearing this, Cui Qingshan felt that the pain in his body was no longer so unbearable. “My life, Cui Qingshan, belongs to the Head Escort from now on.”
Several escorts expressed their stance one after another.
“If we stay, we’ll just be taking abuse. Let’s follow the Head Escort.”
“That’s right!”
“Head Escort, just tell us where to go.”
Shi Xiangui said in a low voice:
“Changfeng Escort Agency.”
……
“Do you still remember what I told you when we escorted the Jingzhou caravan?”
In the meeting hall of Fu’an Escort Agency, Duan Huai’an asked Zhou Yan.
After Shi Xiangui left, the Boss of Fu’an immediately dispatched runners to summon Zhang Wangyue, Huyan Lei, Zhou Yan, Yang Tiexin, and others.
He asked this, and Zhou Yan replied, “I remember.”
“Tell me.”
“Raise a mourning banner to the sky, tread upon mountains and rivers. When we leave, the dragon enters the sea; when we return, the dragon enters the clouds.”
“Exactly. From today onwards, you are the youngest Head Escort in Fu’an’s history.”
Being promoted to Head Escort was something Zhou Yan had already anticipated. He cupped his hands, “Thank you, Boss, for your trust.”
“Fu’an’s future depends on you.”
“Let’s work together.”
Duan Huai’an was pleased. He then turned to Huyan Lei, Wang Kui, and Shi Baichuan, saying, “You four, along with Zhou Yan, will be Fu’an’s four Head Escorts from now on. I hope you can revitalize Fu’an and escort across the land.”
“Thank you, Boss, for your trust. We will certainly work diligently.” Huyan Lei and the others cupped their hands in salute.
“Congratulations to Miss Mu on becoming a formal escort, a Fu’an escort. Master Yang will be tested another day.”
Mu Nianxi said happily, “Thank you, Boss.”
Duan Huai’an nodded, then said to everyone, “Head Escort Shi has resigned, and I have agreed. The escort agency will experience some turbulence in the next few days, so I ask everyone to be more diligent and responsible.”
Zhou Yan let out a slight sigh. Zhang Wangyue’s deduction was entirely correct. Shi Xiangui was surely using a feigned retreat to force the Boss to punish him. As a result, the Boss acted decisively, cutting the Gordian knot.
Having transmigrated and finding himself in Fu’an, meeting such a Boss was indeed fate. Even if he were to roam the Jianghu in the future, he would never forget this bond.
……
As noon approached, a subtle atmosphere permeated Fu’an Escort Agency.
Shi Xiangui left Fu’an under everyone’s gaze. In the following days, seven escorts, including Cui Qingshan, successively resigned.
Fu’an Escort Agency underwent a transformation. From its previous structure with two Head Escorts, it became a situation where Zhang Wangyue, as Chief Escort, held sole command of the agency, with Zhou Yan, Huyan Lei, Wang Kui, and Shi Baichuan as the four Head Escorts responsible for the agency’s operations.
Duan Huai’an had actually worried unnecessarily. In the following two days, no more escorts or runners left the agency. Instead, due to the resignations of Cui Qingshan and others, those escorts and runners who had always respected Zhang Wangyue’s character and admired Zhou Yan’s abilities became united as one.
Duan Huai’an saw this and was delighted. This move was the right one. In time, Fu’an could escort across the land.
Just before the year-end, Fu’an held an examination. Through fair competition, five people, including Yang Tiexin, were hired as escorts.
The escort agency also distributed the year-end bonuses.
Zhou Yan received forty taels.
The escorts and runners, who had been busy all year, welcomed a rare period of over ten days of leisure.
Firecrackers sounded to bid farewell to the old year, always replacing the old with the new.
Zhou Yan had already pasted the door couplets. He went to the escort agency, saddled his yellow spotted horse, slung his quiver, carried his Qinggang sword and fine steel spear, and two blankets. He left Zhongdu and headed straight for the mountains and fields.
He had built a thatched hut in the mountains during his hunting trips. This time, entering the mountains, he intended to use this rare leisure opportunity for diligent cultivation to improve his strength.
……
The hoofbeats of the yellow spotted horse shattered the tranquility of the suburbs of the capital. After proceeding along the official road, Zhou Yan turned onto a small mountain path, his figure disappearing into the layered mountains and fields.
On that official road, however, more hoofbeats sounded. A camel, entirely white, approached unhurriedly. The man on its back, though appearing to have a brown beard and be fifty or sixty years old, had eyes as sharp as knives and swords, making him look exceptionally imposing.
Seeing Zhongdu in the distance, the man muttered to himself, “I wonder if Ke’er is still here.”
As the man spoke, his voice clanged like metal. Suddenly, his voice amplified, and the man declared:
“Carrying a staff, plucking a sword, I walk the yellow sands; the vast western regions are my home. The desert west wind flies emerald feathers; in Jiangnan in March, I watch the fireworks. Old Beggar, Huang Yaoshi, Ouyang Feng has arrived.”
……
As dawn broke, the yang energy began to rise, full of vitality.
The yellow spotted horse, covered with a blanket, grazed for grass in the mountain forest.
A campfire burned in the thatched hut, radiating warmth.
Pure inner qi was generated from Zhou Yan’s dantian, coursed down through the abdomen to connect with the large intestine, entered the lungs, and horizontally exited the chest wall to the upper “Zhongfu” and “Yunmen” acupoints, then flowed down the inner side of the upper arm, washing and solidifying the “Tianfu” and “Xiabai” acupoints, reaching the “Chize” acupoint at the elbow. From there, it followed the meridians along the radial edge of the inner forearm to the “Kongzui” acupoint. This robust and pure inner qi, infused with the gentle essence of Jade Guanyin, circulated through the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian, finally reaching the “Yuji” acupoint on the palm’s thenar eminence and the “Shaoshang” acupoint at the radial side of the thumb.
The key to “One Sword, Three Purities” lies in the circulation of inner qi between the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian and its secondary meridians. The two meridians Zhou Yan has been refining for a long time are now wide and resilient, carrying inner qi that is more than several times stronger compared to when he first practiced Quanzhen Swordplay.
Through diligent cultivation, he has been refining without pause. Zhou Yan could already feel that this main meridian was on the verge of being opened.
As the sun reached its zenith, inner qi surged like a gushing spring from all eleven acupoints of the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian within Zhou Yan’s body. The meridian vibrated with a snap. His body experienced a sudden, tearing pain, followed by the effortless flow of inner qi like a great river within this main meridian.
“Shaoshang, a fisherman of lakes and seas; Yuji and Taiyuan, where I drift my boat. Though the channels are immeasurable, they still make Chize stir up dragons.”
Zhou Yan had successfully refined the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian.
He let out a light whistle and appeared outside the thatched hut. With a “clang,” the Qinggang sword was in his hand.
The mountain wind blew, whipping Zhou Yan’s hair. He guided his energy with his intent, the eleven acupoints of the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian connected seamlessly, his qi and strength flowing as one.
“With the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian refined, and using robust inner qi to drive the sword tip, each sword strike can be divided not just into three, but even into five.”
Zhou Yan thrust out a sword.
Five sword shadows, as if within Mount Sumeru, arranged themselves in an incredible formation, falling precisely onto the tree trunk in front of him from five different angles.
“Crack!”
One sword divided into five, the marks landing evenly, like plum blossoms unfurling.
