Chapter 139: Dragon Slaying Decree

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

Unknowingly, half an hour had passed.

In the waterside pavilion, the handsome man and the heroic prince were meditating opposite each other. Other than their rhythmic breathing, there was no other sound.

“Chirp-” The bird felt that it was unnecessary here, so it circled around the two of them, lay down, and rolled on the floor. Finally, it jumped out of the waterside pavilion and lowered its head to look at the koi in the lake.

Ye Jingtang was sitting upright, seemingly expressionless, but if one looked carefully, they could still see a trace of surprise between his eyebrows. In words, it was probably:

So, I have to meditate. What the hell did 1 practice before…

This place is really a treasured land. When 1 breathe, 1 feel relaxed and happy. It feels almost like burying myself between the little watermelons and taking a deep breath…

Uh- This surging internal energy…

Although he was a little intoxicated, this was the empress’s resting palace after all. He was afraid that the empress would return if he stayed here too long, so he opened his eyes after practicing for a while.

Dongfang Liren was sitting upright on the meditation mat in front of him, not moving at all. The noble aura between her eyebrows and her heroic attire really made her look like a deeply concealed top expert.

As Ye Jingtang’s breathing changed, Dongfang Liren stopped practicing and calmed down. “Why aren’t you practicing anymore?”

“This is Her Majesty’s resting palace. It’s not appropriate to stay too long.”

“There’s no need to be so reserved. Her Majesty is diligent in politics and will only return to the palace in the afternoon. If you want to practice in the future, just let me know.”

Ye Jingtang already owed Dongfang Liren a favor for learning the Jade Bone Picture. He didn’t expect to stay here. After some deliberation, he reached into his sleeve, took out a box, and handed it to Dongfang Liren. “I don’t know how to thank Your Highness for treating me so well. When 1 returned to the capital yesterday, I came across a good store and bought something. I don’t have any other intentions. I just want to return the favor. I hope Your Highness won’t mind the common goods in the market.”

Dongfang Liren was slightly surprised. She took it and unhurriedly opened the jewelry box. Lying inside the small hairpin box was a green and white jade hairpin.

The jade hairpin was in a style wearable by both men and women. There were no engravings, only a flawless streamlined shape. Although it was simple, it was extremely in line with her usual clothes. “You’re quite thoughtful… I don’t lack jewelry. Don’t spend so much in the future. Since it’s a return of courtesy, then…”

Dongfang Liren raised her hand to take off the jade pendant on her waist.

Seeing this, Ye Jingtang hurriedly raised his hand to stop her and said seriously, “There’s no need. If Your Highness really wants to return the gift, just give me an unimportant item.”

Dongfang Liren was stunned. She let go of the jade pendant and asked, “What would you like?”

Ye Jingtang blinked and leaned closer. “Your Highness, can you lend me that precious version of Tears of a Heroine? I went to a bookstore today but couldn’t find it at all…”

?!

Dongfang Liren took a deep breath and glared at Ye Jingtang, but she didn’t say anything. She only felt that he had established a good image in her heart yesterday. But half of it collapsed last night when he asked that woman to sit on top, and the other half collapsed now when he asked to borrow Tears of a Heroine.

Seeing that the Prince of Jing was angry, Ye Jingtang raised his hand slightly. “If it’s inconvenient, I naturally won’t force Your Highness. I’ve read it for many years and consider myself a fan of Wu Shengxie, but I haven’t even read the complete version. I just feel a little regretful…”

Dongfang Liren was silent for a moment before saying angrily, “It’s in my carriage. Get it yourself later.”

Ye Jingtang cupped his hands. “Thanks for letting go of it, Your Highness. When I finish reading it—”

“There’s no need to return it!

ii

Ye Jingtang was stunned. “Then, what will Your Highness read?”

Dongfang Liren originally wanted to say, “I’ll go to the Imperial Academy to search for another book.” But on second thought, it didn’t seem right. She said with a dignified expression, “I never look at that kind of thing. If I didn’t know you wanted it, I wouldn’t have left it in the carriage!”

Ye Jingtang understood and cupped his hands again. “Your Highness is indeed righteous.”

Dongfang Liren didn’t want to talk about the book at all. She got up, went to the bookshelf beside the waterside pavilion, took out a book, and handed it to Ye Jingtang. “Your talent in martial arts is something that the heavens blessed you with. You should read more books like this. How can you become a great person if you read those unpresentable things all day?”

Ye Jingtang took the book and saw the words ‘Dragon Slaying Decree’ written on it. The handwriting was forceful and exuded a sharpness. It was likely written by the Saber Chief, Xuanyuan Chao.

Ye Jingtang’s expression turned solemn. He didn’t open it immediately. Instead, he looked at Dongfang Liren. “Your Highness, showing me the Roaring Dragon Chart is already a favor that’s difficult to repay. If you give me this saber technique…”

Dongfang Liren said earnestly, “I’ve already learned the Heaven Equaling Saber. This is what I promised you. How can I go back on my word?”

Ye Jingtang’s eyes were full of surprise. “Really?”

The meaning in his eyes was probably: I didn’t see it, Dumdum. You actually learned it. Did the sun rise from the west…

Dongfang Liren’s eyes turned slightly cold as she clenched her fists, looking like she wanted to beat someone up.

Ye Jingtang coughed lightly. He pretended to be serious, opened the Dragon Slaying Decree, and looked at it carefully. On the first page, he saw the words: Discussion on Breaking the Eight-Steps Frenzied Blade.

Dongfang Liren had the opportunity to show off her knowledge in front of Ye Jingtang, so she naturally wouldn’t let it go. She explained like a knowledgeable expert, “The Dragon Slaying Decree slays the Hornless Dragon. The moves of the Eight-Steps Frenzied Blade are fixed, and there’s no such thing as changing between true and false moves. However, the Eight-Steps Frenzied Blade was able to dominate the saber world for decades at the end of the previous dynasty because it could achieve ‘great skill in simplicity, only speed can’t be broken’. You can see it, but you can’t block it. You can predict it, but you can’t avoid it.

“In the years when Kuang Yazi’s saber dominated the saber world, countless sabermen in Jianghu racked their brains to counter his moves. Finally, they came to the consensus that no one of the same level could break his moves. Even if Kuang Yazi’s opponents were stronger than him, it would be very difficult to counterattack after being hit. The only way to deal with him was to use a roundabout method to pull away and avoid his attacks.

“Later, Xuanyuan Chao appeared out of nowhere and broke this situation. He switched to a broad-backed heavy saber and used the method of ‘One-Step Retreat, Bowing Saber Spring’ to make the Eight-Steps Frenzied Blade die directly in the starting stance. This method didn’t give the Eight-Steps Frenzied Blade a chance to combo, so the Eight-Steps Frenzied Blad was eliminated from Jianghu.”

At this point, Dongfang Liren walked to the surrounding weapon racks and picked up two edgeless practice sabers. One was an ordinary straight saber, and the other was a broad-backed great saber.

The great saber’s blade was three and a half feet long, the handle was a foot long, the tip was heavy, and the end was light. The broadest part of the saber was four inches wide, and the guard was an inch and a half wide.

After Dongfang Liren walked to the center of the waterside pavilion, she placed the saber on the floor. “Why don’t you try?”

Hearing this, Ye Jingtang stood up, hung the unsheathed straight saber at his waist, and watched Dongfang Liren’s actions.

Dongfang Liren took a shoulder strap, hung it on her body, and then hung the saber on it. Because the saber was too heavy, the leather shoulder strap hanging diagonally in front of her chest pressed right between the fat-headed dragon and formed two semicircles.

Ye Jingtang was only focused on the saber techniques and didn’t look at this. He moved back 30 feet.

The surroundings fell silent.

After Dongfang Liren was ready, Ye Jingtang moved his left hand slightly.

Crack!

A saber light flashed in the waterside pavilion.

Ye Jingtang held the saber in his left hand and slashed toward Dongfang Liren’s center.

At the same time, Dongfang Liren’s entire body suddenly trembled. Even the fat-headed dragon was shaking violently. She moved her left foot back, bent her back, and raised the heavy saber. She held the hilt of the saber that was sticking out over her right shoulder with both hands.

“Haa!

ii

A delicate cry.

Dongfang Liren held the 54-kilogram saber and started the ‘One-Step Retreat, Bowing Saber Spring’. It was a great test of her body’s explosive power, and even her face turned red.

Clang!

Ye Jingtang didn’t use his full strength. He just followed the move and slashed horizontally. When he rushed in front of Dongfang Liren, her extremely explosive saber was already slashing down. It hit the blade of his saber just right.

Bang!

The crisp sound of metal colliding was accompanied by a string of sparks.

Ye Jingtang was holding the straight saber in his left hand when it collided with the heavy saber. He couldn’t withstand the heavy blow of the saber with one hand at all, and the straight saber immediately struck his forearm. This saber slash actually knocked him back.

Bang!

Ye Jingtang slid twenty feet away on the smooth floor and only stabilized himself when he hit a bookshelf.

But Dongfang Liren’s saber was still coming. With the tip of the saber touching the floor, she dragged the saber and ran forward wildly. She bowed like a tiger and instantly charged at him.

If their levels were similar, the first strike would definitely knock Ye Jingtang back. Then Dongfang Liren’s follow-up attack would dismember him on the spot.

But Dongfang Liren didn’t have that much explosive power. She stopped after taking a few steps forward. She put the saber on the floor and whispered while panting, “Huff… Huff… How is it?”

Although she had only attacked once, her consumption was visible to the naked eye. Her face had turned red, and her chest was heaving violently.

Ye Jingtang looked at the straight saber in his left hand. It had already been deformed by the single saber blow, and his entire left arm was numb. If not for Dumdum’s foundation being too weak, this saber move would probably have crippled his left arm.

“This saber technique was completely created for the Eight-Steps Frenzied Blade.”

Dongfang Liren panted for a moment before putting the heavy saber back on the weapon rack. “In the past, the Eight-Steps Frenzied Blade was the most powerful. Since Xuanyuan Chao wanted to take down the Saber Chief, he naturally had to break the Eight-Steps Frenzied Blade. If you want to be the Saber Chief, you have to dismantle the Dragon Slaying Decree and think of something new. Learn the saber techniques of the older generation. Even if you can defeat Xuanyuan Chao, you will win because of your youth, not because of your saber technique attainments.”

Ye Jingtang nodded thoughtfully…