Chapter 718: Breaking Sword With Sword, Greeting the Lord

Jiang Taiyan saw that the situation was not favorable and immediately retreated.

He was merely invited here to see if he could gain some benefits.

He absolutely had no intention of living and dying together with King Chu Qing.

From the current scene, it was evident that Young Master Dongyuan from Yan Kingdom, who had come seeking refuge and reinforcements, had a superior strategy and achieved an absolute advantage. What was the point of struggling any further?

“If not now, then when?”

Being a member of the royal family of Qii Kingdom, he showed remarkable enlightenment since childhood. His outstanding talent made him stand out among his peers in the Jiang Family. As he grew older, he gathered scholars from Qii Kingdom and established the Yushan Academy, nurturing countless talents across the Seven Kingdoms, earning him the title of Grandmaster and the World Sword Sect.

In his lifetime, he didn’t even know how many talents he had cultivated for Qii Kingdom.

He also helped elevate Qii Kingdom to the status of one of the Seven Kingdoms’ hegemons.

To achieve such accomplishments, Jiang Taiyan was undoubtedly no fool. His only lifelong regret was that at birth, he did not choose the right family to be born into, and thus his status and position were inferior, preventing him from gaining control over Qii Kingdom’s inheritance.

No matter how much he cultivated, he could never break through the final Celestial Pass of technique.

There was a natural gap between sevenfold “ingenuity” and fivefold.

The most absurd thing was that his cousin, Prince Qii Zhong, who held the Inheritance Tower Seal, had little interest in martial arts. Not only did he dislike practicing swords, but he had no interest in practicing blades, spears, or hammers. What he loved were painting and beauty, spending most of his time in the deep palace painting beauties.

He even claimed that nothing was more beautiful than people, that the beauty of human figures surpassed all, and that women, especially those formed by nature with balanced bones and flesh, were the epitome of beauty, akin to seeing Heaven and Earth.

It must be said that Prince Qii Zhong, Jiang Taiyu, was quite fortunate, reaching the pinnacle of the world in painting.

It’s said that the beauties he painted seemed almost real, such that if one wasn’t careful and looked too long, they might even step out of the paintings and play music in harmony with people…

This was indeed quite impressive.

Jiang Taiyan sometimes felt anger and jealousy.

But, as long as fate keeps you in the game, there’s no way to escape it.

He could only accept reality.

He didn’t think painting could contribute much to a nation’s prosperity.

But he obviously didn’t have the qualifications to persuade his cousin.

He could only do his best to assist his cousin, and that was all.

The more he did, the more Jiang Taiyu ignored state affairs, claiming to govern through inaction, allowing the people to enjoy peace and sometimes not attending court for six months.

Jiang Taiyan had also considered other ideas, but the pressure of the royal family’s rules was as heavy as a mountain. As long as the Inheritance Tower Seal remained in Jiang Taiyu’s hands, he couldn’t do anything out of line.

He was unable to break through the final layer and truly glimpse the last layer of Sword Technique to see what the view above the sword path looked like.

Jiang Taiyan swept his sword circle, revealing a complex, layered terrain.

Around him, dozens of layers of sword nets unfolded, and his figure floated backward, directly into the street, almost reaching the city gates, only to find that the young girl in the green dress did not raise her sword in pursuit.

Not only did she not use that strange, ethereal, incredibly fast body technique as a chase.

Even the tall female general, whose powers and speed had suddenly increased, made no moves, only pressing her sword and watching with eyes full of ridicule.

“This is not good.”

Jiang Taiyan didn’t understand why these two exceptionally skilled swordswomen, after fighting for so long, suddenly ceased their attacks. Could it be they intended to let him go?

That was impossible.

The only possibility was that the opponent felt there was no need to pursue further.

That he couldn’t escape even if he tried.

Recalling the previous fierce cry heard from afar.

Jiang Taiyan sighed, slightly paused his long sword, crossed it over his chest, stopped, and concentrated, standing his ground.

“How can I be allowed to leave?”

The scene before him seemed like the waxing and waning of the moon, his vision becoming slightly blurred.

Seven zhang ahead, on what was once an empty street, a blue-clad figure appeared at some unknown point.

Even with Jiang Taiyan’s eyesight, which could discern the intricate patterns on a mosquito’s wings, he couldn’t see how the opponent arrived, nor from which direction they emerged.

It was as if the person had always been standing there.

The stranger walked leisurely, with clothes gently swaying in the breeze, holding a bronze longsword, the tip pointed diagonally to the ground. Although emitting no Blood Evil aura…

There was an immensely heavy yet extremely sharp Qi Mechanism pressing firmly on Jiang Taiyan’s heart, making it nearly impossible to breathe.

‘Truly a foe the likes of which I have never encountered.’

Throughout Jiang Taiyan’s numerous battles, not one had put such immense pressure on him.

Even the Qin Kingdom’s overlord, famed for manipulating the emotions of All Living Beings and renowned for conquering without military engagement, wielding the Emperor’s Sword that roams the world, did not exert such immense intimidation.

“The Han Kingdom’s sword is sharp, Qii Kingdom’s sword is clever, but the Qin Kingdom is especially skilled at overwhelming with great force. Observing your distinguished sword technique, ingeniously crafted, almost creating a world with a single stroke…should belong to Qii Kingdom. Might I know which esteemed guest has arrived?”

Chen Ping was not overly familiar with this world.

The Heaven-Reaching Tower’s crude insertion of this identity was merely that of a guard of Yan Kingdom. Apart from farming in his youth, he joined the military as he grew older. Through fearless fighting, he gained the favor of someone influential, becoming a Royal Palace Sword Attendant.

His life was unremarkable, with little knowledge of the world’s major events or various personnel.

This was perfectly normal.

No one would idly share high-level information with a guard of not very prominent status.