White Fox Face entered the palace without any obstruction. To those martial world people whose homes and sects had been trampled by the Beiliang cavalry back in the day, entering here was harder than ascending to heaven, and inside was even more dangerous, earning it a place alongside Martial Emperor City with its “Second Under Heaven” guardian and the Wu Family Sword Tomb producing sword immortals as one of the three great forbidden danger zones.

Martial Emperor City had one old monster who looked down upon all masters under heaven.

The Sword Tomb had a large group of withered swordsmen who for their entire lives were only permitted to use swords, even only permitted to touch swords.

As for the Prince of Beiliang’s palace, besides the obvious Beiliang cavalry guards, there were countless reclusive masters hidden in the shadows. During that martial world calamity, the butcher Xu Xiao had not only mowed down countless long-famous martial world experts like cutting grass, but had also recruited a considerable scale of “running dogs” with poor character but abnormal strength.

From the initially nameless nobody, Xu Xiao from his very first day on the battlefield almost never removed armor or dismounted. Nearly forty years of seemingly endless rise to prominence was enough for Xu Xiao, this great demon lord who made all martial world people flee in terror, to maintain countless retainers, lobbyists, knights-errant and assassins, bestowing heavy gold, beautiful maids, or fame and power.

After the martial treasury was built, various martial art fanatics came seeking learning, willingly selling their lives to the Prince of Beiliang to guard his household.

What normal person dared pull the tiger’s whiskers or touch his reverse scales? The one who dared call himself “this old man” before Xu Xiao and even get physical was just one person – only Xu Fengnian, who led White Fox Face Nangong Pushe into the palace.

At this moment, the Crown Prince in a few words introduced the palace scenery to White Fox Face, who only knew a name. As Xu Fengnian himself said, unable to endure hardship or learn martial arts, possessing the martial treasury that all warriors under heaven dreamed of yet only knowing how to read some unorthodox fringe miscellany inside. Therefore Xu Fengnian didn’t have much profound sense of the palace’s hidden dangers at every third step, while White Fox Face didn’t dare be careless.

Arriving beneath the imposing Tide-Listening Pavilion, looking up at its roof top, eyes complex. Though called a pavilion, it was actually a proper tower with gathered pointed roof, layer upon layer of flying eaves, looking the same in all four directions.

Xu Fengnian chuckled:

“Publicly claimed to be six stories, but inside there are actually nine levels. Numbers begin at one and reach their limit at nine, but concerned that people in the capital with nothing better to do would make sarcastic remarks, it became what it is now.

As you can see, the lower four levels have outer corridors, five and six can serve as observation decks. The top floor has no books or items placed at all, completely empty. Inside the tower, five people are specifically responsible for arranging martial arts secret manuals according to cultivation difficulty from bottom to top – should be what the martial world calls tower-guarding servants. They’re all old fellows I’ve known since childhood, appearing and disappearing mysteriously.

There’s only one copyist. I learned calligraphy and painting from him. A consumptive invalid, looks more ghost than ghost, but still addicted to wine like life itself. Every time I go upstairs I have to bring him wine.

If you say the tower-guarding martial servants are masters, I believe it. If my half-teacher is one, I’ll jump from the ninth floor.”

White Fox Face didn’t push his luck demanding to enter the tower. He didn’t even appreciate the ten thousand carp leaping skyward in the lake, turning to leave, saying lightly:

“First help me take out a set of Sumeru Mustard Seed. The Buddhist holy site Forest of Steles Temple only has an incomplete half set. Inside the tower should be the other half set, six volumes total. I read books quickly – one volume at a time is too troublesome. For me it’s also not cost-effective, because I’ll pay for the wine money you need to go upstairs. I can only give you one of Embroidered Winter or Spring Thunder, so the fewer times you climb the tower, the more peace of mind I’ll have.”

Xu Fengnian asked with a slight haggling tone, “Can I have that Spring Thunder?”

White Fox Face, worthy of being a straightforward man, said without hesitation, “Yes.”

Xu Fengnian said with surprise, “You’re truly willing to part with it?”

White Fox Face, walking away directly, said calmly, “Under heaven there is nothing that cannot be let go.”

Xu Fengnian following behind curled his lip, dismissively muttering, “I’m afraid only someone utterly alone has the qualification to say that.”

White Fox Face settled in a quiet courtyard not far from the Crown Prince’s grand residence, living days that Xu Fengnian found extremely boring – yellow scrolls and blue lamps, working day and night. By the looks of it, the only things missing were boring through walls to steal light or hanging from beams and stabbing thighs.

Originally Xu Fengnian wanted to drag this beauty to appreciate romance, but still gave up. Aside from entering the courtyard to deliver books or going to Tide-Listening Pavilion to return books, only chatting a few sentences when delivering books, all superficial inquiries about martial world matters.

For example, asking White Fox Face which of the Ten Great Masters Under Heaven was more at the pinnacle, whether the Four Great Beauties were truly as lovely as sinking fish and falling geese – all amateur childish questions.

White Fox Face, dependent on others’ hospitality, had no thought of living under others’ noses, mostly ignoring him.

Xu Fengnian was helpless about this, but the only gain was that the now-unapproachable White Fox Face was willing to let him touch the two blades Embroidered Winter and Spring Thunder, even didn’t mind him drawing out Embroidered Winter to entertain himself with a few clumsy moves.

Regarding this, the Great Pillar of State turned a blind eye, never asking a single question throughout.

When news of the Crown Prince’s return to the city spread, that very day Lingzhou’s great dandies who were on good terms with Xu Fengnian came running eagerly to the door. At that time he was still sleeping soundly, and the Great Pillar of State drove them all away.

Only now were people allowed to enter the palace to disturb him. One was Yan Chiji, second son of Lingzhou Governor Yan Jiexi. The other was the notoriously vicious Young Master Li of Fengzhou, Li Hanlin.

The former, due to his name’s unfortunate homophone, was called “Grandpa Eats Chicken” by dandies from neighboring provinces, yet was a rare upright gentleman, a bookworm. Just a rather endearing pedant – vague on small matters, crystal clear thinking on big matters.

While the elegantly named Young Master Li was a complete tyrant. Throwing living people into beast cages to watch dismemberment tragedies was just one of this Fengzhou’s number one dandy’s twisted interests. He also swung both ways, especially favoring young male companions with red lips and white teeth, always keeping one or two pretty young servants in green beside him for favoring and playing with.

Becoming acquainted with Yan Jiexi was because Young Master Yan from childhood was accustomed to being the Crown Prince’s little follower, and Xu Fengnian also enjoyed teasing this peer whose lips always hung with sage teachings.

As for Li Hanlin, this scum, when harming others he was ruthless and merciless, never considering consequences, but toward friends he was beyond reproach. Moreover, Li Hanlin had an elder sister, extremely lovely. Xu Fengnian had coveted her for a long time, thinking he could use proximity to his advantage.

Besides bookworm Yan Chiji and scoundrel Li Hanlin, originally there was another close friend from an official family, surnamed Kong. But as his father’s generation was promoted and went to the capital to serve as officials, they hadn’t seen each other in four years. That one was a martial arts fanatic.

When the four gathered together, the division of labor basically had ringleader Xu Fengnian producing rotten ideas, meticulous and strategically flawless Yan Chiji responsible for cleaning up messes, Kong the martial fanatic providing muscle. If things were exposed, they’d have broken-jar-broken-fall Li Hanlin take the blame. Seamless.

“Brother Feng…” Yan Chiji, who’d been ​visit our site​Xu Fengnian’s little follower for over ten years, was already a refined young master, but upon meeting, he had a look about to cry, calling out an intimate address full of tender feelings, then his eyes moistened.

Sigh, this fellow was good at everything, just too delicate, sentimental, mourning spring and lamenting autumn like a woman. No wonder Li Hanlin thought this guy like him had male favor preferences, just that he was manly, playing with young male companions, while Yan Chiji was devoted to Brother Feng.

“Brother Feng!” Li Hanlin’s greeting was much more domineering. Wanting to embrace the long-separated Xu Fengnian, he was blocked by the latter raising a foot and lightly pressing it against his abdomen, laughing and cursing, “Stay away from me, covered in rouge and powder brought from men’s bodies.”

Scoundrel friends reunited at White Crane Tower atop Mount Qingliang, most suitable for looking far into the distance. The couplet hanging outside this tower, “Old friend sees me off at Yanguan Pass, immortal helps me up Yellow Mountain,” wasn’t from those dynasty-renowned, overseas-famous calligraphy masters whose single characters were worth a thousand gold, but from eight-year-old Xu Fengnian.

Looking at it now, it was increasingly childish, but even though iron-painted and silver-hooked calligraphy now moved much more smoothly, the copyist in Tide-Listening Pavilion, the Crown Prince’s half-teacher, said this was the Crown Prince’s couplet with the least artisan air – both character and meaning. Back then the Great Pillar of State was so happy he adopted it wholesale, carefully rubbed and printed then hung it up. Over these years there’d been no sign of changing to a different couplet.

Xu Fengnian didn’t much recount these three years of hardship and suffering, just selected some fresh martial world anecdotes and observations to narrate to his two peers. Speaking leisurely, he had them startled and exclaimed, extremely envious.

After drinking a pot of wine, Xu Fengnian had pretty much finished speaking. Yan Chiji and Li Hanlin were still savoring the tales. Xu Fengnian walked to the corridor, leaned on the railing and smiled lightly, “Now you know you’re frogs at the bottom of a well. Grandpa Eats Chicken can definitely read ten thousand scrolls in the future. I’ve also traveled thousands of miles. But what about you, Hanlin?”

The carefree Li Hanlin scratched his head, “How about becoming a general later and killing ten thousand people?”

Yan Chiji said disdainfully, “Brute.”

Li Hanlin jumped up, “You dare say that to the Great Pillar of State?”

Yan Chiji was at a loss for words, momentarily unable to respond or refute.

Xu Fengnian suggested, “Ride horses out for a spin?”

Li Hanlin was first to agree, cheerfully saying, “Then we definitely have to go to Purple Gold Tower. Courtesan Yu has been waiting for you these three years and hasn’t taken a single client. Her reputation’s even been surpassed by a new courtesan.”

Xu Fengnian asked, “Did you bring silver?”

Li Hanlin patted his bulging belly, chuckling, “See? For this trip, this young master stole ten thousand taels in banknotes from the secret room. For Brother Feng, I’ve really gone all out. Even if I’m confined when I return, I accept it.”

Yan Chiji mocked, “Look at your ambition.”

Li Hanlin was thick-skinned, laughing, “Then why don’t you steal some? Not saying ten thousand taels, just one thousand taels – do you dare? You scholars can only fight battles on paper. When it really comes to serious business like quarreling and brawling, which time wasn’t Brother Feng and we three putting in the work? Give you a naked woman and you wouldn’t dare roll around on her belly, yet you dare say I have no ambition.”

Yan Chiji’s face flushed red, coldly snorting.

Every desolate night with heaven as blanket and earth as bed, listening to Old Huang’s grating snores nearby, Xu Fengnian, transitioning from complaining unauthorized copyabout fate to finding joy in suffering, would miss the times when his sworn friends bickered, riding horses together by the South Huai River, teasing respectable women together, singing as they ascended brothels together, getting into trouble together, committing sins together, getting thoroughly drunk together.

The three said in unison, “Let’s go…”