thefictionvixens Page 123
Page 123
“But that’s not the case.”
"At least if you put Gu Jiantang in Xu Xiao's position, he simply couldn't have won that battle for the fate of the nation at Xilingbi."
"You should know that in the Battle of Xilingbi, Xu Xiao faced Ye Baikui, who was known as the foremost of the four great generals and the best warrior in the world during the Spring and Autumn Period."
Before Xilingbi, Ye Baikui was synonymous with "God of War," having won countless battles and never tasted defeat.
"The Battle of Xilingbi was the only defeat in his life."
"And this one and only failure cost him everything, including his country."
"When it comes to reading military books, Xu Xiao is not as good as Gu Jiantang."
"But when it comes to leading troops into battle, Gu Jiantang is far inferior to Xu Xiao."
"He could not train fierce generals like Chen Zhibao, Yuan Zuozong, and Chu Lushan, nor could he train an army with the same cohesive morale as the Beiliang Iron Cavalry."
"So overall, Gu Jiantang is still far inferior to Xu Xiao."
"In the Spring and Autumn Period War, Liyang can do without Gu Jiantang, but it absolutely cannot do without Xu Xiao."
As soon as Su Chen finished speaking, a collective gasp filled the hall.
Those martial arts figures who had previously sympathized with Gu Jiantang could only sigh deeply at this moment.
The wars of the Spring and Autumn Period were a stage for countless famous generals and strategists to display their talents.
The most regrettable case is Gu Jiantang, because with Xu Xiao around, he never had a chance to show himself from beginning to end.
With his mastery of military strategy and his tactics, he should have shone brightly in the wars of the Spring and Autumn Period.
But in the end, Xu Xiao stole all the limelight.
As the saying goes, "Two tigers cannot share one mountain," and "Two unparalleled generals cannot be contained in one dynasty."
Before the battle at Xilingbi, Gu Jiantang was only inferior to Xu Xiao in terms of seniority.
But because of this lack of experience, Xu Xiao fought all the tough battles and took all the credit.
If Xu Xiao could be like Ye Baikui of Western Chu, winning every battle and defeating the many with the few, that would be fine.
But Xu Xiao and Ye Baikui are completely different.
Of the four great generals, Xu Xiao had the worst background and suffered the most defeats, countless of them. But he was able to fall and get up again and again, and outlasted his opponents with his stubbornness.
Many people naturally felt that Xu Xiao was inferior to Gu Jiantang.
Now that Su Chen has made these remarks, it has essentially set the record straight.
Between Xu Xiao and Gu Jiantang, Gu Jiantang's military strategy is indeed more impressive.
However, Xu Xiao also had his unique strengths. He was able to cultivate a great general like Chen Zhibao and win the Battle of Xilingbi, a battle that no one else could defeat.
Chapter 83 Accepting him as a disciple
Therefore, it is a certainty that Xu Xiao is stronger than Gu Jiantang.
Gu Jiantang was completely suppressed by Xu Xiao in the imperial court, just like he lost to Qi Lianhua in the martial arts world. It was purely due to his lack of strength and had nothing to do with luck.
The debate over who is the number one general in Liyang can now be put to rest.
After a brief silence, the entire hall erupted in chaos, with the martial arts practitioners buzzing with discussion:
"Haha, did you hear that? Prince Xu Xiao of Beiliang is the real master general. If it were Gu Jiantang instead, we wouldn't have won the Battle of Xilingbi at all."
"Thank you, Celestial Mystery Immortal, for clearing the name of King Beiliang! Although our King Beiliang has suffered many defeats, he is by no means inferior to Gu Jiantang."
"I said long ago that Gu Jiantang's luck was indeed not good, but it was more a matter of strength. The Spring and Autumn Wars will not bury any famous generals."
"That's right! The Spring and Autumn Period Wars were a stage for all the famous generals to show their skills. Gu Jiantang couldn't defeat Xu Xiao simply because he was not strong enough."
"Sigh, Gu Jiantang is quite impressive. He's the youngest of the four great generals, and his record of single-handedly destroying two countries is only slightly inferior to Xu Xiao's."
"It can only be said that Gu Jiantang knows a little bit about everything, but he's not top-notch at anything. The title 'Passerby A' is practically tailor-made for him."
"With these words from the Celestial Immortal, who would dare to say that the King of Beiliang is inferior to Gu Jiantang?"
Next to the railing on the fourteenth floor.
Xu Fengnian smiled and said, "Thank you, Celestial Mystery Immortal, for clearing my father's name."
He spent that million taels of silver with absolute gusto; Gu Jiantang wasn't even worthy of carrying his father's shoes.
Xu Xiao often said that talking about a 50-year-old foundation is pointless.
But he simply didn't think so.
He insisted on letting everyone know, letting that damned Emperor Liyang know, that Prince Xu Xiao of Beiliang was unmatched.
Su Chen took a sip of tea, and after everyone finished discussing, he slowly spoke:
"Next, let's talk about the next sword immortal to make the list."
"Fifth on the Sword Immortal Ranking, Huang Ying."
"This swordsman who made the list is probably unknown to anyone in the martial arts world."
"Because he is not from the Central Plains, but from Japan, and is a member of the Japanese royal family."
“He used to live a comfortable life and knew nothing about martial arts.”
"Once, when he went out with his family, they encountered a group of highly skilled mountain bandits who killed all the guards accompanying them."
"Fortunately, at the critical moment, a swordsman passed by and, with just one sword, took care of all the hundreds of bandits."
"This man is Yagyu Mujin, one of the Seven Great Swordsmen of Japan."
"Huang Ying was so impressed by martial arts that he sincerely wanted to become Liu Sheng Wuwang's disciple."
“Yagyu Mumei originally didn’t want to take on a disciple because Huangying was too old, but seeing that he was very sincere, he finally accepted him.”
"Unexpectedly, Huang Ying has amazing talent in the way of the sword. He has completely mastered the essence of his master's sword technique in just ten days."
"After that, Huang Ying made rapid progress. In three years, he broke through the Vajra Mortal Realm and finally defeated his master, Liu Sheng Wuwang, and began to roam the martial world."
"Over the next ten years, Huang Ying defeated almost every famous swordsman in Japan without ever being defeated. His swordsmanship became more and more powerful, and he entered a state of divine transcendence."
"Just then, a famous sword-making family in Japan forged a weapon called the 'Silent Sword,' which was born with an evil aura and no one could wield it."
"This family has declared that they will give away the Jingji Blade to anyone who can lift it."
"In a short time, many famous swordsmen from Japan rushed to try and subdue this evil weapon."
"But the evil aura of the Jingji Blade is beyond imagination. It has its own powerful blade energy, and anyone who gets close to it is injured."
"A swordsman at the Great Freedom Realm disregarded the threat of the sword energy and forcibly drew his sword. As a result, he was swept away by the sword energy and all five of his fingers were gone."
"From then on, no one dared to approach the Silent Blade."
"After hearing about it, Huang Ying came in person. He approached the Jingji Blade step by step and was not harmed by the blade's energy. He successfully pulled it out."
"But even so, Huang Ying could not connect with Jing Ji Dao and could never control it."
"In order to completely master the Jingji Blade, Huang Ying guarded the blade day and night, without eating or drinking."
"His wife, Rimi, stayed by his side with their daughter, Akiko, to persuade him to give up, and she also stopped eating and drinking."
"But even after his daughter Qiu Zi starved to death, Huang Ying remained unmoved."
"Rimi was utterly disappointed and took her own life by rushing towards Jingji's blade."
"Huang Ying felt no grief at the death of his wife and daughter. Instead, it made him suddenly realize that he had nothing left in his heart except for Jing Ji Dao."
"From then on, Huang Ying fully realized that only by letting go of the shackles of wife, children, wealth, and fame could he truly become one with the Jingji Blade."
"So he gave up his royal status, abandoned everything, and entered the Supreme Ruthless Realm, finally achieving a connection with Jingji Dao."
"With the help of the Jingji Blade, Huang Ying's cultivation level improved rapidly. He created the peerless blade technique 'Seven Styles of Blade Intent' and stepped into the realm of terrestrial immortals in one fell swoop."
"The Seven Styles of Sword Intent encompass seven emotions: chaos, sorrow, pride, infatuation, tranquility, coldness, and anger."
"The first move is called Slash, the second move is City of Sorrow, the third move is Arrogant to All Living Beings, the fourth move is Heartbreak, the fifth move is Quietly Startled, the sixth move is Frosty Eyebrows, and the seventh move is Angry Question to Heaven."
"Seven emotions are combined into one strike, known as the 'Seven Transformations of Emotions.' When the strike is unleashed, it can shake the heavens and earth, sweeping across the Immortal Realm without fear."
"But this ultimate strike is extremely mysterious and complex, and its power is several times greater than the previous seven moves. Huang Ying has been pondering it for ten years but still can't figure it out."
"Even so, Huang Ying's current swordsmanship is enough to sweep across Japan, making him the undisputed number one swordsman."
"Therefore, taking all factors into consideration, he is temporarily ranked fifth on the Sword Immortal Ranking."
In the main hall of Dengtian Pavilion, all the martial arts practitioners couldn't help but show expressions of surprise.
No one expected that the first announced land-based sword immortal would be a foreigner, from the island nation of Japan, which everyone had always looked down upon.
Fortunately, thanks to the Japanese swordsman Yagyu Muki and the master of the Wushen Palace, Jue Wushen, everyone has some understanding of Japan.
Now that they've heard that another terrestrial immortal has emerged in Japan, everyone is looking at this country with new respect.
Although the Earth Immortal is only the weakest of the three levels of Earth Immortals, it is still an invincible existence in the mortal world, and even Haotian has to think twice before acting.
Such powerful individuals are rare, even among the most powerful nations in the Central Plains.
The inclusion of Huang Ying on the list has given many people a new understanding of the martial arts world in Japan.
In terms of its historical and cultural foundation, the martial arts world of Japan is no less powerful than that of some dynasties in the Central Plains.
After hearing Su Chen's analysis of Huang Ying, everyone broke out in a cold sweat.
Huang Ying is ruthless!
Throughout history, those who practice swordsmanship have often been more eccentric and more prone to extremes than those who practice spears or halberds.
For example, the previously announced characters Song Que and the Second Blade Emperor in Tianya Mingyue Dao prove this point.
Huang Ying's ruthlessness and decisiveness are beyond the imagination of ordinary people.
Others are ruthless usually towards others, but he is ruthless towards himself. In order to be in sync with Jingji Dao, he was indifferent even to the deaths of his wife and daughter.
He even gave up his royal status and wealth in pursuit of the ultimate swordsmanship.
This is something that ordinary people in the martial arts world cannot understand or accept.
Because most people practice martial arts in pursuit of power and fame.
If you have to give up everything to become a master, then what's the point of being a master?