Da Dong Mountain is the most beautiful and extraordinary mountain in the world, bordering the sea and backing the land. Its front is a smooth stone cliff as green as jade, and its back is lush green forests nourished by fertile land. In people's rational thinking, it is impossible for anyone to climb up and down that smooth stone cliff, but this record was finally broken by Fan Xian, the supervisor of Qing Yu Nian, the night before.

The front of Da Dong Mountain remains steep and precipitous. Except for a long, straight stone staircase leading directly into the clouds and the mountain peak, there is no other way. If one wants to launch a strong attack, they can only follow this path. Especially in the narrowest places, it is often a case of "one man at the pass, ten thousand cannot pass," truly a dangerous place that is easy to defend and difficult to attack.

The rebel army chose to besiege Da Dong Mountain based on reverse thinking: since the mountain is difficult to climb, if the army surrounds the mountain, it will also be difficult for the people on the mountain to come down.

So far, the rebel army has maintained excellent control over the situation. The forces of Emperor Qing have broken through several times but have been ruthlessly beaten back. After being driven back to the mountain gate, the key areas at the foot of Da Dong Mountain are entirely in the hands of the rebel army.

However, the rebel army did not expect that while they had surrounded the mountain, they could not ascend it even half a step.

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Yes, there are a hundred Tiger Guards on Da Dong Mountain. If a simple arithmetic problem were to be posed, it would take at least fourteen Haitangs to face these powerful guards of Emperor Qing head-on. But in fact, there is only one Haitang in the entire world.

Moreover, beside the Tiger Guards, there is also Wang Shisanlang, a figure filled with foolishness mixed with a bit of bravery and heroism that no longer belongs to this world...

With such powerful guarding strength and the unique terrain of Da Dong Mountain, even if the rebel army's encirclement is complete, it would still be as difficult as ascending to heaven to launch a strong attack and reach the summit.

Just like the name of that long stone path - Deng Tian Ti (Ascending Heaven Ladder).

To ascend to the heavens, how could it be accomplished by mere mortals?

Therefore, the rebel commander, shrouded in black clothing, decisively issued the order to suspend all attacks and instead intensify the patrols and blockades around the base of the mountain.

After giving this order, he turned around, gently patted the horse's back, and said calmly to Yun Zhilan beside him, "In such a great historical moment, you and I sometimes only have the qualifications to be quiet observers."

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This is an era of flourishing martial arts, an era where the power of individuals has reached a near-celestial display. Thirty years ago, there had never been Grandmasters in the world. But when Grandmasters appeared, people realized that the power of an individual could be so strong. Because of their strength, these Grandmasters can influence the general trend of the world.

And for this reason, these Grandmasters often live in seclusion, fearing that their words and deeds would bring turmoil to the world, thereby affecting the life and death of the people they want to protect.

And this place is the mysterious and beautiful Da Dong Mountain, where Emperor Qing is on the summit. It seems only Grandmasters are qualified to make a move.

Once a Grandmaster takes action, those powerful generals and sword masters who dominate one side will naturally retreat to the rear, their glory completely suppressed, like a piece of unilluminated coal, only hoping to witness the unfolding of history.

Just like now.

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The long upward stone steps seemed to have no end, with mountain mist faintly visible at the very top. A person wearing coarse linen clothing and a bamboo hat stood calmly at the foot of Da Dong Mountain, on the first stone step.

The stone steps were covered in bloodstains, some dried, some fresh, emitting various unpleasant smells. It was unknown how many forbidden soldiers and rebels had sacrificed their lives for every inch of ground.

But that person simply stood there quietly, as if he were stepping not on blood-soaked steps, but on朵朵 (duǒduǒ) white clouds. When the mountain wind rose, the person's figure became ethereal, resembling an immortal, as if about to ride the clouds straight up three thousand feet, but not to the heavenly palace, but to the temple on the mountain peak.

When this person wearing a bamboo hat appeared on the first stone step, the armies inside and outside the mountain simultaneously fell silent, not even a cry of surprise, as if fearing to offend this figure.

The black-clothed man and Yun Zhilan, who had been sitting on their horses, silently dismounted and slightly bowed towards the very ordinary linen-clad back, expressing their respect.

They knew that this great figure had already arrived at the foot of the mountain last night, but they did not know how this great figure appeared before everyone's eyes. But they did not need to be surprised, because such a person appearing in this world was originally the most inexplicable thing.

The rebel army made no further movements, while the Tiger Guards and the members of the Imperial Censorate in the forest seemed flustered and at a loss after a brief silence. Because no matter how loyal they were to the emperor and their country, they had never imagined in their hearts that they would have to directly antagonize this person, especially the people of Qing Yu Nian, who had always regarded this peerless master who liked to sail on the sea as the guardian deity of Qing Yu Nian.

However, this deity was now climbing the mountain, ignoring His Majesty's decree, and everyone knew the purpose.

The Tiger Guards tensed up, the swordsmen of the Sixth Bureau of the Imperial Censorate had dry mouths, and the forbidden soldiers were even so terrified that they could hardly hold the weapons in their hands steadily—fighting a god had exceeded the imagination and mental bottom line of most people. Moreover, they knew that although the opponent was only one person, he was more terrifying than thousands of troops.

Even if he had no sword in his hand.

Yes, Ye Liuyun, wearing a bamboo hat, had no sword in his hand, but who knew if he had a precious sword in his heart? His sword had passed through the sea at the foot of Da Dong Mountain last night, sometimes calm and sometimes angry, pierced through layers of white waves, flattened a reef, injured Fan Xian's heart meridian, and finally fiercely and unstoppably pierced into the rock wall as firm as gold and stone, the entire sword completely submerged, leaving only a slightly protruding hilt on the rock wall.

However, everyone in the world knew that Grandmaster Ye Liuyun was even more terrifying when he had no sword in his hand. In those legends, Ye Liuyun resolutely abandoned his sword due to an unknown story, and realized the Liuyun Sanshou (Flowing Cloud Dispersing Hand) in the mountains and clouds, and from then on, he advanced to the realm of a Grandmaster.

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Ye Liuyun had now stepped onto the second stone step. Finally, the Tiger Guards hidden in the forest behind the mountain gate finally reacted. And the first to greet this Grandmaster climbing the mountain was the rain of crossbow bolts, piercing and mournful, extremely powerful.

These were the high-damage weapons equipped by the Imperial Censorate, the repeating crossbows that had once appeared on the Cangzhou Nanyuan Plain. Fired in rapid succession at such a short distance, who could dodge them?

The black-clothed man and Yun Zhilan, watching this scene from the open ground far outside the mountain gate, did not even blink. They were certainly not worried about Ye Liuyun's life or death. No one believed that a mere rain of crossbow bolts could stop a Grandmaster. They simply did not want to miss the scene of a Grandmaster personally taking action, something that usually appeared like a divine dragon!

The black-clothed man thought to himself that if he were facing such a rapid rain of crossbow bolts, he would definitely be injured.

Yun Zhilan was wondering how his master would deal with it.

But Ye Liuyun, facing the approaching crossbow bolts, simply... waved his hand.

This wave was like a mountain pine chasing away the clouds, unwilling to have its green and beautiful face obscured by the white mist. This wave was like raindrops piercing through the clouds, unwilling to have its chance to be close to the earth blocked by dark clouds. This wave gave all onlookers the most peculiar feeling... natural, gentle, yet firm and fast.

Two completely opposite attributes were perfectly and thoroughly fused in this simple wave of the hand.

Where the hand fell, the crossbow bolts lightly drooped to the ground.

The high-speed crossbow bolts, encountering that hand, were like clouds flying extremely slowly, and that hand slowly摘 (zhāi) them off one by one, then threw them into the dust.

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The black-clothed man felt a chill in his heart and said softly, "I can't see his hand clearly."

Yun Zhilan remained silent. He originally wanted to see whether this Grandmaster of Qing Yu Nian was higher or lower than his master in realm, but he did not expect that he could not understand anything at all.

With the eyesight of him and that mysterious black-clothed man, they only understood one thing - the gentle Liuyun Sanshou (Flowing Cloud Dispersing Hand) was so fast that it could be applied gently, yet no one could capture the trajectory of the fingertip!

"More than just fast," the black-clothed man muttered to himself, "Clouds have the most shapes, so his hand is gentle and terrifying."

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Ye Liuyun, in Suzhou City, in Baoyue Tower, had once used a pair of chopsticks to knock down Fan Xian's crossbow bolts like swatting mosquitoes, and now, under the mountain gate of Da Dong Mountain, a single wave of his hand showed even greater skill.

He took another step up.

The light of swords flourished, and the stone path of Dong Mountain in June was like fluttering snow, the snow rushing straight towards the bamboo hat.

It was unknown how many Tiger Guards, in this instant, because of the responsibility and fear in their hearts, mustered up the courage and chose to draw their swords in unison.

The long swords danced in the air, the power of the blades sufficient to break the sky, enveloping Ye Liuyun's entire body within them. The combination of such powerful sword forces at the same time could completely cut Fan Xian and Haitang into several pieces.

But they did not cut Ye Liuyun.

Only a distorted and unpleasant metal friction sound was heard on the stone path. Ye Liuyun's bamboo hat was still on his head, but his person was like a wisp of light smoke, instantly crossing through these layers of sword light, and suddenly arrived above the stone steps, leaving the Tiger Guards behind him.

He shook his arms, and two clumps of metal objects twisted into twists fell on the stone steps, clanging and rolling down more than a dozen steps, scattering apart.

Only then did everyone realize that these metals like twists were originally the long swords wielded by six or seven Tiger Guards!

Liuyun (Flowing Clouds) is enough to bind gold and stone. Grandmaster Ye Liuyun perfectly demonstrated his realm that was too far beyond the secular, but stood quietly on the stone steps. Suddenly, his body swayed, a corner of his linen clothing was blown by the wind, leaving the clothing, and a piece of linen cloth rose with the mountain wind, swirling above the stone steps.

It was unknown when, but a young man with his whole body covered in dried bloodstains, with clear and bright eyes, holding a cyan banner, appeared in front of him.

Wang Shisanlang.

A gust of mountain wind blew, and the layer of clouds covering the mountain top seemed to be blown away, revealing a glimpse of the ethereal temple.

A muffled sound on the stone steps.

Ye Liuyun retracted his hand, looked down at the cyan banner broken into two pieces at his feet, a trace of incomprehension and a smile flashed in his calm eyes, and then coughed twice.

At this time, Wang Shisanlang was still flying in the air, and blood habitually spurted out again. His person drew a long arc, falling despondently into the forest, and a large tree to the far right of the stone steps was heavily knocked down.

Even a ninth-rank expert is still no match for a Grandmaster in one exchange.

However, Ye Liuyun coughed twice.

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A trace of worry flashed in the black-clothed man's eyes. He knew that even after Ye Liuyun impossibly broke through the crossbow bolts, the Tiger Guards, and the powerful young ninth-rank expert, he was still affected—he knew that with the realm of a Grandmaster, he should not be injured. However, Ye Liuyun had deliberately left room for manoeuvre in his three actions, but facing those Qing Yu Nian subordinates, experts whose eyes were red with fear and anger, there would always be some problems.

Grandmasters are the closest people to gods, but after all, they are not gods. They have their own families and countries.

Especially Ye Liuyun, this person is free and unrestrained. Even if he came to assassinate the emperor for his family today, he is still gently unwilling to harm the people of Qing Yu Nian.

Then he saw that piece of linen cloth from the Grandmaster's clothing gently fluttered down and landed in front of him. His mount was curious and sniffed it.

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(I overestimated my abilities and the horror of being away from home. The plane landed at Hongqiao at six o'clock, and I didn't get to my friend's house until eight-thirty. I finished dinner at nine-thirty, showered at ten, and sat in front of the computer at eleven. And... I have to get up at six-thirty tomorrow. This is really terrible. If I can't hold on one day and ask you for leave, please bear with me.)