Inside the secluded courtyard.
“Are you truly certain there will be no issues?” Lu Fenghuo asked with a hint of uncertainty.
“There are no issues,” Song Jiu replied with a smile touching his eyes.
Being amnesiac before was one thing, but now that he had recovered a portion of his memories, he could naturally circulate his internal energy once again. Four months had passed since he was poisoned, meaning a part of the toxin had already dissipated, and he could use his internal energy to force out the remainder.
That should be enough to recover roughly thirty percent of his peak strength.
To deal with a single Xu Yuanhong, that would suffice.
Lu Fenghuo said no more.
The Old Street Terrace.
Over a hundred martial arts heroes had gathered here, laughing, cursing, and bantering noisily in a lively commotion. Dozens of vendor stalls had even popped up around the area.
Lu Fenghuo: What the absolute hell!
People in the martial world truly loved a bustling crowd.
As the Hour of Xu drew near, Xu Yuanhong stood upon the terrace clad in dark blue robes with his sword in hand, yet Song Jiu was nowhere to be seen.
The martial artists gathered below grew impatient as they waited.
“What is going on with this Song Jiu? Wasn’t it said to start at the Hour of Xu?”
“Indeed, the time is almost here, why hasn’t he arrived yet? Could he be playing us for fools?”
“That shouldn’t be the case. Over a hundred martial heroes are waiting right here, and Sect Master Xu has been waiting on the terrace for a long time. Since the challenge has already been put out, he cannot possibly fail to show. But if you ask me, he is probably terrified, which is why he hasn’t shown his face until now.”
“Terrified? Ha! Being terrified won’t help, it is too late! Since the challenge letter was already issued, he cannot back out. Even if he doesn’t show up tonight, Sect Master Xu will surely go find him. This time, there is no one from the Mirror Moon Palace to protect him. Oh my, these Chenzhou fruit pastries taste rather decent, would you like to try one, brother?”
“Truly not bad, smells heavenly.”
“Has the Hour of Xu not arrived yet? This is so difficult to wait for! Just where did this fellow named Song Jiu crawl out from to throw such a big fit? Making all of us wait around like this!”
Amidst the noisy chatter of the crowd, a figure was spotted approaching gradually from afar, walking at a leisurely pace.
The newcomer wore a pristine white robe with his dark hair half-bound. In his hand, he held a folding fan, the corners of his lips curved upward slightly, his light tea-colored pupils reflecting an expression of gentle, timeless warmth.
A pure white mask concealed the upper half of his face.
Yet there was not a soul who failed to recognize him.
The terrace suddenly fell completely silent.
It was a silence that felt somewhat terrifying.
Xu Yuanhong’s expression twisted viciously for a split second.
He recovered his memories already?
The medical experts of the martial world were truly useless.
Clearly, he had been told that the poison’s efficacy would last for several years.
Several years during which Song Guyang would lose all his memories, entirely isolated and helpless. What an absolute, perfect stroke of divine fortune that should have been!
Yet all of this had been completely ruined simply because of that divine doctor’s mouth full of lies and that unreliable poison! He would never find such a golden opportunity again, nor would he ever obtain the mental manual of the Sun-Abundant Sword Technique!
Bloodshot veins filled Xu Yuanhong’s eyes.
A few individuals stood up on the terrace, asking uncertainly, “Is that… Sect Master Song?”
“It is him, it is truly him! With such attire and bearing, no second person can be found in this entire martial world! He is Song Guyang!”
“Song Guyang?!” someone gasped in astonishment. The person immediately reacted, realizing he had actually blurted out the real name of that legendary figure! He instinctively clamped a hand over his mouth.
“It is Sect Master Song!”
A growing number of people were struck with disbelief.
As the pristine white-robed figure walked slowly closer, the numerous martial heroes grew quiet once more.
No one dared to utter a sound.
This was, after all, the foremost figure in the martial world, holding the top rank on the Mystic Ledger.
He was also the Sect Master of the Sun-Abundant Sect and the Supreme Master of the Martial World.
Anyone who laid eyes on him had to address him respectfully as Exalted Lord.
Not a single soul knew just how unfathomably profound his martial arts were.
Not one.
The crowd instinctively parted a path, leaving the prime seating area at the front completely vacant.
“Exalted Lord,” someone called out respectfully.
More and more voices joined in the chorus.
“Exalted Lord.”
“Exalted Lord!”
One voice after another, brimming with reverence and excitement.
“Do you know why Sect Master Song is held in such high esteem?” In a corner of the Old Street, several vendor stalls huddled closely together. One vendor put on an air of profound wisdom as he questioned the others.
“Who doesn’t know that?! Sect Master Song is upright in character and impartial in his dealings. To name just one instance, during the Jiangnan floods, how many commoners did he save?” This was the vendor who sold the Chenzhou fruit pastries.
After finishing, he still felt it was not quite enough, so he added a few more lines. “Sect Master Song has saved countless people. Nearly half the martial heroes in this rivers and lakes have received his grace at some point. Take myself for example. Two years ago, my younger sister was abducted by bandits, and it was Sect Master Song who rescued her!”
“With Sect Master Song conducting himself in such a manner, who in the martial world could see him without calling him Exalted Lord? This title of Martial Arts Supreme is truly well-deserved.”
“Do not let yourselves be deceived by him!” Xu Yuanhong rebuked in a cold voice.
The attention of the crowd instantly shifted back to the terrace.
“Sect Master Song and I are friends of many years, how could I fail to tell the real from the fake?! The person before you is not Song Guyang! He is Song Jiu! A nameless nobody with no background!” Xu Yuanhong’s voice was ice-cold.
“Earlier today, I am certain you all heard it! The Great Elder of the Sun-Abundant Sect stated with his own mouth that Sect Master Song is currently in seclusion. The real Sect Master Song is cultivating in seclusion within the sect, so this impostor who has popped up must be a fake!”
As soon as Xu Yuanhong uttered those words, the crowd fell silent once again.
This person was actually a fake?
True or false?
Who would dare disguise themselves as the Exalted Lord? They must have grown tired of living.
At that exact moment, Song Guyang chuckled softly.
His voice was clear, warm, and pleasant, instantly winning the favor of anyone who heard it.
He produced a silver-white token.
The token was exquisitely crafted, engraved with a solitary sun in the middle surrounded by the characters for “Sun-Abundant.”
“It is the token of the Sun-Abundant Sect!”
“This token is genuine; it bears the uncopyable secret patterns unique to the Sun-Abundant Sect.”
“What does that prove? This is a guest elder token, not the sect master token. This token can only prove that the person named Song Jiu is a guest elder of the Sun-Abundant Sect, and it does not prove that he is Sect Master Song.”
The chivalrous guests debated amongst themselves.
Song Guyang remained noncommittal, simply producing several more tokens.
One, two, three…
There were a full five of them!
Not only were there guest elder tokens, but there were also elder tokens!
Song Guyang’s lips curved upward slightly, a trace of amusement in his tone. “I departed in rather too much haste, so I brought a few tokens along with me. I wonder if these tokens are sufficient to prove my identity?”
How could these not prove it?
Aside from the Sect Master himself, who else could possibly possess such a large number of Sun-Abundant Sect tokens?
Lu Fenghuo felt somewhat relieved.
These tokens were items they had found at the old site of the Southern Yin Dark Hall.
That location had already been thoroughly wrecked and battered. It was a miracle that these tokens had been hidden so deeply that no one else had managed to find them.
Xu Yuanhong remained silent for a moment before suddenly bursting into laughter. “Sect Master Song, you and I have known each other for eight years. If you truly wanted to protect someone named Song Jiu, there was no need to go to such lengths, right? Disguising yourself as Song Jiu just to answer this battle of life and death?”
His words were tantamount to acknowledging Song Guyang’s identity.
Xu Yuanhong was gambling.
Song Guyang would not dare reveal his true appearance.
Though he did not know the reason why, Xu Yuanhong was incomparably certain of this point. Ever since they had met eight years ago, Song Guyang had always worn a mask.
Why?
Could it be that he had even more formidable enemies out in the world, making it inconvenient for him to show his true face?
If that was the case, Xu Yuanhong stood to gain an advantage.
As long as Song Guyang admitted to being a disguised Song Jiu, then this battle of life and death could be immediately averted.
Xu Yuanhong did not wish to fight here.
At least, not in front of so many martial arts heroes.
How many people had Song Guyang saved?
Among these martial heroes, were there those he had rescued in the past?
Xu Yuanhong did not know.
However, he was well aware that engaging in a battle of life and death with Song Guyang in full view of the public was extremely unwise. He would have to be out of his mind to do such a thing.
Even if he genuinely managed to kill Song Guyang, a never-ending stream of martial heroes would likely come seeking vengeance on his behalf in the future.
As long as Song Guyang did not dare remove his mask, then he did not have to be recognized as Song Guyang.
Once tonight’s crisis was defused, Xu Yuanhong could seek another opportunity.
He would strike him down in one decisive blow the moment Song Guyang was left isolated.
Leaving no trace behind.
The martial heroes beneath the terrace were nearly dizzy with confusion.
They truly could not figure out what on earth was happening right now!
The only thing they could be certain of was that the person on the stage was indeed Sect Master Song.
Because Sect Master Song would never hand over so many vital items to someone else!
Yet was Sect Master Song also Song Jiu?
They did not know.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Song Guyang let out a soft sigh.
He reached up and removed the mask from his face.
Beneath the mask, flawless, snow-white skin was exposed without reservation. His pupils were a pale, translucent tea color, exuding an extraordinary and pristine aesthetic beauty. His long eyebrows slanted upward into his temples, and his facial features were supremely refined, every single detail resembling a painting.
This was a face stunning enough to instantly captivate one’s soul.
Every single person present caught their breath in unison.
Sect Master Song had worn a half-mask year-round, leaving no one in the rivers and lakes acquainted with his true appearance. People had once speculated that Sect Master Song might be hideously ugly, which was why he concealed his face.
At this moment, as the crowd gazed upon the visage of that pristine white figure, everyone stared in a dazed trance.
They had been entirely mistaken all along; this person possessed the ethereal beauty of a heavenly being!
Especially since he was dressed entirely in white, making him look all the more refined and detached from the mortal world.
Breathtaking.
Yet this astonishingly striking appearance was not something they were seeing for the first time. During the Famous Sword Tournament earlier that afternoon, that very same Song Jiu had possessed this exact facial appearance!
This person really was Song Jiu!
“It is Song Jiu!”
“Sect Master Song is Song Jiu.”
“Sect Master Song is the ninth disciple under the lineage of the Carefree Sword Immortal. The name Song Jiu must simply be an alias used by his elders to address him.”
“Why on earth would Xu Yuanhong want to hunt down Sect Master Song?”
“It is indeed strange. Sect Master Xu has previously been benevolent and righteous, helping many people. Yet during this period, he has acted somewhat strangely, first killing Elder Jiang and his wife, and now hunting down Sect Master Song.”
“What on earth has gotten into Xu Yuanhong?”
Xu Yuanhong was indeed on the verge of going mad.
He had never expected Song Guyang to be so utterly unconcerned with the consequences!
It seemed a battle today was unavoidable.
Xu Yuanhong’s expression turned dark and gloomy as he spoke with a cold edge, “Song Guyang, I originally wanted to spare some face for you. It was merely a minor matter, and with our friendship of so many years, it could have been resolved privately. Yet I never imagined that when I offered you a step down, you would actually disdain it. Since things have come to this, we have completely torn off the facade, and I no longer care to maintain any reservations!”
“As for why I issued a kill order, I expect you know the reasons far better than I do. You, a Sect Master of the Sun-Abundant Sect and the Martial Arts Supreme, used your superior position to bully the junior, acting lawlessly and cutting down my Profound Moon Sect’s senior eldest disciple with a single sword! My senior eldest disciple’s corpse is still preserved intact to this day, and his wounds unmistakably bear the marks of the Sun-Abundant Sword Technique! Throughout the martial world, you are the only one who commands the Sun-Abundant Sword Technique, and that is a point you cannot argue your way out of!”