Your Majesty, We’re Counting on You to Ruin the Country! 42

Chapter 42: Conviction

“Thud—”

The two streams of inner energy collided, causing the sand to tremble slightly.

Feng Qi’s eyes were fierce, his long sword swinging wide, stirring up the wind and sand. Using a sword relied on the flexibility of the arm and wrist, but at this moment, Feng Qi had no sword technique in his heart, nor was he thinking at all. There was only the surging power and the faint, bloodthirsty desire in his heart, attacking the old man’s vital points based on his body’s instincts.

Although his moves were chaotic, like a wild wolf tearing and biting randomly, his inner energy was deep and terrifying. He firmly suppressed the old man, forcing him back several feet without any ability to fight back. Even so, the old man was not really attacking, just dodging, surviving under Feng Qi’s overwhelming moves and inner energy. He knew that against such an enemy, as long as he could survive, he could win without fighting. Feng Qi was expending so much energy, far beyond what an ordinary person’s body could bear. He would soon be defeated. A storm is feared, its momentum like it’s about to destroy the world, but it comes quickly and goes quickly.

Sure enough, Feng Qi then swung his sword and leaped up. Before the blade could get close to the old man, his face suddenly turned pale, and all the strength in his body seemed to be drained in an instant. His wrist went limp, and the long sword fell to the sand with a “thud,” kicking up a cloud of dust.

The old man seized the opportunity and struck Feng Qi’s chest with his palm, sending him flying half a li away. Feng Qi’s vision went black, and he spat out a mouthful of black blood. He could no longer hold on and fell to the sand, panting heavily, completely exhausted.

The old man also knelt on one knee at the side, his forehead and back covered in a cold sweat. It had been many years since he had fought with such a powerful person. The new generation surpasses the old; the young are to be feared! Of course, what was to be “feared” was not the martial arts, but the courage and guts to practice Annihilating Yang White Bone. After all, the martial arts also came from Annihilating Yang White Bone, so what was truly terrifying was not the martial arts, but that mental cultivation method!

That mental cultivation method is a harmful thing… The old man, as if remembering something, had a strange and dark look flash in his eyes.

On the other side, after Feng Qi had caught his breath, he propped himself up on the sand and cupped his fists at the old man. “Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.” The old man frowned. “Why practice Annihilating Yang White Bone? It’s a disgusting and harmful mental cultivation method. You must know about the Murong family. Has your brain been eaten by a dog?”

Feng Qi: “…”

This was the first time in his life that Feng Qi had been scolded like this. Even when he was young and powerless, no one had dared to do so, not even the Immortal Nanbai.

The feeling was truly… subtle.

Feng Qi shrugged. “What’s done is done. Anyway, my master has already said that if I… if I really lose control, he will personally kill me and not let me harm others.”

“Who is your master?”

In any case, the Immortal Nanbai has disciples all over the world, hundreds of them, but few he has taught seriously. So it’s fine to say.

“The Immortal Nanbai.”

The old man nodded. “That’s good. Nanbai’s martial arts are not bad.”

Feng Qi asked, “Senior knows my master? I’m curious, what is Senior’s esteemed name?”

The old man thought for a moment. “It’s not a secret anyway. My surname is Zhou, my name is Wuxin.”

Zhou Wuxin?

Ten years ago, a great figure in the martial world—the Sword Saint, Zhou Wuxin. Everyone knew him. After Murong Ya went mad and slaughtered the Murong family, it was also Zhou Wuxin who led the martial arts sects to subdue him. But after this, Zhou Wuxin, who was in his prime and full of vigor, retired from the martial world and traveled far and wide. His whereabouts were uncertain, difficult to trace. Everyone was extremely surprised, and the old alliance leader was even more incredulous. If not for the accident, Zhou Wuxin was supposed to succeed him as the next martial arts alliance leader, but he had suddenly retired.

“This old man has a mental cultivation method here. If you trust me, take it and practice it.” Zhou Wuxin took out a thin book from his robes and handed it to Feng Qi. “It will help to calm your inner energy and your mind. The effect is not great, but it’s better than nothing.”

“Thank you.”

If this person was truly Zhou Wuxin, Feng Qi naturally trusted him. Zhou Wuxin had always been known for his righteousness and chivalry, and he had also personally killed Murong Ya. He should be more familiar with Annihilating Yang White Bone.

Zhou Wuxin looked at Feng Qi, who was slowly getting up from the sand with the help of his sword, and said in a low voice, “Next time it acts up, you might not be so lucky as to meet someone like this old man who knows martial arts. If your master is not around, then you’ll have to rely on your own conviction.”

“Conviction?” Feng Qi raised an eyebrow.

“Yes,” Zhou Wuxin said. “Everyone should have a conviction to support them in living. When you want to die or can’t go on, think of this conviction and just madly chant it.”

With that, Zhou Wuxin turned and left.

Zhou Wuxin looked at the vast and empty desert. Perhaps because of Feng Qi, he suddenly thought of that person’s appearance…

“Ahhhhhh—”

The young man in red knelt before him, holding his head and screaming, tears and blood mixed together on his body, his eyes filled with a despair he had never seen before.

“Wuxin, kill me… kill me! I was wrong…” The man trembled in pain.

One strike through the heart, very quick.

“I don’t want to die, I really don’t want to die… I don’t want to go to the eighteen levels of hell. I want to be with you… with you…” The man cried in his arms like a child.

Some people said the person in his arms was a demon, a heinous sinner, that one life could not compare to the souls of the Murong family, that even whipping the corpse would be too light, that he should be torn to pieces to comfort the dead souls and never be reborn! And so, in his haste, he had thrown the already cold body in his arms off a cliff, to a place no one could reach, a lonely place, never to return home.

A gust of wind and sand blew by, as if whimpering.

Zhou Wuxin sighed, stopped, and turned to Feng Qi. “Tell this old man how to find you again. I’ll go and think about how to solve this Annihilating Yang White Bone.”

Feng Qi placed his jade pendant in a small pouch and handed it to Zhou Wuxin, smiling with a raised eyebrow. “Senior Zhou can find me with this jade pendant. But Senior Zhou has not been involved in the affairs of the martial world for many years. Why are you suddenly so interested in Annihilating Yang White Bone? Could it be that you’re worried I’ll become the next Murong Ya?”

“Nothing of the sort. I just want to see if I have the ability to save a person.”

Feng Qi frowned. He felt that Zhou Wuxin’s retreating back was desolate and sad. A hero in his twilight years…

Conviction…

Feng Qi was already too tired to ride back to Fengzhou. He was completely drained of strength, and his mind was a little chaotic. He simply lay on the soft sand and looked at the stars. The horse beside him also lay down comfortably to rest.

The night was as dark as ink, dotted with stars. The only sound was the whistling of the wind and sand. In the distance, the sand dunes and rock walls rose and fell, and nearby, there were scattered withered grass and branches.

Conviction…

Feng Qi closed his eyes.

“Yixin… Yixin…”

On the other side, Zhou Wuxin took out the jade pendant from the small pouch. He saw the character “Feng” surrounded by auspicious clouds and nine dragons on the white mutton-fat jade. The carving was exquisite, and the material was clearly of great value.

Zhou Wuxin smiled and shook his head. No wonder the young man was so noble and arrogant, his tone of voice unconsciously superior to others, and the fabric of his robes was the best of the best. As expected, he was a favored son of heaven. It was just that he hadn’t expected him to be not just a favored son of heaven, but the supreme ruler of the world.

Wen Ning’an had a dream.

Conviction.

This year, Wen Ning’an was still a naive and inexperienced young man. At that time, the general of the military camp had personally come to the new recruits to boost their morale.

“Conviction is the most important thing for us!” The burly general stood on a high platform, his deep and powerful voice spreading throughout the training ground. He slapped his chest hard. “On the battlefield, we can die at any time, we can face a desperate situation at any time. If we don’t have conviction, if we don’t know what we are fighting for, shedding our blood for, giving our lives for, are we still soldiers! Can we survive if we have no reason to live!”

Wen Ning’an stood straight-backed below, listening and thinking seriously.

“Speak!” The general walked down from the high platform and asked one by one, “What is your conviction! What are you fighting for!”

The new recruit who was called on said, “For the country!”

Seeing the flicker in the new recruit’s eyes, the general kicked him hard. “For the country? Is that sincere? When you’re about to die, do you think of the country? I don’t want to hear your fancy reasons! I want you to tell me, why do you fight!”

“F-for my wife!”

“Louder! Haven’t you eaten? What’s there to be ashamed of for your wife? Who doesn’t have a wife!”

The new recruit then took a deep breath and roared, “For my wife! I want to achieve great things so my wife can live a good life!!!”

“Good!”

Then it was Gao Lan’s turn.

“And you? Speak!”

“I also want to achieve great things, so that the people in my village who bullied me and my mother will suffer!”

The general asked one by one. When it was Wen Ning’an’s turn, he shouted seriously, “For the Crown Prince!”

The general let out a “tsk, tsk” and asked with great interest, “Why the Crown Prince?”

“The Crown Prince is the future emperor. I want to conquer and defend the country for His Majesty!”

“Good!”

After that was the war of attrition with Hong Xi. The Left Army, led by the great general, was held back by the Xu family’s reinforcements. Not only were they unable to provide reinforcements and supplies, but their actions were also constrained by the captured prisoners. In the end, the Left Army was surrounded on all four sides and forced onto a barren mountain. The enemy probably wanted to catch them in a jar, trap them, and cut off all their food and water to make them surrender.

The great general swore to die rather than surrender and led the soldiers to hold out on the mountain, waiting for reinforcements from the imperial city.

With a shortage of food and water, after a few days of enduring the cold wind on the mountain, the soldiers were all skinny and weak, with no fighting strength. Their morale was low, and no matter how the general and the adjutants encouraged them, they couldn’t change the tragic and desperate atmosphere.

A riot even broke out. Some people, unable to bear the hunger, even wanted to kill their own brothers.

“Feng Qi…”

Wen Ning’an’s face was sallow. He curled up against the stone wall of the cave and silently chanted that person’s name. Suddenly, he understood what the great general had meant.

“Feng Qi… Feng Qi… Feng Qi…”

It was this name that had accompanied Wen Ning’an through countless cold winters and hot summers on the battlefield, all the desperate situations, loneliness, and anxiety.