Chapter 41 : Chapter 41
Chapter 41: He Is No Longer Capable, But His Biological Grandson Is!
"A magnificent ambition!"
Zhao Yi was awestruck by Cheng Yu’s spirit and vision for a long time. Finally, he stood up with a loud laugh and began to applaud.
As he looked at Cheng Yu’s calm and unruffled demeanor, his heart grew increasingly satisfied. He felt as if he were looking at a reflection of his own high-spirited and vigorous younger self.
However, while Cheng Yu’s words were indeed shocking, they were not enough to make the far-sighted Zhao Yi completely lose his composure.
He spoke plainly. "The ambition is good. But if it is merely talk without the power to realize it, then how would you be any different from those hypocritical 'Great Heroes' of the martial world?"
The masked man at his side stood up with a smile. "Lord Cheng is right. A martial artist's most reliable capital is nothing more than his own skills and the saber or sword in his hand. I could not agree more. I wonder if I might request some guidance, so that I may see just how much capital Lord Cheng truly possesses?"
"You wish to spar with me?" Cheng Yu glanced at Zhao Yi with doubt. He knew that the masked man deferred to Zhao Yi.
Zhao Yi nodded with a faint smile. He also wanted to see exactly what his eldest grandson was capable of, and whether he was truly worthy of that grand ambition.
Cheng Yu understood that Zhao Yi, a man of clearly extraordinary status, intended to test him. He nodded. "I shall naturally accompany you!"
"Then shall we find a place?" The masked man stood up and smiled.
Cheng Yu shook his head. "When martial artists fight to the death, they do not specifically look for a designated arena."
"Hmm?" The masked man was momentarily silenced. He had not expected Cheng Yu to say such a thing.
Beside them, Zhao Yi stroked his white beard and laughed heartily, his admiration for Cheng Yu growing even deeper.
"Then we shall do as you say. Forgive my offense!" The masked man did not take offense. He cupped his fists, and his figure flashed instantly as he closed in on Cheng Yu.
Golden light condensed in his palm, accompanied by the resonant sound of Buddhist chants. He possessed the strength of a top-tier Fourth Rank martial artist at the very least!
Cheng Yu frowned slightly. He realized the masked man was intentionally suppressing his cultivation, but he did not slacken in the slightest. He drew the Thunder-Cleaving Xiuchun Saber from his waist to parry the masked man's attack.
CLANG!
The Thunder-Cleaving Xiuchun Saber collided with the masked man’s palm, producing the crisp ring of clashing metal. The two were evenly matched, and they momentarily separated.
Cheng Yu’s webbing between his thumb and forefinger throbbed with pain. He became extremely cautious. The masked man’s palm technique was incredibly divine; to be able to clash directly with a Human Grade weapon using only his palms meant he was using the highest-tier technique Cheng Yu had ever encountered.
"Excellent skill! But this is not enough!" The masked man laughed and shouted his praise, looking utterly confident.
Zhao Yi, however, began to undercut him from the side. "The boy has good methods. My student’s internal energy is suppressed to the Fourth Rank, but his mastery of palm techniques and his physical body cannot be held back!"
"Teacher, don't say that!" The masked man gave a strange cry and immediately attacked Cheng Yu again.
Seeing his opponent return, Cheng Yu decided to stop holding back. He summoned all of his pure, purified internal energy, which surged like a rushing river into the Thunder-Cleaving Xiuchun Saber.
The blade flickered with faint lightning, and arcs of electricity jumped from the steel. A jet-black glow of internal energy suddenly erupted, carrying an awe-inspiring momentum.
Cheng Yu focused all his concentration and swung his blade, pushing his understanding of the Hundred-Battle Reincarnation Saber Art to its absolute limit.
Under his full-powered strike, the saber light overflowed, giving off a feeling of immense grandeur. It felt as if Cheng Yu were a demonic god, and the heavy sounds of the Dao echoed around him. His offensive was terrifyingly potent, bearing down directly on the masked man.
"What? What is this?" The masked man was in the middle of his assault when he suddenly saw this display of power. His eyelids jumped violently.
Even from a distance, that terrifying saber light made his skin sting. If it actually landed on a person, what would happen? He hurriedly unleashed speed far exceeding the Fourth Rank and retreated rapidly.
"I give up, I give up! Lord Cheng’s martial arts are startlingly heavenly. This is not something a Fourth Rank should have to face!"
To have such strength at the age of twenty—his talent was truly terrifying! The masked man cupped his fists and bowed, thoroughly convinced by Cheng Yu's martial talent.
Zhao Yi was also standing to the side, his mouth agape in shock. Was this truly the strength of his twenty-year-old grandson? And he had cultivated it all on his own? Could it be that his daughter and her husband had specifically trained him just to deceive him?
However, he quickly dismissed that possibility. His son-in-law was incapable of producing such a genuine hero. After the shock passed, Zhao Yi felt only immense joy.
His grandson should indeed be the greatest of geniuses!
"Excellent martial arts! In this vast Jianghu, one could hardly find a few such talented youths!"
Seeing the masked man surrender, Cheng Yu sheathed his Thunder-Cleaving Xiuchun Saber. He still felt a bit unsatisfied, but upon hearing Zhao Yi's praise, he cupped his fists in acknowledgment.
Cheng Yu sat back down at the wine table. He had long been growing curious about Zhao Yi’s identity and his reasons for coming here. The man had questioned his attitude and ambition regarding the Jianghu and then tested his strength; who exactly was this sacred figure?
He raised a cup of wine and spoke bluntly. "Might I ask for Senior's name? I would like to offer Senior a toast."
Zhao Yi smiled and shook his head. "I am very old, and you are still young. Even if I said my name, you would likely not recognize it."
"Teacher, really. Lord Cheng has asked, so why be so mysterious?" The masked man smiled as he looked at Cheng Yu. "I will tell you. Master Zhao’s given name is 'Yi,' the same 'Yi' as in 'Righteousness.' He was once a great figure in the Imperial Court."
"Zhao Yi? Grand Chancellor Zhao?!" Cheng Yu’s eyes widened upon hearing this. He immediately stood up and bowed. "So it is Lord Zhao. Cheng Yu greets the Retired Former Chief Grand Secretary!"
He was profoundly shocked. Zhao Yi was the Grand Chancellor of the Great Qian Dynasty who had retired twenty years ago. He was a legendary pragmatist who had single-handedly halted the decline of the Great Qian Court, bringing it back from the brink of death. He had even suppressed the Jianghu for the first time in three hundred years and kept the Barbarian Tribes and other foreign threats quiet for a decade.
Had it not been for the collusion between internal and external traitors twenty years ago, Great Qian might have regained its former glory by now. He was a figure Cheng Yu deeply admired.
"Do you know me?" Zhao Yi had not expected his grandson to have heard of his name. When he was the Grand Chancellor, Cheng Yu had not even been born.
"I often heard my parents mention you. The decades when your Excellency was in power were the years when the common people lived in peace and the Jianghu was at its most stable. No one fails to be deeply grateful to Lord Zhao. I, Cheng Yu, come from a commoner background, so I naturally would not dare to forget!"
Zhao Yi nodded upon hearing this, but the smile on his face turned a bit stiff. The "parents" Cheng Yu mentioned surely referred to his adoptive parents, and his claim of being from a commoner background was a complete severance of ties with his biological parents.
As his grandfather, Zhao Yi naturally felt pained hearing this. That damned Cheng Zhenjiang was truly less than human! Not only did he abandon such a fine youth, but he even tried to ruin him with his pedantic moralizing! The worst decision Zhao Yi had ever made in his life was marrying Zhao Xichun to Cheng Zhenjiang!
"Lord Zhao, what is wrong?"
Zhao Yi quickly forced a smile again. "It is nothing. I feel a great sense of kinship with you and wish to invite you to drink a few more cups."
"That will not do. I must be the one to toast Lord Zhao!"
"I am joining as well!" the masked man chimed in from the side.
The three of them finally began to drink heartily. After they had finished their food and wine, Cheng Yu found he could truly hold no more. Only then did he take his leave.
Zhao Yi, with his extremely high cultivation, was naturally unafraid of becoming drunk. He watched Cheng Yu’s departing figure, nodding continuously. He could not calm his heart for a long time.
In his youth, his martial arts had reached an incredibly high realm, and his eyes were fixed solely on the world. Unable to stand the hypocrisy and schemes of the Jianghu, he had chosen to enter the Imperial Court as an official.
With the support of his transcendent strength, he had relied on thunderous methods and a heart full of passion to reach the highest ministerial rank. The Jianghu said that the "Eccentric Zhao Yi" was a free spirit who wandered everywhere without a fixed home, a man who was seen but never caught. They thought he was simply a traveler wandering the world.
Little did they know that he was actually busy standing atop the Imperial Court, exhausting his mind and heart for the great affairs of the realm. He had once succeeded in making Great Qian briefly shine with its former glory.
Unfortunately, Great Qian was weak, and the strength of the Jianghu had been an irreversible trend for over a century. All of Zhao Yi's efforts had vanished like smoke under the siege of external enemies and the stabs in the back from his own people. Since then, he had retired to his hometown and truly became the "Eccentric" who wandered the world.
Now, he was already seventy years old, and his children and descendants had become the very likeness of those he loathed. The passion of his youth had completely cooled.
But until today, after hearing Cheng Yu’s grand discourse, Zhao Yi felt that his former ideals were actually being reignited. As martial artists standing between heaven and earth, who would not want to accomplish a grand and spectacular career? Not for anything else, but simply for the satisfaction of the soul!
He was old now, but Cheng Yu was still young. With such talent and vision, Zhao Yi felt as if he saw his former hope once again.
He was no longer capable, but his biological grandson was! The resources and subordinates from those years were still waiting for him.
Amidst a thousand flowing thoughts, Zhao Yi nodded silently. He made a momentous decision in his heart.
He would burn himself out to pave a supreme path to the heavens for Cheng Yu!