Zhuo Shuangfeng composed herself for a long moment. Suddenly, "Never mind!" she declared. "I understand, Martial Uncle, that you can certainly handle Gongsun Xiuyun."

Li Muzhan chuckled, "This time, you’ve misjudged things."

Zhuo Shuangfeng gave a light smile and pointed at the chessboard. "Martial Uncle, it's your move now!"

Li Muzhan picked up a black chess piece, still looking worried. "Remember, the moment Gongsun Xiuyun appears, you leave immediately. No delaying."

"Yes, I know," Zhuo Shuangfeng smiled and nodded, picking up a white piece to place it.

The two stopped talking and devoted themselves entirely to the game. Li Muzhan appeared utterly at ease, while Zhuo Shuangfeng knitted her brows in deep thought, occasionally glancing up at him with an expression of surprise.

Li Muzhan smiled serenely. His spirit was formidable, his thoughts electric, making the game flow as naturally as water.

Suddenly, Li Muzhan looked up, his eyes blazing with light. He stared straight at the south wall and roared in a deep voice, "Who dares disturb my peace late at night! Show yourself!"

"Well, truly formidable." A shadow flashed, and Gongsun Xiuyun materialized, drifting into the courtyard. She stepped up to the small pavilion, cupped her hands, and laughed, "Heh heh, to draw me out so quickly, you are indeed the first. I have yet to ask your esteemed name!"

Li Muzhan remained calm and composed, smiling faintly. "So, it is the elder Gongsun. We meet again! Feng'er, pour tea for Elder Gongsun!"

"Yes."

Zhuo Shuangfeng looked at him, hesitated for a moment, but upon receiving a sharp glance from Li Muzhan, she nodded somewhat clumsily and agreed, gracefully exiting the pavilion.

Gongsun Xiuyun glanced at her, perhaps sensing too much hostility, and waved off the offer. "Let’s skip the tea for now; I’m not thirsty."

Li Muzhan’s expression suddenly changed. With a violent flick of his sleeve, a fierce wind erupted. Zhuo Shuangfeng’s white robes billowed, her hair flying loose, and she looked back in astonishment.

Li Muzhan flashed forward, blocking her path. He said coldly, "Elder Gongsun, striking at a mere junior—do you not find that beneath your dignity? Does it not bring shame upon the Gongsun family?"

Zhuo Shuangfeng froze, then understood instantly. She quickly retreated a few steps, drifting away.

She realized that Gongsun Xiuyun must have attempted to poison her just now, seamlessly, invisibly. She had never imagined that this Gongsun Qingyun could be so shameless.

Gongsun Xiuyun burst into laughter. "If I want to kill, I kill. My actions are only for immediate satisfaction—why bother with dignity? Isn’t life too tiring when one worries so much?"

Li Muzhan smiled faintly. "So that is how it is. No wonder Elder Gongsun used poison, not martial arts, to dispatch the fifth young master of the Wang family."

"Heh heh. This little fellow has excellent potential. If he were a few years older, who knows, he might have become a match for me. Better to eliminate him early!" Gongsun Qingyun laughed, casting a sharp look at Li Muzhan. "Your surname is Li, and your identity is quite mysterious. Where did you spring from? Why must you insist on saving Wang Yanjin's life?"

Li Muzhan stated calmly, "The Wang family means much to me..."

Gongsun Qingyun understood suddenly. "So, it's repaying a debt of gratitude! Alas, with your level of martial arts, you cannot join the Gongsun family; you can only become a ghost of the Wang family instead."

Li Muzhan suddenly flicked his sleeve, and a surge of vigorous wind immediately swept outward, carrying the tea and everything else away.

He frowned, looking mildly at Gongsun Qingyun, and shook his head. "Elder Gongsun, poisoning is useless. Let us rely on true skill instead."

Gongsun Qingyun stared at Li Muzhan in surprise. "What a formidable young man—to see through the techniques of my Gongsun family. You are the first!" Her voice echoed, lingering melodiously.

The tip of the sword shot out with a sharp shing sound. Gongsun Xiuyun struck out with her right palm, hitting the body of the sword directly. With a sharp clang, both practitioners shuddered.

Gongsun Xiuyun stepped back one pace, assessing him. "Not bad, indeed."

She floated forward, attacking with her palm—silent yet swift as the wind, arriving instantly before Li Muzhan's chest. Li Muzhan felt a blur before his eyes, and her hand was already there, carrying a faint, foul scent.

His heart clenched in dread; he knew it was a poisoned palm strike. Instead of blocking head-on, a sword flash—a slight flick—shot out, executing a stratagem to rescue the endangered.

Gongsun Xiuyun’s palm attack did not cease; her other hand struck out, hitting the sword body accurately.

Li Muzhan’s left palm drew a wide arc and thrust out forcefully. It collided squarely with Gongsun Xiuyun’s right palm. With a muffled peng, both were forced back a step.

Li Muzhan staggered slightly and retreated another step. He looked down at his left palm; it was as black as night, like dark smoke drilling into a piece of white jade.

In just a moment, his hand turned completely black. He grunted, his sword flickered, slicing through the air behind him. He shook it twice, and several drops of black blood flew out. His palm immediately reverted to its white, jade-like appearance.

"Hmph, you truly aren't afraid of poison?" Gongsun Xiuyun was surprised, studying Li Muzhan, and stroking her chin in thought. "What sect do you hail from?"

Li Muzhan smiled faintly. "A disciple of the Canghai Sword Sect. Zhanran!"

"Canghai Sword Sect?" Gongsun Xiuyun nodded. "No wonder. I heard the Canghai Sword Sect has ties with the Wang family; it seems true. However, the Canghai Sword Sect doesn't have someone like you among the Four Elders or the Four Siblings. Judging by your skills, you don't look like a junior."

Li Muzhan replied, "Those with martial arts skills like mine are not considered exceptional within our sect."

"Is that so?" Gongsun Xiuyun frowned.

Li Muzhan smiled faintly. "Why would I deceive you!"

Gongsun Xiuyun pondered for a moment, then suddenly chuckled. "In that case, if I don't kill you today, causing trouble with the Canghai Sword Sect could lead to endless disaster!"

Before the words fully left her mouth, she flashed behind Li Muzhan, her right palm aimed precisely at his heart—fast as lightning, impossible to guard against.

Li Muzhan's intuition was sharp. He spun, bringing his sword around to carve a silver ribbon—like a white torrent—that swept toward Gongsun Xiuyun.

Li Muzhan’s swordsmanship was peerless, greatly indebted to Nangong Wuwang’s guidance. His execution sharpened Li Muzhan’s understanding of the Nine Palms of Canghai and deepened his mastery of the Nine Swords of Canghai.

The power of the Nine Swords of Canghai was supreme. Wherever the tip pointed, there was an opening in any move, like looking across the river at a reflection. Gongsun Qingyun grew extremely annoyed, feeling an inexplicable, stifling frustration.

Her nature was free and unrestrained; she acted on whim, pursuing elegance and spontaneity, and her moves were the same—wild and natural. Her internal energy was immense, her perception vast.

But it was different now. Often, halfway through a move, a sword thrust would block her retreat, forcing her to change tactics with no other option. Since childhood, she had never suffered such vexation.

Her palm force was tremendous, but Li Muzhan’s Dragon’s Roar Sword was a refined blade, sharp enough to cut through metal. She dared not meet the sword head-on carelessly, lest her hand be sliced clean off. She attacked like a boundless ocean, surging to engulf Li Muzhan.

Clang, clang, clang, clang! A series of crisp, metallic sounds rang out. Li Muzhan was forced back constantly, his sword light weaving a net to block the surging onslaught of her sword.

Gongsun Xiuyun also wielded a fine sword, no less worthy than the Dragon’s Roar Sword. Where the two blades met, neither could gain the advantage, but Gongsun Qingyun’s sword carried sufficient power, putting pressure on Li Muzhan.

Her sword was imbued with profound internal energy. With every clash, Li Muzhan felt a slight tremor, but his internal energy dissipated the numbness in his arm almost instantly, causing no real hindrance.

Although Gongsun Qingyun's internal energy was vast, her swordsmanship lagged behind. In sparring with Li Muzhan, she was still at a disadvantage.

Li Muzhan himself was utterly astonished. He had expected that with such a large gap in internal energy, he would surely be no match once they fought, but he hadn't anticipated his sword technique being so exquisite that it could suppress the opponent’s six strengths.

In the time it took for a glance, the two had exchanged five hundred moves. They fought from the small courtyard onto the wall, from the wall onto the roof, and from the roof onto the street. The incessant clang sounds were both sharp and pleasing to the ear, shattering the quiet of the small town.

The townspeople ignored them. Only the occasional bark of a dog could be heard.

They fought from the town to the outskirts, finally stopping in an open space before a peach grove. Their swords crossed, their movements slowed, as if their strength had waned.

Heat radiated off Li Muzhan's body, as if he had just stepped out of hot water. His cheeks were radiant white, his eyes like pure jade, as if he had transformed into a jade carving.

Gongsun Xiuyun was far worse off; her breathing was heavy, her face flushed as if drunk.

As she swung her sword, she stared at Li Muzhan with amazement. She hadn't expected that while her internal energy surpassed his, his mastery of the meridians was superior. If this continued, she herself would be the one to lose.

She made a swift decision, laughing heartily. "The Canghai Sword Sect's swordsmanship is indeed exquisite; I concede! I shall seek another lesson another day. Farewell!"

With those words, she turned, drew her sword, and fled! She reached a distance of ten zhang in an instant and was about to enter the peach grove.

Li Muzhan returned his long sword to its sheath. Simultaneously, he extended his left hand, and a handle immediately appeared in his palm. A small flying knife, black as ink, transformed into a streak of dark light and shot toward Gongsun Xiuyun.

Gongsun Xiuyun twisted her body sharply but could not evade it entirely. The dark light pierced her left shoulder, trailing a spray of fresh blood, passed through a peach tree as thick as an arm, and embedded itself in another tree. Before she could fully recover, she kicked desperately, falling backward.

She slid back two zhang on the ground before rolling to her feet, her face showing shock. "Tie Xiu..."

The moonlight was like water, and Li Muzhan saw clearly that where Gongsun Xiuyun's forehead had been struck, a crimson mark remained, as if drawn by a vermillion brush.

Li Muzhan shook his head. This strike had ruined her appearance.

Gongsun Xiuyun wiped her forehead, blood coating her palm. She laughed wildly. "Good! A fine Zhanran! The debt incurred today, I shall repay twofold another day!"

Li Muzhan reached out his left hand, and a flying knife appeared in his palm. He aimed with practiced ease, and another dark streak shot out, arriving instantly before Gongsun Xiuyun.

Gongsun Xiuyun dodged hastily, but she hadn't expected this strike to be faster. She failed to evade it, and a gush of blood flew from her right shoulder. She had been struck again.

Her face turned ashen black. She turned and vanished into the small woods.

Li Muzhan flashed and followed her into the woods. Peach trees blurred past him as he moved rapidly, shaking his head. His Yellow Dragon Flying Sword still needed practice; its power was too weak when the distance became too great!