Princess Yuyang raised her chin, sizing up Li Mo with a look of predatory delight, as if she were looking at a precious toy that everyone was fighting over.
"?"
A small question mark appeared above Li Mo's head.
Who are you?
Don't blame Little Li face-blind; it's mainly because he's often surrounded by Ice Block, making it hard for him to remember people, especially women, because it's unnecessary. He doesn't like to remember unimportant things and people.
Unless it's something like a golden destiny, he might have some recollection of it.
Living in Cloud-Stepping Tower, you can throw a brick and hit several purple destiny stones.
Murong Xiao immediately became wary, and after scrutinizing him, he seemed to have noticed something.
He immediately showed a hint of admiration.
"Um, where have we met before?"
Li Mo was puzzled.
Yu Yang frowned. "Sword Furnace."
Could this Divine Hammer Little Overlord be playing some kind of game of feigned indifference with me?
She didn't think there was anything wrong with her behavior.
Having grown up in the palace, she was surrounded by men who all had numerous wives and concubines. Her father had a harem with three palaces and six courtyards, and when civil and military officials went to court, any man with only a wife who had shared hardship with him was ridiculed.
"I see..."
Li Mo seemed to remember, but something still felt off.
"Hehe, I knew it..." Princess Yuyang thought to herself, like a proud swan, "This is definitely a routine."
Only those who have ideas in their minds will put in the effort.
She had already envisioned the future, the scenario of her requesting an imperial decree from her father to make Li Mo her son-in-law.
A prince consort is not allowed to take concubines.
What expression would that woman have?
"You were forging iron in the furnace next to mine just now, weren't you? It seems your forging wasn't very good."
"?"
Princess Yuyang's expression froze, and she looked at Li Mo with impatience. If Li Mo weren't so dazzling, she would have already sneered and left.
"Enough, Young Hero Li. I'm not some sheltered young lady who doesn't know the ways of the world. If you keep this up, I'm really getting annoyed."
"Um, I've mistaken you for someone else. Maybe we've met before, but I really don't know you."
Li Mo realized something was wrong.
No ordinary woman would refer to herself as "this palace" (本宫). He then recalled where he had seen the woman opposite him before.
"Now that you've met me, do you dare say you don't recognize me?"
Princess Yuyang slightly opened her eyes.
More than not knowing her, her proud nature made it impossible for her to have seen her but not remember her.
"It's normal to not recognize someone you've met before."
Li Mo gave an awkward but polite smile:
"I've even met Emperor Taizu Wu, but he didn't know who I was."
"Now we can get to know each other. I really like the weapons you forge."
Princess Yuyang took a deep breath and did not retaliate.
Murong Xiao lowered his voice and said, "Brother Li, I could tell at a glance that this woman is not a good person. She wants to test your weaknesses."
"Thank you, but it probably doesn't like you. It's hot here, it's cooler upstairs, why don't you go up there?"
Li Mo pursed his lips and turned his gaze to the stage.
"Female benefactor, you should leave now."
"Bald monk, get out!"
"... Alas, Amitabha."
Murong Xiao shook his head and murmured a Buddhist chant. He was kind and compassionate, which was why he spoke up to remind him.
Princess, do you know what you're doing?
He silently took two steps back, afraid that blood might splatter on him later.
Princess Yuyang looked at Li Mo, her fists clenched. She had never been ignored like this before, and was about to say something more.
Zheng--
Suddenly, a sword rang out, and a chilling aura swept through the remaining warmth of the square.
"The Cold Fairy is going to Sword Trial!" someone shouted.
The vast square fell silent in an instant. The aloof young woman standing in the center seemed to have been there for a long time, yet it also seemed like only a moment had passed.
She held a long sword upside down, her black hair tied up high. Although it was evening, her appearance made the moonlight arrive early.
With a slight movement of the sword tip, past sword techniques and the Hundred Birds Form that had been observed were all connected by Taiyin at this moment.
Ying Bing looked at the young man below the stage, her excessively beautiful eyes suddenly becoming bright again.
"I really like the sword."
Li Mo inexplicably knew what Ice Block wanted to say.
But his attention was soon drawn to the incredible skill and unpredictable sword light.
A line of poetry involuntarily came to mind:
"Once there was a beautiful woman named Gongsun, whose sword dance moved all four directions."
"The onlookers were as numerous as mountains, their faces filled with dejection; heaven and earth seemed to bow low for a long time."
Princess Yuyang was speechless. When her gaze fell on the person on the stage, it seemed as if an invisible force choked her, rendering all her words meaningless.
Cold Fairy could have simply made a casual appearance.
But she didn't.
She wanted everyone to see the painstaking effort he had poured into forging this weapon, which had just been completed and personally crafted for her.
Besides blacksmiths, the Heavenly Mountain Sword Villa is also known for its swordsmen, with the swordsmen being more famous than the blacksmiths.
After all, this place has replaced Cloud-Crossing Sword City as the holy land of swordsmanship.
But no one uttered a sound.
The phrase "martial arts skills are so advanced that they are beyond human comprehension" sounds like an exaggeration or embellishment at first glance.
But what if it's not an adjective?
Apart from the Three Heroes of Cloud-Crossing and Xiao Qin, Huang Donglai, and others who were familiar with Li Mo and Ying Bing, the worldviews of the other young geniuses who came here to participate in the Hidden Dragon Ranking were almost collapsing.
Do they even deserve to be on the same list as her?
Is that Hidden Dragon?!
But their commanders were also sweating buckets!
"If she breaks through another aperture, I don't know if I can still fight her with the patriarch's sword."
Xie Xuan wiped his sweat.
Call--
The Taiyin energy suddenly intensified, and the moonlight shone brightly!
Xie Xuan: "??"
His mouth is blessed!
"The Ice Block is about to break through..."
Li Mo smiled as he looked at her, his cheerful eyes reflecting the shimmering light of her fleeting figure.
I can finally stop worrying about her; she'll definitely be in the top three...
"Li Mo."
Ying Bing finished her sword dance, gripped her sword tightly, and walked gracefully forward.
Just then, the first rays of the moon rose at dusk.
The girl looked at him quietly, her aura gradually growing stronger.
"I've decided on a name for it, how about Venus?"
"It is indeed white."
Li Mo looked at the radiantly beautiful, fair-skinned Cold Fairy and nodded earnestly.
"Aren't you going to ask why?" Ying Bing rolled her eyes at him lightly.
Li Mo was speechless. "Why?"
"Venus is the star closest to the Taiyin."
Sheathed her longsword, Ying Bing walked to Li Mo's side, lowered her eyes, and said:
"You don't have a weapon."
"Who knew that among so many craftsmen, there wasn't a single hammer-casting soldier?" Li Mo shrugged.
"I have a way."
"Yes, Sister Bing and I went to the Sword Mound to ask Grandpa Whitebeard for a solution."
Jiang Chulong pushed up her sunglasses and said coolly.
Li Mo was taken aback.
Did Ice Block already know that he might end up without a weapon to participate in the competition?
Was this also part of Cold Fairy's calculations?
"I've broken through to the next realm just as expected, this method... is feasible."
Ying Bing's jade-like face, though serene and beautiful, couldn't hide a gentle smile.
"What method?"
You'll know soon enough.
They talked as if no one else was around.
At Sword Furnace Square, everyone remained in a daze, as if just waking from a dream.