Chapter 11

When Yu Xizhi stood at the door of the neighboring noodle shop, she only then realized that a noodle shop was indeed called a noodle shop.

The storefront of the noodle shop was neither large nor particularly clean. It exuded the flavor of the common folk, a taste that was subtle, fragrant, and soft yet extremely penetrating.

Even the various scents swirling from the nearby vegetable market couldn’t overshadow this aroma. As she approached closer and inquired, it only made her mouth water even more.

Yu Xizhi couldn’t resist such a temptation. She immediately took a step forward, intending to enter through the curtain.

“Stop!”

“Who goes there!”

Two flashes of swordlight, one from the left and one from the right, simultaneously attacked Yu Xizhi’s face. She leaned back, narrowly avoiding them, but the brim of her curtain hat was nicked by a small cut.

Is eating noodles this thrilling now?

Yu Xizhi couldn’t help but think so subconsciously. The impending sword intent was so intense that she didn’t have time to think much. She instinctively reached for her own sword. But before her fingertips could touch the hilt, a small twig had already landed in her hand. Without a second thought, she swung it forward—

The sword intent surged, yet the combined attack of the two men was no match for this strike. The dispersed sword intent scattered out, completely unveiling the scene inside the noodle shop.

In the center of the shop, there was only one table. Although the space around the table was crowded with people, there was only one person seated at the table.

The middle-aged man seemed oblivious to the commotion at the door. With a calm expression, he lifted wide noodles with his chopsticks, splashing a few drops of broth, and the aroma filled the air as he brought them to his lips.

So fragrant.

As the door curtain fell back into place, Yu Xizhi was immersed in the sight of the bowl of noodles she had glimpsed just now. It took her a moment to realize that what she held in her hand was not her sword but a small twig. No wonder the grip felt strange just now.

“Nonsense,” she muttered under her breath, readjusting her hand to tuck the twig back into her bun.

She spoke softly, but the swordsmen who had forced her back were already in the Qi refining stage, with keen senses. They heard her clearly, and their expressions changed instantly upon hearing her words.

“Insolent!”

“Who dares to speak nonsense?!”

Two angry shouts emanated from behind the curtain again. This time, Yu Xizhi finally saw them clearly. The ones speaking were a pair of twin boys.

The boy on the left had a red mole between his eyebrows; his expression was extremely sour. The boy on the right had a scar at the corner of his eyebrow; his expression was icy cold. They looked like a discordant mirror image.

Yu Xizhi furrowed her brows.

“Do I have to defeat you both just to have a bowl of noodles?” she asked, puzzled.

She leaned in to look inside the noodle shop again, but the twin brothers noticed her movement and immediately brandished their swords, glaring angrily at her.

Not even allowed to look?

Yu Xizhi finally straightened up, her expression serious.

This street shouldn’t be this quiet.

And this noodle shop shouldn’t have only one bowl of noodles.

She could smell the rich soup simmering in the kitchen, the well-kneaded dough waiting to be rolled out when a customer ordered, and the bowl full of garlic shoots and diced meat.

But the soup bubbled quietly in the pot, the dough continued to ferment silently, and the garlic shoots wilted slightly, leaving the diced meat lonely.

These people had come spontaneously, blocking the street and occupying the shop, all for that one person’s bowl of noodles.

“You’re not disciples of Kunwu.”

This time, she finally touched the hilt of the Yanxiao sword.

Gripping it but not drawing it, she looked at the twin brothers with a slight frown. “Under the Kunwu prohibition, in Xianyun County, no cultivator is allowed to draw their swords at will on the streets, nor are they allowed to fly their swords. If a mere mortal had entered just now, wouldn’t they have already perished under the sword by now?”

She slowly drew the sword, as if lamenting, “I never thought I’d have to deal with this kind of thing one day. It feels a bit unfamiliar doing it for the first time.”

The Yanxiao Sword gleamed as it unsheathed, illuminating the slightly astonished faces of the twin brothers with red birthmarks and scars. She held the sword in her hand. “Since this is Xianyun County, under the jurisdiction of Kunwu, and I, as a disciple of Kunwu, have encountered such a situation, then I have no choice but to draw my sword.”

The red mole boy and the scarred brow boy thought to themselves, “Nonsense. Do you think we can’t recognize the robes of an outer disciple of Kunwu? Who knows if you heard rumors about our owner’s visit here and thought you could rise above your station, completely ignorant of the rules and wanting to seek guidance?”

Moreover, while the girl seemed to be proficient in swordplay, her initial move was the widely known Kunwu’s Basic Sword Technique, yet upon closer inspection, it seemed she hadn’t even started gathering Qi.

The twin brothers exchanged a glance, each seeing a smirk in the other’s eyes.

Even if Kunwu Mountain Sect was the leader among the three paths and five sects, it was not the place for an outer disciple to come and personally teach at Xiya Tower!

Furthermore, behind them was the owner of Xiya Tower!

The owner of Xiya Tower was invited by Kunwu Mountain Sect for matters requiring consultation. Where did this ignorant outer disciple come from?

Three sword lights intersected in front of the noodle shop.

They only wanted to teach the girl a lesson and didn’t want to cause casualties, so the twin brothers held back some of their strength in their strikes.

But both of them were direct disciples of the Second Floor Master of Xiya Tower, having grown up together and understood each other’s intentions, so their combined attacks were more than the sum of their individual powers.

Thus, even though they both held back most of their power, the combined sword intent of two mid-level Qi refining cultivators was already beyond ordinary mid-level Qi refining!

The twin brothers’ faces were calm and relaxed, as if they could already see the girl being overwhelmed by their swordplay, retreating in embarrassment and spitting blood.

However, the sword light, like autumn water, pierced through the dark blue night, shining even brighter than the lights of ten thousand households. The girl clearly used the same Basic Sword Technique, yet even with such a basic move, she managed to disperse the sword Qi sent by the two mid-level Qi refining cultivators!

Yu Xizhi had noticed that both of them were at the mid-level Qi refining stage. It was a coincidence, as the white-clothed ancestor said, that she was also at the mid-level Qi refining stage.

Since everyone was at the mid-level Qi refining stage and they were in Kunwu Mountain Sect’s territory, what was there to fear?

So the sword intent grew stronger and thicker. The Qianfeng Liuyun Sword was undoubtedly the most basic sword technique, viewed by cultivators as a technique used to intimidate ordinary people. However, at this moment, the one holding the sword felt no qualms about using this technique against the Supreme Danyang Sword, which was the exclusive technique of Xiya Tower’s direct disciples.

Because this was the only sword technique she knew.

The girl’s eyes were bright, as if she held the Kunwu Sword herself and practiced the supreme technique of the Kunwu Mountain Sect. Facing the sword light from the twin brothers, she neither avoided nor retreated, and with a single strike—

The sword fell.

The clash between the blue stone slab and the long sword rang out crisply.

“My apologies,” Yu Xizhi sheathed her sword, but it didn’t return to its scabbard. Holding the sword, she walked forward.

Just as she was about to step over the doorframe, she paused slightly, looking back with some displeasure.

The twin brothers, whose swords had been knocked away by her basic sword technique, were still speechless in astonishment. After waiting for half a day without a response, she couldn’t help but sigh, “How rude.”

“You should say, ‘Thank you for the lesson,'” She spoke impolitely yet with a soft tone, like a gentle breeze. “I’ll say it again: under the Kunwu prohibition, in Xianyun County, no cultivator is allowed to draw their swords at will on the streets, nor are they allowed to fly their swords. I don’t know how long you’ll be in Xianyun County, but I hope that in the future, when you draw your sword, you’ll think about why you’re doing it and remember my words.”

With the hilt of her sword, she lifted the curtain and walked in gracefully. “Boss, I’ll have a bowl of noodles.”