"Ma Yinglong?"
The bamboo curtain of the private booth across the way was lifted aside. A young man with slightly exotic features peered over and chuckled breezily. "Ma Yinglong, you've been let out?"
Ma Yinglong nodded. "That's right, I've been let out."
Wang Yu and Zhao Yingjie buried their faces in their hands at the same time.
Duan Wei laughed wryly. "Did you come to challenge me to a duel?"
Ma Yinglong readily admitted, "Indeed. I heard you went to the Central Plains, so I was heading there to find you. Who would have guessed you'd come right back?"
"I made two new friends in the Central Plains," Duan Wei explained, "and as luck would have it, both had business in the Western Regions, so we traveled back together."
Sitting beside Duan Wei were indeed two other young men, also in their twenties or thirties. One had softer features, while the other looked sharper and more austere.
Ma Yinglong glanced their way and thumped his chest. "In the Anxi Circuit, the Duan family can't hold a candle to the Ma family. Whatever he can't get done for you, you can come to me!"
The two visitors smiled in silence.
Duan Wei clearly knew Ma Yinglong's personality and paid no mind to the boast. However, his eyes flickered as he looked at Wang Yu and Zhao Yingjie, guessing their identities.
Yet he did not call them out, only saying to Ma Yinglong, "Since fate brought us together like this, when do you want to have our bout?"
Ma Yinglong's eyes lit up. "No day like today! Let's do it right now, lest you wake up tomorrow as limp as a wet rag and get a hole poked through you by my spear!"
Duan Wei shook his head. "Not tonight."
"Why not?"
"Because I've been traveling all day. I need a night's rest to regain my strength. Besides, a night with Lady Shuixian will only make me stronger. Does going to sleep make you weaker?"
"Of course not!" Ma Yinglong glared. "Even if I took on seven in a single night, it wouldn't affect the thrust of my spear the next day!"
"Then what's the issue?" Duan Wei said. "If you want to fight, meet me tomorrow at noon by the Ten-Li Pavilion east of the city."
"Fine, it's a deal!" Ma Yinglong agreed on the spot.
"A gentleman's word." Duan Wei gave the three a nod and drew the bamboo curtain closed.
...
Although the bidding for Lady Shuixian had been interrupted, not a soul in Caiyun Pavilion dared raise a fuss.
While the prestige and might of the Ma and Duan families in the Anxi Circuit could not rival that of the Prince of Zhenxi's Manor, both were established martial lineages of longstanding renown. They held sway over crucial resources and trade routes across Anxi. Who among ordinary men would possess the foolhardy courage to disrupt a scheduled duel between their young masters?
Once Duan Wei drew the curtain and concluded the exchange, no one dared bid against him for Lady Shuixian either.
Of course, a single night with Lady Shuixian normally commanded twenty or thirty taels at most, so Duan Wei's offer had already far exceeded the standard rate. Overjoyed, the madam personally escorted her up to the fifth-floor private quarters to await Duan Wei.
Ma Yinglong waved the madam over. "Do you have any girls in this pavilion better than Shuixian?"
A troubled expression flickered across the madam's face, though she could barely suppress the grin tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Well, there is Lady Xuerong, but she isn't supposed to receive guests until tomorrow..."
Ma Yinglong snorted. "One hundred taels!"
The madam immediately beamed. "I'll send Lady Xuerong straight to Room Jia-Three on the fifth floor this very moment to await the young master's pleasure!"
Wang Yu grimaced. "Driving up the market price..."
Zhao Yingjie chuckled and asked Ma Yinglong, "Just how much travel money did Uncle Ma give you this time for you to throw it around like that?"
One hundred taels of silver was enough to sustain many ordinary families for four or five years.
"That's entirely different! This is a duel with Duan Wei—how could I lose to him in this regard?" Ma Yinglong waved a dismissive hand. "If the worst comes to the worst, I'll figure something out once I reach the Central Plains."
Ma Yinglong was not bluffing. While bottom-tier wanderers of the martial world had it rough, high-level martial artists found earning money quite simple. Whether borrowing from local gangs or wiping out a bandit lair on a minor mountain, it was relatively easy and even polished one's reputation.
"I'm set for the night. What about you two?" Ma Yinglong asked, looking at Wang Yu and Zhao Yingjie.
Wang Yu waved him off. "You're the star tonight, and I can't steal your thunder. I'll just drink some wine, listen to the music, and head back. I'll come look for you tomorrow morning and bring along your spear while I'm at it."
What a joke. Qianqian had already warned him. Who knew if Shuixian and Xuerong were agents of the Demonic Cult? Even if they might not cultivate by draining other men, they might not hesitate to drain *him*!
Wang Yu made up a casual excuse on the spot. Since they had only come out to Caiyun Pavilion tonight for leisure, and Zhao Shan and Zhao He were watching from the shadows, none of them had carried weapons.
On the other side of the hall, Duan Wei offered to call courtesans for his two companions as well, but both declined.
"To ensure that Ma Yinglong doesn't play any underhanded tricks, we'll stand guard outside your door tonight," said the sharp-featured man.
"If you end up spent tomorrow morning, I have a Qi-Invigorating Rehmannia Pill for you. It'll ensure you're brimming with vigor for your duel," the milder-looking man teased with a smile.
Duan Wei burst into laughter. "Ma Yinglong is no petty scoundrel, and I certainly won't be spent!"
...
After enjoying more drum melodies and dance performances in Caiyun Pavilion, Wang Yu returned contentedly to the prince's manor with Zhao Yingjie, leaving Ma Yinglong behind to spend the night on the fifth floor with Xuerong, the pavilion's top courtesan.
The next morning, after breakfast at the third quarter of the Hour of the Snake, Wang Yu and Zhao Yingjie waited by the entrance of Caiyun Pavilion until a hale, vigorous Ma Yinglong sauntered out.
"Where's my spear?"
"Take a look and decide which one you want to use!"
Zhao Yingjie tossed two spears across with a wave of his hand. Ma Yinglong reached out and caught one in each palm. He saw that one was his own Dragon Gall Bright Silver Spear, while the other was also entirely silver, its shaft coiled by a raised dragon and its head clasped by a dragon-maw collar. The folded patterns along the hundred-refined spearhead were intricate and mesmerizing.
It weighed about the same as his Dragon Gall Bright Silver Spear, but both its flexibility and razor sharpness were clearly superior!
Ma Yinglong looked back and forth between the two weapons, momentarily dazed.
The Dragon Gall Bright Silver Spear had always been his pride and joy, wiped down, oiled, and meticulously maintained day in and day out. He had truly believed that no weapon in this world could suit him better.
And yet...
How could there be such a splendid spear in existence? It looked enchanting, alluring, practically seductive...
Lost in a daze, Ma Yinglong fell into a profound dilemma, torn over whether he should abandon his old love for a new flame like an unfaithful rogue.
"Hurry it up, don't dawdle," Zhao Yingjie teased. "If you're this indecisive, how are you going to duel Duan Wei?"
Ma Yinglong glared at Zhao Yingjie. "Little Fatty, did you do this on purpose?"
Zhao Yingjie reached out his hand. "Then give the Coiled Dragon Spear back to me."
"No way!" Ma Yinglong pulled both spears against his chest, blurting out in his regional accent, "Mine! They're both mine!"
Wang Yu pointed to the white horse beside them. "Mount up. When we rode over, we saw Duan Wei and his companions heading out to inspect the grounds. We need to get moving too."
Without another word, Ma Yinglong swung into the saddle, slung his Dragon Gall Spear across his back, gripped the Coiled Dragon Spear in hand, and snapped the reins. "*Yah!*"
Wang Yu, Zhao Yingjie, and Zhao Shan and Zhao He, who kept watch not far behind, urged their mounts forward as well.
Caiyun Pavilion sat close to the eastern city gate, which was why Duan Wei had proposed the pavilion east of the city. Everyone had a mount; though galloping through the city streets was inconvenient, once they cleared the gates, they were free to ride at full gallop.
"*Yah!*"
Mounted on fine steeds, they covered the ten li in mere moments. From a distance, they saw Duan Wei and his two companions already waiting near the roadside pavilion. In his right hand, Duan Wei carried a long cloth bundle measuring a full seven feet, his gaze fixed on Wang Yu's group.
Zhao Shan and Zhao He pulled gently on their reins to fall back, intending only to guard Wang Yu without interfering in the meeting.
Ma Yinglong tugged the reins, spurring his horse to the front. His eyes met Duan Wei's, and both instantly understood each other's intent.
"Here I come!"
Still thirty paces from Duan Wei, Ma Yinglong vaulted from his saddle and charged straight at him. The man moved like a legendary steed riding a tempest, the Coiled Dragon Spear thrusting forward in a straight line, its tip whistling through the air.
"Come on, then!"
Duan Wei let out a hearty laugh as his aura transformed, brimming with towering valor. He motioned for his two companions to step aside, then snapped the long bundle in his hand. The fabric fell away, revealing a horse-chopping sabre with a hilt one and a half feet long and a scabbard stretching five and a half feet.
*Clang—!*
The horse-chopping sabre cleared its scabbard. Duan Wei pushed off the ground, sweeping forward like a gale to meet Ma Yinglong head-on.
Wang Yu observed closely. "Duan Wei uses a horse-chopping sabre. Does his martial art originate from the military as well?"
"It does," Zhao Yingjie explained. "The Duan family's blade technique is called the Horse-Chopping Sabre in the military, but in the martial world, they call it the Heavenly King Sabre. The martial arts of both the Ma and Duan families stem from the army. The Ma clan traces its lineage to General Ma Fubo, while the Duan clan descends from General Duan Pingliang. Both were renowned commanders of their eras whose descendants took root in the Anxi Circuit and passed down their traditions to this day."
Wang Yu nodded. By now, Ma Yinglong and Duan Wei had closed the distance. Duan Wei gripped his hilt with both hands and slashed diagonally upward, deflecting the Coiled Dragon Spear half a foot off course before slipping inside Ma Yinglong's guard—breaking the spear's reach with a close-range sabre strike.
Ma Yinglong leaped sideways, using the clash of blade and shaft as a pivot to spin his weapon behind his back. In a technique named 'Azure Dragon Turns Its Head,' the spearhead swept diagonally toward Duan Wei's neck and shoulder.
Duan Wei tilted his body until his torso ran nearly parallel to the earth, evading the Coiled Dragon Spear. He swung his sabre in a low sweep, kicking up yellow sand and broken weeds as the sharp blade bore down on Ma Yinglong's knees.
Ma Yinglong leaped clear of the sweep, spinning three hundred and sixty degrees midair. Channelling the momentum into his spear, he executed the 'Phoenix Nods Its Head,' driving the point down into the rising whirlwind of Duan Wei's upward sabre strike.
*Clang!*
A crisp chime echoed. Duan Wei stumbled back two steps, while Ma Yinglong touched down from the air.
After testing each other with a couple of opening exchanges, it was clear that their internal energy was matched, their martial skill on par, and their weapons each held unique advantages. Neither held the upper hand.
"Again!"
Having spent a full year in seclusion, Ma Yinglong's spirit burned fierce. With a flick of his wrists, his spearhead blossomed into a flurry the size of a rice bowl, throwing out seven afterimages that threatened Duan Wei's seven major acupoints. He wielded the massive spear with the delicate precision of an embroiderer's needle.
"Splendid!"
Duan Wei's eyes gleamed brightly. With a flourish of his sabre, his aura surged to an even higher level. His previously spirited expression suddenly took on a manic edge. Wielding his long sabre like a spear, he charged straight down the center of the blossoming thrusts, meeting offense with offense.
Both men favored offense over defense, and even when parrying, their guards harbored counterattacks. Ma Yinglong's spear thrust like a coiled dragon, its tip grazing Duan Wei's cheeks on multiple passes. Duan Wei's blade swept with biting fury, repeatedly whistling past Ma Yinglong's knuckles.
They clashed back and forth for nearly a hundred exchanges. Duan Wei gradually began to edge ahead in technique, yet he still could not suppress Ma Yinglong. Meanwhile, the fruits of Ma Yinglong's year of isolation were on full display; his unyielding momentum conceded nothing to Duan Wei.
The duel was magnificent to behold and thrilling to watch—so intense it made the onlookers' hearts leap to their throats, as though the next exchange would end in death, grave injury, or mutual destruction.
"Sever!" Duan Wei bellowed, bringing his sabre around in a lateral cleave.
"Strike!" Ma Yinglong spun into a reverse horse-thrust, spearhead angled sharply outward.
Blade struck spearhead with a singular, muted *clink*. The horse-chopping sabre abruptly snapped in two, its upper half spinning off into the air. Ma Yinglong's Coiled Dragon Spear darted forward like an azure dragon exploring the sea, plunging straight for Duan Wei's throat.
*Whoosh—!*
Ma Yinglong slapped the spear shaft with an open palm, knocking the weapon outward so it whizzed past Duan Wei's cheek. Duan Wei's grip tightened, and the broken blade came to a halt half a foot from Ma Yinglong's chest.
The yellow sand settled, grass clippings fluttered down, and a gentle breeze stirred both men's hair.
At the exact same instant, Ma Yinglong and Duan Wei spoke:
"I concede."
Chapter 37