Chapter 405 - Wintry Jade Blade
Even though Lu Feng was very warm, Ai Hui still had his reservations about him. Whoever Senior dislikes, I dislike!
"Mingxiu’s junior is also my junior! I shall call you Junior Hui. From today onwards, we are a family. Feel free to ask me if you need help with anything. Since this is the first time we are meeting, I have prepared a small gift for you. Junior Hui, please don’t decline my kind intentions."
Lu Feng enthusiastically passed Ai Hui a long, rectangular wood box. The wooden box was exquisite. Its surface was neatly embedded with dark green fish scales which gave off an elegant lustre, looking unspectacular yet luxurious.
Ai Hui glanced at Mingxiu and she winked at him.
"Junior has exquisite taste," Mingxiu said plainly.
Lu Feng smiled and did not seem to be at all flustered by her words.
Ai Hui immediately understood what Lu Feng’s facial expression meant. He opened up the wooden box and found a sword lying in it.
Ai Hui’s eyes lit up. He grabbed the sword hilt and held the sword before his eyes to examine it closely.
The sword was dark green in color. Its texture felt unique, seemingly carved out of a dark green jade. The wave-like dark veins on the sword overlapped each other, looking like a body of limpid autumn waters moving under the sun; it was extremely beautiful. The body of the sword was straight and thick while its blade was thick and blunt; however, when Ai Hui channeled a trace of elemental energy into the sword, two extremely sharp sword gleams appeared on both sides of the blade.
The material that made up the sword hilt felt like metal, but was not. The sword hilt was extremely heavy, causing the sword’s center of gravity to shift towards it. This made wielding the sword effortless. Almost instantly, Ai Hui knew that this sword was very suitable for carrying out stabbing and piercing attacks. The sword hilt was covered with unknown fish scales, making it extremely comfortable to hold. Ai Hui did not want to let go of the sword.
"Good sword!" Ai Hui blurted out.
He channeled his elemental energy into the sword and it gave off slight vibrations. These slight and indistinct vibrations involuntarily formed a resonance with the elemental energy in his body, sparking off the desire to fight in him.
This was a Heaven-grade weapon!
The smile on Lu Feng’s face became wider as he cast a glance of approval at the old servant standing in a corner. It was not an easy task to prepare a satisfactory gift in such a short period of time.
"This sword is called Wintry Jade Blade. It’s the first treasure sword forged by master weaponsmith Wei Hong and I came across it by luck. I have long heard that Junior Hui’s swordsmanship is superb and extraordinary. Giving a treasure sword to a hero will bring out the best in both!"
"Oh, Second Brother is too courteous. Then I shall accept this sword."
Ai Hui carefully took the Wintry Jade Blade and winked at Senior Mingxiu.
Whoever Senior dislikes, I dislike! Even if I accepted his gift, I still dislike him!
When Mingxiu saw the scoundrelly look on Ai Hui’s face, she almost laughed out loud. She knew her junior’s character extremely well.
When Lu Feng saw Ai Hui accept the gift and the appearance of a rarely seen smile on Mingxiu’s face, he was overjoyed. He had given Mingxiu many gifts in the past, but nothing had caused her to smile like this.
Lu Feng engaged in a little self-reflection. It seemed that Mingxiu and her junior had a very deep relationship. How had he not realized this earlier?
Luckily it wasn’t too late yet!
The smile on Lu Feng’s face became even friendlier. He patted Ai Hui’s shoulder cordially and said, "What’s there to be polite about with your Second Brother?"
Following which, he gave Mingxiu her gifts. Mingxiu conveniently placed the gifts on the table without taking a second look at them. This action reinforced Lu Feng’s resolution to use Ai Hui to improve his relationship with Mingxiu.
At this moment, Ai Hui noticed that Lu Feng’s unit of subordinates were looking at him. Their bodies emitted a fierce and powerful aura. From the faint energy waves coming from their bodies, Ai Hui could tell that their strength was not to be underestimated and that they had rich combat experience.
Every now and then, their gazes would hold an eagerness and the desire to fight him.
At this moment, a tall and burly man stood out and said, "Sir, do you want to try out your new sword? I can be your sparring partner."
His tone contained a hint of arrogance, sounding as if he was challenging Ai Hui.
For the past few days, the Lightning Blade had been rather reputable in this region. Everywhere they went, they would hear Ai Hui’s name. News of his feat of single-handedly massacring the Grass Bandits had spread to various cities nearby. All of Lu Feng’s subordinates were elites of the Deathgrass Division. Every one of them was proud and arrogant. Naturally, they were unhappy with Ai Hui’s growing reputation.
"Don’t be so rude towards Junior Hui! Behave yourself!" Lu Feng reprimanded the burly man.
Even though the man withdrew, he still looked at Ai Hui with an arrogant gaze.
Initially, Ai Hui did not really care about him; however, when he saw a hint of anger sweep across Senior Mingxiu’s eyes, he said, "I really want to try out this new sword, but the sword doesn’t have eyes. It wouldn’t be good if I accidentally injure you."
Upon hearing these words, the burly man broke out in laughter and mocked, "I have fought an unknown number of battles. I am not even afraid of death, why would I be afraid of getting injured? I am only afraid of injuring you accidentally. If I injure you, I will be scolded by Sir."
The intention to provoke Ai Hui in his words was very obvious.
"Shut up!" Lu Feng glared at the burly man, following which, he turned around and told Ai Hui, "Junior Hui, don’t mind this brainless fool. He is very good at charging into and breaking through enemy lines, but he is brainless. All he knows is how to make trouble for me."
Ai Hui realized that these people were used to charging into and breaking through enemy lines; they were a bunch of arrogant and valiant individuals. From their arrogant and despotic attitudes, Ai Hui could tell that they must have brought a lot of troubles to Senior Mingxiu and her embroidery workshop. If even a friendly and gentle individual like his senior disliked them, then one could certainly tell how irritating they must be.
Previously, Ai Hui had also noticed something else. One of Lu Feng’s subordinates looked at the workshop’s female embroiderers continuously, and when his eyes met theirs, their faces turned white with fear. Apparently, they were terrified of Lu Feng’s subordinates.
Ai Hui smiled. "Second Brother is being too serious. Only a true hero has such a straightforward nature. Why would a true man be afraid of getting injured? Only by engaging in a real fight can a weapon then display its true capabilities. I am truly interested in trying out this new sword gifted by Second Brother."
"Er…." Lu Feng pretended to be hesitant.
He wanted to see Ai Hui’s capabilities for himself as well. After all, he only knew the rumors about Ai Hui. Rumors couldn’t beat watching him in action with his own eyes. His strategy for dealing with Ai Hui would change according to his actual strength.
Ai hui continued, "Of course, it is not possible for me to fight with him."
Upon hearing this, a mocking look appeared on the burly man’s face. A similar look of contempt also appeared on the rest of Lu Feng’s subordinates’ faces. They felt Ai Hui had bragged so much just to withdraw at the last moment.
Lu Feng felt slightly disappointed as well. Just as he was about to say something, Ai Hui spoke again, "After all, I am a slightly reputable individual now. Where will I hide my face if the news of me bullying an unknown individual like him spreads to the outside world?"
Mingxiu chuckled when she saw her junior talking nonsense with a straight face.
Lu Feng was stunned.
The burly man’s face flushed with anger and his eyes looked as if they could spit flame. After being called an "unknown individual," a strong sense of humiliation engulfed his body like blazing flames; he felt as if he was going to explode. He clenched his fists so hard that they produced cracking sounds.
The rest of Lu Feng’s subordinates’ faces turned ugly. Ever since the rebuilding process of the Deathgrass Division began, all of them had achieved countless accomplishments. As such, it was natural for them to be infuriated after being humiliated by Ai Hui.
Ai Hui put a reluctant look on his face. "Therefore, I have to trouble Second Brother to find an assistant for him. Eh? I think this fellow looks rather extraordinary. How about him then? Even though defeating two unknown individuals isn’t something to be proud of, it’s still not that embarrassing. I hope Second Brother can grant me this wish. Reputation doesn’t come by easily and I need to depend on my tiny bit to make a living."
The lean guy Ai Hui had chosen was the one who had previously been checking out the workshop’s female embroiderers.
The lean guy did not expect to be chosen. Soon after, he stepped out and sneered, "An unknown individual like me really wants to learn a thing or two from you. I want to see how sharp the sword of a reputable individual is."
Ai Hui’s words had also made Lu Feng’s face turn slightly ugly. These trusted elites of his had been specially chosen by him. They had followed him through countless battles and were his pride. He did not expect Ai Hui to look down on them, but after all, he was someone that had a renowned status. Very soon, his facial expression returned to normal and he shifted his gaze to Mingxiu to ask, "Mingxiu, can you persuade him not to do this?"
Even though Mingxiu was slightly worried, her facial expression remained the same. She replied indifferently, "I think what Junior said is right."
Actually, she knew that these two were not some unknown individuals.
The burly man was called Huo Dun. He specialized in spearmanship and his attacks were both ferocious and precise. Among Lu Feng’s subordinates, he was always the one who led the charge against their enemy lines. He was brave and valiant. The lean one was called Xiao Sen. He specialized in using grass seeds and his attacking methods were cunning and unpredictable.
All of Lu Feng’s subordinates were experts that had been hired by him after he became the division leader of the Deathgrass Division. All of them had accrued countless military achievements, but due to the lack of overall experience and exposure, they were not well-known. Regardless, they were still considered elites among elites.
These powerful subordinates were directly connected to why Lu Feng could control the Deathgrass Division with absolute power.
Lu Feng nodded and said, "Since this is the case, both of you shall do your best to learn from the Lightning Blade. Weapons don’t have eyes. You can’t complain if you suffer from any injuries. Mingxiu, what do you think?" One could not tell whether Lu Feng was happy or angry.
"I agree."
Mingxiu’s voice was calm. She would be lying if she said that she wasn’t worried about Ai Hui, but she had a lot of confidence in her junior. She knew that her junior was gifted in combat. Since he had agreed to this sparring session, he must have the confidence to defeat them. Her junior would never seek to impress others by bragging about his capabilities.
"Alright, a battle between experts can also be considered a grand occasion. Let us find a location and not destroy Mingxiu’s embroidery workshop," said Lu Feng.
"No need, there is a training arena in my embroidery workshop. Follow me," replied Mingxiu.
She led everyone to the backyard and a training arena appeared before their eyes.
The arena was very big and was surrounded by specially made protective fences on which hung numerous cloth strips. These cloth strips were covered with complicated-looking designs that emitted a faint glow. Four defensive ancient trees were planted at the four corners of the arena. Even though the defensive ancient trees were still young, the glow they gave off was enough to engulf the entire arena.
"I didn’t expect the embroidery workshop to have such a beautiful arena," remarked Lu Feng.
The protective glow from the four defensive guardian trees and the cloth strips hanging on the fences formed a powerful protective light screen around the arena. Unless one was a Master, he or she would not be able to break through this protective light screen.
Mingxiu ignored him and opened up the arena.
Without any hesitation, Huo Dun and Xiao Sen entered the arena. Every now and then, both of them cast a malicious glance at Ai Hui.
"Be careful," Mingxiu reminded Ai Hui.
"Don’t worry." Ai Hui smiled.
Holding the Wintry Jade Blade in his hand, Ai Hui strode into the arena.