The fourteenth year of Shuntian in the Song Dynasty
At this time, a full five years have passed since the seven major sects of the Righteous Way besieged the Bright Summit of Mingjiao. However, in just five years, the world has become more lively and exciting than in the previous fifty years.
The younger generation has the most outstanding masters such as Yuan Mao, Yin Li, Yang Wuji, Zhang Tongyan, and Yin Xiangjun, as well as the slightly older generation Fang Sheng, Yang Zhuorun, and masters from Mingjiao, Shaolin, Zhongnan, Beggar Clan and other sects.
Their deeds are famous all over the world.
The contradictions between the Mingjiao and the Orthodox sects are getting bigger and bigger, and even the Persian Mingjiao is involved. The combined strength of the Mingjiao and the Mingjiao has greatly increased, and it seems that one religion is competing with the entire Central Plains martial arts world.
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Due to the prosperity of martial arts nowadays, ordinary martial artists are like ants in front of the great masters, and the great masters are like children in front of the great martial saints who have successfully established their foundations. Therefore, there are three great martial saints, Yuan Mao, Fan Yao, and Yang Potian, and more than ten martial arts masters.
The Holy Mingjiao has the strength to compete with the martial arts in the Central Plains.
However, the Zhongnan sect has Patriarch Zhang Sanfeng who has set foot in Xianliu, Shaolin Temple has a holy monk Duhe and two great martial arts saints who have set foot in Xianliu, Peach Blossom Island has great martial saint Yang Ding, Qingniu Palace has great martial saints Liu Shuizhen and Liuyun.
Not to mention Zixiao Palace and Yuqing Palace.
If Master Zhang Sanfeng and Holy Monk Du'e can be invited to come forward and invite the great martial saints of other sects to take action, there will be no possibility of victory for Mingjiao even though it is powerful.
However, a lot of things happened in the past five years. Zhang Sanfeng was reluctant to interfere with his old relationship, so he directly announced to the outside world that he had closed the door to death and practiced the method of Yin Shen.
Peach Blossom Island did not care about world affairs. In the end, only Shaolin Temple and Qingniu Palace took the final decision. The leaders of the seven major sects gathered in Songshan. It turned out to be a torturous five years, and finally came to the end of the second battle between the seven major sects of the Central Plains and the Mingjiao.
It’s due.
The second battle of wits was scheduled to take place in Songshan Mountain.
Because it is not because Shaolin and Qingniu Palace meet, but because by chance in recent years, Yang Wuji of the Ming Sect suddenly learned that the disciple of the old abbot Kongjian of Shaolin Temple, Monk Yuanzhen, was Cheng Kun, a master of the side sect from decades ago.
It was Monk Yuanzhen who triggered the dispute between Mingjiao and Orthodoxy. The grudges between Cheng Kun and Xie Xun have lingered to this day, and eventually made Mingjiao and the major sects in the Central Plains enemies. It turns out that everything turned out to be Cheng Kun's conspiracy to destroy Mingjiao.
Therefore, in this competition with the Ming Cult, we must change from passivity to initiative. Not only must we compete with the seven major sects of the Central Plains to decide who will be the future commander of the martial arts world, but we must also use this battle to settle the grudges between Xie Xun and Cheng Kun.
Xie Xun, Fan Yao and other senior officials had long known the reason for Yang Dingtian's death, and now they were holding back their energy to seek revenge.
Before the duel is approaching, the two masters Liu Shui and Liu Yun of Qingniu Palace, the heads of the four major sects of Beggar Clan, Emei, Huashan and Kunlun, as well as the Seven Heroes of Zhongnan, all gathered in Shaolin Temple, waiting for the arrival of the Ming Cult.
In the blink of an eye, the sun was rising, and only three cannons were heard. The expressions of the leaders who were sitting in the Main Hall, drinking tea and talking, all changed. Shi Huolong snorted coldly: "The Ming Cult has arrived."
"Today is the second battle between our Mingjiao and the seven major sects. Fan Yao brought Mingjiao disciples here to ask for advice."
Fan Yao's voice passed through the three mountain gates and rang in the ears of everyone in the hall.
Kong Jian Shen Monk and Master Liu Yun looked at each other, and then said loudly: "We and the seven major sects have been waiting for a long time. Please wait a moment, Master Fan."
After finishing speaking, Kong Jian looked at an old monk in yellow clothes beside him and said: "Yuanzhen, please go and invite the nine elders of Xin Chan Hall."
Yuan Zhen bowed and said, "Disciple, please go and invite your master and uncles."
The Nine Elders of Xin Chan Hall are the only nine remaining senior monks of the Du family in Shaolin Temple. Among them, Du E, who has the highest level of cultivation, practiced the method of refining Qi and transforming into gods ten years ago. He is one of the most respected monks in today's martial arts world, along with Qiu Yang Qi, Zhang Sanfeng, and others.
Pasiba is one of the three equally famous immortals from the four continents.
Except for the holy monk Du'e, the other eight eminent monks of the Du generation are also great martial saints. However, they are limited by their understanding and state of mind, and have never been able to achieve the right results and condense their spiritual thoughts.
The nine elders of Xin Chan Hall are Shaolin Temple and Qingniu Palace. The Zhongnan sect is the three leaders of the martial arts world. Now the Zhongnan sect has the true immortal Zhang Sanfeng, and the Shaolin Temple has the true immortal Arhat to overcome the evils.
Nowadays, the Zixiao Palace has not been born, the Yuqing Palace is far away in the Western Regions and does not care about the affairs of the Middle Earth. The Qingniu Palace is the most active sect in the East among the three palaces of the Quanzhen Sect. Even if there is no true immortal, for the sake of the Quanzhen Sect
In terms of face, no one dares to disrespect Qingniu Palace as one of the three leaders.
After more than half an hour, the middle door of the Shaolin Temple opened wide, and the senior leaders of the seven major sects filed out accompanied by the nine elders of the Xin Chan Hall. After that came the empty-character generation of the Shaolin Temple. The other eminent monks of the round-character generation could not change the names of the seven major sects.
Elders, disciples, etc.
After a while, more than 300 masters with first-class martial arts stood in front of the Shaolin Temple.
In front of the Shaolin Temple, there are more than 3,000 members of the Ming Sect, guarding the leader, deputy leader, left and right light envoys, four Dharma kings, five scattered people, five flag-bearing envoys and more than 20 high-level officials like stars over the moon.
Fan Yao and Xie Xun were both wearing dragon robes, but one had a five-clawed golden dragon and the other had a four-clawed one. The rest of the Dharma King's envoys and other clothes were also extremely gorgeous. They looked like royal relatives and civil and military officials from the imperial court.
generally.
Standing between Fan Yao, Xie Xun, Yang Potian, and Yin Tianzheng was an ugly bearded young man. He was dressed in shabby clothes and looked like a country man, but everyone in the Ming Cult respected him, so he
Even the masters of the seven major sects' expressions changed slightly when they saw him from a distance.
After Du'e waited for the nine elders of the Heart Meditation Hall to come out, he sat still, closed his eyes and chanted sutras. At this time, Du'e opened his one eye, looked at the bearded young man, and whispered: "This boy is Yuan Mao? Sure enough,
All his strength, muscles and bones have reached the peak of the Great Martial Saint. He built the Taoist Immortal Foundation with the Tai Su Hua Sheng Kung created by the ancestor Qingxuan Emperor. The ordinary Great Martial Saint is far from his opponent. You will be defeated by his hands.
It’s not bad at all.”
Yuan Mao had been looking at the old monk from time to time since he came out of Du'e, and even if he had one eye, he would look at each other. Then there seemed to be a light snap in the air, Du'e sighed, pronounced the Buddha's name, closed his eyes and chanted sutras, Yuan Mao
Maung Que's face turned slightly pale, and after taking a few breaths, it returned to red.
"The old monk has such powerful spiritual thoughts. He is worthy of being a famous land immortal for a long time."
In the past five years, Yuan Mao has learned the secret method of refining qi and transforming into gods. Because of his solid foundation and rapid progress, he condensed his spiritual thoughts two years ago and has become the standard for "terrestrial immortals" in today's martial arts world.
After listening to Yuan Mao's words, both Fan Yao and Yang Potian's expressions changed. Nowadays, the ones with the highest level of cultivation in the Ming Cult are Yuan Mao and Fan Yao. These two are land immortals who refine energy and become gods, and Yang Potian,
Xie Xun and others are the Great Martial Saints or Martial Saints.
Although Yang Potian is the reincarnation of Yang Dingtian, his training time is still too short. If he wants to break through the supreme realm of refining qi and transform into gods, and step into the immortal realm of refining qi and transforming into gods, he will have to wait another ten years no matter how fast he is.
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Therefore, in this second battle between Mingjiao and the seven major sects, the only candidates that matter for life and death are dozens of martial saints from the two religions and three immortals: Yuan Mao, Fan Yao and Du'e.
Xie Xun's eyes were intense, and he had already seen Monk Yuanzhen behind Kong Jian. He patted his adopted son Yang Wuji beside him, and whispered: "My dear Wuji, you can follow your father during the war to avoid being hurt."
your life."
Yang Wuji had been following his adoptive father every step of the way since he went up the mountain, and he would look left and right from time to time. When he heard this, his face changed, and he said in a trembling voice: "Father, what are you going to do?"
"I'm going to find the evil thief Cheng Kun who killed Leader Yang and my whole family. Wuji, you don't have to be afraid. If your master wants to kill me for revenge, he won't take advantage of others' danger or make a sneak attack. He doesn't show up just because he doesn't want to.
Participate in the grudges between our Ming Cult and the seven major sects."
Xie Xun's face darkened as he spoke, and he sighed: "Now that I have achieved the level of a great martial saint, I have refined my Qi and reached a desperate state. I often feel guilty for my evil deeds back then. However, a big mistake has been made. I still have to kill Cheng first."
It is only right to kill Kun if he provokes his neck again."
Yang Wuji was startled when he heard this and asked: "Father, has my master already arrived?"
Xie Xun shook his head slightly and said, "I don't know either, but I guess it's in the dark."
Yuan Mao and Fan Yao whispered: "The two sword masters Fang and Yang should have arrived. Only the two of us and the old monk Du'e can vaguely feel their sword intent. They should be on Taishi Mountain."
Yang Wuji raised his head and looked at Taishi Mountain deep in the white clouds. He could only see the high mountains and ridges protruding from the vast clouds.
It turned out that a few years ago, Fang Sheng accepted Yang Wuji as his disciple and passed down the supreme swordsmanship. However, Yang Wuji and Xie Xun met again when the Qinghai sect and the Mingjiao disciples were fighting. Fang Sheng had been searching for traces of Xie Xun in the rivers and lakes for many years, and wanted to kill him.
Kill him to avenge his family, but he can't be found.
Seven years ago, he climbed to Guangmingding but was injured by Fan Yao's palm. The injury has not recovered yet, so he did not participate in the seven factions' siege of Guangmingding. Now when he saw Xie Xun, he naturally became angry and wanted to kill him with his sword.
Down.
Although Xie Xun has practiced secret immortal skills for many years, his martial arts skills are only comparable to those of Luzhangke, and he was defeated after less than twenty moves with Fang Sheng.
Naturally, Yang Wuji couldn't bear the murder of his adoptive father. He begged hard and even threatened his death to beg his mentor Fang Sheng to spare Xie Xun for once.
After that, Yang Wuji followed his adoptive father back to Guangmingding to practice, and he only went down to Songshan Mountain until now.
Mingjiao and others knew that Fang Sheng would never give up and would take action again if he had the opportunity in the future, so Yang Wuji followed Xie Xun, fearing that his adoptive father would be killed by his mentor without even seeing him.
At this time, the two sides set up a battle array in front of the Shaolin Temple, and the battle was about to break out. Yang Wuji also knew the character of his mentor and adoptive father, and knew that what his adoptive father said was right, so he had no choice but to nod in agreement.
Xie Xun jumped up to the Qingshi Square, stared at Yuan Zhen, his eyes seemed to be bursting with flames, and shouted: "Cheng Kun, you killed my whole family, killed my leader of the Ming Cult, led me to kill the heroes of the world, and provoked the Ming Cult and the Central Plains Wulin.
We are enemies of each other, and I won't talk about all these things. At this time, under the general situation, a big war is inevitable.
But the hatred between you and me is as deep as the ocean, so please come out and let’s have a big fight, which will end the blood feud between you and me that has been entangled for decades, so that the remaining two sects can let go and compete for the second time!”
Xie Xun's voice was like a loud bell, which made the copper ring on the door of the Shaolin Temple jingle. Countless orthodox disciples who had not reached the level of Grand Master in martial arts were shaken, their faces turned pale, and they almost wanted to vomit blood.
"Amitabha."
Kong Jian heard the name of the Buddha to stabilize everyone's minds, and then said calmly: "Yuanzhen, since Vice-Master Xie wants to end my relationship with you, you must know that I, a monk, should sacrifice my life for righteousness and cut my flesh to feed eagles. Although you have converted to Buddhism, the karmic hatred of the past must still be with you."
It’s over.”
Yuan Zhen bowed and said: "Master, my disciple followed you to practice Buddhist magical skills and recited sutras and worshiped Buddha every day. All four elements have been lost. What's more, my disciple's martial arts skills were far inferior to mine back then. Now I have learned our Shaolin supreme magical skills.
He will not be my opponent, master, and this disciple cannot bear to hurt him."
Kongjian let out a long sigh and said, "Since you can save yourself, why not use Buddha's teachings to save him?"
Yuan Zhen looked slightly happy, bowed and said: "Disciple understands."
Turning around, Yuan Zhen touched the gray beard on his chest, looked at Xie Xun's gray temples with complicated eyes, and sighed: "Xie Xun, I am old, and so are you."
Xie Xun's light blond hair and beard when he was young has now turned into gray and black. He is only about seventy years old this year. In this era where people who have established an immortal foundation can live to be over a hundred years old, he can be said to be a middle-aged man.
Therefore, he ignored Yuan Zhen, and just waved his right hand, making a crackling sound, and said: "No need to talk nonsense, you are kind to me, and you are also grudge against me. The grudge between you and me has long been unclear, and it is not clear.
It needs to be said that the outcome of today's battle must be decided. You and I will not survive anyway. You are my master, so I will give you three moves."
Cheng Kun's face changed slightly when he saw that Xie Xun had such great skills. He knew that this disciple had another adventure. Even though his martial arts skills were not as good as his own, they were not far behind him, so he did not dare to neglect. He slipped in front of Xie Xun and slapped him with his palm.
Xie Xun did not dodge or block, and received a slap all the time. Then he swayed without retreating and sneered: "Master, you are really old, you can't hit me anymore."
Cheng Kun snorted coldly, but secretly regretted in his heart that he didn't use all his strength. Then he used his left and right hands to his chest and used only one of the seventy-two Shaolin stunts, but its power ranks among the top three, "One Pat, Two Scatter".
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A sharp palm wind that shattered the monument and broke the stone came towards his face. Xie Xun still did not take action to resist, but just moved the universe and moved the yin and yang qi to adhere to the surface of his body.
"Crack!"
After a loud noise, Xie Xun's clothes exploded, revealing his strong chest.
This time Xie Xun took a step back and his face turned green and red. Cheng Kun knew that Xie Xun had been injured, so he immediately reversed the Taisu Nine Yang Kung Fu and used his most powerful Phantom Yin Finger to point towards Xie Xun's Tanzhong acupoint.
Xie Xun still refused to hide or block, but the Qiankun Great Shift Qi on his chest was covered with traces of Yanxia Qi.
"Crack..."
Before Cheng Kun's fingers touched Xie Xun, he felt his fingers were sore and numb, and there was a crackling sound in the real air pressure.
Cheng Kun knew something was wrong and hurriedly stopped his hand and took a step back. Xie Xun shouted: "Three moves have passed, the disciple takes action!"
As he spoke, Xie Xun slapped nine palms with both hands like a storm. Each palm's force and movement were different. What's even more rare is that the nine palms stacked together were like a ball that came first and then moved towards Cheng in a uniform manner.
Kun squeezed down.
Cheng Kun knew that this was Yang Dingtian's unique skill of the Great Nine Heavens Hand, and he was unable to dodge or parry, so he had to use his supreme energy to perform the indestructible power of the Vajra.
A three-foot wall of air suddenly spread out, and with a loud bang, Cheng Kun took three steps back, while Xie Xun took five steps back.
The overflowing energy swept out more than ten feet away, blowing two pine trees as thick as a water tank, causing them to stagger around and causing pine needles to rain down.
When Mie Mie, Bai Yuan, Shi Huolong and others saw this and knew that Yuan Zhen had the upper hand, they all looked slightly happy, but everyone on the Ming Cult side frowned.
Xie Xun was neither impatient nor impatient, and secretly used his kung fu to release Yanxia Qi, and said sternly: "Master, where is your famous Hunyuan Yi Qigong? Where is the Thunder Palm? Why don't you dare to use it?"
Cheng Kun was relieved at this time, knowing that Xie Xun's skills were far inferior to his own, and he could win within two hundred moves at most. When he heard Xie Xun's words, Cheng Kun snorted coldly, and used Fengming with his right hand.
After decades of Hunyuan Thunderbolt Kung Fu, the palm wind came to Xie Xun with the sound of wind and thunder and the power of Yin in the steel.
Xie Xun also practiced this skill for decades, and when he saw this, he clapped his hands and resisted.
Xie Xun took a step back after hitting the palm. Cheng Kun felt secretly happy and smashed the palm again.
After thirty consecutive palm strikes, Xie Xun finally couldn't hold on anymore and blood spurted out from his mouth, and his breath became uneven.
Cheng Kun sneered and said: "Disciple, I taught you martial arts, but you turned out to be a big devil who does all kinds of evil. Today I will clean up the family as my teacher!"
Cheng Kun said he wanted to clean up the family, so naturally he would not use Shaolin magic. He raised and pressed his hands and used the most powerful move in the Hunyuan Thunderbolt Kung Fu.
There seemed to be a thunder in the clear sky, and then the fist was punched out. The wind of the fist knocked back Xie Xun's hands, and the fist was imprinted on Xie Xun's chest.
"Bang!"
"Father!"
"Third brother!"
"Third brother!"
…
Everyone on the Mingjiao side exclaimed, and Yang Wuji's eyes were even redder.
The power of Cheng Kun's punch is enough to beat an elephant into a pulp, and the stone man and stone horse in front of him will also be turned into powder. Xie Xun is the great martial saint who built the foundation of immortality.
It has been broken for a long time, and even if he does not die immediately, he will be seriously injured and will die soon.
Seeing a punch hitting Xie Xun and making a big hole in his chest, Cheng Kun was secretly happy, but he saw that the big hole was pouring out endless suction, causing Cheng Kun's true energy to pour out with the power of the punch, which was difficult to suppress.
.
Cheng Kun had never heard of the incident and this kind of magical power that sucked people's inner energy. His mind was shaken and frightened, and he couldn't break free despite repeated efforts. The energy in his body was continuously sucked away by Xie Xun. Within a quarter of an hour, Cheng Kun's face turned yellow.
He was covered in sweat and on the verge of collapse.
Experts from both the good and evil factions watched the fight between Xie Xun and Cheng Kun. They thought the winner was decided after Cheng Kun punched Xie Xun's chest. However, Xie Xun and Cheng Kun competed with each other in terms of internal strength.
Unexpectedly, within a few moments, Xie Xun, who was about to be seriously injured and dying due to serious injuries to his vital organs, was getting better and better, but Cheng Kun seemed to have lost his vitality and was trembling all over.
The heads of the seven major sects and the eminent monks of the Shaolin Temple were spared any surprises. Except for Yang Potian and Fan Yao, the senior leaders of the Ming Cult had a look of understanding in their eyes, while the others just cheered loudly.
After holding on for another half an hour, Xie Xun's right hand suddenly moved, and Cheng Kun's head was smashed like a watermelon, with red and white things scattered all over the floor.
When Cheng Kun's body fell to the ground, the seven major sects exclaimed and sighed and the Mingjiao cheered at the same time.
There was still a big crater in Xie Xun's chest, which was more than three inches deep. It looked like his heart, lungs, and internal organs had been crushed and deformed. Logically speaking, he would have to lie on the ground and wait for death, but Xie Xun stood there in high spirits.
middle.
"My great revenge will be avenged, and I will have no regrets in this life."
Xie Xun laughed loudly, and began to spurt blood from his mouth. He looked around, looked up to the sky and shouted, "I, Xie Xun, have made many good friends in my life, and I have also done many evil things. If my enemies consecrate me, I only have one wish left..."
"
Xie Xun paused as he spoke, then looked at Master Jue with a look of shame and sadness, and said, "I killed the old hero Fang Ping and his family. Master Jue and Sword Master Fang must be eager to cut me into pieces..."
Master Miejie said sternly: "Yes, I heard that Sheng'er searched for you many times and allowed you to escape. This time, there is no need for him to take action. The poor nun will kill you with one sword!"
"good!"
Xie Xun laughed loudly and faced Jue Jue and said with a smile: "Kill me with one sword. I also killed old hero Qiu with the Yanling Flying Sword. Qiu Xiaoxia, are you a disciple of Luzhuang? Come and kill me too...
…”
As he spoke, Xie Xun turned to look at the heroes behind the heads of the seven major sects. Although most of them were disciples of the seven major sects, there were also dozens of first-rate masters in the world.
"Master Guangling...Headmaster Bai...Headmaster He...the sect elders of the Kongtong Sect...you guys should also kill me with one sword..."
Xie Xunlu looked at the experts from one of the seven major sects one after another, and the names he named were all the senior experts he had killed their relatives, friends, and disciples. Finally, he looked up to the sky and roared: "Fang Sheng, Fang Sword Master, I, Xie Xun, want to do this with all my heart today."
I will die just to eliminate my past sins, so please give me a sword as well!"
At this time, forty or fifty people among the hundreds of people from the seven major sects had come out. Everyone was waiting for Xie Xun with gritted teeth, wishing to stab him to death with a sword, but they were afraid of his martial arts and did not dare to take action for the moment.
After listening to Xie Xun's words, everyone in the Ming Cult was silent for a moment. Yang Wuji even had tears in his eyes. He wanted to persuade, but felt that there was no way to persuade him. However, he had to watch others kill his adoptive father with his own eyes but felt that he couldn't do it. For a moment, Yang Wuji's heart
It is also full of mixed flavors and difficult to control.
After Xie Xun's voice echoed twice on the mountain wall, two figures floated down in the wind. It was Fang Sheng and Yang Zhuorun, two sword masters who were said to have completed the foundation building and began to gather their spiritual thoughts.
Fang Sheng fell in front of Xie Xun and snorted coldly: "You have taken revenge and want to die to apologize and seek peace of mind? Huh, if my family is killed by you, I am afraid that we will not be able to have peace when we die."
Xie Xun sat cross-legged and said in a deep voice: "Everyone, please take action. I, Xie Xun, will never resist. Fang Jian Sheng, the sons and daughters of the world, only seek pleasure and revenge. I can't do anything to harm you, and I can only lose my life!"
"Okay, even though you and I are enemies, I have to admit that you are a hero. I hope you will be a good person in the next life!"
Fang Sheng sighed softly, then waved his right hand, and a wave of energy swept up. The forty or fifty Jianghu disciples standing a foot away who were glaring at Xie Xun couldn't help being swept by Fang Sheng's energy, and then moved forward at the same time.
Rushing out, the long sword in his hand pierced Xie Xun's chest, back and limbs from all corners at the same time. By the time everyone reacted, Xie Xun had turned into a hedgehog.
Fang Sheng sighed softly, glanced at Yang Wuji, and bowed to Master Miejie again, and said: "The deep hatred and grievances of all of us have been avenged. This is a great joy. Auntie, I will take Zhuo
Nao went to pay homage to my grandfather and father and comfort their spirits in heaven."
Everyone killed Xie Xun with their own hands, and with mixed feelings of joy and sorrow in their hearts, they hurriedly bowed to Fang Sheng to express their thanks.
A trace of sadness flashed through Master Miejie's eyes, and she said: "Sheng'er, give your grandpa a bouquet of incense for me. After this fight is over, I will go back to Kaifeng to live in seclusion."
Fang Sheng smiled and nodded, took Yang Zhuorun's hand, and the two of them sang loudly and drifted away——
The half-suspended Songshan Mountain echoed with the two men's rough and heroic songs, while the other's graceful and clever songs: "After all, the world is busy, competition, lust, and worries... Six dynasties and five hegemons, divided into seven countries, conquered from east to west...
Where is the military strategy now? It is empty and desolate, with wild flowers and fragrant grass... I sigh that the foresight and ambition are without luster and haggard...
Traveling through the ancient roads of Chang'an, asking about the suburban ruins, and the centuries-old remains... Han City in the Tang Dynasty, Qin Palace and Zhouyuan, clearly telling... the old site lingers, the old friends disappear, and there is no trace of the news...
Thinking about life and death, forever, who can protect..."
"Thinking about life and death, forever, who can protect..."