When Li Ling was injured, Yu'er temporarily put the matter aside. Later, after she received confirmation from her mother, Li Ling told her not to meddle, and she never mentioned it again.
Recalling how the so-called princess behaved like a shrew in the original story, Li Ling really didn't want to bring trouble upon himself.
Meanwhile, turmoil was brewing in the martial arts world. The plan of the Carefree King to destroy the Famous Sword Manor failed, but this only spurred him to accelerate the establishment of the Martial Alliance.
He hoped to gather the martial arts techniques and mental cultivation methods of all the martial arts sects in the world to further improve his own martial arts skills. After all, the Carefree King was well aware of his and Li Ling's situation, and he also needed to seek a breakthrough.
With the three disciples of the Carefree King joining forces, many martial arts sects were routed. The masters in the sects were either killed or captured and imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison, where they were forced to hand over their martial arts manuals and life-long secret techniques.
Meanwhile, not long after, news came that the missing Song princess had been found. This series of changes also alarmed Zhang Junbao, who was still teaching disciples on Wudang Mountain.
...
That morning, Li Ling, who had just finished his seclusion a few days earlier, was practicing a sword technique in the training ground when a servant suddenly reported: "Zhang Junbao requests an audience."
Upon receiving the news, Li Ling didn't delay. After tidying up, she went to the reception room, where she saw Zhang Junbao waiting with Ming Daohong and Qin Sirong.
Zhang Junbao is now supporting two people at once!
Upon seeing this, Li Ling immediately laughed and said, "Brother Junbao, instead of spending the night with your two beauties on Wudang Mountain, how come you have time to come to our Famous Sword Manor!"
“Young Master Yi is too kind. The main reason I’ve come here is to apologize for any offense I may have caused during my last visit to Mingjian Manor. I hope you won’t take offense.”
Zhang Junbao was an upright and honest person, and he apologized to Li Ling as soon as he saw him.
Li Ling waved his hand: "Hehe, Brother Junbao, there's no need to apologize. It's good that you've found out about your father's death."
"Oh, and congratulations to Brother Junbao! You've managed to persuade Miss Qin to abandon her darkness and embrace the light, leading to a happy ending. I truly admire you!"
The next sentence was spoken while looking at Qin Sirong, who was very close to Zhang Junbao.
Zhang Junbao chuckled as he looked at the beautiful woman beside him and nodded, saying, "Indeed, I have figured it out. I must thank Young Master Yi for his earlier reminder, otherwise I would not have known that my third uncle was the mastermind behind my father's death."
"One reason I'm here is to thank Young Master Yi for the reminder. Secondly, I have another important matter to discuss with you."
Li Ling smiled and said, "Brother Junbao, you're too kind. We've known each other for a long time, and I admire your character. Please feel free to speak your mind!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Junbao smiled and said directly, "Then I'll get straight to the point. I wonder if Brother Yi has ever heard of the Carefree King?"
"As expected." Li Ling confirmed his guess and said to Zhang Junbao, "I do know about the Carefree King! More than a month ago, the Carefree King came to our Famous Sword Manor. I fought with him once, and we were both badly injured in that battle."
"It's really true!" Zhang Junbao exclaimed. "I never imagined that the Carefree King would be so powerful that even Brother Yi is no match for him!"
As he spoke, Zhang Junbao frowned: "This makes things complicated!"
After Zhang Qiqiao used Zhang Tao's name to bring Zhang Junbao and other martial arts figures to cause trouble for Mingjian Villa, and was then strongly countered by Li Ling, Zhang Junbao believed that Li Ling's martial arts represented the pinnacle of the martial arts world. However, he did not expect that the Carefree King could actually fight Li Ling to a standstill.
At this moment, Li Ling gave Zhang Junbao confidence: "Brother Junbao, you can rest assured about the Prince of Xiaoyao. Last time I fought the Prince of Xiaoyao, I was indeed seriously injured, but the Prince of Xiaoyao was not in a good position either."
Moreover, after my full recovery, my skills have improved even further, and I am confident I can defeat the Carefree King!
"Oh, that's wonderful!" Zhang Junbao said happily. "I've just received news that the Carefree King is hunting down righteous people in the martial arts world, imprisoning them in the Heavenly Prison, and even finding his disciple to impersonate a princess of the Song Dynasty."
"I've come here today to ask Brother Yi for your help. Let's work together to deal with the Carefree King and expose his conspiracy."
Li Ling nodded and replied, "I see. Please rest assured, Brother Junbao. I originally intended to deal with the Prince of Xiaoyao. Now that Brother Junbao is working together with me, that would be even better. I believe that we will definitely achieve great success in dealing with the Prince of Xiaoyao this time!"
Moreover, Brother Junbao, you possess the information Marshal Yue entrusted to you, which should enable you to expose the fake princess's true nature. I will then handle the matter of the Carefree King. As for the Carefree King's disciples, Brother Junbao and your fellow martial artists will have to worry about them.”
The two reached an agreement and then made plans. Soon, Li Ling, along with Xueyan, who had already recovered, and Zhang Junbao and others, headed to Lin'an to deal with the Prince of Xiaoyao.
Yu'er originally wanted to come along, but her martial arts skills were only at the beginner level. Li Ling was worried about her safety, so he let her stay at Mingjian Manor.
Moreover, Yu'er's mother has just arrived and is still unfamiliar with everything in the manor; it would be better if Yu'er accompanied her. (Wish Star of All Heavens and Realms)
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Chapter 208: The Imposter Princess is Panicked
Next, Li Ling and Zhang Junbao set off. Before they even reached Lin'an, they heard that the late emperor's princess had been cultivating for a hundred days and would then hold a martial arts conference to announce the late emperor's will.
After receiving this news, Zhang Junbao sought out Li Ling and said, "Brother Yi, what are your thoughts on this? This fake princess even fabricated some kind of imperial edict from the late emperor; it's really suspicious!"
“There’s nothing suspicious about it!” Li Ling laughed. “Why would the Prince of Xiaoyao, a martial arts practitioner, suddenly pay attention to matters of the court? I suspect that his sending someone to impersonate the princess is related to either Qin Hui or the Eighth Prince.”
In the imperial court, it would be difficult for a princess of such unknown origin to be recognized. Therefore, the Eighth Prince probably wanted to hype up the princess and the so-called late emperor's edict to create a stir and achieve his goals.
Both the Eighth Prince and Qin Hui represented the faction in the court that wholeheartedly sought peace with the Jin Dynasty. What they wanted was nothing more than external appeasement with the Jin, allowing the Jin to maintain its own power. The Carefree Prince's actions in the martial arts world required the support of Qin Hui and the Eighth Prince, thus conveniently aligning with this plan.
Zhang Junbao nodded and said, "What you say makes some sense, but do you have any evidence for it?"
Li Ling laughed and said, "Both the Eighth Prince and Qin Hui are people who have been in officialdom for many years. How could such people easily let others find fault with them!"
However, we don't need to worry about matters of the court. We only need to deal with the Prince of Xiaoyao. As for the Eighth Prince and Qin Hui, there are naturally people in the court who will handle them.
Li Ling naturally thought of Chen Muyang, who was now the Crown Prince. Given his status as Crown Prince and his political views, he was bound to clash with the Eighth Prince and Qin Hui no matter what.
If Chen Muyang, having seized control of the throne, still couldn't defeat them, Li Ling could only conclude that he was utterly incompetent.
"Alright, then let's capture the Carefree King first and rescue the righteous martial arts heroes who have been captured by him!" Zhang Junbao said.
"Our most important task now is to find out where those missing martial arts practitioners are being held. I will find a way to investigate that. Brother Yi, you can focus on your cultivation. When the time comes, the Carefree King will be in your hands!"
Li Ling nodded in agreement, and then Zhang Junbao led his disciples out to investigate.
Zhang Junbao acted swiftly, and they quickly located one of the places where the captured martial arts practitioners were being held, and successfully sent his disciple Yu Daiyan into the kitchen.
As for the location of Tianjue Prison, it is quite hidden, and he has not yet found it. Therefore, many important figures in the martial arts world, including the three most senior monks of Shaolin, have not been found.