Chapter 689: Madam Requests

The Prince of Qi had been expecting Uncle Han to apprehend the man and thus avenge his earlier humiliation. But to his surprise, Han Fengqiu had spent so much time yet failed to capture him. In that moment, he felt a sense of relief. "Well," he thought, "if even a peak ninth-rank master can't catch him, it's perfectly normal that I, an eighth-rank, lost earlier."

Murong Qinghe gazed at the scene, her valiant eyebrows furrowing deeper and deeper. "Your brother-in-law is truly odd," she remarked. "He was like this when he fought the Prince, and he's still like this against a peak ninth-rank master. What exactly *is* his limit?"

Chu Youzhao, beaming with pride, declared, "My brother-in-law is incredibly capable." A touch of regret lingered in her heart: she wished her sister were there to witness his impressive display.

Hearing the murmurs from the onlookers, Han Fengqiu halted, his aged face burning with embarrassment. Given his cultivation level, having launched so many attacks without even touching his opponent, he had long since lost all credibility. He knew that continuing this way would not lead to his opponent's capture, so he simply stopped. "You insolent brat," he seethed, "you have truly enraged this old man!"

Zu An couldn't help but grin. "So," he quipped, "you weren't even angry when your pants dropped in front of everyone just now?"

Having already engaged in life-or-death struggles with far more formidable masters, Zu An found Han Fengqiu, despite his power, insufficient to genuinely intimidate him.

Han Fengqiu's face twitched. He took a deep breath, said nothing more, and held his sword horizontally before him. A low hum vibrated through the air! The sword blade began to tremble gently, emitting a series of dragon-like roars. Immediately afterward, he used his right hand to draw a large circle in front of him. The single sword he held instantly multiplied into countless blades, fanning out like a peacock displaying its plumage or a blooming chrysanthemum.

Zu An's smile faded. Even from a distance, he could feel the chilling intent of his opponent's sword energy.

Han Fengqiu tossed the circular sword array he had formed into the sky. The ring continued to spin rapidly, emitting a pulsating hum. Then one became two, two became four, four became eight… The entire sky became densely packed with countless streaks of sword energy, multiplying rapidly.

Han Fengqiu sneered. "You little bastard," he growled, "let's see where you'll hide this time!" Clearly, he shared the Prince of Qi's earlier strategy: since Zu An's evasion technique was bizarre, he would employ an area-of-effect attack, giving him no place to dodge.

At that moment, the woman inside the carriage spoke. "Save him!" she commanded. To her, it was clear that Zu An would be utterly unable to evade this attack.

"Alright!" The gap-toothed coachman grinned, then took a single step that instantly brought him into the middle of the scene. Just then, the sword energy in mid-air abruptly descended, forming a torrential downpour of blades. Every inch of land within a radius of several dozen *zhang* was saturated, ensuring that no matter where Zu An tried to hide, he would be unable to escape.

Zu An's expression turned serious. "Using a sword, are we?" he thought. "Perfect, I also have a similar skill." As he was about to act, a figure suddenly appeared directly in front of him.

"Oh, it's that coachman?" Zu An immediately recognized him. With his uniquely unsightly missing and buck teeth, he was impossible to mistake. At that precise moment, the gap-toothed coachman reached out and casually grabbed the air. In that seemingly ordinary motion, he perfectly seized Han Fengqiu's personal sword. The instant the sword was grasped, the countless streaks of sword energy filling the sky vanished like bursting bubbles.

Han Fengqiu's triumphant smile instantly froze on his face. He had been expecting to watch Zu An writhe in agony as the sword energy flayed him, but how could he have anticipated such an unforeseen development? He quickly recovered, however, and respectfully bowed to the gap-toothed coachman. "Han Fengqiu, a revered retainer of the Prince of Qi's estate, greets the senior!"

Although the other man appeared to be younger than him, in the world of cultivation, skill and power always took precedence. The fact that the man could effortlessly discern the essence of his sword array and directly seize his personal sword indicated he was at least one level above him. Only Grandmasters and those who had comprehended the divine soul could sift through countless sword energies to find the true core and locate the array's vital point. At the same time, he revealed his identity, subtly implying a warning: no matter how powerful the man was, he could not surpass the Prince of Qi.

The gap-toothed coachman snorted. "Don't try to intimidate me with the Prince of Qi," he said dismissively. "It's true I can't defeat the Prince, but beating *you* would be effortless."

Han Fengqiu was speechless.

"Oh, by the way," the gap-toothed coachman continued, his gaze unwavering and a peculiar half-smile playing on his lips, "I just laughed. Weren't you planning to beat me up?"

Han Fengqiu hastily apologized. "This junior wouldn't dare!" Fine beads of sweat broke out on his temples. He inwardly cursed his luck, wondering what terrible karma he had accumulated to encounter such formidable individuals today. He had initially intended to dominate the entire scene and make a grand display of his power. Instead, he had been thoroughly outclassed and humiliated.

"As I thought, you wouldn't dare," the gap-toothed coachman grunted, then turned to Zu An. "Hmm, you're not bad, young man. Your tongue is a bit sharp, but you're handsome and your cultivation is quite good."

Zu An was speechless. *What's with that look, as if he's appraising a potential son-in-law?* He quickly cupped his hands and said, "Had I known of your esteemed cultivation earlier, I wouldn't have made a fool of myself." No wonder they hadn't shown any gratitude when he stopped the startled horse earlier; it turned out the runaway steed couldn't have harmed them in the slightest.

"It's rare to find such a chivalrous heart," the gap-toothed coachman remarked, finding Zu An increasingly agreeable.

Chu Youzhao was a mix of shock and delight. One moment, she had watched with bated breath as countless sword energies flew towards Zu An, her heart pounding in her chest. The next, a mysterious, powerful individual had appeared to aid her brother-in-law. Judging by his tone, it seemed her brother-in-law would surely be safe today. She couldn't help but quietly ask Murong Qinghe, "You're most familiar with people in the cultivation world; do you know who this senior is?"

Murong Qinghe looked bewildered. "I have no idea," she replied. By all accounts, she should have a general understanding of all Grandmaster-level experts in the capital, yet none matched the characteristics of the man before them. The carriage bore no family crest, and its appearance was indistinguishable from that of an ordinary family's, offering no clues as to his origins.

The Prince of Qi's son, standing nearby, grew impatient. While Han Fengqiu had some reservations, the Prince's son had none. In the entire capital, there were few indeed he needed to fear, save for the Emperor himself. "Who exactly are you, sir?" he demanded. "Do you realize you are harboring a criminal who murdered a military officer and obstructing the court's enforcement of the law?"

The gap-toothed coachman chuckled, revealing his yellow, bucked teeth. "You don't need to try to frighten me with such talk," he said. "The court officials will naturally distinguish right from wrong in this matter."

At this point, Zu An interjected, "My dear 'Persimmon Brother,' you can eat whatever you like, but you can't speak so carelessly. When did I murder imperial officers? These men were merely frozen." Zu An retracted the chilling energy, and the former ice sculptures gradually revived, though many were now missing limbs.

The Prince of Qi's son's expression shifted. *What kind of technique was that, so miraculous?* He didn't bother to investigate, however, and quickly retorted, "Even if they're not dead, you severed so many of their limbs! Attacking military officers is still a grave crime!"

Zu An smiled. "There are people watching, you know," he said. "Just now, it was clearly you who created such a grand display, shaking these ice sculptures to the ground and causing their arms and legs to break, all to show off. Frankly, you're the true culprit. So, please, old gentleman whose pants fell down, apprehend the real perpetrator!"

"You!" The Prince of Qi's son trembled with rage. He had intended to use his family's prestige to brazenly twist the truth and call black white, but somehow, he felt as if their roles had been completely reversed.

Rage points from Zhao Zhi: +888, +888, +888…

Han Fengqiu's eyelids also twitched at the mention of "old gentleman whose pants fell down." Was this fellow born solely to infuriate others?

Rage points from Han Fengqiu: +999, +999, +999…

He took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to strike, and looked at the gap-toothed coachman. "May I be so bold as to ask for your esteemed name, Senior?" He understood that the crux of the situation lay with this mysterious expert. Without him, Zu An would be nothing more than a lamb awaiting slaughter.

"I've forgotten my name," the gap-toothed coachman said, waving a hand dismissively. "I'm merely an ordinary coachman."

The others were perplexed, but Han Fengqiu's expression subtly changed. "Could it be that you are...?" he murmured.

The Prince of Qi's son, standing by, grew indignant. "Who cares who he is?" he blustered. "Today..."

Han Fengqiu quickly went to his side to stop him, whispering in his ear, "Prince, he is..."

The Prince of Qi's son's breathing instantly quickened. He hastily looked towards the ordinary carriage, his eyes gleaming with anticipation and fervent desire.

Zu An frowned. *What's gotten into this guy? He looks like a boar in heat. Isn't he afraid that electrocuted thing will snap off if he gets too excited?*

At that moment, the gap-toothed coachman smiled at Zu An. "Young man," he said, "my master requests your presence."

---The comic adaptation of "Land Immortal of the Keyboard" has been released. Those interested can search for "Land Immortal of the Keyboard" on Bilibili Comics. I think the artwork is quite good. However, I strongly suspect the artist has a preference for large chests; every character is drawn with such generous proportions, even though I recall Xue'er's character design was meant to be rather flat-chested...