Chapter 1124 Confidentiality
"Brother Tang, actually..."

"I know what you want to say? But I have made up my mind, you don't have to say anything."

"This……"

Tang Afu's decisive answer made Liu Xunyi stunned. He hesitated and said, "Is it because Master Xiao has been so kind to you?"

"This matter is not only the wish of Valley Master Xiao, but also my own decision."

"Why?" Liu Xunyi was increasingly puzzled. "With the martial arts and reputation of the Ruthless Swordsman, even if you leave the Heartless Valley, you will have a lot of places to go. I believe that all the sects and schools must be eager to find you. Why..."

"Publicly, I must repay the great kindness of the Valley Master. Personally, you and I have known each other for a long time, and you are one of the few people in the martial arts world who can be like-minded with me." At this point, Tang Afu's tone stagnated, and a trace of entanglement flashed in the depths of his eyes. He hesitated and said, "Besides that, I... have a selfish motive."

"What selfish motives?"

"Only you... can help me avenge the extermination of my family."

"This……"

"I, Tang Afu, have sworn to heaven that my life will belong to whoever can help me avenge myself."

As if sensing Tang Afu's inner resentment, Liu Xunyi's eyes straightened as he suddenly realized something and nodded heavily: "Brother Tang, I promised you in Changbai Mountain that when I escape this disaster, I will help you track down the culprit who massacred the Tang family. I, Liu Xunyi, keep my word! Today, let's put aside the relationship between Master Xiao and just talk about our friendship of life and death. I am willing to swear again that I will do my best to help you avenge your shame. If I retreat, I will be struck by lightning and die a miserable death!"

Looking at Liu Xunyi's stern words, Tang Afu suddenly felt warm in his heart, and his eyes trembled slightly as he looked at him. The expression on his face kept changing, and he was indescribably excited.

Whether out of indignation or emotion, Tang Afu, with red eyes, fell to his knees with a plop and bowed deeply to Liu Xunyi solemnly.

"Brother Tang, what are you doing?"

Faced with Tang Afu's unexpected action, Liu Xunyi was horrified, and hurriedly rushed forward, half-knelt in front of Tang Afu, held up his shoulders with both hands, and said anxiously: "How can I dare to accept such a great gift?"

"It's not just me who is bowing down to you, but also the innocent souls of the Tang family who died." Tang Afu tightly grasped Liu Xunyi's arm and said word by word, "From now on, I, Tang Afu, am willing to serve you Liu Xunyi at all times, even if I die!"

"Me too!" Tang Afu, who was always aloof and indifferent, rarely showed his true feelings. How could Liu Xunyi, who had suddenly encountered a great change, not be shocked and filled with emotion, "From now on, I, Liu Xunyi, am also willing to go through fire and water for you, Tang Afu, and stick my neck out for you."

After saying that, Liu Xunyi, in a good mood, and Tang Afu, feeling relieved, helped each other up.

The two smiled at each other, their lofty ambitions expressed in words.

Liu Xunyi found two broken teacups from the messy table, and poured two cups of tea from the broken-ear teapot. He smiled and said, "It's a pity that there is no wine today, otherwise I would definitely get drunk with you!"

Tang Afu held the cup in one hand and gently touched it with Liu Xunyi's cup as if toasting: "Using tea instead of wine also has a different flavor."

After saying that, Tang Afu drank the tea in the cup. However, just as the tea entered his mouth, his face suddenly changed, and he spat violently, immediately spitting a small piece of tea on the ground.

It was only because the broken pieces of teacup were mixed into the tea and he poured it whole into his mouth that it caused such a big reaction.

"This tea... really has a unique flavor." Tang Afu wiped the corners of his mouth with his sleeves and gave Liu Xunyi a wry smile.

"I remember that in Xunyang Tower, Jin Fuyu forced me to drink a cup of Guzhu Zisun, which was also 'unique in flavor', in front of you. That taste... I will never forget it." Recalling the past, Liu Xunyi could only find joy in suffering.

"At that time, he was the butcher and you were the meat, so you naturally let him do whatever he wanted." Tang Afu said, "But now it's different. He is no longer the butcher and you are no longer the meat. On the contrary, it's your turn to offer him a cup of 'good tea', which I believe will make him never forget it."

"Brother Tang, do you also think that there will be a battle between Jin Fuyu and me?"

"Sooner or later!" Tang Afu replied without denying it. "As the saying goes, 'There is no room for two tigers in one mountain'. Don't think that this martial world is so vast and boundless. In fact, it gets narrower as you go up, especially at the top of the martial arts world... It's so small that it can only accommodate one person. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that according to the current situation, the person who will be able to dominate the Central Plains martial arts world in the future... is either you or Jin Fuyu. Unless one of you takes the initiative to give in, there will be a life-and-death battle."

"That being said, it's lonely up there..."

"Some things are destined, and you can't control them." Tang Afu waved his hand to interrupt Liu Xunyi's sigh, and said slowly, "You are now in a difficult situation and you can't retreat. Today, every step you take not only represents your own feelings, but also affects the future of countless people. Not to mention the distant ones, at least the Xianwang Mansion, Jueqing Valley and Xiangxi Teng Clan have been firmly tied to the same boat with you since yesterday, sharing life and death, honor and disgrace with you. Being in the world is like sailing against the current, if you don't move forward, you will retreat. As long as you care about your own life and death and their fate, you must... can only keep climbing up." "There is a saying that goes, 'The higher you climb, the harder you fall.' You have put all your wealth on me, aren't you afraid that I will slip and cause you to fall to pieces?"

"It's not 'the higher you climb, the harder you fall'. It's 'the higher you climb, the more stable you stand'. Only when you climb to a height that others can't reach, can you get real comfort. No one else in the world can stand as high as you, and naturally no one else can threaten your position, let alone overthrow you, overthrow you, and smash you to pieces? Think about Luo Tianjin and Qingfeng. The reason why they ended up miserably was not because they 'climbed high', but because they didn't climb 'high enough', which gave others an opportunity to take advantage of them. The Emperor of the Song Dynasty was always worried about foreign invasions, but the Mongolian Khan never worried about his territory being harassed. This is the reason. It's because Mongolia's strength is far superior to other countries, and others are afraid to avoid it, so how dare they risk their lives to provoke it?"

"hiss!"

Tang Afu's words almost overturned Liu Xunyi's inherent cognition, leaving him with a lot of thoughts and speechless.

"The Valley Master, Clan Leader Teng, and Palace Master Xie did not bet their entire fortune on you. Rather, from the moment you were born, they were destined to be bound to you for the rest of their lives. We are blood relatives, and we are of the same lineage. How could they choose to abandon you at will?"

Liu Xunyi nodded slightly, not quite understanding, and said with a wry smile: "To be honest, your idea coincides with that of Second Master Xie and Xunzhen. Second Master Xie asked me to integrate the major sects and families to create the largest force in the martial arts world. I guess Xunzhen... probably had this idea a long time ago."

"What do you think?"

"I... don't know." Facing Tang Afu's questioning, Liu Xunyi hesitated, "This is a serious matter, I dare not be careless..."

"In fact, whether you want to admit it or not, the alliance of multiple forces centered on you has become a fact, and is jokingly called the 'new faction' by outsiders. What you decide will not encounter any resistance at least in the Xianwang Mansion, Jueqing Valley and Xiangxi Teng Clan. The only difference is... whether you have given everyone a legitimate status."

"Master Xie said the same thing to you..."

“Because we see the same facts.”

"But..." Liu Xunyi frowned, as if he had something on his mind that he couldn't speak.

"But what?"

"But I don't want to become a puppet at the mercy of others." Liu Xunyi was worried and suspicious, and his tone was quite annoyed. "Brother Tang, as I just said, no one can trust me now. Putting aside Master Xiao and Chief Teng, Second Master Xie should be the person I trust the most, but I found that he is very partial to Xunzhen. This morning, Xunzhen told me that Second Master Xie had promised the Young King of Qin that I would take over the unfinished business of the Northern Sage King. Although I have sternly refused and forced Xunzhen to make concessions, my heart has been restless for a long time. I know that I shouldn't judge others by my own meanness, but I just can't help it... I can't help but doubt whether Second Master Xie, Xunzhen, and the Young King of Qin have reached some little-known agreements in private? Deliberately singing the same tune in front of me, are they trying to use me to achieve some ulterior purposes?"

"The Valley Master has the same concerns as you, which is the direct reason why she sent me to your side."

"Valley Master Xiao..." Liu Xunyi was deeply moved by Tang Afu's explanation, and Xiao Zhirou's motherly love also made him feel warm.

"Is it because you are suspicious of Lord Xie that you...refused to open your heart to him just now?"

"What?" Liu Xunyi was startled, "You are talking about..."

"You knew that Yuan Ting was not worthy of being appointed, but you still insisted on entrusting him with important tasks."

After Tang Afu's reminder, Liu Xunyi suddenly realized what was going on, and his expression became more bitter: "So you heard everything?"

"I heard some of it." Tang Afu said bluntly, "You didn't want to tell Xie Xuan the real reason why he promoted Yuan Ting. Is it because you... don't completely trust him? Are you worried that he will reveal your thoughts to Xunzhen?"

"Yes!" Seeing Tang Afu's quick words, Liu Xunyi didn't beat around the bush, "Actually, I value Yuan Ting because... he could betray me yesterday, and he can betray the Young Qin King tomorrow."

"What do you mean?" Tang Afu frowned and asked suspiciously, "Are you not using Yuan Ting to give him a chance to reform, but have other plans?"

"That's right!" Facing the puzzled Tang Afu, Liu Xunyi actually changed his perfunctory attitude in front of Xie Xuan and told him his true intentions without reservation, "Xilu Wuzong is the 'pioneer' of Shao Qin Wang's poisoning of the Central Plains. Only by cultivating a weak-willed person to become the mainstay of the four major branches in the Central Plains, can I help Xilu Wuzong gain a foothold in the Central Plains without scruples. In this way, I can repay Shao Qin Wang and Xunzhen for saving my life, and avoid becoming Shao Qin Wang's accomplice in causing chaos in the Central Plains to the greatest extent. Human feelings are human feelings, and justice is justice. In any case, I am always a Han Chinese, and I dare not forget my roots and rebel against China. And this... is exactly the 'good intentions' that I hope Mr. Xie can understand. At the same time, I also hope that he can turn back from his mistakes, and never be confused by the illusions in front of him, and then make mistakes on major issues, so as not to make eternal regrets with one misstep."

……

　Recently, due to a change in my job, my stable life of several years has been broken. I am overwhelmed by the burden, and my time, energy, and mood are not as regular and calm as before, which will greatly affect my creation. The updates may be intermittent in the next few days, but I will try my best to arrange everything properly and adapt to the new rhythm as soon as possible.

　　At the age of thirty, many things are beyond my control. I beg your forgiveness and hope you will forgive me!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)