Chapter 1

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On the Qingliang Mountain in Lingzhou, a magnificent palace stood, its grandeur and splendor rivaling even that of the imperial palace.

This palace was called the Beiliang Mansion.

It was the palace of Xu Xiao, known as the "Butcher of Men." Xu Xiao, whose nickname was never wrong, only his name was misnamed.

Xu Xiao, with his army, conquered six countries, establishing great achievements for the Liyang Dynasty.

After the end of the Spring and Autumn Wars, he was enfeoffed as the Prince of Beiliang by the Liyang Dynasty, the only remaining non-royal prince, stationed in the northwest, overseeing four states: Liangzhou, Lingzhou, Youzhou, and Liuzhou, where he reorganized the border troops to resist the Northern Barbarians.

At this moment, inside the mansion, in a room with a plaque reading "Changsheng Pavilion,"

a young man, dressed in white, with a handsome face, appeared lazy and slightly dull, about fifteen or sixteen years old.

This was Xu Changsheng, the second son of the Butcher Xu Xiao.

Speaking of the Butcher Xu Xiao, he had two daughters and three sons: his eldest daughter Xu Zihu, second daughter Xu Weixiong, eldest son Xu Fengnian, second son Xu Changsheng, and third son Xu Longxiang.

However, despite having a tiger for a father, his children were like dogs. Although people did not dare to say it openly,

they secretly rejoiced, saying that Xu Xiao had killed too many, and now the heavens were punishing him, making his children all peculiar.

The eldest princess, Xu Zihu, had outlived three husbands, becoming the most beautiful and wealthiest widow in the five counties of Jiangnan, known for her promiscuous behavior.

The second princess, Xu Weixiong, though plain in appearance, was highly learned and skilled in strategy, a disciple of Han Guxi from the Shangyin Academy, and a junior sister to famous figures like the military strategist Xu Huang and the diplomat Sima Can.

The three sons were no less peculiar, lacking the demeanor of Xu Xiao.

The eldest son, Xu Fengnian, was the top playboy of the Liyang Dynasty, known for his frequent brawls and romantic escapades.

Only a few core members of the Beiliang Mansion knew that he was a young genius with deep strategy, calm and composed, with a mind full of wisdom.

The second son, Xu Changsheng, was born prematurely, causing intellectual disabilities, and was naturally a bit foolish. He was poor at reading and lacked martial talent, neither excelling in literature nor martial arts.

Among Xu Xiao's children, he was the worst.

The third son, Xu Longxiang, was also intellectually challenged, with the mind of a child, but possessed extraordinary strength.

The three sons, each different, were a laughingstock to the world, and a source of ridicule for the great pillar of the state, the Butcher Xu Xiao.

"Second Brother, Second Brother, I'm here!"

Outside the Changsheng Pavilion, a young boy, about ten years old, called out, his face tear-streaked, but he ran quickly towards the pavilion.

Xu Changsheng, who was usually lazy, remained so when he saw his third brother, Xu Longxiang.

However, he smiled and said, "Little Longxiang, what's wrong?"

Xu Longxiang, upon entering, immediately hugged Xu Changsheng, his face sad and tearful, and said, "Second Brother, it's been so long since Father sent away Eldest Brother. When will he come back?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Changsheng's expression did not change. He thought to himself: It's been a year already.

The reason for his calmness was that he was different from others, possessing memories from a previous life.

In his past life, he was a good young man, but he woke up one day to find himself a premature baby, with a new sky above his head.

The past was unchangeable, and for him, living alone, there was nothing to recall.

His current life was quite good, living in luxury, with everything provided, a loving father, harmonious brotherhood, and a high status by birth, where his word was law.

"Little Longxiang, don't be sad. How could Father send away Eldest Brother?

It's because Eldest Brother made a mistake again. Father is frustrated with him, but he's also trying to temper and train him.

He will be back after some time."

Hearing this, Xu Longxiang stopped his tears, his eyes filled with doubt.

"Really, Second Brother, you're not lying to me?"

"Ha ha, really, how could Second Brother lie to you? If you don't believe me, you can ask Father."

"Okay, I'll ask Father!"

Xu Longxiang, after saying this, hurriedly left, leaving Xu Changsheng with a helpless look.

Speaking of Xu Changsheng, was he really as incapable as the rumors suggested?

The answer was no. Born with memories, as he grew older, he gradually understood the situation in Beiliang and naturally chose to hide his abilities from a young age.

Unlike his eldest brother, Xu Fengnian, who was rumored to be a playboy but was known by the core family members to be a deep and strategic thinker,

Xu Changsheng's hiding of his abilities started from a young age. Even his father, Xu Xiao, did not know that his son was hiding his true self, thinking that his son's intellectual disabilities were due to being a premature baby, which made the Butcher feel guilty for a long time, as he believed his many enemies had put his wife in danger, leading to constant assassination attempts.

As the second son of the Prince of Beiliang, Xu Changsheng could go almost anywhere in the Beiliang Mansion, except for a few restricted areas or places he did not know about.

The Tingchao Pavilion, where Xu Xiao had collected many martial arts secrets during his conquests, contained half of the world's martial arts classics.

It had nine floors, but was publicly known to have six. Inside, there were six guardians.

The first floor had 30,000 volumes of basic martial arts, the second floor had 4,000 rare books on Yin-Yang and strategy, as well as 49 unique weapons.

The third floor had 20,000 advanced martial arts classics, the fourth floor had some rare antiques, and the fifth and sixth floors also contained advanced martial arts classics. The seventh floor was empty, the eighth floor was where Xu Xiao's strategist Li Yishan read books, played chess, and planned, and the top floor was empty.

The basement had 600 memorial tablets for the fallen Beiliang generals and officers, and the second basement was where the old sword god Li Chonggang was willingly suppressed.

Xu Changsheng had been arranged by Xu Xiao to enter the Tingchao Pavilion, hoping he would gain some knowledge.

This suited Xu Changsheng's intentions. He read various classics inside, and although it seemed useless (to Xu Xiao and others), he found great joy in the Tingchao Pavilion.

Inside, he obtained an unnamed internal cultivation technique that directly led to the First Rank.

"Great Longevity," this was the pursuit of martial artists, and naturally, it was also Xu Changsheng's pursuit.

He named the unnamed technique "The Great Longevity Sutra."

After nearly ten years of diligent cultivation in secret, he had some talent and insight, and had now broken through to the Finger Pointing Realm.

Martial artists in the world were divided into nine ranks, with the ninth being the lowest.

Based on their ability to penetrate armor, those who could injure but not penetrate armor were considered the lower three ranks; those who could penetrate up to six layers of armor were the middle three ranks; those who could penetrate eight or nine layers of armor were the third rank, which was considered a minor expert in the world.

Second-rank experts were called minor masters, like the Prince of Beiliang, Xu Xiao, who was a second-rank minor master after a lifetime of battles.