The road to Jianghu started from the martial arts hall

Chapter 24: Hidden Dragon and Phoenix List

In a joyous atmosphere, Wangjiang Tower, located near the pier, reopened after being closed for six days with a new owner.

Although the name sounds very grand, it is actually just a small pub and cannot compare with those old and famous restaurants.

Otherwise, even if Xiao Ding had a relationship with Fang Xun, it would be impossible for him to buy it for only fifty taels of silver.

When Fang Xun and his group arrived, they saw Xiao Ding at the door at first glance.

His right arm was fixed with two main boards and then wrapped with layers of white gauze and hung in front of his chest.

However, the injuries on his body did not affect Xiao Ding's friendly smile and he greeted every guest warmly.

"Xiao Ding, good luck with the grand opening and congratulations on making a fortune!"

After hearing the familiar voice, Xiao Ding turned around and saw Fang Xun and his group, and quickly greeted them, "Xun brother, you are finally here, come in quickly, the rooms on the second floor are ready!"

Fang Xun smiled and said, "We are all brothers, why should we be so polite?"

As they were talking, a group of people stepped into the hall.

The hall on the first floor is of a decent size, with eight square tables. Not long after it opened, six of them were occupied, so it looks like business is pretty good.

After Fang Xun came in, he was about to go straight to the second floor, but he stopped after accidentally seeing the east wall.

There was a big notice on the wall with five big characters written on top: "Hidden Dragon and Phoenix List".

Fang Xun was stunned for a moment, and said in surprise: "You actually posted the Dragon and Phoenix List here."

After hearing this, Xiao Ding scratched his head embarrassedly.

"Brother Xun, you know that all the well-known and reputable old brands in the county have posted those lists. If my place was not small, the three lists of heaven, earth and man would also be posted here."

"Not bad, very smart," Fang Xun nodded and praised casually, "We can also hire a few more storytellers to stay here to attract customers."

Then Fang Xun waved his hand and said, "You guys go up first. I'll take a look at the list for a while."

"Okay, Brother Xun, we'll go first."

After saying that, Xiao Ding took the others up to the second floor first.

Fang Xun randomly chose an empty table and sat down. The waiter saw him and placed a plate of vinegar peanuts and a pot of Shaodaozi in front of him.

"Xun'er, take your time. If you need anything, just tell me."

Fang Xun drank by himself, looking at the 108 names on the list with great interest.

In the world, there may be many people who are not greedy for money or lustful, but there are very few who have a bad reputation.

Especially the young generation who are full of vigor and vitality.

Who doesn’t have a dream of being a chivalrous and affectionate person in a martial arts world with fine clothes and a mighty horse?
Who doesn’t want to stand out and bring honor to the family?
Who hasn’t dreamed of becoming world-famous and worshipped by countless people one day?
Few people in the world are willing to be inferior to others. As the saying goes, there is no first in literature and no second in martial arts, so there are various lists ranking the world's masters.

The most credible and widely spread lists among all the lists are the four lists of Heaven, Earth, Man and Potential Dragons and Phoenixes compiled by Tianfeng Tower, one of the six gangs among the Thirty-Six Sects.

Tianfenglou is a media organization with an intelligence network spread all over the country.

Although it is only a wind media, its strength cannot be underestimated.

People or organizations that have made such high-profile rankings of experts rarely do so solely for the sake of ranking, and most of them have ulterior motives.

Fang Xun didn't know whether Tianfeng Tower had any ulterior motives or whether it was really just ranking for no other purpose.

But considering that it has gone through ups and downs for thousands of years and has not yet been destroyed by the siege of countless people who are dissatisfied with its ranking, we can get a glimpse of its powerful strength and foundation.

The four lists are updated every six months, and all rankings are based on public performance. Among them, the three lists of Heaven, Earth and Man rank masters in the three realms above the Xiantian Tongmai.

The remaining list of potential talents, referred to as the Dragon and Phoenix List, ranks the young generation of rookies under the age of 30, with a total of 108 people.

Those who are confirmed to have opened up their orifices above the Xiantian Tongmai or are over 30 years old will be excluded.

Among them, opening the meridians and opening the orifices are two innate realms. Zhu Mingcheng, Ma Yu and Sanshui County Magistrate Wang Xianzhi all have innate opening of the meridians, while Fang Xun's master Wei Lin is a master of innate opening of the orifices.

Due to limited space, the list on the wall of Wangjiang Tower only lists the names and brief information of the 108 young generation masters on the Dragon and Phoenix List.

The complete list will also be compiled into a thick book, which will record some public information and deeds of all the people on the four lists, which is much more detailed than here.

'First place: Jian Wuyi, identity: Sword Master of Shenjian Lake, age: 23, weapon: none.'

Fang Xun glanced at the information of the first place, and just seeing "Weapon: None", he felt the horror of the opponent.

Jian Wuyi is a swordsman but he has no weapon, which means that he no longer needs a sword now. Everything in the world can be a sword.

Even Linghu Chong, who has grasped the essence of "Nine Swords of Dugu" and can "win without any moves."

If he didn't have a sword in his hand, his strength would go from being the top three in the world in "Swordsman" to being a dead supporting role. After seeing the first place, Fang Xun looked back and drank two glasses of wine, but didn't touch a single peanut.

When he scanned the names on the list, he felt a bloody sensation between the lines.

For such a simple ranking, countless people in the world started a life-and-death fight.

However, everyone has a competitive spirit, and the struggle for fame and fortune has never disappeared. Even if there is no such list, there will still be all kinds of grudges and hatreds in the world.

With such a public ranking, no one can tell whether the conflicts and fighting in the world have decreased or increased.

Fang Xun read ten lines at a glance, and when he saw the 89th number, his eyes paused.

'No. 89: Jiang Xing, Status: Guerrilla Captain of Guangling Prefecture, Jiangzhou, Age: 26, Weapon: Prison Moon Blade'

After his gaze stayed for a while, Fang Xun continued to scan other names, when a voice suddenly came to his ears.

"This list was updated just six days ago. Only the county government has this information. This store has something special."

"Haha, I heard that the owner used to be a government official. He quit his job in the government office a few days ago because his arm was broken, and bought this shop."

"I see. Hey, look at Soul Chaser Du Feng. His ranking has risen by another six places."

"He just did a big deal in the prefecture last month, and the government's reward bonus has been increased to one thousand taels. Maybe he hasn't left Guangling Prefecture yet."

"Every expert on the Dragon and Phoenix Rankings has a few tricks up their sleeves, but the bonus is only 1,000 taels? The Guangling government is treating beggars like a fool!"

Fang Xun was immediately attracted by the conversation and quickly found the 97th place on the list.

'Ninety-seventh, Name: Du Feng, Identity: Wujiantang Killer, Age: 21, Weapon: Soul-Chasing Sword'

After taking in all the information at a glance, Fang Xun turned to look towards the source of the voice.

Just look at the table on the west side, where two men are sitting opposite each other.

One of them was a burly bearded man with a large circular knife on his back.

The other man was wearing a blue robe, had a gentle face and a goatee, and had a sword hanging from his waist.

There was a plate of broad beans and two pots of wine on the table. The two of them were drinking and chatting casually while looking at the Dragon and Phoenix List on the east wall.

At first glance, Fang Xun felt that the two people's temperaments were very different from the other guests in the hall.

The guests of Wangjiang Tower are basically ordinary people from Sanshui County. At most, they are gang thugs, and most of them have never actually killed anyone.

As for these two people, Fang Xun could easily detect a hint of blood from them; it was obvious that they had seen blood.

Perhaps he felt someone was watching him, the gentleman turned around and noticed Fang Xun, immediately smiled brightly, and raised his glass to toast him from a distance.

"please."

Fang Xun also smiled and raised his glass, and the two of them drank it all in one gulp at the same time even though they were far apart.

A glance between chance encounters.

There is a possibility of bloody conflicts with people asking "What are you looking at?" and "What's wrong with me looking at you?"

It's also possible that they could drink together silently and heartily like Fang Xun and the gentle man.

After finishing the glass of wine, Fang Xun stood up and prepared to go to the box on the second floor.

When the waiter saw this, he trotted over to him and was very attentive.

"Brother Xun, this way please."

As he said this, he led the way in front, and he and Fang Xun walked up the stairs to the second floor one after the other.

The bearded man and the gentleman had also been watching this scene. After seeing Fang Xun walking upstairs, they looked at each other and stood up and walked to the second floor.

His pace was neither fast nor slow, as if he was deliberately slowing down, waiting for something to happen on the second floor before rushing over quickly.

Wangjiang Tower had just opened, and there were no guests in the second-floor lobby yet.

Just as the waiter was about to lead Fang Xun to the private room where the police station was located, he suddenly asked, "Is this your first time as a waiter?"

The waiter was stunned for a moment, with a bewildered expression on his face, as if he was confused by this question.

"Xun'er, you often came to Wangjiang Tower last month. I have been working here all the time. Have you forgotten?"

Fang Xun smiled and said, "Then you should know that I never add vinegar to the food I eat."

The waiter's face suddenly changed when he heard that, and he quickly spread out the rag on his shoulder and covered the area.

There was a deadly cold light hidden behind the rag that stabbed towards Fang Xun!
(End of this chapter)