Volume 1 The Opening Ceremony of Once Upon a Time in the South
The main competition day of the Pillow Sword Club has finally arrived.
The entire Salyushi alley, from Phoenix Street to the competition venue outside the city, watched the lively team stretch all the way. In addition, there are a lot of highlights of this competition, including the mysterious Princess Onian, and a pair of terrifying sons and daughters of Prince Ressa. Along the way, everyone was hotly discussing the final ownership of the championship.
Here in the circular venue, there are already a lot of people surrounded by more than a dozen entrances to the upper floor, fortunately there are so many entrances, otherwise it is estimated that the entire venue will be enclosed. The entrance of the nobles in the south has also been surrounded by a lot of people, and the first ones are all in a hurry to see the excitement, and many high-ranking officials in Guizhou who have heads and faces will come out of the mansion in a carriage.
After all, it was officially opened at nine o'clock, and then the Side Committee made a speech to explain the rules, and then the king spoke. This first game, before ten o'clock, I'm afraid it won't start.
Laiwu and Erwin rented a spacious tent directly in the market to sleep, these people are used to being lazy, where the high rises early, they can sleep for a while. In addition, after looking at the matchup table that day, the games between Lai Wu and Alvin were scheduled for the afternoon, and they were even more reluctant to get up early.
Last night, Alvin had set up a quiet barrier for the tent where a few people lived, and now the noise outside could not be heard at all. Erwin didn't sleep very well last night, he woke up before dawn, bored in his bed flipping through the book "The Laws of Time and Space", hungry and kept complaining, but it would be dark and how could it be sold early, Erwin poked his head out of the tent, felt the cold air from his nose to his brain, covered his head and quickly retracted back into the warm tent.
Lai Wu is in a good state of mind, and he sleeps very dead. As for Chenzhu and Kaiba, they didn't come back until late, and the two of them snored one after another when they lay on the bed, and the tossed Alvin couldn't fall asleep until late.
Now that it was already full of people outside, Alvin thought to himself, poked his head out to take a look, and sure enough, the whole market was bustling and lively. Alvin looked back, and the three of them were still asleep, sighed, and decided to go out for a bite to eat. The smell of roasted meat in the food truck not far away had already attracted Alwin the moment he lifted the tent.
Alvin watched as the hanging leg of lamb swirled around on the grill, the seven diagonal nozzles under the roast table spewed flames every once in a while, and the stall owner was busy rolling cakes for the other customers, and his cat-man slaves were trained to sprinkle cumin, pepper, cinnamon leaves, and occasionally a layer of orange honey on the leg.
Alvin swallowed as he stood in line at the back of the line outside the dining car.
Just then someone tapped him on the shoulder, and Alwyn was staring at the leg of mutton impatiently.
"It's me!" said a young man excitedly, it was Xia Ye, who had a blue nose and swollen face who had been beaten a few days ago.
"Oh, it's you, are you well?" Alwyn smiled.
"No problem at all. Xia Ye patted his chest and said confidently, "By the way, you didn't tell me what your name was last time?"
"Alwin, Alvin Ferry. "Alvin wasn't used to this kind of self-reporting.
"Count Feilie, are you the son of Count Feilie?" Xia Ye suddenly widened his eyes and asked.
Alvin nodded, looking at the other party's expression and secretly suspicious, thinking to himself that his father could still be so famous?
"Your Highness Alwin. Xia Ye suddenly clasped his fists and saluted, his face serious.
Alwin looked puzzled, "What are you doing here?"
"My father was the commander of the Count's Legion Regiment, and he fought dozens of battles with the Count... Xia Ye said with some excitement.
Alvin had only heard Laiwu and them say that his father was quite prestigious in the army, but he didn't expect to meet his old son today.
"Hmm" Alvin nodded, not knowing what kind of attitude to take for a while, mainly because he was too hungry, or the smell of the roast leg of lamb was too tempting, and he couldn't help asking, "Have you had breakfast?"
Erwin felt funny in his heart, every time he met this Xia Ye, the first sentence was, have you had breakfast?
Xia Ye originally met the people of the Fei Lie family who had a passionate speech to say, but was blocked back by Alvin's sentence "Have you had breakfast?" I still think that the person in front of me is very interesting.
The queue in front of me was finished, but it was finally Alvin's turn, but Xia Ye rushed to the front, "Alas, how can you let Your Highness come every time? ”
He didn't wait for Alvin to say anything, and took the lead in paying the money.
The stall owner showed his skillful knife skills, and neatly sliced some meat from the outside of the rotating leg of lamb, and even the roasted gravy was not wasted, and it was rolled directly into the naan. The two mutton naan cakes were wrapped and handed over to Xia Ye and Erwin after a while.
Alvin sniffed the mutton naan that he had been waiting for for a long time, and then took a big bite, thinking that he really didn't look away, this leg of lamb was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with spices and honey, it couldn't be more delicious. Xia Ye, who was on the side, also praised him.
"What time are you playing today?" Alvin took a few bites, feeling less dizzy.
"It's past ten o'clock, what about you, Your Highness?" Xia Ye also swallowed.
"It seems like it's about two o'clock in the afternoon. Alvin thought about the matchup table he had seen that day, "Don't call me Your Highness, I can't afford it." ”
When he shouted like this, others thought how big a knighthood he was, Alvin thought to himself.
"If you want it, you want it," Xia Ye said with a straight face, "My father told me before he died that he had received a lot of favors from the Earl in his life, and he had never had the opportunity to repay it, saying that if he had the opportunity in the future, he would definitely repay the kindness of the year." Besides, if it wasn't for your enlightenment last time, I might have gone to that person again to find trouble. In any case, these favors must be repaid. ”
Alwyn looked at his stark expression, thought for a moment, and said, "But what do you want to repay me? I don't need any help?"
"Your Highness, the present is the present, the future is the future, how can you say the things in the future well? Xia Ye was the first to finish eating and said with a smile.
Alwyn nodded helplessly. I thought to myself, this man is a man who values love and righteousness.
Originally, after breakfast, Alvin planned to go back to the tent to lie down, but Xia Ye pulled him alive to see the opening ceremony of the Pillow Sword Club. Besides, Xia Ye's own competition was about to start soon, and he had to go to the player's area for physical examination and registration. Alvin was dragged by him to the east of the contestants' area, and the guards at the door checked the two of them and let them go.
There were already more than a dozen players waiting in the tent hall where the players were waiting, this should be the first group of players to play, Alvin glanced at the wall clock in the tent, and saw that it was almost nine o'clock.
Alvin and Xia Ye walked straight into the passage, where there were two forks in the path. A slope facing upwards leads to the players' stands in the ring. The remaining one is for the players to go directly to the venue, which is guarded by several committee staff, and the players who have passed the medical examination can collect their registered equipment here and then participate in the competition. Finishers will have to return their equipment here.
The two of them came up from the slope, leaning against the midnight hanging lamp at the corner of the bronze pole and the wooden pole, and Alvin took a closer look at the mixed wooden and bronze construction pattern in the passage, and sighed that this method could bear the load and save materials, which was amazing.
In the passage, you can already hear the noisy and noisy sounds of tens of thousands of people, and it is not until you walk out of the passage and see the dazzling sky light and boiling voices that you can fully feel the atmosphere of the pillow sword meeting. The large area is only divided into three rings in the upper, middle and lower, but there are five or six layers in each ring, and there are nearly twenty or so layers from top to bottom.
Alvin walked out of the aisle and stepped into the players' stands, where he saw a white-haired figure looking at the railing. The abrupt cold wind blew the snow like a waterfall, like rolling up the Milky Way, a wild trickle, looking at her bright neck and shoulders, Alwin lost his mind for a while.
Perhaps sensing the gaze behind her, the woman turned around. I saw that her pair of golden eyes were like a vast ocean, and she smiled gently as if she was returning from spring, Alwyn was surprised by the princess's demeanor last time, and when she saw her again today, she was stunned and couldn't speak, and the pestle was there without advancing or retreating, like a chicken, where there was a little "battle-hardened" look.
Xia Ye, who was beside him, was taken aback by Alwin's audacity, pulled Erwin's sleeve, and motioned to the other party to hurry up and salute the princess. A few days ago, I had breakfast and saw him joking with the prince's daughter, and now seeing that the princess has no aristocratic etiquette, Xia Ye was dripping with cold sweat, but he still admired Alwin's courage in his heart. The rest of the contestants who came to see the opening ceremony deliberately kept their distance from the princess, after all, they were in awe and scruples about the royal members, so Alvin walked up unrestrainedly.
"Uh... In Lower Alwyn, I have seen ... Met Her Royal Highness the Princess. Alvin was reminded by Xia Ye before he remembered to salute, blushing nervously and stuttering.
When Princess Oneen saw his stupidity, she couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle. She was accustomed to those sanctimonious gentlemen, but she rarely saw such a "reserved and shy" person as Elwin.
Xia Ye admired Alvin more and more in his heart, the uneasiness and greenness on his face were really real, and others really thought that this was a young man who was not deeply involved in the world. If it weren't for the fact that he had made the "Arashi Ressa" so much amused two days ago, it would have been difficult to connect him with the man in front of him who stuttered when he talked to the princess.
Alwin himself secretly cursed in his heart, the appearance of this disaster to the country and the people is breathtaking, Rao is "experienced in a hundred battles", but he also makes it the same as a young man who has just fallen in love.
"Elwin, Count Ferre's?" asked Ornian with a smile.
Elwin's eyes widened and he nodded, wondering how the other party would know about him.
When Onien saw him nodding, her eyes suddenly lit up, and she became interested.
"I've heard that you almost lost your life by molesting the girl of Prince Ressa's family?" said Oniehn teasingly.
Elwin's first reaction was very surprised, he almost choked on his own saliva, he didn't expect the princess to come up and talk about this, and quickly explained awkwardly: "Misunderstanding, it's all a misunderstanding." Your Royal Highness Princess, I am a typical mistake and bad friend, beaten out of thin air, flying into trouble, miserable. ”
Onian smiled, seemingly unconcerned with Alwin's explanation. She felt in her heart that this person was funny, she was still expecting Ai Ai, but now she was a lotus flower.
Alvin smiled wryly, thinking to himself that it was useless to explain it.
"You're also here to see the opening ceremony?" asked Ornian with a smile.
"Back to Your Highness, I was dragged over by this little brother next to me, and my game is still early. Alvin said helplessly.
The princess smiled politely, nodded, and turned back without asking.
Alvin looked at the Chu Chu Qianying, there was a kind of pride and independence in the world, and there was a kind of compassion and softness, he didn't seem to see the noisy and noisy tens of thousands of people in his eyes, as if he was standing in the cold pavilion of the distant mountains, looking at a beautiful woman with a white coat and a broad heart was overlooking the snow of a thousand mountains, feeling desolate for eternity.
Just as Alvin was still reminiscing about the conversation with the princess, Xia Ye pulled his sleeve again, and motioned for him to look at the stands opposite with a strange expression.
Alvin followed his gaze, his gaze across the entire ring court, and saw a familiar figure in the stands opposite, dressed in a long red dress and a signature wool cape. Hundreds of meters away, Erwin could feel the other party's glance at him intentionally or unintentionally, and the smile in his eyes made him break out in a cold sweat. Alwyn thought to himself that if he hadn't been so far away, he would probably have to suffer from her abuse again.
There is Princess Onian in the east stand, and the daughter of Prince Ressa's family in the west, and in the upper stands, many good things have been discussed by the audience looking at the indistinguishable appearance and figure of the two.
"See? I'll just say, the daughter of the prince's family is also very good-looking, and she won't lose to the princess, right?"
"I still look at the princess is good-looking, the first beauty of Saliushi, and it should be Princess Aonien... ”
"I've heard that these two people don't deal with each other, and if they do, they won't have to fight upside down?"
"That's not it, it's said that these two are the best in the younger generation of magicians, plus both of them look like immortals, no one must be convinced, this must be a high score... ”
"When you come to the pillow sword meeting, you naturally have to divide the winners and losers, so which one is good-looking and how to divide it? I looked at the prince's daughter's breasts as if they were bigger. . . ”
This drew a burst of laughter.
"You guys can really worry about it, which one is the first to look good and which is the second to be good-looking, what does it have to do with you, anyway, you can't marry and go home, I'm really not afraid of breaking your hearts?"
Finally some of the women couldn't stand it anymore.
Those nobles and high-ranking officials who sat in the middle and lower classes naturally did not like to evaluate which girl was good-looking so explicitly, and they all whispered to the people next to them, accompanied by a low laugh or two from time to time.
At this moment, the first salute sounded, and the venue of tens of thousands of people was sensational, and the pillow sword meeting finally began. In the sound of the cannon salute, King Kelman was alone in front, followed by Master Pierrot, followed by a group of royal members, slowly entering through the north gate. Tens of thousands of people in the hall stood up and saluted, and the sight of the king made everyone very excited, and they cheered loudly to welcome the holy car.
"Long live the King! Long live the Yaffy Empire!"
After the nine cannons were fired, King Kelman had already walked to his gilded throne, and he beckoned to the audience, and the venue of tens of thousands of people was a little quieter. Master Pilo is old and accustomed to seeing big scenes, but when he sees this grand and grand pillow sword meeting again, this full venue, he can't help but recall the past and feel a lot of emotion in his heart. He glanced at the peerless apprentice in the players' stands from afar, and comforted him.
Prime Minister Fowler led dozens of black-clad deacons of the Pillow Sword Society to enter from the east and west entrances. Dozens of deacons stood in a circle around the center of the arena facing the audience. Fowler was standing in the center of the circle, he took out his staff expressionlessly, and threw a circle of staff in the air, a cyan circle of light spread towards the top of the venue, and when it expanded to the outermost part of the venue, it froze, and the color on the aperture was almost invisible, and the entire silent enchantment was released, so the venue that was still noisy just now was silent.
Fowler cleared his throat and began to explain all the rules of this pillow sword meeting succinctly, including the judgment of winning or losing, how to determine whether a player has committed a foul, and so on.
Even so, it took a lot of time to talk about those dozens of rules, and only the emotionless voice of the prime minister could be heard in the entire enchantment, which really made people sleepy. Then the king spoke, and the prime minister led the crowd out.
King Kelman was very happy, pulled out a green blade in his sleeve, waved it in a dashing manner, and roared passionately: "Gu announced, the twenty-ninth pillow sword meeting - officially begins." Qingfeng's sword qi was directly slashed out from the royal stands, directly breaking the prime minister's silent barrier, and the sword qi then flew out, directly triggering the mechanism at the top of the ring venue, and the dazzling fireworks shot out around the field, exploding at the top of the center of the hollow circular venue, after a period of dazzle, looking at it, it was actually a glowing purple iris sword medallion, looking at the huge magic sword medal, the whole venue was stunned at first, and then burst into applause, screams, and cheers.
The purple long sword on the sword medal stood in the air, and the tip of the sword suddenly rotated clockwise, and the whole sword rotated one hundred and eighty degrees, and the tip of the sword pointed straight to the center of the field, and then fell rapidly, "Hmm" The audience couldn't help but let out a burst of exclamations, only to see the whole sword penetrate the sword chapter, when the tip of the sword touched the center of the arena, there was a "boom" sound, and the competition field in the center of the arena slowly rose, and the audience was ignited again, and there were bursts of cheers and applause.
The playing field was a square stone platform of about fifty paces, and the top of the stone platform was covered by a larger hemispherical purple magic field, which was transformed by the sword body of Fang Cai's long sword. According to the rules read out by the Prime Minister, if a player falls off the stone platform or jumps over the magic force field, he will be directly judged to lose.
The 29th Pillow Sword Club officially kicked off.