A journey through the world of martial arts

Chapter 15 Past Events

After hearing Song Yuanqiao's words, Gu Xu said, "The master's kindness is as high as a mountain. This is what I should do. I don't need any reward. Besides, I had some other adventures while traveling." As he spoke, he took out the "Nine Yang Manual" from his bag and placed it on the table.

Upon hearing this, Song Yuanqiao was taken aback, then chuckled, realizing he was truly confused. He looked at the several scriptures on the table, which contained texts he couldn't understand, and asked Gu Xu in confusion. Gu Xu said, "Uncle-Master, pay attention to the small print between the lines of the scriptures."

Upon hearing this, Song Yuanqiao took a closer look and indeed found small characters hidden in the gap. After reading them carefully, his expression changed drastically. The text inside bore many similarities to the Wudang Nine Yang Skill, and the content was even more detailed. Could it be...?

"Nephew, where did this thing come from?" Song Yuanqiao, no longer as composed as before, stood up and asked urgently.

Gu Xu knew this was no small matter, so he said that he had rescued a white ape in a valley and obtained this item from its stomach. After examining it, he realized that it must be related to the Wudang Nine Yang Skill, so he brought it back.

After Gu Xu finished speaking, Song Yuanqiao realized that Gu Xu had such a wonderful encounter. He immediately said, "This thing has an extraordinary origin. I guess it should be the complete 'Nine Yang Manual'. I heard my master mention it a few times in my early years. I never thought that after all the twists and turns, I would return to Wudang. It is truly the will of Heaven. My master will be very happy when he finds out."

He hurriedly led Gu Xu to the place where Zhang Sanfeng was in seclusion, knocked on the door, and said, "Master, I have something urgent to discuss with you." The door opened after a while, and the two went inside and the door closed automatically.

This was Gu Xu's first time visiting the place where the patriarch was in seclusion. The room was neither too big nor too small, and the furnishings were extremely simple, even plain, but it was very clean and bright.

An old Taoist priest with white hair sat upright on the cloud bed, resting with his eyes closed. When he saw the two of them enter, he said, "Sit down and talk." The two of them each took a futon and sat down. Song Yuanqiao carefully took out four books of scriptures. As soon as he took them out, Zhang Sanfeng's eyes widened slightly. They were things that he knew all too well.

Zhang Sanfeng asked in a trembling voice, "Yuanqiao, where did this thing come from?" Gu Xu, seeing Song Yuanqiao's signal, recounted the story again. Zhang Sanfeng looked at Gu Xu and said "Good" three times, each time louder than the last.

Holding the scripture in his hands and stroking it carefully, Zhang Sanfeng couldn't help but recall his childhood. Song Yuanqiao and Gu Xu remained silent for a moment before Zhang Sanfeng finally came to his senses.

"I originally thought this thing was destroyed, but I didn't expect to see it again after so many years." Looking at the scriptures, he thought of his mentor Jueyuan and that bright young girl.

"Master, is this the complete version of the 'Nine Yang Manual'?" Song Yuanqiao asked.

“Indeed, this is the complete ‘Nine Yang Manual’. My master Jueyuan recited it before his death. I memorized a part of it and created the Wudang Nine Yang Skill. Later, I innovated and created the Pure Yang Limitless Skill.” Zhang Sanfeng looked at the object in his hand and couldn’t help but sigh.

"Yuanqiao, remember not to reveal this matter to outsiders. I plan to go into seclusion to integrate the Nine Yang Manual into the Pure Yang Limitless Skill, so that it can be passed down as a unique art in the future." Zhang Sanfeng had his own plans, and drawing on the essence of the manual would be enough to improve the shortcomings of the Pure Yang Limitless Skill.

"Master, rest assured, no one else knows about this except the three of us," Song Yuanqiao also knew the importance of the matter. Once his master successfully integrated the two martial arts, Wudang would surely become famous in the future.

Looking at Gu Xu, Zhang Sanfeng asked, "Do you have any questions about your cultivation?" Song Yuanqiao looked at him with envy. He knew that his master rarely instructed the younger generation in martial arts anymore, so Gu Xu was extremely fortunate to receive his master's guidance.

There was a reason why Zhang Sanfeng valued Gu Xu so much. As soon as he entered the room, he noticed that Gu Xu had a deep breath, bright eyes, and his skill had surpassed that of Song Yuanqiao. It could be said that, apart from himself, Gu Xu was the number one person in Wudang.

Knowing this was a rare opportunity, Gu Xu quickly shared some questions he had about cultivation. Song Yuanqiao was about to leave, but Zhang Sanfeng asked him to stay and listen. The three of them asked and answered questions, and before they knew it, it was already dark. After listening to Zhang Sanfeng's guidance, Song Yuanqiao and Gu Xu suddenly understood and, not daring to disturb him any longer, left the door, leaving Zhang Sanfeng alone to continue studying the Nine Yang Manual.

Song Yuanqiao had to go and take care of some business, while Gu Xu headed towards his master Yu Daiyan's residence.

Upon seeing Gu Xu, Qingfeng exclaimed joyfully, "Senior brother, you've finally arrived! Master has been waiting for you inside for a long time!" Gu Xu greeted Qingfeng and hurried inside.

Upon entering the house, Gu Xu found Yu Daiyan slowly moving with the aid of a cane. He was delighted to see Gu Xu enter and said, "You're finally back." Gu Xu put down his bundle, helped Yu Daiyan sit down, and then respectfully kowtowed.

Yu Daiyan looked at his sensible disciple and told him to get up quickly and not be so formal. After Qingfeng served tea and rice, only the master and disciple were left to talk. "I should have come to greet you first, Master, but I had something to attend to with my eldest uncle, which is why I kept you waiting. It is truly my fault," Gu Xu thought for a moment but decided not to tell Yu Daiyan about the true scripture, lest it cause any unexpected trouble.

Then he looked at Yu Daiyan's legs and said, "It seems that the 'Black Jade Broken Leg Ointment' is indeed very effective. However, since Master can be like this in such a short time, he will definitely be completely healed within a year. Restoring his martial arts skills is not an unrealistic expectation."

Speaking of his own body, Yu Daiyan was also full of emotion. He originally thought that he would be bedridden for the rest of his life, but he never expected that his disciple would be able to find such a wonderful thing. It was truly a blessing from heaven.

"If it weren't for you getting the news about this item and sending the message back, how would I be where I am today? I've already heard the details from my second senior brother and the others. Humph, I will definitely get justice from that second senior brother and those Tartars in the future." Just thinking about the reason for his disability, Yu Daiyan couldn't bear it even with his good composure.

“Master, don’t worry. When I went down the mountain to travel, I found that the people along the way were living in misery and chaos had already broken out. The Yuan Dynasty’s fate was nearing its end. We will settle those scores with them one by one. By the way, Master, I have already taken on a disciple. Have you met him yet?” Gu Xu changed the subject to divert his attention.

As expected, Yu Daiyan's face turned from anger to joy upon hearing this. "Counting the disciples under my master, there are not many. Besides you, there is only Qingfeng. Unlike the other fellow disciples who have many disciples, it would be best if you could take on a disciple."

Although the Seven Heroes of Wudang shared a deep bond of brotherhood, Yu Daiyan felt somewhat disappointed seeing so many disciples under his fellow disciples, while he himself could only offer Gu Xu. Although Gu Xu was exceptional, he still hoped to have as many disciples as possible under his own tutelage.

"I've met Wei Bi before. He has decent potential, but he's far from being able to support your sect." The disciples of the third generation of Wudang leaders will inevitably step into the limelight in the future. Both martial arts skills and character are indispensable; otherwise, it will be difficult to command respect. If an ordinary person is chosen, it will only bring shame to Wudang.

Gu Xu understood his master's meaning, so he explained, "Wei Bi is considered a lay disciple, but he has been in Wudang for a longer time. As for the top disciple, we'll talk about that when a suitable candidate is found." Anyway, he was not old, and he would find a suitable candidate in Wudang.

Seeing Gu Xu's confident demeanor, Yu Daiyan said nothing more. Gu Xu then took out a bottle of restorative pills and used them to help Yu Daiyan recover. He then recounted some of the things he had encountered during his travels. An hour later, seeing that Yu Daiyan looked a little tired, Gu Xu helped him fall asleep before returning to his own residence.

Although he hadn't been back for a long time, the place was very clean because Qingfeng came to clean it every day. After washing up, Gu Xu sat cross-legged on the bed and circulated his internal energy. His true energy flowed continuously throughout his body, and a layer of shimmering white light enveloped his body, making him look like a luminous body that was particularly conspicuous in the darkness.

Gu Xu was very satisfied with his current martial arts skills, but what he lacked was the accumulation of time. Judging from the current situation, he could make up for his last shortcoming in two or three years.

The next morning, just as dawn broke, Gu Xu brought the sleepy Wei Bi to the mountaintop and began teaching him how to invigorate and practice his skills.

"Bi'er, did you remember everything your master said just now?" Wei Bi was woken up early in the morning by Gu Xu and was still grumpy. She was initially unhappy, but when she heard that her master was going to pass on martial arts to her, she became very excited.

"Disciple has remembered everything," Wei Bi said, sitting cross-legged and breathing in a regular pattern, his chest rising and falling. After a moment, Wei Bi's expression suddenly changed, as if he were in pain. Gu Xu was prepared and supported his back with one hand while simultaneously channeling streams of true energy into him.

Guided by the true qi of the valley, the faint flow of qi within Wei Bi's body began to circulate orderly throughout his body, and Wei Bi's expression changed from pain to comfort.

Everything is difficult at the beginning. If you want to develop internal strength, you must open up your meridians. Otherwise, it's like trying to put water in a broken bucket; the more you put in, the more it leaks out.

Wei Bi was also very lucky. With Gu Xu personally clearing and laying his foundation, he saved himself a lot of hard work compared to others. Now his meridians are open early, which will be of great benefit to his martial arts training later.

After circulating his qi for more than half an hour, Gu Xu slowly withdrew his palm and exhaled a breath of turbid air. Helping someone open up their meridians is a delicate task; a slight mistake could lead to the destruction of one's foundation. Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened.

"Bi'er, I have opened up your meridians. From now on, you must meditate for an hour every day, just like today. You must not slack off, otherwise your meridians will become blocked, and you will never be able to practice martial arts again," Gu Xu said solemnly, worried that Wei Bi's childlike nature might prevent him from maintaining the practice for long.

"Master, I understand." After feeling the changes in his body, Wei Bi found that his strength had increased a lot. This must be thanks to his master. He could not let his master down and had to practice martial arts hard. It was just a pity that he could no longer play with Qing Shu.

(End of this chapter)