From a refugee to a martial artist

Chapter 78 The Way of the World
Nie Yannian was an honest man. He never praised Meng Yuan. Instead, he pulled Zhang Guinian aside and asked him to point out Meng Yuan's mistakes.

Zhang Guinian buried his head in eating and said nothing.

Nie Yannian poured wine for Zhang Lingfeng and Gong Zihua one by one, "Don't just eat the food, give us some pointers too!"

Zhang Lingfeng lowered his head and ate without saying a word. Gong Zihua, on the other hand, was modest and said that he had been busy recently and had not yet thanked Meng Yuan for his last desperate rescue.

Nie Yannian ignored Meng Yuan pulling his sleeve and asked everyone in the room.

"You did a good job indeed." Zhang Guinian really started to argue, "It's not that you are very capable, an eighth-rank warrior doesn't have much ability. But when you met that Earthshaker, you didn't panic, you didn't flee randomly, you didn't fight him in close combat, but you fought back and consumed his energy. This calmness alone is not bad, you are a man who knows how to get things done."

Nie Yannian winked at Meng Yuan, and Meng Yuan quickly poured wine for Zhang Guinian.

"But you do have two problems."

Zhang Guinian took a sip with a smile, "After we entered the eighth level, as more and more acupoints opened up, the Dantian became more condensed and wider, but the difference will not be too big. It will be a change when we enter the seventh level."

He pointed at Gong Zihua, Zhang Lingfeng, and the other two young men, and continued, "Fei Xu Gong is the skill of the Demon Suppression Bureau. We are all very familiar with it. When using Fei Xu Gong, it is nothing for an ordinary eighth-grade cultivator to maintain it for more than half an hour. If you use it with all your strength, it will probably be reduced to half."

"According to what you said, you fought with the Earth Shaking King Kong for more than two quarters of an hour, so you must have used all your strength. It shows that your true energy is strong and can withstand more than an ordinary eighth-grade Dantian. The true energy in your Dantian must have doubled."

Zhang Guinian said not only to Meng Yuan, but also to Zhang Lingfeng and others, "Everyone has his own destiny. Different situations and talents lead to very different abilities, and the amount of true qi in Dantian also varies greatly. I guess this is also where you are confident, but you are too confident. It's because you chanted the Earth-shaking Vajra Sutra and became stupid. Otherwise, if he had abandoned the heavy wooden stick and chased you, I'm afraid even if you have the Flying Catkins Skill, it would be difficult to maintain it for too long."

"Hurry up and say thank you Uncle Zhang." Nie Yannian patted Meng Yuan on the shoulder.

"Thank you, Uncle Zhang." Meng Yuan could only obey.

Zhang Guinian smacked his lips and said, "Secondly, I am too arrogant. I have just reached the seventh level of Earth Shaking Vajra and have not yet practiced the Heavenly Secret Diagram. You have to know that the Flying Catkins Technique and the Wild Wind Sword Technique are all minor techniques. Before the Heavenly Secret Divine Ability, they are nothing but chickens and pottery dogs!"

His tone became more serious. "In addition, after entering the seventh rank, you can lock onto the Qi. Even if the Earth-shaking Vajra's eyes and ears are damaged, he can still know where you are and what you are going to do. After you damaged his eyes, he was actually crying to lure you closer. It's just that he didn't have the chance to attack again."

Meng Yuan benefited a lot.

"After all, it seems that our Scholar Meng is lucky?" Nie Yannian laughed.

"If a person has lofty ambitions, he cannot achieve them without luck. How can luck not be important? Besides, I'm saying that the gelder should be cautious. Why are you so anxious? He's still your son-in-law!"

Zhang Guinian was annoyed, looked at Meng Yuan again, and asked, "I remember you just entered the eighth rank. How many of the thirty-three heavens have you opened so far?"

"Seventh place, a new one was opened today." Meng Yuan poured wine for Zhang Guinian and said, "Uncle Zhang's bottle of Baicao Dan really helped me a lot. Now that I have finished it, when can you give me some more?"

Zhang Guinian was drinking. After hearing this, he frowned and looked at Meng Yuan.

Gong Zihua and Zhang Lingfeng also stopped eating, and even his two colleagues looked at him strangely.

"I remember when you killed Luo's mother, you had just entered the eighth rank?" Gong Zihua counted on his fingers and realized, "It's been less than a month!"

"To be honest with you, Brother Gong, I got a Fire Bodhi this time with Taoist Jingxu, and I benefited a lot from it." Meng Yuan did not hide it, he ate it all anyway.

Therefore, there is no harm in saying it bluntly, and it will also make you appear open and honest.

Of course, even with the help of Fire Bodhi, the progress was still unusually fast.

But Meng Yuan had already shown his talent in martial arts, and his progress was very fast, so it was not too abrupt at this moment.

Besides, martial arts talent is not money, and it is not the time to hide it. Showing some prowess and capabilities will help you serve the Third Miss better.

"Old Nie," Zhang Guinian hooked his arm around Nie Yannian's shoulder and said, "You are a member of the Demon Suppression Division and have been with the princess brother. I still think it's a little inappropriate for our niece Qingqing to be the junior."

"You finally said something sensible today." Nie Yannian nodded.

"How about this." Zhang Guinian suggested, and said with a smile: "I have a distant niece, who is not bad in both character and appearance. If your Qingqing doesn't like her, then let my child try it first. I don't mind being a little kid."

"When did I say Qingqing didn't like me?" Nie Yannian immediately shook off Zhang Guinian's arm. He pointed at Meng Yuan and said, "Watch your back and don't go out and mess around! Listen to my instructions later!"

Seeing this, Zhang Guinian smiled, stood up, touched his belly, and said, "Let's go back first and take a break. We have been working day and night these past few days!"

He nodded his chin, and Gong Zihua and others stood up.

Nie Yannian did not go to see him off, but just pulled Meng Yuan aside to talk.

"What Lao Zhang said just now is not wrong. You have to keep it in mind." Nie Yannian no longer had the joking expression on his face.

"I know." Meng Yuan agreed naturally, poured him more wine, and asked in a low voice: "Master Nie, where did the chaos happen?"

Nie Yannian drank a cup, raised his eyebrows at Meng Yuan, and said with a smile: "Do you still remember the disaster last year?"

"I'll never forget it." How could Meng Yuan not remember it? "Last year, there was a severe drought and heavy snow in the north. There were countless refugees, fleeing everywhere. Some went north to the capital, some went south to our side, and some went west."

He pointed to the west and said, "Those heading west had trouble and many people died. But it's not bad here. The prefect is also capable and has managed to settle the victims. But there were some problems. Do you remember why you had the opportunity to study in the palace?"

Meng Yuan naturally remembered that after he arrived at Muzhuang last year, more than a month later, a civil riot broke out in the town north of Songhe Prefecture, and many wealthy families were robbed. This made the princess alert and she planned to train some young confidants.

But later Meng Yuan heard that the civil unrest was quite serious and that many wealthy families died, as well as a large number of refugees.

"I remember there was a civil unrest in the town in the north." Meng Yuan said.

"It was in the west. Songhe Prefecture couldn't hold so many people, and they didn't go to Canglang River, so they just waited to die? They couldn't turn back, so they went west to find food, and they connected with each other on the way, and then they started a riot." Nie Yannian sighed, "But it didn't make any progress in the end, because there were troops stationed nearby, and they were put out immediately. But some people died after all, and several counties and towns were affected."

He pointed at the food and wine on the table. "There's a lot of commotion outside, but we in Songhe Prefecture are still going strong. Why? First, we were built by the river, so the river is unobstructed and there's a granary upstream. Second, the national master came out of seclusion to cast a spell to bring rain, and the drought in the north was slightly relieved, so most of the refugees returned in the spring."

"Then what does this have to do with the demonic chaos?" Meng Yuan was still a little confused.

"Silly boy," Nie Yannian smiled and nodded at Meng Yuan, "Don't think that all monsters have good tempers just because you stay with the little weasel for too long. That's because we have a dock in Songhe Prefecture, with many people coming and going, soldiers upstream, and a hundred households of the Monster Suppression Division, so the monsters around are 'informed' and 'sensible' and dare not act recklessly."

He pointed at the table and continued, "But it's different in the towns and counties below. In some cases, either you suppress him, or he suppresses you."

"The disaster also affected Songhe Prefecture. Many counties and towns in the north of the prefecture also fled south, and the population was emptied out in an instant."

"Now the refugees have returned home to resume farming, but those lands have long been occupied by monsters. When they see people coming back, they retreat a bit, but there are also fierce ones who kill a few people and then become rampant when they see that no one dares to deal with them!"

"Don't think you're the only one who likes to play with a monster. When monsters get tired of eating humans, can't they just find a human to play with? That's still considered light. I saw the Tiger King having a banquet over there. Tsk tsk tsk tsk!"

When Nie Yannian said this, he shook his head and frowned.

Meng Yuan took a sip of wine and said nothing.

"You are a scholar who studies history. Can you tell me when the most frequent rebellions occurred?" Nie Yannian asked.

"Times of natural disasters and troubled times make it difficult for ordinary people to survive," said Meng Yuan.

"That's the truth! Why do they say evildoers emerge in troubled times? Because no one is there to take care of them, there is a lack of people to take care of them, and the masters don't have the time to take care of them."

Nie Yannian laughed softly, "It can't be said that we are in a chaotic world now. It's just a disaster. After all, someone will take care of it. After a few years, those wild monsters will be well behaved again."

"Can monsters be eaten?" Meng Yuan was very interested. Not only could it nourish his energy, but it could also help the people get rid of harm. Why not do it?

"Of course."

Nie Yannian seemed to see through Meng Yuan and said, "After practicing, the monsters have more spiritual energy, and their bones and flesh are more valuable than ordinary meat. Especially those with a slightly higher grade, they are even more valuable."

"So that's how it is." Meng Yuan touched the corner of his mouth.

"You can eat it. Monsters eat humans, and humans eat monsters. Eating more and using more is indeed good for yourself and for martial arts practice. But serious Confucianists, Buddhists, and Taoists don't eat it."

Nie Yannian said more seriously, "Ordinary monsters are useless if eaten. That's why you see many monsters in the mountains, but few warriors can catch them. That's the reason."

Meng Yuan nodded.

"But it's better not to eat it if you can. The spirit has spiritual light, its cross bones have been refined, and it can speak human language. Although it still has the habits of a beast, it is different from a beast and is becoming more and more like a human."

Nie Yannian tapped Meng Yuan's chest, "It can be useful for a while, but if you eat too much, your mood will go wrong. Maybe nothing will happen to you for the rest of your life, or maybe problems will arise slowly. It may even be difficult to move forward. It depends on the person."

He continued, reeking of alcohol, "Just like a medicinal bath can help open up your mind, but you can't always rely on it, otherwise you will be increasingly different from those who have truly opened up their mind. In short, it's okay to take some occasionally, but don't eat too much."

"Then the monster can eat people?" Meng Yuan laughed.

"So our human race is prosperous, and the demon race is declining. They only dare to hide in the mountains and forests, and only dare to show up in times of troubled times. They can only admire our splendor." Nie Yannian smiled.

"Teacher Nie, your advice is valuable and I appreciate it." Meng Yuan bowed.

Nie Yannian smiled and patted Meng Yuan on the head.

"Do you still want to go? Is there any place where you can use me? Sister Qingqing has been worried about you, so I'll always be able to take care of you if you follow me." Meng Yuan thought he should still give it a try. After all, there was really no other way to conserve his energy right now.

"Are you planning to pick another young wife?" Nie Yannian asked with a smile.

"Then I'll have to trouble Master Nie to help me choose. I listen to Master Nie the most." Meng Yuan smiled.

Nie Yannian looked at Meng Yuan and found this boy more and more pleasing to the eye.

(End of this chapter)