Devouring Evil Martial Arts, Eliminating Demons from All Heavens

Chapter 163 Someone is coming
"I don't understand why everyone is talking about the Japanese pirates in the southeast, the unrest on the grasslands, the restless Three Guards outside the Great Wall, and the frequent changes in the lives of ordinary people?"

"You make it sound like my Ming Dynasty is already in a very unstable state."

Imperial envoy and eunuch Zuo Ziqing rode his horse steadily out of the city. To his right were green mountains and forests, and to his left were vast fields.

He had a round forehead, a thin face, and slightly pale skin. Looking around, he felt a little guilty for speaking without much restraint, remembering that he was surrounded by close friends.

"We have come a long way in a time of peace and prosperity."

"The Wokou (Japanese pirates) in the southeast are nothing more than a few pirates coming and going at sea, a minor ailment. The three guards outside the pass were even defeated by a large army a few years ago, and they obediently submitted to the emperor and paid tribute."

"As for popular uprisings, ten years ago, it was said that miners and tenant farmers rebelled, roaming more than 20 prefectures and counties, and claiming to have gathered more than 800,000 people."

"But after the imperial court mobilized 50,000 troops, it directly suppressed this group of rebels, which shows how exaggerated and misleading those rumors were at the time."

The Imperial Guard commander standing beside him laughed and said, "You're right, sir. As the saying goes, seeing is believing. To know how things are going in the world, you have to come down here and see for yourself."

Zuo Ziqing nodded: "However, although our Great Ming is generally good, it cannot be denied that there are indeed some people in the people who harbor evil intentions."

"Those who act rashly and openly rebel are not a cause for concern. The real danger lies in those who outwardly comply but inwardly defy, and who secretly plot against us."

"Six months ago, Lingnan Huoshengou created a secret recipe and reported it to the imperial court. His loyalty was truly commendable. His Majesty immediately issued an edict to select three hundred elite soldiers from the Shenji Camp and send the Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards) to guide them."

"As a result, these more than three hundred people suddenly disappeared while crossing the Yangtze River, neither alive nor dead."

Zuo Ziqing gave a cold laugh as he said this.

The entourage also wore solemn expressions.

Crossing the river was a dangerous undertaking, but considering that the elite Shenji Battalion and the Jinyiwei were traveling together, and that they had the support of the local government, it was still possible for them all to disappear during the crossing due to a single mishap.

Everyone knows how much shady stuff is going on here.

There is no other force with the motive and ability to do such a thing besides the Liuyun Prefecture, whose influence extends across several provinces.

Unfortunately, after the Emperor was furious, his only reaction was to further reward the many imperial guards and invite the abbot of Mount Song and the leader of Wudang to stay in the capital for an extended period, so that they could pray for the royal family in the name of the Buddhist and Taoist masters.

The centurion said, "Sir, given the lessons learned from the past, your willingness to volunteer this time demonstrates great wisdom and courage, which I truly admire."

"Sigh, you still didn't listen to what I just said."

Zuo Ziqing's eyes gleamed. "It is precisely because our Great Ming Dynasty still has a destiny that the Lord of Liuyun Mansion has already reached his limit by doing something like this for the sake of the Fire Mystic Technique."

"If this happens a second time within a year, for the sake of the imperial court's legitimacy, all the officials will no longer be able to tolerate it, and then war will truly break out."

This eunuch was only willing to make this trip because he knew that Liuyun Mansion was not yet ready for such a thing.

Moreover, the Fire God Secret Technique is no longer in the hands of a mere Fire God Valley, but has fallen into the hands of the Southern Shaolin.

Liuyun Mansion was naturally happy to let them entangle with the Southern Shaolin Temple.

If they truly obtain the secret technique of the Fire God and intend to return to the capital, that will be the moment when real danger descends.

Zuo Ziqing felt a burning desire; it was also his chance, as a fifth-rank eunuch, to continue striving for advancement.

Logically speaking, among eunuchs, there was one vacant fourth-rank position and two lucrative fifth-rank positions, making them the most powerful figures.

However, during the reign of Emperor Yingzong, fourth-rank eunuchs controlled both the inner and outer courts and were called "inner ministers." Even after the Tumu Crisis, some eunuchs still obtained titles for their contributions to the restoration.

Zuo Ziqing is only forty years old. If he makes another great contribution, he may well experience the taste of wielding power over the court in his lifetime.

Moreover, he possessed the remarkable achievement of finding the "Fire Secret Technique" for the imperial court.

Perhaps, it could bring power like the Ten Attendants of the Han Dynasty and fame like the Three Jewels Eunuch.

"Every obstacle is difficult, but we will overcome them. The Southern Shaolin Temple has always been obedient to the imperial court. At most, they will use some tricks to overcome this obstacle. There shouldn't be too much danger. Let me deal with them one by one."

Zuo Ziqing had already spotted the outline of the Southern Shaolin Temple. He spurred his horse and galloped away at high speed.

The others behind them also rode swiftly, and before long they reached the foot of the mountain.

On the mountain gate of the Southern Shaolin Temple are engraved the four large characters "Farming and Zen as One," bestowed by the founding emperor himself. Anyone who sees them must dismount.

Zuo Ziqing, with agile movements, flipped down and was about to send the gatekeeper monk to inform him.

To everyone's surprise, looking up from these stone steps, one could see more than ten monks, each leading a group of guests, some going up the mountain and some going down, all very busy.

It's no surprise that the Southern Shaolin Temple is very popular with worshippers.

Strangely, most of these guests smelled of medicinal herbs, and some even carried medicine boxes, clearly indicating they were renowned local doctors.

"what happened?"

Zuo Ziqing asked in confusion.

The commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard immediately went to inquire and soon returned to report.

"It is said that a few days ago, the second young master of Xiahou Manor came to visit the Southern Shaolin Temple. The Southern Shaolin Temple treated him with courtesy. Who knew that the young master Xiahou was staying in the temple idly and had nothing to do, and he made many criticisms of the martial arts of the Southern Shaolin Temple."

"Just yesterday, the two sides started fighting, and even the abbot got involved, but he was severely injured."

Zuo Ziqing frowned slightly, but still sent the guest monk to inform them.

Not long after, the two head monks, Miaokong and Miaoyin, came down to greet him personally. Their words and actions were extremely humble, giving the imperial envoy all the respect he deserved.

But once inside the temple, after drinking fragrant tea and eating vegetarian food, Zuo Ziqing and others praised the anti-Japanese resistance and talked about the new type of firearms.

The two head monks claimed to know nothing when questioned, saying it was all done in secret by the abbot.

The abbot is currently unconscious and cannot be questioned.

Zuo Ziqing harbored suspicions but did not press the matter too hard, settling into his lodgings at the Southern Shaolin Temple. In the Arhat Hall...

Upon hearing the report from the young monk beside him, Abbot Miaofan's brows relaxed.

“I have been busy at the front mountain for many days, and Miaokong always comes here to chat with the lay Buddhist. Now it’s finally my turn.”

Miao Fan received news of the imperial envoy's impending arrival yesterday and immediately devised this method to delay him.

Xiahou Feishan sat down beside him and said sincerely, "If the abbot is injured by me, wouldn't spreading this false news damage the reputation of the Southern Shaolin Temple?"

"This old monk is no match for Young Master Xiahou. Young Master Xiahou has indeed looked down on the martial arts of Southern Shaolin. I am just stating the facts."

Miao Fan smiled and said, "When more people know that your swordsmanship has reached the pinnacle, they will not be surprised by the defeat of the Southern Shaolin Temple today."

"I believe that under the guidance of the Heavenly Hermit, you will soon reach that point."

Xiahou Feishan grunted.

If he really beat up that group of monks, it wouldn't be a big deal if the news got out; he could take the blame.

But he didn't hit it, he didn't hit it!

These days, it's clearly him who gets beaten every single day.

If facing an ordinary person, Xiahou Feishan could easily wield his sword with bare hands.

However, when facing Chu Tianshu, even though he had channeled all his sword intent and true energy into his palm, Xiahou Feishan felt as if his arm had been struck by lightning after the fight.

What made Xiahou Feishan even more upset was the timing of Chu Tianshu's attack.

Initially, Chu Tianshu would give a warning before making a move.

After the two became familiar with each other, Chu Tianshu would suddenly make a move without any prior warning.

Sometimes, Chu Tianshu would hold a brush in his right hand and write characters, stroke by stroke.

As soon as the brush touched the paper, while it was still in motion, his hand left the brush handle.

After throwing a punch, he pulled it back, perfectly completing the final stroke of the brush.

On several occasions, Xiahou Feishan was genuinely caught off guard and didn't have time to circulate his internal energy. He had to rely solely on his sword intent to block the attacks, and he was sent flying backward.

However, after several attempts, he gradually realized that he didn't necessarily need to deliberately keep the idea of ​​"circulating internal energy" in mind.

If the sword intent is used well, the internal energy will be automatically guided by the sword intent.

"I have finally finished compiling my set of 'Arhat's Heart-Stabilizing Qigong'."

Chu Tianshu was focused on writing and didn't pay much attention to the conversation between the two people next to him.

After he put down his pen and blew on the last few lines of ink to dry, he couldn't help but smile.

This is a hard qigong he created by extensively abridged the introductory chapter of "The Heavenly Divine Skill" and mixed it with some content about the artistic conception of kung fu from the Shaolin boxing stance.

This skill initially involves practicing fists and feet, and hard skills. As you practice, it will involve cultivating and strengthening internal energy.

Such internal energy quality is definitely much worse than the Heavenly Hanging Divine Skill.

But it is very suitable for the martial monks of the Southern Shaolin Temple who practice hard skills.

Abbot Miaofan took it and glanced through it: "In terms of meridian circulation alone, it seems to be no different from ordinary martial arts, but in the early and middle stages of cultivating internal strength, it is quite different from common martial arts."

"Is this the method of refining essence into qi that Master Tianju mentioned?"

Chu Tianshu nodded.

His recent sparring session with Xiahou Feishan was both to increase his experience in confronting the divine will of martial arts and to continue comparing the differences between the two paths.

Xiahou Feishan provided him with a lot of inspiration.

Such an outstanding employee really deserves a bonus, but Xiahou said he wasn't interested in money.

That despicable rich kid.

"Were you just saying that the imperial court has arrived?"

Chu Tianshu gazed at the vast sky and felt that there were no clouds for thousands of miles, and the sky was as clear as jade.

The wilderness was lush and green, and the distant mountains stretched to the sky, a perfect place to relax his eyes.

Abbot Miaofan nodded: "The leader is Zuo Ziqing, a fifth-rank eunuch. There is not much information about his actions. He is said to be known in the palace for his kindness and has extraordinary martial arts skills."

As he said this, even Abbot Miaofan couldn't help but laugh. A kind-hearted fifth-rank eunuch was indeed a joke.

"I have a hunch."

Chu Tianshu said slowly, "Judging from Chen Zuqi's past behavior, he is a bold and meticulous person."

“There is no way he hasn’t reacted to what’s happening here yet. Either he’s encountered some trouble at sea, or he’s already infiltrated Fujian and is waiting for an opportunity.”

Abbot Miaofan's expression was solemn: "You mean, once the imperial army arrives, the opportunity he's been waiting for will have arrived?"

"That's very likely."

Chu Tianshu closed his eyes and said slowly, "I don't know exactly how he'll do things, but I have a feeling about it."

"So... there are more than a dozen good swords in the Dharma Hall, right? Let Xiahou pick one out."

(End of this chapter)