The Legend of the Condor Heroes: From Being Expelled from Peach Blossom Island

Chapter 396 Master Lingzhi
As Wu Chengyu stepped off the stage, the surrounding spectators quickly backed away, making way for him. Their faces were filled with fear. To them, a guy who could bear to beat a beautiful woman into an enhanced version of her was a truly ruthless person, and everyone would instinctively avoid him.

Zhang Wei, however, had a strange look in his eyes, but still managed a forced smile as he approached.

"Uncle Tian, ​​you are really... really too powerful. I really don't know what to say."

Wu Chengyu didn't even look at him, and casually asked as he walked out.

"How much did you bet?"

Zhang Wei answered instinctively, "Thirty taels of silver."

"It definitely wasn't given to me, it was given to the Poisonous Woman, right?"

Zhang Wei was speechless for a moment, not knowing how to answer.

Wu Chengyu then asked, "What are the odds for me and Poison Lady today?"

"The Poisonous Lady is worth three times the stake, while you are worth ten times the stake."

"Let me calculate. If you had bet on me yesterday, even if it was just one or two taels of silver, you would have made thirty taels."

Today the odds are 1 to 10. If you bet 30 taels on me, you can earn 300 taels.

I won two matches, and you got a ten-tael commission, plus a one-tael silver for recommending me to the ring. But all in all, you lost three hundred taels. Aren't you regretting it?

Moreover, the thirty taels of silver you bet today should have been a reward given to you by the Poisonous Lady yesterday.

Zhang Wei, doesn't the phrase "shortsighted" perfectly describe you? You're like someone trying to catch a pie falling from the sky with their backside—do you think you're so clever?

Zhang Wei froze upon hearing this. Watching Wu Chengyu walk away, he slapped himself hard and hurriedly chased after him.

"Uncle Tian, ​​I was truly blind to your greatness. Please give me another chance."

"I don't mind, but I'm reminding you to bet on me again next time, so you can save some money for your future medical treatment."

Zhang Wei didn't know what Wu Chengyu meant, but he thought it was mockery. So he shamelessly followed behind Wu Chengyu, trying his best to please him.

After the second round of the arena, Wu Chengyu had attracted everyone's attention at the Juxian Hall, and those who were responsible for recruiting experts for their masters no longer hesitated.

Before Wu Chengyu could return to his room, a little old man dressed in a mink coat walked up to him with a smile on his face and his hands clasped in a fist and palm salute.

"My name is Liang Ziweng, also known in the martial arts world as the Ginseng Immortal Old Monster. I am currently working for the Prince of Zhao at his residence. I have met Brother Tian."

Wu Chengyu looked at the little old man in front of him. He was not tall and had gray hair, but his face was wrinkle-free and rosy, which suggested that he took good care of himself.

This guy is also one of the experts recruited by Wanyan Honglie in The Legend of the Condor Heroes. Yesterday he met Peng Lianhu, the Thousand-Handed Butcher, and today he has come to meet Liang Ziweng, the Ginseng Immortal.

Ghost Dragon King Sha Tongtian and Three-Headed Flood Dragon Hou Tonghai have not yet appeared. However, when Wanyan Honglie went to Mongolia, he took Sha Tongtian's four disciples, the Four Ghosts of the Yellow River, with him. Therefore, the two of them should have already submitted to Wanyan Honglie by now.

The only remaining expert of Wanyan Honglie should be that Lingzhi Shangren. I wonder if this great lama has now joined his side.

However, this Liang Ziweng is worth noting. The giant viper he raises is one of Guo Jing's future opportunities, but it's probably not the right time yet.

Wu Chengyu didn't want to steal Guo Jing's opportunity, especially since he had already eaten the Bodhi Snake King, so a man-made medicinal snake would be useless to him.

"Brother Tian's martial arts skills are truly remarkable. My Prince Zhao is eager to learn and has always admired masters of the martial arts world. I wonder if Brother Tian would be willing to join my Prince Zhao's mansion and serve the Prince? Rest assured, Brother, Prince Zhao is extremely tolerant of his subordinates and will definitely satisfy you."

"Mastering both literary and martial arts is the way to serve the emperor. Since I, Tian, ​​have come to this Juxian Guild Hall to compete, I naturally hope to find a good master and enjoy wealth and honor. However, the rules of this Juxian Guild Hall require me to complete three rounds of competition before I can be recruited by other families."

"Tian still has one match left, and he might get beaten to death because he's not as skilled as his opponent. So, Brother Liang, you're in a bit of a hurry. Why don't you wait a little longer?"

"Of course, of course, this Gathering of Heroes Hall was set up by nobles in the palace, and no one will violate the rules here."

Liang is just here to greet Brother Tian. After the third match, Brother Tian might consider our Zhao Wangfu.

However, since it's a rare occasion to meet Brother Tian today, and King Zhao places great importance on etiquette, some kind of gift is in order.

As soon as Liang Ziwen finished speaking, he immediately took out a token and handed it to Wu Chengyu.

"This is a token from my Zhao Wang Mansion. With this token, whatever you do at the Juxian Hall, all expenses will be covered by my Zhao Wang Mansion. You can use it with confidence."

"Old Liang, I won't bother Brother Tian any longer. You should rest well and conserve your energy. We'll have a good drink together when Brother Tian returns victorious tomorrow. Goodbye."

After Liang Ziweng finished speaking, he clasped his hands in a fist salute, turned around and left without any hesitation. Wu Chengyu looked at him with new respect.

Old people are shrewd and experienced. This old man has been in the martial arts world for many years and is very shrewd in his dealings. In the original story, it was Guo Jing who sucked his snake blood, which destroyed his years of hard work and caused him to lose the opportunity to advance to a higher level. That's why he became somewhat hysterical. Now it seems that he is at least very good at putting on a show.

Hong Qigong once mentioned that this old monster was obsessed with absorbing yin to replenish yang, which ruined the chastity of many girls, and he ended up in Hong Qigong's hands.

This kind of flower thief deserves to be killed by everyone. If Wu Chengyu had encountered him, he would have given him an extremely tragic death. However, Hong Qigong only pulled out his hair and beard and let him go. He didn't even destroy his martial arts skills.

Wu Chengyu didn't know what Hong Qigong was thinking at the time; perhaps in his eyes, the flower thief wasn't a great villain.

Now it's speculated that Liang Ziweng must have begged for mercy desperately, feigned pitifulness, and used his silver tongue to somehow hit a nerve with Hong Qigong, which is why he was spared.

In short, judging from Wu Chengyu's interactions with Liang Ziweng, this man was indeed eloquent and knew how to conduct himself well, at least making Wu Chengyu feel very comfortable.

However, while Wu Chengyu was resting in his room, someone appeared who made him very uncomfortable. The door was suddenly pushed open, and a man dressed in traditional Jurchen noble attire, with a shaved head and no regard for Han Chinese etiquette, walked in with an arrogant expression.

"So you're Tian Boguang? You look so pathetic, yet you dare to call yourself Wanli Duxing. But your martial arts skills are barely passable."

"We're giving you a chance to serve the Rong Prince's Mansion. Here's a contract; just sign it."

As soon as he finished speaking, he took out a contract and placed it in front of Wu Chengyu, giving Wu Chengyu no chance to refuse.

Wu Chengyu looked at the guy in front of him. He was just like his master, Wanyan Hongxi, arrogant and domineering, and also just as incompetent.

Look at how the Prince Zhao's mansion recruits experts, and then look at this guy's stupid and fierce appearance. He just opens his mouth to ask Wu Chengyu to submit, and doesn't even give him any benefits. No wonder Wanyan Hongxi couldn't defeat Wanyan Honglie in the end.

With a snap, the golden statue in front of him was kicked out of the room by Wu Chengyu. He lay on the ground in pain and rolled around, but in the end he still dared not shout at Wu Chengyu again.

Zhang Wei rushed over in a panic, first trying to persuade the guy to leave with kind words, and then came to Wu Chengyu's side.

“My lord, the Rong Prince’s Mansion is the most dangerous place in Daxing City. They won’t dare to do anything here at the Juxian Guild Hall, but if you go outside, they will definitely retaliate against you. Why are you being so impulsive?”

Wu Chengyu completely ignored the conversation and instead asked about tomorrow's opponent.

Zhang Wei was very responsible this time and dared not have another child with Wu Chengyu.

"This time, his opponent has also won two matches in a row. Moreover, his martial arts skills are extremely high. He is ruthless and leaves no survivors. The evaluation of him in the hall is far higher than that of the previous Iron-Armed Maitreya. He is a master of Tantric Buddhism from Tibet, named Master Lingzhi."

Wu Chengyu was delighted. The person who was supposed to appear would eventually show up. He had just been wondering when this Lingzhi Shangren would join the Zhao Prince's Mansion, but unexpectedly, he delivered himself to their doorstep.

~~~~~~~~~~
On the third day, during Wu Chengyu's third arena match, Wu Chengyu looked at Lingzhi Shangren, who was already standing on the arena. He was big and burly, dark-skinned, and even uglier than Big Head Brother. The key thing was that this guy had a great presence, looking like a master, or like a proud featherless rooster with its head held high.

Wu Chengyu turned to Zhang Wei: "What are the odds today?"

“Master Lingzhi pays out 2 for 1, but Uncle Tian pays out 3 for 1.”

In the first match, he was an unknown player, while Iron-Armed Maitreya had a remarkable record, so his low odds were understandable.

In the second round, everyone thought he had fallen for the Poisonous Lady's dirty trick, so the low odds were understandable.

Wu Chengyu was truly surprised that even after winning two matches in a row, his odds were still lower than his opponent's. The people at Juxian Guild Hall really looked down on him. Why? Just because this black monk was ugly enough? Or rather, ugly and fierce.

"Zhang Wei, did you bet on me or this black monk in this game? How much did you bet?"

“I don’t usually save money; I gamble away any money I have. I lost the last two rounds, so I’m really short of cash. The only reward I got was five taels of silver from Uncle Tian’s win in the last round.”

"Don't worry, sir, I'm completely rooting for you this time. I admire you to the core."

"Very good, you've finally learned your lesson. With a 1 to 3 payout, you'll earn fifteen taels of silver in a bit. Be careful with your spending; it should be enough for your medical expenses."

Zhang Wei was still wondering why Wu Chengyu kept mentioning medical expenses, and before he could ask, he saw Wu Chengyu leap onto the stage.

As soon as Wu Chengyu stepped onto the stage, Lingzhi Shangren, who had been waiting for a long time, finally opened his eyes, which had been closed just now, but still held his chin up and his nostrils pointing to the sky, looking arrogant and invincible.

Wu Chengyu chose to forgive him. This guy was originally an arrogant person who didn't know his own limitations. His pride actually came entirely from ignorance.

In the original work, even when he met the Western Poison and the Northern Beggar, he looked down on them, unlike Peng Lianhu and Liang Ziweng who were so respectful.

To put it bluntly, he's just a country bumpkin monk from the snowy region who's never seen the world. He looks down on everyone because he has some martial arts skills, and he still doesn't know how to back down even after being slapped in the face.

However, Wu Chengyu was more interested in Lingzhi Shangren's neck. Whether it was the Eastern Heretic or the Western Poison, when they attacked Lingzhi Shangren, they always hit the mark with one strike, directly grabbing the back of Lingzhi Shangren's neck and rendering him unable to move instantly.

Some have analyzed that the back of the neck is Lingzhi Shangren's weakness, which the Eastern Heretic and Western Poison, with their martial arts skills, could naturally see through at a glance, thus subduing the arrogant old monk with a single move.

Wu Chengyu is now on the same level as the Eastern Heretic and the Western Poison, both at the level of entering the subtle realm. He didn't think the ugly monk's neck was a flaw.

This guy is dark-skinned and muscular, with little to no excess fat, except for a lump of fat on the back of his neck, which makes his neck, which isn't particularly thick to begin with, appear very thick. A neck like that certainly wouldn't be very flexible when it comes to moving.

In Wu Chengyu's opinion, this lump of fat was just the right size, and the feel of it was superb. He thought that the Eastern Heretic and the Western Poison would feel the same way, which was why they both chose to use this spot as their target.

As for the martial arts of this Master Lingzhi, it's really just so-so. In terms of skill level, he's a top-tier second-rate practitioner, but he practices the Great Mudra of Tibetan Tantric Buddhism, which is inherently more powerful than ordinary palm techniques.

Moreover, judging from the faint black aura emanating from his palms, he had clearly taken a shortcut, using poison to enhance the power of his handprint, somewhat similar to the Poison Sand Palm.

In the original story, he also launched a surprise attack on Wang Chuyi when he was not paying attention. Wang Chuyi's internal strength was definitely not weaker than his, but he was caught off guard and unprepared. The Great Handprint was more powerful than the Quanzhen Palm Technique, and it was even poisoned, which is why Wang Chuyi suffered such a great loss.

Therefore, considering the power of this Poisoning Handprint, Master Lingzhi can barely be ranked among the top-tier masters.

When Master Lingzhi saw that Wu Chengyu remained silent and kept looking at him with great interest, he felt a chill run down his spine and finally couldn't help but speak.

"You filthy scoundrel, why don't you come up here and die?"

　Chapter Two is here. I hadn't even started writing it at this time yesterday, but I can finally relax a bit today.

　　thanks for your support.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)