The world of martial arts, the immortal swordsman in the mortal realm.

Chapter 18, Section 18: Huang Yaoshi's Test
Huang Yaoshi knew his daughter's personality well. On the surface, she seemed clever and mischievous, lively and playful, but in reality, she was very opinionated and stubborn, just like him. Otherwise, she wouldn't have left alone in a fit of anger. Therefore, he was unwilling to force her too much.

Furthermore, if Lu Chen were to find Chen Xuanfeng and Mei Chaofeng by sheer luck, and were to gain the ability to capture them, then using Peach Blossom Island martial arts would be the most appropriate course of action—Huang Yaoshi's disciples, no matter how disobedient or unfilial, should not be defeated by martial arts from other schools.

After a moment's thought, he slowly said:
"I will teach him the Falling Petal Sword Technique, but the Jade Flute Sword Technique is not suitable."

The "Falling Flower Sword Technique" was a martial art that Huang Yaoshi used when he was young. Now it has been integrated with several other sword techniques and transformed into the "Falling Flower Divine Sword Palm". Therefore, the "Falling Flower Sword Technique" is no longer considered the core secret technique of Peach Blossom Island, so there is nothing wrong with teaching it to Lu Chen.

However, the Jade Flute Sword Technique is different.

This is one of Huang Yaoshi's signature martial arts techniques, which he created himself. Since Lu Chen had not yet fulfilled his bet and become a disciple of Peach Blossom Island, he naturally could not pass it on to him.

However, this outcome was exactly what Huang Rong had anticipated. It was her strategy of retreating to advance, so she immediately feigned dissatisfaction, pouting and saying:

"Father, you're too harsh! The bet was already so difficult, and you only allow me to teach him one sword technique... Humph, you won't let me teach him the Jade Flute Sword Technique, but surely you can teach him lightness skill?"

Seeing his daughter's defiant expression, as if to say "If you don't agree, I won't give up," Huang Yaoshi pondered for a moment, then nodded in agreement.

"can."

Given his temperament, the reason he was so easy to talk to was not only because he didn't want to have another conflict with his daughter, but also because he genuinely admired Lu Chen's unparalleled talent and the spirit displayed in that song.

Otherwise, why would he have made this extremely difficult but ultimately possible bet with Huang Rong and Lu Chen?

Not just anyone deserves his promise, Dongxie Yinuo.

Seeing that her plan had succeeded, Huang Rong naturally wouldn't be at odds with her father anymore. She grabbed Huang Yaoshi's arm and said with a smile:

"Has Father eaten?"

"No."

"Then shall I make Daddy a bowl of fried rice with eggs?"

Huang Yaoshi looked at the unfinished, sumptuous dinner on the stone table, and thinking of his daughter's unwavering support for Lu Chen, he felt another wave of depression.
They made a grand feast for Lu Chen, but only fried rice for his old father. Although Rong'er's fried rice was also excellent, it was still heartbreaking to think about compared to the grand feast...

Is it going to be impossible to keep my daughter?

When Huang Rong was feeling depressed, she had already asked Lu Chen to clean up the table. After the stone table under the tree was cleaned up, she went to the kitchen to make fried rice with eggs for Huang Yaoshi and asked Lu Chen to talk to his father.

Lu Chen invited Huang Yaoshi to sit down at the stone table and brewed him a cup of tea.

Huang Yaoshi's face was ashen. He took a sip of tea, and seeing Lu Chen standing to the side, he said calmly:
"Wasn't your singing just now quite grand? Daring to sit on equal footing with emperors, what can wealth and honor do to you? What, you don't dare to sit on equal footing with me?"

Since Huang Yaoshi has said so, what else can Lu Chen say?

He immediately plopped down firmly on the chair to Huang Yaoshi's left and said to Huang Yaoshi:

“Senior is Rong’er’s father. Rong’er has done me a great favor. Of course, I cannot be disrespectful to you.”

Huang Yaoshi raised his eyelids and saw that the young man was sitting steadily and calmly, without any restraint or fear. In fact, he felt that this young man's spirit was quite to his liking. He then took another sip of tea and said lightly:

"What was the name of that sword strike you just used?"

"Sword One, White Rainbow Piercing the Sun."

"A white rainbow piercing the sun?" Huang Yaoshi looked at Lu Chen again. "Do you know the origin of 'a white rainbow piercing the sun'?"

Lu Chen said, "When Nie Zheng assassinated Han Kui, a white rainbow pierced the sun; when Jing Ke pierced the sun, a white rainbow pierced the sun, and the Crown Prince was terrified."

Huang Yaoshi nodded: "No wonder you dare to claim to be on equal footing with emperors. You've been to school?"

"I've read some."

"Do you understand poetry?"

"I can't write poetry, I can only recite it."

"Do you understand arithmetic?"

"I know a little."

"Astronomy and geography?"

"I know a little." "Do you play any musical instruments?"

"I can play a Western percussion instrument."

"..."

The Song Dynasty had a thriving maritime trade, and with Huang Yaoshi's extensive knowledge, he certainly knew about Southeast Asia and even Western countries, but he had never actually heard of any "Western percussion instruments."

But he was always proud and wouldn't show weakness in front of a junior, so he immediately dropped the subject and asked instead:
"Do you understand farmland irrigation, military strategy, and mechanical formations?"

"I... I know a little bit about this."

He had at least lived in the information technology era in both his previous lives, and he even graduated from a top-tier university in his previous life. Although he couldn't possibly be an expert in everything, the breadth of his knowledge was unimaginable to people in ancient times.

Huang Yaoshi, however, did not believe Lu Chen's empty words. He began to test him without making a sound, throwing out all sorts of topics, from literature to music theory, from astronomy to military affairs, from farmland irrigation to the art of machinery. Lu Chen's answers left Huang Yaoshi feeling very complicated.

Judging from Lu Chen's words, he did not come from a scholarly family.

Huang Yaoshi spoke in the manner of a scholar-official, quoting classical texts and displaying his erudition, which Lu Chen only half understood. His wording lacked any elegance of a scholar, yet he truly knew a lot of poetry. Even if he couldn't compose poetry, he could recite it and explain the historical background and allusions of many poems.

Lu Chen also dabbled in other fields, such as divination, astronomy, military affairs, and even agriculture, irrigation, metallurgy, and iron smelting. Although he lacked depth in most of them, his breadth of knowledge was so impressive that even Huang Yaoshi couldn't help but nod in approval.

There are also some novel viewpoints that even Huang Yaoshi, with his limited knowledge, has never heard of. At first glance, they seem absurd, but upon closer examination, they seem to contain profound truths and are thought-provoking.

This made Huang Yaoshi feel very strange.

Although the Song Dynasty was a civilized and prosperous nation, knowledge was still concentrated in the hands of a few.

Such extensive knowledge is almost impossible to acquire without coming from a family with a rich collection of books and a long-standing scholarly tradition.

Many of his thought-provoking and novel viewpoints were not even known to anyone in his time. Only Huang Yaoshi had the brainpower, knowledge, and comprehension to understand them. Ordinary scholars would probably not understand them and would simply dismiss them as fantasy and heresy.

If it's said that it's due to years of accumulation, then Lu Chen is still too young.

So where did this freak come from?

How could you know so much?
Huang Yaoshi wanted to test him a little more, but Huang Rong had already cooked fried rice with eggs and served it on a tray with two seasonal side dishes.

It had been a month since Huang Yaoshi had eaten a meal cooked by his daughter. Although it was just a simple bowl of fried rice, far inferior to the grand meal he made for Lu Chen, Huang Yaoshi quickly put aside his slight resentment when he saw the golden grains of rice and smelled the mouthwatering aroma. He picked up his chopsticks and began to eat with elegant manners.

Huang Rong sat beside Huang Yaoshi, her hand supporting her rosy cheek, and watched her father eat for a while with a smile. Seeing that her father was eating with relish, she pulled Lu Chen to the open space in the courtyard, wanting to seize the time to teach him martial arts.

"Not counting tonight, in ten days, you will be traveling the world alone."

Huang Rong sounded extremely reluctant, as if she had already accepted the fact. She even gave her father a deliberately resentful glance, but Huang Yaoshi pretended not to see it and continued eating his meal with an elegant air.

Huang Rong gave a light snort and continued speaking to Lu Chen:
"Now I will teach you the first lesson of navigating the martial world. Lu Chen, what do you think is the most important thing in navigating the martial world?"

When asked this question, Lu Chen immediately thought of one thing: "The martial world isn't just about fighting and killing; it's about human relationships and social interactions."
However, he still said, "High martial arts skills, can fight?"

"They ran fast!"

Huang Rong stood with her hands behind her back, looking very serious:
"Of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, running away is the best. If you can't win, run away; if you can win but may pay a heavy price, you still have to run away; if you are surrounded by many people, you must know how to run. First, lead the enemy in circles to scatter them, and then find an opportunity to defeat them one by one. In short... as long as you run fast, danger can't catch up with you."

Lu Chen nodded in agreement:

"That's right. When you're out in the world, safety comes first, and being fast is the most important thing."

Huang Yaoshi listened and snorted, but did not refute him. After he mastered his martial arts, he no longer needed to run away, but who has never been weak? He had gone through the same thing when he first entered the martial arts world as a young man.

Even Huang Rong's words were taught to her by him. After all, no father wants to see his daughter fighting with others at the drop of a hat, so naturally he would teach his daughter to run away if she couldn't win a fight.

Huang Rong continued speaking:

"Therefore, I will now teach you lightness skills. First, I will teach you the technique of leaping, so that you can easily climb trees and scale walls, moving high and low. Try bending your knees slightly, raising your qi in your dantian, and when you feel your true qi rising, relax your muscles and bones, focus your mind on the jade pillow acupoint, and leap forward..."

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(End of this chapter)