Arhats Subduing Demons: Starting with The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber

Chapter 20 The Heartbroken One

Time flies, and from the boundless autumn with its falling leaves, we have arrived at the cold winter.

The north wind howled that day, snow fell like goose feathers, and snow descended from the mountains.

He acquired many of Wang Chongyang's martial arts secrets, becoming increasingly engrossed in them, studying them day and night, neglecting sleep and meals. His research and practice yielded even greater benefits. He initially intended to study the martial arts and fully master them before pursuing further exploration.

But Yunhe said that in the martial arts world, keeping one's word is of utmost importance. One must always keep one's promise and fulfill one's actions. To break one's promise and not show up is a thousand times more shameful than admitting defeat in a contest, and is even more despicable.

Unless you choose to live like me, retiring to the mountains and never leaving the world, then stay here.

Yun Changkong was naturally unwilling, so he could only pack his bags and go down the mountain. Fortunately, his martial arts skills had already improved by leaps and bounds, so going down the mountain would only mean that he would not be able to concentrate on practicing martial arts without any distractions.

"With your current martial arts skills, you are more than capable of dominating the martial arts world. However, the martial arts world is full of treacherous people and you must be very careful. Even seasoned martial arts masters like Yu Sanxia of Wudang have fallen."

Furthermore, women can lead one astray. Young people are full of vigor and must be very careful in this regard. Countless promising heroes in the martial arts world have been ruined because of this. Zhang Cuishan is a living example. You must be careful...

Yunhe instructed Yun Changkong to descend the mountain to fulfill his promise, but also reminded him of something.

Chang Kong smiled and said, "You've said these things many times, I understand. I will do my best to do what you asked me to do. Please study the internal energy cultivation manual I left you."

"Grandma, please take care of yourself."

After spending five years in the mountains, Madam Yun was surprisingly sprightly. She smiled and said, "Don't listen to your father. If you find a good girl outside, have him arrange a marriage for you. What do you mean by women ruining men? That's all because men are useless. Why blame women?"

Yunhe's eyebrows twitched.

Chang Kong laughed and said, "Grandma is still the best."

As he spoke, he bent his knees, knelt down, and kowtowed three times to the two men.

Over the past five years, I have been able to focus on martial arts training entirely thanks to the care of the two of them; otherwise, I would have had to prepare my own meals.

Yunhe hurriedly went to help him up, but Changkong's body was as straight as an iron nail rooted to the ground. He only had one hand, so how could he lift him up?

Seeing Yunhe's left sleeve fluttering in the wind, Changkong thought to himself, "Don't worry, you cheapskate, I'll make sure you get your revenge and won't let you hold a grudge over a favor." He then turned and went down the mountain.

In the dead of winter, he wore only a thin blue robe, carried a bundle on his back, and even wrapped his long sword in cloth as he slowly descended the mountain.

As he walked, his clothes remained still, his knees straight, and his steps were light and graceful, like drifting catkins or flowing smoke.

Chang Kong recalled that five years ago, he came in through this mountain path to seek refuge, but today he was leaving through the same path to seek revenge. His state of mind had changed. He came without any attachments, but now he was leaving with a bittersweet feeling of parting, which made him feel uneasy. Suddenly, a sound rang in his ears, and he recited: "The most heartbreaking thing is parting."

Suddenly, with a whoosh, a woman in white darted out from a snow-covered cliff.

Chang Kong stopped in his tracks and saw a beautiful young woman with a face as lovely as a peach blossom standing on the snow. Feigning surprise, he then said with a look of sudden realization, "Ah, you must be Xiao Cui. You've come at the right time. Take this bundle to your young lady." As he spoke, he took out a bundle and handed it to her.

Xiao Cui, the maid of the woman in yellow, was taken aback and said strangely, "You and the young lady are really strange. She had us copy the martial arts manual a long time ago, and you seemed to know I was coming."

Chang Kong smiled slightly and said, "That's because I knew your young lady had prepared martial arts manuals long ago, so I naturally had to return the favor."

Xiao Cui took the bundle and glanced at it, then scoffed, "You're such a country bumpkin."

Then his expression turned serious: "Young lady, you have received many instructions from your strict father. You know very well what you should and shouldn't do. Wang Zhenren is a man of great talent and arrogance. It is fate that his legacy has fallen on you. Although the Quanzhen Sect still exists, no one walks the martial world anymore. I hope you will take it upon yourself to expel the barbarians and make good use of this opportunity."

Chang Kong laughed and said, "Is this an order?"

The secret manual given by the woman in yellow contained martial arts such as "Finger Pen Skill", "Iron Foot Skill", "Frost-Treading and Ice-Breaking Palm", "Pure Yang Finger", "Three Flowers Gathering at the Top Palm", "Quanzhen Swordplay", "Golden Goose Skill", and "Heavenly Dipper Formation".

Yun Changkong naturally knew that Wang Chongyang's Quanzhen Sect martial arts, left in the ancient tomb, had been broken by Lin Chaoying, but he didn't care.

He is now like someone who has a vast fortune hidden in a secret place, but he doesn't have the key to open it. With the Quanzhen martial arts, he can fully unleash his inner strength.

Buddhist martial arts take "emptiness" as their ultimate goal, while Taoist internal energy cultivation progresses from "unobstructed and unimpeded" to "the realm of non-discrimination." The methods of entry and application of the two are very different, but when they reach the highest level, they lead to the same destination.

So Chang Kong isn't afraid of ruining himself through practice. If he does, it just means he's bad at it, so what else is there to say?

Xiao Cui said very seriously, "The young lady said that the martial arts world today is full of useless people, especially among the younger generation, there is a lack of talent. You are a rare talent. In this chaotic world, you cannot do whatever you want. You must leave room for maneuver in everything you do."

Chang Kong curled his lip: "Tell your girl to study the 'Arhat Subduing Demon Method' carefully. Next time I beat her, I'll definitely take her as my wife. Don't say I took advantage of her then!"

Chang Kong also gave the eighteen Arhats to the woman in yellow. It was inconvenient for him to carry them himself, but keeping them might cause trouble. Since he had memorized them, he was happy to be generous. Xiao Cui angrily said, "You...you...you...if you don't take this seriously, just wait and see." She turned and leaped into the air, her small body landing on a nearby ancient pine tree. Her figure flickered, already far away.

Chang Kong sighed, "It seems that she didn't have any special meaning in passing on the Quanzhen Sect to me. She just wanted to make it easier for me to do the important task of 'expelling the Tartars.' Alas, it's easier said than done. The road to winning back my wife is long and arduous!" Thinking of this, he felt rather dejected.

Chang Kong immediately turned around and suddenly caught sight of a yellow figure in the distance, moving incredibly fast and disappearing behind the rocks in the blink of an eye.

If it weren't for his superb skills and exceptionally sharp eyesight, he would never have been able to spot her. He thought to himself, "This person's movements are so fast, could it be her?" With a sway of his body, he had already reached the foot of an ancient pine tree, the very spot where he had just spotted the figure. Dianxue remained unperturbed.

He stared intently and saw a delicate footprint on the ground, clearly left by a woman. The footprint was only a few inches long, and he had seen it clearly earlier. The woman must have used the ground for leverage when she suddenly moved, leaving such a shallow footprint. Her lightness skill was truly breathtaking.

However, this also makes it obvious which woman in the martial arts world, in the Zhongnan Mountains, possesses such superb lightness skills. Chang Kong couldn't help but feel a surge of joy: "You said you'd challenge me to a duel the moment you saw me, but you still came, haha..."

His laughter was clear and melodious, piercing through clouds and mist, shaking mountains and valleys, causing snowflakes to fall softly from ancient trees and mountain peaks.

Chang Kong stopped laughing and said, "Miss, I've remembered everything you said. But acting according to your heart, leaving no regrets, and pursuing spiritual freedom—that's the true meaning of life. Everything else is just fluff, haha..."

He leaped up, his body as swift as a flying goose, touched a few spots on several large trees, and vanished into the vast sea of ​​snow in the blink of an eye.

The echoes of laughter still lingered in the sky when a yellow shadow, like a rainbow, streaked across the heavens and landed on an ancient pine tree that stretched out from the cliff face.

A beautiful woman in a gorgeous dress stands gracefully atop a pine tree, with a snow-white world behind her. Her beauty is simply breathtaking, and who could not be moved by her charm?

Unfortunately, it was a few girls on the cliff who witnessed this scene.

Xiao Cui said, "This person is truly remarkable. In just a few months, he has mastered the Golden Goose Skill to such a high level!"

Both Quanzhen and Shaolin martial arts are authentic martial arts that emphasize sudden enlightenment. Once you have the aptitude, you can learn them very quickly, but they are easy to learn but difficult to master.
Chang Kong memorized all the martial arts secrets in just three days. Then he practiced them according to the instructions. This "Frost-Treading and Ice-Breaking Palm" is known as the most ferocious palm technique of the Quanzhen Sect. When used, it can truly shatter trees and send stones flying.

Later, he practiced the "Three Flowers Gathering at the Top Palm," which is the most powerful palm technique in the Quanzhen School.

However, when Chang Kong struck the tree trunk with his palm, not even the branches shook, and when he hit the stone, the stone did not tremble. Chang Kong knew that his martial arts skills had been mastered.

The true superior skill lies in transforming ferocity into tranquility, and inflicting invisible damage on the enemy.

I already know all the secrets and mysteries of Chang Kong's kung fu; what I lack is only the right timing and experience.

To truly master and apply knowledge at will, one must put in the effort. The deeper one's skill, the greater the power; this is the principle that learning has no end. Therefore, he lingered on the mountain for several months before finally descending.

Even so, the theories in this martial arts had already benefited him immensely. Not only had his martial arts skills improved, but his understanding of martial arts had also deepened. Only then did he truly enter the ranks of first-class masters. At this point, even if he used the "Arhat Fist," which was previously not worth mentioning, its power was already extremely great. There were probably very few people in the world who could match him.

Unfortunately, only a few women knew about this news; no one else knew that a freak had emerged from Zhongnan Mountain.

The woman in yellow swept her beautiful eyes around, a cold glint flashing in them, and said, "Xiao Cui, report on his whereabouts in the martial world every seven days."

"Yes, girl!"

A woman in black said, "Xiaoling, what do you think he will do after he goes down the mountain? Will he listen to you, young lady?"

Xiaoling raised her eyebrows and said, "How would I know? But this person seems pretty good. Xiaohong, what do you think?"

Xiao Hong hummed in agreement.

Xiao Cui said, "You two didn't have your weapons knocked away, so you're saying he's not bad?"

Xiaoling said, "He's about our age, and his martial arts are better than ours. We were so disrespectful to him, but he didn't get angry. He defeated us but left us with room to maneuver. Isn't it good to have such a capable person who isn't arrogant?" She then turned to the man in yellow and smiled, saying, "If he had hit us, you definitely wouldn't have taught him martial arts."

The woman in yellow sighed and said, "Yun He is a chivalrous gentleman, and Yun Changkong has some of his father's qualities. He is also young and only cultivates in the mountains. He has no violent tendencies in his heart. He also has his own plans for me and leaves room for maneuver in his actions, so it is not surprising."

But I'm afraid that after he goes down the mountain, he will witness the ruthlessness and danger of the martial world. Those people are completely unrelated to him, and that would be worrying..." At this point, he sighed sadly and stopped talking.

The women frowned, exchanged glances, and Xiao Cui said, "Didn't you leave behind a way to restrain him? If he really dares to bully the weak, act recklessly, and kill innocent people indiscriminately..."

The woman in yellow glanced back at her and said, "All martial arts in the world are created by people. Even when our ancestor broke Wang Chongyang's method, he still managed to break it completely."

He is still so young; he may very well have another extraordinary encounter. If he gains more experience, it's not impossible for him to become a martial arts master like Wang Chongyang. For now, we can only place our hopes on him, that he will understand my good intentions.” He then leaped up and flew towards the summit.

(End of this chapter)