Quickly conquer the martial arts world, and let your fists dominate the heavens!

Chapter 280 The Martial Arts World a Century Ago
After the riots at the Northern Garrison Command ended, everyone discovered that, apart from the great battle of the previous night, Grand Secretary Liu Yiju had been kidnapped and many Imperial Guards had been killed or wounded.

Chen Zhan, who was in the imperial prison, has also disappeared!

It was inevitable that reports would be submitted to higher authorities.

Normally, Chen Zhan's disappearance might be a big deal, but last night, the Black Stones launched a sneak attack on the Zhenfu Division and kidnapped a Grand Secretary of the court. The disappearance of Chen Zhan, an eccentric man, is not such a big deal.

Only Shen Tong and Jin Yichuan paid a little attention.

At dawn, people from the Southern Garrison arrived, and the Imperial Guards on duty took their turn, before Jin Yichuan left the Garrison.

The alley in the north of the city was deep and quiet. Jin Yichuan dragged his tired body and pushed open the courtyard gate. His Jinyiwei uniform was still stained with some blood.

Last night he was very clever. Knowing that his kung fu was not good enough, and that no one would ask him to fight desperately even as a minor officer, he pretended to exert himself and was not injured.

But he didn't know what had happened to his master, Chen Zhan, who had also disappeared.

The riots at the Zhenfu Division had left him exhausted, and all he wanted to do was collapse and sleep.

He froze as soon as he stepped across the threshold, his hair standing on end.

"Who?"

Jin Yichuan pressed his hand on the hilt of the Embroidered Spring Blade, his voice tense.

In the shadows of the main room sat a figure dressed in black.

The man had his back to him, his figure tall and straight, completely shrouded in black. He was very familiar with the clothes, the build, and even the attire.
It was Chen Zhan who disappeared from the imperial prison.

Chen Zhan turned around, and part of the charred skin on his face faded, revealing white skin surrounding his eyes. The area below his eyes remained the same as before, creating an eerie contrast with the lingering charcoal black skin, like a burnt ink painting.

Once Jin Yichuan saw through Chen Zhan, he wasn't so worried anymore.

Chen Zhan seemed to have no ill intentions. He stepped forward, clasped his hands in greeting, and asked, "Are you able to walk now?"

He thought Chen Zhan was powerless, so he willingly allowed himself to be captured and hidden in the imperial prison.

Chen Zhan said, "I'm here to ask you about a few things."

His voice was somewhat muffled, resonating from his abdomen. Chen Zhan didn't need to open his mouth to speak; only his eyes and half of his chin were visible on his black face, making him appear even more mysterious and terrifying.

Ventriloquism!
Ventriloquism was nothing strange to Chen Zhan; it was just a technique of muscle exertion and resonance. Other martial artists might find it difficult to master, but for someone who had reached his level in boxing, it was a piece of cake.

"What are your orders, sir?"

Guangyuan Temple.

"Guangyuan Temple? What would you like to know, sir?"

"everything."

Jin Yichuan glanced at Chen Zhan strangely, somewhat surprised.

It was strange that Chen Zhan knew that he had just checked the records in the Embroidered Uniform Guard's archives in the past few days, and that there was detailed information about Guangyuan Temple.

He thought Chen Zhan wanted to know some deeper information, but Chen Zhan actually just wanted him to give a general overview.

Jin Yichuan took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Guangyuan Temple is located on Yunqi Mountain, eighteen miles outside the capital. It is known as one of the three holy sites of Buddhism, along with Shaolin and Putuo. It has a history of five hundred years. The temple is very popular, and many ministers and generals in the court are frequent visitors. Even the Empress Dowager in the palace often sends people to offer sacrifices. It has an extremely high status."

"What about the Buddhist masters?" Chen Zhan pressed.

"The abbot of the temple, Master Xuankong, is a master of the Innate Realm. He has cultivated the Crimson Vajra Technique to the highest level and is said to be invulnerable to swords and spears."

"There are also two chief masters, Yuanmie and Yuanjue, both of whom are experts in the Innate Realm. Their specific realms are unknown, but they are proficient in Arhat Fist and Prajna Palm."

"In addition, there are a hundred warrior monks in the temple who practice the Demon-Subduing Staff. When they form a battle formation, they can withstand a thousand troops."

Jin Yichuan spoke very quickly, revealing everything he knew.

"The Innate Upper Realm?" Chen Zhan asked.

He had heard people talking these past few days and knew that masters of internal energy were divided into those who had acquired it and those who had acquired it, but he was not clear about the specific distinctions between the two.

Jin Yichuan found it even stranger. How could a 'master' like Chen Zhan not know the specific distinction between innate and acquired skills?
Are you some kind of savage?

However, he didn't dare say it directly, and could only say:

"Both innate and acquired are divided into four realms: lower, middle, upper, and extreme."

"Among them, the lowest realm is the lowest, with the weakest internal strength, and the extreme realm is the peak, with the strongest internal strength."

Chen Zhan nodded, sensing the worm-like internal energy within Jin Yichuan's body, and asked, "Are you at the Later Heaven Realm?"

Jin Yichuan's face darkened. "Uh, that's right."

Chen Zhan didn't dwell on the question any further, and asked again, "Are there no hidden masters in a major sect that has existed for five hundred years?"

Upon hearing the word "Buddhism," Chen Zhan immediately thought of figures like the Sweeping Monk, suggesting that Buddhism might harbor hidden masters.

Because internal energy accumulates more and more, without eating grains or doing manual labor, one can cultivate oneself, practice martial arts and meditation every day, live a long life, and naturally have high skill levels.

"This"

Chen Zhan's question made Jin Yichuan shudder. He suspected that Chen Zhan had been following him all along and was now deliberately testing whether he was lying.

I had just seen it in the archives the day before yesterday.
Not daring to hide anything, Jin Yichuan said directly:

"The archives say that Guangyuan Temple has a 500-year history, and there is no confirmed news of the death of the previous abbot, Fang Sheng, so it's possible."

"But if he were alive, he would be 130 or 140 years old."

"Mr. Fang?"

Chen Zhan seemed to have heard this name somewhere before, but he couldn't quite place it.

Seeing Chen Zhan's confusion, Jin Yichuan nodded and said:
"That's right. This monk Fang Sheng was the abbot of Shaolin Temple a hundred years ago during the Zhengde era. He was also the junior brother of Master Fang Zheng. Shaolin and Guangyuan Temple are from the same lineage. At that time, Guangyuan Temple suffered a disaster, and all the monks, big and small, in the temple were slaughtered by the Demonic Sect."

"Therefore, Abbot Fang Sheng was appointed to the new abbot in a time of crisis and was tasked with rebuilding Guangyuan Temple."

Chen Zhan looked up, and Jin Yichuan stopped speaking. After recalling for a while, Chen Zhan asked, "Fang Zheng? Abbot Fang Sheng of Shaolin?"

"That's right, the leader of the righteous path, and the one who was recognized as the top of the three great masters of the righteous sects at the time."

"The other two, Master Chongxu, the leader of the Wudang Sect, and Zuo Lengchan, the leader of the Songshan Sect and the leader of the Five Mountains Sword Alliance, are known as the three great masters of the righteous path,"

"At that time, the Demonic Sect was at its peak, unparalleled in its power. The imperial court was short-handed and had to unite with the righteous sects to eradicate the Demonic Sect."

The more Jin Yichuan spoke, the more familiar Chen Zhan felt. The plot seemed very similar, yet something felt off.

"And then what? What happened to the Huashan Sect? How was the Demonic Cult ultimately wiped out?"

"Huashan Sect? Huashan has little presence. Early records show that Yue Buqun fought Zuo Lengchan at the Five Mountains Alliance Conference and was defeated by Zuo Lengchan in ten moves, which greatly diminished its reputation and made it the bottom of the Five Mountains Sword Sects."

"The suppression of the Demonic Sect was quite arduous. Needless to say, a large army was pressing in, but even so, Blackwood Cliff was easy to defend and difficult to attack. At that time, many Imperial Guards died tragically, and we almost had to mobilize the border army."

"In the end, the three great masters of the righteous path, along with the number one master of the younger generation, 'Hengshan Sword God,' and the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard at the time, besieged Dongfang Bubai. Four died and two were injured before they were able to capture Blackwood Cliff and wipe out the Demonic Sect."

After Jin Yichuan finished speaking, Chen Zhan was somewhat bewildered.
The plot seems to be different from what I knew.

Mount Hua has no Linghu Chong, no Lin Pingzhi, and even Yue Buqun only appears briefly.

On the contrary, the Hengshan Sword Sect stands out from the crowd.

The number one expert among the younger generation?

Hengshan Sword God?

Chen Zhan pondered for a moment, then, without dwelling on the matter, said, "Continue talking about Monk Fang Sheng."

Jin Yichuan said, "The reason why some people still doubt his life even after a hundred years is because of the records in the archives."

"What did it record?" "It said that more than ten years ago, an old night watchman had seen Fang Sheng."

Chen Zhan was somewhat speechless and said, "What's so strange about having seen him? Is it just because he lived to be a hundred years old?"

Jin Yichuan's voice trembled slightly. He took a few steps forward, stood beside Chen Zhan, and whispered:
"It's not surprising to have seen it before, but the old night watchman saw Monk Fang Sheng eating a live deer in the mountain stream outside Guangyuan Temple!"

"Eating raw deer?"

"That's right, that's how it's recorded in the archives."

"The old night watchman wasn't mistaken? He knows Monk Fang Sheng?"

"Yes, he is nearly seventy years old. He worked at Guangyuan Temple when he was still the abbot of Guangyuan Temple in his early years."

Chen Zhan nodded and then asked about Blackstone.

Jin Yichuan answered all questions without reservation.

However, the records of the Embroidered Uniform Guard's archives are not extensive, only mentioning a few top masters. The leader of the Embroidered Uniform Guard is the Wheel King, and below him, Xi Caishi, Xi Yu, and Lei Bin are all top masters.

Furthermore, it was discovered the other day that Ghost Swordsman Xie Wuchang has also joined Black Stone.

The expert who impersonated Zhao Qianshan that day was also at the Innate Realm.

So, Black Stone has at least three innate masters.

Chen Zhan nodded, got up and left.

Jin Yichuan didn't dare to ask any more questions. Seeing that Chen Zhan had disappeared, he was tired, but he was no longer sleepy.

He went out to find Ding Baiying.

Meanwhile, at Guangyuan Temple on Yunqi Mountain.

On the top floor of the Sutra Repository, a single green lamp flickers.

Master Xuan Kong sat cross-legged on a futon, listening to his young disciple talk about recent events in the capital.

Soon someone came to report and whispered a few words in his ear.

Xuan Kong's expression changed slightly. He stood up, his expression somewhat strange: "Go and call Senior Brother Yuanmie and Senior Brother Yuanjue."

The atmosphere in the main hall of the Embroidered Uniform Guard Commander's Office was as heavy as iron.

Xu Long, dressed in a crimson official robe with python patterns, sat upright in a tiger-skin chair, his brows furrowed as he stroked the copy of the case file presented by Pei Qian.

The flickering candlelight on the table made the wrinkles on his face appear even deeper.

A moment later, Xu Long nodded, got up, and led Pei Qian to the main hall. He triggered the mechanism, and as the stone door slowly rose, it carried a musty smell.

The candlesticks on both sides lit up automatically, making the knife marks and sword imprints on the passageway walls appear even more ferocious.

Pei Qian followed closely behind Xu Long, his gaze sweeping over the dossier boxes displayed on both sides of the passage. They were all made of black iron, with the word "Top Secret" engraved on the locks.

He knew that this place held secrets that could shake the court, and only the commander could freely enter and leave.

"In the innermost 'Tian' cabinet, on the third floor."

Xu Long's voice echoed in the corridor. Pei Qian heard it, walked up to the cabinet, and ran his fingertips across a row of yellowed files.

Finally, I stopped in front of a thread-bound book with a cracked cover. The cover only had the four characters "Strange Tales of Putuo" written on it, and the writing was already blurred.

“If it’s Putuo Temple, then it should be this matter, you see,” Xu Long said.

Pei Qian opened the file.

His gaze suddenly stopped on a certain paragraph, and his fingertips pressed down on the paper with such force that they almost pierced the page.
Before his death, the abbot of Putuo Temple secretly informed the Ministry of War that the temple possessed a Buddha relic, which could be eaten by the wounded to promote tissue regeneration and by those without illness to extend their lifespan by more than ten years.

Pei Qian continued to flip through the files, but the case file did not record what happened afterward.

But it was enough to terrify him; if there truly were a way to prolong life...
The current emperor
Pei Qian looked at Xu Long, who, knowing Pei Qian's doubts, said directly:
“That’s right, you don’t need to doubt it. All the important officials in the court know about this. This secret letter has been stored here for twenty years. When I was still the garrison commander, I investigated this matter in detail. The Embroidered Uniform Guard plowed up the entire Putuo Mountain three feet deep, but they didn’t find any Buddha relics.”

"Moreover, the abbot of Putuo Temple died, and no one in the temple knew about it. There was no way to verify it, and twenty years have passed, so no one cares."

"According to the case file, Lord Liu's disciple died not long after returning from Mount Putuo, and his whole family committed suicide. I really don't know about this. However, if there is any connection with Mount Putuo, this is the only thing that is worth Black Stone going to great lengths to gather three Xiantian experts and forcibly abduct Lord Liu from the Zhenfu Division."

Pei Qian understood what Commander Xu Long meant and said in shock, "If such a miraculous medicine really exists, I'm afraid it's not just Black Stone who will be tempted. With Black Stone's interrogation methods, Lord Liu will definitely not be able to withstand it."

Liu Yizhu was a civil official, while the Embroidered Uniform Guard was the most skilled in interrogation. Pei Qian knew no less than a hundred ways to make someone talk.

“Lord Liu may know the whereabouts of that thing, but it’s impossible for him to have it. If he did, the man would be dead by now!” Xu Long said.

"To revive the dead, heal the flesh and bones, and prolong life..."

Xu Long turned and walked out of the passage, his steps steady, yet carrying an invisible pressure:

"Pei Qian, pass on my orders: interrogate all those involved with Black Stone, regardless of their background. Use the 'Bone-Cracking Torture' to pry their mouths open! By any means necessary, you must find out where Liu Yijing is hiding, and all of Black Stone's strongholds in the capital!"

"Bone-cracking torture" is one of the most brutal interrogation methods used by the Embroidered Uniform Guard. It involves piercing the joints with specially made steel needles and using internal force to create shockwaves. The pain is excruciating but does not damage vital organs, and very few people can withstand it.

Pei Qian's heart skipped a beat, and he bowed, replying, "Your subordinate obeys!"

In a dilapidated temple on the southern outskirts of the capital, cobwebs were everywhere.

Ding Baiying, Ding Xiu, Ding Tai, and Lu Wenzhao sat around the campfire, the firelight illuminating their solemn faces.

Jin Yichuan arrived, panting heavily, and told him everything he had found out.

"While you were in the imperial prison, did you hear that person speaking to you? What was that voice?" Ding Baiying asked.

Jin Yichuan tried his best to imitate the voice, but it was only two or three parts similar, but that was enough.

“That’s right, it was him. It was the same voice that saved me last night. I was ready to fight to the death, but suddenly someone told me to leave.” Ding Baiying said.

"So, this person escaped from the imperial prison, followed the Black Stone's men all the way, and finally rescued you from King Yama's clutches?" Lu Wenzhao asked.

"That person's martial arts are so high? He still looks seriously injured, right?" Ding Xiu said incredulously.

“That’s right. Only his eyes are visible on his face; the rest is charred black. He’s wearing the clothes Miss Zhou gave him, so we can’t see his body,” Jin Yichuan nodded and said.

"There's no need to dwell on this; this person is an unpredictable variable."

"However, if what Liu Yijing said is true, that the Buddha's relics are hidden in Guangyuan Temple, then it contradicts the notes left by General Qi."

Ding Baiying frowned, tapping her long sword lightly on the ground, and said in a deep voice, "That's not right. General Qi's notes clearly record that the Buddha's relics appeared on the coast as early as the Xuande period and were confiscated by the supervising officer Wang An. How could they suddenly appear at Putuo Temple and then be hidden in Guangyuan Temple?"

"Could there be an error in the text?" Lu Wenzhao asked doubtfully.

“Impossible.” Ding Baiying denied it outright: “General Qi is cautious all his life. He would never make a mistake when it comes to such a divine object. Moreover, Wang An is extremely ambitious. If he really has the relic, he would never let it go easily. He would definitely keep it firmly in his own hands.”

Lu Wenzhao stroked his chin, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes:

"Could it be two relics? Or is the one at Guangyuan Temple a fake, and Wang An deliberately leaked the news to incite various parties to fight over it so he could reap the benefits?"

"Otherwise, it's hard to explain how a scholar like Wen Yuheng could obtain such a divine object."

“That’s possible.” Ding Xiu threw away the straw in his mouth and grinned. “That old eunuch lives deep in the Eastern Depot and never leaves his house, yet he can control the court. He’s very cunning. Maybe he was behind the Black Stone assassination and the anti-poetry case.”

Jin Yichuan's expression changed: "If that's really the case, wouldn't we be being used as pawns by him?"

Ding Baiying coughed twice and laughed, "Not necessarily. Regardless of whether the relic is real or fake, too many forces are involved. It's a battle of wits and will make everyone an enemy. It would be best if all three sides were to suffer heavy losses!"

"So we're not going to Guangyuan Temple?"

"No, let's watch them fight first, and keep an eye on the Eastern Depot."

(End of this chapter)