Martial Arts Crossover: My Wife is the Top Scholar

Chapter 162 Ding Chunqiu: Xiao Feng, I'll give you three moves!

night.

Moon Mountain Miao Village.

On and off the mountain, everyone was enjoying themselves. Beautiful young Miao girls and healthy young men sang and danced around the bonfire, filling the village with a joyful atmosphere.

Those around Li Zhaoting all know that he has a strange hobby... he really likes Miao costumes.

Miao people's attire is indeed very beautiful, especially their exquisite and beautiful silver ornaments, which are captivating and in no way inferior to the phoenix hairpins worn by imperial concubines.

That being said, there must be a reason for any preference.

People like Xiao Feng and Duan Yu, being upright gentlemen, probably couldn't understand it, but Lan Fenghuang understood it long ago.

Miao girls' festival attire, especially during celebrations, often includes barefoot costumes, such as the bamboo pole dance, where they dance barefoot and are incredibly beautiful.

Li Zhaoting sat by the campfire, watching the Miao girls dance with abandon and keeping time. Lan Fenghuang nestled beside him, watching Li Zhaoting's eyes, which were free of any wicked thoughts and only appreciated art. She couldn't help but feel a little annoyed and poured him a cup of Five Treasures Honey Wine.

"Brother Li, let me toast you."

"The old man is really generous. He took out dozens of jars of Five Treasures Honey Wine, which takes many years to brew. Has his inventory been almost emptied?"

"What good is keeping it? It can't produce offspring! Five Treasures Honey Wine can be brewed every year, with dozens or even hundreds of jars of fine wine produced each year. If we don't use it to entertain great heroes, are we going to entertain ordinary people? Only peerless heroes like Brother Li and Brother Xiao are qualified to enjoy this fine wine."

"My father-in-law will be very sad to hear this!"

"Brother Li can try to coax him."

“Uh… Go tell the old man that I’ve had the Hua family of Jiangnan set up a caravan in Moon Mountain to sell silk. Tell the old man to be prepared.”

What does the Hua family caravan need?

"Silver jewelry, tea, medicinal herbs, mountain products!"

“I asked my dad to prepare the travel permit.”

The Five Poisons Sect has special passes for doing business, so as not to be mistaken for enemy troops and lured into the poisonous Gu formation.

When you treat others with courtesy, you must ask for something.

Old Master Lan's politeness was, of course, meant to elicit a substantial return. He needed the support of the Dali royal family, Li Zhaoting's help in contacting wealthy merchants from the Central Plains, a steady stream of supplies from Central Plains caravans, and a continuous improvement in the living standards of the Miao village on Moon Mountain.

With the military suppression of the Five Poisons Sect and the ever-improving good life, the surrounding Miao villages will change from envy and jealousy to dependence, and eventually be gradually swallowed up by him.

This is also a good thing for Dali.

There are dozens or even hundreds of Miao villages around, and I don't know which one to marry into, or which one to befriend and which one to fight.

Once only three or five Miao villages remain, they can use a strategy of alliances and counter-alliances to win over one village while attacking another. If someone wants to form a marriage alliance with another Miao village, they can go directly to negotiate.

Xiao Feng lifted the wine jar and drank it all in one gulp: "This wine is truly potent, excellent wine! Truly excellent wine!"

Duan Yu laughed and said, "Besides my elder brother, I'm afraid no one would dare to drink like this in the Miao village. The Five Treasures Honey Wine of the Five Immortals Sect is rarely used to entertain outsiders."

Li Xunhuan said, "We are not outsiders, we are the groom's groomsmen. Look at Master Lan, his eyes are practically closed from smiling, he looks even more prosperous than the birthday celebrant."

"Yo~~ The show's about to begin!"

Xiao Feng pointed to the altar in the distance.

Miao Gu techniques are renowned throughout the world. Whenever a grand ceremony is held, a Gu fighting competition or a contest of poison skills is held to select a few talented young people.

The victorious young talents will become high-ranking elders of the Five Poisons Sect, and are the seeds of the sect.

The Five Poisons Sect is not strong in terms of martial arts inheritance, but it is always thriving in terms of poison and Gu techniques.

The older generation is still vigorous and experienced.

The younger generation is courageous, diligent, and studious.

After all, theoretically speaking, poison and gu techniques belong to the fields of biology, chemistry, and medicine, which are science and engineering subjects. As long as the inheritance is not interrupted and poisonous flowers, herbs, insects, and beasts are not extinct, their average abilities will definitely become stronger and stronger, and will never stagnate.

The consequence of stagnation is... extinction!
Both the Tang Clan and the Wen Clan have similar rules.

The Wen family, a time-honored brand in Lingnan, is internally divided into four branches: Big, Small, Dead, and Alive. The Small branch refines toxins, the Big branch hides toxins, the Dead branch uses toxins, and the Alive branch treats and saves lives. Each branch has its own distinct lineage.

Wen Family Rules:

If the small-scale producers cannot manufacture new poisons, the large-scale producers cannot preserve their unique poisons, the dead-scale producers cannot create new methods of poisoning, and the living-scale producers cannot crack all the poisons, the head of the family will be severely punished.

Furthermore, those who use poison are not necessarily treacherous or wicked.

Most of the Wen family disciples are upright and honest. For example, Wen Yuehong, the adoptive father of Zhui Ming, and Wen Wan, the current head of the family, are both famous heroes in the martial arts world. There are also some tech geeks.

There aren't many old villains in the martial arts world who spend their days mingling and researching ways to poison people.

When traveling the martial arts world, you can see the poisons and hidden weapons sold by the Five Poisons Sect, the Wen Family, and the Tang Clan. You rarely see the disciples of these sects. Taking the Tang Clan as an example, the most famous rising star of the Tang Clan is probably Tang Zhuquan.

Several young people are fighting with Gu.

A young girl achieved a three-game winning streak.

The young woman was beautiful and curvaceous, no less so than Lan Fenghuang. After making some inquiries, it was learned that she was the disciple of the Blue Sect Leader and the niece of He Hongyao. Her real name was Yu Shou. According to the sect rules, she was qualified to have her hand cut off in exchange for an iron hook.

Spurred on by Lan Fenghuang, He Yushou certainly wouldn't turn himself into "He Tieshou." Instead, he focused on mastering unique skills such as the Spider Red Soft Rope and the Five Poison Palm, and refined his poison skills. His mastery of poison and gu was advancing by leaps and bounds. With the help of the newly refined Toad Treasure, he easily achieved three consecutive victories.

Lan Fenghuang whispered, "Brother Li, Yu Shou is quite lucky; she actually managed to refine a toad treasure."

What is a toad treasure?

"The Five Poisons of the Central Plains and the Five Poisons of the Five Immortals Sect are slightly different. The Five Poisons of the Central Plains do not include spiders, and the Five Poisons of the Five Immortals Sect do not include geckos. But no matter which classification you use, the universally recognized king of poisons is always the 'toad'!"
The Poisonous Demons are categorized into Flower, Insect, Gu, Vessel, and Human.

The 'insect' in it is a toad.

One is the Manggu Zhuha, and the other is the Wandu Jinchan.

Common Gu insects are mostly poisonous insects such as scorpions, spiders, and centipedes, or poisonous snakes and silkworms. Using toads to refine Gu is extremely difficult, with a success rate of less than 10%.

Even if I were to personally refine the Gu, under the perfect conditions of timing, location, and people, I would have at most a 30% chance of succeeding, which would already be considered exceptionally gifted.

Because of its extreme difficulty and power, the Gu worms made from toads are not called 'Gu', but are compared to magical treasures of immortals, and are therefore called Toad Treasures.

Toad Treasure has two innate abilities. One is the ability to swallow clouds and spit out mist, controlling poisonous fog and miasma.

Secondly, by absorbing toxins, its potential continuously increases. When cultivated to its fullest potential, the toad will develop a poison-free pearl within its body, a truly miraculous creation.

Throughout the history of the Five Immortals Sect, no more than ten people have ever successfully crafted a toad treasure, and only one has cultivated it to its full potential—that is, the ancestor of the Miao village on Moon Mountain. The toad treasure loves to inhale and exhale moonlight, and Moon Mountain is a naturally blessed land.

He Yu has successfully crafted the Toad Treasure, making her the undisputed leader of the Five Immortals Sect, unless someone else creates the Golden Silkworm Gu or the Ice Silkworm Gu to compete with her, or attempts to assassinate her.

Refining Gu will consume a lot of resources.

Who would use their painstakingly crafted Gu worms to feed He Yushou's toad treasures? Wait, Yushou's toad treasures aren't just one, but a pair—the Crimson-Eyed Ice Toads!

Her talent in Gu magic surpasses mine!

May Heaven bless the Five Immortals Sect!

Lan Fenghuang was not jealous of He Yushou; on the contrary, she felt very lucky. If it weren't for Li Zhaoting, Lan Fenghuang would have become the leader of the Five Poisons Sect. After Li Zhaoting appeared, Lan Fenghuang married him and could not become the leader. For the Five Poisons Sect, it was a loss of a top genius.

Now that He Yushou has filled the position, with these two Crimson-Eyed Ice Toads, the Five Poisons Sect can be sustained for at least thirty years.

In addition, the betrothal gifts from Li Zhaoting fully repaid the resources spent on cultivating Lan Fenghuang, ensuring that the Five Poisons Sect's years of hard work would not be completely wasted.

It may sound a bit mercenary and calculating, but for the sect, succession is the top priority. Lan Fenghuang has been a saintess for many years, so she must take on the responsibility.

Today's celebration was originally intended to boost He Yushou's reputation. The old sect leader Lan announced loudly, "If no one steps forward to challenge, I declare He Yushou the winner of the Gu Fighting Competition. He will be rewarded with the Golden Snake Sword and the Golden Snake Cone. I hope you will continue your efforts and research more Gu poisons."

"Thank you for the reward, Master!"

He Yu bowed to receive the Golden Snake Sword.

Just then, green flames rose in the distance, and a shrill voice came from afar: "What skills does this little girl have? What makes her think she can win the championship? What is the Five Poisons Sect? If we're talking about poison techniques, then my Starry Constellation Sect is the supreme one. The Starry Constellation Immortal has boundless magical power."

A young man, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, tall and thin, with a yellowish-green complexion but quite handsome features, floated down from mid-air. This man was named Zhaixingzi, the senior disciple of the Xingxiu Sect, whose poison skills were second only to Ding Chunqiu.

Azi stole the Divine Wood King Cauldron and ran away. Ding Chunqiu chased after Azi, and the chase continued southward until they reached Dali. Ding Chunqiu's Huagong Dafa required a large amount of poisonous insects and herbs. After arriving in Dali, he heard about the reputation of the Five Poisons Sect and wanted to ask them for poisonous substances.

Ding Chunqiu was arrogant and looked down on everyone.

When passing through the Central Plains, they were afraid of famous sects such as Shaolin and Wudang, and dared not boast about them.

After arriving in Dali, he figured there were no famous masters there, so he completely let loose and had his disciples beat drums and gongs, play instruments and sing, and boast about it.

The disciples of the Xingxiu Sect are well-versed in three great skills: shamelessness, flattery, and conch shell technique. No one in the world is better at sycophancy than the disciples of the Xingxiu Sect.

As the star-picking sprite fell from the sky, the sounds of gongs, drums, and stringed instruments filled the air. The disciples of the Starry Constellation Sect cheered loudly, and their chants of praise to the Starry Constellation Immortal resounded through the heavens, using all sorts of nauseatingly sweet words that were beyond the imagination of ordinary people.

The sun and moon are no match for the brilliance of the Old Immortal Star, and the heavens and earth are no match for the vastness of the Old Immortal Star. Since Pangu separated heaven and earth, no one else has possessed Ding Chunqiu's unparalleled power and virtue.

Regardless of Ding Chunqiu's martial arts skills, his appearance alone stunned everyone. Among the many show-offs present, some were elegant and refined, some were graceful and refined, and some were low-key and humble, but none had ever seen such a straightforward show-off.

Compared to the Xingxiu Sect's grand gestures, Li Zhaoting's scouting and rescue, Xiao Feng's feigned humility, and Li Xunhuan's gentle demeanor were all overshadowed.

Even if Li Zhaoting scouted and rescued people a hundred times, it wouldn't compare to the hundreds of Xingxiu Sect disciples beating drums and gongs.

Ding Chunqiu sat in the sedan chair, his hair and beard all white, with a youthful face despite his white hair. He held a feather fan and listened with great enjoyment to the flattery and sycophancy. His posture was elegant and graceful, like that of an immortal.

"The Starry Sky Immortal possesses boundless magical power..."

"...Old Demon Clown, utter nonsense!"

The exact same sound came from the Miao village.

Zhaixingzi stared intently and saw that the person imitating him was a beautiful young girl. The imitation was so lifelike, with the same expression and tone. Zhaixingzi was furious. He grabbed at the campfire and condensed a ball of green ghost fire.

This is a common technique used by the Xingxiu Sect: poison is sprinkled into a raging fire to burn the enemy's body. The fire and poison enter the body simultaneously, causing the enemy unbearable pain.

It is somewhat similar to the "Black Demon Palm".

Poison and malevolent energy combined to deliver a double blow; Li Qingming's twenty years of internal martial arts skills could only withstand two rounds of attacks.

The fireball hurtled towards Azhu.

Xiao Feng suddenly stood up and blocked his way. Without seeing what move he made, he simply snorted and the fireball was deflected. Zhai Xingzi activated his true energy and turned the fireball into a thin line, attempting to bypass Xiao Feng with it.

You ungrateful animal!
If someone wants to court death, no one can stop them!
Xiao Feng raised his hand and unleashed a palm strike, which sent the flames back the way they came. Zhai Xingzi was about to increase his true energy when he discovered that Xiao Feng's palm strike was endless and he had no way to resist it.

"Wow!"

Flames exploded in mid-air.

Hundreds of sparks fell on the star-picker.

Zhaixingzi's entire body was engulfed in eerie green flames. Instead of helping him, his fellow disciples retreated and hid behind Ding Chunqiu, continuing to loudly praise him.

Ding Chunqiu raised his feather fan, and the Xingxiu Sect disciples immediately stopped their flattery. Ding Chunqiu said calmly, "Where are you from, little brat? I see you have good talent. Why don't you become my disciple and I'll make you the senior disciple of our sect!"

Xiao Feng sneered, "Ding Chunqiu, I wonder how much of your boasting you had is actually true!"

"Little brat, I see you're young and can't bear to kill you. Since you're courting death, I'll teach you a few moves. Little brat, you make the first move!"

"Ding Chunqiu, take this!"

Xiao Feng, wanting Ding Chunqiu's head as payment, naturally wouldn't be polite. He strode forward, slashed with his left hand, and unleashed a palm strike with his right, raising his hand to summon the dragon in the field. The two were now fifteen or sixteen zhang apart. Even if the bandit leader Chu Liuxiang flew at full speed, he couldn't cover that distance in one leap.

Ding Chunqiu closed his eyes to rest and concentrate his energy, waiting for Xiao Feng's palm force to dissipate before launching a counterattack.

How could Xiao Feng not be able to accurately calculate the attack range?
From raising his palm to gathering his power, the two were only seven or eight zhang apart. Xiao Feng drew an arc with his right hand and unleashed another palm strike, another "Dragon Appears in the Field" strike.

The domineering and powerful aura surged like a tide. Before Ding Chunqiu could react, the distance between the two was less than three zhang. Xiao Feng drew an arc with his right hand again and unleashed another palm strike. Three palm forces roared as they arrived.

From the moment he made his move to the moment his palm struck, it took less than a second. Ding Chunqiu felt as if the air had solidified like mercury, and every movement required several times his usual strength. Every acupoint on his body was locked by the palm force, and the surging palm force condensed into a tangible wall, carrying the divine power of thunder and lightning and the collapse of mountains and rivers, pressing down on him like an overwhelming force!

Ding Chunqiu had no time to dodge and could only hastily draw three arcs, hoping to barely block the attack for a moment.

"boom!"

Ding Chunqiu was blasted several feet away.

The sedan chair was blasted into dozens or even hundreds of pieces!
　Thank you to readers Shao Banxian and I Love Pancakes for their generous donations.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)