Martial Arts Crossover: My Wife is the Top Scholar

Chapter 348 The Legacy of the Free and Unfettered Sect: Not a Single Upright Person in Their Ancestors
The night was dark.

The lights in Shijiazhuang were dim, like grains of soybeans.

The flowers and trees in the back garden have all withered, the autumn air is bleak, and the evening wind is desolate. Even a clump of yellow chrysanthemums by the wall cannot dance in the dim moonlight, making it all the more melancholy.

Chu Liuxiang's mood was more melancholic than the autumn wind.

It was clearly a luxurious manor with pavilions, towers, rockeries, covered walkways, and lotus ponds, but under the dim light, it was more eerie than the underworld.

Shi Family Manor and Zhibei Manor are both located in Songjiang, about thirty miles apart. However, because they cared too much about Zuo Mingzhu, they were unaware that Shi Family Manor's eldest daughter, Shi Yin, was seriously ill.

Shi Yin's illness was more serious than Zuo Mingzhu's.

Zuo Mingzhu can at least wait for Li Zhaoting to come to her rescue.

Shi Yin had been dead for several hours. When Chu Liuxiang arrived at the Shi family, the corpse placed in the mourning hall stood up like a zombie. The eldest madam of the Shi family, Hua Jingong, who was keeping vigil, was first startled, then delighted, and then furious.

The surprise lies in the fact that the body came back to life.

The surprise was that her daughter came back to life.

What shocked and angered her was that Shi Yin repeatedly claimed she did not know Hua Jingong and said she was the daughter of Zuo Qinghou.

The eldest master of the Shi family was a weak scholar, while his first wife, Hua Jingong, was a tigress, a shrew, and a leopard. As a result, the eldest master of the Shi family was often ridiculed for being afraid of his wife, and the one who laughed the most was Zuo Qinghou of Zhubei Manor.

Hua Jingong has a son and a daughter, making him a blessed family.

Zuo Qinghou said that his daughter is smart, well-behaved, and a warm-hearted daughter, which is better than having a hundred sons.

Hua Jingong's son married Xue Yiren's eldest daughter, Xue Honghong, thus becoming related to the Xue family by marriage. This caused the relationship between the Zuo and Shi families to deteriorate rapidly, escalating from verbal sparring to physical violence. Some time ago, in order to improve the relationship between the Shi and Xue families, Hua Jingong planned to betroth his daughter, Shi Yin, to Xue Yiren's son, thus forming a marriage alliance.

Unexpectedly, things went wrong.

Shi Yin fell seriously ill and remained bedridden for more than a month before passing away. She later revived from the dead, recovering from all her illnesses except for a mental problem.

Shi Yin identified herself as Zuo Mingzhu.

Possession into a corpse is a matter of ghosts and gods. Hua Jingong had some understanding of it in the past and could barely accept it. Possession into a corpse was one thing, but how could it turn into Zuo Mingzhu?

Isn't this a joke?
Hua Jingong was a fierce and valiant man. He had trained dozens of highly skilled maids and was about to gather his men to reason with the Zuo family. As his name suggested, Hua Jingong was an expert in archery. With dozens of strong bows firing in succession, even if Zuo Qinghou was powerful, he would be in for a tough time.

Chu Liuxiang hurriedly appeared to stop him.

Hua Jingong mistakenly believed that Chu Liuxiang was a petty thief who was trying to seduce his daughter, and launched a barrage of attacks with his golden bow and silver bullets.

Chu Liuxiang wasn't Tang Zhuquan; he had no interest in arguing with a shrew. He dashed back to Zhubei Manor.

Escaping is not so easy.

Hua Jingong's daughter-in-law is Xue Yiren's daughter, Xue Honghong, who is highly skilled in swordsmanship and proficient in Gongsun swords. Beside her is Xue Xiaoren, whose swordsmanship is like a god or a demon. Xue Xiaoren is Xue Yiren's younger brother, who is crazy and wears brightly colored clothes. He thinks he is a child and claims to be only twelve years old. His swordsmanship is as fast as lightning.

Back then, when Chu Liuxiang fought against Zhongyuan Yidianhong, he felt that Zhongyuan Yidianhong's swordsmanship was incredibly swift, with no other swordsmanship faster than this. Now, after seeing Xue Xiaoren, he realized that Yidianhong's swordsmanship was only superficial and could hardly reach the pinnacle.

Faced with Zhongyuan Yidianhong's swift swordsmanship, Chu Liuxiang was able to defend without attacking, dodging 144 sword strikes in a small space without even scratching a corner of his clothes.

Faced with Xue Xiaoren's swift sword, Chu Liuxiang could only run away for his life and dared not fight back against Xue Xiaoren.

Chu Liuxiang soared into the sky, leaving a trail of fragrance under the moonlight, gracefully dodging Hua Jin Gong's rain of flowers, Xue Hong Hong's twin sword strikes, and Xue Xiao Ren's madman's swift sword. In the instant the three's strength dissipated, they disappeared into the vast night.

Xue Xiaoren's sword was very fast.

It was so fast that it sent chills down Chu Liuxiang's spine.

However, this was definitely not the fastest sword Chu Liuxiang had ever seen. The swordsman Chu Liuxiang had ever seen with the fastest sword speed was undoubtedly Li Zhaoting.

If he were to wield a sword to strike an enemy, Li Zhaoting's sword would not be very fast. Li Zhaoting had roamed the martial world for more than three years and never used a fast sword to defend himself. Li Zhaoting's speed lay in his decisiveness when he could kill with a single blow. It was the cold light of the sword blade slicing through the throat, the thunderous flash of the hundred-step flying sword, and the domineering force of eight swords flying at the same time. Every strike of his sword would be a kill.

Using a fast sword takes a lot of physical exertion.

There is no need to maintain a super high speed at all times.

As long as you are faster than your enemy when you deliver the fatal blow, you can defeat them.

You may be faster than me in ninety-nine moves, but I only need to be faster than you in one move—one sword strike, enough to kill.

To put it simply:
Xue Xiaoren attacks at a rapid pace, striking several times per second!
Li Zhaoting's attack was swift and deadly!
Chu Liuxiang returned to Zhubei Manor under the moonlight, secretly comparing his swordsmanship with Xue Xiaoren and Li Zhaoting's. He had a rather leisurely and elegant mood, which was one of Chu Liuxiang's strengths.

No matter how dangerous the situation, Chu Liuxiang could always find a glimmer of hope, using that light as his inner anchor, turning the tide of battle and achieving victory.

Most of the enemies Chu Liuxiang fought were more powerful and ruthless than him. Except for speed, Chu Liuxiang was at a disadvantage in all attributes.

However, Chu Liuxiang always manages to win.

This kind of victory cannot be replicated, nor can it be explained by the principles of martial arts; it can only be described as a power of the mind.

The righteous are invincible and never fail.

Chu Liuxiang's lightness skill, Li Xunhuan's flying knives, Lu Xiaofeng's Lingxi Finger, and Li Zhaoting's Qing Suo Sword all follow the same principle: as long as one has a sense of justice and one's inner emotions are firm, the power that can be unleashed will be stronger.

"Why think about this! It's boring!"

Chu Liuxiang shook his head, clearing his mind of the jumbled thoughts, and went to his guest room to sleep soundly.

The next morning.

With Wang Shenglan's support, Li Zhaoting slowly practiced Tai Chi and did aerobics in the garden.

Even if one knew no martial arts at all, it was clear that Li Zhaoting's steps were unsteady and his energy was extremely weak.

It's like having a serious illness that severely depletes one's vitality. Even with Su Xinghe and Xue Muhua helping to recuperate, plus a ton of tonics, and eating ginseng and deer antler as food every day, it still takes seven or eight months to recover.

It's not all bad, though.

At least there's no need to worry about Li Zhaoting running around and meddling in other people's business, ruining some conspiracies that have been painstakingly planned for years and are about to reap the rewards of victory!
For example: Shi Youming!

He wiped out his entire family, pretended to be a ghost for three or four years, and killed hundreds of people. He thought he had unparalleled martial arts skills and wanted to start a business, but was casually killed by Li Zhaoting.

Although Shi Youming was no good, and being torn to pieces would be too lenient for him, Li Zhaoting's intimidating power over the martial arts world was truly terrifying.

The doctors watching the morning exercise had different thoughts.

Just as Chu Liuxiang was about to go and explain to Zuo Qinghou, a series of shouts and curses came from outside Zhubei Manor. Hua Jingong, with more than twenty maids, holding gold bows and silver bullets, blocked the gate of Zhubei Manor and began to curse at the top of their lungs.

"Zuo Qinghou! Open the door! Open the door! I know you're home! Don't hide inside and stay silent!"

"You're capable of harming people, but you don't have the guts to open the door!"

"Zuo Qinghou, get out here right now!"

"Lord Zuo Qinghou, don't force me to burn down the house!"

Exhausted and sleepless from the matter of possession, Zuo Qinghou, despite his dark circles under his eyes, managed to muster some energy when he heard Hua Jingong cursing. He ordered Zuo Mingzhu to be brought over to verify the possession.

Zuo Mingzhu claims to be the eldest daughter of the Shi family.

Your mom's here, let's see how you behave!
Hua Jingong shared the same idea. Four strong sedan chair bearers carried a sedan chair inside, where Shi Yin, who called herself Zuo Mingzhu, was seeking an explanation from Zuo Qinghou.

"Chu Liuxiang" is the perfect excuse.

Shi Yin's body was originally lying quietly in the main hall of the Shi family. Chu Liuxiang sneaked in stealthily, and Shi Yin woke up shortly after, having been "resurrected" in someone else's body. Chu Liuxiang bears inescapable responsibility.

As everyone knows, Chu Liuxiang and Zuo Qinghou were sworn brothers. It must have been that Zuo Qinghou was unwilling to accept Zuo Mingzhu's death from a serious illness, so he asked Chu Liuxiang to use supernatural magic.

There are at least eight hundred, if not a thousand, strange tales about Chu Liuxiang in the martial arts world. Because Chu Liuxiang's lightness skill transcends the limitations of martial arts, it is comparable to the supernatural powers of immortals. There are at least two or three hundred legends about him.

Perhaps Chu Liuxiang really can "summon souls"!
Who can say for sure about something like this?
Who can prove that Chu Liuxiang doesn't "summon souls"?
Chu Liuxiang himself could not provide proof!

Hua Jingong didn't understand the concept of "presumption of innocence." She had a fiery and fierce personality, and once she made up her mind, no one could argue with her unless they could beat her down.

Wang Shenglan helped Li Zhaoting to watch the excitement.

Li Zhaoting is now a good-for-nothing playboy who can't lift a finger. He needs to be served whenever he goes out, and he gets hurt if you touch him. A slap can keep him in bed for three months.

Wang Shenglan secretly regretted that if she had known Li Zhaoting would turn out like this, she should have brought Meizhu with her.

Wang Shenglan has no idea how to serve people.

This is Mei Zhu and Jiang Yuyan's specialty.

"Old man Zuo, what are you up to! You have such a cruel heart! Knowing that my daughter was sick, you invited all the miracle doctors away, letting my daughter die from her illness."

That's fine, my family is not fortunate enough to invite all the great doctors, but since ancient times, the dead are respected. You actually colluded with Chu Liuxiang to perform a soul-summoning spell, using my daughter's corpse to summon your daughter's soul. You bastard!
Old man Zuo, either kill me today or give me an explanation, or I'm not leaving!
I can't live like this anymore!
Zuo Qinghou is bullying people!
Chu Liuxiang is a bastard!
"They're bullying us because we're all scholars..."

Hua Jingong was eloquent and pointed at Zuo Qinghou, launching into a tirade of angry curses. He then played the "sitting on the ground" trick, sitting on the ground and wailing, attracting several hundred spectators.

Of course, most of the audience members were invited by her.

Zuo Qinghou's face darkened.

Taking action would sound bad if word got out.

If we don't take action, it'll sound even worse if word gets out!
Zuo Mingzhu suddenly ran towards Hua Jingong: "Mother, don't cry, I'm not dead, I'm here!"

On the other side, Shi Yin ran towards Zuo Qinghou and called him "Father" directly. Her words, actions, and every smile were exactly the same as Zuo Mingzhu's. If her face were covered, even her own parents would not be able to tell who Zuo Mingzhu was.

The family education of the Shi family and the Zuo family is different.

The Zuo family had strict upbringing. Zuo Mingzhu was a talented woman who was proficient in all the arts, including music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. She was skilled in flower arranging, needlework, and was intelligent, gentle, obedient, and considerate.

None of the men in the Shi family knew martial arts; the women were in charge of the household. To avoid being bullied, the women of the Shi family were quite feisty, forthright, and impulsive.

Shi Yin was skilled at wielding spears and sticks, and even more adept at using the golden bow and silver bullets than the flowery golden bow. However, she was completely incapable of composing poems, playing the zither, or arranging flowers.

Now the two have "reincarnated" each other, and not only are their words and actions flawless, but their abilities have also been swapped. Apart from their different appearances and physiques, there are no flaws in any aspect. Zuo Qinghou stared blankly, and Hua Jingong forgot to throw a tantrum, as if he had been struck by lightning a hundred times.

"This...this..."

"A single finger can decide life or death." Zhang Jianzhai pondered for a few moments, glanced at the pale-faced Li Zhaoting, and finally fabricated a barely plausible "reason."

"With Master Li's foundation in internal strength, coupled with his Longevity True Qi, he shouldn't have suffered such a depletion when using the One-Finger Divine Skill to treat patients. Yesterday, when he was treating patients, Master Li was exhausted and collapsed. It seems that he was treating two young ladies at the same time, which depleted his vital energy by twice as much."

"Old Zhang, stop talking nonsense. Shi Family Village is thirty or forty miles away from Zhubei Manor. No matter how miraculous the One-Finger Divine Skill is, can it travel thirty or forty miles?"

Xue Muhua refuted Zhang Jianzhai without hesitation.

Wang Shenglan waved her hand: "Junior nephew, you only know one side of the story. This involves some kind of supernatural ability. I found a little bit of information about it in the Jade Linglong."

There is a mysterious technique in the martial arts world that allows one to transfer power through objects.

This power transmission technique can ignore distance limitations and transmit power over extremely long distances. It can even draw upon the power of the sun, moon, stars, heaven, earth, and the universe to temper weapons and bodies.

In Tantric Buddhism, this is called remote initiation.

In Taoism, this is called divine transmission.

In the Demonic Sect, this is called synesthesia.

In unorthodox practices, this is called possession by a ghost.

As far as I know, there are two examples in the martial arts world.

One is Guan Qi, the seventh holy master of the Mitian Alliance. He is skilled at transmitting power through objects and once used this method to enlighten Wuqing.

One of them was Gu Mutian, a strange man from the Western Regions, who used this method to absorb the power of the sun, moon and stars, temper the dragon soul and phoenix blood, and single-handedly forged a pair of spiritual weapons.

When my husband was treating Miss Zuo, the souls of the two young ladies became entangled, causing my husband to unknowingly treat both of them.

The matters of the soul and spirit have been unexplored since ancient times.

The immortal embryo of Cihang Jingzhai, the demonic seed of the Dao Heart Demon Seed Great Method, the Dao seed of the Daoist sect, the sword seed of the swordsman, and the innate relic of the Buddhist sect are all based on the same principle.

I am skilled in body refinement but do not understand the soul; I only found a few words recorded in the Jade Linglong.

Believe it or not!
Let's just treat it as a local oddity!

Wang Shenglan pointed to the mark between her eyebrows.

This is the Jade Linglong, a priceless heirloom of the Free and Unfettered Sect.

Su Xinghe and Xue Muhua firmly believed this.

The renowned healers all nodded in agreement. They couldn't think of any reason for the possession of a corpse. Rather than wasting their own time, they might as well go with the flow. Since things had come to this point, why dwell on it?
Li Zhaoting gently stroked Wang Shenglan's slender waist.

Wang Shenglan returned a charming look.

"My dear husband, I did a good job, didn't I?"

—How should I be rewarded tonight?
Li Zhaoting transmitted his voice secretly: "Sheng Lan, I'm seriously injured now. Guess what Su Zhen will do when we get home? Do you want to experience the Li family's discipline?"

Thinking of Feng Suzhen's formidable swordsmanship as the eldest wife, Wang Shenglan shuddered and almost threw Li Zhaoting out. She grabbed him and pulled him back, saying, "Husband, you won't just stand by and watch me be punished according to family law, will you?"

"Of course!"

"My husband is the best!"

"I will close my eyes!"

"My husband, you're always bullying me~~"

The two flirted using the telepathic soul-searching technique.

It must be said that Xiaoyaozi was very creative. This method of transmitting sound and searching souls can change the frequency at will, similar to making a phone call, so that only a specific target can hear the sound.

Even with Chu Liuxiang's keen senses, he couldn't hear the two flirting; he only saw their lips move slightly.

If Xiaoyaozi could know this from beyond the grave...

—He's used to it!
More than forty years ago, Li Qiushui and Wuyazi flirted with each other using the Soul Searching Technique of Sound Transmission. This was a tradition of the Xiaoyao Sect, an ancestral method that could not be changed!
Chu Liuxiang had no interest in paying attention to Li Zhaoting.

He was completely influenced by the idea of ​​"reincarnation".

Chu Liuxiang did not believe in ghosts and gods.

There must be something fishy about this!
(End of this chapter)