Martial Arts Crossover: My Wife is the Top Scholar

Chapter 432 Azure Dragon Society: I definitely have to lend a hand in such an important matter!
"I met people from the Wanyan clan!"

The Wanyan clan was severely divided. Wanyan Honglie was determined to fight to the death, with his forces being the largest, but his own military strength being relatively weak.

Wanyan Changzhi has a high level of martial arts skill, and his finger technique is no less than mine. He is interested in joining the Mongol Yuan Dynasty and has frequent contact with them. He has several experts under his command.

Jin Muxia and Jin Chenying are ambitious but lack talent; together they cannot defeat Cao Xiong.

Several others changed their surnames and mingled in the martial arts world. These people were quite intelligent and had high martial arts talent. One was skilled in music, and the other was skilled in swordsmanship.

The one skilled in music uses the Purple Mansion Divine Flute, named Tan Yuchong, and practices the orthodox Xuanmen mental cultivation method.

She is skilled in swordsmanship and created her own "Weaver Girl Sword Technique". She changed her name to Meng Qingqing and has two experts under her command. Meng Qingqing herself has the cultivation of a Grandmaster, and her two guards can be ranked in the top 20 of the Earthly Fiend Ranking. Their combat strength should not be underestimated.

Wanyan Jue, Wanyan Changzhi, Wanyan Honglie, Eleven Wings, Nine Soldiers, Golden Swallow Divine Eagle, Tan Yuchong, Meng Qingqing—although I don't believe in fate, the current situation of the Wanyan clan is exactly what one would call a final burst of energy before death.

Either press on and severely damage the Qing Dynasty.

"Either my luck runs out, or I'm doomed to die!"

Lu Xiaofeng shook his head and sighed, "Everyone talks about learning from history, but now it seems that the only result of learning from history is that all these people are shit!"

Li Zhaoting raised his wine glass and laughed, "The only lesson humanity learns from history is that humanity doesn't learn from its mistakes; later generations lament but don't learn from them..."

Perhaps it was the butterfly effect of the martial arts, or perhaps it was the Jin Dynasty's fortunes returning to normal, but the Wanyan clan's reserves of experts were truly not small. There were more than a handful of Grandmaster-level combatants, and more than a dozen Grandmaster-level experts.

With so many experts united, even if Wu Sidao worked himself to death, he still couldn't defeat the Wanyan clan.

Unfortunately, these masters acted independently, each with their own agendas. Some were obsessed with fists, while others were ambitious but lacked talent. Those with high martial arts skills lacked intelligence, and those with intelligence had poor martial arts skills. Among those who possessed both intelligence and strength, only Tan Yuchong and Meng Qingqing were constantly planning their escape.

Li Zhaoting's elimination of Wanyan Jue was a way to give the Wanyan clan a second chance and relieve Wanyan Honglie's pressure. At the same time, with Wanyan Jue's death, Jin Muxia and Wanyan Changzhi no longer needed Wanyan Honglie to check them, and their strength was already declining. They had to cut off their own arm.

Lu Xiaofeng said disdainfully, "Jin Muxia plans to use this martial arts tournament to force Wanyan Honglie and Cao Xiong to perish together, thus eliminating two powerful enemies in one fell swoop."

Feng Suzhen frowned: "The Imperial City Guard cannot continue to cooperate with the Wanyan Clan! These useless people are still fighting amongst themselves even at the last minute; they are more likely to cause trouble than help!"

Li Shengnan sneered: "A formidable enemy? What kind of formidable enemy is Cao Xiong? There are countless Cao Xiongs in the Manchu Eight Banners. Even if a hundred of them die, there will always be talented people to replace them in time."

Wang Yuyan skillfully played the supporting role: "Wanyan Honglie is the last hope of the Wanyan clan. Let alone fighting to the death against Cao Xiong, even if he fights to the death against Wu Sidao, it will still be a huge loss."

Li Zhaoting: "Are there any more clues?"

Chu Liuxiang: "Yes! I saw Cao Xiong secretly meeting with two monsters in a secluded house. The two seemed to be monks, but their aura was like that of demons."

I peeked over...

It had no legs, very obvious marks of chains piercing its bones in its shoulders, was blind, and had teeth that resembled those of a wild beast, with sharp nails, making it even more formidable than a tiger or wolf.

An explosive burst of energy, with messy teeth resembling a shark, all four limbs intact without obvious injuries, but with difficulty moving, suggesting a possible severe spinal injury.

These two are Cao Xiong's trump cards.

Brother Li, be careful of those two!

Lu Xiaofeng stroked his mustache: "Cao Xiong secretly contacted a clandestine organization and purchased a huge amount of gunpowder. This gunpowder does not require ignition; it ignites upon contact with water. Jinzhou is near the sea, so it has no shortage of water!"

Li Shengnan: "The martial arts arena is by the sea. When the battle reaches its most intense moment, the internal energy will vibrate against each other, which will definitely create waves and cause a huge explosion."

Feng Suzhen: "What's the name of that organization? Could it be the Thunderbolt Hall? Does someone surnamed Lei have the guts to do that?"

Lu Xiaofeng laughed and said, "The name is easy to remember. It's related to gambling on Pai Gow. I think it's called something like Tianmen!"

"puff!"

Li Zhaoting sprayed tea three feet high, covering Lu Xiaofeng completely. Lu Xiaofeng, his face covered in tea leaves, glared at Li Zhaoting with an unfriendly expression. No matter how good-tempered someone is, being sprayed with tea leaves will make them very angry.

Lu Xiaofeng really wanted to beat Li Zhaoting up.

Li Zhaoting hurriedly asked, "Lu Xiaofeng, who is the Master of Tianmen? What kind of martial arts does he use? Ice or fire? What are the code names of his disciples?"

“Is this question important?”

"Very important!"

"How important is it?"

"If you dare to keep me in suspense any longer, I'll turn your four eyebrows into three. People in the martial arts world have seen Lu Xiaofeng with four eyebrows, a few have seen him with two eyebrows, but no one has ever seen him with three. Do you want to give it a try?"

"Tch! Boring! You're lucky! I've never met the Heavenly Gate Master, only his son-in-law. The Heavenly Gate's direct lineage of Yin-Yang internal energy seems to belong to the Demonic Sect."

I exchanged a move with the son-in-law of Tianmen. The Tianmen's direct lineage's ultimate technique is called Tianchi Yin Yang Hand. Its internal energy is very similar to the Heavenly Chaos and Earthly Chaos Primordial Art. Its move is the Soul-Chasing Source Life-Stealing Hand. This person has also practiced Japanese swordsmanship and is very ambitious.

His name seems to be... Yue Longxuan!

Hearing this, Li Zhaoting felt much more at ease.

The name "Tianmen" is too shocking, directly transitioning from martial arts to mythology, from the lifespan limit of 150 years to a chaotic battle of ancient monsters.

Li Shengnan said, "One hundred and fifty years ago, the Left Envoy of the Holy Sect established his own sect and took away three volumes of the 'Great Compassion Ode to the Interplay of Heaven and Earth and Yin and Yang,' which must have been the Heavenly Gate!"

There are two different versions of "The Great Compassion Ode of the Intercourse of Heaven and Earth and Yin and Yang": one is for high-level managers to practice, and the other is for the leader to practice. Their core concepts are completely different.

The sect leader's special version is a return to the origin, transforming from the demonic path to the righteous path. It focuses on mental cultivation, lightness skills, and auxiliary techniques, and has only one killing martial art.

The Manager's cultivation version focuses on killing and has only one internal energy cultivation method and one auxiliary cultivation method. The remaining five are all killing martial arts techniques, which are extremely yin, ruthless, and poisonous.

When the Left Envoy of the Demonic Sect defected, he had practiced three secret manuals: the Chaotic Primordial Technique of Heaven and Earth, the Soul-Chasing and Life-Taking Hand, and the Heaven-Shifting and Earth-Shifting Acupoint Technique. The Demonic Sect leader did not cripple the Left Envoy's martial arts, but only cut off his legs.

The Left Envoy established the Heavenly Gate near the Heavenly Pool, incorporating the insidious techniques of the Soul-Chasing and Life-Taking Hand into the Yin-Yang internal energy of the Heavenly Chaos and Earthly Chaos Primordial Skill, and using the Heaven-Shifting, Earth-Turning, and Acupoint-Shifting Method to harmonize the meridians, thus creating the Heavenly Pool Yin-Yang Hand.

This is the origin of Tianmen (Heavenly Gate).

The defection of the Left Envoy was a closely guarded secret within the Demonic Sect, with no detailed records. A century later, Li Shengnan only had a vague recollection of it.

Li Shengnan said, "One hundred and fifty years have passed, and all the favors we have done have been used up. Tianmen will not obey the orders of the Holy Sect. I will take charge of dealing with Yue Longxuan."

Lu Xiaofeng stroked his beard: "Tianmen, Shenbang, Tianlongbang, the Twelve Orders of the Universe, Shangwan Tiangong, plus Wanyan clan, and us troublemakers, there are nearly twenty Grandmasters participating in this battle. It is likely to become the most intense battle in the martial arts world in the last fifty years."

Chu Liuxiang remained silent. He disliked bloodshed and killing, especially battles like this one, where there was no distinction between good and evil, only between different stances. In this battle, it was hard to say who was good and who was bad; everyone was fighting for their own master.

Feng Suzhen said, "Sir, you killed Nangong Ling to warn Cao Xiong. He will definitely have a response. We can divide and surround him to weaken his strength."

Li Zhaoting shook his head: "No way!"

"why?"

Most people thought so, even Chu Liuxiang, who never killed anyone, was no exception. Only Wang Yuyan supported Li Zhaoting, saying that this method was bound to fail.

Li Zhaoting said, "There are too many experts. Cao Xiong simply cannot control the situation. He is just a pawn. The one who controls the pawn behind the scenes is Wu Sidao. Wu Sidao is the most cunning of all, even more cunning than my father. He would never willingly disperse his forces."

Wang Yuyan said, "According to historical records, when facing top masters, splitting forces will surely lead to certain death. Jinzhou is Manchu territory, and they have the advantage in numbers!"

Li Zhaoting said, "Compared to us, the only advantage of the Manchus is their numbers. Anyone with a brain would never willingly give up their advantage under these circumstances, unless those who are being abandoned are cannon fodder!"

Li Shengnan scoffed, "If Wu Sidao is really as smart as you say, why doesn't he run away? He's probably going to be silenced for being the Grand Commander of the Sticky Rod Office."

"When it comes to love, Wu Sidao is cunning and resourceful, but his only weakness is love."

Li Zhaoting briefly recounted Wu Sidao's story: his grudges with Emperor Kangxi, his cooperation with Emperor Yongzheng, his ambiguous and unspoken feelings for Consort Hua, and Consort Hua's dying words. Despite his profound wisdom, he could not escape the entanglement of love.

Lu Xiaofeng looked at Li Zhaoting provocatively: "A wise man does not fall in love. Li Zhaoting, are you a wise man? I don't think there are many people in the martial arts world who are smarter than you."

Li Zhaoting said, "I am not smart at all. I have done hundreds of things that wise people dare not do."

"So, falling in love with these stunning beauties is a foolish move on your part? Madam Feng, Madam Li, what do you think of this matter? I certainly cannot tolerate it!"

Lu Xiaofeng fanned the flames, adding fuel to the fire.

Li Shengnan sneered: "Lu Xiaofeng? You're not married to my husband, so what does it matter to you whether I can tolerate it or not? Similarly, what does it matter to me whether you can tolerate it or not? Can you mind your own business?"

Feng Suzhen laughed and said, "Master Lu, love is not a rational choice. It is a momentary impulse and an uncontrollable emotion. When you are hot-blooded, you can only see your husband's good points. I can't see his shortcomings."

"Even the most passionate moments will eventually subside!"

"At that time, I had become familiar with the official's shortcomings, which would turn into strengths."

"As expected of Madam Feng, I'm impressed!"

Lu Xiaofeng looked at Chu Liuxiang: "Handsome Chu, I'm very jealous right now. Can you do me a favor?"

"How can I help you?"

"Kick me into the sea!"

Before Lu Xiaofeng could finish speaking, a large foot accurately kicked him in the buttocks. With a crack, Lu Xiaofeng flew out of the window and hung on a treetop outside.

Li Zhaoting said, "Now that we have some peace and quiet, let's continue our discussion. Let this guy go out and look for clues."

"What if we can't find any clues?" Lu Xiaofeng pondered for a moment with a mournful expression.

I'll turn you into an eyebrow!

Li Zhaoting pointed his fingers into a sword shape, and the corners of his mouth turned up.

Lu Xiaofeng hurriedly ran away.

Chu Liuxiang was speechless: "I found out that the Sticky Rod Office has spies in both the Wanyan clan and the Red Flower Society. Cao Xiong has some connections in the Mongol Yuan Dynasty and has invited several lamas."

"I'm only worried about one person."

"Bashiba?"

"At the time of Zhang Zhenren's 100th birthday banquet, Ba Shiba tried to force Zhang Zhenren to break through the void. Zhang Zhenren broke through his mental illusion and drew a prison in his mind."

Unless Bashiba breaks through the limit and reaches the level of Shattered Vajra, he cannot leave even half a step.

However, when he attained the Vajra Shattering Technique, the Eighth Master, Ba Yang Shen, shattered the void, leaving behind only a physical body.

Unless they come to provoke me, the Eighth Master is not a threat. What I am worried about is the Red Sun Dharma King. He is the number one assassin in Tantric Buddhism and the strongest assassin in the history of Tantric Buddhism. He was trained as an assassin from childhood and was able to rise to the position of Tantric Dharma King.

Compared to the Red Sun Dharma King, Zhongyuan Yidianhong was as naive as a child. Even assassins like Sima Xue, Liu Fenyu, and Meng Xinghun combined couldn't compare to him.

If the Red Sun Dharma King decides to launch an assassination, even those standing on the mountaintop could be injured. He is the most shameless, despicable, and ruthless of all.

Hey~
Pity!
If the Blackwater Gang hadn't been destroyed by Master Zhang, I really would want to know who was the top assassin, Zhu the Great Heavenly King or the Red Sun Dharma King, and who was more skilled at assassination.

I'm voting for Zhu Datianwang.

In terms of actual combat record, Zhu Datianwang ambushed and killed Yan Kuangtu and Li Chenzhou with a single, decisive blow.

The Red Sun Dharma King ambushed and severely injured Qin Mengyao. Even without the protagonist's halo to heal her, Qin Mengyao could have lasted for eighty-one days. They were evenly matched in terms of stealth and infiltration, but Zhu Datianwang was superior in terms of the power of his moves.

The group quickly exchanged information, Chu Liuxiang and Lu Xiaofeng left overnight, and Li Zhaoting went back to his room to sleep.

Few people can fall asleep.

Cao Xiong did his best to play the role of a chess piece.

Despite the pressure from Li Zhaoting, the various experts broke into smaller groups and infiltrated the area, setting up multiple ambushes.

Compared to the dark clouds hanging over the Qing Dynasty, the morale of the Wanyan clan was soaring. Li Zhaoting was certainly not a friend, but based on the principle that the enemy of my enemy is my friend, Li Zhaoting might offer help. Even if Li Zhaoting looked down on the Wanyan clan, he would at least disrupt the Qing Dynasty's plans.

A master of Li Zhaoting's caliber could disrupt the situation with a single strike if he were willing to go all out.

Every strategy has its limits.

A wise person can set up an ambush from all sides to kill.

The brave can choose a direction to charge in.

Not everyone can be like Han Xin. Once the soldiers suffer losses to a certain extent, a rout is inevitable.

Wu Sidao was helpless in the face of this.

Wu Sidao was a strategist.

Man proposes, God disposes.

Looking at the latest intelligence, the white-haired Wu Sidao sighed and blinked wearily. Jin Muxia wanted to use someone else to kill Wanyan Honglie, and those young people in the Sticky Rod Office also wanted to use someone else to kill.
Even Emperor Qianlong had this thought.

The relationship between Emperor Qianlong and Emperor Yongzheng was not good, and he did not particularly like the old officials left behind by his father.

Emperor Qianlong wouldn't mind rewarding a meritorious, intelligent, and relatively young official like Li Wei. But for a dead man, a reward is just an empty promise; no matter how great the reward, Li Wei couldn't possibly come back to life.

Not only did Wu Sidao not die, but in his twilight years, he repeatedly overcame his illness, devising strategies despite his frail health, displaying remarkable wit and resourcefulness, almost like a demon or an immortal.

If "Emperor Yongzheng" were a TV series, Wu Sidao would be both an actor and a screenwriter. As an outsider, he sees things more clearly, standing directly outside the world.

Emperor Qianlong disliked Wu Sidao's pretentiousness and unfathomable demeanor, yet he couldn't do without him. During the struggle for succession among the nine princes, Wu Sidao lived in the Prince's Mansion and served as Qianlong's tutor, teaching him many principles.

For example: reciting Emperor Kangxi's poems, recording how many animals were hunted as recorded in Kangxi's daily records, praising Kangxi as the number one warrior of the Qing Dynasty...

With a mix of emotions swirling within him, the spectacular drama of this Guandong martial arts tournament was, in effect, the final act arranged by Emperor Qianlong for Wu Sidao. He would either die at the hands of an assassin or succumb to exhaustion and burnout. Reflecting on the trials and tribulations of these past years, Wu Sidao sighed.

"I've lived long enough to get by!"

"Qiuyue, I should have come to see you a long time ago!"

"Qiuyue, you won't blame me, will you?"

Wu Sidao took out a jar of wine from his study. This was the fine wine that Consort Nian (Consort Hua) had personally brewed for him to keep him when he planned to retire after achieving his goals.

Wu Sidao buried the wine under the plum tree, dug it up by himself yesterday afternoon, and plans to drink it tonight.

"It's a pity I didn't live to see autumn!"

Wu Sidao poured himself a large bowl of wine, gulped down half of it, ate a few fried peanuts, and continued to drink heavily until he finished the entire jar. He felt dizzy, followed by a tightness in his chest, an unbearable metallic taste in his throat, and vomited a mouthful of blood.

The imperial physician, who had been waiting outside, rushed to treat the patient.

Wu Sidao must die, but he cannot die now.

Even if it means death, I will drag the remnants of the Wanyan clan down with me.

The imperial physicians of the Qing Dynasty were very "specialized" in certain areas.

Their expertise in pediatrics was extremely poor. The average age of Manchu princes and princesses was only in their twenties, which was worse than that of commoners raised in the countryside. This was all thanks to the imperial physicians.

Take the famous "Consort Hua" as an example.

Emperor Yongzheng doted on Consort Hua. During the period when Consort Hua was most favored, she gave birth to four children, all of whom died young!

The fact that more than a dozen of Emperor Kangxi's sons died young, and that about half of his princesses died prematurely, subconsciously leads people to suspect that the Manchu imperial physicians were all members of the Heaven and Earth Society, plotting to overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming.

However, once they survived the "torture" of the imperial physicians and successfully reached adulthood, as long as they didn't cause any trouble, most of them lived relatively peacefully, and could easily live to their sixties or seventies.

In other words, the imperial physicians of the Qing Dynasty were not very good at treating children, but were better at maintaining the health of the elderly.

In his later years, Emperor Kangxi indulged in deer blood wine and reveled with a large group of concubines. Emperor Yongzheng, on the other hand, was a workaholic. Without the care of imperial physicians, he would likely have long since suffered from exhaustion.

This prompted Li Zhaoting to consider going to the Manchu imperial palace to kidnap several imperial physicians for Zhao Zhen, so that they could take care of Zhao Zhen's health and prevent him from "dying young."

Thanks to the imperial physician's skillful treatment, Wu Sidao crawled back from the brink of death. His face was ashen, he was exhausted, and he was on his last breath, speaking in broken sentences.

“Yongning… Yongning…”

The imperial physician hurriedly sent someone to find Princess Yongning.

A glint of light flashed in Wu Sidao's eyes.

How could such a cunning old fox not leave himself an escape route?
When Yongning arrived, she knelt beside him and wept. Wu Sidao slowly raised his hand, and as Yongning helped him up, he tossed three brocade pouches into Yongning's sleeve: "Yongning, your teacher left you a will in a secret compartment of the study..."

……

In any major event in the martial arts world, a certain force is always involved, and this is especially true for larger events.

This force is: the most notorious troublemaker in the martial arts world, a super force boasting 365 branch headquarters, a jinx who never stops causing trouble, a bastard skilled at sowing discord and stabbing in the back, a rat everyone hates wherever he goes, and an endless schemer.

—The Azure Dragon Society!

The Guandong Martial Arts Tournament is such a major event, involving nearly twenty grandmasters, as well as the leader of the Heavenly Gang and the Eight Heroes of the Martial World. If the Azure Dragon Society doesn't come to lend a hand, it would be a disservice to the Azure Dragon Society's infamous reputation.

The Azure Dragon Society had dozens of branches during the Qing Dynasty.

The main focus is on the April branch.

The leader of the fourth month is responsible for the source of wealth.

Money can move mountains, and there can be many gods of wealth.

Huo Xiu, Shi Tianwang, and Yuan Suiyun all served as leaders of the April League, and the Qing Dynasty also had one such leader.

This man had a kind face but a wicked heart and was ruthless. He mainly dealt in rice, flour, and cooking oil. With the overt or covert support of a certain prince, he became the largest grain merchant in the Qing Dynasty.

No one knew her name, nor did anyone know her background; she only had a code name.

—Boss Xue!

With money, you can hire experts and buy intelligence.

Boss Xue's assistant, "Aunt Chang," gathered the relevant intelligence in just one day.

(End of this chapter)