In the beginning, he was ranked alongside An Shigeng as a spoiled brat.

"This humble dog has met the renowned masters Yagyu and Fu!"

"Greetings, Senior Brother Little Dog!"

Liu Sheng Piaoxu addressed him as "Senior Brother" as a sign of respect.

At the same time, the samurai dog also spotted Zhang Xiaoshan, a young man who appeared to be of noble birth.

A black-clad warrior stood guard on one side, holding a rare snow fox in his arms, while five hunting dogs comparable to tigers and leopards lay resting on the ground at his feet.

noble?

In contrast to the samurai of the four islands who served the nobility, the samurai of Horai Island focused primarily on martial arts.

Even so, the little dogs did not dare to act recklessly. After all, they were still samurai, and most of them served under nobles.

"This is Young Master Zhang from the Central Plains. He has come to pay his respects to Senior Yiben."

"Young master from the Central Plains? Please come in!"

Although not a member of the Japanese nobility, Xiao Quan knew that Zhang Xiaoshan's identity was definitely not simple.

After all, the presence of two beautiful heirs speaks volumes.

Upon entering the training ground, one is greeted by numerous warriors diligently practicing, which moves even Zhang Xiaoshan.

Compared to the treacherous world of martial arts in the Central Plains, Bushido in Japan is more like a spirit.

Primarily, it reflects the domineering nature of Confucianism.

The other schools of thought were suppressed, and Confucianism was exclusively honored.

Aside from the imperial examinations, even the head of the Six Doors was only a third-rank official, and above him, he was subject to the control of the Minister of Justice and the suppression of scholars.

Therefore, the separation between the martial arts world and the imperial court led to the result that knights-errant used their martial arts to break the law.

The backyard of the dojo.

In the quiet and elegant garden, an elderly man with white hair was fishing in the spring, his back to everyone, appearing mysterious and unpredictable.

"Master, the renowned masters Liu Sheng and Fu have arrived."

In addition, a distinguished guest from the Central Plains has come to visit Master!

"Distinguished guests from the Central Plains?"

The old man immediately turned around and looked at Zhang Xiaoshan with a hint of surprise.

Because his back was turned, the old man had not heard Zhang Xiaoshan's footsteps at all, even though Zhang was already within two zhang of him.

"Distinguished guests from the Central Plains have come from afar; it is I who have been negligent in my hospitality!"

"You're too kind, senior. I shouldn't have disturbed you."

Zhang Xiaoshan remained calm and composed, neither humble nor arrogant, and glanced at the old man's fishing hook before smiling:

"Are you waiting for someone, senior?"

"What you say is true, young master. I have been waiting for someone!"

"May I ask what brings you, young master, to Yibendaokou, accompanied by two renowned masters?"

"cooperate!"

Zhang Xiaoshan got straight to the point and explained the cooperation with Penglai.

Furthermore, there was also the addition of hired cooperation, namely, the Zhang family's merchant ships hired Penglai warriors for escort, traveling between the East and the West.

Zhang Xiaoshan did not refuse to hire disciples from prestigious schools like Shaolin and Wudang.

Instead, they were all weak but arrogant.

After all, prestigious sects only allow their direct disciples to learn their profound martial arts. The martial arts practiced by those outer disciples may not be as good as those warriors who just trained so hard.

For guards who are not top-tier or even third-rate, Japanese samurai are naturally more cost-effective.

Low hiring price, no arrogance from prestigious families, and excellent swimming skills!

"May I ask how you intend to hire him, young master?"

"For each great voyage, the price is 100 taels for a genin-level samurai, 300 taels for a chunin, and 1,000 taels for a jonin."

Moreover, these transactions were not settled in silver, but rather based on goods from the Central Plains.

Zhang Xiaoshan wasn't stingy; he always spoke in round numbers.

However, a single voyage between East and West takes at least six months, so the cost of hiring one is not high.

Of course, compared to the escort agencies in the mainland, the price was more than double.

However, if the settlement is made in the form of goods, the cost is lost, and the amount is reduced by an unknown amount.

Overall, everyone was happy.

"can!"

The old man made his decision without consulting the leaders of the other sects.

Because Zhang Xiaoshan's offer was not low, especially the payment method of goods, which was a great temptation.

"Master, he's here!"

he?

Zhang Xiaoshan looked at the person who had come, and it was a warrior dressed in white who slowly walked over.

The samurai glanced at Zhang Xiaoshan and his two companions, his gaze finally settling on the old man. He spoke slowly in Chinese:

"I am coming!"

"You're too late. If it were earlier, I might have been willing to fight you."

But now, my anger has dissipated!

Broken up?

Xiao Quan and Liu Sheng Piaoxu didn't understand, but Zhang Xiaoshan shook his head.

At the same time, they looked at the man in white, who also looked over. As their eyes met, the man in white's eyes suddenly gleamed.

"Are you a master from the Central Plains?"

Zhang Xiaoshan nodded, without denying it.

For a moment, the entire courtyard was eerily terrifying, and the white-clad man's gaze burned like fire, like a volcano that might erupt at any moment.

Even Fu Junzhuo could feel immense pressure amidst the oppressive atmosphere around her.

But Zhang Xiaoshan remained unusually calm.

Chapter Fifty-Three: Returning to the Central Plains via Peach Blossom Island

"You are strong!"

The white-clad swordsman didn't make a move; instead, he turned and left.

However, Zhang Xiaoshan shook his head and smiled, knowing that the white-clad swordsman intended to leave.

But no matter how fast the white-clad swordsman progresses, he can never surpass his speed; the gap between them will only widen.

What is the greatest point of progress made between life and death?

Zhang Xiaoshan is cheating.

Moreover, given the overwhelming power of his hard skills, the white-clad swordsman didn't even have the ability to severely injure Zhang Xiaoshan.

This is a flawless skill, unlike those third-rate masters who sell miracle drugs in the martial arts world; it truly makes one invulnerable to swords and spears.

Unless it's a sudden, fatal attack, Zhang Xiaoshan will be at his weakest point when he's completely relaxed.

Seeing this, the old man looked solemnly at the young man from the Central Plains before him.

With his keen eyesight, how could he not see that Zhang Xiaoshan was younger than the white-clad swordsman?

He had no doubt about the white-clad swordsman's strength, but he didn't expect that Zhang Xiaoshan's strength was such that even the white-clad swordsman was not confident of drawing his sword.

For a moment, I couldn't help but let out a long sigh:

The martial arts world of the Central Plains is a place where hidden talents abound!

A mere teenager possesses the power to intimidate the strange creatures of Penglai.

"It's a fine sword, but alas..."

A sigh of regret left everyone puzzled.

It's a pity they never fought? Or is it a pity their paths diverged?

Next, Zhang Xiaoshan toured Penglai and recruited several skilled ninjas.

Invisibility, disguise, clones...

Although these were all flaws in Zhang Xiaoshan's eyes, the group were all Jonin-level, no less than Ji Yaohua and Ruyan.

With the Taoist sects living in seclusion, Fusang ninjutsu is quite unique.

Ji Yaohua and Ruyan were both servants of the An family, just like Hongxiao and Jiangxue who served Zhang Xiaoshan. They were sent to Penglai to learn ninjutsu when they were very young.

The ninja masters recruited by Zhang Xiaoshan were locals from Penglai.

Because the training of these ninja arts requires a lot of medicinal herbs and resources, making them huge drug users, but for the Zhang family it's just small change.

Therefore, Zhang Xiaoshan did not hesitate to recruit him into his ranks.

Zhang Xiaoshan only stayed in Japan for seven days, but the gains he made in those seven days were enormous.

In addition to having four excellent partners, they can also hire Japanese samurai to escort their ships on long voyages, avoiding attacks from Japanese ronin and pirates along the coast, which is a win-win situation.

Next, Zhang Xiaoshan prepared to frantically ship soap to Japan.

This kind of low-cost item is only scarce now. Once they've squeezed all the gold and silver from Japan, Zhang Xiaoshan won't even release the formula without feeling the pinch.

However, Zhang Xiaoshan resisted the urge to make small profits but increase sales volume; a little more wouldn't hurt.

There are too many; even good things won't be worth much in the end.

"Farewell, Head of the Yagyu family!"

"Take care on your journey, Young Master Zhang!"

They boarded a merchant ship that was preparing to return to the Central Plains, and it was a large Fujianese ship that traveled between the Central Plains and Japan.

On the merchant ship, the merchants were extremely surprised when they learned of Zhang Xiaoshan's identity.

But there were more surprises than anything else.

Therefore, Zhang Xiaoshan not only did not need to change routes again, but also reached Lin'an Prefecture directly.

Sailing at sea is undoubtedly a lonely experience, especially when it lasts for months at a time.

Out of boredom, Zhang Xiaoshan spent most of his time practicing martial arts.

Aside from the purple aura of the rising sun in the morning, Zhang Xiaoshan was also practicing the 'Pure Yang Limitless Skill'.

The domineering nature of the external hard qigong meant that every morning, he would have rice porridge made with a top-quality nine-ounce old ginseng; at noon, he would have ten catties of beef and a large cup of wine; and in the evening, he would still have ten catties of beef, leaving everyone on the ship dumbfounded.

Even Fu Junzhuo felt the intense, sun-like energy and blood when Zhang Xiaoshan was cultivating.

The seemingly tall and somewhat delicate young man was actually a master of physical training.

Moreover, he is a martial arts master who has achieved the ultimate in physical strength.

"Young Master Zhang, doesn't Senior Ghost One need to eat?"

Fu Junzhuo discovered this problem a long time ago, but she has always been skeptical.

However, the ship was cramped these past few days, and she truly saw the ghost. It hadn't eaten for several days and drank some unknown substance every three days, which was extremely mysterious.

"Ghost One cultivates the Bat Blood Technique, a secret Miao ethnic technique."

After reaching the highest level, the body becomes stiff like a zombie, impervious to swords and spears, and lives on blood.

Under normal circumstances, one can abstain from drinking blood and eating for half a month, but generally one bag of sheep's blood is given every three days to suppress blood cravings.

If used for defense, the Bat Blood Technique is terrifying; it can instantly suck the enemy's blood into one's mouth.

Moreover, his strength increased dramatically, restoring him to his peak condition.