Martial Arts Master: The Lin Family Sword God, who swept through the Five Mountains and Four Sects

"Good! Good! Good!" Guo Jing said three times, suppressing his excitement. "We are currently in the midst of a major battle, so we, uncle and nephew, will talk later." With the great battle at hand, there was no time to be distracted.

Releasing Yang Guo, he turned to look at Lin Tian, ​​who was standing quietly to the side, and said in a softer tone, "Junior Brother Zhitian, with you here today, I no longer have to shoulder the burden alone."

He was well aware of Lin Tian's abilities—this man was unfathomable and certainly no less capable than him.

"Senior Brother Guo, how have you been?" Lin Tian smiled and cupped his hands. "Since Senior Brother is unwilling to embarrass himself, as his junior brother, I naturally feel embarrassed to show my face as well."

"ah--"

Guo Jing's face stiffened, and he said urgently, "Junior Brother Zhitian! What you're saying..."

Before he could finish speaking, Yang Guo stepped forward and said loudly, "Uncle Guo, there's no need to worry. Master's meaning is very clear—why would he need to personally deal with such an opponent? Master, you rest. I'll handle this big monk."

"Can't win?" Lin Tian glanced at him indifferently. "Ten days of confinement."

"Uh..." Yang Guo shuddered, his expression changing slightly. Last time, he was locked in a dark room for three days for slacking off during practice—at first he didn't take it seriously, but on the second day he broke down: that wasn't confinement, it was torture in purgatory!

"Great monk!" Yang Guo roared, stepping forward bare-handed. "I'll take you on!"

He cultivated the Nine Yin Manual, and all his skills were contained in his palms and legs, so he didn't need any weapons.

"Guo'er! No!" Guo Jing's heart tightened, and he almost rushed forward to stop them. Even he himself wasn't confident of victory against the Golden Wheel Monk, let alone this child?

Lin Tian raised his hand to stop him, a smile playing on his lips: "Don't worry, if I wasn't confident, why would I let him fight? Senior Brother Guo, just keep an eye on things."

Even so, Guo Jing's face was still full of anxiety.

At this moment, Huang Rong walked gracefully closer, her gaze falling on Lin Tian: "Is this Yang Guo's master, Daoist Zhitian?"

"Just call me Lin Tian, ​​Chief Huang." Lin Tian's tone was calm and not overly polite.

To be precise, he didn't have much affection for Huang Rong, or rather, for Huang Rong of this era.

During the time of the Condor Heroes, she was a clever and witty little fairy; but by the time of The Return of the Condor Heroes, she had become protective, calculating, competitive, and always put her husband first, and was worn down by the years into the image of a woman from the old world.

Lin Tian even suspected that Huang Yaoshi's estrangement from Guo Jing's family was not necessarily because he disliked Guo Jing's dullness—but more because he was heartbroken to see his daughter change after getting married, to the point that even her own father could not recognize her, which made him unwilling to live with them on Peach Blossom Island.

After nodding and greeting Lin Tian, ​​Huang Rong turned to Guo Jing and said softly, "Brother Jing, you previously mentioned that Guo'er's master, Brother Lin, is no less skilled than you. Since he has agreed to let Guo'er take the field, he must be very confident. Besides, he knows Guo'er's abilities better than anyone else. Let's wait and see how things unfold in this battle. Perhaps Guo'er can give us a pleasant surprise."

"Um."

Guo Jing's brows relaxed slightly. Although Huang Rong had reassured him somewhat, his muscles and bones remained tense, and his inner energy quietly rose to its peak. If Yang Guo were to suffer even the slightest mishap, he would strike instantly without hesitation.

"Great monk, are you the Golden Wheel Monk?" Yang Guo looked the other man up and down, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"Oh? This little brat knows my name?" The Golden Wheel Monk raised an eyebrow, his face full of surprise. He was a high-ranking disciple of the Western Xia Tantric sect and had never shown his face in the Central Plains martial arts world. Logically speaking, no one should recognize him.

"Of course I've heard of it." Yang Guo chuckled, a hint of mockery in his eyes. "Three years ago, there were two good-for-nothings named Huo Du and Darba, who were killed by my master. Before they died, they were shouting something about 'The Golden Wheel Monk will avenge us'—I was thinking, how powerful must this master be to be worthy of shouting such a slogan? But then I saw... hey, you?"

The Golden Wheel Monk's face darkened instantly, his gaze sweeping like a knife towards Lin Tian beside him, a flash of killing intent appearing and then disappearing before he coldly fixed his gaze on Yang Guo:

"You sharp-tongued brat, once I've dealt with you, I'll settle accounts with your master. Hmph! I'll give you three moves today, so you won't accuse me of bullying the weak."

"Oh?" Yang Guo's eyes lit up, and he grinned. "You said it yourself—if you miss a move, you're a bastard."

Before he finished speaking, the other man approached like a ghost, his body moving like a snake or a fox, his right fist carrying immense internal force, aimed straight at the Golden Wheel Monk's chest!

This attack came without warning and was incredibly swift. The Golden Wheel Monk had no time to dodge and could only forcefully gather his inner energy to take the blow with his physical body.

"Bang--!"

A muffled thud exploded, and the ground trembled.

"Snake-like movements and fox-like leaps? The Great Subduing Demon Fist?! This...this is a martial art from the Nine Yin Manual! How could Guo'er know these?!" Huang Rong's pupils shrank, and she exclaimed in a low voice.

"He is my disciple, so naturally I taught him." Lin Tian said calmly, as if he were talking about something perfectly ordinary.

"But you... how could you..." Huang Rong frowned, realizing her mistake halfway through her sentence, and quickly stopped. After all, the Nine Yin Manual was obtained by Master Chongyang, who had explicitly forbidden Quanzhen disciples from practicing it. Now that Lin Tian had openly violated the ancestral precepts, such a matter should not be discussed.

"Brother Lin, I..." She looked at Lin Tian with a slightly apologetic expression.

Lin Tian waved his hand, a slight smile playing on his lips: "I'm at most a half-disciple of the Quanzhen School. The rules set by Wang Chongyang don't apply to me. Besides—didn't he practice the Nine Yin Manual himself? Is it a case of 'the magistrate is allowed to set fires, but the common people are forbidden even to light lamps'?"

In his eyes, Wang Chongyang was nothing but a hypocrite. Unable to decipher Lin Chaoying's "Jade Maiden Heart Sutra," he secretly carved the "Nine Yin Manual" into the Ancient Tomb, shamelessly declaring that "Chongyang's life was no less than anyone else's"—his shamelessness was unparalleled. Lin Chaoying, a woman of such stature, was truly blind to have fallen for such a hypocritical scoundrel.

To say Wang Chongyang never practiced the Nine Yin Manual? Ha! That's like a man hugging a woman and saying, "I'm just going to rub against you," who would believe that?

……

Yang Guo's punch was utterly merciless. Caught off guard, the Golden Wheel Monk had no choice but to withstand it with his bare flesh.

The consequences were predictable.

If he hadn't already cultivated the Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill to the ninth level, with his bones and muscles as strong as iron and his physique comparable to Vajra, this punch would have been enough to cripple him on the spot.

Even so, he was blasted so hard that his blood and qi surged, a sweet taste rose in his throat, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. He staggered back several steps, and the bluestone beneath his feet cracked with spiderweb-like marks, embedding itself deeply into the ground.

"You!! Despicable!!" The Golden Wheel Monk's eyes turned bloodshot as he glared at Yang Guo.

Yang Guo shrugged, looking completely innocent: "Hey, big monk, you were the one who said you'd let me have three moves, right? And you're already swearing after just the first move? Don't forget, there are still two moves left—are you going to fight back?"

Before he finished speaking, his figure moved again, his killing intent surging, and he pounced to kill once more.

Should I take two more hits?

The Golden Wheel Monk was no pushover; if he withstood two more moves from Yang Guo, he would lose his life.

A chill ran down his spine, and he dared not underestimate his opponent again. His shoulders trembled slightly, and five cold lights burst forth from behind him—gold, silver, bronze, iron, and lead wheels appeared simultaneously!

These five wheels are made of different materials, some as heavy as a thousand pounds, others as fast as lightning, combining strength and flexibility, making them unpredictable and difficult for ordinary masters to even see through, let alone parry.

But what about Yang Guo? He remained nonchalant on the surface, but his mind was already on edge. He knew that this bald monk before him was a man who could truly kill.

In the instant the five wheels pierced the air, he touched the ground with his toes, and his figure suddenly transformed into a blur—the Nine Spiral Shadows, five bodies in one step! It was impossible to distinguish between the real and the fake, as elusive as a ghost, forcing the Golden Wheel Monk to change his moves repeatedly, disrupting his rhythm.

The Heart-Shattering Palm thrusts out horizontally, its chilling wind biting to the bone; the Nine Yin Divine Claw tears through the air, grabbing for the throat; the hand wields the Five Strings, the finger strength sweeping like the sound of a zither; the Great Subduing Demon Fist crashes down with thunderous force! All the ultimate techniques of the Nine Yin Manual are at his fingertips, forcing the Golden Wheel Monk to retreat step by step, until he is overwhelmed and unable to breathe.

"I never imagined... that Guo'er would possess such skill!" Guo Jing's eyes reddened, and his voice trembled. "If Brother Yang could know this in the afterlife, he would surely be smiling in his grave."

He then turned and clasped his hands in a respectful bow to Lin Tian, ​​saying, "Thanks to Junior Brother Zhi Tian's meticulous guidance, I, Guo, am deeply grateful!"

Lin Tian raised his hand in a gesture of support and said with a faint smile, "Senior Brother Guo, you flatter me. He is my disciple, and it is only my duty to teach him everything I know."