Observing Wanfa from the martial arts school servants

Chapter 141 Idle Talk

When Lin Mu returned to Xianzong, a sliver of bluish-gray had just appeared on the horizon.

He closed his eyes and meditated for half an hour on the couch in the guesthouse, then hid his night clothes in a secret compartment and changed into clean clothes.

The medicinal power of the Rejuvenating Pill flowed slowly through the meridians, and a thin layer of scabs had formed on the wounds on the shoulder and under the ribs.

The mist in his dantian regained some brightness.

Just after dawn, Xiaoxiao pushed open the door and came in.

"Big brother! Let's do our morning lessons!"

She held the well-worn copy of "The Great Learning," her two crooked ponytails bouncing high in the morning breeze.

Lin Mu rubbed her head and followed her into the study.

Half an hour later, Lin Mu came out of the study and walked towards the blue stone platform by the waterfall.

After condensing his inner core, he no longer needed to endure the hammering of the waterfall, but he could not neglect his daily boxing practice.

Morning light filtered through the bamboo leaves and fell on the platform, while the mist from the waterfall rose and swirled in the sunlight. Several early-rising disciples of the Xianzong sect were already practicing by the pool.

Chuzhou and Fanyang arrived the earliest.

Chu Zhou was still dressed in his lean and fit outfit, while Fan Yang had a serious expression.

The two stood in their stances while chatting idly.

Lin Mu stood a few steps away on the edge of the platform, his back bent in a stance, slowly circulating his body-strengthening technique, listening to every word of their conversation.

"Have you heard? The Xuanmen sect has been wiped out again."

Chu Zhou stopped his Tongbei Fist stance and lowered his voice to speak.

"Wasn't it already taken down?"

Fan Yang yawned.

"The battle between the Quan family and the Xuanmen on the back mountain of the Zou family a few days ago was so fierce that it was dark and chaotic. In the end, it was Young Master Jinyu who stepped in to mediate."

"Does Young Master Jin Yu really have that much ability?"

"It's said that a very important person has stepped forward, and Young Master Jin Yu is just running errands."

Fan Yang looked around and lowered his voice even further.

"The number of people who can make the Quan family bow down can be counted on one hand in the entire Qingzhou Prefecture."

"But even after mediation, it was useless. Yu Qiubai was still killed, and the scene showed traces of the Golden Wing Technique."

"However, the Quan family has not admitted it."

Chu Zhou responded.

"Although Yu Qiubai is exhausted after the great battle, it will not be easy to kill him if the first seal of the Golden-Winged Phoenix is ​​not broken."

"The Quan family only has two elders, Quan Zhan and Quan Xin, in the Gang Jin realm in Qingzhou Prefecture; the others are all in other places."

"When Yu Qiubai died, neither Quan Zhan nor Quan Xin were present, but many people witnessed it."

"That's strange. If it wasn't the Quan family who did it, then who else could it be?"

Who cares who he is?

Chu Zhou draped the towel he was using to wipe his sweat over his shoulder.

"What I was about to say was something else—last night, another ten or so Core Formation cultivators from the Xuanmen sect were killed."

Fan Yang was drinking water from a bamboo tube when he heard this and choked, water running down his chin.

"Wasn't the Xuanmen sect wiped out by the Quan family long ago? The Qingzhou branch is completely empty, so where would they get a Core Formation cultivator?"

"Hidden in another stronghold."

Chu Zhou took half a step closer.

"There are about a dozen hidden in the training ground just two alleys behind the Quan family's herbal medicine shop. They were all recently transferred from various counties to tamper with the martial arts exams."

"They were all raided last night, not a single one was left alive. I heard it was a horrific scene."

"Is this the Golden Wing Technique again?"

No, that's not it.

"I heard the traces are very mixed, including all sorts of boxing styles, but they're all rudimentary skills."

"It should be the same group of people."

Chu Zhou frowned.

"Then who did it?"

"Who knows?"

"The Xuanmen has too many enemies. In Qingzhou Prefecture alone, there are the Quan family, the Zou family, and the rogue cultivators who were suppressed by them before. Any one of them has blood on their hands."

Chu Zhou shook his head.

"But speaking of which, why are they so concerned about the martial arts exam? They transferred people all the way from Yunzhou Prefecture just to cause trouble in the martial arts exam in Qingzhou Prefecture?"

"You don't understand."

Fan Yang kept it a secret.

"We disciples of the Xian Sect do not participate in the martial arts examinations unless we aspire to become the top martial arts champion. Otherwise, we can stay in the sect and cultivate with abundant resources. We can be assigned to official positions at any time, so the martial arts examinations are meaningless."

"But it's different for the Xuanmen (Taoist sect)."

"The Xuanmen is an alliance of demon descendants. Their goal is to squeeze into the martial arts examination, monopolize the quota, and prevent all non-demon descendants from entering the palace examination."

"The imperial examination contains the inheritance of ancient martial arts, and they don't want human martial artists to obtain it."

Chu Zhou nodded thoughtfully.

"However, unifying the martial arts curriculum will not be an easy task for them."

"There are quite a few strong individuals in each county."

"Have you heard of Zhao Youliang's twin swords? He's from Maple Forest Town, and he's in the mid-stage of Core Formation."

"Two longswords, one wrapped in fierce wind and the other frozen in frost, when used simultaneously, one cold and one hot, making it difficult for the opponent to even get close."

"He fought Ning Dan in eighteen matches and never lost."

"And Tang Yuan, who is skilled in using chains."

"Those chains are made of cold iron. They can extend and retract after martial arts are condensed into a dantian. Once you're entangled within ten steps, you can't escape."

.

"It is said that he single-handedly killed three ice wolves outside Yongye Pass last year."

"And Qin Wuding? He's from Qingzhou. His Vajra Fist technique has reached perfection; he can shatter a stone lion that's half a zhang tall with a single punch."

"I heard he never dodges, he takes the blows head-on, and fights until his opponent admits defeat."

"The most incomprehensible one is Bai Xiu. She's only nineteen years old and at the early stage of Core Formation, but she has the bloodline of the Ice Phoenix."

"With innate cold energy, one can freeze an area of ​​three zhang (approximately 1.6 meters) in the Transformation Stage."

"The Xuanmen sect invited her several times, but she ignored them completely."

Fan Yang clicked his tongue twice, and the conversation gradually came to a halt.

Lin Mu finished his stance training and exhaled a long breath.

The conversation between the two was very informative.

The Golden Wing Skill has a seal, so the power of the Quan family's Golden Wing Slashes may not be at its limit.

The Xuanmen sect's infiltration into the martial arts examinations was deeper than he had anticipated, with their people present at every level, from Heyuan to Qingzhou, from the county examinations to the prefectural examinations.

As he was thinking, a small hand tugged at the hem of his clothes.

"Big brother! Stewed goose in an iron pot!"

Xiaoxiao suddenly appeared out of nowhere, grabbing his sleeves with both hands and pulling him out with all her might, her heels creaking on the bluestone slabs.

Not far behind her, by the bamboo grove, Qin Wu was holding a bamboo basket. The basket contained something that was making a cawing sound and a muffled flapping of its wings.

"Where did this demon goose come from?"

Lin Mu squatted down and scratched Xiaoxiao's nose.

"Uncle Qin Wu caught it!"

Xiaoxiao spoke with righteous indignation.

"He said there were demon geese raised on the back mountain, and Xiaoxiao immediately asked her older brother to make her stewed goose in an iron pot!"

Qin Wu placed the bamboo basket at the kitchen door with a blank expression.

The demon goose in the basket was twice the size of an ordinary white goose, with a faint dark gold pattern around its neck. It was honking and flapping its wings, making the bamboo basket clang loudly.

Qin Wu lifted it out of the basket and slapped it on the goose's head, and the demon goose stopped moving.

Lin Mu rolled up his sleeves.

The stove fire licked the bottom of the pot, ginger slices sizzled in the hot oil, and a cloud of white steam rose the moment the goose meat hit the pot. The aroma of soy sauce mixed with the sweet and spicy scent of star anise wafted far and wide through the bamboo forest.

Xiaoxiao moved a small stool and sat by the stove, swinging her two short legs back and forth, occasionally standing up to peek into the pot.