Courtyard House: A System Connecting Two Worlds, Resources for the Nation

For the sake of his father's life, Duan Yu was desperate. He stumbled and rushed over, spreading his arms to stand between the two.

Zhou Feng withdrew his internal energy, then used the Lingbo Weibu (a martial arts technique) to spin twice in place, dissipating the force generated by his attack.

Duan Zhengchun's finger strike was somewhat delayed, and the force of the finger grazed Duan Yu's shoulder, tearing a hole in his outer robe.

This immediately changed his expression. He took half a step back, focused his mind, and withdrew his inner strength.

Ignoring the burning pain in his shoulder, Duan Yu abruptly turned to his father: "Father! Young Master Zhou was invited back by Miss Zhong to save people! They killed Ye Erniang, Yue Laosan, and Yun Zhonghe, thwarted the Four Evils' conspiracy, and even saved me! Please, please don't fight with Young Master Zhou!"

His expression was extremely anxious, and his body was intentionally or unintentionally blocking Duan Zhengchun's way.

Although his relationship with Zhou Feng and the others wasn't very deep, considering that he led the way to Langhuan Paradise, with him in front of them, at least Zhou Gongzi's men wouldn't use those hidden weapons to attack his father!

Noticing that his father had given up the idea of ​​taking action, Duan Yu breathed a sigh of relief, looked at Zhou Feng seriously, and bowed deeply: "Young Master Zhou, my father really mistook you for someone else, thinking that your lady was an old acquaintance of his. I hope you will forgive him."

Zhou Feng waved his hand casually. Anyway, he hadn't suffered any loss. On the contrary, the test showed that his internal strength was now no less than Duan Zhengchun's. He even felt that Duan Zhengchun's martial arts were just so-so!

Looking at this comparison, perhaps next time I encounter Duan Yanqing, I can test his skills myself without using a sniper rifle.

Duan Zhengchun's lips moved, his gaze swept over Zhou Feng, and looked at Zhao Pan'er behind him. He seemed to want to say something, but when he saw Zhao Pan'er holding Zhou Feng's arm, he swallowed the words that were about to come out.

Dao Baifeng also left the battlefield and quickly walked to Duan Zhengchun's side. Gritting her teeth, she squeezed out a sentence: "That's Young Master Zhou's wife. Haven't you embarrassed yourself enough today?"

It's one thing for him to flirt with Zhong Wanchou's wife, but at least Dao Baifeng knows about Gan Baobao's existence.

But Mrs. Zhou didn't know him, yet he still wanted to approach her in front of her.

You should know that three of the Four Evils died at the hands of this young man. Does Duan Zhengchun have no regard for his life?

Besides, the other party even saved my Yu'er!

If Duan Zhengchun were to speak again, he would utterly disgrace the entire Dali Duan family!

Ba Tianshi cleared his throat at the opportune moment, stepped forward, and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Zhou Feng: "Young master, my lord was quite rude just now. I am Ba Tianshi, a member of the Duan family of Dali. I thank you for your help in saving my young master. May I ask your honorable name?"

Zhou Feng glanced at him, then at Duan Zhengchun. Seeing that the other man had already withdrawn his gaze from Zhao Pan'er, he casually waved his hand and said, "Disciple of the Free and Unfettered Sect, Zhou Feng."

Ba Tianshi nodded, cupped his hands in greeting to Zhou Feng, turned around and walked to Duan Zhengming's side, whispering a few words to him.

The latter nodded, his gaze sweeping over Zhou Feng and his companions. He gave a slight nod and then said, "Young Master Zhou, your chivalrous spirit is truly admirable. Why don't you come back to Dali City with us? My Duan family will surely repay you handsomely!"

Zhou Feng glanced at Zhao Pan'er, who nodded slightly before bowing to Duan Zhengming and saying, "Then I will trouble you and my wife."

After greeting Zhou Feng, Duan Zhengming turned to look at Zhong Wanchou. Several of his retainers behind him drew their weapons, and Duan Yu quickly stepped forward to stop them again.

"Uncle, it wasn't this Mr. Zhong who kidnapped me. I encountered the Four Evils on my way back and was captured by that crippled villain. They were just trying to trick my father in Dali City."

Duan Zhengming glanced at Duan Yu, who was still speaking up for Zhong Wanchou, then at Zhong Wanchou, who was stubbornly refusing to speak. After a few seconds of silence, he waved his hand and said, "Alright, let's go back. But Master Zhong, although my Dali Duan family is usually kind to others, we are still a prominent family in the martial arts world. If anyone in your valley targets members of my Duan family again, don't blame me for being impolite!"

Upon hearing this, Zhong Wanchou wanted to say something harsh, but Gan Baobao pulled his arm hard, making him swallow his words.

He used to hide in Wanjie Valley, where he could say whatever he wanted.

Now that the location of Wanjie Valley has been confirmed by the other party, if he causes any more trouble, it's likely that more than just a few people will come.

Zhong Ling stuck out her tongue and slipped away from her parents as quickly as possible, darting into Zhou Feng and the others' carriage.

"Ling'er, where are you going?"

"Mother! I promised Brother Zhou I would venture out and explore the world, how can I go back on my word? I'll be back in a while!"

Zhong Ling, inside the carriage, replied in a charmingly sweet voice.

She's always been a restless person, and now that Zhou Feng and the others are her shields, of course she's going to keep running away from home.

Previously, she had been half-forced into the carriage by Zhou Feng and the others, but now she wanted to get on the carriage on her own initiative and didn't even want to leave!

There's no such thing as a perfect life. You get to enjoy so many delicious snacks on the carriage, have a sister like Qin Jingru who you get along with, and have Zhou Feng and the others to protect you so you won't encounter any danger.

Forget about being coerced, even if Zhou Feng wanted to kick Zhong Ling out now, she wouldn't leave!

However, Bai Ling, Zhao Pan'er, and the other girls exchanged glances and roughly understood what was going on.

Their team might go from 5 to 6!

At this moment, Mu Wanqing was standing behind Qin Hongmian.

The reason Zhong Ling was allowed to ride in the carriage was because she was worried about her safety, so she begged Zhou Feng to agree.

Now that she has found her own master, she naturally no longer needs to act with Zhou Feng and the others.

However, as Mu Wanqing watched Zhou Feng and the others' carriage gradually move forward from a distance, a hint of reluctance slowly appeared in her eyes.

Although they had only traveled such a short distance, the harmony and tolerance among Zhou Feng and his companions, as well as the comfort of the carriage, made her reluctant to leave.

As the saying goes, it is easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but difficult to go from extravagance to frugality.

Having ridden in Zhou Feng's carriage, it was naturally a bit difficult to switch to horseback riding.

"Qing'er, your condition..."

Qin Hongmian noticed Mu Wanqing's pale face and placed her hand on her wrist with concern. Her expression immediately changed: "Where is your internal energy? Why is your body so weak?"

Upon hearing her master's question, Mu Wanqing hesitated for a few seconds but still didn't tell the truth.

Three of the Four Villains have already died at the hands of Zhou Feng and his group. Even if he tells Qin Hongmian the truth, what difference will it make?

Can Qin Hongmian still seek revenge from Zhou Feng on her behalf?

Then it definitely won't be Zhou Feng and the others who fall!

She has already lost so much internal energy, so she shouldn't let her master take any more risks.

Otherwise, how would the two of them, master and apprentice, roam the martial arts world in the future?

Sitting in the carriage, Qin Jingru grinned: "That person was quite nice just now, saying he would reward us handsomely. I wonder what kind of reward we will get."

Do you think he's a good person?

Zhou Feng looked up at Qin Jingru expressionlessly, and the latter nodded seriously.

"Sister Bailing just said that the man on horseback is named Duan Zhengming, the emperor of the Dali Kingdom. For an emperor from the old society to treat us like this, isn't he a good person?"

Unlike Zhao Pan'er and Sun San Niang, whose world had long since ended feudal society, they still harbored a certain curiosity about ancient emperors.

Bai Ling was alright, after all, she had met Puyi.

But Qin Jingru and Lou Xiao'e, both naturally cheerful girls, would certainly take a closer look at the emperor now that they had met him in person.

"You think he treated us well, so why didn't he stop Duan Zhengchun when he attacked me?"

Zhou Feng asked a question casually, which surprised Qin Jingru and the other girls.

"If my skills aren't up to par and I get injured by Duan Zhengchun, do you think he'll punish Duan Zhengchun for it? Or will he just offer a perfunctory apology and let the matter drop?"

Having said all that, the outcome is already obvious.

A hint of disdain appeared on Zhou Feng's lips. In the world of martial arts novels, one's own strength is far more important for improving one's status than wealth and power.

After all, even an old beggar like Hong Qigong could freely enter and leave the imperial kitchen of the palace to steal food, which shows that in the eyes of these martial arts masters, imperial power was nothing special.

After Zhou Feng's words, the girls' infatuation with Duan Zhengming was somewhat dispelled, so they decided not to talk about such a disappointing topic and instead discussed where they wanted to go for fun in the capital of Dali Kingdom later!

When it comes to this topic, Zhong Ling has the right to speak.

Although Zhong Wanchou harbored extreme hatred towards the Duan family of Dali, he did not restrict Gan Baobao and Zhong Ling's personal freedom. The mother and daughter visited the capital of Dali quite often.

After entering the city, Ba Tianshi once again came to the front of Zhou Feng and his companions' carriage and cupped his hands in greeting: "Young Master Zhou, my lord sincerely invites you all to stay at the Zhennan Prince's Mansion. On the one hand, the accommodations are quite nice, and on the other hand, we can also fulfill our duty as hosts."

"No need, thank you for your kind invitation, Prince Zhennan. My ladies and I will find an inn in the city to rest, so we won't bother you any longer."

Zhou Feng's voice came from inside the carriage, which made Ba Tianshi's face turn somewhat ugly. The invitation from the dignified Prince of Zhennan was actually rejected outright!

But since the other party was, after all, his young master's benefactor, he couldn't say anything more. He could only sigh and go back to report.

Zhou Feng and the others completely ignored his attitude. Tie Jianguo, who was sitting in the driver's seat, drove directly towards the largest inn in the city, following the directions given by Zhong Ling.

Just as Duan Zhengming said, the generous reward was completely dispensable to them.

Behind this group of people lies an entire world, and the prosperous Song Dynasty at that.

Let alone gold and silver jewelry, even if you gave Zhou Feng the entire Dali, he wouldn't even look at it.

Even the entire world of Dream of Splendor was thrown to Chen Xiao by Zhou Feng. How could worldly wealth possibly attract him?

Perhaps because they were unhappy with Zhou Feng and the others' attitude, they spent two or three days playing and having fun in Dali City, and Duan Zhengming and Duan Zhengchun did not contact them.

It wasn't until the fourth day that Duan Zhengming appeared outside the inn, followed by his men carrying several wooden boxes.

"As the ruler of Dali, I have been busy with state affairs these past few days and have neglected Young Master Zhou and his wife. Please forgive me."

Duan Zhengming was quite polite. He bowed to Zhou Feng as soon as they met, then turned his body slightly to reveal the wooden box behind him.

"This is a small token of my gratitude for your help in saving my nephew. I hope you will accept it, Young Master Zhou."

Zhou Feng nodded, his gaze not falling on the wooden crates, but instead fixed on Duan Zhengming: "King Duan, you didn't come here just to deliver gifts, did you?"

Duan Zhengming's expression stiffened, and he gave an awkward laugh before lowering his voice: "Young Master Duan, you may not know this, but in the next two days, our Dali Tianlong Temple will be facing a formidable enemy."

"The Great Snow Mountain Great Wheel King and the Tibetan National Preceptor Kumārajīva have sent a letter of invitation, wanting to take the treasure of my Dali Tianlong Temple, the supreme secret of the Dali Duan family martial arts, saying that they want to send it to Suzhou to be burned. This is simply absurd. I hope that Young Master Zhou can lend a hand. If you can make Kumārajīva back down, that would be the best."

As the ruler of the country, he naturally couldn't act like an ordinary martial arts practitioner, resorting to violence at the drop of a hat.

Kumārajīva was the national preceptor of Tibet and the ruler of Dali.

If he were to resolve the issue of Kumārajīva, it could easily escalate into a diplomatic problem between the Tibetan and Dali kingdoms.

This is certainly not what Duan Zhengming wanted to see.

However, if Zhou Feng were to step in and force Kumārajīva to retreat, then it would simply be a friendly sparring match among martial artists, and the Tibetan side would have nothing to say about it.

"Tenryu-ji?"

Zhou Feng raised his eyebrows slightly.

After playing for so many days, I've finally received some useful information.

At this point in the story, Duan Yu neither absorbed that much internal energy nor needed to be sent to Tianlong Temple for treatment. He even thought that Xiao Zhi had stopped coming because of the butterfly wings!

Hearing news about Xiao Zhi now made Zhou Feng feel a strange sense of warmth.

Now that Xiao Zhi is here, things will be much easier!

He looked at Duan Zhengming and nodded slightly: "I understand about this matter. King Duan only needs to send someone to inform him later."

Now that Xiao Zhi is coming, Zhou Feng needs to prepare in advance.

In the original story, in order to resist Kumārajīva, these old monks hung the diagram of the Six Meridians Divine Sword in the hall, and six people practiced the six meridians separately.

This gave Zhou Feng the opportunity to take photos secretly, since the drones Lin Yin brought had long-distance shooting capabilities and the clarity was definitely sufficient.

If he can get his hands on the Six Meridians Divine Sword manual, he might be able to master it.

Although Duan Yu learned the Qi Guiding and Returning to Emptiness method of the Dali Duan family, the Beiming Divine Art also has a similar method, which is even more exquisite than that of Dali!

In terms of internal energy alone, although Zhou Feng did not have as much as Duan Yu, he had the advantage of having a very solid foundation in the Beiming Divine Art. The internal energy he absorbed was also much purer than Duan Yu's after transformation.