Ming Dynasty: I am truly not the Emperor of Longevity

The words of "Ghost's Bane" were far beyond Lu Chen's expectations.

Lu Chen originally thought that the external martial arts this person practiced were a secret technique passed down by some sect, but he didn't expect it to be a common technique circulating in a Miao village!

Moreover, judging from what he said, many people in that Miao village practice this sword technique, but the vast majority of them cannot find the Qi sensation.

Even if a few people manage to sense the Qi and develop some internal strength, their improvement is very limited; at most, they can only use a Miao sword weighing seven or eight pounds.

Some of the strongest men in the army can wield blunt weapons weighing seven or eight pounds.

These Miao people, who had cultivated some internal strength, were much stronger than ordinary people, but they did not exceed the limits of normal people.

In other words, this external martial arts technique, which has been passed down in the Miao village since the Tang Dynasty, has never been used by anyone to become a true master in hundreds of years.

This sword technique has always been regarded as an ordinary martial art.

But how could this person break through the limits that countless Miao people could not break through and develop a powerful external internal strength?

"So many people practice but fail to become masters, how did you manage to do it?"

Lu Chen stared into the eyes of "Ghost's Sorrow".

"I don't believe you haven't thought about this issue carefully."

"For so many years, I have been completely baffled by this."

Upon hearing Lu Chen's question, "Ghost's Sorrow" let out a long sigh.

"Back when I had just developed a sense of Qi, I also discussed it with several experts in the village who had developed some internal strength."

Their experience was similar to mine; they all felt a warm current in their dantian when their blood and qi were full during a sword practice session.

As he continued to practice his swordsmanship, this warm current gradually strengthened, and he slowly began to be able to control it as if it were his own limbs, allowing it to flow along the meridians in his body.

Wherever the warm current reaches, power is enhanced.

When applied to the arm, the originally heavy weapon becomes light.

It was only then that I realized that this must be the internal energy that has been circulating in the martial arts world for so long.

Although we practiced the exact same sword technique, the others were even more diligent than me, and they shared their cultivation insights without reservation, often discussing them together.

However, once their internal strength reached a level where they could exert themselves to the point where their arm strength was about twice that of an average person, they could no longer increase it no matter how hard they practiced.

According to the village elders, I am the only one who has broken through this limit in hundreds of years.

About ten years ago, I also reached my limit, when I could increase my strength by about five times when I used my internal energy.

It could no longer grow, which is why I began to seek out internal martial arts techniques.

Lu Chen did not doubt that this person was holding back when discussing with the Miao people, after all, this martial art had been passed down in the village for hundreds of years.

Over the years, there must have been many masters who had developed some internal strength, and their various insights had long been commonplace.

Therefore, this "Broken Mountain Saber Technique," which originated from a Tang Dynasty military general, is actually a martial art that heavily relies on talent.

"Ghost's Bane" can break through the limits and, with the support of internal energy, can exert more than five times the strength of an ordinary person, simply because the body is very compatible with this external martial art.

The Tang Dynasty general who passed down this sword technique was probably also a person with extraordinary talent.

"Since you had already settled down and built a career in that Miao village, why did you return to the Central Plains?"

Lu Chen continued to ask,

"According to what you just said, you only started to pursue internal martial arts techniques ten years ago because you reached a bottleneck in your internal strength."

However, I have investigated and found that the first major case you handled was committed in Chongqing Prefecture sixteen years ago.

At that time, you had only been practicing this swordsmanship for about four years. Staying in the Miao village would have been your best choice. Why did you end up in Chongqing Prefecture?

"Do you really think I would abandon my wife and children back then in pursuit of martial arts skills?"

"Ghost's Sorrow" burst into wild laughter.

Sixteen years ago, An Wanyi, the chieftain of Shuixi and the Pacification Commissioner of Guizhou, died suddenly. His younger brother, An Wanquan, took advantage of the young age of the emperor to "succeed" as the Pacification Commissioner of Guizhou and took charge of Shuixi.

Taking advantage of the internal turmoil in Shuixi, Yang Xiang, the Xuanwei Envoy of Bozhou, the chieftain of Bozhou, who bordered Shuixi, secretly launched a surprise attack, intending to reclaim the land that had been seized by Shuixi in the past.

My wife and children's Miao village is right on the route of the Bozhou soldiers' sneak attack!

In order to prevent the surprise attack from being leaked, Zhang Shiyan, the commander of the Bozhou army, ordered the massacre of the village.

Although there were dozens of men in the village who practiced the Broken Mountain Sword Technique, they were powerless to resist the thousands of armored and shield-wielding Bozhou soldiers who were as fierce as wolves and tigers.

I will never forget what happened that day.

As my relatives and friends, with whom I had spent the last four years, fell one by one, I was in a life-or-death situation. The village elder summoned several experts from the village, including myself, who had cultivated internal strength.

They ordered us to ignore everyone else, concentrate our forces to break through the encirclement, and file a complaint with the Ming government against the Yang family of Bozhou for their unauthorized use of force and the extermination of their entire clan and village.

Our group of six fought desperately, but in the end, only two of us, including myself, managed to break through the encirclement and escape into the mountains.

After shaking off our pursuers and enduring countless hardships, we trekked through the towering mountains of northern Guizhou and finally submitted a petition to the Chongqing government office to accuse the Yang family of Bozhou.

The people from Chongqing told us to go back to the inn and wait for news. Do you know what we got in return?

Assassins sent by Bozhou!

That corrupt official sold us off to the Yang family of Bozhou in a flash!

The last person who escaped the village with me died in the inn while covering my escape.

After escaping the inn, I decided to go all the way and sneak into that corrupt official's mansion under the cover of night, killing his entire family of more than ten people.

From then on, he was wanted by the imperial court and became known as a notorious bandit!

I am a man of my word, and I will never regret it!

After this incident, my only obsession in this life is to avenge the Yang family of Bozhou and to repay the blood debt owed to my wife, children, and hundreds of lives in the entire village.

I practiced the Broken Mountain Saber Technique relentlessly, and after reaching a bottleneck ten years ago, I sought out internal martial arts techniques everywhere, all so that one day I could kill Prime Minister Yang and Zhang Shiyan to avenge them.

"I see."

Upon hearing the words "the devil's nightmare," Lu Chen also let out a long sigh.

"I never imagined you had such a blood feud."

However, over the years you have acted erratically, committed countless major crimes, and have taken at least a hundred lives.

I don't believe they all deserved to die.

"Once someone commits indiscriminate killing, it becomes much easier to do it again."

"Ghost's Sorrow" said with a wry smile.

"I have blood on my hands, and now that I've been captured, I probably won't be able to leave alive."

The reason I told you about these past events was so that I wouldn't let that bloody case from sixteen years ago be forgotten.

Your Excellency is so young yet already possesses such profound inner strength; your potential is limitless.

I believe that the crimes of the Yang family of Bozhou will one day be punished.

"I have taken note of what you have said."

Lu Chen nodded slightly.

"You were captured by the Eastern Depot yesterday. From today onwards, you will be escorted to the capital as a wanted criminal and executed in accordance with the law."

Releasing you is impossible. However, if you can answer my questions truthfully, I might grant you a quick death.

For the past ten years, you've been pursuing internal martial arts techniques; you must have come into contact with some masters of internal martial arts, right?