Daily life of a teacher in the martial arts department

The two found an empty classroom nearby.

The man took out some documents from his pocket and handed them to Mu Nandong. Mu Nandong quickly glanced at them... If Shen Xin were present at this moment, he would definitely recognize that these were the prescriptions that Feng Yunke had written for them to treat Shen Jiu.

"It looks like a prescription... Was it copied from some ancient book?" Mu Nandong frowned slightly and said, "It's so messy..."

How can a prescription be considered 'chaotic'?

But Mu Nandong could tell that this prescription was very 'chaotic'.

This "chaos" doesn't refer to the disordered medicinal properties of the herbs, but rather to...

"Centennial Valley, scientifically known as Qihua, is the name given to Qihua by the Adiya civilization more than two thousand years ago. White Dragon, scientifically known as Shanzao, is also a name used by the western minority groups of Northern Qin. Shengzhizi refers to bamboo fruit, a medicinal material from the Cherry Blossom region of Seti, and is a transliteration based on the pronunciation there. Wheat Straw refers to agarwood bark, but this name disappeared as early as sixteen hundred years ago. If I hadn't read ancient border books, I probably wouldn't have known... what this prescription is all about?"

Yes, this is the "chaos" that Mu Nandong sensed.

The names of the medicinal herbs used in this prescription are a complete mess. One second they're from sand-fighting people in some civilization three thousand years ago, the next they're from rural residents in some ancient city, and then they're from modern scholars using incredibly professional scientific terms. It's like laymen always calling things "internal strength," "mental techniques," "martial arts," and "external strength," while martial arts masters basically just say "cultivation methods" and "application methods." The leaps in terminology are so excessive that it's hard to imagine what kind of person could write such a prescription.

The man said, "If I told you... this prescription was written by one person, what would you think, Mr. Mu?"

Mu Nandong calmly said, "The progenitor, mythical creatures, and the immortal worm."

Mu Nandong thought this prescription was very abnormal, partly due to the enormous amount of knowledge on the paper. More importantly, according to normal human logic, it was impossible for him to write a prescription like this. It's like writing an essay; you can use oracle bone script, seal script, clerical script, cursive script, regular script, and running script interchangeably, no problem, you're awesome. But not only do you use oracle bone script, seal script, clerical script, cursive script, regular script, and running script interchangeably, you also use Japanese, English, pictographs, emoticons, Martian language, and Morse code!

Is this something a human being could do?

The man neither admitted nor denied it, but said, "You can look at the documents at the back."

Mu Nandong continued reading... He understood. This was a compilation of various professionals the military had gathered from around the world, hoping to truly complete this prescription. Perhaps, translating it into modern scientific names had already made considerable progress. But Mu Nandong immediately saw that the military was stuck; the last few items were simply unidentifiable...

The man reminded him again, saying, "There are some special records on the last page."

Mu Nandong turned to the last page, and the contents inside made him secretly alarmed. It contained information recorded in the first person, which was "my" general impression of "a certain medicinal herb," ​​what it looked like, what it was used for, what the specific details were, when and where I had seen it, or where it grew.

Considering the list of medicinal herbs mentioned earlier, Mu Nandong vaguely guessed what was going on, and remained silent, waiting for the man to speak.

"All that I can say is in this document. With Mr. Mu's intelligence, I'm sure he has already guessed something. There's no need to tell me or ask me for confirmation. What's important now is that the military wants to confirm the contents of this list of medicinal herbs and has already mobilized many people for this purpose. You are not the first, nor will you be the last. I hope the hints on the last page can bring you more help."

The man said, "Please do your best, and the military will provide you with all the help you need."

Mu Nandong understood and nodded.

-

"Goodbye, you two. Take good care of your injuries!"

"Ah... goodbye."

After bidding farewell to another guest, Ying Qin Guan squinted at Nephalem and said, "I didn't know you were so popular."

In recent days, many people have come to visit Ying Qin Guan and the Nephalem. Quite a few have come to visit Ying Qin Guan, but most have been turned away. Ying Qin Guan became famous throughout the world because of his victory in the Martial Arts Tournament, ranking alongside Hishimura Tan's as one of the two strongest warriors in the world. These people mostly knew Ying Qin Guan because of that tournament and hoped to become acquainted with him, naturally failing in their attempts. The situation is different with the Nephalem; he has a genuinely large number of visitors. Moreover, they all know him, and he can talk to them quite a bit, hence Ying Qin Guan's remark.

"Hmph." Nephalem said arrogantly, "Don't you even know who I am!"

—Director of the Anguo Division.

What kind of organization is the Anguo Division?

As the only officially certified intermediary agency in the country, with branches in almost every city in the Seven Realms, Jiu Yi might indeed be a bit more powerful in terms of social status and reputation, given the overwhelming influence of the Royal Academy Dean. But when it comes to real power... do you know the influence of the boss of the only officially certified intermediary agency in a major economic power? He wields immense power; as long as it doesn't go too far, he's practically a Nephalem sucking garlic.

With such a status, how could there not be many people visiting the Nephalem?

"Impressive! Impressive!" Ying Qin Guan clapped his hands in praise, then exclaimed, "Other people's fruit just tastes different..."

Nephalem's arrogant expression instantly turned into a stern one.

Most of the people who come to visit the Nephalem are extremely utilitarian, and with such utilitarianism, the fruits they bring are naturally all of the highest quality, but the Nephalem... he is forbidden to eat them.

So all these valuable goods ended up in Ying Qin Guan's stomach. He was really ruthless; as soon as the other party left, he ate everything up, and even found a few checks from the Seven Luminaries Bank inside.

"You really have no sense at all. Even sending me a few books would be better than sending these things..." Nefertari sighed, looked out the window, and after a moment, he suddenly spoke, "Ying Qin Guan... there's something I feel very uncomfortable if I don't discuss it with you."

Ying Qin Guan stopped what he was doing and asked, "What is it?"

"It's about the Son of Man... about the God of War, Ye Jiaofang, Cain, Feicun Tanying, and Yu Xietian, as well as the descendants of the Son of Man they brought with them."

Chapter Twelve Mission

The entanglements between Ye Jiaofang and the offspring of another man were not widely known, but it was not difficult to find out about them.

"The Son of Man... is like that immortal worm that has been passed down through generations. Feng Yunke, what exactly is all this? Is it a mission? Is it destiny? Is it power? Is it a curse? Or is it reincarnation?"

The Nephalem asked a series of questions, but he didn't actually need Ying Qin Guan to provide answers. Perhaps, in fact, none of them were qualified to draw a definitive conclusion about this matter; only the descendants of those who had given and sacrificed themselves were qualified to define it.

"No matter what happens, at least for now, it all seems to have become a mission..."

Nefertari counted on his fingers and said, "The ones we know of who are related to the Son of Man are the true Son of Man, the one from the God of War, which we'll call the first generation, the one from Ye Jiaofang's side, called Shen Ya, the one from Cain's side, we don't know what to call him, let's just call him the second generation, then Shen Jiu and Shen Xin. In total, there are six people."

"Among them, those who chose to complete their mission were the first generation, Shen 9, who abandoned their mission. But those who failed to some extent were Shen Ya and Shen Xin. The ones who were almost completely unknown were the Son of Man and the second generation. There's not much to discuss about these two, as the era was too chaotic."

Human history did not begin with the Age of Gods, but the era before the Age of Gods is like the period before the Xia Dynasty. There's not much point in discussing that, because it's far too chaotic, with almost no reliable historical records.

In other words, what the Nephalem wanted to say was actually the pair of the original Shin-9 and Shin-chan.

"Actually, at first, I wanted to divide them into those who embraced the mission and those who abandoned it... but later I changed my mind. Because it really seems to be fate, inescapable. Shenya was caught up in the dragon's calamity back then, and Shenxin, needless to say, clearly had already refused Fengyunke's invitation, but in the end, she was still drawn into this incident..."

When this matter came up, Ying Qin Guan couldn't help but ask, "Would escaping fate bring misfortune?"

Shen Ya once escaped her fate by eloping with Ye Jiaofang, but died in her twenties. Shen Xin also tried to escape once, but paid a heavy price. Is this the punishment for escaping fate?

"...It cannot be completely denied, but as things stand, it cannot be established either." Nephalem understood Ying Qin Guan's meaning. Denying it meant that Shen Ya's price was paid before the elopement, and the price of Shen Xin... If we're talking about prices, didn't Shen Jiu pay even more?

Not to mention the first generation who followed the God of War, who faced countless progenitors as their enemies. Although Feng Yunke didn't mention it, their ending must have been bleak.

Therefore, the statement that "the son of man cannot escape fate, and escaping will come at a price" is not entirely true at present, but it cannot be denied that there are indeed similar signs. The price paid by Shen Jiu can be understood as being paid by Shen Xin, after all, she is her sister. As for Shen Ya, needless to say, the son of man has the ability to observe the future, so it is not surprising that he would pay the price in advance.

All I can say is that nothing is certain yet.

Ying Qin Guan said in a low voice, "I hope so..."

It's fine for a person to come into this world and take on certain responsibilities. But it's truly tragic if a person comes into this world only to take on those responsibilities.

Everyone should have their own life, whether it's good or bad, it's either their own choice or the choice of the times. But at the very least, it shouldn't be just to shoulder certain responsibilities.

Nephalem continued, "As for the Children of Man, whether they accept it or not is a choice, and it is basically based on their own heart."

Ying Qin Guan was slightly taken aback... Yes, the choice of a person's offspring naturally comes from their own heart. This mission is there; whether they accept it or not is entirely up to them, but...

"Those people that the Son of Man follows... no, what should we call them? Host, partner, lover, none of these are quite right. Let's just call them 'destined ones' for now. When these destined ones appear, will the choices that the Son of Man and these destined ones make still be as free as before?"

"For example, did Shen Ya really want to leave the shrine and elope with Ye Jiaofang? In her heart, she still couldn't let go. It was only for Ye Jiaofang that she chose to leave. And what about Fei Cun Tan Ying? Why did he have to work so hard for Shen Jiu's mission? Now he has ended up in such a miserable state, with less than six years left to live... Was he willing to do this? Probably not. He only did it because of Shen Jiu."

"So what?" Ying Qin Guan said, "Isn't this normal? How many people in the world can truly live entirely for themselves? Changing one's actions because of others...that's a common occurrence."

"If it's an ordinary person, of course it's possible, but if a child truly carries a certain destiny, then... is meeting the person destined for them a good thing or a bad thing?"

Ying Qin Guan sat up, placed his hands on his knees, and frowned.

Ying Qin Guan seemed to understand the Nephalem's meaning, but not entirely. The Nephalem's meaning was vague and could be interpreted from multiple angles. The crucial point was that the Nephalem itself didn't know what it meant either. It only vaguely sensed something and couldn't be certain. Right now, it was simply sharing its immature thoughts and deductions with Ying Qin Guan.

Ying Qin Guan remained silent for a moment, finally realizing that Nephalem's topic was very abrupt, and asked, "Why are you suddenly bringing this up?"

Nephalem looked out the window and sighed.

"News came from the military that Hisumura Danzai left a letter and disappeared... Out of respect for him, I didn't read the letter. But I could guess it was a farewell to Shenzhou-9... He felt his days were numbered, so he left."

Ying Qin Guan was slightly taken aback.

"Is that so... I see. No wonder you suddenly brought this up."

“I’ve imagined a very comical scene,” Nephalem said. “Six years later, or sooner or later, Hiyomura Tanzaku, corrupted by the will of the God of War, will return and embark on an undying journey with Kami-Kyu once again… just like the God of War and the Son of Man back then. But the God of War is not the God of War of the past, and the Son of Man is not the Son of Man of the past. It’s just that their will is immortal and is imposed on people in the present in this way.”

A complex mix of emotions welled up within Nephalem. He murmured, "If this really happens, then this scene will be both tragic and absurd."

Ying Qin Guan remained silent; he seemed to have come to understand the meaning of the word "curse."

"The tragedy of the times ultimately becomes the tragedy of the individual."

Chapter Thirteen: Warcraft

"I'm not playing anymore... I can't take it anymore."

Nephalem put down his cards, a headache on his face.

Last night, someone finally brought them a Time-Space Killer. Nephalem thought he could have something to relieve his loneliness... but as it turns out, not everyone is like Jiu Yi. He was quickly beaten and lost his will to fight.

Ying Qin Guan said, "With two people, there will definitely be less fun."

"No, the reason there's so much less fun is because of constantly losing..."

Nephalem shook his head, offering a rebuttal, but in his heart he also agreed with Ying Qin Guan. Because under the current circumstances, most two-person competitive games wouldn't be very interesting. There are too few variables, and the core fun of competition lies in these variables.

Of course, I'm referring to fun, not competitiveness. Generally speaking, the competitiveness of a game is inversely proportional to the variables. There are many things that affect the variables. The simplest and most direct way is to increase the number of players. For example, in poker, when two people play poker, the cards are revealed after they are drawn. But with three people, it's a completely different concept.

Ying Qin Guan said proudly, "It's because your will isn't strong enough!"

The Nephalem was very displeased upon hearing this, but could not find any reason to refute it. The example of Jiuyi was clear and irrefutable proof.

He lay in bed, letting out a long, bored sigh. Clearly, lying in bed for days on end was becoming unbearable. This would have been unimaginable for a Nephalem during his time as a secret agent. He wouldn't have complained about lying comfortably in bed, or even about lurking in a muddy, stinking ditch, as long as it was for the mission. It just goes to show that people are always moving forward. But moving forward doesn't necessarily mean growth. Just like many people's peak of knowledge is in high school, not university—this sounds counterintuitive, but it does happen.

"I don't know how long I'll have to lie here like this. The doctor didn't give me a specific time. The Ten Commandments took so many beatings, but they just turned around and went to sleep and passed away. I really envy them."

Ying Qin Guan was intrigued upon hearing this. He knew of the Ten Commandments; before he and Hishimura Tan's rise to fame, the Ten Commandments, Athosher, and Nephalem were truly top-tier, first-rate martial artists capable of vying for the title of number one. As for the Sword Saint, even his granddaughter, who was studying at the Seven Luminaries University, knew that he was no match for the three. The reason he was considered the best in the world was mainly due to the impressions of laymen, who believed that he had become famous decades ago, invincible, and that after ruling Ouma for decades, his martial arts must have reached their peak. In reality, his growth had stopped decades ago.

Closer to home.

The three were Nephalem, Athosher, and the Ten Commandments. Nephalem was a genius, a master of the common path, and had a tumultuous past before becoming the Director of the State Security Department, having faced numerous life-or-death situations to reach his current position. Athosher's success mainly stemmed from mastering Ye Jiao's False Self Visualization Technique. Although Ye Jiao had discarded this skill, it remained extremely powerful for others. Only the Ten Commandments remained a mystery to Ying Qin Guan, who had heard of a mythical creature residing within him. Now that Nephalem had brought it up, Ying Qin Guan was naturally intrigued.

He said, "What's wrong with that guy...didn't he get quite injured when he fought Ye Jiaofang?"

“A mythical creature,” the Nephalem said. “A mythical creature resides within him.”

Ying Qin Guan asked, "What kind of immortal worm?"

Nephalem shook his head and said, "Wrong... Although everything about the Undying Worm sounds like a mythical creature, it is actually a magical beast. While magical beasts and mythical creatures are not strictly hierarchical, there are still differences between the two."

"Is that so?" Ying Qin Guan didn't care about the relationship between mythical creatures and magical beasts; he was only curious about what the mythical creatures on the Ten Commandments were, so he asked as well.

The Nephalem's reaction to this was naturally...

"I don't know. How would I know about this? It's obviously top secret."

Ying Qin Guan's interest immediately waned. He had thought he was going to hear something interesting, but it turned out that Nephalem didn't know either.

"But... the Undying Worm is actually a magical beast?"