The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, becoming a disciple of Yue Buqun.

According to his thinking, Feng Qingyang is a member of the Sword Sect, so he shouldn't be so nice to the Qi Sect. Among the current members of the Huashan Sect, only Linghu Chong is somewhat to his liking.

Yue Buqun nodded: "It should be."

At this point, Yue Buqun paused for a moment, then continued, "Actually, I told you before that our Huashan Sect didn't originally have a Sword Sect or a Qi Sect. Back then, my master, senior brothers, uncles, and senior masters all practiced martial arts on Huashan Mountain, and the sect was very united. At that time, Uncle Feng was already a member of the Huashan Sect."

"But as you later learned, my predecessors split into the Qi Sect and the Sword Sect due to ideological differences. The disciples of Mount Hua also took sides, with the Qi Sect emphasizing Qi and the Sword Sect emphasizing swordsmanship."

Jiang Ning asked with some surprise, "Weren't there any predecessors who advocated for the equal importance of sword energy back then?"

Yue Buqun nodded: "Yes, but in that environment, the competition between sword and qi became increasingly fierce, and those Huashan disciples who proposed to emphasize both sword and qi were naturally not tolerated by the people of the sword and qi sects."

At this point, Yue Buqun's thoughts seemed to drift back to decades ago.

At that time, he was just an ordinary disciple of Mount Hua. He didn't know why, one day, his fellow disciples and seniors, who had been living in harmony, suddenly split apart. Many disciples were forced to choose sides, either the Qi Sect or the Sword Sect, with no other choice.

Yue Buqun came to his senses, shook his head, and said, "Those disciples who proposed emphasizing both sword and qi were ostracized by both the sword and qi sects, and their fates were not good."

At this point, Yue Buqun sighed: "Now that I think about it, those disciples who proposed to emphasize both sword and qi were right, and they were the ones who truly wanted the Huashan Sect to be better. If it weren't for that sword and qi dispute, our Huashan Sect would have had countless masters, and how could it have fallen to this state?"

Jiang Ning nodded. Indeed, if it weren't for that sword energy contest, the Huashan Sect at that time would have been far more powerful than the Songshan Sect is now, and the Songshan Sect would never have become the leader of the Five Mountains Sword Sects.

However, Yue Buqun still didn't explain why Feng Qingyang of the Sword Sect would specifically leave them clues.

However, without Jiang Ning even asking, Yue Buqun continued to speak.

"Actually, back then, my Huashan Sect split into the Sword Sect and the Qi Sect. At that time, Uncle Feng's swordsmanship was divine, and many of my Qi Sect disciples naturally regarded him as a member of the Sword Sect. But now, thinking about it carefully, that may not be the case."

"Do you remember when I told you about how Uncle Feng suddenly went down the mountain and went to Jiangnan when the Sword Qi Competition was about to begin?"

Yue Buqun suddenly said.

"remember."

Jiang Ning nodded.

Yue Buqun frowned and pondered deeply. After a long time, he said, "Back then, I was just an ordinary Huashan disciple. I had no access to the core of the sect and knew nothing about why Uncle Feng suddenly went to Jiangnan. But I think it must have been my master and the others who did it."

His master was the previous leader of the Huashan Sect.

"However, upon careful consideration, I believe that things may not have been so simple at the time."

The events of that year were too distant and too long ago. If Yue Buqun hadn't seen those three names on the Cliff of Contemplation, he would have almost forgotten who Feng Qingyang was.

“Uncle Feng’s swordsmanship is divine, and he is a top expert. At that time, my Qi Sect had few experts and few disciples. If we really went head-to-head with the Sword Sect, we would likely lose. So it was understandable that my master and the others tried to send Uncle Feng away. But now, when I think back on the past, I find something is not right.”

Yue Buqun paused slightly before continuing, "At that time, our Qi Sect had few experts, so it's understandable that we wanted to transfer this expert away. But why didn't the Sword Sect react at all? It's impossible that they didn't know anything about this. They must have known that it was a trick of our Qi Sect. Back then, the Sword Qi Competition was about to begin, and they would never have allowed Uncle Feng to leave the mountain. But at that time, not a single person from their Sword Sect spoke up and tacitly allowed Uncle Feng to leave Mount Hua. Later, the Jade Maiden Peak Sword Qi Competition began."

"Now that I think about it, perhaps we all misunderstood and were misled by Uncle Feng's swordsmanship. In fact, he was neither a member of the Qi Sect nor the Sword Sect; he was just a member of the Huashan Sect."

Under those circumstances, all Huashan disciples were forced to take sides; those who did not were ostracized and attacked. Feng Qingyang likely did not take sides.

He didn't take sides, so the Qi Sect thought he was a member of the Sword Sect, but the Sword Sect didn't acknowledge him as one. However, because his martial prowess was too high, Feng Qingyang was ostracized by both the Qi and Sword Sects.

At the time, both the Sword and Qi sects were afraid that Feng Qingyang would suddenly side with either side during their fight. So when the Qi sect set a trap to lure Feng Qingyang away from Mount Hua, the Sword sect members did not say anything but watched the scene unfold. As soon as Feng Qingyang left, the two sects immediately broke into a fight.

When Feng Qingyang returned, he found that the once-prosperous Huashan Sect had been embroiled in internal strife, with many of his fellow disciples and uncles dead. He knew that his fellow disciples from the Sword and Qi factions had abandoned him. Overwhelmed with grief, he went into seclusion and never appeared in the martial world again.

Jiang Ning remained silent.

He didn't actually know this part of history. He only knew that Feng Qingyang was a member of the Sword Sect, but the truth was probably as Yue Buqun said. After all, Yue Buqun had participated in the sword qi competition back then, so he had more authority to speak on the matter.

"For so many years, there has been no trace of this Uncle Feng. I always thought he was dead. I never expected that he would actually be living in seclusion on Mount Hua."

Yue Buqun frowned.

Jiang Ning looked at him and suddenly asked, "Master, if Uncle-Master Feng is really living in seclusion on Mount Hua, have you ever thought about persuading him to return to Mount Hua?"

"No."

Yue Buqun shook his head without hesitation.

"There's no need. Since he has been in seclusion for so many years and hasn't shown up, it means he doesn't want to return to Mount Hua. In that case, let's not disturb him."

Besides this, there is another reason: Feng Qingyang's seniority is too high. If Feng Qingyang really returns to Mount Hua, his position will be in a very awkward position.

Currently, Mount Hua is under the leadership of Yue Buqun. Although the sect is weak now, it is very stable. If a senior figure of high standing were to be invited back to oversee Mount Hua, it would cause many unnecessary troubles.

It's not that Yue Buqun is power-hungry, but rather that he has to be this way; the current Mount Tai faction is a prime example.

The leader of the Taishan Sect is Tianmen Daoren, but he has several senior uncles and grand-uncles of the Yuzi generation above him. They are of high seniority and have great influence, which means that Tianmen Daoren is completely unable to control the Taishan Sect.

If Yue Buqun were to bring Feng Qingyang back, it could very well become the next Mount Tai Sect.

Moreover, Yue Buqun doesn't really need to invite Feng Qingyang back now. He already has the Innate Skill and the Five Mountains Sword Techniques, which have been lost. Not only is his own strength increasing every day, but he also has an excellent disciple. The Huashan Sect is thriving. Although the Huashan Sect is still not very strong, continuing on its current path is the safest course of action, with the only concern being external pressure.

There is absolutely no need to invite an ancestor back to worship.

Jiang Ning nodded without saying anything more.

Yue Buqun's ideas cannot be said to be right or wrong. Every decision has its advantages and disadvantages, and it is impossible to know whether it is right or wrong until the very end.

Moreover, even if he went to invite him, Feng Qingyang might not be able to come back. Yue Buqun has worked diligently for more than 20 years to maintain and develop the Huashan Sect. Since Feng Qingyang lives in Huashan, he must know the hardships of the Huashan Sect. But he has never thought of helping the Huashan Sect overcome its difficulties over the years, which means that he may not consider the Huashan Sect as his home anymore, or rather, he does not consider the current Huashan Sect as his home.

Although Yue Buqun didn't say it, he still felt somewhat repulsed by Feng Qingyang when he thought about how diligently and cautiously he had worked over the years.

It is undeniable that Feng Qingyang is indeed very strong, but people always have their own thoughts. It is unknown whether he really left clues on the Cliff of Contemplation to allow the Huashan Sect to obtain the lost sword techniques of the Five Mountains Sword Sect, as Yue Buqun thought. He cannot guarantee what Feng Qingyang has been thinking all these years, and Yue Buqun will not gamble on it.

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore."

At this point, Yue Buqun deliberately changed the subject and asked Jiang Ning, "Since you say that Zuo Lengchan will soon make his move against us, how should we respond?"

Although Jiang Ning is only talking about the idea stage and it hasn't happened yet, Yue Buqun seems to have already accepted it as a fact.

"Just stick to the original plan."

Jiang Ning remained calm.

There was indeed not much that could be done to counter Zuo Lengchan's move. The only way was to develop the strength of the Huashan Sect as soon as possible. During the vacuum period after Lao Denuo's death, when Zuo Lengchan did not send a single spy into the Huashan Sect, they should develop rapidly. By then, even if the Songshan Sect brought the remnants of the Sword Sect to the mountain to force Yue Buqun to step down, Yue Buqun would be able to angrily rebuke them and say no.

Originally, this matter didn't need to be discussed, but Jiang Ning needed to use Liu Zhengfeng's fate to remind Yue Buqun, so that he wouldn't be caught off guard when he was attacked.

Yue Buqun stroked his beard and nodded: "You're right."

Strength is the only true measure of success. No matter your schemes and tricks, I will overcome them all with my own strength.

"Ha, you dare to dream of swallowing up my Huashan Sect? Then let's see what happens."

Yue Buqun sneered.

To be honest, both he and Jiang Ning were surprised by Zuo Lengchan's idea of ​​annexing the Five Mountains Sword Sect.

How could someone have such a brilliant idea?

"Our Five Sacred Mountains Sword Sects are scattered across the north and south of the Yangtze River. Mount Hua is in Shaanxi, Mount Heng is in Hunan, Mount Song is in Henan, Mount Tai is in Shandong, and Mount Hengshan is in Shanxi. The bases of our Five Sacred Mountains Sects are more than a thousand miles apart. How can he unify them? What would be the point of merging them?"

Jiang Ning sneered and said, "Putting aside other things, the Five Sacred Mountains sects have been in their respective bases for hundreds of years. Each sect has different martial arts philosophies and beliefs. Hengshan has a Buddhist foundation, Taishan sect is a Taoist sect, and my Huashan sect is also a Taoist sect. How can we resolve the sectarian issue if they want to merge sects?"

"Even if he does force the merger, there will surely be experts among the Five Mountains Sects who are dissatisfied with his merger. How will he deal with these people?"

Putting everything else aside, just consider the Hengshan Sect. Their second-in-command, Liu Zhengfeng, was turned into a fugitive from the righteous path by the Songshan Sect, ruining his reputation. Don't they hate the Songshan Sect? Zuo Lengchan wants to merge the sects? Would they agree?

"If Zuo Lengchan chooses to kill the masters from various sects who are dissatisfied with the merger, then even if the Five Mountains Sword Sects merge, their strength will definitely be greatly reduced. If the Demonic Sect launches a major attack at that time, how will Zuo Lengchan resist? Rely on Shaolin? Ha."

The current Demonic Cult is the largest cult in the world, with countless followers and numerous masters. It is divided into two paths: the righteous path, represented by righteous sects such as Shaolin, Wudang, Emei, and the Five Mountains Sword Sect, and the Sun Moon Cult, which represents the entire demonic path. This shows the power of the Sun Moon Cult.

"Let alone whether he can eventually succeed in merging the factions, even if he does succeed, not only will many people within his own ranks want him dead, but Shaolin, Wudang, and the Demonic Sect will also want him dead. At that time, he will be close to death."

"He wants the Five Mountains Sword Sects to merge, but this is on the premise of resolving the external crisis. Although the Demonic Sect has not made any major moves in recent years, it is not without its actions. The Demonic Sect is watching our Five Mountains Sword Sects all the time. Instead of trying to solve the problem of the Demonic Sect, he is targeting us."

"He wants to merge the Five Mountains Sword Sects, but his ruthlessness in attacking his allies will inevitably lead to the disintegration of the Five Mountains Sword Sects and destroy the hard work of our Five Mountains predecessors."

"He thought the Five Mountains Sword Sect was his target, but in reality, Shaolin and the Demonic Sect were his real enemies, his biggest threats, and the ones he should really deal with. Instead of uniting with the Five Mountains Sword Sect to fight against the Demonic Sect and Shaolin, he went on a rampage against his own allies, thinking he had everything under control. He will surely be misled by his own stupidity in the future."

(PS: This chapter has 6000 words. There will be another chapter later. Are you all happy?)

Chapter 87: In the world of martial arts, how easy is it to avoid offending anyone?

If Zuo Lengchan never intended to merge the factions, but simply wanted to disrupt the other four factions, then his approach was extremely clever.

However, if they want to merge the sects, they will weaken their strength in this way. Even if they merge, there will be many problems. As the leader of the righteous path, Shaolin will not allow a more powerful Songshan sect to be on Songshan Mountain with them. How can they tolerate others sleeping soundly next to their bed? They will definitely try every means to suppress them.

As their mortal enemy, the Demonic Sect would not stand idly by and watch Zuo Lengchan merge the sects. They would inevitably take advantage of the period of weakness after the merger and launch a major attack against the Five Mountains Sword Sect, which was plagued with problems.

The Five Mountains Sword Sects were originally an alliance of five different sects, the result of the joint efforts of previous generations. Zuo Lengchan didn't even understand why the Five Mountains Sword Sects formed an alliance, yet he still dared to dream of merging the sects and even ruthlessly killed his own allies, doing what the Demonic Sect and Shaolin wanted to do but couldn't.

If it's not extremely unlikely, he's more like a Shaolin spy planted within the Five Mountains Sword Sect.

Yue Buqun was persuaded by Jiang Ning's words.

To be honest, he originally had some idea of ​​merging factions, after all, who hasn't fantasized about it? But his idea of ​​merging factions wasn't like Zuo Lengchan's, which involved ruthlessly attacking his allies. He wanted to make the various factions more closely connected.

But after hearing Jiang Ning's idea, he completely erased the idea of ​​merging factions from his mind, and stopped even fantasizing about it.

Rather than merging the Five Mountains Sword Sects, it would be better to strengthen the Huashan Sect, even though it would be slower, it would be more stable.

"In that case, we need to hurry up when we get back."

Yue Buqun said.

Jiang Ning's analysis of things is very clear, which makes him see things in front of him more clearly. As the saying goes, one person's wisdom is limited, but two people's plans are longer. He no longer feels confused about the future as he used to.

Previously, he pondered the future of the Huashan Sect alone. Even though Ning Zhongze knew his difficulties, she could not offer him advice and could only listen.

Jiang Ning's analysis of Zuo Lengchan, the Songshan Sect, and the Five Mountains Sword Sects was a revelation to him, and his extraordinary insight thrilled him.

However, Yue Buqun was still somewhat disappointed at this moment.

Actually, this should have been the time for Linghu Chong to discuss the future of the Huashan Sect with him.

But Linghu Chong...

Shaking his head, Yue Buqun cleared his mind and looked at Jiang Ning, asking another question: "Are you really going to Sichuan to cause trouble for the Qingcheng Sect and Abbot Yu?"

Jiang Ning nodded: "We should go, but not now. We should wait until Zuo Lengchan takes action against my Huashan Sect before we go."

Even if Jiang Ning wants to target the Qingcheng Sect, he can't ignore the main issue while focusing on the secondary one; the Huashan Sect is his core base.

If Zuo Lengchan had sent the Songshan Sect and the remnants of the Sword Sect to the mountain to force Yue Buqun to abdicate during his absence from Mount Hua, even if Yue Buqun's strength had greatly increased, if something unexpected happened, Jiang Ning, who was in Sichuan, would not have been able to get the information and would not have been able to return immediately.

Yue Buqun didn't have much to say either; Jiang Ning's arrangements were very rational and didn't require further explanation.

However, his expression still showed some hesitation.

After all, the Qingcheng Sect is still a righteous sect.