I am Jinshan Youxia

Even external martial arts like Iron Palm mostly involve using external objects to hone body parts, and then circulating internal energy to strengthen those parts, achieving a synergistic effect where one plus one equals more than two, thus unleashing their power.

Using internal energy to 'temper' the body seems like consuming one's own power to permanently enhance physical constitution? How does one temper oneself like that? Where does one begin?

Qiao Feng began a brainstorming session, but he found himself in a predicament and gained nothing.

"Alright, stop thinking about it. Take your time. We'll bring a few more people over and we can all think of a solution together."

Seeing the confusion and struggle on his face, Zhang Chengyi offered a word of advice, then asked with great interest, "Hey, do you want to know about your background?"

Qiao Feng snapped out of his daze. Upon hearing the word "capture," his eyelids twitched. He took a deep breath, remained silent for a moment, and then asked, "Are you saying that I am a descendant of the Khitan people?"

“Hey, Monk Zhiguang and the others only know one side of the story, but I’m different. I know everything.” Zhang Chengyi’s face was full of the expression “Come beg me.”

Qiao Feng hesitated for a while before exhaling the air he had just inhaled with a sigh, and bowed, saying, "May I ask you, brother, for your explanation?"

Zhang Chengyi nodded in satisfaction, muttering incoherently, "Since you asked so sincerely, I'll mercifully tell you, in order to prevent the world from being destroyed... wait, wrong channel."

"That's right. About thirty years ago, there was a chief instructor of the personal guard of the Xiao family in the Liao Kingdom named Xiao Yuanshan. He was deeply trusted by the Empress Dowager of Liao. Because the Han people taught him martial arts, he vowed not to be an enemy of the Han people or to kill them. Therefore, he repeatedly advised the Empress Dowager to stop the war between Liao and Song."

"However, his actions attracted attention. When he was taking his wife and children back to Wuzhou to visit relatives via Yanmen Pass, he was ambushed. His wife was killed tragically. He went berserk and killed more than ten skilled men who ambushed him before jumping off a cliff to commit suicide."

"..."

Qiao Feng stood there stunned for a few seconds before asking, "You mean, Xiao Yuanshan is my father?"

“That’s right, Monk Zhiguang explained what happened next very clearly.” Zhang Chengyi nodded. “However, Xiao Yuanshan did not die, nor did the person who spread the false information and had your parents ambushed.”

Qiao Feng was struck dumb. After a short while, he said in a trembling voice, "You mean my biological father... he's not dead?"

"What, you believe me?" Zhang Chengyi asked with a smile.

Qiao Feng calmed his still somewhat agitated emotions and said, "Brother, you jest. I..." He smiled wearily, with a hint of sadness on his face.

The sorrow of being betrayed by the Beggars' Sect was far greater than he showed, but he was unwilling to reveal it. Now, upon hearing that his biological father was still alive, it was as if he had grasped a lifeline in despair, and he was so excited that he could hardly control himself.

If the Beggars' Sect members were only after power, what did he do to end up in this situation? If he really was a Khitan, what stance should he take to live?

"Uncle Zhang, we've arrived," said Su Xinghe, who was driving the carriage.

Looking at the town street scene outside, Zhang Chengyi invited, "Come on, Brother Qiao, let's go down for a drink, and I'll tell you all about it slowly."

Here's a little spoiler: consider this a perk for him working.

A true hero like Qiao Feng, or an unlucky guy like Wu Yazi who is a good person, would be absolutely exploited and grateful if given some benefits before working.

What's that saying again? "Look, he even thanked us."

In other words, a gentleman can be deceived by his principles.

People like Kumārajīva, who are devoted to martial arts, are easy to deal with; just make a promise. Xiao Yuanshan and Murong Bo both have weaknesses and are not easy to deal with, so he feels no guilt when threatening them. The monks in the temple are just unlucky. He has never been fond of monks, and he has even less affection for Xuanci, who has committed serious mistakes and broken his vows, and the monks of Tianlong Temple who are members of the Dali royal family. He doesn't care if they are captured and forced to work.

A chivalrous knight-errant isn't a pushover; to save someone in distress, that person must first be someone he deems worthy of his attention.

Strangers you look down on or have no feelings for, you'll use any means necessary.

Of course, he does have some bottom line, but the players' bottom line...

For example, those martial arts practitioners at Jingfu Temple, who knew how many of them were just there to watch the show, were still beaten up by him without any explanation. They didn't die, but they were covered in bruises. Even martial arts practitioners who knew internal energy would need to rest for a few days, and the pain wouldn't lessen at all.

Completely unaware of the StarCraft player ideas swirling in Zhang Chengyi's head, Qiao Feng readily agreed. Filled with resentment and frustration, he desperately needed a jar of good wine to soothe his throat.

Chapter 35 Fireworks in March in Yangzhou

As the saying goes, "My old friend bids farewell to the Yellow Crane Tower and heads down to Yangzhou in the third month of spring, amidst the fireworks and blossoms."

Zhang Chengyi and his party arrived in Yangzhou at the end of March.

A small problem arose in front of them.

After traveling for more than half a month, I'm a little short on money.

Firstly, Su Xinghe wanted to please the family head, so he tried to stop and eat, drink, and stay in some well-known places along the way. Secondly, Zhang Chengyi had no concept of spending ancient money and ate and drank as he pleased with Qiao Feng.

Upon arriving in Yangzhou, before even entering the city, a minor financial problem arose, but money was a small issue.

So on this day, after settling down in Yangzhou, Su Xinghe bowed and said, "Uncle Zhang, I have to leave for a while."

After being exposed to this for a period of time, his speech became similar to that of a modern person.

The culprit, Zhang Chengyi, sat at the dining table, waved his hand dismissively, and said, "Go away, go away." He picked up his wine bowl and said magnanimously, "Waiter, another ten catties of sorghum and two catties of cooked beef!"

He was feeling down when, on his way here, because of Yangzhou, he naturally thought of the famous characters in Mr. Cha's novels—

Lord Wei.

So he was excited to find Desheng Mountain, where Mao Shiba had taken Wei Xiaobao to a duel, but then, a bit embarrassingly, there was no Desheng Mountain at all.

He recalled carefully that there was a temple for the wife of a martyr on Desheng Mountain, and the wife of the martyr was Liang Hongyu, the wife of TM Han Shizhong.

This is the Northern Song Dynasty, not the Ming or Qing Dynasty. Liang Hongyu only existed in the Southern Song Dynasty.

Moreover, the name Desheng Mountain only came about because Han Shizhong suffered a major defeat here in the early years of Shaoxing in the Southern Song Dynasty. Who knows where Desheng Mountain was or what it was called during the Northern Song Dynasty?

"Alright!" the waiter shouted upon hearing this. "Second floor private room, ten catties of sorghum and two catties of cooked beef!"

The waiter was pleased, but Su Xinghe quickened his pace. Beef from the Song Dynasty was really expensive, and ten catties of sorghum was far from enough for the old man sitting on the second floor. He had to find someone to "borrow" some money to spend.

"Hey"

Qiao Feng finished his bowl of wine, put it down, looked out the window, and looked somewhat melancholy. He hadn't been happy at all on the way here.

Even though he got spoilers from Zhang Chengyi and learned a lot of the truth, he still couldn't be happy.

In this era, the concept of ethnicity and bloodline is much more important, and the distinction between Han and Liao is something he has mentioned countless times in the past.

Now that he has become a Khitan, he feels extremely uncomfortable.

"Brother Qiao, have you been to Yangzhou before?" Zhang Chengyi asked in a low voice as he ate and drank.

"Hmm," Qiao Feng replied absentmindedly.

Zhang Chengyi winked and said, "I've heard that in Yangzhou, the brothels are categorized into high-class, low-class, and unclass?"

"Ah."

"Ok?"

Qiao Feng's voice rose several notches, attracting the attention of Xue Muhua, who was closest to him.

"A place of pleasure is a brothel."

Zhang Chengyi repeated himself, not because he was lustful, but because he felt an excitement that a chivalrous hero should not miss visiting brothels.

Compared to controlling a body across the world, which lacks the necessary senses and other abilities to engage in romantic relationships or perform certain activities, he felt it would be better to work hard to find a suitable body before doing such things.

At least they feel like they're doing something.

But the desire to join in the fun is hard to suppress.

Qiao Feng's originally melancholy expression turned strange. His mind seemed to have been turned upside down, with all sorts of chaotic thoughts swirling in his head. He lowered his voice and said, "I've heard a little bit about it."

Could it be that all these years, besides practicing martial arts, working for the Beggars' Sect, and contributing to the country, he was actually just a rough and inexperienced guy?

Men, sometimes they have to put on a brave face even when they're not.

"Shall I take you guys to check it out later?" Zhang Chengyi looked around and whispered.

He's a modern man—no, a modern tech genius—and he has an instinctive, taboo-breaking feeling about going into the red-light district.

While feeling excited, there will definitely be some emotions that you can't let others know.

Qiao Feng knew he couldn't let this man know he lacked experience, otherwise he would definitely seize on this and keep mocking him. So he made an excuse, saying, "I've made some progress with the body-tempering method, and I'm at a crucial stage..."

Zhang Chengyi hesitated for a moment, then said, "Alright, body training is more important."

He secretly thought to himself that he would ask Old Su privately later, but he didn't know if Mr. Congbian, who hadn't left the house much in thirty years, still knew any connections.

"By the way, have you made any new discoveries?" he asked casually.

"Well, didn't we mention the body and meridians before..." Qiao Feng racked his brains trying to come up with a plan for body tempering, and he was talking nonsense. Seeing that the other party was listening attentively, he suddenly had a flash of inspiration in his mind in his haste.

"I've got it."

His tone was somewhat agitated. He suddenly stood up and hurriedly left.

What came to your mind?

This time, Zhang Chengyi was completely baffled. He uttered a bunch of incoherent words and then ran away.

Xue Muhua was about to chase after him when he gently shook his head to stop him. "Forget it," he said. "He's a true hero, after all. It would be strange if Qiao Feng ran away after promising to help."

"Where's Lao Su? What's Lao Su up to? Why isn't he back yet?"

-------------------------------------

The city of Yangzhou is a maze of winding, dense alleyways.

Su Xinghe was strolling on the rooftop. With his lightness skill and internal strength, apart from Grandpa Zhang, Qiao Feng, and Wu Yazi, no one could detect him, let alone catch up with him.

In short, his purpose in going there was to "borrow" some money from the Salt Gang.

Due to its advantageous geographical location, where the Yangtze River, the Grand Canal, the Huai River, the Tongji Canal, and the East China Sea all converge, Yangzhou was bound to be a megacity in ancient times when water transport was the core.

The importance of salt goes without saying. Salt guilds, which were recognized by the government, naturally rose along the Grand Canal. Cities like Yangzhou naturally had salt guilds gathering there. Until the Qing Dynasty, the salt guilds in Yangzhou were very powerful. However, with the rise of railways in the late Qing Dynasty and the decline of water transport, Yangzhou gradually fell from an international metropolis, and the salt guilds soon disappeared from the historical stage.

Getting back to the main point, it's no surprise that the Salt Gang is wealthy. Moreover, they mostly collude with officials and merchants, selling smuggled salt, engaging in water transport, cooperating with bandits, and secretly training armed personnel. In short, they are rich, but they are not good people, and ordinary people in the underworld can't afford to offend them.

When Su Xinghe arrived in Yangzhou, he was short of money but not afraid of trouble, so he naturally wanted to borrow some money from the Salt Gang.

"Huh?" He was searching for his target when he suddenly spotted one, no, two familiar faces.

After Jingfu Temple, Quan Guanqing, the leader of the Dazhi branch of the Beggars' Sect, and Kang Min, the widow of Ma Dayuan, fled from the Beggars' Sect.

News travels fast in the martial arts world; in just over half a month, it's enough time for martial arts practitioners to spread the news all over the country on foot.

What happened at Gyeongbokgung Temple that day is probably already being talked about even further south. Meanwhile, some interesting changes have also occurred within the Beggars' Sect.

Should we take them both back to Grandpa Zhang for a look?

Su Xinghe looked at Quan Guanqing and Kang Min arguing in the courtyard and thought to himself.

Chapter 36 You've Arrived

"Bitch! Bitch! Bitch!"