I am Jinshan Youxia

"Yes, yes!" The renowned physician Xue Muhua walked out with a smile on his face. "Thank you, Uncle Zhang."

"Thank you so much, Uncle Zhang!" X7

I must say, the eight of them have amazing teamwork.

"Ha~ Ah," Zhang Chengyi yawned and casually said, "Let's go."

We arrived at the inn in the evening, ate and drank our fill, and played around for a while. The moon was already high in the sky, so it was time to go to sleep.

Chapter 15 Division of Labor and Cooperation

The next day, early in the morning, at the inn.

"So it is, and so it is."

Zhang Chengyi shook his head as he looked at the Northern Darkness Divine Art manual filled with Wu Yazi's annotations, feeling as if his brain was growing.

His month at Leigu Mountain wasn't wasted; he thoroughly brushed up on his martial arts knowledge in a private tutoring session run by the leader of the Xiaoyao Sect.

The main reason is that, as a cheat-like character with inexhaustible internal energy, he actually has many more powerful ways to play.

For example, with the Infinite Transfer of Skill, without the Northern Darkness Divine Skill to digest, at most everyone would just practice the Health Preservation Technique with him. But the Health Preservation Technique that goes directly to the top is still better than any peerless martial art.

The problem is, he doesn't know how.

Yes, the transmission of internal energy is not something anyone can do. You need sufficient martial arts knowledge and experience in cultivating internal energy, as well as a high level of control over your internal energy. Otherwise, if you try to insert your internal energy into someone else's body, a slight mistake could result in internal injuries if you're lucky, or even permanent disability or death if you're unlucky.

The meridians are connected to the five internal organs; otherwise, how could internal energy guide qi back to its source?

Even if Zhang Chengyi wanted to create more top-tier martial arts masters to study stronger martial arts techniques or the way of martial arts together, he would still need to catch up on his own studies first.

Taking shortcuts can make you stronger, but if you want others to be like you, you have to honestly walk that path all over again.

Of course, the more important reason is that it is meaningless for artificial masters to be so skilled. What is needed is martial arts knowledge. You can't just copy a bunch of illiterate masters, can you? That would be of no use in advancing martial arts.

He and Wuyazi are already invincible enough, so there's no point in creating a few more experts.

There is still some hope in going back to learn martial arts again.

He has a photographic memory and is taught by Wu Yazi, so his progress is quite fast. Even if it's not something that happens overnight, he has plenty of time and there's no rush.

As for the Northern Darkness Divine Art?

Wu Yazi had endured thirty years of paralysis and was the leader of the Xiaoyao Sect. He was not bound by sect distinctions. His promise not to pass on the secrets was simply a ploy to trick a peerless master into inheriting the position of leader of the Xiaoyao Sect.

In the novel, before Xu Zhu received his skills from him, he clearly did not want to accept the position of leader of the Xiaoyao Sect or become his disciple. Xu Zhu accepted it readily, not wanting to force others.

With abundant internal energy that can be replenished at any time, transferring internal energy is really nothing special.

In order to obtain the Northern Darkness Divine Skill, Zhang Chengyi adjusted his internal energy to a pitifully weak level, practically handing over his life and death to others.

Wu Yazi was deeply moved by this, which is why his goodwill towards his benefactor increased, and he completely affirmed the benefactor's character, to the point that he could even accept his disciple selling himself into slavery.

Little did they know, these people were practically superhuman, completely disregarding one or two lives.

Subtle cognitive differences create a beautiful misalignment.

In theory, the two of them combined could mass-produce unparalleled masters. However, Wu Yazi had reservations about this and had not found a successor for thirty years. He was a bit PTSD because Ding Chunqiu had made him feel that smart people were inherently bad and stupid people lacked comprehension.

In addition, Zhang Chengyi felt that creating artificial masters was meaningless. He wanted to go to the martial arts world to gather more martial arts techniques and then create them all at the same level to figure out how to break through the limits of the human body.

So the two agreed that Wu Yazi would kill Ding Chunqiu and get rid of his inner demons, and then they would discuss their plans together when he returned.

Zhang Chengyi then traveled to the martial arts world to seek out masters, preparing to create a Leigushan version of "Xia Ke Dao" (侠客岛).

Along the way, he sat in the carriage, spending most of his time studying the secret manuals of the Free and Unfettered Sect. However, his progress was a bit awkward. He hadn't even finished half of the Northern Darkness Divine Art, let alone other martial arts such as fist, palm, finger, and sword techniques.

By the way, after learning and maxing out the Beiming Divine Skill, my athlete's foot disappeared. This peerless martial art comes with the effect of being immune to all poisons and balancing Yin and Yang. When circulating throughout the body, it can make the body feel like it's being tortured in a furnace and several times colder than ice, which is probably a kind of disinfection and sterilization.

The problem isn't that hair loss is completely cured. The key issue is that the cause of hair loss is the death of hair follicles. The dead cells can't be regenerated, so even if you don't go bald further, your hair will still be somewhat sparse.

Zhang Chengyi could only console himself that since his long hair was tied up in a bun, others wouldn't be able to tell anything at first glance.

"Very good, morning reading is over." He put the bookmark into the book, tucked it into his pocket, wiped his face with the still-warm towel, and went downstairs to prepare for breakfast.

People in the Song Dynasty did not have the habit of eating three meals a day. As a poem says, "I only eat fish and shrimp for two meals, and my belly is now like a small pond." Most people ate two meals a day, namely a "big meal" at Chenshi (7 to 9 am) and a "small meal" at Shenshi (3 to 5 pm).

Some wealthy families would have a snack at noon. Rich people can eat whenever they want, and it doesn't matter if they eat eight meals a day, but they don't consider it a separate meal.

Meanwhile, breakfast in this era is exceptionally lavish, designed to provide energy for the day's work, hence the name "big meal." Zhang Chengyi, having been in this body for over two months, has somewhat adapted to local customs.

Aside from breakfast and dinner, he mostly buys snacks and braised meat as treats.

Upon arriving at the hall, just as he was wondering why no one was there, Su Xinghe hurriedly walked in from the backyard and said, "Uncle Zhang, Mu Hua and his men have captured a spy."

They're spies, aren't they?

Zhang Chengyi translated it in his head, then became interested. Ignoring his slight appetite, he followed them into the backyard to join in the fun.

A monk was tied to a millstone, looking listless. He was unharmed, but his face still showed signs of fear.

Medicine and poison are inseparable. For Xue Muhua and Su Xinghe, this pair of divine doctors and disciples, to concoct some poisons or interrogation drugs would be a waste of their talents.

Gou Du, the third of the Eight Friends of Hangu, immediately said, "Uncle Zhang, Master, he said he was acting on orders from the Lingjiu Palace of Misty Peak and had been monitoring the actions of the Deaf-Mute Sect. This time, he followed the carriage all the way here."

Oh ho, Lingjiu Palace on Misty Peak?

Zhang Chengyi found it quite interesting. Tianshan Tonglao was a very awkward person. Look at how she had ignored her missing junior brother for thirty years, but in reality, she was constantly bickering with Li Qiushui. At the beginning of the novel, she even secretly sent people to Zhanjianhu Palace and investigate Wuliang Jade Wall. In the end, she still cared.

Sending people to the Central Plains to search for information is very likely an attempt to find the missing Wuyazi through Su Xinghe.

Tsk, why be so awkward? Just come over and ask, and you'll know everything.

The Lingjiu Palace on Misty Peak was too far away, and news was very scarce. Apart from him, Su Xinghe and the Eight Friends of Hangu were completely unaware of anything and were all wondering if it was related to Ding Chunqiu.

"Let him go," Zhang Chengyi said. What else could he do but kill him?

They can be considered family, both belonging to the Xiaoyao Sect. There are differences in kinship, but there's no need to actually take their lives.

Although Su Xinghe didn't understand why, he still immediately reached out and used his internal force to break the rope.

The monk knelt down with a thud, gagged a few times, said nothing, and staggered away.

Chapter 16 Temple

On a bright, sunny morning, the carriage swayed and wobbled away from the town.

They only had eight more mounted attendants than when they arrived.

"The next stop is a temple..."

As before, Su Xinghe made the carriage move slowly forward, while he leaned against the carriage and recounted the upcoming journey and landmarks in a clear voice.

Zhang Chengyi flipped through the book for a while, then couldn't help but listen.

That's very interesting.

There is a lot to say about temples. Temples in the Northern Song Dynasty can be broadly divided into two types: those that were granted official designations and those that were not.

A bestowed title is a certificate issued by the imperial court. First, it grants tax exemption; second, it grants land ownership; third, it makes the temple famous; and fourth, temples with bestowed titles have certain channels to obtain blank ordination certificates.

This brings us to the ordination certificate system, which influenced all aspects of the Song Dynasty.

I won't go into the complicated details. To put it simply, you can fill in any blank certificate and become a legal monk. It can basically be used as a new ID card, erasing all past grievances.

This becomes a legitimate and legal means of escaping punishment.

Due to their special effects, many people collected and speculated on the ordination certificates, which is what is known as "merchants and commoners alike running around for them".

The imperial court itself even sold ordination certificates. Su Shi asked the court for a hundred ordination certificates instead of money in order to dredge West Lake. Yue Fei's military pay was also in the form of ordination certificates.

It is clear that this thing is, in a sense, an ancient version of a valuable item.

Temples that receive imperial decrees are often granted ordination certificates on occasions such as the emperor's ascension to the throne or his birthday. This is a form of alternative income, and the kind that appreciates in value.

Of course, most importantly, temples without official permits could be demolished by local governments at any time in a legitimate and legal manner, and monks without ordination certificates would be tattooed on the face and exiled.

It's not as simple as just building a temple, shaving your head, and claiming to be a master of a certain temple.

To put it bluntly, the quota system and the ordination certificate system were the means by which the imperial court controlled the number of temples and monks. Temples that could obtain quotas were generally large in scale and influence, while those who obtained ordination certificates were either wealthy or passed the examinations, and in any case, they had a reason to become monks.

On the one hand, the imperial court provides some benefits by granting quotas and ordination certificates. On the other hand, it can also use these quotas and ordination certificates to prevent ordinary people from easily entering the country. Otherwise, if all the peasants become monks, who will sell their blood and lives?

However, despite the imperial court's management, there were indeed many unlicensed temples in the countryside that had been quite well-known locally in the past. Without official recognition, local governments dared not easily demolish them, given their influence.

However, temples that receive official designations are heavily promoted by the government, and as their fame spreads, it naturally leads to a decline in the popularity of unofficial temples.

Today, most of the unlicensed temples are starting to look for new ways to survive, each relying on their own abilities to attract worshippers. In addition, many fake monks who have bought their ordination certificates have also joined them, making the place a mixed bag.

Some accept pawn services, some buy and sell information, some act as pimps, and some are even famous for their cooking.

"Wait, where is the temple famous for its cooking?" Zhang Chengyi asked curiously.

"Well..." Su Xinghe looked troubled. He had access to information, but that didn't mean he could find out exactly what a certain temple was doing and how it did it.

“Uncle Zhang, I know him.” Xue Muhua rode over on his horse, leaning on the back to avoid looking down at his master and the head of the family. He introduced the monk, “His name is Huiming. He’s an excellent cook of pork. Many high-ranking officials and martial arts masters pass by.”

“We can make the detour, it should only take about ten days.” Seeing that the head of the family was interested, he pulled out a map from his horse, unfolded it, and pointed to the bottom.

Well, it's a bit of a detour, but I'm really curious about the monk who's good at roasting pork, and I really want to try it.

Zhang Chengyi hesitated for a moment. Since there was still plenty of time, he thought, "Why don't we go take a look?"

Su Xinghe nodded and said, "According to the route, we will still pass through Jingfu Temple, the next destination I just mentioned. It is a very lively market and intelligence trading place."

"I heard that they have close ties with the Beggars' Sect there." He paused, then said, "I noticed that Uncle Zhang is very interested in news about the Beggars' Sect, so he specially sent someone to investigate."

“I have received news that the four elders of the Beggars’ Sect, Xi, Song, Chen and Wu, had a secret meeting in the Dabie Mountains a few days ago. After that, the Beggars’ Sect disciples from all over the world gathered in Jiangnan. Many years ago, the Beggars’ Sect elder Xu Chongxiao had been living in seclusion at Qingliang Temple on Mount Wutai. He was also invited out by them and visited various temples along the way south.”

At this time, he was a guest at Gyeongbokgung Temple.

Xu Chongxiao.

Zhang Chengyi was also deeply impressed by this character.

When reading Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, during the discussion in Xingzi Forest, Qiao Feng first stopped Quan Guanqing from speaking to prevent him from disturbing the gang members' thoughts. Then, he reasoned with him and appealed to his emotions, and even took the punishment upon himself, thus controlling the situation.

Knowing that he was a Khitan, the four elders Xi, Song, Chen, and Wu remained silent, not intending to reveal the matter. Even after the matter was eventually exposed, the three elders Song, Wu, and Xi, along with the three branch leaders and 50% of the gang members, supported him.

It is clear that whether people believe or not what Master Zhiguang, Tan Gong and Tan Po, Zhao Qiansun and others said is not important. How could a few words and a letter of unknown authenticity determine the position of the Beggar Clan leader?

At this point, no matter how eloquent Quan Guanqing was, he had no chance of turning the tide. Coincidentally, there was an urgent military situation in Western Xia. The Beggars' Sect should have been put on hold due to the imminent threat of a major enemy.

Given Qiao Feng's meticulous mind and methods, he would never have gone so far as to resign in public.