Knife splashing

Chapter 39 Zhang's Martial Arts School
"Do you understand the rules?"

The man with dead fish eyes spoke in a gloomy tone. Not to mention Li Yan and Shalifi, even Wang Daoxuan's eyes turned slightly cold.

"Rules...of course I understand!"

Sharifei chuckled, stood up and touched his bald head, "Let's not talk about the rules of the competition for now. When talking to people, you have to introduce yourself. This is the rule of the underworld..."

"It's the rules of being a human being!"

"You don't even know the rules of being a human being, what nonsense are you talking about!"

Sharifei is a guy whose martial arts skills are average. He relies on his mouth to survive. He has never lost an argument, so he would never fail to fight back when someone stepped on his doorstep.

Unexpectedly, the dead-eyed man was not angry after hearing this. He just shifted his attention to Sharifei and said indifferently: "You do know a little bit about the rules of being a human being. You should be careful about everything."

"You smile a little, give in a little, drink a little, and before you do anything, you flip the table and challenge someone to a life-and-death duel. Do you really think you have a strong fist?"

"Whether it's hard or not, you won't know until you try it!"

"I'm afraid it will become soft before I even try it!"

The two of them argued back and forth, and they were evenly matched.

Moreover, the atmosphere became inexplicably tense.

Sharifi widened his eyes.

The man with dead fish eyes had a solemn expression.

They sized each other up, as if a general had met a good opponent in the battle line.

Li Yan rubbed his brows and asked, "What exactly do you want to do, sir?"

He inexplicably felt that if these two people started quarreling, he would be useless this morning.

The dead-eyed man was obviously a little regretful after being interrupted in a quarrel, but he also began to introduce himself and bowed casually: "I am Zhang Shitong from the Zhang family martial arts school, and I am also a visiting guest of the Xianyang Divine Fist Association."

Li Yan narrowed his eyes slightly, "Were you sent by Zhou Pan?"

Of course he understood the rules of the life-and-death contest.

First, the invitation must be sent. Since he was the one who asked, he has to send the invitation.

Secondly, you need to ask for witnesses. No matter if it is from the government office or a senior in the underworld, someone must be present to testify and sign a life and death agreement. If you beat someone to death, you don't have to go to court.

Three are the rules of the arena.

Others have to accept the posts he sends, otherwise they would be admitting defeat.

But if someone else takes the challenge, he will set the rules. When it comes to the ring, whether it is a round ring, plum blossom pole fight, or a boxing or sword fight, it is not up to him to decide.

If he didn't dare to accept it, he could only admit defeat and leave Xianyang.

This is called a go and come.

As for the patroller, it is a position in the Shenquan Society.

The Shenquan Clubs in various places were mostly composed of local martial arts schools. They were considered as hangouts in the underworld. Some were hired by officials and gentry as bodyguards, and some opened escort agencies, which made them relatively close to the imperial court.

They would sometimes help the imperial court deal with disputes in the martial arts world and quell banditry, so they also had connections with the militia in various villages and often sent people to teach them how to use swords, guns, sticks and clubs.

The patrollers are the ones who are responsible for traveling around and gathering intelligence.

I originally planned to send the invitation today, but how come the other party came first?

"hehe."

The dead fish-eyed man smiled coldly, "The Divine Fist Association is not dominated by Zhou alone. My father is the vice president. Zhou is not qualified to command us."

Li Yan was puzzled, "What does that have to do with you?"

"It didn't matter originally." The dead-eyed man Zhang Shitong's eyes became serious. "The two disciples surnamed Zhou behaved recklessly in Xianyang City, bringing shame to the entire Divine Fist Association. We couldn't stand it, but we couldn't do anything about it."

"If you kill them directly, I will have to secretly respect you as a hero."

"But since you used the name of Li Hu's son to fight, this matter has something to do with our martial arts school."

"My father...wants you to come over and take care of him!"

…………

Zhang's Martial Arts School is located in the Yaowang Temple area in the northeast.

This is the old city of Xianyang. Unlike the previous life, it is still relatively well preserved. There is even a section of the broken wall of the old Qin capital, which has been reinforced to separate the two streets.

The martial arts hall is quite large and very old. The walls are built with old Qin bricks, which, combined with the faded plaque, make it look even more ancient and heavy.

What is even more attractive is the pair of stone lions at the door.

Before Li Yan got close, a strange look appeared in his eyes.

The stone lion as a kind of talisman originated in the Han Dynasty.

At that time, the rulers of Parthia and Dayuezhi in the Western Regions presented lions as tribute. Later, along with the introduction of Buddhism and Taoism, lions were endowed with divinity, and the stone lions that guard houses have been popular since then.

This pair of stone lions are simple in shape, and many parts have been worn away, but the aura of strength and dominance still prevails. It is a Han Dynasty style and is by no means an ordinary object.

Sure enough, after opening his sense of smell, Li Yan immediately smelled an odor with a sense of majesty in the incense. It was obvious that the internal energy was condensing and a small "game" had been set.

It can be considered a treasure to protect the house, much better than the plaque in his house.

With this thing in place, I guess no evil things would dare to come in.

Zhang Shitong was sharp-eyed. Noticing that he looked amiss, he immediately sneered, “This is a treasure passed down from our ancestors. Even my father has to call me Master.”

"I heard that you also entered the Xuanmen?"

"I'd better remind you early. Although Xuanmen is the leader of the martial arts world, it also has its own rules. And Zhou Pan's family has a stronger talisman, so don't play any tricks."

"Otherwise, it would be someone else who comes looking for you..."

"Of course I know!"

Li Yan replied calmly. The Great Xuan Dynasty is powerful, and no matter if you are from the Xuanmen or the Jianghu, you must abide by its laws. If you kill someone openly, no matter if you are a Jianghu swordsman or a sorcerer, you will be wanted.

Of course, privately it’s another story.

Before approaching the martial arts hall, I heard uniform shouting from inside, obviously some disciples were practicing boxing.

When Master Zhang arrived at the door, he first respectfully bowed to the two stone lions and said, "Hello, two masters," before he was led in.

Li Yan was startled when he heard this.

Well, this is probably a tip from an expert.

I'm afraid that over the years, this pair of stone lions will become spirits and will also be the patron saints of Zhang's martial arts school, similar to the methods used by some famous mountains and big sects.

After entering the door, there are two huge martial arts arenas.

The ground was paved with yellow earth, and swords, guns, sticks and clubs were placed on the weapon rack.

On one side there are plum blossom stakes, stone locks, stone balls and other objects.

It was already autumn, and the weather had turned cold after a few autumn rains, but the disciples on the martial arts field were all wearing short coats. Their muscles were muscular, their punches were swift and powerful, and sweat was rising from their heads.

Xinyi Liuhequan?
Li Yan recognized his boxing skills at a glance.

This boxing is based on the principle of "the movement of the mind is the intention, and the direction of the intention is the fist". The gun is taken out and the fist is used to punch the six combinations, so it is called Xinyi Liuhe boxing.

In Guanzhong, although Hongquan is the mainstream, Xinyi Liuhequan is also widely spread, and it is not uncommon to have martial arts schools that specialize in teaching it.

The main hall of the martial arts hall is also quite large. On the back wall is a statue of the Zhang family's ancestor, with two armchairs below. There is also a row of chairs on each side of the main hall, and several magnificent landscape paintings are hung on the walls.

An old man was sitting on the armchair. He was not tall, wearing a green cloth jacket, with brow bones connected horizontally, slightly graying hair, and also had a pair of dead fish eyes.

"Greetings, Senior Zhang." Li Yan saluted with his fists clasped.

Although he is unruly, he is not ignorant of etiquette.

This old man is called Zhang Yuanshang. He is the vice president of the Xianyang Shenquan Association. He also runs a martial arts school and has connections with several escort agencies. He is considered a local martial arts veteran.

Old man Zhang was smoking a water pipe. When he saw him come in, he just raised his eyebrows slightly, and several disciples in the hall immediately left and closed the door.

With the sound of the door closing, the light in the main hall immediately dimmed.

The Zhang father and son and Li Yan were the only ones left in the lobby.

Zhang Yuanshang looked at Li Yan with his dead fish eyes, a cold light flashing in them, and said in a hoarse voice: "Although Li Hu can't control his pants, he is also a man of heroic spirit and awe. How come he gave birth to a pretty boy?"

This old man is not tall, but his aura is extremely impressive.

The cold gaze shot over, as if a knife was pointed at his forehead.

Li Yan's expression remained unchanged. He turned his head and glanced at Zhang Shitong standing next to him. He shook his head and said, "Senior is amazing. We are indeed a family."

The Zhang family and Zhou Pan are not on good terms, so they definitely didn't invite him here to start a fight.

The old man just wanted to show his power and test his courage.

But his foul mouth is exactly the same as his son's.

"You're a coward, but you still have a bit of temper."

Old man Zhang was not angry. He leaned back, sighed and said, "If you had come to me first, you wouldn't have to do this."

"Don't fight this life-and-death duel anymore. Leave Xianyang. At least you can save your life!"

Li Yan was amused. "My fight is related to the seniors?"

Old man Zhang said, "Your life or death has nothing to do with me, but you are Li Hu's son, and the life and death fight in Xianyang City has something to do with me!"

As he spoke, he looked out the window and said calmly, "This world is neither simple nor complicated."

"It's simple. Whoever has the bigger fist has the stronger back!"

"What's complicated is that there are rules everywhere, and social etiquette everywhere."

"Ten years ago, a few old friends and I valued your father and knew Zhou Pan's character. We didn't want him to become the president of the Xianyang Divine Fist Association, so we made many arrangements and put in a lot of effort."

"Just when things were about to be done, your father died in Chang'an, in a brothel, allowing Zhou Pan to take the throne easily, and we were also ridiculed as a result."

"The other old buddies have all given in, but I won't. But if you are beaten to death in Xianyang with the title of Li Hu's son, then that old monkey will become tough and I will be too ashamed to leave the house."

"Do you understand this principle?"

"Understand!"

Li Yan nodded and said calmly: "It's nothing more than being afraid that I will step on the scale. Once the weight is determined, some things will be difficult to say."

"That's good."

Zhang Yuanshang nodded slightly and lit up the hookah again. "No matter what you want to do, once you say you want to fight a life-and-death duel, it has nothing to do with that scoundrel Meng Haichen. Whether he wins or loses, his life is in danger."

"Zhou Pan has already reached the state of transformation, and he is extremely concerned about his reputation. I'm afraid he won't even show his face, let alone take action..."

"His famous disciples include the Eight Vajra, all of whom have already mastered the hidden power. The leaders of the Iron Knife and White Ape gangs are among them. Any one of them can beat you to death..."

"But Zhou Pan will not let them do it either. Because you are too young, and they are outsiders who have been famous for a long time, so even if they win, it won't count as a win."

"If I'm not mistaken, the one who did it will be Zhou Bai. He is the most outstanding disciple of this generation of the Zhou family. He is only about seventeen or eighteen years old. He already entered the dark energy last year. He is also a martial arts madman. He has been sparring with others everywhere and has a lot of experience."

"When there is no tiger in the mountain, the monkey becomes king. Only when Zhou Bai kills you, can this old monkey feel relieved."

"How about it... Do you still have the guts to go on stage?"

Li Yan raised his eyebrows and said calmly: "I think that old monkey will have to hold his breath for a while longer!"

"Well, at least you're tough enough!"

Zhang Yuanshang clapped his hands and nodded:
"Teacher boy, try his strength."

"If you just keep talking, I'll break your legs and throw you out of Xianyang!"

(End of this chapter)