Rise from a Poor Family: My Martial Arts Counterattack

Chapter 245 Zhao Qianqiu: A Casual Planting Has Grown into a Forest
Lingxiao City!
Today, in every tavern and teahouse, wherever martial artists gather, everyone is talking about one thing.

Compared to the challenges posed by the Four Harmony Martial Arts Academy and the Pilgrimage Martial Arts Academy two months ago, this time the impact is clearly much greater.

Many martial artists who had reached the rank of master also participated.

Once you've mastered the internal organ cultivation, you're not far from entering the next level.

Ordinary martial artists at the Great Perfection of Internal Organ Refinement are not taken seriously by entry-level martial artists. Although they are only one step apart, this step is an insurmountable chasm for many martial artists.

However, for the three Beichen brothers and Lin Chen, who were all martial artists who had reached the Great Perfection of Internal Organ Refinement, all the rank-up martial artists knew that they were bound to reach the rank-up.

Lingxiao Martial Arts Garden!

The most popular place for martial artists in Lingxiao City is a place where they can spar and exchange ideas.

Most importantly, martial arts schools are located throughout the nine kingdoms, and many martial artists are members of these schools.

Deep within Wuyuan.

The woman in the red dress looked at the group of people in front of her with a cold and expressionless face.

"Elder Zhao, you should be more flexible."

"Make an exception. Don't forget the agreement we made with the founding emperor of Liang when Wuyuan entered the country. Wuyuan would never interfere in the affairs of the Liang court."

Zhao Qianqiu looked at the other four people in front of her with a frosty expression. All five of them were elders of the Jin Garden of the Great Liang Martial Garden.

Wuyuan has a total of nineteen branches in Daliang, and she has four branches.

A year ago, she was not a Golden Garden Elder, but an ordinary Silver Garden Elder, only in charge of two martial arts gardens. Thanks to discovering Lin Chen, she was promoted to Golden Garden Elder, not only taking charge of two more martial arts gardens, but also becoming a Golden Garden Elder.

The rules of the entire Daliang Martial Arts Garden were discussed and formulated by the elders of the Golden Garden, and this time it was these four elders of the Golden Garden who forced her to agree to change the rules of the Martial Arts Garden.

"Times have changed. Other countries have decided to establish the Hidden Dragon Ranking. According to the current assessment of the nine countries, only ten young geniuses from Daliang will be on the Hidden Dragon Ranking this year. Even the strongest one, Lin Chen, who was discovered by Elder Zhao, is only ranked tenth."

An old man on the left said in a deep voice, "When my Martial Academy entered the Great Liang Dynasty, it said that it would not interfere with the Great Liang court. The purpose of the Martial Academy is to cultivate martial arts geniuses, but the current situation in the Great Liang Dynasty makes it impossible for a true genius to emerge."

"That's right. If the Great Liang doesn't change, it will inevitably fall to the bottom in the long run."

Zhao Qianqiu coldly observed the group. These people weren't genuinely concerned about the martial arts geniuses of Daliang; they were simply afraid that Daliang would be at the bottom, affecting their own assessments.

The martial arts academy also conducts assessments for its elders.

Discovering geniuses is what Wuyuan requires of them, which is why she was able to rise to the rank of Elder of Jinyuan just because of Lin Chen.

Originally, there was no comparison between the nine kingdoms, and the geniuses of other kingdoms would not affect them. But now it's different. The Hidden Dragon Ranking is a combination of martial arts geniuses from the nine kingdoms. If the geniuses of Liang are at the bottom, it means that the Martial Arts Garden has not played its role.

"Elder Zhao, it's not that we want the Liang court to change things. The Liang royal family and the court probably already have this idea. This time, when the three Yu brothers from the Nansha Islands came to Lingxiao City to challenge us, many of the Liang geniuses who could defeat the three Yu brothers did not show up."

At the head of the table, an elderly man in his fifties, his eyes gleaming, stroked his beard and said, “As far as I know, the young men from the five clans of Guanzhong have come to Lingxiao City. These men defeated the three brothers of Yu Beichen. Elder Zhao should know what that means for Daliang.”

Zhao Qianqiu remained silent, a hint of murderous intent flashing in her eyes; she knew, of course, what this meant.

This means that the five clans of Guanzhong, as well as some other martial arts families in Daliang, will take the opportunity to demand that the Daliang Ministry of Military Affairs change its policies. After all, it is those geniuses who cultivate in other countries who ultimately save face for Daliang.

This is a blow to the Ministry of Military Affairs, proving the failure of its policies.

Actually, for Zhao Qianqiu, Daliang's choice to change was a good thing. The reason she didn't agree was because she thought of Lin Chen.

She was able to become an elder of Jin Garden because she discovered Lin Chen. However, if it weren't for the Martial Hall under the Martial Affairs Department, a young man like Lin Chen would never have had the opportunity to enter the Martial Hall and obtain the Enlightenment Pill, and thus would never have had the chance to appear in Martial Garden.

Perhaps, with Lin Chen's martial arts talent, he will have the opportunity to reach the rank later, but one step behind means falling behind at every step.

After a few years, or even just half a year, she will lose all interest in Lin Chen and will certainly not allow Yan He'an to give Lin Chen any special attention.

If Daliang can produce one Lin Chen, who can guarantee that it won't produce a second one?

Even without Lin Chen's talent, it at least preserves an opportunity for teenagers from ordinary families.

That's why she hasn't agreed.

But she also knew in her heart that this matter could not be resolved by her opposition alone; even Lord Kong from the Ministry of Military Affairs could not withstand the pressure.

The secrets that the snowy region has revealed this time are too astonishing.

"Elder Zhao, how is it?"

Faced with the gazes of the four people in front of her, Zhao Qianqiu had no choice but to open her red lips slightly, just about to agree, when footsteps suddenly came from the courtyard gate.

"Elders, the results are in!"

The courtyard gate was pushed open, and a middle-aged man rushed in.

"What was the result?" Elder Jin asked in a deep voice.

"The results of today's battle at Lingxiao Martial Academy are in: Daliang has won!"

"That's it?"

Several elders of Jinyuan looked displeased. They already knew the outcome of this battle; Daliang would ultimately win, and the three islands of Nansha had been used by others.

Seeing that the elders' expressions remained unchanged, the middle-aged man was somewhat surprised. Did the elders already know the news?
But that doesn't make sense. No one else has come here except me. Where did the elders get this information?
The middle-aged man glanced at Zhao Qianqiu and suddenly realized that the person in question was discovered by Elder Zhao.

"I was too excited. With Elder Zhao here, the elders should have known the outcome of this battle long ago. I'll take my leave now."

Zhang Shunan was so excited not only because Lin Chen was also a member of the Martial Arts Academy, but also because he himself was a martial artist from Daliang, and Lin Chen's victory this time was extremely satisfying.

"and many more!"

Zhao Qianqiu called out to Zhang Shunan: "What do you mean by that?"

Zhang Shunan stopped and turned around, seeing the puzzled looks on the elders' faces. He was somewhat bewildered: "Didn't you elders already know that Lin Chen defeated Yu Beichen and the other two?"

"Lin Chen defeated Yu Beichen?"

Zhao Qianqiu slapped the armrest with her fair right hand, instantly turning it into dust. She stood up, and her originally wrinkled long skirt slid down, revealing her beautiful figure.

"Can you say that again?"

"In the first match, Di Qian and his two companions were defeated by the Yu Beichen brothers. Later, Lin Chen appeared and joined two others to fight against the Yu Beichen brothers. They won this match!" Zhang Shunan didn't understand why Elder Zhao was so excited, but he still answered quickly.

"I understand!"

After a brief moment of shock, the elderly man sitting at the head of the table suddenly burst into laughter.

"This must have been arranged by the Liang court, so that Lin Chen and the disciples of the five clans of Guanzhong would participate together. This way, at least some face was saved for Kong Qifeng, and the Ministry of Military Affairs would not be under such pressure. It can be said that they went to great lengths."

"That should be the case. This is indeed a good solution. It seems that Cui Yunfan and his group are quite strong, capable of fighting two against three. As for Lin Chen... he'll just stay on the field."

Another elder from Jinyuan stood by and smiled in agreement. Lin Chen had only been practicing for a short time, so having him participate would probably just make him a mascot.

This is to save face for Kong Qifeng and the Ministry of War!
This saved face for Kong Qifeng and the Ministry of Military Affairs, allowing them to push the Ministry of Military Affairs to change its policies, and also giving Kong Qifeng a way out.

"The five tribes of Guanzhong do have some schemes."

Zhang Shunan was completely bewildered by what the elders were saying. He couldn't understand what they meant by the Five Clans of Guanzhong and how to save face for Lord Kong.

"Elders, the reason we were able to win this battle is because of Lin Chen. Lin Chen and two other people went up to the stage, and those two fell into the trap of the three Yu Beichen brothers as soon as they entered the stage. They were seriously injured at the beginning. Just when everyone thought that the Great Liang was going to lose this battle, Lin Chen took out a bow and arrow and killed them one by one with just three arrows, defeating the three Yu Beichen brothers in just three arrows."

Seeing that the elders seemed to have misunderstood, Zhang Shunan couldn't help but describe the details of the duel. At the end, he even unconsciously made a bow-drawing gesture with both hands.

The courtyard fell silent instantly!

After a while, a pleasant laugh rang out.

Looking at the stunned expressions on the four people's faces, Zhao Qianqiu felt nothing but irony.

"Alright, I'm going to see Lin Chen now. Elders, you may discuss this further."

Zhao Qianqiu drifted away; she was going to see Lin Chen.

He was only slightly interested in Lin Chen at first and did it casually, never expecting Lin Chen to give him such a pleasant surprise.

"By the way, regarding the Hidden Dragon Ranking, we'll need to trouble the elders to renegotiate the rankings with the elders from other countries as well."

As she reached the door, Zhao Qianqiu turned back, a smile on her face.

"Elder Zhao, go ahead. We will definitely argue our case regarding the Hidden Dragon Ranking. At the very least, Lin Chen's ranking on the Hidden Dragon Ranking is too low right now."

The four elders in the courtyard also realized what was happening, but their faces showed no anger.

Because they realized that even though they had been proven wrong this time, Lin Chen's outstanding performance meant that his ranking on the Hidden Dragon List would change, and this was also due to their efforts.

Although Elder Zhao deserves the main credit, they can also benefit from it.

Zhao Qianqiu turned gracefully. She wasn't worried about Lin Chen's ranking on the Hidden Dragon List. These four were very self-serving, but precisely because they were so self-serving, they would fight tooth and nail for anything that involved their interests.

"I heard from Yan He'an that Lin Chen wanted to see me several times."

Thinking of what Yan He'an had told her—that Lin Chen had wanted to see her several times to express his gratitude in person—Zhao Qianqiu's red lips curved into a beautiful smile.

(End of this chapter)