Rise from a Poor Family: My Martial Arts Counterattack

Chapter 247 The Nine Kingdoms Need Martial Arts Geniuses

At the entrance of the palace.

A woman in a red dress appeared, tall and slender, her skirt trailing on the ground like flowing clouds, the belt around her waist outlining her beautiful figure.

Her eyes were like peach kernels, her red lips were touched with vermilion rouge, and even before she opened her lips, there was a hint of a smile. The bright pearls by her ears swayed gently and shone with her cloud-like hair, making her snow-white skin even more beautiful than jade.

Her every step exudes a natural, captivating charm, like a datura blooming in the night.

Is this Elder Wu Yuan?
If someone hadn't informed him of the visitor's identity, Lin Chen would have suspected that this person was a lady from a wealthy family.

If Senior Sister Jiang Qing represents purity and Murong Yan represents desire, then the woman in the red dress before us is a ripe peach, incomparably beautiful.

"So it's Elder Zhao."

Hou Zhantian spoke up, having already met Zhao Qianqiu before.

Elder Zhao?
Lin Chen was taken aback. The elder in Poyang County was also surnamed Zhao, as Senior Yan had told him.

Is it just a coincidence that they share the same surname?
"This humble woman greets Dean Hou."

Zhao Qianqiu smiled and looked at Lin Chen, who was standing to the side in a daze: "I heard from Yan He'an that you wanted to see me several times. What's wrong? Now that you've seen me, you have nothing to say?"

Lin Chen was still pondering whether the Elder Zhao in front of him was the one he had guessed, but upon hearing this, he no longer hesitated and immediately bowed and said, "Junior greets Elder Zhao."

"I have received care from the martial arts community several times. Senior Yan told me that it was because of Elder Zhao's instructions. I wanted to express my gratitude to Elder Zhao several times, but Senior Yan said that you were not in Poyang County."

Lin Chen's expression was sincere. No matter how different Elder Zhao was from the image he had imagined, the man had still taken care of him.

At first, he chose opponents for himself, which allowed him to quickly improve his Qingfeng Palm cultivation progress. Later, he gave himself treasures such as the "Thousand Hammers Diagram". In addition, he helped him to open his acupoints through true blood and also provided him with points to exchange for notes.

"This junior just didn't expect... didn't expect Elder Zhao to be so young, that's why I was a little caught off guard."

Upon hearing Lin Chen's explanation, Zhao Qianqiu's red lips curved into a smile, showing interest: "Oh, what kind of elder am I in your eyes?"

Lin Chen felt a little embarrassed and didn't know how to speak. In his imagination, Elder Zhao was an old man of similar age to Yan He'an.

Hou Zhantian, who was standing to the side, narrowed his old eyes slightly when he saw Lin Chen being stumped by the question. This Elder Zhao was the newly promoted Golden Garden Elder of the Martial Garden, and he knew that the other party was able to be promoted to Golden Garden Elder largely because of Lin Chen.

In this respect, Lin Chen and Elder Zhao can be considered each other's benefactors.

"Elder Zhao, please have a seat."

Hou Zhantian still spoke up to help Lin Chen out of the predicament, gesturing for her to sit down. Zhao Qianqiu nodded, her expression returning to seriousness. She walked to the guest chair, gently pinched the side of her skirt with her right hand, and gracefully sat down, her skirt without a single wrinkle.

Elder Zhao should already know the results of the martial arts academy's competition.

"Yes, that's why I've come here."

Zhao Qianqiu didn't keep them in suspense and looked at Lin Chen: "This time, Lin Chen defeated the three Yu Beichen brothers, so the ranking on the Hidden Dragon List will be changed."

"Hidden Dragon List?"

Hou Zhantian and Lin Chen both looked at Zhao Qianqiu.

"Today, our Martial Academy will release a list, gathering geniuses under the age of twenty from nine countries, and selecting the top one hundred to be listed. Before today, Lin Chen's ranking is set at tenth on the Hidden Dragon List."

"Tenth on the Hidden Dragon List?"

Hou Zhantian frowned. He wasn't surprised by Lin Chen's ranking, but rather by the Hidden Dragon Ranking.

"If I remember correctly, the Martial Garden never had a Hidden Dragon Ranking before. Why would they suddenly create this Hidden Dragon Ranking?"

"Does Lord Hou not know?"

When Zhao Qianqiu saw Hou Zhantian frown, he pondered for a while and then understood.

I'm afraid the higher-ups of the Great Liang Dynasty haven't decided whether to reveal the secrets discovered in the Snow Region. Although Hou Zhantian is also a high-ranking martial artist, he is only the dean of the martial arts academy and has not interfered in the court affairs.

The Liang royal family and the three dukes should inform Hou Zhantian and the other high-ranking martial artists only after they have made their decision.

"What do you know?" Hou Zhantian asked in a deep voice.

Zhao Qianqiu glanced at Lin Chen, who was equally curious, and her smile faded: "Something has happened in the Snow Region. Your Great Liang and Xiang Kingdom have both discovered the Snow Region Secret Realm and retrieved a bamboo slip from it. The bamboo slip records a lost history of the nine kingdoms from two thousand years ago."

Two thousand years ago?

Lin Chen looked completely bewildered, while Hou Zhantian's eyes gleamed: "Elder Zhao, are you referring to the origins of martial arts?"

"Yes."

Zhao Qianqiu nodded, and seeing Lin Chen's confused expression, he explained, "Whether it's the Great Liang or the other eight kingdoms, the records of martial arts can be traced back to at most two thousand years ago. Martial arts have existed since the beginning of recorded history in various countries, but no country has recorded what the origin of martial arts is. It's as if this technique suddenly appeared."

"So that's it."

Lin Chen suddenly realized, and Hou Zhantian pressed further: "Does that bamboo slip record the origin and source of the martial arts of the nine kingdoms?"

"Nine Kingdoms Martial Arts... or more accurately, only four kingdoms' martial arts originated from: Xiang, Liang, Han, and Yan." "Why only four?"

This time, Lin Chen pressed for an answer.

Zhao Qianqiu did not answer, and Hou Zhantian explained: "More than a thousand years ago, there were not the current nine kingdoms. There were only four kingdoms. The five kingdoms that have now emerged, namely Zheng and Zhao, were split off from the original four kingdoms."

"So that's how it is. It seems I need to brush up on my history."

Lin Chen felt somewhat embarrassed, realizing that his question was indeed a bit foolish. The world is a place where things are divided and then united, and what he saw now were nine kingdoms, but that didn't mean there were nine kingdoms a thousand years ago.

"The martial arts of the four kingdoms originated from a dynasty called Yanhuang Dynasty."

Yan Dynasty?
Hou Zhantian said in a deep voice: "Is this Yan Dynasty a dynasty that existed on this land more than two thousand years ago?"

"No, the Yan Dynasty is in another place. It's just that a martial artist from the Yan Dynasty came here and taught martial arts to the ancestors of the four countries. The reason this history was lost is simply because the task of that martial artist from the Yan Dynasty was to teach martial arts. After completing his task, he left."

The main hall was completely silent.

Lin Chen and Hou Zhantian were both processing the information in Zhao Qianqiu's words.

The fact that the martial arts of the Nine Kingdoms actually originated from other dynasties is a shocking revelation to all the martial artists in the Nine Kingdoms.

However, Lin Chen was thinking about another question: why did the Yan Dynasty send people here to teach martial arts, and then conceal this matter?

Or why didn't the Yan Dynasty bring the nine kingdoms under its control?

No dynasty doesn't want to expand its territory. Also, why has no one from the nine kingdoms discovered the existence of the Yan Dynasty in the past two thousand years?
Seeing the pensive expressions on Hou Zhantian and Lin Chen's faces, Zhao Qianqiu smiled and asked Lin Chen, "What have you thought of?"

"This disciple has many questions."

"If you have any doubts, speak up. This elder will see how many you can come up with."

It was obvious that Zhao Qianqiu was deliberately testing Lin Chen, and Lin Chen didn't waste any time, asking all the questions he had just had.

"Any more?"

"These are all I can think of for now."

"You can only think of these things because there are many secrets you don't know."

Hou Zhantian spoke up. As a high-ranking martial artist, he knew far more about the secrets of the Nine Kingdoms than Lin Chen, and he also gained many answers from the information revealed by Zhao Qianqiu.

"Is the Yan Dynasty related to the legends of the desolate lands?"

Zhao Qianqiu was not surprised that Hou Zhantian could guess this, and nodded: "In the eyes of the Yan Dynasty, the land of the Nine Kingdoms is a desolate place. According to the rules of the Yan Dynasty, a desolate place should have a thousand years of martial arts development time. Although I don't know why no martial artists came to the Yan Dynasty a thousand years ago, it at least verifies that the legend is true."

"I see. No wonder the Five Clans Association of Guanzhong suddenly arranged for their members to appear, and it's also no wonder your esteemed institution has released the Hidden Dragon List."

Having received confirmation, Hou Zhantian was finally free from the confusion that had been nagging at him for the past few days.

"Dean, Elder Zhao, this disciple is completely confused."

Seeing the two of them playing cryptic games, Lin Chen felt a little helpless. Couldn't they just be more explicit?
"A legend has always circulated across the land of the Nine Kingdoms that the land of the Nine Kingdoms is actually a desolate place. This desolation does not refer to the barrenness of the land, but rather to the desolation of martial arts."

Seeing Lin Chen's somewhat anxious expression, Zhao Qianqiu parted her red lips slightly: "The bamboo slips in the Snowfield Secret Realm were left behind by people from the Yan Dynasty. According to the bamboo slips, they were specifically responsible for searching desolate places, then passing on their martial arts techniques, and giving them a thousand years to develop independently without any interference."

"A thousand years later, the Yan Dynasty will send people again. If the martial arts in this desolate place fail to develop, all the martial artists in the desolate place will be conscripted by the Yan Dynasty. As for why they will be conscripted, the bamboo slip does not mention it."

Lin Chen pondered. Although the bamboo slip did not mention what the purpose of the expedition was, it was definitely not a good thing.

"Don't worry, according to the records on that bamboo slip, the martial arts of the nine kingdoms have developed, and there is no possibility that they will be taken away."

Zhao Qianqiu knew what Lin Chen was thinking and reassured him.

Hearing this, Lin Chen breathed a sigh of relief. Thinking about it, it made sense. With so many high-level martial artists in the Nine Kingdoms, it would be a bit unreasonable to call it a desolate place for martial arts.

"However, once it develops and is no longer a desolate place, it will lose the protection of the Yan Dynasty's 'independence' rules, and the forces within the Yan Dynasty will be able to come here."

"According to the bamboo slips, the group of people who went to the land of the nine kingdoms to teach martial arts were only considered to be of average status in the Great Yan Dynasty. Any second-class sect in the Great Yan Dynasty would have the ability to swallow up the nine kingdoms."

Hou Zhantian, who had been silent all along, spoke up at this moment: "If we want to protect it, there is only one way, and that is to cultivate martial arts geniuses."

Seeing Lin Chen's puzzled expression, Hou Zhantian recited: "The thousand-year-old edict has ended, and desolation is not unique. If we want to safeguard the mountains and rivers, we must raise the unicorn and the phoenix."

These two lines are from a folk song in a desolate legend.

Lin Chen's eyes were thoughtful. Without Elder Zhao's explanation, these two lines of the song would have been difficult to understand, but with Elder Zhao's words, their meaning became clear.

A thousand years later, the desolate land of martial arts has passed its millennium protection period. If it still wants to protect its homeland and territory, there is only one way: the emergence of "Qinglin Fengxiang," also known as a genius.

"The contents of the bamboo slips are known to the high-ranking officials of all countries. Although it is unknown why the Yan Dynasty has not yet emerged, it is a sword hanging over the heads of the nine countries. After deliberation, my Martial Garden has decided to issue the Hidden Dragon List."

Zhao Qianqiu's eyes gleamed with wonder. This time, the Hidden Dragon Ranking would not be just about fame; every person who made the list would receive abundant martial arts resources.

(End of this chapter)