Arhats Subduing Demons: Starting with The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber

Chapter 1 The Three-Day Young Master
In the western part of Taiyuan Prefecture, there stands a tall mansion with a pair of stone lions on either side. On two flagpoles, each over two zhang tall, two lifelike white cranes flutter in the wind, as if they are about to leap out of the flagpole.

Above the vermilion gatehouse hangs a wooden plaque with the four large characters "Jinyang Escort Agency". Inside the agency, in a courtyard, two weapons are displayed, clearly indicating it's a martial arts training ground.

Under a flowering tree, a child lies on his back in a large, comfortable rocking chair, his eyes closed, one hand playing with a jade pendant on his chest, his hair hanging down in a mess, obscuring his eyes, and his bare feet swaying gently with the rocking chair.

His skin was fair and smooth, and he was only ten years old. However, the veins on his small hands were clearly visible, indicating that he had been practicing martial arts since childhood. Yet, he was like an adult, indulging in this lazy and listless state.

"Master!"

A young maid, about seventeen or eighteen years old, dressed in green, came gracefully with a tray in her hands and served a sliced ​​watermelon.

Yun Changkong opened his mouth, and a maidservant put a piece of watermelon into it.

Yun Changkong exclaimed, "That's awesome!"

The maid chuckled and said, "Young master, the matriarch said you're slacking off during your practice, so she won't give you any food tonight."

Yun Changkong, munching on watermelon, said leisurely, "Practicing this martial art probably won't be of much use."

The maid smiled and said, "Everyone knows that our Jinyang Escort Agency is the best among all the escort agencies in the world. This time, Master went to Wudang Mountain to seek justice for Longmen Escort Agency. He was very impressive."

Yun Changkong chuckled and said, "It's not necessarily impressive. In my opinion, this trip to Wudang Mountain is just a way to secretly offer incense behind his daughter-in-law's back, risking his life and suffering some trouble."

A hint of curiosity flashed in the maid's eyes. She thought to herself, "Young Master has been ill, how come he has changed so much? His words are simply outrageous."

Three days ago, Yun Changkong was playing with a jade pendant on his bed when he was brought here. Upon merging his memories, he learned that the Longmen Escort Agency had been wiped out by Zhang Cuishan, the "Iron Brush Silver Hook" of the Wudang Sect, who killed 72 people, young and old, and disappeared for ten years, but now he had returned to Wudang.

Yun Changkong immediately realized that this was the world of Jin Yong's Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber.

He learned that as the young master of the Jinyang Escort Agency, his status was not much different from Lin Pingzhi's. However, he had never heard of the deeds of his father, Yun He, in his previous life.

He felt that Yunhe was probably just one of the members who followed the major martial arts sects to cause trouble at Zhang Sanfeng's 100th birthday celebration. He didn't know him because he was a nobody in the martial arts world.

However, Yun Changkong knew that no matter what kind of sect leader you were or what kind of low-level martial arts practitioner you were, going to Wudang Mountain to seek justice would be a waste of time.

After all, these days people always side with their relatives and friends, not with those in the right. Right and wrong are all decided by who has the bigger fist.

Even the legendary master Zhang Sanfeng was no exception!

His constantly shifting attitude towards the Ming Cult is a testament to this.

However, unaware of Yunhe's and Jinyang Escort Agency's deeds, Yun Changkong immediately realized that it was a good thing that he was not in the vortex of the martial arts world!
After all, having traveled through time to the Yuan Dynasty, his role in expelling the Tartars is undeniable, but the Yuan Dynasty will eventually be destroyed by Zhang Wuji, leading the Ming Cult and other major martial arts sects. Whether he exists or not, they will still succeed.

Furthermore, Yun Changkong is from a later era, and the Han and Mongol peoples have long been one family. He has only been here for three days and hasn't even left his house yet. He doesn't even know what the world looks like to him. So, he can just shout the slogan, but expecting a ten-year-old child to actually put it into practice is simply asking the impossible.

In the world of martial arts, it would be a waste of the opportunity to travel through time if one didn't strive to be the "greatest martial artist in the world." But now, there is a pinnacle of martial arts, Zhang Sanfeng, who dominates the martial arts world.

I've been here for three days and haven't found any system or anything. I only have a jade pendant, which I haven't found to be of any use yet. Learning this cheap old man Yunhe's martial arts is good for strengthening my body, but it's definitely not enough to make a name for myself in the martial arts world, let alone compete for the title of "Number One in the World".

If you want to find profound and top-notch martial arts manuals on your own, the only places are the Ancient Tomb and Kunlun Mountain.

However, the ancient tomb is inhabited by a woman in yellow with a "musical troupe".

Kunlun Mountain is thousands of miles away, and the mountain is so huge that figuring out where Zhang Wuji fell from and obtained the Nine Yang Divine Skill would be a difficult, laborious, and dangerous task.

Currently, he is in the body of a child under eleven years old. Considering various factors, Yun Changkong felt a sense of helplessness, as if he were a hero with no place to use his talents.

It seems there's nothing else to do besides lying down and enjoying life!

Anyway, I'm dressed well, I'm a pampered young master, so I can reminisce and enjoy my childhood without making any mistakes.

Being fed watermelon by a maid was a decadent lifestyle that Yun Changkong found quite pleasant. Suddenly, he heard a servant running and shouting, "Young master, young master, the master is back!"

Yun Changkong didn't react much; in the original owner's memories, he didn't particularly like this strict father either.

The maidservant, who served the old lady of the Yun family, scolded the servant, "It's perfectly normal for the master to come home. Why are you making such a fuss?"

The servant said urgently, "No, Master is injured; he has broken his arm."

"What?" The maid was shocked.

Yun Changkong also jumped up from his chair: "What's going on?"

This was certainly a son's reaction, but it was also unexpected for Yun Changkong. For a martial artist, losing an arm—the right arm—is practically a complete loss of skill; the left arm, too, greatly diminishes their power, bringing with it greater danger. Having obtained Lin Pingzhi's copy, why wouldn't he run away? What was he waiting for?
"As soon as the master returned, he summoned all the head镖师 (bodyguards and镖师) to the hall. He has something important to announce..." The servant was out of breath from running, and before he could finish speaking, Yun Changkong had already put on his shoes and was walking towards the hall. He needed to find out the facts quickly.

The maid and servant followed.

Yun Changkong had been practicing martial arts since he was seven years old and walked very fast. When he arrived at the entrance of the hall, he saw dozens of镖头 (bodyguards) and 趟子手 (escorts) standing in the hall.

Despite their different ages, their faces all looked equally grim; some frowned, some wore pained expressions, and others had beads of sweat constantly rolling down their foreheads. Despite the large number of people, it was eerily quiet.

Such a solemn scene made Yun Changkong even more nervous: "Martial arts people live on the edge of a knife, and they say that only those who can withstand being cut without crying out in pain are true men. It seems that this matter is very serious! Damn it, am I really only destined to live a life of luxury for three days?"

With a thought in his mind, he stepped into the hall. Although this was not a place for a child like him, he didn't need to be too afraid because he was known as the young master.

In the hall, there was a statue of Bodhidharma (all those who ran security escort agencies worshipped Bodhidharma), and in front of the statue stood a thin, tall figure.

Judging from the background, he had indeed lost an arm and was offering incense with one hand. Yun Changkong knew that this was Yun He, the chief镖头 (bodyguard) of Jinyang镖局 (escort agency), and his adoptive father.

After offering incense, Yunhe knelt before the statue of Bodhidharma and said, "Disciple Yunhe swears before the Patriarch that he will no longer work as a镖行 (escort service) and will never enter the Jianghu (martial arts world) again..."

"Master!"

"Chief Escort!"

Yunhe's disciples and the head镖师 all knelt down, as if someone were giving a command, and said in unison, "Please reconsider!"

Yunhe shook his head, sighed sadly, and said, "The flag of Jinyang Escort Agency was stolen, and I became a cripple. I was even forced to swear never to set foot in Wudang Mountain again."

Although forced by circumstances, this act has disgraced the reputation of the escort agency, ruining my name and leaving me utterly disgraced. I have no face to stand in the martial world anymore. Master, have mercy! This disciple begs for forgiveness!

Yun Changkong knew that "Cheap Old Man" would return empty-handed, but he never expected it to be like this. In his memory, the Wudang Sect had never attacked those who came up the mountain. Where did this flag-grabbing, arm-severing, and oath-taking come from? What was going on? Could this not be the world of "Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber" that he knew?

Yun Changkong wanted to ask, but he knew that as a child, it seemed somewhat inappropriate in this serious atmosphere. Thinking back to how Yun He had treated his son in the past, he knew that if he spoke carelessly, he might get slapped by his father.

"Chief镖头 (Chief Escort), if we were afraid of death and valued our lives, what would we have done out here?"

"Since we're eating at the Jinyang Escort Agency and someone has damaged our reputation, we'll fight them one-on-one, life for life!"

Yunhe stood up and faced the disciples and the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort). When he saw his son walk in, his expression froze for a moment.

When Yun Changkong saw his father, who was originally handsome and refined, his face was pale and he looked dejected, as if he had aged twenty years. Clearly, this trip to Wudang Mountain had been a great blow to him.

Yunhe said solemnly, "My trip to Wudang Mountain this time was not for wealth, but for justice, but I never expected..."

At this point, tears welled up in Yunhe's eyes, and he wiped his face with his one arm: "The honor, disgrace, success, and failure of the escort agency all depend on the escort flag. You are all good men who have followed me through life and death..."

Yunhe said, then looked at his eldest disciple: "Cheng'er, go and tell the accountant to distribute all the gold and silver in the escort agency to everyone. Everyone should go their separate ways and leave no one behind!"

(End of this chapter)