In the martial arts world, he threatens Yin Susu from the start.

He was confident that even if Gu Hanyuan resisted, he couldn't withstand his palm strike.

Gu Hanyuan had long anticipated that Kong Zhi would be careless.

After all, his age was a factor. Even Song Qingshu, the third-generation disciple of the Wudang Sect, who was said to have the highest martial arts skills, was only at the peak of the Acquired Realm.

Kong Zhi, however, was at the peak of the Innate Realm. There was a whole major realm and three minor realms difference between them. Furthermore, he had never heard of Gu Hanyuan's reputation; it would be strange if he didn't take it lightly.

Moreover, Kong Zhi's personality is impulsive and easily angered, and he is arrogant about his martial arts skills, believing that he can easily manipulate Gu Hanyuan.

In the blink of an eye, Kongzhi had already rushed to Gu Hanyuan's side, but 99% of his attention was focused on Zhang Sanfeng, who seemed indifferent to the side.

They no longer just glanced at it out of the corner of their eye; they even turned their heads away.

It is evident that Zhang Sanfeng, who did not actually intervene, also helped Gu Hanyuan divert most of Kong Zhi's attention.

Gu Hanyuan, who was well-prepared, naturally wouldn't miss the opportunity.

The longsword was drawn, and the sound of it cutting through the air reached Kongzhi's ears.

The exquisite sword technique "Thirteen Swords of the Divine Gate" was already being used by Gu Hanyuan, and he thrust it straight at the Shenmen acupoint on Kong Zhi's wrist with a sharp speed.

The "Thirteen Swords of the Divine Gate" was, after all, meticulously created by Zhang Sanfeng. Although it cannot compare to ultimate techniques like the "Tai Chi Swordplay" and the "Two Elements Divine Sword," it is still not something that ordinary people in the martial arts world can handle.

Moreover, the "Thirteen Swords of Shenmen" is extremely difficult, and only Yu Lianzhou and Yin Liting among the Seven Heroes of Wudang can use it.

By the time Kongzhi's expression changed drastically and he wanted to change his move, it was too late. He could only grit his teeth and continue to strike with his palm, trying to hit the spine of the sword.

However, the "Thirteen Swords of the Divine Gate" are inherently fierce and sharp, emphasizing speed, accuracy, and ruthlessness.

If Gu Hanyuan had not yet reached the Innate Realm, he might have been able to evade it, but he is now at the early stage of the Innate Realm.

Moreover, in such a hasty situation, it would have been impossible for Kong Zhi to dodge.

After the two separated, Gu Hanyuan remained indifferent, as if he hadn't been the one who had made the move.

Kongzhi, however, gripped his wrist tightly, blood dripping from between his fingers onto the ground.

If Kong Zhi hadn't managed to stop in time, his wrist would have been broken in half.

Kong Zhi looked at Gu Hanyuan with a solemn expression and uttered two words:

"innate!"

Everyone was in an uproar.

Things happened so fast that many weaker people didn't even see it clearly before Kongzhi was already injured.

The leaders and disciples of the various sects began to whisper among themselves.

The Innate Realm is a hurdle for the vast majority of people. Those who lack the aptitude for martial arts may never overcome it in their lifetime, thus blocking most people who aspire to master martial arts.

In recent years, due to the growing strength of the Ming Dynasty, most of the talented individuals within its borders have chosen to join the forces established by the imperial court.

Although many disciples of various sects in the martial arts world of Gu Hanyuan's generation have broken through to the Innate Realm, most of them are the same age as or even older than the Seven Heroes of Wudang, and have long since exhausted their potential, with no possibility of making any further progress.

Disciples of similar age to Gu Hanyuan who broke through to the Innate Realm were extremely rare; each of them was a renowned young talent.

Some sects, facing a talent shortage, don't even have a single disciple at the Innate Realm.

The Wudang Sect had already shown signs of decline, although most of the Seven Heroes of Wudang were only in their thirties, with the oldest, Song Yuanqiao, not even fifty. Therefore, it was understandable that the disciples they accepted were young and had low cultivation levels.

Before Gu Hanyuan's sudden emergence, Song Qingshu was undoubtedly the most talented among the third-generation disciples of the Wudang Sect. However, he was only above average, and currently only at the peak of the Acquired Realm. Without a special opportunity, his achievements would be limited, and becoming a Grandmaster would be virtually impossible.

Now in his early twenties, Song Qingshu had yet to earn the title of "Jade-Faced Mengchang" (a reference to a famous court official in ancient China). His face darkened as he stared at Gu Hanyuan standing in the center of the room, feeling that the position should rightfully belong to him. Jealousy gnawed at him, and he couldn't help but clench his fists.

The top sects or forces in the martial arts world must have at least one Grandmaster in charge.

A first-rate sect must have at least one grandmaster, and many sect leaders require that they reach the grandmaster level before they can succeed to the position.

The strongest member of a second-rate sect is usually the sect leader, who is typically at the peak of the Innate Realm.

Gu Hanyuan, with his early-stage Innate Realm cultivation, managed to injure Kong Zhi, who was at the peak of the Innate Realm.

As for Kongzhi's carelessness during the process and the fact that Zhang Sanfeng had diverted most of his attention, these cannot be used as excuses.

Given that Gu Hanyuan is only seventeen or eighteen years old, people will only think that Gu Hanyuan has extraordinary talent and is destined to become a grandmaster or even a great grandmaster.

Therefore, Gu Hanyuan, who was fully aware of all these rules, chose to provoke Kong Zhi into attacking him.

He used Kongzhi's lifelong reputation to boost his own prestige.

Just by looking at Kongzhi's face, you could tell how angry he was.

He tried to attack Gu Hanyuan several times. However, he was now being closely watched by the Seven Heroes of Wudang, and Kong Wen would not allow him to continue his reckless behavior.

It's too late to get revenge.

With Gu Hanyuan, at least the Wudang Sect will not suffer a generational gap. Even if the older generation passes away, the sect can still maintain its prestige.

Shangguan Haitang opened her folding fan and lightly covered her slightly open mouth, which was agape in surprise.

She is about the same age as Gu Hanyuan, and she is a disciple of Wuhen Gongzi. Her talent is also extremely high, and she may break through to the Innate Realm at any time, but she is currently only at the peak of the Acquired Realm.

As for injuring Kongzhi, who was at the late stage of the Innate Realm, with only the initial stage of the Innate Realm, it was simply a pipe dream for her.

Although Shangguan Haitang and Gu Hanyuan are only nodding acquaintances now, she has always admired him greatly. Now, she even harbors a little bit of worship for him.

Chapter 11: Kong Wen Submits, Wu Tian Makes His Appearance

After the noise in the room gradually subsided.

Gu Hanyuan surveyed the changing expressions of everyone from the various sects. There was curiosity, doubt, and apprehension, but above all, awe.

Finally, Gu Hanyuan stared at Kong Wen and Kong Zhi and spoke loudly:

"As expected of the domineering Northern Shaolin! When reasoning fails, they resort to violence. If it weren't for my own skill, wouldn't I have been beaten to death here? I wonder where your high moral character, your prestige, and your compassion lie? You dare to be so unscrupulous in front of my grandmaster. Do you think Wudang has no one to rely on?"

Gu Hanyuan's voice grew louder and louder, and when he finally finished his stern questioning, a chorus of shouts erupted in the room.

The Wudang disciples behind him instinctively drew their swords and shouted in unison:

"Do you think Wudang has no one to rely on?"

After all, this has escalated to the level of sect honor, and as a Wudang disciple, if you don't respond, you will be despised.

People in this world have a very high sense of identity with their clans and sects, so it is very difficult for someone who has been expelled from their sect to regain their footing in the martial arts world.

This is also why Gu Hanyuan was speechless about Zhang Cuishan. He claimed to have taken full responsibility, but wouldn't being forced to commit suicide as an apology damage the sect's prestige? In truth, Zhang Cuishan's death was the greatest insult to Zhang Sanfeng and the Wudang sect.

Seeing the Wudang disciples draw their swords, creating a tense atmosphere, the expressions of the people from all the major sects present changed.

Not to mention that the Wudang Sect was stronger than them, everyone's weapons, except for Abbess Miejue's Heaven-Slaying Sword, were unloaded and stored in the Sword-Unlocking Pool.

Those who fight bare-handed will only face a brutal massacre.

Kong Wen was already worried about a bloody fight, so he only came to interrogate him under the pretext of righteousness and because he had the advantage of numbers. Resolving the issue by force was simply not an option for him.

As for challenging someone to a duel, that's something that only happens when the two sides are evenly matched. If the difference in strength between the two sides is too great, who would bother with you?

However, to everyone's surprise, Gu Hanyuan's sharp tongue still managed to lead to the current situation.

This is also the source of Gu Hanyuan's confidence in making baseless accusations. He knows that Kong Wen would never dare to resort to force again. As long as he pushes the situation to a escalating tension, the more explosive the conflict, the more influence he can gain from the Wudang Sect. Kong Wen, on the other hand, can only back down with words. But are people who have experienced the information explosion of modern times afraid of a verbal battle with a few bald monks?

Of course, it was pointless for Kongwen to blame Kongzhi for striking first. He could only hurriedly explain, not even bothering to chant "Amitabha" as he usually did.

"My fellow practitioners in the Wudang Sect have misunderstood. Junior Brother Kongzhi only acted out of desperation to test Young Hero Gu's martial arts skills because our temple's reputation had been tarnished. There is no question of fighting or killing. It is pure nonsense."

Looking back at how Kong Wen used to call him "Little Benefactor," and now he keeps calling him "Young Master Gu," it's truly laughable.

"What a misunderstanding! What a weighing! Bullying the weak and still acting like it's okay? Why don't you see Master Kongzhi weighing Grandmaster's martial arts? If I, Gu, am not skilled enough, wouldn't that also be a misunderstanding, an accident? If you can kill me by accident today, you can surround and kill Fifth Uncle tomorrow. In a few days, will you give an order to send 100,000 monks to attack Wudang Mountain? After you seize the Dragon-Slaying Saber and become the supreme martial arts master, will you also want to divide the country with the imperial court?"

Gu Hanyuan immediately started by escalating the issue, blaming everyone regardless of their reasoning. As for rebuttal, he already knew there wouldn't be a chance for the Northern Shaolin side to argue.

The more stern and forceful Gu Hanyuan's words became, and the higher the level of his pronouncements, the more terrified the monks of the Northern Shaolin Temple turned pale.

Kong Wen and Kong Zhi's faces turned completely black, and they almost fainted from the frustration that was stuck in their chests.

Especially Gu Hanyuan's last sentence, which practically labeled the Northern Shaolin Temple as treasonous. Add to that the fact that there are Ming Dynasty officials present today; if this gets back to the court, who knows what the consequences will be?

As expected, Kong Wen had no choice but to back down first, lower his stance, and plead in a pleading tone:

"It was indeed wrong of us for Junior Brother Kongzhi to attack Young Hero Gu. We can have him apologize to you, Young Hero Gu. If you are not satisfied, you can bring compensation to apologize to Wudang another day. However, we ask Young Hero Gu to retract his previous statement. Our temple has been established in the martial arts world of the Ming Dynasty for a hundred years, always abiding by the law and taking it as our responsibility to maintain peace and justice in the martial arts world. We have never had the idea of ​​becoming the supreme master of the martial arts world. As for the claim of 100,000 martial monks, that is utter nonsense."

At this point, Kong Wen didn't even dare to mention Xie Xun or the Dragon-Slaying Saber. Who knew if Gu Hanyuan would pin some other earth-shattering accusation on him?

However, Gu Hanyuan only smiled coldly and remained silent.

The atmosphere in the room immediately became tense.

Just then, a chilling laugh came from outside the main hall.

"As expected, the so-called righteous sects are hypocritical. They are skilled at using their power to oppress others and arbitrarily labeling people, but when they are outmatched, they immediately beg for mercy while pretending to be virtuous."

Kong Wen's mind was already in turmoil from Gu Hanyuan's actions today, and upon hearing such provocative words, anger rose within him. He shouted towards the door:

"Which scoundrel is playing tricks on us!"

A figure slowly walked in through the door.

The man wore a dark and eerie Shura mask, and his long, jet-black hair was completely covered by a wide black robe. In his hand, he held a simple, dark, broad-faced single-edged sword.

"Dragon Slaying Sword!"

Zhang Cuishan, who had lived with Xie Xun for more than ten years, recognized the Dragon-Slaying Saber at a glance, his eyes filled with disbelief.

After all, the Dragon-Slaying Saber had been inseparable from Xie Xun for over a decade, a symbolic act of "the saber is his life, the saber is his death." Now, seeing only the Dragon-Slaying Saber and no sign of Xie Xun, he immediately became worried.