All the gods began by cultivating the Iron Shirt technique.

As Hong Qigong said, his skills are now quite diverse. In addition to internal energy cultivation and external martial arts, he also knows swordsmanship, fist techniques, palm techniques, and grappling. However, he mainly relies on external martial arts, internal energy cultivation, and the Whirlwind Sword Technique to travel the martial world.

In terms of external martial arts, Yang Pan has already mastered Iron Shirt and there is nothing more to learn. Even the newly acquired hard qigong is not difficult for him. He only needs to practice diligently to reduce the time it takes for internal energy to penetrate his flesh and bones. This is something that even a master's guidance would not be of any use.

As for internal energy cultivation, it requires gradual refinement; as long as there's no shortage of rare and precious materials, Yang Pan can make rapid progress. Regarding his swordsmanship, he just made a breakthrough tonight and still needs time to digest it.

The remaining fist techniques, palm techniques, and grappling techniques are not particularly sophisticated martial arts. It would be a waste to use the favors of the Five Great Masters to instruct these techniques.

After much thought, Yang Pan finally came up with a palm technique—the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms.

He hasn't yet mastered this palm technique, which is the most powerful and yang-like palm technique in the world, but according to the gang rules, he can start practicing it after becoming a hall master. He's not far from Jiuyuan County now, and according to intelligence, with his current strength, he can kill that hall master without anyone's help; he can do it alone.

At that time, he will be able to become the new hall master, and thus be qualified to practice the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms.

Wouldn't it have been wonderful to have Hong Qigong instruct me on palm techniques back then? I would have saved myself the trouble of going to Xiangyang to receive the palm technique inheritance.

Having made up his mind, Yang Pan immediately told Hong Qigong what he was thinking. Upon hearing Yang Pan's words, Hong Qigong looked at him with a hint of appreciation and said:

"Good lad, you've got a good plan. After killing Bai Yan, you can become the hall master. In that case, it'll be in accordance with the gang rules for Old Beggar to teach you the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms."

"Well, since the old beggar has promised to guide you, he naturally won't go back on his word. But I'll only stay in Jinzhou for a month at most, and then I'll leave. How much you learn by then will depend on yourself."

Hong Qigong agreed, having no objection to Yang Pan's request. The Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms wasn't a martial art that only the leader of the gang could teach; otherwise, he wouldn't have passed it on to Guo Jing in the first place. Now that this young man Yang wanted him to instruct him, he would do so, and it would also be a good opportunity to see how talented the young man was.

However, Bai Yan was, after all, a branch hall master, and his strength was among the top of third-rate martial artists. Yet Yang Pan spoke without the slightest fear, as if the branch hall master was an easy target for him. Hong Qigong was now somewhat curious about Yang Pan's strength. Could it be that the strike he had just delivered wasn't the young man's full power?

Hong Qigong pondered this in his heart, while Yang Pan was also pleasantly surprised to receive the other party's promise.

Inside the temple, the old man and the young man remained silent, letting the flames crackle in the air. They ignored Wei Hong and his companions, who had only been drugged; they would be fine after a night's sleep.

The next day, a bright red sun rose high in the sky, its orange-red rays piercing through the clouds and dispelling the lingering darkness, bringing with them the moist scent of rain after a long day to the vast land.

Inside the temple, Hong Qigong was still asleep on the altar, in the exact same position as the night before. Yang Pan, however, had vanished; he had set off for Jiuyuan County. Before leaving, Yang Pan had asked Hong Qigong if he would like to accompany him, but Hong Qigong didn't answer and simply continued sleeping.

Yang Pan understood what the other party meant, so he left alone.

As dawn broke, Wei Hong and the others, who had been sleeping soundly in the temple, finally woke up one after another, groaning.

"Oh no, our valuables!"

Upon waking, Wei Hong immediately recalled the scene of being attacked the previous night and cried out in alarm. However, when he hurriedly got up and arrived at the temple gate, the sight of several headless corpses instantly cleared his still somewhat dazed mind.

"Boss Wei, these... these are the bandits from last night?" The companions who followed behind also saw the mutilated corpses at the door and said in trembling voices.

Wei Hong remained silent, suppressing his horror as he carefully examined the clothing of the corpses and the scattered heads at the entrance, then nodded silently. He recalled the last scene he had seen before losing consciousness the previous night—the sight of the robust young man who had remained silent since entering the temple opening his eyes was unforgettable.

Looking at the figure that had long since disappeared in the corner of the temple, and the beggar who was still sleeping peacefully on the altar, Wei Hong knew perfectly well that he and his companions had encountered a master, and had even been saved by that mysterious master.

Thinking of this, Wei Hong felt grateful, but he also reminded his companions behind him, "Hurry up and pack your things. We don't know if these people have accomplices. We need to leave quickly!"

Upon hearing this, the group immediately disregarded their shock and headed towards the convoy outside the temple.

Wei Hong then went to the offering table and shook the sleeping beggar awake. Hong Qigong was still sleepy and pretended to have just woken up.

"Old beggar, wake up! Someone has died in the temple. We can't stay here any longer. You should leave with us too." Wei Hong said, grabbing Hong Qigong's collar and walking out of the temple.

Behind him, Hong Qigong staggered, shouting as he walked, "Hey, slow down! This old beggar isn't in good health; he can't walk too fast."

......

After leaving the mountain road, take the official road Yangpan to reach Jiuyuan County.

As Yang Pan rode slowly along the way, he was deep in thought. Hong Qigong would only stay in Jinzhou for a month. Subtracting the time he would spend killing the branch hall master, the time Hong Qigong would spend guiding him would not exceed a month at most.

If he lingered longer, the time the other party would spend instructing him would be shorter. However, if he wanted to prolong the process, Yang Pan couldn't afford to delay once he entered the county town; he had to quickly and decisively kill Bai Yan.

Yang Pan had already learned something about Bai Yan through the information Huang Rong had given him before setting off. Bai Yan came from the Bai family of Jiuyuan County in Jinzhou, a prominent family in the county. The Bai family donated a considerable amount of money each year to gain the protection of the Beggars' Sect, thus Bai Yan could be considered a member of the Beggars' Sect's Clean Clothes faction.

In reality, the Beggars' Sect has always maintained a loose control over its Clean Clothes Sect disciples. After all, strictly speaking, the relationship between these Clean Clothes Sect disciples and the Beggars' Sect is more like a transaction. The Clean Clothes Sect members give money to the Beggars' Sect, and the Beggars' Sect provides protection for the Clean Clothes Sect disciples and their families.

The relationship between the two should have been one of mutual benefit and harmony, but Bai Yan was fond of martial arts. His years of martial arts training and contributions to the gang earned him the position of hall master.

However, after becoming the leader of the gang, this person abused his position to sell intelligence and traffic people to the Mongol army in exchange for profit to build up his family. Such behavior was a complete violation of the gang rules, and therefore he was placed on Huang Rong's kill list.

"This man has been operating in Jiuyuan County for many years and must have many powerful subordinates under his command. To kill him quickly, we need to find an opportunity for him to be alone." Yang Pan pondered his strategy and led the reins into Jiuyuan County.

Although Jiuyuan County is called a county, its size is not much larger than that of an ordinary township. According to intelligence, Jiuyuan County only has four streets and four wards, which is much smaller than the previous Jingu County.

However, this small county town was managed by the Bai family as if it were an ironclad fortress. Perhaps Bai Yan was also afraid that his actions would be exposed and he would face retribution one day, so he arranged for Bai family spies to keep watch at the entrance of the county town.

As Yang Pan walked along, he felt many eyes scrutinizing him, and only when he looked over did the other person leisurely look away.

"They're really blatant." Yang Pan ignored these people and led his horse to an inn to stay overnight.

He couldn't make any moves now that he had just entered the county town, otherwise he would definitely arouse Bai Yan's suspicion immediately.

Moreover, back in Tongjiang County, the Qin family mansion possessed bows, crossbows, and armor. Not to mention that Jinzhou is located in the Qinling Mountains, at the border between the Song and Mongol dynasties, and the Bai family is practically a local tyrant in Jiuyuan County. Yang Pan didn't believe that the other party wouldn't have these things.

No matter what, we have to wait today until the informant Huang Rong mentioned comes to meet us, so that he can at least learn something about the Bai family.

......

Jiuyuan County, Fugui Lane, Bai Mansion.

The Bai Mansion is a spacious courtyard house with four courtyards and four entrances. Its vermilion gates stand tall, and carved beams complement the blue bricks and gray tiles. The eaves of the gate towers are upturned, and the carved windows are decorated with flowers, birds, and auspicious symbols, giving it a magnificent and luxurious appearance.

At this moment, in the innermost courtyard of the main house, a figure moved swiftly back and forth in the bluestone-paved courtyard. His movements were agile, like a dragon playing in water, displaying immense power. Often, with a flick of his shoulder, his arm would lash the air like a steel whip, producing a piercing, mournful sound.

His arm and hand traced arcs, his five fingers spread wide as if to encompass all directions. Suddenly, the figure stepped forward, turned, and his fingers and palm slammed into a blue stone rockery in front of him with tremendous force.

Card wipe!

The bluestone beneath the palm print cracked with fine lines, and the broken stones scattered and flew everywhere under the pressure of the palm, whistling sharply as they shot into the pool next to it, splashing water everywhere.

"Congratulations, Hall Master! Your Dragon Subduing Palm technique has improved even further!" Someone who had been standing by the side said this congratulatoryly as soon as the figure stopped moving.

"Alas, despite years of cultivation, progress is still slow. I suppose the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms can only unleash their full power in the hands of Guo Jing and Hong Qigong." Bai Yan withdrew his hand, glanced at the bluestone rockery with several cracks, and sighed.

Although he came from a wealthy family, he was also obsessed with martial arts. After his family established a connection with the Beggars' Sect, he obtained cultivation techniques from them.

However, after practicing, he realized that he was not talented. After years of cultivation and the help of various medicinal herbs, he could barely master the six main meridians. Although becoming a hall master and practicing several moves of the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms increased his strength, he also knew that he probably would never have the chance to become a first-class martial artist in his lifetime.

That's why he gradually gave up cultivation and started using his identity in the Beggars' Sect to manage his family's business.

Jinzhou is located at the border between the Song and Mongol territories. As the head of the hall, he often learned about military secrets that Beggars' Sect disciples risked their lives to obtain. He would then sell this intelligence to the Mongols for profit.

As for whether doing so would provoke public outrage and chill the hearts of those in the know, it was simple for him. He only needed to use both kindness and force on those in the know, and then slaughter all those who refused to submit to him. Then the remaining Beggar Clan disciples would all be on his side.

From then on, even if he didn't give the order, those whose interests were tied to his would naturally help cover it up.