Republic of China era: A hundred-year-old still practicing martial arts? Is that right?

Not far away.

Liu Yuanbao reached out and pulled Lin Ji along, walking one after the other from under the corridor of the Martial Arts Hall office building.

Upon seeing Liu Qingzhu and Gu Yanqiu, Lin Ji smiled.

"Miss Liu, it's been a long time."

"Instructor Gu."

Seeing the barely suppressed anxiety on Lin Ji's face, Gu Yanqiu was about to ask when Liu Qingzhu took a small step forward, shielding her to the side, and said with a hint of apology in her voice:

"It's been a long time."

"I'm so sorry to bother you, Uncle Lin, while you were resting in the martial arts hall. Yuanbao kept asking me to tell you a story, so I went to your house but couldn't find you. That's why I brought Yuanbao to the martial arts hall."

Lin Ji's heart skipped a beat, but his expression remained unchanged: "No trouble at all, no trouble at all, you can come anytime."

Liu Qingzhu looked Lin Ji up and down, noticing that the old man looked younger than when they had parted. After considering her words carefully, she deliberately said:

"Uncle Lin looks younger and younger."

"Haha, the food at the martial arts hall is good, and you get plenty of rest. You feel relaxed and naturally stay young." Lin Ji's heart skipped a beat. Liu Qingzhu was not someone to be fooled, but he still used the same old rhetoric.

"Sister! I want to hear a story." Liu Yuanbao couldn't understand the two's polite chatter, so he stepped forward, grabbed Liu Qingzhu's arm, and shook it.

"Alright, tell me a story."

Before Liu Qingzhu could speak, Lin Ji spoke first.

Leading the three men, Lin Ji returned to the gatehouse.

The cabin was small.

Lin Ji cleaned it up thoroughly.

It's just the right size for three people to stand.

Liu Yuanbao excitedly jumped onto Lin Ji's bed, his running motion causing the bed boards to creak.

"Old man Lin, is this your home? It's so small, like a coffin."

Upon hearing this, Lin Ji's expression suddenly froze.

The child is still as innocent and outspoken as ever.

"Yuanbao! Don't talk nonsense."

Liu Qingzhu frowned slightly and reprimanded him.

Standing at the door of the small house, Gu Yanqiu couldn't help but chuckle. He looked around the rather small house; it was indeed quite cramped.

"No problem, no problem! Children say the darndest things." Lin Ji said with a smile, turning to look at Liu Yuanbao:

"Yuanbao, just tell me what story you want to hear. This old man won't charge you a penny today."

"I still want to listen to Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit." Liu Yuanbao glanced at Liu Qingzhu, not daring to cause any more trouble.

"Okay." Lin Ji's voice was no longer as aged as before, and he nodded in agreement.

Liu Yuanbao seemed to have just noticed that Lin Ji had become younger, and taking advantage of Liu Qingzhu's inattention, he blurted out another outrageous statement:

"Old man Lin, you shouldn't die anytime soon. You look much younger than before; you can live for at least another twenty years."

"Pfft..."

Gu Yanqiu, who was standing at the door, could no longer maintain her composure and burst out laughing.

"Liu Yuanbao!"

Liu Qingzhu gave another light rebuke, and Liu Yuanbao quickly shrank back into the corner of the bed.

Lin Ji waved his hand, his heart filled with helplessness.

I'm not going to live past twenty.

He didn't say anything, his thoughts shifting as he recalled where the story had left off last time.

This time, without the shadow puppet show, Lin Ji's story was still as moving as ever, and the tale unfolded slowly:

"Rainbow Cat descends the mountain alone to find the other six sword masters. There is Blue Rabbit, the master of the Jade Toad Palace, wielding the Ice Soul Sword, whose swordsmanship is as clear and pure as water; there is Sally, the innkeeper, whose Purple Cloud Sword is like a needle hidden in cotton; there is Dou Dou, the healer, whose Rain Flower Sword can save lives and subdue enemies; there is Da Ben, whose temper is as fiery as a raging fire, whose Thunderclap Sword is drawn with the force of thunder; there is Tiao Tiao, who has been an undercover agent in the Demonic Sect for many years, whose Green Light Sword is used to pierce the enemy camp's vital points; and there is Da Da, the hermit who lives in seclusion in the bamboo forest, whose Whirlwind Sword guards his homeland."

"When the seven finally gathered together and the seven swords were unleashed in unison, the sword light shot straight into the sky. The seven sword intents—rainbow, ice soul, purple cloud, rain flower, thunder, green light, and whirlwind—were twisted into one, causing mountains to collapse and rocks to shatter. No matter how powerful the demon was, it could not withstand this sword strike from the united will of the people."

"With this sword strike, the Demonic Sect was wiped out completely, and the world finally ushered in peace."

"The sun rises in the east, its rays shining brightly across the land!"

With those words spoken, the story ended.

Liu Yuanbao clenched his little fists tightly. After a long while, he glanced at Liu Qingzhu and said:

"Old man Lin, is the Seven Swords Combined technique even more powerful than a Grandmaster of Dark Force?"

Lin Ji smiled, his gaze drifting through the window to the horizon:

"Silly boy, what's powerful isn't the sword, but the person wielding it. Anyone can be defeated in a one-on-one fight, but when seven people work together, there's no obstacle they can't overcome."

Lin Ji vaguely recalled the slogans of the march in the streets yesterday, and Zhao Qiaosheng's words that someone always has to sacrifice on the road to progress.

Looking out the window, his thoughts wandered.

"Isn't Jiangcheng in the same situation right now? Foreigners are pressing in, unscrupulous merchants are running rampant, and the people are suffering terribly. Zhao Qiaosheng alone, or the Tongmenghui alone, cannot save the country. But if all the patriots and martial artists in the world unite as one, they can cut down the evil forces of the world like the Seven Swords combined!"

"oh!"

Liu Yuanbao didn't understand the meaning behind Lin Ji's words. He only knew that the combined power of the seven swords should be more powerful than his sister, a master of internal strength.

Lin Ji turned his gaze away from the window and swept it over the other two people inside the room.

Liu Qingzhu remained aloof, her face expressionless, her eyes fixed on something deep in thought.

Gu Yanqiu's handsome brows furrowed slightly, his eyes gleamed, and his lips parted slightly, as if he were muttering something.

"This story has come to an end."

Lin Ji sighed, and the story of Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit came to an end.

Half an hour passed.

Liu Qingzhu smiled slightly and took out two silver dollars from a hidden pocket in his clothes:

"Uncle Lin, as usual."

Lin Ji smiled slightly, just as he was about to reach out and take the two silver dollars, when Liu Yuanbao leaned on his shoulder:

"Old man Lin, didn't you say you wouldn't charge me this time?"

Lin Ji's outstretched hand froze in mid-air; he thought to himself:

Is this kid here to hear a story, or to cause trouble?

Seeing this, Liu Qingzhu gently bent his hand and clenched the two silver dollars into his palm:

"In that case, we won't give you the silver dollars. How about Yuanbao and I treat you to a simple meal instead?"

"The old man still needs to watch over the martial arts hall gate. I'm a little worried about him leaving like this."

Liu Qingzhu turned her head to look at Gu Yanqiu, and as the two looked at each other, Liu Qingzhu blinked slightly.

Gu Yanqiu immediately understood and hurriedly stepped forward:

"Uncle Lin, let Steward Wang take your place for a while. I, the head instructor of the martial arts hall, have granted you leave."

"Come on, Grandpa Lin, my sister took me to a Western restaurant last time. I guarantee you've never had food there before," Liu Yuanbao said, pulling on Lin Ji's arm.

Gu Yanqiu and Lin Qingzhu both extended invitations, and Lin Ji could no longer refuse, so he readily agreed.

"it is good."

……

Jiangcheng, Nancheng District, Qingfeng Street.

The four of them sat in a very avant-garde restaurant, where Lin Ji saw foie gras, pasta, steak, and other dishes for the first time in this world.

Beside me was a large floor-to-ceiling window, through which sunlight streamed in, filtering through wine glasses and casting dappled patterns on the solid wood table.

In a daze, Lin Ji had a feeling of traveling through time and space.