The Great Martial Arts World: Hot Topics and Great Heroes

"Hmph, kid, don't look at me like I am now. I am... well, since you know what happened back then, you should also know my identity! Soon I will be able to take back everything that belongs to me! When that time comes, I will be the emperor of Dali. Will I still be unworthy of her?" Duan Yanqing was very confident.

Chu Luren fell silent again, seemingly deep in thought. Duan Yanqing stared at the dead man for a long time, but this time he didn't interrupt Chu Luren's thoughts.

What would Duan Yanqing do if he knew the truth now?

In the original novel of the Tianlong series, during the tragedy at Mantuo Manor, several of Duan Zhengchun's lovers died one after another. Just when it seemed that Duan Yu was about to lose his life, Dao Baifeng showed Duan Yanqing Duan Yu's birth date gold medal, revealing Duan Yu's true identity.

After Duan Yanqing learned of this, his obsessive-compulsive disorder was instantly cured, and he saw through the illusions of the world.

Some even thought, "I have a son, but you don't; I've won," and "The throne of Dali has finally returned to my son's hands; I'm as happy as if I were emperor even if I weren't."

Afterwards, he even told Duan Yu, "Since you don't acknowledge me, you can use the Six Meridian Divine Sword to kill me and avenge Duan Zhengchun and your mother."

After Duan Yu understood his identity and refrained from attacking him, Duan Yu left "overjoyed".

In other words, Duan Yanqing's intense emotional change at that time stemmed more from the death of Dao Baifeng than from the sudden realization that he had descendants and a son.

Most importantly, when other important officials from Dali arrived and spoke with Duan Yu, Duan Yanqing deliberately used secret telepathy, showing that he was intentionally trying to protect Duan Yu's reputation. This suggests that Duan Yanqing himself must have understood deep down that he was not capable of being emperor. Even if he recognized Duan Yu, it would be best not to let outsiders know!

"Senior Duan, if I told you that you have a son who is now handsome, skilled in martial arts, and has an excellent background, what would you do? Would you ruin his current life and tell him that you are his biological father?" Chu Luren asked after hesitating.

If it weren't for Chu Luren and Duan Yu, which isn't a particularly handsome type, nor does it resemble the appearance of someone from the Duan family, and given that he had just denied it, Duan Yanqing might think he was making up a story...

Chapter Nineteen: The Star-Absorbing Technique?

"What a joke! No matter how high my son's martial arts skills are now, how can they compare to my personal instruction? After I find him, I will not only personally teach him my Duan family's One-Finger Divine Skill, so that he can surpass his master, but also pass on the Dali kingdom to him after I defeat Duan Zhengming and Duan Zhengchun and ascend the throne!" Duan Yanqing said passionately.

Chu Luren's gaze towards him grew increasingly strange, thinking to himself: It seems that Duan Yu could have obtained all of this without you...

At the same time, I also noticed that the old man's aura of "keep away" had indeed faded a lot.

So Chu Luren gritted his teeth and directly provoked, "Senior Duan, do you dare to make a bet with me? If I reveal who your son is, and if your appearance will only make things worse for him, will you not acknowledge him as your son?"

At this point, Chu Luren was already 80% confident. Duan Yanqing, disregarding his obsessive-compulsive disorder, was still a man of character. The best example of this was when he used telepathy to guide a young monk he found agreeable in playing chess during the Zhenlong Chess Game.

However, considering that Duan Yanqing found Xu Zhu pleasing to the eye, his appearance must really not be that great, no wonder Wu Yazi disliked him...

Duan Yanqing's eyes shifted repeatedly, unsure of Chu Luren's true intentions, but he still believed he was the best father in Dali, so he nodded in agreement.

"Listen up, Senior Duan! Duan Yu, who was almost ruined by you before, is your own son! He has his own 'father' and uncle to teach him. He just doesn't want to learn the One-Finger Divine Skill! The throne of Dali will be his sooner or later, and it will be a legitimate inheritance! What? Do you still want to acknowledge him?" Chu Luren deliberately made his words sound more authoritative.

When Duan Yanqing suddenly heard that the seemingly foolish boy he had painstakingly tried to frame was actually his own son, he was immediately shaken. His first reaction was that Chu Luren was playing a trick on him, but upon closer inspection of the boy's features, it seemed that it really was true...

"You're lying to me! How could that be!" Duan Yanqing wouldn't believe it so easily.

"You don't believe me? Then go and see if the Princess of Zhennan is the same person from back then! And take a look at the birth gold medal in Duan Yu's arms... But don't forget what you promised me."

"I will naturally verify it. If it is true... I will keep my promise and will reward you handsomely afterwards..." After Duan Yanqing finished speaking, he used his lightness skill to leave.

Fortunately, before leaving, he remembered to release Chu Luren's pressure points, otherwise Chu Luren would have been really worried about being picked up by someone else.

"You're leaving already? Can't you take me with you?" Chu Luren looked at his sprained ankle again and had no choice but to walk back to Dali City alone, feeling lonely and cold.

At the same time, I realized that, let alone the "Belt and Road Initiative," if I hadn't been quick-witted, I might have been "sent on a journey"!

It was already dark when Chu Luren finally limped back to Dali City. The guards at the gate recognized him and quickly led him to the palace.

Duan Zhengming and Duan Zhengchun were greatly relieved to see Chu Luren return safely, but... their faces still showed signs of worry.

Chu Luren's heart skipped a beat, thinking that Duan Yanqing had broken his promise. However, after carefully looking at Duan Zhengchun's worried face and the top of his head, it didn't seem like he was wearing a new hat.

After asking around, Chu Luren finally learned what had happened...

Duan Yanqing had just returned and captured Duan Yu again. However, this time, after taking Duan Yu to Wanchou Valley, Duan Yanqing did not harm him. He just laughed and left!

The Duan brothers are now worried because Duan Yu somehow learned the Star Absorbing Technique and, by chance, absorbed the internal energy of Yue Laosan, Ye Erniang, Yun Zhonghe, Zhong Wanchou, Gan Baobao, Sha Tongtian, Hou Tonghai, and Mu Gaofeng in Wanchou Valley... Now his internal energy is in chaos, and he is in danger of going into qi deviation.

While inwardly blaming Duan Yanqing for being unreliable, Chu Luren also explained how he escaped—he pretended to have encountered an old monk, engaged in a verbal battle with Duan Yanqing, and then Duan Yanqing released him.

In this way, Duan Zhengming and Duan Zhengchun could simply assume that Duan Yanqing's previous reaction was a sign of enlightenment, which was understandable. Even if Duan Zhengchun's true colors were exposed in the future, they would only associate it with the enlightenment of a high-ranking monk from Tianlong Temple who knew the truth.

“The Star Absorbing Technique… It has never reappeared since Ren Woxing of the Sun Moon Cult disappeared. How could Yu’er have learned such an evil skill?” Duan Zhengming asked, puzzled.

In this world, Duan Zhengming didn't mistake the "Northern Darkness Divine Art" for the "Dissolving Power Technique," but he did mistake it for the "Star Absorbing Technique," since the Free and Unfettered Sect... really didn't have much of a reputation.

"Uncle Duan, have you misunderstood? When I first met Brother Duan, it was at Wuliang Mountain. At that time, Brother Duan and I learned two peerless martial arts at the foot of the cliff: Lingbo Weibu and Beiming Divine Skill. Beiming Divine Skill can also absorb people's internal energy!" Chu Luren said, pointing out the truth.

As for whether Iron-Blooded Marquis practices the Star-Absorbing Technique, or perhaps... the Power-Absorbing Technique?

Anyway, that's not the official story from the Song court, and the Chu Lu people don't know either, nor dare they ask.

"Lingbo Weibu? Beiming Divine Skill? Could it be that we, who have lived in Dali for so long, are simply ignorant...? I have never heard of these two unique skills before. Nephew, is your movement technique Lingbo Weibu?" Duan Zhengming couldn't help but ask.

"That's not it. To learn these two unique skills, one must have extremely high comprehension and be extremely proficient in the Eight Trigrams and the Book of Changes. My aptitude is limited, and I have only grasped three or four tenths of the essence of these two unique skills. I forcibly combined the two techniques and ended up with a hybrid that is neither fish nor fowl," Chu Luren said modestly.

“Nephew, you are too modest. You are a genius for combining two martial arts with your own strengths!” As Duan Zhengming spoke, he thought of Chu Luren’s finger technique and assumed that Chu Luren was “especially good at integrating various martial arts.”

"However... does this Northern Darkness Divine Art have such side effects? Is there a solution in the technique?" Duan Zhengming quickly asked about the important matter.

"In my humble opinion, the essence of the Northern Darkness Divine Art lies in the continuous accumulation of one's own internal energy, and the balance of Yin and Yang within that internal energy, in pursuit of the realm where all martial arts under heaven can be used. Although one may be able to absorb the internal energy of others by using the thirty-six major acupoints around the body by completely following its method, this is only a side effect," Chu Luren said after recalling the Northern Darkness Divine Art.

Using the Northern Darkness Divine Art to absorb someone's internal energy is actually quite risky—after all, it requires using one's own acupoints to contact the other person's acupoints, and the acupoints must be aligned with the method of practicing the technique…

Does this have any practical significance?

The normal cultivation method is more like tapping into thirty-six major acupoints to absorb the essence of heaven and earth in order to accelerate the accumulation of internal energy.

Wu Yazi and the ancestors of the Xiaoyao Sect must have cultivated in this way, otherwise they would have stirred up a bloody storm long ago, and the Xiaoyao Sect would not have been unknown in the martial arts world.

On the contrary, Li Qiushui, being Wu Yazi's wife, had also seen the sect leader's training method and might have had some ulterior motives.

Just think, when she was drawing the Northern Darkness Divine Art manual, she specifically used herself as a model, and in all thirty-six drawings, she was dressed very scantily, even less than the Heart of the Ocean figure drawn by Jack...

Chu Luren guessed... she really did have a way to touch other people's acupoints!

Because this method of accumulating internal energy through thirty-six acupoints simultaneously is the opposite of the meridian circulation in most martial arts techniques, it has the ability to absorb other people's internal energy.

"Alas, so it turns out that Yu'er unintentionally violated the taboo of this technique by incorporating so much mixed internal energy into himself, which is why he showed signs of going into qi deviation." Duan Zhengming understood at this moment.

Just then, Mu Wanqing burst in from outside: "Chu Luren, Chu Luren! Are you dead? Ah, Father and Uncle are here too..."

Previously, Mu Wanqing was quite worried when she learned that Chu Luren had been captured by Boss Duan. When she suddenly heard that he had returned, she waited for him in her room. Who knew... Chu Luren was chatting with her father and uncle and showed no intention of coming over. That's why Mu Wanqing went directly to the palace!

Chapter Twenty: As Long As You're Happy

Upon seeing Mu Wanqing "bump in," Duan Zhengming and Duan Zhengchun chuckled and told Mu Wanqing to take Chu Luren to rest first.

After all, Duan Yu is currently "possessed by demonic possession," not kidnapped by anyone. Chu Luren can't help even if she's anxious here.

The only solution Duan Zhengming could think of was to use his immense internal strength to calm the surging, strange internal energy within Duan Yu's body.

However, Duan Zhengming alone can only solve the problem temporarily. To completely solve it... he cannot do it, not even if he joins forces with the Yellow-Eyebrow Monk. He must ask several eminent monks from Tianlong Temple to work together to completely suppress the alien internal force of this scale in Duan Yu's body!

Moreover, Duan Zhengming had already considered becoming a monk and was planning to take Duan Yu with him...

After Chu Luren and Mu Wanqing left, Chu Luren discovered that Mu Wanqing was still very thoughtful, having prepared a late-night snack for him. Although it was probably just something she had instructed the kitchen to make, it was at least a token of Mu Wanqing's affection.

Furthermore, for Mu Wanqing, going to the kitchen first and then throwing a tantrum was already a huge improvement.

However, Chu Luren didn't think too much about it. He simply went along with Mu Wanqing's words, talking to her about Duan Yanqing's past and the events at Wanchou Valley...

At first, Mu Wanqing was not interested in Chu Luren's unromantic topics, but she gradually became fascinated by them. After all, Mu Wanqing was not a romantic person; it was just that her previous series of emotional upheavals had caused her some psychological stress.

Chu Luren quickly swayed him back to his "heroic" mindset.

When Mu Wanqing heard that Hua Hegen was in the tunnel and wanted to attack Zhong Ling, and that he was "joking" with her, she was furious. She patted Chu Luren on the shoulder and said, "Well done," and then lowered her head in embarrassment.

Before Chu Luren could figure out what she was doing with her head down, she suddenly heard a commotion among the guards around her, but upon closer listening, it didn't sound like there were any enemies...

"Quickly go find the Prince and His Majesty! The Crown Prince's madness has flared up again!"

"Oh no, something's wrong with Brother Duan. I'll go check on him." Upon hearing this, Chu Luren quickly shoveled the last few mouthfuls of rice into his mouth.

"What a hassle... I should just have my uncle shave his head too!" Mu Wanqing wrinkled her nose and said angrily.

Of course, in reality, Duan Zhengming took Duan Yu to Tianlong Temple only to calm his internal energy, not to become monks together.

When Chu Luren and Mu Wanqing arrived at Duan Yu's room, he had just been restrained by Duan Zhengchun and Gao Shengtai, and Duan Zhengming had also helped him regulate his internal energy.

However, with Duan Zhengming's skill level, he could not solve the problem once and for all. Moreover, this was not an injury, and it was not something that Duan Zhengming could resolve by using his innate skill to "explode".

"Yu'er's condition is urgent, I will take him to Tianlong Temple tomorrow!" Duan Zhengming said solemnly.

“Brother Emperor…” Duan Zhengchun seemed to hesitate.

If it were just about saving Duan Yu, there would be no hesitation. However, Duan Zhengchun knew that his elder brother would not return after leaving, but would instead remain at Tianlong Temple to become a monk.

"Second brother, don't let your personal feelings get in the way! The future of Dali rests on your shoulders! You may not wish to accept the throne, but that's fine. You can leave it to Yu'er. You will first take charge of the government as the Grand General of the State." Duan Zhengming entrusted him with the affairs of state.

Chu Luren, thinking of the divine skill of Tianlong Temple and the potential crisis that might follow, also expressed his desire to go along.

Although Tianlong Temple was a place of quiet cultivation for members of the Dali royal family after they became monks and did not receive worshippers, Duan Zhengming felt that it would be fine for a young hero like Chu Luren to pay a visit, so he agreed.

Mu Wanqing also wanted to go along, however... Tianlong Temple forbids female relatives.

Even though Duan Zhengchun felt deeply indebted to Mu Wanqing, Tianlong Temple was not a place where he could make decisions. After much persuasion, he finally managed to convince Mu Wanqing to stay.

The next morning, Duan Zhengming did not bring any guards or convoys. He only traveled to Tianlong Temple with Duan Yu and Chu Luren, traveling light.

Tianlong Temple is located in the Diancang Mountains of Dali, not far from Dali City. If Duan Yu hadn't had some health issues, the three of them could have arrived there in a single day.

However, because Duan Yu's internal energy was either running wildly or his limbs were weak, he was delayed for two more days.

Duan Zhengming was quite old and an elder, so Chu Luren naturally took on the task of carrying Duan Yu on his back when they walked along the mountain path.

Of course, for Chu Luren, these two days were definitely worthwhile...

Over the course of two days, Chu Luren frequently sought Duan Zhengming's advice on martial arts—not on any special martial arts manuals, but rather on some difficult principles and concepts related to martial arts.

Although Chu Luren was able to "fully master" any martial arts technique after reading it once because of the meditation space, this so-called "full mastery" was just a perfect score on the exam.

Just like "Kun swimming in the void," Chu Luren had already fully mastered it in theory. However, when saving Mu Wanqing, he still gained new insights and was able to go a little faster under the full impetus of enlightenment.

Duan Zhengming had always thought highly of Chu Luren and was generous with his guidance, even passing on some non-core, non-secret techniques to him.

In this world, Duan Zhengming is not only Duan Zhengming, but also the Southern Emperor "twenty years after the first Mount Hua Sword Tournament". Chu Luren has also gained a lot in these two days.

Two days later, the three arrived outside Tenryu-ji Temple.

Although Tianlong Temple does not welcome pilgrims, as it was a place of monastic practice for members of the Dali royal family, Duan Zhengming was naturally invited in as soon as he arrived.

Chu Luren was led to a resting room...

Whether it was just his imagination or not, Chu Luren felt that this quiet place of cultivation had become more tense. Duan Zhengming naturally noticed it as well, but he didn't say anything to Chu Luren.