The Great Martial Arts World: Hot Topics and Great Heroes

These past two days, Chu Luren has been quite generous, sharing not only techniques like the Northern and Southern Dragon Subduing Techniques, the Tianshan Six Yang Palms, and the Nine Yang Divine Claws, but also internal martial arts techniques such as the Shaolin Nine Yang Skill, the Yi Jin Jing, and the Xiao Wu Xiang Skill.

However, since Master Guo had already mastered the "Dragon Subduing Strength," he certainly wouldn't drastically alter his internal skills; at most, he would refer to them.

Firstly, I want to thank Master Guo for teaching me the Ancient Dragon Subduing Technique; secondly, I admire Master Guo himself and hope he becomes even stronger in Xiangyang.

Without a general outline, the "Nine Yin Heart Sutra" was overwhelmed by Yin energy, and the practice of the "Northern Darkness Divine Art" was completely different from ordinary martial arts. Therefore, Chu Luren did not mention these two. He also did not mention other things related to the inheritance of sects... except for Shaolin!

As for whether Shaolin will cause trouble for him?

Chu Luren wasn't worried at all—I picked them up myself, it's not like you taught me to do it, and it wasn't stolen from your temple, so why did you lose them?

Even if Shaolin knew about this, given the prevailing customs and morals of the martial arts world, it couldn't be blamed on Chu Luren.

As for the rumors circulating everywhere...

Not mentioning Guo Juxia is not a talkative person. Besides, if Shaolin dares to be unhappy about passing on their martial arts to Guo Juxia, then which side are they on?

Chapter 235 Birthday Celebration X Birthday Celebration √

"Aren't you bringing a birthday gift to the sect leader?" Mu Wanqing asked.

"Celebrating a birthday... isn't that a bit old-fashioned?" Chu Luren felt a little uneasy.

The three had already left Chongyang Palace and arrived near the ancient tomb. Chu Luren naturally did not take the waterway again, but instead came to the "main gate".

"Yu Yan, Miss Li, Granny Sun, open the door quickly... Sect Leader, I've come to celebrate your birthday!" Chu Luren was outside, using the Nine Netherworld Sound Soul Technique.

The sound penetrated through layers of mechanisms and seeped into the ancient tomb.

"And who is Granny Sun?" Mu Wanqing asked, frowning.

"Huh? Didn't I tell you? He's an old servant of the Ancient Tomb Sect, someone who watched the sect leader grow up since he was a child," Chu Luren answered honestly.

"Old servant... Oh, it really is Grandma." Mu Wanqing breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that "Grandma" was some kind of nickname.

"There are fake mothers-in-law?" Chu Luren was utterly baffled.

At this moment, the door of the ancient tomb opened, and three figures appeared. One of them was still wearing a yellow Taoist robe, and it was Li Mochou, whom we hadn't seen for a long time. However, the robe was no longer apricot yellow, but a softer goose yellow. The two on the left and right were both dressed in white. On the right was Wang Yuyan, who was slightly excited to see Chu Luren, and on the left was Xiaolongnu, who had a cold expression.

Seeing this scene...

Mu Wanqing and Huang Rong were also stunned for a moment, thinking to themselves: If the world knew that the Ancient Tomb was like this, their impression of the "Ancient Tomb Sect" would be greatly changed... no, it would have to be demolished and rebuilt!

Chu Luren glanced at Li Mochou standing in the middle and then at Xiaolongnu beside her, thinking to himself: Miss Li, have you usurped the throne?

"What, Young Master Chu, you've brought guests with you? Aren't you going to introduce them to me and my junior sisters?" Li Mochou looked at Chu Luren with a smile.

That smile... it's eerie!

Does this mean they already know Huang Rong's identity?

"Let's talk inside, let's talk inside." Chu Luren was worried that Li Mochou might have a problem with Huang Yaoshi's daughter, so he naturally played the good guy and mediator with a smile.

Seeing Chu Luren's appearance, Li Mochou rubbed the Ice Soul Needle in her sleeve, but in the end she still stepped aside.

After her initial excitement, Wang Yuyan felt a bit resentful, but when she saw Chu Luren about to come in, she obediently stepped aside.

Instead, Little Dragon Girl stood expressionless in front of the door and said, "If outsiders come in, Granny Sun will be unhappy."

"We've come to wish you a happy birthday. Surely Sect Leader Long won't turn us away?" Mu Wanqing had snapped out of her daze by now.

"No, it's my birthday." Chu Luren rolled his eyes.

If this were Li Mochou, they probably would have already started fighting. However, Xiaolongnu didn't realize anything was wrong. After thinking for a moment, she said, "Birthday wishes... I don't celebrate birthdays, but if it's a guest... let's not do it again." As she spoke, she turned around, took a couple of steps, then seemed to remember something and turned her head slightly, saying, "Follow me."

Seeing this, Mu Wanqing felt somewhat embarrassed: "I came to wish... Sect Leader Long a happy birthday, but I didn't bring a gift. I'm really sorry."

"A gift?" Little Dragon Girl asked, slightly puzzled.

"Didn't you receive any gifts on your birthday?" Mu Wanqing asked.

"No." Little Dragon Girl shook her head.

"What a coincidence, I don't have any either... You guys should have some, right?" Mu Wanqing was probably trying to liven up the atmosphere.

Li Mochou's lips twitched slightly before she said, "Women of the Ancient Tomb don't need gifts!"

Wang Yuyan thought for a moment and said hesitantly, "My mother is usually very strict with me, and not many friends come to the manor on my birthday, so I... probably won't celebrate."

Upon hearing Wang Yuyan's words, Mu Wanqing's gaze indeed softened.

Huang Rong then turned her gaze and said, "My father is a loner, and I'm always on the island. Apart from some deaf and mute old servants, there's not much I can interact with."

Chu Luren gave her a strange look—this was most likely a deliberate attempt to gain sympathy. Although Huang Yaoshi was aloof and probably not good at expressing concern to his daughter, he should actually care about Huang Rong a lot. It was unlikely that he hadn't celebrated her birthday!

Upon hearing this, both Mu Wanqing and Wang Yuyan looked over with sympathy and understanding.

Li Mochou, however, noticed another element: "On the island?"

"Ahem, we'll talk about that later! By the way, where's Granny Sun?" Chu Luren asked curiously after changing the subject.

"I went to the city with my junior disciple Lingbo to buy rice and flour." Little Dragon Girl naturally had nothing to hide.

The Ancient Tomb Sect doesn't own any farmland or tenants, so they have to buy food. After all, while jade bee jelly can be eaten as a meal, there's no need to torture yourself.

"So, where does our Ancient Tomb Sect get its money?" Chu Luren asked with a strong sense of ownership.

The righteous sects of the martial arts world have only four sources of income: rent from landlords, gifts from business partners, sponsorships for taking on disciples, and income from trade routes and industries.

Ancient tombs, being secluded sects, not only lack real estate and farms, but they certainly don't receive tributes from past escort agencies and merchant caravans.

As for sponsoring apprentices...

That's only available if you take in a rich kid!

The Ancient Tomb Sect originally had two disciples, both orphans, so they ended up with two more mouths to feed and no property.

Now that we've taken Wang Yuyan in, once Mantuo Manor finds out, they'll probably offer some gifts every year.

As for "Robin Hood funds," they are usually only done by lone wolves, and even some famous heroes disdain doing them—when a "hero" is short of money, he can just go and visit a wealthy person in the martial arts world.

When Chu Luren first entered the Earth Ranking and went to Tie Wushuang's residence, they had prepared several envelopes of silver...

Chu Luren's physique, and the fact that he still sneaks into the mountain stronghold all the time, shows that he is "easygoing"!

Chu Luren estimated that when Li Mochou was traveling the world, she must have lived by "robbing the rich to help the poor" just like him. But it's impossible that the Ancient Tomb Sect relied on her to make a living.

Moreover, Li Mochou hadn't been in the Ancient Tomb for the previous ten years...

"Funerary items," Little Dragon Girl gave her answer.

"Huh?" Chu Luren was taken aback.

"These are Wang Chongyang's 'burial goods.' Back then, Wang Chongyang lived in seclusion in the Ancient Tomb. He was only able to emerge from the world after being provoked by the Patriarch. Later, when he lost the Ancient Tomb to the Patriarch in a bet, there were still quite a few 'burial goods' here. They were probably some of the remaining valuable items from Wang Chongyang's military supplies when he raised his army." Li Mochou spoke in slang as if nothing was amiss.

"Red goods" refers to non-cash items such as antiques and paintings; this term is generally used by those involved in escorting or robbing goods.

In other words, this should be considered as Wang Chongyang's "small change." Compared to those great treasures, the amount is naturally not much, but given the ancient tomb's consistently small population, it's enough to sustain its expenses for a very long time.

This is probably the prototype for Li Mochou's rumor that she had "antiques and calligraphy as part of her dowry"!

Seeing Chu Luren looking at her with a strange expression, Li Mochou realized she had used the wrong words and awkwardly changed the subject: "You came to wish the sect leader a happy birthday, but you didn't bring any gifts?" She did mention "happy birthday" in this context.

"Of course we have some! Everyone has some! I brought some for Granny Sun and Lingbo." Chu Luren said, pulling out a large handful from his pocket...

"What is this?" Li Mochou asked curiously.

"I specially went to Chongyang Palace to obtain this protective lucky bag," Chu Luren said seriously.

“Chongyang Palace? Are you sure it was ‘specifically’ and not ‘incidentally’?” Li Mochou pouted.

Mu Wanqing looked at her curiously, but after Li Mochou noticed, she quickly turned her gaze away.

I feel like this "Red Serpent Witch" is somewhat different from what I imagined...

Chapter 236 The Outer Sect Elder Finally Enters the Gate

"If the sect leader doesn't usually celebrate his birthday, how should we celebrate this time?" Chu Luren thought for a moment.

"Is there anything you absolutely have to celebrate on your eighteenth birthday?" Li Mochou asked, frowning.

At this time, the customs of the Great Jianghu were similar to those of ancient times in the minds of the Chu Lu people. Generally, birthday celebrations were held once every ten years, and for those who were in their thirties or forties, young adults did not celebrate their birthdays; at most, they would have a small celebration at home.

There are specific ceremonies for older children, or those who have reached the age of one year, twenty, or the coming-of-age ceremony.

In the original work, Yang Guo celebrated Guo Xiang's sixteenth birthday entirely to stir up trouble.

"What experience do you all have?" Chu Luren looked at the others, and they all shook their heads.

"How do you celebrate your birthday in your hometown?" Huang Rong asked Chu Luren after learning the word.

Chu Luren thought for a moment: "Light the candle, then blow it out!"

The people in the ancient tomb: ...

Lighting candles in an ancient tomb and then blowing them out—it sounds very "ritualistic," and a rather eerie one at that!

"And then there's... longevity noodles and pastries," Chu Luren continued.

The latter is clearly more reliable!

When Granny Sun returned, she was indeed very unhappy that outsiders had entered the ancient tomb. Huang Rong and Mu Wanqing looked at Granny Sun and then at Chu Luren—yes, this is the style the ancient tomb should have.

Fortunately, after learning that the two had come to celebrate Xiaolongnu's birthday, Granny Sun no longer kept a stiff face.

Although she didn't say anything, Grandma Sun bought rice, flour, vegetables, fruits, oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar, and also brought back a lot of candied fruit that she wouldn't normally buy—most likely because she was thinking of Little Dragon Girl's birthday.

Blowing out candles in an ancient tomb is a creepy thought. Everyone just ate and drank and exchanged some blessings. Xiaolongnu's expression didn't seem to change much, but in reality, she was experiencing some turmoil inside.

It's never this lively usually...

Because of the environment, Huang Rong and Mu Wanqing thought it was "quiet," but for Xiaolongnu, it was undoubtedly "lively."

In previous years, Granny Sun would not celebrate Xiaolongnu's birthday in a grand manner—it was actually just the day Xiaolongnu was taken back to the Ancient Tomb.

Although I usually buy extra snacks and desserts every year, I never say it out loud. After all, the martial arts of the Ancient Tomb Sect are not suitable for joy or anger, so it's better to remain calm.

Little Dragon Girl wasn't particularly perceptive or curious, so she mostly didn't notice...

Granny Sun was actually a little conflicted. Having spent a long time with Xiaolongnü, she could naturally sense the joy and shyness hidden beneath Xiaolongnü's current indifference.

On one hand, she watched Xiaolongnu grow up, and seeing the child happy made her happy too. On the other hand... is it really okay to be so happy?

The Ancient Tomb Sect's rule of "not being able to be happy or angry" is not just a rule, but also a restriction on the cultivation of the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra!