The Great Martial Arts World: Hot Topics and Great Heroes

"Brother Chu, who are those two people? You walk so fast!" Dog Bastard exclaimed in amazement.

"Naturally, it's the people Iron Fork will be hiding from," Chu Luren explained.

"So they're the ones who sell Laba porridge? Why can't they sell their Laba porridge? Why do they have to come here looking for people to drink it..." Dog Bastard shook his head with a sigh.

He had only heard the Iron Fork Society members say that they were hiding from the Second Envoy, and that even if they jumped into the sea, became cowards, or were eaten by sharks, they would never drink Laba porridge!

Chu Luren really had a hard time explaining this problem. At this moment, Gou Zazhong suddenly exclaimed, "Oh no! We definitely can't go to that village later. I saw a boat full of corpses, all of them were members of the Flying Fish Gang. They were all killed by the Laba porridge seller. It was terrifying!"

Dog Bastard has now mastered internal strength. In the original work, his internal strength was even above that of the two envoys who reward good and punish evil. However, he didn't have the self-awareness of a master. When he saw a chivalrous person from the martial arts world, his instinct was to hide.

They are...purely good people who will step in to help those in need, even if they can't win a fight. However, when they "hear" about injustices, they will only stay far away. They can be considered a representative of neutral kindness.

He would stand up when he saw the old man being tortured to death. He would also stand up when he saw the villains killing the boatman and then heading to a small village. He didn't have time to stop the former, nor did he rush to stop the latter. He would just roast wild boar on the side and remind passersby when he saw them.

It's definitely wrong to say he's public-spirited. In the original work, when Dog Bastard saw Ding Busi indiscriminately killing ordinary people to vent his anger, he didn't think much of it. But it's even more wrong to say he's callous. When others wanted to hurt him, he would refrain from doing so because he was worried about others getting hurt, even if he himself suffered some humiliation or injury.

They have reached the pinnacle of being strict with themselves and lenient with others.

Dog Zazo's cooking skills are not bad. Although he is not as good as Huang Rong, he is above "skilled". If you can calm down and do something well, you can't be too bad.

However, the Chu Lu people only dabbled in it – their staple food was still salted fish and drunken crab!

The bastard dog, curious, asked Chu Luren for some to eat with it.

This wild boar was quite large; it was big enough for Wang Yuyan and the others as well...

The dog-bastard ate a salted fish and a roasted wild boar... which reminded Chu Luren of the original work, when the dog-bastard drank the wine of the two envoys who rewarded good and punished evil.

This should have been the fuse for the dog bastard to further improve his internal strength, but now he has ruined it himself. Will it affect his performance on Xia Ke Island later?

If Chu Luren can't comprehend the "Tai Xuan Jing," then he'll still need that bastard dog to carry him!

So Chu Luren specifically asked, "Brother Gou, I noticed your steps are heavy, but your breathing is unusually long... You haven't learned any other skills, but your internal strength is surprisingly profound, right? What kind of internal energy do you practice? Let's lend a hand and try it out."

"Huh? Oh!" The bastard looked at Brother Chu's outstretched hand with a silly expression, then stepped forward and shook it tightly.

After a while...

As Mu Wanqing's gaze grew increasingly strange, Chu Luren urged, "Don't just hold on like that, start channeling your inner energy!"

“Circulate internal energy… Alright, I’ll give it a try…” the bastard said, without much skill involved, simply circulating energy from his dantian to his palm.

"Huh?" Chu Luren exclaimed in surprise.

"Brother Chu, what's wrong?" Dog Bastard asked curiously.

"Your internal strength... no, no, where did you learn the Yi Jin Jing from?" Chu Luren was also confused for a moment.

This internal force of yin and yang was something Chu Luren had anticipated, but... Chu Luren clearly also felt the essence of the Yi Jin Jing within it!

If Chu Luren's martial arts skills weren't so high, one really wouldn't realize that he could accidentally learn the "Flaming Skill," but surely the Yi Jin Jing couldn't?

Chapter 733 Sworn Brotherhood

"What 'Yi Jin Jing'? I've only practiced the two sets of martial arts that Brother Chu left me. One set was taught to me by Uncle Xie, and the other was something I practiced randomly on my own." Dog Bastard looked at Chu Luren with confusion.

When Chu Luren first met Brother Dog, he copied down the exercise diagram outside the clay figurine and gave it to him...

As expected, "Xie Yanke" was teaching people to practice internal energy haphazardly again. However, judging from the dog's current internal strength, he is no longer bound by internal energy cultivation. If he were to practice according to the method of "Shaolin Nine Yang Skill", he would not have such profound internal strength even if he practiced until he was a hundred years old, let alone reach the level of yin and yang complementing each other.

Because of Xie Yanke's misguided guidance, Gou Zazhong's internal energy cultivation has deviated from its original scope and is now a completely new martial art that requires immense luck to master.

And indeed, the "Arhat Subduing Demon Skill" had been mastered by the bastard. However, due to the nature of the Arhat Subduing Demon Skill, its effects were not obvious after mastering it, and it only manifested its unusual properties when learning martial arts.

However, it is quite possible that Chu Luren's "Dao Embryo" energy was affected because he already possessed the Arhat Body—the martial arts of the Dao Embryo lineage originally had the nature of a second meridian after being integrated with the Arhat Subduing Demons Technique!

However, this does not explain why the dog's internal energy at this moment has the properties of the Yi Jin Jing, and why his body has been subtly modified by the Yi Jin Jing...

"Ah! Is this it?"

Suddenly, the dog-bastard thought of something and began to practice his skills cross-legged in front of Chu Luren. He was really a bit of a natural airhead. If you were practicing your skills, who would be able to tell what you were doing?

Fortunately, Chu Luren noticed!

Because he had also studied the Yi Jin Jing (Muscle/Tendon Changing Classic), although he hadn't mastered it independently, he had integrated it into his practice, so his Qi was somewhat affected...

"That's right, who taught you this?" Chu Luren asked quickly.

"Is this...is this martial arts? That old man only told me it's for strengthening the body, something many people know!" Dog Bastard looked remorseful.

"Who is 'that old man'?" Chu Luren pressed.

"He was a master from Tibet. A few days ago, I saw him while I was roasting a rabbit. He came to beg for alms, so I gave him a rabbit. After that... he inexplicably said a lot to me. I didn't know what he meant, so I gave him some advice. In the end, he suddenly realized something, but left with a heavy heart. Before leaving, he passed on this martial art to me..."

"I didn't want to learn his kung fu at first. Old Master Xie said that martial arts skills shouldn't be easily passed on to outsiders. But after I refused, he said that I was destined to learn this skill, and that it wasn't really martial arts, just a little trick to improve health," Dog Bastard said honestly.

"A Tibetan monk? Does he have a hole in his head?" Chu Luren immediately thought of two people.

"A trap? No, no, that master looked kind and dignified!" the bastard described.

Chu Luren thought it sounded like Kumārajīva, so he asked again, "...Is there anything unusual about him? For example, do his eyes sometimes turn red?"

Upon hearing this, the bastard looked enlightened and said, "That's right! When he's unhappy, his eyes turn red, and he looks very fierce. But after I advised him a few times, he stopped doing that."

Chu Luren: ...

What kind of operation is it to persuade your inner demons to turn back?

After confirming that it was Kumārajīva, Chu Luren said to be on the safe side, "This person is no good. I also know the Yi Jin Jing. I will teach you it again and see if there is any difference!"

"No, Uncle Xie said we can't just do it casually..."

“It’s not just casual! Look, Brother Dog… we seem to hit it off right away, so why don’t we become sworn brothers? That way, it would be only natural for me to teach my younger brother martial arts.” Chu Luren said quite reasonably.

Upon hearing this, the bastard slapped his thigh: "Great! Dingdingdangdang also said that if men and women get along well, they will become husband and wife, and if men get along well, they will become sworn brothers! Brother Chu, let's become sworn brothers!"

With that, the two men took heaven and earth as their witness, bowed to each other, and became sworn brothers...

"Today I swear brotherhood with Brother Chu. Whether I am Shi Zhongyu, Shi Zhongjian, Shi Potian, or Shi Yidao, whoever I am, if I ever betray my brothers, may I be roasted and eaten like this wild boar!"

Dog Zazhong has many names now. Bei Haishi calls him "Shi Potian". The Shi Qing couple first called him "Shi Zhongjian", then "Shi Zhongyu". The people of the Snow Mountain Sect also call him "Shi Zhongyu". Later, Granny Shi did not misunderstand and gave him the name "Shi Yidao".

However, even though he had many names, Dog Bastard still couldn't figure out who he was. On the contrary, Chu Luren called him "Brother Dog," which made him feel more at ease. Dog Bastard was just a name that others told him didn't sound good, but he himself thought it sounded the best.

"I, Chu Luren, have sworn brotherhood with Brother Gou. From now on, we will share blessings, hardships, and merits together. If I ever betray my brother, may I die like this wild boar, without a burial place," Chu Luren added.

"Big brother!" The bastard laughed as if he had Samoyed blood.

“Brother!” Chu Luren paused for a moment before saying, “I have two more sworn brothers. When we meet them in the future, we’ll bring them along to become sworn brothers together.”

"Alright! Since he's the eldest brother's brother, he's also the younger brother's brother!" Dog Bastard said, glancing at Wang Yuyan and the others.

“Dingdingdangdang says that if a man and a woman have a good relationship, they will become husband and wife… Brother Chu, are they all your wives? I pay my respects to all my sisters-in-law!” the bastard said bluntly, and then bowed deeply.

Seeing this, Chu Luren quickly helped him up and corrected him, "Dingdingdangdang taught you incomplete things, but he might still be a good friend!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yuyan and Mu Wanqing both rolled their eyes. The four sword servants and Azi chuckled, especially the latter, who seemed to be plotting something mischievous, her eyes darting around.

"Oh, brother... then why are all your good friends women?" the bastard asked, puzzled.

"Stop talking, learn martial arts!" Chu Luren interrupted impatiently.

Chu Luren checked the dog bastard's "Yi Jin Jing" and found no problems. Although some words and phrases were different, it should just be a translation issue of the original version.

In other words...

Kumārajīva also obtained the Yi Jin Jing through other channels—it seems that Chu Luren had made him choose between the Yi Jin Jing and the Luohan Fumo Gong, and he had fallen for Chu Luren's negotiation trick!

However, the bastard was able to make his internal energy exhibit the properties of the Yi Jin Jing (Muscle/Tendon Changing Classic) in a short period of time...

It is evident that he has not only seen through the illusions of "self" and "others," but has also clearly gained a high-level understanding—this is not just a matter of practice, but is equivalent to adapting the Yi Jin Jing!

Alright, as expected of you...

After Chu Luren finished speaking, he had Gou Zazhong repeat the conversation between Kumozhi and him.

The bastard was also full of doubt. In his view, it was just an ordinary conversation, and... the master's words were somewhat incoherent.

After hearing this, Chu Luren nodded knowingly and gave an approving smile.

Wang Yuyan and Mu Wanqing immediately realized—he didn't understand either!

However, this did not prevent Chu Luren from speculating about the situation at the time. Most likely... Kumārajīva had already practiced the "Arhat Subduing Demon Skill" incorrectly, and then found that he had just encountered a silly boy who actually knew this skill and was eating roasted rabbit meat...

The unusual movement of Chu Luren's Dao Embryo also indicates that there should be a connection between the Arhat's body and the body that subdues demons.

Are they eating roasted rabbit?

No, he must have been waiting for me here on purpose!

I, Kumārajīva, have never been inferior to anyone in my life. This humble monk will now go and debate with him on the meaning of Zen…

Chapter 734 A Series of Unexpected Events

A few days ago, after debating Zen with the bastard dog, Kumārajīva visited Shaolin Temple...

Unlike the original story, he did not make a big fuss or provoke anyone. Instead, he quietly and discreetly arrived at the Bodhidharma Cave as a wandering monk.

Of course, ordinary wandering monks could not enter the Bodhidharma Cave. Kumārajīva won the debate on Zen by defeating the concepts of emptiness, emptiness, and emptiness wisdom, and that's why he came to the Bodhidharma Cave to meditate.

Originally, he wanted to come to Shaolin, but his initial idea was to learn martial arts from Shaolin and surpass Shaolin in skill!

However, on his way there, he received guidance from a young man...

When he first met the young man, he felt a faint resonance with his "Arhat Body" and thought he was a master from the Shaolin School who had "ambushed" him on the road.

So he took the initiative to step forward and debate Zen with the other party...

After all, Kumārajīva was not confident in taking direct action—his Arhat body was something he had achieved by accident, and it was no longer an Arhat body, but rather… a demonic monk body, a demonic Buddha body!

Unable to master the "Arhat Subduing Demon Skill," Kumārajīva took a different approach, using the disordered internal energy and inner demons that arose from his forced practice of Zen martial arts as the source of this second meridian.

In this way, Kumārajīva felt refreshed and invigorated, and felt that he would no longer be troubled by qi deviation. He believed that he had seen through the drawbacks of Zen martial arts and had resolved or even utilized the drawbacks of Zen martial arts in another way!

Not only did he keep himself alert in his daily life, but he also improved his martial arts skills—which made his idea of ​​"outshining Shaolin" even clearer.

But to his surprise, Shaolin had anticipated his arrival, and there was a Zen master waiting for him by the roadside, roasting rabbit meat...

After several attempts to test him, Kumārajīva discovered that although the man appeared young, his skill was unfathomable. Therefore, he wanted to first debate with him on Zen. If he could win the debate and subdue the man's mind, he would surely gain the upper hand when he made his move!

Unexpectedly, after a debate on Zen, Kumārajīva attained enlightenment...

I realized that I had been misled by external things and had strayed far from the Buddha. My inner demons had retaliated several times, but I had been "persuaded" back by that young man!