The Great Martial Arts World: Hot Topics and Great Heroes

Who told me to get married?

After all, they have both mastered the new version. If they were to deny it as a Daoist partnership, Chu Luren would probably be even less likely to believe it.

“Then let’s go up the mountain first thing tomorrow morning. Given my relationship with Chongyang Palace, I believe my fellow disciples won’t mind,” Chu Luren said to Wang Chongyang.

At that time, the Song and Yuan dynasties were in a period of great turmoil. Chongyang Palace was located within the territory of the Mongol Yuan dynasty. From the perspective of the Taoist sect, the Quanzhen School actively spread its teachings to the Mongol Yuan dynasty and expanded its influence, competing with the Tantric and Chan schools. However, from the perspective of the martial arts world, the Quanzhen School only recognized the Han dynasty.

At this critical juncture, Ma Yu's time was drawing near. The Quanzhen Sect hurriedly notified Qiu Chuji and others who were away to return, but kept it a secret from the outside world. No rumors about it could be heard in Chang'an City. The only news obtained from the Qunyu Academy in Chang'an was "no news".

It is estimated that after Ma Yu's actual death, the Quanzhen Sect will not hold any major events, but will simply announce a new sect leader in a quick manner, trying to avoid attracting attention.

Ordinary visitors from the martial arts world would generally not be received by Chongyang Palace at this time—Chongyang Palace has long maintained a low profile within the Mongol Yuan territory, and its occasional closure to visitors does not attract much attention.

However, given Chu Luren's relationship with the Quanzhen Sect, he could visit at any time.

Wang Chongyang could follow him with just a slight disguise.

The next day, when Chu Luren saw him, he found that he had only tied his hair up and shaved his beard, and he did not look like a seventy or eighty-year-old man. He looked more like a forty-year-old with premature gray hair.

"Huh? Senior Brother is indeed getting younger and younger. Even Yue Buqun can't compare to him," Chu Luren exclaimed after seeing this.

Wang Chongyang said helplessly to Chu Luren, "Junior brother, although I haven't been back in the Central Plains for long, it's still hard for me not to hear about Yue Buqun's affairs!"

Don't you have any better analogies? Besides Yue Buqun, are there no other people who look young?

This isn't really a disguise, it's just that I'm trying to look younger...

After all, Wang Chongyang has been "dead" for more than 20 years. Even more than 20 years ago, he looked much older than he does now. He is a "brand new version" who makes him look younger and younger.

It is believed that apart from his disciples and Zhou Botong, no one else would recognize him.

If he were to wear a cloak, even his disciples wouldn't be able to recognize him—even if they vaguely noticed something, they wouldn't dare to believe it!

Chu Luren arrived at Chongyang Palace and encountered a guest disciple on the mountain path.

As expected, despite some hesitation, Chu Luren's relationship with Chongyang Palace was such that he was welcomed up the mountain.

Unlike usual, instead of inviting him in to serve tea, they waited for Qiu Chuji to come out and greet him.

"It's too kind of you to come all the way to welcome me, Daoist Qiu. I'm so sorry," Chu Luren said politely, clasping his hands in greeting.

In other words, he would call Wang Chongyang "Junior Nephew". However, when Chu Luren met people from the Quanzhen Sect, he would not actually call them that. As for whether they would call him "Uncle-Master", Chu Luren did not care!

"Brother Chu, it's only right that we welcome you. Please don't blame us for being impolite," Qiu Chuji said with a smile.

Qiu Chuji was not a cheerful person to begin with, and now that his senior brother was... he could only offer a polite smile.

"Oh, this is a friend of mine, and also a close friend of Master Ma." Chu Luren introduced Wang Chongyang, who was wearing a cloak.

Qiu Chuji saw that the man was covered up tightly, but he only frowned slightly and didn't care. After the Seven Sons, he was the one who traveled the martial arts world the most. He could understand that some people's identities might be shameful or that they were not suitable to appear in Chongyang Palace.

So Chu Luren also said that he was the senior brother's "close friend", so he must already know... Therefore, there is no need to dig deeper into the matter since he came to see him off.

Chu Luren didn't exchange many pleasantries with him. The two walked side by side into the Chongyang Palace gate, with Wang Chongyang lagging behind by a step.

Qiu Chuji hesitated for a moment, then asked to confirm, "Brother Chu, have you heard something?"

Otherwise, why would they bring their senior brother's friend, who is not suitable to reveal his identity, to their door?

Chu Luren was taken aback, but then felt there was nothing wrong with saying it, so he nodded and asked, "Master Ma... how are you?"

"Sigh!" Qiu Chuji shook his head, and complained, "Sure enough, that Li... sigh, we don't have any major conflicts with the Ancient Tomb Sect, at most there's some... connection between our founders! Why did Li Daogu have to do this?"

"Huh?" Chu Luren was still a little puzzled as to how Li Mochou had been brought up.

Qiu Chuji asked in surprise, "Didn't it Daoist Li tell Brother Chu?"

"Mo Chou? Mo Chou probably doesn't know..." Chu Luren only remembered that Li Mo Chou had complained to him.

When Lin Chaoying had just woken up, Li Mochou came to Chongyang Palace to inquire about Wang Chongyang. As a result, these old Taoist priests got very angry for some reason and even had a fight.

Qiu Chuji said with some doubt, "Perhaps... When the nun Li came before, she asked, 'Has Master Ma seen any dead people?' It's just... just... sigh!" Qiu Chuji was implying that he was complaining.

Since it involved the Ancient Tomb Sect and the woman was a woman, he couldn't very well go to her door to cause trouble, so he went to Chu Luren to complain.

Chu Luren then understood why Li Mochou had argued with the people from Chongyang Palace—what she said… couldn’t be said to be unambiguous, but the points of ambiguity were just too strange!

Then, Ma Yu's body couldn't take it anymore, which was really misunderstanding-worthy, no wonder they almost got into an argument.

"There must be some misunderstanding. I'll talk to her properly when we get back," Chu Luren said awkwardly.

Qiu Chuji didn't dwell on the matter. After asking his junior sister Sun, who was taking care of him, and learning that his senior brother was still awake, he invited Chu Luren and a close friend who wished to remain anonymous to come in...

Chapter 870 Quanzhen

"Please come in, you two. Our sect leader is waiting for us." When Sun Bu'er came out, he had tried his best to tidy his appearance, but his sorrow was still evident.

Sun Bu'er's "becoming a nun" was mostly to accompany Ma Yu. In the original work, when Yang Guo and Xiaolongnu were getting married on the Double Ninth Festival, they took Sun Bu'er hostage as a witness. While Sun Bu'er was angry, she was reminded of her own time with Ma Yu when she was young, and her expression softened considerably.

After Chu Luren and Wang Chongyang went inside, Qiu Chuji whispered to Sun Bu'er, "Junior Sister, that person wearing the cloak is said to be a good friend of the Sect Leader... Do you know him?"

“This… his figure looks somewhat familiar, perhaps I’ve seen him before, but I can’t recognize him. Since he came with Alliance Leader Chu, there shouldn’t be any problems, right?” Sun Bu’er frowned.

Qiu Chuji shook his head. He didn't think there was anything wrong with it, but he just felt a little strange.

……

"My old bones are useless, I'm sorry to have made Uncle Chu laugh at me." Ma Yu lay on the couch, but his spirits were not bad.

However, Chu Luren had already "seen" from outside that Ma Yu's inner energy was rapidly weakening and irreversibly dissipating.

This is also a process that all Taoist masters of internal martial arts experience before they die of old age.

Taoist internal energy cultivation generally has health benefits. Even after one's lifespan ends, one's internal energy can still "burn" for a period of time. Moreover, before that, although the body's muscles and bones age, the internal energy will not decline significantly.

It seems that with Ma Yu's internal strength, his lifespan in the last few months was basically sustained by his internal strength.

Many highly accomplished Taoist masters, unwilling to leave in such a wretched state, will dissipate their inner energy and gracefully ascend to immortality...

Ma Yu was an honest man. Qiu Chuji and the others addressed him as "Brother Chu" or "Alliance Leader Chu," but Ma Yu called him "Uncle-Master Chu."

“Nephew Ma has been working tirelessly ever since my senior brother passed away; it’s time for him to take a break,” Chu Luren said with a sigh.

"Well, it's good to rest, but... Chongyang Palace is a quiet place, so my uncle won't have to make a fuss about seeing me off, hahaha..." Ma Yu was still in a good mood.

However, at this time, Ma Yu kept looking at Wang Chongyang, and the frequency of his looking at him increased.

"Who is this friend?" Ma Yu couldn't help but ask in confusion.

It looks familiar, it seems...

"Xuanbao, you've worked hard all these years," Wang Chongyang said, referring to Ma Yu's courtesy name after he became a monk.

“You, you are…” Ma Yu’s eyes widened in surprise, then her eyes reddened.

Chu Luren was about to say something, indicating that he wouldn't be in the way, when Ma Yu suddenly realized something and looked at Chu Luren in shock: "Uncle-Master! So you really are..."

"Huh?" Chu Luren hadn't quite understood yet.

"Uncle-Master, you could have just pulled me down directly, why bother my master..."

Chu Luren: ...

Seeing Ma Yu's mischievous expression, Chu Luren realized that he was joking.

"You guys keep talking, I'll go out and take a look," Chu Luren said as he left the room.

However, just as he stepped out, he pushed the door open again and came back in, adding, "Senior Brother Wang, don't you dare talk Junior Nephew Ma to the point of enlightenment, or I'll have already passed away by the time I come back in... then we won't be able to explain ourselves!"

Seeing that Wang Chongyang and Ma Yu were both looking at him expressionlessly, Chu Luren closed the door.

Qiu Chuji and the others did not wait at the door, to show their trust in Chu Luren, and... since Chu Luren brought the sect leader's "close friend," he must have something he didn't want others to hear.

After coming out, Chu Lu walked around casually and found Qiu Chuji angrily scolding Zhen Zhibing.

To be precise, the anger was directed at Zhen Zhibing—not because he had made any mistakes, but because Yin Zhiping had gone into seclusion and had not yet emerged.

Zhen Zhibing simply went to check on the situation and then reported it to his master truthfully, which resulted in him being severely scolded.

It's understandable, really. If one goes into seclusion, one will know nothing about what's happening outside. Presumably, Yin Zhiping doesn't know that his senior master is dying.

If he were truly in seclusion practicing martial arts, Qiu Chuji certainly wouldn't say much, and might even feel somewhat gratified, but...

Before going into seclusion, Yin Zhiping brought in a lot of alchemy materials and a Golden Core Cauldron—it's obvious that this wicked disciple was once again neglecting his duties and pondering the heretical path of Golden Core!

Zhen Zhibing was also innocent. Before, when Yin Zhiping was neglecting his duties, he was Qiu Chuji's most prized disciple. However... because of Chu Luren's comments, Zhen Zhibing was disliked and was subject to extra discipline in terms of cultivating a pure and simple mind. As a result, his martial arts skills have not improved much in recent years.

Furthermore, since Yin Zhiping had mastered the "Innate Skill" and almost became the de facto head among the third-generation disciples, Zhen Zhibing was more like a gofer.

Zhao Zhijing, who was also criticized by Chu Luren, was also strictly disciplined by Wang Chuyi. Especially after Song Qingshu lost face for Wudang at the Zhenlong Chess Game on Leigu Mountain, Wang Chuyi was worried that Zhao Zhijing would become as foolish as Song Qingshu one day, and often used Song Qingshu as an example to teach him a lesson.

By deliberately limiting his power within the sect, Zhao Zhijing's mental state has regressed rather than improved over the years. If it weren't for the stability of the Quanzhen Heart Sutra, he might have already gone mad from the pressure!

With Ma Yu nearing the end of his life, Qiu Chuji and Wang Chuyi were naturally in low spirits, and Zhen Zhibing and Zhao Zhijing were even more unlucky.

Qiu Chuji only let Zhen Zhibing go for the time being when he saw Chu Luren approaching...

"Brother Chu has met the Sect Leader?"

"Well, my friend, I have something to say to Master Ma privately," Chu Luren said truthfully.

Qiu Chuji didn't ask any further questions about that person's identity—after all, if he could reveal it, Chu Luren wouldn't have kept it a secret without even mentioning the name.

That evening, Chu Luren, unusually, did not stay for a meal, nor did he even take his horse from Chongyang Palace; instead, he rode his own horse there!

Well, since Wang Chongyang's health hadn't fully recovered, the two of them rode horses to get here.

However, the route from Chongyang Palace to the ancient tomb is all mountain roads, making it inconvenient to ride a horse.

Upon seeing that the person who had brought him the gifts was Zhen Zhibing, Chu Luren handed him the horse reins: "Could you go to the Qunyu Courtyard in Chang'an for me and return this horse?"

"Huh?" Zhen Zhibing was shocked when he heard "Qunyu Courtyard".

"What? You've never been there?"

"Of course I've never been there! You should ask someone else..." Zhen Zhibing quickly replied.

"Who do you think has been there?" Chu Luren looked around, and Zhen Zhibing had no choice but to say, "No one from the sect should have been there!"

Chu Luren turned his head and glanced at Wang Chongyang, as if to say, "He went there before; I took him with me."

"Don't worry, it's very simple. Just walk in and shout, 'Two people, no ones over eighteen,' and the manager will understand!" Chu Luren patted him on the shoulder, looking like he had high hopes for him.

Well, now that Chu Luren has Sister Dongfang's token and the secret code Miss Ren gave him, he doesn't really have much authority anymore; it's basically just for renting a horse...