The Great Martial Arts World: Hot Topics and Great Heroes

Without the support of the Dragon Guardian Manor, the number one manor in the world is just a place where 13,000 petty thieves and scoundrels live. The influential chivalrous list has been discontinued. Instead, Cao Zhengchun has started to organize a list of loyal subjects. He is just short of going door to door to collect protection money!

Following Haitang's comforting words, Murong Jiu also offered a few words of reassurance, and then...

He turned around and went to the Eastern Depot!

"Godfather... no, the Dog God Marquis is probably already ruined. It's time to find a new backer," Murong Jiu made his judgment.

Murong Jiu arrived at the Eastern Depot as a secret agent of the Yellow rank. After sitting for a while in the waiting room, the first to greet him were Luo Jusheng and his wife—the traitor from Shaolin, and his Persian wife.

Luo Jusheng spoke in a sarcastic tone, with the air of a victor accepting surrender. Under the guise of serving tea, he secretly exerted pressure on Murong Jiu, wanting to embarrass "him"!

Instead, he was subtly reprimanded by Murong Jiu...

Murong Jiu easily accepted his tea, but Luo Jusheng was subtly restrained by Murong Jiu, his entire body stiffening and petrifying.

Seeing this, Luo Jusheng's wife tried to release the Gu worms, but Murong Jiu knocked them away with a flick of her wrist.

Just then, Cao Zhengchun came out from the back hall...

"What a big shot Murong is. Since when did the spies of the Dragon Guard Manor become able to punish people from my Eastern Depot?" Cao Zhengchun said sinisterly.

"Heh, I punish them not as a secret agent of the Yellow rank, but as a member of the martial arts world... We, who roam the martial arts world with pride and vengeance, what wouldn't we dare to do?" Murong Jiu didn't argue about who struck first, but instead spoke with a pointed remark.

Cao Zhengchun was placing his hand on Luo Jusheng's shoulder to help him expel Murong Jiu's fossilized true energy, but his expression also stiffened—Murong Jiu's martial arts were far more troublesome than he had imagined!

With the Heavenly Gate wide open, especially after the Qi Heavenly Gate was opened by Yaoyue and Dongfang, Cao Zhengchun's martial arts skills have also improved significantly, and he has now reached the threshold of breaking through the Heavenly Gate.

However, Cao Zhengchun now felt that if he were to fight this Nan Murong one-on-one, the outcome would probably be 70/30, or even 60/40 – he was not entirely confident!

More importantly, what did Murong Nan just say?

Not as a yellow-skinned secret agent!

Based on the Murong young master's usual temperament, Cao Zhengchun also understood the implied meaning.

Therefore, Cao Zhengchun did not resort to hostility, but instead exchanged pleasantries with Murong Jiu in a gentle voice.

Seeing that the atmosphere was good, Murong Jiu said at the right time: "Zhao Wushi plotted to kill Guo Juxia. This matter not only shocked the court and forced Xiangyang to rebel, but also made many people in the martial arts world hostile to him! I disagreed with him doing this at the time, but he was stubborn and self-willed. Fortunately, I was quick-witted at the time and destroyed Guo Juxia's body to cover up the evidence... Hehe."

Murong Jiu's tone was suggestive, and Cao Zhengchun's eyes lit up upon hearing this—could it be... that Guo Juxia is still alive?

If that's really the case, then I can truly be a great hero in pacifying Xiangyang, and it will be even more natural for me to wield immense power and sit on the throne as the Ninth Prince!

Cao Zhengchun was burning with desire—other generals could be coerced or bribed using their families in Lin'an and the evidence found at the Dragon Guard Manor, but for the Song court, the most troublesome place right now was Xiangyang…

However, Murong Jiu only touched on the subject briefly, without mentioning where Guo Juxia was or even explicitly stating that Guo Juxia was still alive.

Cao Zhengchun then said with a forced smile, "Murong Junma is indeed a man of great talent. Once the remaining poison of Hulong Manor is cleared away, the court will still be unable to do without Hulong Manor. Murong Junma is also a member of the imperial family. I think it would be best if Murong Michen could be granted the title of 'Hulong Marquis' and regain control of Hulong Manor!"

Cao Zhengchun has stopped mentioning "Murong the Secret Agent" and has changed his address.

"You flatter me, Chief Supervisor Cao. If that's truly the case, I would certainly appreciate your guidance..."

Murong Jiu and Cao Zhengchun exchanged sly smiles.

At this moment, Murong Jiu was in a good mood—Zhao Wushi's downfall was both a danger and an opportunity, and she... was able to make the choice to seize the opportunity!

Murong Jiu recalled Chu Luren's mocking words—"Hmph, I'll make him see just how timely and correct my choice was..."

Chapter 972 Important Matters

Upon hearing about what had happened in Lin'an, Chu Luren's first reaction was to rush there immediately...

Zhao ignored that old monkey; he was definitely playing a trick!

On the one hand, it was to buy time; on the other hand, it was to "let the tiger run rampant"—by using Cao Zhengchun, they first eliminated some of the toughest nut to crack, and made the emperor and his officials completely lose trust in the Eastern Depot.

Once Zhao Wushi has fully digested Jinlun and absorbed Cao Zhengchun, he will be closer and closer to breaking free of his shackles!

More importantly, Chu Luren was also worried about Murong Jiu—knowing her as he did, Murong Jiu was definitely buying high and selling low right now…

Taking advantage of Zhao Wushi's self-defamation, it would be best to just let him die unjustly in prison, lest things change!

Although Zhao Wushi must have made various arrangements, otherwise he wouldn't have obediently gone to prison. On the surface, the old monkey has lost power, but once he went to Lin'an, it would still be a den of dragons and tigers—this was something Chu Luren was prepared for.

but……

Chu Luren was quite confident in his own abilities.

After mastering the new version of "Three-Part Return to Origin Qi", Chu Luren's "Mind, Body, Qi, Technique, and Power" have all reached the limit of knocking on the Heavenly Gate!

It is not just a threshold, but the limit, and the limit of "knocking on the gate of heaven". In other words, the "heart, spirit and momentum" of the Chu Lu people have actually reached the realm of the gate of heaven.

Because the corresponding Heavenly Gate had already been opened, it was easier to break through.

As for "body" and "technique," they are already on the verge of knocking on the gate to heaven. Perhaps with some further enlightenment, they will be able to knock on the gate to heaven on their own. Even if they don't make any progress, as long as others knock on the gate to heaven, Chu Luren will definitely be able to take the opportunity to sneak in as well...

In this way, Chu Luren cannot say that he can be sure of winning against a master who has opened the Heavenly Gate on his own, but Zhao Wushi is definitely no match for him before he reaches the Eight Extremes Return to Truth!

This is precisely the source of Chu Luren's confidence to venture into the tiger's den and capture the tiger cubs...

However, another matter mentioned by Boss Wu made Chu Luren abandon his idea of ​​going to Lin'an immediately.

Something's happened at Yihua Palace!

Rumors circulated that Hua Wuque had been kidnapped by Wei Wuya, the leader of the Twelve Constellations, and taken to Turtle Mountain. Wei Wuya had ordered Yaoyue and Lianxing to come to Turtle Mountain to retrieve him on the fifteenth of March.

This is just a rumor circulating in the martial arts world, but in reality, the Righteous Alliance knows even more clearly—not only was Hua Wuque captured, but Xiaoyuer and Tie Xinlan, who were with Hua Wuque at the time, were also captured!

This alarmed not only the Chu Lu people, but also Tie Zhan...

Chu Luren finally understood why he hadn't seen any disciples of the Yihua Palace after logging in; it seemed they were already busy with preparations.

Moreover, this Turtle Mountain is not the Turtle Mountain north of Xiangyang, not far from Wudang, but a desolate mountain in the northwest border region, near the Western Regions.

Otherwise, if it were truly near Wudang, Master Zhang would have already gotten rid of this rat...

Chu Luren calculated that he still had more than a month to go to Guishan. However, going to Lin'an first and then Guishan would be too rushed. Besides, if he really went to Lin'an, he couldn't just sign in and leave. He didn't know how much time and effort it would take.

More importantly, March 15th was the date Wei Wuyuan announced. In reality, given Yaoyue's personality, how could she possibly arrive on March 15th? She would most likely arrive earlier!

Wei Wuyuan's martial arts skills are not worth mentioning—it's not a matter of skill level, but rather that this guy is a cripple with a deformed body and half-crippled limbs, unable to walk independently normally.

What makes him terrifying is his mastery of mechanical arts and his vicious schemes!

Moreover, this person is insane; his obsessive infatuation with Yaoyue and Lianxing makes him capable of easily committing suicide together with them…

In the original work, Yaoyue and Lianxing were almost trapped to death in the underground palace by him. It was through this that Yaoyue broke through to the ninth level of the Mingyu Gong.

Chu Luren was naturally even more worried about this place...

As for Lin'an?

Chu Luren decided to send a message to Xiao Hong first—after all, Zhao Wushi wouldn't be able to escape immediately, and as long as Murong Jiu didn't act too recklessly, Zhao Wushi wouldn't target her first after escaping!

"Xiao Tie, don't worry, we'll go together and we'll definitely rescue your daughter."

"Wei Wuyuan? This rat is still alive... The fact that the Twelve Constellations have survived to this day is already a huge profit for them!"

"That's right, this time we will completely eradicate them all."

"Just what is the quality of these Inviting Moon and Pitying Star? We need to weigh them!"

The thirteen elders all made strong statements to reassure Tie Zhan.

Chu Luren then coughed twice and said, "Have you all forgotten again? Yihua Palace is also a member of the Righteous Alliance! What do you mean by 'quality'?"

The thirteen elders were speechless for a moment. They had really forgotten about this. After all, thirty years ago, the names of Yaoyue and Lianxing did not exist in the martial arts world.

They only knew from the group that came ten years ago that the two envoys who rewarded good and punished evil were killed by a little girl named Yaoyue...

They had previously promised Chu Luren that they would become elders of the Righteous Alliance. At this moment, Yu Ziya awkwardly said, "Ahem, since we're on the same side, then we'll reason with each other..."

“That’s right, that’s right, then there’s even less reason to worry about her killing Xiao Tie’s son-in-law,” Ghost Child chimed in.

"Have you forgotten that one of the people who opened the Heavenly Gate of Qi was none other than Yaoyue?" Chu Luren clearly did not think that Yaoyue was a reasonable person.

"So you can't control her?" Mi Shiba asked, winking.

"I am simply respecting the opinions of all my allies..." Chu Luren emphasized righteously.

The thirteen elders fell silent for a moment upon hearing this, until finally Lady Xiao spoke up: "What's there to be afraid of when we knock on the Heavenly Gate? Can she take on all thirteen of us by herself?"

Chu Luren said confidently, "You don't need to argue. I'll go ahead first to avoid any trouble at Guishan. You don't need to worry."

As for the thirteen elders...

Although each of them possesses extraordinary martial arts skills, capable of killing ten young men with a single punch, and even after hundreds of moves in a real fight, their stamina deficiency becomes glaringly obvious when it comes to long journeys.

This time, Chu Luren didn't call his fourth brother either—after all, when it came to settling scores with Wei Wuyuan, what he lacked wasn't martial arts skills, but caution and brains... and his fourth brother wasn't very good at that either.

So Chu Luren didn't mention this to anyone else, but simply exchanged pleasantries and said goodbye.

Although many of them intended to join the Righteous Alliance, most of them are now eager to revisit their old haunts.

It is foreseeable that there will be major changes in the martial arts world in the next few months—after all, a group of old masters are returning!

However, Chu Luren had no time to consider these things. He simply asked Boss Wu to send people around to spread the word, especially to inform Huang Rong, to arrange for a large number of old guys, some of whom might bring their families, to join the Righteous Alliance.

He himself headed northwest, and in his haste to get there, he didn't even travel with Lin Pingzhi and Zhou Zhiruo...

Chapter 973 Turtle Mountain

Chu Luren used his light-footed skills to travel, and ten days later, on February 12th, he arrived near Turtle Mountain in the Western Regions.

It was a month earlier than the time Wei Wuyuan had provoked them to agree to...

If it were before going to Xia Ke Dao, the speed might not have been much slower, but now it would definitely be covered in dust and tattered clothes.

But Chu Luren is still dressed neatly and his hair is in perfect order—if he were wearing white, he would still be dressed elegantly, but Chu Luren is not so flamboyant.

Along the way, the Chu people also put away their suonas and changed their appearance to carrying a knife and a sword.

Chu Tai Sui has never claimed to be a master of both swords and sabers, so it's hard for people to associate him with that image. In addition, his appearance has improved, so unless you meet someone you know well, you wouldn't recognize him.

As for the news that Chu Tai Sui had returned from Xia Ke Island, and even brought back many people from twenty or thirty years ago with him, although it was spreading rapidly, the speed at which the news spread was far slower than the speed at which the Chu Lu people were traveling...

Unless they are powerful families with carrier pigeon stations in Leizhou, they certainly wouldn't know the news yet.

Turtle Mountain is located further west than the Great Snow Mountain where the Snow Mountain Sect is located, roughly northwest of the Snow Mountain Sect and southwest of the Lingjiu Palace.

Although his martial arts skills had improved significantly, Chu Luren did not forget the importance of caution—after all, Yaoyue and Lianxing had almost met their end in the original work.

Although Chu Luren's martial arts skills are now high, if he were to truly face Yaoyue, he could only be said to have a fighting chance, and he would still lose more often than he would win.