The Great Martial Arts World: Hot Topics and Great Heroes

Luckily, I "almost" picked the flower, otherwise I would definitely have been skinned alive...

The monk Bujie was already erratic in his actions, and with his wild imagination, he gave Tian Boguang an opportunity—he saw that his daughter missed Linghu Chong, so he fed Tian Boguang poison and threatened him with the antidote, demanding that he take Linghu Chong to Hengshan to see Yilin.

Tian Boguang was controlled by others, but dared not go directly to Mount Hua, so he came up with a plan to lure the tiger away from the mountain...

Although the plan did not go very smoothly, and they even offended Li Mochou along the way, almost getting stuck in Chang'an, Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze finally fell into the trap and were no longer on Mount Hua.

As for the other Huashan disciples, Tian Boguang treated them as nothing—because of the sword qi dispute, there were too few senior masters in Huashan. If it were another sect, even if the sect leader was not present, Tian Boguang would not dare to come to their door like this.

At this moment, Tian Boguang had already stolen the two best jars of wine from a famous restaurant in Chang'an and was preparing to go to Mount Hua... He would first try to get close to Linghu Chong. If he could invite him to Mount Heng, that would be best. If he couldn't persuade him with reason, he would just tie him up and take him there!

As he counted down the days until he was cured, and knowing that Mount Hua was now completely unguarded against him, Tian Boguang felt a mix of anxiety and relief. He even started planning where he would go to "hunt" after he was cured.

However, just as he reached a section of mountain road that the Shanghua Mountain Sect had to pass through, he suddenly became very wary—as a lecherous thief, Tian Boguang was quite alert, otherwise he would have been ambushed and killed long ago!

Swoosh, swoosh...

Two familiar sounds of air being cut came in quick succession. Tian Boguang quickly threw the two jars of wine into the grass beside him and drew his sword to block the sound!

It was that familiar aching feeling in my hand again; it was just an ordinary pebble, yet it bounced off with such force...

Sure enough, under Tian Boguang's wary gaze, Chu Luren emerged from the nearby grove, tossing pebbles in his hand—clearly, turning around and running away was not an option!

Otherwise, if your back is exposed, you'll definitely be caught in the enemy's "hidden weapon"!

Last time in Chang'an, I beat Tian Boguang so badly that his shinbone ached for several days, and that was even more than 20 zhang away, when his accuracy and strength were greatly reduced.

The two are now only ten feet apart; turning around and running away is no different from closing one's eyes and surrendering.

"Tsk tsk, so it's Brother Chu who's traveling with a beauty. Is your health failing? Why would you come to such a remote place as Mount Hua if you're not with your lovely lady?" Tian Boguang thought to himself, "This is bad," but his words remained unrestrained.

"Ha, the lecherous thief who should be roaming in eastern Shaanxi has also come to Mount Hua."

Upon hearing Chu Luren's words, Tian Boguang's expression grew even more unpleasant—clearly, this was no accident; this fellow had seen through his feigned retreat and was now lying in wait for him!

"Hehe, it seems Brother Chu has grown tired of those women and come to Mount Hua... Hmm, Yue Buqun's daughter is quite pretty too. I won't spoil Brother Chu's fun, I'll go find some women that Brother Chu doesn't fancy!" Tian Boguang started by throwing mud at people, and also implied a threat.

Of course, even if he manages to get through this, Tian Boguang will still need to find Linghu Chong afterward.

However, Chu Luren remained unmoved and said, "Tian Boguang, you have defiled over a hundred women in your life. Did you not foresee this 'death' you will face today?"

"Hahaha, there are plenty of heroes who want me, Tian, ​​dead. Let's see what you're made of!" Seeing that things had come to this and he couldn't handle it, Tian Boguang simply launched a full-scale attack on Chu Luren.

"Well done! If you can withstand three hundred moves today..."

Halfway through Chu Luren's sentence, Tian Boguang's eyes lit up. He thought Chu Luren would stop after three hundred moves and was unwilling to fight to the death. But Chu Luren said, "Then I'll give you a chance... to die by my ultimate move!"

That's right, Chu Luren also wanted to test his "Dream God," provided that Tian Boguang could at least withstand three hundred moves from him...

Tian Boguang cursed under his breath, a ruthless glint appearing in his eyes.

Tian Boguang had faced enemies even stronger than Chu Luren before, so why would he surrender?

Faced with Tian Boguang's fierce sword energy, Chu Luren did not draw his sword, but met it with his bare hands. The "Dragon Crane Great Capture" is more suitable for use with bare hands, and it is also more suitable for "Flowers in Full Bloom".

On the contrary, "the sword of love between a man and a woman" is a perfect match for "exquisite true energy".

Although Chu Luren could also use "Minor Chaos True Qi" to imitate "Exquisite True Qi" and then use "Love and Affection Sword," that would be the same as his own Dream God's path.

Since you can switch, it's obviously a different approach, which will catch the enemy off guard even more!

Chu Luren's internal strength is far less profound and solid than Qiao Feng's, but with his "Minor Chaos Skill," which imitates the Dragon-Capturing True Qi, he can still play a role in creating some kind of remote binding effect, making him a perfect match for the "Dragon-Crane Great Capturing Technique."

In the blink of an eye, the two had already exchanged dozens of moves...

As Tian Boguang unleashed his Gale Blade Qi, not only did the blade wind ripple around him, but it also created a feeling of yellow sand filling the sky!

It was as if a sandstorm had truly been unleashed, centered on Tian Boguang's sword strike.

Whether you call it sword energy or sword light, the sword light formed by true qi couldn't possibly be spread so widely; otherwise, Tian Boguang might have been able to fight Zuo Lengchan head-on.

The sword aura that resembles a sandstorm, a hazy yellow aura, is actually the release of internal force. It is far less harmful than true qi; it only obscures a person's vision and hearing, making them feel as if they are truly in a sandstorm.

The reason why Tian Boguang was able to escape unscathed from the encirclement and suppression by righteous people on many occasions was not only because the real top-level masters were too proud of their status or had other concerns to ambush him, but also because of his routine of immediately escaping with light footwork after the flying sand and stones, which allowed him to handle the encirclement and attack with ease.

This move is supposed to be a way to escape when surrounded, but now that he was facing Chu Luren alone, Tian Boguang was in a desperate situation and could no longer care about the consumption of his internal energy!

But what can you do during a sandstorm?

At this moment, Chu Luren also gave it his all, as if he had seen a cactus in the desert suddenly bloom with small white flowers...

Even in a sandstorm, this white figure is so conspicuous!

Chu Luren flipped his left hand, and with a slight flick of his claw-like true energy, he pulled, grabbed, and dragged Tian Boguang's right wrist, causing the sword energy to momentarily become chaotic.

At the same time, Chu Luren rushed forward, his body tilting and rotating at an incredible angle as he twisted through the gaps in the flying sand and stones. As he did so, his right hand also channeled the Dragon-Capturing True Qi, grabbing towards Tian Boguang's chest and abdomen acupoints...

Chapter 133 Rules of the Martial World

Chu Luren rubbed his chest and took a few steps back to catch his breath—he had just been struck by Tian Boguang's palm.

Tian Boguang stood there, assuming a pose as if he were committing suicide with his sword drawn, and... half of the blade was indeed inside his neck. Judging from the rampant bloodstains around him, blood from his major arteries had just gushed out as well!

gurgling...

Tian Boguang's eyes widened, and after letting out a few muffled thuds, he collapsed and died.

Just now, after exchanging over a hundred blows with Tian Boguang, Chu Luren spotted an opening, stepped forward, and seized a major acupoint on Tian Boguang's chest, seemingly about to capture him.

However, Tian Boguang was also a man of principle. He knew that Chu Luren was determined to kill him. Moreover, given his status, being captured would definitely not end well. Since he could no longer use his single sword at this distance, he simply struck out with a palm!

In this way, although Chu Luren had the opportunity to take his life, he would also inevitably be injured. To avoid this palm strike, he would naturally have to retreat, sweeping away all his previous advantages and disadvantages and starting over. Tian Boguang was used to fighting, and making this decision was just a matter of a thought.

And the Chu Lu people...

Lacking combat experience, he didn't react at all. Seeing the opponent with low health, he got carried away and subconsciously ignored the palm strike—the opponent was already at the kill threshold, so what was the point of waiting for the opponent's cooldown?

Using his true qi and feigned strength, he wrapped it around Tian Boguang's right wrist and pulled it towards his own neck...

A direct trade of injury for death!

Even as he died, Tian Boguang was still glaring at Chu Luren, never expecting that this man would be so ruthless.

Chu Luren was not unwell after taking a blow; he suffered at least a minor injury, and it was even a minor internal injury. In fact, someone with more combat experience, who was in the upper hand, would most likely have instinctively dodged the attack to avoid a change in the situation if they were injured.

Only a very calm and quick-reacting person can instantly assess the extent of their injury and the difficulty of killing their opponent, and then choose to trade injury for death!

Unfortunately, this doesn't apply to beginners like Chu Luren.

You think I'm on the second floor, or you're worried I'm on the fifth floor, but actually I'm on the first floor!

"Cough cough cough... huff huff." After catching his breath, Chu Luren stepped forward and habitually touched the corpse.

The blood spurted almost two meters, so it couldn't be a fake death; there was no chance of finishing off the enemy.

"With such superb lightness skills, can't you have any ambition and steal some secret manuals from various sects to keep on your person?" Chu Luren scolded angrily after only finding some silver.

Afterwards, the Chu Lu people dragged the body into the forest and hastily covered it with soil and stones—not to give it a proper burial, but rather... what if someone else discovered it and took credit for it?

Carrying a severed head directly would be rather unseemly!

Besides some loose silver coins and banknotes, Chu Luren also acquired two jars of fine wine.

Taking Tian Boguang's wine, Chu Luren headed directly towards the Huashan Sect's mountain gate.

Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze had already gone down the mountain to hunt down Tian Boguang, but he killed him first. Of course, he had to go and remind him. Otherwise, what if Yue Buqun couldn't find him and got so angry that he couldn't eat or sleep?

It was well-intentioned of them to go to Mount Hua to spread the word. No matter how utilitarian a person is, they shouldn't think that Chu Luren was deliberately making a fuss!

They could bring wine along, and also visit Linghu Chong at the Cliff of Contemplation. Perhaps they could even learn the Five Mountains Sword Technique, or even... it's not entirely impossible that Feng Qingyang, seeing Chu Luren's noble character, would insist on teaching him the Dugu Nine Swords.

At this time, Linghu Chong and Tian Boguang had little relationship, and when they learned that Chu Luren had killed the lecherous thief, they would only applaud.

The so-called "friendship with bandits" was entirely for the purpose of saving Yilin. Linghu Chong's martial arts skills were not good, so of course he had to use his wits. Besides, he himself almost died at the hands of Tian Boguang, so how could he have any friendship with Tian Boguang?

In the original story, before Yue Buqun was lured away from his mountain stronghold, his original plan with Ning Zhongze was for Linghu Chong to openly kill Tian Boguang, while the couple would secretly carry out the attack...

In this way, Linghu Chong's reputation was enhanced, and people were spared the accusation that Yue Buqun was bullying the younger generation—after all, Tian Boguang was not much older than Linghu Chong.

Linghu Chong was happy to do so, and even practiced with his master and mistress with great enthusiasm. This was because Linghu Chong had already seen the Five Mountains Sword Technique and the moves to break the Five Mountains Sword Technique on the stone wall of the secret passage of the Cliff of Contemplation. Linghu Chong's swordsmanship aptitude was excellent, and once he saw it, he could never forget it.

When his master's wife was testing him, Linghu Chong unintentionally displayed his exquisite swordsmanship, which made Yue Buqun suspect that he was "taking the evil path of the Sword Sect," so he made him return to the Cliff of Repentance to continue facing the wall.

Otherwise, Tian Boguang's attempt to lure the tiger away from the mountain would have failed from the very beginning...

In the original story, Tian Boguang came to Siguo Cliff to ask Linghu Chong for a drink. Linghu Chong drank a bowl with him, then kicked the remaining wine jar off the cliff and told Tian Boguang that he and Tian Boguang were irreconcilable enemies of good and evil.

Later, when the two fought, Tian Boguang defeated Linghu Chong again, but did not kill him. The psychological description also made it clear that Linghu Chong was worried that Tian Boguang would attack the mountain gate and that his junior sister would be in danger, so he had another "friendly exchange".

It was only because he was spared that, after Feng Qingyang gave him guidance, Linghu Chong did not kill Tian Boguang when he defeated him... This is quite normal.

After all, Linghu Chong wasn't an impartial and just official. Since Tian Boguang spared his life, he naturally didn't want to kill Tian Boguang.

Chu Luren thought to himself that if he were in that situation, he would have done the same thing—unfortunately, Tian Boguang didn't have the chance to spare Chu Luren, so Chu Luren could kill him to his heart's content!

In the original work, until Tian Boguang promised Linghu Chong that he would no longer pick flowers, Linghu Chong outwardly treated him as a brother, but in reality, his inner thoughts were still clearly stated: "How can I, Linghu Chong, be friends with a flower thief like you?"

In all accounts, Linghu Chong at least "did" to make Tian Boguang repent. To criticize Linghu Chong for "not doing" to rid the people of evil is actually unreasonable—Linghu Chong was never a "ruthless judge" and never considered himself a great judge of the martial arts world.

As a young (?) swordsman, he risked his life several times to fight Tian Boguang, eventually getting Tian Boguang to promise to stop picking flowers. Yet, he is now accused of associating with bandits? If he were an official of the imperial court, he would still have the responsibility to enforce the law impartially. However, in terms of the code of chivalry, such accusations are clearly untenable.

Otherwise, what about the Sweeper Monk taking in Murong Bo and Xiao Yuanshan? What about Yideng taking Qiu Qianren as his disciple? Even the kindest of them all, Dog Brother, calls Ding Busi, who killed passersby to vent his anger, "Fourth Grandfather"...

If you insist on saying that the Sweeping Monk, Yideng, and Brother Gou are unable to distinguish right from wrong, this argument may hold true in the government, but it won't hold true in the martial arts world, or at least it won't resonate with people. If you really want to argue, the only way to do it is with your own fists—just like when Liu Zhengfeng's family was arrested, the martial arts world of Hunan was outraged, but when Liu Zhengfeng himself was killed, no one stood up for him.

In the official sense, Liu Zhengfeng shouldn't have died, but ultimately, it's not the same set of rules.

Even Yue Buqun, who valued his reputation highly, would not suddenly attack Mu Gaofeng and his ilk. Instead, he would smile on the surface but curse inwardly, and only take action when a real conflict occurred.

The biggest mistake Linghu Chong made was that the TV series didn't provide voice-over for his psychological descriptions. Some TV series even cut out several scenes of Linghu Chong secretly harboring hostility towards Tian Boguang, as well as scenes of him actively trying to cooperate with his master and mistress to eliminate the threat, in order to maintain consistency. This made his character very "confusing".

Without reading the original work, viewers might mistake Linghu Chong's several instances of being generous and magnanimous when Tian Boguang was being evasive for genuine feelings, and thus believe in some secondhand accounts, unaware that Linghu Chong actually knew better than anyone else—"You lecherous thief, you're not worthy of my friendship."

As for the claim that Linghu Chong wronged Yue Buqun, that's utter nonsense, distorted and edited.

In the original work, during the battle at the ruined temple, Linghu Chong saw his master and mistress being humiliated by the enemy. Despite his serious injuries, he forced himself to fight again, even fighting against the masters of the Sword Sect. He also took a risky move to blind the masters who attacked from Mount Song. Afterwards, he was so injured that he could not get up.

Yue Buqun, however, remained convinced that Yue Buqun had secretly learned the "Evil-Repelling Sword Technique," and mocked him, questioning his decision to let the enemy go, and pretending to be too weak to release his pressure points so he could laugh at him... Readers who have read the original work must be feeling incredibly frustrated at this point.

However, amidst the battle for popularity among a host of martial arts-themed public accounts and self-media outlets interpreting famous works, it became clear that—yes, Linghu Chong intentionally wanted to embarrass Yue Buqun, and it was all because of him that Yue Buqun cut off his penis!

Chu Luren certainly couldn't understand this...

Of course, from Yue Buqun's perspective, Linghu Chong's performance was definitely unacceptable.

The real story of Linghu Chong "befriending villains" only comes after he was expelled from his sect and became disillusioned with the debate between good and evil. His logic later completely transformed into: as long as someone treats me as a friend, I'll treat them as a friend. I won't support my friends doing bad things; I'll try to dissuade them if I can, but if they insist on doing it, it's none of my business, and I won't help them…