The Great Martial Arts World: Hot Topics and Great Heroes

"Huh? Wanqing, what did you just say?"

"He didn't say anything!"

Chapter 155 The Battle of Sword Qi Resumes

People from Guanzhong and surrounding areas arrived one after another. The Songshan Sect could not suppress them by force and could only try to persuade Yue Buqun, the sect leader, by appealing to his legal principles...

Feng Ping and others directly accused Yue Buqun of usurping the position of sect leader but lacking the ability to teach disciples, nor the ability to govern Mount Hua and uphold the righteous path, causing Mount Hua's prestige to decline again and again.

Yue Buqun, on the other hand, insisted on the "sword and qi dispute" of that year. He argued that the qi sect had already won, the outcome was decided, and right and wrong were clear. He claimed that the sword sect's claim to the position of sect leader was an act of denial that was neither legitimate nor justifiable.

However, these three were truly determined to deny it to the end, asking Yue Buqun, "Is there any witness?"—who could prove that the Qi Sect won the sword qi dispute? Who could prove what the original agreement was?

The matter has always revolved around the sword energy dispute within the Huashan Sect itself, so naturally the other sects can only watch the show and act as witnesses, without rashly intervening.

Furthermore, while Feng Buping and his two companions may seem to be cheating, they are not entirely without reason...

After all, the Qi Sect's victory back then was indeed achieved through cunning and trickery, luring away Feng Qingyang, the strongest member of the Sword Sect.

Naturally, there were no witnesses, otherwise the Qi Sect wouldn't have dared to pull such a stunt.

In the end, it all came back to the "battle of sword energy"—the Sword Sect demanded a rematch!

Moreover, there's no need to worry about a lack of witnesses this time, as people from Songshan and other sects are present and can all serve as witnesses.

Yue Buqun originally did not want things to escalate to this point. After all, if there were any further losses, the Huashan Sect's situation would be even more precarious. He also disapproved of Feng Ping and others' behavior. Now, by relying on the Songshan Sect to regain control of Huashan, wasn't it obvious that even if they won, they would still have to become vassals of the Songshan Sect?

However, it's clear that people's joys and sorrows cannot be shared...

As a member of the Qi Sect, Yue Buqun naturally thought this way. However, in Feng Buping's eyes, the Qi Sect had used conspiracies and tricks to seize Mount Hua back then. They had endured humiliation and hardship in Zhongtiao Mountain for many years, and for more than 20 years they could not forget it and refused to establish their own sect. They did this just so that the Qi Sect could be driven away in this day, even if it meant joining Mount Song!

"Amitabha Buddha, if we can resolve this dispute through a few matches that are only moderated, that would be the best outcome."

This time, the Songshan Sect learned their lesson and invited the Venerable Shenshan of Qingliang Temple. Under the guise of mediating and stopping the dispute, the old monk was actually subtly pushing the situation toward a "rematch".

Qiu Chuji wanted to say something, but Shenshan preemptively added, "Or if there is any martial arts master who can provide evidence for the conflict between the Huashan Sect back then? If so, they can speak out in time and avoid further disputes."

Hearing Shenshan say this, Qiu Chuji remained silent—he was naturally unaware of what happened back then, and could not speak carelessly.

"Since Brother Feng has said so, I, Yue, have no choice but to agree for the sake of the peace of Mount Hua. However, with so many friends witnessing this, I hope that after Brother Feng's defeat, he will not do anything to bring shame to Mount Hua!" Seeing that things had come to this point, Yue Buqun had no choice but to agree.

However, the underlying meaning of their words was that they couldn't accept defeat against the Sword Sect.

"Ha! I'll return those words to you hypocrites of the Qi Sect!" Feng Buping said angrily.

Yue Buqun originally wanted to duel Feng Buping, but the three from the Sword Sect insisted that the sect leader's success was not based on personal martial prowess, but also on the sect's cohesion, the ability to teach disciples, and so on...

Finally, with Songshan's support, they forced a best-of-three agreement.

“The Sword Sect consists of the three of us, fellow disciples. I’ll go first…I wonder if Madam Ning would like to offer some guidance?” Cheng Buyou stepped forward and said.

Before her marriage, Ning Zhongze was a renowned female knight-errant of Mount Hua in the martial arts world, so out of respect, people mostly called her "Madam Ning" rather than "Madam Yue".

The three from the Sword Sect were also playing dirty tricks. Firstly, they knew that the Qi Sect didn't have any promising disciples. Yue Buqun's only peer was his wife, Ning Zhongze. It was a best-of-three match... compared to already winning one round!

Secondly, Cheng Buyou provoked Ning Zhongze first. He believed that his swordsmanship was ruthless enough, and he would be able to intimidate women and women. Moreover, if Ning Zhongze was injured first, Yue Buqun would definitely be thrown into a panic, which would be beneficial for the three brothers to win.

However, Linghu Chong, standing to the side, naturally wouldn't let his master's wife take the lead. Seeing the other party make a move, he immediately stepped forward and said, "Master's wife! Let me test the Sword Sect's skills first. If my Qi Sect skills are not up to par, then you and Master can fight them!"

Linghu Chong didn't forget to provoke him as he spoke: "Master Cheng, you have been away from Mount Hua for a long time, so you can't be considered senior uncles or senior masters. If you want to return to the Mount Hua sect, you have to see what my master wants. But even if he agrees, the rules of our sect are that those who enter first are superior. You should call me senior brother!"

Moreover… After Linghu Chong finished speaking, he rushed forward and picked up the broom that was placed in the corner.

Cheng Buyou was furious upon hearing this, but he also understood that this junior disciple of the Huashan Sect was playing mind games with him.

"Heh, what? Qi Sect disciples, now you don't even carry swords anymore?" Cheng Buyou said disdainfully.

"Where true qi goes, grass and trees become sharp swords!" Linghu Chong acted as if he were a grandmaster of the Qi Sect.

Of course, this is pure nonsense in reality—don't be fooled by Linghu Chong's age; his internal strength is far inferior to Chu Luren's, and he has only practiced the "Righteous Qi Technique," the foundation-building skill of the Huashan Qi Sect. He is probably at least two cycles of sixty years away from being able to "injure people with flying flowers and falling leaves."

Linghu Chong knew his own weakness. He understood that if they really fought, Cheng Buyou, although from the Sword Sect, was much older and his internal strength would definitely be superior to his. On the contrary, his sword skills were his greatest advantage!

However, if you use a sword, it's easy to be overpowered by brute force, while with a broom...

"Huh? Are these Huashan disciples really that powerful?" Mu Wanqing asked Chu Luren with a puzzled look.

"His swordsmanship is indeed decent, but if he were to actually use a sword, Cheng Buyou would simply have to go all out—take a blow from his own sword, and then kill him with his own sword... What use would it be if he used this broom to sweep directly at his body and face? How could Cheng Buyou, who considers himself a senior expert, possibly withstand that?" Chu Luren explained to Mu Wanqing in a low voice.

Linghu Chong had this idea in mind: as long as Cheng Buyou paid attention, he would definitely be bothered by his "moves". A broom covered in chicken droppings and mud was more useful than sword energy driven by internal force!

"How come it's according to you... it seems the Sword Sect's advantage is strong internal energy, while the Qi Sect's advantage is exquisite sword techniques?" Mu Wanqing asked suspiciously, as if to say, "Are you trying to fool me?"

"You don't know this. No matter how much the Sword Sect emphasizes sword techniques and sword stances, they must also practice internal energy cultivation. Cheng Buyou is much older than Brother Linghu, and Brother Linghu... although his internal energy is not good, he had a fortuitous encounter with his sword techniques before," Chu Luren explained.

Chu Luren's words were soon proven true. Linghu Chong actually used a broom to unleash a variety of exquisite sword moves, forcing Cheng Buyou to jump around wildly.

Others may not have seen the sword techniques of the Huashan Sword Sect, but Linghu Chong had already mastered them along with the methods to counter them in the cave!

In the end, Cheng Buyou mustered his inner strength and forcibly cut the broom in half with his sword energy, and then injured Linghu Chong with his palm force.

Although from the perspective of the martial arts competition, Cheng Buyou seemed to have won, the people present couldn't help but look strange—how could the disciple of the Qi Sect use such exquisite swordsmanship, while the elder of the Sword Sect had to win with internal energy?

Moreover, Cheng Buyou also knew that winning like this would be humiliating, and in his shame and anger, he lost his composure and even wanted to take drastic measures.

However, Qiu Chuji pulled Linghu Chong away at the right moment, and then flicked his whisk to deflect Cheng Buyou's thrusting sword. No matter how fierce the sword was, it could not cut through Qiu Chuji's whisk.

After calming down a bit, Cheng Buyou realized he was in the wrong and didn't dare to blame Qiu Chuji for saving him. He just muttered, "I won the first round!"

Chu Luren then whispered to Mu Wanqing, "These people are all stubborn. If it were me, I would be making preparations right now to sweep away Chen Ke, emphasizing both sword and qi, and to use this battle to prove that the Sword Sect understands the principle of 'emphasizing both sword and qi' better than the Qi Sect..."

Chapter 156 Borrowing a Sword

Linghu Chong's "honorable defeat" came at an awkward moment. The surroundings were very quiet, and Chu Luren's words could be heard perfectly. However, neither the Sword Sect nor the Qi Sect showed any intention of responding.

To paraphrase Yue Buqun's words to Yue Lingshan in the original work—if this happened thirty years ago, when the Sword Sect and Qi Sect were fighting fiercely, any Huashan disciple who dared to say "Sword and Qi are equally important" would be beheaded within half a day... because "equally important" means "not important at all," and both sides would try to kill her!

In the original work, when Yue Lingshan expressed the idea of ​​"emphasizing both sword and qi", she was immediately reprimanded by Yue Buqun, who used the cruel situation of that year as an example. In fact, Yue Buqun's personality was probably the root of the trouble that was sown at that time.

They were all fellow disciples from the same sect, yet they fought tooth and nail for the sake of "mastery of sword energy," resorting to all sorts of despicable means, even risking their lives. How could Yue Buqun, who spent his entire youth in such an environment, possibly be a gentleman?

Even now, the people of the Sword Sect have all cultivated their internal strength to a high level. Yue Buqun of the Qi Sect... looks like he has thick eyebrows and big eyes, and he emphasizes to his disciples every day that they must not take the evil path of the Sword Sect. In fact, he has long since secretly mastered the Three Immortal Swords of Death - the most typical sword technique of the Sword Sect!

However, he certainly wouldn't say these things aloud. In fact, the swordsmanship that Linghu Chong had just displayed had already made Yue Buqun uneasy, so he didn't have a very pleasant expression at this moment.

"Dayou, help your senior brother to heal his injuries." Yue Buqun couldn't scold Linghu Chong too much at this point.

Cong Buqi stepped forward at this moment, glanced at Ning Zhongze with a thieving eye, and said, "Madam Ning, please!"

Of the three members of the Sword Sect, Cong Buqi was the most despicable. In the original work, he was the one who spoke rudely to Ning Zhongze in the dilapidated temple.

However, Cong Buqi was not stupid. At this moment, Ning Zhongze was instinctively disgusted by his gaze, but he did not say anything dirty in front of the various sects.

In fact, the three members of the Sword Sect, having been suppressed by hatred for so long, had indeed lost some of their uprightness—otherwise, Feng Qingyang would not have looked down on them, and in the original work, he even taught the Dugu Nine Swords to Linghu Chong.

If they really came to Mount Hua alone to challenge Yue Buqun, Feng Qingyang wouldn't stand by and watch.

Ning Zhongze felt a chill run down her spine—judging from Cheng Buyou's swordsmanship just now, if Cong Buqi was his equal, she would be no match for him!

Especially since the Sword Sect's moves were so dangerous, even Ning Zhongze, a heroine who was no less capable than any man, couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive...

Of course, Ning Zhongze wouldn't show any weakness in terms of momentum, and stepped forward. But at this moment, Linghu Chong suddenly shouted to Lin Pingzhi, "Junior Brother! How can we just watch these villains run amok? I think Master Cheng and Master Cong are not very capable. They've just lived for a few years in vain. They might even become our junior brothers. I'm not very good, and I lost to them by half a move. You help me save face!"

Linghu Chong understood that if Cong Buqi and Cheng Buyou were of similar strength, then his master's wife would probably be no match for this man. Moreover, judging from his demeanor, he must be a ruthless and vicious person.

Instead, it was Lin Pingzhi who said it...

Having learned from his previous experience, he had at least a 30% chance of winning—at this moment, Lin Pingzhi's swordsmanship was about the same as Linghu Chong's, or even... Linghu Chong felt that Lin Pingzhi had gained more during his previous enlightenment.

After all, when Chu Luren triggered the eruption of his sword intent, it was the first time Lin Pingzhi had seen the Sword Wall!

Moreover, although Linghu Chong has received some extra training from Feng Qingyang, he has not yet been taught the "Nine Swords of Dugu" because he did not have the sword duel with Tian Boguang. Feng Qingyang probably also considered that after Chu Luren unintentionally released the sword intent in the sword wall, Linghu Chong also gained a lot from it and needed some time to digest it.

However, Linghu Chong's shout not only surprised Yue Buqun and the others, but also made Lin Pingzhi feel uneasy. He couldn't help but glare at Linghu Chong, but then realized that the situation was inappropriate and restrained his anger.

It wasn't that Lin Pingzhi was stingy and hiding his abilities, nor that Linghu Chong maliciously exposed his secrets; rather, it was simply that the two had a significant information asymmetry.

Lin Pingzhi was already somewhat wary of Yue Buqun, while in Linghu Chong's heart, his master was still the same righteous and noble person. Therefore, Lin Pingzhi was unwilling to reveal his swordsmanship, fearing that Yue Buqun would associate it with the "Evil-Repelling Sword Technique." Linghu Chong, on the other hand, never thought that his master would covet the Lin family's swordsmanship.

However, having been exposed by Linghu Chong, Lin Pingzhi could no longer hide his skills, otherwise, if his swordsmanship were exposed in the future, it would inevitably arouse more suspicion.

"Master, Mistress, your disciple requests permission to fight!" Lin Ping stepped forward and asked Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze for instructions.

Seeing this, Yue Lingshan quickly grabbed him and said, "Little Lin! What's wrong with you? How could you be their match? Senior Brother, are you out of your mind!"

Linghu Chong didn't want to talk...

This time, Xiao Linzi did not retreat with her senior sister's help, but continued to look at Yue Buqun.

"You...go." Yue Buqun lowered his eyelids slightly, concealing the strange light in his eyes.

Previously, Linghu Chong's sudden improvement in swordsmanship had already aroused Yue Buqun's suspicions. The Cliff of Contemplation was a quiet place, suitable for practicing quiet skills like Huashan internal energy cultivation. Sending Linghu Chong to the Cliff of Contemplation was indeed intended to cultivate him, but... I have never heard of someone improving their swordsmanship by practicing quiet cultivation on the Cliff of Contemplation!

Before Lin Zhennan and his wife died, Linghu Chong was by their side. If... Lin Pingzhi had also used his exquisite swordsmanship, Yue Buqun felt that the case could have been solved.

"Brother Lin, use my sword!" Chu Luren said, handing over his own sword, still holding its scabbard.

The standard swords of ordinary disciples of the Huashan Sect are only considered average. In this vast martial arts world, if one's internal strength is overwhelming, it is quite common for sword energy to directly cut through the opponent's sword.

The reason why Linghu Chong deliberately used his seniority to humiliate Cheng Buyou and then used a broom was because Cheng Buyou considered himself a senior and naturally felt embarrassed to immediately break the broom of a junior.

After receiving the sword, Lin Pingzhi was stunned for a moment, then clasped his hands in thanks to Chu Luren and said, "Thank you for the sword, Brother Chu!"

Seeing this, Yue Lingshan felt a little jealous and couldn't help but hand over her own sword as well: "Young Master Chu's sword is a bit soft and may not be suitable for the Huashan sword technique. Xiao Linzi, use mine!" Indeed, as the daughter of the sect leader, and with this sword given to her by Ning Zhongze, Yue Lingshan's quality was actually no less than Chu Luren's "Gentle Breeze Accompanying the Moon".

"This... is not necessary." Lin Pingzhi hesitated for a moment, but seeing Chu Luren wink at him, he still refused.

Chu Luren was also helpless—I clearly asked you to change your sword, okay? Anyway, the goal has been achieved…

Fortunately, although Lin Pingzhi misunderstood Chu Luren's meaning, he still showed good emotional intelligence and said to Yue Lingshan, who had a bad expression, "No need for the sword, Senior Sister, wait for me to return victorious... help me embroider a sachet! I accidentally tore it when you were teaching me swordsmanship."

"Hmph, it's all because you're clumsy!" Yue Lingshan said, noticing the tense atmosphere, and quickly pushed Lin Pingzhi.

Yue Lingshan's complexion had brightened, but... Linghu Chong, whom Lu Dayou was supporting, seemed to have suddenly worsened his injuries...

Chapter 157 Dolphin Reappearance

Lin Pingzhi seemed like an unintentional protagonist from somewhere. As the junior brother who was being bullied in the sect, he resolutely represented the sect in battle at a time that no one would have expected.

Moreover, given the current situation, Lin Pingzhi has no chance to hide his abilities and can only go all out!

Lin Pingzhi's swordsmanship is now similar to Linghu Chong's; their internal strength is just a matter of being extremely weak.