The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, becoming a disciple of Yue Buqun.

"Moreover, he was too deep in thought. People with deep thoughts think more than ordinary people, which consumes more of their mental energy. They grow gray hair early and die earlier than ordinary people."

"Those who are exceptionally gifted often incur the envy of the heavens."

"Birth, aging, sickness, and death are the laws of all things, and no one is an exception. We can only follow these laws. However, we martial arts practitioners practice martial arts and cultivate our qi to strengthen our bodies in order to delay the laws of birth, aging, sickness, and death, or rather, to defy these laws. In essence, we are going against the will of Heaven."

"Among most martial arts practitioners, some have practiced martial arts for decades without making any progress, yet they are able to die peacefully in their old age. Others, despite their high level of martial arts skills, die prematurely due to a relapse of an old illness, being killed by others, or for various other reasons. Why is this? Because they have defied their own destiny."

Chapter 160: My Heart is Bright

"For example, a person may be able to live to seventy, but if he is exceptionally intelligent and practices martial arts to prolong his life, he can extend his life to eighty, which goes against his destiny and causes his lifespan to be shortened."

"Everyone has their own destiny, and most people can only accept it. However, some people are exceptionally gifted and skip their original destiny. But the consequence of this is that they do not live to their original lifespan. Otherwise, why would there be the saying that the heavens are jealous of talents and that some people die young?"

Feng Qingyang spoke calmly, his face devoid of joy or sorrow, leaving Linghu Chong stunned.

These words were too mystical, making him somewhat skeptical.

"He is too murderous, too talented, and too cunning. These three things are all related to the secrets of heaven, which will shorten his lifespan. If he has just one of them, his lifespan will be shorter than that of an ordinary person. Unfortunately, he has all three. He won't live long."

……

"Death? Of course I will die. No one is immune to death."

Jiang Ning laughed.

inside the house.

Liu Zhao and Lin Pingzhi sat on the other side of the table.

Since becoming Jiang Ning's disciple, Liu Zhao had always wanted to learn more about Jiang Ning. Jiang Ning rarely talked about himself, which made Liu Zhao very curious. He saw that Lin Pingzhi respected Jiang Ning more than the other Huashan disciples, so he finally couldn't suppress his curiosity and asked Lin Pingzhi about Jiang Ning's deeds. However, after learning about Jiang Ning's actions, Liu Zhao was stunned and couldn't help but ask, "Doesn't Jiang Ning worry about dying if he does this?"

"Life is a long journey of several decades, and in the end we all have to die. Since we will all die eventually, why not die for our ideals?"

Liu Zhao and Lin Pingzhi stared blankly at Jiang Ning.

"Is your ideal, Senior Brother, to be a chivalrous hero and help those in need?"

Lin Pingzhi hesitated for a moment, then asked.

Jiang Ning thought for a moment and nodded: "Pretty much."

Lin Pingzhi was stunned.

Even if it means dying?

Jiang Ning nodded: "Mm."

Lin Pingzhi was somewhat incredulous.

"why?"

Even when he was a rich young master, he would help those in need, but that was more of a hobby than an ideal. He could restrain himself from doing evil. For example, when a peasant woman verbally abused him on his way to Hengshan, he did not retaliate with force. He had a chivalrous heart, but he could not bring himself to die for it.

Not only him, but most people are like this.

Jiang Ning was lost in thought and only replied after a moment.

"The world shouldn't be like this."

Jiang Ning was an idealist, but he knew that neither this world nor the world of his past life could accommodate idealists, and he had died once because of this.

But so what? He just wants to do it, he just wants to do it, even if he dies again, so what?

Lin Pingzhi couldn't help but ask, "Senior brother, aren't you afraid of death? Aren't you afraid of being misunderstood by others?"

Jiang Ning didn't speak. He got up, went to the window, and opened it. The night on Mount Hua was shrouded in darkness, and as far as the eye could see, it seemed like an endless abyss.

Jiang Ning's expression was calm, but his eyes shone brightly.

Looking at the darkness outside, Jiang Ning suddenly smiled.

"With a heart full of light, what more is there to say?"

……

the next day.

Jiang Ning was practicing swordsmanship in the courtyard.

The sword that Yue Buqun gave him was damaged and no longer suitable as a sword, so Jiang Ning put it in the room. Fortunately, there were some swords stored in the door, so he could use them temporarily.

Lin Pingzhi returned home yesterday after retrieving the Lin family's valuables, and he also took Liu Zhao with him. They each have their own rooms.

Jiang Ning took a break at noon to eat in the canteen, and then returned to his room to continue practicing the Innate Skill. He did this every day, and a month passed in this way.

It's tedious, but that's how training is. If you want to get stronger, you have to endure the loneliness. You won't get any results if you only train sporadically.

"Refining essence into qi..."

Jiang Ning sat cross-legged on the bed, circulating his Innate Skill while also recalling the incantation of the Innate Skill in his mind.

After a while.

"The speed has indeed increased..."

Jiang Ning opened his eyes and muttered to himself.

Since the battle in the rainy night in Sichuan, he has found that his circulation of the Innate Skill is smoother than before, and his training efficiency is also faster. He was a little worried that this efficiency would only last for a short time and then return to the original speed, but it is still the same now and has not changed.

After practicing for a while, Jiang Ning stopped and walked outside.

He planned to check on Liu Zhao's progress.

"The essence of Hunyuan Gong lies in..."

Upon arriving at the Suoyoubuwei Pavilion, Jiang Ning discovered that Yue Buqun was teaching Liu Zhao the Hunyuan Gong in the open space in front of him, and Liu Zhao was listening very attentively.

"Master."

Jiang Ning bowed to Yue Buqun.

"Ah."

Yue Buqun nodded, and upon seeing Jiang Ning arrive, Liu Zhao quickly bowed to Jiang Ning.

Yue Buqun asked, "How are you feeling now? Are you feeling better?"

Jiang Ning smiled and said, "Much better."

Aside from Yue Buqun expending his inner energy to heal his injuries at the beginning, he has been drinking nourishing soups every day for the past month to replenish his qi and blood, and his health has improved rapidly. He is now almost fully recovered.

Yue Buqun stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "That's good."

Jiang Ning glanced at Yue Buqun's face, looking somewhat surprised.

A whole month has passed, and Yue Buqun's face is still so pale, as if there is no improvement at all.

Is it that difficult to recover?

This made Jiang Ning feel that something was wrong.

"Ning'er is here?"

At this moment, a voice rang out from inside the Suoyoubuwei Pavilion, and then Ning Zhongze's figure was seen walking out from inside.

"Master's wife."

Jiang Ning bowed to Ning Zhongze.

"Ah."

Ning Zhongze was very happy to see Jiang Ning. She asked Jiang Ning the same question Yue Buqun had asked before, and was relieved after receiving an answer. Then she looked at Yue Buqun.

"Senior brother, Dayou has already prepared the soup and will bring it over in a bit. You can drink it later."

Yue Buqun nodded upon hearing this: "Okay, I understand."

His tone revealed a sense of weakness.

However, Ning Zhongze no longer looked at Yue Buqun with heartache as she had a month ago; instead, she looked at him with suspicion.

For the past month, Lu Dayou has been brewing nourishing soup every day, and Yue Buqun has been drinking it every day as well. But for some reason, it seems to have no effect. Even after a month of drinking it, Yue Buqun is still like this. If Jiang Ning and Linghu Chong hadn't both recovered, Ning Zhongze would have thought that the precious medicinal herbs used to brew the soup were fake.

"Senior brother, are you feeling better now?"

Ning Zhongze asked with a puzzled look.

Yue Buqun said weakly, "I'm much better, but I still feel a bit short of blood and qi. I think I should be completely cured after some more treatment."

Ning Zhongze narrowed her eyes upon hearing this, scrutinizing Yue Buqun's expression from head to toe.

Yue Buqun remained unfazed.

"Okay, then you should get some rest."

Ning Zhongze nodded, said nothing more, and then went inside to retrieve his sword and teach his disciples swordsmanship.

"Hoo."

Yue Buqun secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

He felt he couldn't keep up the act any longer; Ning Zhongze had begun to suspect him, and the look Ning Zhongze had given him just now sent chills down his spine.

Yue Buqun turned his head and saw Jiang Ning's suspicious eyes, which were exactly the same as Ning Zhongze's eyes before.

Chapter 161: Lin Pingzhi's Desire to Return Home

"cough."

Yue Buqun coughed lightly and explained, "I consumed too much true energy last time, which damaged my essence and made my recovery slower. There's nothing I can do about it."

Jiang Ning would have believed Yue Buqun's words a month ago, but now...

"Master, please take a good rest."

That's all Jiang Ning could say.

"Ah."

Yue Buqun nodded slightly, then said to Liu Zhao, "That's enough for this morning's practice. Go have lunch with your master."