Of course, the mere Blood Saber Ancestor wouldn’t let Nie Yun waste three days. In fact, as soon as he left the city, he caught up with the Blood Saber Ancestor and beheaded him with a single sword strike, leaving him terrified.

After slaying the Blood Blade Ancestor, Nie Yun headed straight for Kaifeng without stopping.

When he heard Shi Qing say he was going to Kaifeng, he knew that the story of “The Wandering Swordsman” had begun.

The Xuan Tie Ling, which completely changed Shi Zhongjian’s fate, is now located in Houjianji, twelve miles east of Kaifeng’s East Gate.

Knowing that he didn’t have much time, Nie Yun traveled day and night and finally arrived there on the second night.

The rest was much simpler. After disguising himself, he went directly to Wu Daotong’s pancake shop, took a pill, and obtained the Xuan Tie Token that could get “Skyscraper” Xie Yanke to do things for him.

Having obtained the Xuan Tie Token, Nie Yun didn’t waste any time and relieved Wu Daotong’s pain with a single sword strike. He then spent the next day wandering the streets, finally finding Shi Zhongjian, who had fainted from hunger.

Looking at his appearance, which was almost identical to Shi Zhongyu’s, Nie Yun couldn’t help but marvel.

It’s important to know that the two are not twins, but brothers who are one year apart.

The two grew up in different environments and had vastly different nutritional conditions. Unexpectedly, more than ten years later, they developed into two people with identical faces, so much so that even their parents, Shi Qing and Min Rou, could not tell them apart.

All I can say is that the Creator—no, I mean, Jin Yong’s plot design is just too damn amazing!

Looking at the pitiful Shi Zhongjian, Nie Yun picked up his longsword several times and put it down again.

Although he was ruthless in achieving his goals, he found it hard to bring himself to harm a kind and simple-minded little beggar who had never hurt him.

“Sigh… Looks like I’m still not ruthless enough!” Nie Yun thought to himself, recalling Shi Zhongjian, whom he had brought back to Wuchang and who was now staying at an inn in the city.

Nie Yun shook his head, then took out the Blood Saber Scripture, another secret manual from the “Liancheng Jue” that had been dropped from the Blood Saber Ancestor.

The Blood Saber Manual is the ultimate martial art of the Blood Power Sect, consisting of two parts: internal energy cultivation and saber techniques. In the original story, the Blood Saber Ancestor relied on this skill to dominate the martial arts world of the Central Plains, with almost no rivals.

The characteristics of this martial art are its unorthodox and unconventional nature. Whether it is internal energy cultivation or external sword techniques, it is completely different from other schools.

Nie Yun opened the book and saw a picture of a thin, withered, naked man on the first page. He pointed one finger to the sky and the other to the ground, and his face was extremely strange. Next to him were strange characters in various colors, shaped like tadpoles, some red and some green.

The man in the picture has a hooked nose, deep-set eyes, curly hair, and high cheekbones. He doesn’t look like a sergeant. His appearance is quite strange, but within this strangeness, there seems to be a kind of attractive force that makes people’s hearts flutter and their minds wander.

At this time, Nie Yun was simultaneously cultivating the Nine Yang Divine Skill, the Purple Cloud Divine Skill, and the Divine Illumination Scripture. His internal energy cultivation had already reached a state of perfection, so he was naturally unaffected.

He turned to the second page and saw that it still depicted the same naked man, but in a different pose. He stood on one leg, his right leg stretched out horizontally, and his hands were behind his back, with his left hand holding his right ear and his right hand holding his left ear.

As they continued to flip through the layers, they saw that the naked human figures were in increasingly strange and varied poses. Sometimes they would support themselves on their hands, sometimes they would leap into the air, and sometimes they would stand upside down with their heads on the ground, while six legs would suddenly grow from their lower bodies.

All the figures have several very faint gray lines on their bodies, depicting veins.

After flipping through the book once, Nie Yun had memorized it thoroughly. He tossed the book aside, assumed the pose of the person in the book, and then used his internal energy to regulate his internal energy according to the meridian lines described.

In a short while, I felt my whole body go limp and light, an indescribable feeling of lightness and comfort.

Moreover, when his internal energy circulates, it flows like a river, requiring almost no effort from him, and begins to circulate naturally after just one cycle.

“No wonder it could transform Di Yun from a weakling into a peerless master; this technique is indeed extraordinary.” Nie Yun sighed inwardly, but the faint killing intent and evil thoughts rising within him also made him secretly vigilant.

The disciples of the Blood Blade Sect are all fierce and ruthless, and they have done all sorts of evil deeds. This may not all be due to their nature; it is likely that the influence of this martial art also plays a role.

Thinking of this, Nie Yun put down the Blood Saber Scripture and began to practice the Divine Illumination Technique.

The Divine Illuminator, as the name suggests, illuminates the lamp of the heart and clearly sees oneself.

This technique not only stimulates potential and awakens vitality, but more importantly, it enables practitioners to maintain a clear mind at all times, allowing them to look directly into their own hearts and make everything in their hearts as clear as a mirror, so that no matter what kind of inner demons or evil thoughts they have, they have nowhere to hide.

In this respect, it is somewhat similar to the function of the Jade Bed in “The Return of the Condor Heroes”.

However, the Cold Jade Bed uses low temperatures to force people to calm down and extinguish their inner demons.

The Divine Illumination Technique allows one’s mind to be as clear as a mirror, seeing everything clearly.

Nie Yun did not try to eliminate the evil thoughts in his heart, because he knew that humans are not gods and cannot be perfect. So-called evil thoughts are just a manifestation of uncontrolled desires.

What he needs to do is find all those evil thoughts, turn them into controllable factors, and prevent them from becoming time bombs buried deep in his heart.

In this way, Nie Yun practiced one page of the Blood Saber Scripture and used the Divine Illumination Skill once, mastering all eighteen pages of internal energy cultivation diagrams in one night.

After finishing the last page of his internal energy cultivation, he saw that it was already dawn outside, so he slowly stopped practicing.

Although he hadn’t slept all night, Nie Yun felt no fatigue whatsoever; the true energy within his body surged like a mighty river, surging endlessly.

He now feels more than twice as strong as before.

He opened the door, went into the yard, picked up a tree branch, and began practicing the “Blood Blade Technique.”

This “Blood Blade Technique” is extremely bizarre. Every move is made from an impossible angle and is derived from the strange postures of the internal energy circulation.

After Nie Yun finished demonstrating his sword technique, he stood there quietly.

After a moment, he moved again, but this time he was much faster and eliminated some of the pointless, sensual movements.

And so, Nie Yun would practice for a while, think for a while, and then practice again.

Shui Sheng and Ling Shuanghua both came to see him during this time, but seeing that he was so engrossed in his work, they didn’t disturb him and quietly left.

Nie Yun practiced from sunrise to midday, and then from noon to sunset. The twenty-seven forms of the Blood Blade Technique gradually merged and condensed with practice, eventually becoming nine new forms.

This sword technique combines the strangeness of the Blood Blade Technique with the speed of the Gale Blade Technique (by Tian Boguang), making it extremely powerful and designed solely for killing. It was named the Blood Killing Nine Styles by Nie Yun.

“I never imagined that besides being a lecher, I’m also a martial arts fanatic!” Nie Yun said with self-deprecation. “Speaking of which, it seems that all that’s left in this world now is the Tai Xuan Jing on Xia Ke Island and the Yi Jin Jing from Shaolin Temple. If I could just get these two martial arts techniques, I could basically do whatever I want in Jin Yong’s world.”

********************

“Master Shi, Lady Min, thank you for protecting me the other day.”

At the dinner table, Nie Yun spoke to Shi Qing and his wife.

“Sect Leader Nie, you’re too kind. I should be thanking you for healing me!”

Shi Qing smiled and returned the greeting, “I apologize for the inconvenience this time. If you have time next time, please ask Sect Leader Nie and Miss Shui to come to Xuan Su Manor so that I can fulfill my duty as a host.”

Min Rou also smiled and said, “Sect Leader Nie, I’m entrusting Yu’er to you!”

Nie Yun nodded and said, “Don’t worry, Miss Min, I will take good care of my junior brother.”

After a few rounds of drinks, Nie Yun suddenly asked, “Master Shi, is there any urgent business in Kaifeng that you have?”

Shi Qing was slightly taken aback, then sighed, “Sect Leader Nie, it’s not that I intentionally concealed it, but this matter is a lifelong regret for my wife and me.” He shook his head as he spoke, clearly not wanting to bring it up again.

Upon hearing her husband’s words, Min Rou felt a pang of sorrow in her heart, and tears immediately streamed down her face.

Ling Shuanghua and Shui Sheng exchanged glances, wondering what could have caused the renowned “Black and White Twin Swords” to appear so pained and helpless.

Nie Yun nodded and said, “Master Shi, Lady Min, I would like you to meet someone.”

He turned to the doorway and called out, “Young man, come in.”

Upon hearing this, everyone turned their heads towards the door, where a teenager entered. He looked bewildered and slightly nervous as he gazed at them.

“Yu’er!” Min Rou looked at the boy and called out loudly, rushing forward to hug him tightly. “I missed you so much!”

Upon suddenly seeing her beloved child, whom she had longed for day and night, safe and sound, Min Rou was overjoyed. She turned to Nie Yun and said, “Sect Leader Nie, I didn’t expect you to have brought Yu’er down the mountain as well.”

Nie Yun smiled slightly and remained silent.

Shi Qing watched his son from the side, his heart filled with excitement. As a strict father, although he wasn’t as affectionate with his child as Min Rou, a look of joy still appeared on his face.

At this moment, the boy being held in Min Rou’s arms spoke up, “Who…who are you?”

Min Rou was shocked upon hearing this and quickly said, “Yu’er, what’s wrong? You…you don’t recognize me? I’m your mother!”

The boy’s face grew increasingly confused. He stammered, “No… I’m not your child. My name isn’t Yu’er, it’s Gou Zazhong. I’m looking for my mother. I have a mother!”

Min Rou turned to Shi Qing, tears welling up in her eyes, and said in a trembling voice, “Senior brother, look at this child…”

When Shi Qing heard that Shi Zhongyu (whom he thought) did not recognize his mother and even called himself a bastard, he was furious and slammed his fist on the table, ready to scold him.

At this moment, Nie Yun spoke up: “You two don’t need to worry, he is indeed not Shi Zhongyu.”

“What?” The two were taken aback. Shi Qing quickly asked, “Sect Leader Nie, what do you mean? He is clearly my child!”

Nie Yun shook his head, “Take another look.”

Upon hearing this, the two looked the boy up and down carefully and realized that although he looked very much like Shi Zhongyu, he was half a head shorter than Shi Zhongyu, and his eyes were not as lively as Shi Zhongyu’s. Instead, they revealed a sense of ignorance and confusion.

The couple exchanged a glance, both secretly astonished that there could be such similar people in the world.

Looking at the couple, Nie Yun thought to himself, “They’ve lived such a long and wasted their lives!” He took a sip of wine and continued, “Master Shi, Lady Min, do you only have your junior brother as a child?”

The two were puzzled, thinking, “We only have one child, Yu’er, so why would Sect Leader Nie ask such a silly question?”

Nie Yun shook his head, completely losing hope in the intelligence of these two. He said to Min Rou, “Miss Min, have you only given birth to your junior brother in your entire life?”

Min Rou’s heart skipped a beat, and she quickly turned to look at the young man, a voice echoing in her mind: “Could it be Jian’er?”

Although she knew it was impossible—her own child had been killed by her enemy long ago, and she had chosen the burial site for him herself—she couldn’t suppress the thought as she looked at the boy before her. It burned like a wildfire, gradually spreading throughout her body and making her excited.

Shi Qing also understood the deeper meaning in Nie Yun’s words. He got up and helped his wife, whose body was trembling violently, and looked at the young man with the same excited expression.

Nie Yun beckoned Shi Zhongjian to come to his side, while Shi Qing and Min Rou kept their eyes on him, unwilling to leave him for a moment.

Shi Zhongjian timidly approached Nie Yun and asked in a low voice, “Brother Nie, what… what’s going on?”

Nie Yun patted his shoulder and laughed, “It’s okay, tell us how you lived before.”

Upon hearing this, Shi Zhongjian replied, “Okay.”

After saying this, he recounted his childhood life in Kucaoling, Xiong’er Mountain. When he mentioned that his mother called him “bastard” when he was young, Shi Qing and Min Rou were both startled: This woman called our Jian’er “bastard,” so she must hate us both very much. Could it be that woman?

Min Rou quickly said, “That woman has an oval face, very fair skin, and is very beautiful. She has a dimple when she smiles, right?”

Shi Zhongjian shook his head and said, “No, my mother has a chubby face, a yellowish and dark complexion, and she always has a stern face and rarely smiles. What are dimples?”

Min Rou breathed a sigh of relief and said, “So it wasn’t her.”

Shi Qing nodded and said, “Thankfully it’s not.”

Nie Yun was utterly speechless. He simply couldn’t believe that the renowned “Black and White Twin Swords” were so naive.

He shook his head and said, “Miss Min has been traveling the martial arts world for so many years, don’t you know there is a skill called disguise? Even if it’s not disguise, any woman who knows a little about makeup can use whatever she has to transform herself into a different look.”

Shi Qing exclaimed in surprise, “The art of disguise?”

Nie Yun said, “That woman raises this child but doesn’t take good care of him. She beats and scolds him all day long, and often says things like, ‘Why don’t you go beg that delicate little slut of yours?’ It’s obvious she’s a woman who has been abandoned and is heartbroken. But she didn’t harm the child’s life. I think she must have mixed feelings of love and hate for that man, only wanting him to suffer the pain of losing his child, but unable to bear actually harming his own flesh and blood. If that’s the case, who else could it be but Mei Fanggu, who wanted to marry Master Shi back then but couldn’t?”

Shi Qing was taken aback and quickly asked, “Sect Leader Nie, how…how did you know?”

Nie Yun sighed and said, “Back then, the story of the two women fighting over a man and the ‘Black and White Swords’ losing their beloved son is widely known, if not universally acknowledged. Mei Fanggu has never appeared since then, naturally hiding and living in seclusion. She is deeply in love with Master Shi, so of course she wouldn’t want to kill your child. But because she can’t have him, she won’t treat the child well. Otherwise, she wouldn’t call the child ‘bastard’ all the time.”

Nie Yun felt a strong aversion and disdain for Mei Fanggu.

Because the person she loves doesn’t love her back, she’s made herself into a grotesque mess. And then there’s her birth mother, Mei Wenxin; the two are practically identical.

There are many men in the world besides Shi Qing. In the end, she was just unwilling to accept that Min Rou, who was inferior to her in every way, could win Shi Qing’s love.

But out of resentment, she not only took away Shi Qing and Min Rou’s young child, but also killed another unknown child, and then returned the body to Shi Qing and his wife in a gruesome manner, making them believe that the child was dead.

In this sense, she wasn’t much better than Ye Erniang.

Moreover, after so many years, Mei Fanggu’s love for Shi Qing has probably faded considerably. Yet, she clings to this meager so-called love and overwhelming hatred, living in seclusion alone in Xiong’er Mountain, unwilling to free herself from this burden.

If you’re so capable, raise Shi Zhongjian to the point where he only recognizes himself and not his biological parents. That would be a way to vent your anger!

As a result, she used the stupidest, dumbest, and most useless method, which tormented both others and herself. She was simply a fanatic and incredibly stupid.

These words were like a wake-up call. Shi Qing and Min Rou looked at Shi Zhongjian and thought to themselves, “Could it be that when Mei Fanggu kidnapped Jian’er back then, she didn’t kill him? The child’s corpse she brought later had a bloody and mangled face. Although it was wearing Jian’er’s clothes, it wasn’t actually Jian’er. If this little brother isn’t Jian’er, why would she call him a bastard? And why does he look so much like Yu’er?”

Nie Yun stood up and said to the group, “Please wait a moment, I’ll be right back.” Then he turned and left.

Shi Qing was in a state of utter confusion, while Min Rou was in tears. The two stared at Shi Zhongjian, their hearts filled with a mixture of surprise, joy, and fear.

Shui Sheng and Ling Shuanghua also gleaned the story from the conversation. Their natural gossip instincts kicked in instantly, and their beautiful eyes darted back and forth between the three of them, their faces full of excitement.

Shi Zhongjian felt uncomfortable being stared at by the group and involuntarily retreated to the wall, shrinking into a ball.

Just then, Nie Yun walked in carrying a bowl. He placed the bowl on the table, and inside was a pool of clear water.

Nie Yun took out a silver needle and said to Shi Qing, “Master Shi, here is a bowl of water. You can try it.”

Shi Qing rushed forward, his hand trembling as he took the silver needle. He gently pricked a small hole in his middle finger, dripped the blood into a bowl, and then looked anxiously at Shi Zhongjian.

Shi Zhongjian was startled by Shi Qing’s gaze and immediately ran behind Nie Yun.

Nie Yun turned around and pulled Shi Zhongjian over, holding his hand and saying, “Don’t be afraid, it’s just that you’ll let a drop of your blood go in.”

Shi Zhongjian looked at Nie Yun’s harmless eyes, nodded, and extended his finger. Nie Yun picked up a silver needle, pricked his finger in the same way, and dripped a drop of blood into it.

Several people stared intently at the bowl, feeling as if their breath had stopped. The two drops of blood in the bowl coagulated smoothly into one, exciting Shi Qing and Min Rou.

“Jian’er!” Min Rou’s eyes were brimming with tears, but her face was filled with excitement. She stepped forward and hugged Shi Zhongjian tightly. Nie Yun stroked his chin, thinking to himself, “Thank you to the TV station for broadcasting Zhen Huan every day.”