Chapter 204

　　Because it is the Mingzong World, Emei is the third largest of the eight major sects, and its strength is very powerful. The previous generation, namely the generation before Miejue and Dugu Yihe, had the Four Elders of Emei (Chaoyuan, Chaochen, the 13th generation leader Chaofan, and Chaohui). In addition to Miejue and Dugu Yihe, there were also Jin Guang Shangren and Shenxi Daoren.

　　The third generation, which is Zhou Zhiruo’s generation, consists of Zhou Zhiruo, Ding Minjun, and eight disciples of the “Jing” generation, led by Abbess Jingxuan, and the Taoist lineage consists of the Three Heroes and Four Outstanding Women.

　　It can be said that talents from three generations—old, middle-aged, and young—have emerged in great numbers.

　　The Huashan Sect is equally formidable. The older generation includes the Divine Sword Immortal Ape Mu Renqing, as well as the Two Elders of Huashan. The middle generation includes Sect Leader Xianyu Tong, Tianyin Daoist, Jinlong Daoist, Huang Zhen, and Gui Xinshu. The younger generation doesn’t have any outstanding super rookies yet, but there are definitely many promising young talents who will become quite strong as they gain more experience.

　　The phrase “Swords emerge from Mount Hua” doesn’t just refer to the Mount Hua Sword Sect. Those who lead the Mount Hua Sect are naturally very skilled in swordsmanship. Among their renowned techniques are the Thirteen Styles of Qingfeng, the Golden Dragon Sword Technique, the Three-Sword Technique, the Six Harmonies Sword Technique, and the Colorful Butterfly Double Flying Sword. Because many of these sword techniques are similar to sword formations, they require two, three, or even six people to perform them simultaneously. So, while they may not seem very strong individually, their combined power is immense.

　　The Divine Sword Immortal Ape Mu Renqing and Feng Qingyang were of the same generation and had a decent relationship. In their youth, they were hailed as the Twin Pillars of Mount Hua, equally brilliant, and were also among the Ten Famous Swordsmen.

　　However, like Dugu Yihe, Mu Renqing chose to stay at Mount Hua and did not intend to go to Bright Peak. But the two elders of Mount Hua came with Tianyin Daoren and Jinlong Daoren.

　　Of course, the Huashan Sect actually had another master, the former sect leader Wan Zhenyue, who came from the Huangshan family and had two daughters. The eldest daughter was famous for her beauty and was known as one of the Huashan Twin Sisters or the Huashan Twin Beauties along with Ning Zhongze. However, because of her great beauty, she unfortunately fell into the hands of the Plum Blossom Bandits, was captured by them, and was raped by the villains.

　　Because of this incident, Wan Zhenyue was in a hurry to marry off his youngest daughter. In the end, he chose Xianyu Tong, who was all show and no substance. He was also constantly pursuing the Plum Blossom Thief who had killed his eldest daughter. This is also the reason why the Plum Blossom Thief later disappeared.

　　In fact, Wan Zhenyue knew that his eldest daughter was not dead, but he certainly could not keep her on Mount Hua, so he sent her to Japan. That’s right, this woman was Shi Guanyin, Wuhua’s biological mother, the current Queen of Kucha, and also the wife of Tianfeng Shisilang.

　　Tianfeng Shisilang crossed the sea to the Central Plains to challenge various sects, but he also wanted to find the woman he deeply loved. As a result, he was besieged and killed. One of the leaders was Wan Zhenyue. He would not acknowledge such a son-in-law, nor did he want such a family scandal to be exposed.

　　The Embroidered Bandit has now been caught, but the Plum Blossom Bandit has resurfaced. Wan Zhenyue has naturally gone to investigate the Plum Blossom Bandit, as he is his mortal enemy and must be killed.

　　In order to find the Plum Blossom Bandit with all his might, he even gave up the position of sect leader. Even though Xianyu Tong was not very strong, he still let his son-in-law take the position.

　　Since today is a meeting of allies, the three factions should at least show off their strengths and determine their respective positions. In addition to the commanders of their respective allied forces, they should also compete for the position of leader of the alliance.

　　The Shaolin and Wudang sects are both somewhat weak right now, and their leaders aren’t very strong. Many of the people present are capable of competing with them.

　　Unfortunately, Fang Zheng’s performance when fighting Jiang Yuyan was indeed lackluster, unworthy of the title of Abbot of Shaolin. Therefore, it was inevitable that many people would look down on him and think that Shaolin had really been crippled by Yihua Palace.

　　The current participants are the younger generation of the Seven Swords of Mount Hua, including Linghu Chong. Several other young members of the Mount Hua Sect, such as Feng Nandi, Sun Zhongjun, Liang Fa, and Yue Lingshan, have also been included in the Seven Swords of Mount Hua. However, since two of them are currently in the capital, there are actually only five swords in total.

　　Of course, this refers to the new generation of the Seven Swords. Actually, there were seven before, but not all of them were in Mount Hua. Some, like Liu Ruofeng, were doing very well or came from good families. After they could not inherit the position of sect leader, most of them would go to their own territory or seize a territory to develop. This is how most of the so-called major sects and martial arts families came about. Therefore, the actual influence of a famous sect and its control over the area it covers far exceeds what is described in general martial arts novels.

　　This is also why Yu Canghai in the original novel of The Smiling, Proud Wanderer looked down on the 100,000 taels of silver given by Lin Zhennan, feeling that 100,000 taels a year was not as valuable as a copy of the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual.

　　Qi Wuhui (Sword of No Return), Feng Wuya (Sword of Wind and Moon), Yan Wuhui (Sword of Echoing Clouds), Gu Xiaoxiao (Sword of Golden Gold), Yun Feizhuo (Sword of Fragmented Ice), Gu Qingshuang (Sword of Swift Snow), and Hua Qingqing (Sword of Plum Blossom Hand), the Vice Head of the Huashan Sect.

　　Of these seven, only three remain in the Huashan Sect. The other four have either left to establish their own sects or returned to their families. They have their own businesses and are considered members of the Huashan Sect, but they generally do not participate in such martial arts conflicts. Even if they benefit, it has little to do with them.

　　Yan Fei is the only son of Yan Wuhui, the Sword of Xiangyun, and one of the Seven Swords of Huashan. The Yan family, along with the Hua family and Huangshan family, which belong to the two elders of Huashan, are the main families of Huashan Sect. The establishment of a large sect can ensure stability, and the main families are indispensable. These families are also the key to ensuring the sect’s cohesion and orderly inheritance.

　　The one who fought Yan Fei was Yan Renying, the eldest brother among the Three Heroes and Four Heroes, who was a disciple of Dugu Yihe.

　　Because the names contain the characters “秀” or “英”, “秀” here refers to a woman and “英” refers to a man, so in total, there are four women and three men.

　　Si Ying:

　　1. Ye Xiuzhu: She has superb light-foot skills and can fly over rooftops and walk on walls.

　　2. Sun Xiuqing: Exceptional swordsmanship, a disciple of Ximen Chuixue.

　　3. Ma Xiuzhen: Possesses profound internal strength and is skilled in using hidden weapons.

　　4. Shi Xiuyun: Intelligent and quick-witted, with agile swordsmanship.

　　Three Heroes:

　　1. Yan Renying: Extremely talented in martial arts and has a resolute character.

　　2. Su Shaoying: He has a forthright personality and is highly skilled in martial arts.

　　3. Zhang Yingfeng: Highly skilled in martial arts, especially in swordsmanship.

　　Even among women, the Four Beauties of Emei and the Four Beauties of Qingcheng are on completely different levels. The most powerful ones have even reached the fourth rank and are about to break through to the upper third rank. They are no less than the Three Great Protectors and the deputy leaders of the Five Mountains Sword Sect. This is the foundation of a top sect.

　　After all, a major sect like Emei has resources and a pool of students that other ordinary second- or third-rate sects cannot match. In addition, its own heritage is very complete and its skills are among the best in the martial arts world. Naturally, it has no shortage of experts, unlike the long-declining Huashan Sword Sect.