Chapter 220

　If you were to ask about the major events happening in the martial arts world right now, the first thing that comes to mind would naturally be the reappearance of Yaoyue and Lianxing. After all, these are two Grandmasters of the Innate Realm, and they are also sisters. Naturally, they are the most talked-about topics in the martial arts world, even surpassing everything else. The siege of Bright Peak by the Eight Major Sects was directly pushed to second place on the martial arts world’s hot search list.

　　As for the second most important event, it is naturally the siege of Bright Peak by the eight major sects. The main reason is that it is still halfway there, and this grand event in the martial arts world has lasted for more than three months. It is estimated that it will take another two or three months before it actually happens. It is a big event, but it is not that shocking. It is definitely not as shocking as the return of Yaoyue and Lianxing to the martial arts world.

　　The third most searched topic is the whereabouts of Ding Peng, the Demon Blade. After all, he is another legendary Grandmaster. However, since he is a lone wolf, his story is not as shocking as that of Yao Yue Lian Xing.

　　However, there are rumors that wherever Ding Peng goes, he is always accompanied by a beautiful woman dressed in green, who is said to be his wife, Qingqing.

　　Fourth on the list is the whereabouts of Blood Prince Zhang Lingyu. Some say that Zhang Lingyu learned of Yaoyue Lianxing’s whereabouts in advance, so he ran away ahead of time. Others say that Zhang Lingyu is secretly carrying out a big matter, or even went directly to the Sword Tomb to ask the Sword-Eating Ancestor to come out of the mountains to deal with the two female demons, Yaoyue Lianxing.

　　…

　　Zhang Weihao had just arrived in Taiyuan when he learned of Yaoyue Lianxing’s news. He looked puzzled; it was quite a pity that they arrived so close together, by a twist of fate.

　　However, Zhang Weihao wasn’t too worried about the Zhang family. He sent a message back through the Tianji Pavilion, and it was likely that they were there to help him guard the Zhang family and prevent it from being affected by the siege of Bright Peak by the eight major sects.

　　Unfortunately, this matter should not be underestimated. The eight major sects are the order of the Central Plains martial arts world. With most of their elites leaving their lairs for this expedition, the original order of the Central Plains martial arts world is destined to be in a vacuum. In addition, some sects already have internal factions and power struggles, so the Central Plains martial arts world is destined to fall into chaos.

　　It’s hard to say what role the imperial court played in all of this. So, the fact that Yaoyue Lianxing, who had just broken through her cultivation barrier, came directly to the Zhang family without massacring them proves that Zhang Weihao’s judgment was correct. She really was his “old lover” reincarnated, and she was just helping him guard the house in the past.

　　Zhang Weihao wasn’t sure if it was a plot revision or just a coincidence, but many major events in the martial arts world did happen during the special period when the eight major sects besieged Bright Peak. This is easy to understand; the balance was broken, giving countless ambitious people hiding in the shadows an opportunity to cause trouble.

　　Although there were many plot developments on both sides, Zhang Weihao ultimately decided to go to Bright Peak, because this time Bright Peak would probably be more lively than he had imagined, and he was really curious about the quality of the martial arts world outside the Great Wall.

　　Because he was traveling alone, Zhang Weihao disguised himself using a transformation technique. At this moment, he looked like a completely different person, a nine-foot-tall, resolute and forthright chivalrous swordsman carrying a heavy sword box on his back. He looked somewhat intimidating and was the kind of master with real kung fu skills. He was modeled after Huang Rihua.

　　Tianji Teahouse is a gathering place for countless people in the martial arts world. It is full of all kinds of news in the martial arts world and is never short of elegance. Many people in the martial arts world like to gather here when they have nothing to do and exchange ideas.

　　The eight major sects will also send some disciples along the way to gather information.

　　Of course, these disciples were only gathering rumors, not information from the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion. The authenticity of the information could not be verified. The reason was simple: verified information was too expensive, and even the eight major sects couldn’t afford to buy it every day.

　　”There’s still no trace of Xie Xun?”

　　”No, since the death of Zhang Wuxia and his wife, and the disappearance of their adopted son Zhang Wuji, all information about them has been completely lost. The only thing that can be confirmed is that he is blind, lives alone, and has the Dragon-Slaying Saber in his hands.”

　　”Where is the Purple-Robed Dragon King?”

　　”There is no news yet. The current news is that the Green-Winged Bat King, the White-Browed Eagle King, and Yang Xiao will gather at Bright Peak to fight against the Eight Great Sects.”

　　”That’s it? Then the eight major sects are guaranteed to win. What’s the suspense?”

　　…

　　A group of martial arts practitioners started talking about the siege of Bright Peak by the eight major sects, and without exception, they all favored the eight major sects who had gone to great lengths to launch the expedition.

　　Because most people in the martial arts world value individual martial prowess more and have no real concept of what an army or a large, powerful force is, they are completely unaware of the true terror of the Ming Cult.

　　In a normal martial arts world, without the existence of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion and the Martial Arts Ranking, people don’t have a clear concept of the gap between masters. Therefore, it often happens that the truly powerful are underestimated, while those with empty reputations are overestimated.

　　For example, Ming Cult masters, especially Yang Xiao, the Right Envoy of Light, would normally be greatly overestimated, and people would think he was some kind of super demon. However, when the martial arts rankings and weapon rankings were released, although Yang Xiao was on the list, he was only about the same as Zuo Lengchan, belonging to the bottom of the martial arts rankings. He was just a well-known strongman among the innate masters, not even an innate grandmaster. He was not weak, but not that powerful either.

　　This time, the eight major sects have many innate masters participating in the battle, and there are even sword formations that can trap innate grandmasters. The most powerful one is only an innate master. Even if the Green Winged Bat King and the White-browed Eagle King are both innate masters, they seem to be incomparable. How can they fight like this?

　　Naturally, no one had high hopes for the Ming Cult.

　　Besides the Ming Cult, many people were talking about the rising stars of the eight major sects, including some beautiful female disciples. Zhang Weihao, with his excellent hearing, overheard quite a bit of gossip.

　　No wonder many people consider taverns and teahouses to be the most important sources of information in the martial arts world. You can hear a lot of news there, although most of it is useless or even unreliable, but it is certainly plentiful and satisfying.

　　”Would you mind if another person sat down and had a drink?”

　　”random.”

　　”My name is Lü Feiyang, the Shattered Jade Hand. May I ask your esteemed name, sir?”

　　”Invincible in all directions, unmatched in martial arts.”

　　The moment Zhang Weihao’s pretentious nickname and name were uttered, they immediately attracted the attention of everyone in the teahouse. No wonder, both the title and the name were so irritating, was this guy really not afraid of being beaten to death?

　　”Invincible in all directions? I don’t know what that means?”

　　”The top ten martial arts are: knife, spear, sword, halberd, staff, fist, palm, leg, claw, and finger.”

　　The names are respectively

　　One Strike: Unparalleled Sword Technique – Clouds Cutting Through the Blue Sky, Gale and Rain, Mountain City Drizzling Rain

　　Second Strike: Heaven-Asking Strike Technique – Wrathfully Questioning the Common People

　　Three Swords: Destiny Sword Path – Snow-Soaring Sword River

　　Four Halberds: The Great Yi Halberd Manual – Guiding the Way Through the Maze

　　Five Sticks: Tiger Roar Stick Collection

　　Six Fists: The Classic of Mountains and Seas – Inspired by the ancient and mysterious work “Classic of Mountains and Seas”, it uses mountains as the warp and seas as the weft. The punches are as heavy as mountains and as varied as the sea. It combines hardness and softness, and is incomparably powerful.

　　Moves: Overturning Dragon and Sea, Fist Overturning the World, Dragon Scales Piercing the Sun, Overturning Rivers and Seas, Dragon Shadows Across the Land, Coiled Dragon Entangling the Moon, Straight to the Yellow Dragon

　　Seven Palms: Xuanwu Divine Palm – Xuanmen Piercing the Void

　　Eight Leg Techniques: Fierce and Powerful Leg Techniques – Raging Trample Mountains and Rivers, Shifting Stars and Rivers, Raging Shatter Mountains and Rivers

　　Nine fingers: Harmonious Golden Finger

　　Ten Claws: Oracle Bone Dragon Claw – Thousand Whirlpools and Myriad Claws, Evil Dragon Entanglement, Heavy Dragon Deep Lock

　　Simply put, I am invincible in all forms of combat—knife, spear, sword, halberd, staff, fist, palm, leg, claw, and finger—therefore I call myself invincible in all directions, unrivaled in martial arts.