Chapter 5

Shudu, Sichuan! Qingcheng Mountain, Songfeng Temple.

“Master, that bastard from the Lin family has actually spread the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual throughout the martial arts world! What should we do next?” Yu Renhao, one of the Four Heroes of Qingcheng and Yu Canghai’s prized disciple, directly told his master Yu Canghai about the newly acquired Evil-Repelling Sword Manual and the latest information he had gathered.

Inside the Taoist temple, Yu Canghai was meditating with his eyes closed, surrounded by the wafting smoke of incense.

Beside Yu Canghai sat his son, and in front of him were several disciples. Yu Renhao bowed respectfully and reported on the Lin family’s Evil-Repelling Sword Manual incident, which had recently caused quite a stir in the martial arts world.

The short-statured Yu Canghai opened his eyes and touched the catfish whiskers.

The sinister-looking man glanced at the manual in Yu Renhao’s hand, but didn’t take it. His expression was full of disdain, and he said in fluent Sichuan dialect with a face full of resentment, “Those bastards from the Lin family actually pulled this stunt. I never expected it. Let’s suspend the operation and see what happens first.”

“Master!” Yu Renhao hesitated for a moment. “Disciple has something to say.”

“explain.”

“You mean… did the Lin family hear some rumors that we would target them, that we already had clues about the Lin family’s ancestral manual, so… did they pull this stunt to expose the manual in advance in order to escape this calamity?”

“They know nothing! This is no small matter. I just made the decision, and the earliest I can act is next year. How could those bastards possibly know?” Yu Canghai cursed.

However, after cursing, Yu Canghai hesitated again.

Considering what’s happening in the martial arts world right now.

I think Yu Renhao’s words make a lot of sense.

The Lin family’s behavior is too strange, or it may really be the work of the Demonic Sect, deliberately using the Lin family and the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual to harm the martial arts world and trick martial arts practitioners into castrating themselves.

The conversation between the master and his disciples at Songfeng Temple was naturally unknown to those in the martial arts world. However, the matter of the fake manual had far-reaching consequences.

Even though many sects thought the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual was fake, they still carefully examined the matter and wondered what the Lin family’s purpose was, or whether it was a conspiracy by the Demonic Sect.

Mount Hua… Mount Song… Dragon Guardian Manor… Wudang… Shaolin… Sun Moon Cult, even the Ming Cult, which was in a state of disarray and located in the Western Regions, no longer under the rule of the Ming Dynasty, was completely baffled at this moment.

Because the leaders and masters of these forces can tell the difference between the real and fake, this sword manual is most likely genuine. It is extremely profound and mysterious, and can be considered a very rare quick-learning divine skill in the martial arts world.

The one who cares most is naturally Dongfang Bubai, the leader of the Sun Moon Cult. Her sister has been away from the cult for five years. Although they have been corresponding, it is very mysterious. Even she cannot find out more information about her sister Xue Qianxun. It is obvious that she controls other forces that her master left for her.

For example, the very mysterious Tianji Pavilion.

Master, you still don’t trust Xiaobai in the end, and you always feel that I am not your most obedient and sensible disciple.

“Senior brother, what is the Fuwei Escort Agency doing? Why would they suddenly spread the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual, a harmful and evil martial art, in the martial arts world? What is their purpose?” On Mount Hua, in a side hall, a gentle and serene beautiful woman frowned slightly and asked a middle-aged man with the air of a grandmaster, who was very refined, with a puzzled expression.

Although this beautiful woman appeared to be around thirty years old, her noble status and high level of internal strength made her still stunningly beautiful. In fact, her age of thirty-five or thirty-six did not make her look old; instead, it added to her mature charm.

Meanwhile, the refined middle-aged man on the other side, though old, was tall and upright, retaining the demeanor of a scholar. He must have been a handsome young man in his youth. Now, his face no longer showed the traces of his youthful days, but the passage of time made him look even more upright, like a born hero, especially with his sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes… making people feel trustworthy just by looking at him.

These two were Zhang Weihao’s newly recognized master and mistress, the head and mistress of the Huashan Sword Sect.

Yes, it’s the Huashan Sword Sect, not the Huashan Sect. The Huashan Sect is one of the six major sects, while the Huashan Sword Sect is one of the Five Sacred Mountains Sword Sects. They are both located on Mount Hua, but they are not the same sect.

This is actually quite normal. Even the Wudang Sect was formed by the fusion of many sects and Taoist temples. It’s just that Zhang Sanfeng was the most powerful and received an official title from the imperial court, so everyone respected him and was willing to regard the Sanfeng Sect as the orthodox sect, collectively known as the Wudang Sect.

However, now that Zhang Sanfeng has ascended to heaven, the other Taoist temples are not as obedient as they used to be.

Although the current leader of the Wudang Sect is Song Yuanqiao, the head of the Seven Heroes, other elders with unfathomable strength and the abbots of other Taoist temples may not really take Song Yuanqiao seriously as the leader. In the third generation, it may not even be Zhang Sanfeng’s direct descendant who inherits the position of leader.

After all, the third generation of the Sanfeng School really had no successors. On the contrary, Shi He, the disciple of Mu Daoren, and Chongxu Daoist, who became more and more cunning with age, had a good chance.

Of course, the Huashan Sword Sect itself is not weak. Huashan Sword Saint Feng Qingyang is one of the five great sword gods and a ruthless person who ranks eighteenth on the martial arts ranking list. His reputation of “swords emerging from Huashan” is not undeserved.

However, due to a catastrophe in the martial arts world twenty years ago, coupled with the conflict between sword and qi, the Huashan Sword Sect has long since withered away. Even the original position of leader of the Five Mountains Sword Sect Alliance has been handed over to the Songshan Sword Sect, leaving only Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze to struggle to maintain the Huashan Sword Sect’s facade.

The neighboring Huashan Sect is one of the six major sects, so naturally it has ambitions, especially after it took in several remnants of the Sword Sect.

However, as long as the news of Feng Qingyang’s death and attitude remained uncertain, the Huashan Sect dared not make any rash moves, including Zuo Lengchan, the leader of the Five Mountains Sword Alliance, who had always wanted to merge with and annex the other four sects.