The Traditional Jianghu (Continued)

"Get lost!" Zhao Yili cursed. "You have the nerve to talk back to me? Don't forget who became a stutterer the moment they saw the hostess, unable to utter a coherent sentence for ages. And you, who are usually so eloquent and call yourself the sect's strategist."

Zhao Zhixin's face flushed slightly, and he hurriedly retorted, "That's different. That celestial being had an extraordinary air about her; you could tell at a glance that she came from a very noble family. Ordinary wealthy families couldn't raise a woman with such elegance. Let alone me, even Manager Qian, who has traveled all over the country and seen a lot, was still hesitant and humble when he met her."

The other disciples in the sect all echoed his sentiments.

"Yes, yes, Pingyuan Commandery isn't a small place, but I've never seen such an elegant woman before. She's like a fairy from a story."

"Yes, seeing her is like seeing Guanyin Bodhisattva; I can't even have the slightest thought of disrespect. Even speaking to her face-to-face makes me feel like my breath is defiling her."

"Don't overthink it. The way that person spoke made it seem like they were bowing down to you as an equal, and their posture, tsk tsk, you could tell they were used to being bossy and arrogant. They must be a high-ranking person. I'd guess they're either royalty or from a powerful family."

Zhao Yili slammed his hand on the table and said, "Look, you all admit that the mistress is unapproachable. Compared to her, her maid is much more approachable."

Some rough guys nodded. "That's right. Although that woman is a bit fierce, she is just like us in the world. She doesn't speak coquettishly at all. She is very straightforward at first glance. She doesn't have the bad habits of those high-ranking ladies."

"Most importantly, she's beautiful too! Everyone says that the Fairy of Xiaoxiang Fairy in the Lingering Waves Palace in Jiangnan is unparalleled in both swordsmanship and appearance, but I think she's only on par with that."

At this moment, the sect leader's daughter, Zhao Xiaohui, walked over, rolled her eyes, and said, "You bunch of toads, don't even think about it. Shuiyun is a great master; she could take on ten of you. I've never heard of a female warrior taking a fancy to a man whose martial arts are weaker than hers."

Zhao Xiaohui was twenty-seven years old. She had a round, oval face with a bit of baby fat, dark eyes, and rosy cheeks. She exuded a youthful and lively aura and was quite cute and pretty. However, her body had not yet fully developed, so she gave the impression of being a little girl. Her fellow apprentices all regarded her as their younger sister.

"We can all see that she's skilled in martial arts, but to say she could take on ten of us is just bragging! Our eldest and second senior brothers are among the top martial arts masters in Pingyuan Commandery, how could they possibly lose to a woman?"

"When we said she was no less beautiful than the Xiaoxiang Fairy, we were referring to her looks, not her martial arts skills. There aren't that many powerful women in the world."

Zhao Zhixin said, "She's so skilled in martial arts, yet she still works as a maidservant. Surely that sickly young master isn't some kind of expert who can take on ten opponents at once?"

Zhao Xiaohui said angrily, "Young Master Sima was originally a master of internal martial arts, but he became what he is now because he was seriously injured. Yesterday he even taught me a Mnemonic internal Internal Cultivation arts."

Upon hearing this, everyone first looked at each other in bewilderment, then burst into laughter.

"He actually claims to be an expert in internal martial arts! If he is an expert in internal martial arts, then Senior Brother is a master of both internal and external martial arts."

"Internal Cultivation Mnemonic are invaluable treasures for any sect, so why would they easily reveal them to others? Take our Origin Return Sect's 'Origin Return Secret Manual,' for example; no one but the sect leader can practice it. Can you imagine the sect leader casually telling the 'Origin Return Secret Manual' to an outsider?"

"Actually, that's not necessarily true. It could just be a regular breathing technique, something we brothers practice every day, right? Junior Sister, why don't you recite the Mnemonic and let everyone help you figure it out to see if the other person is a fraud."

"That makes sense. That young master might have Qi Deviation from Internal Cultivation, which is why he looks like this. Junior Sister, you must be very careful. Internal Cultivation is something you can't just practice carelessly."

"Hey, I think the Internal Cultivation Mnemonic might be real. Our junior sister is so pretty and charming, maybe the young master has taken a fancy to her and wants to take her as his third concubine. This Internal Cultivation Mnemonic is the betrothal gift."

People from the martial arts world don't hold back when they speak. The brothers kept teasing Zhao Xiaohui until her pretty face turned red. She stomped her foot angrily and said, "Just you wait, I'll show you when I've mastered Qi!" Then she stormed off.

No one took it too seriously; they were just joking around. They figured it would be fine in a couple of days. Besides, Qi perception isn't something that's easy to cultivate. Ordinary people might not be able to develop it in two or three months, and even geniuses need ten to fifteen days. Only those exceptional geniuses, one in a million, could possibly develop Qi perception in just two or three days.

Although the junior sister has some martial arts talent, she is by no means a martial arts prodigy. Otherwise, the sect leader would have passed on the "Origin Return Secret Manual" to her long ago. Other craftsmen believe in passing on their skills to men but not women. People in the martial arts world don't care much about this rule. At worst, they can just find a son-in-law to live with them.

Zhao Zhixin looked at Liang Zhenhuan, the junior brother whom his master liked the most, and said, "Why isn't Junior Brother Liang saying anything? Is it because your standards are too high and you look down on everyone?"

Everyone fell silent and turned to look at Liang Zhenhuan. Their gazes swept over him in unison, enough to startle anyone with a weak heart.

Liang Zhenhuan was a junior disciple that the sect leader Zhao Donglai had only taken in two years ago. Because of his extraordinary talent and ability to learn by analogy, he was greatly favored by the sect leader and was being groomed to be his successor. After all, although Zhao Donglai also had a son, he was born weak and could not practice martial arts. He could only take the path of officialdom and take the imperial examinations. Now he was a scholar and it was impossible for him to become the leader of a martial arts sect.

As for Zhao Yili and Zhao Zhixin, they were adopted sons of Zhao Donglai and raised from childhood. The two had long regarded the position of sect leader as their own, so how could they allow an outsider to "get there first"?

The conflict between these three was common knowledge. Some people watched the spectacle with interest, while others had already chosen sides. Naturally, Zhao Yili and Zhao Zhixin had more supporters.

Liang Zhenhuan remained composed despite the stares of the crowd. He took a sip of tea and said calmly, "In my opinion, we are certainly not worthy of that mistress, and marrying that maid would likely bring us a shrewish wrath. However, if we could take that concubine as a concubine, everyone would be envious."

"That's right! Junior Brother Liang is absolutely right! That concubine was incredibly beautiful, with a perfect figure. She smiled at me that morning, and it kept me up all night. When I woke up the next day, my pants were all wet!"

"Me too, me too! That concubine has the body of a harlot, but she's so innocent, like she doesn't understand anything. She's as clueless as a little girl. Looking at her, I wish I could protect her with my life."

"If the mistress is a fairy, then this concubine is a demoness, but not a fox spirit, but a crane spirit. If I could sleep with her for one night, it would be worth dying from exhaustion!"

They were just a bunch of rough men, not very shrewd. When it came to topics that interested them, they immediately forgot all their stance, which made the Zhao brothers so angry they wanted to curse.

Inside the carriage, the talk of the town, "Sick Young Master" Si Ming took the medicine from Si Shuiyun, pinched his nose, and drank it all in one gulp. Then he frowned and smacked his lips, saying that the taste of this stuff was truly inhuman.

"Did you hear that? There's a whole bunch of people outside who want to cuckold you!" Si Jingyu, the "official wife," teased.

The group of rough men assumed that the people inside the carriage couldn't hear them because they were far away, so they talked behind their backs without restraint. Little did they know that this distance was practically nothing to the four people inside the carriage.

"A small temple breeds many demons, a shallow pond teems with turtles; even the sect leader only possesses Level Six Inner Cultivation, yet the disciples are engaged in infighting. Truly, wherever there are people, there is martial arts world."

It wasn't that Si Ming was arrogant; it was simply that these people were too weak to be worth his attention. Even if he only had less than 10% of his power left, he was confident he could defeat them with one hand.

Si Shuiyun said indignantly, "How dare these people use such foul language to criticize Miss! I'm going to kill them right now!"

Si Jingyu said, "Forget it, they're just a bunch of nobodys. There's no need to bother with them. One's perspective determines one's capacity. Take this 'Junior Brother Liang,' for example. He's quite shrewd, and he's very good at using words to deflect unwanted attention. It's a pity that without a fortuitous encounter, he'll only ever be the head of a third-rate sect, having to bow and scrape before the disciples of those major sects."

Si Shuiyun exclaimed, "Miss is truly magnanimous."

Si Jingyu turned to Si Ming and asked, "How are your injuries?"

"He's getting better, but judging from the speed of recovery, it won't be fully healed for at least three to five years. That big-eyed guy's cultivation level has probably already reached the Void Returning Realm... cough cough..."

After the four were captured by the ghostly hand, they were met by a fully equipped army of Monster Race. Fortunately, Si Ming fired two True Qi Beam Cannons at the cave entrance at the beginning, blasting the Anomalies army into a rout, and they were spared from being ganged up on immediately.

If it were just Si Ming alone, he could have escaped using the speed of the Vermilion Bird Profound Armor. However, with three burdens added, he was inevitably overwhelmed. In the end, it was only thanks to Hongdou using the secret technique from the "Scroll of Space" that they were able to traverse space and escape to a ghostly place where no one knew them.

Si Shuiyun said apologetically, "It was all because you were trying to save me that you got injured. That beam of light should have hit me instead."

Si Ming waved his hand and said, "The enemy will definitely shoot that beam of light; it's just a matter of probability who it will hit. And no matter who it hits, I'll definitely have to stand up and block it. That's the fate of a meat shield!"

He never expected his opponent to be so fierce, beating him half to death in one move. He couldn't get out of bed for several days and almost thought he was going to be paralyzed. Fortunately, the Blazing Sun True Qi had a restraining effect on the Power of Anomalies, and with his strong physique, after drinking the Si Clan's secret medicine for a few days, he was finally able to get out of bed and walk. However, that strange power was still lingering in his body, and he couldn't find a way to get rid of it.

Si Ming had never met Void Returning Great Grandmaster, but there was no doubt that this Purple-Pupiled Spirit King was also a giant at this level.