Alas, No One in the Central Plains Martial World

It was getting late, and the light in the Apricot Forest was dim.

Although it was almost night, noisy sounds continued to come from the forest.

First, I heard several men arguing.

"He was raised and taught by Shaolin monks and has long since shed his Khitan nature of ferocity."

"Well said. Since he has changed his vicious nature, he is no longer a bad person. If he is not a bad person, why can't he continue to be the leader of our Beggar Gang's Sect?"

Then another group of people started arguing, some convinced and some not, creating a chaotic mess.

The three women and three men stood out somewhat from the group of Old Beggar, remaining silent and frowning. Some were worried about the situation, while others were pondering how to escape, fearing that a disturbance might engulf them.

"Ha ha ha ha..."

A loud, clear laugh drowned out the clamor of countless others, and the entire forest space seemed to be taken over by this one person's laughter.

Who is it?

"Who are you, you scoundrel?"

"Hero, please show yourself!"

The group of Delia who were still arguing became wary of these people. Regardless of their martial arts skills, they were all seasoned veterans of the martial arts world and quite knowledgeable. They could naturally tell that there was profound skill in the laughter.

The three girls clapped their hands and laughed happily, all of them letting out a sigh of relief.

The tall, rugged-looking man in the middle of the Delia, his shoulder stained with blood, noticed the scene and felt uneasy.

"Could it be Gusu Murong Fu? His arrival at this time is not good."

"Alas... I am now deeply mired in trouble and can barely save myself. How can I have the mood to worry about others? Maybe if he comes, he can help me understand the situation."

After the laughter stopped, the woods fell silent.

The crowd that had been shouting moments before were now on high alert, nervously looking around.

Although they outnumbered the gang, the organization was in chaos, and the Apricot Forest was dark and dimly lit, so they were afraid of being ambushed.

But all they heard was a sarcastic remark that infuriated everyone and raised their blood pressure.

"Haha... How laughable! How laughable that the martial arts world of the Central Plains is devoid of talent!"

Such blatant mockery was something no one present could tolerate.

They hurled all sorts of nasty insults and cursed each other.

Then they heard another cold snort, and everyone felt a sudden darkness before their eyes. For a moment, they also lost their hearing, with only some white noise ringing in their ears. They swayed for a couple of moments before recovering.

Just as I came to my senses and felt that everything was quiet, I heard the crunching sound of dry leaves being crushed underfoot.

Everyone turned their attention to that direction.

Under the moonlight, a tall, handsome man carrying a sword approached.

His expression held a mocking, almost sarcastic tone.

At this point, ordinary people and experienced individuals dared not make any rash moves, having already witnessed the preemptive strike and the show of force this man had displayed.

"Who are you? How dare you be so arrogant! To look down on the martial arts world of the Central Plains! Are you Khitan dog?"

In front of Qiao Feng, he deliberately cursed the Khitan dogs.

Even the son of Iron-faced Judge may not be incorruptible.

Shan Zheng's sons, Shan Zhongshan, Shan Shushan, Shan Jishan, charged at Ji Boying from the front.

Shan Zheng knew that the person who came was highly skilled in martial arts, so he dared not be negligent. He followed his son and rushed forward, ready to lend a helping hand at any moment.

Then he saw Ji Boying holding his sword with both hands, his upper body still, and his lower body swaying slightly, and he had already delivered three consecutive kicks.

The three thuds seemed to come together as one, Shan Zheng's three sons were simultaneously kicked in the chest and sent flying backward.

"You scoundrel, stop your arrogance!"

Shan Zheng Ji Boying would continue his cruelty, Shan Zheng shouted to attract Ji Boying's attention and attacked forward at the same time.

Ji Boying didn't take this old Iron-faced Judge seriously at all. He Shan Zheng reached out and grabbed Shan Zheng, then slammed him to the ground, leaving Shan Zheng dazed and confused.

Then he stepped on Shan Zheng's head with his left foot.

Three of Shan Zheng's five sons were kicked in the chest and were still lying on the ground, not yet recovered. The remaining two wanted to help but dared not make a move, for fear that the man might crush their father's head with a single stomp.

This really made their family lose face.

The five brothers, known as the Five Tigers, had already made a name for themselves in the martial arts world. Now, these five Han Dynasty were being trampled on like children.

The crowd looked at the scene before them and felt it was quite familiar. Just now, Qiao Feng had easily subdued these three Han Dynasty and stepped on one of their heads.

Now, an even more humiliating scene has occurred: such a highly respected person as the Iron-faced Judge has been thrown to the ground and had his head stepped on. How could he not feel ashamed?

Whether the members of the Shan Family could get up or not, their faces were already flushed.

The many martial arts figures watching were all indignant, angry that this person had humiliated Shan Zheng and mocked the Central Plains martial arts world, but no one dared to make a move easily, for fear of losing face like Shan Zheng, and also for fear that this person would hurt Shan Zheng.

"What is your name, sir? Why do you humiliate the martial arts world of the Central Plains?"

Xu Chongxiao stepped forward.

Ji Boying ignored him and nodded to A'Zhu, A'Bi, and Wang Yuyan.

Seeing that Duan Yu was staring intently at him, he greeted him in return.

Seeing the scene in the forest, A'Zhu had long felt indignant on behalf of Qiao Feng. Now that someone had finally come to her aid, especially seeing that Ji Boying was not polite to these people, she naturally jumped out to help Ji Boying gain prestige.

"This gentleman is Ji Boying, a Qi Cultivator from Mount Zhongnan! He is knowledgeable about all things in the martial world. Perhaps Master Ji can help with Chief Qiao's matter, but there will be a price to pay in exchange."

A'Zhu introduced Ji Boying.

There were no marks or traces of ointment on her cheeks.

Originally, she was supposed to get involved in this mess with Elder Tan and Madam Tan, but as soon as she arrived in the forest and met Duan Yu, she explained her background in just a few words.

Duan Yu is indeed a very chivalrous man, just like his father.

He immediately and happily accepted the girl as his girlfriend.

Seeing Madam Tan suddenly rush up, he was panicked and didn't know how to defend himself, but he managed to protect A'Zhu with his Lingbo Weibu).

The three women had already stood behind Ji Boying, Duan Yu naturally followed Wang Yuyan, Bao Butong, and Feng Bue. He could only follow behind.

Ji Boying showed no courtesy to these martial arts figures, continuing to mock them.

"What? Am I wrong to say that there are no heroes in the Central Plains martial arts world? Qiao Feng in the North and Murong in the South, so Qiao Feng in the North was a Khitan and Murong in the South was a Xianbei. I've never heard of any other heroes from the Central Plains between the North and South."

One sentence infuriated everyone, but they couldn't refute it. Now, hearing these words, though unpleasant to hear, they were indeed true, and they couldn't refute them, which naturally made them even angrier.

"Aren't you from the Central Plains?"

Bai Shijing spoke up and asked.

Ji Boying simply gave a cold snort. Although these people did make him feel disgusted by their actions, it was only a few individuals who were disgustingly hypocritical. Most of them were just limited by their perspective.

As Qiao Feng himself said, many members of the Beggar Gang had made contributions to the country and could be considered heroes.

"I am naturally Han Chinese, but I am different from you narrow-minded, morally ambiguous, and short-sighted people."

Quan Guanqing also dared to mock.

"Where have you suddenly become so noble? Are you a Han Chinese, yet you stand up for the Khitan and Xianbei to mock us Han Chinese?"

Upon seeing Quan Guanqing Ji Boying's disgust intensified.

"Ha!"

Ji Boying deliberately made a sound, spitting a mouthful of Sharp Sword towards Quan Guanqing's face.

Quan Guanqing had no chance to dodge; a mouthful of phlegm was smeared on his face, making him feel nauseous and causing his head to spin.

Although everyone was indignant, they were all shocked by the man's skill. This spit clearly contained extremely strong internal force, which made Quan Guanqing dizzy and unable to wipe it away. He staggered and fell to the ground, which was extremely embarrassing.

"You're all incapable of distinguishing right from wrong and narrow-minded, yet you still disagree. Let me ask you this: Qiao Feng's parents were killed by you when he was young, yet he mastered martial arts and made great contributions to the Central Plains. So, who wronged him, you or him?"

This left everyone with a conscience speechless once again.

Qiao Feng tried to speak several times, but could only sigh. He felt a burning sensation in his chest and wanted to clasp his hands in a fist salute, but could only lower them.

Only a few people dared not show themselves, and whispered in the back, "He is Khitan, how can he be the same?"

"Hey!"

Ji Boying sneered.

"Khitan, so what if Khitan? Your Elder Song is still wielding an iron mace, but does he not know that during the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Taizong Li Shimin had two heroes under his command, one who wielded an iron mace named Qin Shubao, and the other who wielded an iron whip named Yuchi Jingde?"

But then Quan Guanqing let out another cold laugh, "Why are you spouting this useless nonsense for no reason?"

Ji Boying clapped his hands and laughed, but anyone could see the sarcasm in his voice.

Among the group, only Duan Yu could laugh with him.

What are you laughing at?

Quan Guanqing was somewhat annoyed, and his men echoed his sentiments.

"Yeah! What are you laughing at?"

"Speechless now, what are you laughing at!"

Duan Yu couldn't hold back any longer and laughed so hard he could barely breathe.

"You... you really don't know? That Yuchi Jingde is Xianbei."

His words left everyone speechless, and Quan Guanqing felt his face burning.

"As expected of the Ten Directions Scholar Quan Guanqing, you don't even put Yuchi Jingde, the founding Duke of the Tang Dynasty and one of the twenty-four meritorious officials of the Lingyan Pavilion who made great contributions to the Tang Dynasty, in your eyes. Surely you can conquer cities and territories for the Great Song Dynasty, unify the world, and take back the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun?"

Ji Boying's sarcasm was a huge embarrassment for Quan Guanqing.

"He was once a famous general of the previous dynasty, the Big Dipper shines high, and Geshu carries his sword at night. To this day, even those who spy on grazing horses dare not cross Lintao. Haven't you all heard this poem before?"

"Which of these people, such as Li Bai, Du Fu, Wang Wei, Gao Shi, didn't write poems praising this Prince of Xiping, Geshu Han! He was originally Turkic people, and he made countless contributions to the Tang Dynasty throughout his life. In the end, he was killed by the Han Chinese Yang Guozhong. If we were to judge these heroes and great men, such a Turkic savage would naturally be insignificant."

"What a load of bull! Geshu Han isn't even worthy to carry your shoes. He's just a barbarian from beyond the borders. The Great Song Dynasty still has to rely on the heroes of the Han people to conquer cities and territories for the Great Song. Now, we pay tribute to the Liao Dynasty every year. It must be the Han heroes who are strategizing and deliberately kowtowing to the Liao Dynasty, trying to make them laugh to death. They are sending money to the Liao Dynasty, trying to crush them with money. They are strategizing and winning battles from afar. Amazing, truly amazing!"

Ji Boying's words made everyone present feel as if their chests were about to explode.

Each of them blushed, their eyes bloodshot, having suffered the greatest humiliation of their lives, yet they were all speechless.

Ji Boying was naturally sarcastic, expressing his disappointment and frustration, which at this moment resembled Huang Yaoshi's mockery of traditional ethics.

Whether it was Qiao Feng, Monk Zhiguang, the Beggar Gang heroes, or even Zhao Qiansun, who was already like a walking corpse, they all felt ashamed and indignant.

Bao Butong was initially reluctant to stand behind Ji Boying, but at this moment he was completely convinced. This man's words were far more venomous than mine; I wasn't even worthy to carry his shoes.

Even though Qiao Feng felt somewhat pleased to hear these words, since they were standing up for him, his long-standing habit of still considering himself a Han Chinese made him feel somewhat uncomfortable.

For a moment, all he could do was sigh helplessly.

He thought to himself that this young master Ji's mouth was truly venomous.

He then kept a close eye on the Four Great Elders and Bai Shijing and the others, fearing that someone with a strong personality might be unable to bear the humiliation and commit suicide there.

However, among the Four Great Elders, there was one who was truly agitated, with bloodshot eyes, while Bai Shijing maintained a cold expression throughout, seemingly indignant but without any excessive reaction.

The farce in the Apricot Forest seemed to be coming to an end. The heroes tried to speak several times, but they didn't know where to begin.

Even the Iron-faced Judge, who was being trampled under Ji Boying's feet, was forgotten by everyone.

In the end, it still took Qiao Feng to step in.

Xiao Feng clasped his hands in a respectful salute to Ji Boying.

"Thank you so much, Brother Ji, for standing up for me. I am truly grateful. But this young lady just said that you are knowledgeable about the affairs of the martial arts world, but you don't know anything about my matter. Could you perhaps offer some guidance, Brother Ji?"

"If you can tell me the truth, and tell me who the Leading Brother is, Qiao... Xiao Feng will repay your kindness with his life."

I have great respect for Xiao Feng Ji Boying.

"Master Xiao, there's no need for such formalities. I wouldn't claim to be an expert on all matters of the martial world, but I do know some important things."

Ji Boying said this, Xiao Feng felt that it made sense and was also quite eager.

"What about my matter?"

Ji Boying laughed and said, "I'm afraid there aren't many storms in the martial arts world over the past few decades that can be bigger than the incident involving Master Xiao. I know the ins and outs of this matter very well."

(Just a heads-up. Yuchi Jingde's best weapon was the horse lance. In fact, many fierce generals in history used long spears and horse lances, which were very practical weapons on the battlefield. However, the folk tales portray it differently. For example, Sun Li, the "Sickly Yuchi" in Water Margin, used a steel whip.)