Nameless Holy Monk

So this wasn't the world of The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber that Song Qingshu had assumed, but a strange world.

Hearing Zhou Zhiruo mention Guo Jing and Huang Rong, who guarded Xiangyang, Dongfang Bubai of Blackwood Cliff whose divine skill was unmatched beneath heaven, and Xiao Feng, the Khitan Great King of the Southern Courtyard who had once stirred up bloody storms in the Central Plains Martial Arts World... Song Qingshu's expression became extraordinarily colorful.

After much probing, Song Qingshu finally confirmed with a strange expression that this was a world jointly constructed from Jin Yong's fourteen novels.

In this world, Song-Liao had battled for over a century, each claiming victories and defeats. Then, two Jurchen tribes rose in Liao Country's rear—the Heishui Jurchen and the Jianzhou Jurchen. The Heishui Jurchen founded the Jin Dynasty, and after several major battles, they directly pushed into Liao Country's heartland, nearly destroying it. Fortunately, another nomadic people, the Mongols, rose on the grasslands and began attacking Jin Dynasty's rear. Only then did Jin Dynasty halt its advance against Liao Country and turn its main forces around to deal with the Mongols.

Now the two nations remained locked in a standoff along the Yellow River Basin and the Chang'an-Tongguan line. Liao Country had finally gained a chance to catch its breath, holding out in Shanxi and Inner Mongolia. However, several years ago, the Liao emperor gained Xiao Feng, the Great King of the Southern Courtyard, a figure on the level of a god of war. Together with an alliance with the Mongol Empire, there were gradually signs of revival.

The Jianzhou Jurchen had established the Manchu Qing Dynasty, destroyed the Great Ming Dynasty, which had been plagued by troubles both within and without, and occupied the vast lands of Liaodong, Hebei, Shandong, and Yangzhou.

At present, the only nation established by Han Chinese was the Song Dynasty south of the Yangtze River, relying on natural barriers to resist the southward advance of the nomads' iron cavalry.

In the world today, the Mongol Empire was the strongest. However, the war to unify the Mongol tribes had been exceedingly brutal. Great Khan Temujin's sons had all died in battle, and few generals of his generation or his sons' generation remained. Fortunately, the third generation, the princes among his grandsons, were exceptionally outstanding. The sixth prince, Hulagu Khan, followed Great Khan Temujin as the Mongol main force embarked on its Western Expedition, splitting into two routes. One attacked Khwarazm and the federations of Eastern Europe, while the other attacked the powerful nations of Persia and Arabia.

Before Temujin's Western Expedition, he left Prince Ruyang Chahan, son of his late sworn brother Muqali and Zhao Min's father, to lead an army in managing the Western Regions, suppressing the Ming Cult and the Hui tribes while appropriately containing Western Xia so that it had no time to expand.

He sent the fourth prince, Kublai Khan, to lead an army in attacking Jin Dynasty along the Chang'an-Tongguan line, and the eldest prince, Möngke Khan, to lead an army south from Sichuan to attack the Song Dynasty. After Möngke Khan died in battle, Kublai Khan absorbed his troops. Now, in the Nanyang Wancheng region, he attacked Jin Dynasty's Chang'an and Luoyang to the north and Song Dynasty's Xiangyang to the south, his prestige eclipsing all other Mongol princes for a time.

The seventh prince, Ariq, led an army to remain on the Mongol grasslands, eyeing the Manchu Qing Dynasty like a tiger. Yet the young Manchu Qing ruler, Kangxi Emperor, was also a man of great talent and ambition. He personally guarded Yanjing, while Prince Pingxi Wu Sangui guarded Shanhaiguan Pass and Prince Bao Hongli guarded Shengjing, forming a mutually supporting formation. Externally, they allied with the Heishui Jurchen's Jin Dynasty, and their momentum faintly surpassed the allied forces of Ariq and Liao Country.

Of course, border states such as Tibet and the Dali Duan clan were merely struggling to survive, so there was no need to elaborate further.

After digesting all this in shock, Song Qingshu still harbored doubts. Was this truly a fusion of Jin Yong's fourteen novel worlds? Then an idea struck him. There was someone in Shaolin Temple who would certainly be able to give him an answer.

Song Qingshu said he was going out for a walk. Zhou Zhiruo nodded without much concern. Song Qingshu chuckled and muttered as he walked, "This woman's feelings for her husband are truly thin enough. It seems only Zhang Wuji can stir her emotions..." Only after a long while did he remember that his first priority was to heal his meridians and then survive in this super-chaotic era, not be jealous of Zhang Wuji.

He made his way to Shaolin Temple's Scripture Repository and explained his purpose to the reception monk. Knowing that he was the husband of the Emei Sect Leader, the monk did not dare slight him. Seeing that he merely wished to consult Buddhist scriptures, he registered him and led him inside. "Young Hero Song, our temple has always welcomed those with affinity to read Buddhist scriptures. The first floor contains various editions of the sutras, which Young Hero Song may browse freely. However, the second floor and above house this temple's martial arts manuals. Since Young Hero Song is not a member of our sect, I hope you won't make things difficult for this humble monk."

"Thank you, Master. I understand." Song Qingshu knew the monk had put it politely. The second floor of the Scripture Repository was Shaolin Temple's restricted ground and was always guarded by experts. Forget that he was now too weak to truss a chicken—even if his martial arts had not been damaged at all, he still would not have been able to go up.

Song Qingshu aimlessly flipped through the sutras. His heart wasn't in them to begin with, and he was only casually browsing while searching everywhere for a certain figure.

After wandering around for most of the day without finding the person he sought, Song Qingshu could not hide his disappointment. Could it be that I guessed wrong?

"Eh?" Unknowingly, he wandered into a dim corner and saw the three words, "Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra." Remembering that the Nine Yang Divine Skill had once been hidden within it, Song Qingshu excitedly reached out and opened it.

Though he knew full well that Zhang Wuji had already learned the Nine Yang Divine Skill, proving that the scripture had long since been lost from the Scripture Repository, he still clung to a trace of hope. Sure enough, it was completely empty. Song Qingshu sighed in disappointment.

"Amitabha!" A Buddhist chant sounded behind him, startling Song Qingshu. He turned around and discovered that a gray-robed monk had somehow silently appeared behind him.

The man wore the lowest-ranking attire of Shaolin Temple and held a battered broom. He was thin and withered, his face gaunt, and the few sparse strands of long beard he had were already completely white. To anyone else, he was merely an old servant monk on the verge of death, but Song Qingshu's thoughts churned chaotically. He hadn't expected the Nameless Holy Monk to truly exist.

"This junior, Song Qingshu, greets you, Master." Song Qingshu respectfully bowed.

"Eh?" Nameless had not expected Song Qingshu to treat him with such respect and was greatly curious. "This old monk is no master. I merely saw Young Hero Song moving about the Scripture Repository. You only gave the other sutras a cursory glance, yet when you saw this Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra, Young Hero Song picked it up without hesitation. After seeing what was inside, you revealed disappointment. This old monk became curious and thus showed himself."

"This junior was holding onto a bit of luck, but in the end, I discovered that it truly was only wishful thinking. That is why I seemed somewhat disappointed." Song Qingshu hesitated before answering tactfully.

"This old monk has been in the Scripture Repository for more than forty years. If I remember correctly, this Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra once had a copy of the Nine Yang Divine Skill tucked inside it, but it was later taken away. May I ask whether that was what Young Hero Song was looking for?" Nameless was indeed very curious. Song Qingshu was so young—how did he know such a secret? Moreover, he seemed to know quite a bit about him as well.

Having been seen through in a single sentence, Song Qingshu felt somewhat embarrassed. "To be honest, Master, I was indeed checking whether the Nine Yang Divine Skill was still inside."

"Oh." Nameless laughed heartily. Rather than asking why Song Qingshu knew such a secret, he instead asked with concern, "If this old monk is not mistaken, Young Hero Song's meridians are now completely severed. Even if you found the Nine Yang Divine Skill, you would be unable to cultivate it. Why add further troubles to yourself?"

"I beg Master to save me." Thinking that the man before him might be the only person in the world capable of saving him, Song Qingshu became so agitated that he lost his composure.

"Young Hero Song's life is not in danger. Why do you need saving?" Nameless helped him up. "If you wish to restore your martial arts, then forgive this old monk for speaking bluntly. Young Hero Song's meridians have all been severed. This is no longer something human effort can remedy. This old monk is powerless as well."