"Junior Brother Feng, take some men and deal with the Demonic Cult. This matter is of great importance, so don't bother with any jianghu rules when dealing with them.
If you can't drive them back head-on, then launch sneak attacks to slow their advance. You must buy us enough time for the battle of Luoyang."
If a peerless expert cast aside all dignity and resorted to sneak attacks, the damage he could wreak would be immense. Especially someone like Feng Qingyang, a master of the sword—the killing power he could unleash was even greater.
"Don't worry, Sect Leader. My sword is already ravenous. If those Demonic Cult scoundrels dare to invade, I'll make sure they never return!
It's just that if I leave, those old monks..."
Before Feng Qingyang could finish, Ning Qingyu laughed heartily. "Don't worry, Junior Brother Feng. Those monks from Shaolin Temple value their lives far too much.
"At their age, if they fought me with all their strength, they'd soon be off to meet their Buddha. Without those three old fellows, Yuancong alone won't be able to maintain Shaolin's current lofty status."
In a martial arts world where strength reigned supreme, Shaolin Temple could become the foremost sect not only because of its deep foundations and countless disciples, but also because it held an advantage in top-tier fighters.
But peerless experts weren't cabbages that could simply be grown whenever one wanted. Even a powerhouse like Shaolin couldn't guarantee that every generation would produce them.
Time wore everyone down, and martial artists were no exception. The older generation of peerless experts at Shaolin Temple had grown frail with age, while Yuancong's generation had produced only Yuancong himself.
With their profound internal energy, those old fellows could hold on for another decade or two and keep Shaolin's glory alive. But if they fought someone with all their strength and exhausted their internal energy, they'd be done for in an instant.
That was another reason Ning Qingyu dared to make his move now, aside from the fact that Mount Hua Sect had reached the limit of its growth.
Those old monks might not dare to risk their lives now, but once they neared the end of their allotted years, everything would be different. For the sect they had protected all their lives, dragging someone down with them before they died would be perfectly natural.
With Feng Qingyang and the others gone, the situation in Luoyang grew ever more tense. It looked as if a great battle could erupt at any moment.
With two major jianghu sects involved, along with all the forces behind them, the city's officials grew nervous too—or, more precisely, the local gentry and powerful families did.
When the city gates caught fire, the fish in the moat suffered.
At first glance, the conflict seemed to have nothing to do with them. But the people of the jianghu were used to doing whatever they pleased. With all kinds of people converging on the city, who could guarantee there weren't a few reckless souls among them?
To maintain order in the city, not only did the yamen runners and constables work overtime, but the Six Fan Sect, the Brocade Guard, and the Eastern Depot all sent people out. Even the garrison troops stationed nearby entered the city. In the end, they could barely keep things under control.
Even so, the gentry still felt unsafe and pressured the Luoyang prefect again and again.
Miao Shixing had only just taken the seat of Luoyang prefect. He hadn't yet gotten a taste of the good life promised by the saying, "Three years as an incorruptible prefect, ten thousand taels of silver," when this enormous problem landed in his lap.
"Well? What did those damned jianghu people say?"
The secretary looked ashamed and stammered, "My lord, those jianghu people are utterly lawless. I didn't even get to see their leader before they drove me out."
Hearing this, Miao Shixing's face flushed with anger. He kept cursing, "Outrageous! Outrageous! I'll report this to the court and send troops to wipe out these rebels..."
Though he had expected the people in the north to be fierce and unruly, no amount of preparation could have made him imagine they would be this brazen. They had ignored him, the prefect, outright.
Before Miao Shixing could continue, Vice Prefect Liu hurriedly cut him off. "My lord, be careful what you say! Mount Hua and Shaolin are both upright, righteous sects. They could never be rebels.
"I'm sure there's some misunderstanding here. Once it's cleared up, everything will be fine. The Six Fan Sect has always handled jianghu affairs. We should leave this to them!"
Vice Prefect Liu, who came from a prominent local family in Luoyang, knew just how formidable Shaolin and Mount Hua were. If they were branded as rebels, he didn't know whether the two sects would be destroyed, but he knew for certain that their own heads wouldn't stay on their shoulders.
Throughout the dynasties, the court had tried to wipe out martial sects more than once, but every campaign had ended in failure. When the court's army arrived, the sects disappeared; as soon as the army left, they sprang back to life.
The court had tried it once in the early days of the Great Ming. The result was heavy casualties among the troops, the officials in charge of the campaign dying one after another, and even several imperial princes losing their lives. The emperor himself had nearly been assassinated.
In the end, Wudang had to step in and mediate. The court and the various jianghu sects reached an agreement: "Jianghu matters are settled by the jianghu."
The court wouldn't meddle in jianghu disputes, and jianghu disputes wouldn't involve ordinary people. The Six Fan Sect was established to handle crimes involving members of the jianghu.
Naturally, these dark chapters of the court's history weren't made public. Aside from the six major sects at the time, only a few northern aristocratic families involved in the affair knew the truth.
Miao Shixing, born into a poor family, naturally knew nothing about the inside story. Otherwise, even if he'd had such thoughts, he wouldn't have blurted them out so brazenly.
Of course, the conflict between the court and the jianghu wouldn't end so easily. How could an emperor—a creature that never forgot a grudge—possibly refrain from taking revenge?
If a direct confrontation wouldn't work, then the court would stir up conflict within the jianghu and make the sects slaughter one another.
Of the six great sects of old, only Shaolin, Wudang, and Mount Hua still flourished. The other three had been ruined just like that.
But the court's scheme had also been exposed, putting the various jianghu sects on guard. They still fought over their interests, but though they fought, they now showed restraint.
If they hadn't feared the court swooping in like a fisherman after the snipe and clam, the Five Mountains Sword Sects and Shaolin would have long since torn off their masks and come to blows. Instead, they fought without breaking the peace.
In Smiling Proud Wanderer, Shaolin and Wudang had also set aside their differences. When the Demonic Cult provoked them, they cowered all the way through, scheming and maneuvering from behind the scenes the whole time, utterly lacking the bearing of martial arts leaders.
"Those who know nothing fear nothing!"
Feeling that his dignity had been challenged, Miao Shixing gave a cold snort.
"Hmph!"
"Vice Prefect Liu, don't forget your position. You're speaking up for these lawless jianghu people. Could there be some unspeakable business behind this?"
In keeping with the principle of balancing power, the responsibilities of Great Ming officials were divided rather ambiguously. Conflicts between a chief official and his deputy were commonplace; the court even deliberately assigned political enemies to work together.
"If that's what you think, Prefect Miao, you're welcome to submit a memorial to the court and impeach me. I've given you my warning. If something happens in the future, don't blame me."
Their relationship had never been good to begin with, so Vice Prefect Liu naturally wouldn't tell Miao Shixing the truth. If he hadn't been worried that any trouble might implicate him, he wouldn't even have bothered to warn him.
"I wouldn't dream of troubling you, Vice Prefect Liu!"
His words were firm, but his heart had already begun to waver. If only he hadn't spoken so boldly just now...
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