The Infernal Affairs

The White Lotus Sect, a rebel faction known to everyone in Changle Commandery, had once swept across the entire commandery before the Changle Commandery Office spent a great deal of effort to suppress them.

After that, the White Lotus Sect shifted from the open to the shadows, ceasing public activities and instead moving among aristocratic clans, noble households, wild mountains, and rural villages. This decentralized tactic made the White Lotus Sect one of the extremely rare rebel forces that, despite clearly lacking in strength, the imperial court simply found difficult to eradicate and remained endlessly plagued by.

However... that's all there is to it.

Having time-traveled to this era twenty years ago, Wang Ping was long well-versed in the ways of the current world. From his perspective, this Great Shun Dynasty clearly still had plenty of life left in it.

The imperial court's control over the localities remained intact.

Although public grievances boiled, they were confined merely to the rural hinterlands. The aristocratic clans and noble households within the county towns were actually quite satisfied with the imperial court and felt no discontent.

Therefore, the "hearts of the people" still belonged to the court.

Under such circumstances, the White Lotus Sect could only pursue a grassroots route, hoodwinking the blackheads in the countryside. They might not perish, but growing any further would also be difficult.

Thus, when the government secretly contacted him, Wang Ping—who had originally joined the White Lotus Sect merely to earn a living—promptly chose to turn over a new leaf.

Ever since then, he had been an undercover agent.

Although being an honest-to-goodness rebel in the White Lotus Sect isn't a bad gig either, joining the imperial court opens up a much vaster world for me.

Inside the courtyard, Wang Ping, having finished his meal, slowly stretched his tendons and bones. He formed his hands into a lotus shape, then pressed them steadily against his lower abdomen, his fingertips slowly massaging his dantian.

"Ah, not bad at all."

On the other side, the young Dao Practitioner Xie Shi pushed open the door and nodded approvingly at Wang Ping. "Junior Brother has learned this move, Lotus in Fire, quite well."

"Tortoise and serpent coil, nature and life grow firm, yet a golden lotus is planted in the fire."

This was the introductory martial art of the White Lotus Sect. By using the lotus hand seal to massage the acupoints around the dantian and stimulate qi and blood, one could vastly enhance physical strength over time.

Wang Ping patiently massaged for a full half-hour, stopping only when he was drenched in sweat and his steps felt somewhat unsteady. At the same time, a trace of internal admiration stirred within him. This hand seal really does have some substance to it. Just simple massage yields high-intensity fitness effects. My years of bitter training haven't gone to waste.

"That's enough for today."

Not far away, Xie Shi smiled. "Too much is as bad as not enough; practicing any more will harm your body... Right on cue, Master is preparing to see you this afternoon. It's time to pass on martial arts to you."

...Martial arts?

Wang Ping blinked. Thinking of the marvelous subtleties of Lotus in Fire, a sense of anticipation arose in his heart. Could this wretched place actually be a low-martial world?

Soon, the two returned to the Daoist temple.

More than a dozen cult members suspected of being traitors were still placed under house arrest in the main hall. Instead, the old Daoist had walked out and was stretching his limbs in the temple courtyard.

Seeing Wang Ping and Xie Shi approach, a smile appeared on the old Daoist's face as well.

"You've come?"

Without a trace of hesitation, Wang Ping dropped to his knees and bowed, as he had initially. "Greetings, Cult Master."

Hearing this, the old Daoist narrowed his eyes in satisfaction, then waved a hand. "How many times must I tell you not to dwell on these superficial courtesies? The old man doesn't care for them."

"This subordinate understands."

Wang Ping lowered his head. He didn't actually get up, his tone and expression remaining as respectful as before.

"I said you needn't be like this." The old Daoist shook his head helplessly and said warmly, "I called you here this time intending to pass down our sect's supreme martial art."

"My Daoist name is Shouchong. From now on, you don't need to call me Cult Master."

Wang Ping blinked upon hearing this.

Not call him Cult Master? Then what should he be called?

"You, oh you." Seeing Wang Ping's blank expression, Xie Shi beside him immediately chuckled. "Once you step out this door, calling Master 'Cult Master' won't earn you a rebuke from him."

"But once you step through this door, what should you call Master?"

"..."

Wang Ping understood the score crystal-clear; this fellow was trying to win him over. But wasn't this old fogey thinking a bit too wishfully? He expected a single martial art to buy him over?

Admittedly, he had some small expectations for the so-called martial arts, but no matter how formidable martial arts were, what of it?

My good sir, times have changed!

Talk to him about martial arts? You might as well talk to him about weapons!

From his perspective, unless the old Daoist pulled out a Maxim heavy machine gun with infinite ammunition right now, rebelling with him held zero prospects.

"This child really is an honest sort."

Seeing this, the old Daoist didn't get angry. Instead, he reached into his robe, drew out a palm-sized, gleaming silver little knife, and weighed it in his hand.

"The supreme martial art secretly passed down by my White Lotus Sect is called the Plain Moon Lotus Blade. It is a technique of flying daggers. If one can train it to the realm of perfection, one can acquire a tactical art called A Thought Blooms a Flower. If you manage to learn it, among the eight circuits and twenty-four commanderies of Great Shun, a place will inevitably be yours."

Wang Ping listened with total indifference.

What Plain Moon Lotus Blade? The name sounded nice enough, and they even called it a tactical art, plus A Thought Blooms a Flower. No matter how fast a flying knife was, could it outrun a bullet?

It was all sheer nonsense...

RUMBLE!!!

The next second, a heaven-shaking, earth-shattering explosion interrupted Wang Ping's somewhat wandering thoughts. The deafening sound left him stunned on the spot.

A moment later, he snapped back to his senses as if waking from a dream and turned to look behind him.

There, a rockery several people tall had originally stood. Yet at this moment, it had utterly shattered into pieces, transformed into a pile of scattered stone debris and ruins.

And on the shadow-reflecting screen behind the rockery, the flying knife the old Daoist had been holding was firmly and squarely embedded right in the center. Dense cracks spread outward in all directions with the flying knife as their core, as if pulling the flying knife out would cause even this shadow-reflecting screen to crumble into ruins alongside it!

Holy crap...

The next second, finally understanding what had happened, Wang Ping whipped around, his gaze burning as he stared fixedly at the smiling Dao Practitioner Shouchong.

The old Daoist spoke softly, "How about it? Want to learn?"

"Your disciple pays respects to Master!"

Without a single shred of hesitation, Wang Ping made a move completely driven by instinct, prostrating himself flat on the ground on the spot and acknowledging this accidental master.

For at this moment, he knew clearly in his heart:

Ancient feudalism be damned! Blasting apart rocks with a casual move—flying daggers can be used like missiles. A conservative estimate puts this at mid-martial. How can I let such a fine opportunity pass me by!

The times had changed right back!

Besides, being a disciple of the White Lotus Sect didn't interfere with him continuing to serve as an undercover agent for the imperial court. Two negatives made a positive; it was essentially a freebie. How could he let such a good opportunity slip away?

"Heh, you're not stupid after all... Get up."

Shouchong patted Wang Ping's shoulder with complete satisfaction and retrieved a thick book from his robe. "Go back and practice well. I have high hopes for you."

"Many thanks for Master's cultivation!" Wang Ping kowtowed once more.

Shouchong smiled faintly and continued with instructions, "After you learn it, remember not to use it casually. Once used, it must draw blood, and no living witnesses can be left behind."

"After all, your master's old face is well-known throughout Changle Commandery, and the nearby Longxing County hunts us down day and night. Exposure will be extremely troublesome."

"However, as you know, I haven't actually propagated doctrines in Former Village, nor have I incited rebellion. I've merely exerted myself to heal the sick and save the people... Yet the more people I save, the more flourishing the temple and sect's incense becomes, and more and more people naturally follow by my side."

At this, the old Daoist's expression suddenly sank:

"This isn't because this old Daoist possesses any great skill, but because the times are thus... It is that tyrannical, muddle-headed ruler far away in the Eastern Capital who has made the world into this state!"

"Twice the conquest of the demon realm, and the eight circuits and twenty-four commanderies have drained their households to the bone."

"Raising palaces and temples, three hundred and sixty prefectures and counties suffer the separation of flesh and blood."

"Meager fields and heavy taxes, exhausting the realm's common folk to nourish a single surname and a single state."

The more Shouchong spoke, the angrier he became, wearing an expression of righteous indignation. Yet Wang Ping went in one ear and out the other, his mood completely unchanged.

After all, this had nothing to do with him.

As the old saying goes: cross whatever river by wearing whatever shoes you have, and wear trousers that fit your backside. I'm just a farmer, what are you telling me about major affairs of state?

On the surface, however, he put on a loyal expression and said in a resonant voice, "Therefore, only Cult Master can save everyone from the fiery depths of suffering, allowing everyone to enter the Vacuous Hometown and enjoy eternal life... Cult Master, to me, you are the only sun in my heart!"

...A bit too far.

The corners of Shouchong's eyes twitched slightly. If a newly initiated cult member had spoken such words, his first reaction would have been that this person definitely had ulterior motives.

However, Wang Ping was different.

This child had been in the cult for five years and had always used this rhetoric... To be honest, it felt a bit awkward when he first heard it, but lately, the more he heard it, the more pleasing to the ear it became.

"All right, all right. Go back and practice for a bit first."

"Once you've finished reading the secret manual and prepared the items, come ask me if there's anything you don't understand."

Shouchong said casually, "The matter of investigating spies isn't urgent for now. I plan to take a trip to River Village three days from now, and I'll just happen to guide your martial arts practice before then."

"Many thanks, Master!"

Wang Ping expressed his profuse gratitude and left, leaving only Shouchong and Xie Shi, that master-and-disciple pair, standing on the spot while the atmosphere gradually shifted from mild to stern and killing.

After a moment of silence, Xie Shi spoke, "Congratulations, Master, on taking in an excellent disciple."

"An excellent disciple? Not necessarily."

Shouchong lowered his eyelids, his expression utterly without ripples. "Actually, what this Wang Ping said earlier was very much to this master's liking... Kill them all, and the inner traitor dies along with them."

"Regrettably, they cannot be killed."

"If they truly were killed, the hearts of the people would scatter... He intentionally proposed this solution and offered to execute himself voluntarily, perhaps anticipating that I would inevitably stop him."

Xie Shi blinked. "So he still might be the inner traitor?"

"That is not the point."

Shouchong turned his head to glance at Xie Shi and said softly, "To accomplish extraordinary grand undertakings in the present world, one sometimes must have extraordinary methods."

"Therefore, who the inner traitor is actually doesn't matter at all. What matters is how much damage these people cause to the entire organization. The greater the damage caused, the more likely he is to be the inner traitor... Even if he isn't the inner traitor, he must be treated as one. Only thus can errors be avoided to the greatest possible extent."

...This disciple has received your instruction. Xie Shi bowed in salute.

"So long as you understand."

Shouchong nodded slightly, continuing, "Keep an eye on Wang Ping. I want to know all his movements over the next few days, and then I will decide our next step."

"Understood." Xie Shi acknowledged the order and departed.

Early in the morning, just as the sun broke the horizon, Wang Ping awoke from his slumber. Full of spirit, he picked up the Plain Moon Lotus Blade manual and began to flip through it.

"Strength rises from the earth, is born in the feet, originates in the thighs, is commanded by the waist, and travels through the ten fingers..."

Inside the courtyard, Wang Ping struck a pose, holding the secret manual in one hand and grasping a leaf in the other, then whipped his arm forward fiercely in accordance with the text.

Bang!

In an instant, a crisp explosion rang out. The leaf flew out like a pebble for nearly a meter, yet quickly softened before fluttering down to land on the ground.

At this sight, Wang Ping wore an excited expression. Although the leaf reverted to its original state less than a meter after leaving his hand, he could sense that under the techniques of the Plain Moon Lotus Blade, the sharpness of the leaf at the very moment it left his hand was no different from a real blade. And this was just him starting to practice it!

"Again!"

At this moment, Wang Ping was like a child who had just received a favored toy, eagerly continuing his drills and tirelessly tossing leaves over and over.

By the time he was utterly exhausted, the morning sun was already directly overhead.

Unwittingly, he had actually practiced for an entire morning—several hours. Yet the fatigue of his body was completely overshadowed by the joy in his heart.

My talent seems pretty good!

Or rather, this secret manual for the Plain Moon Lotus Blade was exceptionally well-written. It was written entirely in vernacular, teaching you almost hand-in-hand how you ought to practice.

Generally speaking, martial arts possessed three methods.

The refining method, the combat method, and the breathing method.

Among these, Wang Ping understood both the combat method and the breathing method. The former focused on forms and was the art of striking and combat, while the latter focused on foundations and was the method of nurturing life and supplementing one's vitality.

In short, combat method was external kung fu, while breathing method was internal kung fu.

Only this refining method was different.

This "refining" was not the refining of cultivation, but the refining of forging--as the name implied, the refining method referred to the artifact-forging art of blacksmithing and casting weapons.

Combat methods and breathing methods are secondary. The key to martial arts in this world is actually the refining method: the practitioner personally forges the weapon corresponding to their cultivation technique, establishing a resonance of life and a harmony of body and mind with it, and then uses the weapon to nourish oneself. Rather than saying one is practicing martial arts, it's more like one is forging a weapon...

Moreover, a practitioner's progress in martial arts would also be reflected intuitively on their weapon.

"Weapons are divided into four grades, and techniques into four stages: initiation, minor accomplishment, major accomplishment, and perfection... The higher the tier of the martial art, the higher the grade of the weapon will rise accordingly."

"And if one can practice a martial art to perfection, the corresponding weapon will give birth to a [tactical art]. For example, the strike with which Dao Practitioner Shouchong shattered the rockery yesterday was the [tactical art] after the Plain Moon Lotus Blade reached perfection, named A Thought Blooms a Flower, and its might is truly extraordinary."

What was A Thought Blooms a Flower?

Just as the name implied, the moment the thought-guided blade was unleashed, the target locked onto by the martial artist's intent would shatter like blooming flowers. To describe it in a single sentence:

If you look at it, you explode.

Recalling the might of Shouchong's strike yesterday, Wang Ping felt another surge of burning heat in his heart, unable to stop himself from daydreaming for a moment—until his legs suddenly went weak.

Ugh!

The next second, having stood in a posture for the entire morning, Wang Ping collapsed abruptly onto his knees on the ground. All his pores dilated, sweat pouring off him in sheets, and he barely managed to catch his breath.

Immediately following this, a dull rumble echoed from his belly.

Gurgle, gurgle...

Accompanying the sound was a fierce sense of hunger. Yet according to the records in the secret manual, at this moment one must absolutely not eat other things.

I have to eat rice!

It couldn't be unpolished brown rice or coarse grains; it had to be that exorbitantly expensive polished white rice. Otherwise, eating it into one's belly would not only yield no benefit to martial arts practice, it would even cause harm.

And this was merely to replenish the body's consumption. If one wanted to accelerate progress in martial arts, besides rice, one also had to eat meat. By the same token, one couldn't eat wild game from the mountains; it had to be good meat refined through secret methods. If it were fierce beast meat, that would be even better—the better the meat, the greater the effect on martial arts practice.

Such conditions certainly could not be met in the countryside.

...Which actually works out just right.

Recalling the information he had seen yesterday, Wang Ping steadied his mind. Using this reason to go to the county town is entirely logical and reasonable. It'll be just the right time to find an opportunity to meet up with my handler.