Young Master Mingxi

"Who are you seeing?" Ding Songyan asked curiously as he followed Xie Fengchao into his family's carriage.

Who is worthy of such a solemn introduction from Fifth Young Master Xie?

Xie Fengchao chuckled:

You'll see when you get there.

"You can tell just by looking at him? He has very distinctive features." "Rivers and Lakes Beauty Register ' or a famous figure on the ' Jade Tree Martial Arts Rankings '?" Ding Songyan nodded thoughtfully and did not ask any further questions.

Surprises are meant to be unexpected, as long as they're not bad.

Inside the carriage, where incense smoke was rising gently from the burner, Xie Fengchao sat upright and said:

"That Li Linquan has been bewitched by some evil spirit lately. He keeps looking for people to spar with, but he doesn't use the ' Thunderlight Heaven-Splitting Sword '. He only uses the most common sword moves. He loses time and time again, but he still won't give up."

"Only someone like Li Linquan would play along with this ridiculous nonsense."

Those most common sword moves? Could he be trying to recreate the "Dao One Sword" from his dream? Oh no, I hope I don't lead this "Azure Thunder Banished Immortal" astray... He's skipping the earlier steps and directly trying to reach the state of "seeing mountains as mountains and water as water." How can he possibly gain anything? He'll only become more confused the more he practices... Ding Songyan never expected Li Linquan to be such a martial arts fanatic.

You dare to casually practice the Swordsmanship you dreamed about?

Then I'll give you a copy of the "Evil-Repelling Swordsmanship," will you practice it?

"Perhaps it was just a passing fancy, a fleeting thought, but once you realize that such Swordsmanship is useless, you'll be fine," Ding Songyan casually replied to Xie Fengchao's words.

The two chatted idly until they arrived at Xiumei Mountain, northwest of Golden Pool Lake.

Although it's called a mountain, it's actually less than a hundred feet high. The greenery has withered, the plum blossoms haven't bloomed yet, and it's a desolate scene.

Ding Songyan the carriage and followed Xie Fengchao up the stone steps. They soon arrived at the pavilion at the top of the mountain.

Outside the pavilion, many servants and attendants stood guard, while inside, several singing girls surrounded the pavilion, and two figures could be vaguely seen sitting around a stone table.

Xie Fengchao walked calmly and gracefully into the pavilion with one hand behind his back, laughing heartily:

"I brought a guest with me."

He turned to the side, pointed at Ding Songyan:

"Xiaoming Sect Ding Songyan Perfected Dayan Realm, and his Martial Arts are superior to mine."

Xie Five is a good person to deal with; he's using his own reputation to elevate mine, even though I don't really need it... Ding Songyan clasped his hands and smiled:

"Just lucky."

His gaze swept across the room, taking in one of the people who had risen to greet him.

The person wore an exquisite Bamboo Crown and a loose, light blue robe. His eyebrows resembled distant mountains, his eyes were like Autumn Water, and he had a delicate nose, jade-like lips, fair skin, and white teeth. His body was covered with colorful patterns, but none of them formed words.

Ding Songyan knew who this was at a glance:

"The Rivers and Lakes Beauty Register" is incorrect. He is a famous figure on the "Jade Tree Martial Arts Rankings," known as "Young Master Mingxi" Jiang Lanting.

Dude, are you sure you're not a woman dressed as a man? Ding Songyan then realized that the portraits of the characters on the "Jade Tree Martial Arts Rankings" were quite restrained. The Jiang Lanting in front of him was a stunningly beautiful woman dressed as a man, and not even the kind with any heroic air.

"I don't need to introduce this one, right? Jiang Lanting, uh..." Xie Fengchao paused for some reason.

"Young Master," Jiang Lanting said with a helpless smile, his voice clear and melodious, neither male nor female.

"Yes, Young Master Jiang," Xie Fengchao continued, "He is the last disciple of True Person Xiang of the Yin-Yang Religion."

True Person Xiang is the Supreme Elder of the Yin-Yang Religion, Great Grandmaster who hasn't made a move in decades.

Ding Songyan's peripheral vision fell on Jiang Lanting's throat, and he could indeed see a prominent Adam's apple, which moved as Jiang Lanting spoke.

Apart from her Adam's apple, her neck was long and graceful, fair and plump... Ding Songyan withdrew his gaze, not daring to look any longer.

After he and Jiang Lanting bowed to each other, Xie Fengchao pointed to another person and said:

"Brother Bai Qilin the Heavenly Fool Sect, we became acquainted after a fight."

Only then did Ding Songyan turn his attention to Bai Qilin.

He had to admit that "Young Master Mingxi" Jiang Lanting was indeed Rivers and Lakes Beauty Register in the martial arts world.

Bai Qilin was in his twenties, with an ordinary appearance, the kind that would be easily overlooked in a crowd. There was a blue aura swirling around his earlobes, his Brow Center were slightly protruding, and a few tufts of grass-like hair grew along the edge of his cheeks.

Ding Songyan was no stranger to this person, after all, Heavenly Fool Sect was one of the Six Sects and Four Factions of the Great Zhao, inheriting from the ancient god Tianyu, who followed nature, hid secrets, patrolled mountains and rivers, and manipulated wind and rain.

Bai Qilin is twenty-five years old and has reached the Perfected Dayan Realm. Because he lost to Xie Fengchao, he is currently ranked ninety-seventh on the "Orchid Honor Roll and Magnolias," which is considered to be among the top three in this generation of the Heavenly Fool Sect.

--The "Orchid Honor Roll" is compiled by the Langhuan Division of the Great Zhao Langhuan Bureau, which is more biased towards the country. Young talents from Gan, Yu, and Feng are unlikely to be on the list unless they have a very high reputation or have entered the Law Realm before the Thirty Years Old.

Bai Qilin was not one to engage in social maneuvering, so he only exchanged a few simple pleasantries.

After everyone was seated, he asked Ding Songyan with considerable curiosity:

"You've beaten Xie Fengchao?"

Xie Fengchao quickly gave Ding Songyan a wink:

Don't even mention the story about beating me in ten breaths!

"Fifth Young Master Xie was too eager to win and overconfident. He tried to defeat me in close combat, which is why I was able to defeat him," Ding Songyan said, speaking the absolute truth.

As for how many moves it took to defeat him, don't worry about that.

Ding Er is quite good at talking... Xie Fengchao felt relieved.

Bai Qilin nodded slightly:

No wonder.

"Young Master Ding, let's have a friendly spar sometime."

"I couldn't ask for more," Ding Songyan said sincerely.

At this moment, the four singing girls placed an incense burner on the stone table and inserted a rather thick incense stick, the faint woody scent gradually filling the pavilion.

Xie Fengchao, not bothering to hide it from outsiders, pointed at Jiang Lanting and smiled at Ding Songyan:

"Young Master Jiang free-spirited and interesting person. You don't need to be too reserved when you're with him. Just a few days ago, he even wore Jade Maiden Mask to teach someone a lesson, and he wasn't caught by the Martial Prohibition Bureau."

Ding Songyan nearly spat out the tea he had just taken a sip from the teacup.

You're wearing Jade Maiden Mask too?

Wait, am I the only male "Jade Maiden"?

Young Master Jiang, you also have a penchant for cross-dressing?

Ding Songyan didn't hide his curiosity and deliberately asked:

"Yeah?"

He wanted to add, "Is it the male ' Jade Maiden ' who attacked Hu Chaohui of the Treading the Sea Gang?" but then he realized that it was too unrealistic for Jiang Lanting, who was only at the Perfected Dayan Realm, so he swallowed his words.

"That 'Jade Maiden' dressed in opera costume as Jade Maiden," Xie Fengchao replied with a smile, helping Jiang Lanting answer.

Jiang Lanting said with a beautiful smile:

"Actually, I was also one of the ' Golden Boy ' these past few days, the one in costume."

"Playing both the Golden Boy and the Jade Maiden, are you trying to create a pair for yourself? Although I also played Golden Boy and the Jade Maiden, how can they be the same?" Ding Songyan had a bellyful of complaints but couldn't voice them.

The singers served tea or snacks, and Xie Fengchao and the others chatted idly.

Jiang Lanting's bright eyes suddenly lit up, and she looked at Ding Songyan with great interest:

"I have seen the ' Cosmic Star-Dipper Swordsmanship ' before and learned a few moves. I wonder if I could ask Young Hero Ding for some pointers?"

Ding Songyan had long coveted the "Great Thousand Myriad Forms Art," which could also "perform all laws," so Jiang Lanting's suggestion was like a pillow to a sleepy man, and he had no reason not to agree.

Xie Fengchao watched with great interest.

He wanted to see if Jiang Lanting, ranked forty-ninth on the "Orchid Honor Roll," could gain an advantage over Ding Er.

So far, he still hasn't figured out Ding Songyan's true strength, and he's quite curious about it.

"Let's use this smoke to exchange blows, no need for a big fight." Jiang Lanting grinned, dazzling the singer opposite him.

After the singing girls set up another incense burner and inserted incense sticks, "Young Master Mingxi" pointed with his right index finger, Sword Qi shot out with a whoosh, driving the wisp of green smoke that was closer to him to pierce Ding Songyan at lightning speed, as fast as Flying Star Breaks Dawn at dawn.

He has a certain resemblance... No Double Pupils appear... Ding Songyan observed Jiang Lanting's eyes, pointed his finger, and Sword Qi shot out, guiding the green smoke in front of him to block the incoming attack.

This sudden attack, arriving before Jiang Lanting, gave them no chance to adjust their smoke, and the two collided.

Jiang Lanting's wisp of green smoke was instantly dispersed, while Ding Songyan's wisp of green smoke still had some strength left, so it made a small arc and shot towards the "Young Master Mingxi".

At the same time, Ding Songyan was also making an assessment and judgment in his mind:

It's similar to "Ten Thousand Stars True Qi," but its power is only 70% of that of "Ten Thousand Stars True Qi" at the same level...

Double Pupils never appeared in his eyes...

The "Great Thousand Myriad Forms Art" evolves other Martial Arts based on the user's own body. Its foundation remains unchanged, and there will be no corresponding Unusual Apertures or non-human organs temporarily appearing.

The advantage of this is that there's no need to switch cultivation methods; you can use whichever one you want. The disadvantage is that it's all show and no substance, only able to reproduce about 60-70% of the evolved target's appearance...

Using the True Qi of the "Great Thousand Myriad Forms Art" to forcefully propel it should allow the evolved Martial Arts to approach the original power, but this will inevitably lead to the loss of subtle variations and some unique characteristics...

Seeing his own smoke dispersed, Jiang Lanting quickly pointed out with his left index finger, causing the smoke from the incense stick to rise again and drift forward, attempting to use the "Star-Shift" move to neutralize Ding Songyan's attack and counterattack.

Ding Songyan did not change his moves, but simply increased the infusion of "Illuminating Candle True Qi".

The two plumes of green smoke collided again. Ding Songyan's green smoke was powerful and heavy, with a majestic Sword Intent, which allowed Jiang Lanting's green smoke to only dissipate most of it and was powerless to rebound. It was quickly dispersed again.

Jiang Lanting tried his best to use the green smoke to block, while Ding Songyan went straight for the road and used the technique of "one sword breaks all laws", which was to take advantage of the fact that the "Cosmic Star-Dipper Swordsmanship" evolved from the "Great Thousand Myriad Forms Art" only had 70% of its original power.

"I won't ask for your guidance anymore!" After about ten moves, Jiang Lanting, enraged, dissipated his Sword Qi.

He gritted his teeth, his bright eyes glaring at Ding Songyan:

Why are you like this?

"We agreed to spar using the ' Cosmic Star-Dipper Swordsmanship,' but you've only used one move back and forth!"

"Elder Brother, don't you think your expression and tone are a bit effeminate right now? Although it's quite pleasing to the eye..." Ding Songyan chuckled and said.

"This is the highest level of the ' Cosmic Star-Dipper Swordsmanship,' capable of breaking through all techniques with a single sword strike."

Jiang Lanting thought about it carefully, then became even angrier:

"Isn't it just because the ' Cosmic Star-Dipper Swordsmanship ' evolved from the ' Great Thousand Myriad Forms Art ' is inferior to the original?"

"If you don't exploit weaknesses, what's the point of practicing swordsmanship?" Ding Songyan asked casually.

Jiang Lanting was speechless for a moment.

"Young Master Jiang..." Bai Qilin tried to ease the tension.

Jiang Lanting interrupted angrily:

"Young Master Jiang has lost; now it's Miss Jiang's turn!"

What? Ding Songyan was a little stunned.

Xie Fengchao leaned close to his ear and whispered:

"Young Master Mingxi is born with both Yin and Yang Male and Female Together nature, making him most suitable for cultivating the Yin-Yang Religion's techniques."

Yin and Yang as one, Male and Female Together? Ding Songyan was first taken aback, then realized which Mythical Beasts the Yin-Yang Religion's techniques originated from:

The Elephant Snake a bird, resembling a female pheasant with five colors. Eating it harmonizes Yin and Yang, manifests myriad laws, Making Oneself Male and Female, Reproducing Offspring Oneself.

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