The Martial World in Uproar
While the battle raged inside the main hall, unusual phenomena began to appear in the mountains and forests.
Hidden in a southern mountain valley, a weapons workshop was guarded by lay disciples who were raising their guns and firing outwards.
Others hurriedly blew their iron whistles, using a special tone to call for help.
The group attacking the workshop numbered only a dozen or so, but each of them moved with unpredictable agility, shifting and dodging, and they seemed quite unafraid of the attacks from the Divine Fire Gun.
However, lay disciples were constantly being knocked down by the hidden weapons they launched.
If the steward and his men were to follow Chen Zuqi to deal with the top masters of the Southern Shaolin and infiltrate the area, they might be exposed prematurely.
Therefore, they were sent out to kill more craftsmen and then kidnap them.
Mount Qingyuan is known for its numerous springs and dense network of waterways, making it easy to obtain water for firefighting.
While a small forest fire is still worrying, it's not as serious as a fire near an arms workshop or gunpowder mill.
The latter is clearly more frightening.
The stewards determined the location of the workshops by observing the size of each group of Southern Shaolin monks as they traveled to different places, as well as the differences in their expressions and behavior.
The steward looked old, but moved with remarkable agility, leaping and bounding over the fence in a few swift movements.
Just as everyone was about to turn their guns around, they saw him spread out his sleeves, and long white water sleeves shot out from his wide robe.
Four people on the left and six on the right, their bodies dangling around their waists by these two sleeves, felt nauseous and their vision blurred.
They all fainted on the spot.
"Where did this thief come from, daring to covet the imperial court's secret techniques?"
The branches in the woods swayed slightly, the leaves trembled and swirled, and a loud roar came from the air.
Zuo Ziqing led his men through the crowd. Although he was a eunuch, he had a strong voice and a deep, resonant tone, demonstrating his profound internal strength.
The Brocade Guard around him rushed out and confronted the dozen or so Japanese pirates.
Suddenly, the ground ahead flipped over, and a Japanese pirate jumped out from the pile of fallen leaves, slashing at Zuo Ziqing with his sword.
Choke!
As the knife fell, Zuo Ziqing suddenly vanished.
Just as the Japanese pirates were feeling surprised, they felt a tap on their necks.
A major blood vessel in the neck suddenly trembled, snapped, and blood gushed out from the skin to the side.
Once any group seizes power, it will always try to access and plunder all the benefits it can.
Even if they don't need it themselves, they will give it to those around them or use it to train close juniors.
Eunuchs were the same.
Not all the old eunuchs in the palace were necessarily skilled in martial arts, but the eunuchs in power would definitely select a few from among the junior eunuchs, reward them with the best martial arts manuals and medicines, and invite famous teachers to teach them.
Zuo Ziqing was promoted because he distinguished himself in martial arts and made a meritorious contribution in protecting the emperor. From then on, he paid more attention to martial arts and practiced diligently regardless of the weather.
Coincidentally, the martial arts he practiced were also from the Shaolin school.
These are several secret manuals that the Mount Song Shaolin contributed to the Imperial Palace. They start with the Arhat Fist and the Skanda Palm, and continue to the Flower-Dodging Seven Star Fist and the Twenty-Four Demon-Subduing Hands.
Later on, however, unlike the Shaolin approach, they did not study the earlier techniques among the Seventy-Two Supreme Techniques.
Instead, he tried to combine the internal energy techniques of "Flower-Dodging Seven Star Fist" and "Twenty-Four Demon-Subduing Hands" to create the "Iron Pipa Divine Art".
Once this skill is mastered, one's cultivation level will be sufficient to be ranked among the top abbots of the Mount Song Shaolin throughout history.
He held the pipa at an angle, turning his body to the side.
Zuo Ziqing's figure moved like a butterfly flitting among flowers, swaying and staggering.
Four Japanese pirates who tried to stop him, their eyes clearly locked on him, were suddenly thrust into his blind spot. All of them suffered fatal injuries, their neck veins ruptured, and they died spitting blood.
This style of kung fu is so ruthless that the Shaolin school generally doesn't study it.
"How dare these mere Japanese pirates act so presumptuously in our Great Ming Dynasty?"
Zuo Ziqing killed four people in a row, but his expression was not good.
He used his ultimate skill right from the start, but in reality, the strength of these four people is comparable to that of the best members of the Brocade Guard.
If one has made meritorious contributions, being a centurion is enough.
Such people appearing out of nowhere in droves are probably Chen Zuqi's close entourage.
"Don't linger in the fight!"
Zuo Ziqing shouted, "Grab two craftsmen each, have them hide separately, change their appearances, and meet up in the capital."
"Those who successfully return to the capital will be promoted and granted titles, and their descendants will be blessed with good fortune."
As he spoke, he leaped into the workshop.
With a buzzing sound in the air, the pristine white long sleeves seized the opportunity and lashed out.
Zuo Ziqing threw a punch, intending to break the sleeve, but unexpectedly, upon contact, his body was thrown to the ground. He was startled to feel a chill that seemed to penetrate his lungs, but it was neutralized by his internal energy.
"Internal energy is icy cold, specifically damaging the lung meridians—the skill of the East Sea Water Cloud Sleeves?!"
The butler came waving his sleeves.
"Why should a self-deceiving official in the capital need to seek out some Fire God Secret Formula?"
The steward laughed heartily, "You've always been content with just seeing the prosperity of the capital. Once we've replicated the Divine Fire Gun overseas enough, the imperial court can just buy them from us!"
"Buy a hundred clubs, get one free. Is that enough for you to protect the capital?"
The two sleeves billowed like waves, swirling and shaking, but the points where the sleeves landed were quite different.
Sometimes he'd pull the ball from the head, sometimes he'd strike the leg.
Zuo Ziqing was furious and tried to attack several times, but was always blocked.
The Water Cloud Sleeves technique is precisely the nemesis of the Iron Pipa Divine Art, which emphasizes footwork.
If you can't get close, getting out of the other person's sight is extremely difficult.
Before they knew it, they had exchanged thirty or forty blows.
Zuo Ziqing finally found an opportunity, gripped his sleeves tightly with both hands, and released his internal energy.
"Idiot!"
The butler chuckled, "Did you think Water Cloud Sleeves's only trick was to injure the lungs with cold energy?"
The two sleeves were already bulging like cylinders, yet they kept swaying.
Zuo Ziqing suddenly felt a slight tremor in the meridians of his kidneys, as if being pulled by an invisible force.
Of the five internal organs, the kidneys belong to the water element.
The East Sea Water Cloud Sleeves, besides directly invading the lung meridian with cold air, also has the method of disrupting the kidney meridian through external resonance of internal force.
If the kidney meridian is affected, the circulation of internal energy throughout the body will inevitably be slowed down.
To everyone's surprise, Zuo Ziqing's face turned red, he was panting heavily, and the power he displayed became even more ferocious.
Large beads of sweat appeared on the butler's forehead as he exclaimed in surprise, "You eunuch, how can your kidneys be so strong?!"
When Zuo Ziqing was practicing martial arts, he knew he was a eunuch. Even though he practiced Shaolin skills diligently, he still lacked the masculine strength of a monk.
Therefore, he asked his godfather and godfather at the time to replace most of his medicine with potent tonics.
After each dose of medication, he had nowhere to vent his emotions, so he channeled all his energy into practicing martial arts.
Such excessive exertion would inevitably damage the kidney meridians first, compounding the injury.
He was also shrewd; each time he practiced, he would first dedicate 70% of his strength to protecting his kidney meridians, and then continue to practice diligently.
Over time, the kidney meridians are nourished.
Although that thing still won't grow back.
However, he was full of masculine energy and his every move exuded a strong sense of manliness, making him stand out among the eunuchs.
The emperor also treated him differently.
Unlike the husky, hoarse voice of ordinary eunuchs, which was effeminate and strange, he was also unlike ordinary guards, who required strict vigilance in certain aspects.
"Can't eunuchs strengthen their kidneys and improve their health?"
Zuo Ziqing roared, "I'm going to fight for this!"
With this roar, the two water sleeves suddenly tore apart.
The butler grunted, but instead of running away, he used his nimble palm strikes to pounce on the enemy.
"So what if your skill surpasses mine by a fraction?"
"Once the master has dealt with the monks and comes down the mountain, you will surely be dead!"
Zuo Ziqing's face had turned ashen, and he knew this was the truth; he was quite anxious.
But after exchanging a couple of blows with the butler, his expression suddenly changed, and his gaze seemed to pass over the butler and look behind him.
The butler also felt a strong pressure suddenly arrive.
"What..."
His head suddenly shifted three feet to the side, his mouth opened, and he uttered the last word.
"... people?"
However, the Japanese pirate steward moved his head three feet, but his body remained still, with nothing below his neck.
The headless body lay on the ground, gushing blood.
Chu Tianshu stretched out his right arm, grabbed the head, and looked at Zuo Ziqing.
"The Imperial Envoy just said that the secret lies with the imperial court? That doesn't quite add up."
His voice sounded tired, yet it sent a shiver down Zuo Ziqing's spine. He asked in surprise, "Who are you?"
"Amitabha Buddha."
The two monks, Miaoyin and Miaoguo, followed from the forest and announced loudly, "So that the Imperial Envoy may know that this is the Layman Tian."
"The object entrusted by the orphan of Fire God Gully, the true master of the Fire God Secret Formula."
"Indeed, the man who just killed Chen Zuqi, the leader of the Japanese pirates!!"
(End of this chapter)