Heroic Wu Erlang and Central Plains Phonology

The Diba Deng person possesses two sets of martial arts skills.

One set is the Beggars' Sect' Sect's ultimate martial art, the "Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms," which was already famous in the Tang Dynasty and underwent a major improvement during the Northern Song Dynasty.

That was at the end of the Northern Song. The hero Wu Erlang captured Fang La with one arm and then went into seclusion at Six Harmonies Temple.

Many people thought that Wu Erlang would spend the rest of his life in seclusion, living a life of Buddhist meditation and reclusion.

Little did they know, Wu Erlang had another extraordinary encounter. The Iron-Armed Hero, who had taught him martial arts in his early years, came to him and said that he had undergone many trials and tribulations, which greatly improved his mindset and gave him the true heart of a hero who was "transcendent in the world, yet unwilling to leave the mortal realm."

With this state of mind, he could cultivate the prototype of the divine skill created by the Iron-Armed Hero in his later years, so he took out the Marrow Jade and the secret manual.

After Wu Erlang consumed the Marrow Jade, he practiced the secret manual and his old injuries were completely healed.

That set of secrets was derived from the Book of I Ching.

It is said to "nourish the righteous energy of heaven and earth, gather the myriad powers of the four directions, and when gathered, it becomes mysterious and profound; when released, it fills the Six Harmonies."

This skill originally did not have a formal name, but the general outline contained the words "Six Harmonies," and it just so happened that it was cultivated and perfected in the Six Harmonies Temple.

Therefore, the divine skill was henceforth named "The I Ching Six Harmonies Heart Method".

After mastering his Erlang Shen, Wu Erlang, feeling restless, picked up his staff and wandered the world again. He abandoned his former reputation and, under the name "Six Harmonies," went on to uphold justice and help those in distress.

He was known to the world as the Six Harmonies Divine Beggar.

The leader of the Beggars' Sect' Sect at that time was distressed because there was no outstanding successor in the sect. When he heard about this divine beggar, he specially sought him out, presented him with the "Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms", and invited him to become the leader of the Beggars' Sect.

After repeatedly declining, Wu Erlang accepted the heavy responsibility and devoted his life to reforming the gang's rules and sweeping away its decadence.

The founder of the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms also drew much inspiration from the I Ching, but it is an external palm technique. It does not require meditation or qi cultivation, but only practice moves. When you reach a certain level, internal energy will naturally grow.

Wu Erlang verified and greatly improved the "Six Harmonies Heart Method" and the "Dragon-Subduing Divine Palms" to make them a perfect match.

From then on, only the leaders of the Beggars' Sect' Sect throughout history were able to learn both of these divine skills.

However, sixty years ago, Kublai Khan intervened in the affairs of the Beggars' Sect, and the then-leader of the Beggars' Sect' Sect was Kublai Khan injured and fled.

Although Yang Muren learned the Six Harmonies Heart Method, he failed to learn the Dragon-Subduing Divine Palms, and from then on, the Beggars' Sect lacked the inheritance of the Dragon Subduing Palm.

"... That year, I was begging in the mountains when an earthquake struck, causing a flash flood. The floodwaters carried a large block of ice from the mountainside, inside which was an old beggar. I clung desperately to that piece of ice, which is how I survived the flood."

The Diba Deng voice was slightly hoarse as he said, "That was the Beggars' Sect' Sect leader from sixty years ago. After being severely injured, he used ice to protect himself, and he was also my old mentor."

The old gang leader's old injuries were beyond repair, and the master and disciple only spent three days and three nights together.

The Diba Deng disciple received his master's dying Chuangong, but found it difficult to use, so he had no choice but to wander the martial world and diligently practice his palm techniques.

Two years ago, he met a strange man who said he could use his own powers to buy treasures.

The Diba Deng cultivator had used twenty years of his cultivation to buy a piece of Marrow Jade.

In this way, although his foundation of power was reduced, thanks to the benefits of consuming the Marrow Jade, he could still actively utilize the remaining power.

However, his mindset was still not right. To unleash his full fighting power, he needed to boost his morale.

"You are a blessed man," and "You will overcome adversity and turn misfortune into good fortune."

These were actually his mentor's dying wishes.

After hearing these words, Chu Tianshu blinked twice, his eyes moving slightly faster than usual.

The leader of the Beggars' Sect' Sect at the end of the Northern Song Dynasty wasn't even surnamed Qiao? That's not all.

How did Wu Song become the leader of a gang?!

If these were merely interesting old news, then another matter concerned Chu Tianshu even more.

"You're saying someone made you use twenty years of your cultivation to buy a piece of Marrow Jade?"

Chu Tianshu asked, "What was the transaction like? Did he absorb your power?"

The Diba Deng shook his head. "That person was very mysterious, I don't know if it was a man or a woman. Just by pointing with his hand, my power disappeared. Then he pointed with his hand again, and a piece of Marrow Jade appeared in my hand."

Chu Tianshu was a little puzzled. "This person has such abilities, why do you seem to have little respect for him?"

Diba Deng scratched his head.

"Although that person acted very mysteriously, I always felt that he lacked confidence. Moreover, I later found out that there were imperial experts chasing someone in the vicinity at the time."

"It is said that during several battles, that person's strength suddenly increased dramatically, but even so, he was unable to eliminate the leader of the pursuers."

Chu Tianshu's heart stirred.

A mysterious figure, not particularly strong, but with mysterious methods—could he be related to the Youdu Edict?

Chu Tianshu asked, "Where did you meet that person?"

The Diba Deng secretly wiped away a cold sweat and breathed a sigh of relief.

He was actually quite unsure of himself when facing Chu Tianshu.

He started by bringing up old stories and recounting the origins of his martial arts Falai, even mentioning mysterious figures, all to show off his extensive experience, wide connections, and competence.

Since this person in front of me is interested in the mysterious man, I, as the one who made contact with him, naturally have even more value.

"It's in Miao Territory."

The Diba Deng said, "But even if that person's voice is made neither male nor female, and very ethereal, I can still recognize it."

"That person was most likely not from Miao Territory; his speech carried a hint of Central Shu accent, and there was also a certain..."

The Diba Deng frowned deeply, deep in thought.

"It's very similar to the pronunciation of words in Central Plains Phonology, but without the deliberate articulation of opera singers; it's as if they were born speaking that way."

When he said these words, he deliberately imitated the Central Plains Phonology he had mentioned.

Upon hearing this, Chu Tianshu suddenly realized...

The Diba Deng speaker, who originally spoke with a hint of Jiangnan dialect and a mixed accent, suddenly switched to Mandarin in the last few sentences.

Chu Tianshu quickly asked, "What is the Central Plains Phonology?"

The Diba Deng hesitated, "I heard someone mention it a couple of times while singing opera, but I'm not really sure what it is. It seems to be something specifically for opera singers to practice their voices?"

Sun Liang then spoke.

Sun Liang said, "During the Liao, Jin, and Great Yuan dynasties, the Han people in the north were successively influenced by foreign ethnic groups. They still retained the Chinese language and characters, but they were inevitably affected by some changes in pronunciation."

"This book is specifically about this evolution and includes a lot of planning and correction of pronunciation."

Sun Liang also seemed a little puzzled at this point.

"But this book is ultimately too bookish. Northerners don't actually speak like that in everyday life. Even those who perform in operas year-round will pronounce it somewhat deliberately."

"How could anyone say something like that so naturally?"

Chu Tianshu coughed lightly and switched to standard Mandarin, saying, "Was that mysterious person speaking in a similar tone?"

Sun Liang was speechless.

The Diba Deng's eyes lit up. "Hey, yes, yes, that's it! But that person's voice isn't as nice as yours..."

At this point, he suddenly realized that what he had said seemed somewhat disrespectful, and quickly stopped talking.

Chu Tianshu didn't pay attention; he was just thinking about it over and over again.

Did he learn Mandarin from a young age? Then, the mysterious person might be a time traveler.

The methods used were mysterious, and the possibility that the person was a time traveler and possessed another Youdu Edict Token skyrocketed.

However, that person was being hunted down two years ago, and now, the Youdu Edict still remains in this world.

Did the other person just happen to re-enter this world, or did they stay in this world all along?

Having learned more about the other Youdu Edict, Chu Tianshu had a clearer direction in his work.

Is the function for trading?

He pondered for a moment, then placed his left hand on his shoulder and picked up a tuft of long hair that was a mix of black and white.

"If trading skills are strong, someone like Meteor Gods and Devils, with profound power but nearing death, would be the best client, wouldn't they?"

(End of this chapter)