The Water Bandit Sect Master

Downstream from Bajung, the waterway continued for half a month, causing the caravan to experience extremely bumpy travel.

Living on a ship for extended periods is not only uncomfortable, but also exposes one to problems such as the ship potentially running aground.

But this is already considered the safest way to travel from Ba County to Jiangxia.

This is also the path that Zhao Liang agrees with.

Relying on carts and horses to travel on rugged mountain roads would not only be difficult, but would also present more safety challenges.

Normal merchant groups would find it difficult to incur such expenses, which is fortunate because they were not seeking profit but simply wanted to pass through normally.

Standing at the bow of the boat, Zhao Liang leaned on the railing and gazed into the distance, his heart wandering aimlessly.

Zhang Xuezhou and Dong Zhongshu, on the other hand, sat in the cabin chatting to pass the time.

The Confucian School classics are numerous and require memorization, while Dong Zhongshu is skilled in various Technique Method, which makes the two cultivators not lonely together.

Occasionally, Zhang Xuezhou would mention the Yin-Yang School's concept of realms and engage in a dialectical discussion with Dong Zhongshu.

"The Yin-Yang School's realm technique involves one side being Yin and the other Yang. They seem to be interdependent and mutually reinforcing, but they are also in conflict and opposition. According to what you said, only by cultivating to the end, where either Yin envelops Yang or Yang devours Yin, can one break the shackles and reach the ultimate. This kind of cultivation method requires extremely great assistance to break through the realm, and it is beyond the reach of ordinary human beings..."

Dong Zhongshu spoke eloquently about his own understanding.

Zhang Xuezhou recounted almost everything except for the issue of Human Pill (a traditional Chinese medicine).

The Yin-Yang School's cultivation techniques, which reach the ultimate Yin and Yang, are extremely unique; it is a school of thought that pushes control to its limit.

There are methods of control from the Yin side of the Nine Heavens Sect, and methods of control from the Yang side of the Nine People Sect.

Whether it's alchemy, array construction, or the complex Puppet Technique, all require meticulous control.

Even Dong Zhongshu admired this level of skill.

If Zhang Xuezhou hadn't lacked knowledge, he would have been eager to delve deeper into it, to see if he could integrate the Yin-Yang School's theory of realms into his own cultivation.

Having mastered the arts of various schools of thought, Dong Zhongshu's art of achieving perfection was not merely conventional; rather, it had its own definition and references for perfection.

His mastery of both literary and martial arts almost perfectly embodies the principle of yin and yang.

The Yin-Yang School's realm techniques pursue the ultimate Yin and Yang, and its cultivation methods are more profound than those of other schools. Therefore, there is no problem in replacing the realm techniques of many other schools.

This even goes beyond the Confucian School classics of Dong Zhongshu's time.

If he adopted the Yin-Yang School school of thought for cultivation, Dong Zhongshu felt that his cultivation methods would inevitably be replaced.

He surpassed the Confucian School cultivation methods, which makes it possible that he could have adopted them.

However, Dong Zhongshu felt that the Yin-Yang School's realm techniques might have gone astray in their final form, or perhaps there was a better path that had not yet been discovered; otherwise, the Yin-Yang School would not have declined to this extent.

While Zou Bugui and Jin Chang may seem to be famous throughout the land, this fame is due to the execution order, not to the true influence of the Yin-Yang School.

Dong Zhongshu couldn't help but express regret when he shared his views.

"Once I've completed all the techniques related to realm cultivation, you can take a look at them for me!"

Those involved are Zou Bugui lingers in the shadow of worry over the Human Pill, while Jin Chang is plotting to seize the inheritance of the Nine Heavens Sect.

As for Zhang Xuezhou, he currently has little authority to comment on the cultivation practices of the Yin-Yang School.

He lacked sufficient knowledge, a high level of understanding, and the accumulation of years of experience; moreover, he spent a long time struggling to survive.

In this situation, Zhang Xuezhou rarely engaged in critical thinking; instead, he focused on learning by constantly following in the footsteps of his predecessors.

Zhang Xuezhou indeed always held Dong Zhongshu and Ren Yisheng, who founded their own schools of thought, in high regard and had high expectations for them.

Zhang Xuezhou was never one to hoard his knowledge. He described the cultivation techniques of the Yin Yang Great Compassion Nine Heavens Incantation and the Yin Yang Great Joy Nine People Incantation in order to hear Dong Zhongshu's opinion and even hope that Dong Zhongshu would provide some guidance.

The only drawback is that Zhang Xuezhou currently has relatively little knowledge.

However, after hearing Dong Zhongshu mention that the Yin-Yang School's two cultivation techniques were both ultimate realms of learning, and that there were few cultivation methods in the world that could replace them, he couldn't help but have some ulterior motives.

According to Dong Zhongshu, the Yin-Yang School's initial approach was unparalleled, surpassing Confucian School, and it's even possible that 99% of other schools of thought couldn't compare to the Yin-Yang School's initial approach.

However, the Yin-Yang School was defeated in the middle or late stages; a perfect beginning did not correspond to a perfect ending.

The two chatted back and forth, occasionally nodding in agreement.

Only when the ship began to shake violently did the two men's expressions change, and they quickly ran out of the cabin.

"Gentlemen, we bandits are starving and freezing, we beg you to spare us a meal!"

In the middle of the great river, dozens or even hundreds of long bamboo poles were thrown into the riverbed, leaving only their sharpened ends.

This arrangement was simple, but forcing its way through would inevitably cause it to hit the bottom of the ship, preventing Zhao Liang's cargo ship from moving forward and forcing it to temporarily stop by rowing in the opposite direction.

Several more bamboo rafts drifted on the water.

On the bamboo raft, dozens of ragged young men carried knives and swords, and some also carried water-splitting daggers and other similar items.

Leading the group of young and middle-aged people was an elderly man in his sixties.

The other man had white hair and beard, but his skin was bronze, and his muscles were bulging and muscular. He had a bow and arrows hanging on his back and a large knife at his waist, clearly indicating that he was proficient in various martial arts, both near and far.

He shouted, which immediately drew cheers from all the young and strong men.

"Disembark!"

"Hand over your goods!"

We want money!

"Obey me and you'll live; disobey and you'll have no reason to blame the river ghosts for eating you!"

"He died a gruesome death!"

"You can leave once the goods are released!"

The young and middle-aged people used extremely brief words to describe the most serious consequences.

"You bandits!" Zhao Liang shouted, "We come from Shu County, carrying official documents from the prefect to conduct business. Don't bring disaster upon yourselves!"

Faced with the threat of death, Zhao Liang naturally didn't care about money.

But this is not Shu County, and with the long journey and a lack of money, they will find it difficult to move an inch.

Disembarking would avoid conflict with pirates, but it also meant heading towards a dead end.

Conflicts are inevitable when it comes to protecting ships and property.

After more than ten days of sailing, the group was not only in poor health and lacking in strength, but more troublesome was that few of them were skilled in naval warfare.

Even if these people were to sabotage the ship, it would cause unbearable trouble.

Zhao Liang took a deep breath, feeling that the current situation was just like the choice they had made more than ten days ago. No matter what they chose, they would inevitably face troubles and consequences.

The twists and turns of this journey made him feel that traveling far was too difficult.

And the remaining journey is at least two-thirds complete, a long and seemingly endless road.

"Officials and businessmen!"

"They're officials and businessmen!"

Kill these guys!

"Kill them!"

Zhao Liang's self-introduction did not arouse the bandits' fear; on the contrary, his mention of the government led to their even stronger hostility.

If the old man at the very front of the bamboo raft hadn't remained still, these people might have already boarded the boat and started killing people.

This made him very anxious, and he couldn't help but take several steps back.

He only calmed down a little when he heard the footsteps of Dong Zhongshu and the others coming from inside the cabin.

No matter what, Dong Zhongshu was a high-ranking official in the imperial court and possessed considerable power.

If the bandit leader can be killed, this fighting might be able to stop.

He almost called out Erudite Dong by his full name, but after nearly two months of changing his address, he managed to switch back to 'Accountant Du'.

"Iron-backed Azure Ape Su Fang?"

When Dong Zhongshu stepped out of the cabin and looked at the elderly man leading the group, he hesitated for a few seconds before uttering a name.

"Is it a demon?" Zhang Xuezhou asked in surprise.

"He is the sect leader of the Beast Taming Sect, and he is a human being!"

"These days, even sect leaders have to come out and rob people?"

The leader of a school of thought wouldn't be a demon, but for the leader of the Beast Taming School to resort to robbing on the water is arguably the most unreliable leader of a school that Zhang Xuezhou has ever seen.