Uncle Yao's villa.
Inside the study.
At this moment, Feng Haoyu and a young man were sitting in the study, drinking tea and chatting.
This man, about the same age as Feng Haoyu, also had an arrogant expression and an indifferent demeanor. His entire aura gave off an extremely sharp and domineering feeling, like a treasured sword drawn from its sheath!
Small knife!
This person was a student in the same year as Feng Haoyu from the Holy Land. He was skilled with a knife. Previously, Feng Haoyu had asked Xiao Dao to go to Mount Emei and subdue the entire Emei Sect!
In fact, in Gao Jianfei's hometown of ZG City, the four people, including "Junyi" and "Shaocong," were all students in the same class as Feng Haoyu and Xiaodao. However, the four of them, including "Junyi," did not have a good impression of Feng Haoyu, while "Xiaodao" had a good relationship with him.
"Junior Brother Haoyu, you must feel quite proud of yourself this time, right? Haha, the Venerable One personally ordered the Holy Land disciples to protect Gao Jianfei and ensure his success in the match two months from now." Xiao Dao smiled slightly. "Alright! I knew it! The Venerable One has always doted on you since you were little. Two months later, after you defeat Gao Jianfei, you can use that momentum to stand at the top of the mortal world and become an idol worshipped by millions. At that time, money, status, power, and beautiful women will follow!"
Feng Haoyu smiled, a hint of smugness in his expression. "Brother Xiaodao, please rest assured, I, Feng Haoyu, am not a heartless person. When I have fulfilled my wishes and goals, I will certainly not forget you, Brother Xiaodao! At that time, if you have any pursuits in the mortal world, I, Haoyu, will definitely do my utmost to help you!"
"Alright! I don't have anything else to do lately anyway, so I'll just keep you company. I've been by your side the whole time you were competing with Gao Jianfei. Hehe, I heard this competition is huge, and it's quite interesting that I was able to watch it live. Haha." Xiao Dao laughed heartily. "I reckon many other students from our Holy Land will also be there to watch the competition."
The two chatted animatedly and relaxed.
After a pause, Xiao Dao changed the subject, "By the way, Junior Brother Hao Yu, are you really that confident about this competition? That Gao Jianfei doesn't seem like an ordinary person either. Beast taming techniques, an ancient family... tsk tsk, these are all very intriguing!"
A disdainful smile appeared on Feng Haoyu's lips. "Senior Brother Xiaodao, you still don't believe me? The Genius Divine Skill can infinitely develop a cultivator's brain, allowing them to freely choose to learn specialties in different fields. They can learn it in no time and master it in no time! Senior Brother Xiaodao, I have now reached the 5th level of the Genius Divine Skill and have mastered specialties in 38 fields. Last time I returned to the Holy Land to see the Venerable One, he was very supportive of my competition with Gao Jianfei. Therefore, he specially bestowed upon me a rare pill. With the help of this pill, haha... Senior Brother Xiaodao, I have broken through the 5th level of the Genius Divine Skill and reached the 6th level!"
"Oh?" Senior Brother Xiaodao was also very curious. "Then... Senior Brother Haoyu, after reaching the sixth level of the Genius Divine Skill, wouldn't you be able to learn several more special skills?"
"Hahahaha!" Feng Haoyu laughed heartily. "Senior Brother Xiaodao, after reaching the sixth level of the Genius Divine Skill, my brain has been further developed. Now, I can learn 12 more fields of expertise! Adding to the 38 fields I was already proficient in, I can now have a total of 50 fields of expertise! Hahaha! Tell me, how can Gao Jianfei compete with me? Before, when I was proficient in 38 fields of expertise, I was a little worried that on the day of the competition, I might be randomly drawn to have 12 fields that I wasn't good at. But now, I'm proficient in a full 50 fields of expertise. How can Gao Jianfei compete with me? No matter how he draws, no matter what field he gets, I will defeat him! Ahahahaha!"
Feng Haoyu laughed so hard he was almost manic!
With this burst of laughter, the muscles in Feng Haoyu's face contorted somewhat.
Xiao Dao chuckled a few times, then muttered to himself, "Junior Brother Hao Yu has gone astray! We martial artists naturally value strength, but he's pursuing worldly skills. Even if he reaches the pinnacle of the world, he's still just a mortal. How can that compare to the satisfaction of mastering martial arts? Besides, he seems a bit crazy! Ugh! Could it be that his studies are too diverse, causing him to go astray..."
…… …… ……
Shaolin Temple on Mount Song!
In a side hall used for receiving guests.
At this moment, a large number of people had gathered in this side hall! There were monks, Taoists, Buddhist monks, and laypeople, all of different appearances, but they were all quite old.
There were hundreds of them! Moreover, each of them had a very refined and ancient air about them, clearly distinguishable from ordinary people.
These are all the leaders of the top-ranking ancient martial arts internal style schools in China today!
The abbot of Shaolin Temple, the leader of Wudang Sect, the leader of Kongtong Sect, and the leader of Kunlun Sect.
Even the Venerable Miaojue of the Emei Sect and the Daoist Guanxuanzi of the Qingcheng Sect attended the event!
Terrifying! The people who appeared in this side hall included the top leaders of all the major martial arts sects in China!
Their expressions were all very serious!
Chapter 393 Dramatic Change in the Situation!
Chapter 393 Dramatic Change in the Situation!
Inside a side hall of Shaolin Temple!
Over a hundred high-ranking leaders from various ancient martial arts schools gathered together! It was truly a grand event! Moreover, a large portion of these internal martial arts masters had previously harbored some animosity towards each other! Their disciples had even clashed and fought amongst themselves. But at this moment, everyone seemed to have set aside past grudges and spontaneously gathered for this meeting!
"Everyone!" Master Chenkong, the current abbot of Shaolin Temple, with his white hair and beard, and a face full of compassion, spoke. In fact, Master Chenkong was not only the highly respected head of an ancient martial arts sect, but also enjoyed immense fame in the secular world. He was over 130 years old, had authored several Buddhist scriptures, and was the president of the Buddhist Association of China. Moreover, due to his longevity, he was revered by the secular world, receiving several interviews each year and lecturing abroad. In short, Master Chenkong was a prominent figure in China, a leading figure in the internal martial arts circle. Upon hearing his words, the hundreds of internal martial arts masters present fell silent, their faces showing respect.
"Today, everyone has gathered at Shaolin Temple because of a major event that has recently occurred in our national martial arts circle! Gao Jianfei! According to Master Guan Xuanzi of the Qingcheng Sect, that young man has mastered the ancient secrets of beast taming." Master Chenkong looked at Guan Xuanzi.
Everyone present turned to look at Guan Xuanzi.
Guan Xuanzi's face flushed slightly. "Please don't look at me with such suspicion! I'm an old man, why would I lie? To be honest, the secret of Gao Jianfei's beast-taming technique was something my Qingcheng Sect wanted to keep to myself. Unfortunately... behind Gao Jianfei is an ancient and powerful family. My Qingcheng Sect has tried to deal with Gao Jianfei several times, but has suffered heavy losses. Almost all of my disciples have been slaughtered by the experts of Gao Jianfei's family! Out of desperation, I had no choice but to reveal his secret to the world! I think, no matter how powerful Gao Jianfei's family is, they can't be stronger than the whole world joining forces, right?"
Master Chenkong nodded slightly, "After learning of this secret, all our major sects have dispatched disciples throughout the country to surround and intercept Gao Jianfei. However... take our Shaolin as an example, the disciples we sent out have all been intimidated and threatened, and even... killed!"
"Yes! Master, our Wudang disciples have also suffered casualties!"
"Our disciples of the Kongtong Sect were warned and humiliated to our faces!"
"Some of our Beggars' Sect disciples were crippled. The other side threatened that if we dared to investigate Gao Jianfei's whereabouts again, they would not hesitate to wipe out our Beggars' Sect!"
...
Immediately, a cacophony of voices filled the hall. Most of the sect leaders wore expressions of indignation, but this indignation was tinged with helplessness, bitterness, and dejection.
Master Chenkong gestured for silence.
He was highly respected, and once he made his statement, the many sect leaders present, even if they had a lot of complaints, could only suppress them for the time being.
"The reason I've called everyone here for this meeting today is because of this matter." Master Chenkong's tone became serious. "Everyone has sent their disciples to investigate Gao Jianfei's whereabouts, but they've all been obstructed! Some of our disciples have been threatened or even killed. This matter demands our attention! I'm wondering if it's still necessary for us to continue this investigation and pursuit of Gao Jianfei. Based on all the circumstances, it's not the family power behind Gao Jianfei that's harming our disciples, but rather a mysterious and terrifying force..." As he said this, the muscles at the corners of Master Chenkong's eyes twitched a few times, revealing a look of deep apprehension.
Distinguished sect leaders, some of you had already guessed a thing or two. Now, upon hearing Master Chenkong's words, their faces seemed to instantly turn ashen.
"Master Chen Kong, in fact, we should all have guessed it by now. In this world, there is only one force that can threaten, or even arbitrarily torture and kill us disciples of ancient martial arts sects! That is... that is... the Holy Land that has truly mastered the correct cultivation method of Chinese martial arts..." The leader of the Wudang Sect said with trepidation.
Holy Land!
This isn't a force known to everyone in the internal martial arts circle. For example, Yuanzhi and the others who were killed in ZG City certainly didn't know about it. Their level wasn't high enough. Only a portion of the high-ranking members of the internal martial arts sects currently present knew about this sacred land.
Now, Abbot Chenkong explained the matter of the 'Holy Land' and then gave a detailed explanation to some of the sect leaders who were unaware of it.
Then, everyone was stunned.
"This...this...everyone, it's obvious...the people from the Holy Land also know about Gao Jianfei's beast-taming secrets, and they're interested in them too. So, no matter what, they won't allow us to get our hands on it...alas, what bad luck! Once the Holy Land sets their sights on us, how can we possibly compete with them? Whether our disciples are warned, insulted to our faces, or even killed...we can only endure it! If we can endure it, we must endure it; if we can't endure it, we still have to endure it!" the Wudang Sect Leader said bitterly.
"Indeed, everyone, I think we have to give up... The disciples of the Holy Land are terrifying. We have absolutely no power to resist them." The Emei Sect's leader, Abbess Miaojue, couldn't help but speak up. "Some time ago, a disciple from the Holy Land stormed into our Emei Sect headquarters and killed several Emei Sect disciples right before our eyes. I... I didn't dare do anything... It was shameful, utterly shameful..."
Everyone was stunned by Abbess Miaojue's words. This wasn't shameful at all. If they were obsessed with saving face and seeking revenge, the only outcome would be the complete slaughter of their sect by the Holy Land!
**law?
People in the internal martial arts circle generally have their own set of rules, which run counter to the various codes of the secular world. In their circle, there are no laws; it's all about force. Whoever has the bigger fist has the most say.
"Haha, everyone," at this moment, the Kunlun Sect leader, a Taoist priest of about 50 years old, laughed instead, "Our Kunlun Sect clearly knows that Gao Jianfei possesses the secret of beast taming, yet we haven't sent even a single disciple to investigate his whereabouts! The reason is simple: my son will be having a genius competition with Gao Jianfei in two months. I spoke with him on the phone beforehand, and he told me not to try to track down or capture Gao Jianfei. To be honest, my son is a disciple of the Holy Land!"
The leader of the Kunlun Sect said with no small amount of pride.
These words immediately sparked a murmur of discussion among the crowd. Soon, several sect leaders approached the Kunlun sect leader, trying to curry favor and curry favor with him.
His son is actually from the Holy Land, so the Kunlun Sect is more or less connected to the Holy Land! Many people now want to befriend the Kunlun Sect. After all, the Holy Land is too terrifying; its influence in the Chinese martial arts circle is enormous. Everyone wants to seize any opportunity to establish a connection.
The Kunlun Sect Leader suddenly sneered at Abbess Miaojue and said, "Abbess Miaojue, back then, I made a marriage agreement with your Emei Sect. My son, Haoyu, was to marry Nie Xiaoxia from your sect. This marriage was supposed to be of great benefit to your Emei Sect. Think about it, my son is a disciple of the Holy Land. If he marries a disciple of your sect, your entire Emei Sect will benefit. But now, that shameless Nie Xiaoxia has disobeyed her husband's wishes... Hmph, never mind, I don't want to talk about this anymore. If my son, Haoyu, wants to use the Holy Land's background to directly annihilate your Emei Sect, then I can't stop him."
Master Miaojue seemed to have bitten through a gall bladder, “This… Fellow Daoist… This matter is the fault of our Emei Sect. Once we find Nie Xiaoxia, Li Yun, and the others, I will punish them severely! I will personally escort them to Kunlun Mountain so that you can punish them… I hope you, my nephew Haoyu, will put in a good word for the Emei Sect.”
The Kunlun Sect Leader snorted dismissively, his expression arrogant and disdainful. "Hmph! We'll discuss this privately. Anyway, the life and death of your Emei Sect rests entirely in the hands of my son, Haoyu!" he thought to himself... "Emei Sect has so many beautiful female disciples, this time, hehe..."
Chen Kong glanced at the Kunlun Sect Leader and said helplessly, "Since your son is a disciple of the Holy Land, then let you devise a strategy..."
The sect leaders handed over the power of speech directly to the Kunlun Sect Leader.
The Kunlun Sect Leader said nonchalantly, "Everyone, the matter is clear. I know you are all very interested in Gao Jianfei's beast-taming secrets, but since the Holy Land has already intervened, what can we do? Give up! Give up as soon as possible, lest we be wiped out by the Holy Land! Alright, everyone, recall the disciples you sent out to track down Gao Jianfei! Also, I have a suggestion... Hmm, I think if I could use my son's connection to convey a message to the people of the Holy Land... that is, that we ancient martial arts sects are willing to submit to the Holy Land, then the Holy Land might even bestow upon us some of the true secrets of cultivating internal martial arts! Haha!"
"What? Fellow Daoist means we should abandon the legacy passed down from our ancestors for thousands of years and become dogs of the Holy Land, their lackeys? Is that what you mean?" The Wudang Sect Leader's expression was unfriendly. He already disliked the arrogance of the Kunlun Sect Leader, thinking to himself, "You're just lucky to have a son chosen by the Holy Land. Now you're showing off in front of us, even encouraging us to submit to the Holy Land. This is too much!"
"Hmph! I'm too lazy to argue with you all. Those who can't grasp the situation will suffer sooner or later!" The Kunlun Sect Leader stood up impatiently. "Alright, that's enough. I'll take my leave now! Don't blame me for not warning you today: going against the Holy Land will lead to your annihilation sooner or later!"
After the Kunlun Sect Leader finished speaking, he immediately left, displaying an extremely arrogant attitude.
As soon as he left, a large number of leaders of internal martial arts schools followed suit, as if they were changing their minds with the wind.
Of the more than one hundred sect leaders, only a limited number of 33 remain, residing in the side hall.
"Master Chenkong, what do you think of this matter?" The Wudang Sect leader asked, his face extremely grim.
"Alas..." Master Chenkong sighed with regret.
"Master Chenkong, you can speak frankly. Those who remain are undoubtedly sects that will not easily submit to the Holy Land!" The Wudang Sect leader, at this moment, adopted a reckless stance. "At first, I was afraid of the Holy Land, but after a moment's reflection, I realized that our current cowardice could very well lead to our eventual being swallowed up by the Holy Land! The Kunlun Sect leader was quite blunt; he wants to be a slave to the Holy Land. He will find an opportunity to convey his servile intentions to the Holy Land. Once the ruler of the Holy Land develops ambitions because of this, then we... we will be in danger! My Wudang Sect has a history of over a thousand years; I don't want it to be destroyed in my generation!"
"How could my Shaolin Sect ever wish to become slaves?" At this moment, Master Chenkong finally couldn't help but speak up. "Since Bodhidharma founded our sect, our Shaolin Sect has been the leading ancient martial arts sect in the entire Z country. But now, the threat from the Holy Land could destroy the Shaolin Sect at any moment, causing it to cease to exist! What a sin! What a sin! Although I am incompetent and immoral, I cannot stand by and watch the Holy Land poison our Shaolin Sect!"
"That's right!" The leader of the Kongtong Sect frowned as well. "In the past, the Holy Land seemed isolated from the world, having no connection with us ancient martial arts sects. We could still treat the Holy Land as a legend. However, through this investigation of Gao Jianfei's incident, we have finally gained a direct understanding of the Holy Land's power. It's too pathetic. The disciples of the Holy Land treat the disciples of our ancient martial arts sects like pigs and dogs. They intimidate, threaten, and kill them at will... I won't even discuss whether the Holy Land has any ambitions to invade us. Just thinking about their terrifying power makes me feel chilled and restless!"
Yes, judging from the current situation, even if the Holy Land doesn't intend to take action against these ancient martial arts sects, they will still lose their appetite and sleep peacefully from now on.
After all, the Holy Land was too powerful, and its attitude was too arrogant. When it came to killing the disciples of these ancient martial arts sects, it basically didn't follow any principles and killed them at will.
This feels like a blatant disregard for human life.
"Master Chenkong, we cannot sit idly by and let this situation continue! Otherwise, our ancient martial arts sects will be wiped out sooner or later!" the Wudang Sect leader said with a heavy heart. "The sect leaders here are all men of integrity and principle, preferring to die a glorious death rather than live a shameful life. So, let's all think of a solution!"
"Find a solution? Easier said than done!" Master Chenkong felt utterly miserable. "In terms of martial prowess, we are far from being a match for the Holy Land. Moreover, analyzing the current situation, dozens of ancient martial arts sects, led by the Kunlun Sect, all want to join the Holy Land. The tide has turned; the tide has turned! How can our mere thirty-odd sects contend with the Holy Land? I am willing to resist the Holy Land, but I lack the strength! The only thing we can do is, when the Holy Land reveals its ambition and tries to invade our Shaolin, we will fight them to the death… cough cough, however, in terms of the balance of power, if our Shaolin were to confront the Holy Land, it would only result in total annihilation…"
At this moment, an old nun from Qingjing Nunnery on Yandang Mountain said, "I think we should form an alliance. If the Holy Land harbors ill intentions, we can all rise up and fight against the enemy together. No matter what the outcome, it's better than being defeated one by one by the Holy Land, isn't it?"
This statement immediately received a response.
“What you say makes sense, Master. So, does Master have any other opinions? Now that things have come to this, Master, don’t hold back. Speak your mind and let everyone discuss it!” Master Chenkong gave the old nun an encouraging look.
The old nun nodded heavily. "In my opinion, we must continue our investigation into Gao Jianfei's matter! We should stop investigating openly and start investigating covertly."
"Oh?" Master Chenkong and many other sect leaders all looked at the old nun.
The old nun said, “Think about it, everyone. Gao Jianfei comes from an ancient family and possesses the secrets of beast taming. Such a family must be quite powerful. Moreover, the secrets of beast taming can make up for deficiencies in martial arts. If we can make contact with Gao Jianfei’s family and cooperate, we might be able to contend with the Holy Land! Although it’s risky, it’s like gambling. We’re betting on the foundation and power of the ancient family behind Gao Jianfei! Of course, if Gao Jianfei’s family is willing to pass on the secrets of beast taming to us, then we’ll have a better chance of fighting the Holy Land! However, this is just a last resort, a desperate measure.”
silence.
Upon hearing this, all the sect leaders in the main hall fell silent.
Everyone is thinking about it.
Choosing to cooperate with the family behind Gao Jianfei is tantamount to directly opposing the Holy Land!
(Well, of course, if they knew that Gao Jianfei had never had any family background, they would probably regret their risky behavior today.)
"Well... I think that since the Holy Land also covets Gao Jianfei's beast-taming secrets, Gao Jianfei will be captured by them sooner or later, and the ancient family behind Gao Jianfei will inevitably clash with the Holy Land. If we express our intention to cooperate with Gao Jianfei, he and his family will certainly not refuse," the Wudang Sect Leader murmured. "The key question now is whether we need to contact Gao Jianfei's family immediately and reach a cooperation agreement..."
"This matter is of utmost importance!" Master Chenkong's forehead was already beaded with sweat... "How about we secretly send our disciples to find this young man, Gao Jianfei, first..."
“Alright! For now, Master Chenkong will be the leader of our alliance, and we will follow his orders!” The sect leaders all agreed.
Thus, a meeting that was originally intended to investigate Gao Jianfei's whereabouts turned into a split... domestic martial arts, more than a hundred major sects, split into two camps.
The faction led by Kunlun, Emei and other sects wanted to join the Holy Land and become its slaves in exchange for the opportunity to cultivate true martial arts.
Led by Shaolin and Wudang, the faction cherishes the heritage and foundation of their respective sects and fears that the Holy Land might cause trouble. They have formed an alliance to stand together and fight side by side! Furthermore, they want to cooperate with Gao Jianfei!
Chapter 394 The Number One Female Singer in the Chinese Music Scene
Chapter 394 The Number One Female Singer in the Chinese Music Scene