What Liu Datou saw next made him feel terrible. The two guys next to him were both bald. Aside from lacking ordination scars, they were practically indistinguishable from monks.
As a former member of the Hongmen (Triads), Liu Datou naturally knew that this wasn't some kind of monk; it was called shaving one's head to show one's resolve. This indicated that these people were determined to overthrow the imperial court.
"We three, fellow disciples, have just left the mountain. Has anything major happened recently?" Lin Yang asked evasively.
Upon hearing this, Liu Datou braced himself and began to answer. Although he didn't know why Lin Yanghu asked this, he had no choice but to answer everything he knew in order to survive.
Through the question-and-answer session, a lot of useful information was revealed. For example, the Ming Dynasty preceded the Qing Dynasty.
The emperor of the Qing Dynasty was Daoguang.
The emperor of the Ming Dynasty was surnamed Zhu.
The world is now in chaos. For some unknown reason, countless people have risen up in rebellion.
Those who rely on cults to bewitch people are called cult bandits.
Those who directly occupy dangerous places and rise up in rebellion are called bandits.
Some even became outlaws, roaming all over the country, and were known as wandering bandits.
In short, for some reason, it seems as if overnight, the glorious Qing Dynasty simply collapsed.
Of course, Liu Datou automatically ignored the Opium War seven years ago. The British were nothing more than barbarians from beyond the borders. Seeing that they had traveled thousands of miles to pay homage to the court, he felt sorry for them, so he simply rewarded them with some silver and sold them some silk and tea.
Of course, according to Liu Datou, this is the official version. As for those rumors circulating privately, such as the imperial court being defeated by the British, how could that be possible?
My Great Qing Dynasty is a celestial empire, how could it be defeated by the tiny British barbarians? It is obvious without even looking that these claims are slanders against the court by those rebels who raised an army.
Lin Yang glanced at Cai Yan and Shi A, noticing their equally disdainful expressions. Indeed, it was obvious they had been defeated by the British, yet the court dared not admit it.
What kind of dynasty is this? With that ugly pig tail on top of it, no wonder people are rebelling.
"So, are there any famous masters in the world today? I mean true masters, the kind who are renowned throughout the land," Lin Yang continued.
"Well, the experts in the world today are divided into three tiers and nine ranks. The strongest are naturally the Supreme Grandmasters, which are the first rank of the upper tier. The so-called Supreme Grandmaster refers to a strong person whose physical body, spirit, and will have all reached perfection."
"However, while the Supreme Grandmaster is indeed powerful, it is also very difficult to reach. Since the time of General Fukang'an, our dynasty has not had any experts at the level of Supreme Grandmaster."
"Second-rank masters are what are called grandmasters, and they seem to be quite rare. Generally speaking, only masters who have perfected any two of the three aspects of physical body, spirit, and will can be called grandmasters."
"Nowadays, there are only a handful of Grandmasters in the entire world. For example, Lord Senggelinqin of the Imperial Court. This man was born into the Manchu Eight Banners. He initially learned the Longevity Technique of the grasslands, and later he learned the secret techniques of the Eight Banners of the Imperial Court. After combining the two, he achieved the position of Supreme Grandmaster."
"Furthermore, the current leader of the literati, Lord Lin Zexu, who comes from the Lin family of Fujian, is also a highly skilled martial artist of the second rank. This is why he was able to remain unscathed even after the failure of the opium ban."
"A third-rank master is a grandmaster in the martial arts world. It takes mastering any one of the three skills to achieve perfection. For example, the current Governor of Guangzhou, Lord Ye, is such a master."
As Liu Datou listed the experts of the imperial court, he gradually became excited. However, after glancing at Lin Yang and the other two beside him, his excitement immediately vanished.
"Of course, now we also have to add a few seniors. I imagine that, to be able to subdue more than a hundred of us with just a hum, the seniors must be close to being grandmasters."
"How are these three tiers and nine ranks divided? What are the criteria?" Shi A suddenly asked. After all, the level of martial power in this world directly determines the way things are done.
Upon hearing this, Liu Datou paused for a moment before continuing, "Most of the experts at the seventh, eighth, and ninth ranks have honed their physical bodies and cultivated their true qi. However, they cannot project their true qi outwards; they only have the ability to strengthen their bodies. Moreover, the amount of true qi they possess is quite limited. Even a seventh-rank expert would be utterly powerless against an army of a hundred men."
"Masters of the fourth, fifth, and sixth ranks are also known as innate masters. These masters have already opened specific acupoints, allowing them to communicate with the inner and outer worlds at any time and place, and to a certain extent, achieve continuous life."
"Moreover, they can also use internal energy to attack externally. True energy mostly has certain attributes and is extremely lethal. Even if they face a hundred-man army head-on, as long as the terrain is suitable, they can directly kill them. Generally speaking, these people are elders in gangs and also serve as bodyguards in the imperial court."
"As for the first, second, and third-rank masters, they are even more formidable. If they wish, they can take the head of a general from among ten thousand troops. For such masters, the army is no longer of any use. If they are determined to wage guerrilla warfare against the imperial court, they will cause endless trouble. Therefore, the imperial court will bestow upon such masters the titles of True Man or Dharma Master."
"The current abbot of Shaolin, the head of Wudang, the Celestial Master of the Celestial Masters sect, the head of the Quanzhen sect, the master of Tantric Buddhism, and the great shaman of Shamanism are basically all at this level. However, I don't know the specific rank," Liu Datou slowly explained.
After a moment's thought, Shi A said calmly, "It seems that ranks seven, eight, and nine are roughly equivalent to the first-tier acquired realm. Ranks four, five, and six are roughly equivalent to the second-tier innate realm. Ranks one, two, and three correspond to different stages of the third-tier grandmaster. According to this classification, we should all be considered third-tier experts."
"No, in terms of actual combat strength, he should be a second-grade Grandmaster. In that case, he can do whatever he wants." Lin Yang said with a little excitement.
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Chapter Twenty-Nine: Want to be given important responsibilities? Change your ancestor first.
Seeing that Lin Yang and the other two remained silent, Liu Datou thought for a moment and then suddenly made up his mind and said, "Senior, would you be willing to join the imperial court? With your martial arts skills, you will surely be given an important position. If you make meritorious contributions, the imperial court will surely reward you handsomely."
"Senior, please don't! The Manchus are in power now and treat Han people like pigs and dogs. You are not a Manchu, so you will definitely be guarded against at every turn. Even if you make great contributions, you will not have a good ending." The burly man next to him clutched his chest and said excitedly.
"Back then, Zheng Peigong was a man of both literary and military talent, a first-rate figure in the world, and he made many contributions to the court. In particular, he made unparalleled contributions when suppressing the Three Feudatories. But what was the result? He was still feared by the court and directly exiled to Shengjing as a governor, where he served until his death. Senior, please think twice!" the big man said loudly.
Upon hearing this, Lin Yang gave him a special look. It must be said, this man was quite quick-witted. Instead of using grand principles like ethnicity or nationality to persuade Lin Yang, he directly presented examples and used incentives to convince him.
Look at Zheng Peigong. After making great contributions, how did the court treat him? They put it nicely, sending him to Shengjing as a military commander, but that place was the Manchu stronghold. It would be strange if a Han Chinese military commander could have an easy life.
"Senior, don't listen to this person's nonsense. As long as you are willing to join the Han Eight Banners, you will become a bannerman. At that time, you will surely be given an important position."
"Think about the Shi family in Fujian. Ever since Shi Lang quelled the Zheng family's rebellion in Taiwan, they've always been officials of the Han Eight Banners. Now, after all these years, their lives couldn't be better," Liu Datou said hurriedly.
"Hmph, think of Shi Lang, that traitor who betrayed his master for personal gain. Later, he even abandoned his ancestors and joined the Han Eight Banners. I wonder if his ancestors, if they knew in the afterlife, would still recognize him as their descendant," the burly man mocked.
"Who said that..."
Although he didn't know who the two were referring to, Shi A roughly understood what they meant. They were saying that Han Chinese, or purely Han Chinese, were discriminated against and oppressed by the Manchus, unless you changed your ancestors and became a Bannerman.
Therefore, Shi A lost interest in what Liu Datou was about to say. With a light flick of his right hand, a sword aura shot out, and Liu Datou's head fell directly to the ground.
“They don’t even care about their ancestors anymore. Are all Han people like this now? No wonder they’re ruled by the barbarians. These spineless bastards can no longer be considered Han people.” Shi A shook his head as he withdrew his right hand.
"As for you accomplices, you can all go to hell together." With that, Shi A pointed his fingers like a sword and made a light slash. A golden sword aura instantly killed all of the more than one hundred Qing soldiers.
From the moment he spoke to the moment his head fell to the ground, only a single breath had passed. Afterward, Lin Yang and the other two left immediately.
"This... sigh, I wonder which kind of deity possesses such formidable strength, yet knows nothing about him. Could he really be that old immortal who has secluded himself in some remote corner for cultivation?" the burly man muttered to himself.