Martialism

Chapters 10

When Yi Ping opened his eyes with a sudden jolt, he had just broke out in a cold sweat! He seemed to be fast asleep and having nightmares. This nightmare was always the same, haunting him constantly. She could not forget how her mother Shui Yichi had died yet she had to continue living in denial.

She was afraid to lie but she had lied to Shui Yixian. Although she was honest about her mother's maiden name to Shui Yixian, she had lied to her that she had died shortly after giving birth to her. It was because he still had to look for people who had hurt his parents.

Although he was a five-year-old boy back then, he could remember his father's name was Yi Tianxing and his mother's maiden name was Shui Yichi. His father had an sworn brother and it was this sworn brother who had betrayed his father and hurt his mother.

She did not know that her mother was from the Eternal Ice Palace therefore when Shui Yixian questioned her about it, she told her half the truth. That was before she knew that her mother was actually the older sister of her protege.

No wonder she found herself attracted to Shui Yixian, she did have a lot in common with her mother …

Before she could confess to him about the truth, Shui Yixian had died …

Yi Ping thought, "Am I destined to live a lonely life?"

An alluring voice sounded calling out to him, "You've woken up? I thought you were dead. Your pulse is very weak. I ... I'm very sorry …"

He had not heard her apology because he was still in a daze. When he saw it was Ji Lingfeng, he looked at her and became as white as cloth. He immediately panicked and was terrified as he tried to escape from her!

Seeing her again was worse than the horrible nightmare she had just experienced!

Ji Lingfeng called out to him, confused by his actions. "Why so scared of me? Do you really think I'll eat you? Who me? A female demon? Did you forget that you were the one who wanted to visit the old man?"

After Yi Ping heard it, he started to turn around. He asked hesitantly, "Are we really achieving?" He's really scared of her.

Ji Lingfeng laughed softly, "Of course, at the end of this road. Hurry up, follow me!"

Yi Ping sighed and staggered behind him, "If I knew that this trip would be so difficult and almost cost my life, I would never agree to come. Even before I can find a martial master, I previously would probably die in his hands..."

This time, Ji Lingfeng just walked around gently. When he saw that he was even struggling to walk, he immediately grabbed his arm to prop it up.

Suddenly, Yi Ping felt he was not that bad.

They are now walking very close. Both Yi Ping and Ji Lingfeng averted their eyes and were awkward.

There were several times Ji Lingfeng or Yi Ping wanted to say something but they were unable to find the courage to say a word. It was as if they were afraid of disturbing the calm air between them.

Immediately after, Yi Ping saw a small broken hut. He was astonished that someone had actually built a residence here in this desolate forest valley.

Ji Lingfeng smiled, "We're here! Let's go in." The way he said it, it seemed like it was none of his business and he was just a speculator waiting to see what would happen next.

But before Yi Ping could get inside the hut, a voice sounded that said, "Young lady, you came back so quickly? You haven't forgotten me? I smell the Fragrant Bamboo Leaves. Just incredible! But you seem to be bringing someone here. I don't like strangers. You can ask him to leave!"

Ji Lingfeng laughed softly, "It wasn't me who brought you the Bamboo Leaf Wine. This young man did it. If you don't want to see him, he can just walk away."

An old man with a stick opened the door of the hut. He had a cane and it seemed like he had trouble walking.

The old man growled and said, "Son, why did you bring him here?"

Ji Lingfeng replied, "He wants to learn a superior martial art from you."

The old man looked at Yi Ping from head to toe while saying, "He looks like he almost died and he still wants to learn martial arts from me? After all, I will not accept any disciples. He can leave soon. I have no habit of training anything to strangers."

Ji Lingfeng said, "Oh? Didn't you teach me the Asper Horizon Hand a few days ago? Am I not a stranger?"

The old man said, "I also have other habits. When I take something from a stranger, I will never owe them anything. You're just lucky that I had a craving for good wine that day."

Ji Lingfeng said coldly, "Did you know that in order to find you, she had been running all night, looking for you from hill by hill? Does this not prove his sincerity and willingness to endure hardships?"

Yi Ping was touched that he had actually entered to persuade the old man for her. He knew that he was asking for the impossible and that this would probably be a wasted trip. He was just trying his luck.

In the fraternity, martial masters would never reveal their martial secrets so easily. Even if they wanted to find a successor, it was most likely someone they had raised since young. That was to reduce the chances of their skills falling into the wrong hands.

Yi Ping was expecting a reclusive martial hermit and the sight of this old man was disappointing him. Nevertheless, he truly believed that this old man was the one who could help him improve his martial progress.

So he respectfully said, "Old Senior. I, Yi Ping, salute you. I'd like to meet a worthy master …"

The old man muttered, "Yi…"

Suddenly, his expression changed. "What's your name again?"

Yi Ping replied weakly, "Yi Ping."

The old man stumbled backwards. He looked at Yi Ping carefully and when he saw the White Phoenix Emerald precious sword, he trembled. How did this young man obtain the White Phoenix Emerald precious sword that Shui Yichi had once used? He remembered very clearly that this sword had been given to Shui Yixian…

He asked, "Who is your mother?"

Yi Ping was puzzled because this old man suddenly asked about his mother. He asked, "Why are you asking me that?"

The old man clutched his shoulder and asked again, "Your mother, where is she?"

Yi Ping could feel the strong grip of the old man who was on it. He could not breathe and his face turned purple. But he refused to say anything. That was because this old man was probably the enemy he had been looking for all this time!

Ji Lingfeng panicked as she attacked the old man with her palm. He said loudly, "Old man strange, what do you think you're doing?"

In three consecutive attacks, he forced the old man to release his grip from Yi Ping as he retreated a few steps.

In a state of panic, he had just used the ‘Moonlight Cut’ punch of the Sacred Heart Skill. The Sacred Heart skill was his true skill. Unless he had no other choice, he didn't want to use it. He tried to hit the strange old man on his shoulder and face at the same time, followed by another attack but he had dodged it all!

Yi Ping fell to his knees weakly.

Ji Lingfeng was beside Yi Ping in an instant as she voiced her concern for him, "Are you okay? If he doesn't want to teach you anything, I'll teach you!"

Yi Ping was too weak to even reply to him. His vision has blurred. He felt very unlucky today. Three times a day, he almost died. The first time was by Gu Tianle, the second time by Girl Ji and the third time by this crippled old man.

The old man said firmly to Ji Lingfeng, "Give her to me or I'll be bad. I don't want to put my hands on you."

Ji Lingfeng replied coldly, "Funny! You don't want him as your protege, so why are you asking for him now?

The old man said, "Now I have changed my mind and decided to make it my martial arts protege!"

Ji Lingfeng stepped in front of Yi Ping who was falling gracefully as she displayed a defensive posture as she replied coldly, "What if I'm not willing to let this happen?"

The old man raised his staff and said, "Then I will definitely teach you a lesson that you will never be able to forget."

Ji Lingfeng said coldly, "A martial master like you will raise your hands on unarmed juniors and weaker genders? That's very commendable indeed. Why don't you tell me your name so I can tell everyone in the fraternity what you've done?"

The old man said, "In a real fight, there are no seniors or juniors, no men or women and only fighters. Only survival matters. Moreover, I have been a hermit for so long. What do I care about for martial honor? brotherhood?"

Ji Lingfeng hummed coldly as she prepared for her impending attack. This old man was paralyzed and had difficulty walking. Even though he was an experienced opponent, he probably would not lose to him with his superior speed skills and with any luck.

The old man added, "And you must be unarmed. From top to bottom, there are at least three hundred secret projectiles you can use. Others may be fooled by your deceptive view, but not mine."

Ji Lingfeng was stunned because she could see it. This would make his surprise attack difficult. Did he just guess? Therefore he replied calmly, "You think too much. I don't have a secret projectile."

The old man said coldly, "Is that so? What about the dozens of needles in your straw hat? What about the crystal beads on your wrists? What about the toxic paint on the smallest fingernails on your left? What about all three? hairpins on your head and dozens of secret projectiles under your outerwear?

Ji Lingfeng could not hide her surprised expression as she took a step back. This old man had very sharp eyes.

The old man said, "If I still fail to see that you are from the Sacred Hex Sect after using the Sacred Heart Skill, then I am definitely blind. Sacred Hex Sect is famous for its poisonous secret projectiles and techniques, especially ‘ Purified Meteor Rain Techniques and Meteor Rain Needles."

Yi Ping was surprised that Ji Lingfeng had so many weapons on her. He disagrees with using a secret projectile, seeing it as a way of cheating in a fair fight.

No wonder he had deliberately concealed his martial origin. That was because the Sacred Hex Sect was an unorthodox heretical sect and in recent years was at odds with the common orthodox brotherhood!

In a dizzy state, he muttered, "How cruel!"

Ji Lingfeng raised her right leg backwards and kicked Yi Ping. He exclaimed unhappily, "Shut up. My secret projectile might save your life."

Although his kick was not hard, in Yi Ping current condition, it was more than enough to make him faint. Yi Ping could be heard muttering before he was knocked out, "Why..what.you.kid....me....to…"

Ji Lingfeng said coldly, "Serve you properly! Whose side do you think you're on?!"

The old man said angrily, "What did you hit him for?"

Ji Lingfeng said, "Because he's rude!"

The old man said angrily, "You have no right!"

Ji Lingfeng said coldly, "Hmph, does it matter? If I don't have the right, you have the right?"

The old man said angrily, "I have the right. I'm his father!"

Ji Lingfeng said coldly, "If you are her father, then I am her mother!" Then he raised his right leg again and kicked Yi Ping, not once but twice. "Look!"

Suddenly, the old man attacked him with his cane in anger, forcing him to turn over because he did not want to use his bare hands against his cane.

Just as he was about to attack him with the Meteor Rain Needle, the old man was already beside Yi Ping, shaking him and checking his pulse, "Pulsing Heavenly Tear Energy! Yichi must have given him the Heavenly Ice Tears! He really is my son!"

The old man lamented, "Son, who caused you to be in this terrible predicament? Who is that heartless fellow?!"

Ji Lingfeng gasped in surprise, "You're really her father?"

The old man said, "Yes! Tell me, who is this heartless man who has injured her and put her in such a bad state?"

Ji Lingfeng said timidly, "Err. We are no match for his Triple Merciless Palms and were chased by him all night."

The old man sighed, "More than twenty years ago, I had actually saved his life. I should have ended his life long ago. His Triple Merciless Palms were indeed outstanding and could be ranked among the top skills in the fraternity."

But he secretly thought, "You really think I'm a stupid old man. At first, you said you were looking for me from hill to hill and now, you said you were being chased."

Ji Lingfeng tried to distract him, "Will Yi Ping be alright?"

The old man said solemnly, "Come with me! If he dies, I'll hold you accountable, too." The old man carried Yi Ping on his back and walked into the hut.

Ji Lingfeng protested, "What does this have to do with me?"

The old man turned around and said firmly, "Because you just claimed to be his mother and have given him three kicks!"

Ji Lingfeng sighed deeply as she said, "The kick wasn't even a real kick at all .." But because she was worried about Yi Ping, she followed the old man into the hut.

When Yi Ping opened his eyes again, he saw the old man smiling at him. "My son, are you okay?"

Ji Lingfeng was sitting on a chair, looking calm as she looked towards him. He even smiled at her.

"Are you okay?" he said with sincere attention.

But when she saw him smile, she was terrified. It was because he remembered the torturous journey with him and the kick he received from him …

Yi Ping had a lot of courage. He was not afraid of death and pain. In fact, fear was always the last thing on his mind and he almost got himself killed many times in the past.

But when he saw her, he was really afraid of her. It was because Girl Ji was sometimes warm and sometimes cold towards her. He did not know when he would suddenly become cold again.

Although his kick was not loud, he was suddenly shocked and he could still remember it clearly. Stunned by his sudden kick, he fainted from the cold.

Yi Ping thought, "They should have fought each other. Why are they together in the same room? Are they acting or is Girl Ji selling me to this old man? a clan that is unorthodox and capable of anything. Jeez, I'm so pathetic.”.

The old man shook him and shouted excitedly, "Son, I am your father Yi Tianxing! Your mother is Shui Yichi! Son, I thought you had died years ago. Heaven has eyes!"

When Ji Lingfeng heard his name, her smile suddenly disappeared. It was because his father, Ji Yunzhong, the previous protege master of the Sacred Hex Sect had died because of Yi Tianxing. At that moment, his facial expression underwent an incredible change…

Even though Yi Tianxing was late to the martial fraternity and disappeared quickly, he had gained fame as one of the top swordsmen in the fraternity with his Horizon Swordplay as well as his various courtesy actions.

Yi Ping was stunned as he stuttered, "You know my mother ... You .. are really my father?"

Yi Tianxing nodded sadly, "Son, where is your mother? Is he still healthy?"

Yi Ping shook his head dejectedly, "Mother died when I was five years old …"

Although Yi Tianxing was expecting the worst, he was still emotional. He said, "Son, it must have been hard on you all this time."

Yi Ping asked, "Dad, where have you been all this time? If you're with us, maybe mom's still alive today."

Yi Tianxing sighed deeply, "This is a very long story. Let me start from the beginning."

He said, "Twenty-five years ago, with just an iron sword with me, I went to the Heavenly Mountains to challenge the Eternal Ice Palace. That's where I first met your mother, Shui Yichi. Back then, she was the Emerald Mistress of the Eternal Ice Palace. We fought for three days."

He paused for a moment as he recalled the past, "On the first day, we fought with our martial power and were balanced. On the second day, it was a contest about who had superior swordplay. Again, we are balanced. . On the third day, we decided to fight who among us who had higher determination, who moved first at the icy peak of the Heavenly Mountains would be the loser!"

Ji Lingfeng interjected, "Then you must be the loser! He might be able to meditate for days without moving, even in the snow."

Yi Tianxing laughed, "You're wrong! The contest was actually completed in less than a day!"

Ji Lingfeng flinched, "That's impossible. The mediation technique of the Eternal Ice Palace is already well-known and I don't think Shui Yichi would be afraid of the cold."

Yi Tianxing laughed, "That's right but after the contest lasted for six hours, Yichi, he opened his eyes because he thought I was dead. So I won."

Ji Lingfeng was stunned.

He added, "It turns out he was not concentrating on his mediation but was worried that I had frostbite. To be honest, I was cold and my limbs had already turned purple. I was already injured by his Icicle Fingers on the first day and did not notice the severity of my injuries. But I was stubborn and refused to say a word. He saved my life and took me back to the Eternal Ice Palace to recuperate."

Yi Tianxing laughed cheerfully, "I may have won the contest but I lost my heart to her. We will retire peacefully and be freed from the affairs of the martial fraternity."

Yi Tianxing said, "Son, do you know why your name is Ping?"

Yi Ping was surprised, "You knew my name even before I was born?"

Yi Tianxing nodded slowly as his eyes filled with tears, "We have decided to name you Ping no matter if you are female or male. That's because we want you to live an ordinary life unlike ours …"

His eyes were like they were in a far away place.

He finally spoke again after a moment of silence, "At that moment, Yichi knew his days might stay counting and he wanted to live an ordinary life with me and our unborn child. So we decided to name you Ping, which means just plain and peaceful."

Yi Ping was startled, "My mother is sick?"

Yi Tianxing shook his head, "Not at all. His health is fine. It's just that the high-level practitioners of the Eternal Ice Palace knew the end of their day through Divine Disaster, just as our Divine Horizon Hand practitioners also know our day. . That was the reason why he forced himself to train so hard to avoid the Divine Disaster."

Ji Lingfeng's curiosity appeared. This was the first time she had heard of such a thing as ‘Divine Catastrophe’. What was that?

Yi Ping also asked, "About What Divine Disaster is it?"

Yi Tianxing seemed reluctant to discuss it as he changed the subject, "I used to have a very good brother. He was the first person I met when I left the mountain …"

Yi Ping was silent. He only knew that his mother often muttered to him that his father had been betrayed by his best brother. "What's his name?"

Yi Tianxing looked at Yi Ping eyes and asked, "You know?"

Yi Ping nodded bitterly, "Mother only told me this much but she never told me her name!"

Yi Tianxing sighed deeply, "It's because my brother, Gongsun Bai, has a great influence in the fraternity. He had many powerful friends and many exponents under his wing. Your mother doesn't want you to waste your life."

Both Ji Lingfeng and Yi Ping were stunned to hear that his foster brother was Gongsun Bai. Gongsun Bai came from one of the major martial clans in the martial fraternity, the Gongsun Clan and was also one of the four major aristocratic martial clans in the martial fraternity.

Yi Ping said, "Gongsun Bai is Gongsun Jing's father. I have met Gongsun Jing and she is as crafty as her father! Father, I swear I will avenge you!"

Yi Tianxing shook his head, "I'm afraid that Gongsun Bai right now might be too formidable. It is best that you avoid the Gongsun family."

Yi Tianxing sighed, "I never expected Gongsun Bai to turn against me. Of all my friends, he was the only one I trusted the most because he was a kind-hearted man and was highly respected in the martial fraternity. He is also from a respectable and wealthy clan but unfortunately he is.”.

He added, "One day, Gongsun Bai deceived me by telling me that the Three Evils of the West are back in the fraternity and only I can stop them. Wanting to prevent a disaster from happening to the martial fraternity, I left the heavy Yichi with the child and rushed with Gongsun Bai to stop the Three Western Crimes. I promised her I'd be back in no time … "

"I believed him because he was my foster brother, but he set a trap for me and ambushed me. I fell into this valley, breaking my back and legs. For a long time, I couldn't move. Maybe I was lucky.the mud that was in this valley seemed to have healing properties and my broken back was slowly recovering. As of now, I have not fully recovered and my movements are very limited."

She sighed, “Once I can move again, I return to the village to look for your mother but I can't find anyone. No one lives there anymore. Disappointed and aimless, I returned to this valley with my back. Only the mud here can ease my pain."

Yi Ping said, "The village has been destroyed by the flood many years ago and since then everyone has been displaced. Moreover, Gongsun Bai had chased after my mother; she had left the village even before the great flood."

There was a moment of silence. That was because no one could imagine what was really going on and what kind of ordeal Shui Yichi had to go through during that dark time. Gongsun Bai was a wolf in disguise and there was no better way to hurt someone than to pretend to be a friend.

Ji Lingfeng asked, "What was the reason for betraying you?"

Yi Tianxing was silent for a moment before he slowly said, "He told me that he envies me. He wants to take Yichi as his wife and has his martial secrets. Therefore he tried to kill me so that he could get it close to my wife."

Suddenly, Ji Lingfeng said coldly, "Great Hero Yi, do you know who I am?"

Yi Tianxing laughed out loud, "How do I not know? You are from the Sacred Hex Sect and are definitely related to Ji Yunzhong."

Yi Tianxing said, "I knew when you first came to this valley. Although you did not make a sound but I recognized the weightlessness skill of Fairy Breeze from the Sacred Hex Sect. You may not see me but I have seen you from afar!"

Ji Lingfeng was surprised, "You know back then?"

He said coldly, "You know who I am from day one and you even taught me the Asper Horizon Hand?"

Yi Tianxing laughed, "Who are you another matter. I just wanted to drink the wine you had back then."

He added, "In addition, although I've taught you the Asper Horizon Hand, I don't really expect you to be able to use it this fast. When you can use the Asper Horizon Hand, you should visit me again with more wine."

Ji Lingfeng said coldly, "Why? Do you think I really want to learn more of your martial skills?"

Yi Tianxing laughed, "Oh no. That is because if you have used the Asper Horizon Hand a few more times, your vital energy will be erratic. And the only one who can help you is me! Asper Horizon hands are not suitable for use by anyone. Without my Aspire Invocations Intricate Recite to control the vital power of your Asper Horizon Hand, it would only harm the body. If you don't believe it, you can freely press the Acupuncture Point that is five fingers under your heart."

Ji Lingfeng did as she was told and could feel a pressing pain! He said coldly, "I think you are a boxer hero, yet you used this despicable means to hurt me!"

Yi Ping said, "Miss, I think this might be a misunderstanding. Please relax. My father is not a bad man."

Yi Tianxing said, "I just want you to visit me a few more times and buy me some good wine to reduce my boredom. I can lift your deduction and give you the complicated basic formula of the Aspire Prayer. After all, I didn't really hurt you."

Yi Ping knew nothing about the risks of the internal martial intricate formula. She exclaimed happily for him, "Girl, congratulations! My father will teach you the Aspire Prayer. He won't hurt you."

Ji Lingfeng smiled bitterly. It was not encouraging that he could learn the Asper Invocations Intricate Recite. That was because giving her the Asper Invocations Intricate Recite could actually hurt her even more.

All internal martial intricate formulas had unbroken rules, the practitioners had to master them and be able to use them in the shortest possible time with their best understanding. That is why the same complicated formula can end differently and affect the purity of the vital internal energy produced for different practitioners.

Although the internal martial intricate formula was able to realize the martial progress of the practitioners, it could not be learned carelessly.

If practitioners advanced too quickly without first fully understanding the essence of the complicated formula of the previous level, they would suffer in the next level and also affect the purity of the internal energy. If practitioners were exposed for too long at the lower levels of the complicated formula, it would affect their future martial development and their internal energy strength.

Therefore, many practitioners from the martial clan would spend years building their martial foundation and martial comprehension, it even took him years to ponder and research certain internal martial intricate formulas!

But of course, once they laid their hands on the precious internal martial intricate formula, they might not be able to resist the temptation. The martial masters of the major martial clans in the martial fraternity knew the risks of the internal martial intricate formula. That's why they only give it to suitable learners or even just the next leader candidate.

This leads to jealousy and many boxers will ignore the risk of practicing the complicated formula of internal martial arts because everyone wants to be stronger than their rivals, believe that they are the ones who have the intelligence and talent for those skills.

And as time went on, due to the many conflicts in the fraternity, many internal martial intricate formulas were lost; it became a greedy thing for boxers to lay their hands on. Even the previous old warnings were lost on most boxers in pursuit of stronger skills.

If Ji Lingfeng was struck with the Asper Prayer or if it was against her existing internal martial formula, the Complicated Pronunciation of Sacred Charity, her reaction would be terrifying.

He had to find a way to combine Holy Amalgamate and Aspire Invocations first. It would probably take weeks and even years for him to safely start training in Aspire Invocations.

Once he started reciting the Asper Invocations Intricate Recite, he could not return anymore. And this strange old man could only teach him the complicated basic formula of the Aspire Prayer as a solution to his internal injuries. Without seeing and knowing what is contained in the later stages of the Asper Prayer, it would be a dangerous practice.

Therefore, he would never believe that this strange old man had not tried to harm him.

Perhaps Yi Tianxing had seen what was bothering him. He laughed, "Don't worry too much."

If he wasn't worried, it wouldn't be possible. He was almost fainted by those terrifying thoughts and was afraid that he would lose or cause his martial power to deteriorate!

Suddenly, Ji Lingfeng said coldly, "Since you already know that I am related to Ji Yunzhong then do you know that you are the one who caused his death? How cruel you are. Now you're trying to hurt me! "

Yi Tianxing was surprised, "Your father is no longer in this world? Young lady, there must be a misunderstanding! I didn't kill your father."

Ji Lingfeng began to tremble as she said, "He was killed by Gu Tianle twenty years ago and because of this victory, the boxers in the fraternity gave him the title of Warrior God. That's what everyone thinks. The real cause of her death was her injuries you caused her twenty-five years ago that she never recovered."

Yi Tianxing asked, "So you want to avenge your father?"

Yi Ping was shocked to learn that his father was indirectly killed by his father.

She remembers that her mother had indirectly died when she tried her life. The real culprit was Gongsun Bai who had caused him to suffer severe injuries before. That's why he secretly vowed to find the real culprit behind his father's disappearance and his mother's death indirectly …

...****************...