Narration System for the Journey of Martial Arts

Page 30

Normally, Huashan Sect disciples only enter and exit through the left and right side gates to maintain the operation of the Ancestral Hall.

The main halls on both sides have also been expanded to accommodate at least four or five hundred people at the same time for sacrificial activities.

Beneath the main hall's porch stand nine vermilion pillars, majestic and imposing. White jade railings have been added to the veranda, and the ground has been replaced with black stone slabs that exude an even more solemn and dignified aura.

At this moment, Yue Buqun held the Emperor's Sword in his hand, wearing a vermilion Taoist robe, with Yue Yuchen and Linghu Chong following closely behind him.

At this time, all the direct disciples of the Huashan Sect, including Ning Zhongze, could only kowtow outside the Ancestral Hall.

Under the guidance of Feng Qingyang, the most senior member of the Huashan Sect, Yue Buqun led his eldest and second disciples in bowing three times and nine times to the ancestral tablet.

Then the Emperor's Sword was placed on the altar. Together with the previous imperial edict, it received offerings from Mount Hua.

After Yue Buqun offered incense, Linghu Chong, the acting sect leader, followed closely behind, and then everyone else offered incense according to the rules. Only after the last disciple offered incense did everyone leave the ancestral hall.

At this time, the two most important places of the Huashan Sect, the Sutra Repository, were guarded by Yue Yuchen year-round, while the Ancestral Hall was guarded by Feng Qingyang year-round, with the three senior uncles taking turns patrolling.

After everyone had left the main hall and the doors were closed, Yue Buqun finally let out a breath and a slight smile appeared on his face. Now, the Huashan Sect was completely secure under the Zhu Ming dynasty.

With the imperial edict and the Emperor's Sword, even if future emperors do not bestow further titles, the Huashan Sect can continue to be passed down peacefully.

The Emperor's Sword itself is a symbol of imperial power. This was the best reward that Emperor Wuzong of Ming bestowed upon the Huashan Sect. With this sword, it was a symbol that during the Ming Dynasty, the Huashan Sect was a sect that all future emperors had to recognize.

Yue Buqun also knew that the symbolic meaning of the Emperor's Sword was greater than its practical significance. He enshrined it in the Ancestral Hall as a tool to intimidate all sects and tell the world: Don't mess with me!

Once used, the emperor would have an excuse to take it back, and at that point, obtaining another emperor's sword would be virtually impossible.

At this moment, all the important figures of the Huashan Sect were present. Yue Buqun looked around and said, "Chong'er has been acting as the sect leader for some time now. Taking this opportunity, I would like to send invitations to all the major sects to formally announce Chong'er's status as the successor."

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Yue Yuchen, who shrugged and said, "Then Second Junior Brother will have a tough time from now on!"

Everyone laughed good-naturedly. Yue Buqun patted his eldest disciple on the shoulder, feeling extremely gratified...

"Chong'er, choose an auspicious day as soon as possible and send out invitations to all sects to inform them of the situation."

Soon after, disciples of the Huashan Sect went to various sects and sent invitations to Shaolin, Wudang, the Beggars' Sect, the Five Mountains Sword Sect, and other smaller sects: On the eighth day of the fourth month of the sixteenth year of Zhengde, the Huashan Sect will hold a succession ceremony and invites all sects to attend.

………………

April 8th, the sixteenth year of Zhengde.

At the foot of Mount Hua, heroes from all walks of life gathered, creating a bustling and lively scene.

To show the importance of the event and to prevent any deliberate disturbances, Yue Yuchen personally greeted the martial arts figures from various sects who came to observe the ceremony at the massive mountain gate archway.

Since Dongfang Bubai's defeat and death at Blackwood Cliff, all sects have followed the rules and shown the utmost respect to this master who is now known as the number one martial artist in the world. No one wants to test his current level of martial arts.

As they ascended the mountain, disciples of the Huashan Sect guarded various points along the way, guiding the heroes to the Sword Qi Hall.

As Yue Yuchen and Daoist Chongxu ascended the mountain, the Huashan Sect's Inheritance Ceremony began.

Yue Buqun and his wife sat at the head of the table, flanked by Fang Sheng of Shaolin and Chongxu of Wudang. Below them were the Beggars' Clan and the other sects of the Five Mountains Alliance. As for the smaller sects, they could only squeeze in at the back to watch.

Faced with the imperial edict and the Emperor's sword that had been brought out, everyone subconsciously slowed their breathing, knowing what this meant.

Seeing that the auspicious time had arrived, Yue Buqun stood up and cupped his hands to the surrounding people, saying, "Fellow martial artists, today is the grand ceremony for the succession of the next generation of leaders of my Huashan Sect. I am very grateful to all of you for coming."

After speaking, he bowed to the surroundings, clasped his hands in thanks, and then picked up the sect leader's seal from the table, looking at Linghu Chong and saying, "Chong'er, please step forward."

"Today, with the Emperor's Sword above and our patriarchs below, Linghu Chong, are you willing to uphold righteousness, glorify our sect, and not betray the legacy of our patriarchs?"

"This disciple is willing," Linghu Chong said, kneeling before the portrait of his patriarch.

"Today, with the Emperor's Sword above and our revered masters below, Linghu Chong, are you willing to uphold justice, protect your fellow disciples, and safeguard the nation and its people?"

"This disciple is willing," Linghu Chong kowtowed again.

"Today, with the Emperor's Sword above and the revered patriarchs below, Linghu Chong, are you willing to help your fellow practitioners, resist the demonic cult, and uphold justice?"

"This disciple is willing," Linghu Chong said, bowing three times.

Holding the seal, Yue Buqun bowed to those around him and said, "Everyone, from this day forward, Linghu Chong will be the next leader of our Huashan Sect. I ask that you all bear witness to this. If anyone disrupts the Huashan Sect's lineage in the future, all of you will join forces to punish them."

After Linghu Chong stood up and accepted the sect leader's seal, everyone congratulated him, praising him as "a promising young man" and "a model of righteousness," among other things.

After Yue Buqun and Linghu Chong had dealt with their fellow martial arts practitioners, they were about to invite everyone to a banquet when they heard a voice from outside the door: "Imperial decree has arrived!"

Amidst the uproar, a eunuch dressed in a bright red robe walked in first, followed by local government officials.

The eunuch glanced around, nodded to Yue Yuchen, and immediately stretched out his right hand, revealing a bright yellow imperial edict: "By imperial decree, Yue Buqun, head of the Huashan Sect, receive this decree!"

Upon hearing that the eunuch had already knelt down, and that the eunuch was none other than Sun Zhu, Yue Buqun nodded...

"There is an imperial decree"

"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: 'There is now the Huashan Sect, which inherits the lineage of the Western Mountain, upholds righteousness, and helps the country in times of difficulty. They are truly a model of the righteous path, and I am delighted with them.'"

"The Huashan Sect made great contributions in the battle against Prince Ning's rebellion, yet they remained humble despite their achievements. Later, they made great contributions in rescuing the emperor, which is of paramount importance!"

"Now, Yue Buqun, the head of the Huashan Sect, is hereby appointed as the Grand Master of Changchun Yandao, in charge of the Quanzhen Dao lineage. This is the imperial decree."

"This humble Taoist accepts the imperial decree and expresses his gratitude. Long live the Emperor!" Yue Buqun kowtowed.

After he stood up and accepted the imperial edict, the eunuch cupped his hands and said, "Master Yue, congratulations! You have rendered meritorious service in saving the emperor. From now on, you will be remembered by the emperor!"

Yue Buqun repeatedly said he dared not, stating that it was his duty.

………………

You rewrote the fate of the Huashan Sect in this world, making it truly reign supreme and stand at the pinnacle.

In the crowd, Yue Yuchen felt a sudden urge, as he sensed a suction force coming from within his body. Before he could react, his body was already surrounded by a silvery-white glow.

Amidst the gasps of the crowd, a flash of silvery-white light disappeared.

Witnessed by martial arts heroes and imperial envoys, Yue Yuchen soared into the sky amidst a silvery-white glow.

"This is... ascension to immortality!" someone exclaimed.

Chapter 58 The Beggar on the Verge of Starvation

"Hungry, so hungry, extremely hungry!!!"

This was Su Yuchen's first feeling since waking up. His stomach was empty, and the feeling of hunger made his stomach feel like it was on fire. He was so weak that he could barely open his eyes, and he couldn't even manage a bitter smile.

With his last shred of consciousness, Su Yuchen couldn't help but think: Am I going to starve to death right from the start?

As Su Yuchen tried to concentrate, the surrounding environment gradually came into his ears. Su Yuchen didn't know what was happening, he only knew that the surrounding environment was extremely noisy, with many footsteps rushing back and forth, many people cursing and swearing, and the sounds of rummaging through drawers and cabinets rising and falling.

The next second, a whooshing sound came crashing down on Su Yuchen. He tried to dodge, but he didn't even have the strength to move. With a "bang," a round lump landed next to Su Yuchen, hit the wall, rolled around, and the smell that brushed past Su Yuchen's nose screamed to him: It's a flatbread! It's a flatbread!

The next second, his body instinctively urges Su Yuchen to open his eyes. The instant he sees the flatbread, his taste buds and every cell in his body rejoice. Driving his already limited strength, he quickly reaches out and grabs the flatbread. In no time, the flatbread is already at his mouth.

Su Yuchen had to force himself to tightly grip his right hand with his left. He knew that in a state of extreme hunger, instinctive reactions would only hasten his death.

Fortunately, although his cultivation was gone, he had not lost his original state of mind. Reason eventually overcame instinct. Su Yuchen carefully broke off a piece of bread and put it in his mouth, letting the frantically secreted saliva soak the bread before slowly chewing it.

As soon as the flatbread entered his stomach, Su Yuchen could even feel his stomach churning, as if telling him to have more, more. Ignoring his stomach's unreasonable demands, Su Yuchen broke off small pieces of flatbread and put them into his mouth little by little to prevent himself from eating too much or too fast.

[Because of your usurpation, the body that was originally in a deep sleep didn't eat for a whole day. As the first transmigrator who almost starved to death, young man, you have made history.]

It wasn't until much later, after he had finished half a pancake and his stomach finally felt less uncomfortable, that Su Yuchen was able to look at the hints given in the narration of 'After Ascension'...

You have completed The Smiling, Proud Wanderer, making the Huashan Sect truly reign supreme in the martial world.

You have entered a time-space turbulence.

[System energy is low, body automatically acts as energy replenishment, selects the nearest 'anchor point', jumping...]

Looking back, as soon as I entered the void, a narration sounded, and then a silvery-white passage appeared before me, radiating silver light. After that... after that, I knew nothing more, as if everything had stopped.

When I woke up again, this is what I looked like now.

"Is this the consequence of insufficient energy? My physical body is being used as fuel for time travel?" Su Yuchen thought to himself.

Shaking his head, Su Yuchen realized there was no point in thinking about it anymore, so he had the mood to look at other things. As he looked around, Su Yuchen couldn't help but smile bitterly. No wonder he was so hungry. So this body belonged to a beggar?

His hands were filthy, his fingers were black, and his fingernails were full of black dirt. When the evening wind blew, more sand and dirt were blown onto his hair, clothes, face, and even his flatbread. Even without a mirror, Su Yuchen knew that he looked like a beggar at this moment.

Su Yuchen spat twice, removing the dust from the corner of his mouth. He then patted the flatbread to remove the loose dirt before slowly chewing it. He glanced around, wondering where he was in a market town. It seemed that the town had encountered bandits.

Because everyone in the town except himself had their doors and windows tightly shut, and no one was outside, only a group of black-clad bandits in front of Su Yuchen, who were constantly cursing and swearing. These people were carrying steel knives and looked like they were not to be trifled with. More importantly, the dozens of horses parked on the street undoubtedly proved the strength of these bandits.

After all, in the Central Plains, which bandit group could be so powerful as to mobilize dozens of horses at the same time? Apart from the army and those from beyond the Great Wall, Su Yuchen couldn't think of any other.

"Could these bandits be soldiers in disguise? What are they after?" Watching the group of people going in and out of a pancake shop, Su Yuchen dismissed his initial guess.

After all, if it were an army, what they needed were wealth and heads, then these townspeople would definitely have been gathered together, waiting to be slaughtered; if it were bandits, they would never waste time in a pancake shop, their primary target would definitely be the wealthy households in the town, not the poor households without any profit.

Reasonable guesses are meant to demonstrate your wisdom; baseless guesses are simply wishful thinking.

Su Yuchen curled his lip, unmoved by the narration system's mockery. Having experienced the previous world, Su Yuchen understood that he didn't need to get angry with a system that couldn't communicate at all; that would only make him feel powerless and furious.

........................

"Search thoroughly, don't miss a single place. Even if we have to tear this place down, we'll find it for you!" An angry roar interrupted Su Yuchen's reverie. Looking up, he saw the only man in black who hadn't moved from his horse waving his whip, looking extremely angry. Another man in black standing beside him retreated hesitantly.

The next second, the man's whip lashed the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. Then, he pointed to the corpse on the ground and said, "Two men, examine him thoroughly from head to toe, don't miss a single hair. The rest of you, break the roof beams, the heated brick bed, and the blue bricks on the ground into pieces and search carefully."

"Yes."

Soon, two people responded and went over. They immediately stripped the man of his clothes, shoes, and socks, and even untied the hair bun in his hair to search carefully. After a moment, the two examining the body looked at each other, raised their heads, and shook their heads at the man on horseback. The man looked disappointed, waved his hand, and let the two join the demolition team.

With each clanging and clattering sound, the anger of these men in black grew. In addition to the tables, chairs, wooden cabinets, and rice containers that had already been thrown out, the bowls, dishes, and clothes from the pancake shop were also thrown out. With a clang, a bowl smashed on the ground, chipped but not completely broken, and rolled toward Su Yuchen. Finally, it stopped after spinning around a few times a few steps away from him.

After a long commotion, the sky grew increasingly dark, but the men in black still refused to give up. They dismantled the doors and windows of the pancake shop and used clothes and other flammable materials soaked in lamp oil to make torches, illuminating the pancake shop that had already been torn to pieces. It seemed that they had no intention of leaving at all.

Looking at the half-eaten sesame seed cake in his hand, Su Yuchen desperately needed water to quench his thirst. The cake was too dry, and Su Yuchen found it difficult to swallow. However, he huddled in the street corner and refused to move. Firstly, he didn't have much strength left, and secondly, these men in black didn't seem like the type to reason with a beggar. He didn't want to be implicated and killed here instead of starving to death.

After a while, it had completely darkened. The group of men in black who had finished demolishing the house looked at each other, all with helpless expressions, clearly having gained nothing. They had turned the entire pancake shop upside down; not a single intact brick was left.

“Brother Zhou, we really can’t find that thing. We’ve searched every place we could. Look at this now…” one of the men in black said, bowing to the man on horseback.

Although the man in black, called Brother Zhou, looked grim, he knew that his brothers had indeed done their best, and he saw it all. He could only sigh bitterly and wave his hand, saying, "Let's call it a day!" Upon hearing this, the men in black mounted their horses and roared out of the town.

Once he was sure the men in black had gone far away, Su Yuchen, using the torchlight, was about to get up and pick up the broken bowl to find some water when he heard a soft groan. He looked at the 'corpse' that hadn't moved at all with a surprised expression.

Sure enough, the next moment, under the moonlight, the mangled corpse began to move on its own.

Su Yuchen watched as it shakily stood up, looked around, and instead of leaving, bent down and began picking up the sesame cakes from the ground. Even Su Yuchen was moved. What kind of spirit was this? Was it truly a case of loving what you do? Even though it was about to die, it still picked up these sesame cakes. How much did it love sesame cakes?!

Chapter 59 The Mysterious Iron Token Appears, Revealing Where He Is

The next moment, Su Yuchen realized he had been overthinking things. The corpse wasn't looking for pancakes; it was searching for something. Su Yuchen wasn't in a hurry anymore and just watched curiously as the corpse picked up one, broke it open, and then casually threw it away.

The 'corpse' hadn't found what it wanted, so it moved even more frantically, its hands moving faster, as if it were about to despair. The 'corpse' roared, "Pancake, pancake, my pancake!"

Staring at the 'corpse,' he diligently examined all the sesame cakes, but still hadn't found what he was looking for. A thought struck Su Yuchen. He looked at the sesame cake in his hand and exclaimed in surprise! Shaking the sesame cake in his hand, Su Yuchen's eyes were full of curiosity. He squeezed the sesame cake again: "Could this be the one I'm looking for?"

Immediately, Su Yuchen's face showed an expression of "I knew it," and "My luck is off the charts."

His fingers had already pinched a hard protrusion in the sesame seed cake, which, if he was not mistaken, should be what the 'corpse' was looking for.

As soon as Su Yuchen made a sound, the 'corpse' of the pancake shop owner noticed him, and then saw the pancake in his hand, letting out a roar: "Pancake, give me back my pancake, give me back my pancake!"

It roared and crawled toward Su Yuchen as if it were going mad.

The 'corpse' completely disregarded the judge's pen still stuck in its abdomen. With a series of movements, its entire abdomen was covered in blood, leaving a long trail of blood on the ground, and the pancakes along the way were stained with blood.

"Hey, don't get my sesame seed cakes dirty!" Su Yuchen frowned and shouted.

The 'corpse' froze, its face and hands covered in blood and dust, its狰狞 (zhengning - ferocious/hideous) appearance even more terrifying in the night.

Ignoring everything else, the 'corpse' crawled up to Su Yuchen and reached out to grab his ankle: "Give me back my pancake!"

Su Yuchen rolled his eyes, chewing on a sesame seed cake, and pulled his ankle back to avoid the blood-stained hand: "What do you mean your sesame seed cake? This is my sesame seed cake!"

The 'corpse' that had crawled up to him was stunned, probably never having seen such a fearless little beggar before; Su Yuchen also looked at him and shook the sesame seed cake in his hand.

He mumbled indistinctly, "What's in this sesame seed cake?"

The 'corpse' was stunned for a moment, then a fierce killing intent flashed in its eyes, and a terrifying smile appeared on its face. In what it thought was a kind tone, it said, "Little brother, give me the sesame cakes, and I'll give you money—enough to buy lots of sesame cakes!"

"Why should I buy a sesame seed cake? Can't I just buy a roast chicken?" Su Yuchen took a bite of the sesame seed cake and looked at him like he was an idiot.

"Uh..." Perhaps because he had never encountered such a cheeky beggar before, the 'corpse' was at a loss for words for a moment.

He paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Sure, of course, I'll give you lots of money so you can buy roast chicken. Now, give me the sesame seed cake."

As he spoke, he reached out and hooked the sesame seed cake.

Su Yuchen dodged with his right hand: "Even if you die, the money is mine! Besides, are you sure you still have any money?"

After saying that, Su Yuchen pointed to the ruins behind him, looking at him with the eyes of someone looking at an idiot, full of pity.