FIMA Ch118: Learning Martial Arts

Tang Sheng looked at Gu Siyuan, then at the two Xie brothers, the corners of his mouth ticking up slightly.

If it were anyone else, it might have been a self-deprecating smile. But for a guy like Tang Sheng—who never believed he was wrong and always thought the fault lay with others—this was naturally a sneer, mocking Gu Siyuan and the others for putting on a pretension.

Next, he channeled his internal energy into both palms, struck a combat stance, and said coldly, “In the end, it’s strength that does the talking. Since that’s the case, the three of you can come at me together!”

“…” Gu Siyuan raised an eyebrow.

Don’t just pick opponents at random. As someone without the strength to even truss a chicken, how could he possibly get involved in this kind of battle? He very briskly took a few steps to the side, distancing himself from the three of them.

Meanwhile, the Xie brothers had already engaged Tang Sheng in a fierce melee.

Shen Luoshuang and Situ Feng stood to the side, their expressions conflicted.

Truth be told, they naturally agreed with Xie Chenyun killing Sun Yanyan. However, they also couldn’t raise their hands against Tang Sheng. This was especially true for Shen Luoshuang, who held deep affections for Tang Sheng. As for Situ Feng, because he deeply loved Shen Luoshuang, how could he possibly do something that would put her in a difficult position?

At this moment, Gu Siyuan, standing off to the side, suddenly gave a signal to his shadow guards.

A light breeze stirred.

Pfft… A soft sound rang out.

The noise was extremely faint. However, everyone present possessed internal energy and could naturally catch it. It was just that they didn’t pay it much mind, their complete attention focused on the intense battle in the center of the courtyard.

But then, another sound followed—the loud, sharp clatter of a sword hitting the ground: Clang…

This sound was obvious enough and quite jarring to the ears.

The first person to look toward the source of the noise was Shen Luoshuang. Then, she directly screamed, “Dead… she’s dead!”

Situ Feng immediately turned his head.

Then came Tang Sheng. The moment his gaze swept over, his entire body froze, even momentarily forgetting the battle at hand.

Xie Chenyun’s thrusting sword couldn’t be halted in time and directly slashed the clothing across Tang Sheng’s chest.

Only then did Tang Sheng violently dodge away. After steadying his footing, he impatiently dashed straight toward that spot.

Xie Chenyun and Xie Mingkong furrowed their brows, withdrawing their respective longswords, and did not continue fighting. Out of the corners of their eyes, they too had clearly seen what had just transpired over there.

Sun Yanyan’s slender body lay collapsed on the ground. Her beautiful face was a sickly pale blue, her eyes wide open and her cherry-sized mouth slightly parted, as if she wanted to say something but had permanently lost the chance.

On her abdomen, there was a narrow line of blood that was rapidly widening, continuously bleeding outward.

It was left by a phantom-like dagger strike just now. It seemed casual, but was actually extremely deliberate—that single strike perfectly severed her meridians and pierced her dantian, scattering all her internal energy and causing ceaseless bleeding.

The ones who made the move were, naturally, Gu Siyuan’s shadow guards.

In this Wuxia world where protagonists had miraculous encounters and aristocratic families had ancient legacies, the standard internal cultivation methods the shadow guards learned could only be considered extremely ordinary. If they were to duel one-on-one with top-tier Wuxia masters, they would naturally be no match.

But when it came to the art of sudden, explosive assassinations—especially against a second-rate master like Sun Yanyan—they were the most clean and efficient of all.

Tang Sheng looked at the shadow guard whose dagger tip was still dripping blood, his gaze profound to the extreme.

But his gaze only lingered for a moment before finally turning to Gu Siyuan. He said slowly, “Yanyan was just a little girl. Her personality was unrestrained and stubborn, but she was also innocent. She just happened to run into me, she…”

Gu Siyuan raised an eyebrow, directly interrupting him with a clear voice: “She also killed a lot of people. Among those murdered victims, there might have also been innocent and pretty young girls exactly like the one you just described. That girl might have also been some young man’s beloved.”

The romance you experience is not the only romance in this world, nor is your affection the most precious thing, capable of overriding the life and death of others.

“…” The words Tang Sheng had been brewing were completely choked back down.

He held his breath right there, unable to swallow it and unable to spit it out. The resentment and fury that had accumulated in his belly clumped together even tighter, feeling as if it were about to violently explode.

He glared at Gu Siyuan, his palms and feet shifting as he fell into a stance. “It’s useless to say more right now. Since we are all people of the martial underworld, let our skills decide who is superior. If I cannot personally defeat you under my palms today to avenge Yanyan, then I, Tang Sheng, have lived as a man in vain!”

Xie Mingkong immediately widened his eyes in anticipation. This friend his older brother had brought back seemed to have a very unusual background; maybe he was the direct disciple of one of the four great sects. He wondered how a fight between him and Tang Sheng would turn out?

“…”

Xie Chenyun, however, fell silent.

He looked at Tang Sheng and thought to himself: Making bets with things like this so casually? Then I’m afraid you really won’t be able to be a man from now on. Gu Siyuan won’t even fight you.

Sure enough, the very next moment.

Gu Siyuan raised an eyebrow slightly. “A martial arts duel is naturally out of the question. Since entering the Wuxia world, this one has never exchanged blows with anyone…”

Tang Sheng was furious. “You look down on me?!”

“This one simply does not know martial arts at all.” Gu Siyuan calmly finished his sentence.

“Don’t know martial arts?” Tang Sheng narrowed his eyes. “Even so, what of it? Normally, I might not kill an ordinary person who lacks the strength to truss a chicken. But you scoundrel have committed a heinous crime, killing Yanyan with despicable sneak attacks! I don’t care if you know martial arts or not; today I am bound to strike you dead under my palms.”

Gu Siyuan nodded, saying faintly, “You have said many nauseating things tonight, but only those words just now were truly sincere.”

“However, since you want to use martial force to bully the weak, then… me using superior numbers to bully the few shouldn’t be a problem either.”

The moment his voice fell.

Clap! He clapped his hands together.

The men in black who had been hidden on the walls all leaped down. Raising their weapons, they blocked in front of him, forming an airtight shield to guarantee his safety.

But this wasn’t the end of it.

Afterward, Gu Siyuan looked toward Xie Chenyun. “Brother Xie, are you interested in continuing your previously unfinished battle with this man?”

“…” Xie Chenyun’s mouth twitched slightly.

Then, he naturally nodded fiercely and stepped forward.

Tang Sheng stared at Gu Siyuan, his expression changing. He had never imagined there could be someone so brazen and shameless in this world.

However, even if he wanted to stop now, the people on the opposite side wouldn’t agree to it.

Upon receiving Gu Siyuan’s signal, those black-clad shadow guards had already formed a battle array and attacked with impenetrable coordination.

Xie Chenyun was already injured, so at this moment, he only coordinated from the periphery. But even so, this was already enough to put immense pressure on Tang Sheng.

The martial arts hierarchy of the Great Zhou underworld was ranked in descending order: Innate Grandmaster, Ordinary Grandmaster, First-rate Master, Second-rate Master, Third-rate Master…

An Innate Grandmaster had reached the absolute pinnacle of martial arts and internal cultivation, even evolving it to create their own martial “Dao” (Path). From then on, they could sense the subtle workings of heaven and earth and prolong their lifespan. There were only three people in the entire world who had reached this realm.

An Ordinary Grandmaster had cultivated a specific martial art to its absolute limit and comprehended a trace of the “Dao,” but this trace of “Dao” belonged to the cultivation method itself, not something they created. However, such people were equally extremely rare; they were either sect leaders or senior experts enshrined by aristocratic families for many years. The youngest among them was already over thirty-five years old.

Below them were the First-rate Masters. Although they had cultivated their martial arts to a state of pure proficiency, they hadn’t been able to comprehend any intent of the Dao. Some hadn’t even cultivated that far, but because the martial arts they practiced belonged to the “peerless” category, they could rely on their uniquely profound internal energy to remain undefeated against other first-rate masters. Therefore, there were slightly more people in the first-rate master tier, and its composition was a bit more complex. There were a few young people in their teens or twenties, but almost all of them hailed from major sects or aristocratic families.

Although Tang Sheng had only been cultivating for a few short months, relying on the immense power of the peerless Innate Heaven and Earth Cultivation Arts, he could also be considered among the mid-to-lower ranks of the first-rate masters.

Meanwhile, Xie Chenyun had cultivated his family’s martial arts for years, and with his talent, he had naturally reached a state of pure proficiency. However, the Xie family’s martial arts methods were truly average. Not to mention comparing them to the Innate Heaven and Earth Cultivation Arts, they even fell short of the methods of other ordinary sects. Thus, he could only be ranked at the very bottom of the first-rate masters.

Finally, like the shadow guards beside Gu Siyuan, the common martial arts methods they practiced were even inferior to the Xie family’s. Therefore, each of them could only be considered to have barely touched the edges of a first-rate master, having reached the absolute peak of the second-rate masters.

However, at this moment, eight shadow guards plus the two Xie brothers swarmed him all at once.

Although Tang Sheng’s martial arts were one or two minor tiers higher than theirs, there was no fundamental gap. This gap could be bridged—and even overwhelmed—by sheer numbers.

Amidst the flashing blades and sword glares.

With a smack, Tang Sheng’s chest was kicked by someone unknown. His figure became unsteady, and he fell straight backward, simultaneously violently coughing up a mouthful of fresh blood.

The shadow guards didn’t even lift their heads; they continued their assault toward Tang Sheng, intending to kill him directly with the next strike.

Since this man had shown killing intent toward His Majesty, he naturally deserved ten thousand deaths. The best outcome was for him to die violently right on the spot.

“Big Brother Tang!”

Who would have expected that right at this moment, Shen Luoshuang, who had been observing the situation on the field the entire time, rushed over at an unimaginable speed, using her own body to block a shadow guard’s fatal sword strike.

Looking at the fresh blood before his eyes, and the beautiful young girl collapsing into his arms, Tang Sheng’s expression drastically changed.

However, Gu Siyuan’s group of shadow guards were not the type to show tender affection for women; the next wave of attacks arrived as usual.

Suddenly, an incomparably gentle breeze swept down from above, brushing past everyone present.

The lanterns under the eaves swayed gently.

Gu Siyuan stood under the tree with his hands behind his back, the strands of hair falling by his cheeks also fluttering slightly.

He was in no mood to brush them aside. He was currently looking at the white-clad figure who had suddenly appeared in front of Shen Luoshuang and Tang Sheng, single-handedly repelling all the shadow guards, and he furrowed his brow in displeasure.

The figure in white also looked toward him, speaking up: “Heaven cares for every living thing; why must Your Excellency drive them to utter extermination? Let people off where you can!”

This voice was crisp and melodious, carrying a hint of delicate charm. It clearly belonged to a young woman of seventeen or eighteen. Yet, observing her move just now, her cultivation was not far from the Grandmaster realm, which was truly shocking.

Even Tang Sheng, who was still holding the injured Shen Luoshuang, couldn’t help but look at this white-clad woman.

Gu Siyuan’s expression remained unchanged. He simply asked, “I have not yet asked for Your Excellency’s esteemed name?”

“Outer Heaven Pavilion, Xiao Hanxin.” The woman in white bowed gracefully.

Although her expression and tone were both indifferent, it wasn’t hard to hear a hint of aloof arrogance within them.

Afterward, with a slight movement of true qi in her palms, she grabbed one person in each hand, gracefully floating away with Tang Sheng and Shen Luoshuang.

Seeing this, Situ Feng immediately gave chase at top speed.

In the courtyard of the Xie Family Manor, only a few people remained.

“Outer Heaven Pavilion?” Xie Chenyun muttered thoughtfully, unable to stop himself from glancing at Gu Siyuan.

Gu Siyuan’s expression was quite placid. He knew the original plot through the system, so naturally, he understood this as well.

The Outer Heaven Pavilion.

A legendary martial arts holy land, ethereal and elusive, mysterious and unfathomable. During times of peace, the disciples of this sect rarely walked in the mortal realm; the people of the world sought them out but could never find them.

But whenever a chaotic era arose, the disciples of the Outer Heaven Pavilion would actively descend upon the world, choosing the “True Dragon Emperor” they acknowledged to assist them. And in past historical records, the figures of Outer Heaven Pavilion disciples did indeed seem to appear during the founding of a couple of dynasties. Therefore, people often said they “chose a ruler on behalf of Heaven,” occupying the ultimate moral high ground.

In the original plot, the Outer Heaven Pavilion chose Tang Sheng, and eventually, this white-clad beauty named Xiao Hanxin also became one of Tang Sheng’s lovers.

Naturally, Gu Siyuan didn’t hold any awe toward these illusory rumors. Especially not after they had chosen Tang Sheng.

However, the shadow guards knelt uniformly on the ground to accept their punishment. “Your subordinates failed in our duties and deserve ten thousand deaths.”

Gu Siyuan slightly raised his hand, saying casually, “No matter. The opponent this time was indeed beyond your capabilities. That fellow Tang Sheng is but a madman; his life or death isn’t that important. Step down for now.”

“Yes.” The shadow guards stood up in perfect unison, their figures moving as they vanished from everyone’s sight.

Xie Chenyun walked up beside him, asking curiously, “Since it doesn’t matter, why do you still look like you’re in a bad mood?”

Gu Siyuan stood with his hands behind his back, his voice crisp and cold: “I was merely pondering a conclusion that makes one displeased.”

With those looks, this foolish ruler truly seemed quite distinguished.

“Hm? What conclusion?” Xie Chenyun raised an eyebrow.

“Knowing martial arts is very important. Someone else’s strength is, ultimately, someone else’s. No matter how much power and influence I hold, or how extraordinary my strategies are, in a situation like today’s, I am powerless. I could only watch helplessly as Tang Sheng was taken away.” Gu Siyuan said as he walked forward.

Eventually, he stopped at the spot where Tang Sheng had previously been knocked down. Ignoring the silver taels, porcelain bottles, and other things scattered on the ground, he simply bent over and picked up a piece of pale yellow silk cloth, continuing, “But if I knew martial arts, everything would be different.”

These words were spoken with utmost solemnity and sincerity, and they made perfect sense. They should have evoked a sense of deep reflection.

But as the listener, Xie Chenyun curled his lip dismissively. “…”

How difficult and arduous is it to practice martial arts? You are the mortal emperor, sitting upon the world. The imperial palace has countless experts, and the royal library naturally lacks no profound martial arts manuals. If you truly wanted to learn martial arts, it would be a hundred times easier for you than for anyone else. Yet you’ve lived nearly twenty years achieving nothing on the martial path, only caring about seeking pleasure and lusting after beauty. Having a sudden whim now? You’ve long missed the optimal window for forging your foundation and practicing martial arts. You really can only just ‘think’ about it.

Gu Siyuan saw right through what Xie Chenyun was thinking at a single glance. However, at this moment, he had no intention of arguing with this foolish mission target.

Instead, he held up the precious silk in his hand, his mood seemingly quite good, and said to Xie Chenyun, “Thanks. I’ll treat you to a meal later.”

“…” Xie Chenyun.

As stated before, this foolish ruler owned the world and possessed the four seas, naturally standing high above others. What matter or object in this world was worthy of his special regard, let alone specifically giving thanks for it?

Now he just picked up a bloodstained rag, and he wants to treat him to a meal?

Xie Chenyun furrowed his brows. After a long moment, suddenly recalling an awkward scenario, his face shifted between pale and green.

Could this foolish ruler be doing this on purpose?

Does he just want to use the excuse of a ‘meal’ to continue making contact with me?

This foolish ruler truly is a complete and utter lecher—not only loving beautiful women, but men as well!

Xie Chenyun’s dark eyes darted, and he deliberately asked, “Brother Gu, what precious thing did you pick up? I remember it seemed to have dropped from Tang Sheng just now?”

Gu Siyuan nodded. “Indeed. Your first sword strike tore his clothes, and in the ensuing melee, you kicked him, so these things fell out.”

“…” Xie Chenyun narrowed his beautiful phoenix eyes.

He definitely has an ulterior motive.

How could this foolish ruler, a man who knows absolutely nothing about martial arts, observe his fighting process so meticulously? If there was no other meaning behind it, who would believe that?

Xie Chenyun completely lost interest in continuing his inquiry. For a dignified, seven-foot-tall man to be coveted by another man… who could possibly be in a good mood after that?

Gu Siyuan actually spoke a rare extra sentence: “This item is indeed quite precious. If Brother Xie is interested, you can admire it together with me.”

“…” Xie Chenyun’s mouth twitched slightly. “No need. You can keep it and look at it yourself.”

Such a tiny piece of cloth, yet we have to ‘admire it together’? When the time comes, wouldn’t we have to be shoulder-to-shoulder, hand-to-hand? Then you, the foolish ruler, would have achieved your goal, wouldn’t you?

Tch, no wonder the country is going to ruin. Even the excuses he makes up to coax people are so brainless. Truly stupid.

Xie Chenyun didn’t want to continue tangling with this person and directly turned his face away, his gaze landing on Sun Yanyan’s fallen corpse.

She had been dead for some time now. The blood flowing around her had coagulated, her slender body was stiff, and faint lividity spots had even begun to appear.

Xie Chenyun curled the corners of his mouth into a shallow smile.

He didn’t have a hobby of humiliating or torturing people, nor did he possess an obsession with having to exact revenge with his own hands. Being able to end things before dawn and swiftly give an answer to the deceased members of the Xie family—this was already more than enough.

In all this, Gu Siyuan’s contribution was the greatest.

Even though this foolish ruler’s motives were questionable and harbored ill intentions. But then he thought again—in the dead of night, for someone as powerless and incomparably noble as Gu Siyuan to specifically leave the palace for his sake, even personally stepping into a dangerous place…

Xie Chenyun licked his lips, his emotions somewhat complicated for a moment.

After a long time, he finally turned his head and said sincerely to Gu Siyuan, “Actually, I should be the one thanking you!”

Gu Siyuan was currently looking at the silk cloth. Hearing this, he raised his head, followed Xie Chenyun’s previous line of sight, and instantly understood.

He immediately shook his head and said righteously to Xie Chenyun, “No need. This is what I ought to have done.”

He was the Emperor of Great Zhou; this was his world.

Even a stray cat or dog on the street was a cat or dog under his protection. Even guards who sold themselves or enslaved servants were subjects he was meant to shelter.

Whoever dared to touch them was challenging his prestige.

He wanted to kill Sun Yanyan partially to help Xie Chenyun, his mission target, but mostly it was simply following his own heart.

“…” Xie Chenyun.

Xie Chenyun’s expression became even more complicated.

What does he mean ‘ought to have done’? Is he treating my business as his own business?

Isn’t this foolish ruler being a little too direct?!

Xie Mingkong had been standing to the side, directing the surviving Xie family servants to collect the corpses. Inadvertently looking up, he saw the two of them staring at each other in silence, both wearing expressions full of complicated emotions. He felt a bit confused, and even more so, an inexplicable urge to get goosebumps.

“Bro, what are you two standing there for? Flirting with your eyes?”

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