As tears shimmered in Zhang Sanfeng's eyes and threatened to fall, he heard footsteps approaching and quickly regained his composure to hide his emotional state.
Zhou Zhiruo walked gracefully towards them and glanced at the two young men who were not wearing the Wudang Taoist robes.
Since she had already been informed, she knew that one of them was Song Qingshu, the son of Wudang's Song Yuanqiao, and the other was Zhang Wuji, the orphan of Wudang's Zhang Cuishan.
As she stopped, she turned to see a white-haired, slightly plump figure leading the Wudang Six Heroes with his back to her. Zhou Zhiruo quickly removed her veil to reveal her beautiful face as a sign of respect, then saluted with her hands and spoke in a clear and respectful tone.
"Disciple Zhou Zhiruo of Emei pays respects to Master Zhang."
Zhang Sanfeng turned around and replied with a hint of teasing: "Is the anger of Miejue not as great as before?"
Strictly speaking, it was impolite to criticize someone's master in front of their disciple, so it seemed a bit inappropriate.
However, Zhou Zhiruo listened with a calm expression and smiled gracefully.
"My master has been concentrating on studying Buddhism for the past few years, and her cultivation has naturally reached a higher level."
She calmly defended her master's dignity and reputation without offending him.
Zhang Sanfeng was pleased and smiled. This generation of Emei disciples was not as disappointing as the previous one, and the Emei sect could be passed on properly.
In an instant, Zhang Sanfeng's demeanour improved greatly, and he uttered a few words of praise.
"You're quite a speaker. Miejue is lucky to have you as her disciple."
Then he called out and gestured: "Wuji, come and take the Yitian Sword and return it to Emei."
Upon hearing this, Song Qingshu's face immediately stiffened and he looked deeply at Zhang Wuji.
In this situation, Zhang Wuji was still a bit timid and did not say a word. He took the "Yitian Sword" from Zhang Sanfeng's hand and handed it over to Zhou Zhiruo.
Zhou Zhiruo also raised her head and looked at the simple-looking young man in front of her.
Returning the "Yitian Sword" from Wudang to Emei in this situation was not a small matter, and Zhang Sanfeng called Zhang Wuji to represent Wudang. The affection and fondness between them was self-evident.
Zhou Zhiruo understood this in her heart. Although Zhang Sanfeng had already passed the position of Wudang Sect Leader to Song Yuanqiao, he would still have a say in who the next Sect Leader would be as long as he was alive.
In other words, Zhang Wuji was highly likely to be the next leader of Wudang among the third generation disciples.
Zhou Zhiruo thought of this and quickly smiled to show her closeness.
"Wuji, are you Zhang Cuishan's son?"
Zhou Zhiruo thought that as soon as the young man in front of her answered, she would immediately begin to praise Zhang Cuishan and further their relationship, leaving a good impression.
However, Zhang Wuji was troubled by the fact that he had been unaware of his parents' death all along. Before Zhang Wuji could even answer, Song Qingshu eagerly jumped out.
"That's right, Wuji is an orphan left behind by Fifth Uncle."
Upon catching Zhou Zhiruo's gaze, Song Qingshu stood tall and proudly gave a salute. "I am Song Qingshu, my father is Song Yuanqiao, the leader of the Seven Wudang Warriors."
At this point, Zhang Sanfeng interrupted, "Zhiruo, since you've come from far away, why don't you stay for a couple of days and let my top disciple, Song Yuanqiao, teach you a set of Wudang sword techniques?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhiruo was overjoyed and thanked him, "Thank you, Master Zhang."
No martial arts school likes to keep their techniques a secret, and they usually don't teach them to disciples who don't have the right skills or qualifications.
The sword techniques aren't important to Zhou Zhiruo. What she values is the honor and the opportunity to be close to Zhang Sanfeng.
In the blink of an eye, a few days passed and Li Xiu was hosting another feast in a tavern at the foot of Wudang Mountain.
Previously, he had disguised himself as a Wudang woodcutter and disappeared for over a dozen days. Wudang would not be foolish enough to wait for him to return.
Li Xiu was not so foolish as to go back and ask for his woodcutting job back, instead he used a large sum of money to bribe the woodcutter who replaced him.
This tactic was old and cliched, but it worked very well.
Li Xiu, who viewed money as dirt, had heard about such people from historical legends and had occasionally seen them on TV, but he had never encountered one in real life.
The shining gold coins fell and he became the master, not Wudang.
Upon hearing the news from the woodcutter's mouth, Li Xiu's thoughts immediately became active.
Zhang Sanfeng is currently in seclusion, with the Wudang six warriors acting as his bodyguards. Song Qingshu is now in charge of managing all affairs in Wudang.
Li Xiu wants to go up the mountain to take the Yitian Sword, but he has always been afraid of Zhang Sanfeng, saying that he is self-aware or "from the heart."
In any case, Li Xiu, who has achieved the level of Nine Yang in internal strength, is confident that he can compete with Zhang Sanfeng.
But in terms of hand-to-hand combat, Zhang Sanfeng can probably beat him up easily, hanging him up or pressing him down as he wishes.
It would be easy to beat him up, as there is a difference of nearly a hundred years in martial arts knowledge and combat experience between him and Zhang Sanfeng.
And this is not just ordinary hundred years of martial arts experience. From a young age, he was hunted by Shaolin, and after the hard work of establishing Wudang, he had to fight against the entire martial arts world. He can be said to have gone from an unknown fighter to being admired by all, and he has never been defeated.
In the original novel, Zhang Sanfeng took Zhang Wuji to Shaolin to ask for a demonstration of the Shaolin Nine Yang skill. At that time, Shaolin meant: "If all of my thousands of Shaolin disciples attack together, I don't believe that Zhang Sanfeng can kill everyone."
The first thought of the Shaolin Temple, the first great martial arts school in the world with a tradition of hundreds of years, was not "if Zhang Sanfeng is disrespectful, we will capture and punish him," but rather a tendency to fight to the death, even if it meant destroying everything.
Is there ever been, or will there ever be, a person who scared the entire Shaolin Temple into panic?
Furthermore, this is a peak period in Zhang Sanfeng's life, as he is about to create the unparalleled martial arts Taiji Fist and Taiji Sword, and solidify his title as a "real person."
In a world where there is no concept of cultivating immortality, the road he has created has gradually shifted from martial arts mastery to cultivating enlightenment, and it is so fearsome and shocking!
With Zhang Sanfeng in charge of Wudang, Li Xiu would not be foolish enough to go provoke him.
But now that Zhang Sanfeng is in seclusion and there are only three generations of disciples and one Emei disciple, Zhou Zhiruo, left in Wudang, Li Xiu does not care at all.
That night, he sneaked into Wudang and waited for an opportunity to attack.
In Wudang, a group of people were being surrounded and attacked in a exquisite courtyard that was usually reserved for Wudang's VIP guests.
Several ordinary Wudang disciples were kicking Zhang Wuji, who has always been very dear to Zhang Sanfeng.
Zhang Wuji was beaten until his face was blue and purple, covered in dirt, and he was crawling on the ground in desperation.
Song Qingshu, a fellow apprentice, was laughing the most happily and proudly. Usually, Zhang Wuji was so favored by their master that even he did not dare to be too extreme in public. He had never had so much fun before.
Zhou Zhiruo stood aside, covering her face and smiling lightly, with a mocking expression.
She had previously thought that Zhang Wuji, who was so loved and close to Zhang Sanfeng, must be the next leader of Wudang and had tried to ingratiate herself with him.
But who knew that Zhang Wuji had been struck by the Xuanming Palm eight years ago and could never practice martial arts again. Who knows how long he will live? How could Wudang allow a useless person to be the leader?
That's why she later accepted Song Qingshu's great kindness and agreed to his plan to play a trick on and bully Zhang Wuji together.
In the midst of the dust, Zhang Wuji was constantly being beaten, and his heart was extremely bitter.
He lost his parents at a young age and grew up in the Wudang sect. Although the place was not big, it allowed him to see the kindness and cruelty of people and made him more understanding.
Besides the fact that his master genuinely loved and tried to cure him of the Xuanming Cold Poison, a few uncles and masters occasionally took care of him.
Wudang's three generations of disciples didn't even give Zhang Wuji a good face.
Seeing that he couldn't practice martial arts and had no support but was exceptionally close to his master, they either ignored him or bullied him, especially Song Qingshu and his group of people.
But what can he do? He can't fight back, should he go to his uncles and masters and complain like a seven-year-old child?
"Master, he bullied me."
If those people had thought things through, there wouldn't have been the first person to bully him.
If disaster doesn't come to one's own doorstep, how can people be remembered and how can they be restrained?
As time goes on, sooner or later there will be another "Master, someone bullied me again."
How many times can he say such things over and over again, and is it not ridiculous? It doesn't matter if he is laughed at by others, but his parents in heaven will still have to suffer because of him. Is Zhang Wuji worthy of being a son? Moreover, there is also a Song Qingshu, the son of Master Song Yuanqiao, whom he has always respected, and the current and future Head of Wudang, designated as the third generation head of Wudang.
Can he really report it to him and create even more resentment? After reporting it once, he will surely be subjected to even more severe bullying.
Zhang Wuji originally thought very clearly. His master is over a hundred years old this year, with white hair and old age, and it is only a matter of time before his lifespan ends.
His master can only live for a few more years.
When he feels wronged, he will endure it and bear it.
He has been doing this all these years to not cause his master any more worry.
Once his master is gone, there will be no strong internal strength to sustain his life, and when he gets a cold, there will be nothing he can do.
He has always lived this way, but today is different from the past.
His master and uncle are not around and will be in seclusion for three months. Song Qingshu no longer has any reservations, and even if he kills him, he has plenty of excuses to get off scot-free. Zhang Wuji was truly panicked.
These people no longer discriminate between heavy and light punishments, and if he does not resist, he will likely be beaten to death or tortured to death.
Once he decided to resist, all the grievances and suffering he had accumulated over the past eight years surged to the forefront of his mind. Suddenly, anger surged from his heart and his face reddened like blood.
Zhang Wuji searched for a stone brick on the ground and swung it wildly, flailing about like a madman.
First, they did not expect Zhang Wuji to resist, and second, they were scared by his reckless behavior.
A few Wudang disciples retreated and scattered. Zhang Wuji, whose anger had been burning all this time, chased after the Wudang disciples with the stone brick in his hand and inexplicably gained the upper hand.
However, the good times did not last long. Song Qingshu's face immediately turned cold and he attacked ferociously.
A few blows sent Zhang Wuji repeatedly retreating and he did not know where the stone brick in his hand had fallen. In the end, Song Qingshu kicked Zhang Wuji and pressed him against a tree in the courtyard, using his foot to pin his neck and keep him from moving.
Zhang Wuji, who was weak and exhausted, tried several times to escape but was unable to escape.