Chapter 98

Why did Li Shier suddenly lose his composure?

In the martial arts world of the Republic of China, if one were to list the top ten masters, the choices would be largely fixed, not just for the top ten, but also for the top three, with little dispute.

The Tiger Head Young Guardian, Sun Lutang, was known as the First Hand under Heaven. He practiced Xingyi Quan's Half-Step Pounding, Bagua Zhang, and Tai Chi Chuan, mastering all three major internal martial arts. He combined Xingyi and Bagua, creating his own Sun-style Tai Chi. He remained undefeated in his lifetime, widely recognized as the best in the world.

As for the other two in the top three, one was the Sword God Li Jinglin, and the other was the Invincible Fist, Divine Spear Li Shuwen, Li Shier's teacher. Only these two deserved the titles of Sword God and Divine Spear.

The newspaper boy said that the Sword God and the Divine Spear had a confrontation last night, both suffering injuries. Since it mentioned Li Shier's most respected teacher, how could he not lose his composure? He grabbed the newspaper boy and roared, "That's impossible!"

Du Gufu agreed with Li Shier's judgment.

Beside him, Guo Xingxing quickly went online to search for what had happened. News that made it to the newspapers would certainly be found on forums and homepages in the real world.

Why did Du Gufu agree with Li Shier?

This involves a famous case in the martial arts world of the Republic of China!

If one were to rank the top three masters of the Republic of China, most people would place Sun Lutang first, Li Jinglin second, and Li Shuwen third.

However, in terms of combat records, Li Shuwen, the martial arts fanatic, had fought countless battles, both in quantity and quality, surpassing Sun Lutang. He practiced the expansive and direct Ba Ji Quan, with a fighting style that was relentless, often leaving his opponents dead or injured, earning him a great reputation.

Why did he rank third? Because of his only defeat in his lifetime.

When Li Jinglin was setting up the Shandong National Martial Arts Institute, he invited martial artists to teach there, including Li Shuwen. However, Li Shuwen stayed at the institute for less than a month before he had a conflict with a man named Huang Zhidong, nicknamed "Vine Spear Huang." Martial artists naturally settled disputes with their fists. The result was that Vine Spear Huang, like Li Shuwen's other opponents, was killed with a few strikes.

However, Vine Spear Huang had another identity—he was Li Jinglin's maternal uncle.

It is said that Li Jinglin intervened in the matter, but Li Shuwen refused to admit fault. In a bind, Li Jinglin said to Li Shuwen, "Let's have a match; the loser leaves." Li Jinglin's sword against Li Shuwen's spear, they fought for only a few rounds. Li Jinglin used Bagua footwork to advance diagonally and strike a fatal blow. Li Shuwen admitted defeat and left the Shandong National Martial Arts Institute.

In terms of regular combat records, Li Jinglin had no advantage, and even lagged behind other masters in the top ten. However, this battle made him famous, and he became the widely recognized second-best in the world.

As for Li Shuwen, he lost the chance to compete with Sun Lutang for the top spot.

It seemed that the matter was settled, with clear facts and evidence, and the ranking of the top three was finalized. However, there was a problem.

According to Li Shuwen's disciples, at the Shandong National Martial Arts Institute, their master and Li Jinglin had a falling out over Vine Spear Huang, and the master simply left without a fight. The decisive battle that Li Jinglin claimed was a fabrication, and it never happened.

Some might wonder, given Li Shuwen's hatred of evil and intolerance of injustice, how could he endure being falsely accused by Li Jinglin? Wouldn't he immediately confront Li Jinglin and kill him on the spot?

This is related to Li Jinglin's true identity.

What was Li Jinglin's true identity? Besides being a martial arts master, he graduated from the Baoding Military Academy and fought with the Qing army against the revolutionaries after the Wuchang Uprising. Later, he joined the Northeastern Fengtian clique and participated in the warlord conflicts.

During the First Fengtian-Zhili War, after only seven days, the Fengtian First Brigade Commander Zhang Xueliang was wounded, and the Western Army lost its position, leading to a major defeat for the Fengtian forces. The Third Brigade Commander, with over 20,000 troops, held off the Zhili forces' pursuit, establishing a defensive line in Tangshan, stabilizing the Fengtian forces. This Third Brigade Commander was Li Jinglin.

Facing a warlord with tens of thousands of troops, even Li Shuwen's strength would be of little use...

However, the above is history, a mystery in real history. This is a game world!

The Li Jinglin and Li Shuwen in the game world are not the historical figures. The historical conflicts do not carry over into this game world, even if... they are set as opposing forces.

To increase one's reputation in the Ba Ji Men, the fastest way is to oppose Li Jinglin's faction, defeat his subordinates, publish defamatory articles in the newspapers, and do other things to tarnish his image. Conversely, to learn Wu Dang swordsmanship, one must support Li Jinglin and denigrate Li Shuwen and the Ba Ji Men.

Practicing both is more impossible than mastering all three internal martial arts, as all players of the Republic of China martial arts masters know.

However, this does not mean that Li Jinglin and Li Shuwen are mortal enemies who will fight to the death upon meeting. In fact, they have never fought.

As the protagonist of the game, controlled by the game's system, it is enough to act like mortal enemies. Would you really expect actors on TV to fight to the death over non-existent grudges?

But, this did happen... How could Li Shier not be surprised? How could Du Gufu not agree with his surprise?

Did Li Shuwen and Li Jinglin lose their minds? Or did a player find a system exploit? Or perhaps the system itself malfunctioned... Du Gufu's expression suddenly changed.

"Second Brother, there's a high chance that Master is still in the city. I need to find him and see... what's really going on," Li Shier said anxiously to Du Gufu, worried about his master's condition and the sudden disruption of their plans.

Originally, everything was planned out. After entering the city, the four of them would split into three groups and proceed according to the plan. His sudden departure would affect everyone's progress.

Du Gufu shook his head decisively, "Big Brother, go ahead. Our major plans require time, and a day or two won't make a difference. Just be careful; this situation is strange..." He thought for a moment, then took the boss lady's death phone and activated the group video call mode.

He had Li Shier attach the camera to his waist, set it to wireless mode, and placed the thin earpiece and microphone on his ear and throat, respectively. After making sure everything was in place, Du Gufu said, "Big Brother, only the owner can set up the phone, but the call and video functions are not affected. We will stay in constant contact, and you will inform us of any developments immediately."

"Second Brother..." Li Shier looked at Du Gufu, speechless.

Du Gufu smiled slightly, "Big Brother, are you being too formal? Among brothers, do we need to explain such small matters? Have a safe journey, and take care."

"Sure, you too," Li Shier nodded heavily.

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