Chapter 64

At the dining table, there was one more person, someone who had piqued Bai Xiaosheng's interest.

Duan Yu, a devout Buddhist fool. Throughout the entire book of "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils," Duan Yu can be seen as a person equipped with Buddhist and Confucian ideologies, possessing a benevolent heart and a kind nature, not overly rigid. If he were not a member of the Duan family, he would surely have become a renowned literary figure in later generations.

However, there was one aspect of him that was quite annoying: his aversion to martial arts!

In his mind, martial arts were all about fighting and killing. Even though he was part of the Duan family, he was unwilling to learn martial arts, and even left home for it. If not for a series of coincidences, he probably wouldn't have acquired the martial arts skills that made him famous.

"Lord Bai, this is my son, Duan Yu... Yu, this is the master of the Famous Sword Manor, Lord Bai Xiaosheng, who is very skilled in martial arts, even your father can't match him." Duan Zhengchun introduced the two, and Duan Yu immediately stood up, clasped his hands, and said, "Duan Yu greets Lord Bai!"

Bai Xiaosheng returned the gesture and said, "Your Highness is too polite!"

The two sat down and had a few more drinks. Duan Yu asked, "Father, what were you and Lord Bai talking about just now?"

Duan Zhengchun smiled, glanced at Bai Xiaosheng, and said, "I was talking to Lord Bai about matters on the battlefield. You may not know, but although Lord Bai is young, he has experienced many things. He is a disciple of the Beggar Sect and has once attacked the Liao people on the border between Song and Liao, defending the country."

"Ah, so Lord Bai is a disciple of the Beggar Sect, I apologize for my rudeness!" Duan Yu immediately bowed again. Bai Xiaosheng, not wanting to be too formal, supported him and said, "Your Highness is too polite. The Beggar Sect is not a remarkable sect; we are just a group of beggars. We all have the heart to do good for the country, and we do not deserve your praise."

"Not at all, not at all... Lord, your words are incorrect. In the books I have read, those who serve the country and the people are all great heroes and valiant figures. As a disciple of the Beggar Sect, you deserve my respect."

As they spoke, they became more familiar with each other. Bai Xiaosheng also shared some external matters with Duan Yu, broadening his horizons and making him very excited. However, when it came to martial arts, his expression became awkward, and he was not interested in listening. Duan Zhengchun, fearing that Bai Xiaosheng would misunderstand, explained, "Lord Bai, my son is knowledgeable and has a good character, but he has one flaw: he does not like martial arts. This is all my fault. If I hadn't made him study Buddhism, it wouldn't have been like this."

"Father, what you are saying is incorrect. The study of Buddhism is the true path, while martial arts are just a minor path. How can they compare to Buddhism?" Duan Yu immediately disagreed.

Bai Xiaosheng laughed and said, "Your Highness, your words are biased! Do you know the origin of martial arts?"

Duan Yu blinked, puzzled, and said, "I don't know! Please enlighten me, Lord Bai!" His manners were impeccable.

Bai Xiaosheng took a sip of wine and said, "In ancient times, when humans were just born, they were like infants, like blank sheets of paper. At that time, the greatest happiness for humans was to survive. Whether day or night, they had to face attacks from wild animals. Survival was not easy! Your Highness should know that the greatest characteristic of humans is learning. In the face of attacks from wild animals, humans also learned to counterattack, which allowed them to establish and develop. Later, humans created weapons and other offensive tools based on the laws of nature... These things, I believe Your Highness knows. What you may not know is that in the battles with wild animals, humans imitated the animals to increase their offensive power, which was the initial form of martial arts."

Duan Yu nodded in understanding and said, "I can understand this. The Five Animal Exercises created by Hua Tuo were inspired by wild animals."

"Exactly!" Bai Xiaosheng secretly praised and continued, "Martial arts initially were simple combat techniques, existing for human survival. When human life improved, martial artists naturally had other desires, such as power, money, and beauty. These things attracted people to learn martial arts, and later, the focus shifted to longevity."

"Longevity? Can practicing martial arts really lead to immortality?" Duan Yu was surprised. Duan Zhengchun, who was sitting beside him, also looked shocked.

Bai Xiaosheng shook his head and said, "Of course not, otherwise, there would have been legends over the years. Although practicing martial arts cannot lead to immortality, it can extend life. The foundation of martial arts is to exercise the body and strengthen the blood and qi. A healthy body naturally resists diseases, and longevity is not a problem. Some powerful martial artists can even live over a hundred years. Look at the long-lived legends of Daoist and Buddhist masters in history; there must be some basis for these stories."

"Moreover, practicing martial arts can help eliminate the strong and support the weak, satisfying people's heroic aspirations. You dislike martial arts because you think they are about killing and destruction, but do the words 'killing and destruction' refer to martial arts?"

"Your Highness, Prince, I believe that the words 'killing and destruction' refer not to martial arts but to human hearts! If you do not have the heart for killing and destruction, practicing martial arts is just for strengthening the body, which is not bad at all."

"Good! Very good! Lord, your words are very true." To Bai Xiaosheng's surprise, Duan Yu slapped the table in agreement and turned to Duan Zhengchun, saying, "Father, no wonder Lord Bai's cultivation is higher than yours. His realm is something you cannot match. I think you should learn Buddhism from me to eliminate the heart for killing and destruction."

"You little rascal..." Duan Zhengchun smiled bitterly, and Bai Xiaosheng was also somewhat amused. Bai Xiaosheng's words had a bit of Buddhist wisdom, naturally making Duan Yu agree. However, when it came to martial arts, Duan Yu was still unwilling. He said frankly, "I have a Buddhist heart and can naturally influence people with Buddhist principles. Learning martial arts is not necessary."

"Your Highness, what about strengthening the body? Without a healthy body, how can you influence others with your Buddhist heart? The monks at Shaolin Temple all practice martial arts, don't they?" Bai Xiaosheng's counter-question made Duan Yu think. After a moment, he slapped the table again and said, "Right, Lord's words are very reasonable. Although martial arts are about killing and destruction, learning some martial arts for strengthening the body is good."

Hearing that his son was willing to learn martial arts, Duan Zhengchun was delighted and said, "Good! Yu, it's great that you are willing to learn martial arts. Tomorrow, I will personally teach you."

However, Duan Yu was not pleased and said, "Father, your martial arts are all about killing and destruction, I won't learn them. If I learn, I want to learn martial arts for strengthening the body. Lord Bai, do you have such martial arts? Duan Yu is willing to learn from you."

Bai Xiaosheng smiled bitterly, and Duan Zhengchun was even more amused. However, he was happy that his son was willing to learn martial arts and said, "Lord Bai, my son is willing to learn martial arts, and I am very happy. If you don't mind, would you consider taking him as a disciple?" Bai Xiaosheng's sword skills were excellent, and Duan Zhengchun was also willing to pull some strings. If Duan Yu became his disciple, he would naturally take care of his own disciple in the future.

Bai Xiaosheng thought for a moment and said, "Prince, there's no need to take a disciple. I find our conversation very engaging. Why don't we learn from each other? I practice Daoist techniques, and martial arts can also strengthen the body. Your Highness is proficient in Buddhism, so I can teach him Daoism, and he can teach me Buddhism. What do you think?"

"Good, good, that's great!" Duan Yu clapped his hands before Duan Zhengchun could speak. This made Duan Zhengchun quite helpless, but a good outcome was still a good outcome. He raised his wine glass and toasted Bai Xiaosheng, saying, "Lord Bai, I will trouble you to teach Yu well in the future."

"Prince, please rest assured, I will do my best to teach Your Highness."

After they agreed, Bai Xiaosheng temporarily stayed at the prince's residence, which suited his intentions. In Dali, the Tianlong Temple, the imperial palace, and the Zhen Nan Prince's residence were the three places with the most flourishing martial arts. These three places were interconnected, and now that he had entered the prince's residence and was teaching the prince, he would naturally have the opportunity to enter the imperial palace to learn martial arts.

Such a good opportunity, Bai Xiaosheng naturally would not refuse.

In the back courtyard's training ground, Bai Xiaosheng held a Buddhist scripture borrowed from Duan Yu, reading it carefully. Duan Yu, on the other hand, was running slowly around the track with his six female disciples.

One lap, two laps, three laps, four laps, about 1,500 meters later, Duan Yu, out of breath, stopped, while the six women continued running without stopping.

Bai Xiaosheng closed the book and smiled, saying, "Your Highness, how about it? My six disciples are women, not much older than you, yet their stamina is better than yours. What do you think about that?"

Duan Yu smiled bitterly and said, "Lord Bai, don't tease Duan Yu. Now I understand, I should really exercise more."

Bai Xiaosheng nodded and said, "Good! It's great that Your Highness has this mindset. Please continue running."

"Yes!" Duan Yu bowed and immediately followed the six women, continuing to run.

Bai Xiaosheng's approach was different from what Duan Yu knew. Being in the Duan family, he had seen others practice martial arts, but running? It was indeed unexpected. He didn't know that Bai Xiaosheng was showing him the stamina of the six women to inspire his interest in martial arts. Otherwise, a person unwilling to learn martial arts, no matter how serious or hardworking, would not achieve much.

By noon, Duan Yu was completely exhausted, feeling as if his legs were filled with lead, heavy and unable to lift. Looking at the six women, who were only slightly flushed and breathing slightly, he was greatly impressed and determined to practice more. Otherwise, being consistently outperformed by these six women would be a blow to his male pride.

Bai Xiaosheng, who had already put down the Buddhist scripture, saw that Duan Yu was almost at his limit and said, "Alright, stop now!" He walked forward, supported Duan Yu, and instructed the six women, "Continue your practice. I will help Your Highness relax." He then took Duan Yu to a wooden bed that had been prepared and gently massaged his acupoints.

This massage was part of medical training, originally prepared for the six female disciples by Bai Xiaosheng. Unfortunately, as women, it was inconvenient for Bai Xiaosheng to do it himself, so he had to teach them to do it themselves. However, their shallow skills meant they couldn't use internal energy to enhance the effect, so it wasn't as effective. When Bai Xiaosheng did it, each tap was powerful, making it very comfortable and gradually relieving the fatigue.

Look at Duan Yu, who fell asleep under Bai Xiaosheng's massage.

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