Chapter 3

On the peak of Huashan Mountain where the sun rises, a young man with a face as fair as jade, around thirty years old, was pacing back and forth outside a room, his steps hurried and anxious. Clearly, something important was happening inside, causing him great concern. However, his steps, though quick, were not disordered, indicating his deep martial arts skills, which he used unconsciously.

This man's surname is Yue, and his given name is Buqun. He is the leader of the Huashan Sect, inheriting the Purple Sun Divine Skill from his master, with profound martial arts and exceptional skills. Known for his gentlemanly demeanor and his hatred of evil, he has earned a good reputation in the martial world and is called the "Gentleman Swordsman," a rising star among the righteous. His wife, also a disciple of the Huashan Sect, is surnamed Ning, and her given name is Zhongze. She is his junior sister, known as the "Huashan Jade Maiden" before their marriage, and is also well-known in the martial world.

The Huashan Sect, derived from the Quanzhen Sect, has been established for over two hundred years since its founder, Hao Datong, and has a prestigious reputation in the martial world, once being one of the six major sects. However, due to the incompetence of later generations, it began to decline over a hundred years ago. After the Qi and Sword dispute seven years ago, the sect lost many of its top experts, and the Sword Sect almost vanished. The remaining members felt that the Qi Sect's victory was not fair and left in anger. The Qi Sect also suffered heavy losses, and the younger generation, limited by their age, could not match the Sword Sect, suffering almost total casualties. The older experts were also severely injured and died one after another. Now, among the entire Huashan Sect, only Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze can be called experts, and the entire sect has only a few people left, showing a clear decline. Even the position of the Five Mountains Alliance Leader, which has always been held by the Huashan Sect, was taken by the Songshan Sect.

Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze have been married for several years. They have been working hard to support the sect, maintaining the reputation of Huashan by frequently traveling in the martial world. A few months ago, Yue's wife realized she was pregnant and returned to Huashan. Now, after ten months, it is finally time for her to give birth. As a major event after the great changes in Huashan, this soon-to-be-born child is not only Yue Buqun's first child but also carries the hope of the Huashan Sect, naturally making him, the soon-to-be father, somewhat nervous.

After another half an hour, Yue Buqun became increasingly anxious, and his steps became slightly disordered. At this moment, the sound of a baby's loud cry and the midwife's voice, "It's a girl... It's a girl...," came from inside the room. "It's a girl," Yue Buqun felt a bit disappointed, as he had hoped for a son to carry on the Huashan legacy. But then he thought it didn't matter, as he and his wife were still young and had a chance for more children. However, why hasn't anyone come out yet? Has something happened inside? Yue Buqun's heart tightened again.

After a while, just as Yue Buqun was becoming more anxious and was about to force his way in, the room again echoed with the cry of a baby, startling the newborn girl into crying. The cries of the two babies alternated and echoed together.

"Congratulations, Sect Leader Yue, congratulations, Lady Yue, it's a pair of twins," the midwife said, opening the door and holding two swaddled babies, seeking his approval.

Yue Buqun quickly took the two babies, thanked the midwife, and hurried into the room. He looked at his wife, who was pale and sleepy but still smiling, and said softly, "Junior Sister, you've worked hard!"

Ning Zhongze looked at the two babies with affection and said, "Senior Brother, we've been through so much together, why say these things..."

Yue Buqun, thinking of the years of hard work to maintain the sect and the fierce Qi and Sword dispute where he narrowly escaped death, felt a bit sad: "Junior Sister..."

Ning Zhongze, seeing this, knew that Yue Buqun was worried about the sect and reminded of some unpleasant past events, quickly changed the topic: "Senior Brother, let's give the two children names first!"

Yue Buqun, understanding his wife's concern, thought for a moment and said, "Let's name the girl Lingshan, for her flexibility and beauty. For the boy, let's name him Fangxing, for his uprightness and the prosperity of Huashan."

Ning Zhongze, hearing this, looked at the two babies and smiled, "Yue Lingshan, Yue Fangxing, good names, Senior Brother is truly talented." They smiled at each other, their hearts in sync, without a word.

Fangxing woke up, but his eyelids wouldn't open. He felt the environment had changed, and there was no familiar disinfectant smell. He thought he might have been transferred to another hospital, but the doctor didn't notify him. He quickly shouted, "Nurse, nurse..." but what he heard was "Wah... Wah..." and was startled: Whose voice is this? Could it be mine? Have I been reborn? But why do I still remember my past life? He thought of his parents from his past life. Although he had a terminal illness, his parents should have been prepared for his departure, but his sudden death would surely cause them great sorrow. He couldn't help but cry.

While sobbing, Fangxing vaguely heard a woman asking a man to name the child. He listened carefully and thought: Yue Fangxing, just one more character than my past name, not bad, a way to remember my past. The girl must be my sister, Yue Lingshan. Wait, Yue Lingshan, why does this name sound so familiar? Yue Lingshan, Yue Lingshan... He couldn't think for long and felt his brain become drowsy, falling asleep.

Time passed, and three years went by. Fangxing had long understood his situation: he was in the world of "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer," the son of Huashan Sect leader Yue Buqun and his wife Ning Zhongze. As a young man who grew up in the atmosphere of the movie "Shaolin Temple" after the reform and opening up, almost everyone had a martial arts dream, and few had not read Jin Yong's martial arts novels—most had at least seen the TV series. Fangxing had also read them, though he had only read "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer" a few times and did not have a deep understanding of martial arts. However, he remembered the main characters and plots: Yue Buqun, Linghu Chong, Lin Pingzhi, Yue Lingshan... the Fuwei Escort Agency massacre, Liu Zhengfeng's retirement, the Five Mountains Alliance... He didn't remember the specific details, like where Linghu Chong ate and fought or when Liu Zhengfeng retired, but it didn't matter. His arrival was already a variable, and whether those events would still happen was uncertain.

During these three years, Fangxing did not idle. Although he was too young to study literature or martial arts, he often did simple exercises. In ancient times, the infant survival rate was not high. He combined the child-rearing manuals and brain development methods from his past life to focus on training his brain. Perhaps due to the abundant energy and good environment of this world, his brain development had achieved some success. Now, he could almost remember everything he read, even long and difficult texts, which he could quickly recite after a few readings. However, as a child, he had limited exposure and a simple mind, so it was uncertain if he would still be this way when he grew up. But Fangxing estimated that even if his memory declined, it would still be as good as Linghu Chong's, who could recite the difficult "Nine Swords of Dugu" after hearing it a few times. His thinking was also much faster than in his past life, and according to the world's standards, he had high insight. Combined with the scientific thinking skills he learned in his past life, if his mind was still not as good as Linghu Chong's, he would be ashamed.

However, as the saying goes, "The tallest tree in the forest is the first to be felled by the wind." Fangxing understood the principle of hiding one's abilities, so he did not show his talents. He learned to walk and talk at the same time as Yue Lingshan, giving the impression of being somewhat quiet and not as lively as other children of the same age. But Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze, lacking child-rearing experience, thought he was just naturally introverted and did not find it strange. They didn't know that Fangxing's small body hid a mature mind.

During these years, Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze were busy taking care of their children, and no one from the Huashan Sect traveled in the martial world, almost like a closed mountain. The sect's reputation in the martial world gradually declined, and it barely maintained its position as a major sect due to its centuries-old reputation. If not for some people worrying about hidden older experts in the Huashan Sect, the sect might not even have kept its mountain gate. Recently, Yue Buqun, feeling this situation, decided to leave the mountain to re-establish the "Gentleman Swordsman" reputation and hoped to find a few excellent disciples to glorify the Huashan Sect. It had been several months since he left, and only Ning Zhongze, Yue Lingshan, and Yue Fangxing, along with a few servants, remained on the mountain.

One early morning, Yue Fangxing got up very early and secretly climbed to the Sun Platform to watch the famous "Sunrise at Sun Platform." After a while, the sun rose, and the sky gradually brightened. The eastern sky turned from gray to light yellow, then to orange, and finally to a rainbow of colors, forming blocks, strips, or layers, with red and purple intermingling, changing rapidly and continuously. The entire sky gradually brightened, especially the ever-changing eastern clouds, which changed so quickly that it was astonishing. Sometimes they looked like wild horses galloping, sometimes like golden dragons dancing, sometimes like a flock of phoenixes flying, and sometimes like a peacock spreading its tail. The colorful clouds and the vast sea of clouds on the horizon merged, creating a magnificent scene, with some clouds floating away, some folding, and some turning into flowers, a beauty that could not be described. The natural scenery was truly amazing, and Yue Fangxing, bathed in the morning light, seemed to be painted with a brilliant, indescribable color.

Yue Fangxing was entranced by the view, watching the sun rise higher and higher, and felt a sudden enlightenment: a person's life is like the rising and setting of the sun, with birth and death, a cycle. His past life was over, and his current life had just begun. Instead of dwelling on the past, he should embrace the future and create new peaks. Reflecting on the past three years, although he had been obedient and had not caused his parents much worry, he had not been particularly close to them and often thought of his past life, even unconsciously harboring prejudice against his father due to the "false gentleman" portrayal in the novel. Now, he realized this was wrong. Regardless of whether his father was a "false gentleman"—how could someone deceive his wife, children, and disciples for decades without revealing any flaws? As a child, how could he blame his parents or believe others' words or base his judgment on events that had not yet happened? Even if his parents were wrong, he should remind them and guide them in the right direction. Thinking of Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze's love for him, he felt he had been very wrong, unworthy of being their son. He decided to treat his past life as a dream and let it go.

At this thought, Yue Fangxing felt his mind clear. Looking at the sky full of clouds and the sunlight, he felt it was even more beautiful than before, and his heart became lively again, regaining some of the vigor of youth. Thinking of the hero's boldness in the martial world from his past life, he longed to go out and experience the martial world, but he was too young and had to wait. He resolved to practice martial arts well in the future, not to dominate the martial world, but at least to help his parents and revitalize Huashan. From then on, he truly integrated into this world, with no more psychological barriers.

"Brother, brother, what are you doing standing so high? I saw Father coming back!" Just as Yue Fangxing was lost in thought, he heard Yue Lingshan's clear voice from below. His sister was just as lively and cute as described in the novel.

Hearing Yue Lingshan's voice, Yue Fangxing was startled and looked up. The sun was already high, and he realized he had been there for one or two hours, almost noon. He quickly shouted, "Sister, sister, I'm here, I'm coming down."

Yue Fangxing, having just put aside his psychological barriers, was eager to see his parents, especially since he hadn't seen Yue Buqun for several months. He hurried down the Sun Platform and ran down with Yue Lingshan.

When they reached the Hall of Righteousness, Yue Fangxing saw his father and mother talking, with a twelve-year-old boy standing beside them, dressed in tattered clothes, with messy hair, thin, and red-faced from exhaustion, clearly having endured a hard journey up the mountain.

Ning Zhongze quickly walked forward, and Yue Fangxing, seeing this, rushed to Yue Buqun, saying, "Father, why did you come back so late?"

Yue Buqun turned and, seeing his son's affectionate demeanor, picked him up with one hand and hugged Yue Lingshan with the other. He hadn't seen his children for months and thought they were just missing their parents, not suspecting anything else. However, he noticed a hint of anger on his wife's face and asked, "Junior Sister, did Shan and Xing cause any trouble?"

Ning Zhongze, hearing this, became even angrier and said, "How could they not cause trouble? Shan is always mischievous, as you know. Xing didn't even find breakfast today and ran off somewhere."

Yue Lingshan quickly said, "Brother went to the Sun Platform today, I didn't cause any trouble."

Yue Buqun, hearing this, was a bit angry but, feeling good about seeing his son so affectionate, did not scold him and asked, "What were you doing at the Sun Platform? It's very high and not safe. Don't go there again until you're older."

Yue Fangxing, hearing his mother's words, felt a bit uneasy but was relieved by his father's words. He thought, "Today, their personalities are reversed. Usually, Yue Buqun scolds and Ning Zhongze defends." He replied, "I went to the Sun Platform to watch the sunrise."

Seeing his mother still angry, he quickly changed the topic, pointing to the twelve-year-old boy and asking, "Father, who is this big brother? Is he a new senior brother?" He thought, "Could this be Linghu Chong?"

Ning Zhongze, hearing this, stopped pursuing the matter and glared at Yue Fangxing, saying, "We'll talk about your behavior later. Senior Brother, whose child is this? Is he your new disciple?"

The boy, hearing "whose child," his eyes welled up with tears. However, despite his young age, he had a proud spirit and did not want to cry in front of others, just looking up at Yue Buqun. Yue Fangxing, seeing this and combining it with Linghu Chong's character from the novel, was even more certain it was him.

Yue Buqun, seeing his new disciple, was very satisfied. As a new teacher, he felt he needed to establish his authority, so he did not comfort Linghu Chong and said to Ning Zhongze, "Junior Sister, this is my new disciple. His parents unfortunately passed away, and he was alone and had good potential, so I brought him up the mountain to keep Shan and Xing company. His surname is Linghu, and his given name is Chong. He is eleven years old. Take him to clean up first, and in three days, on a good day, I will formally offer sacrifices to the Huashan Sect's ancestors and officially take him as a disciple."

Ning Zhongze, hearing this, felt a surge of compassion, took Linghu Chong's hand, and wiped away his tears with a handkerchief, saying softly, "You poor child, let's call you Chong. You will be treated like family here. Senior Brother, I'll go now. You just got back, rest well and spend time with Shan and Xing."

She then turned to Yue Lingshan and Yue Fangxing, saying, "Shan, Xing, stay with your father. I'll take this big brother to clean up." She led Linghu Chong into the back hall.

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