Chapter 85

Tie Wuching's words were somewhat vague, and Su Xin did not deliberately press for more details.

At this moment, a member of the Flying Eagle Gang suddenly came in and handed a note to Huang Bingcheng.

After reading it, Huang Bingcheng walked over to Su Xin and said, "Boss, there's a strange matter. The gang has received news that many outsiders have appeared in Changning Prefecture today, and they seem to be quite powerful.

Moreover, after they arrived in Changning Prefecture, they started inquiring about the strongest forces here, and we don't know what they're up to."

Tie Wuching added, "Your information is really slow. I came here today to tell you about this. Something big is about to happen in Changning Prefecture."

"Something big? What kind of big thing?" Su Xin asked.

Tie Wuching teased, "Do you know who came today?" Without waiting for Su Xin to answer, he continued, "If I tell you, you'll be scared to death.

First, there's the Yijian Sect from the Jian'nan Dao, and the person who came is Xie Zhiyan, the 'Heavenly Maiden' of the Yijian Sect, the direct disciple of the acting sect leader Meng Jingxian, the Mystic Heart Sword Master, and ranked 78th on the Human List.

Second, there's the Qingcheng Sword Sect from the Chuannan Dao, and the person who came is Fang Dongting, the son of an elder of the Qingcheng Sword Sect, ranked 105th on the Human List.

Third, there's the Jiangnan Dao's Nian Gang's Hall Master. Nian Gang is divided into the 'Four Seasons Altars' and the 'Twenty-Four Solar Terms Halls.' The person who came is the Hall Master of the Lixia Hall, Jiang Ling. Although he is not on the Human List, it's only because of his age; his strength is comparable to the top 80 on the Human List.

Fourth, there are the direct disciples of the three major families in the Xiangnan Dao: the Ruan, Zhang, and Jiang families. Although these three families are not well-known in the Central Plains, they are one of the local powers in the Xiangnan Dao."

After finishing, Tie Wuching expected to see Su Xin's shocked expression, but instead, Su Xin looked bewildered.

"Don't tell me you don't know these sects," Tie Wuching said, surprised.

Su Xin smiled bitterly, "Should I know them? I've just barely established myself in Changning Prefecture. Why should I go out of my way to investigate these distant sects?"

Tie Wuching shook his head helplessly, "You really are oblivious to the outside world. It's fine not to know now, but if you don't know in the future, you'll definitely suffer.

Well, today I'll give you a brief introduction to the top sects in the martial world, so you don't get into trouble.

The Great Zhou Empire is divided into forty-one Dao and hundreds of prefectures, and there are also the Eastern Jin, the Northern Grassland's Golden Tent Khanate, the Northwest Barbarians, and the Western Regions' Thirty-Six Kingdoms.

Where there are people, there is a martial world. In such a vast area, there are tens of thousands of sects, but only a few can be considered top-tier.

These few are: the Three Buddhist Temples, the Four Daoist Sects, the Five Sword Sects, the Six Major Families, the Seven Great Gangs, the Eight Left-Path Sects, and the Nine Evil Demons.

I won't go into the specific names; you can ask any martial artist, and they'll know.

Among the four groups that came this time, the Qingcheng Sword Sect and the Yijian Sect are part of the Five Sword Sects, and the Nian Gang is one of the Seven Great Gangs."

"From three to nine, what about one and two? Are they non-existent?" Su Xin asked.

Tie Wuching shook his head, "They exist, but they are beyond what a small constable like me can know. These martial world secrets are not something you can know without sufficient status and strength."

Su Xin nodded. It was true. Just like how farmers always assume the emperor eats meat buns every day, some worlds are beyond the imagination of ordinary people.

"By the way, what is this Human List?"

Tie Wuching explained, "The Human List is a ranking established by the imperial court, with 108 positions. Any young martial artist under the age of 35 is eligible to be on the list. Once they turn 35 or reach the Transcendent Realm, they are removed from the list.

The court updates the list monthly, ranking martial artists based on their strength and battle records.

If there are significant changes in the rankings, the court may update the list early.

In addition to the Human List, there are the Heaven List and the Earth List.

The Heaven List has 36 positions, and the Earth List has 72. However, those on the Heaven List are all grandmasters, so there is no ranking."

Su Xin pondered for a moment and then laughed, "Two peaches to kill three scholars, the court's move is indeed ruthless. With the Human List and the Earth List, I bet there have been many battles over these rankings."

Many martial artists are not interested in wealth or beauty, but few are indifferent to fame and status.

No one is content to be beneath others. For the sake of these rankings, the bloodshed must be considerable.

The court has used these two lists to incite bloody internal conflicts among martial artists. The person who came up with this idea is not simple.

Tie Wuching said, "Even without these lists, martial artists would still create their own rankings.

The desire to compare is universal, and the struggle for fame and status has never ceased. The court merely amplifies and clarifies this situation."

Su Xin nodded. The competition for fame in the martial world has existed since ancient times. Two strangers might fight to the death just because someone says one is stronger than the other. This is a common occurrence.

The court has merely amplified and clarified this situation with a list.

Of course, the court dares not go too far. For example, the Heaven List has no ranking; it only records the 36 strongest martial grandmasters in the current martial world.

These grandmasters are not to be trifled with, and the court would not dare to provoke them with such petty means. They would really dare to go to the Weiyang Palace to talk to the emperor.

"These major sects are so powerful in the Central Plains. Why are they coming to a remote place like Changning Prefecture?" Su Xin asked, puzzled.

Tie Wuching said, "That's why I came to see you today. It's said they are here for the treasure left by the former Three Xiang Martial Alliance leader, the Mad Lion Du Yuansheng.

They are inquiring about the powerful gangs in Changning Prefecture, probably to find local informants to help them gather information.

Your Flying Eagle Gang is now one of the five major gangs in Changning Prefecture, so they will definitely come to you.

You can't refuse them, and you don't need to. Just do me a favor and keep an eye on them. Don't let them cause any major trouble in Changning Prefecture."

"Three Xiang Martial Alliance leader? I've never heard of such a position," Su Xin asked, puzzled.

Tie Wuching played with the iron ball in his hand, a rare look of admiration on his face.

"Of course you haven't heard of it, because Du Yuansheng has been missing for eighteen years. However, he is one of the few people I truly admire.

In the past, the Great Zhou Empire rose from this southern wilderness, and the Mad Lion Du Yuansheng helped the nascent Great Zhou, gathering all the martial artists from the Xiangnan Dao, Xiangjiang Dao, and Xiangxi Dao to form the Three Xiang Martial Alliance, which attacked the former Central Plains hegemon, the Eastern Jin.

This man was a great strategist and a world-class hero. It can be said that the Great Zhou Empire's current status is largely due to the Mad Lion Du Yuansheng.

However, eighteen years ago, just as the Great Zhou Empire was about to completely destroy the Eastern Jin, the Mad Lion Du Yuansheng suddenly disappeared, causing the Three Xiang Martial Alliance to disintegrate. This led to a slowdown in the Great Zhou Empire's offensive, allowing the Eastern Jin to recover and survive to this day."

Tie Wuching drained the tea bowl on the table and continued, "At its peak, the Three Xiang Martial Alliance's power and influence were on par with today's top sects.

Du Yuansheng followed the Great Zhou Empire, wiping out countless small and large sects that supported the Eastern Jin, and gathered countless treasures, powerful martial arts manuals, and divine elixirs.

Even a top-tier sect like the Yijian Sect would be envious of these treasures."

Su Xin also took a sip of tea and said, "From their appearance, it seems that Du Yuansheng's treasure is just a rumor. Is it worth all this trouble for a legendary treasure?"

Tie Wuching laughed, "Of course, these major sects are not that foolish. They wouldn't openly send a large group of people here. Not finding the treasure would be embarrassing, and if the treasure really exists, their actions would attract the attention of other sects.

This time, they sent young disciples, all around the Transcendent Realm, to scout. If they find the treasure, they will send more people later."

After finishing, Tie Wuching got up to leave, saying, "I'll go first. Dealing with these martial world sects is awkward for my position in the court. If anything happens, just send me a message."

Su Xin nodded. After Tie Wuching left, Huang Bingcheng came over and asked quietly, "Boss, what should we do now?"

Su Xin said calmly, "What else can we do? Wait for those sects to come to us.

You heard what Lord Tie said; these sects are not to be trifled with."

The sudden arrival of these martial world sects in Changning Prefecture indeed caught Su Xin off guard.

However, Su Xin had no conflict with them. If they were looking for treasure and needed help, as long as he could help, he wouldn't refuse. After all, he had promised Tie Wuching to keep an eye on these sects.

Just as Su Xin and his group were about to leave, a commotion broke out on the first floor of the Shenglong Tower. Su Xin led his people downstairs and saw several young swordsmen in conflict with the innkeeper.

One of the young men, about fifteen or sixteen years old, slammed his hand on the table and said coldly, "What's the meaning of this? You're trying to kick us out in broad daylight. Do you think we can't pay?"

The young man threw a silver ingot onto the table with a 'clank.' It was at least a fifty-tael official silver ingot.

Seeing the young man's demeanor, the innkeeper's heart sank. These young men and women were not ordinary. Their presence and confidence were unmistakable.

Ordinary small sects could not cultivate such a presence.

PS: The Nian Gang is from a new school martial arts novel, "Tang Dynasty Wind Record," that the author read in the past. It's a very interesting and humorous martial arts novel. When the author read it, there was no online version or physical book, and he had to collect the serials from half a district's newsstands. If you're interested, you can check it out.

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