Chapter 4

It turned out that this was not the world of "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber" that Song Qingshu had originally thought, but a strange world.

When Zhou Zhiruo mentioned the couple Guo Jing and Huang Rong defending Xiangyang, the invincible Dongfang Bubai on Blackwood Cliff, and the Liao Empire's Southern Chancellor Xiao Feng, who once stirred up a storm in the Central Plains martial world... Song Qingshu's expression was a mix of astonishment and bewilderment.

After much probing, Song Qingshu finally confirmed with a strange look that this was a world constructed from the fourteen novels of Jin Yong.

In this world, the Song and Liao Empires had been in conflict for over a hundred years, with mixed results. Eventually, two Jurchen tribes rose up in the rear of the Liao Empire: the Heishui Jurchens and the Jianzhou Jurchens. The Heishui Jurchens established the Jin Empire, and after several major battles, they directly invaded the heartland of the Liao Empire, nearly causing its downfall. Fortunately, another nomadic tribe, the Mongols, rose up on the grasslands and began to attack the Jin Empire from behind, forcing the Jin to halt their advance on the Liao and turn to deal with the Mongols.

Now, the two countries are at a stalemate along the Yellow River, from Chang'an to Tongguan. The Liao Empire has been able to catch its breath, holding out in Shanxi and Inner Mongolia. A few years ago, the Liao Emperor Yelü Hongji obtained the god-like Southern Chancellor Xiao Feng, and with an alliance with the Mongols, the Liao Empire has shown signs of revival.

The Jianzhou Jurchens established the Manchu Empire, which conquered the troubled Ming Empire and occupied the vast lands of Liaodong, Hebei, Shandong, and Yangzhou.

Now, the only Han Chinese state left is the Song Empire, which controls the area south of the Yangtze River and resists the nomadic cavalry from the north.

In the current world, the Mongols are the strongest, but the unification of the Mongol tribes was a brutal battle. The Great Khan Temujin's sons all died in battle, and few of his contemporaries and nephews remain. Fortunately, the third-generation grandsons are exceptionally talented. The sixth grandson, Hulagu, followed the Great Khan Temujin in the western campaign, dividing his forces into two routes: one to attack Khwarezm and the Eastern European federations, and the other to attack the powerful Persian and Arab countries.

Before Temujin's western campaign, he left his deceased sworn brother Muqali's son, Chagan, the Prince of Rongyang (Zhaomin's father), to lead an army to govern the Western Regions, suppress the Ming Cult and the Hui tribes, and appropriately contain the Western Xia, preventing it from expanding.

He sent his fourth grandson, Kublai, to lead an army to attack the Jin Empire along the Chang'an-Tongguan line, and his eldest grandson, Möngke, to lead an army to attack the Southern Song Empire from Sichuan. After Möngke's death, Kublai took over his forces and is now in the Nanyang-Wancheng area, attacking the Jin Empire's Chang'an and Luoyang from the north and the Song Empire's Xiangyang from the south, becoming the most prominent among the Mongol princes.

He left his seventh grandson, Ariq Böke, to lead an army to guard the Mongol grasslands, eyeing the Manchu Empire with suspicion. However, the young Manchu Emperor Kangxi is also a man of great talent and vision. He guards Beijing, with his vassal Wu Sangui guarding Shanhaiguan and Prince Hongli guarding Shengjing, forming a strategic triangle. They have formed an alliance with the Heishui Jurchens' Jin Empire, and their momentum has quietly surpassed the combined forces of Ariq Böke and the Liao Empire.

Of course, the small border states like Tibet and the Dali Duan clan are merely struggling to survive and are not worth mentioning in detail.

After being shocked by all this, Song Qingshu was still skeptical. Was this really a fusion of the worlds from Jin Yong's fourteen novels? A sudden idea struck him, and he thought of someone at Shaolin Temple who could give him the answer.

Song Qingshu said he was going for a walk, and Zhou Zhiruo nodded indifferently. Song Qingshu chuckled and kept muttering to himself as he walked: "This woman's feelings for her husband are really quite shallow. It seems only Zhang Wuji can stir her emotions..." After a long time, he realized that his top priority now was to heal his meridians and survive in this chaotic world, not to be jealous of Zhang Wuji.

He made his way to the Shaolin Temple's Sutra Pavilion and explained his intentions to the reception monk. Knowing that he was the husband of the Emei Sect's leader, the monk did not dare to be rude. Seeing that he only wanted to read the Buddhist scriptures, the monk registered him and led him inside: "Young Master Song, our temple always welcomes those with a connection to read the Buddhist scriptures. The first floor houses various versions of the scriptures, and Young Master Song can browse them freely. However, the second floor and above contain our temple's martial arts texts, and since Young Master Song is not a member of our sect, we hope you will not put the young monk in a difficult position."

"Thank you, Master. I understand," Song Qingshu knew that the monk was being polite. The second floor of the Sutra Pavilion was a restricted area of Shaolin Temple, always guarded by experts. Even if he were at full strength, he could not go up, let alone now when he was powerless.

Song Qingshu aimlessly flipped through the scriptures, not really interested in them, but rather searching for a certain figure.

After searching for a long time, he couldn't find the person he was looking for, and his disappointment was evident. He wondered if he had guessed wrong.

"Ah!" Unconsciously, he turned to a dim corner and saw the words "Lengqie Jing" (The Lankavatara Sutra). Remembering that the "Nine Yang True Scripture" was once hidden inside, Song Qingshu excitedly reached out and opened it.

Although he knew that Zhang Wuji had already learned the "Nine Yang True Scripture," and that the scripture had been removed from the Sutra Pavilion, he still held out a sliver of hope. As expected, it was empty, and Song Qingshu sighed in disappointment.

"Amitabha!" A Buddhist chant from behind startled Song Qingshu. He turned around and saw a gray-robed monk standing quietly behind him.

The monk was dressed in the lowest-ranking attire of Shaolin Temple, holding a tattered broom, thin and gaunt, with a few sparse, completely white whiskers. To anyone, he looked like a dying old monk. However, Song Qingshu was filled with mixed emotions, not expecting that this nameless monk really existed.

"Junior Song Qingshu greets Master," Song Qingshu respectfully bowed.

"Hmm?" The nameless monk was surprised by Song Qingshu's respect and curiosity, "I am not a master, just an old monk. I saw Young Master Song wandering around the Sutra Pavilion, only skimming through other scriptures, but when you saw this 'Lengqie Jing,' you picked it up without hesitation. When you saw the contents, you looked disappointed. I was curious, so I came to meet you."

"Junior was hoping for a miracle, but it turned out to be just a fantasy, hence the disappointment," Song Qingshu hesitated and said tactfully.

"I have been in the Sutra Pavilion for over forty years. If I remember correctly, this 'Lengqie Jing' once contained the 'Nine Yang True Scripture,' but it was later taken away. May I ask if the item Young Master Song is looking for is it?" The nameless monk was indeed curious about how Song Qingshu, so young, knew about this secret and seemed to understand him.

Caught off guard, Song Qingshu was a bit embarrassed: "To be honest, Master, I was indeed checking if the 'Nine Yang True Scripture' was still inside."

"Oh~" The nameless monk laughed heartily, not asking why Song Qingshu knew this secret, but instead asked with concern, "If I am not mistaken, Young Master Song's meridians are completely severed. Even if you found the Nine Yang True Scripture, you would not be able to practice it. Why add to your worries?"

"I hope Master can save me." Thinking that this might be the only person in the world who could save him, Song Qingshu became agitated and lost his composure.

"Young Master Song's life is not in danger, why do you need to be saved?" The nameless monk helped him up, "If you want to recover your martial arts, I must be frank. Your meridians are completely severed, and it is beyond human ability to restore them. I am also powerless."