The Villain's Counterattack

There is a difference between being in seclusion and coming out of the world. Since the old fellow Zhuge Yi came out in the open, his abilities have been greatly improved. He has become more tolerant of his useless son, and his granddaughter has become the daughter-in-law of the Cao family. However, the dowry he gave made all the wealthy families in the capital jealous.

Wu Fang, the son of the Wu family, successfully passed the imperial examination and initially planned to strive for the position of magistrate of Rongjing County. However, this position was snatched up by many people and was finally awarded to a royal relative. As compensation, he was allowed to continue working for Murong Fu and was given a minor official position in Yazhou Prefecture.

Although the rank is not high, it is a position of real power, and he works under the new prefect Murong Fu. Such a position is still very popular. Even the head of the Wu family is quite satisfied with it and is considering whether to move the family to Yazhou Prefecture.

There are many wealthy families in Rongjing County who share this idea. It is their consensus that they can eat meat by following Murong Fu. Naturally, there are also many families who are reluctant to leave their homeland. Murong Fu's attitude towards these people is entirely voluntary. He has no shortage of followers in this world.

As he was about to leave office, Murong Fu started the power transfer in advance, or temporarily transferred the power to others, and began to transfer the power that truly belonged to him to Yazhou Prefecture. This kind of thing did not require him to do it personally, he just needed to give specific orders.

Magistrate Murong's outings were not uncommon in Rongjing County. During his final year in office, his personal appearances had become increasingly rare. Without him, Rongjing County could continue to thrive without major problems. Murong Fu and his entourage of twenty or thirty men rode briskly, accompanied by maids and guards, Zhong Wanchou's family of three, and Cao Yi and Zhuge Xiu.

As one of the best young masters in the martial arts world and an idol admired by the younger generation of the martial arts world, the movements of the not-so-low-key Murong Fu are no secret, especially as the three-year agreement is approaching. Many people know that North Qiao Feng and South Murong are about to fight. Their fight seems ordinary, but it is unusual, as they represent two major forces in the martial arts world.

As the leader of the world's number one gang, the Beggars' Sect, Qiao Feng naturally represents the Beggars' Sect, which naturally has a different meaning. Since taking office as the leader, he has fought through hundreds of battles and never lost. The title of the Qiao Feng of the North was earned through his punches and kicks.

Murong Fu is the sole heir of the Murong family. Despite the presence of Old Madam Murong, many still consider him the family's representative. He possesses both literary and martial prowess, possesses an astonishing wealth, and possesses a wealth of resources that few in the martial arts world, even those from wealthy families, would not envy. However, compared to his martial arts prowess, his achievements in civil administration are even more remarkable. If it weren't for the great battle on the shores of Taihu Lake two years ago, many might not have recognized his martial prowess.

Ever since Murong Fu and his party left Sichuan, they were immediately followed by others. No matter whether they were traveling leisurely or galloping, there were always people who saw them, either following them blatantly or secretly.

Murong Fu didn't care much about this. His martial arts had never stopped improving for a moment in the past two years. At least eighty out of a hundred masters from Dali, Tubo, and Xixia were defeated by him. Not to mention that he had an old father at home who was well versed in the 72 Shaolin martial arts and could be used for training. His experience was no less than that of Qiao Feng.

What's more, he also obtained more ancient inheritance from Zhuge Yi, and the combination of ancient and modern times made his martial arts realm greatly improved.

The group did not hide their purpose and rushed all the way to Songshan. However, many people knew the destination of the competition and secretly called their friends to rush over.

By the time Murong Fu and his party arrived at Shaolin, the inn at the foot of Mount Song was already packed. Fortunately, they had contacted Shaolin Temple in advance, and they had already reserved a room for them, saving them from having to sleep in the wilderness. For convenience, Gan Baobao, Zhong Ling, and the four maids all dressed up as men. While it didn't look like the real thing, it served the purpose of deceiving the public, allowing them to pretend they hadn't seen anything.

After all, Murong Fu has already given Shaolin a lot of face by doing this, so why should they be stubborn and make things difficult for themselves? Moreover, Qiao Feng in the north and Murong in the south decided to hold this martial arts competition at Mount Song, which may also be intended to give Shaolin face.

Murong Fu's whereabouts are no secret, he also arrived at Songshan in advance, but the whereabouts of the other protagonist are uncertain due to his identity. After all, the Beggars' Gang has always been committed to fighting against foreign enemies and protecting the Song Dynasty. If their whereabouts are known, they will inevitably be encircled by foreign enemies. Even the former gang leader Wang Jiantong was captured by Liao warriors.

Qiao Feng was an extraordinary martial artist, and although he was not afraid of these things, it was never too much for him to be cautious. Moreover, he was not a child of aristocratic family like Murong Fu, who was surrounded by maids and guards when traveling and was extremely high-profile. Qiao Feng was alone and dressed in ordinary clothes, coming and going like the wind, but he was not conspicuous. Except for the disciples of the Beggar Gang, it was difficult for ordinary people to catch his whereabouts.

For three or five days in a row, the entire Songshan became extremely lively because of Murong Fu's arrival. Zhong Ling was born and raised in Dali and did not know much about the Central Plains. This time, she followed Murong Fu to Songshan and was extremely happy along the way. She had been with Murong Fu all the time in the past few days, and seeing so many people in the martial arts world being respectful to Murong Fu, she liked him even more.

Most of the martial artists treated Murong Fu with courtesy when they saw him. In the martial arts world, people with fists are worthy of respect, and being able to witness the battle between Qiao Feng in the north and Murong in the south will undoubtedly increase their qualifications, and no one wants to miss it.

It's a pity that Murong Fu didn't give them an accurate answer. He only said that the leader of the Beggar Gang was of great importance and his whereabouts could not be easily leaked. As long as he showed up, the scheduled competition would start soon. As for the result, Murong Fu only said it was 50-50, and it was likely that there would be no winner.

Why?

Murong Fu was confident that he had made greater progress than Qiao Feng. Although he did not want to win, he could at least ensure that he would remain undefeated. This way, he could maintain a balance of power and create more topics and attention.

In the north, Qiao Feng and in the south, Murong Fu, either the two kings do not meet each other, or if they meet, it is difficult to determine the winner, otherwise the balance will be broken, and it will be bad for anyone to lose. If Qiao Feng loses, the prestige of the Beggars' Sect will definitely be hit, and if Murong Fu loses, the Gusu Murong clan will also face a wave of shocks.

However, ever since they made the agreement three years ago, they had to clash with each other. Firstly, Qiao Feng needed to use Murong Fu to intimidate the old men of the Beggar Gang. Secondly, Murong Fu also needed to use Qiao Feng to demonstrate his martial arts skills and make those people in the martial arts world with impure intentions remain in awe.

Qiao Feng did not let Murong Fu wait any longer. One day, at noon, an old couple in a farmhouse sent a burly man out of the house. They kept giving him instructions and nagging as they walked. The burly man was tall and strong, with steady steps, but he greeted the two old people with a smile and nodded in response.

When the two old men turned around, the burly man straightened his back, exuding the aura of a superior. He exerted a little force on his feet and rushed out seven or eight feet away in an instant, then continued all the way to Shaolin Temple.

"Who is this? Boss Qiao?!" Many of the martial artists who had been wandering around Mount Song knew Qiao Feng.

Qiao Feng did not stop. When he heard the man talking, he bowed and smiled slightly, leaving behind a solid back. In an instant, the news that Qiao Feng from the north had gone to Shaolin spread.

The Shaolin side had been prepared in advance. After all, Qiao Sanhuai and his wife lived at the foot of Mount Song. They also knew that Qiao Feng was staying overnight in their hometown, so they made preparations in advance. When Qiao Feng arrived at the door, several high monks of the Xuan generation came out to greet him.

Seeing the person coming, Qiao Feng hurried forward and knelt vigorously, saying, "Disciple Qiao Feng greets Master."

The monk was Shaolin Master Xuanku. He hurriedly helped Qiao Feng up and looked at his disciple with mixed feelings. From what he had just seen, he felt that his disciple's martial arts skills were probably even better than his own, and his reputation in the martial arts world was far beyond the reach of this old monk.

"Okay, okay, Feng'er, you have worked hard these years. You have done a great job. I am proud of you." Master Xuan Ku applauded repeatedly. Seeing that his master was fine, Qiao Feng felt relieved and smiled. He also greeted several other masters of the Xuan generation and kept a low profile.

At this moment, Murong Fu's voice rang out, "Brother Qiao, you are the leader of the Beggars' Sect after all. It is proper for you to pay respect to Master Xuan Ku in public. After all, he is your mentor. However, it would be better for you to treat the other masters as equals. Otherwise, it would seem to be lowering the Beggars' Sect. It would be better for you to be like me, and say a few words to everyone I meet in Shaolin, showing respect in my heart rather than with my words."

The monks couldn't help but frown when they heard this. Nan Murong claimed to be a scholar, but he behaved like a complete playboy. The abbot of Shaolin, Master Xuanbei, was also an old friend of his father. This bastard actually used his status as the head of the Murong family to force them to treat each other as equals, which made the monks of Shaolin speechless.

Upon hearing this, Qiao Feng laughed heartily and said, "The reputation of the Beggars' Sect was earned through fighting, defending the borders of our country and resisting foreign aggression, not through showing off our power or intimidating others. Even if I, the leader of the sect, were to kneel before heaven and earth and before my parents, mentors, and elders, it would not have the slightest effect."

Hearing this, Murong Fu raised his thumb and exclaimed, "This is the confidence of the world's number one gang. My Murong clan is weak, so we can only pretend to be powerful and intimidate some scoundrels to protect ourselves."

Qiao Feng and the Shaolin monks: Are you still weak? The Murong family's reputation is almost catching up to that of Shaolin and the Beggars' Sect, and they have many talented subordinates. There's Wang Jiaerlang, the president of Gusu College, the foul-mouthed censor Bao Bu Tong, and the little Guan Gong, the killer Feng Bo'e (so named after he learned the Spring and Autumn sword technique from Zhuge Yi). Which one of them is an easy target? Not to mention, above them are the two equally renowned owners of the manor, Deng Baichuan and Gong Yeqian.

Gong Ye Qian once drank happily with the leader of the Beggars' Sect, Qiao Feng, and fought with him passionately. He remained undefeated for thirty moves. Although he lost in the end, he was still known as the "second best palmist in Jiangnan".

Are you talking about Murong Fu?

Haha, everyone knows that Murong Fu's real strength is not his palm skills. Although he fought with Qiao Feng for two hundred rounds with his palm skills and was slightly at a disadvantage, he finally won back with his boxing skills and the ability to change the world. Therefore, what people in the martial arts world saw was not his palm skills, but his miraculous skill of using his own method to defeat others.

There is another reason why Gongye Qian's palm technique is second to none. It is probably because what he practiced was the Sky-Flipping Palm that Murong Fu used that day. Initially, Murong Fu used this palm technique to counter Qiao Feng's Dragon Subduing Palm.