Starting from Tianlong, Wudu Tianxia

Seeing that his son still looked clueless, Ma Wude wore an expression of exasperation at his son's lack of ambition:

"This child is younger than you, and not only is he exceptionally articulate, but he also managed to escape from the encirclement and suppression of the Zoroastrians to the capital. As long as he doesn't die young, his future is limitless."

"We were already heading back to Yunnan, so giving him a ride would have been a simple matter, but it would be an immense favor for him. How could we not take advantage of such a kindness?"

"Your father's martial arts skills are mediocre. He has gained some minor fame in the martial arts world because of his reputation for being righteous, hospitable, and sincere."

Ma Yuanlin frowned, puzzled, and said:

"But what if there are unforeseen events we don't know about? You know, Jingzhao Prefecture is not under the control of the Zoroastrian Church. As long as we are careful, we don't need to help cover for him at all. But he still came."

Ma Wude took a deep breath.

"If anything else happens, just explain our relationship with him, and then appeal to his emotions and reason to distance ourselves from the situation. Can't you even say you were unaware and were deceived?"

"Everyone in the martial arts world knows your father is warm-hearted and hospitable; such is his nature. Ignorance is no excuse, understand?"

"Would any respectable gang really bother with us?"

Old Ma's three soul-searching questions left Ma Yuanlin speechless.

Just as he was about to compliment his father, Old Ma gave him his ultimate assessment.

"As stupid as a calf."

Ma Yuanlin: "..."

at the same time.

Gao Yuan left the teahouse and headed straight for the inn, pondering and weighing his future path along the way.

As dusk approached, the sky gradually darkened, the sun's tail painted the sky with ink, and the clouds turned a dark yellow.

Stepping into Shuichi Street, shops, restaurants, and theaters come into view.

There are many similar streets in Jingzhao Prefecture, and the intermingling of shops and restaurants can attract more people so that merchants and travelers can make purchases nearby.

After turning a corner, a restaurant stood in the street with the three large characters "Jin Ke Lai" written on its golden signboard.

This was the inn where Gao Yuan was staying.

The restaurant's name, which sounds like "GG," wasn't chosen randomly.

Restaurants famous for their food and drink usually have elegant names, such as "Guanhelou," while those mainly serving as rest stops and lodgings have the character "ke" (客) in their names.

In fact, most restaurants offer both food and lodging services; the different names are simply to differentiate the advantages of each establishment.

Just about to enter the store.

Suddenly, his ears perked up, and he heard unusual noises coming from deep within the alley.

The sound was not obvious, and no one on the road could hear it, but Gao Yuan was full of internal energy at this moment and his senses were sharp. Although it was not intentional, he could hear it clearly naturally.

I wasn't in a hurry to go back, so I stood at the entrance of the alley and looked inside.

Filled with curiosity, I slowly walked deeper into the alley.

This place is located in the bustling Shuichi area, with restaurants and houses standing side by side. During the day, food stalls gather here, and leftover vegetables and rice mixed with grease give off a pungent odor.

Turn two more alleys, and you'll see two children dressed in fine clothes beating a skinny boy in tattered clothes.

The group consisted of children around five or six years old. The boy who was being beaten was curled up in a corner between two walls, covering his head and coldly enduring the blows.

"Keep running, you little bastard, you dared to steal, hand it over."

Not satisfied with just hitting him, the man kicked him twice more, causing him to break out in a cold sweat from the pain, only able to bite his lower lip tightly.

The two men held him down and began groping him.

"Wow...no!"

When the pendant he was clutching in his palm was pried open, he, who had been gritting his teeth and straining, finally couldn't hold back and burst into tears.

Seeing him resist, one of them squatted down, picked up a stone from the base of the wall, raised it high, and smashed it down hard on the dirty boy.

A gentle breeze swept by.

The group turned around and were surprised to find a stranger standing in front of them.

One of the children noticed that his best friend's wrist had been grabbed by the newcomer.

Gao Yuan snatched the stone away, frowned, and said to the two, "So ruthless at such a young age. Who are you children? Where are the adults? Don't you know the laws of the Song Dynasty? Killing someone without cause is a serious crime!"

The two were about to reprimand him, but when they heard him speak first and saw that he was much taller and bigger than them, their stiff necks immediately went limp.

A child, his eyes darting around, mumbled, "Who...who killed someone...it was just playing around..."

The slightly chubby child also tried to hold back: "Don't try to scare people with 'Song Xing Tong'."

Despite his firm words, he secretly took a half-step back, clearly flustered by the "serious crime" accusation.

"Go back."

The two children were intimidated by his imposing manner. They glared at him fiercely but didn't dare to say another word. They hurriedly darted into the side alley and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Approaching the "boy," Gao Yuan looked him over and asked, "What's your name?"

She tilted her head back and said, "None of your business."

Looking at the thin child in front of him, Gao Yuan found it somewhat amusing.

The boy wouldn't wear a lining with pink twigs embroidered on the corner of his clothes. The way she spoke, with a sob in her voice, was unlike that of a typical mischievous boy; instead, it had a touch of a little girl's stubbornness.

Gao Yuan withdrew his gaze and said to the child, "Don't steal things anymore, or you'll get beaten to death."

"Oh, and remember to tear off the creases on the hem of your undershirt."

The little girl quickly covered the corner of her clothes and looked at him in panic.

Gao Yuan didn't say anything more. He gave the little girl a dozen or so copper coins and turned to leave.

"Mind your own business."

The gaunt girl breathed a sigh of relief as he left, and spat at the alleyway where he disappeared.

She lifted her shirt, bit the opening with her teeth, and with a "rip," the hem of her inner shirt was violently torn off.

The movement was a bit too large, which aggravated the bruises on his abdomen, causing him to grimace in pain and tears to stream down his face.

She remembered what her grandfather had said to her before he passed away.

"Xiao Ying, your grandfather is old and can't take care of you anymore. Remember, from now on, you are a man, not a woman. Until you can protect yourself, you must always dress like a man when you are out in public."

She knew that her grandfather couldn't stay with her for long.

Grandpa didn't live his life in vain. He could tell with his eyes closed what would happen to a helpless girl from a poor family after he was gone.

No one will treat her like a human being anymore.

She wiped away her tears, rubbed her rumbling stomach, and opened her palm, staring at the dozen or so copper coins Gao Yuan had given her.

The child's tender yet sallow face suddenly broke into a smile.

……

When Gao Yuan returned to the restaurant, there were almost no customers in the main hall, and the manager was sitting in front of the counter, resting his chin on his hand and fiddling with an abacus.

Seeing him step in, she weakly said "Honored guest, returning home" and continued doing her own accounting.

He smiled and shook his head. It was no wonder the innkeeper was so unenthusiastic that he had only booked a basic single room.

Back in the private room, I bolted the door.

Gao Yuan sat cross-legged on the bed, engrossed in reading "The Hundred Acupoints Atlas".

Memorizing acupoints before bed and then practicing internal energy is his unwavering habit.

After all, Sun Kang studied diligently by the light of snow, never ceasing his studies.

The study of meridians is not something that can be accomplished overnight. There are more than 300 acupoints of varying sizes in the human body. If one does not diligently memorize them every day, it is nothing short of a pipe dream.

He's not like Feng Heng, who can remember everything after seeing it only once.

This is why Gao Yuan dared not further cultivate the Northern Darkness Technique; he would always get stuck on meridians and acupoints that he couldn't understand, leaving him completely bewildered.

Without understanding the relevant aspects, he dared not attempt to cultivate the remaining diagrams of the Canghai Qi-Inducing Chapter.

It should be noted that in the cultivation of internal energy, the slightest carelessness can lead to the energy going astray, resulting in the destruction of one's body and martial arts.

He also studied the meridian and acupoint diagrams of external medical clinics and martial arts schools, and even went to specialized pharmacies to consult doctors, hoping to obtain two medical books and the "Hundred Acupoints Atlas" for mutual reference.

Damn it... they're all stubborn old fogies who cling to their own possessions.

He either had to become an apprentice or bleed a lot of money; he didn't want to be taken advantage of like a vengeful child!

It's fine if it's slow. At least the "Hundred Acupoints Chart" is a genuine product certified by Lao Fan. If you accidentally buy a counterfeit, losing money is a minor matter.

If you end up making yourself stupid from all that training, you'll be at a huge loss.

only……

He glanced at the newly purchased classics on the table, including "Zhuangzi's Free and Easy Wandering" and "I Ching".

I can understand Zhuangzi's "Free and Easy Wandering," but the Book of Changes has too much content, including the eight trigrams, sixty-four hexagrams, and hexagram texts, and it's also obscure.

Honestly... I can't remember them all, I can't remember them all... There are too many, I can't possibly remember them all!