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After descending from Mount Hua, He Hongyao returned to Wudujiao, where she returned the Golden Snake Sword and Golden Snake Needle. As for the treasure map, it had already been destroyed by Xia Xueyi, but the Pirated Books contained specific information. He Hongyao informed her brother, the leader of the sect, about the address. He Brother had been feeling guilty, angry, and worried about his sister's situation. Now that she had finally returned and made amends, He Brother was overjoyed, and his health improved significantly. In the original storyline, He Brother had suffered greatly due to He Tie Shou's issues and was preoccupied with dealing with those who sought to exploit the situation for their own gain. This led to severe poisoning that caused him to leave this world early, leaving behind his daughter, He Tie Shou. Now, with He Hongyao bringing back the sect's treasures and redeeming herself, there were no longer any excuses for rebellion among the others. They settled down, allowing He Brother to avoid facing poison and preserving his health, thus preventing an early death.
He Brother sent trusted subordinates to accompany He Hongyao to the Central Plains to excavate all of Emperor Jianwen's treasures and transport them back to Wudujiao. Without this batch of treasure for support, Li Zicheng's resources could not be replenished, and his strength could not be enhanced, which slowed his advance into Beijing City and provided a buffer for the Ming Army.
After transporting the treasures back to Wudujiao, He Hongyao departed. She traveled north towards Feng and infiltrated the Qing Imperial Palace. From the Pirated Books, she learned that in the future, the Qing barbarians would take control of the Central Plains, leading to tragedies such as the Yangzhou Ten Days and the Jia Ding Massacre. He Hongyao was not Han Chinese and had no interest in who ruled as emperor among them; she did not care about their lives or deaths. However, she believed that the Pirated Books were a gift from the divine. Since the divine expressed discontent with the Manchus taking over the Central Plains within those pages, perhaps it was meant for her to take action.
Thus, a repeat of the Wen Family incident occurred, this time targeting the entire Manchu royal family: Hong Taiji was poisoned, Dorgon was poisoned, Dayuer also died... The Eight Banners fell into chaos, and the Manchus lost both their desire and ability to march southward. The northern borders became secure, allowing Chongzhen to muster strength against domestic peasant revolts. In truth, Chongzhen was quite capable; he just had bad luck facing an ice age and dealing with the mess left by previous emperors. Now that his main adversaries had been dealt with, he could finally breathe easy and focus on resolving domestic issues. The Ming Dynasty had many capable ministers and generals who could now concentrate on countering rebels like Li Zicheng without giving him a chance to defeat them. Soon after, peace was restored; Chongzhen exhausted himself but ultimately revitalized the Ming Dynasty. Meanwhile, A Jiu lived her life without ever encountering someone she liked; she married and had children peacefully and happily.
……
In another world...
Atop Emei Mountain stood a boy around fifteen or sixteen years old. As he practiced swordplay, he recited a mantra: "Return sister hastens towards no delusion; no delusion hastens towards sameness; sameness hastens towards great abundance.A transforms into C; C transforms into G; and G transforms into K.. The Rat and Ox meet; The Dragon and Snake meet; The Horse and Goat meet. Wind and Thunder are one change; Mountains and Marshes are one change; Water and Fire are one change. Heaven and Earth clash; Thunder and Lake clash; Fire and Wind clash. Three increases form five; five increases form nine..."
The boy's name was Zhang Yingfeng, Dugu Yihe's eldest disciple from Emei Sect. This child was an orphan who had been taken in by Dugu Yihe when he was young. To Zhang Yingfeng, Dugu Yihe was like a father—respected yet kind.
Zhang Yingfeng was currently practicing "Dugu Nine Swords," not Dugu Yihe's version but rather that of Dugu Qiubai’s origins from Hanno and a trash can. On a sunny day like today, while practicing swordplay at the mountain peak, several sheets of paper wrapped around a book suddenly descended from above. The boy held these two items in his hands as he glanced around at the empty mountaintop before looking up at the sky. Were these two items dropped by a deity?
He first examined a few sheets of paper and was immediately astonished. "Dugu Nine Swords," what exquisite swordsmanship! And named after "Dugu," it must have been sent by someone for his master! Flipping through the book quickly shocked him further; he hurriedly clutched both the sword manual and Pirated Books to seek out his master.
Upon seeing the contents of Pirated Books, Dugu Yihe's expression shifted between green and white. As an old minister of Golden Peng Dynasty, only a few people knew about this fact—no one even among Emei Sect’s elders knew about his origins—but it was clearly written in this book. Did that mean what was written would come true? One of his disciples betraying him while seducing outsiders leading to his demise? Another disciple being with his murderer before reaching forty-seven years old?!
According to his eldest disciple’s account, these two items had descended from above. Dugu Yihe believed Zhang Yingfeng’s words; as an honest child, he would not lie—if they descended from above, then they indeed came from there. So these two items were gifts from deities? Perhaps unable to bear seeing Emei’s eventual ruinous fate unfold as foretold in history books—they wrote down future events so that he and Zhang Yingfeng could see them in order to correct their path? Fearing they might lack sufficient martial prowess, they even bestowed upon them an exceptional sword technique for cultivation?
Dugu Yihe tucked away the two items and instructed his eldest disciple, "Do not tell a third person about today's events. Just the two of us knowing is enough. As for Dugu Nine Swords, I will teach it to you once I fully understand it."
Dugu Yihe decided to enhance his eldest disciple's martial prowess, so that he would not inadvertently learn certain secrets and become a target.
Zhang Yingfeng nodded vigorously, then asked with concern, "What should I do about Sister Ye and Sister Sun?"
Dugu Yihe sighed, "Treat them as you always have. They know nothing of the current situation. I will guide them well, hoping to help them avoid future troubles. However, if they betray me and Emei as written in the book, I will not be merciful."
Though Dugu Yihe spoke these words, he harbored some resentment towards his two female disciples. The current Emei Four Beauties were only around ten years old, personally brought up the mountain by Dugu Yihe. Ma Xiuzhen was cheerful, Yeh Hsiu-Chu was gentle, Sun Xiuqing was kind, and Shi Xiuyun was lively. Dugu Yihe cherished all four girls as if they were his own daughters. Little did he expect that half of these "daughters" would betray him for a man. Dugu Yihe felt heartbroken; although he treated all four girls equally on the surface, he had begun to differentiate between them in secret. This distinction was subtle enough that the four girls could not perceive it, but only Zhang Yingfeng noticed Dugu Yihe's differing attitudes towards them. Dugu Yihe was particularly strict with Ma Xiuzhen and Shi Xiuyun in their martial training, urging them to improve their skills so they wouldn't easily fall victim to Shangguan Feiyan's hidden weapons. In contrast, he focused more on teaching Yeh Hsiu-Chu and Sun Xiuqing about virtues like filial piety and integrity rather than demanding high martial skills from them. Yeh Hsiu-Chu was indifferent to this approach, but Sun Xiuqing was competitive; seeing Ma Xiuzhen and Shi Xiuyun practice diligently, she too worked hard to improve her skills, surpassing her original abilities.
Years passed swiftly, and the plot was about to unfold. At this time, Zhang Yingfeng had learned Dugu Nine Swords from Dugu Yihe and had doubled his martial prowess compared to the original story. He could match swords with Ximen Chui Xue and Ye Gucheng to a standstill, gaining fame that rivaled both of them. Dugu Yihe felt immense pride in this; he had taught Dugu Nine Swords exclusively to Zhang Yingfeng—believing him to be the chosen one—rather than his other disciples who were unworthy of such knowledge. However, teaching Dugu Nine Swords to Zhang Yingfeng also greatly benefited him, refining his own dual mastery of sword and saber techniques.
Meanwhile, Yan Renying and Su Shaoying learned the improved "Dual Sabers and Swords: Seventy-Seven Forms" developed by Dugu Yihe along with his insights into Dugu Nine Swords, significantly enhancing their martial skills as well. However, the Emei Four Beauties only learned the older version of the "Dual Sabers and Swords: Seventy-Seven Forms." Dugu Yihe remained wary of Yeh Hsiu-Chu and Sun Xiuqing; unwilling for them to learn advanced martial arts yet again forced Ma Xiuzhen and Shi Xiuyun to study the outdated forms first before introducing them to newer techniques once everything settled down.
What frustrated Dugu Yihe was that despite his strict teachings on loyalty and righteousness regarding their sect, Yeh Hsiu-Chu still betrayed Emei for Huo Qing; even Sun Xiuqing developed an interest in Ximen Chui Xue after hearing rumors about him. Was fate truly unchangeable? Dugu Yihe felt anxious. Fortunately, Zhang Yingfeng reassured him: "Master, if I take my second junior brother's place at Yan Boss's side, won't that allow my junior brother to escape from Ximen Chui Xue's fate? Moreover, your skills now surpass those of Ximen Chui Xue; you have seen through Huo Qing's schemes and won't fall into his traps or die at Ximen Chui Xue's hands. Isn't that a change in destiny?"
Upon hearing this, Dugu Yihe felt enlightened and stepped out of the fog of despair while Zhang Yingfeng took Su Shaoying's place to secretly protect Yan Tieshan.
A banquet was set up in the Water Pavilion surrounded by lotus ponds that were as clear as jade; the red railings of the winding bridge stood out vividly against the scenery. The pearl-draped windows were raised high, allowing a gentle breeze carrying the fresh scent of blooming lotus leaves to waft through. It was already April.
This banquet was naturally arranged by Huo Qing under the pretense of hosting Six Phoenixes and Flower Full Building while secretly colluding with Shangguan Feiyan to take this opportunity to kill Yan Tieshan openly.
Zhang Yingfeng wasn't as scholarly as his second junior brother nor particularly eloquent; he lacked the ability to liven up the atmosphere. He simply held a wine cup while gazing at the lotus pond. Others thought he was admiring the scenery when in fact he was searching for Shangguan Feiyan's hiding spot. Despite being surrounded by many martial experts in the Water Pavilion—including those with exceptionally keen hearing from Flower Full Building—none detected Shangguan Feiyan hiding among the lotus plants; this demonstrated how well she concealed herself. But while they were oblivious, Zhang Yingfeng remained vigilant and finally caught a glimpse of her whereabouts. Stealthily shifting positions, Zhang Yingfeng moved closer to where Shangguan Feiyan lay hidden.
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