Mysterious Martial Arts: The Record of the Swordsman

Chapter 167

In the night, a small green-browed bird boat is going down the river. The hull is relatively low, but the bow is as thin as a bird's head, and it is named after a green horizontal stripe.There are four oars and one scull on the front and back of the hull, and there are people drumming on each side.

This boat can accommodate 50 people, and now the draft is not shallow but the speed is fast, but the boss of the boat is always frowning.Jiang Wen and Yuan Ziyi didn't feel sleepy at all, they stood at the bow of the boat together and looked around, and they didn't worry about Yelu's heavy intrusion.

"Master Jiang, are you not worried about the apprentices in the city after you have been out for a few days?"

Yuan Ziyi asked curiously.

"Wending, Ningdie, and Xiaoshitou are all qualitative children, why should I chase after them to teach them?"

Jiang Wen shook his head: "Besides, before I came, I found them a private school to go to school. I took this opportunity to make up for the cultural lessons. At least I can't lose my literacy, so I won't be laughed at when I go out."

The green-browed bird boat sailed through a dangerous shoal again, the originally narrow world suddenly opened up, and the sand fields on both sides stretched into stretches. Sometimes Jinlin could be seen reflecting the moonlight, flashing across the water, and the mighty tide It also rises from the sea along the river mouth, pushing out piles of mottled wrinkles, until Yuan Ziyi's eyes.

Seeing such a scene for the first time, Yuan Ziyi suddenly woke up, and the drowsiness caused by the heavy dew in the middle of the night was swept away. How many stunning views have been missed.

"Mengfuzi said to keep the night air and keep your spirits upright, so I couldn't sleep well for a long time. I didn't think of anything in my dream, but I always dreamed of some old friends I haven't seen for a long time."

Jiang Wen's mood seemed to change, and he started talking about irrelevant gossip.

Yuan Ziyi also said with a little sigh: "It turns out that the head of Jiang also has the worry of going to the country and homesickness. I also left Mount Emei, so I always think of those common sights on weekdays."

Jiang Wen smiled slightly, but shook his head. He rested his right hand on the ancient bronze sword at his waist. After a little thought, he didn't pull out the sword from the lacquered wood scabbard. , pulled out a white jade sword with a sword body like flowing water waves, and faced the vast sandbar of heaven and earth alone.

"I don't dare to close my eyes before the dream is halfway through. Every time I wait until the cock crows on the pillow, the night air will return. I want to live my life, the prosperity and beauty, and my eyes are empty. For 50 years, it has always been a dream..."

The slightly dejected lingering sound lingered, and the white jade sword in Jiang Wen's hand suddenly raised, drew an arc in the sky, and landed in his left hand.

"However, 50 years in the human world are nothing compared to the sky. Looking at the world, is there anyone who can live forever within the sea and sky?"

Jiang Wen stood at the bow of the boat, holding a white jade sword like a pool of autumn water. He didn't move at all from head to toe, but an awe-inspiring aura rose from his body, as if he wanted to use his body as a sword to cut through all the confusion and attachment in the world, brewing a detachment in the world. The realm above sword moves——

But how should this sword be cut out?
This is what Jiang Wen has been thinking about recently, how to deal with Zao Wou-ki again.

After Yiguai Mirage, Jiang Wen was not sure that he would be able to slash the sword that surpassed the peak again. The internal strength that cannot be used with all its strength is a short board after all, and it is easy to show flaws in the fight.

And Zao Wou-ki's Celestial Silkworm Divine Art has reached the realm of transformation, as if he has touched the threshold of the invisible and unintentional. He might be able to rely on his profound skills to be invulnerable, fly to the sky and escape from the ground. opponent.

Escaping is a last resort; fighting may not be able to take advantage, unless you bring three or five top players like Ding Dian, you will never be sure of winning.

Fortunately, the two sides have not officially broken their faces, so Jiang Wen can use the rest of the time to find out the details of the opponent, at least to thoroughly study this silkworm magic skill of unknown origin.

Speaking of this martial art, Jiang Wen has always known some sporadic inside stories, and not all of them come from Jin Yong's Jianghu or his memories before time travel.

When he first arrived in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, he visited the Shaolin Temple in Songshan Mountain, and naturally sneaked into Wudang Mountain in Hubei.

In the Sutra Pavilion behind the Zhenwu Hall of the Wudang School, Jiang Wen read the classics left by the ancestor Sanfeng, the content of which is basically consistent with the records in the "Ming Yitong Zhi": [Zhang Sanfeng, who once lived in Jintai Temple, Dongsanli, Baoji County, I said that I passed away, and died with a eulogy.The people Yang Guishan and others put the coffins and buried them, and looked at them before the burial. After Sanfeng came back to life, he went to Shu, and saw the King of Shu went to Wudang Mountain again, or traveled between Xiang and Deng.In Yongle, envoys were sent to search for him, but they were not met, so they waited for him in the palace. 】

In order to prevent the corpse from decomposing, the general encoffining and burial will not exceed ten days, but this time Zhang Sanfeng's resurrection lasted nine days, which is called "the sun god travels". Shan Ding killed more than a hundred thieves, so he became famous in the world for his unique skills.

Jiang Wen was basically sure that it was after this incident that Zhang Sanfeng went to the banquet for ascending to the immortals at Manting Peak in Wuyi Mountain - because he was still traveling at this time, this incident was extremely secretive, even Feng Daode Didn't know anything.

The second similar experience was after he established a sect in Wudang Mountain.Zhang Sanfeng slept with his eyes closed for a full 81 days in the back mountain. If it wasn't because there was still a trace of breathing left, the disciples would have planned to burn his body with firewood.And after this resurrection from the dead, Zhang Sanfeng's kung fu advanced to another level, and created the mysterious and profound Tai Chi alchemy.

After this time, Zhang Sanfeng went to Youming Lane in Fuzhou City, and read the "Nine Nether Scriptures" left by Huang Chang, the prefect of skulls. The level of martial arts has also been raised to an incalculable level. This incident has left a few words in the Wudang School.

But for the third and last time, Zhang Sanfeng walked into the secret room of the back mountain alone, fasted for more than ten days in advance, only drank clear springs and ate fruits, and finally never walked out of the cave. When they went in to collect the bones, they only found a rickety corpse wrapped in silver and white silk.

In the end, they were the ones who announced the news of Sanfeng Patriarch's death to everyone in the Wudang Sect.

Jiang Wen knew that the elixir of life on Wuyi Mountain and the way of reviving the soul in Youming Lane in Fuzhou City were in the final analysis a road to nothingness that was elusive, but something distorted by indescribable existences. It will never be complacent, and it is very likely to find other ways.

Originally, Jiang Wen had always suspected that the Wudang faction had used the ancestor who had faked his tortoise breath as firewood, but now that he thinks about it, it is very likely that he has practiced this miraculous silkworm skill, and wants to make a further step on the road of longevity and long-term vision. But in the end, he failed to break out of the cocoon and emerge...

The pitch-black river winds and undulates, flowing under the vast sky, and the fields on both sides are covered with lush forests hanging down on the ground, like dormant and sleeping animals, secretly gathering their wings into a ball, only when the cold wind passes by occasionally Then, there was a rustling mournful sound.

Under the cold moonlight, the water mist from the dense river network permeates everywhere, making pedestrians feel like they are in the vast mist. When passing by, you can only see the river channel widening and narrowing, and the green-browed bird boats also drifting east and west Swinging, completely unaware of the undercurrent surging under the water surface, I can only vaguely see some clues from the expressions of the people who punted the boat as if they were facing a formidable enemy.

The boss of the boat became even more nervous, and cold sweat dripped from the thick palms holding the boat.He didn't want to take the night boat order, because Xijiang has its own dangers that outsiders don't know, let alone a few people from the rivers and lakes with unknown motives.

However, he found that there were old and young people in this group, which was obviously not the configuration that robbing a ship should have. The boat fare worth 30 taels of silver for a single trip was too generous, so he was willing to take the risk.

The boat owner carefully steered the helm and escorted the escort, and then looked at the silver ingot in Jiang Wen's hand with fascination, and whispered, "Your lord, be careful, the dangerous beaches here are difficult to navigate at night. I don't know why so many of you are going to Jiangkou overnight?"

"Don't ask too many questions, you just sail the boat."

As soon as Jiang Wen opened his mouth, he was given a soft nail—in view of ordinary people's discrimination against Dan people, Jiang Wen specially asked the boat owner not to ask the identity of the people in the cabin before the trip, otherwise the boat will not be paid.

If the boatman says he doesn't love money, he must be lying.

Now the Qing court is intensively conducting naval maneuvers in Guangdong, Fujian, and Zhejiang. It looks like it is going straight to the Zheng family's headquarters. The sailors rely on nothing more than the profit of the boats. Numerous ships are mobilized along the way, which directly leads to a skyrocketing market price. It used to be enough money to buy a small boat, but now I can't even get a piece of good wood for a boat.

The boats are expensive, and the materials are not cheap, but life is still to be lived. You can’t waste your food because you cherish the boats, and don’t come out to run the boats to make money. Therefore, at this time, a quick money business like Jiang Wen’s is particularly tempting. .

But slowly, the boss of the boat also began to notice the clues, and couldn't help but want to ask for more details.

For example, the boatman found that no matter how rough the wooden boat was in the wind and waves, Jiang Wen stood on the bow of the boat as if his feet had taken root, without any embarrassment of staggering.It wasn't just him, the beautiful girl beside him was also able to stand on the bow of the boat as steadily as Mount Tai, and even the dozen or so passengers in the boat seemed to be accustomed to such turbulent waves.

"Boater, I see that the waves here are calm and the water is not deep. What's going on?"

Jiang Wen asked quietly.

"The nobleman doesn't know something. You ordinary people are afraid of the depth of the water, but those of us who live on the river are most afraid of the shallow water."

The boatman withdrew his gaze, carefully grasped the direction, and explained to Jiang Wen with a little nervousness: "When the water is shallow, at least the warehouse will break into the water, and at worst, people will die when they hit the rocks. Every step must be terrified."

Yuan Ziyi chuckled when he heard the words: "Boater, you people who often take this waterway, don't you know where the water is deep and where the water is shallow? Do you think the boat is not enough?"

The boatman quickly explained: "I didn't mean that, but this Xijiang River is weird. When we go on a night boat, people often have accidents inexplicably, and it is easy to see unclean things, especially in the dark and windy night, when the moon is born. At a moment's notice, anything can happen..."

People who travel by boat often have more taboos. When talking about these with Jiang Wen, his expression became more and more unnatural. From time to time, he would use a long pole to plunge into the water, and move the river surface to draw dizzy marks. , and then he stopped with a little relief, and the back and forth never stopped.

Jiang Wen and Yuan Ziyi didn't understand each other's intentions, but they were also embarrassed to ask the bottom line, so they stood on the deck of the ship without saying a word, watching the scenery on both sides of the river pass by, and sailed lightly for several miles.

Seeing that the undercurrent was thrown behind him, the boss of the boat let out a heavy breath, and explained his actions just now with lingering fear.

"Forgive me, guest officer, on the West River, boatmen often encounter strange things, saying that there are things following them at the bottom of the river, and they will also encounter rotten flat-bottomed boats coming towards them, densely packed with soldiers with bruised faces and festered corpses. "

The boss of the boat recalled the panic when others told him, "Those are said to be the imperial forest guards of the former Song Dynasty. They were suddenly killed by wind and waves and their entire army was wiped out. They failed to catch up with the battle of Yamen and turned into fierce ghosts who refused to reincarnate. Traveling to and from this West River..."

The narrow area of ​​the Xijiang River was easily passed through, and the waterway of three hours was finally coming to an end.Going forward, you can see the scenery of Zhangqiugang Village and Jiangkou.

Seeing that the dangerous area has been crossed, the captain of the boat hastily asked his men to set up the sails, row the oars vigorously, and hurry up to finish the last section of the journey to Jiangkou.

"My lord, there seems to be a ghost under the water, come ashore with us!"

A Danman suddenly opened the guest door and rushed out of the cabin. Jiang Wen discovered that all the adult Danmen inside were all in the same position, keeping their limbs lying on their stomachs and ears touching the ground, listening intently and nervously. The old and weak women and children were also hugging each other tightly. , showing shock.

Jiang Wen hurriedly wanted to step forward to ask, but the boss of the boat stepped in front of him one step faster, and shouted at him angrily: "Where did you come from! Damn, this boat can't be full of Danhu!"

He looked at Jiang Wen with a fierce look on his face, "These people are monsters of dragons and snakes, and they are the best at offering sacrifices to water. Are you trying to kill us!"

But this was the first time that Danmin ignored the scolding and contempt in front of Jiang Wen, and did not show a trace of timidity and hesitation, but continued to say to Jiang Wen: "Quick, the ghosts from the bottom of the water are coming up!"

At this moment, the green-browed bird boat, which had been running smoothly all this time, suddenly felt as if it was stuck by something, and suddenly stopped in place. There were collision and shaking sounds everywhere, and even the keel was sore Squeak!
"Kill the talent! What's going on!"

The boss of the boat staggered and bumped against the pole of the boat, shouted angrily and shouted at the young boy who was paddling, for fear of hearing the bad news that the boat hit the rocks and opened his mouth, "Whoever told you to stop the boat and dock, stop it for me!"

The scene at this time was obviously wrong. After a pause and swaying, the green-browed bird boat that was going down the river suddenly went slower and slower until it stopped in place. The sails on the top of the ship were also pulled to full swing, but the whole ship stayed on the wide water surface of the Xijiang River, unable to move an inch.

It doesn't look like a boat is stopping, but it looks like it was hit head-on by an invisible and intangible ghost ship, and it was forced to stop in the middle of the river!

The light at the bow of the ship became dimmer and condensed to a point like a cigarette butt. This diminutive light seemed to exist only to set off the extremely dark scene around.Jiang Wen hurriedly stopped the boss of the boat, and looked there in shock: "There are weird things in front of and behind the boatman, be careful!"

As the breeze passed by the river, everyone could smell an indescribable fishy smell, which was carried on the sandbank and the river water at this time.People who often walk at night will understand that when traveling at night, they often feel that the land is white, but the water is black, so dim that it is impossible to see what it should look like.

Just now, more and denser waves appeared on the surface of Jin Lin's jumping water, one after another, like the dark boiling of the river before it was boiled, as if something was about to jump out of the water, and was about to jump to the shore.

The captain of the boat, with a pale complexion, suddenly picked up the pole and rushed to the side of the boat, raised his hand and poked into the water, clenched his teeth and opened his eyes wide, as if he was so frightened and angry that he couldn't contain it, he was in harmony with the feminine and wicked The river fought fiercely.

Yuan Ziyi was already looking around with a soft silver whip in his hand, and stood next to Jiang Wen vigilantly. The surrounding cold mist also unknowingly surged from the Dihua, blocking the sight in all directions, and invisible things seemed to be staring at this place. A boat sailing at night.

"The boat is drifting in place, there should be an undercurrent passing underneath."

Jiang Wen looked at Dan Min who ran out, and continued to ask, "What are you talking about Jiaogui?"

Dan Min opened his eyes wide and said to Jiang Wen, "The old man said that the corpse of a dragon underwater will turn into a dragon ghost before it rots. Run, as fast as possible!"

Dan people have lived in lakes, seas and rivers for generations, and their perception and experience of danger are more abundant than ordinary people. Obviously they know that the current situation is not right.Jiang Wen believed what they said without hesitation, and turned to look at the boat boss on the side of the boat.

"Boatman, now is not the time to worry about these things, just leave quickly!"

At this moment, the sound of turning over and falling into the water was heard. Before a young oarsman could make a sound, something grabbed the oar and threw it into the water. In the cold water of the West River.

The boatman's eyes were red, and he was still wrestling with the river water with a pole in his hand. He kept looking for the place where the boy fell into the water, but the other party couldn't reach him. He could only sink into the dark water more quickly, as if being caught by a bird hidden deep inside. hand dragged away.

"It must be the demon technique of Danhu!"

Without saying a word, he turned his head and wanted to hit the skinny and black Dan Min, but Jiang Wen easily blocked him and pushed him away three steps away.

"Why do we need to bring so many people to kill you?! Now that we are in the same boat, are you planning to see the blood first?"

Yuan Ziyi taught angrily, raised his hand and threw a whip, which was wrapped around a young disciple's arm with great precision, and with both hands, he was suddenly pulled out by three points.

At this time, the captain of the boat also woke up as if he had just woken up from a dream, and with a pale face, he took the pole again and slapped him, finally rescued the boy from the dark and cold water, and barely dragged him to the boat.

The little student spat out river water in a panic, his eyes were wide open when he coughed violently, and the eyeballs almost fell out of their sockets.His mind was already in confusion, but he yelled persistently and terrified, saying that someone was pulling him under the water!
Jiang Wen suddenly came to the side of the boat, stared intently at the pitch-black river, pulled the boat lantern with his left hand, and approached the water recklessly, looking straight at the bottom of the boat where the water was surging, holding Han Gaozu Snake Slayer in his hand. The sword has no fear at all.

But with just one glance, Jiang Wen discovered the distorted black shadow hidden in the bottom of the water, and now he was facing him with a distance of less than one foot!

It was a swollen and whitish human face, the eyelids were swollen into a slit, but they were narrowed strangely into an upward slash, as if with a mysterious and inexplicable smile.

It faces the people on the shore with broken and rotten eyeballs, its mouth is black and wide open, its lips, teeth and mouthpiece are rotten, as if its face was torn into a big black hole after laughing to the extreme, and its throat directly leads to the bottom of the unfathomable water the tunnel.

The sword shadow sliced ​​through the water, stirring up splashing waves, but the corpses of the floating bag froze in place unhurriedly, just like this green-browed bird boat that had no power to resist, except that one was on the water and the other was in the water. Under the water, tell the people on board maliciously that one day you will also be in this position and become one of the floating corpses.

As if to verify this feeling, there are countless corpses with the same "smiling smile" emerging at the bottom of the water deeper under the corpse of the floating sac, with dizzying heights.The more they looked at it, the more real it became, that the countless swollen hands and the dark green body were approaching Jiang Wen, and those ugly faces were being surrounded and grabbed bit by bit.

No matter they are male, female, old or young, their appearances have been corrupted and distorted to the point of being extremely similar, as if hundreds of thousands of identical appearances are swimming towards the surface of the water, laughing and laughing.

The arm in the water seemed to turn around suddenly, wanting to grab his neck and drag Jiang Wen on the boat down to the bottom of the river. A deep pit at the bottom of the river!
"Your Excellency, be careful!"

Dan Min's voice sounded, followed by the sound of falling into the water. Before Jiang Wen drew his sword and slashed again, he knocked Jiang Wen away, and threw himself into the dark and smelly river.

During the day, the Danmin were still cowering and kneeling beside the Beidi Temple, no matter how threatened they were with the whip, they would not easily go into the water to get the pearls, but now the Danmin are not only the person in front of them, but the rest of the adult Danmin are also coming out in a file , tearing off the tattered shirt that was stitched together from old canvas, revealing a lean and muscular dark body, showing the dazzling tattoos all over the body.

Qu Dajun in the same period may not have written "Guangdong Xinyu", but the Zhouyu in volume 18 of this book will clearly record the legend of Cantonese, "Dan women can be addicted to raw fish and can swim.Those who were called Longhu in the old days used their embroidered face tattoos when they entered the water to resemble the son of a dragon.Travel in the water for thirty or forty miles without being harmed by things.Today it is called the Otter Family, the female is Otter and the male is Dragon, because neither of them is human. 】

The green-browed bird boat slowly began to move. The mysterious and unpredictable customs of the Dan people, as well as their strange physical characteristics, seemed to be tainted with a trace of ancient divinity at this moment. In the midst of it, a raging storm was set off.

The old men and women of the Dan people took off the snake-shaped hairpins from their hair and plunged into the river with all their strength. People from the Baiyue period to the present seem to still firmly believe in their identity as the sons of the Jiaolong. Jiang Wen can only rely on imagination and guesswork to imagine the terrifying scene of life and death, people and corpses fighting!
Taking advantage of the critical moment when the people are fighting for water, the boss of the boat finally remembered his mission as if awakened from a nightmare. rotting bones.

I don't know how long it took, the underwater undercurrent gradually receded, and with the bleak moonlight shining, all the people on the boat suddenly heard a huge sound like dragon chant and thunder rising from the sea, rolling in and out, sweeping across the endless domain In the meantime, it aroused all the ominous things in the sea and sky.

Accompanied by the strange sound in the sea, the stagnant wind beside the boat suddenly turned its direction, deviated from the direction at the same time, turned back and disappeared on the vast sea, only then did the exhausted Dan people float up from the water, the dragons on their bodies The snake tattoo turned red and discolored like a burn, extremely dazzling.

On the sandbar in the distance, you can see many ups and downs. When you look carefully, you find that there are decayed and crooked tombstones. In the sand hills where the salt and fresh water meet, many sand graves have been washed away after the big tide After being exposed, the corpse was washed into the sea again, leaving only the empty coffin of the tomb—not far away is a quiet and peaceful small fishing village, and the lights flicker faintly, just like panicked hearts.

Accompanied by the sound of beating gongs and drums and shouting and cursing in the distance, a group of haggard villagers rushed to the riverside with torches, seemingly not for any purpose, just wanting to drive away the haze in their hearts and retain their last courage.

The weird scene is still in front of our eyes, the people on the boat don’t even know what they are fighting with, and the people on the shore can only watch helplessly under the green-browed bird boat, seeing countless corpses deformed by floating sacs clearly, and still maintain a strange smile , with mutilated limbs, slowly and mysteriously drifting away with the waves, disappearing at the end of the endless ocean...

(End of this chapter)