While on Mount Hua, my mind is at peace!

Chapter 52 When three people walk together, one of them must be my teacher.

Yue Feng left Hengyang and headed north, arriving in Xiangyang Prefecture one day. The famous Wudang Mountain is located in the western part of Xiangyang Prefecture.

With Wu Qingcang left to guard Hengyang, and having also sent a letter to the chief constable of the Six Doors in Huayin, asking for his assistance, Yue Feng wasn't in a hurry on his journey. Seeing the famous mountain before him, he wanted to climb it and explore it thoroughly.

To everyone's surprise, when they arrived at the foot of Wudang Mountain, it started to rain heavily. Yue Feng, who had come in high spirits, returned disappointed and could only find a small town near the foot of the mountain to rest for the night.

That evening, Yue Feng disguised himself simply in his room—this was something Wu Shuangxue had taught him when he was stranded in Hengyang. Although it wasn't as skillful as Li Yunshang's, it was enough for traveling the world—before going to the lobby of the inn to drink.

He poured himself a drink, feeling rather bored, when a rumble of thunder sounded outside. Three men, carrying long swords, wearing straw hats and raincoats, entered the shop. They glanced around, chose a corner seat, and one of them called to the waiter:

"Hurry up and bring the drinks and food! This awful weather is delaying everything."

Yue Feng's gaze casually swept over the three men's swords, noting that they were very similar to, yet slightly different from, the swords of the Huashan Sect.

He recalled seeing the same sword in the secret cave of the Cliff of Contemplation, and with a slight thought, he guessed the identities of these three people. He just wondered why they were here; surely they weren't here for sightseeing too?

Among the three, a man dressed as a Taoist priest looked around to make sure no one nearby could hear them, then lowered his voice and said to the man with the yellowish-brown dough:

"Senior Brother Feng, we lost our sword duel with the Wudang Sect, and now we're trapped here by this heavy rain. What if we ruin Lord Qi and Alliance Leader Zuo's plans?"

The man surnamed Feng said, "Since we received the news, we've been traveling at breakneck speed, which should have saved us a lot of time. Even if we're delayed here for a few days, it won't matter. Ultimately, matters concerning the Huashan Sect still require the intervention of our Huashan Sect. Even if they arrive earlier, they'll still have to wait."

Another short man hesitated and said, "This...it's not very appropriate to make Lord Qi and Alliance Leader Zuo's men wait for us, is it? Even if we manage to achieve our goal and regain control of Mount Hua, we'll still have to rely on them a lot in the future."

At this moment, the waiter brought out the wine and dishes, and the three of them fell silent. Only after the waiter left did the man surnamed Feng say, "There's nothing we can do about it if things aren't going well. We might as well use these next few days to prepare for battle, which will increase our chances of winning."

Upon hearing this, Yue Feng recognized the man surnamed Feng as Feng Buping of the Huashan Sword Sect, and the short man as his junior brother, Cheng Buyou.

In the original story, it was Cheng Buyou who severely injured Linghu Chong with a single palm strike, which led to a series of subsequent events. Cheng Buyou's palm strike can almost be considered the root of all evil.

As for Cong Buqi, who was dressed as a Taoist priest, his actions made Yue Feng hate him even more. During the battle at the ruined temple, Yue's wife, Ning Zhongze, was subdued, and this bastard actually tried to search Ning Zhongze's body.

Although Yue Feng believed that such a thing could not happen in this time and space, thinking about Cong Buqi's character, he felt that he had to do something for him, otherwise he could not get over this idea.

As he pondered how to deal with Cheng Buyou and Cong Buqi, several Taoist priests suddenly burst in through the door. Seeing Feng Beng and his group, they drew their swords and cursed:

"Cheng Buyou! Cong Buqi! You two scoundrels, you harassed women and injured tourists on Wudang Mountain, and you still dare to parade around here! If you have the guts, draw your swords and let this Taoist priest teach you a lesson!"

Seeing the way these Wudang disciples drew their swords, Yue Feng knew they were no match for Feng Buping and his men. Sure enough, Cheng Buyou and Cong Buqi sneered and were about to get up. But Feng Buping reached out and stopped them.

He stood up and was about to speak to the Wudang disciples when Yue Feng suddenly slammed his hand on the table, causing the bowls, chopsticks, plates, and dishes on the table to jump up.

"What's so great about being a disciple of Wudang? I don't approve! If you want to frame me, you'll have to get my sword's permission first!"

The leading Wudang disciple flew into a rage: "Where did this brat come from, daring to spout nonsense at the foot of Wudang Mountain? Do you even know what's going on? Don't meddle in things that aren't your business!"

Yue Feng stepped forward: "I'm going to fight you! I don't care about right or wrong. If I can't stand you, I'll beat you up!" Without saying another word, he drew his sword and started slashing wildly up and down without using any special moves.

The disciple also drew his sword to counter, using the Wudang school's direct lineage swordsmanship. After several moves, the disciple felt that his opponent's sword moves were chaotic, but his internal strength was no less than his own. He quickly focused his attention, abandoned his underestimation, and devoted himself entirely to the sword fight.

The two exchanged over a hundred blows, neither able to gain the upper hand. The disciple's initial enthusiasm had long since cooled. Seeing that Feng Ping and the others hadn't even made a move yet, and he had already encountered such a formidable obstacle, he let out a cold snort, sheathed his sword, and retreated.

"You scoundrel, don't you dare run away!"

The disciple uttered a perfunctory remark and left the inn with the other disciples. Yue Feng sheathed his sword, returned to his seat, and, as before, poured himself a drink, without initiating a conversation with Feng Ping and the others.

Feng Buping and his two companions exchanged glances, all quite curious about this strange young man. Feng Buping picked up a bowl of wine and said to Yue Feng, "Young brother, if you don't mind, please come and have a drink with me, how about it?"

Yue Feng politely declined, saying, "I appreciate your kindness, elder brother. However, it seems the three of you have something to discuss, so I won't disturb you." With that, he picked up his wine bowl, toasted Feng Buping, and downed it in one gulp.

Seeing his generosity and tact, Feng Buping's goodwill towards him grew even stronger. He slowly finished the wine in his bowl, put it down, and said to Yue Feng, "It's alright, we've finished discussing our business. Young brother, are you really unwilling to come over?"

Yue Feng hesitated for a moment, then walked over, bowed to the three of them, and took his seat. Feng Buping ordered the waiter to bring a few more dishes and inquired about Yue Feng's lineage and background.

Yue Feng said he was from Xi'an Prefecture and had no formal teacher. He had only learned a few qigong techniques from his family, and after achieving some mastery, he went out to travel the martial arts world. A few days ago, he went to Wudang Mountain, hoping to learn some swordsmanship from the Taoist priests there, but they looked down on him and kicked him out. That's why he acted so impulsively when he met the Wudang disciples just now.

Feng Buping recognized Yue Feng's accent as belonging to Xi'an Prefecture; the martial arts skills Yue Feng displayed also matched his self-description, so he believed about 70-80% of his story. He thought to himself:

"Our Sword Sect excels in swordsmanship, but lacks a notable lineage in internal energy cultivation. This young man possesses profound internal strength; isn't he a disciple bestowed upon our Sword Sect by heaven? If he is properly nurtured, the future of the Sword Sect might very well rest on his shoulders."

Thinking of this, he said to Yue Feng, "Young brother, if you want to learn swordsmanship, I happen to have a sword technique here. How about I teach it to you to repay your kindness in helping us out of trouble earlier?"