The Legend of the Heavenly Book of the North Wind

  In the morning of Jiajing, the Japanese pirates were rampant, and General Qi Jiguang led the Qi family army through a long and arduous anti-pirate struggle, finally achieving a decisive victory. From then on, people's lives returned to their original order, and gradually began to forget the cruelty of the Japanese pirates, and many places became complacent because they had achieved some small victories in the resistance against the Japanese pirates.

  In the tenth year of Wanli, namely in 1582, the warm sunshine sprinkled on the water town of Wu language, and the gentle spring breeze of Jiangnan scattered the flying willow catkins. The sacred place of Wulin, Xingwutang, was holding a martial arts conference. Here, famous Wulin figures gathered together, more than 500 people sat beside the tables and chairs next to the wide inner courtyard of Xingwutang, asking each other and chatting while drinking tea.

  The conference was presided over by Song Renyi, the successor of Jiangnan's greatest swordsman, Fengjian. Standing beside him on the left was a high-ranking monk with white eyebrows and whiskers, whose face radiated good fortune - this was none other than Master Zhihai, a renowned martial arts expert from Shaolin Temple.

  Song Renyi saw the lively and harmonious scene of Xingwu Hall, he turned to ask Master Zhihai: "Today, 532 famous martial artists have come to our grand gathering, all of them are full of enthusiasm."

  Master Zhihai said, "Changbai Mountain Villa is the number one villa in Jianghu. The master and deputy master's visit has brought us great honor. As for Mr. Gongsun Taomu, it's a pity he couldn't make it. The Gongsun family was once the number one assassination sect in Jianghu, always at odds with our orthodox schools. But this generation's Gongsun Taomu left home early and became a legendary swordsman. It's truly rare and precious."

  Song Renyi said, "He also has a sister named Gongsun Taoli, who married a swordsman. Neither of the Gongsun siblings engages in assassination, and this school can be considered the first to fall among the Jianghu evil sects."

  Zhi Hai said: "We should have certain standards when evaluating a sect, I've always disagreed with your evaluation of the Gong Sun family, this is also one of the reasons I participated in the Martial Arts Conference this time."

  Song Ruyu saw that the conversation was not going in the right direction, so he immediately changed the subject and said: "Today, apart from the 36 top masters of Shaolin, the 7 swordsmen of Wudang, there are also Xia Chun, the leader of the Yellow River sect, and his 15 disciples, Sun Wu, the leader of the Yangtze River sect, and his 20 great disciples. There are also masters from Poyang Lake, Dongting Lake, Taihu Lake, Xuanwu Lake, Hongze Lake, East Sea, West Sea, South Sea, North Sea, Mount Huangshan, Mount Emei, Wudang Mountain, as well as the Five Peaks and other sects. Additionally, there are also representatives from the Salt Guild, the Grain Transport Guild, the three major poison dart sects of Sichuan, Yunnan, and Guangxi, and finally, the masters representing each province's Escort Agency."

  Master Zhihai said: "Everyone is here, let's start the meeting."

  Song Renyi nodded and asked someone to invite a few people from the Changbai Mountain Villa to come out. Then he stood up and said loudly to everyone: "Fellow Jianghu celebrities, Wulin seniors. Today, we have invited everyone here, gathered together, and held this unprecedented Wulin gathering. The purpose is only one, to eliminate the remaining Japanese pirates. As you all know, more than a decade ago, General Qi Jiguang pacified the large-scale Japanese pirate disturbances, but small-scale Japanese pirates still sneak into our various towns, inquiring about the secrets of our dynasty. Therefore, today we are together to jointly develop a comprehensive method to eliminate the Japanese pirates and prevent them from causing trouble by dispersing."

  Song Renyuan's words won a warm and lasting applause from everyone present. The leader of the boatmen, shaking his arm and shouting: "Eliminate the Japanese pirates!" The crowd responded in unison, their voices taking a long time to calm down.

  At this time, Master Zhihai stepped forward and waved his hand to signal everyone to stop. Master Zhihai was highly respected, and with just one gesture, the entire hall fell silent. Master Zhihai said: "Everyone! Let me say a few words. All of you famous Jianghu figures have managed to rush here today to attend this conference, thank you for your hard work!"

  The crowd erupted in applause, and Master Zhi Hai continued: "Everyone, the Japanese pirates are ruthless and cruel, harming innocent civilians. As monks, we shouldn't get too involved in this matter. We should be compassionate and merciful. If the Japanese pirates are stubborn and refuse to listen, you must teach them a lesson. But I advise you all, if possible, do not take their lives unnecessarily. The Japanese pirates are also human beings, and if we can use kindness to reform them and make them put down their butcher knives, our merits will be immeasurable."

  As soon as Master Zhihai's voice fell, a figure flashed out from the crowd and walked while speaking in poor Mandarin: "Still this old bald donkey speaks like a human, I see you Central Plains warriors gathering together, what's so great about it? Isn't it just a case of many people being brave?"

  The crowd followed the sound and looked over, only to see a tall and sturdy Japanese warrior emerge from the crowd. He was about 45 or 46 years old, with a shaven head, a thin and pale face, prominent cheekbones, and eyes that radiated anger. His left hand remained gripping the hilt of the Japanese sword at his left waist.

  He stood in the middle of the courtyard, with all the good men glaring at him angrily.

  "This Japanese pirate didn't care about everyone's gaze, he stood still and looked around in a circle saying: 'Today you've come with quite a few martial arts masters!'"

  Song Renyi said: "Are you alone? Report your name!"

  The Japanese pirate said: "One person? That's a death wish! Let me tell you, I am Kame no Kotetsu, the greatest swordsman of Fusang. Dealing with you mob is beneath me."

  Master Zhihai joined his hands together and said, "Amitabha Buddha, this Japanese donor, if you have come to hone your skills and promote the martial arts of your country, we welcome you. However, I hope you can be more polite and not speak boastfully."

  Kuida Shigen ignored Zhì Hǎi's words and continued to speak arrogantly: "You Chinese have a saying, 'Without a diamond drill, one dare not take on the task of porcelain work.' When I was in my teens, my older brother and I led sixty brothers through your Jiangnan region, covering two thousand miles. Along the way, tens of thousands of government soldiers fled at the mere sight of us. Later, we besieged a county town with over twenty thousand troops stationed inside, and they didn't even dare to fart. Today, I've brought only ten brothers, which is more than enough to destroy you." With that, he waved his hand, and from behind the crowd emerged ten robust but not particularly tall Japanese pirates. The heroes looked at these pirates, their faces filled with anger, yet involuntarily took a step back.

  "Benefactor, I've finally found you! So it was you who was burning, killing, looting and plundering all along! You brought destruction all the way, while I led the Shaolin disciples to provide aid and chase after you. Today, justice will be served and debts will be repaid. Amitabha!"

  Kameda said: "Bald donkey, you couldn't beat me back then, now that you're old like this, what chance of winning do you have?"

  Zhī Hǎi Dà Shī said, "Amitabha Buddha, if I don't go to hell, who will? The Japanese pirates have been rampant for decades. I can tell you that after we went through Qi Jiguang's resistance against the Japanese pirates, our martial arts world is no longer what it used to be!"

  "Those years I was at home nursing my injuries, otherwise Qi Jiguang would have fallen under my sword long ago. He's probably old now too? The Qi family army is also old and useless now? Hahaha!" - Gu Ding

  Zhī Hǎi Dà Shī angrily stepped forward and said, "Amitabha, I see that the donor is obstinately ignorant. It's better for me to teach the donor a high-level move."

  Song An, the old steward of the Song Mansion, who was standing aside with a frail and aged appearance, saw Master Zhihai step forward and hastily advised: "Master, you are already advanced in years, why not let me, Song An, exchange moves with him instead?"

  Master Zhihai was about to speak when Song An limped over with a large broom, raised it and swung it at Kameda Hidesato. Before the broom could land, Kameda let out a strange cry and drew his Japanese sword to slash at Song An. Song An calmly swept the broom forward, and Kameda raised his sword to meet it. As soon as the broom and sword clashed, there was a loud clang, and Kameda's sword was knocked from his hand by Song An's broom. Kameda retreated a step before falling to the ground in disarray.

  The heroes were shocked, and a burst of astonishment erupted among them. The discussions were in full swing, with everyone talking at once. "Song An is just a steward, and he defeated the Japanese pirate's sword in just one move?" "I heard that the Japanese pirate's long sword can cut a cow in half!" "This Song Mansion really produces talented people! Does Old Master Song have some kind of divine skill?" "I heard that when Old Master Song was young, he could easily tear apart the Japanese pirates with his bare hands without even breaking a sweat!" "No way, Song An is just an old man with no strength to bind a chicken. The Japanese pirate really isn't worth mentioning!"

  ……

  In a flurry of discussion, Song An held up his large broom and shouted: "Gu Tian, do you admit defeat?"

  His words had just fallen, and Kameyama Hidenao and a dozen or so Japanese pirates trembled, then knelt down on the ground, desperately kowtowing to apologize, their buttocks raised high, without any of the arrogance they had shown earlier. Song An picked up the broom and was about to hit the Japanese pirates when Song Renyi hastily stepped forward and said: "Song An, don't be rash, step back!" Song An nodded repeatedly and retreated.

  The heroes' applause shook the heavens!

  Song Renyong sternly said: "You Japanese pirates have been harassing the people for decades, but now we are not what we used to be. In the Central Plains martial arts world, benevolence and righteousness come first. Do you submit or not?"

  Kameida Hideshirō, with a group of wokou, repeatedly kowtowed and loudly exclaimed: "You are really too powerful, we wokou are no match for you, we have lost all sense of shame, we are not human, we are worse than pigs and dogs..."

  His words had barely fallen when an arrow came flying from somewhere, piercing the wind and making a "puff" sound as it shot through Kameyama Hidenao's chest!

  Kuida Hidemichi's mouth corner flowed out blood, he turned his head to see who was secretly attacking him, but before he could turn around, he felt a blackness in front of his eyes and fell down. He fell diagonally to the ground, without convulsing, and didn't move again.

  Kameda Shu is dead...

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