Mysterious Martial Arts: The Record of the Swordsman

Chapter 364 Thatched Cottage in a Poor Lane

Chapter 364 Thatched Cottage in a Poor Lane

The next day, at dawn, before daybreak, Geng Jingzhong, He Lang'er, and the others had already packed their belongings and set off from Tanwei Street. They had to walk twenty li to reach their destination, so time was of the essence.

The Longyao Mountain they were going to was located in the northwest of Tai Island in the south of Fuzhou. The mountain was not high, but it was winding and undulating, resembling a reclining dragon sitting on the north bank of the Minjiang River.

The Longjiang Thatched Cottage that Lin Lunyi mentioned is built on the southern slope of Longyao Mountain, nestled against the mountain and facing the river. It is backed by the gentle slope of Longyao Mountain, with the door facing the Wulong River. The river is sparkling, the mountains are lush and green, and there is a dense bamboo forest in front of it. Only a winding stone path leads out of the mountain.

Even after traveling for an hour, the five teenagers were still able to keep up with Geng Jingzhong, because they had all eaten their fill the day before and still had a hint of alcohol on their faces, making them quite energetic. Only Geng Jingzhong had a furrowed brow.

"That young master Lin is really generous, two hundred taels of silver! If we can really get this done, we'll never have to put up with those thugs again!"

The boys rubbed their hands together excitedly, their eyes shining; clearly, material incentives were a great help.

Geng Jingzhong glanced back at him and said coldly, "Do you think two hundred taels of silver is so easy to take? The disciples of the Sanyi Sect are all over the city and countryside, and even the government doesn't dare to provoke them easily."

The smiles on the boys' faces froze instantly, and one of them scratched his head and said, "Then... then why did you agree to their request, big brother?"

“...That Ryukyu woman is strange.”

Geng Jingzhong didn't explain much, but quickened his pace: "You guys change your clothes first, take out your old coarse cloth short clothes and put them on. He Lang'er and I will go to Longjiang Thatched Cottage to scout the way first, and you guys will meet us at the foot of the mountain."

He Lang'er was the oldest among them and also the most alert and intelligent, so Geng Jingzhong chose to approach with elite troops and light equipment, while ensuring that his own escape route was not lost.

The two walked up the stone path, encountering groups of two or three pedestrians along the way, who were clearly believers heading to Longjiang Thatched Cottage to listen to sermons.

These people were dressed in various ways: there were wealthy merchants in silk, scholars in blue robes, and doctors carrying medicine chests. But without exception, they all had a look of longing on their faces.

"Brother, look at these people, why are they all so quiet?" He Lang'er whispered in Geng Jingzhong's ear.

Geng Jingzhong didn't speak, but cautiously observed his surroundings.

He noticed that although these believers came from different places, their walking posture was surprisingly similar. They all walked with their backs straight, their hands hanging naturally, and their steps were as light as if they were walking on cotton. Moreover, they hardly talked to anyone. Even when they did speak, they were whispering to the people around them about things like "Genbei" and "Xingguang".

"It's alright. Look, most of them don't know each other, which is a good thing for us. It won't be hard to blend in later."

The two mingled with the crowd and walked for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn before finally arriving at the gate of Longjiang Thatched Cottage.

Outside the hut, bamboo, lychee and longan trees, common in Fujian, are planted everywhere. Beyond the treetops, the seven-story stone pagoda of Jinshan Temple can be faintly seen, quietly reflected in the river.

This thatched cottage in Longjiang is not large in scale. It occupies half an acre facing west. The roof is covered with small blue tiles. The ridge is straight and without complicated decorations, with only a slight upturn at both ends. The eaves tiles are covered with moss due to years of disrepair, and a few vines have climbed over them.

Two men in gray cloth robes stood on either side of the mountain gate, staring blankly at everyone who came in and out. Therefore, Geng Jingzhong was in no hurry to go in. After hesitating for a moment, he pulled He Lang'er and mingled with a group of believers, then walked in with his head down.

The double wooden doors of the main entrance are painted dark brown, and a wooden plaque with the inscription "Jiejie Room" hangs on the door. On both sides is a couplet: "The mountains and rivers are not my dwelling, and heaven and earth are my hut." There is a small square window on each side of the gable wall, which is only covered by wooden lattice, and the security is quite lax.

But what Geng Jingzhong was wary of was this seemingly relaxed exterior but inwardly tense atmosphere, which he suspected was suspicious.

Passing through the mountain gate, the view suddenly opens up. In the center of the flat land, there is a tall thatched hut, which should be the main hall for preaching. Scattered around the main hall are dozens of low bamboo houses, which are also places for believers to stay and practice.

By this time, it was already broad daylight. Outside the thatched hut, the Trinity believers gathered in small groups, talking in hushed tones. Without exception, their topics were all about the lecture given by the Trinity Master the previous night.

"The Genbei Heart Method that Master Sanjiao taught last night is truly profound! I circulated my qi according to the method he described, and I felt a surge of heat rising from my coccyx, traveling up my spine, all the way to my Yuzhen acupoint. My whole body felt light and airy, as if I were about to fly!"

An elderly man with a goatee said excitedly, his face glowing, and everyone who heard this showed envy.

Geng Jingzhong and He Lang'er exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of doubt in each other's eyes.

Just then, two servants dressed in short blue cotton coats carried a food box out from a small door on the side of the main hall. They walked lightly, their expressions respectful, not daring to even breathe loudly.

“The Three Masters didn’t have a good appetite today. They only ate half a bowl of porridge and gave the rest to us.”

"A servant said in a low voice, his voice full of gratitude."

"That is the master's compassion."

Another servant quickly said, "Don't forget the master's rules. When serving him, you must be very quiet and not make a sound. The master likes quiet and hates being disturbed while he is cultivating."

"How could I forget?"

The first servant laughed and said, "Last time, a new apprentice accidentally broke a teacup when he was serving tea to the master. It was only after Master Dong pleaded for him that he was spared."

The two walked away talking.

Geng Jingzhong grew increasingly suspicious. Judging from the servants' words, it seemed that the Master of the Three Teachings lived in the bamboo house behind the main hall.

Just then, a clear and melodious chime sounded from the main hall, and the previously noisy thatched hut instantly fell silent. All the believers stopped talking, straightened their clothes, and walked toward the main hall.

"It looks like they're about to give a lecture, let's go in too."

Geng Jingzhong pulled He Lang'er along, mingling with the crowd as they entered the main hall.

The main hall of the thatched cottage is a three-bay wooden structure with a gable roof, measuring three zhang wide and two zhang deep, capable of accommodating a hundred or so people.

The main hall was quite spacious, but there were no tables or chairs set up; only rows of cushions were neatly arranged on the floor. Directly in front was a high lectern, and on the wall behind the lectern hung a portrait of an elderly man in a white robe and tall hat, with a thin face, slightly pursed lips, and a solemn yet gentle expression.

Geng Jingzhong and He Lang'er found two prayer cushions in the last row and sat down. They then looked around and found that all the believers were already seated, their backs straight, their hands flat in front of their knees with their palms facing up, their eyes fixed on the lectern, and their faces full of anticipation.

The entire main hall was completely silent; even the breathing of those around them became extremely faint.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a middle-aged scholar walked out from behind the lecture hall. He was wearing a gray Taoist robe and holding a thread-bound book in his hand.

The middle-aged scholar walked to the front of the lectern, bowed deeply to the portrait, then turned around and glanced at the believers below.

Fellow practitioners.

The middle-aged scholar spoke softly, but each word was clear: "Today, we will continue practicing the 'Genbei Method' of the *Linzi Sanjiao Zhengzong Tonglun* (The Complete Treatise on the Orthodox Lineage of the Three Teachings) and see who can receive the true teachings of the Three Teachings Master."

He opened the book in his hand, cleared his throat, and continued, "The Book of Changes says: 'If you keep your back to yourself, you will not find your body. If you walk in your courtyard, you will not see anyone.'"

"The image of the Gen hexagram is Gen above and Gen below, two mountains overlapping. The top of the mountain is Yang, and the bottom contains Yin. Yang is on the outside, Yin is on the inside. Yang strength stops on the outside, and Yin gentleness is hidden inside. This is the principle of heaven and earth, and also the method of human self-cultivation."

"When we practice the Gen Back Method, we are to emulate the image of the Gen trigram, stopping the external while moving the internal. The body is as immovable as a mountain, and the mind is as calm and still as water. Then we guide the Yin energy in the body to rise along the spine and interact with the Yang energy at the top of the head. Only when Yin and Yang are in harmony can we cultivate the Great Dao."

As the middle-aged scholar explained, he gestured with his fingers on the table. The believers below listened with rapt attention, their eyes wide open, afraid of missing a single word.

"Now, fellow practitioners, please join me in studying the Genbei Fa."

The middle-aged scholar put down his book, his voice becoming even deeper: "Close your eyes and regulate your breathing, palms facing upwards, focus your mind on the coccyx, and let all thoughts return to one. With one inhale, let the breath sink to the dantian; with one exhale, let the breath flow to the coccyx."

Everyone around followed the instructions, regardless of age. Geng Jingzhong and He Lang'er exchanged a glance and had no choice but to close their eyes and adjust their breathing according to Dong Shi's method.

At first, Geng Jingzhong was just going through the motions and didn't really use his internal energy, but after a while, he suddenly felt a strange tingling sensation rising from his coccyx, as if countless tiny threads were winding up his spine.

He was startled and quickly opened his eyes, trying to stop his breathing exercises. But just then, he heard a rustling sound around him. He turned his head and saw that the believers below the hall all had their eyes closed, their bodies trembling slightly, and their faces showing expressions of extreme pain and extreme pleasure.

"Qi reaches the Mingmen point (Gate of Life)."

The middle-aged scholar's voice rang out again, carrying a strange, magical quality: "Focus your mind on the Mingmen point, let it linger there for a moment, and then continue upwards."

As Dong Shi spoke, Geng Jingzhong felt the tingling sensation growing stronger and stronger, reaching his vital point. He tried to get up to resist, but found that his strength was locked by something, and he couldn't mobilize it at all. After a moment, his body stiffened, and he couldn't move an inch.

"The Qi reaches the spine."

The voice grew closer, as if hovering right next to your ears: "Continue to ascend, do not stop, the Three Teachings Master is guiding you."

Geng Jingzhong trembled all over, feeling the tingling sensation reach his Jiaji acupoint. His back felt like it was being bitten by countless ants, both itchy and painful.

He struggled desperately, but his body wouldn't obey him. He quietly opened his eyes and looked at He Lang'er, only to see that He Lang'er also had his eyes closed, his face was pale, his lips were trembling, and his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

"The anger rises to the jade pillow!"

Dong Shi's voice rose in pitch: "Break through the Jade Pillow and reach the Niwan! The Masters of the Three Teachings have arrived! The Masters of the Three Teachings have come to guide all living beings!"

Just then, a shrill cry suddenly rang out from the main hall.

An elderly man sitting in the front row suddenly jumped up from his prayer mat, ripped open his collar to reveal his withered neck, then tilted his head back, grabbed wildly in the air with his hands, and let out a roar that was not human.

Immediately afterwards, several more believers jumped up, some rolling on the ground, some banging their heads against the wall, and some tearing at each other's clothes while chanting "Master of the Three Religions".

The entire main hall was thrown into chaos. Geng Jingzhong noticed that his grip had loosened and suddenly grabbed He Lang'er's hand.

To his surprise, He Lang'er did not react at all. His eyeballs were moving rapidly under his thin eyelids, and at the same time, his teeth were chattering, making a very subtle, rhythmic knocking sound, as if he was talking to something.

His throat was twitching incessantly, making no sound, yet Geng Jingzhong felt as if he were silently shouting the same thing—

"The Master of the Three Teachings"

The middle-aged scholar stood on the podium with a strange smile on his face. When he saw Geng Jingzhong's eyes wide open, a hint of doubt seemed to flash across his face. So Geng Jingzhong could only pretend to be crazy and keep his eyes closed, palms up, regulating his breathing and pretending that his coccyx was also hot.

Then, he actually saw his own back.

The feeling was very similar to the feeling of being suspended on the day of the assassination. It wasn't like being looked in a mirror, but rather as if something above his body had pulled his entire consciousness out of the top of his head, leaving it suspended in mid-air, and then slowly turning around so that he could look down from behind.

Gradually, he saw himself kneeling on the prayer mat, his back arched, his spine protruding one by one under his thin clothes, rising and falling slightly under his skin.

Just then, He Lang'er trembled and suddenly opened his eyes. His gaze was unfocused and his pupils were dilated, as if he had seen something extremely terrifying. However, when he opened his mouth to speak, he could only make a "ho ho" sound.

In a flash, He Lang'er sprang up from the futon, stumbling and rushing out the door like a wild beast whose spine had been broken and forcibly reattached.

Fortunately, the thatched cottage was in chaos at the moment, and there were more than one person running around, so no one noticed them. The believers were all immersed in their own world, only the middle-aged scholar remained standing on the platform, smiling as he watched everything, his lips still uttering nameless scriptures.

"Those who follow the nine sequences of reversal and forward movement possess the secret method of interacting with Heaven and Earth. Cultivating the first sequence cures illness and prolongs life. Cultivating to the third sequence opens the meridians. Cultivating to the sixth sequence allows one to see the light of one's true nature. Cultivating to the ninth sequence allows one to..."

The two of them paid no heed and ran wildly all the way, out of the bamboo fence and down Longyao Mountain, without ever looking back.

"Huh...huh..."

Almost exhausted, He Lang'er leaned against a big tree, bent over and vomiting repeatedly, but what came out was only the clear water he had drunk before entering the house, with no filth in sight.

"How are you?" Geng Jingzhong patted him on the back.

He Lang'er raised her head, her face completely bloodless.

He was trembling all over, his teeth chattering, and he said in a hoarse voice, "Brother...I...I saw it..."

"What did you see?" Geng Jingzhong asked.

"I saw my own back, and I also saw something behind me..."

The boys, who had been lying in ambush by the roadside, had naturally seen the two running towards them. They finally caught up and stopped them under the shade of a tree, patting He Lang'er's chest and back to ease his pain. It took He Lang'er a while to calm down, and in a state of shock, he struggled to describe what he had just seen and heard.

He Lang'er said that he saw something pressing on his back, like armor plates and cloth and countless layers of piled, wrinkled, and constantly wriggling skin, making rustling sounds by rubbing against each other. Then, from the countless wrinkles, four thin, long hands and feet covered with strange joints emerged, each with at least seven or eight joints.

Just then, it "spoke".

These sounds mingled together, thick, murky, and deafening, like countless tiny insects burrowing into your ears, your brain, and the cracks in your bones. Interspersed among them were a few fragmented, incomprehensible shamanic incantations, like remnants left from who-knows-how-long times, now distorted beyond recognition.

"Those are rampant soldiers!"

He Lang'er finally came to her senses and gripped Geng Jingzhong's sleeve tightly, saying urgently, "Someone must have broken the altar here and caused trouble, otherwise we would have encountered such an evil thing!"