In the night, a small green-browed bird boat was swimming down the river. The boat had a relatively low hull, but the bow was as pointed as a bird's head, and it was named after a green horizontal stripe. There were four rows on the front and rear of the boat.

Every oar and oar is pumped, and there are people on each side who are beating the drums continuously.

This ship can accommodate thirty to fifty people. It has a shallow draft but is traveling very fast. Only the boss of the ship is always frowning. Jiang Wen and Yuan Ziyi did not feel sleepy at all. They stood on the bow of the ship together and looked around, not worried about the night dew.

Deep intrusion.

"Headmaster Jiang, you have been out for a few days, aren't you worried about the disciples in the city?"

Yuan Ziyi asked curiously.

"Wen Ding, Ning Die, and Xiao Shitou are all determined children. Why should I keep chasing after them to teach them?"

Jiang Wen shook his head: "Besides, before coming here, I found a private school for them to attend. I took this opportunity to catch up on their cultural classes. At least I can't stop reading and writing, so I won't be laughed at when they go out."

The green-browed bird boat sailed through another dangerous shoal. The originally narrow world suddenly opened up, and the sandy fields on both sides stretched into stretches. From time to time, Jinlin could be seen reflecting the moonlight, flashing across the water, and the mighty tide.

It also emerged from the sea along the river mouth, pushing out piles of mottled wrinkles until it was in front of Yuan Ziyi's eyes.

It was the first time Yuan Ziyi saw such a scene, and he suddenly woke up. The sleepiness caused by the heavy dew in the late night was swept away. He only felt that the world in the middle of the night had a unique charm. He went in and out in a regular manner, but he didn't know that he was unconscious.

I missed so many wonderful sights in my daze.

"Master Meng said that you should keep your night energy and be alert, which made me unable to sleep well for a long time. I didn't think of anything in my dreams, but I always dreamed of old friends I hadn't seen for a long time."

Jiang Wen seemed to have a change of mood and started talking about irrelevant gossip.

Yuan Ziyi also said with some emotion: "It turns out that Master Jiang also has the worry of going to his country to miss his hometown. It was also after I left Mount Emei that I always thought of those common sights."

Jiang Wen smiled slightly, but shook his head. He placed his right hand on the ancient bronze sword at his waist. After thinking for a while, he finally did not pull out the sword from the lacquer wood scabbard. Instead, he turned his hand and took off the Shuanghe Mahogany Sword scabbard from behind.

, pulled out a white jade sword with a sword body like flowing water waves, and faced the vast sandbank of heaven and earth alone.

"I don't dare to close my eyes easily before the dream is over. Every time I wait until the rooster crows on my pillow, the night air comes back. Because I think about my life, the prosperity and splendor, everything is gone. For fifty 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.

"But fifty years in the human world is nothing compared to the sky. Looking at the world, in the sea and the sky, is there anyone who is immortal?"

Jiang Wen stood at the bow of the boat, holding a white jade sword like autumn water. He didn't move at all from head to toe, but there was an awe-inspiring aura rising from his body, as if he wanted to turn his body into a sword and cut through all the confusion and persistence in the world. He was brewing a desire to transcend the world.

The realm above sword moves——

But how should this sword be cut?

This is what Jiang Wen has been studying and thinking about recently, how to deal with Zhao Wuji if he faced him again.

After the Yi Wei Mirage, Jiang Wen was not sure that he would be able to strike out with a sword that surpassed the peak. The inability to fully display his internal strength was a shortcoming, and it was easy to reveal flaws during a fight.

And Zhao Wuji's Heavenly Silkworm Divine Skill has reached the state of transformation, as if he has touched the threshold of the invisible and unintentional. It is impossible to say that he can be invulnerable with his advanced skills, fly into the sky and escape from the earth. When the time comes, even he himself may not be able to suppress it with his martial arts level.

opponent.

Escape is a last resort; fighting may not necessarily give you an advantage. Unless you bring along three or five top experts like Ding Dian, you will never be sure of winning.

Fortunately, the two sides haven't officially broken their skin yet, so Jiang Wen can use the remaining time to find out the details of his opponent, or at least to thoroughly understand the mysterious Celestial Silkworm Art.

Speaking of this martial arts, Jiang Wen has actually always known some sporadic insider information, and it is not all due to Jin Yong's Jianghu or memories before time travel.

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

In the Sutra Collection Pavilion behind the Zhenwu Hall of the Wudang Sect, Jiang Wen read through the classics left by Patriarch Sanfeng, and the contents were basically consistent with the records in "Ming Yitong Zhi": [Zhang Sanfeng once lived in Jintaiguan, Dongsanli, Baoji County,

He said that he was about to die and left a tribute. The people, Yang Guishan and others, laid the coffin and paid tribute before the funeral. After Sanfeng was resurrected, he went to Shu. When he saw the king of Shu, he entered Wudang Mountain again, or traveled between Xiang and Deng. In Yongle,

I sent an envoy to look for him but didn't find him, so I treated him as an official.】

In order to prevent the corpse from rotting, the general coffin and burial lasted no more than ten days, but this time Zhang Sanfeng's resurrection lasted for nine days. It was called the "Yang God's Journey". In his dream, he received a fist from Emperor Xuan, so that he could

A single man killed more than a hundred thieves and became famous for his unique skills.

Jiang Wen was basically certain that it was after this incident that Zhang Sanfeng went to the Immortal Exaltation Banquet at Manting Peak in Wuyi Mountain. Since he was still traveling at this time, this incident was extremely secretive. Even Feng Daode was not aware of it.

Not aware at all.

The second similar experience happened after he established the sect in Wudang Mountain. Zhang Sanfeng slept with his eyes closed for eighty-one days in the back mountain. If it weren't for the fact that there was still a trace of breath left, all the disciples would have planned to

It was time to burn his body with firewood. But after experiencing this resurrection from the dead, Zhang Sanfeng's skill reached a new level, and he created the profound and profound Tai Chi elixir method.

After this time, Zhang Sanfeng went to Nether Lane of Fuzhou City and read through the "Nine Nether Scriptures" left by the Skull Governor Huang Shang. His martial arts level also improved to an immeasurable level. This incident left only a few words in the Wudang Sect.

But for the third and last time, Zhang Sanfeng walked alone into the secret room in the back mountain, went on a hunger strike for more than ten days in advance, drank only clear springs and ate fruits, and finally never left the cave again.

When they went in to collect the bones, they found only a rickety mummy wrapped in silver-white silk.

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

Jiang Wen knew that the elixir of immortality on Wuyi Mountain and the Netherworld Resurrection Road in Fuzhou City's Netherworld Alley were, in the final analysis, elusive and nihilistic roads that were distorted by indescribable existences. With Zhang Sanfeng's character and strength,

There will never be any compromise, and it is very likely that we will look for other solutions.

Originally, Jiang Wen had always suspected that the Wudang sect had used the ancestor who had faked his death as firewood. Now that he thought about it, it was most likely that he had practiced this magical Celestial Silkworm Art and wanted to take a further step on the road to immortality.

But in the end, he failed to emerge from the cocoon...

The dark river meanders and flows under the vast sky, while the fields on both sides of the river are covered with dense forests hanging low on the ground, like dormant and sleeping animals, secretly folding their wings into a ball, only to be caught by the cold wind occasionally.

Only then did a mournful sound come out.

Under the cold moonlight, the mist rising from the dense river network is diffused everywhere, making pedestrians seem to be in the vast mist. When flowing, one can only see the river widening and narrowing, and the green-browed bird boats are also drifting eastward and westward.

I had no idea what kind of undercurrent was surging beneath the water. I could only vaguely see some clues from the expressions of the people punting the boats as if they were facing a formidable enemy.

The boss of the boat looked even more nervous, and cold sweat broke out in his thick palms that were clenching the spar. He originally didn’t want to take the boat order that night. The Xijiang River has its own dangers that outsiders don’t know, let alone several Jianghu with unknown intentions.

person.

However, he found that there were both old and young in this group of people, and they were obviously not equipped to rob a ship and steal goods. The ship fare, which was worth thirty taels of silver per trip, was too generous, so he was willing to take the risk.

The boss of the ship carefully steered the ship and escorted it. Then he looked at the silver ingot in Jiang Wen's hand with fascination and whispered: "My lord, please be careful. The dangerous shoals here are difficult to navigate at night. I wonder why so many of you are going to the mouth of the river overnight?"

"Don't ask too much, you can just sail the boat."

As soon as Jiang Wen opened his mouth, he was given a hard time - in view of ordinary people's discrimination against Dan people, Jiang Wen specifically asked the boatman not to ask the identity of the people in the cabin before traveling, otherwise he would not be paid a penny of the boat fare.

If a boatman says he doesn't love money, he is definitely lying.

Nowadays, the Qing government is conducting intensive naval exercises in Guangdong, Fujian and Zhejiang, as if it wants to go straight to the Zheng family's base camp. The navy relies heavily on the strength of the ship's hull. Signs along the way call countless ships, which directly causes the market price to skyrocket.

The money that could buy a small boat in the past can now not even buy a piece of good wood for making a boat.

Boats are expensive and materials are not cheap, but life has to go on. You can't stop eating and skipping meals just because you cherish boats, so you can't make money by running boats. Therefore, at this time, a quick-profit business like Jiang Wen's is particularly tempting.

.

But slowly, the boss of the ship began to notice the clues and couldn't help but want to find out more details.

For example, the boatman found that no matter how the wooden boat was bumpy in the wind and waves, Jiang Wen stood on the bow of the boat as if his feet were rooted, without any embarrassment. He was not the only one, but the beautiful girl beside him could also stand on the bow of the boat as steady as a rock.

Even the dozen or so old boat passengers in the boat seemed accustomed to such rough and turbulent weather.

"Boatman, I see that the waves here are calm and the water is not deep. What could happen?"

Jiang Wen asked quietly.

"The nobles don't know something. You ordinary people are afraid of the depth of water, but those of us who make a living on the river are most afraid of shallow water."

The boatman withdrew his gaze, carefully grasped the direction, and explained to Jiang Wen slightly nervously: "When the water is shallow, the cabin will be flooded with water, or the rocks will be hit and people will die. Every step must be trembling with fear."

Hearing this, Yuan Ziyi chuckled and said: "Boatman, you guys who often take this waterway don't know where the water is deep and where the water is shallow? Do you think the boat fare is not enough?"

The boatman quickly explained: "That's not what I meant, but there is something strange about this Xijiang River. When we take the night boat, people often have inexplicable accidents, and it is easy to see unclean things, especially at night when it is dark and windy, and the moon is shining.

When you are at a loss, anything can happen to you..."

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 insert a long pole into the water and move it to draw dizzy marks on the river surface.

, then he stopped with some relief, and kept going back and forth without stopping.

Jiang Wen and Yuan Ziyi were confused about each other's intentions, but they were too embarrassed to break the casserole and ask for the truth, so they stood on the deck of the ship without saying a word, watching the scenery on both sides of the river flow by, and sailing lightly past miles of Dihua.

Seeing that the undercurrent was being thrown behind him, the captain of the ship let out a heavy breath and explained what he had just done with lingering fear.

"My lord, please forgive me, boatmen on the Xijiang River often encounter strange things, saying that something is following them at the bottom of the river. They will also encounter a rotten flat-bottomed boat coming towards them, which is densely packed with soldiers with purple faces and festering corpses.

"

The boss of the ship recalled the panic when others told him, "It is said that those were the imperial guards of the former Song Dynasty. They were suddenly killed in a storm 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 on this Xijiang River..."

The narrow area of ​​​​the Xijiang River was easily crossed, and the three-hour waterway finally came to an end. Going forward, you can see the scenery of Zhangqiugang Village and the river mouth.

Seeing that they had passed through the dangerous area, the boat boss quickly asked his men to pull up the sail, paddle hard, and hurry up to complete the last section of the journey to the river mouth. He planned to rest overnight in Zhangqiugang Village and wait until dawn before buying a boat and leaving.

"My lord, there seems to be a ghost under the water, follow us to the shore!"

A villager suddenly opened the passenger door and rushed out of the cabin. Jiang Wen discovered that the adult residents inside were all lying on their hands and knees with their ears to the ground, listening intently and nervously to something. The old, weak, women and children were also hugging each other tightly.

, with a look of surprise on his face.

Jiang Wen hurriedly wanted to step forward to ask, but the boss of the ship stepped in front of him and shouted angrily at him: "Where are the Danhus from! Damn it, there are not all Danhus in this boat!"

He looked at Jiang Wen with a fierce look on his face, "These people are dragons and snakes. They are best at sacrificing people with water. Do you want to kill us?"
To be continued...