Chapter 110: Genius

Chapter 110: Genius

"Rebuild a martial arts sect? Does my point-allocation build even have the possibility of replication? I'm just disguising myself as a brute, not an actual idiot. You want to feed me a pie in the sky like this?!"

"And you, Gu Xi, even if you've entered officialdom, you're merely a seventh-rank County Magistrate. Daring to brave the world's condemnation, sheltering the revival of martial arts? What kind of mysterious dragon-gate formation are you setting up?"

On the streets of Shenghua District, a man with a dragonfly perched on his shoulder was talking to himself, utterly heedless of passersby.

He even turned his head to spit when the excitement peaked, his expression ferocious.

This bout of bizarre behavior startled the foreigner next to him, who hurriedly planted his civilized staff and walked away at a brisk pace.

The mental state of the Ming people is getting more and more unstable these days; truly, the richer the place, the more eccentric the commoners.

Our people back home are better, so much more simple and honest!

Li Jun didn't notice the strange looks from those around him at all. He reached into his martial artist's pocket. Gu Xi's pie-drawing skills weren't brilliant, but those five million had solved his urgent crisis.

Now that Gu Yong had been seized by the Sichuan-Chongqing Gambling Convention people, those few slices of brain tissue he had embezzled had surely fallen into the hands of those bandits. With this money, he should be able to settle the Crow Blossoms matter.

"Old Brother Qian's assist was perfectly timed."

Lost in thought, a neon running light depicting a hammer and a longsword appeared before Li Jun. Crimson light projected a string of standard script characters onto the ground before the shop.

"Honest and fair, no deception of young or old."

Li Jun looked up at the shop sign, narrowing his eyes. "Blacksmith Studio of the Horse-Slaying Knight. What the hell kind of name is that?"

The sign bore obvious traces of alteration; the newly written characters were crooked and slanted, revealing the owner's fury at the time.

Ding-ling~

"Welcome, Boss, honored by your presence."

The synthetic greeter's voice carried a thick Shu accent; presumably, several foreign language translations followed, a long string of gibberish.

The shop's interior was a complete mess. Tools were strewn everywhere, and the floor tiles were covered in large patches of solidified machine oil.

"Want anything? Just look around yourself."

An indifferent voice came from behind the counter. A youth gripped two exquisitely crafted miniature longswords, using his fingertips as hilts, clashing them together in a heated flurry.

Li Jun focused his gaze. Between offense and defense, the moves of those two swords were sharp, the guard impenetrable—they were genuine martial arts sword techniques.

This kid really is a martial fanatic.

Clang!

The swords clashed, ringing out continuously.

"What will you use to block my 'Golden Goose Soaring Across the Sky'?!"

"Have you ever heard of the 'Sword-Intercepting Form'?!"

Zhao Qingxia's expression shifted—sometimes heroic, sometimes savage, sometimes brimming with killing intent, sometimes carefree and unrestrained.

Right at the critical moment of his solo spar reaching its climax, a finger suddenly descended from the heavens, plunging straight into the sword light, pinning both longswords directly onto the counter.

"Little friend, that's not how you play with swordsmanship."

"Who the hell are you to discuss swordsmanship with this Young Master?" Zhao Qingxia snapped his head up. A face he had dreamed of day and night filled his vision. "Jun-Jun Bro?!"

Just as the words fell, a drunken voice emerged from beneath the counter.

"What chick? What kind of name is 'Swift Dove'? Pretty unique. Can it be ridden?"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Zhao Qingxia grabbed the counter and stood up, stomping his feet hard while grinning ingratiatingly at Li Jun. "Jun Bro, you finally showed up. You have to teach me a few moves properly this time."

"This dove of yours is too bumpy. The hell with it, Grandpa Horse ain't riding anymore, refund my money!"

Seeing Li Jun's expressionless face, Zhao Qingxia said awkwardly, "That old turtle drank with someone yesterday and got a bellyful of machine oil poured into him. Still not awake. Jun Bro, don't mind him."

Li Jun suppressed the urge to pluck his eyebrows, pointed a finger back at the bustling crowd outside, and asked, puzzled, "You're running a shop so brazenly in the busy market. Aren't you afraid the Confucians will come looking for trouble?"

"No worries. This shop is registered under a major Mohist conglomerate. Unless they catch us red-handed during a shipment, those crooked melons and cracked dates of the Chengdu Confucian Academy wouldn't dare show up."

Li Jun let out an "oh," looking at Zhao Qingxia, whose eyes were shining. "How's your Mimicry Martial Arts coming along?"

"Major progress!"

Zhao Qingxia's voice suddenly rose several decibels. "The forms are already perfected. Right now, I'm researching how to simulate Internal Force using other methods."

"Internal Force can be simulated?" This time it was Li Jun's turn to be shocked.

"The difficulty is indeed high, but it's not impossible. I've got some ideas now. I'll tell you, Jun Bro."

Zhao Qingxia didn't care if Li Jun was interested, chattering excitedly on his own. "Currently, there are twelve Sequences prevalent in our Great Ming Empire. Though the number seems large, many Sequences share a similar essence."

"Take Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. These three essentially walk the path of Cerebral Development, hence the birth of Buddha Lands, Grotto-Heavens, and Academies. It's just that each Sequence has a different focus. Buddhism is Deception, Daoism is Divination, Confucianism is Usurpation."

"Although Confucianism often preaches 'Body, hair, and skin, received from parents,' they really only require the brain to be original equipment."

"Buddhism and Daoism are even more so. If not for protecting their Wisdom Roots and Dao Foundations, they probably wouldn't even use mechanical prosthetics. Wouldn't going bare be more comfortable?"

Zhao Qingxia snorted, with slight disdain. "As for the Military Sequence, their advancement emphasizes the fusion degree of Machine Heart and Genes. Opportunistic shortcuts, not worth mentioning."

"The Legalist Sequence... their advancement core is the grasp of Authority. This is something I've never quite understood. What exactly does this 'Authority' refer to?"

"Diplomacy and Yin-Yang—I haven't researched them yet. But for us Martial, Mohist, and Agricultural Sequences, they all emphasize developing one's own genes. Though each has its own focus, I feel there must be some common ground!"

"As long as I find that point, I'll definitely be able to simulate the Martial Sequence's Internal Force!"

Zhao Qingxia's eyes glittered with brilliant light, contrasting sharply with Li Jun's slightly dazed gaze.

You're not simulating Internal Force, kid. This is mass-producing Sequences!

So this is what a genius looks like!

"Jun Bro, what do you think of my idea? Any problems with the approach?"

Li Jun swallowed. "I don't understand, but I think it's amazing."

"What does that mean?"

Zhao Qingxia scratched his head in confusion, an unworldly, bashful smile on his face. "Did I explain too vaguely? No matter, I'll demonstrate for you."

"Zhao Qingxia, you little turtle, who are you yelling at? You woke Grandpa Horse from a beautiful dream."

A voice cut in at that moment, interrupting Zhao Qingxia's movement.

An armored arm swayed unsteadily from beneath the bar, draping over the counter.

Then a helmet with a red eye embedded in the brow emerged, a wisp of red light shooting toward Li Jun.

"I wondered who it was. So it's you, brat."