Chapter 891 - 722: The Lost Martial Arts Lineage

A slender figure drifted over like a wisp of smoke.

She wore a simple pure-white scholar’s robe, a matching white carefree headscarf, and held a folding fan painted with a black-and-white landscape, dressed entirely as a man.

Yet from her rosy little mouth, her fair skin, and that long neck without an Adam’s apple, one could still clearly see she was a woman.

However, her eyes were extremely bright, with a distinct aura of killing intent hovering within them.

Lou Yi also noticed.

This woman’s pair of hands were like jade in texture, flawless, and a faint glow shimmered on their surface.

This was clearly a sign that her External Cultivation had already stepped into the Transformation Realm.

"Junior Sister!" The burly man who had been leading the seven just now showed a complicated expression of admiration mixed with awe on his face.

"Second Senior Sister!"

"Senior Sister!"

The other Martial Artists called out different forms of address, but the same look of respect appeared in every pair of eyes.

The female scholar slightly inclined her head to the men, counting it as a greeting.

Then she walked to a spot a few zhang in front of Lou Yi, scrutinized him carefully for a moment, and then shook her head, saying:

"He is not a successor of the Lion Seal lineage. That branch resides in the Northern Border, with everyone’s hair slightly yellow and their irises amber.

And they are all fiery and unyielding by nature. If he truly belonged to the Lion Seal lineage, the lot of you would probably not still be alive."

"What?!" Hearing the woman’s words, the seven burly men all became somewhat doubtful and unsettled.

The female scholar, however, cupped her fists to Lou Yi and said, "Young hero, my fellow disciples offended you just now in many ways; I must ask your forgiveness."

"It’s nothing. To be concerned for their Master is only human." Lou Yi said.

"I do not know, my Master..."

"Senior was injured because he stepped in to help me resist the Demon. That is why he was hurt." Lou Yi lightly patted the back of the unconscious old man beside him.

The old man floated toward the female scholar like a goose feather and landed gently in front of her.

"Master!" Only then did a trace of anxiety appear on the female scholar’s face.

Her fair jade hand pressed against the white-haired old man’s pulse. After a moment she said,

"Years ago my Master was ambushed by a vile person and suffered a wound that can never fully heal. This time he was injured atop his old injuries; it is no wonder he fell unconscious and has not woken."

"Please accept these Elixir Pills; they should be of some use to him." Lou Yi handed over several delicate porcelain bottles.

The female scholar pulled out the wooden stopper, brought her fine nose close and sniffed, and could not help showing a hint of shock in her eyes.

"These Elixirs must be extremely precious."

Just from a faint whiff, she felt her mind clear and refreshed, the Gang Qi in her body stirring restlessly. It was clear these Elixirs were extraordinary—she had roamed the jianghu for many years and had never seen their like.

"Junior Sister, this guy might well be trying to poison us; you must not let Master take them!" The burly man with a beast-bone necklace around his neck warned the female scholar, eyes full of wariness.

"If you’re worried, you can eat one and try it. I still have some here." Lou Yi said with a smile.

"Humph, trying to poison me? How could I fall for that... Wait, Junior Sister, what are you doing!" The beast-bone burly man was startled; he rushed forward, trying to stop the female scholar.

But he was too late and could only watch as she pinched a green Elixir Pill and put it into her mouth.

"Not bad." The female scholar commented casually on the taste.

After waiting a moment and seeing that her aura did not change in the least, and that her whole bearing was even a shade more radiant than before, everyone finally relaxed.

The female scholar personally fed the old man the medicine. Seeing the old man’s complexion visibly improve, she couldn’t help letting out a long breath.

"Many thanks for your aid, young hero."

"Senior was injured saving me; this is what I ought to do."

...

"May I ask which Sect you hail from, young hero?" After chatting for a bit, the female scholar started probing into Lou Yi’s background.

"I come from the wild mountains. I was raised to adulthood by my Master from childhood, but I do not belong to any Sect." Lou Yi said.

"May I ask your esteemed Master’s surname and given name?" Hearing this, the female scholar’s expression grew solemn.

"Before I descended the mountain, my Master told me that if I had not trained my Martial Arts to great completion, I was not to reveal his name and bring disgrace upon his reputation, otherwise he would expel me from his gate." Lou Yi shook his head and declined.

So after all that, he had essentially said nothing. The female scholar and the group of burly men looked at one another, unable to make heads or tails of Lou Yi’s origins.

In truth, Lou Yi had originally wanted to say that he, like that Demon, also came from beyond this world.

But that would be a bit too shocking, so it was better to keep a low profile; he simply made up a casual background.

As for whether they believed it or not, that wasn’t important. They had only met by chance in any case.

"Sigh, with Master like this now, are we still going to the Fan Kingdom to attend the Martial Arts Grand Assembly? Or should we first return to the Sect to recuperate and talk about it later?" One of the burly men asked dejectedly.

"There’s no time. We go—we must go!" The female scholar said decisively. "If we still fail to obtain the Five-Colored Spirit Essence this time, our branch will surely fall completely into decline, and Master would never consent to that!"

"But there are many people who don’t want to see us go. If Master were awake it would be fine, but as things stand, it all depends on us...

Even if you, Junior Sister, are exceptionally gifted, in the end your time in cultivation has been too short; you may not be a match for those villains..." The beast-bone burly man also hesitated.

The female scholar suddenly bent at the waist and saluted toward Lou Yi. "My honored Master lies unconscious, the road ahead is fraught with difficulties, and we fear powerful enemies may strike.

This little woman has a presumptuous request: I wish to ask the young hero to accompany us for a few days. Once my Master awakens, every obstacle will be easily overcome."

"All right." Lou Yi agreed without hesitation.

The old man had shown him kindness, and besides, he was currently idle. Traveling with this group was a perfect way to feel out the ways of this world.

After that, two of the burly men made use of what was at hand, chopping down several nearby trees and fashioning a simple sedan litter, laying the white-haired old man flat upon it to be carried.

The remaining eight people, Lou Yi included, split up around the litter front and back, echoing one another at the head and tail, and hurried off in one direction.

And in the exchanges that followed, Lou Yi obtained quite a bit of useful information.

First was that this world was called the True Profound Continent, and its origin was related to several powerful Martial Artists of the True Profound Realm who had fled here.

The True Profound Realm is the Third Realm of Martial Arts, another name for the Profound Light Realm.

"According to ancient books hidden in secret vaults, in the distant Vast Sea Realm there was once a struggle between the Immortal and Martial Paths. Martial Arts fell into decline and were ruthlessly purged.

A few great Martial Arts experts then led a host of Martial Artists to flee the Vast Sea, finally coming to this realm to take root, multiplying generation after generation; it has now been over ten thousand years..."

The female scholar’s name was Yun Jin; her background was clearly unusual, for she even knew of events from ten thousand years ago and could rattle off many secret histories.

As if sensing Lou Yi’s surprise, Yun Jin smiled faintly. "Among those few True Profound Realm experts, one of them was the Patriarch of our Treasure Vase Seal branch..."

Perhaps because she thought Lou Yi came from the wilds, Yun Jin patiently explained things to him, truly treating him as someone untouched by the world who knew nothing.

Lou Yi thus learned many hidden pieces of information that most people in this world were unaware of.

After the struggle between the Immortal and Martial Paths, the Martial Seal lineage within Martial Arts escaped to this place and left behind their inheritances.

Among them were the Treasure Vase Seal, Lion Seal, Bright King Seal, Sun Seal, and other Martial Seal branches.

The so-called Martial Seal should be a unique method of Martial Arts cultivation that had already vanished in the Vast Sea Realm.

Yet in this world it had flourished once more, and the way of the Martial Seal had become the mainstream of Martial Arts cultivation.

As for how exactly one cultivated it, Lou Yi did not dare ask too specifically, lest the other side see through his identity as a visitor from beyond this world.

In any case, there would be plenty of time to learn later.

What was more pressing now was to digest those few gains on the Attribute Panel.

Lou Yi looked toward the Attribute Panel, and a prompt from the Demon God’s avatar immediately popped up:

’A collectible item has been detected. You may choose one of the following three:

1. Energy: 1,699 points

2. Yin Affinity enhancement

3. Divine Skill: Thousand Hands

Will you choose?’

...