The Villain's Counterattack

Chapter 587 I don’t know what kind of martial arts my brother-in-law is talking about

On the fifth or sixth night after Yang Xuyan arrived at Songjia Mountain City, he finally met the other members of the Song family. During the banquet, Song Zhi and Song Lu were so shocked to see Song Que drinking that their eyes almost popped out. You know, Song Que is extremely self-disciplined and rarely indulges himself like this.

During the banquet, Song Que announced several things. The first was to form an alliance with Liaodong and marry his eldest daughter Song Yuhua to Yang Xuyan, the Duke of Liaodong, as his co-wife.

Everyone was shocked by this statement. They had long known that Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty had arranged for the marriage of Yang Xuyan, Duke of Liaodong, to Pei Ju's legitimate daughter. Recently, there had even been rumors that Wang Shichong had married his niece to Yang Xuyan. They had never imagined that their eldest brother would actually marry Yuhua to him. Xie Hui, the lord of Duzun Fort, who was also at the table, had a stiff expression. He had previously tried to propose marriage to Song Que, hoping that his eldest son would marry Song Yuhua, but had been rejected. He had never expected to hear today that Song Que was planning to marry his daughter, and that the person being proposed was the Duke of Liaodong, a high-ranking official.

Xie Hui had heard of the young man, Yang Xuyan, the Duke of Liaodong. He was truly extraordinary in both literary and military skills, and had built up a huge fortune from scratch. He was much better off than himself, not to mention his useless son. However, no matter how much he thought about it, he still felt a little angry.

Yang Xuyan did not refuse Song Que's marriage proposal. This was what they had discussed in the afternoon. Yang Xuyan readily agreed during the meal and reported his own gift, which included three master-level martial arts (not counting the previous One Finger Yang and Demon Subduing Sword Techniques), rare treasures worth more than one hundred thousand taels, and ten other skills such as salt drying, sugar making, and shipbuilding. Everyone in the Song family was stunned when they heard this and almost drooled.

Song Shidao and Song Yuhua, who were originally unhappy, now realized how much their future brother-in-law valued their sister. They just didn't know how much of this attention was for their sister and how much was for the Song family, but they really couldn't refuse this betrothal gift.

"I wonder what kind of grandmaster-level martial arts brother-in-law is talking about?" Song Shidao's words "brother-in-law" made Song Yuhua blush. He pretended to twist his ear, causing everyone to laugh.

Yang Xuyan smiled and said, "I still have several master-level skills. If you have any ideas, you can bring them up and I will try my best to satisfy them." As soon as these words came out, everyone except Song Que was in an uproar. This tone was a bit too arrogant. You know, Xie Hui himself could only come up with one or two master-level skills. The Duke of Liaodong County was actually going to let Song Shidao make the request himself, and he would provide the corresponding three master-level skills.

Song Shidao seemed to be deliberately trying to embarrass him. After a moment's hesitation, he said, "My father is so proficient in swordsmanship that ordinary Grandmaster martial arts are useless. My two uncles are also Grandmasters, and they have Grandmaster-level staff and sword techniques. Two days ago, my brother-in-law gave my sister a Grandmaster-level finger technique. Now, all we lack are Qinggong, body training, and Grandmaster-level martial arts suitable for women. I wonder if my brother-in-law has any of them?"

Everyone was speechless after hearing this, all looking at me, waiting to see what was going on. Yang Xuyan paused for a moment before saying, "Are there any other specific requirements? For example, should one be good at traveling long distances or at teleporting? Should one's physical training techniques be more Taoist or Buddhist? Women's techniques are too general, and Yuhua will inherit the relevant knowledge by marrying me. If Yuzhi wants to learn, she can ask Yuhua for it. There's no need to take up three spots."

After hearing Yang Xuyan's words, everyone was speechless. Song Shidao, however, was greatly surprised and said with a smile, "Then change the martial arts suitable for women into sword techniques that suit me. It would be best if you can take Qinggong into consideration as well. As for the body-building techniques, the Taoist ones are more suitable."

Upon hearing this, Yang Xuyan looked at him deeply. This kid was not honest. To be honest, Song Shidao's character seemed pretty good to ordinary people, but he was somewhat unsuitable as the future heir of the Song family. Being kind was not a bad thing, but being blindly kind was a bad thing.

His three requirements were very particular. The lightness skill had to take into account both traveling and fighting. Choosing Taoism instead of Buddhism for body training was undoubtedly to avoid suspicion. Presumably, Buddhism was overbearing and unreasonable, while Taoism was more gentle and a local sect, which was more in line with the Song family's positioning.

"I have a light martial art called the Golden Goose Kung Fu. It helps cultivate internal strength, is good for climbing and leaping, and can also be used to travel. It's easy to learn, but requires great effort and hard work to achieve perfection. It's applicable from the foundation-building stage to the grandmaster stage. It's a rare and wonderful Taoist martial art."

"I have a Taoist body-protecting martial art called the Golden Bell Cover. It's an extremely superior horizontal training technique, divided into two parts. The upper part can be quickly mastered, while the lower part cultivates both internal and external skills, increasing its power tenfold."

"I have a sword technique called the Thirteen Swords of Shenmen, which specializes in attacking the Shenmen acupoint on the wrist. It's a rare sword technique for stopping wars. Each move is different, but they all target the Shenmen acupoint on the enemy's wrist."

Song Shidao was delighted upon hearing this, but pretended to be dissatisfied and said, "The Golden Goose Skill and the Golden Bell Cover are very useful in improving cultivation, but why is it that when it comes to the sword technique that suits me, it is just pure sword technique, and may not be at the Grandmaster level?"

Yang Xuyan glanced at him and said, "These three martial arts all share a common characteristic: they're easy to get started with, but mastering them requires substantial effort. Ultimately, they all reach the power of a Grandmaster. Just like the Thirteen Swords of the Divine Gate, in the hands of a top-tier expert, they're first-rate; in the hands of an innate expert, they're innate; and in the hands of a Grandmaster, they're Grandmaster-level. However, the purpose of this swordsmanship ends here; it can never be considered a Grandmaster's swordsmanship."

"However, this is indeed one of the few sword techniques that suits you. Besides the Thirteen Swords of the Divine Sect, perhaps the Yangwu Sword Technique of Yue Buqun, the Huashan Gentleman Sword, is also suitable for you to practice. As long as you are willing to study hard and learn something, I will put aside my pride and beg him to teach you this sword technique. How about it?"

Song Que's eyes twitched when he heard this, and he thought to himself that these clone characters of yours are really useful. Song Shidao was overjoyed when he heard this, and he high-fived him to swear an oath. Then Xie Hui was surprised to hear that Yang Xuyan and the gentleman swordsman Yue Buqun knew each other, and hurriedly asked about their relationship.

Yang Xuyan said casually, "Hermits are also human beings, and as humans, they have social circles. Rumor has it that the Sword Master Yue Buqun and the Sword Demon Dugu Qiubai are close friends. The Sword Demon Dugu also challenged the Sword Master Fu Cailin in Liaodong, so he must be acquainted with me. If I approach him, it won't be a problem for me to meet the Sword Master Yue. However, the more I use favors, the less I value them. As a teacher, I must not let my efforts go to waste, or I will not forgive you."

Song Shidao nodded repeatedly, indicating that he would work hard to live up to his brother-in-law's efforts. Yang Xuyan paused for a moment and continued, "Although the Divine Sect's Thirteen Swords are excellent, they are ultimately somewhat lacking, especially for you now. I have a superior Taoist internal energy method called the Big Dipper Method. The internal energy it cultivates is quite pure and has enormous potential. If you cultivate it to a high level, it will be much easier to comprehend the Big Dipper Sword Formation."

Everyone was shocked when they heard this. Song Que was also slightly moved and asked, "But is it the Tiangang Big Dipper Sword Formation that once defeated Master Yijian Fu Cailin and forced back Martial Master Bi Xuan?"

Yang Xuyan nodded slightly and said, "It is this sword formation. This formation is also one of my trump cards for survival in Liaodong. Although it is not the most important, it is also extraordinary, second only to the Zhenwu Seven-Section Formation."

Everyone was speechless. How come another Zhenwu Seven-Section Formation suddenly appeared? And from what you said, its power was even greater than that of the Tiangang Big Dipper Seven-Star Sword Formation?

What is the origin of your Liaodong faction? Could it be a Taoist holy land? How could it possess so many unique Taoist skills?

The Sword Demon Dugu Qiubai, the Gentleman Sword Yue Buqun, Xie Hui's heart moved and he suddenly asked: "Could it be that Young Master Yang is the Taoist Grandmaster, the disciple of Senior Xiaoyaozi?"

Yang Xuyan looked at him and smiled without saying a word, neither denying nor admitting. He changed the subject and introduced several martial arts suitable for Song Shidao, which made him excited. However, these martial arts could only be heard about, and it was not easy to obtain them. Fortunately, his future brother-in-law gave him some hope, and as long as he worked hard, his future would be bright.

Seeing his future son-in-law disciplining his silly son, Song Que could only secretly shake his head and smile bitterly, but he felt a little happier in his heart. He knew his son's character very well. He was not a wise leader, and even had a bit of a tiger father and dog son nature. He was good at maintaining the status quo but not enterprising enough.