Fang Yuan's eyes flashed with reminiscence as he continued:
“This starts with my family background.”
"My family was originally an antique dealer in the imperial capital. We were quite famous and wealthy, and we also had a shop in the Antique Street."
"A few months ago, my father bought a mysterious ancient painting worth ten thousand taels of silver. The painting is called Blood Sun."
Ten thousand taels of silver? Qiao Mu was shocked.
According to the purchasing power of the Great Yan Dynasty, ten thousand taels of silver were equivalent to tens of millions of RMB in the previous life, which was indeed not cheap.
It seems that the financial strength of the Fang family of antique dealers is even stronger than Qiao Mu had imagined before, and it is not just a "small family fortune".
"It is said that the Blood Sun Picture was drawn by a high-level spiritual warrior several hundred years ago. The warrior was also a painter, but he suddenly went mad in his later years and used his own blood as ink to draw the picture."
"When the painting was finished, he died of blood loss."
"My father originally thought that this was just an ordinary story, a means for calligraphy and painting to raise their own value. This kind of thing is very common in the antique circle, so he didn't pay much attention to it."
"Who would have thought that just three days after acquiring the Blood Sun Map, something strange would happen."
"What's so strange? A monster with a blood-red sun on its head ran out of the painting?" Qiao Mu interrupted.
"..." Fang Yuan looked at him strangely:
"How can it be so weird? It's just a painting. What kind of strange story is Senior Qiao telling?"
"In fact, three days later, a martial artist came to our store pretending to be a customer who wanted to buy calligraphy and paintings."
Oh, is it the martial arts style? Isn’t it a bit late to change the style back now... Qiao Mu complained in his heart.
Fang Yuan continued:
"That Soul Refining Warrior -- at that time we didn't know that he was a Soul Refining Warrior with great martial arts skills, so we just treated him as an ordinary customer."
"That man wanted to buy the Blood Sun Map, but he was only willing to pay one thousand taels, one tenth of the price. How can that be justified? Of course my father refused."
"That person did not argue. He just turned around and glanced at my father and mother before leaving."
"Since then, my parents have both fallen ill. They often wake up in the middle of the night from nightmares, sweating all over. In their dreams, they only remember a pair of eyes as sharp as swords. Since then, my parents' spirits have been visibly declining day by day."
"My family was wealthy at the time, so we searched for famous doctors in the capital... But when those famous doctors heard about this, they all avoided me. Our Fang family spent a lot of money, but we didn't even know the cause of the disease."
"Until one day, we finally found an old famous doctor who practiced martial arts. He spoke and we learned the truth."
"The old doctor said that my parents were not ill, but their 'minds' were damaged."
"This is the 'eyewitness method' that only high-level spiritual warriors can master. It can kill people with just the eyes!"
When Fang Yuan said this, a look of sadness inevitably appeared in his eyes.
Why did he practice martial arts so diligently
Wouldn't it be nice to be a jailer in a prison and have a stable job
It was Hai Wuya and Qiao Zhong, two great masters in his eyes, who gave him some hope of revenge.
"Although my parents are extremely wealthy and have warriors and servants to guard the house, how can they deal with a top-three-rank spirit-refining warrior? We were even ambushed, and it took us a long time to find out about it."
"By the time I came to my senses, the painting of the bloody sun had been stolen."
"To be honest, when I heard the news that the Blood Sun Map was stolen, I felt relieved."
“Although it is an ancient painting worth ten thousand taels, it is something coveted by all the spiritual warriors. If it continues to be in our family’s hands, I’m afraid it will continue to cause trouble.”
"Although the calligraphy and paintings were stolen, my father and mother's illness did not improve. Half a month later, they both died of natural causes."
Speaking of this, Fang Yuan's face showed a bit of sadness.
There is a world of difference between going from a wealthy young man to a jailer with a stable job in a prison.
"I spent a lot of money and energy on treating my parents, but in the end it was all in vain."
"Not only that, when my family was busy treating the disease and had no time to care about other things, Wan Ronghua, a wealthy businessman in the imperial capital, took the opportunity to poach our people and used various means both overt and covert..."
"My family's antique shop suffered continuous losses and was eventually forced to sell it to him... We even owed a debt and were forced to sell our ancestral home."
"My youngest sister also fell ill at this time and eventually ran away from home without saying goodbye. We still don't know where she is now."
"And I relied on my father's connections... to barely get a job as a jailer in Tianlao."
"Later, I spent some time to find out... mainly from the former martial arts masters in the Heavenly Prison, and only then did I know the whereabouts of the former martial artist who practiced martial arts."
There are many high-ranking officials and martial arts masters who have committed serious crimes in the prison.
They may have been famous in the past, but once they enter the prison, it is as deep as the sea. People like Hai Wuya, who study in prison and have a background in Wu Ji Hui, are exceptions among exceptions.
Generally speaking, the more powerful and powerful one is, or the more skilled one is in martial arts, the more severely they will be tortured by the jailers.
For them, a roast chicken may not be exchanged for any martial arts secrets or great secrets.
But if it is insignificant information like the "Sword Ghost", then just give it.
From this point of view, Fang Yuan's ability to obtain information about his enemies from the mouth of a serious criminal in Tianlao was both his opportunity and his ability.
Fang Yuan said with hatred: "That martial artist who practices the spirit called himself 'Sword Ghost'. In addition to his extraordinary swordsmanship, he also has a superb eyewitness technique. And he... is actually a tribute to the wealthy merchant Wan Ronghua."
Speaking of this, Fang Yuan inevitably felt a little jealous:
"Wan Ronghua's business is getting bigger and bigger. He even hired a martial artist to serve as a priest. After he took over our shop, he became one of the four richest businessmen in the imperial capital."
"It is said that he even climbed up the high branches of the Yi Ren Dao Sect and has a background in immortality..."
Qiao Mu was silent for a moment.
No matter they are cultivators or warriors, they are not the kind of people who live in the open air and are detached from the world.
Since ancient times, the poor were scholars and the rich were martial artists. Practicing martial arts requires not only perseverance, but also food and financial support.
The cultivation of immortals is also about wealth, friends, Dharma and land, with wealth being the first.
Human lifespan and energy are limited. Those with extraordinary talents can certainly accelerate their practice, but the power of money can also accelerate it.
Therefore, it is normal that a wealthy man in the imperial capital like Wan Ronghua can impress the spiritual warriors and establish a connection with the Da Dao Sect.
It would be strange if such a wealthy man in the imperial capital had no background.
"In other words, the enemy you want to kill is the Sword Ghost, the martial artist who practices the divine arts, and Wan Ronghua, who is suspected to have an immortal background and embezzled your family property?"
"Not bad..." Fang Yuan was a little nervous.
Qiao Shuanglin was a stranger he met for the first time, not Qiao Zhong, with whom he had been in the prison for a month.
He didn't know Qiao Shuanglin, and faced with a martial arts sword ghost, and a wealthy man in the imperial capital like Wan Ronghua, who was suspected to have a fairy background... .
If they were ordinary people, they would most likely avoid them like the famous doctors that the Fang family had found before, for fear of being dragged into the storm.
only...
"You have guts." The 90-year-old man in front of him patted him on the shoulder:
"Then I will definitely teach you martial arts!"
Fang Yuan was slightly surprised, and then his expression gradually became moved.
The old man in front of me obviously couldn't be some hot-blooded young man.
Those who can live to old age in this era are basically all smart people, and after Qiao Shuanglin heard about his life story, he actually agreed immediately... He hasn't even thrown out the bait yet
But he didn't notice that Qiumu's eyes had gradually changed while he was speaking.
Turtle, how could he not get involved in such a dangerous matter
Military men in the world are divided into nine ranks, and the difference between each rank is similar to the difference in official positions among the nine ranks.
The top three grades are the three stages of cultivating the spiritual warrior.
This means that in today's era, the way of refining the spirit is the mainstream for warriors.
Martial artists who practiced slowly and accumulated internal strength had long been eliminated by the old martial arts world and represented an outdated method of practice.
No matter how much you improve in the three areas of strength, power and skills, you are not as good as a martial artist who has cultivated the spirit... This is just like a martial artist cannot beat a cultivator of immortality, it is common knowledge among martial artists.
"This sword ghost who is a martial arts master can kill people with just his eyes. It sounds quite powerful. I wonder if he can kill me?"
As Qiumu thought about it, he couldn't help but feel his heart beating fast.
Ninety-year-old Qiao Mu did not embark on the path of spiritual cultivation.
He took a different path.
Sixty-year-old Qiao Mu has just entered the fourth rank. Now he can only say that he feels that he has exceeded the limit of the fourth rank, which is the soft upper limit of the warrior's human body.
The ninety-year-old Qiao Mu had a slight doubt as to whether the Spirit Refining Warrior was stronger than him.
If we can win, it means we are helping Fang Yuan to get revenge. It is a wise idea and we will not lose.
If I lose the fight and get killed by the sword ghost... What, is there such a good thing
Qiao Mu felt envious just by imagining it, and he wished he could go to the door and give himself up tomorrow.
At this time, Fang Yuan spoke again, interrupting Qiao Mu's beautiful vision:
"Senior Qiao, there is actually one more thing. I only discovered this belatedly after the ancestral home was sold."
Fang Yuan smiled bitterly and said:
"My father was a cautious person. In fact, he not only bought a bloody sun painting, but also a bloody moon painting from the same person."
"It's just that my father secretly concealed the existence of the Blood Moon Map and didn't make it public, not even to me..."
"If nothing unexpected happens, this blood moon picture should still be in the secret room of our old house."
"I only found out about this from a prisoner in the Heavenly Prison later... The Blood Sun and Blood Moon diagrams were both drawn by martial artists hundreds of years ago. Rumor has it that they may contain the ultimate truth of martial arts, which is why the Sword Ghost coveted them..."
A picture of the bloody sun was enough to attract the heart of Wan Ronghua, a wealthy man in the imperial capital, and to make the spiritual warrior Jian Gui rush to snatch it.
Then the Blood Moon Picture, which was created by the same person, is probably no less impressive and has its own mysteries.
The existence of this blood moon picture is actually a bait prepared by Fang Yuan to persuade Qiao Mu to help.
He deliberately concealed one point in the previous conversation because he was cautious and wanted to see Qiao Shuanglin's reaction first before deciding whether to reveal everything.
After all, if Qiao Shuanglin was the second sword ghost, it would bring disaster.
Although Fang Yuan is young, he has had a rough life and naturally he is more cunning than ordinary people.
But he didn't expect that Qiao Shuanglin was so generous and directly agreed to teach him martial arts.
"So the next question is... how to take back your old house?" Qiao Mu pondered.
"Well, are we going to take it back now? Shouldn't you teach me martial arts?" Fang Yuan was slightly surprised again.
It seemed that Qiao Shuanglin not only wanted to teach him martial arts, but also offered to help him take back his ancestral home. This made him feel a little flattered.
"The martial arts thing is easy to talk about..."
At that moment, the two men and the cat returned to the jailer Fang Yuan’s residence and talked about martial arts for most of the night.
With Qiao Mu's current attainments in martial arts, he has already achieved some success in many martial arts techniques, so it is natural for him to instruct a ninth-grade warrior.
...
"Senior Qiao, our Fang family's ancestral home has become a prosperous and prosperous property for many families." Fang Yuan explained in detail:
"Wan Ronghua is now one of the four richest families in the imperial capital. They have many businesses and are much more powerful than our family was back then... One of the businesses they are involved in is house rental."
"And he rented out our ancestral home. In fact, if we want to retrieve the blood moon map in the secret room, we can just rent the old house. It's not difficult. Of course, if we have enough money, we can buy it directly."
"Then why don't you do it?" Qiao Mu asked.
"First, it's easy to alert Wan Ronghua, who is not a good person. Second... an innocent man is guilty of possessing a treasure. Even if I get the Blood Moon Map, what can I do? Wouldn't it just be a repeat of my parents' tragedy?" Fang Yuan smiled bitterly, then his eyes fell on Qiao Mu:
"Of course, the old senior has excellent martial arts skills, so he can naturally control such a treasure."
"What you said... makes a lot of sense." Qiao Mu agreed deeply.
"It's easy to get the Blood Moon Map back, but I'm a gentleman who sticks to his word. Since I said I would help you get the old house back, I won't break my promise."
Qiao Mu looked around with a sharp gaze;
"Fang Yuan, tell me the truth. How much savings do you have after working in the prison for so many years? How much of the value of your ancestral home is it?"
As for the jailer Fang Yuan, perhaps because he was born into a merchant family and had experienced many hardships, he is young but very smart and tactful.
Qiao Mu guessed that he was not the only one who was treated like this by bringing roast chicken, fine wine and other food to the serious prisoners in Tianlao.
Perhaps, Fang Yuan also gained some benefits from those other dignitaries and martial arts masters who were imprisoned.