Chapter 67: A Chat Through the Ages

"You say we all come from the pen of an author named Jin Yong, that we are all fictional characters under his pen."

Zhu Cong asked the two in disbelief, while the other six of the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan stared fixedly at Guo Jing.

"No, some people truly existed in history, such as Daoist Qiu Chuji; he was historically more formidable than Wang Chongyang, but my seven masters and I are all fictional characters under his pen."

Guo Jing pondered for a moment and spoke solemnly; upon hearing Guo Jing's affirmative reply, the seven fell silent for a long time before asking in a cacophony of voices.

"By the way, you just told us you went to the future; how do people in the future live?"

"Did the Great Song eventually recover its lost lands and avenge the Jingkang Humiliation?"

"Are the Han people in the future still bullied by nomadic tribes?"

Thus, Guo Jing and Nie Huaishang patiently explained the future history to the seven; the history of the Southern Song was undoubtedly humiliating.

When Guo Jing spoke of the defeat at the Battle of Yamen, when Lu Xiufu carried the Emperor and jumped into the sea, when a hundred thousand soldiers and civilians perished for the nation, and when the Southern Song was utterly destroyed by the Mongols, tears flowed from all without exception.

It was too humiliating; the Emperor's skull was made into a drinking vessel; for the Mongols, killing a Southerner required only a fine equivalent to the price of a donkey; commoners could not even have names, being named only by their generation.

When Guo Jing spoke of how, decades later, a commoner from Huaiyou drove out the Tartars and restored China, the seven could not help but clap their hands and cry out in approval.

"This Zhu Yuanzhang, restoring China as a beggar, is truly remarkable; his grand strategy and ambition even slightly surpass those of the Great Song's Taizu."

Ke Zhen'e could not help but sigh.

However, when speaking of the Battle of Sarhu, the peril of the Four Nine Cities, the Chongzhen Emperor hanging himself on Meishan Mountain, the Manchus entering the Central Plains, the Divine Land falling once more, the Ten Days of Yangzhou, the Three Massacres of Jiading, "Keep the head, lose the hair; keep the hair, lose the head," the robes and hats of Huaxia were gone...

"China has the greatness of ritual and propriety, hence it is called Xia; it has the beauty of ceremonial dress, hence it is called Hua; shaving the head and changing clothes, losing not only the rituals of dress but the very root of Huaxia..."

Zhu Cong, the second of the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan known as the Skillful Hand Scholar, could not help but weep bitterly upon hearing this.

However, what saddened them was not only this; when Guo Jing and Nie Huaishang spoke of the Qing Dynasty having its gates opened by foreign powers with iron ships and cannon.

That series of unequal treaties and the corruption of the Qing rulers made their hearts ache even more.

The Treaty of Nanking ceded Hong Kong Island; paid Britain compensation for opium prices, merchant debts, and military expenses totaling twenty-one million silver dollars.

The Boxer Protocol totaled 980 million taels of silver in principal and interest (details: compensation of 450 million taels of silver, repaid over 39 years, with principal and interest totaling approximately 980 million taels).

The Treaty of Shimonoseki ceded the Liaodong Peninsula (later failed to be obtained due to the Triple Intervention), the island of Taiwan and its affiliated islands, and the Penghu Archipelago to Japan, and compensated Japan 200 million taels of silver.

However, when speaking of the fall of the Qing Dynasty and the establishment of the Republic, the seven instantly felt much better.

However, when Guo Jing spoke of the situation at that time where warlords within Huaxia carved up territories, constantly fighting each other, while foreign powers surrounded them.

The crowd could not help but feel deeply worried; when speaking of the subsequent outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the Nanjing Massacre, Unit 731, and other such human tragedies, the seven were filled with righteous indignation.

Ke Zhen'e was so angry he slammed the table and rose, cursing: "Our Huaxia, with five thousand years of history, has been bullied by these three-island Japanese slaves to this extent."

When speaking of the founding of New China, the people becoming masters of their own destiny, defeating the world's number one power in the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, and at the same time solving the banditry that had plagued the land since ancient times, the seven wore smiles of joy.

"I never expected the future to be a time when the people are masters of their own destiny; good, truly good."

Hearing Guo Jing's description of the future, Ke Zhen'e immediately felt a longing in his heart.

At this moment, Nie Huaishang stepped forward and said solemnly to the seven: "Seven elders, what we have done during this time is to bring the prosperous age of China to the future ahead of schedule."

"That world without exploitation or oppression, where everyone is free and equal, descends here; we hope all elders will lend us a hand."

In Nie Huaishang's view, these seven possessed firm wills; once they set their minds on something, they would never waver, and in the future they would absolutely be their good helpers.

The Seven Freaks of Jiangnan would absolutely be their good assistants in the days to come; do not look at how their performance in the original story was merely passable, feeling as if they could not defeat anyone.

Do not forget that the ones they could not defeat were the Five Greats, Mei Chaofeng, Chen Xuanfeng, and those others.

One must know that Mei Chaofeng practiced the Nine Yin White Bone Claw from the Nine Yin Manual; it was normal for the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan to be unable to defeat her.

Even Wang Chongyang's disciple, Qiu Chuji, only fought the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan to a draw; Qiu Chuji was a disciple of Wang Chongyang, the number one under heaven.

Moreover, in Nie Huaishang's view, besides their Wu Gong, some of the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan possessed abilities that would be of great help to them.

For instance, the third of the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan, the Horse King God Han Baoju; his horsemanship was superior, and his skill in judging horses was unmatched in the world; Guo Jing's little red horse was the one he selected.

Furthermore, Guo Jing would soon personally teach the seven the Small Formless Art; he believed this would quickly remedy the seven freaks' weakness in internal strength.

Guo Jing has currently only taught the Small Formless Art to his personal guards and his father, Guo Xiaotian.

Regarding Nie Huaishang's proposal, the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan readily agreed; after all, they seven deeply longed for the prosperous China and the society where the people are masters of their own destiny spoken of by Guo Jing and Nie Huaishang.

"Being able to devote ourselves to such a great cause is the honor of us Seven Freaks of Jiangnan."

Zhu Cong said excitedly, and the other six nodded their heads respectively.

"By the way, seven masters, this is the Daoist Small Formless Art, the exclusive internal energy cultivation technique of the Xiaoyao Sect; its power is immense; as long as one possesses this art and knows the moves of other martial arts, relying on its unparalleled power, one can imitate others' supreme arts and even surpass the originals."

At this moment, Guo Jing also took out his own Small Formless Art and handed it to the seven; seeing this, the seven hurriedly refused.

"How can this be? We came here originally to teach you Wu Gong; we have done nothing, so how can we accept your internal energy cultivation technique?"

Ke Zhen'e said anxiously, and the other six quickly nodded their heads.

One must know that an internal energy cultivation technique is the foundation of a sect; moreover, this internal energy technique, if one knows the moves of other martial arts, can imitate others' supreme arts and even surpass the originals.

Looking at it this way, this internal energy technique is in no way inferior to the Nine Yin Manual, the number one cultivation technique in the current Wu Lin.

"Seven masters, you traveled ten thousand li to come to us mother and son; how can you say you have done nothing? Moreover, the things we will do in the future are fraught with extreme danger; I have already taught this Small Formless Art to my hundreds of personal soldiers."

Guo Jing said sincerely to the seven; if the martial arts of the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan were enhanced, it would also increase their own strength.

Hearing that Guo Jing had already taught the internal energy cultivation technique to his personal soldiers, the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan did not refuse.

However, they had already secretly vowed to dedicate the rest of their lives to the great cause of building a nation where the people are masters of their own destiny.