Chapter 53: Gong Jiu

Yu Liancheng followed Laoshi Heshang to a commercial port where ships came and went frequently, and boarded a large, steady merchant ship.

On the surface, this ship appeared to be an ordinary cargo vessel, filled with all sorts of common goods. But Yu Liancheng had already discovered that the cargo ship concealed quite a bit of gold, silver, and treasure, and both the crew and the other passengers were acting quite mysteriously.

Of course, that had little to do with him.

The first ray of sunlight broke through the clouds, and the sea surface was brilliant with Jinguang, magnificent and glorious.

Yu Liancheng stood on the deck; this was not the first time he had seen such a sight, but every time he saw it, it could give him an incomparable sense of shock.

"Monk, how much longer until we arrive?"

"Soon, two days at most."

Laoshi Heshang had also risen and was standing right beside Yu Liancheng.

This monk was indeed very honest; at least, Yu Liancheng had never heard him tell a lie.

But Laoshi Heshang was definitely not an honest man.

Except for Yu Liancheng, almost everyone who had offended him even slightly would meet with retribution.

Furthermore, many times, telling only half the truth is often more terrifying than a lie.

Laoshi Heshang suddenly asked, "Why do you want to go there?"

Yu Liancheng replied without hesitation, "Because there are truly many experts there, quite a few peerless martial arts, and also a very interesting person like Xiao Laotou."

He had long since regarded Xiao Laotou as an opponent, and no matter what, he had to meet him.

Xiao Laotou was a remarkable man, well-versed in astronomy and geography, and even capable of predicting storms and tides at sea, making the great power of heaven and earth his own to use. Thus, he committed one astonishing major crime after another, yet everyone thought they were accidents and could not trace them back to him.

Of course, what truly concerned Yu Liancheng was Xiao Laotou's astonishing attainments in martial arts. Peerless arts that predecessors had exhausted their life's efforts to master, he could often learn in just a few months, picking them up with ease and using them with infinite ingenuity.

Back then, Ruyi Xianzi was an unparalleled talented woman in the martial arts world; it took her three years to master the peerless art "Ruyi Orchid Hand," yet her daughter practiced it for a full thirty years, only to end up exhausted and dying after vomiting blood.

Xiao Laotou's daughter, Niurutang, was lazy and hated work, yet she practiced it for five years.

And Xiao Laotou only used three months.

This kind of martial arts talent was perhaps already no less than Yu Liancheng's.

Xiao Laotou possessed many long-lost unique skills and could fuse them into one; his martial arts had truly reached an unfathomable level, perhaps already the number one person in the world today.

His vision was exceptionally high; if this world had the concept of "Shattering the Void," he had perhaps already reached a higher world.

Of course, just how powerful Xiao Laotou was exactly would have to wait until they met.

Two days later, Yu Liancheng and Laoshi Heshang left the large ship and departed on a fast boat.

Laoshi Heshang held the oars and said, "It will take about half an hour to reach the Island. I don't know how you came to know of the existence of us Invisible Men, but I must still warn you. There are many experts on the Island; in terms of martial arts alone, besides Xiao Laotou, you must also be careful of one person."

Yu Liancheng said, "Who?"

Laoshi Heshang said, "Gong Jiu! His status on the Island is extremely noble, second only to Xiao Laotou. His sword technique is also very high; I can guarantee that it will absolutely not lose to Ye Gucheng or Ximen Chuixue. So if you meet him, you must be careful, and you must not provoke him."

Yu Liancheng did not speak, staring straight at Laoshi Heshang, making his scalp tingle.

"Fine, fine, fine, what a good Laoshi Heshang, you are indeed very honest, not a single word of a lie." Yu Liancheng sneered.

Wumingdao was very large, and Gong Jiu might not necessarily be on the Island.

Laoshi Heshang appeared to be warning Yu Liancheng.

But a person like Yu Liancheng, once he knew there was such an expert on the Island, would never be willing to miss out.

And when the two met, there would surely be an injury.

Laoshi Heshang still had not told a single lie, nor had he even told only half the truth, but it was already more terrifying than the most vicious lie.

Laoshi Heshang pressed his palms together and said calmly, "Laoshi Heshang is, of course, honest."

"I know you are plotting against me; no matter, we will settle this account another time." Yu Liancheng let out a cold laugh.

Yu Liancheng certainly knew of Gong Jiu.

He also knew that Gong Jiu was indeed a top-tier expert, but compared to Gong Jiu's martial arts, he was more interested in Gong Jiu's magical recovery ability.

In the original timeline, Lu Xiaofeng negotiated with Gong Jiu and happened to run into Gong Jiu's masochistic episode; in order to make Lu Xiaofeng use a whip to lash him, he even insulted Shaman.

Lu Xiaofeng was furious and whipped Gong Jiu severely, leaving him covered in lacerations and dripping with blood.

If it were an ordinary person, they would inevitably have suffered broken bones and tendons, lying in bed for ten days or half a month, but in the time it took Gong Jiu to change his clothes, the wounds on his body had all healed, his skin smooth as jade.

However, Yu Liancheng was not clear whether this was due to Gong Jiu's own abnormal constitution or if he had practiced some special martial art.

If it were some kind of exotic martial art, then the value would be simply too great.

The small boat moved slowly forward, and Yu Liancheng closed his eyes to rest; he did not know how much time had passed before he finally saw an island.

The boat docked, and the two stepped onto the Island.

Just at this moment, a figure flew over from the distance.

It flew truly fast; at first, it was just a small white dot. After blinking a few times, that person had already appeared before them.

"Nine Young Master!"

Laoshi Heshang had already lost his voice and changed color.

"Gong Jiu?!" Yu Liancheng's heart stirred, and he fixed his eyes on that person.

He saw that this person's features were as beautiful as a carving, his face carrying a cold, arrogant, and resolute expression, his eyes as sharp as a blade. His jet-black hair was perfectly neat, and there was not a single wrinkle on his snow-white robes.

"You are... Laoshi Heshang?" Gong Jiu scrutinized Laoshi Heshang carefully several times before finally recognizing him. In reality, they had met several times before and could not be considered strangers.

"Laoshi Heshang greets Nine Young Master." Laoshi Heshang bowed.

"Mm, you've come at the right time; I'm lost, I'll go back with you," Nine Young Master said coldly and indifferently.

"Good." Laoshi Heshang nodded; he did not feel surprised.

Gong Jiu was undoubtedly a very intelligent and very arrogant person.

But Gong Jiu would space out, get lost, and sometimes could not even do arithmetic under ten.

This person was simply complex to the extreme.

Gong Jiu acted as if he did not see Yu Liancheng, simply following Laoshi Heshang as they walked in a certain direction.

Yu Liancheng also seemed not to see Gong Jiu, honestly following Laoshi Heshang.

They walked for about the time it takes for one stick of incense to burn.

Slap!

Laoshi Heshang suddenly slapped himself; this slap was very heavy, and a red five-fingered print immediately appeared on his face.

Gong Jiu asked curiously, "Why would you hit yourself?"

Laoshi Heshang pulled a bitter face and stammered, "Because this monk just had a bad thought; this is truly not a thought a person who has left the secular world should have."

Gong Jiu asked curiously, "What thought?"

Laoshi Heshang lowered his head to look at his tattered straw sandals, his voice even lower.

"This monk was thinking, if you two were to fight, I wonder who would be beaten to death."