by Jin Yong
He thought to himself, “Mother's heart has always been too soft and she does not know the consequences of the old man and his daughter getting away! If my Shifu were to hear about this, and were to bring them to face me, how could I deny what's been going on! I would really be in much trouble!” He immediately rushed off to search for them and see if he could stop them in time before they actually escaped from the palace compound. Running into Guo Jing was the last thing he expected.
They had already fought viciously that day and now they meet again in the middle of the night. One was in a hurry to rush back with medicine, the other in a hurry to kill two people to seal their lips. Now they fought even more viciously than before. Guo Jing tried to escape a couple of times but was blocked by Wanyan Kang. When Guo Jing saw the bodyguard coming forward drawing his sword ready to assist his master he thought things were going badly indeed!
o0o
Liang Ziwong thought that Huang Rong was about to be defeated and turned to leave, but to his surprise he heard a call from the crowd that indicated a change in the situation. Huang Rong suddenly raised both her arms and tossed her head sending the three bowls of wine soaring straight up in the air. She then swung both fists towards Hou Tonghai and struck using a move called ‘Eight Steps to Overtake the Moon’. Because Hou Tonghai was holding the wine bowls he couldn't block the strike and instead dodged quickly to the left. Huang Rong followed through with a flash of her right hand leaving Hou Tonghai no option this time but to block with his arm. Not only was he unable to stop the wine in his hands from spilling, but the bowl perched atop his head also tipped over and fell to the floor with a crash.
Huang Rong instantly stepped back and caught two of her bowls in mid air while the remaining one fell neatly onto the soft cloud of her hair, all without spilling so much as a drop of wine. Those present could not help murmuring ‘Excellent’ after seeing this brilliant performance of skill. Ouyang Ke however didn't murmur his praise but said it rather loudly. Sha Tongtian shot him an angry glare; but Ouyang Ke did not notice and again called out, “Brilliant indeed!”
Hou Tonghai's cheeks flushed red, “Try that again!”
Huang Rong laughed and touched her cheek with a finger and said, “Now, now, aren't you ashamed?”
Sha Tongtian, seeing his younger martial brother's loss of face, let out a grunt, “Young girl, you are certainly full of devious tricks. Tell us, who is your master?”
Huang Rong smiled sweetly saying, “I'll tell you tomorrow. Right now I must be on my way.”
Without appearing to bend a leg or take a step Sha Tongtian suddenly appeared in the doorway blocking Huang Rong's exit. Just a few minutes earlier Huang Rong had already learned just how powerful Sha Tongtian's kung fu was when he had grabbed and locked both of her hands. Now his ‘Change Form Exchange Place’ maneuver only served to highlight just how powerful an opponent he would be. Although she felt a slight rush of worry, her face didn't betray her feelings. Instead she showed a slight frown and asked in a slightly annoyed tone, “Why are you blocking my way?”
Sha Tongtian replied, “I want you to tell me which school you belong to and why you came barging into the palace.”
Huang Rong arched her pretty eyebrows and asked, “And what if I don't tell you?”
Sha Tongtian snapped, “When the ‘Dragon King of the Demonic Group’ asks a question, there is no choice but to answer!”
Huang Rong saw that she was surrounded and there wasn't much chance of her making a run for it. She had seen Liang Ziwong about to leave and called out to him pleading sweetly, “Uncle! This bad man is blocking my way and won’t let me go home.”
Liang Ziwong laughed when he heard her pleading in such a cute manner. “The ‘Dragon King’ has only asked you a question, why don't you be a nice girl and answer him? I'm sure he will let you go then.”
Huang Rong laughed in her most charming way and replied, “But I just don't feel like answering.” And then to Sha Tongtian she said, “OK - If you won't make way, I'll just have to dash through.”
Sha Tongtian laughed coldly, “Only if you have the ability to get past.”
Huang Rong demanded, “You must not lay a finger on me!”
Sha Tongtian replied, “What need is there for me, the ‘Dragon King’, to move a finger in order to stop a little girl like you.”
Huang Rong exclaimed, “Good, it's settled then. A gentleman cannot go back on his word. Dragon King Sha, do you see that?” She pointed with her left hand off to one side of the room. Sha Tongtian looked over to where she was pointing and at this point Huang Rong made a dash to get past him while he was distracted.
She moved with blinding speed, but Sha Tongtian's reaction was even faster. He shot his right two fingers up and aimed towards her eyes as she moved forward. If she didn't stop she would be blinded. Luckily she was agile enough to stop in time and leap back away from the danger. She tried again and again from many different angles but each time she found her way blocked no matter how quickly she moved. Finally, when she found her nose almost smashing into Sha Tongtian's shiny bald head threatening to stain it with blood from her broken nose, she gave up with a little shriek of frustration.
Liang Ziwong laughed heartily, “Dragon King Sha is a master at this, there is no point in continuing. Why not just admit defeat?” He then turned away and set off at a rapid pace back to his medicine store room.
As soon as he stepped into the room he smelled fresh blood and knew that all was not well. He looked down and saw, by the glow of his torch, the shriveled body of his prized red snake. All its blood had been drained and his stores of medicines were strewn about the place. Liang Ziwong's blood ran cold. Twenty years of work had been destroyed in one night! He clutched the body of his dead snake and couldn't control his tears.
The Ginseng Immortal was originally a ginseng picker on Changbai Mountain. Later he killed a seriously wounded senior master and from inside his sack he took a manual of martial arts secrets along with ten or so prescriptions for the preparation of different types of medicines, drugs and potions. The study of this book combined with use of these drugs would lead to martial arts of incredible power. Part of the preparation of the drugs required the raising of a special type of venomous snake. He searched deep in the forests and mountains to find this type of snake and fed it the most precious of herbs and other medicines. The snake’s body was originally black, but over the years as he fed it cinnabar it gradually began to turn a bright red. After twenty years of feeding the snake it had only a few more days before it completed its transformation. Then he was called to Yanjing to meet with the Prince. When the snake was ready he need only drink the blood of the snake and meditate to gain the full benefit of the martial arts power. This would make his kung fu more powerful than ever. Seeing his life’s work not only lost to him, and possibly someone else having benefited instead, was more than he could bear.
After a few moments he managed to compose himself and saw that the traces of blood on the snake had not yet congealed. He realized then that it couldn't have been very long since the snake died, so the culprit must still be near by. He immediately leapt up into a tall tree and looked all around for any signs of the thief. From there he saw the vicious fight between Guo Jing and Wanyan Kang going on in the garden. Burning with fury and anger, he leaped down and sped off towards the fight. As soon as he arrived he could already smell the pungent smell of the snake's blood coming from Guo Jing.
Guo Jing was not yet Wanyan Kang's equal when it came to fighting, so from the start he was already at a disadvantage. To make matters worse, he felt his stomach burning with an unbearable heat as if it were full of boiling water. He was terribly thirsty and itched excruciatingly all over his body.
“This time I'm certain to die.” he thought. “The snake's poison is beginning to take hold.”
In the midst of these fearful thoughts he was being struck repeatedly by Wanyan Kang's fists which were made even more painful by the effects of the poison.
“You filthy bastard!” Liang Ziwong yelled, “Who sent you to steal my precious snake?” He couldn't imagine that some stupid kid would know the secret of the snake. He thought it must be someone else who put him up to the task. In fact he was almost certain that it was Wang Chuyi who had sent Guo Jing.
When Guo Jing heard this he was furious. “That precious snake of yours attacked and poisoned me! I've got a bone of contention to pick with you!” and he leaped towards Liang Ziwong with his fists raised ready to attack.
Liang Ziwong however smelled the scent of medicines mingled with the snake blood and had an evil thought. “He has drunk the snake’s blood. If I kill him now and drink his blood then I may still gain the beneficial effects. Who knows, maybe the drug's effects will be enhanced...” As soon as he thought of this his anger vanished and he leaped towards Guo Jing to meet his attack. With his superior kung fu he was able to easily lock Guo Jing's arms and legs and hold him down. He then prepared to bite into Guo Jing's neck to extract his precious medicine...
Meanwhile Huang Rong, no matter how quickly she moved, had not been able to get past Sha Tongtian. She was getting anxious about what would happen if he decided to catch her. She decided that a change of tactics may be appropriate. “If I can get through the door then you promise to let me be, okay?” She asked.
“If you can get through the door I will admit defeat.” Sha Tongtian replied.
“Ai yo! What a pity my father only taught me the skill of entering, not the skill of leaving.” she sighed.
“What is this 'entering' and 'leaving' skill?” Sha Tongtian asked half doubting, half curious.
“Your ‘Change Form Exchange Place’ skill, although not bad, is still far below those of my father's skills. Way below in fact.” she boasted.
“Don't talk nonsense you stupid girl.” Sha Tongtian retorted angrily. “Anyway, who is your father?”
“If I told you my father's name, I'm afraid I would scare you out of your wits, so it's best if I don't say.” Huang Rong replied mischievously. “When he taught me the skill of entering he hid by the door way and I tried to rush in from outside. I tried many times but was never able to get past him. However, even though I cannot get out against you with your piddling skills, there is no way that you could stop me from getting back in. I wouldn't even have to raise a sweat!”
Sha Tongtian laughed coldly and said, “From outside going in or from inside going out, what's the difference? OK you come here and show me!” With that he moved aside to let her demonstrate the great 'entering' kung fu of which she boasted.
Huang Rong immediately shot outside and laughed, “Ha, you fell for my trick. You said a minute ago that if I could get through the door that you would admit defeat and would let me go. Well am I outside now? Did I not go through the door? Come now Dragon King Sha, you are an honorable man; your word is your bond. You cannot think of going back on what you promised in front of all these gentlemen.”
Although Sha Tongtian knew that she had tricked him, she was correct, his word was his bond and he could hardly go back on what he promised. He scratched his bald head and flushed red but could see no way to get out of it.
Peng Lianhu, however, was not about to let Huang Rong get away. He suddenly shot out a stream of darts [fei biao] towards her. The darts were extremely fast but they were aimed near to the back of her head rather than right at her. When they hit the stone pillar by the door however, they ricocheted towards her. They were too fast for her to catch and she had no choice but to leap forward a pace to avoid them. The darts continued in a stream and each one forced her to move forward a few inches. Before she knew it she had moved back inside the hall again!
Peng Lianhu’s objective all along had been to force her back into the room and everyone watching proclaimed their praise at his skill. He just laughed and said, “What's this? You've gone back inside again!”
Huang Rong scowled, “Huh! You used your concealed weapons to bully a girl and force her to move, what's so fantastic about that!” “Who was bullying you?” he asked incredulously. “I never laid a finger on you or harmed you!”
“Then let me go!” she said angrily.
“First tell us who taught you your kung fu.” he demanded.
Huang Rong smiled and said, “I taught myself whilst in my mother's womb!”
Peng Lianhu said, “If you're not willing to tell us then perhaps I can find out another way!” With this he shot his fist straight towards her shoulder. Huang Rong didn't move or try to block the blow. She figured that he wouldn't dare to act so shamelessly as to hit a girl who refused to fight back.
When Peng Lianhu saw she wasn't going to fight he pulled his punch and withdrew his arm shouting, “Come on, show me what you've got. Stupid girl! I bet I can find out who your master by your style of fighting within ten moves.” He had seen many styles during his life and although he had seen that Huang Rong was a very crafty girl, he was confident that she would not be able to hide her real martial arts style from him in a true fight. In fact he thought he needed no more than ten moves to do so.
Huang Rong asked, “And if you have not found out within ten moves?”
“Then I will let you walk free.” he replied. Without further ado he launched an attack using 'Triple Linked Penetration' so called because it incorporated three movements.
Huang Rong turned her body and dodged while forming a ring with her thumb and little finger and stretching the remaining fingers to form a three-pronged fork. Using this she counter attacked using the 'Night Trident Searches the Sea'.
Hou Tonghai cried out, "'Night Trident Searches the Sea’! Senior Brother, this brat must be from the ... our school of martial arts!”
“Rubbish!” Sha Tongtian scolded. He knew the Huang Rong had already been teasing and making fun of Hou Tonghai for some time before tonight. He figured that she must have picked up the 'Night Trident Searches the Sea!' from her earlier encounters fighting with Hou Tonghai.
Peng Lianhu couldn't suppress a laugh as he whirled around to attack again. Huang Rong turned obliquely to the left and without bending a knee or taking a step suddenly 'moved' to the side.
Hou Tonghai again exclaimed, "‘Change Form Exchange Place’ ! Senior Brother, did you teach her that?”
Sha Tonghai again scolded him saying, “Can you shut up - okay? You’re always saying stupid things!” However, inside he couldn't help but admire Huang Rong's intelligence and skill in learning the basics of such a move after only having seen it once. Even if the execution of the move wasn't entirely correct, she had been able to dodge Peng Lianhu's strike. An amazing achievement!
As the fight continued Huang Rong attacked using the ‘Soul Smashing Knife’ followed by the 'Soul Snatching Whip’ strikes. When Hou Tonghai saw these attacks and heard her call out "Yi Yi Yi" with each strike he couldn't help but call out, “Senior Brother! This brat must be from our school...”
If he hadn't seen Sha Tonghai's face growing angrier by the minute he would have again called out the name of the sects moves.
Peng Lianhu was also getting angrier. He thought to himself, “So far I've been kind and have shown mercy with my attacks, but this girl is craftier than a witch. If I don't start using more vicious attacks
I take the chance of not forcing her to reveal her true style.”
Martial Artists, after training in their chosen style, may pick up moves from other styles and over time can even become quite proficient at them. However, in a life and death struggle, they will always return to their roots and use the style that they first learned and are most familiar with.
Peng Lianhu's first four strikes had been mild and contained no desire to injure. However from his fifth strike on his moves became like a whirlwind. When the spectators saw his moves take on a vicious turn they couldn't help but become worried for Huang Rong. No one had any idea of her background and although she had been stubborn, no one actually had any real grievance with her or wanted to see such a young, pretty and charming g
irl come to harm.
No one except for Hou Tonghai that is, who actually thought, “The sooner the bitch is dead the better!”
Huang Rong continued to hide her style by using strikes from Wanyan Kang's ‘Absolute Perfection School' [Quanzhen] and Guo Jing's 'Southern Mountain Fists' style. She had only just learned these moves by seeing them earlier the same day when Guo Jing and Wanyan Kang fought using them in the arena. For the seventh move she even used Peng Lianhu's 'Triple Linked Penetration' that she first saw only six moves ago! However now it was getting more and more dangerous. Even in a straight fight with Huang Rong using all her strength and true skills against Peng Lianhu she would not be able to prevail, how could she expect to survive using tricks picked up by observing others? She was gambling against the fact that, even though he was using vicious strokes, he wouldn't actually go so far as to kill her.
Ouyang Ke thought, “This little girl is remarkably smart. She can hold herself against that Peng guy's fists.” Aloud he said, “Ai yo. Watch out, watch out. Why haven't you dodged left?”
Peng Lianhu's style used a brilliant mixture of false and real strikes, which he was able to switch between at will. On the eighth move he made a feint with his left and a real lunge with his right. Huang Rong expected him to do the opposite on the next move and feint with his right whilst attacking with his left. This meant that she ought to dodge to her right, but when she heard Ouyang Ke call out she immediately changed her mind and leapt elegantly to the left. This sudden posture was exquisite, and it turned out that nobody in the crowd recognized it.
When Peng Lianhu heard Ouyang Ke's crucial words of help he became furious. He thought, “Do you think that I wont kill you if I have to you stupid girl!” His nickname wasn't 'Butcher with a Thousand Hands' for nothing. He had an extremely cruel nature when angry. When he first saw Huang Rong he thought, that she being so young, and a girl, it would be shameful to kill her; but now, having reached the second last move of the contest and still unable to find her real school, he was so angry that he no longer cared. He struck with 'Push Open the Window and Watch the Moon' using all his force, left hand "Yin", right hand "Yang", one soft, one hard, both pushing out simultaneously.
