by Jin Yong
Tong Baixiong replied resentfully, "I was quite foolish back then!"
Dongfang Bubai shook his head and said, "You weren't foolish. You were just being a loyal friend. I met you when I was only 11 years old. At that time, my family was poor and impoverished. Luckily you came and gave us aid for many years. When my parents passed away and we had no way to provide a proper burial for them, it was you who stepped in and took care of it for us."
Tong Baixiong waved away with his left hand and said: "Why bring up the past for?"
"I just had to,” Dongfang Bubai said. “Brother Tong, it's not that I don't value our friendship and have forgotten all that you have done for me. It's just that you have offended my Brother Lian. He wants me to take your life, I just can't do otherwise."
Tong Baixiong shouted, "Enough! Enough!"
Suddenly, a pink blur streaked across their eyes, it appeared to be Dongfang Bubai. They heard a clang as the blade in Tong Baixiong's hand fell to the floor as he swayed back and forth in a daze on his feet. Then they saw Tong Baixiong's mouth open widely as his body fell forward straight onto the floor where it remained motionless. Although everything happened in only an instant, Ren Woxing and the others saw it clearly. The left and right Taiyang points above Tong Baixiong's eyebrows and the four Renzhong points below his nose all had a small red dot on them, as tiny drops of blood leaked out. It appeared that those points had been punctured by the sewing needle in Dongfang Bubai's hands. Ren Woxing and the others were shocked and took several steps backwards instinctively. Linghu Chong pulled Yingying behind him and shielded her with his own body. The room was filled with an eerie silence, no one even dared to take a single breath.
Ren Woxing slowly unsheathed his sword and said, "Dongfang Bubai, congratulations on completing your training of the 'Sunflower Manual'!"
"Chief Ren, it was you who gave me this 'Sunflower Manual'. I've never forgotten your kindness," Dongfang Bubai said.
"Really? Is that why you imprisoned me under the West Lake, never letting me see the light of day?"
"But I didn't kill you, did I?” Dongfang Bubai said. “If I had only instructed the Four Playfellows of Jiangnan not to give you water for about half a month, do you think you could've survived until now?"
Ren Woxing sarcastically said, "Well in that case, you treated me very well then?"
"Why of course! I arranged for you to enjoy paradise in the West Lake of Hangzhou. West Lake is world-renowned for having some of the best scenery under heaven. And Plum Manor on Mount Gu is considered one of the best spots in all of West Lake."
"So in fact you were letting me retire in the lap of luxury in that dungeon under the West Lake. I should be thanking you instead then."
Dongfang Bubai sighed and said, "Chief Ren, I'll never forget all that you've done for me. I was just a minor assistant under the Elder of the Wind and Thunder Hall. You were the one who went against convention and promoted me every year. You even presented me with our sect's most prized possession, the 'Sunflower Manual', and decreed that I would succeed you in the future as Chief of the Sun Moon Sect. I will always be grateful for the charity you have shown me."
Linghu Chong looked down at Tong Baixiong's corpse and thought, "Before you were constantly praising all the good things that Elder Tong had done for you, then you suddenly struck out and killed him. And now you're bringing up all the things that Chief Ren has done for you. But I doubt he'll fall for that same trick."
But Dongfang Bubai's movements were just fast beyond belief, like a flash of lightning, a clap of thunder, there was no way to tell when he was going to strike, such speed was definitely frightening.
Linghu Chong lifted his sword and pointed it straight towards Dongfang Bubai's chest. As soon as any of his four limbs moved, he could easily stab forward. Only by taking the initiative could he hope to defeat this opponent. If he let Dongfang Bubai strike first, he would definitely end up dead. Ren Woxing, Xiang Wentian, Shangguan Yun, and Yingying were all focused intently on Dongfang Bubai, not even daring to blink an eye, because they knew that his attack could come at any time.
Dongfang Bubai continued, "At that time, I wanted only to become the Chief of the Sun Moon Sect, to reign for a thousand autumns, and ten thousand epochs, to unite the entire world. So I plotted arduously and fervently to usurp your position, but first I had to cut off your wings. Brother Xiang, it appeared that this plan of mine couldn't escape your attentive eyes. In the Sun Moon Sect, besides Chief Ren and I, I'd have to say that you are also quite a talent."
Xiang Wentian's hands were clenched tightly as he focused hard, he didn't dare to break his concentration with a reply. Dongfang Bubai let out a sigh and continued, "When I first ascended to the position of Chief of the Sun Moon Sect, it was definitely glorious. I was showered with chants and praises of 'Talented in the academics, gifted in the martial arts. For the prosperity of our divine sect.' What undignified rubbish they were all spewing. It was only after I started to practice the 'Sunflower Manual' did I realize what was truly important in this life. After that I started to diligently train my internal energy. Several years later, I finally understood the beauty of life, the myriad of all things."
As all of them listened to his high shrill voice speaking, their hands began to sweat. His words were definitely logical and coherent, extremely clear and to the point. But his strange androgynous, neither male nor female appearance made them all shiver and cringe the more they looked at him. Dongfang Bubai's eyes slowly shifted towards Yingying. Dongfang Bubai asked, "Young lady Ren, how have I been to you these past few years?"
"You've been very good to me," Yingying answered.
Dongfang Bubai let out a sigh and said softly, "I never say it but I've always envied you greatly. Being born a woman is definitely a hundred times better than being born as a rotten man. In addition, you're attractive and beautiful beyond compare, young and lively. If only I had the chance to switch places with you, forget about the Leadership of the Sun Moon Sect, I wouldn't even want the Emperor's throne."
Linghu Chong laughed and said, "If you were to switch places with Miss Ren, then that means that I'd have to marry an old twisted monster, I don't think that would be very easy to do!"
When Ren Woxing and the others heard those words escaped his mouth, they were quite shocked. Dongfang Bubai's eyes glared at Linghu Chong, his eyebrows flared up as his face turned green. "Who are you? How dare you talk to me like that. You've certainly got some guts." His tone of voice has sharp, he was definitely annoyed beyond repair.
Although Linghu Chong was aware of the precarious situation that he was in, he couldn't help but laughed and uttered, "Well, does it really matter whether I'm a handsome young lad, or a beautiful young maiden? What I resent the most are those shameless old men who dress up like women."
Dongfang Bubai screeched back angrily, "I'm asking you, just who exactly are you?"
"My name is Linghu Chong!"
Dongfang Bubai's anger gradually subsided and a smile broke on his face as he said, "Ah! So you are Linghu Chong. I've wanted to meet you for some time, I've heard that Miss Ren is totally enamoured by you, to the point where she would even be willing to cut off her own head for you. I had the impression that you must be a handsome, charming, and talented young gentleman. But the more I look at you, you seem quite ordinary and plain. Compared with my Brother Lian, I'd have to say that you're off by a lot."
Linghu Chong laughed and replied, "There really is nothing much good about me, only that I am true to my own feelings. Although that Yang buddy of yours is quite handsome, it's a pity and quite disturbing that he likes withered old weeds, coming here to ..."
Dongfang Bubai stammered, "You ... you idiot ... what are you babbling about?" His entire face blushed red. Suddenly, a pink blur of a figure flashed across the room, a needle flew directly towards Linghu Chong. Linghu Chong had intended on angering him by saying those words, but as he saw Dongfang Bubai's sleeves swayed, he raised his sword and stabbed towards Dongfang
Bubai's throat. That one sword stab was incredibly fast, if Dongfang Bubai didn't withdraw, that blade would have pierced through his throat. But at that same moment, Linghu Chong suddenly felt a slight pain on his left cheek, he swung towards his left in defence.
Dongfang Bubai's speed was simply unimaginable. In that flash of an instant, he managed to prick Linghu Chong's face, and then contracted his arm to block Linghu Chong's sword strike with his needle right afterwards. Luckily that strike from Linghu Chong was incredibly swift as well, it forced his opponent to draw up a defence, coupled with the fact that Dongfang Bubai was quite riled up and angry, the needle just slightly missed its mark -- the Renzhong acupoint on Linghu Chong's face. The needle in Dongfang Bubai's hand was no longer than an inch, light enough to be blown away by the wind, light enough to float on water, yet he was able to parry Linghu Chong's sword head-on with it. Dongfang Bubai's martial arts level was definitely beyond comprehension. Linghu Chong was startled immensely, he knew that today he had run into a foe of unimaginable power. He knew that if he gave his opponent the leisure of the initiative, his life would be in grave danger. So instead, he unleashed four quick stabs at Dongfang Bubai, all aimed at vital spots.
Dongfang Bubai cried out in surprise and remarked, "Excellent swordsmanship!" He parried to the left, to the right, above and below, and knocked away all four of Linghu Chong's attacks. Linghu Chong stared intently at Dongfang Bubai's movements. That tiny sewing needle blocked four of his strikes yet showed not a single sign of wear or flaw. He didn't dare let Dongfang Bubai counterattack so with a shout, he hacked straight at Dongfang Bubai's head. Dongfang Bubai held the needle in his right hand between his thumb and index fingers, and simply lifted it upwards, stopping Linghu Chong's sword dead in its path, impeding it from striking downwards entirely.
Linghu Chong's arm felt numb, but he saw a pink blur flashed by and a figure dashed towards him from his left. It was already too late to block and too late to avoid it, in the spur of the moment, his sword rose and flashed towards Dongfang Bubai's left eye as well, it was a move that would result in injuries for both sides. Stabbing towards an opponent's eyes was a very underhanded move, a move that experts never used. But the 'Dugu Nine Swords' that Linghu Chong had mastered was formless to begin with, he was also quite a carefree person, and never really thought of himself as a master, also in the midst of such danger he had no time to care about rules and etiquette. But he suddenly felt another small sharp pain near his left brow, as Dongfang Bubai leapt away and avoided his sword stab. Linghu Chong realized that he had been pricked again by that needle in Dongfang Bubai's hands. But because Dongfang Bubai had to avoid Linghu Chong's sword, his accuracy was a little off again and missed his target, else Linghu Chong's one eye would have been instantly blinded. In a fright, Linghu Chong's sword lashed out like a violent storm, wildly stabbing and slashing in every which way, making it extremely difficult for the opponent to have time to counter with a single move. Dongfang Bubai parried to the left and blocked to the right, yet still had time to leisurely praise, "Excellent swordsmanship, excellent swordsmanship!"
Ren Woxing and Xiang Wentian both saw that the situation was starting to get out of control, one brandished his sword, the other his whip, and both attacked Dongfang Bubai at the same time. The combined force of these three masters of the martial-realm was certainly devastatingly powerful. But Dongfang Bubai, with a handful of needles in each hand, unleashed a flurry of pricks and pokes at the three of them. His movements were as quick as lightning and he showed no signs whatsoever of weakness. Shangguan Yun took up his blade as well and joined in the flurry of attacks, making the battle a four-against-one. After a brief moment in the confusion of battle, Shangguan Yun cried out as his blade hit the floor with a clang, with a flip he landed on the ground, writhing in pain over his left eye which had just been blinded by Dongfang Bubai. Linghu Chong noticed that Ren Woxing and Xiang Wentian were attacking Dongfang Bubai all out, and that Dongfang Bubai showed no intentions of attacking him, so his sword sprung into action, unleashing stab after stab at Dongfang Bubai. But Dongfang Bubai's body was like a ghost, whirling in and out of sight, drifting about like formless smoke. The tip of Linghu Chong's sword was always several inches off its mark.
Suddenly, Xiang Wentian cried out with an 'AH', followed by Linghu Chong who gasped with an 'HEY', as the two of them had been struck by needles. Although the power of Ren Woxing's 'Art of Essence Absorbing' was powerful and deep, Dongfang Bubai's movements were fast to the extreme, he was nearly impossible to catch. Secondly, his weapon was an embroidery needle, he had no way of absorbing his internal energy through it. After several more exchanges, Ren Woxing cried out with an 'AH' as well, his chest and throat both having been pricked. Fortunately, Linghu Chong was unleashing an extremely fast attack at that time, forcing Dongfang Bubai to fend for his own safety, one of the needles missed its mark, while the other one did not penetrate very deep at all, both attacks were unable to injure the opponent.
The four of them had Dongfang Bubai surrounded and were attacking him all at once, and yet they hadn't even touched him yet, while all of them had already been pierced by his needles. Yingying, who was watching on the side, became increasingly worried, she thought, "I wonder if those needles are coated in poison, if they are then we'd be in deep trouble!"
Dongfang Bubai's movements became faster and faster, his body spun around in a pink blur all over the room. Ren Woxing, Xiang Wentian, and Linghu Chong were all panting and shouting in frustration and anger. All three of their weapons were infused with their internal energy, winds of force rocked through the room. Yet not even a peep escaped from Dongfang Bubai.
Yingying thought to herself, "If I throw myself into the battle, I'd only hinder their efforts and get in the way, what good would that bring? It appears that Dongfang Bubai still has the upper hand even though it's a three-on-one." From the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of Yang Lianting sitting on top of the bed, focused intently on the battle, his face full of concern. An idea crossed Yingying's mind, as she crept towards the bed. Suddenly the dagger in her left hand rose, and stabbed into Yang Lianting's right shoulder. Yang Lianting was caught by surprise and could only cry out in pain. Yingying then drew her sword and stabbed it into his thigh.
Yang Lianting realized what she was trying to do, she wanted him to cry out in pain to disrupt Dongfang Bubai's concentration. So he tried his hardest to endure the pain and held it in, not another sound escaped his mouth. Yingying became enraged and shouted, "Are you going to cry out or not? I'll cut off your fingers one by one!" Her sword rose and sliced off one of the fingers on his right hand. Yang Lianting was indeed resilient, although the pain was unbearable, he managed to keep his mouth shut. But the first cry that Yang Lianting gave out before had already reached Dongfang Bubai's ears. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Yingying beside the bed, slowly torturing Yang Lianting with her sword. With the shout "Little witch!", a pink cloud of a figure darted towards the bed at Yingying. She withdrew at the very last second to avoid the incoming attack, but it wasn't clear if Dongfang Bubai's needles had struck their mark. Linghu Chong and Ren Woxing saw the opportunity as both slashed their swords across Dongfang Bubai's back and Xiang Wentian snapped his whip violently towards Yang Lianting's head. Dongfang Bubai disregarded his own safety, and stabbed his needle backwards into Xiang Wentian's chest.
Xiang Wentian felt his entire body go numb, as his whip fell to the floor. Right at that time, Linghu Chong and Ren Woxing both plunged their swords through the back of Dongfang Bubai. Dongfang Bubai's entire body shook, and then collapsed on top of Yang Lianting . Ren Woxing was overjoyed as he pulled his sword out from Dongfang Bubai's back and pointed the tip at the back of his neck and said, "Dongfang Bubai, finally ... finally you've fallen by my hand!" In the rush of heated combat, he hadn't yet caught his breath. Yingying was too shaken up by the fight, her two legs became weak, as she wavered back and forth and then fainted to the floor. Linghu Chong rushed to her
side and caught her just as she fell, he saw a tiny gash of blood on her left cheek.
Yingying said, "You've sustained quite a number of injuries too." She extended her sleeve and wiped across Linghu Chong's face, her sleeve became stained with dots and streaks of red blood.
Linghu Chong turned to Xiang Wentian and asked, "Are your injuries serious?"
Xiang Wentian forced a laugh and said, "I won't die that easily!"
Blood gushed forth from the two fatal wounds on Dongfang Bubai's back. He cried painfully, "Brother Lian, Brother Lian, how cruel of these villains to torture you like this!"
Yang Lianting replied angrily, "You've always claimed that your martial arts was invincible, how come you can't even take care of these bastards?"
Dongfang Bubai replied, "I ... I already ..."
"You what?"
"I've already tried my best, their ... their martial arts are quite strong as well." His body suddenly trembled as he rolled to the floor. Ren Woxing was afraid that he would get up again so he stabbed his sword into Dongfang Bubai's left thigh.
Dongfang Bubai laughed feebly and said, "Chief Ren, you've finally won, I've lost."
Ren Woxing let out a hearty laugh and said, "You little sneak, do you think you can change what has transpired?"
Dongfang Bubai shook his head and said, "I'm not trying to change anything. Since I've been defeated here today, I know that my life is over." His voice had been extremely high and sharp, but now it had sunk to a lower tone as he continued, "But if we had fought one-on-one, there is no way that you would have defeated me."
Ren Woxing hesitated for a second, and then replied, "You're right, your martial arts is definitely at a higher level than mine, that I truly admire."
Dongfang Bubai went on, "Linghu Chong, your swordsmanship is incredible, but if we fought one-on-one, you wouldn't be my match either."
Linghu Chong acknowledged, "That is true, in fact the four of us combined wouldn't be able to overcome you. It was only because of your attachment to that person surnamed Yang, that we were able to break your concentration and injure you. Your martial arts are at an unimaginable level, there is no one worthy of the title, 'Number One Fighter under the Heavens' other than you. In that sense, I truly have the utmost respect for you."
