Return of Condor Heroes (201 page)

Having heard this, Yang Guo’s heart sank, his hands turning ice-cold.

Then Yideng continued, “The young madam’s poison condition is very severe. If I wasn’t injured, I could use my “One Yang Finger” to temporarily stop the poisons so we could go search for the antidote. But today… luckily your energy foundation is strong. I have this medicine that can save you for seven days. Then let us go to the Passionless Valley together to look for my disciple.”

Yang Guo jumped up and cried out. “Good! This Indian monk is known for his knowledge of poisons. He must have a way to save my wife.”

Yideng said, “If my disciple can find a cure that is natural. In the world some children die shortly after birth. Young lady here has had a chance to get married, that is fortunate.”

Having said this far, he recalled that years ago Zhou Botong and Concubine Liu had a child but because of his own jealously and hatred, he was not willing to save him. And that child eventually died. And it was actually Ci’en who’d injured him.

Yang Guo looked at Yideng with wide, shocked eyes. He thought to himself, “We still don’t know if Long’er can be cured. Yet, you haven’t said a word of comfort.”

Xiao Longnu made a faint smile and said, “What Reverend said is true.”

She looked out at the heavy snow and weakly said, “These snowflakes are so white and so beautiful. But after the sun comes out, each and every one of them will vanish, without a trace. Next winter there will be a lot of snowflakes again, but they will never be like this year’s snow.”

Yideng nodded and turned his head to look at Ci’en. He asked, “Do you understand?”

Ci’en nodded and thought -- when the sun came out, the snow of would disappear, and it snowed in winter. What was so complicated about these simple facts?

Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu had always been close. They understood even the vaguest thought in the other person’s mind. But now that she was conversing with Yideng, he was left aside. It was as if she and Yideng shared the same thoughts, and he himself was an outsider. This had never happened since he fell in love with her, and he was now perplexed.

Yideng took out an egg from his chest and gave it to Xiao Longnu. He said, “Do you know which came first, the chicken or the egg?”

This was an age-old conundrum which nobody could ever solve. Yang Guo thought to himself, “At a time of life and death like this, why are you asking such a question?”

Xiao Longnu accepted the egg. It was actually a porcelain egg but its color looked as if it wasn’t. She paused a little and then clearly understood. She answered, “The egg hatches a chicken. The chicken lays an egg. Where there is life, there must be death.”

She gently crushed the egg shell, and a pill tumbled out. It was a golden and perfectly round ball like an egg yolk. Yideng said, “Eat it, quickly.”

Knowing that this medicine was precious, Xiao Longnu put it in her mouth, chewed, and swallowed.

Early next morning, it was still snowing. Yang Guo thought that the Passionless Valley was quite a distance away. Although Reverend Yideng’s pill gave them seven extra days, they had to go as fast as they possibly could, with not even a bit of delay. He asked Yideng, “Reverend, how’s your injury?”

Yideng’s injury was really heavy but he wanted to save his apprentice brother, Zhu Ziliu and Xiao Longnu and knew that all were urgent matters. His gown sleeves flared out as he said, “It’s not a problem.”

He drew in air and sprang forward, covering over ten feet in one leap. The three people followed.

After taking the pill, Xiao Longnu felt a surge of warmth in her abdomen and her strength returning. With her lightness skills, she caught up with Reverend Yideng in no time. Ci’en was startled. This timid young lady actually had quite an awesome kungfu. Suddenly his competitive spirit rose. His feet became swift as he gave chase. One person was a Gu Mu disciple of with unparalleled lightness skills. The other was a renowned master nicknamed ‘Iron Palms Floating on Water.’ In a flash the two people had covered twenty, thirty feet, quickly becoming two gray spots on the snow. Yang Guo was afraid that Ci’en would suddenly become evil and hurt Xiao Longnu so he went after them to protect her. His lightness skills were inferior to those of the two people but his inner energy was solid, and his feet were strong. At the beginning, he was a great distance away from them. Less than half an hour later, the two people’s shadows became clearer.

Suddenly he heard Reverend Yideng laughing from behind him. Yideng said, “Young gentleman’s inner energy is so profound. This really is rare. May I ask who your master is?”

Yang Guo slowed down to move side by side with him. He replied, “My wife taught me my martial skills.”

Yideng asked in wonder, “Is she as good as you?”

Yang Guo said, “For these past few months, my inner energy has somehow kept increasing. I myself don’t understand why.”

Yideng asked, “Is it possible that you’ve taken some kind of medicine that boosts inner energy? Perhaps shaped ginsengs or millennium mushrooms?”

Yang Guo shook his head and said, “I had dozens of snake gallbladders. Since then, my strength has skyrocketed. Do you think they are related?”

Yideng said, “Snake gallbladders? Snake gallbladders can cure rheumatism. They have nothing to do with inner strength.”

Yang Guo said, “These gallbladders were from very strange poisonous snakes. Their scales glittered like gold, and their heads were crested. The shape was really weird.”

Yideng paused for a bit and suddenly said, “Ah, they are the ‘pu-si-qu’ snakes, mentioned in a Buddhist record. They said these snakes lived underground, moved like a wind, and were extremely difficult to catch.”

Yang Guo said, “A big eagle caught them for me.”

“That really is the strangest thing in the world.” Yideng exclaimed.

While the two people talked, their feet didn’t slow down at all. After a while, they were nearing Xiao Longnu and Ci’en. Yideng and Yang Guo exchanged a smile. Even though their lightness skills were inferior to those of Xiao Longnu and Ci’en, speed declined with increasing distance, and it was then up to their inner energy. By this time, because her inner energy was inferior, Xiao Longnu had already dropped some ten feet behind Ci’en. And as soon as they rounded the mountain, Yang Guo pointed ahead and said, “Eh, how come there are three people?”

It looked like someone was closely trailing Xiao Longnu. Yang Guo took a look and sensed that this person’s lightness skills were not less than those of Xiao Longnu and Ci’en. On his back he was carrying something that looked like a trunk yet his feet were still swift, and he was always twenty or thirty feet behind Xiao Longnu. Yideng was also puzzled. Surprisingly there was another skilled master on this wild mountain. Last night he ran into this pair of young and elegant couple. Today he saw this person, obviously an old man.

Not long after being overtaken by Ci’en, the distance between Ci’en and Xiao Longnu widened. She heard the sounds of footsteps from behind and thought it was Yang Guo. She said, “Guo’er, that monk’s lightness skills are incredible. I can’t beat him. You go try.”

The person laughed and said, “Come sit on this trunk and gather your strength. You don’t have to fear that old monk.”

Hearing the words, Xiao Longnu was puzzled. She turned her head back and saw a man with a white beard and hair. It was the Old Urchin Zhou Botong.

With a laugh, he pointed at the trunk he’d been carrying on his back and said, “Come…come…come!”

In this trunk was the stuff that had been in the Sacred Scripture Chamber of the Chongyang Palace and looked like it was filled with the Quanzhen sect’s Taoist scrolls. Zhou Botong had brought it with him on his back. Xiao Longnu faintly smiled but said nothing. Zhou Botong suddenly dashed forward. He grabbed her with one arm and put her on the trunk. His body movements were so fast and his hand technique was so strange that Xiao Longnu couldn’t even resist. While carrying the wooden trunk, he couldn’t help thinking, “The Quanzhen sect is known throughout the world as an orthodox martial school. The Taoists at the Chongyang Palace couldn’t defeat me. It must be because they hadn’t learned the essence of their sect’s martial skills.”

By now Yang Guo and Yideng had recognized Zhou Botong. Ci’en was concentrating on rushing forwards for fear that Xiao Longnu would catch up with him, and so he was the only person who didn’t know that there was another person behind him.

Zhou Botong followed him in big strides and said, “Another half an hour, he’ll slow down.”

With a smiled Xiao Longnu asked, “How do you know?”

Zhou Botong said, “I’ve fought with him, pursuing him from Zhongyuan [China] to the Western region and from the Western region back to Zhongyuan. After running around for tens of thousands of li, how could I not know?”

Sitting on the trunk, Xiao Longnu was both secure and comfortable, just like riding a horse. She softly asked, “Old Urchin, why are you helping me?”

Zhou Botong replied, “You are quite likeable, not like that crafty and strange Huang Rong. I stole your bee honey, and you are not mad.”

They ran for another half an hour. And just like Zhou Botong had predicted, Ci’en started to slow down. Zhou Botong said, “You are off!”

He shrugged his shoulders, sending Xiao Longnu out over ten feet. Energy was sent to her feet, and she ran forwards. In just a moment she caught up with Ci’en and giggled. Startled, Ci’en sped up. But the two people’s lightness skills were about the same level. One person had just had a long rest while the other had been running non-stop. The more they ran the further the distance between them. Ci’en had no way to catch up.

In his whole life, Ci’en had two of martial skills that no one in the world could compare but, in just one day and one night, his ‘Iron Palms’ was defeated by Yang Guo and his lightness skills were outmatched by Xiao Longnu’s. He couldn’t help becoming depressed. Sensing that his legs were about to give out, he thought to himself in alarm, “I can’t even defeat a young girl, can it be that my death is near?”

Last night he had his evil spell. After injuring his master, he had become restless. Just now he’d used all his strength in a lightness kungfu competition with Xiao Longnu and still lost. Even though his mind was troubled, he felt like all things in the world no longer made sense.

Observing them from behind, Yang Guo clearly understood. Seeing that Zhou Botong had secretly helped Xiao Longnu defeating Ci’en, his interest was piqued. He sped up to walk side by side with him and laughingly said, “Senior Zhou, many thanks.”

Zhou Botong said, “Haven’t seen this Qiu Qianren for a long time. The older he is, the crazier. How come he’s shaved his head and become a monk?”

Yang Guo said, “He’s now Reverend Yideng’s disciple, don’t you know?”

Having said this, he pointed to the back. Zhou Botong was horrified, crying out, “Emperor Duan is here too?”

He turned his head back and saw Yideng from a distance. He said, “I’ve got to run.”

Then he immediately fled into the woods. Yang Guo didn’t know who ‘Emperor Duan’ was. He only saw the trees and bushes moving. Zhou Botong had disappeared without a trace. Yang Guo thought to himself, “This person is so strange. There aren’t many like him in the world.”

As soon as Zhou Botong ran away, Yideng quickly stepped forward. Seeing that Ci’en looked withered and broken and all his earlier bravado had vanished, Yideng said, “With all your victories, how come you haven’t figured this out?”

Disheartened, Ci’en didn’t say a word.

Yideng continued, “You were blinded by your desires. With your strong martial skills, if not for your lust to win, how could you not know there was another person behind?”

The four of them traveled with haste, and the next five days flew by quickly. On the morning of the sixth day, Yideng’s injury worsened, and he could barely support himself. Yang Guo said, “Reverend, please take a rest for a moment. Let your body recover. The Passionless Valley isn’t very far from here. We, husband and wife, will hurry into the Valley with Reverend Ci’en and we’ll rescue the Divine Monk and Uncle Zhu too.”

Yideng faintly smiled and said, “I can’t put my mind at ease.”

He paused and then continued, “It’s dangerous in the valley. I’d better come along.”

Ci’en said, “I’ll carry you.” Having said that he put Yideng on his back and marched forward in big strides.

They arrived at the valley entrance in the afternoon. Yang Guo turned to Ci’en and said, “Should we let them know we are here so your sister can come out to greet you?”

Ci’en was nervous and had yet to reply. Suddenly he heard the faint sounds of clashing weapons. Ci’en thought about his sister and was afraid that she would be fighting with Wu Santong and the others. No matter who was injured, it would be quite bad. He said, “We must rush to stop them.”

With his lightness kungfu he sped up. He was not fully familiar with the roads to the valley, and Yang Guo pointed in one direction.

The four of them rushed forward only to see seven or eight people in green holding their weapons, defending themselves just outside the woods. They heard the sounds of clashing weapons but couldn’t see who the people in green were actually fighting with.

Seeing that there were more enemies coming, the valley disciples in green gave out a shout and charged forward. But as soon as they got closer and recognized Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu, they halted. The leading disciple walked over and raised his sword to greet them. He said, “Have you already accomplished our chief mother’s task?”

But Yang Guo asked, “Who are the people fighting in the woods?”

That disciple in green did not reply. Instead, he narrowed his eyes, not knowing whether Yang Guo had come with a good or bad intention.

With a faint smile Yang Guo said, “I (little brother) didn’t come here to cause harm. Is Madame Gongsun well? Is Miss Gongsun all right?”

That disciple’s hostility was somewhat resolved. He said, “Bless you. Chief mother and Miss Gongsun are well.” Then he asked, “Who are these two monks?” Did they come with the four women?”

Yang Guo said, “What four women?”