Return of Condor Heroes (29 page)

Yang Guo was startled, and felt that her words were cold and emotionless, but when he thought about it her words made sense; then he was struck with grief once more and burst out crying again.

Xiao Longnu looked at him coldly, her expression remained the same, after another while she said, “We are going to bury her, follow me.”

She picked up the body and exited the room. Yang Guo wiped away his tears with his sleeve and followed her. The tomb’s passageways were pitch black, he opened his eyes wide but could only see the ghostly white image of Xiao Longnu, he could only follow closely, he didn’t dare to lose track of her.

She twisted east and winded west, after half an hour, she pushed open a heavy stone door and from her pockets she took a match and lit two oil lamps on a stone table. Yang Guo took a look around and shivered, he saw a large empty room with five stone coffins. He took a closer look and saw that two of them were tightly closed, the other three were half open, and he didn’t know if there were corpses inside.

Xiao Longnu pointed to the first coffin on the right and said, “Ancestor Grandma lies there.” She pointed to the second one and said, “Master lies there.”

Yang Guo saw her pointing to a third coffin, his heart jumped, he didn’t know who she was going to say lies in that one. The lid was not closed; if there was a corpse inside wouldn’t it be extremely putrid? He heard her say, “Grandma Sun will lie in that one.”

Yang Guo knew it was an empty coffin, and let out his breath. He saw the other two coffins and became curious, he asked, “What about those two coffins?”

Xiao Longnu said, “One is for my apprentice sister Li Mochou, the other is for me.”

Yang Guo froze and said, “Li Mochou! Miss Li is going to return?”

Xiao Longnu replied, “My teacher planned it all, she will return. There is one coffin short because my master didn’t plan for you.”

Yang Guo was shocked and quickly said, “I don’t want one...I don’t want one!”

Xiao Longnu said, “I promised Grandma Sun that I was going to look after you forever. Since I won’t leave, then that means you won’t either.”

Yang Guo heard her talk about his life and death; he lost any sense of concern and said, “Even if you don’t let me go, when you die, I’ll be able to leave.”

Xiao Longnu said, “I promised to look after you forever, I won’t die before you.”

Yang Guo said, “Why not? You are older than me!”

Xiao Longnu calmly said, “Before I die, I will kill you.”

Yang Guo’s heart jumped into his throat, and thought, “Maybe not. People have got legs, won’t I run away?”

Xiao Longnu went up to the third coffin and opened the lid, she then picked up Grandma Sun and placed her inside. Yang Guo didn’t want to abandon her just yet and said, “Let me take another look at Grandma.” Xiao Longnu knew they had just known each other for a over a day yet they managed to become so closely bonded, she agreed to his request. She frowned and picked up the corpse of Grandma Sun unmoved. Yang Guo looked at Grandma Sun under the dim light, and wanted to cry again. Xiao Longnu looked at him, then placed Grandma Sun’s body into the coffin; she pulled the lid over, a click sound, and the lid locked into place tightly sealing the coffin.

Xiao Longnu was afraid that Yang Guo would cry again and said, “Let’s leave!” She waved her left sleeve, the two oil lamps in the room were put out, and the room was plunged into darkness. Yang Guo was afraid that she would trap him in there and quickly ran out.

In the tomb, there is no difference between night and day. The two of them had a long day and were tired. Xiao Longnu ordered Yang Guo to sleep in Grandma Sun’s room. Yang Guo had wandered around Jianghu by himself since he was very young; he would normally sleep rough or in old temples, and was brave. But now, sleeping by himself in this room, he began to think about the dead people in the coffins and was frightened out of his wits. Xiao Longnu said a few words but he did not reply.

Xiao Longnu said, “Did you not hear me?”

Yang Guo said, “I’m scared”

Xia Long Nu asked, “Scared of what?”

Yang Guo replied, “I don’t know. I’m afraid to sleep by myself.”

Xia Long Nu frowned and said, “You can sleep with me in my room.” She then led him to her room. She was used to the darkness and would not usually light a candle, but because of Yang Guo she lit a wax candle. Yang Guo saw that she was beautiful, the clothes she wore were as white as snow, with not a speck of dust, and he thought that her room must be very elegant and refined. When he entered however, he was disappointed; he saw that her room was empty and was like the room with the coffins. There was a blue green stone bed with a cover of long grass, a white cloth for use as a blanket, and apart from these objects there were nothing else in the room.

Yang Guo thought, “Where am I going to sleep? I’m afraid that she wants me to sleep on the floor.” Then Xiao Longnu said, “Sleep on my bed!”

Yang Guo said, “That’s not right. I’ll sleep on the floor.”

Xiao Longnu’s face changed and said, “If you want to stay here then you have got to do as I say. If you want to fight with the Taoists of Quanzhen, it’s up to you. If you argue with me, I’ll immediately punish you with death.”

Yang Guo said, “If you say you won’t use that terrible punishment, then I’ll listen to you.”

Xiao Longnu said, “You dare to talk back?”

Yang Guo saw that she was young and beautiful, but she was strict and domineering, he stuck out his tongue and didn’t say a word.

Xiao Longnu saw and said, “Why are you sticking out your tongue? You refuse to obey is that it?”

Yang Guo didn’t say anything, he took off his shoes and climbed onto the bed and went to sleep. He slept on the bed a while and then awoke as he felt his bones chilled, he was alarmed and quickly jumped off the bed. Xiao Longnu saw that he was frightened out of his wits and sympathized with him, but there was a slight smile on her face as she said, “What is it?”

Yang Guo saw that smile on her face, he smiled and said, “There’s something strange with that bed; you wanted to make a fool out of me.”

Xiao Longnu became serious again and said, “Who’s making a fool out of you? The bed is like that, quickly, go to sleep.” As she said this she took out a broom from behind the door and said, “If you get off the bed again, you will get ten whacks with this broom.”

Yang Guo saw that she was serious, and could only climb onto the bed again, but this time he was prepared and wasn’t shocked. It was as if there was a block of ice underneath the layer of long grass; the longer he slept the colder he became, his body shivered and his teeth chattered noisily. After a while, the coldness went into his bones, he couldn’t endure anymore and got off the bed again.

He turned around and saw Xiao Longnu looking at him; her face seemed to smile but didn’t smile. She had a punishment in mind for him, he secretly cursed himself in his heart and he clenched his teeth tightly and used all his strength to resist the coldness of the bed. He saw Xiao Longnu take out a rope, and tie one end to a hook on the eastern side of the room, and tied the other end to a hook on the western side of the room. The rope was off the floor at a height similar to that of a person. She lightly jumped up and lay along the rope, using it as a bed. She waved her left palm and the wind of the palm blew out the candle.

Yang Guo was in awe and said, “Gu Gu, could you teach me this skill tomorrow?”

Xiao Longnu said, “This skill is nothing. Practice hard, I have many great skills to teach you.”

When Yang Guo heard that Xiao Longnu was going to sincerely teach him martial arts, he then immediately wiped away his initial feelings about her. He was grateful and tears were forming in his eyes, and said, “Gu Gu, you treat me very well, before I hated you.”

Xiao Longnu said, “I forced you out of the tomb, of course you would hate me, what is so strange about that?”

Yang Guo said, “I thought you were going to be like my previous master, teaching me useless kung fu.”

Xiao Longnu heard him shiver as he talked and said, “Are you cold?”

Yang Guo said, “Yes, there’s something strange underneath this bed, why is it so cold?”

Xiao Longnu said, “Do you like it or don’t you?”

Yang Guo said, “I…I don’t.”

Xiao Longnu chuckled and said, “You don’t like it, yet there are many skilled fighters on this earth who wish they could have the chance to sleep on this bed.”

Yang Guo asked, “You aren’t punishing me?”

Xiao Longnu said, “I treat you well, and you think I’m punishing you, you really don’t know what’s good for you.”

From her tone, it seemed as she was saying that sleeping on this bed was a blessing, so he softly asked, “Gu Gu, what is so good about this cold bed, can you explain it to me?”

Xiao Longnu said, “If you sleep on this bed for the rest of your life, you’ll find out the benefits for yourself. Close your eyes, don’t speak anymore.”

In the darkness he heard her clothes rustle lightly, it seemed like she was turning over; she was sleeping on a rope in midair, yet was able to turn over when she wanted to. It was uncanny.

Her last two sentences were said with a strict tone, Yang Guo didn’t dare to question any further. He closed his eyes to sleep, but the coldness from below advanced on him; then he thought about Grandma Sun and he was depressed again, how could he sleep? After a while he quietly called out, “Gu Gu, I can’t stand it.” He heard Xiao Longnu’s slow breathing; she was asleep. He quietly called out twice, but there was no reply and he thought, “If I get off the bed and sleep on the floor, she wouldn’t know.” He then quietly sneaked down from the bed, and stood on the floor, not daring to breathe out.

As soon as his feet touched the floor, a ‘se’ sound was made as Xiao Longnu leapt down from the rope, and bent his left arm behind his back, and forced him onto the floor. Yang Guo shouted in shock. Xiao Longnu grabbed the broom, and hit his backside with force. Yang Guo knew there was no use in pleading so he clenched his teeth and took the blows. The first five were very painful, but by the sixth hit Xiao Longnu held back a little, and by the last two hits she was afraid that he won’t be able to endure it anymore and they were even lighter. After the ten blows, she put Yang Guo on the bed and said, “If you get off the bed again, I’ll hit you again.”

Yang Guo lay on the bed, and didn’t make a noise; he heard her place the broom in the corner and then leaped back onto the rope. Xiao Longnu thought that he would definitely cry, but didn’t think that he wouldn’t make a sound. She was surprised and asked, “Why aren’t you making any noise?”

Yang Guo said, “What is there to cry about, you said you were going to beat me, you beat me, even if I begged it wouldn’t be of any use.”

Xiao Longnu said, “Humph, you are cursing me secretly in your heart.”

Yang Guo said, “I am not cursing you secretly in my heart, you are much better than my previous master.”

Xiao Longnu asked, “Why?”

Yang Guo said, “Although you hit me, you cared for my well being. The hits became lighter, you were afraid that I would be in pain.”

Xiao Longnu blushed slightly when she heard those words, it was lucky that it was dark and Yang Guo didn’t see her, she scolded, “Humph, who cares for you, the next time you are disobedient I’ll beat you even harder.”

Yang Guo heard her gentle tone and smiled and said, “If you beat me harder, I’ll like it even more.”

Xiao Longnu spat out, “Little rascal, I’m afraid you won’t be able to sleep each day without a beating.”

Yang Guo said, “It depends on who beats me. If it was someone who cared about me, then I won’t be angry, I’ll be pleased instead. If it were someone who hates me, insults me one word, when I grow up, I’ll take my revenge on them.”

Xiao Longnu said, “Listen to your words; who’s going to hate you and who’s going to love you.”

Yang Guo said, “This is all clear in my mind. There is no need to mention those who hate me; there are countless people. The people who love me are my deceased mother, Uncle Guo, my Godfather, Grandma Sun and you.”

Xiao Longnu chuckled and said, “Humph, I won’t love you. Grandma Sun told me to take care of you; I will take care of you. There is no point in hoping that I will treat you well.”

Yang Guo was feeling cold already, but when he heard those words it was like someone had poured a bucket of cold water over him. He asked, “What’s wrong with me? Why do you hate me?”

Xiao Longnu said, “Whether you are feeling good or bad, what is that to do with me? And I don’t hate you. I have lived in this tomb all my life, I don’t love anything, and I don’t hate anything.”

Yang Guo said, “Is there anything fun around here? Gu Gu, have you ever been outside?”

Xiao Longnu said, “I have never left Mount Zhongnan, there’s just trees and mountains, the sun and moon outside, what is so good about that?”

Yang Guo clapped his hand and said, “Ah, then you haven’t lived properly. There are many colorful and interesting objects in the city, you should see them.” Then he described all the things he had seen in his life. He was a good speaker, he added his own colorful descriptions and the objects he was describing sounded even more interesting and strange, he described hundreds of things. It was fortunate that Xiao Longnu had lived in the tomb for the past eighteen years; she didn’t question his descriptions and believed them all, after he had finished, and she gave out a sigh.

Yang Guo said, “Gu Gu, I’ll take you out to play, how about that?”

Xiao Longnu said, “Don’t say such things! Ancestor Grandma passed down a rule; those who have lived in the Tomb of the Living Dead must not leave Mount Zhongnan one step.”

Yang Guo was shocked, and thought, “Peach Blossom Island is an island in the middle of the sea, I went there and was able to leave, how can this large tomb keep me here?” and he asked, “Miss Li Mochou is your apprentice sister, she lived in the Tomb of the Living Dead, how did she leave Mount Zhongnan?

Xiao Longnu said, “She didn’t obey my Master, it was my Master who sent her out of the tomb.”

Yang Guo was pleased and thought, “If there is such a rule, when I want to leave all I’ve got to do is disobey you and you will send me out of the tomb.” He thought how he mustn’t let this slip otherwise his plan wouldn’t work.