Return of Condor Heroes (81 page)

Huang Rong saw that he really was using the “Dog Beating Stick Technique”, though the stances weren’t smooth and not fully utilized. When he used it, the techniques he used looked proper and like the real thing, she knew that his weapon wasn’t convenient for him so she went into the middle of the hall and stuck the stick in between the two and said, “Guo’er, to beat dogs you need the Dog Beating Stick. You can borrow Chief Lu’s Dog Beating Stick. After you’ve finished beating the evil dog, return the stick.”

The Dog Beating Stick is the property of the Beggar Clan’s Chief; it had to be clear that it was being borrowed.

Yang Guo was delighted and received the stick. Huang Rong whispered into his ear, “Force him to give up the antidote.” As soon as she said this she returned to her place.

Yang Guo had not paid any attention to Zhu Ziliu falling victim to a concealed weapon; he didn’t know what antidote she was talking about and was slightly startled; Huo Dou’s palm chopped down. Yang Guo raised the Dog Beating Stick and pointed towards Huo Dou’s belly. The bamboo stick was strong and sturdy, the length and weight was perfect; using the Dog Beating Stick to perform the “Dog Beating Stick Technique” can only result in an increase of power. Huo Dou had sent out a palm that was chopping across his neck when he saw the bamboo stick come out, it was aiming for the ‘Sealed First’ pressure point three inches below his navel. This was an important pressure point to the movement of the veins; this little punk’s ability in recognizing pressure points was so precise that Huo Dou couldn’t help being shocked.

As he had tangled with Yang Guo, he thought that Yang Guo was just a nimble young man who had been advised by a great master; after he saw this stance of piercing towards his pressure point, he began to treat him as a an opponent who could match him. He didn’t dare to take it easy; he returned his palm and used his fan to protect his chest. The onlookers saw that he had changed his stance into defense showing that he was worried about Yang Guo, they were even more surprised.

Yang Guo said, “Wait, this little punk does not fight for no reason, there has to be a wager.”

Huo Dou said, “Fine, if you lose, kowtow to me three times and call me Grandfather three times.”

Yang Guo again used a trick that children from Jiang Nan used to take advantage of others, he pretended he didn’t hear and asked, “Call what?”

Using this trick makes it very easy for the other person to fall into the trap. Huo Duo had grown up in Mongolia and Tibet and had always been surrounded by honest people, how would he understand the craftiness of Jiang Nan kids, so he casually replied, “Call grandfather!”

Yang Guo responded, “En, good Grandson; say it one more time.”

The crowd broke out into laughter again and Huo Dou knew that he had again fallen for a trick; he clenched his teeth, with the fan in his right hand and his left palm, he attacked like a violent storm.

Yang Guo used all his strength to repel him and said, “If you lose, you need to give the antidote to me.”

Huo Dou angrily said, “I’ll lose to you? Stop daydreaming bastard!”

Yang Guo raised the bamboo stick and shouted, “Little bastard is scolding who?”

Huo Dou said, “Little bastard is scolding…” As he got up to this part, he suddenly became aware; at least he managed to rein back the horse from the cliff, the last word ‘you’ was held back.

Yang Guo laughed and said, “Little Prince, I’ve taught you a few things, remember it.” Though his words were said easily, it was becoming more and more difficult for his hands to cope.

Huo Dou is Jinlun Fawang’s proudest disciple, he had received the important aspects of the Tibetan school, and he was able to exchange almost a thousand stances with Reverend Yideng’s strongest disciple. His internal energy was profound; he and Yang Guo should not be mentioned in the same breath.

At first, Yang Guo was able to get an advantage by making him angry; Huo Dou had not fought with his full strength, now he really was fighting. After twenty moves or so, the comparison between he and Yang Guo was clear; Yang Guo was definitely inferior. The crowd saw that he was of a young age yet he managed to last so long against Huo Dou, they all praised him and said, “This child is amazing.” They all asked each other whose tutelage is this young man under.

Huo Dou saw that his opponent was weaker than him and sent out stronger and stronger palms. The “Dog Beating Stick Technique” that Yang Guo was using is ingenious and inspired, Huo Dou’s fan and palm techniques could not match it; but all Hong Qigong taught him was the stances, he had heard the formulae and principles from Huang Rong. He was clever and managed to force himself to combine the two and use it, but it was impossible for him to understand and comprehend everything immediately, so of course the power of the technique cannot be fully utilized. After a while, Yang Guo was dodging and flashing around, but it was difficult for him to attack.

Ever since the first fight started, Guo Fu and the Wu brothers had been watching intently, quietly talking to each other. When Yang Guo came out and started to fight, they were shocked and surprised. The Wu brothers said that he was rash and impudent, he’s just asking for trouble, Guo Fu was on the opposite side, she praised Yang Guo, saying that he was daring and ardent. When the Wu brothers heard this, their hearts ached with an uncomfortable feeling. When the two brothers first saw the closeness between Xiao Longnu and Yang Guo when she first arrived, the two of them glanced at each other and were able to relax. When they heard Yang Guo say that she was his master, though they didn’t know whether this was true or not, their hearts sank. Now, they saw that Yang Guo was forced onto his back foot (as sign that he is losing) by Huo Dou, the two brothers knew that they shouldn’t wish that the enemy would win, but deep in their hearts, they hoped that the more he suffers the better. Because of the trouble in their hearts, the two experienced many different emotions in the blink of eye.

Guo Fu didn’t have any good feelings towards Yang Guo but she didn’t loathe him either; she just treated him as a down on his luck, incapable person. He was insignificant, but when she heard her father wanted to betroth her to him, she was angry. But she still thought that this would never happen so she didn’t take it to mind. Later on, she saw that his martial arts were anything but ordinary, she was just surprised and nothing more; yet when she saw that he was in danger, she couldn’t stop herself from worrying about him.

Yang Guo knew that if this continued, within ten moves he would succumb to his opponent. He had glanced over and saw that although Xiao Longnu was still sitting on the stone base, her back was no longer leaning against the pillar. She was paying close attention, at any moment she would leap out and help him. He had an idea; he suddenly waved the stick and flew across, leaping over Xiao Longnu’s legs.

Huo Dou shouted, “Where are you going?” He followed after him.

Xiao Longnu’s legs raised slightly, the tip of her left foot aimed towards Huo Dou’s ‘Descendant’s Arrangement’ pressure point on his right ankle, the tip of her right foot kicked towards his left foot’s ‘Surging Spring’ pressure point.

At least Huo Duo’s skills were profound and refined, he saw what was happening, there was a nimble change, Xiao Longnu’s legs had risen a little, and the bystanders didn’t think anything of it. He himself knew that Xiao Longnu had used a lethal attack, in the midst of this he used a stance of “The Mandarin Duck’s Looping Kick”; his legs kicked thin air in a loop and avoided the motionless pressure point kick by Xiao Longnu.

When Yang Guo went by Xiao Longnu’s legs, he knew what was going to happen; he didn’t wait for his opponent to fall to the ground and attacked with his Dog Beating Stick.

Huo Dou stretched out his fan and supported it against the stick and used the force to move faraway from Xiao Longnu. He couldn’t stop himself from glancing over at her, thinking, “Indeed there are many able people in the central plains, that boy and girl are still in their teens, how come they are so good?”

With the advantage of an extra stance, Yang Guo kept on attacking with the stick technique, he used three critical stances in a row, and Huo Dou was scrambling about, using all his strength to repel the attack. However, Yang Guo did not have an ingenious fourth attack to continue the chain, he slowed down momentarily and allowed Huo Dou to counterattack, and was on the receiving end again.

The onlookers did not understand the stick technique and it went by them, Huang Rong however kept on calling out “What a pity” in secret, she couldn’t hold in her thoughts and said, “The stick returns across the ground under the clever hand, striking the twin dogs without return.” This was one of the formulae of the “Dog Beating Stick Technique”, though Yang Guo knew the stances and formulae, he didn’t know when to use them; when he heard Huang Rong recite this, he immediately brushed the stick across the ground and attacked forward without returning.

The direction and force of this stick was weird, though he used it, he didn’t know what use it had. How could it be that as soon as the stick attacked forward, it happened just at the same time as the opponent raised his fan? Huo Dou had not finished using this stance but knew something was wrong, he hurriedly jumped up and moved away.

Huang Rong continued, “When the dog leaps over the wall how can it be beaten? Quickly hit its backside and chop its tail.” This stick technique had been passed from generation to generation in the Beggar Clan. Beggars aren’t the most elegant and cultured, the words of course would be vulgar.

The bystanders thought that Huang Rong was ridiculing him by calling him a dog; they didn’t know that she was giving martial arts advice to Yang Guo. Though the “Dog Beating Stick Technique” wasn’t taught to anyone other than the chief; but firstly, Yang Guo had already learned it, and secondly, this match was extremely important, victory was needed. Huang Rong couldn’t care about the clan’s rules anymore, when she saw the two of them advancing and retreating, attacking and defending, she kept on calling out pieces of advice.

Every phrase she called out was ingenious and what was needed, and along with Yang Guo’s intelligence, he was able to unleash the stances power. After he gained the upper hand many times, he didn’t wait for Huang Rong to finish the line before he continued, he just needed the first few words and was immediately able to use right technique. The power of the “Dog Beating Stick Technique” was indeed strong, even with Huo Dou’s level of martial arts, a bamboo stick was able to run circles around him, and he had no chance to attack. Everyone saw that after a few more moves, the skilled Prince of the other nation would lose. The heroes’ surprise and delight rose. The hall was filled with cheers.

Huo Dou quickly unleashed two stances with his fan forcing Yang Guo away a few steps and then called out, “Hold it!”

Yang Guo laughed and said, “What? My Grandson admits defeat?”

Huo Dou’s face was angry and said firmly; “You said you are challenging for the position of Chancellor for your master, why are you using the martial arts of Hong Qigong? If you say you are representing Hong Qigong, we’ve just had two rounds. Are you people trying to cause confusion, deny it or not?”

Huang Rong didn’t think wrongly, these words were difficult to refute, she was about to argue with him when Yang Guo interrupted, “This time you are speaking like a person, indeed this stick technique is not my Master’s, even if I beat you, you won’t take it. If you want to test out my skills, it’s not hard. Just know I used another sect’s kung fu because I was afraid that when I unleash my own sect’s kung fu, you’d lose even more tragically.” When he heard Huo Dou’s words, he looked over towards Xiao Longnu and realized something, “Luckily that Prince woke me up. If I use the “Dog Beating Stick Technique” to beat him, how will I be able to show off Gu Gu’s abilities? How could Gu Gu not be offended if I’ve forgotten her great kindness in teaching me martial arts?” In reality, Xiao Longnu was really innocent and naïve, her heart was filled with love and passion for Yang Guo. As long as she could see him, she was fulfilled; she didn’t care about anything else. If he wins that’s great, if he loses there’s no harm, it doesn’t matter. And when it comes to whether he uses their sect’s kung fu or not, or whether he’d listen to Huang Rong’s advice, she didn’t take any of that to heart.

Huo Dou thought, “If you don’t use the “Dog Beating Stick Technique”, how hard will it be to take your life?” So he chuckled and said, “Fine, I’ll experience your Master’s great stances.”

The most refined techniques that Yang Guo had learned under Xiao Longnu were swordplay, so he faced the crowd and said, “Please can I borrow one of you Senior’s sword.” Within the two thousand or so people in the hall, three hundred of them carried a sword, when they heard Yang Guo’s request, they all agreed and offered their swords.

Before Hao Datong and Sun Bu’Er entered the tutelage of Wang Chongyang, they were patriotic people; after they were nurtured by Wang Chongyang; their desire to repel the barbarian invaders was even stronger.

They were of course angry with Yang Guo, who expelled himself from the Quanzhen sect, but now when they saw that he was helping China to fend off the enemy, they flung their sect’s feud with him to one side.

Sun Bu’Er was the weakest of the Quanzhen Seven Masters, before Wang Chongyang died, he gave her Quanzhen’s sharpest and most precious sword to help compensate for her weak kung fu. She saw that Yang Guo was requesting a sword to fight off the enemy so she dashed forward to the front, her hands holding a glittering, precious sword and said, “Use this sword!”

Yang Guo saw that the sword was like a clear autumn river, he knew that it was a weapon which could cut through gold and jade, if he used it to fight Huo Dou, he would definitely be able to gain some advantage. But as soon as he saw the Taoist gown that Sun Bu’Er was wearing, he immediately thought about the suffering that he had in Quanzhen, and also remembered how Grandma Sun died under the palm of Hao Datong. He rolled his eyes and didn’t take the sword, he instead turned around and borrowed a dark and rusted iron sword from a Beggar Clan member and said, “I’ll borrow this brother’s sword.” He left Sun Bu’Er standing there like a corpse; she couldn’t advance forward or go back. Though she practiced Taoism, it is hard to cleanse the fiery nature of martial artist; this young man dared to throw back her good intentions of lending her sword, she couldn’t stop herself from getting angry. She wanted to scold and curse him but the enemy was here, it wasn’t convenient to start another argument, she forced herself to endure her anger and returned to the crowd.