With the rain of snow swirling in the air, under the flickering lanterns inside the Wei Palace, a human figure, which seemingly brimming with infinite explosive power, was, in one moment, flashing on the roof of the long corridor like a ghost, and in the next moment attacking the pursuing Wei Army in violent offensives. The sword qi was fierce and severe, the moves were beyond all expectations. Although the Wei Army occupied the advantages of being on their home turf and they had many men, a great force, unexpectedly momentarily they were unable to grab the momentum to close in on the enemy, allowing the person to move unhindered among the palace halls, pavilions, and gardens. Inevitably some men were hit by the sword and fell to the ground, sustaining injuries.
By this time, under the illumination of the faint light reflected by the snow, they were able to see that this person was surprisingly a young woman in the prime of her youth. Although her hand was extremely ruthless, her every movement was brimming with mechanical sense of beauty; elegant and pleasing to the eye.
The most astonishing thing was the changes of her movement when advancing or retreating; she always landed on the weak point or the gap in the net that the pursuing troops created while trying to intercept her. Just like a graceful game of chess, each piece landed on the spot that was beyond the enemy’s expectation, so that practically the enemy was being led by the nose by her.
Definitely her martial art skill has reached Shi Feixuan, Wanwan’s level. Even in life and death decisive battle, there was still some kind of elegant and at ease feeling, calm and relaxed flavor.
‘Dang! Dang!’
Two long spears attacking her were parried by her long sword. And then spinning around, she entered the space between the two enemies, the tip of her left palm swept the two men’s face one after another; the enemies screamed and rolled down the roof, and fell onto the ground.
Just before the enemy’s weapons reached her, her body soared into the air like a bird. Three somersaults in succession, she landed on top of the main palace hall within the Wei Palace. Three martial art masters from the Wei side followed closely behind her, but before they steadied their footing, she turned around and pounced, heavily injured one of them, forcing the other two to drop down back to the ground.
Arrows were released like rain, shooting at her both from the ground and from the roof of the neighboring buildings. The young woman sidestepped and leaped, she evaded the attack effortlessly, until finally she stood behind the roof ridge, and drew the sword to create a net of sword light protecting her body, striking down arrows and darts that not even one leaked through.
Although the ones she was battling were the Wei soldiers, who were short-handed and whose morale had sunken low – the young woman’s shenfa, sword technique and strategy, none was not superior to the shocking level.
Arrows and darts eased up a little bit. The three-hundred strong Wei Army guarding the Palace heavily surrounded the main palace hall from the roof of the surrounding buildings, which were about a zhang away from the Ling Xiao Dian. However, seeing her astonishing skill, no one had any confidence that they would be able to detain her here. Among the demoralized Wei Army, no one was willing to take the risk of scrambling on top of the Ling Xiao Dian even more.
The young woman was standing charmingly on the roof ridge of the palace hall under the swirling snow, looking like an immortal descending to the world; both intimidating and touching to the extreme point.
Hiding far away from the siege, Kou Zhong, Xu Ziling and Hou Xibai were staring in awe; they were quite shocked by her flower countenance and graceful bearing.
This woman looked to be between eighteen and twenty years old, as delicate as the blooming tree peony [Paeonia suffruticosa] or Chinese peony [Paeonia lactiflora]. Her cloud of jet-black beautiful hair cascading down her back, fluttering freely, brushing and dancing in the snowstorm, following her movements, smooth and graceful to the extreme point.
Moreover, her figure was graceful, tall like a pole, and quite charming. Under her beautiful-like-crescent-moon long eyelashes were slender and long, bright and beautiful eyes, flickering with divine light. Even more beautiful that it caught people’s breath was against her bright and beautiful eyes, her gentle eye sockets looked like clear pond. Under her elegant and perfectly straight nose was a pair of cherry, plump and glossy scarlet – lips, that when she smiled, it made her appeared even more picturesque. Her eyes carried a bit of childlike tender naiveté.
Her hand wielding the sword was tender and white, her fingers slender, delicate and pretty and beautiful. Looking at the hands alone, this pair of hands would appear to be the slender hands that were skillful in playing qin or plucking zheng; no one would imagine it could brandish a sword with this ferocity, ruthless, experienced and expertise.
“Stop!”
The martial art masters among the Wei Army, who were hesitant whether they should take chances by charging up the palace hall’s roof, were dying to hear this word; hastily they scattered around to the roof of the neighboring palace halls, which were comparatively lower than the main palace hall.
Xu Ziling and Kou Zhong, two boys exchanged glances. A feeling of hatred, which they were unable to suppress – welled up in their heart, because it was precisely Yuwen Huaji’s voice.
In the past, after they buried Fu Junchuo, the hatred toward Yuwen Huaji started to grow in the deepest part of the two boys’ heart. Only because at that time they were young and weak that revenge became delusion, an extravagant hope; hence they had no choice but to use their rationale and suppress this urge. But the hatred, the desire to kill Yuwen Huaji to repay Fu Junchuo, whose magnificent, luxuriant years of her life was cut short like the fragrant disappeared, the jade perish – has never stopped burning in their hearts, not even a moment.
Now they, separately, have become the most outstanding experts in martial art study among the younger generation, who were able to fight the three grandmasters. If they were willing to risk their lives to fight with all their might, even under current circumstances, they still had 80% confidence to kill Yuwen Huaji. Even if they had to pay the ultimate price of their own life, they would never shirk this responsibility.
Only this moment did they understand Fu Junchuo’s position in their heart, that is, nothing could take her place. And thus they also realized their hatred toward Yuwen Huaji, which even all the water of the Yangtze River and Yellow River would not be able to wash clean. Fu Junchuo sacrificed her life for them; they were willing to do the same in return, as long as they could kill Yuwen Huaji.
But when they were showing sign that they were about to make their move, the first to be shocked was Hou Xibai. Severely shaken, he said, “Two LaoGe must be joking! There are several hundreds Wei troops in here, not a few martial art masters are among them; how many are we going to kill? Besides, there might also be Yuwen Shang nearby.”
Kou Zhong reached out to wrap his arm around Hou Xibai’s shoulders; pulling him tightly, he smiled and said, “Although at the beginning Laozi thought that you, this kid, was unpleasant to the eye, but now, I really like you. Ha! Don’t misunderstand or be too excited, because this is friend-kind of like. Lao Bai! Why don’t we decide which pleasure house we are going to meet? After we chop Yuwen Huagu’s stinky head, we’ll rush over to meet with you. What do you think?”
Hou Xibai has not had any chance to reply, a clear and melodious, tender and gentle voice rang out in the air above the Wei Palace Hall, amidst the wind and the snow filling the whole sky, “Who’s speaking?”
Although she spoke with very articulate pronunciation and vocalizing, it still carried a slight foreign accent, forming some kind of soft and gentle style brimming with exoticism. Momentarily Hou Xibai forgot to respond to Kou Zhong; he appeared to have his mind intoxicated. Shaking his head and swaying his noggin, he praised with a sigh, “Listening to the voice one would know the person; this is a talented and good-looking fine woman of foreign nationality.”
Kou Zhong let go of his arm around Hou Xibai’s shoulder; turning to Xu Ziling, who was crouching behind a bush on his other side, he said with a wry smile, “I am sure this fool is not going to leave; persuading him will be useless.”
Shrugging his shoulders, Xu Ziling said, “Let him be! As long as he understands forty-, fifty-percent of Immortal Image Method, he shouldn’t bring disgrace to Immortal Image Method’s famous reputation. No one in the Great Wei can match him.”
Yuwen Huaji’s voice was heard from the distant inner courtyard of the rear Palace; he did not deliberately raise his voice, yet every single word was very clear, the qi meridian was prolonged, as if he spoke next to everybody’s ears. Obviously the training of his Mysterious Ice power has reached great heights [lit. reach the peak, arrive at the pole (Courtesy of Akolaw)]. He said, “This person is the Great Wei Lord, Yuwen Huaji. Guniang forcefully charged into my imperial palace, aren’t you taking too much advantage of me?”
Although he spoke pompously, those with discernment could hear that his ambitious and ruthless air has gone, no longer like in the past, intimidating and blazing like when he was rebelling against the Sui and murdering his superior the Emperor.
The Gaoli beauty, wearing skintight nightwalker warrior outfit, which put her tender body and beautiful lines in full display – let out a burst of silver-bell like laughter and said, “I am the Gaoli’s ‘Yijian Dashi’ Fu Cailin’s disciple Fu Junqiang. This time I am coming to collect Da Shijie Fu Junchuo’s blood debt. Yuwen Huaji, do you dare to fight one-on-one with me according to your Central Plains Jianghu rules?”
Hearing that, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling’s blood was boiling, as if they suddenly met a close relative, whom they never met, but had blood relationship with them.
Yuwen Huaji was silent. The entire Wei Palace was so quiet that a pin drop would have been heard, waiting for his response. Outside, the soldiers were defeated, inside, assassin was at the door, the leaking house was encountering night rain; this very late at night with intensely cold wind and bitter snow, the Wei Palace was heavily shrouded by the doomsday atmosphere.
Yuwen Huaji’s voice came from the distant again; he said with a sigh, “Guniang, just leave! If it were your honored master coming in person, I, Yuwen Huaji, would definitely keep him company.”
Hearing that, Kou Zhong and the others, three men looked at each other in dismay. Could it be that the always overbearing, imperious Yuwen Huaji, on the face of the country ruined and the people starving, suddenly changed his character, was unexpectedly willing, after Fu Junqiang killed and injured so many Wei soldiers – to still let the enemy go? How would he answer his subordinates?
Laughing coldly, Fu Junqiang said, “Incidentally, just like you said, my Shizun [revered master] already decided to go down south to the Central Earth, to find Yin Gui Pai’s master Yin Hou Zhu Yuyan to settle the account; furthermore, he might meet with San Zhenren Ning Daoqi, to experience his San Shou Ba Pu [scattered hand eight pounces]. I, Fu Junqiang, am merely a foot soldier, Shizun’s vanguard, to get your, Yuwen Huaji’s head for the sacrificial offering to open the way for Shizun, to strengthen his, the Senior’s interest in the journey.”
In their hearts, none of Kou Zhong, three men did not have huge wave rising to the sky. Fu Cailin was one of the three grandmasters whose names shook the world; if he really came to the south, with so much enmity between the Han and the Gaoli people, he would definitely raise the wind and cloud [i.e. unstable situation] of the weapons of war, to create more storms to the already troublesome Central Plains.
From this, it could be inferred that the Gaoli people had the intention to push the wave and add to the billows, to add oil to the fire, so that the Central Plains, which the Tujue already watched like a tiger watching its prey, would be even more chaotic.
Letting out a long laughter, Yuwen Huaji said, “Since Guniang insists on following the path to your own doom, what can I, Yuwen Huaji, say …”
Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling chose this moment to rise up to their full height from their hiding place. The former shouted loudly, “Hold on! Tonight, coming to give you, Yuwen Huaji bad luck, are also us, two brothers.”
Instantly Hou Xibai, who was standing behind them, also had a very strange feeling. In his eyes, the two boys’ qi momentum suddenly rose to the unfathomable apex. Each leap, jump, shift, and flash to evade the more than a dozen powerful arrows shooting swiftly toward them – displayed enormous self-confidence. And only this kind of absolute self-confidence could make them waste the least amount of energy, could enable them to evade the rain of arrows in just the right way.
Hou Xibai was immediately infected. He suddenly revealed the Fan of Beauty, which had never left his body, and swiftly flashed sideways to evade several long spears coming right toward his face, and landed on the grassy land by the long corridor. His fan waved at an angle, he deflected a saber chopping across from the side, and borrowed thirty-percent of the enemy’s power, which he transformed inside his dantian, to be used for his own. By the time the Fan of Beauty was spread again, following his abstruse footwork, the edge of the fan accurately cut over empty air at the side of an enemy’s neck. The enemy was hit by the fan and fell down, immediately saying goodbye to the mundane world.
As soon as he made his move, he already used a fraction of the Immortal Image Method, because only by using this method he would have the hope to preserve his life until the two boys killed Yuwen Huaji.
Hou Xibai had never thought that he would be willing to give his life for his friends, but right now he was doing exactly that, with such an honor that did not allow him to glance back.
There was absolutely no way that these four persons would be able to surpass more than a hundred Wulin martial art masters plus the as-numerous-as-the-clouds Yuwen Clan disciples and personal guards. Kou Zhong, Xu Ziling, and Hou Xibai had to fight a desperate battle at the long corridor, while endless stream of Wei soldiers was surging like a tide from the front and both sides.
If they could pass this long corridor and turn right at the end, that would be where the Ling Xiao main palace hall was.
Kou Zhong sent out his first saber strike to meet and cut off an enemy’s sword head-on, and continued to chop the enemy’s chest. The attacking enemy met the saber and fell; perhaps even upon his arrival at the underworld, he was still unclear how he died.
Xu Ziling deeply understood the cruelty or war. Ordinary Jianghu fight would not be effective here; he could only use the most primitive, the most direct, the most simple and the most effective method to kill, while trying to avoid being killed. It was some kind of deathly game to see whose injury was heavier. No one could avoid getting hurt!
Thinking to this point, Xu Ziling’s heart was moved; he spun around and unexpectedly entered the enemy ranks. His body was hit by at least two sabers and one spear, but all were deflected by the true qi protecting his body. “Shaoshuai!” he shouted loudly, “What kind of water don’t stink?”
As he spoke, he sent out two punches and one kick; three enemies were hit and fell to the ground.
Xu Ziling’s voice had just arrived, Kou Zhong already laughed heartily and said, “Naturally it’s rolling and flowing water; just like Xibai Gongzi’s Immortal Image Method.”
Hou Xibai’s voice came from a distance, “Inside is the natural rotation of the sky, outside is the circulation of the handle of the Big Dipper; the Immortal is within it. Two LaoGe, shall we try to reunite to become one?”
The main road leading to the main palace hall was teeming with one-falls-the-next-follows charging Wei Army, forcing the originally fighting together three young martial art masters to fight their separate battles. Weapons were attacking from four sides and eight directions, so that they were completely without any spare time to take a breather and circulate their qi. Every moment was used to deal with the many weapons threatening their bodies. The space where they were able to dodge and move about was constantly narrowing.
Although the enemy had just suffered crushing defeat, their morale was low, but this moment, when life and death were concerned, their usual strict training plus their abundant combat experience were put in full display, as they formed a great wall made of flesh and blood, dashing on bravely with no thought of personal safety, in violent attack toward the three men.
As for the three, because each one of them had his own unique consummate skill, upon contact with the enemies, they immediately occupied the upper hand. However, this kind of superiority could not be long lasting; once the true qi recovery slowed down and their true qi was consumed, under this kind of situation, their true energy might suffer wear and tear rapidly, plus whenever they were wounded and bleeding, it would accelerate the wear and tear of the true energy even more, hence Hou Xibai’s proposal.
Concentrated, their power would be strong; separated, their power would be scattered.
Xu Ziling’s palm swept out, he pushed aside an enemy’s big axe, while at the same time he sent out a spiraling true energy, jolting the enemy so that his defense line was open wide, and then a carefully-placed kick, fast as lightning, hit the pit of the axe-wielder’s stomach. This kick was executed at full strength, sending the man off the ground and knocked down the three Wei soldiers behind him.
Suddenly a shot of pain burst out on his thigh and shoulder blade, as he was hit by the enemy’s weapon. Although the true qi protecting his body reacted by jolting the weapons that they slipped, but because he was concentrating his power to deal with the axe-wielder, he still suffered half a cun of skin and flesh wound.
There was no way they could let this kind of tangled battle continued, since in the end their power would be exhausted and their blood drained, and then they would perish. Hence Xu Ziling shouted loudly, “To the roof on the left!”
Crashing sideways, he knocked two Wei soldiers, sending them rolling down like a gourd.
To the left of this huge corridor was a three-zhang wide lawn and flowerbed, which, this moment, was covered in thick and fluffy snow; beyond that was the side wall of another building.
Taking a mouthful of breath rapidly, Kou Zhong’s Moon in the Well chopped thirteen times in succession, the saber momentum was fierce and severe without equal, but he felt that the true qi within his body was growing and multiplying without end, without exhaustion. Unexpectedly not one of the thirteen enemies was lucky enough to evade, they all died under the saber strike. But inwardly he was not pleased at all. If he had the choice, he would never kill on the first encounter, plus there was no hatred or desire for revenge toward these people.
The enemy’s martial art masters unceasingly leaped down from the roof to join the battle formation surrounding them. The situation was bitter to the extreme point, the dead and injured were everywhere, blood splashes created frightening red spots on the white snow; it seemed like life was not worth even half a penny.
This was the essence, as well as the true face – of war.
A burst of painful heat shot up from his back; he was stabbed by a spear. But before it had any chance to pierce his skin and flesh, the true qi protecting his body already generated reaction force to shock it, so that it slipped away from his shoulder blade and could only rip open his clothes.
This was not to say that Kou Zhong had already reached the impervious-to-sword-and-spear realm; it depends on who was holding the spear. In this instance, the spear-wielder did not have enough qualifications to harm him.
Kou Zhong’s Moon in the Well whirled in the air, saber light flashing brightly, yellow light dazzling the eyes, the enemies all around had their heart turned cold, their guts sank down, they were falling forward and tumbling down.
As a result, he also received many more injuries; even the time to apply his power to stop the bleeding was lacking. Letting out a loud shout, his body moved following the saber, he charged in the direction of Hou Xibai. Anybody trying to block him was swept away; unexpectedly no one was able to stand.
Immediately the pressure on Hou Xibai was greatly reduced; staking everything, he parried a sword. By opening and closing his folding fan, the enemy struck by the fan fell to the ground. Rising up, he broke away from the heavy siege and turned over in Kou Zhong’s direction.
Kou Zhong’s long saber slashed out, forcing the enemy to break away. He also rose up, reached out to grab Hou Xibai’s belt, and carried Hou Xibai, whose power has been exhausted – along as he leaped up and flew toward Xu Ziling.
Xu Ziling saw the two were flying high in the air toward him, he knew that the crucial point between life and death would be decided at this moment.
Ignoring the weapons coming to greet his body, he soared into the air. Deliberately he cast himself down, but the attacking blade could only cut open his clothes and added many more traces of blood.
In such close-distance bloody battle, this was the price to pay to get away.
The three met in the air. Xu Ziling generated power to both hands and reached out to separately catch the clothes on the two men’s back, taking them to land on different spot, and then together they flew toward the roof of a multi-story building on the left.
More than a dozen enemies guarding on the roof were waiting in tight formation. One of them had a long saber, which created dots of saber light enveloping them. The saber momentum was fierce and severe. This was the most threatening attack since the fight broke. The three knew that they were encountering the enemy’s martial art master.
Xu Ziling let out a loud shout. He took a breath in the air, his two hands sent out true power. Kou Zhong and Hou Xibai promptly seized this opportunity to soar high to evade the saber strike, and threw themselves toward the roof behind the enemy.
But Xu Ziling dropped down to the ground; once again he was trapped inside the enemy’s heavy siege. Even with his martial art skill, he could forget about escaping easily like a moment ago, because he had fallen into the lone-army-in-desperate-battle situation.
Sticking out his thumb, he hit the middle of the enemy’s blade. The man suddenly realized that the opponent’s thumb was producing a suction force. Aghast, he quickly pulled his saber back, and began to know that he had fallen into the enemy’s trap.
Xu Ziling then borrowed the little bit of sucking force to leap across the enemy, and together with Kou Zhong and Hou Xibai he safely landed on the roof ridge.
At the same time they were able to see the entire situation clearly.
