by Jin Yong
Sure enough, as soon as Ouyang Feng heard that, he replied, “Why not?” He squatted and with a loud grunt, sent his ‘Toad Stance’ energy forward through his palms. This one push was backed by his lifelong cultivation of internal energy. Even if Hong Qigong or Huang Yaoshi were here, they would not be able to resist this attack head on, so how could Guo Jing block it?
Ouyang Feng had just exchanged several stances with Guo Jing, compelling him to use the ‘Vacant Fist’ technique. He noticed that Guo Jing’s movements were subtle with marvelous variations. In his heart he was secretly pleased and thought this must be the ‘Nine Yin Manual’s’ martial arts. He wanted to watch Guo Jing use enough of this technique so that he could steal as much as he could. Unfortunately, Wanyan Honglie barged in and questioned his ability. He still thought that Guo Jing would be useful, and he knew the ferociousness of his own strength, therefore, he voluntarily withdrew his push.
But unexpectedly, Guo Jing was determined to guard the Wumu Legacy with his life. He knew that if he stepped to the side, the cave entrance would be defenseless and the Wumu Legacy would fall into the enemy’s hands. Although there were numerous palace guards outside, how could they defend against Ouyang Feng and the others? He knew the incoming force was ferocious. He could not block it, yet he must evade it. His feet kicked jump about four feet upwards to escape the attack and landed back in front of the entrance. He heard a loud noise behind him as sand and rocks fell because Ouyang Feng’s force had hit the cave wall.
“Good!” Ouyang Feng called out. With exceptional speed he sent out the second attack. The previous force had not yet dissipated before the next force arrived.
Guo Jing felt a sudden gust of wind blowing on his upper body. He groaned inwardly and immediately launched both palms forward using the ‘Tremors Shake a Hundred li’ [zhen jing bai li]. It was one of the most powerful moves of the ‘Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms’. This time he’d blocked hard with a ‘hard’ stance. For an instant both of them stayed motionless. Guo Jing realized his strength was not a match for his enemy’s and he knew he would suffer defeat, but there was no alternative.
Wanyan Honglie watched these two men fighting, leaping and eluding. As one rose up the other dropped down. Suddenly they were as rigid as corpses. Not even a finger stirred and they did not even seem to breathe. He was greatly astonished. A short moment later sweat began to drip from Guo Jing’s body. Ouyang Feng knew that if this fight continued his opponent would suffer a serious injury. He had a mind to yield for half a stance, but as soon as he lessened his power his chest tightened because his opponent’s power was pressing in. If not for his profound strength he would certainly have been injured.
Ouyang Feng was startled. He had never expected that at such a young age, Guo Jing’s strength would be so fierce. He took a deep breath and counterattacked immediately, pushing the incoming force back. If he just added a little bit more strength to his push, he would be able to overcome Guo Jing easily. But at this time, both parties palm strength was equal. If he wanted to score a victory he would have to inflict heavy injuries on his opponent. It would not be difficult should he really want to kill Guo Jing, but this kid was the key to understanding the Manual, so how could he destroy his only resource? Therefore, he intended to wait for Guo Jing’s strength to become depleted and then capture him.
Not too much later it became obvious that as one’s strength declined, the other’s increased. Wanyan Honglie and Yang Kang, who watched from the sidelines, did not know how much longer this situation would last. They became very anxious. Actually, the two people had only been in this deadlock for a short time, but because the light from outside was getting brighter and the noise from outside was getting louder, it seemed in Wanyan Honglie and Yang Kang’s minds that they had been motionless for a very long time.
With a loud noise, two palace guards suddenly came barging into the waterfall. Yang Kang swiftly pounced. With a ‘ta, ta’ sound both of his hands penetrated the guards bodies. It was the deadly ‘Nine Yin White Bone Claw’ [jiu yin bai zhua gong]. The reeking smell of blood assailed everyone’s nostrils as the guards died instantly. Yang Kang then drew a dagger from his boot and jumped forward to stab Guo Jing in the side.
Guo Jing was resisting Ouyang Feng’s palm with all his strength. How could he avoid this incoming thrust? He knew if he moved even a little bit he would die violently from the Western Poison’s ‘Toad Stance’. Therefore, even though he knew the dagger would penetrate his body soon, he was forced to ignore it. He suddenly felt a severe pain in his side and his breathing stopped. He instinctively swung his fist and hit Yang Kang’s hand.
By this time the difference in the levels of martial arts between these two was vast. Guo Jing’s fist struck Yang Kang’s hand like it was about to crack bones. Yang Kang hastily withdrew his hand so that the dagger’s blade only penetrated halfway into Guo Jing’s side. Right at that moment the ‘Toad Stance’s’ force came surging into Guo Jing’s chest. He let out a noiseless grunt, bent over, and fell down.
Realizing that in the end he had inflicted injury, Ouyang Feng waved his hand and shook his head. “What a pity! What a pity!” he called out. He was dejected and knew that this kid could not be revived. There was no reason why he should hang around since he still had to get the Wumu Legacy. He stared at Yang Kang angrily and thought, “This kid has spoiled my big chance.” He turned around and entered the cave in big strides. Wanyan Honglie and Yang Kang followed behind.
By that time there were a lot of palace guards there. Without turning, Ouyang Feng reached back and, one by one, flung the guards away. In the end, no guards were able to enter the cave.
Yang Kang lit a torch to see the cave’s interior. He saw thick dust everywhere.. .a sign that nobody had entered it for a very long time. There was a stone table in the middle of the cave and a stone box on top of it, measuring about two feet square. The box was sealed. Other than that, no other objects could be seen inside the cave. Yang Kang brought his torch closer to take a look. The writing on the seal looked very old and the characters were not recognizable.
“The book must be inside this box,” Wanyan Honglie called out.
Yang Kang was delighted. As he reached out his hand to take the box, Ouyang Feng’s left arm gently pushed his shoulder away. Yang Kang staggered back several steps before falling down. He was startled and saw that Ouyang Feng had taken the box.
“The great work is accomplished.. .everyone withdraw!” Wanyan Honglie called out.
With Ouyang Feng in front leading the way, the three went out of the cave. Yang Kang saw Guo Jing, his body covered with blood, lying motionless among several guards at the cave entrance. He felt slight remorse and muttered under his breath, “You don’t know good from bad and always meddle in other people’s business. You can’t blame me for this in spite of our sworn brotherhood.” Remembering his dagger was still in Guo Jing’s body, he stooped to retrieve it and suddenly saw a shadow appear outside. “Jing ge ge, where are you?” the shadow called out.
Yang Kang recognized Huang Rong’s voice. He was startled and without taking his dagger he jumped over Guo Jing’s body and ran outside of the water curtain to follow Ouyang Feng and the others.
o0o
Earlier, Huang Rong had been rushing to the east and running to the west on the rooftops with Peng Lianhu and Liang Ziweng in pursuit. Not long afterwards, palace guards began to gather in the area. Peng and Liang were frightened and did not dare chase Huang Rong any longer, so they went back to join Sha Tongtian and the others waiting for Wanyan Honglie by the waterfall. They killed several guards outside the cave before Ouyang Feng came out.
Huang Rong was concerned about Guo Jing, so she went back inside the cave and called out several times without getting an answer. She was beginning to get nervous, so she struck her flint to her fire-starter bundle and saw Guo Jing, his body soaked in blood, lying next to her foot. Huang Rong was scared to death and her hands began to tremble, her fire-starter bundle fell an
d the fire went out.
Outside the cave, the guards were still shouting loudly, calling to each other to capture the assassin. More than a dozen guards were grabbed and tossed away by Ouyang Feng with broken necks. No one dared go near them any longer. The palace guards carried a heavy burden of responsibility and presently there was an assassin in the palace. If they did not shout loudly and appear bold by not running away, how else could they show their loyalty?
Huang Rong stooped down to hold Guo Jing, noticed that his hand was still warm and felt relieved. She called out several times without getting an answer from him, so she decided to carry him on her back and quietly slipped away from the waterfall towards the back of the false hill.
By now the area around the ‘Jade-Green Cold Hall’ was as bright as daylight from the guard’s lanterns. Guards from other parts of the palace had heard the news and arrived in abundance. Even though Huang Rong’s movements were quick, it was impossible to avoid being seen by several guards. They shouted loudly and began to chase her. Huang Rong silently cursed. “You are a bunch of scum. You don’t pursue the bad people but chase after the good people.”
She gritted her teeth and flew away. Several guards with higher martial arts skills managed to get close to her, forcing her to launch several steel needles. “Aiyo!” she heard several guards cry out
and fall down. The rest of the guards did not dare pursue her and could only look helplessly at her
as she leaped over the palace wall and disappeared without a trace.
Those people were so noisy that the whole palace was frightened. In the dark of the night nobody knew if it was a coup with somebody trying to usurp the emperor’s throne, or some government officers inciting a rebellion. The palace guards, the imperial army, and all the armed forces personnel were alarmed, but not a single high-ranking military officer knew what was going on for sure. They were confused for the rest of the night. Come daybreak the cavalry was dispatched and the city was turned upside down in search of ‘the rebels’ or ‘the assassin’. Quite a number of people were arrested. Unfortunately, later investigations proved that these people were nothing but petty thieves and local ruffians. The officials were forced to fabricate oral confessions and randomly execute some people in order to appease the throne and to assure their own safety and position.
After leaving the palace that night, Huang Rong ran without looking where she was heading. She randomly chose her way and only slowed down after realizing that nobody was pursuing them. She entered a small alley and stretched her finger to feel for Guo Jing’s breath. She was relieved to find Guo Jing was still breathing, but since her flint had been lost in the palace, in the darkness she could not examine him to determine where the injury was. She knew if she waited for dawn, it would be more difficult to find shelter inside the city walls, especially with her having a blood-covered person with her, so she decided to leave the city that very same night and headed towards Sha Gu’s wine shop.
Huang Rong’s martial arts skills were high, but after running fast for half the night and carrying Guo Jing on her back, it was with a nervous heart that she shoved open the door of Sha Gu’s shop. She was out of breath and her body felt weak. She sat down to calm herself. After catching her breath she found a piece of firewood and lit it so she could look at Guo Jing’s face and examine his
wound. She was even more shocked than when they were at the palace.
Guo Jing’s eyes were tightly closed, his face was as white as a sheet, and he looked more dead than alive. Huang Rong had seen him injured several times before, but had never seen him in this kind of critical condition. She felt as though her own heart was about to jump out of her throat. As she stood lost in thought with the torch in her hand a hand suddenly reached out from the side and touched the torch. Huang Rong slowly turned her head and saw that it was Sha Gu. Huang Rong sucked in a deep breath. Now that there was someone beside her, she felt somewhat better. She remembered that she was going to examine Guo Jing’s injury. Under the bright light of the torch she could see a blackish object protruding from Guo Jing’s side. It looked like the ebony hilt of a dagger. She lowered her head for a closer look and saw that it was indeed a dagger with the blade stuck in Guo Jing’s left side.
By this time Huang Rong’s panic had reached its limits and her mind became calm. She gently tore the clothes from around his waist, exposing bare skin and muscle. She saw that the blood had coagulated around the blade, which had penetrated the muscle several ‘cun’ deep [1 cun is approximately 1 inch]. She was afraid if she pulled the dagger out, Guo Jing would die immediately, but if she waited too long it would be even more difficult to save his life. Biting her lips, she reached out to grab the dagger’s hilt, but doubt suddenly came creeping into her heart and she withdrew her hand. This happened several times. She just could not make up her mind.
Sha Gu became impatient. The fourth time Huang Rong withdrew her hand, she suddenly stretched out hers, grabbed the hilt and abruptly pulled the dagger out. Both Guo Jing and Huang Rong shouted in shock, but Sha Gu thought it was fun and laughed happily.
Huang Rong saw blood gushing like a spring from Guo Jing’s wound, while Sha Gu was still laughed foolishly. Huang Rong went from shock to anger. Her palm struck backwards sending Sha Gu rolling on the floor. Then she immediately stooped down to press the wound with a handkerchief.
When Sha Gu fell, she took the torch with her. The flame was extinguished and the room became pitch-black. Sha Gu was angry. She jumped up and kicked Huang Rong’s leg. Huang Rong did not avoid the kick. Sha Gu was afraid Huang Rong would retaliate, so she jumped back immediately after kicking. After a while, she heard Huang Rong sobbing softly. She was surprised. Hastily she re-lit the torch and came asking, “Did I hurt you bad?”
When the dagger was pulled out, the pain was so severe it woke Guo Jing up. In the torch light he saw Huang Rong kneeling beside him. “Master Yue’s book ... was it ... was it stolen?” he quickly asked.
Huang Rong was delighted to hear him speak. Knowing he was very concerned about this matter she felt it was not the right time to add to his anxiety. “Don’t worry,” she said, “Those traitors were not able to get their hands on the book ...” She wanted to ask how he was feeling but her hands were still warm from his blood.
“Why are you crying?” Guo Jing asked in a low voice.
Huang Rong forced a smile and said, “I am not crying.”
Sha Gu suddenly opened her mouth, “She is too, isn’t she? Look, there are still tears on her face.”
“Rong’er, don’t worry.” Guo Jing said. “There is a section about treating injuries in the ‘Nine Yin Manual’. I won’t die.”
Upon hearing this, Huang Rong was like someone in the dark suddenly seeing a beacon of light. Her eyes shone brightly and her delight was unspeakable as though nothing could dampen her spirits. She wanted to ask for the details but was afraid she would make him weary. She turned around to hold Sha Gu’s hand. “Sister, did I hurt you just now?” she asked, with smile on her face.
Sha Gu’s mind was still set on seeing her cry so she ignored her question and asked, “You were crying.. .won’t you admit it?”
Huang Rong smiled, “Fine, I was crying but you weren’t. You are a good girl.” Sha Gu was delighted to hear her praise.
Guo Jing slowly circulated his ‘qi’ because the pain was unbearable. By this time Huang Rong had cleared her mind. She took out a steel needle and pierced the acupoints around his left side, both to slow down the flow of blood and to reduce the pain. Then she washed his wound, applied some medicine and re-wrapped the wound with clean cloth. She also gave him a ‘Nine Flower Jade Dew Pill’ to help stop the pain.
Guo Jing said, “Although the dagger went in pretty deep, but . luckily it did not hit any vital organs, so it . it won’t be life-threatening. I suffered more dangerous injuries from the Old Poison’s ‘Toad Stance’. Fortunately it seems like he did not use all of his strength, so it looks like I can be healed. Only I will ha
ve to make you suffer for seven days and seven nights.”
Huang Rong sighed. “You know that even if I had to suffer seventy years for you, I would still be willing,” she said.
Guo Jing felt a sweetness creep into his heart and at the same time felt dizzy. After waiting for a moment his mind cleared up a little bit and he said, “It was a pity that when Master was injured I missed several days’ opportunity to treat him. Had it been otherwise, even though the snake venom was fierce, it wouldn’t have been too hard for him to fully recover. He wouldn’t be ... he wouldn’t be disabled like he is today.”
Huang Rong replied, “When we were on that island, even if we could have healed Master’s injury, would the Old Poison and his nephew let us? Please don’t think that way. Just tell me your method and set my mind at ease.”
“First we must find a peaceful and quiet place,” Guo Jing said. “Then, following the Manual’s instructions, we circulate our ‘qi’ together. Each will hold the other’s palm. By using your internal energy you are helping me heal my injury.” At this point he closed his eyes to catch his breath before continuing. “The only difficulty is that for seven whole days and nights our palms cannot be separated even for a second. Your breathing will be closely linked to mine. We can talk to each other, but we definitely can’t have a third person interrupting us by even a half sentence. Also, we must not walk even half a step. If someone else disturbs us, we may ...”