by Derek Dorris
Yang Shu saw her opportunity to not only remove this most dangerous threat but also remind the world of who she was. She moved on the hunchback only to notice a group of soldiers encroaching on her left who were much lighter in their footsteps and breathing than those she had faced thus far. She remembered Wong Shi Hong’s warning about experts disguised as Qui soldiers so she gave them the attention they deserved. Three attacked at once and indeed their martial skills were high. Seeing her mace on the ground she flipped over the onrushing experts onto her hands, collecting the chain of the mace as she sprang. In a second, she was amongst the main body of experts wielding her mace like a wrecking ball. Bodies flew everywhere and though these experts wore armour, its weight and bulk only hindered their movements.
Yang Shu was gaining confidence but, critically, she was close to exhaustion after her holding her breath underwater for so long. More experts emerged from the bottom of the slope and arrows rained in on her from the reorganised unit of Qui archers. She moved closer to the experts because it was all she could do to avoid the arrows and the longer range weapons of the experts. However, it also negated the principal advantage of her mace. Brandishing the sickle blade she began trapping, grabbing, and slicing. The arrows continued to pour down, taking a handful of experts with each volley.
To the archers, who were some distance away, Yang Shu was like a goddess of war, twirling, spinning, flipping and stabbing as she went. Bodies fell with every one of her movements. But then, so did hers.
As she moved through the experts, Yang Shu ran straight into the crouching Yu Guo Wei who had recently recovered from her attack but didn't show it. Getting that close to a master of his level without maintaining sufficient awareness was a mistake but he played the “wounded man” role impeccably. He used a single palm to strike her on the chest and as she was stunned into immobility, he manoeuvred behind her back unerringly as a snake and snapped her neck. Grunting dismissively, he let her corpse slump to the ground in an undignified ball. The Silver Phoenix was gone.
Without looking twice at her, he walked to his horse holding his injured head. “Messenger!” he shouted.
The young man who had seen Yu Guo Wei being struck on account of his distraction had fled for fear the notoriously cruel hunchback would kill him out of anger. Indeed, Yu Guo Wei intended to do just that but not before he heard the full message first. All he had made out was Wong Shi Hong’s name.
Reluctantly, a Qui soldier stepped forward. “General, he fled after you were struck to the ground.” Yu Guo Wei was almost happy at this young soldier’s poor choice of words as he needed to doubly vent now. He flicked the soldier on the temple as he passed him by. The soldier didn't fall down. His body just stood there—unmoving and dead.
Yu Guo Wei didn't waste a second. When they met all those decades ago, he was superior to Wong Shi Hong but since then, the Majestic Wanderer had spent over twenty years under the tutelage of the Earthly Dragon and from there, he and his 100 Fists had gone on to shake the world. Yu Guo Wei had gotten this far by being incredibly cautious and relying on his godly skill only as a last resort. Wong Shi Hong was right, he was extraordinarily disciplined; far more than most men of ego.
“Captain,” he barked at his first-in-command. “Gather your men and let's get going.”
“Yes, sir.” The terrified subordinate moved like lightning.
Yu Guo Wei only had to glance at his company of martial experts to know they had been shaken by Yang Shu’s power. Only half of the original sixty were left standing and their commander had been cut down. He pointed to the most seasoned fighter he could see—a tall bulky man with a huge broadsword on his back. “Take command and follow the soldiers. Keep a discreet distance behind us at all times.”
“Yes, Senior Yu,” the warrior replied, far less obsequiously than the captain, though nonetheless, with full respect.
Without another look, the Divine Alchemist mounted his horse and led his soldiers away. Nothing was done with the bodies.
As such, Silver Phoenix who had sat perched atop of Mount Yiding like a glorious bird of prey for decades ended her reign lying prone at the foot of the east slope waiting for anyone to come across her.
* * *
The person who did find her came five hours later and fittingly, it was someone with whom she shared the prestige of a nation—someone who wouldn't let her final state besmirch his memory of her. Tears welled in Wong Shi Hong’s eyes for the first time in his life. It wasn't that he knew Yang Shu all that well. They had fought side by side some years ago when they were helping Folding Wind and the Blue Lady route some bandits in the southern provinces. Yet she had kept to herself. It wasn't because she was a true beauty, even to this, her final day. He cried because she had wasted her life on the folly of misplaced love and the life wasted was an extraordinary one.
“Da’er. Feng'er. This was Silver Phoenix,” he said through his sadness. “She was a magnificent warrior. Don't remember her like this. I will take the responsibility of remembering this particular image.” Those last words rolled like distant thunder and his two juniors were under no illusions as to what they meant. Now more than ever before, the Divine Alchemist and the 100 Fists Majestic Wanderer had a date with destiny.
Xun Da stepped forward and bowed deeply to her corpse. Bai Feng followed him.
“Good boys,” Wong Shi Hong said with genuine pride. Wiping the tears from his face with his old tattered sleeve, he and the two juniors reverently carried her body up the hill and buried her outside her hut. Before they left, Wong Shi Hong erected a sign and inscribed the message:
“Burial place of Silver Phoenix—Heroine of her age. Let no person desecrate these remains or their bones will be crushed to powder.”
It was signed: “Wong Shi Hong...”
The message was to the public in general but Yu Guo Wei in particular. In Wong Shi Hong's mind, that desecration had already been done.
While closing the shutters inside Yang Shu’s hut, Bai Feng came across the scroll that Ng Méh-è had left her. He unrolled it and took in the magnificently written characters as he read:
“Ten minus two regrets,
Brush the bosom, streak the face,
Fret not because together tears flow,
The Dragon’s pen needs time to write not tears,
Heart breaks more without doubt,
How many tears, think!
Criss-cross your cheeks and run across your face!
Don't try to speak when worry makes you weep,
Nor use the pen when it will bring your tears.”
Bai Feng was almost hypnotised by the words. He read it and re-read it. It was almost as if his mind moved in sequence with the words, their tone, and their tempo. He even felt stronger. After some time, he left the hut and rejoined the other two.
The three men bowed one last time to the grave. Wong Shi Hong brought his forehead all the way down to the ground and tapped it eight times off the dirt in the deepest respect. They stood up and left without saying a word.
On the way down, Bai Feng broke the solemn mood. “Uncle Wong, I found this in Senior Yang’s hut. It seemed too beautiful to leave there. Maybe we should've buried it with her.” He showed Wong Shi Hong the scroll.
Wong Shi Hong immediately recognised the amazing calligraphy. His heart was stirred. He knew his dear friend who he respected more than anyone in the world had seen through Yang Shu’s cold exterior and recognised her for who and what she really was. “No Feng'er, this should stay with you. It's most opportune you found it.” He gave the scroll back to Feng'er who placed it in his sleeve, curious as to what Wong Shi Hong meant by that.
As they walked on down towards their horses, Bai Feng's head was swimming with feelings of form and formlessness. He felt intensely emotional. Beside him, the Majestic Wanderer was in a contrary state. With each step taken, he purged the feelings of sentiment within him. He had matters to attend to.
The Road to Fangshen
The three men ro
de as fast as their horses would allow until they reached a fork in the road. Reining his horse to a stop, Wong Shi Hong looked south and pointed. “You two ride south for Fangshen. When you get there, travel six kilometres to the south of the city and look for a jade green lake. Fu Xiaoli lives on the eastern shore. Ideally, you should have a woman with you. She detests men but I'm hoping she will recognise your characters as good ones.”
Naturally, Wong Shi Hong thought of sending Ng Méh-è to warn Fu Xiaoli as he did with Yang Shu. Despite the nun’s disapproval of the Blue Lady’s viciousness, she would've gone if he asked. But he had miscalculated. He figured Yang Shu would heed his warning and leave Mount Yiding. If Yu Guo Wei couldn't eliminate her, he wouldn't dare touch one of the others. But with her gone, he could kill either the Blue Lady or Folding Wind and only have only one master left to contend with. Or better yet—eliminate them both at the same time.
Wong Shi Hong took a golden dagger out of his pocket and gave it to Xun Da. “Present her with this and she'll know you speak for me. Convince her to leave. If she agrees, it probably won't be with you. Just go straight back to Gongsum. She'll either follow you or go elsewhere—probably the latter. Just ensure that she's not left to face that bastard alone.”
Xun Da nodded his agreement, “Of course Shifu, we won't leave her there. You're riding for Shangqing?”
“Yes. Tao Huiqing is the greater threat to Yu Guo Wei so he'll want to deal with him himself. But he'll also want to move quickly on Fu Xiaoli. He'll send a party to Fangshen while he attacks Shangqing. I wouldn't be surprised if Wangchuk Drup is leading the southern party. He's proven to be her match before. He's injured now but as he's already beaten her, he'll have no qualms about using the soldiers and his hired experts just like Yu Guo Wei did back there.”
“Uncle Wong, can Xun Da and I face Wangchuk Drup together?”
“In his current state yes; but watch those mercenaries. They're a dangerous bunch yet they're as trustworthy as a bag of snakes. Play on that; try to use them against each other. But pay heed to his cleverness.”
With that Wong Shi Hong turned his horse and bolted up the northern road. Xun Da and Bai Feng did likewise down the southern route.
* * *
Despite the circumstances, Bai Feng and Xun Da were delighted to be once more in the other's company. When they met years ago, their eleven year age gap seemed much more than it did now. After all, Bai Feng was now a grown man. However, he still treated Xun Da like a senior martial brother. Xun Da felt uncomfortable about this given Bai Feng’s kung fu was now superior to his but he knew Bai Feng wouldn't change his demeanour. Anyway, it was nice having a younger brother to look out for.
Bai Feng was dismayed at how much conflict he'd witnessed since his return from Earthly Mountain and it was increasingly bothering him. He had lived a relatively sheltered life thus far and was slightly bewildered by the degree of hate and begrudgery in the world of people. “Brother Da, you've been all over the country these last few years. It seems like everyone is fighting.”
Xun Da appeared to think about his answer before replying soberly. “It's a time of war. Everyone knows the Qui are coming and that they'll ransack, pillage, murder, and rape their way through the countryside when they do.”
“But even the martial world is getting involved. Is that not unusual?”
“It is. The Qui have never used our own skills against us. I fear we are the reason for this.”
“We are?”
“Well, the Plum Tree Brotherhood. I suppose you've been conscripted whether you like it or not.” Xun Da smiled. “You see, the Brotherhood is a creature of Shifu’s efforts to fight the Qui. I help him direct its activities. The most difficult missions, we take care of ourselves. We use our skills to infiltrate their camps and assassinate their leaders. There's little we can do against an army of soldiers; but with our internal kung fu and our close quarter fighting skills, there's not a general who can hide from us. Of course, these are the very actions that have captured Rui’In’s attention. His logical reaction was to recruit others with our skills. To beat him, we’ll need the stronger Liu masters to ally themselves with us once and for all.” He shook his head regretfully. “And now, this plan which Li Jing and I concocted made Yang Shu, Fu Xiaoli, and Tao Huiqing targets before we ever even got a chance to warn them. Silver Phoenix is gone because of my carelessness.”
Hearing her name spoken again, Bai Feng's mind switched back to his earlier preoccupation—the poem! “Brother Da, what exactly was so special about Yang Shu's kung fu?”
“It was similar to the Blue Lady's in that it derived from the idea that the arms and legs could be wielded as objects while weapons could be wielded as extensions of the limbs. Alas, I never got to see it. Her Silver Fire Form was reputed to be amongst the most powerful styles in Wulin despite also being an exceptionally beautiful style. My master described it to me often. The concept of ‘straight circles’ played a crucial role in it.”
“Straight circles!” Bai Feng almost gasped the words out of his mouth.
“What?”
Not hearing Xun Da’s question, Bai Feng looked up to the sky as if on the verge of realising something. All of a sudden, it hit him. He reached into his sleeve and took out Yang Shu’s poem. He read it again and realised that, within the words’ meaning, lay instructions on a type of kung fu.
Silver Phoenix’s style was intricate, based on a cunning concept. Within the ten lines, Bai Feng could discern twenty different mace stances that also worked empty-handed. They were ingenious, simultaneously both circular and straight in their attacks. She had not simply encoded the movements within the words of her poem; the emotion of the poem also informed the reader on how to execute them while the calligraphy went even further and teased out the more profound ideas within the system. It truly was an eclectic work of art.
Bai Feng reigned in his horse and jumped to the ground. Swinging his arms in a series of wide arcs that funnelled suddenly into straight attacks, he began to execute the hidden form within the poem.
Xun Da watched in amazement. “That's the Silver Fire Form—exactly as my master described it! Where did you learn it?”
“It's in the poem... Here read it, learn it.” Bai Feng hurriedly gave Xun Da the scroll.
“No!” Xun Da waved his hand in shock. “Shifu gave it to you. I suspect he knew what it was.” Xun Da sighed. “Silver Phoenix is only gone a day and yet her kung fu has returned; how wonderful.”
As Bai Feng went through the form again, Xun Da noticed the depth of variation to it. Silver Phoenix forged a truly divine skill on that mountain, he thought.
Bai Feng was experiencing a wave of energy with each stance. He felt as if he was getting stronger. The form was designed for wielding a mace but the principle of each movement translated seamlessly to the empty hand. He could've gotten lost in the stances and for a time it looked like he was going to. However, time wasn't on their side. Xun Da cleared his throat bemusedly, prompting Bai Feng to stop and look up at his friend. With a guilty smile, he finished practicing as quickly as he started and the two resumed their journey. However, from then on, every time they rested, Bai Feng would practice the form repeatedly.
* * *
Half a day's ride later they entered the lakelands of the south coming across a large lake running eight kilometres in length and spanning over a kilometre in width. Xun Da had been here a few years earlier and remembered a ferry crossing that would save them some time. They rode east for ten minutes and found it easily. Pulling up outside a small house, the two men jumped down off their horses and Xun Da went inside to inquire what time the ferry would be back. The house was right on the lakeshore which itself was dotted with docked fishing boats and overhanging willow trees.
Bai Feng's attention was caught instantly by some kids playing in one of the trees. Given his ten year seclusion with the Earthly Dragon Sect, he hadn't experienced a normal childhood so, in many ways, he was still young at heart. He wandered ov
er to watch them and saw three boys and four girls between the ages of seven and twelve jumping from branch to branch until they fell into the water with a giddy splash. Bai Feng sat down against a tree and smiled, remembering the days he spent on Baiyun Mountain. The kids were just having fun without any seriousness—just as he and his friends had played. None of them could clear more than two branches but that wasn't even a concern. The fun was in the trying; and in the splashing.
However, it wasn't long before the kids were interrupted by five older boys aged between seventeen and twenty. Xun Da joined Bai Feng just as this was happening.
“Disciples of the Yellow Lake Brotherhood,” he said, nodding towards the older boys.
“They know kung fu,” remarked Bai Feng, noticing how lightly they moved. The tallest of the group was particularly adept and he cut a striking figure as he bound up the tree like a monkey. The remaining four all followed, showing off their own refined skills.
“Uh-huh.” Xun Da handed his friend a flask of water and some small apples he bought from the ferrymaster’s daughter. “Their masters are kung fu experts. But they're not part of orthodox Wulin. Their styles are unusual and their members often use their skills disreputably. Those younger ones shouldn’t give us any trouble though.” Rubbing his belly, he looked around. “The ferry isn't arriving for an hour. I'm going to get us some proper food.”
“Okay, I'll wait here and catch up on my meditation.”
As Xun Da left, Bai Feng continued to watch the older boys bounce from branch to branch almost like they were mimicking the water birds that were all over the lakeshore. The younger kids were now sitting on the lower branches wowed by the show. Soon, however, the older kids were jumping from tree to tree in search of bigger praise and within half a minute they were trying to outdo each other.