ROCH Chapter 26 onwards...

[Da Bao]

heyy i noe cantonese too..hahax..

Yeah, but my main dialect at home is Techew/Chaochou/Diojiu (whatever you wanna call it. There's many official ways to spell it)

[Xiao_Long_nu]

Yeah, but my main dialect at home is Techew/Chaochou/Diojiu (whatever you wanna call it. There's many official ways to spell it)

why are ur dialect these languages...are u a chinese..?

[Da Bao]

why are ur dialect these languages...are u a chinese..?

Yes, I'm Chinese and proud of it! What? You couldn't figure it out? lol

My Chinese name is Bao Ling, but for a username I changed it to Da (big/large) Bao (treasure).

[Xiao_Long_nu]

Yes, I'm Chinese and proud of it! What? You couldn't figure it out? lol

My Chinese name is Bao Ling, but for a username I changed it to Da (big/large) Bao (treasure).

hahax im proud as chinese too lol...and my surnames Yang..too..

[Da Bao]

hahax im proud as chinese too lol...and my surnames Yang..too..

Yang? Are you serious?!?! That's so funny/ironic/cool. That must be great, huh? To have the same last name as the character in Jin Yong's novel.

[Xiao_Long_nu]

Yang? Are you serious?!?! That's so funny/ironic/cool. That must be great, huh? To have the same last name as the character in Jin Yong's novel.

u could say that..thanks..i like my surname yeah!!

[Da Bao]

u could say that..thanks..i like my surname yeah!!

That'd be awsome, but I wouldn't changed my last name for the world I like mine. It's Lai (pronounce "Lie" like in lying)

[Da Bao]

I wish I could read more Chinese though... then I could translate. I know very little, just suffiecient enough to understand.

[Xiao_Long_nu]

I wish I could read more Chinese though... then I could translate. I know very little, just suffiecient enough to understand.

ok...but dun be sad...its tough job to trnaslate...makes the head blow...lol

[xuelian]

Since everyone is so desperate, I'll give it a humble shot. I'll try my best to work here "part-time" until Xiao_Long_nu takes over full-time... which won't be long!! Of course we don't want overlapping efforts, so Xiao_Long_nu tell me at which point you want to take over and I'll stop there

And don't worry, I'm still full-timing over at LOCH! During my "break" I managed to get a couple of weeks' worth of updates, so I have some breathing space. Anyway, enough of my rambling!

Chapter 31-4

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Li Mochou was also taken aback. “The antidote is in your daughter’s hands?”

“No,” replied Gongsun Zhi. “I’ll tell you the truth! That evil woman is excessively stubborn and violent. The antidote must be hidden in an extremely concealed place and we cannot possibly force her to hand it over. We can only resort to trickery, it’s the only way.”

“That’s correct,” said Li Mochou, nodding in agreement.

“That wretch is heartless to everyone and there are no limits to her viciousness. However she does care for her daughter and her alone, and we can use this to our advantage. I’ll trick Lu’e over so you can capture her and toss her into the flower thickets, then that evil woman will have no choice but to retrieve the Passionless Pill to save her daughter. We’ll seize this opportunity to snatch it – there’s no reason why we’ll fail. It’s a pity there’s only one Passionless Pill in the world, and since it’s going to you, my daughter’s life cannot be saved.”

“We don’t actually have to use real passion flowers to prick your daughter. We just need to put on an act and make her seem like she’s poisoned – this way, we get the pill and your daughter stays safe.”

Gongsun Zhi sighed. “That wretch is extremely shrewd. If my daughter was merely poisoned by something else, it will not go unnoticed.” His voice became constrained towards the end and he choked, as if he was really turning emotional.

Li Mochou said, “How can I let your daughter be harmed in exchange for my life? It seems also that you are reluctant to part with her. Let’s drop this matter.”

Gongsun Zhi said hurriedly, “No, no! Although I hate to part with her, it would be worse to part with you.”

Li Mochou remained silent, admitting as much that there really was no other way.

“Let’s wait here,” said Gonsun Zhi. “I’ll call her out when it’s past midnight. Clever she might be, but she would never guess that her father has got something up his sleeve.”

Gongsun Lu’e heard every sentence that had just transpired between the two, and the more she dwelled on it the more she was afraid. When Gongsun Zhi drove her and Yang Guo into the alligator pit that day, she knew her father cared naught for their father-daughter relationship. But that day’s events could be explained away as a rash fit of anger. Now, he was actually plotting and scheming his daughter's end, just to please a woman he had just met. His heartlessness and cruelty truly exceeded that of even the most savage beasts.

Gongsun Lu’e had originally lost her will to live, but when she heard them plotting her murder, she instinctively wanted to try and escape. It was a good thing that the area had plenty of hill ranges and dense forests, making hiding places aplenty. And so she lightly took one step back, and after a few moments, took another step back. In this manner, she retreated tens of feet before finally turning around to flee.

After an hour’s journey, she was far from Passionless Valley. Knowing her father would come for her soon, she didn’t even dare to return to her bedroom. She sat perched on a rock, desolate. The cold wind pierced her flesh and the pale moon glared mercilessly down. There was nothing left in this world that she longed for, and she mumbled to herself, “I didn’t want to go on living anyway. Why did you still devise this plot to kill me, father? If you want to kill me, come along and kill me. It’s very strange, why did I escape?”

Suddenly, a notion struck her like a bolt of lightning: Father is vicious, but his scheme is brilliant. Since I’m going to commit suicide anyway, I might as well use his scheme to trick the pill from mother and save Brother Yang. Then you husband and wife will have me to thank for your reunion – me, the ill-fated girl who treated him with all her heart. At this thought, her heart was filled with a mixture of gladness and sorrow, but nevertheless she found her energy once again. She glanced at her surroundings to ascertain her location. Then, she rose and walked towards her mother’s bedroom.

When she passed by the Passionless Flowers, she severed two flower stalks. Holding them in her hands, she walk to her mother’s bedroom door and called in a low voice, “Mother, are you asleep?”

Qiu Qian Chi answered from her room, “E’er, what is it?”

Lu’e cried, “Mother, mother! I’ve been pricked by the Passion Flowers.” As she spoke, she embraced the flower stalks and pushed down forcefully down onto her chest.

The hundreds and thousands of little thorns sank into her flesh all at once. Since her childhood she had been repeatedly warned against getting pricked by these flowers, but because she did not have the capacity for such desires then, she suffered no serious injury despite being pricked occasionally. But as she grew up, the warnings from people around her grew sterner. After more than 10 years of cautiously avoiding this object – to think that now, she was actually pricking herself on purpose! The pain in her heart grew a level deeper and she grit her teeth, calling again and again, “Mother!”

Shocked to hear that something was wrong with the cries, Qiu Qian Chi anxiously ordered the maidservants to open the door and help Lu’e inside. Lu’E exclaimed, “I have the Passion Flower thorns in my body, you can’t come near me.” The color drained from the two maidservants’ faces and they opened the room door wide, allowing Lu’e to walk in herself. How would they dare to touch her body?

On seeing her daughter’s body shivering with a face as pale as death, and with two Passion Flower stalks hanging from her chest, Qiu Qian Chi asked hurriedly, “What happened to you? What happened?”

Lu’e cried, “It’s father! It’s father!” Afraid of her mother’s suffocating gaze, she lowered her head, not daring to make eye contact.

Qiu Qian Chi said furiously, “And you still call him ‘father’? What did that old thief do?”

“He… he…”

“Lift up your head and let me see you.”

Lu’e obeyed and met her mother’s frightening eyes. She shivered and said, “He… he was speaking secretively with the pretty Taoist Priestess on Duan Chang Cliff… the Priestess that came to the Valley today. I hid behind a rock to hear what they were saying…” Up till now, Lu’e had been speaking the truth. But after this point she would have to spin a lie, and afraid her mother would notice something unusual, she lowered her head.

Qiu Qian Chi pressed, “What did the two of them say?”

Lu’e said, “They spoke of being together in illness, and something about being extraordinarily fated. They… they kept calling you ‘wretch’ and ‘evil woman’, and I couldn’t stomach it…” At this, she started weeping.

Grinding her teeth, Qiu Qian Chi said, “Don’t cry, don’t cry! What happened next?”

“I accidentally moved from my position, and they realized my presence. That Priestess… that Priestess then pushed me into the flower thickets.”

Sensing hesitation in her tone, Qiu Qian Chi said, “No, you’re lying! What really happened? Don’t even think of hiding it from me.”

Lu’e broke out in cold sweat. “I didn’t lie to you, this… aren’t these Passion Flowers?”

“There was something wrong with your intonation,” said Qiu Qian Chi. “You have been like this since young, unable to tell lies of any sort. How would I, as your mother, not know this?”

An idea came to Lu’e and she said, “Mother, I was lying, it was actually father who pushed me into the thickets. He was angry at me for following you and helping you, saying that I only wanted mother and not father. He… he was trying his utmost to please that pretty Taoist Priestess.”

Qiu Qian Chi hated her husband to the core and Lu’e’s words struck precisely at her heart’s threshold, suiting her perfectly. Immediately she had no further doubts and took Lu’e’s lies to be true. She hurriedly held her daughter’s hand and said gently, “Lu’e, don’t be afraid, your mother will deal with that old thief. There was always going to be a time where we finally vented this hatred in our hearts.” She then ordered the maidservants to bring her a pair of scissors and pliers. First she removed the stalks from Lu’e’s chest, then used the pliers to extract the broken thorns.

Choking with grief, Lu’e said, “Mother, I don’t think I’ll survive this time round.”

“Don’t worry, we still have one half of the Passionless Pill,” said Qiu Qian Chi. “Luckily we didn’t waste it on that heartless scoundrel Yang Guo. You won't be totally rid of the poison with only half the pill, but if you be good and stay by mother, completely ignoring all worthless men, or even completely shutting them out from your thoughts, then you’ll definitely be safe.” Qiu Qian Chi had bitterly endured her husband’s torture, and then Yang Guo had refused to become her son-in-law. She hated all the world’s men with a vengeance, and there would be nothing better than if her daughter remained unmarried all her life.

Lu’e frowned in silence. Qiu Qian Chi asked, “Where’s that old thief and the Taoist Priestess? Where are they?”

Lu’e replied, “I struggled up from the flower thickets and didn’t dare look back. They’re probably still there.”

Qiu Qian Chi thought to herself: Now that the old thief has found a powerful helper, he will definitely return to claim back the Valley. The disciples here are all probably his followers. In a confrontation, they would undoubtedly help the old thief. Either that or they will just sit on the fence, not helping any side, but they will definitely not oppose him. All my limbs are crippled and I can only use my date stone skill. If fired at an unprepared opponent, its power is extremely great. But that old thief will be on his guard and I will probably not be able to withstand his attacks. If he uses the tablet to attack, I will be left with no devices. What, then, should I do?

[Xiao_Long_nu]

hahax..thans..i will start on 14th October...so if u are free..,free to trnaslate for them..

[Bangs]

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!! XUELIAN THANK YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!! NYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!! !!!!!!

[xuelian]

No problem, glad to help out

Xiao_Long_nu - you might want to remove the quotes as it duplicates the translation, makes the page very long lol.

[williamlcb]

Greetings. I am new here and finally decided to join in this forum today. My, what a big forum you guys have here. Gasp! Bigger from the place where i was banished from, causing me to live in exile here. Xuelian, thanks a lot. I have been noticing this section for quite a while and now you have actually posted something to continue with the story. Words cannot describe my feelings now!
anyway, I will also be looking forward to hearing much of the future from the full time translater Xaio Long Nu. Go go go, Wuxia for all!

[JamesG]

No problem, glad to help out

xuelian, you are a double sweetie!

Wizard

[Da Bao]

Xuelian!!! I love you!! OMG I can't believe there's another part of the chapter finish!! I would hug you if I could!

[Xiao_Long_nu]

Xuelian!!! I love you!! OMG I can't believe there's another part of the chapter finish!! I would hug you if I could!

hahax..cool huh Xuelian...tomolo i wil post the remaining..

[xuelian]

Chapter 31-5

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Qiu Qian Chi’s eyes flickered as she remained silent, deep in thought. Thinking that her mother was now deliberating if her words were truth or fallacy, she was terrified that more questions would be asked and the truth exposed, eventually. Her own pain and suffering was secondary, but if she failed to get the Passionless Pill, Yang Guo would never be rid of the poison. The moment Yang Guo flitted into her mind, a huge pain seized her chest and she let out a cry. Qiu Qian Chi reached out and caressed her daughter’s hair, saying, “Let’s go and retrieve the Passionless Pill.” With two claps of her hand, the maidservants carried her chair out of the room.

Ever since Yang Guo went, Lu’e had always wanted to know where her mother had hidden the half Passionless Pill. She had heard her mother mention before that the pill must never be hidden near her, or anyone could just kill her and obtain it through a simple search. Lu’e thought to herself that since her mother was disabled and required people to carry her around, the pill couldn’t possibly be hidden in some place of extremely great height. Hiding it in the mountain caves or secluded valleys was also out of the question, so it should be hidden within the manor. But Lu’e had spent the last 10 days or so searching the Pill Room, the Sword Room, the garden and the bedrooms, but there was no sign of it anywhere. Presently, the maidservants carried Qiu Qian Chi towards the Great Hall, and this came as a big surprise. The Hall was where everyone frequented and it was the hardest place to conceal an object. Furthermore, strong opponents seeking the Passionless Pill were now congregated in the Great Hall itself. Could it be that the Pill had been there all along for anyone’s taking?

The steel doors of the Great Hall had been firmly shut and the disciples were guarding it with their knives and fishnets. Upon seeing Qiu Qian Chi’s arrival, the disciples went forward and saluted. The head disciple bowed and said, “The enemies have not made any move and seem to be helplessly waiting for death.”

Qiu Qian Chi retorted with a “humph”, thinking: What a frog in the well, not knowing the vastness of earth and sky. These are no ordinary people who have come with ill intentions. How could they be ones to helplessly wait for death? Aloud, she commanded, “Open the door!” Two disciples opened the steel door while another eight flanked Qiu Qian Chi, guarding her with two fishnets. Together, they moved into the Hall.

Yi Deng, Huang Rong, Wu San Tong and Ye Lu Qi were all sitting at one corner of the Hall. After Qiu Qian Chi’s maidservants lowered her chair onto the floor, she said, “All here except Huang Rong and her two daughters are free to leave without hindrance. I will not pursue your crimes of intruding the Valley, so please take your leave immediately.”

Huang Rong smiled and said, “Valley-Owner Qiu, a misfortune looms over your head and still you do not know to flee. Instead you come here and exaggerate your importance. It makes one’s teeth go cold.”

Qiu Qian Chi’s heart chilled at this, thinking: How does she know a misfortune looms? Could it be that she knows the old thief has returned? She said coolly, “Whether it is a blessing or misfortune, retribution will reveal. This old lady is a cripple with handicapped limbs, what else can I be afraid of?”

Of course, Huang Rong knew nothing of Gongsun Zhi’s return. But one’s countenance speaks everything: she noticed that there was a furrow in Qiu Qian Chi’s brow and could tell that something weighed heavily on her mind. This was a contrast from the arrogant and ruthless expression she wore when exiting the Hall. Huang Rong conjectured that something must have cropped up in the Valley and so, said a few words to verify. Qiu Qian Chi’s defensive response told her that she was most probably right.

“Valley-Owner Qiu, your elder brother slipped and fell into the depths of the valley himself, and was definitely not harmed by junior. If you still bear a grudge over this matter then junior will not try to avoid death, but you must first hand over the antidote to cure Yang Guo’s poison,” said Huang Rong. “If I do die, all my friends here will bear no grudge against you for it and will even help you fend off this pending misfortune and fight the internal enemy. Do you accept this bargain?”

Huang Rong’s offer seemed extremely advantageous to Qiu Qian Chi, seeing as the latter, being a cripple, could only rely on her powerful date stone skill to inflict any kind of harm. Mentioning the words ‘internal enemy’ also struck Qiu Qian Chi's biggest worry.

Qiu Qian Chi thought to herself: Isn’t this too good to be true? Aloud, she said: “You are Leader of the Beggars’ Union, so I assume you will hold true to your words. Should I strike you with three of my date stones, you will not dodge or use any weapon to deflect them?”

Before Huang Rong could even reply, Guo Fu butted in, “My mother just said she will not avoid it, but she never said she wouldn’t use a weapon to deflect it.”

Huang Rong smiled and said, “If Valley-Owner Qiu wants to vent her heart’s hatred, then junior will certainly not use any weapons to deflect.”

“Mother! How can this do?” Cried Guo Fu. Her long sword had earlier been broken by the date stone’s strike, and she knew its power was incomparable. Her mother was after all made of flesh and blood, how could she survive without avoiding or deflecting?

But Huang Rong thought: The Guo family owes Guo’er a huge debt. Now that he has contracted this deadly poison, we must obtain the antidote no matter what. Her date stone skill is the deadliest projectile in the world, if I let her hit me with 3 stones it is indeed dangerous. Just a slight moment of carelessness will cost me my life, but how would she be willing to hand over the antidote otherwise?

Huang Rong had chosen her words wisely, making sure that Qiu Qian Chi’s every need was met. The intention was to lessen her bitterness and worry. In her moment of anxiety they would help her fend off her enemy, and to lessen her bitterness she would be free to injure Huang Rong in the only way she could. Even Qiu Qian Chi herself would not be able to think a more advantageous offer than this.

But Qiu Qian Chi suspected it was too good to be true. She said hoarsely: “You are my mortal enemy, yet here you are, willing to take three date stones from me. What scheme are you hiding? What ill intentions do you have?”

Huang Rong went forward and said in a low voice, “There are many pairs of eyes and ears in this place, most of which harbor ill intentions towards you. I’m going to whisper a few things in your ear.”

Qiu Qian Chi swept a glance at all the disciples and thought: Amongst them are many of the old thief’s followers. Indeed I should be careful. She nodded.

Huang Rong went near and whispered, “Your enemy will be attacking soon. Isn’t junior in a precarious situation as well? Let us quickly bury this hatchet and, no matter if junior lives or dies, everyone can fight side-by-side and resist the enemy. Furthermore I am indebted to Yang Guo, I must obtain the Passionless Pill for him even if it costs me my life. If one does not know how to repay kindness, wouldn’t he be no different than any beast on this earth?” Ending her sentence, she took three steps back and concentrated her gaze on Qiu Qian Chi.

At the words ‘if one does not know how to repay kindness, wouldn’t he be no different than any beast’, Qiu Qian Chi gave a start, thinking: If it wasn’t for that fellow Yang Guo who saved me, I’d still be all alone in that underground cave, suffering in silence. But this thought came and went as fast as lightning and her heart hardened once more. She said icily: “Your pretty words do nothing to change my iron heart. Come, come! Take three of my date stones!”

Huang Rong flung her sleeve and said, “Then I’ll put my life on the line and take three of your date stones.” As she spoke she moved backwards, stopping at the middle of the Hall about 30 feet from Qiu Qian Chi. “Please fire your date stones!”

Though Wu San Tong knew that Huang Rong was always full of wit and ideas, everyone was witness to the power of Qiu Qian Chi’s date stone skill and now, seeing Huang Rong stand there with barehanded, all their hearts beat anxiously. Guo Fu was even more worried and walked over to Huang Rong, tugging at her sleeve. “Mother,” she whispered. “Let’s find a place, I’ll give you the Hedgehog Armor so you can put it on, then we don’t have to be afraid of that old hag’s deadly projectiles.”

Huang Rong smiled. “What’s the big deal if I use the Hedgehog Armor to block the date stones? Wait and see your mother’s method.”

At this moment, Qiu Qian Chi said: “Everyone else move…” before the word ‘aside’ left her mouth, a date stone had already been fired at Huang Rong’s abdomen. Though it was just a tiny date stone, it sliced through the air so violently that the sound of its speed sounded like a shrill flute. With a high-pitched cry, Huang Rong bent over, clutching her stomach.

Guo Fu, Wu San Tong and the others were horrified and before they could go over to help her up, the ‘flute’ sounded again – the second date stone had been fired, this time at Huang Rong’s chest. Again, with a loud cry, Huang Rong swayed and moved unsteadily backwards, looking like she was about to fall.

Qiu Qian Chi saw that Huang Rong was indeed true to her word, making no attempt to dodge. The two date stones had already struck the essential points of her body. With that same kind of compelling force, the date stones could break even a rock, what more human flesh? But Huang Rong had sustained two date stones without falling, obviously hanging on despite the pain to receive the third date stone. Secretly astounded, Qiu Qian Chi thought to herself: At first I thought this woman looked too delicate to possess any real substance as Leader of the Beggars’ Union. But now it seems like she is indeed a formidable pugilist!

At the thought of Huang Rong’s imminent death after receiving two date stones, she couldn’t help but feel pleased. With a “po” sound, the third date stone left her mouth. This time, it went for Huang Rong’s throat. With the stone penetrating the throat, her brother’s killer would definitely die on the spot.

[Bangs]

Wow what a fast update! Xuelian thank you!

Huang Rong is in trouble, she's a very smart woman though, I believe she'll make it through this one. Nice story as always.

Thanks Xuelian!!!!!

[xuelian]

Your welcome Bangs! Like you guessed, this is just another example of Huang Rong's brilliance... all will be revealed in Xiao_Long_nu's installment tomorrow