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Thread: Legend of the White Haired Maiden

  1. #41
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    Cool

    More more more. How many chapters are there ?

  2. #42
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    I loved this story, that ZYH, what a lucky guy?
    too bad he doesn't know it and wasted it for something
    stupid

  3. #43
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    When is the next chap coming out? the suspense is killing me!
    Ren Zai Jiang Hu Shen Bu You Ji
    Tian Xia Ying Xiong
    Dao Di Shei Neng Gou
    Xiao Ao Jiang Hu

  4. #44
    Senior Member Du Gu seeking a win's Avatar
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    Default Rest of Chapter 6

    Early morning of the next day, Zhuo Yi Hang bid his farewells to Wang Zhao Xi. Since Wang Zhao Xi knew that Zhuo was determined to leave, he did not try to detain him. They delivered their best wishes to each other and then departed with tears in their eyes.

    Having recently undergone a series of traumatic changes, Zhuo Yi Hang was filled with sorrow and dejection. But at the same time, he knew that there were matters concerning the state and country which could not be ignored. He thought over such matters for quite a while before he finally decided to take the next step of journeying to the capital and report to the Crown Prince about the traitors who have been bought out by the Manchurians. He figured that he could take this chance to proclaim his innocence as well.

    In order to arrive at the capital, he decided to take the path through ShanXi and then turn into Hebei. It took him only seven days to arrive into the ShanXi area and as he entered into the LongMen County that day, he marvelled at the force of the Yellow River’s rushing currents and the grand majesty of the stone cliffs that comprised a most sublime scene. Zhuo Yi Hang suddenly remembered that Tie Fei Long and his daughter resided in this area and couldn’t stop a jolt of fear from striking at his heart. His eyes darted all around him but he found no other pedestrians alongside the roads. In fact, the only things that could be discerned were the faint outlines of boat sails seen amidst the far seas. Zhuo Yi Hang felt quite lonely during his trip as he trudged along, accompanied by only his own shadow. After walking for a while, he passed over a hill to suddenly come face to face with a villa situated right in front of him.

    Zhuo Yi Hang thought to himself, "Could this be the ‘Tie Villa’?" and just as he was in the process of mumbling to himself, he suddenly heard a series of cold laughter sound from behind him. When he whipped his head around, he was shocked to discover that it was none other than Yun Yan Ping and Jin Qian Yan! Yun Yan Ping sneered, "Hey! Where’s your bodyguard Yu Luo Cha? You know kid, if you had stuck to her, we may not have been able to do anything to you. But I can’t believe that you would actually dare to run around on your own!" Zhuo Yi Hang extracted his sword from its sheath and shouted angrily, "Even if I’m by myself, I’m still not afraid of you!" Jin Qian Yan laughed and said, "Oh, what a brave little hero! Did you really think that we weren’t aware of the limits to your capabilities? You can just quit your bluffing now."

    Amidst the laughing and jeering, a loud gust was suddenly heard as Jin’s palm struck out to attack. With a twist of his waist followed by a quick dodge, Zhuo Yi Hang immediately retaliated with a swipe of his sword. Jin Qian Yan’s body flitted up as he threw a punch with his left hand and then initiated a palm strike using his right hand. He punched towards Zhuo’s chest and slashed towards his wrist, enabling the same stance to be simultaneously executed in two different fashions. With a quick twist of his body, Zhuo Yi Hang blocked with his treasured sword and attacked from the side. With a ferocious growl, Jin Qian Yan’s right index finger suddenly flicked out at Zhuo’s sword blade, causing the sword to swerve to one side. Then with a punch using his left fist, Jin immediately advanced to attack again.

    Zhuo Yi Hang hurriedly executed the "Reverse Seven Star Steps" and branded his sword in accordance with the movements of his body. Amongst the piercing glint shooting out from the sword’s blade, Zhuo executed the stance "Toss of the Golden Coins" to chop towards Jin’s palm and pierce towards his wrist. The stance arrived with such startling speed that Jin Qian Yan did not dare to intercept with his fingers, therefore with a "Twist and Hook," he expanded his arms and grasped towards Zhuo Yi Hang’s head with his vermillion coloured palms. Knowing that Jin was the practitioner of the Venomous Palms of Yin Winds, how could Zhuo Yi Hang possibly dare to intercept this attack? Therefore he could only thwart the attack with his sword’s blade and then sneak out from under the gusts of his opponent’s palm strikes to execute the 72 Styles of the Sequential-Linking Swords, conjuring up such a storm that his opponent dared not to approach.

    Although Jin Qian Yan’s movements were not as agile and lithe as Zhuo Yi Hang’s, yet his overall martial art cultivation was far above Zhuo Yi Hang’s and as a result, his palm strikes were extremely forceful. Furthermore, the Venomous Palms of the Yin Winds was such a deadly and poisonous martial art that had Zhuo Yi Hang not been a practitioner of internal energies, he would have found it difficult to withstand even a light whiff coming from Jin’s palm strikes. After the two fighters have battled for up to fifty or seventy stances, Zhuo Yi Hang was already beginning to show the signs of eminent defeat. On top of that, there was still a Yun Yan Ping observing the battle from the sideline with his waist belt in hand, ready for attack at any moment.

    Since Zhuo Yi Hang knew that he wasn’t their match, he could only attempt to devise an escape plan while still engaged in battle. During the most intense moment of their combat, Zhuo Yi Hang faked a move and then immediately dashed towards the direction of the villa. Yun Yan Ping’s levitation skills were quite superb and after shouting out loudly "Where do you think you’re going?" his toes tapped lightly on the ground and with just three sequential jumps, he has already arrived behind Zhuo Yi Hang. With a flicker of his belt, the sash coiled towards Zhuo Yi Hang’s waist, yet Zhuo has already dashed into the villa with just a few quick darts. Yun Yan Ping’s belt was like a python snake that never left Zhuo’s back for more than three inches and just when the danger has escalated to its most urgent point, a woman’s clear laughter rang out from amongst the cluster of flowers and trees planted by the side of the road. A pair of long handled scissors then suddenly emerged to cut Yun Yan Ping’s belt into two pieces!

    From amongst the cluster of flowers and trees, a woman suddenly emerged. She was followed by another woman. The one who was walking in front was the same middle-aged matron who was just recently wounded under Yu Luo Cha’s projectiles. Behind her was Tie Fei Long’s daughter Tie Shan Hu. Yun Yan Ping hurriedly folded his fists to perform obeisance and said, "Jiu Niang (1) , this kid is bad news." He then also said, "Miss Shan Hu, last time you lent out a helping hand to us. Can you please see us to the end here and help us out again by capturing this kid for us?" Tie Shan Hu laughed with scorn and said, "I will only do what I want to do. Why would I want to help you guys out?" The middle-aged matron then said with a displeased expression, "Our Master has already said that he won’t see the two of you. So why did you guys come barging into here again?" Yun Yan Ping replied, "We were chasing after that kid and ended up here. Did you not see that elder?" The middle-aged matron scoffed, "You expect me to bother myself with taking notice of your trifling matters? Did you think our Tie Villa was a place you can just charge into at will? Now get out of here right away, Go!" Yun Yan Ping and Jin Qian Yan just looked at each other and did not know what to say.

    This middle-aged matron was named Mu Jiu Niang and she was the stepmother of Tie Shan Hu. When Tie Fei Long lost his wife during his midlife years, he later took a street performer as his wife. Although he adamantly refused to establish Mu Jiu Niang as his official wife out of respect for his deceased wife, yet Mu Jiu Niang was still highly favoured and dotted upon. Therefore the only thing that Jin Qian Yan and Yun Yan Ping could do was to stare at each other for even though their martial arts were far above that of Mu Jiu Niang’s, yet they feared her powerful backup. Even if they had been ten times gutsier, they would still never dare to initiate any conflict with Tie Fei Long’s precious concubine.

    Mu Jiu Niang shouted again, "Are you guys really itching for a good beating? Why aren’t you guys scramming like I told you to? Did you really want me to call upon the Old Master and ask him to personally see you guys to the door?" Yun Yan Ping hurriedly insisted, "Jiu Niang, please do not mind us. We will leave your esteemed abode immediately." After a hateful glare at Zhuo Yi Hang, he then quickly ran out of the village with Jin Qian Yan.

    Just as Zhuo Yi Hang was about to retreat as well, Mu Jiu Niang beckoned with her hands and said with an inviting smile, "Where are you going? Come here!" Zhuo Yi Hang lifted his sleeves and then said with a bow, "I dare not disturb the Master of the Villa." Mu Jiu Niang remarked, "Silly boy, if you go out now those two people will still be hanging around. Don’t forget that you’re not their match, did you really want to die?" Zhuo Yi Hang blushed and realized that there was indeed reason behind these words; therefore he could only follow them inside the mansion.

    Mu Jiu Niang brought him to West-end reception room while Tie Shan Hu brought forth fragrant tea and then suddenly asked, "Is Wang Zhao Xi going to be with you?" Zhuo Yi Hang replied, "No." Tie Shan Hu looked as if she was quite disappointed and with a twist of her body, ran outside the reception room. After a while, Tie Fei Long entered the room with his daughter by his side and Zhuo Yi Hang hurriedly issued a courteous bow in greeting.

    Tie Fie Long asked him for his name and then suddenly remarked, "You’re a descendent of Zhuo Zhong Lian?" Zhuo Yi Hang stood up and said, "He is my grandfather." Tie Fei Long’s expression did not falter as he continued, "Is Wang Zhao Xi a good friend of yours?" Zhuo Yi Hang replied, "You can say that we are acquaintances formed in the name of honour." Tie Fei Long gave a cold snicker and said, "Wang Jia Yin could be considered as a powerful figure of the Underground world, yet why is he always interested in hanging around government officials?" Zhuo Yi Hang was extremely displeased, but Tie Fei Long continued, "Is that thieving wench who battled with me the other day also with you?" Although Zhuo Yi Hang was indeed displeased with the fact that Yu Luo Cha was a bandit, yet upon hearing others insult her as a "thieving wench," fury still erupted in his heart. He coldly stated, "Please do enlightened your unworthy junior as to what line of reasoning you abide by old hero Tie; you say that you despise the government officials and yet, you similarly detest the bandits."

    Tie Fie Long was infuriated as he shouted, "Mind your manners you pompous brat!" and immediately extended his hands to grasp down on Zhuo’s shoulders. Zhuo Yi Hang sunk his shoulders and lowered his elbow in order to struggle free from his grasp. Although he did manage to escape out of this deadlock, yet he also felt as if his shoulder was just scalded by a rope made of fire as he was overwhelmed by painful burning sensation.

    Tie Fei Long’s expression immediately changed as he shouted, "You’re the disciple of Taoist Priest Purple Sun?" Zhuo Yi Hang replied, "Indeed, he is my revered ShiFu." Tie Fei Long murmured an "Oh," as Zhuo Yi Hang continued, "Seven or eight years ago, I was still at Wu Tang accompanying my ShiFu. At that time, I have already seen you Elder Tie." Tie Fei Long again murmured an "Oh" as his expression immediately softened and with a sweep of his hand he said, "Have a seat."

    Zhuo Yi Hang sat down as instructed and Tie Fei Long said, "I once had the opportunity to meet your ShiFu and so I have no desire to give you a hard time. But you must answer me truthfully, that girl who battled with me the other day – who is she?" Zhuo Yi Hang proudly replied, "She is the famed Yu Luo Cha, whose mere name can cause the abandonment of all guts and the loss of all courage amongst the crowds of the Underground world!" Tie Fie Long jumped up and cried, "Ha! So she’s Yu Luo Cha?! And I always thought that the talk amongst the Underground world were merely exaggerations! It seems that she does have some credibility to her martial arts." He continued to ask, "And who are you to her?" Zhuo Yi Hang replied, "You can say that we are acquaintances formed in the name of honour," causing Tie Fei Long to immediately burst out into a series of loud guffaws.

    Zhuo Yi Hang had no idea what that was all about, but after Tie Fei Long had his share of laughing he finally said, "I was just planning to bring Yu Luo Cha and Wang Zhao Xi over here. Since you guys are all acquaintances formed in the name of honour then that’s perfect! But I’m afraid that I will have to inconvenience you by asking you to remain here at my humble abode for a few days, which means that I can’t let you go until they get here!" Zhuo Yi Hang reacted with anger, "So what elder you are trying to say is that you plan to kidnap me and put me under restraint?" Tie Fei Long replied, "That’s right! However, on the account of your ShiFu I won’t put you under restraint. But don’t you even think about escaping!" Thus he brought Zhuo out of the reception room and pushed him into the woodshed before locking the door behind him and saying, "I’m afraid the room’s not too ideal, but you’ll just have to tolerate it for a few days."

    Though Zhuo Yi Hang was thrown into the woodshed, yet he knew that he was dealing with a man of a very peculiar temper and could therefore only accept the situation as it was. He proceeded to sit cross-legged on the floor and began to practice the cultivation of his internal energies. By nightfall Mu Jiu Niang has already arrived with his dinner. She smiled and said, "Wow, aren’t you very hardworking!" but Zhuo Yi Hang ignored her and swallowed down his dinner in just two or three gulps. Mu Jiu Niang sat down beside him and was watching him eat when her almond shaped face suddenly flushed a shade of light pink. After she had stared at Zhuo for a little while longer, she then lowered her head. But from then on, every meal was delivered by Mu Jiu Niang and furthermore, the quality of the dishes got increasingly better. Not only was there wild fowl and mountainous livestock, but there was also carp fish from the Yellow Rivers.

    Every time that Mu Jiu Niang came, she would chatter on and on and on, but Zhuo Yi Hang would barely take any notice of her, leaving her to be quite dispirited. One night, Mu Jiu Niang came again for another babbling session and said to Zhuo Yi Hang, "People say that your ShiFu is the number one swordsman in the world. Then your sword skills must also be quite good. Why don’t you perform a few moves for me?" Zhuo Yi Hang did not budge a finger and instead stated coldly, "I am your prisoner, how could I be allowed to play with swords and knives?" Mu Jiu Niang replied, "Oh I see, you’re still angry at our master. But that’s understandable, after all you’re a descendent from a wealthy family of officials, how can you possibly tolerate this kind of suffering? Did you want to run away?" Zhuo Yi Hang kept his lips tightly sealed and did not utter a single word in reply.

    Mu Jiu Niang continued, "Did you know why our master has to lock you up here like this? It’s all because of his precious daughter." Zhuo Yi Hang was quite taken back as he asked, "What?" while thinking in his heart: one is already hard enough to handle, what am I going to do if another one latches on? Mu Jiu Niang laughed and said, "Shan Hu’s heart is set on marrying Wang Zhao Xi, but it turns out that Wang Zhao Xi already has a fiancé." She immediately stopped once she has gotten to this part but Zhuo Yi Hang was already silently crying to himself "Oh no!" before Mu Jiu Niang could add, "Therefore he has to lock you up here." Zhuo Yi Hang hurriedly stammered, "But what does that have to do with me? There are plenty of other men in this world!" Mu Jiu Niang’s laughter rang out and flourished like a flower dancing in the breeze, causing Zhuo Yi Hang to be quite baffled. Mu Jiu Niang laughed for a while longer and then extended her index and middle finger to teasingly brush across her face while laughing, "Oh dear! What an egotistical Narcissist! Did you think that she has her eyes set upon you? Shan Hu wants to lock you up here in order that she may lure Wang Zhao Xi to the Tie Villa and then …" having gotten to this part, she suddenly stopped again.

    Zhuo Yi Hang let out a sigh of relief as he secretly laughed at himself for letting his imagination run out of control while Mu Jiu Niang suddenly sighed and remarked wistfully, "But perhaps there is someone else who has their eyes set upon you." Zhuo Yi Hang sat crossed-legged on the floor and completely ignored her, once again causing Mu Jiu Niang to be quite dispirited. She then leaned forward and attempted to make small talk, "Did your ShiFu give you this sword?" Zhuo Yi Hang continued to ignore her, but Mu Jiu Niang suddenly stretched her hand towards his waist and snatched his sword away from him. Zhuo Yi Hang immediately leaped up and said, "What are you doing?" Mu Jiu Niang pouted, "Can’t I even take a quick peek?" Zhuo Yi Hang was just about to snatch it back when Mu Jiu Niang immediately hid the sword behind her body while simultaneously thrusting her chest forward. Just when Zhuo Yi Hang was in the process of hurriedly retreating, a cold laugh drifted in from outside the door followed by the words, "Shameless tramp!" The sound of a loud bang was immediately heard as the door was suddenly kicked open, causing Mu Jiu Niang to jump up in fright. A young girl was immediately seen to jump inside and it turned out to be none other than Yu Luo Cha!

    Zhuo Yi Hang cried, "Lian jiejie!" while Yu Luo Cha glared and did not respond. Her expression filled with the iciness of the wintry frost as she turned towards Mu Jiu Niang and said, "What do you think you’re doing here? Humph! You really have no sense of shame!"

    When has Mu Jiu Niang ever experienced such ridicule and chastising? Though embarrassed, she was simultaneously infuriated which is why even though she knew that she wasn’t Yu Luo Cha’s match, yet she simply found it impossible to settle the fire that was arising within her heart. With a swipe of her sword, she immediately lashed out at Yu Luo Cha, but Yu Luo Cha only laughed coldly and then executed a stance in return, immediately causing Mu Jiu Niang’s sword to fly#####ds. However, with just a sweep and rotate of her sword, Mu Jiu Niang was able to retract her sword and then extract it from its sheath before she hurriedly escaped through the window.

    Yu Luo Cha was momentarily dumbfounded, for the stance that Mu Jiu Niang just executed was again a stance taken from her ShiFu’s exclusive sword art. She hurriedly chased outside and with just a flit of her silhouette, immediately zipped above Mu Jiu Niang’s head to land in front of her, completely blocking her way of escape. Then with a stab of her sword and a leap towards the left, Yu Luo Cha used her residual momentum to immediately rotate the tip of her blade around. This was a powerful move within her exclusive sword art and unless the internal energies of one’s opponent was far above that of one’s own, otherwise the opponent must employ a stance from the same school of sword art in order to dismantle it.

    As expected, Mu Jiu Niang did indeed block with her sword by using her blade to deflect from left towards the right and then with just an additional sink of her sword, Mu Jiu Niang was able to dismantle the stance. Although her movements were not at all well-practiced, yet it could be ascertained without any more doubt that she has indeed read the sword manual. Yu Luo Cha unleashed a series of wild laughter and no longer held any mercy in her attack.

    Her sword stances succeeded each other with such urgent force that with just two quick swipes, she was able to simultaneously pierce towards the acupoints located on the two sides of Mu Jiu Niang’s body. Although Mu Jiu Niang has indeed secretly practiced Yu Luo Cha’s sword manual, yet these days were nevertheless limited and the stances weren’t even well-practiced yet, thus how could she possibly withstand Yu Luo Cha? In just a flash, Yu Luo Cha’s sword has already pierced through Mu Jiu Niang’s clothes and entered into the acupoints located on the two sides of her body, causing Mu Jiu Niang to fall over backwards.

    Yu Luo Cha retracted her sword and laughed wildly, but just when she was about to pursue, Tie Fie Long has already charged out and after a sweep of the scene with his two eyes, his anger erupted like the raging thunders. With a sweep of his Iron Palms, he roared furiously, "Yu Luo Cha, you’ve gone too far! Since you’ve come to my doors requesting a duel, then why didn’t you follow the rules of the JiangHu world and presented a calling card? What vengeful score could you possibly have with her that would justify you to use such deadly actions?!" Yu Luo Cha snickered and said with an icy tone, "Humph! Your whole family is a bunch of petty and dirty thieves!" With an angry snarl, Tie Fei Long immediately struck out with a sweep of his palms. Yu Luo Cha flipped her body over and attacked, all the while laughing coldly and saying, "If you don’t return my sword manual to me, I swear that you will never see the end of me!"

    Tie Fie Long intercepted a few stances with ferocious fervour before issuing a violent blow that forced Yu Luo Cha to retreat a few steps and then shouted out, "A bunch of crap! What sword manual?" Yu Luo Cha struck again with her sword while sneering, "What use is there in pretending that you know nothing? If it wasn’t you who stole my sword manual, then how come your precious daughter and that flirtatious fox would know how to execute my ShiFu’s exclusive sword stances?" With another lion’s roar, Tie Fei Long’s two fists struck out and once again forced Yu Luo Cha to retreat a few steps. He then immediately jumped out of the battle sphere and shouted, "Wait! Let me get this straight first!" and then jumped to Mu Jiu Niang’s side to help her up.

    When he observed that she was bleeding from her sides, he was initially filled with tender compassion until the cold light radiating from a sword blade caught his eye and he discovered the long sword that laid by her side. Tie Fei Long immediately recognized that this was Taoist Priest Purple Sun’s Ice Ray Sword and thus no further questions needed to be asked in order for one to determine that the sword was taken from Zhuo Yi Hang’s body. Suddenly the two words "flirtatious fox" rang in Tie’s head again, causing him to undergo a change of colour as he growled in a low tone, "Why did you steal another person’s esteemed sword?"

    The traces of an icy sneer hung by Yu Luo Cha’s lips, but just when she was about to open her mouth to speak, she suddenly noticed that Mu Jiu Niang was trembling violently. Unspeakable volumes of terror could be discerned from her eyes, a look that very much resembled the horror found in the eyes of the ferocious bandits that would usually die under her own hands. She suddenly thought of the words that Zhuo Yi Hang said to her when they were in the cave, and she didn’t know why, but she was suddenly filled with a merciful compassion that caused her to hold back the truth that have already arrived at her lips.

    When Mu Jiu Niang saw that Yu Luo Cha did not reveal anything, she let out a sigh of relief and then said with a trembling voice, "She broke through the door with her sword in her hand and since I didn’t have any weapons in my hand at that time, I could only borrow Zhuo Yi Hang’s sword for the time being." These words sounded quite reasonable but Tie Fei Long continued to bellow, "Then did you take the sword manual?" Mu Jiu Niang could only continue to shamelessly deny her guilt as she stammered, "N…n…no, I didn’t." Tie Fei Long roared, "Bring Shan Hu here!" causing Mu Jiu Niang’s face to be suddenly drained of all colour.

    Such is: The extraordinary book brings about extraordinary calamities, jade bones consumed by dust and sand.

    **************************************

    1) "Jiu Niang": Mu Jiu Niang is the name of Tie Fei Long’s concubine. The word "Jiu" literally means Nine (9), whereas the word "Niang" can also mean "lady," "madam" etc.

  5. #45
    Senior Member Du Gu seeking a win's Avatar
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    Default Chapter 7

    Chapter 7

    Sword Manual Incites Unthinkable Tragedy
    One Storm Succeeds Another
    Sect Leader Imparts Heavy Responsibility
    Unexpected Misunderstandings Erupts Everywhere

    Now more suspicious than ever, Tie Fie Long bounded on top of the fake mountain and furiously hollered three times, "Shan Hu … Shan Hu … Shan Hu!" Yet not only was he met with no response, but two silhouettes were furthermore seen to flit out from behind the back courtyard’s walls. This was directly followed by a loud "poom" sound and a wave of flames that blazed straight towards the skies. Tie Fei Long pointed to Mu Jiu Niang and screamed, "Wench! Don’t you dare move!" Yu Luo Cha snickered and then stood beside Mu Jiu Niang with her sword in her hand before gently saying to Tie Fei Long, "Go. I’ll be here to take care of things, don’t worry."

    Tie Fei Long’s short beard was bristling with a fury that caused each individual hair to stick out like sharp lances. He has been spending the last twenty or thirty years of his life living the life of a tiger whose whiskers nobody dared to mess around with. But now somebody has not only barged into his home, but has actually dared to set fire upon it! His rage at that moment was simply shooting through the roof! When he observed the two silhouettes, he noticed right away that their movements were extremely fast, indicating that they possessed a very high level of martial arts. He was already anxious to begin with, but now worried about the fact that his daughter might have come under harm, he actually felt fear. Thus he gave up the prospect of chasing after his opponents and ran towards the site of fire instead.

    Just when he has flitted across two buildings, three people promptly shot out from amongst the glare of the flames. The group consisted of two women and one man – the male was Wang Zhao Xi and the two females were Meng Qiu Xia and Tie Shan Hu. Moreover, Tie Shan Hu’s face was ghostly pale as she was being carried out by Meng Qiu Xia!

    With a loud "humph," Tie Fie Long charged forward and bellowed, "Wang Zhao Xi, you have some nerve! You can take away your fiancé, but why did you have to set fire upon my house and then wound my daughter?" But just when he has grasped out with his hands, Tie Shan Hu suddenly opened up her eyes to shout, "Papa, it’s not him!" Wang Zhao Xi stole three steps to the side as Tie Fei Long also retracted his palms and growled, "Then who was it?" Tie Shan Hu replied, "It was Jin Qian Yan’s uncle!" Tie Fei Long’s face suddenly changed colours as Wang Zhao Xi said, "Right now it’s more important to put out the fire. We can hunt down those two scoundrels another time."

    Tie Fie Long thought over Wang’s words and felt that they did indeed make sense. Jin Qian Yan’s uncle was named Jin Du Yi, but he has always resided in the far Western frontiers and has not stepped foot outside the South and Northern Tian Shan area during the last thirty years. Jin Du Yi was also a practitioner of the Venomous Palms of the Yin Winds, but his skill level has reached such pinnacle levels that Jin Qian Yan was only able to capture six or seventh tenths of what his uncle has achieved. Thirty years ago, Tie Fei Long once had the chance of encountering Jin Du Yi, but at that time, Jin still has not succeeded in completing his Venomous Palms yet. Yet even then, they were already equally matched in battle. Tie heard afterwards that Jin has finally succeeded in his Venomous Palms and has publicly taken a vast number of disciples from the Western regions while his actions were also quite peculiar. But by that time, Tie Fei Long has already secluded himself within the LongMen County, pretty much ignoring the matters of the JiangHu world.

    The two of them each went their own separate ways and had not bothered to correspond with the other person during all these years until Jin Qian Yan suddenly paid a visit along with Yun Yan Ping three days ago. But because Tie Fei Long detested Jin’s uncle, he did not grant him the right to be received into the house and thus the moment that Jin Qian Yan stepped foot inside the Villa’s front gates, Mu Jiu Niang has already acted upon Tie’s orders to shoo them right back out. This incident caused Tie Fei Long to think to himself: Could it be that the old freak was angered by how I kicked his nephew out of my house and therefore purposely came here tonight to seek revenge? But if that is the case, then his breadth of heart is seriously much too cramped. However his martial arts are indeed very powerful and even if I chased after him, I wouldn’t be able to catch up. Therefore he could only follow Wang’s advice and put out the fire first.

    On the other hand, Meng Qiu Xia who has travelled a million miles in search for her husband has finally reunited with him now. Yet, she couldn’t help herself from being overcome with all sorts of emotions as she stared at Wang Zhao Xi and then looked at Tie Shan Hu under the light that cascaded from the fire’s flames. What had happened was that as soon as Meng departed from the capital, she then promptly travelled towards the Northwest regions. Since she was an alert and careful girl who was practiced in martial arts, therefore even though she had to travel through millions of miles, yet luckily nothing bad happened.

    One day, she arrived in ShaanXi and happened to stumble across Tie Shan Hu and Mu Jiu Niang as she was walking along the path. Since they were all girls of the JiangHu world, they easily struck up a pleasant conversation with each other. However, in the midst of their conversation, Meng Qiu Xia happened to reveal that she was here in ShaanXi in search of her husband. Because Tie Shan Hu had her own romantic problems to think about, she took particular note of Meng’s words and purposely asked questions in order to probe into Meng’s situation. Though Meng Qiu Xia was alert and quick, yet she was still nevertheless quite inexperienced with the world and ended up making the mistake of revealing Wang Zhao Xi’s name. With a cold sneer, Tie Shan Hu struck out unexpectedly, moving with the speed of lightning to seal Meng’s acupoint.

    By the time that Meng Qiu Xia finally woke up, she found that she was already situated within the Tie Villa. Because Tie Shan Hu still had the temper and disposition of a child, when she heard Meng say that she was the fiancée of Wang Zhao Xi, she immediately ignored all consequences in order to strike her down. When she returned home and reported to her father, she was initially a little uneasy for fear that her father would reprimand her. Yet Tie Fei Long only stroked his beard and laughed while saying, "Wang Jia Yin is a Lord of the Underground world, yet he would actually go and become in-laws with some kind of martial art instructor that works for the Crown Prince! So let him undergo a little ridicule." Tie Fei Long’s character was not only very strange and eccentric, but he also didn’t allow others to ignore or oppose his own wishes. Last time Wang Jia Yin very delicately refused his marriage proposal, causing him to be quite displeased. But when he thought over it again, he realized that considering his status and position, to give a single girl a hard time was nevertheless something that was not particularly glorious when the word leaks out. Therefore, he then ordered Tie Shan Hu to treat Meng Qiu Xia with courtesy while he simultaneously sent someone over to alert Wang Jia Yin.

    Yu Luo Cha and Tie Fei Long had originally made a pact to re-duel with each other one month later, but when she heard of Wang’s incident, even though she knew that the set date hasn’t arrived yet, she still insisted on personally accompanying Wang Zhao Xi on this trip. When they arrived at the Tie Villa, Yu Luo Cha then suddenly said, "Though we have come together, yet we have different things to do. I have already made a pact to have a one-on-one duel with Tie Fei Long. You have to stay here and wait until we have determined the winner before you can come out." Therefore even though Wang Zhao Xi was greatly impatient to get inside, yet he had no choice but to pace about outside.

    Wang Zhao Xi waited around outside for a long time, but when he still didn’t see Yu Luo Cha come out he immediately thought to himself: Sh*it! They’re both such competitive and proud fighters, if they can’t determine a winner they might end up fighting to the point of a double fatality before they’ll call it quits. Since I am here already, I can’t just stay on the outside and ignore everything. Thus as soon as he made this decision, he risked the chance of being reprimanded by Yu Luo Cha to stealthily sneak into the villa from the back end, hoping to catch a glimpse of how their fight was progressing.

    At the very same moment that Wang snuck into the Tie Villa, Jin Du Yi was also in the midst of searching the Villa with another first rate fighter. Tie Shan Hu happened to wake up in the middle of the night to discover Jin and immediately shouted loudly for assistance. As a result, she ended up sustaining one of Jin’s palms. Because Meng Qiu Xia’s room was connected right to Tie Shan Hu’s, the instant she heard noises she leaped out her room only to bump right into Wang Zhao Xi. Meng Qiu Xia immediately went over to pick up Tie Shan Hu while Jin Du Yi threw out a small sulfur bomb and then escaped by jumping over the wall.

    The fire ignited by the sulphur bomb was not particularly serious and Tie Fei Long only had to pick up a few cotton blankets to throw over the sources of fire so that in no time at all, the fire was extinguished. Tie Fei Long immediately jumped back down from the rooftops to see Wang Zhao Xi and Meng Qiu Xia on the floor, generating their internal energies into Tie Shan Hu in order to help her circulate her inner Qi. Tie Fei Long was greatly touched when he witnessed this scene. During the past few days, Tie Fei Long has already had a few conversations with Meng, and he was able to discover that contrary to his expectations, Meng Qiu Xia had a very temperate disposition and was not one who would snivel to herself with mortification or insult others with snobbish arrogance. Now watching Meng and Wang cooperate together in reviving his own daughter, he noticed an affectionate expression flowing between their gazes that expressed an endless amount of love. Yet as they were helping his daughter revive from her injuries, it was also evident that their attitude was very serious and their efforts genuine. Tie Fei Long thought to himself: This Meng Qiu Xia has already spanned the millions of miles in search for her husband – that alone is already difficult enough of a task. Now upon reuniting with her husband after sustaining repeated difficulties, she doesn’t selfishly concern herself with narrating the details of the events that ensued during her separation but would instead concern herself with reviving her "enemy" from her injuries first. Such a girl is indeed a rare find.

    Wang Zhao Xi greeted him as "Old Hero Tie" and was just about to reassure him that Shan Hu’s injuries were not serious when Tie Fei Long erupted into loud laughter and said, "Though that old bandit Jin may be unruly, yet he still harbours some caution for me within his heart. If he really did have any serious intent to harm Shan Hu, she would have been finished even if she had ten lives." It was only then did Wang Zhao Xi finally realize that the only reason why Tie Fei Long went to put out the fire first was because he knew right away that his daughter’s injuries were not serious.

    By now, Tie Shan Hu has already started to regain some of the natural red glow in her face, but when Tie Fei Long suddenly shouted in a very severe tone, "Get up!" Tie Shan Hu immediately scrambled up to the sound of his command and murmured, "Papa, what are you angry about this time?" Wang Zhao Xi was also perplexed, for it was already strange enough that her father would not console her after she has just undergone a trauma, but why would he proceed to speak with her in such an angry and severe tone? Tie Fei Long shouted, "I have something to ask you, follow me!" Then dragging his daughter by the hand, they entered into the outer courtyard. Wang Zhao Xia and Meng Qiu Xia followed closely behind and immediately saw Yu Luo Cha standing on top of a large slab of rock with her sword in her hand and a cool sneer on her face. Mu Jiu Niang was sitting on the floor, her pale face was a ghostly white.

    Tie Fei Long then said, "Alright. Listen carefully Yu Luo Cha, I will judge and handle this matter with the utmost impartiality." He then whipped his head around and asked Tie Shan Hu, "Did you steal her sword manual?" Tie Shan Hu replied, "No I didn’t!" Yu Luo Cha laughed with a chilling coldness that caused Tie Fei Long’s expression to harden as he shouted fiercely, "Shan Hu! You better tell the truth! I’ll ask you again: Did you steal her sword manual?" Tie Shan Hu broke down crying and blurted out, "I did have a look at some kind of sword manual, but it wasn’t me who stole it!"

    Tie Fie Long’s face instantaneously changed into all sorts of awful colours as he asked in a trembling voice, "Then how did you see it?" Tie Shan Hu replied, "Auntie brought it to me!" In that split of second, Mu Jiu Niang’s face had already turned into the colour of an ashen grey. Yu Luo Cha was laughing with satisfied merriment while Tie Fei Long’s bloodshot eyes seemed ready to spit out fire as the colour of his face turned from green with rage to red with embarrassment. Yu Luo Cha suddenly ceased her laughter and said coldly, "Old Tie, I haven’t wrongly accuse you now have I?"

    Tie Fei Long’s face froze with the iciness of a winter frost as he ignored Yu Luo Cha’s words and turned towards Tie Shan Hu to say instead, "Tell me everything and don’t you dare hold one word back." Tie Shan Hu lifted her sleeve to wipe the tears from her eyes and then said in a low voice, "Two months ago, I was journeying home from the ShaanXi area. One day I was resting by a small diner in the Ji Xian town when I suddenly saw an old Taoist priest whose face was all black and bruised as he sat on the floor, unable to move. The diner’s owner wanted to drag him outside because he said that the priest seemed to have suddenly contracted some kind of serious illness and was afraid that he was going to die right there in the diner. But when I saw how pitiful he looked, it suddenly triggered my curiosity and so I went forward to have a better look at him. That old priest was really something! He opened his eyes and knew right away that I practiced martial arts. Therefore he said to me, ‘Little girl, did you bring a sword with you? Please, tear apart my upper shirt and use your sword to cut off the rotting flesh located an inch under my shoulder blade and extract a poisonous needle for me! Hurry!’" Zhuo Yi Hang could barely croak out the words, "It’s Taoist Priest Zhen Qian!"

    Tie Fei Long asked, "Did Priest Zhen Qian know that you were my daughter?" Tie Shan Hu replied, "He didn’t know at that time, but when I told him later, he then said to me, ‘I have long heard of your father’s name and understand very well that he is a passionate hero. I would like you to please tell him that I have a sword manual that was relayed to me by someone else. I was to bring this manual to Huo Tian Du of the Heavenly Mountain, but it’s now been stolen by another person. If I am unable to recover from my injuries and end up dying here, then please ask your father to bring this message to the Heavenly Mountain and ask Huo Tian Du to seek revenge for me." Tie Fei Long has never heard anybody praise him as a "passionate hero," thus when he heard these words his cloudy expression immediately lightened up a bit as he stroked his beard and said, "Taoist Priest Zhen Qian is really some figure."

    Tie Shan Hu continued, "Later, he wrote out a medicinal prescription and told me to go find the herbs on the list for him. I took the prescription and went to the herbal stores in town, trying to gather together the right ingredients. But the stores were all so deficient in stock that they were either missing this ingredient or some other, forcing me to run to quite a few stores before I was able to collect together all the right ingredients. But it was then when I suddenly ran into Auntie in search for me." Tie Fei Long murmured an "mm," and then said, "When we didn’t see you return, I sent your Auntie out to look for you." Tie Shan Hu continued, "So I told Auntie about the whole situation and took her to see the old Taoist Priest. But to my surprise, the old priest has suddenly disappeared while two men stood in his place instead. The two guys comprised of an old man and a young guy, and they were searching around for the old priest’s whereabouts. When they saw Auntie, they quickly bowed with courtesy and asked about the well-being of you, father. Auntie suddenly said, "Old Jin (1) , come with me outside."

    Tie Fei Long snorted angrily and then turned towards Mu Jiu Niang to say, "So this masterpiece was done by you and Jin Qian Yan?" Mu Jiu Niang sobbed, "I was only trying to get him to reveal where the stolen goods were." Tie Fei Long then said, "Fine. Shan Hu, continue on." Tie Shan Hu thus continued, "The two guys followed us to a vacant area and then Auntie said to the old man, ‘Old Jin, hand over the sword manual!’ Initially, the old man kept insisting that he didn’t have anything and it was only when he was forced into the corner by Auntie did he finally admit to everything." When Yu Luo Cha heard this, she again emanated a wintry laugh, as her icy and haunting gaze shot onto Tie Fei Long’s face.

    Tie Fei Long retorted with anger, "What are you being so impatient for Yu Luo Cha? The sword manual will eventually be returned to you!" He then continued to ask Tie Shan Hu, "So did that Jin Qian Yan finally hand over the sword manual?" Tie Shan Hu replied, "At first he wouldn’t, but then Auntie said, "You guys should know what kind of figure Taoist Priest Zhen Qian is. He has friends all over the world and now that you guys have murdered him here, did you really think that you could get away so easily and just take his sword manual back to XinJiang (2) ? Aren’t you afraid that his friends would investigate into this matter? Give me the sword manual now and I’ll keep it safe for you. When I finish reading it, I’ll return it to you guys. Otherwise, hahaha … you should know that to anger Mu Jiu Niang would not be a good idea!" That old Jin laughed and said, "Jiu Niang, then we will follow the rules of the Underground world and share the wealth amongst everyone. I will hand this sword manual over to you first and will come to retrieve it in 2 months.’ When Auntie had the sword manual in her hands, she then swiftly brought me to a nearby mountain to practice it."

    Tie Fei Long asked, "Why didn’t you tell me of this incident earlier?" Tie Shan Hu replied, "Auntie told me not to say anything. As soon as she has practiced a few stances, it was as if she has suddenly discovered a priceless treasure and straightaway said to me, ‘This is the world’s most extraordinary book, if we can practice the sword stances as outlined in this book, we can be unbeatable within the world!’ She also said, ‘Shan Hu, we will practice this sword skill together in secret, but we must not let your father know.’ I was thinking: It’s not such a bad idea to have more skills, so therefore I promised her in the midst of my ignorance."

    Zhuo Yi Hang blurted out, "Then did the two of you come across Taoist Priest Zhen Qian afterwards?" Tie Shan Hu replied, "We only saw Priest Zhen Qian again on the QingFeng Mountain, but weren’t you guys there that day as well?" Tie Fei Long grunted again and said, "Taoist Priest Zhen Qian made an arrangement to meet with me on top of that mountain, but when I got there he was nowhere to be found. This was very likely related to the same incident. Wench! Why is it that even now you won’t tell me the truth?"

    Mu Jiu Niang didn’t dare to respond because ever since she has taken the sword manual, she has always wanted to keep it within her sole possession. When Tie Fei Long once again traveled to the Northern Shaan area to see Wang Jia Yin last month, Jin Qian Yan sent someone to secretly deliver a letter to her which said that they have discovered Zhen Qian hiding on top of the QingFeng Mountain. Coincidently, Tie Fei Long also happened to receive an anonymous letter which asked him to come to the QingFeng Mountain for a meeting and thus Tie Fei Long brought Mu Jiu Niang along with him on the trip. Afterwards, when Tie Shan Hu drew Yu Luo Cha to the mountain and Tie Fei Long ended up battling with her, Mu Jiu Niang was then free to proceed to the back of the mountain to discover Zhen Qian hiding in a cave.

    Now that the truth was finally made clear, Yu Luo Cha said in an icy tone, "Stealing my sword manual is already bad enough, but why did you have to go and murder Taoist Priest Zhen Qian as well?" Tie Fei Long widened his eyes and glared at Mu Jiu Niang, causing her to stammer with panic, "I did discover Zhen Qian inside the stone cave, but by that time he was already on the verge of dying. There was some food beside his body, indicating that there was most likely somebody there to take care of him previously. But by the time I got there, there was only him! His expression indicated to me that he was in great pain and he seemed to be trying to tell me to help him end this torture. So I had no other choice but to follow his orders!" Mu Jiu Niang’s words were indeed truthful, but what she didn’t admit to was that she also had another agenda on her mind at that time. She was afraid that Zhen Qian would discover that the sword manual was in her possession and was similarly afraid that Tie Fei Long would return to discover everything, therefore hurriedly expedited Zhen Qian’s death.

    After Tie Fei Long has finished his interrogation, he was greatly infuriated within his heart. But on observing how his precious concubine and daughter were both horrified and shriveled up within themselves, he was incredibly devastated at the same time. Wave after wave of chilling sorrow pierced into his heart so that even his voice was trembling and broken up as he first turned towards his daughter to say, "Fine, then bring out the sword manual and return it to its rightful owner." Tie Shan Hu cried, "It was just stolen by someone else!"

    Tie Fei Long asked, "You mean the old freak Jin?" Tie Shan Hu admitted, "Yes!" Finally, Tie Fei Long understood everything, "Jin Qian Yan just came to see me two days ago. It must be concerning this book." When Yu Luo Cha heard that her sword manual has been stolen again, her whole face changed colour as her temper boiled to such threatening degrees that it was on the brink of exploding again.

    Tie Fei Long said in a clear and loud voice, "Yu Luo Cha! The retrieval of your sword manual will now be my personal responsibility. I swear I will bring your sword manual back to you even if I have to run to the ends of the earth!" Yu Lou Cha replied, "Fine, I’ll believe it when I see it(3) ," as if trying to say that she doesn’t believe his words. Ignoring her remark, Tie Fei Long reached out his hand to lightly sweep across his daughter’s hair, a gesture he used to make when she was still a little child. When Tie Shan Hu came into contact with her father’s gaze, she couldn’t stop a haunting chill from shooting straight into her heart as she cried out, "Papa, what are you doing?"

    Tie Fei Long said slowly, "Shan er, you have turned nineteen this year, am I right?" Tie Shan Hu replied, "Uh-huh. Why?" Tie Fei Long then said, "You are no longer a baby bird. You have now grown your own wings and can venture out to face the world on your own." Tie Shan Hu cried out, "Papa! I want to always remain by your side and be your baby bird!" Tie Fei Long’s face suddenly hardened as he pushed her away and shouted in a severe tone, "From now on, you are no longer my daughter! Now get out of my house! But when you go out there, you are not to use my name for your own purposes!"

    Tie Shan Hu was trembling uncontrollably from head to toe, very much desiring to cry out yet was unable to. Tie Fei Long added, "You coveted another sect’s sword manual and then kept it a secret from your own father. If it wasn’t for your deceased mother’s sake, I would have taken your little life right away!" Ever since the day she came into this world, Tie Shan Hu has never had to sustain such punishment and furthermore, she was very aware of her father’s temper and knew that he would never take back his words. When she saw Yu Luo Cha look at her with a peculiar expression, she was simultaneously ashamed and angry. Therefore she immediately knelt down on the floor and knocked her head to the ground three times before stating tearfully, "Papa, please take of yourself from now on!" and then ran out the villa’s front gates without so much as turning her head around for one last look.

    Although Yu Luo Cha was used to killing human lives without so much as batting an eye, yet upon witnessing such a scene, she couldn’t help but feel saddened within her heart. When she originally saw Tie Shan Hu shriveled up on the floor, she had already wanted to say something to alleviate Tie Fei Long’s anger. Yet in that brief moment’s time, she was unable to turn around and change the tone of her words. Now that the father and daughter have had this falling out, it has already become too late for her to attempt in consoling either person.

    After Tie Fei Long finished kicking his daughter out, he had to calm himself down briefly before he was able to turn to Mu Jiu Niang and shout, "Wench! Get over here!" Mu Jiu Niang suddenly thrashed her hair about and shrieked with wild laughter before screaming loudly, "C’mon you old bag of bones! I’ve wanted to die for a long time now so just kill me and get it over with!" Tie Fei Long shouted, "You have stolen another person’s sword manual and ruined my name. Such is a crime that can be rightfully justified with the punishment of death! What else do you have to say for yourself?"

    Mu Jiu Niang laughed with crazed madness and screamed, "Years ago I had no choice but to marry you when my father suddenly died in a foreign hometown, leaving me without any money to conduct his burial ceremonies. But after I married you, I was not given the title nor treated with the respect of an official wife. Just because I put on a fake smile whenever I see you, did you really think that I would truly like you? I’m looking forward to dying now because I’ve wanted to be freed from these living conditions for a long time!"

    Mu Jiu Niang has followed by her father’s side ever since she was a very young girl, and even though they had to go from town to town performing tricks and stunts for money, yet their lifestyle was actually quite free and unrestricted. When her father died, she was left with no other choice but to marry a much older Tie Fei Long whose white hair marked a stark contrast against her youthful face and caused them to comprise a most unattractive couple. But what made her feel even more depressed was the strictness of Tie Fei Long’s eccentric character that rarely left her with the chance to experience any moments of true happiness. Had it not been out of fear for Tie Fei Long’s deadliness, she would have escaped a long time ago, and the reason why she would actually dare to steal another’s sect’s sword manual to begin with was because she wanted to secretly succeed in the sword skill so that Tie Fei Long could no longer prevent her from leaving.

    At that moment, Tie Fei Long was almost paralyzed with shock. Mu Jiu Niang delivering such a speech to him was a scene he would not have conjured up even in his wildest dreams. But when he looked at her beautiful face blooming in all its loveliness and then thought to the snowy beard that filled his own face, he realized that he truly couldn’t blame her for feeling this way. The palm that was already raised above Mu Jiu Niang’s head immediately froze in mid air and he suddenly found that he couldn’t bring himself to smash it down on her skull. Yu Luo Cha immediately leaped forward and gently pulled Tie Fei Long’s hand away from Mu Jiu Niang.

    With a long sigh, Tie Fie Long then said with a sweep of his hands, "Go then! Don’t ever come back to see me again!" Mu Jiu Niang’s laughter suddenly ceased and then she also knelt down to knock her head on the floor three times before saying, "Master, please take care of yourself from now on!" Then like Tie Shan Hu, she also ran out of the front gates without so much as turning her head around for one last look.

    Tie Fie Long’s face was contorted with anguish and torment while his heart was wringed by wretchedness and despondency. He suddenly felt that he truly was an old man. Crumbled on top of the fake mountain, he felt as if he has just undergone a huge illness. With a sigh he said, "Alright, we should all be going as well."

    *************************************

    1) "Old Jin": The actual text in the book should be correctly translated to "Old third Jin" referring to Jin Qian Yan’s hierarchy within his lineage. But it was shortened in the translation to induce better flow.
    2) "XinJiang": The largest province in China, more commonly known in the ancient eras as the "Western Regions" (XiYu) that was taken over by the "Huns." Famous landmarks belonging to the Xinjiang region includes the Silk Road, the Flaming Mountains (Huo Yan Shan – the legendary landmark featured in the great Chinese classic "Xi You Ji"/"Journey to the West"), the Heavenly Lake and most pertinent to this novel, the Heavenly Mountains (Tian Shan).
    3) "I’ll believe it when I see it": The translated phrase has actually been slightly modified to induce better comprehension of the sentence. The original text was actually a Xie Hou Yu (sometimes translated as "Informal Phrases" and "Riddle Phrases"). Xie Hou Yu relies on the pairing of two statements that answers off each other (an "answer" to the "riddle") and then of which could be applied to reference many people, things and incidents of daily life. Some very simple and commonly used examples of a Xie Hou Yu would be "The cat who cries for the mouse" --> "Showing fake mercy/compassion" …or… "The clay bodhisattva that crosses the river" --> "Can’t even take care of himself" … or … "Lantern made of Cow’s Skin" --> "You can never illuminate it." A Xie Huo Yu is also used here, the first part translates as "Riding the donkey while reading the musical sheets" and the later part answers the first as "Riding while reading" (literal translation), which has the double meaning of "we’ll see as we go along." The actual implication of the phrase is basically that of showing scepticism towards the vow/statement made by another person. In this case, the translator has decided to modify it in such a way which can facilitate a more comprehensible read while simultaneously retaining the original implications.


    The early morning of next day, Zhuo Yi Hang was the first to express his intentions of departing. Yu Luo Cha said to him, "I hope that you will arrive safely at the capital." Zhuo Yi Hang replied, "I also hope that you will be able to retrieve your sword manual."
    Wang Zhao Xi and Meng Qiu Xia both came forward as well to express their farewells to Tie Fei Long. Tie Fei Long said to them, "Sonny, please give my sincere apologies to your father when you return home. I was much too impertinent in the past." Wang Zhao Xi replied, "I dare not" and after a short pause, Tie Fei Long continued with a sad smile, "This Miss Meng is really a much more superior girl than Shan Hu. Now that the two of you have sustained such a crisis together, I’m sure that you will most definitely be able to spend the rest of your lives in happiness and will have to undergo no further separations." Wang Zhao Xi suddenly felt greatly relieved for he knew that from now on, this old man will never bug him again. Yet though he was filled with joyful happiness, he was simultaneously struck with compassionate pity. He was feeling joyful because he knew that Meng Qiu Xia really did love him, yet he was also feeling pity because this old man standing in front of him was simply too sad and lonely.

    Wang Zhao Xi then said, "We will be accompanying brother Zhuo for a short distance." Tie Fei Long then inquired, "What about you Yu Luo Cha? Aren’t you leaving as well?" Yu Luo Cha smiled and said, "I can’t just let you go by yourself to retrieve my sword manual." Tie Fei Long angrily snapped, "Since I have made you a promise, then this has become my own business. Did you think that I won’t be able to bring back your manual by myself?"

    Yu Luo Cha was secretly amused by the extreme pride of this old man but said instead, "Since old hero Tie you have promised to personally take action, I am of course completely reassured. But I’m afraid that you might be a bit lonely if I left you to travel such long distances by yourself. Don’t you think it’s a better idea for me to accompany you and relieve you of your boredom?"

    Tie Fei Long became quite joyful when he suddenly heard Yu Luo Cha praise him with such respect, but the latter part of her speech induced an even more powerful and soothing effect on him for those words were spoken with a tender affection comparable to that of which a daughter would use with her father. Though Tie Fei Long was indeed competitive and arrogant, yet he truly did admire straightforward people who possessed a bold personality and true abilities. Having gone through two intense battles with Yu Luo Cha, they have unexpectedly transformed from enemies into friends, both respecting and admiring the other person.

    Tie Fei Long chortled with laughter and remarked, "It’s too bad you’re not my daughter!" to which Yu Luo Cha replied, "Then I will be your daughter!" and then immediately knelt down to bow with joyful respect while saying with genuine tenderness, "Father. (4) " Tie Fei Long hurriedly helped her to her feet and said, "How can I be worthy of such an honour?" Yu Luo Cha smiled and asked, "Are you unwilling to take me as your daughter because I once insulted you and then hit out at you? Let me tell you, if you want to vent out your anger, then I think it would be best for you to be my father. Think about it, when you become my father, only you will be allowed to hit and yell at me while I won’t be able to hit or yell at you!"

    Tie Fei Long was so amused by her words that he roared out into joyful laughter and said, "Since that is the case, if I don’t accept you as my daughter, then it would make me look even more petty and immature! Too bad I don’t have any valuable presents to give you. Since your martial arts are already better than mine, there’s really not much I can give you. But in terms of inner energy cultivation, I can still be said to have a relatively acceptable grasp. Why don’t I share my understanding of it with you in the future and then we can both study it together." The reason why Yu Luo Cha was willing to call Tie Fei Long father was because firstly, she liked how his character was similar to her own and secondly, she pitied how desolate and lonely he was. She never wished to learn his martial arts and therefore never expected him to relate to her the essence and practice methods of the internal energy cultivation that he has gathered over the last twenty, thirty years. Since to refuse such a heartfelt offer would simply be too disrespectful, she could therefore only express her gratitude without any further hesitation.

    Thus Tie Fei Long, now accompanied by Yu Luo Cha saw Wang, Zhuo and Meng outside the villa’s gates. Yu Luo Cha entreated Wang Zhao Xi to take care of the matters related to her mountain fortress for her, while also specifically beseeching Meng Qiu Xia to take her female troops under her command for the time being. Meng Qiu Xia also agreed to her request. Yu Luo Cha then had to once again bid her farewells to Zhuo Yi Hang, but her unwillingness to separate from him this time was even stronger than before.

    By the time they finished seeing their guests out, it was already noon hour. Tie Fei Long and Yu Luo Cha were retreating back to the house for a rest when Tie Fei Long’s eyebrows suddenly knitted together as he remarked, "That Zhuo Yi Hang has such a snobby upper class attitude, I really don’t understand why you would be on such friendly terms with him." Yu Luo Cha just laughed and did not answer, but at that very moment, a servant suddenly ran into the room, bringing with him a black visitation box.(5)

    When Tie Fei Long saw the black visitation box, his face immediately clouded over while Yu Luo Cha also remarked, "Why would this person be so disrespectful?" For it should be understood that the typical visitation box that carries within it social calling cards are usually outlined with gold or made of red wood in order to express the caller’s joyful blessings. Black visitation boxes are rarely ever seen or heard of. Tie Fei Long said, "Let’s read the card first before we say any more." Thus he opened up the box and took out the calling card to discover that written on the card were the words, "Wu Tang’s Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf and Taoist Priest Red Cloud brings forth their disciples, humbling asking for the honour of being received into your esteemed abode."

    Tie Fei Long remarked with surprise, "Why would the Wu Tang 5 elders travel the millions of miles to come here and visit me? They have always declared themselves as the orthodox centrality of the martial arts world and then labeled me into the category of the demonic and villainous, why would they suddenly come calling upon my house with such courtesy and respect?" He thus hurriedly sent orders to invite them inside.

    Amongst the 5 elders of Wu Tang, Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf ranked second and was followed by Red Cloud who was third in ranking. In terms of their respected status and exalted eminence, they were only below that of Taoist Priest Purple Sun. Tie Fei Long has once exchanged palms in the past with the fourth ranked elder Taoist Priest White Stone and in the end won over him by one stance. He knew that in both Yellow Leaf and Red Cloud’s hearts, they felt that the combat results were unjustified and unmerited. Thus when he saw their calling card, he immediately became suspicious for he did not know whether they harboured good or bad intentions behind their visit. He thus awaited their arrival with quite a serious and anxious expression whilst Yu Luo Cha just stood by one side and issued a soft chuckle every once in a while.

    After just a short while, the doors opened as Yellow Leaf and Red Cloud were seen to ascend the stairs and enter into the room walking shoulder to shoulder. Tie Fei Long promptly brought his hands together to greet them while saying, "It has been ten years since our last encounter, yet the health and well-being of two respected priests are still as before. How is Taoist Priest Purple Sun?" Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf said remorsefully, "My honoured martial arts brother has left the mortal world last month to ascend into heaven and join the pantheon of deities."

    This piece of news made Tie Fei Long incredibly upset for even though the relationship between Tie and the other four elders was infused with cracks which allowed the feelings of resentment and dislike to seep in, yet towards Taoist Priest Purple Sun, Tie truly held only the highest regard and esteem. Only now did Tie Fei Long understand the reason to why Yellow Leaf and Red Cloud would use the colour black on their visitation box. Unable to stop his tears from welling up, Tie Fei Long sighed and said, "Such an unexpected tragedy. From now on, the martial arts world will know of no other elder whose actions and distinction can give others cause for true respect and esteem." Though these words were obviously Tie’s way of exalting Taoist Priest Purple Sun, yet when Yellow Leaf and Red Cloud heard these words, they couldn’t help but feel traces of disgruntlement and unease.

    Tie Fei Long turned to face the South and then bowed three times to express his last respects before suddenly thinking to himself: the Wu Tang sect is the current martial art world’s big dipper. Now that their sect leader has died, they must be most chiefly concerned with establishing another successor, not to mention there must also be a great deal of ceremonial rites that needs to be prepared and completed. Why would Yellow Leaf and Red Cloud find time to come here? Can it be that they’re trying to clear away all the scores of their sect’s past vengeances and thus came here to settle the score with me? But after thinking over it more carefully, he realized that such a conjecture did not make any sense and therefore couldn’t help but ask, "May I ask why honoured priests have called upon my house today?" Yellow Leaf looked around the room and then said coldly, "We would like to inquire about two matters. The first concerns our sect’s disciple Zhuo Yi Hang. Is he currently residing in your honoured villa?" Yu Luo Cha interrupted right away, "Why are you guys looking for Zhuo Yi Hang? Are you trying to hasten him home for the funeral?"

    Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf glowered at Yu Luo Cha, but because he knew that Tie Fei Long had a daughter named Tie Shan Hu who was very unruly and ill-behaved, he therefore thought that Yu Luo Cha must be Tie’s daughter and secretly snickered at the bad manners of the Tie family. He thus continued, "The last orders of our sect leader Purple Sun states that Zhuo Yi Hang was to be established as our new sect leader. (6) We have purposely come to bring him back to the mountain."

    As soon as Yu Luo Cha heard these words, her heart was immediately filled with elation. But within her joy, there also surfaced uneasiness. She was happy for Zhuo Yi Hang when she found out that he was to be established as the leader of a sect at such a young age and would just be a step away from ascending into the exalted position of the martial art world’s leader. But she was similarly worried because she has had some past issues with the Wu Tang sect, and now that Zhuo has become their sect leader, she was afraid that it would be harder for them to get closer in the future.

    Upon observing the haughtiness in Yellow Leaf’s expression, Tie Fei Long replied coolly, "Then the two of you have arrived at precisely the wrong moment. Zhuo Yi Hang has just left." Tie had originally expected Yellow Leaf to swiftly express his farewells and run after Zhuo when he heard these words, but Yellow Leaf was surprisingly calm and nonchalant as he remarked, "Really? Then we will wait for him here" before he proceed to sit down. At first, Tie Fei Long was greatly baffled by this response, but he quickly understood the reason after analyzing over the situation briefly.

    The calling card read "Wu Tang’s Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf and Taoist Priest Red Cloud brings forth their disciples, humbling asking for the honour of being received into your esteemed abode," yet in front of them stood only Yellow Leaf and Red Cloud, which means that the other Wu Tang disciples should also be arriving promptly. To receive a sect’s leader was an extremely important and serious matter, but since these two people were Zhuo’s martial art uncles, they will therefore be assisting him in the future. Thus it could be deduced that they have come here today with the purpose of relating the final words of Zhuo’s ShiFu to him and were not here to personally comply with him. Because of this reason, the martial art brothers of Zhuo’s lineage will therefore have to arrive shortly in order to perform the proper rites and customs of recognition to a sect leader. Thinking to these rules of the martial arts world, Tie Fei Long secretly laughed at his own thoughtlessness. Since the Wu Tang disciples will be arriving soon, they will likely come across Zhuo Yi Hang and intercept him. No wonder these two old Taoist Priests would be sitting here in wait.

    But Tie Fei Long still had some queries that were left unanswered and therefore he brought his hands together with respect and asked, "May I inquire about how honoured Taoist Priests managed to procure such rapid information so as to discover that Zhuo Yi Hang was at my humble abode?" Yellow Leaf did not respond, but just sat there with the same haughty nonchalance. Then he suddenly stated, "There is still a second matter which I would like to inquire about."

    Tie Fei Long was quite crossed as he declared loudly, "Please continue." Yellow Leaf thus said, "How did Taoist Priest Zhen Qian die?" Tie Fei Long jumped up and blurted out, "Humph! So you were the one who wrote the anonymous letter?" Yellow Leaf replied, "Yes." Tie Fei Long laughed coolly and said, "Since that is the case, then you were unable to keep our engagement" to which Yellow Leaf said in reply, "Now is not too late."

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    4) "Father": Should be correctly translated as "Foster father," but the word "father" was used here instead to induce better flow.
    5) "visitation box": A box with a social calling card inside that lists the name and (possibly) also the purpose of the visitors calling upon the owner of the establishment.
    6) "sect leader": To translate the actual term used in the novel, it should really be "sect leader-disciple." The word "disciple" added onto the title may indicate that though Zhuo was to be established as the new sect leader, yet he was also to be guided by his elders (the other 4 elders), thus stressing the importance of his simultaneous position of the "disciple."


    Yellow Leaf and Red Cloud’s side of the story began with them setting out to receive Zhuo Yi Hang with six other second generation disciples. To do so, they must first arrive at the Zhuo family’s mansion located in the Shaan Xi area, but little did they expect that as soon as they arrived in Shaan Xi, they would accidentally stumble across the secret codes left behind by Taoist Priest Zhen Qian at the diner. The symbols communicated to them that Zhen Qian has undergone a furtive attack and was now hiding on the QingFeng Mountain, trying to recover from his injuries.

    There were Wu Tang disciples situated all the country and furthermore, a Wu Tang disciple residing in the local area happened to come up to Yellow Leaf and report to him that they have discovered the traces of Tie Fei Long who was currently residing in another inn within the same small town. Since Taoist Priest Zhen Qian was close acquaintances with the Wu Tang 5 elders, Yellow Leaf therefore quickly hastened to the mountain. But by that time he got there, Zhen Qian was already unable to speak. When Yellow Leaf asked him to explain his encounter, he could only use his finger to write on the ground: "Ask Tie Fei Long." Zhen Qian told Yellow Leaf to go ask Tie Fei Long because he has already related his whole story to Tie Shan Hu and therefore naturally conjectured that she must have told everything to her father as well. But instead, Yellow Leaf misinterpreted Zhen Qian’s intentions and ended up believing that Zhen Qian was murdered under the hands of Tie Fei Long.

    When Yellow Leaf first examined the seriousness of Zhen Qian’s injuries, he already knew that it was no longer possible for Zhen Qian to recover and therefore ran back to the inn in a rampage and unhesitatingly sent out an anonymous letter to the inn that Tie Fei Long was residing in. Yellow Leaf requested Tie to meet him at the QingFeng Mountain so that he may list out his crimes and take revenge for Zhen Qian in front of his corpse. The reason why Yellow Leaf sent out the letter anonymously was because he was taking into account of the possibility that Tie Fei Long would be scared away by the fame of the Wu Tang 5 Elders.

    Yellow Leaf was originally intending to attend the meeting, but as soon as he sent out the anonymous letter, the local disciple rushed in unexpectedly to report that the front doors of the Zhuo mansion were for some unknown reason padlocked. He also reported that the servants of the mansion were also seen to leave the mansion intermittently, each one of them carrying luggage within their hands, clearly indicating that some kind of sudden change or urgent crisis had taken place. Yellow Leaf thought over the situation carefully and felt that Taoist Priest Zhen Qian’s case was a matter which could still be taken care of later, but to bring Zhuo back to Wu Tang was the most important matter to take care of at present. Therefore after assessing the situation and weighing the consequences, Yellow Leaf had no choice but to miss this engagement.

    By the time that Yellow Leaf arrived at the Zhuo mansion, Zhuo Yi Hang was already taken to the Yan An City, and by the time Yellow Leaf made it to Yan An, Zhuo Yi Hang was already rescued. Through the repeated process of searching and pursuing, they later discovered that Zhuo Yi Hang’s imprisonment was related to Wang Zhao Xi. Therefore the Wu Tang sect went over to WaYaBao to see Wang Jia Yin. But Wang Jia Yin himself wasn’t sure about the history between his son and Zhuo Yi Hang, therefore could only tell them that his son has just traveled to Shan Xi’s LongMen County to call upon Tie Fei Long.

    Due to the fact that Wang Jia Yin and the Wu Tang 5 Elders were not close acquaintances and also because the Wu Tang sect has always looked down upon the people of the Underground world, Wang Jia Yin therefore did not explain the situation to them in detail. And of course, he definitely would not mention Yu Luo Cha’s pact to duel with Tie Fei Long and Wang Zhao Xi’s intentions of rescuing his fianc" But judging from the signs in front of him, Yellow Leaf concluded that to find Zhuo Yi Hang, they must first find Wang Zhao Xi, and since Wang Zhao Xi was at the Tie Villa, then they might as well find Zhuo and seek revenge for Zhen Qian at the same time.

    Therefore, Yellow Leaf and Red Cloud immediately chased to the Tie Villa to blatantly confront Tei Fei Long about Taoist Priest Zhen Qian’s death. As soon as Tie Fei Long heard these words, he could no longer hold back his rage as he sneered and said coldly, "Then I take it that elder priests have come here today to accuse me with the crime of Taoist Priest Zhen Qian’s murder?" Yellow Leaf did not bother to conceal his true intentions, but just answered with stark honesty, "Indeed."

    As soon as these words were spoken, it was as if someone had just poured oil upon fire, for Tie Fei Long immediately surged forward with wild force and swept down on Yellow Leaf with a strike of his palm while he roared, "Yellow Leaf, what kind of person do you think I am?" Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf intercepted with a strike and said coldly, "You are fully aware of what you have done. Why come and ask me?" With a snarl, Tie Fei Long executed the "White Ape Opens Road"and then brought his two palms together before suddenly extending them out towards the left and right sides, simultaneously slashing towards Yellow Leaf’s two shoulders. Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf immediately flipped his body over and had to consecutively execute the two stances "Three Rings Covering the Moon"and "Wind Sweeps Across Drooping Willow"before he was able to dismantle Tie Fei Long’s stances. Tie Fei Long snickered and said, "I know that after Taoist Priest Purple Sun dies, the rest of you who are petty and restricted in breadth of heart will definitely not to be willing to leave me alone. Haha! Since you guys are so indignant, then come on! We’ll have another battle!"

    Barely concealing the sarcasm and ridicule behind his tone, Tie Fei Long was basically saying: I once defeated one of the Wu Tang 5 Elders, and though Taoist Priest Purple Sun who was forgiving and magnanimous does not take it to heart, yet the rest of you who are trivial and narrow-minded will of course try to find any little excuse just to seek your revenge.

    In truth, though Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf was indeed indignant about their defeat that occurred years ago, yet he would never be as bitter and resentful as Taoist Priest White Stone was. But now hearing Tie Fei Long’s words, he couldn’t help but feel anger erupt from the bottom of his heart as he rushed forward and took the disadvantaged position to strike up a stance and shout, "Old bandit! Come on! Did you think I was afraid of you? Taoist Priest Zhen Qian is waiting for you in the hellish underworld! If you have any last words or wishes, you better say them now while you still have the chance!"

    Tie Fei Long exploded with rage as he bellowed, "I’ll make you choke on those words first! Take this!" Tie then jumped from the "Gen"position to the "Li"(7) house and with a "Bronze Pipa Hands,"the back of his hand swept#####ds, slapping towards Yellow Leaf’s face with the speed of lightning. With a flit of his body, Yellow Leaf extended his palms to slash across Tie Fei Long’s right arm while his two fingers snuck towards Tie’s acupoint, causing Tie to suddenly retract his palm. Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf’s body shot upwards while his right fist charged forward and then suddenly transformed into the "Hammer (8) striking beneath elbow"stance. He then brought his fist forward to impact upon Tie’s palm, forcing both parties to retreat three steps.

    As soon as Tie Fei Long stepped back, he surged forward again right away to thunder, "Taoist Priest Zhen Qian was murdered under the hands of a malicious villain, but what does that have to do with me? You’re pushing all the blame onto me for no reason! If you don’t apologize to me right now, don’t you even think about getting out of these doors alive!" Tie Fei Long’s fiery temper exploded earlier when their conversation turned into an ugly argument, pushing him to immediately deliver a strike with his fists and resulting in an exchange of a few stances. But then he realized: combating palms is one matter, but Zhen Qian’s death concerns a completely different matter. I have to first get things straight. Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf was similarly taken back as he asked, "Are you telling the truth?" Tie Fei Long snapped with anger, "You dare to doubt my words? Stinking Taoist Priest, I can seek revenge for Zhen Qian, but I will still duel palms here with you today!" With a flit of his body, he jumped from the "Li"position into the "Kan" position, and through the power of wind and force of thunder planted within his palms, two strikes instantaneously ripped towards Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf with a loud whoosh.

    When Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf saw how forceful Tie’s approaching attack was, he swiftly transformed his left fist into a palm and rounded inwards towards the center. Then with a twist and a wring of his right arm, he used the stances from the "Crane Arm Technique"to disband the force of Tie’s attack. Though Tie Fei Long’s palm strikes had the ability to alternate between both hard and soft attacks, yet his right arm was already confined by Yellow Leaf, forcing Tie Fei Long to take advantage of the pulling momentum and strike out with his left fist. With a "Charging Fist,"Tie’s confined right arm charged upwards and struck towards Yellow Leaf’s "Tai Yang acupoint"while still being locked in the band created by Yellow Leaf’s arm.

    Amongst the 5 Elders of Wu Tang, the martial arts of Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf were behind only that of his elder martial arts brother, the sect leader Purple Sun. With a turn of his shoulder, a loud blast sounded as Yellow Leaf forcefully intercepted Tie Fei Long’s fist. Then with a hook of his left arm, he immediately snagged onto Tie Fei Long’s wrist and with the speed of lightning, bent his arm down towards the bottom in one twisting motion. Tie Fei Long’s punch struck Yellow Leaf so hard that sparks flew and stars danced in front of his eyes, but having had his arm snapped by Yellow Leaf, Tie Fei Long was also in unbearable and excruciating pain. He hurriedly generated the internal energies within his left palm, pushing it forward while Yellow Leaf brought out his right palm to intercept it forcibly. Although Yellow Leaf was shocked so hard by this contact that he almost toppled over, yet his right hand remained in its place and it was refusing to let go.

    The battle was now caught in a deadlock for the martial art proficiency of both fighters has already reached the levels akin to the purest part of a burning blue flame. Sweat started to drip down from the foreheads of the two opponents and Yellow Leaf whose face was the colour of mouldy dust was furthermore wheezing loudly like a cow. Tie Fei Long has generated all his internal energies to withstand him, but the bones of his wrist were snapped so hard that he felt as if it was going to burst apart with pain. Although both men were now secretly regretting their moves, yet to retract their energies at this point was already a very complicated matter.

    Taoist Priest Red Cloud immediately began to act out when he saw how dangerous the combat situation was, but just when he was about take action, a beautiful sight suddenly lighted up in front of his eyes. Yu Luo Cha’s white dress fluttered by and before Red Cloud could even register what was happening, she has already blazed ahead of him with a blinding speed. Then with an extension of her two arms, she simultaneously grasped towards the underarm area of both fighters, causing them both to experience an extreme itchiness. As a consequence, they both unconsciously receded the generation of their internal energies, thus allowing Yu Luo Cha to pull them apart with just a light tug.

    This caused Yellow Leaf and Red Cloud to be equally taken back while Yu Luo Cha just pursed her lips into a smile and said, "Both elderly Priests are already of such an old age, but why would you still be as ignorant as I am?" Yellow Leaf was in the midst of circulating his internal energies in order to slow his rapid breathing and bring his vital functions back to normal circulation, but when he heard her words, he couldn’t help but ask with surprise, "What did you say?" Yu Luo Cha replied, "At first, I also thought that Taoist Priest Zhen Qian was murdered by old hero Tie, and like you guys, I also blindly struck up a battle without first getting everything straight. But now that I think back to it, I really have to laugh at my foolishness." Yellow Leaf asked with astonishment, "Then, you’re not his daughter?" Yu Luo Cha smiled and replied, "Who said that I wasn’t?" Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf angrily scowled, "Humph! What kind of joke are you playing on me?"

    In the midst of this conversation, sounds of footsteps were suddenly heard to approach from outside the room. Red Cloud swiftly leaped down the stone steps and then shouted back up to them in a loud voice, "Zhuo Yi Hang has returned!"

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    7) "Gen", "Li" referring to the positions plotted according to the eight trigrams. Refer to footnote in Chapter 6 for further details.
    8) "Hammer" Chinese hammers that are used as weapons can be either constructed with long or short handles, and has a head shaped like a melon (therefore it is sometimes referred to as standing/lying melon hammers), while some heads are octagonal or square in shape. Some hammers are attached to a long chain or rope (referred to as Meteor Hammer). The following is a picture of a melon hammer: http://www.gungfu.com/pics_general/p...on_hammers.jpg and a meteor hammer: http://www.gungfu.com/pics_general/p...eor_hammer.jpg

    Feeling quite desolate and depressed after he has departed from Yu Luo Cha, Zhuo Yi Hang lagged behind on his horse and trotted behind Wang Zhao Xi and Meng Qiu Xia. Watching them together, riding saddle by saddle, Zhuo unconsciously thought to Yu Luo Cha and was overwhelmed by all sorts of emotions. He found that the more he thought about her, the more disconcerted and confused he became. Suddenly, a few horses were seen to gallop towards their direction with rapid speed and there was also someone who was shouting loudly, "Brother Zhuo!" Wang Zhao Xi pulled on his reins and the approaching crowd also descended their horses. The person leading the crowd was the eldest disciple within Wu Tang's second generation, Yu Xin Cheng. Behind him were five other people, one of them being Geng Shao Nan!

    Zhuo Yi Hang introduced his sect members to Wang Zhao Xi, but Geng Shao Nan who has met him previously became quite embarrassed having been reminded of their past encounter. Zhuo Yi Hang asked, "What has brought my honoured brothers here today?" Yu Xin Cheng inquired back, "Have you not seen our second and third martial arts uncles yet?" Zhuo Yi Hang remarked with surprised, "Why would the two elders come here as well?" Yu Xin Cheng tearfully cried, "During the ninth of last month, our ShiFu has passed away to ascend into the heavens!" Upon suddenly receiving this news, Zhuo Yi Hang immediately wailed "wa" and burst out into tears, nearly falling to the floor. Taoist Priest Purple Sun spent twelve arduous years educating and enriching Zhuo Yi Hang who loved him like a father, but now that they've been separated forever, he could no longer repay his ShiFu for the kind beneficence he has shown him all these years.

    Yu Xin Cheng hurriedly held up Zhuo Yi Hang while consoling him in a soft voice, "Brother, please take care of yourself and try not to be overly saddened. Now that ShiFu has passed away, the responsibility of our Wu Tang sect will be lying on your shoulders from now on." Zhuo Yi Hang wiped away his tears and asked, "What do you mean?" Yu Xin Cheng replied, "ShiFu's last orders were to have you succeed him as the sect leader!"

    Zhuo Yi Hang was greatly taken back as he asked in a trembling voice, "But there are still four other respected martial art uncles above me and below them are still my numerous martial art brothers. Why would I be chosen as the sect leader?" Yu Xin Cheng replied, "Brother, not only are you are skilled in both your martial and literary arts but you are also knowledgeable, resourceful, young and dynamic. The mission of glorifying our sect will now depend on you! Every single person in our sect respects and concurs with ShiFu's last wishes. We are all rejoicing over his last decision." After he finished these words, he immediately conducted the rites of obeisance towards a sect's leader. Geng Shan Nan and the other four sect members also came forward to perform obeisance.

    Zhuo Yi Hang hurriedly returned the act of courtesy and said, "Brothers, how can I be deserving of such high regard? I am simply too unworthy, so please, let us not mention these matters of succession for the time being. We can discuss such matters in greater detail later when we return to the Wu Tang Mountain." Yu Xin Cheng said, "Brother, please do not be indecisive about such matters." Geng Shan Nan also added, "Elder brother, please come with us to see second and third uncle first." Zhuo Yi Hang asked, "Are the two elders here as well?" Yu Xin Cheng replied, "They are waiting at the Tie Villa up ahead." Geng Shan Nan said, "We have put in a lot of effort and spent a great deal of time before we were able to find you here." Zhuo Yi Hang said with tears, "I have put my honoured brothers and uncles through too much trouble. You have all travelled such long distances and endured such difficult toils. I feel awful to have been the cause of all this, but in regards to the high expectations my ShiFu and honoured sect members hold for me, I'm afraid that I will end up disappointing everyone."

    With tears, Zhuo Yi Hang departed from Wang Zhao Xi and then turned his horse around to begin his return journey when Geng Shao Nan suddenly asked, "Elder brother Zhuo, why would you be travelling on the same paths as that little scoundrel?" Zhuo Yi Hang asked, "What do you mean?" Geng Shan Nan said, "He is the son of Wang Jia Yin, the bandit lord of the Northern Shaan area!" Zhuo Yi Hang answered back, "I am already aware of this fact."

    Yu Xin Cheng was the eldest in rank amongst the second generation disciples, but because he was of extremely average talent, he was therefore truly satisfied and in support of Zhuo Yi Hang being established as their sect leader. However, he was also very firm and rigid about adhering to the rules of their sect; therefore upon hearing these words, he jumped back in alarm and quickly asked Geng Shan Nan, "Is that the same youngster who accompanied you on your trip last year?" All the sect members know of Geng Shao Nan's incident because after Geng was ridiculed, he immediately hastened back to the mountain to wail about his injustice. Geng Shao Nan affirmed, "Yes" and Yu Xin Cheng's face instantaneously underwent a change of colour as he said to Zhuo Yi Hang with a serious manner and a sombre tone, "Brother Zhuo, you are now our sect's leader. From now on, whatever you do, you must take extra caution to set a good example for the rest of our sect."

    Zhuo Yi Hang wiped his tears and replied, "Elder brother, thank you kindly for your constructive words, I will most definitely take them to heart. But amongst the underground world, there are still a good number of heroic and valiant figures. As long as we don't become bandits, then even if we happen to associate with them on a casual basis, that still wouldn't be considered as violating our sect's rules." Yu Xin Cheng said, "That is true, but they say that this Wang Zhao Xi was connected together with Yu Luo Cha! I'm sure brother you are aware of how Yu Luo Cha burglarized your grandfather's possessions." Zhuo Yi Hang's face flushed red and he could only mumble, "My grandpa did not hold her in blame."

    When Geng Shan Nan heard these words, he became quite displeased as he asked, "Have you seen Yu Luo Cha yet Brother Zhuo?" Zhuo Yi Hang nodded his head and then suddenly said, "I am feeling very upset and bewildered right now. There are still many matters which I would like to tell my honoured brothers about in the future. Brother Geng, I am infinitely grateful towards you for accompanying my grandfather on his trip for me last year," and as soon as he finished these words, he then proceeded to strike a low bow as his gesture of appreciation. Geng Shan Nan hurriedly returned a bow in respect and muttered with a red face, "Your incompetent brother I was unable to properly complete my duties and fulfil my promise to you. Even if brother you don't blame me, your unworthy brother I am still much ashamed." Yu Xin Cheng interrupted, "Let's not mention these matters anymore. Brother Zhuo is our sect's most promising talent and now he has become our sect leader. Is there still any doubt that he will be able to settle this score for you in the future?"

    Zhuo Yi Hang directed his horse forward, but his troubled heart was in a state of turmoil as his horse slowly trotted forward. The fact that his sect members would regard Yu Luo Cha as their enemy was already something that he had anticipated, but he really didn't expect that their attitude towards her could actually turn out to be so hostile. Now that Yu Luo Cha was at the Tie Villa, they will all be coming face to face with each other very soon!

    Zhuo Yi Hang's heart palpitated wildly when Yu Xin Cheng suddenly said, "Brother, let's usher our horses to pick up their speed." In a muddled daze, Zhuo relaxed his hold on the reins and before he knew it, they have already arrived at the Tie Villa. But the moment they stepped foot inside the Villa, they were greeted with the sound of Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf shouting. Yu Xin Cheng was incredibly shaken and thus without even waiting for the servants to relay the message of their arrival, he has already commanded all his sect members to charge inside.

    Back to Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf who was just in the process of interrogating Yu Luo Cha when he suddenly saw Yu Xin Cheng's group accompany Zhuo Yi Hang inside. He hurriedly came forward to receive them and Zhuo immediately knelt down with a mournful wail. Yellow Leaf helped him up and then repeated Taoist Priest Purple Sun's last words to him. But Zhuo Yi Hang insisted, "Your worthless disciple is much too incompetent and unworthy to merit the bestowment of such an important responsibility. I beseech uncle to please gather together all the Wu Tang disciples by recalling them back to the mountain and then re-establish a more suitable person as the sect leader." Since Yellow Leaf felt that it was inappropriate to discuss such matters within the Tie Villa, he thus said, "That is a good suggestion. Let me finish this business with old Tie first and then we can all return to the mountain."

    Tie Fei Long was already quite displeased when he watched the Wu Tang sect overstep the boundaries of a guest and take over their host's house as if it was their own, but luckily Taoist Priest Purple Sun happened to be the person he most admired and respected, otherwise his temper would have exploded a long time ago. The moment Yellow Leaf and Zhuo Yi Hang finished their conversation, he immediately jumped forward to state loudly, "Yellow Leaf, your own sect leader is here right now. You can ask him yourself who the true culprit behind Taoist Priest Zhen Qian's murder was." Zhuo Yi Hang discerned through Tie's words and expression that there must be some kind of misunderstanding between him and his martial arts uncle over Taoist Priest Zhen Qian's death, therefore he immediately reported to his uncle, "Taoist Priest Zhen Qian was murdered by the practitioner of the Venomous Palms of the Yin Winds, Jin Du Yi's disciple. Old hero Tie was just about to travel to the Western frontiers in order to seek him out for revenge."

    Since Zhuo Yi Hang has personally confirmed Tie's words, Yellow Leaf had no other choice but to believe Tie's claim and as a result, blushed deeply while hurriedly bringing together his fists and bowing to Tie Fei Long to say, "Please excuse my irrational behaviour and accept my sincere apologies. When are you planning to leave senior Tie? I will most definitely send disciples to accompany you along your journey in order that they may assist you."

    Tie Fei Long snickered coldly and said, "There's no need. I have only one thing to ask of you. When you arrive in front of the Taoist Priest Purple Sun's tomb, please tell him that Tie Fei Long not only has an important matter to take care of, but also due to the incompatibility between our respective sects, he would not be able to arrive in person to give his last respects. I can only continue to offer my worship and veneration from afar, but I sincerely hope that I can have his understanding and forgiveness." Yellow Leaf knew that Tie Fei Long was still angry at heart, yet he also did not know what he could do in order to mitigate his bitterness. He therefore could only bring his fists together to say, "Senior Tie, such words are much too serious."

    Zhuo Yi Hang was standing by one side during the whole conversation (for although his ShiFu did establish him as the sect leader, yet he did not dare to take on the central position of a sect leader) but when he looked over to his side, Zhuo discovered that Geng Shao Nan was standing beside his martial arts uncle Red Cloud and furthermore, the faint traces of Geng's soft whispering could vaguely be heard. Geng appeared to be reporting something to Red Cloud and since Zhuo knew that Geng Shao Nan was Red Cloud's favoured and esteemed disciple, a thought immediately flashed across his head causing him to secretly cry with alarm. Geng Shao Nan must be asking his ShiFu to seek revenge for him!

    Zhuo Yi Hang quickly glanced towards Yu Luo Cha who was sitting behind Tie Fei Long, her animated eyes wandering nonchalantly around the room as if oblivious to what was happening around her. When her magnetic eyes happened to gaze directly into his own eyes, Zhuo Yi Hang hurriedly lowered his head while his heart palpitated so wildly that its hammering beat suddenly became audible.

    After Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf expressed his apologies to Tie Fei Long, there was already nothing else left for him to say and therefore Yu Xin Cheng along with the rest of the disciples all got up and prepared to depart. Yellow Leaf forced out an awkward laugh and said, "Please do excuse us senior Tie, we will be departing now." But before he could even finish his words, Taoist Priest Red Cloud has already jumped out to shout loudly, "Hold on brother!"

    Startled, Yellow Leaf turned back around only to see Red Cloud point to the young girl standing behind Tie Fei Long and declare loudly, "We have been so very impressed by this heroine here that this menial Taoist priest has long hoped for the opportunity to learn a few things from her. Who would have thought that I would come across this chance today?" Yellow Leaf froze with alarm as he thought to himself: has my brother suddenly lost his mind? He resides as one of the 5 elders of Wu Tang, but he sounds as if he's trying to issue a challenge to this young girl! How could he utter such words?

    With a sarcastic snicker, Tie Fei Long flashed over to one side and allowed a perfectly composed Yu Luo Cha to take the center stage. But Yu Luo Cha's expression was still one of poised tranquility as she took her time straightening up her clothes and smoothing out her dress before she very slowly stood up.

    ***********************************************

    Red Cloud leaped forward a step while Yu Luo Cha smiled faintly and said, "The swordsmanship of the Wu Tang Sect is unrivaled within the world, how could I possibly dare to challenge elder priest's skills?" With an angry grunt, Red Cloud then declared, "It's fine if you don't want to exchange moves. But this humble priest dares to ask young miss you to repay the debts you owe to our Wu Tang sect." Yu Luo Cha's eyebrows shot up as she asked, "What debts?" Red Cloud replied, "I dare to ask young miss you to please severe six of your fingers and then give them to this humble priest so that I may bring it back to Wu Tang!"

    That year, when Yu Luo Cha ridiculed the five disciples of Wu Tang on the Ding Jun Mountain, she cut off two fingers on Geng Shao Nan's hand while the other four disciples each lost one finger. All together, it comprised a total of six fingers. As soon as Yellow Leaf heard these words, he immediately understood: So this young girl wasn't Tie Fei Long's daughter, but was instead the famed Yu Luo Cha whose mere name can cause the abandonment of all guts and courage amongst the gangs of the Underground world?! Who would have thought that she would be so young?

    Yu Luo Cha did not bother responding but only stood there giggling incessantly. Although Taoist Priest Red Cloud was already situated in the middle of the room, yet he knew it wasn't proper to take out his sword and push a young girl into battle.

    Zhuo Yi Hang's whole body was trembling and when Geng Shao Nan saw the peculiar expression on Zhuo's face, he approached his side softly and whispered, "Elder brother, is anything wrong?" Zhuo Yi Hang replied, "No, nothing." Geng Shao Nan said, "That female bandit is extremely powerful, I'm afraid that even ShiFu can't stop her! You have to prepare yourself elder brother, we absolutely cannot let her escape today." His head caught in a daze, Zhuo Yi Hang could only nod in response while secretly hoping within his heart that this battle won't ensue.

    Amidst the laughter, Tie Fei Long ran into the middle of the combat ring and said in a clear voice, "Lian er, do you really owe Wu Tang something?" Yu Luo Cha smiled and said, "Nah, I don't owe them anything. What I took away with me was merely a prize! Since Wu Tang's five disciples wanted to compare sword skills with me, they can't expect me to return empty-handed right? Father, I'm sure you're aware that this has always been the rule within the black societal clans." When Yellow Leaf heard them refer to each other as father and daughter, he was again startled.

    Tie Fei Long stroked his beard and laughed, "Lian er, you must have been mistaken. Those people who battled with you must have been impostors who were pretending to be Wu Tang disciples. Think about it, the Wu Tang sword skill is undefeated within the world! Why would they gang up on one person with the combined power of five fighters and still end up losing?" The father and daughter went back and forth with their playful banter, causing Red Cloud to be even more humiliated as he whipped out his sword to yell, "Yu Luo Cha, are you planning to clear this debt or not?" He then turned towards Tie Fei Long to say, "We reside on the mountains and have really gotten out of loop with the matters of the outside world, thus we never knew that you actually have such an extraordinary daughter. We realize that to seek payback from her right in front of your face may indeed be disrespectful, yet you have to repay an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Such is a reality which I cannot change!"

    But Tie Fei Long only roared with laughter and said, "This daughter of mine is quite different from all others. She never needs me to worry or interfere with anything that she does. Any debts or problems she may have, she will take care of herself. What are you all coming to me for?" When Yellow Leaf heard these words, he was once again baffled for Tie's attitude did not seem to reflect the relationship between a father and daughter. After a slight pause, Tie Fei Long continued, "But being her father, I should come forward to say a few words on her behalf. Is it just you who's seeking payback, or will the two generations of Wu Tang's skilled fighters gathered here today be seeking payback as a group?" Red Cloud snapped furiously, "As long as you don't help out, our Wu Tang sect most definitely will not take advantage of our large numbers to win this battle." Tie Fei Long smiled and said, "Really? But even if you do decide to send out a few more fighters all at once, it still won't be much of a big deal. As long as Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf can hold back, then I don't have to worry my old head about anything. I may as well have a seat with Yellow Leaf and just enjoy this battle." What Tie Fei Long was obviously saying was: as long as Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf does not participate in the battle, then even if all of your fighters strike out together, you will still not be Yu Luo Cha's match. Such words of course made Red Cloud even more infuriated.

    Tie Fei Long and Yellow Leaf gestured to each other, then retreated simultaneously before Red Cloud said, "Yu Luo Cha, aren't you going to take out your weapon? What are you waiting for?" Yu Luo Cha smiled ever so faintly and said, "Since the elders have issued orders, then this youngster dares not to disobey. But out of respect to seniors, please strike your stance first."

    Despite Taoist Priest Red Cloud's aggressiveness, Yu Luo Cha continued to take no notice of him, and though she has said that she will follow his orders, yet her sword still remained within its sheath. Red Cloud was boiling with anger, and yet he had no other choice but to return his sword to its sheath and then swiftly blast out with his left palm. The sleeves of his robe sliced through the wind as he strained his two fingers to pierce towards Yu Luo Cha's face using the stance "Painting the eyes on the Dragon." But Red Cloud was surprised to find that Yu Luo Cha only had to move her body ever so slightly before he ended up attacking empty air!

    The sound of a sword blade grazing through the wind instantaneously followed as a current of cool air immediately approached from behind him. Although Red Cloud was greatly alarmed, yet luckily his martial arts were also incredibly apt, and thus with a tap of his toes he executed a "bending waist to plant willow" and then by generating the energy from his whole body, he immediately snuck to one side. Even while in the midst of rotating his body, he was able to discern where the weapon of his opponent was positioned and thus with the execution of Wu Tang's supreme martial art skill the "Yuan-Yang (9) sequential kicks," he kicked madly towards Yu Luo Cha's sword wielding hand. With a slide, Yu Luo Cha evaded his attack, but Red Cloud continued to kick and ended up more than ten feet away from the combat ring before he could stop himself. He turned back around only to find Yu Luo Cha asking with her long sword in her hand and a dazzling smile on her face, "Elder priest, why aren't you taking out your sword?"

    The sheer speed of Yu Luo Cha's movements was like nothing he has ever seen before! Red Cloud had to stop and secretly take a deep breath for he really couldn't believe that she would have the ability to extract her sword even in the midst of dodging his attacks. Because he had underestimated her abilities, he bludgeoned forward blinding and almost committed an irreversible mistake.

    Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf was only observing the battle from the side, but he was similarly taken back. Even though the degree of Yu Luo Cha's martial arts proficiency still could not be discerned yet, however it could already be ascertained that her levitation skills were above Tie Fei Long's and therefore it seems reasonable to conclude that her martial arts were not taught by him.

    By this time, Red Cloud no longer dared to take this battle lightly and as he hurriedly took out his sword, he said in a much more humbler and courteous tone, "Fine, then would young miss please strike a stance first." Again, Yu Luo Cha only smiled faintly and said, "Then excuse my rudeness!" She then raised her left fingers above her head and immediately pushed her right arm forward. The tip of her sword was sparkling rays of light as she pierced towards Red Cloud's chest while standing in the center position!

    The theory of martial arts states that: "The Sword runs along the side, the Spear attacks along a line," and there is a similar saying which states, "The Sabre follows the light, the Sword follows the dark." What these phrases illustrate is that the art of sword should be chiefly concerned with agile transformations and lithe movements, thus those who use the sword will typically attack from the left or right sides. They don't often take the centre position. But now, Yu Luo Cha has chosen the method of the frontal attack by taking the centre position with her very first stance, this was obviously a way of slighting Red Cloud's abilities. Even though Red Cloud has already changed his attitude towards Yu Luo Cha by treating her as an equally matched opponent, yet when he observed the disregard she was showing towards him, he couldn't stop himself from exploding with absolute rage.

    With a swirl of his esteemed sword, Red Cloud's blade approached Yu Luo Cha's blade and with the stance "Dance of the Silver Snakes (10) ," he suddenly twisted#####ds. Such a move had the ability to dismantle the frontal attacks of one's opponent and was a powerful attack found within the Wu Tang sect's 72 Styles of the Sequential-Linking Sword Skill. Yellow Leaf, who was observing from the side was secretly praising his brother and thinking to himself: brother's sword skill truly has improved greatly. This stance was executed at exactly the right time and with exactly the right force, with such a twist and pull, regardless of how powerful one's opponent may be, this stance will most definitely cause their weapon to fly out of their hand!

    Taoist Priest Red Cloud was thinking the exact same thing and was very confident that his attack was most definitely going to succeed. But he never expected that Yu Luo Cha's sword stances would turn out to be so erratic and contrary to convention. He watched her attack from the front, but what was obviously a "Venomous snake flicks out forked tongue" stance underwent a slight vibration and somehow, the blade suddenly slid over to one side and pierced towards his left shoulder-blade while also simultaneously slashing downwards towards his arm and the side of his body. Red Cloud was greatly taken back, but by bringing his body together with his sword, he rotated in a semi-circle and managed to escape such an attack. Yu Luo Cha followed closely behind and by bending at the waist and extending her arm, her long sword tore out with the force of a tornado.

    When Red Cloud observed that she was obviously attacking with the "Waves clashing against dragon gates" stance, he hurriedly lifted his sword to scrape in an upwards motion. But little did he expect that when Yu Luo Cha's stance reached its halfway point, she would suddenly change directions, so that what should have been a stance which struck towards the top would suddenly pierced downwards and even when it appeared that she was attacking left, she would suddenly flip towards the right. Caught completely off guard, Red Cloud was all thumbs as he clumsily scrambled about and repeatedly stumbled backwards.

    Yet nevertheless, the fame of Wu Tang's sword skill was not founded on unmerited grounds. After the exchange of a few stances, Red Cloud was able to discover that even though the mysticism of Yu Luo Cha's sword skill was incomparable to anything he has ever encountered before, yet he was also able to gradually understand some of its dynamics so that he was not as baffled and unprepared as before. He then immediately made the decision to execute all 72 styles of the Sequential-Linking Sword Skill with such intensity that it forms a shield which could prevent the invasion of wind and rain. By doing this, he was concentrating his full energy into resisting her attacks but would have to end up abandoning the prospect of initiating any attacks.

    It should be understood that Wu Tang's art of inner energy cultivation was considered as the essence of orthodoxy within the martial arts world. Similarly, their school of sword art has undergone the reformation and modification of many generations of talented martial art masters. Therefore, their sword skill truly was profound and ingenious, otherwise how could they have taken possession of the "World's number one" title? Under the tight defense created by Red Cloud, Yu Luo Cha truly was unable to break through his barrier at the time being.

    Yellow Leaf's palms were dripping with sweat and it was only now did he finally allow himself to let out a breath of relief, but the fact remained that Red Cloud was still unable to decipher or comprehend Yu Luo Cha's radically bizarre sword skill. Amongst this process of attacking and guarding, another fifty or seventy stances past while Yu Luo Cha continued to reside solidly in the position of the fighter with the upper hand. She took the initiative with every move, causing Yellow Leaf's heart to eventually return to a state of nervous panic. He knew that in a situation where two skilled fighters were competing sword skills, if one fighter only had the ability to defend and not to attack, their every move will most definitely be restricted by their opponent at every turn. Once enough time passes by, they will eventually reveal an opening of which their opponent can take advantage of. His own status was extremely respected and he had further made a promise to Tie Fei Long, so of course he could not lend out a hand to help his brother.

    But at that time Zhuo Yi Hang happened to be standing beside him and so he lightly tugged on his hand and then whispered to him softly, "Wait here a while longer, then go forward to substitute your martial arts uncle." Amongst all the second generation disciples, Zhuo Yi Hang's martial arts were recognized as being the most superb. Even though overall, he may still be slightly below that of Red Cloud, yet the fact that he was young and energetic was one area which he excels over his martial arts uncle. Therefore Yellow Leaf thought to himself: by asking him to go out, he can at least withstand fifty or so stances. Besides, Zhuo Yi Hang was a youngster and therefore even if he was defeated, it at least won't be such a shameful loss. It is best to let him ward off the opponent for the time being while we think of another plan.

    By that time, Zhuo Yi Hang was lost in a comatose daze as his eyes remained glued to the battlefield and his limbs were frozen over with terror. When Yellow Leaf pulled on his arm, he couldn't help but be shocked as he immediately glanced towards him and asked, "Are you feeling sick?" Zhuo Yi Hang shook his head while Yellow Leaf continued in a low voice, "Did you hear what I said?" Zhuo Yi Hang nodded with bewilderment, leaving Yellow Leaf unsure of whether he could believe his answer or not. But on observing Zhuo Yi Hang's soulless, glassy-eyed stare, he became extremely concerned.

    At the same time, the fight on the battlefield was becoming increasingly intense as the sweat on Red Cloud's forehead started to become visibly observable. With a laugh that rung out long and clear, Yu Luo Cha stroked her sword to paint out a ray of brilliant light, striking straight towards Red Cloud's wrist. Red Cloud lifted his sword to block her, but her wrist suddenly retracted so that the tip of her blade pierced downwards, heading directly towards the joint on his kneecap. Red Cloud was incredibly surprised, for such a move was none other than the "Gold Needle Shocks World" (11) stance from his own Wu Tang sword skill!

    Because Red Cloud has fought over one hundred stances with Yu Luo Cha, he had already begun to understand that her sword skill tends to run in the opposite direction of the original stances that were being imitated. But since he couldn't figure out a way to overcome these stances, he could only exert all his efforts into defending and ignore the lure of attacking. By this way of secure shielding, he could only hope that he will not leave an opening for his opponent to make a fool of him. But when he suddenly saw his opponent approach with a stance from his very own sect, he momentarily forgot that her sword skill was based on opposite principles and actually rushed forward to take the outer position. With a swerve of his sword, he then quickly spun it around two rotations. Such a move was called "Three Turns of the Dharma Wheel (12) " and was originally an ingenious move that could be used to ward off the "Golden Needle Enters World" stance. But what he did not expect was that even though Yu Luo Cha appeared to be piercing downwards, the tip of her blade would suddenly bounce around to thrust upwards. Red Cloud's sword was snagged within the force of her blade as the two weapons twisted together for two full circles before Red Cloud's sword almost flew out of his hands!

    Such is: Amongst the blur of dust and wind, sword skill sheds out divine light.

    ************************************
    9) "Yuan-yang": translates into Mandarin duck.
    10) "Dance of the Silver Snakes": translation shortened. Full translation should be "Dance of the Silver Snakes on Mountain"
    11) "Golden needle shocks world": The translator believes that "golden needle" may be referring to the legendary Monkey King Sun Wu Kong's (the main character in the Chinese classic "Journey to the West") weapon, a golden stick which was also known as "The Divine Needle that Stabilizes the Sea"
    12) "Dharma wheel": A Buddhist term, also known as the "Wheel of Law."

  6. #46
    Senior Member Du Gu seeking a win's Avatar
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    Default Chapter 8 (1)

    Chapter 8

    Humbly Honours Sect Leader
    Entangled Heartstrings Cannot be Broken
    Spilled Water Forever Unrecoverable
    Sorrow and Hatred Still Remains

    When Geng Shao Nan saw how dangerous his ShiFu's situation was, he cried out with alarm and was just about to charge out with Yu Xin Cheng when Red Cloud has already retreated two steps, relieved from immediate danger. What had happened was that though Red Cloud was not Yu Luo Cha's match, yet his inner energy cultivation was still quite rich. Therefore during the most crucial moment, he hurriedly generated his inner energy to momentarily freeze her sword, thus alleviating the force of her attack. He then immediately retracted his sword and retreated, barely able to catch his breath.

    Yu Luo Cha smiled faintly and said, "We have fought over one hundred stances but was still unable to determine a winner. I think we should just forget about this whole score and stop fighting." Yu Luo Cha was only saying these words for Zhuo Yi Hang's sake for she was trying to allow Red Cloud to save some face. But Red Cloud has already fought to the point of where his head was spinning with dizziness, and now that he was unable to defeat a youngster in front of his own disciples, how could he be willing to give up? To him, Yu Luo Cha's words were simply oil that poured over his fire. His face grew green with rage and with a grind of his teeth, he whipped out his sword and charged towards Yu Luo Cha again!

    With a flare of her slender eyebrow, Yu Luo Cha laughed icily and said, "Ha! So you still wanna fight?" and thus with a swipe of her sword, she pierced towards his right side. This move was again a stance taken out of the Wu Tang sect; it was named "White Crane Preys on Fish." According to logic, Red Cloud has already experienced the repercussions of one mistake and should be careful not to repeat the same mistake again. Therefore, he should have hastened back to defense mode. But Red Cloud has spent a few dozen years studying the sword skill of his sect, so that the act of uniting the sword with the heart as one has long become a habit. As soon as he saw Yu Luo Cha use a stance from his very own sect's sword skill, he couldn't help but rush to take the outer position again and with a side sweep, he used the "Intercepting the river battle" stance. With a back sweep, Yu Luo Cha forced Red Cloud's sword to twirl around before a loud "ding dong" sound was heard and Red Cloud's sword was immediately seen to fly out of his hands!

    Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf was incredibly frantic as he pushed Zhuo Yi Hang and cried, "Why aren't you going out yet?" But words are often slower than words, for Yu Xin Cheng and a few other sect members have already charged forward one after the other. Zhuo Yi Hang was completely stupefied with shock as he extracted his sword in a state of frenzied bewilderment. But sounds of metal clashing and scraping against each other were immediately heard as Yu Luo Cha's white dress fluttered by. A white flash slithered through the crowd and in just a blink of an eye, the long sword in the hands of all five Wu Tang disciples have been shocked out of their hands!

    Geng Shao Nan, who was so willing to risk his life in order to save his ShiFu just a moment ago, found out the moment he stepped foot onto the battlefield that just one glare from Yu Luo Cha was enough to terrify him to the core. Having completely lost his courage, he actually didn't dare to exchange stances with Yu Luo Cha and could only drop to the floor and roll away from the battle. Only when he had rolled to the walls did he finally stop.

    When Red Cloud saw his disciples humiliate themselves in such an embarrassing manner, his bloodshot eyes burned with fury as he picked up a long sword from the floor and then charged towards Yu Luo Cha again. Yu Luo Cha only laughed coldly and said, "You should probably wait for your disciples to pick up their swords as well." But in just a blink of an eye, Red Cloud has already attacked with three stances!

    Yu Luo Cha blocked and sealed with her sword when suddenly, her blade turned downwards with the speed of lightning. Zhuo Yi Hang happened to arrive right at that very moment, and though his arms and legs were limp, yet when he saw his martial arts uncle come under danger, he had no choice but to pierce out with his sword. Yu Luo Cha cried, "You!" and then suddenly screamed sharply before she tossed away her sword. As her weapon crashed to the ground, Yu Luo Cha also backed up more than ten feet but it could already be observed that her arm was injured as blood seeped through her white dress!

    Yu Luo Cha has always been a proud and competitive person who strives towards victory. Yet for Zhuo Yi Hang's sake, when she first began her fight with Red Cloud, she was already planning to let Red Cloud take advantage of the fight by a stance or two. But when she saw how aggressive and unrelenting Red Cloud was, she couldn't stop herself from losing her temper and as the fight escalated to its intense moments, how could she be willing to let it all slide? It was only when she had defeated Red Cloud and then extracted the weapons from the Wu Tang disciples did she regret her action. Not sure of how to resolve this mess, when she saw Zhuo Yi Hang pick up his sword and charge forward, she purposely allowed Red Cloud's sword blade to lightly drag across her arm, so that she may pretend to be injured and retreat in defeat!

    But the person who was most surprised was probably Red Cloud who thought that he must have been dreaming when he saw Yu Luo Cha throw away her sword and retreat in defeat. Even though he was holding his sword in his hand, he actually didn't dare to charge forward to attack Yu Luo Cha. At this very moment, Tie Fei Long was suddenly heard to explode into a thunderous howl while Yellow Leaf was also heard to cry out hoarsely!

    What had happened was that when Zhuo Yi Hang ran forward, the sounds of metal crushing and blades breaking simultaneously ensued. When Yellow Leaf saw how his sect's disciples were all an embarrassing farce and how Zhuo Yi Hang was teetering and tottering about, obviously far from being Yu Luo Cha's match, he understood that such a situation no longer allowed him to hesitate or insist on his principles. Therefore, he immediately expanded his arms and hurriedly flew towards the battle center. On one side of the room, Yellow Leaf was seen to fly up. While on the other side of the room, with a sweep of his sleeves, Tie Fei Long also soared out like a large bird. (1) The palms of both fighters met up with each other and with a loud explosion, both men were shocked backwards. Tie Fei Long roared ferociously, "Yellow Leaf! Have you no shame?!" By that time, Yu Luo Cha has already retreated with a scream after she intentionally let herself be wounded. Yellow Leaf nearly jumped out of his skin as his heart pounded wildly in his chest. But he couldn't be bothered with answering Tie's words and could only cry out hoarsely, "Yi Hang! Are you hurt?" He thought that Zhuo Yi Hang must have undergone some kind of harm already, but Red Cloud immediately hollered out instead, "Brother! Let's just go!"

    Tie Fei Long brought up his fists and was itching to charge forward again when Yu Luo Cha who was leaning against the sandalwood table called out, "Father! Your daughter I tied them in battle, there's no need to fight anymore." Tie Fei Long asked, "Why do you say that?" Yu Luo Cha replied, "Taoist Priest Red Cloud kindly allowed me to win one match, but when I combated their second generation disciple, I was also defeated by one stance. Therefore we're even, neither one of us has lost." Tie Fei Long said, "Since that is the case, then we'll forget about this whole incident! Yellow Leaf, you have important matters to take care of, so I won't detain you!" He then brought his hands down and returned to his seat, lifting up his tea cup as a gesture of biding farewell to his guests.

    Red Cloud didn't know whether he should laugh or cry, but Yellow Leaf understood very well that if they continued to fight, it would most definitely prove to be unbeneficial to them. Therefore he could only force back his anger and force out a fake smile as he expressed farewells to Tie. Tie Fei Long remarked, "In front of Taoist Priest Purple Sun's shrine, please ask him to forgive me for my discourtesy." Yellow Leaf replied, "I dare not forget!" Zhuo Yi Hang bowed alongside Yellow Leaf as they retreated, but when he suddenly saw Yu Luo Cha leaning against the door frame with what seemed to be a smile and yet did not resemble a smile on her face, he hurriedly turned around, no longer daring to turn back for another look.

    The crowd departed from the Tie mansion and all along the trail, Red Cloud's face was taunt with displeasure as he did not utter a single word for very very very long time. Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf rode alongside Zhuo Yi Hang, purposely allowing themselves to fall behind the crowd before he said to Zhuo in a soft voice, "This Yu Luo Cha's sword skill is truly brilliant and unfathomable, which goes to show that her fame truly is well deserved. But why would she be wounded by you?" Zhuo Yi Hang replied, "That was thanks to third uncle." Yellow Leaf chuckled and said, "I don't think that even I could defeat her" and thus Zhuo Yi Hang knew that Yellow Leaf did not believe his words and couldn't help but blush. Yellow Leaf continued, "It seems to me that she was purposely looking out for you." Zhuo Yi Hang knew that his martial arts uncle was already suspicious therefore could only relate to him the full details behind his encounter with Yu Luo Cha. When Yellow Leaf heard to the part of where Yu Luo Cha combated the six villains on top of Mountain Hua's peak, he secretly marveled to himself with surprise. After he had finished listening to the full details of Yu Luo Cha's background, he was even more startled. He remained silent as he pondered over Zhuo's words for a long time before he nodded his head and thought to himself: This female bandit's ways are indeed unorthodox, for even though she may be "demonic," yet at the same time she seems to possess a bit of the heroic valor. And thus he said, "So she was su*ckled by a mother wolf? No wonder she is so wild and unruly! But you yourself belong to the educated elite classes, it's not very fitting for you to associate with her." Zhuo Yi Hang replied, "Please do not misunderstand uncle, your disciple I do not have any personal relationship with her." Yellow Leaf laughed and said, "Let's hope so. Otherwise, as a sect leader, you will be laughed at by your fellow disciples!" But Zhuo Yi Hang was thinking to himself: I'd rather not be the sect leader.

    They traveled alongside the Yellow River and passed by the Tong Pass to enter into Henan before heading south from Nanyang to enter into Wubei. All along the trip, they had each other to converse and chat amongst, so that the journey was not at all lonely. But amongst the conversations of Red Cloud, Yu Xin Cheng, Geng Shao Nan and the likes, it could be easily detected that they harboured great resentment and hatred towards Yu Luo Cha. Although Taoist Priest Yellow Leaf's attitude was somewhat better, yet he still viewed Yu Luo Cha as belonging to the demonic and eccentric classes. Zhuo Yi Hang secretly lamented to himself as he ruminated over how difficult it is to dissipate the misunderstandings that exists between human beings.

    **************************************

    1) "large bird": The direct translation should be "wild goose."

  7. #47
    Member Faerie Queene's Avatar
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    Default Post Translation Rant ...

    Hi all! Finally got myself an account! ... and happily surprised to see that Brother seeking-a-win has already posted my update for me

    Below is my freshest rant

    Personally, I just really really love these last two chapters ... it was one of those emotional highs for me ... Tie FeiLong kicking his daughter out made me cry, but Yu Luo Cha willing to admit him as her father made me so happy. I seriously think that YLC & TFL make the coolest father/daughter combo ever! Both equally powerful, both equally unruly ... and similarly, both equally worthy of pity. I'm happy that they've at least got each other.

    I've always considered the TFL & 9Liang break so realistic .... both from 9L's side and Tie's side. With Tie, we see the hint of the mid-life crisis here ... it was said that he took 9L as his concubine during his midlife years, and when his daughter and concubine left him, it was said that he finally felt that he truly was "very old." They say that the midlife crisis occurs when one is unwilling to accept the fact of natural aging. Perhaps that's why Tie decided to take a much younger 9L. This theme of aging is actually one which resonates through the novel, and there will even be a phrase in chapter 8 which pretty much summarizes it ... "Since the beginning of time, the Hero has been like the Beauty, they can never let the world see their white head." We'll be coming back to this theme again in later chapters ...

    A little bit about Tie ShanHu. Though TSH can't compare with YLC and in the story, she doesn't play that significant of a role, yet she is still one of my favourite supporting females. At the beginning, she doesn't really strike me as being particularly likeable ... she seems to be the very typical spoiled brat. In fact, in this regard, she's very similar to another Liang Yusheng female support character, Yang LiuQing who appears in "JiangHu 3 Nu Xia"/the three heroines of the martial art world (which was actually written around the same time as this book was). They both lost their mother at a very young age and was therefore spoiled by their father. They both took advantage of their father's prominence to be unruly and arrogant. They both tried to get themselves married off to another guy, but was rejected. But unlike Yang LiuQing, Tie ShanHu gets better, she changes and reforms (whereas, I've always felt that Yang's life doesn't turn out that well). TSH's change I feel is due to 2 influences ... Yue MingKe (who appeared earlier and will be returning) & YLC. Actually, even in chap 7, I already felt that Shanhu was different ... the fact that she would have enough courage (albeit laced with a hurt pride) to walk out on her own after being kicked out by her own father in front of a whole room of people (remember, this was a very spoiled girl to begin with). There's something about such a willful personality that I just gotta admire.

    Of course, the fact that TFL threw her out of the house and thus allowed her to face the world on her own helped her to mature. So that in the end, she truly does become a very likeable girl. I'm not going to reveal too much about Shan Hu in order not to ruin the plot for you guys, but since she and YLC are now sisters, it's important to kind of compare them from now on in terms of how they love & who they choose to love. In fact, such a comparison should be made even with the other female characters. YLC is easily the most superior woman in this novel (and also one of the most extraordinary heroines amongst the female heroines of LYS's other books), but her choice in love is simply too .... (sigh).

    Btw., I really do admire YLC for actually trying to lose to the Wutang nerds. You have to really understand, YLC is really arrogant when it comes to martial arts and she loves to win. But the fact that she would be willing to lose to the nerd Red Cloud (who is nowhere near her caliber) simply speaks for her grace and her deep feelings for ZYH .... the poor girl ... and what angers me is that even at this point, forget admitting to everyone and himself that he is going gaga for this lovely woman, ZYH can't even admit to people that he & YLC are FRIENDS!!!! (and mumbles some crap about being "acquaintances made in the name of honour")

    But I also want to mention that YLC will be having quite a few more run-ins with the WuTang sect, and very soon, she will definitely not be so gracefully forgiving. It could be for many reasons -- probably b/c she will soon meet White Stone (who is *the* bit*ch amongst the elders ... Yellow Leaf and the others were not as bad as he was), and maybe b/c either she or Liang Yusheng have simply had enough of their crap. I certainly did

    About Meng QiuXia & Wang ZhaoXi ... they will be pretty much receeding for the rest of the story ... appearing only once in a while, but overall, their role in the story won't be very significant. However, I do like this pair of lovers ... I really do like the assertive attitude the girls in this book take towards love. Meng is a very good example ... even from the very moment she appears, the first thing that she says to the gawking Wang is "Yo dude, why are you oogling at me?" So straightforward, so unpretentious, yet said without any vanity. Just love it. Then she goes and runs after her husband for millions of miles ... kind of romantic dont' you think?

    My good friend Polie once mentioned that the fact she left her father's altar to run after her husband instead of fulfilling the proper rites of remaining by the alter for I-don't-know-how-many days was somewhat unfilial. And I definitely see where he's coming from, but I do think that sometimes, love and filial piety can't always been measured through formalities. As long as Meng loves her father at heart, that is enough (and I'm sure she does). After all, she is a Jianghu girl, and such strict adherance to formalities is not always so necessary. If her father was watching her from above, he would have wanted her to be happy and probably wouldn't want her to be so concerned with these rigid and stuffy customs. And the grace and assertiveness she shows when she chases after Wang is so admirable ... when your man misunderstands you over a very small matter, what do you do? You don't sit around crying and wait for him to hopefully come to his senses so that he can back to you, you gracefully forgive him and then go out there yourself and make that man know what your feelings are! Go girl!

    Fight scenes ... did you guys catch the humour? What do you do when two fighters are deadlocked in the midst of combating internal energies? Easy. You tickle them (beatuy and brains) Also, what I found funny was when YLC first used the reverse Wu Tang sword skill to combat Red Cloud, we can deduce that she was implementing a fighting tactic (it was said that she let out a clear and long laugh ... seemingly to imply a sort of resolve to initiate a move which could end the fight), and Red Cloud does fall for the bait. But what was funny was that when he charges forward again to attack, YLC once again uses the same tactic (maybe her way of looking down on him, knowing that he won't be able to correct himself?) ... and he falls for the bait AGAIN! hahaha.... loser. As for Geng Shao Nan's drop and roll ... hehehe ... BIG loser.

    Unfortunately, YLC will now be accompanying TFL to retrieve the manual, so she will be dropping out of the story for quite a few chapters. The story will mostly swerve into the direction of Zhuo & Yue Ming Ke. Although I do like and respect Yue Ming Ke (and actually, his position within the Tian Shan series is actually more important than YLC), and though his chapters are entertaining enough (more fights coming up ahead), yet I do feel that this is YLC's story, and when she's not around, the story simply doesn't shine. I won't tell you which chapter she returns, but I do think that those of you who like her will find that her subsequent return is well worth the wait

    I plan to got out of town at the end of the month and don't think I'll bring my laptop w/ me, so I plan to put chap 8 mostly into summary (as it mostly concerns ZYH) and throw it out b/f I leave. Hopefully you can all put up with me if the next few chapters are a little slow in coming out. Though there's no YLC, the next few chapters are a valuable read as it builds up on some cool side characters and will make you appreciate the whole story more.

    That's all for now!
    Thanks for reading, hope you're all enjoying it

    Btw., a late Chinese New Year greeting to all of you! & also Happy Valentine's Day (late again )
    Queenie sends her blessings as always
    Last edited by Faerie Queene; 02-17-04 at 02:19 AM.
    At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napolean -- and my ambition has steadily grown ever since.

    ~ Salvador Dali


  8. #48
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    Default

    Originally posted by divine_comedy
    More more more. How many chapters are there ?
    Hi there!

    There are 32 chapters all together, and since I plan to put most of chapter 8 into summary, that means that I have completed about 1/4 of the story

    I sometimes feel like this translation is some kind of martial art skill I'm practicing, where every chapter I complete equals to an extra level I have suceessfully completed . So that the day I can finish this, I will then be "Tian Xia Wu Di" and then I can go ... sit on an elephant or something

    Actually, I would probably go around to all the other wonderful translators such as Mo, Meh, Lanny first and give them a root for them and then and pinch their butts before I run off to crush that elephant
    At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napolean -- and my ambition has steadily grown ever since.

    ~ Salvador Dali


  9. #49
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    Default

    Originally posted by zhouyu
    I loved this story, that ZYH, what a lucky guy?
    too bad he doesn't know it and wasted it for something
    stupid
    No kidding. And when you think about it, to win her heart, all that guy had to do was give her his jacket. (sigh).

    Originally posted by crazy
    When is the next chap coming out? the suspense is killing me!
    I know the feeling, I've been there.

    Hope you enjoyed this last update, but I really am sorry I can't translate faster
    At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napolean -- and my ambition has steadily grown ever since.

    ~ Salvador Dali


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    Thumbs up Welcome!

    Just want to say: Welcome to SPCNET, FaQ!
    .
    Interested in a few Wuxia discussions here?

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    Default Re: Welcome!

    Originally posted by Anonymous
    Just want to say: Welcome to SPCNET, FaQ!
    .
    Interested in a few Wuxia discussions here?
    Thanks very much for welcoming me Anonymous

    This is such a cute and cool site ... I will definitely take a good look @ the interesting wuxia discussion topics around here, but I really don't think that I will be participating in any lengthy discussions at ANY forum in the near future

    I really do think my forum frequenting days are over ... these days, all I really want to do is study more wuxia (yes, STUDY ), finish my translation (aka my Bai Fa Mo Nu Shen Gong ) and work on my other creative projects.

    But anyhow, I'm glad that I at least got an account here now ...

    At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napolean -- and my ambition has steadily grown ever since.

    ~ Salvador Dali


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    Smile All Hail The Queene!

    Welcome Faerie! What have you been up to lately?

    Greetings, Rene
    (On Her Majesty's Secret Service)
    ¹ï ¼Ä ¶· ¬½ ¡A ±Ù ¯ó °£ ®Ú ¡A ¨k ¤k ¦Ñ ¥® ¡A ¤£ ¯d ¤@ ¤H

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    Default Re: All Hail The Queene!

    Originally posted by Laviathan
    Welcome Faerie! What have you been up to lately?

    Greetings, Rene
    (On Her Majesty's Secret Service)
    Heeeeeey Lava!!!!! Wow! It's great to hear from you ... I've missed you! How are you doing? Still in Beijing?

    What have I been doing these days? Mmmm ... a lot, and not much at the same time I won't spam this board with my life story (I do that enough at the WDF ), but you can always e-mail me and we can chat (but I have to warn you, I'm super bad w/ replying to e-mails, even though I'm always happy to hear from others).

    However, I'll tell you this ... I just finished a rock climbing course last week and man, now I know how rough it was on little GJ when he had to climb up that mountain to meet his 7 Shifus... ... still, it was fun

    Take care for now!

    Btw., how's the secret mission going? Have you stolen the national treasure yet? Remember, I want a cute and chubby baby panda & not an old and boring one who sits around scratching his bum and chewing up my plants okay?
    At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napolean -- and my ambition has steadily grown ever since.

    ~ Salvador Dali


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    Default chapter 8 (part 2)

    Yo! Here's the rest of chapter 8 ... the majority of it has been arranged into a summary by me. The parts which are translated word for word have been put into bold and italics.

    After traveling for 12 days, they arrived at the Wu Tang mountain where all the religiously practicing disciples and non-practicing disciples were already waiting for them. They along with Taoist Priest White Stone and Green Palm came out to receive Zhuo Yi Hang, accompanying him into the inner room to see Taoist Priest Purple Sun’s corpse.

    It has already been 2 months since Purple Sun’s death, but since they wanted to wait for Zhuo Yi Hang’s return, they did not lower the corpse into the ground and used tonics to preserve the corpse in order so that it will not decompose. When Zhuo Yi Hang saw the corpse, he fainted with distress.

    He gradually awakened after a long lapse and immediately discovered that all four of his martial art uncles along with the 12 eldest disciples of the second generation were there, organized into two rows with a somber expression.

    Yellow Leaf then brought up the issue of succession again, using the many acts of kindness and beneficence that Purple Sun bestowed upon Zhuo as the reason for him to abide by his Shifu’s last wishes and accept the position of the sect leader. When Zhuo voiced that he was too young and inexperienced, his martial arts uncles insisted that his youthful energy was exactly what their sect needed, whereas they themselves were simply too old to take on such a task.

    When Zhuo looked over to Yu Xin Cheng, Yu Xin Cheng immediately commanded four other brothers forward and performed obeisance, once again insisting that everyone in the sect is in absolute support of Zhuo’s succession. Yu Xin Cheng was afraid that Zhuo’s hesitation was due to his apprehension towards the possibility that his fellow sect members may feel that his succession was undeserved, and therefore he was especially keen to indicate that their feelings were otherwise. When Zhuo looked around the room at the 12 martial art brothers, he had to admit that amongst them, there was nobody else who had the talent and ability to take on such a daunting responsibility. And even if they did select another candidate, others would not be satisfied with such an arrangement.

    Finally Yellow Leaf reminded Zhuo that if he continued to tarry, his ShiFu’s burial would continue to be delayed which means that they would be unable to lower the corpse into its burial plot. Zhuo thus finally said that even if he was to take over the position, he must wait until three years later because he was now a convicted criminal on the run from the law.

    Zhuo has kept the details of this incident a secret from his martial arts uncle and fellow sect members all along the journey because this concerned a very serious matter and they had many disciples along with them during the trip. But now, Yellow Leaf took Zhuo to one side and Zhuo explained everything in detail to him. After he finished listening to everything, Yellow Leaf suddenly asked, “Then Yu Luo Cha knows about this matter?”

    Zhuo Yi Hang replied, “Yu Luo Cha most definitely knows. Amongst the six villains who battled with her on Mountain Hua’s peak, there were two who were Manchurian spies.” Yellow Leaf asked, “Since she is a bandit of the Underground world, shouldn’t the fact that somebody else is also trying to capsize the imperial government make her happy now that she’s getting what she has wanted all along?” Zhuo Yi Hang replied, “She feels only true hatred towards those people. Not only her, but Wang Zhao Xi feels the same way as well. Within the hearts of the Underground heroes, they feel that though the Emperor’s position may be something which can be seized, yet the country most definitely cannot fall into the hands of a foreign race.”

    After Yellow Leaf analyzed over the situation, he agreed with Zhuo that he should proceed to the capital as soon as possible to report to the Crown Prince and clear his name. Yellow Leaf then went outside to discuss over the situation with Red Cloud, White Stone and Green Palm. White Stone then suggested that since this is the case, then during these three years the position of the sect leader could only be momentarily transferred upon Yellow Leaf. Yellow Leaf had no other choice but to accept the responsibility for the time being.

    During the next few days, the burial rite for Purple Sun was finally conducted. Afterwards, most of the disciples also left the mountain to return to their homes but Zhuo remained on the mountain to mourn. One night, Yellow Leaf asked him to come to his room and then asked Zhuo whether his father has arranged a marriage for him when he was alive. Zhuo answered no.

    Yellow Leaf then asked, “So are you interested in anybody?” Zhuo Yi Hang’s face blushed deeply as he hesitated briefly before answering, “No” while within his heart, he found it very strange that his martial arts uncle would ask him such questions. Yellow Leaf continued, “You’re no longer a young kid, I think it’s about time for you to arrange a marriage.” Zhuo Yi Hang replied, “But I am still in my mourning period, how could I talk about such things as marriage?” Yellow Leaf chuckled and said, “I may not be from the wealthy governmental families, yet in regards to these ancient customs, I do know a thing or two. While in the midst of mourning, all marriage rites should be delayed for three years. But it is still acceptable for one to talk about and arrange marriages.” Zhuo Yi Hang felt a jolt come from within as he hurriedly said, “I really have no intentions of doing such things.”

    After thinking over Zhuo’s words for a while, Yellow Leaf laughed and said, “Considering your talents and superb qualities, you should be matched with a virtuous girl of extraordinary talents and beauty. The martial arts of that Yu Luo Cha may indeed be powerful, but she is nevertheless a ruthless bandit of untamed wildness. I suggest you to not take much notice of her.” Zhuo Yi Hang replied, “Your disciple I did not have such an intention, but uncle you have mentioned this matter more than once. Is it because you do not believe my words?” Yellow Leaf replied, “You are the most extraordinary talent of our sect and now the heavy responsibility of our sect rests upon your shoulders. I was only afraid that you would lose your way and end up falling into the dark paths.” Zhuo Yi Hang replied, “Uncle you can be reassured. Your disciple I will know to take good care of myself.” Yellow Leaf answered, “That is good. But upon coming across a suitable girl of virtue, I must help you to quickly establish a proposal so that you don’t get distracted by outside attractions.”

    Zhuo Yi Hang was becoming increasingly alarmed, for even though he truly has not thought to matters of marriage with Yu Luo Cha yet, but for some reason, he found that after encountering her, all the women of the world were merely soiled earth in comparison. Yu Luo Cha’s strong and forceful personality may sometimes scare him and it could even be said that he detested such a personality. Yet at the same time, it seemed to have burned a mark into his heart.

    Now hearing his uncle’s words, Zhuo was sensing that he wanted to be his matchmaker, causing him to be so worried that he repeatedly waved his arms and said, “Your disciple really does not want to talk about matters of matrimony at such a young age.” When Yellow Leaf saw his anxious expression, he couldn’t help but be secretly amused and yet at the same time, he also couldn’t help but be secretly worried. He could tell that Zhuo’s insistence of having no feelings towards Yu Luo Cha was unlikely to be truthful and therefore thought to himself: Since he is acting like this, then it is better not to push him. When he can meet a better choice, we’ll let them spend more time together and then we don’t have to worry that he won’t gradually transfer his affections.


    When Zhuo saw his uncle smile to himself faintly and did not pursue the topic, he let out a breath of relief and expressed his intentions of leaving for the capital. He had originally wanted to leave later, but after this conversation with his uncle, he wanted to leave as soon as possible. But Yellow Leaf said that he didn’t want Zhuo to travel to the capital by himself and therefore suggested that he should be accompanied by his martial arts uncle Taoist Priest White Stone. Amongst the Wu Tang 5 elders, White Stone ranked in the fourth place, but he was also the youngest in terms of age. He was only in his early fifties at this point and has been a Taoist Priest for just ten years. Zhuo knew that his uncle was originally surnamed He and it was only after his wife died did he become a Taoist Priest. Zhuo Yi Hang accepted such a proposition with joy and thus with a smile on his face, Yellow Leaf got up and reminded him to rest early.

    Amongst his four uncles, Zhuo was somewhat closer to White Stone. Therefore now that White Stone was willing to accompany him on his trip, Zhuo was quite excited. After a visit to his ShiFu’s tomb, Zhuo bid his farewells to his uncles and descended the mountain with his uncle White Stone.

    After more than 10 days, they’ve just arrived at the Eastern regions of HeNan when White Stone suddenly asked Zhuo whether he wanted to take a trip to Song Shan. When Zhuo asked him why he took a sudden interest to the Song Mountain, White Stone remarked that it was a famous landmark and deserving of a visit. When Zhuo asked whether they could visit this landmark after their trip to Beijing, White Stone insisted that they could spare the time. Therefore Zhuo could only follow him while secretly marveling at how strange it was that his uncle never mentioned anything about this in advance.

    The Song Shan was comprised of two peaks; one which houses the Shaolin temple located in the TaiShi Shan region, just a dozen miles away from ShaoShi Shan. Therefore Zhuo asked his uncle whether he was interested in visiting the Shaolin temple. White Stone said no, causing Zhuo to be more confused, for if his uncle didn’t want to go to Shaolin, then why would he want to travel around the Song Mountain?

    The two of them ascended the ShaoShi mountain early the next mourning. All along their journey, the beautiful scenery captured their interest and freshened up their spirits. They then arrived at a famous old cedar tree which was rumoured to be more than 2000 years old; it was called the “General Cedar.” Zhuo was marveling at how even a 100 year old person would merely be an infant when compared to this tree when White Stone suddenly said, “Listen! It sounds like somebody’s coming!”

    They retreated behind the old cedar as three officers appeared. Zhuo recognized that one of them was none other than the Imperial bodyguard Shi Hao and secretly mused at how this man would actually have the sensibility to visit such a picturesque mountain. It was then that he suddenly noticed the hand that White Stone had placed on his own was trembling ever so slightly.

    Shi Hao then marveled to the “Official Li” at how having safely transported the imperial emissaries to the local institution, their burden has now been lightened significantly. The “Official Li” also remarked on how that the Crown Prince was now supposed to ascend the throne, Yun Yan Ping and his gang most likely wouldn’t dare to harm the imperial emissaries. When Zhuo heard these words, he immediately conjectured that these imperial emissaries must be emissaries Zhou and Li who seemed to have already been found and safely delivered from any harm. Zhuo also noticed that his uncle had a very peculiar expression on his face and was just about to say something when his uncle signaled for him to remain silent.

    When the three people got to the top of the mountain, Shi Hao remarked, “The leaves on this old cedar are still so lusciously green. What a remarkable sight. Why don’t we go and rest beneath the old cedar for a while?” The “Official Li” sighed and remarked, “They say that ever since the beginning of time, the Beauty has been like the famed Warrior for never can they allow the world to see their white head. This tree is known as ‘The Great General,’ but even though it has now reached the old age of 2000 autumns, yet its head still has not turned grey yet. Such is really a sight that fills people of my generation with both admiration and envy.” Zhuo Yi Hang thought to himself, “This person has actually had a bit of education.”

    As the three people approached closer and closer, White Stone was just about to jump out when suddenly the mountain breeze brought forth the sounds of young girls’ laughter and chatter, causing the three people to stop in their tracks. After a while, a young girl bounded down from the peak of the mountain. She was about seventeen or eighteen years of age and was holding a little girl around ten years old by the hand. The little girl was laughing and jumping about as she descended the mountain, but when she saw the three strangers, she said “Look sister! There’s some people here! Tell them to go away so we can play hide and seek!” During that moment, Taoist Priest White Stone’s hand was again trembling slightly.

    The one whom they called “Official Li” was in his early forties and had quite an imposing and domineering presence. He ran towards her and said, “Hey little girl, what’s your name? Where’s your mother?” The little girl said, “None of your business!” but still added, “I don’t have a mama, I only have an auntie.” The older girl glared at the “Official Li” and said, “Hua mei, ignore them. Let’s go back.” The young girl asked, “Jiejie, are they officials? Auntie said that officials are bad people. Alright, I’ll listen to you, I won’t play with him.”

    The older girl held onto her little sister’s hand and swivelled around when the “Official Li” hurriedly called out, “Hey, we’re not bad people. Please take us to see your Auntie.” The older girl said, “My auntie does not want to see you guys.” There was another officer standing beside the “Official Li” and he seemed keen on soliciting his superior’s approval, therefore with a leap forward, he stood in front of the young girl and said with a sinister grin, “What a pretty little girl! Why won’t you play with us? How about we take you to play in the capital? That’s where the real fun is.” He then extended his hands to touch the girl’s face as “Official Li” cried out, “Old Hu, stop your insolent behaviour right away!” But before he could even finish his words, the young girl’s slender hand has already swept out and a loud slapping sound followed as a hard slap landed smack on the officer’s face.

    Zhuo Yi Hang almost burst out laughing as he thought to himself: These officials have taken advantage of their power status for so long that they are used to going around taking advantage of woman and young girls as if it was no big deal. This hard slap that he got from the young girl was truly well deserved! The young girl’s movements are quite impressive and it seems that she has practiced martial arts before.

    The officer who was just slapped in the face was called Hu Guo Zhu, and his position was a grade below that of “Official Li” and Shi Hao. The three of them all work together in the Imperial Bodyguards department and will therefore always get together to drink and seek pleasure with women. When he heard his superior tell him to “stop his insolent behaviour,” he was already quite bitter within his heart for he was secretly thinking to himself: Humph! What are you pretending to be so prim and proper for? And after further sustaining such a hard slap, his anger flared up immensely. He charged forward and tried to catch the young girl. The young girl pushed her little sister to one side and then with a light block, dissipated Hu Guo Zhu’s force. With push of her palms, she caused Hu to retreat three steps and then shouted out, “Hey! Are you guys looking for a fight?”


    Hu Guo Zhu was a sub-commander within the Imperial Bodyguards and was furthermore a skilled fighter from the Kun Lun Sect who had a bit of name within the martial arts world. But now being pushed back by a young girl in front of his colleagues, he of course lost all face and screamed to the young girl, “Humph! You want to start a fight with me?” The young girl replied, “It’s not me who wants to start a fight with you, it’s you who wants to start a fight with me.” Hu Guo Zhu said, “Fine. It doesn’t matter who wants to fight with whom, but there will definitely be a fight here today!”

    The Official Li originally wanted to stop him, but then he decided that it might be a good idea to have a look at the girl’s martial art skills and see whether she was taught by that person. The young girl placed her little sister on top of a slab of rock and told not to go anywhere while she watched the fight. The little girl clapped her hands and cheered, “Yay! Watch the fight! Watch the fight! Jiejie, you have to win this fight!” The young girl jumped out and called out to Hu Guo Zhu who was red in the face for judging from the basis of levitation skills, he knew that he was already a grade below that young girl.

    Shi Hao warned Hu that the girl was a trained fighter, but Hu still clamped towards the young girl’s face using the “Golden Dragon Extends Claw,” a stance taken from the Kun Lun Sect’s “18 Dragon Shadow Formations.” But he only ended up clasping empty air for the girl has already dodged and then struck out at him with the “Crushing Palms” to “crush” his chest. Hu was greatly taken back and was barely able to escape her attacks.

    No longer daring to take the battle lightly anymore, Hu then switched from the “18 Dragon Shadow Formations” to the “Black Tiger Fists” which emphasized the use of strength. Though the girl’s levitation skills were good, yet her strength was nevertheless below that of the man, therefore at this point, they were equally tied.

    The young girl changed her palm stances again and because Hu’s movements were not as agile as the girl’s, this time he ended up sustaining two palm strikes. Luckily, they weren’t impacted onto his vital areas.

    The “Official Li” repeatedly shook his head and then told Shi Hao to bring back Hu Guo Zhu while taking extra care not to hurt the girl. In terms of palm skills, Shi Hao might not have been able to win over the young girl, but he had a deep reserve of inner energy and therefore his palms encompassed Yin power within them as well. That year when he encountered Wang Zhao Xi, he performed the “Feet Shattering Tiled Steps” skill and even Wang Zhao Xi had to avoid him. Since this girl’s abilities were below that of Wang’s, how could she possibly withstand Shi Hao? Shi Hao was thus able to separate the two fighters by pushing them both backwards.

    The young girl was just about to advance again when “Official Li” shouted, “Young girl, there’s no need to fight anymore. We’re all one family! Is your father not surnamed He?” The girl was stunned and did not say anything for a long time.

    The “Official Li” smiled faintly and said, “Now can you bring me to see your auntie?” But as soon as he finished his sentence, someone jumped down from the adjacent mountain cavity and said coldly, “What did you come here for?” The person who said these words was a middle-aged nun around 40 years of age. As soon as “Official Li” saw her, he immediately ran forward and asked with surprise why she has become a nun.

    The nun ignored him and simply took the two girls’ hands and said, “There are too many bad people in this world. Let’s go home” when the “Official Li” bounded forward and asked whether he could have a few words with her. “Official Li” then proceeded to apologize to the nun, calling her “Xia mei” and admitting that he had made a terrible mistake many years ago, but have now come to take her back home. The nun snorted with disgust and retorted, “Who am I to you? You go and be your official while I’ll be my nun. Don’t come around here causing trouble again.”

    “Official Li” then said that the Crown Prince was set to ascend the throne any day now, and because he was a trusted servant of the Prince, he believes he will one day be bestowed a high title and that is why he has come to bring her home. The nun got very angry (while also a bit embarrassed) as she chastised him for spewing slanderous words. Li only laughed and said, “No wonder you’re so angry, I suppose you haven’t heard yet: Hu has died and she has not left behind any daughters or sons, so my home will now be all yours.” With a chilling laugh, the nun said with an icy expression, “Get out of my sight! Fourteen years ago you divorce me for your wealth and riches …” while the “Official Li” interrupted, “But that was solely my mother’s idea, it had nothing to do with me.” The nun snapped back, “You think I’m some kind of shameless woman with no principles? Divorcing a wife is like throwing out a bucket of water. Let’s see you go recover every droplet of that spilled water back to me!”

    The “Official Li” persisted, “But even if you won’t do this for my sake, you can at least do it for Shen er’s sake.” A tremble shook through the nun’s body as she turned back around and asked, “How is Shen er?” “Official Li” replied, “He is at home waiting for his mother’s return!” The nun snickered and snapped, “You think I really know nothing? Shen er was not willing to live under his step-mother’s poor treatment and ran away from home a long time ago! Did you want me to tell you where he has gone?” Defeated, the Official Li’s face immediately turned a shade of grey as he suddenly jumped up and shouted, “Ha! So you are hiding him!” The nun sneered and said, “Look! Just that one little test was enough to uncover your mask. You have come only for your son, so don’t spew your load of garbage at me! Now get out of my sight!”

    The “Official Li” said, “I want both of you to return home with me” but the nun was as cold as a slab of ice as she said to the “Official Li,” “Shen er is not here.” “Official Li” then asked, “Then where is he?” The nun hardened her face and did not reply, “Official Li” continued, “Humph! I know you’re still pining away for that Long kid. But he’s not interested in you anymore!” Angered, the nun immediately pounced forward and with a sweep of her hands, “Official Li” sustained a hard slap in the face in exactly the same fashion as Hu Guo Zhu.

    “Official Li” snarled, “You nasty shrew!” and grasped forward. With a twist of her body and a “Seven Stars Hands,” the nun struck out consecutively. Li just dodged her attacks and said, “I have already given you a break, now aren’t you going to stop?” while he slashed out with his left palm and swept out with his right palm, executing movements which very clearly indicated that he was a skilled fighter who specialized in the inner martial arts. The nun was incredibly enraged and repeatedly struck out in a rampage. Luckily, the martial arts of “Official Li” were quite high, but he was still forced back repeatedly as he gradually arrived in front of the cedar tree.

    Taoist Priest White Stone immediately leaped out and by just applying a hand on Li’s shoulders, he pushed him aside. When the nun saw him, she was simultaneously happy and surprised as she cried out, “Brother! When did you get here?”

    The real name of this nun was He Qi Xia and she was the sister of Taoist Priest White Stone. More then 20 years ago, there were two families that asked for her hand in marriage. Both families had a reputable name within the martial arts world; one was E-Mei sect’s Long Xiao Yun while the other was the present “Official Li” whose full name was Li Tian Yang. Since both the Long and Li were family friends with the He family, He Qi Xia’s father was unable to determine whose proposal to accept and therefore left it for his daughter to decide. At that time, He Qi Xia was only a young girl of sixteen or seventeen years of age, and it was based solely on the fact that she felt that Li Tian Yang was the slightly better good-looking of the two did she end up choosing him.

    But since Li Tian Yang was quite greedy for riches and fame, he therefore traveled to the capital after his marriage. Because his martial arts were quite good and since he was educated, he therefore caught the eye of an official who offered him his daughter’s hand in marriage. However, Li Tian Yang did still have a bit of conscience left within him and didn’t immediately abandon his wife at the capital. He waited until they returned home before reporting the news to his parents and asked his mother to do the dirty work of breaking the news of divorce to his wife. At that time, he already had a three year old son and Taoist Priest White Stone still has not become a priest yet. White Stone had gone to the Li family and pleaded for the case that because his sister and Li have already been married a few years and even have a son, therefore it seems too drastic a decision for them to resort to separation.” But the Li family was adamant and did not retract their decision, causing White Stone to be infuriated and thus broke off all ties and relations with the Li family.

    Now, fourteen years later, Li Tian Yang has already become the Commander amongst the Imperial Bodyguards while Long Xiao Yun has disappeared. He Qi Xia returned to her ShiFu’s home on ShaoShi Shan after she was kicked out of the Li family, but since her ShiFu death seven years ago, she has already gotten used to the life in the mountains and therefore proceeded to shave off her hair, becoming a nun.

    When Li saw White Stone, he was quite alarmed. He asked White Stone to please help him persuade He Qi Xia, but White Stone only retorted with bitterness that he had already did his part in trying to persuade him fourteen years ago. Embarrassed, Li was momentarily speechless.

    Since Zhuo Yi Hang has also followed behind White Stone, when Shi Hao saw him he immediately greeted him. Since Shi Hao didn’t want to interfere with Li’s family business, he then asked Zhuo to go over to one side for a few words.

    Zhuo asked Shi Hao whether he was intent on arresting him now that he was a wanted criminal, but Shi Hao just laughed and said that the Crown Prince misses him very much and that he was absolved from the all criminal suspicion a long time ago. Because the Emperor was severely ill, all matters of the state have now been handed over to the Crown Prince two months ago. Emissaries Li and Zhou ran from Zhuo’s home that day and have arrived safely in HeNan, settling down in the home of a local official before sending out a letter to the Crown Prince that details their encounters. After a thorough investigation, the Crown Prince has already sent out wanted criminal notices to arrest Yun Yan Ping. Through the various clues, this case has eventually ended up on the tails of Wei Zhong Xian, but Wei is the head of the Eastern Coalition and he has long planted his roots of power. Therefore the Crown Prince did not want to start a hard battle during a period where he was to officially ascend the throne any day. But Shi Hao ensures Zhuo that the Crown Prince misses him very much and when he left with Commander Li on this mission of escorting the emissaries back home, the Crown Prince has ordered him to be on the lookout for any news regarding Zhuo. Zhuo Yi Hang remarked that he plans to travel to the capital to see the Crown Prince regarding another matter but cannot travel together with them since they have to escort the emissaries.

    At this time, the two of them were suddenly interrupted by a high shriek of “Get out of here!” coming from the nun. It seems that all attempts at reconciliation have failed and Li has angered her once again.

    With a saddened expression, Li had no other choice but to leave. The nun screamed to him that she never wants to see him again, and with a sigh, Li could only signal to Shi Hao and descend the mountain.

    After the three of them left, Zhuo turned back around to greet the nun and discovered that the young girl was already standing beside the nun while the little girl was sitting on Taoist Priest White Stone’s lap. White Stone laughed and said to her, “Say hello to Zhuo gege!” He turned to Zhuo and said, “You haven’t met my daughters yet have you?” he then pointed to the older one to say, “She is He E-Hua” and then lifted up the younger one to say, “And she is He Lu Hua.” He Lu Hua squeaked with excitement, “Zhuo gege!” while He E-Hua has already started to reveal the shy and embarrassed behaviours of a stereotyped girl as she softly muttered a greeting with her head lowered, causing White Stone to erupt into loud guffaws.

    Such is: Pity the young boys and girls, caught in the waves of love.
    At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napolean -- and my ambition has steadily grown ever since.

    ~ Salvador Dali


  15. #55
    Member Faerie Queene's Avatar
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    Default no rant this time :)

    Hi all!

    I'm going out of town for a week or two, so the next update won't be for at least a month (sorry). If this update is filled with more mistakes than usual, please forgive me, I've been up since early morning putting on the final touches and my plane leaves in a few hours so I really can't afford another read. Leave me any questions and concerns, I will answer them as soon as I can when I return.

    There's not much I wanted to say for this chapter anyways ... just the: "ever since the beginning of time, the Beauty has been like the famed Warrior for never can they allow the world to see their white head" line I mentioned last rant and the "Spilt Water Forever Unrecoverable" idea. Like beauty that will fade with age as time forever strips away the splendor of one's youth, perhaps it would be equally hard to restore those sweet emotions and tender moments once love has gone bitter.

    Like spilled water, there are some mistakes in life that can never be changed. However, though they say "Fu Shui Nan Shou," (Spilt Water: Unrecoverable) there is also the phrase "Po Jing Chong Yuan" (The mirror's shattered reflection can be reunited) , so what will be the ultimate fate of the book's lovers? Well, you'll just have to wait and see

    Sorry every thing is so rushed ... take care!
    At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napolean -- and my ambition has steadily grown ever since.

    ~ Salvador Dali


  16. #56
    Senior Member ghostdarTeal'c's Avatar
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    hi,

    i just gotta say i really love this story.......i can only rely on translations coz imn ot chinese literate......

    I found Yuk Lou Sat as a very interesting character...she's so outspoken and straightforward and aside from being cold and sometimes ruthless, she is still compassionate and considerate(see how she purposely try losing in the duel with Wu Dang elder)....and her love for Yat Hong is so beautiful......i somewhat despise Yat Hong's vainness in this matter.......tho i must say his actions might have resulted from his strong bond with Wu Dang sect which he's been with for almost all his life, comparing how he only knew Yuk Lou Sat for only a few occassions....even if she has saved his life for tremendous number of times....*sigh*

    anyway, im really looking forward for next chapters....i really hope it wont take long....*hopeful gaze* i think im already addicted to this....

    GREAT JOB PEoPLE!
    Last edited by ghostdarTeal'c; 03-05-04 at 12:00 AM.
    Da One and Only,
    ghostdarTeal'c

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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    My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius; Commander of the Army of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor; Marcus Aurilius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife, and I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next.

    - The Spaniard -

  17. #57
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    Default to Fairie Queenie

    Wow, thanks for your translation (and everyone who had helped posting them previously here)... I love your end note and rants It helps me to understand things... Keep doing the translation as well as the rants I keep them all in my hard drive.

    You said you study wuxia - what does it mean ? Did you take formal study on it ?

    Why did Liang YuSheng title every chapters in four lines ?

    Thanks.

  18. #58
    Senior Member Han Solo's Avatar
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    AFAIK, FaQ never did formal studies in wuxia. She is a B.A. but spends heaps of time researching for the translation which is top-notch.

  19. #59
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    Default

    Originally posted by ghostdarTeal'c
    [B]hi,

    i just gotta say i really love this story.......i can only rely on translations coz imn ot chinese literate......
    And I'm glad you're enjoying the translation I do the translations for the fans, and if nobody is enjoying the story, it would mean nothing regardless of how many nice things people say about it.

    And don't sell yourself short for not being "chinese literate" I don't think that being able to read Chinese is such a big deal. What matters is how good of a reader you are, and that's not determined by how much Chinese you can read

    I found Yuk Lou Sat as a very interesting character...she's so outspoken and straightforward and aside from being cold and sometimes ruthless, she is still compassionate and considerate(see how she purposely try losing in the duel with Wu Dang elder)....and her love for Yat Hong is so beautiful......
    Yes, isn't she great? In the journey of my wuxia craze, there is wuxia before Yu Luo Cha, and there is wuxia afterwards. Reading about such a female character has really re-sparked my passion for wuxia at a time when it was kind of dwindling due to some disenchantment with the portrayal of certain issues. But reading about Yu Luo Cha has really opened up a new realm of perception for me.

    i somewhat despise Yat Hong's vainness in this matter.......tho i must say his actions might have resulted from his strong bond with Wu Dang sect which he's been with for almost all his life, comparing how he only knew Yuk Lou Sat for only a few occassions....even if she has saved his life for tremendous number of times....*sigh*
    Mmmhmm. In the world of the BaiFa fans, there are those who really hate or despise Zhuo, but there are also some who sympathize with him. I personally have always understood that he's not a bad person and I understand how his character flaws are traceable to his background and upbringing. I also understand that the problems between Zhuo & Yu Luo Cha can't all be attributed to him. And he does somewhat redeem himself near the end. So I've never hated him. But I do find him really annoying Therefore though I don't hate him, I also can't say I really like or sympathize with him. (shrugs)

    anyway, im really looking forward for next chapters....i really hope it wont take long....*hopeful gaze* i think im already addicted to this....
    I'm definitely looking forward to finishing this book ASAP. It's just so time consuming and it's kinda hindering me from completing some other creative projects that I need to work on. But it's definitely rewarding to know that people are enjoying it.

    I'm planning to put out chapter 9 in 2 parts. I still have to put the final editing touches on the first part. The second part is just fight after fight after fight, and it's going to take me a while. But you will probably see part 1 some time early next week
    At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napolean -- and my ambition has steadily grown ever since.

    ~ Salvador Dali


  20. #60
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    Wink Crouching Tiger Fan?

    Originally posted by green destiny
    [B]Wow, thanks for your translation (and everyone who had helped posting them previously here)... I love your end note and rants
    hehe Thanks ...

    Yeah, the rants allows me to get everything off my chest

    I keep them all in my hard drive.
    Wow, as we say in Cantonese, "Ho Bay Meen!"

    Too bad there tends to be little mistakes here and there w/ all the chapters. One day I'll get the "official" version of the book uploaded to the Reading Room ...

    You said you study wuxia - what does it mean ? Did you take formal study on it ?
    Hehe no. I live in Canada, and unfortunately, there still hasn't been any wuxia courses offered at the universities yet Besides, I've really had enough of school, don't think I'll go back to it for the time being.

    Why did Liang YuSheng title every chapters in four lines ?
    That's a good question. I don't think I've talked about this in my rants, but I have mentioned this in a reply to someone. The titles of the chapters are not only organized in four lines, but in the nature of Chinese poetry, the 4 lines have all been carefully constructed.

    The actual structure of the phrases will inevitably be lost somewhat through my translation. But I do try my best to preserve the original structure (though now scanning back, I wonder whether I may have screwed up on one of the chapter titles ... have to check when I get home). Anyways, notice that the number of words in each of the lines always follow the pattern of 4,5,4,5 (or sometimes 5,4,5,4). And the words and themes expressed in each line often contrasts, echoes or reflects of each other.

    Take for example:

    Chapter 4:
    Seven Greats’ Formation Efforts Voided
    Great Villain Surrenders Life
    Thirty Year’s Love A Dream
    Stone Wall Yields Manual

    The "7" in the 1st line and the "30" in the 3rd line are both numbers, "Efforts Voided" (ekk, I think I changed this wording later on when I went through to did some re-editing) and "Love A Dream" again reflects the same idea of emptiness, illusion, loss.

    As for lines 2 & 4, the word "surrenders" (2nd line) is synonymous with the "yields" in the 4th line.

    That's basically how the structuring of poems and in this case, the chapter titles are arranged. Really it's very cool when you read it in Chinese ... the Chinese language is simply so beautiful

    Okay, gotta go, time to get off work!

    Will be back in a few days ...
    At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napolean -- and my ambition has steadily grown ever since.

    ~ Salvador Dali


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