Four Constables - Return to the Capital City by Wen Rui'an

[徐中銳]

Don't forget that Mr. Chow recently re-used it for his Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons...

Have you seen the following ? Shu Qi recording it in Cantonese (with speech coach assistance) :


It's not for me to judge her (rendition of traditional dancing and...

[Jean]

to continue....


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The brightly dressed young girl’s intelligent eyes stared at Qu Benlei for a short moment before whispering to the young man, “This person is called Qu Benlei, also known as the ‘Axe of Guandong’. He threads loosely between good and bad in the way he does things, with a strong will and a strange temper. He never does anything offensive, other than countless episodes of openly robbing, burning and killing others. It’s said that he is very highly skilled, both in internal energy and external moves and legendary in his use of his axe. Sir, when your swift sword crosses path with him, you have to be careful. He likes to work alone, doesn’t like traveling with others…”

The young girl was talking very quietly but it seems that Qu Benlei seems to be able to hear her. He suddenly turned his head around, the grumpy look on his face lightened up as he grinned at the young girl and said, “Little girl, I didn’t expect you to know about my reputation too.”

Turns out that this ‘Axe of Guandong’ Qu Benlei is almost 60 years old but still has an imposing aura. Indeed he always does things on his own and makes his own decision and he has offended almost half of those in the martial arts realm throughout his life. It’s just that he is so highly skilled that no one can do anything to him.

Qu Benlei said loudly, “Let’s be aboveboard and make things clear, all of you are here because of ‘Secluded Ghostly Manor’ and I am here because of the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’, same like all of you. If you know that you are not my match, then better be smart and get lost first! That’ll save me the trouble of sending you scrambling!” His voice was so booming that some dust fell off the tiles on the roof.

By now, out of the 10 odd people who came with Chang Wutian, about 4 to 5 of them who had once suffered under the hands of Qu Benlei had quietly slipped away, afraid of antagonizing him further. Chang Wutian saw that this person easily killed the ‘Five Dragons of the Left River Bank’. This Chang Wutian is a coldhearted person by nature so he never even thought of seeking revenge. Instead he was thinking that he is so rich and powerful, he might as well try and attract this person to work for him. In that way, he can be even more of a bully without fear of others. Immediately he started fawning, “Old sir’s martial arts is indeed extremely formidable, I…”

Qu Benlei stared at him fiercely and Chang Wutian was so taken aback that he staggered backwards, only to hear Qu Benlei bellow, “You’re a dog, I don’t talk to dogs!” and a punch came out.

This is just an ordinary punch but somehow, Chang Wutian tilted his head but did not manage to dodge the blow. The punch landed on his gums and the two rows of his front teeth flew out. There were 3 to 4 tooth which he swallowed as well and Chang Wutian wailed, “Hit him! Hit him! Hit him!”

Those surrounding Chang Wutian, four of them were his bodyguards. Although they were afraid of Qu Benlei, they dare not offend their employer Chang Wutian. They thought that this old man may be powerful, but his two fists can’t fight against the four of them so they might as well attack him together. So the four of them gave a loud roar together and rushed towards Qu Benlei in four directions.

The four of them just got near and have yet the chance to attack when Qu Benlei chortled and faced the man coming from the east and said, “Hitting your crown!”

The man was stunned and Qu Benlei’s fist has hammered down on his skull and he died instantly. Qu Benlei turned and faced the man coming from the south and exclaimed, “Hitting your philtrum!”

That man just extended his fist but once he heard his opponent saying he’s going to hit out, he hurriedly retracted his hands to defend but Qu Benlei has already punched into his philtrum with a ‘bang!’. Fresh blood flowed, how can he stay alive?

Qu Benlei turned again and faced the third man. Once the man saw the other two falling, he was already frightfully stunned. He only heard Qu Benlei say, “Hitting your chest!”

The man hurriedly raised his arms towards his chest but Qu Benlei still struck hard. There were two cracking sounds, not only was he unable to block the punch, even his arms were broken from the impact and the punch still landed on his chest. He spurted out a mouthful of blood and died immediately!

The fourth person’s limbs went soft from what he saw and was about to run away when Qu Benlei exclaimed, “Hitting your stomach!”

The man cried out, “Hero, spare…” ‘Bam’, a punch already landed on his tummy and he flew out of the shop, no longer breathing.

Qu Benlei started his attack from the head to the stomach, one punch per person and killing four of them continuously without even flinching. Those around Chang Wutian were so frightened they all disappeared, leaving Chang Wutian alone clasping his bloodied mouth in shock.

The young man suddenly stood up and told the young girl , “This person is too murderous, I’ll go stop him.”

The young girl held on to the corner of his clothes and wanted him to sit down, saying gently, “Don’t be rash, those four did deserve death. Those are the four who helped Chang Wutian with his atrocious deeds, who knows how many women they have sullied and how many innocents they have harmed. Now that they died in the hands of this Master Qu, they have not died in vain.”

The young man replied, “Oh.’

Qu Benlei has excellent sight and hearing, and on hearing that the young man wanted to duel with him, was actually impressed with his guts.

He turned and looked at the young couple and suddenly seemed enlightened. He laughed and said, “I know who you are, so you’re from the famous ‘Four Famed Families of Wulin’, the Young Master of ‘Southern Stockade’ Yin Chengfeng. I guess this must be the heroine ‘Cai Yunfei’.”

The man cupped his hands and said, “Nay, nay.”

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[Laoren]

Thanks Jean.

[Jean]

to continue.....


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As he stood up, his slender frame like a handsome tree billowing in the wind with his imposing might, the people in the shop can’t help but cheer.

It turns out that there are ‘World’s Three Greats’ in the martial arts realm and they are: “The World’s Greatest Sect” – Changxiao Sect; “The World’s Greatest Manor” – Shijian Manor and “The World’s Greatest Escort Agency” – Fengyun Escort Agency.

Changxiao Sect and Shijian Manor were eliminated many years ago while fighting each other, and now only Fengyun Escort Agency remains. There are many martial arts exponents in Fengyun Escort Agency but their biggest support comes from the ‘Four Famed Families of Wulin’, namely ‘Eastern Fort’, Southern Stockade’, ‘Western Town’ and ‘Northern City’. This Yin Chengfeng may be only 21 years of age, but he is the new Stockade Leader of ‘Southern Stockade’.

The youth Yin Chengfeng, has a nickname ‘Swift Lightning’ which describes his style of fighting and sword skills. Since young he has been well versed in scholarly and martial pursuits. He was never distracted, and concentrated on one word ‘speed’. On top of that, his understanding of things is exceptional and is willing to take hard work, that’s why his martial arts is extremely outstanding. The old Stockade Leader of ‘Southern stockade’ died suddenly and Yin Chengfeng succeeded the position when he was only 20 years old. However, his martial arts and intellect is not below that of the previous Stockade Leader, and in no way inferior to the Fort Leader of Eastern Fort, Mayor of Western Town and Castellan of Northern City.

It’s just that Yin Chengfeng was concentrating on his studies and martial arts so before he took on the position of Stockade Leader, he never experienced much of the martial arts affairs, which has its pros and cons. The good thing is that he concentrated so much on his martial arts practice that he is now wonderfully proficient; but the bad thing is that he is totally ignorant about the happenings in the martial arts realm.

The lucky thing is the previous Stockade Leader of Southern Stockade left a daughter behind when he died and this girl is the so called ‘Caiyun Fairy’ in the martial arts world. She inherited her father’s martial arts skills and although she’s not as good as Yin Chengfeng, because she was in frequent contact with her father and the highly skilled fighters in the stockade and is widely read, she is very knowledgeable. Each family and sect, each faction and branch is at the tip of her fingers.

Yin Chengfeng is the adopted son of the previous Stockade Leader Wu Gangzhong, so he grew up together with Wu Caiyun as close childhood friends. After Yin Chengfeng succeeded as Stockade Leader, Wu Caiyun often goes out together with him, constantly teaching him how to recognize the people and things in the martial arts realm. Yin Chengfeng is a bright student and seems to learn everything quickly.

This Wu Caiyun is a refined beauty and her father Wu Gangzhong had two outstanding skills, one is his swordplay and the other his lightness skill. Wu Caiyun is still a girl at heart and she dare not kill others, so she concentrated on learning lightness skill and by now she has reached the peak of perfection. Those in the martial arts realm refer to her as ‘Flying Caiyun’ or ‘Heroine Caiyun’.

Once everyone heard that this young couple is actually Yin Chengfeng and Cai Yunfei, they had either looks of surprise or admiration.

Suddenly Lu Benlei hollered angrily, “Bastard, you’re still not leaving, are you really waiting for me to strike again!”

That Chang Wutian was so frightened that his face paled and with Lu Benlei shouting at him, he started trembling. He stammered, “Yes… yes….” and stumbled out the door.

Lu Benlei was still standing at the main door as he said loudly, “Everyone listen, I, Lu Benlei is here for Secluded Ghostly Manor’s ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’. Anyone who has the same aim as me, come and have a fight with me quickly to see who is the winner or you’ll have to show your skills before you can come with me. Otherwise, get lost!” He said the same words thrice, his thunderous voice ringing in everyone’s ears and even the bowls on the table were shattered by his voice.

At the table with the 6 martial arts exponents, one of the men was drinking from his bowl when it suddenly broke and wine splashed all over his nose and mouth. He slammed hard on the table as he stood up and shouted, “Damn that old man, we are here for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’, what can you do?” The others around his table stood up and drew their weapons.

Qu Benlei laughed loudly and said, “Nothing, just showing you this!”

He suddenly stretched out his hand and pulled out his axe. Everyone thought that he will strike those nearer to him but did not expect him to just flick and throw his axe and then just stand there, not striking at all.

The six martial artists were stunned when suddenly there was a ‘whoosh’ and the axe is flying back from behind them. They tried to dodge but it’s too late! The shiny black axe flashed by and the six men touched their own heads, only to realize that the hats some were wearing had been sliced in half, the portion of the cloth holding their hair had been cut off and for those who did not wear anything, their hair had been chopped in half. The man who slammed the table earlier paled, for not only was his hair chopped off, even his scalp was bleeding. If the axe had gone an inch lower, he would be dead. He was totally quiet, his face ashen and in absolute shock.

These six men had after all roamed and fought their way out in the martial arts realm. They may be uncouth but they do know when to admit defeat. Right now, they were all ashen-faced and glanced at one another. Without a word, they walked out.

‘Axe of Guandong’ Qu Benlei laughed out loud thrice when suddenly his eyes gleamed and stared at the four burly men dressed in gold. The four men panicked when they were noticed and dared not look at Qu Benlei. Instead, they lowered their heads and concentrated on their drinks.

Qu Benlei laughed, “Pretending to be deaf and dumb won’t do, you’ll have to take a strike from me to be considered a man!”

He took a huge step over as he spoke and pushed his palm out. The palm moved out really slowly but the four men in gold were already in a state of panic. Once they saw Qu Benlei coming towards them, they all jumped up. Unexpectedly, Qu Benlei’s palm suddenly sped up midway and ‘boom!’ slammed down on the table.

The four men were extremely close to the table and totally did not expect Qu Benlei to land his palm on the table and they were stunned. The four large bowls of wine on the table suddenly shot up from the impact and the four of them dodged hurriedly but still ended up with wine on their faces and bodies. The wine that shot to their faces stung them and it was thoroughly embarrassing.

The wine on the table all splashed out from the impact but the bowls and wine jar on the table were perfectly intact. His internal skills have reached the point where he can easily control to extend and withdraw at ease, to such an unimaginable extent.

The four men looked at one another, thoroughly drenched and very aware that if Qu Benlei chose to crush the porcelain bowls with his internal strength and shoot it at them, they would have died. They heaved a long sigh and one of them clasped his fists and said, “Time has no impact on the green mountains and flowing rivers. Just like Master Qu may have stopped our ‘Golden Clothes Sect’ from our business deal today, we have nothing to say, except we hope to meet again in future, to repay any debts and settle any disputes!” Once he finished his words, the four of them stepped out of the shop without even turning back.

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[LuDongBin]

I hope this Qu Benlei does not turn to dust when he enters the Manor. Thks Jean.

[Jean]

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Cai Yunfei whispered to Yin Chengfeng, “Those six martial artists earlier are six men from different families in Xiangbei but who share common interests so they joined to form the ‘Six Heroes of Xiangbei’. They may be extremely uncouth but they rarely bully others and sometimes even help those in distress. Those six aren’t really considered ‘heroes’. Those four wearing gold have some backing too. They are the four Branch Leaders of the famous ‘Golden Clothes Sect’ around Xiangjiang district. Other than robbery, they have not done that much evil. Seems like when Master Qu strikes, he does take note of how heavy handed he wants to be, unlike the rumors in the martial arts realm which says that he’s a heartless killer…”

Her words were uttered extremely softly but with Qu Benlei’s immense internal energy, he could hear every word clearly. He beamed at Cai Yunfei and walked over, “Little Miss, I find you young couple quite interesting. Don’t you worry, but I am a man of my words, otherwise why would my name Qu Benlei be roaring in the martial arts realm? Just take a strike from me but remember, if you can’t take it, don’t try to force yourself.”

It turns out that Qu Benlei was extremely pleased with Cai Yunfei’s praise and took a liking to the couple. But this Qu Benlei has a stubborn streak and always a man of his words, so when he advised them ‘not to force yourself’, it’s really out of good intentions.

Qu Benlei’s words caused Cai Yunfei to blush deeply. It turns out that Cai Yunfei has taken a liking to Yin Chengfeng a long time ago and Yin Chengfeng has admired Cai Yunfei all along but the both of them have never talked about marriage so when Qu Benlei addressed them as ‘young couple’, they were really happy. But when they heard him say ‘not to force yourself’, they thought he’s being sarcastic and meant their martial arts are not good enough so although they have no hostile feelings towards Qu Benlei, they welcome the chance to have a duel. Yin Chengfeng replied proudly, “Brother Qu, please start.”

Qu Benlei chortled and suddenly drew his axe. There was a dark flash, as swift as lightning but it was not aimed towards Yin Chengfeng or Cai Yunfei, but aimed at a table.

Qu Benlei’s energy is really unimaginable, when it’s harsh it’s like a brewing sea storm but when it’s gentle it’s like rolling clouds and wind. The strength he used with the axe seems like it can split open a mountain so when it landed on the table, everyone expected splinters to fly out but the table did not move at all. Instead the things that flew out were the chopsticks, bowls, plates, jars as they made clinking sounds and shot towards Yin Chengfeng and Cai Yunfei like 20 to 30 odd secret weapons.

At this moment, the seven burly men who had the word ‘revenge’ carved on their chests were totally shocked and inexplicably gasped ‘Ah’. Yin Chengfeng and Cai Yunfei did not even blink their eyes. Yin Chengfeng’s arms flew around as he caught all the cups, plates, bowls and chopsticks and swiftly placed them on the table. Cai Yunfei grabbed the flask and concentrated on pouring four cups of wine and by the time she finished pouring the four cups, Yin Chengfeng had caught all the items and placed them back where they belonged, not a millimeter different from their original placement.

Once Yin Chengfeng finished placing the utensils, Cai Yunfei flicked her sleeves and the four cups of wine together with their contents flew towards Qu Benlei. Cai Yunfei laughed and said, “Master Qu, we’ll offer you a toast as well… a toast is not enough, how about four!” The first cup flew over like lightning, straight towards Qu Benlei’s face! The cup was flying swiftly but not a drop of wine fell out of the cup, almost similar to Qu Benlei’s earlier move when he splashed the wine out without cracking the bowl. But what is even more ingenious is that Qu Benlei just laughed and said, “Bottoms up then.”

He did not dodge at all but just opened his mouth and caught the cup by its rim as he lifted his head and drank the first cup. He moved his axe and the remaining 3 cups landed steadily on the flat of the axe. Qu Benlei took them one by one and drank up, after which he laughed, “So young and such talented martial arts. Impressive, impressive. I’m afraid I’ll be inadequate enough to stop you from coming along.” At that, he chortled, turned around and walked away.

Actually Qu Benlei is secretly startled as well and from what they have witnessed, those in the shop are totally aware of what has happened.

Qu Benlei’s axe has defeated many ever since he came into the shop and only Yin Chengfeng can take his strikes without breaking a sweat. If it is a one on one duel, no one can predict if Qu or Yin will win but Yin Chengfeng with Cai Yunfei, the outcome will most likely be a defeat for Qu Benlei.

Yin Chengfeng and Cai Yunfei are so accomplished at such a young age and yet they are not proud at all. At that instant all the men were secretly feeling great respect for them.

Now Qu Benlei, with his axe in his hand, is staring at the four monks. The four monks hurriedly acknowledged and one of them, an old monk with bright eyes stood up slowly and said, “Master Qu, we came here from Mount Song because four of my disciples disappeared from Secluded Ghostly Manor three years ago and now we are here to investigate. We are not here for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’, please do not worry.”

It’s not that the Shaolin monks are afraid of Qu Benlei and decided to take the humiliation. Just that everyone in the martial arts realm knows that Shaolin monks are ascetic monks after all, who are non-competitive so they made their intentions clear.

Qu Benlei tilted his head and said, “Indeed, there were four Shaolin Monks who disappeared from Secluded Ghostly Manor three years ago. Since monks will not tell lies, and you are not here for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’, then it’s none of my business.” After he said that, he headed towards the two Taoist priests.

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[LuDongBin]

Thks Jean.

[Laoren]

Thanks Jean.

[Jean]

to continue....


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The two Taoist priests were able to hold on to their temper. When they saw Qu Benlei behaving so arrogantly, they had wanted to spar with him but when they saw that the four Shaolin monks would rather avoid a fight, the two of them made eye signals at each other. One of them said, “Master Qu, both of us are here for the ‘Three Disciples of Wudang’ who disappeared from Secluded Ghostly Manor three years ago. We have no desire for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’ that Master Qu is seeking.”

Qu Benlei eyed both of them and said slowly, “Wudang is an orthodox sect, I believe their disciples are all sticks-in-the-mud. Since you have nothing to do with ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’, then I will go my way and you knick-knacks can go yours.”

The other Taoist priest, on hearing Qu Benlei speaking so rudely, moved and was about to call out a fight when the other Taoist priest swiftly pressed him to back down. That priest did not try again for they both know that this crazy and unreasonable Qu Benlei’s martial arts are truly not to be trifled with.

On the other hand, Cai Yunfei whispered to Yin Chengfeng, “Those four old monks are the famous protectors of Shaolin Temple’s Bodhidharma Hall. There are 10 esteemed monks of Bodhidharma Hall, namely Dragon, Tiger, Leopard, Tiger Cub, Snake, Bear, Crane, Ape, Horse and Monkey. It is said that the four monks ‘Dragon, Tiger, Leopard and Tiger Cub’ were lost in Secluded Ghostly Manor. These four old monks here are their teachers so their martial arts are definitely superior. Shaolin has always been full of hardworking men and there is always a pool of talents in Wudang. Those two Taoist priests are the Senior Brothers of the ‘Three Disciples of Wudang’ and they are known as the ‘Twins of Wudang’. One of them is named Qing Songzi, he’s a hot headed and unyielding person while the other is called Qing Lingzi, who is more amicable and steady…” Cai Yunfei explained, very familiar with all those in the martial arts realm.

By now Qu Benlei has already walked to those seven men with the words’ Revenge’ tattooed on their chests. The seven men only held on to their weapons but did not say anything. Qu Benlei asked, “I’m asking you a question, did you hear me?” The seven men may be fearful of Qu Benlei’s martial arts but they are also very stubborn. They would rather take him head on then to tell Qu Benlei the reason they are here, for others may think that they are begging for mercy.

Qu Benlei saw that they remained silent so he said icily, “So you are here for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’?”

He was about to strike when Cai Yunfei called out, ‘Hold it.”

Qu Benlei has already taken a liking to Cai Yunfei so he stopped immediately and asked, “What’s the matter?”

Cai Yunfei asked the seven men, “Big brothers, are you all from Shaanxi?”

The seven of them looked at one another, wondering how Cai Yunfei could tell where they came from. Cai Yunfei smiled as she asked, “Big brothers, are your esteemed teacher ‘Ten Ultimate Soul Chasing Hand”, Elder Guo Zhigeng?”

The seven of them saw how respectfully Cai Yunfei was addressing them and their Teacher so they gladly answered, “That’s right, how did you know?”

Cai Yunfei smiled, “I knew when I saw the weapons you were carrying. The seven weapons are all distinctly special yet the usage is the same so obviously they come from the same source. Someone who is skilled in ten different types of unique weapons, who else could it be other than your esteemed teacher? Big brothers, your chests are tattooed with the word ‘Revenge’, so I boldly guess that you are here to avenge Elder Guo. Master Qu, I think these few brothers are not here for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’ as well.”

The man holding the meteor hammer saw that Cai Yunfei was smart and polite so he answered with a smile, “That’s right, we are here to avenge our Teacher.”

Suddenly his voice turned hoarse as the seven of them pulled open their shirts at the same time, exposing their muscular and hairy chests as they pointed to the word ‘Revenge’ and said, “The ten of us useless disciples were brought up by our Teacher single handedly. However, Seven, Eight and Nine turned treacherous and brought shame to our names, committing heinous crimes which resulted in our Teacher going missing when he went to investigate them at Secluded Ghostly Manor. We guess those three beasts must have harmed him. If our Teacher is unable to come out, with our skills, how can we expect to avenge him! But if we do not avenge him, we would have lived our lives in vain. That’s why we decided to tattoo the word ‘Revenge’ on our chests three years ago, and made a promise not to forget. Today…” As he spoke, his voice became even more emotional.

Cai Yunfei said sadly, “The determination to avenge your Teacher, who in the martial arts realm can be like all of you, such honourable and righteous men. It is said that the seven of you, in order to avenge your Teacher, had been practising hard the past three years. Your skills now are comparable to your Teacher, it is worthy of congratulations.”

Yin Chengfeng stood up and said, “It is even more worthy of admiration and respect. Master Qu, allow me to take your strikes on behalf of these seven men.”

The man holding the Thunder God Weapon jumped up and said, “We, the disciples of ‘Ten Ultimate Soul Chasing Hand” may be useless but none of us are cowards. Now we have changed our names to ‘Seven Heroes of Revenge’ and we’re willing to take on Mister Qu’s strikes!”

However, Qu Benlei sighed loudly, “Heroes such as you, even if you kneel down and ask me to strike, I would have ignored you. If only the disciples I have are half as good as you. You are not here for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’, so why should I fight you?” And he walked away after saying that.

The ‘Seven Heroes of Revenge’ saw that this extremely difficult old devil is actually declining to fight them and were secretly feeling relieved. Cai Yunfei and the rest however feels that this Qu Benlei is not one who is unreasonable.

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[LuDongBin]

Thks Jean.

[Laoren]

Thanks Jean.

[Jean]

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By now, of those in the shop, Yin Cheng Feng and Cai Yunfei have dueled with Qu Benlei; the four monks from Shaolin and the Twins of Wudang were spared the fight because they were not here for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’; Qu Benlei refused to fight with the ‘Seven Heroes of Revenge’, so the only people remaining in the shop were the man dressed in black, the man in brocade, the four dhutas and two men with amputated arms.

The four dhutas saw Qu Benlei staring at them and were secretly alarmed but they kept a calm composure. The man in black looked green while the man in brocade was pouring and drinking wine on his own, expressionless. The men with the amputated arm looked icy, a murderous look on their faces.

Qu Benlai chortled and took a large step towards the four dhutas.

The four dhutas stood up with a cold, stern look on their faces, obviously prepared for a fight.

Cai Yunfei explained quietly to Yin Chengfeng, “These four dhutas were originally from Chuanzhong. They’re extremely highly skilled and were four bandits. The leader is called ‘Three-sectioned Staff’ Shi Tong, the second called ‘Convenient Shovel’ Gong Zhisi, the third called ‘Soul Snatching Bell’ Bi Bian, the fourth called ‘Thousand Miles Traveled’ Peng Gujian. There was once in Chuanzhong they stole the royal horses and alarmed the Four Famed Constables, who went after them until they had no choice but to disguise themselves as four dhutas. The came to Xiangjiag to lie low until the danger is over.”

The four dhutas can’t help but feel secretly alarmed when they heard that, thinking, “How can their movements be deduced by this little lass? If so, how can they ever hide from the famous ‘Four Famed Constables’?”

They did not expect that normally others will not be able to tell who they are but now the four of them have revealed their weapons, one holding a Three Sectioned Staff, one holding a Convenient Shovel, one holding a large blade with nine tiny bells, and one holding a walking stick. Indeed it’ll not be easy for others not to recognize them for a person can disguise himself but he’ll be so used to the weapon that he’s always use and there’s no way he can disguise the weapon.

Qu Benlei laughed loudly, “Great, the authorities are after you guys, scaredy cats. Look out for the axe!” He shouted and the axe swung down.

Shi Tong and the group saw that the axe was not aimed directly at them and thought that Qu Benlei must be using the same earlier trick so they were on their guard against the bowls and chopsticks on the table that Qu Benlei might shoot at them.

The axe flew with a ‘swoosh’ and suddenly the table became shorter!

This sudden change was really unexpected. Turns out that Qu Benlei’s low axe attack had four changes but due to the speed, the sound emitted merged into one. The axe actually cut the four legs of the table in half and the table dropped down immediately and those at the table, Shi Tong, Gong Zhisi, Bi Bian, Peng Gujian will certainly be drenched by the wine on the table.

The delightful part about Qu Benlei’s four axe change is even better than Yin Chengfeng’s four sword change. Maybe it’s Qu Benlei’s deliberate attempt to show off to Yin Chengfeng that whatever he can do, so can Qu Benlei.

But Shi Tong and his gang are outstanding as well and once the saw that the situation was amiss, then gave a cold snort and with their right hands holding on to their weapons, their left hands simultaneously each grabbed a corner of the table and stabilized the legs of the table.

At the same time, Qu Benlei’s axe flew as fast as lightning.

Just as the four of them were holding on to the table, Qu Benlei’s axe has arrived.

Shi Tong, Bi Bian, Gong Zhisi and Peng Gujian were startled and wanted to block the axe with their weapons when they heard a sudden ‘boom’ and the table they were holding suddenly split right in the middle.

Turns out that Qu Benlei’s move is to smash towards the table and split it into two so that the four of them will still end up being splattered by the wine and food on the table.

The way Qu Benlei made use of the opportune time, his internal strength and the speed of his axe is really chilling. Shi Tong and the rest turned ashen and just as they were feeling helpless, Qu Benlei chortled and said, “Not bad, not bad. That the four of you can take on one of my move, even if you’re here for ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’, you are good enough to come along with me.”

It turns out that he was really delighted when he saw the four of them calmly grabbing hold of the table with no fear and after all, the move which split the table in half really belongs to a second move. He is a person who keeps his words so since the other party could take on one move, he has no wish to make things more difficult for them. He then walked towards the two men with the amputated arms.

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[Laoren]

Thanks Jean.

[LuDongBin]

I can't wait for them to enter the Manor. Thks Jean.

[Jean]

It's a looong time before they get to the manor. This is an extremely long chapter describing the various characters.


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Both men’s expression turned somber as they stood up and the one on the left said, “’Soul Trapper’, Xin Chou.”

The man with the amputated right arm added, “’Soul Snatcher’, Xin Sha.”

The man with the amputated left arm continued, “We’re here for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’.”

The man with the amputated right arm carried on, “Qu, just execute your move.”

The way two of them continued each other’s sentences with such coldness and yet so fittingly, everyone in the shop was visibly moved. Turns out that these brothers, ’Soul Trapper and Soul Snatcher’, were handicapped since young and discriminated so they practiced hard and killed their way across the martial arts realm without fear of anyone.

Qu Benlei laughed, “Great, so outright.” He shot out a palm and knowing that these two brothers are not to be trifled with, he used 60% of his strength in this attack through the air.

‘Soul Trapper’ Xin Chou and ‘Soul Snatcher’ Xin Sha both gave a cold smile as they each shot out a palm too! The 3 palm energies met in midair and by right there should be an enormous bang but there was no sound at all. Qu Benlei only felt his palm energy dissipating into nothingness and can’t help but feel alarmed for this is something he has never experienced before from the day he roamed the realm.

At the same time, Xin Chou and Xin Sha waved their amputated arm and a huge insurmountable force rushed towards Qu Benlei.

Qu Benlei is experienced after all and immediately understood that these two brothers are using a special type of palm skill to absorb the energy from his palm attack and then combined with their own energy, redirecting it back from their amputated arms.

This means that there are now 3 lines of energy coming straight towards Qu Benlei.

This Qu Benlei suddenly roared and his face turned red, his beard stubbles stood up as he gathered all of his energy and forcefully met this attack head on.

After a loud ‘bang’, Qu Benlei swayed a little as the dust on the roof fell down. The Xin brothers staggered 3 steps back before they gained their balance but after than took another 3 steps back involuntarily as their faces turn ashen.

Yin Chengfeng asked Cai Yunfei, “Fei’er, the moves of those brothers were really strange, which sect are they from?”

Cai Yunfei replied with a smile, “That’s not from any sect at all, but a skill those brothers invented on their own, using one hand to lure their opponent’s internal strength and then forcing it out of their amputated arms together with their own strength. Very few can take on their blow, which is called ‘Unique Amputated Arm Skill’ and it is indeed a very strange skill.”

Although Qu Benlei could forcefully take on the Xin Brothers’ attack, it is after all the second palm move. After the other party took on his own palm attack, they could still retaliate and he had to use all of his strength on his second palm move before he could force the brothers back a few steps. He was secretly impressed and said, “Excellent skills, excellent skills!”, and then proceeded towards the man in black and the man in brocade.

The man in black cannot suppress himself any longer, he was at first seated with his back towards Qu Benlei but now he suddenly flipped over and stood up to face Qu Benlei.

The distance between the tables and chairs are extremely close and without even moving them, the man in black was able to flip over in an instance. No one could see clearly how he did that but once they saw how he moved with lightning speed, they remembered how he caught and killed the leader of the ‘Five Dragons of the Left River Bank’ so quickly and returned for his drink, the speed at which he did it was unimaginable. Now that he is up against Qu Benlei, everyone knew they’re in for a good show.

However, Cai Yunfei suddenly called out, “Old Master Ba…”

The man in black was taken aback as he turned around and asked, “You know me?”

Cai Yunfei smiled gaily and replied, “How can I not know when Old Master Ba executed the ‘Suction Skill’ and ‘Thousand Miles Purge’ earlier! In the martial arts realm, who else but Old Master Ba is able to execute the ‘Suction Skill’ so precisely?”

Once Cai Yunfei said these, everyone were suddenly enlightened.

Turns out that ‘Suction Skill’ is an extremely profound martial arts skill. Most of those who master it, could only execute it clumsily and although it’s useful in a fight, it’s a chore to execute it. There is only one person in the martial arts realm who could master this skill and yet execute it cleanly and that person is Ba Tianshi.

Similarly, his Junior Brother, whom others nickname ‘Laughing Soul Chaser’, Yu Wenxiu, was unable to master the skill because as a scholar, he was worried that practicing such a skill would be ungraceful so he only mastered ‘Thousand Miles Purge’. With that skill, he was able to gain a reputation in the martial arts realm and was known as ‘Laughing Soul Chaser’.

However, Ba Tianshi is adept at both skills so it’s no wonder that when the leader of the ‘Five Dragons of the Left River Bank’ met him earlier, he stood no chance of struggle at all before dying.

Cai Yunfei smiled and said to Qu Benlei, “Master Qi, this is Old Master Ba, and most likely here because of Old Master Yuwen.”

Although grumpy by nature, after being praised by Cai Yunfei, Ba Tianshi can’t help but feel smug and said loudly, “That’s right, ever since my Junior Brother Yuwen entered the ‘Secluded Ghostly Manor’, he became mad. I am now going into the manor to see what manner of ghouls and demons there are in there!”

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[Abhay]

Ah...Lady Jean is back and I never ever noticed. Thanks for continuing.

[LuDongBin]

That means I have to be patient .... thks Jean.

[Jean]

to continue....


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Qu Benlei knows that this Ba Tianshi is highly skilled and in order to win him, he will have to fight hard as well and it goes without saying that Ba Tianshi will be able to take his one attack. Qu Benlei had thought that his only intention is to obtain the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’ so he’s trying to get rid of all those people so that they will not get into his way. He did not expect Yin Chengfeng, Cai Yunfei, Xin Brothers, Ba Tianshi etc would all be here, and together with Shi Tong, Gong Zhisi, Bi Bian, Peng Gujian whose skills are formidable as well, on top of the four Shaolin monks and the two Wudang disciples whose skills are unfathomable as yet. This person in brocade is most likely not to be trifled with as well. He was immediately disheartened, for he knows that if he fights them one on one, he won’t likely lose but if he offends them with his words and they gang up against him, he’ll have a hard time getting out.

He laughed drily and said, “Ba Tianshi, fine, fine. You’re there for that mad scholar, it’s none of my business.”

He walked towards the man in brocade as he gathered 100% of his strength in his hand, thinking of defeating him in one move, otherwise there will be more and more people going the same way and it will not be to his advantage.

He did not expect the man in brocade to stand up with a smile as he clasped his hands together in greeting and said, “Brother Qu, please. I am Cai Yudan, a close friend of the master of ‘Secluded Ghostly Manor’, Shi Youming. Now that we do not know if Manor Master Shi is alive or dead, as his close friend, it is only right that I make a trip to the manor.”

Once Cai Yudan gave his name, everyone in the shop was stunned. This Cai Yudan is nicknamed ‘Silk Hero’, an extremely wealthy silk merchant but very generous and always ready to help others in need. He’s also highly skilled.

Manor Master Shi Youming of ‘Secluded Ghostly Manor’ has very few friends and it is widely known that he is a good friend of Cai Yudan. Now that something bad has happened to Shi Youming, it is only right that Cai Yudan pay a visit.

However Qu Benlei does not want another person around to hinder him so he said, “I am there for the ‘Secret Manual of the Dragon’s Song’ and it is said that this manual is in the manor. I don’t care if that Shi Youming is dead or alive but since I am going there to take the book and you are Shi Youming’s friend, you may not tolerate that. So you better take my attack!” He was secretly gathering his internal strength in the hope of defeating Cai Yudan in one blow so that there will be one less strong enemy to fight.

Cai Yudan smiled, “In that case, I will have to take on Brother Qu’s attack, I hope you will excuse me.”

Qu Benlei laughed, “Then take this blow!” As fast as lightning, Qu Benlei swung his axe out.

The shiny black axe did not fly straight towards Cai Yudan but made a big arc as it flew rapidly towards Cai Yudan’s head.

This axe attack is vastly different from the move Qu Benlei made earlier to scare away the ‘Six Heroes of Xiangbei’. This attack is ten times more intense than the earlier move! Ten times the speed! Ten times the intensity!

Everyone can’t help but feel alarmed for they did not expect Qu Benlei to use all his might on the first strike. The axe buzzed through the air rapidly and no matter what weapon one uses to block it, one can only stop the axe but not the force behind it.

Cai Yudan is still smiling when his smile suddenly disappeared as he swiftly removed his robe and twirled it around and in an instant had the robe covering the flying axe.

Everyone can’t help but cheer. Cai Yudan is indeed amazing, for there is really no weapon better than the robe which can be used against the spinning axe.

Once Qu Benlei saw his opponent move and capture his flying axe, he was secretly alarmed and with his left hand throwing out the axe and his right hand moving to catch it, the axe flew out of the robe but it has already lost its momentum and dropped down into Qu Benlei’s hand.

Only now did the audience recollect their thoughts and their cheers were deafening.

Qu Benlei’s ‘Flying Axe Skill’ have reached the stage where it can fly at will, injuring others and returning to him, which means that once the flying axe leaves his hand, it will strike the opponent and the remaining force will bring the axe back into Qu Benlei’s hands.

Using the momentum from the flying axe, Qu Benlei’s axe was able to tear past Cai Yudan’s robe and that in itself is already a formidable feat.

But Qu Benlei himself was secretly breaking out in cold sweat, for if his axe did not manage to tear out of the robe earlier, he would have been defeated in one move. Luckily his axe managed to tear out of the robe, so Cai Yudan has lost slightly and he has not lost his reputation entirely. But he has made two moves with his left hand attacking and his right hand catching so there’s no way he can force another attack without looking bad. Cai Yudan looked at his torn robe and said with a smile, “Brother Qu, great skills, that was a close call for me. The robe may be torn but at least I’m still alive.” With that, he off handedly put the robe aside and sat down again, smiling as he drank his wine.

Everyone saw how magnanimous Cai Yudan was and secretly admired him as a true hero. Qu Benlei was quietly feeling ashamed and was about to say something nice as he looked up and instead uttered ‘Ah!’. Everyone looked towards where he looked and can’t help but exclaim, ‘Eh’.

It turns out that at a small table in the corner, there was a person dressed in coarse robes and sleeping soundly. All the martial arts experts in the shop did not realize when this person came in and this person seemed oblivious to everything that happened.

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[LuDongBin]

Thks Jean.

[Jean]

to continue......


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Everyone was alarmed and wondered when did this martial arts expert appear, but after that they tried to convince themselves that this must be a worker in the shop who walked in from the back room and hence they did not notice him.

Qu Benlei stared at the old shopkeeper and asked, “That’s your staff?”

The old man took a look and scratched his head, “Huh? No… no…”

Ah Fu wondered loudly, “That’s strange, when did this person come in?”

Ah Ben stammered, “Boss… that fellow drank three jars of fine wine…. But I… I did not serve him any at all. This… This person is stealing wine….”

Qu Benlei hung his axe on his waist as he walked towards the man and shouted, “What are you here for?” He shouted thrice and his voice was so loud that the tiles on the roof were vibrating.

But that person remained sleeping and did not wake up.

Qu Benlei gave a cold laugh as he struck with his axe. He only used 30% of his strength, and if this person cannot avoid it in time, he will lose his life.

That person was still sleeping and Cai Yunfei can’t bear to see that person die so she cried out, “Spare him!”

Qu Benlei laughed, “I’m just cutting off one of his ears!”

That person still did not move but he suddenly yawned and all the bowls, plates, cups etc on the table suddenly flew towards Qu Benlei.

Qu Benlei did not expect such a move at all and was taken aback when the wine fell on him and drenched him. Qu benlei roared in anger and was actually able to forcefully pull his attacking axe back to block the other cups and dishes instead.

Qu Benlei cursed, “Good fellow, can’t tell that you’re skilled as well!” He struck with his axe again and this time he used 70% of his strength, not giving him any chance now!

Cai Yunfei, Yin Chengfeng and Cai Yudan saw that this person seemed to be hiding his abilities so they did not interfere but just observed quietly.

This axe attack is extremely sharp and it looks like that person is about to perish when suddenly their eyes blurred and that person is now seated at one side of the bench, still sleeping. Because the bench is now tilted in balance, it flipped up and Qu Benlei’s axe landed right on the bench!

Qu Benlei was startled because he knows that now that his axe is stuck in the bench, if that person were to strike now, he would have no choice but to give up his axe and retreat first. But that person is still sleeping soundly. Qu Benlei has never been so ridiculously fooled before. He roared and instead of using his axe, he used his hand to hit on the bench, which broke into half.

Qu Benlei thought to himself, ‘Let’s see how you can sleep now.’ But their eyes blurred again and that person is now seated on another bench, still sleeping.

There are four benches around the table and with one broken, there are three remaining.

Qu Benlei was surprised and furious and he attacked with his axe again. The person shifted and is on another bench yet again, as the bench which he was originally on split apart.

In the same way, soon Qu Benlei has smashed the fourth bench and the person shifted and is now on the table instead, still sleeping.

The veins on Qu Benlei’s forehead popped up as he roared in fury, “Let’s see where you can escape to now!” He smashed with his axe and with a whoosh, the table split into two.

There’s no other place for that person so he flipped and stood up but his eyes were still closed and he was even snoring.

Qu Benlei could take it no longer and he used his ultimate skill ‘Flying Axe Skill’.

This time, Qu Benlei used up all his might and the flying axe buzzed thru the air towards that person.

The person suddenly opened his eyes, the look in his eyes shining brightly for obviously he dare not belittle this flying axe.

Everyone else saw how Cai Yudan used his robe to wrap the flying axe and was wondering if this person would be able to deal with this flying axe. Cai Yudan has crossed swords with the flying axe before and knows how formidable it can be so he cried out, ‘Be careful, friend!”

Yin Chengfeng is by nature an extremely gallant person and he can’t help but cried out, “Quick, wrap it with your robe!”

That person stared at the flying axe and it seems that it’s almost going to smash into him when he suddenly fell backward.

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