Originally Posted by
CC
IIRC, it was not really 300 strokes either since WY was cheating with the count.
There was no indication that Huang Rong was cheating with the count. Having proposed the 300 stroke limit, she must have been confident that Guo Jing could last for 300 strokes against Huang Yaoshi and Hong Qigong, without any need for further help from her. HR couldn't have cheated with the count anyway, as the two Greats weren't only competing with GJ, but also with themselves to see who could beat GJ more quickly.
Originally Posted by
Candide
I remember reading that it's a new technique he specifically trained for the 2nd Huasan tournament to defeat other Greats. Don't think it's a handicap.
From LOCH chapter 40:
Seeing Guo Jing was unexpectedly able to withstand his more than ten
years worth of ?qi men wu zhuan? [wonderful gate five revolutions]
cultivation, Huang Yaoshi was not angry; on the contrary, he was happy.
?Old Beggar,? he said, ?I am useless, the title Number One in the World
is yours.? He cupped his fists and turned around to leave.
However, HYS might have competed with GJ before using one of his specialist internal skills. During the Three Tests chapter, GJ tried to disrupt HYS's flute melody by tapping his bamboo stick, and HYS responded. The first part of the quote is from HYS's contest with Ouyang Feng's zither. The second part of the quote is from HYS's contest with GJ. Both are from LOCH chapter 18:
Initially Huang Rong watched these two played music with smile on her
face; but afterwards she saw their expressions were getting serious. Her
father stood up and started to walk around while blowing his flute. His
steps were actually following the 'ba gua' [Eight Diagram]. She knew
this was the footwork her father followed when he was cultivating his
internal energy; showing her how fierce the battle was for her father
that he was forced to use up all his strength. Turning toward Ouyang
Feng she did not see anything better. Thick steam was coming out from
the top of his head; his sleeves were fluttering following his hands'
movement plucking the strings; creating gusts of wind blowing
everywhere. His face looked seriously focused on his zither playing;
obviously he did not dare to act careless.
...
After half a day, the volume of the flute gradually decreased, make it
difficult to be heard. Guo Jing stopped the bamboo tapping to listen.
Unexpectedly to him, this was the moment Huang Yaoshi was waiting for;
the softer the sound, the stronger the energy it carried. Because Guo
Jing was listening attentively, his heart began to follow the beat of
the flute. If it happened to other people, they would fell into the trap
and would not be able to escape; but Guo Jing was different. He had
learned the left/right mutual hands combat; he was capable of dividing
his mind. So he used his left hand to take the shoe from his left foot
to knock on the bamboo. "Knock! Knock! Knock!" again, disrupting the
flute sound.
Huang Yaoshi was startled, "This kid possesses some extraordinary
skills, truly cannot be underestimated." He started to walk around
according to the Eight Diagram while his mouth continued blowing.