Novel 7
In my earlier translations i wrote that Fan Zong releases his blades, technically Fan Zong didn't use mechanism to release his blades. But rather Fan Zong throws his blades, it's just that for some reason I don't know why i used the word release . But throw is the correct wording. Earlier on I wrote Liao Lian Zhou as Wudang's Headmaster but later on i changed it to leader. Both are actually the same, its just that i find the word leader more suitable than Headmaster. In my earlier translations i wrote something like ' break *insert technique's name', break is not a wrong translation , it is a literal translation that doesn't seem to make sense in the context. So i changed it to counter. I'm pretty sure if i look through my earlier translations i can probably find more suitable words to replace some of the wording used. Sometimes in a hurry i just translate some stuff literally rather than trying to find words that fit into the context. I guess in the future, i will try to spend more time looking through my translations .
Usually after when i write 'Person A Vs Person B', usually i write down abit of the action that occurred. Usually there's too many stuff to be written down so i just summarize or just cut out some stuff. Perhaps i should write 'they continue fighting' so as not to confuse to you people as to why the paragraph suddenly ends.
I suddenly remembers 2 differences in manhua vol 6 and the novel : in the novel the flashback of Liu Zong Wu (leader of Mt Hua) receiving his sword from his master happened just before he was about to be defeated by Liao Lian Zhou. But in the manhua the flashback happened before the fight, i guess the team didn't want to disrupt the flow of the battle which is why they moved the flashback to before the fight started. Another difference is that the manhua explains the key points of a sword formation while the manhua didn't. I think there may be other minor differences that i have forgotten or didn't notice.
For those who have forgotten the few important characters of this novel, i added a 'Important characters that appeared in this volume' section at the end of this translation.
Anyway in my previous translation i missed out Hall of Mastery #14
Hall of Mastery #14 : About Wudang Four Sword Techniques. There are 4 sets of sword techniques on Wudang ( not including Tai Ji Sword , which was evolved from Tai Ji Fist) :
•Wudang Line Sword
Introductory sword technique for Wudang disiciples. Pays attention to the speed and angle of attack. The key to this technique lies in the footwork. The characteristic of its footwork is like that of a snake's movement. By not attacking and retreating in a straight line, evading an enemy's direct attack while at the same time attacking the side of an enemy . And because the user will keep moving around it is suitable for fighting against a few enemies. And thus it is the elementary sword technique that a Wudang disciple must learn so as to raise oneself defense skills.
•Wudang Force Sword
A sword technique that is the opposite of Wudang Line Sword. It pays attention to the hard and ferocious power of a sword strike. To block an attack head on or to use a direct frontal attack to break an enemy's force , not moving back even half a step when using the sword. Such tactics require high amount of inner strength. When attacking , the wrist, arm and waist and leg strength must burst out at the same time. It is a higher level of Wudang Sword Technique. Because this technique pays attention to taking an enemy's attack head on , the user requires a thicker than usual sword like the Kan Li Water Fire Swords ( Chen Yuan's sword) , Shan Bei Sword ( Lian Zhou's sword) or Jing Wu Dual Swords ( which is now with Yan Heng and Tong Qing. They originally belong to one of the Wudang fighters in Cheng Du ( i can't remember his name) ) if not the sword might not be able to withstand the blow.
•Wudang Flying Dragon Sword
A even higher level of technique that blends Wudang Line Sword and Wudang Force Sword together. Using Wudang Line Sword Technique's swift sword strikes and combining it with Wudang Force Sword Technique's ferocious and hard methods, and jumping from a long distance to attack. Since this technique uses the full body strength to jump and attack , it cannot be retracted.
•Wudang Form sword
Highest level of sword technique among the 4. One must see clearly one's enemy's movement so as to intercept the attack by attacking the enemy's limbs from different angles . ( For example the arteries on the enemies wrists, arms etc) Doing so will obstruct the enemy's attack and the enemy may even 'voluntarily' deliver his/her limbs to the user's sword . This is what that is called Zhui Xing Jie Mai ( Chasing to cut arteries ). Xin Fa ( refer to
http://readonline.egscans.com/Blood_and_Steel/Chapter_013/9. egscan translates Xin Fa as method ) is of most importance in this technique. There are no fixed moves , users have to respond accordingly to the enemy's movement. To use this accurately , it requires good eyesight and the ability to make judgments momentarily. The user must have lots of combat experience. Only advanced Wudang disciples are able to succeed in practicing this . The one weakness of this technique is that it requires the user to concentrate on observing the enemy, which is why this is suitable in a 1 on 1 fight and not in a group fight.
- Er Han & Si Dao are heading back to Wave Dragon King's base ; situated at 1 of the mountains outside Lu Ling. They're afraid of seeing Wave Dragon King. The poisonous pill that was thrown in the previous vol is known as ' Yun Lin Sha'. In a cave , there is an old man being chained to the walls. Another man appears and they started talking. Initially the old man did not want to sharpen weapons for the other man, because the old man feels that he is the one responsible for all that has happened to the town folks ; it was because of him that the other man came all the way down here. But when the other man put a sword in front of the old man, the old man couldn't resist it. To not sharpen such a weapon is to deny being himself, and that feeling is worse than that of death. And so the old man spent 3 months grinding the blade. The old man recognizes that sword as one of Wudang's and that the blade has killed many people. The old man can also tell that the sword does not belong to the other man. The other man nods and says that he is safe guarding it for a man whom he respects the most.
- Er Han & Si Dao have returned to report on what just happened. Sitting down is Huo Yao Hua, a 30+ years old female bandit who is wearing multi-colored clothes that is similar to the other Wave Dragon King's men. From her left hand that is not covered by the clothes, it can be seen that she has the incantation tattoo from her shoulder all the way down to the back of her hand. There is another man, Mei Xin Shu who is dressed in black with lots of scars on his face. Around his waist is a pair of short blades shaped like an animal's tooth. There is a iron ring on the handle , attached to it is a long chain that is wrapped around his waist. Wave Dragon King then enters. The bald guy and the 'other man' mentioned earlier are both the same person ; the Wave Dragon King. Previously Er Han & Si Dao sacrificed 1/4 ( 50 men) of Wave Dragon King's men and half of his horses (50 horses ) just to escape. Er Han feels that if he is lucky ,he might get away with just 1 of his eyes or arms crippled. But Wave Dragon King orders Er Han and Si Dao to kill 150 people within 3 days , put 'Hua Wu Talisman' on the severed head . So as to get 3 "You Nu (Slave)" to take care for each his men that have gone to the netherworld. Wave Dragon King then talks to Mei Xin Shu. Mei Xin Shu is the only one that dares to look at Wave Dragon King in his eyes. The attitude that Wave Dragon King is giving to Xin Shu is different from the one that he gives to his 3 subordinates. Wave Dragon King refers the Mei Xin Shu as Mei
Shi Di ( Mei being surname. Shi Di = male martial arts junior). Xin Shu remembers the day when he an Wudang elite warrior , abandons his position to leave Wudang together with this traitor so as to seek power. Not Wudang's meaningless 'Pinnacle of martial arts' but real power that can be used in this world. Wave Dragon King grabs Huo Yao Hua's hand and bites it. He wipes the blood on his eyebrow and starts chanting 'Soul Calming Scripture'. Despite following Wave Dragon King for 3 years, she still isn't sure if he is a true believer of Wu Yi Cult or not. Yao Hua wonders why he did not punish Er Han and Si Dao. He knows that Er Han would not anything how sacrifice 50 men for nothing, and that it must have been a dangerous situation with strong enemies. He intends to strike at his enemies ; his enemies will definitely be complacent and relax , and so tonight is the best opportunity for him to kill them. He asks Xin Shu to gather men at the foot of the mountain to guard this place.
Hall Of Mastery #25 : About Wu Yi Cult.
- Tong Qing thanks Fei Hong for saving her life. Even though Fei Hong is very happy , he just smiles a little and nods at her. Being a 60+ years old man, Fei Hong is very tired. His biggest weakness is not being able to be in the battlefield for too long. Wang Shou Ren & co and behind Jing Lie & the whole gang as they head back to Lu Ling. Outside Lu Ling, the citizen are kneeling in front of Jing Lie & co thanking them but Tong Qing says that they are afraid that they will be held responsible. Wang Shou Ren exits the carriage. The citizen recognizes Shou Ren (he's their ex magistrate). They are happy that Shou Ren is back and many people rush out to greet him. ( The people respects him) In the past Wang Shou Ren offended Liu Jin, a wicked imperial official and was banished to Gui Zhou province ,up till 4 years ago, when Liu Jin was executed due to rebellion . After which his banishment was terminated and he was reinstated and was appointed to be Lu Ling's magistrate. He was promoted and was transferred to other posts time and time again. Last year he was promoted to Nan Jing's Minister of Imperial Stud ( in charge of horse breeding). Nominally he is in charge of horses but in reality it's just a title with no power. Wang Shou Ren isn't happy and thus keeps on delaying to take office. This year, he spent his time travelling around giving lectures. Since he is passing by Jiang Xi, he decides to visits Lu Ling to see how is everything.
- Shou Ren heard that many people have died and wants to head in. Jing Lie stops him and tells him of the poison. He asks Jing Lie to take care of the situation. Jing Lie acknowledges. For some reason that he himself don't understand, he is treating Shou Ren politely. Jing Lie tells the people to get water and pour them over the dead bodies to dilute the poison and prevent it from spreading into the air. After which wrap the corpse with thick cloth and dig deep graves and bury them outside the city . But the poison has already been absorbed into the ground, Jing Lie doubts that the poison will dissipate in a year . He suggests surrounding the place and prohibit people from going near to this place. As Jing Lie & Shou Ren & co go to the guesthouse that Jing Lie & co visited earlier, the current magistrate Xu Hong De arrives . Shou Ren exits the guesthouse and even though he is of higher rank then Xu Hong De , Shou Ren greets him politely (Shou Ren is of 4th rank, while Hong De is of 7th rank) . Xu Hong De frantically greets him back. Xu Hong De is terrified ; he wonders if someone sends Shou Ren to find fault with him. ( Shou Ren is well known) Being a official for so long, Shou Ren can tell what Hong De is thinking just by looking at him. Shou Ren believes that Hong De is somehow related to Wave Dragon King and thus heads back to the administrative building with Hong De hoping to pry some information out of Hong De. He asks Jing Lie to get information about Wave Dragon King from the people.
- Jing Lie & co together with Huang Xuan (1 of the 6 scholars who arrived with Shou Ren) walk on the streets. Huang Xuan says that martial arts practitioners always kill each other, tossing away their lives. And that he doesn't understand why people like Jing Lie & co desperately keep practicing martial arts. Yan Heng have been pursuing martial arts his whole life, and now that a weak scholar talk as if it is worthless he asks Huang Xuan why did Huang Xuan follow Shou Ren. Huang Xuan replies saying that it is to learn the way of Confucius and says some stuff about recognizing good and bad , creating a world of peace etc etc. And so begins the exchange of words between martial arts or the way of Confucius being more effective. Jing Lie quickly unsheathe and re-sheathe Huang Xuan's sword. Jing Lie smiles and tells Huang Xuan, should Wave Dragon King's men come attack Huang Xuan, how would he create a peaceful world? Through his "way of Confucius"? Or through his sword? Huang Xuan's face turns red and says something like , that their strength is merely able to succeed for a while. Yan Heng doesn't understand how words is going to change an evil-doer and if by the time the evil doer becomes good, what about the people that he has killed so far? Huang Xuan doesn't know how to answer. He retorts that if swords can bring peace to the world, why is it that the people are so afraid of Jing Lie & co. Yan Heng finally understands that the people are afraid because in their eyes, Jing Lie & co are different. Huang Xuan challenges Jing Lie to find out about Wave Dragon King from the people. Jing Lie discusses with Fei Hong and Ling Lan to put up a show for the people. Fei Hong throws his flying blade in a arc direction while Ling Lan fires an arrow at the red scarf that's on the flying blade. The arrow together with the blade hit a house pillar. While the spectators are still stunned, Fei Hong flings another flying blade in another arc . Ling Lan fires another arrow which nails the flying blade into an even further house. More people start gathering. Fei Hong flings 2 flying blades at 2 different arc directions. Ling Lan fires 2 arrows ; 1 after another. Both hit the blades which in turn followed the arrow trajectory and hit the houses' walls. Fei Hong then flings a flying blade from its sheathe , but unlike the previous 4 throws, this flying blade is thrown in a straight manner and so its speed is faster than the previous 4 throws. Just as the flying blade is about to hit a shop's signboard it got hit by the arrow. The arrow hits the iron ring that is used to hang the signboard and the arrow shaft keeps spinning in the ring. Upon this sight, the people starts cheering. Jing Lie questions the people about Wave Dragon King and what previously happened in the town. Jing Lie is disappointed when there is no reply. Huang Xuan then steps in, saying that he is Shou Ren's pupil and that should the people speak up, Huang Xuan will tell Shou Ren and Shou Ren will solve the problem. People start gathering around Huang Xuan. Fei Hong wonders who is Shou Ren. One villager explains that Shou Ren is their ex-magistrate. Basically in the past Shou Ren have been helping out the people of Lu Ling , they look up to him as if he is a living saint; he got rid of the plague, bandits etc. Jing Lie then admits defeat to Huang Xuan.
- Xue Jiu Niu, a villager tells Huang Xuan & co that Wave Dragon King brought around 100 men to Lu Ling 6 months ago and took away Shi Han Zi .They occupied Pure Lotus Temple (situated on 1 of the mountains outside Lu Ling), killed all the monks in it . The villagers heard that they even took women from nearby villages and rape them in the temple . As time passed, Wave Dragon King recruited more people. Fei Hong asks 1 guy if those 2 people who escaped earlier on were their leaders and how many people like them are there? That guy replies that he has greeted 4 such person before. The 2 that came earlier ( Er Han and Si Dao) often bring men to loot and blackmail people from the town. There is also 1 man and 1 woman. The man does not talk much, have never killed anyone in the city , does not wear the Wave Dragon King's multi colored robes, and it seems that the others are very afraid of him. The woman is about the same height as Ling Lan and also wields a big blade. There was once when she killed a child while riding on her horse and after which she was laughing loudly. That guy then describes Wave Dragon King's description .Because of the tattoo's description , Jing Lie & Yan Heng is convinced that Wave Dragon King is a real Wudang disiciple.Ever since Shou Ren left 2 years ago, things have gotten worse; people can get killed or robbed once they exit the city and even the magistrate don't bother. Fei hong feels that a small official like Hong De cannot cover up Wave Dragon King's action. Huang Xuan then says that without Hong De's higher up's agreement, Hong De will never accept such bribe . The reason the 'undead' are in such a state is because they have eaten Fang Xian San. Initially when Wave Dragon King's men first arrived, they lied to the people saying that Fang Xian San is a magical medicine that can strengthen one body and erase one troubles. As time passed, the price of Fang Xian San is increased. The addicted starts selling all their stuff, some resorted to thievery.
- Wang Shou Ren returns. The people becomes quiet and downtrodden. Jiu Nui explains that while Shou Ren loves his people, he does not have any army and will be unable to do anything. Even if Shou Ren presents a memorial to the emperor he may not be able to mobilize the army; the imperial court has strict control over the military. Whenever the army is mobilized there must be a eunuch assigned by the imperial court to supervise the army. Now that the Wave Dragon King has lost so many men, he is sure to get revenge , even if the army can be mobilized , who knows when it will arrive and by the time it arrives it might be too late. The people then look at Jing Lie & co. Jing Lie replies saying that he knows what they are thinking, but there is something that he must first make clear. After killing so many of Wave Dragon King's men , should they decide to leave , the people of Lu Ling can push the blame on Jing Lie & co saying that they do not know each other. Wave Dragon King's men will definitely be very angry and may kill a couple of people and will chase after Jing Lie & co. But should Jing Lie & co stay and should they lose . Wave Dragon King's men will definitely pay them back 10 times. By that time, it could be a massacre of the whole city . Jing Lie asks the people if they are prepared for such a outcome? The people look at Shou Ren, waiting for his reply. Shou Ren decides that he will fight evil together with the citizens to death and asks Jing Lie &co if they could help him out. All of them agrees. Before this, Jing Lie has never thought that such a big official would be willing to throw away his life to fight against a bunch of crazy demons just for the sake of 1 small prefecture. Shou Ren gets Hong De's bodyguards to look after Hong De and make sure he does not inform the enemy on what they are doing. Shou Ren then gets people to set up sentry stations at the roads outside the town so as to warn the people inside if they spot Wave Dragon King's men coming.
- At night. Jing Lie and Jiu Niu are towards Wave Dragon King's hideout. Jing Lie was the one who suggested spying on the enemy forces and the hideout's terrain , he thinks that because they just started fighting today the enemy would never expect that they will move so fast. Like Jing Lie, Shou Ren intends to bring the battlefield to the enemy's location; the enemy uses deadly poison and concealed weapons (their sleeve arrows) that can kill many civilians in 1 shot , so not only will defending Lu Ling be difficult but alot of innocent citizens will die as well. Initially Ling Lan wants to tag along, but Jing Lie doesn't allow her to . He says that he is used to travelling alone at night in Nan Man's forest and for such night infiltration, travelling with more people will mean that they will be caught easily, all he needs is someone who is familiar with the terrain to lead the way. Jiu Niu volunteers. Once they are near the mountain where Wave Dragon King's lair is located, both of them get down their horses . They fitted horseshoes that's wrapped with cloths and mouth piece on to the horses so as to prevent the horses from making noises. They snuff out their fire, bring their horses and walk into the vegetation. For convenience, Jing Lie left his long weapons back in town. Right now he's only carrying 2 blades, flying darts/shuriken and the chain with the spear head. Jiu Niu doesn't understand why Jing Lie & co are fighting for the people of Lu Ling. Jing Lie says that he loves to fight strong people , and now there are evil people in front of his eyes that he will not pity even if he kills them. They take out charcoal that they brought and spread them on their faces and arms. They tie their horses and head towards Deng Long Village (at the bottom of the mountain). They heads towards one of the window of the rooms that 1 of the Wave Dragon King's men entered. In it are 20 + women who have their legs chained. They seem to be under the influence of Fang Shi Xian. Jiu Niu suggests rescuing the women, but Jing Lie disagrees. They cannot leave any traces that they have been here. Jing Lie feels that currently Wave Dragon King does not know if his enemies have reinforcements or not , and thus wouldn't lead his army into attacking Lu Ling but should he know that Jing Lie & Jiu Niu are here, Wave Dragon King may immediately open war on them. Jiu Niu wants to rebut but Jing Lie tells him that previously he did mention that he will not hinder Jing Lie. Jing Lie says that war is like this and for the sake of victory, they will return later. Jiu Niu says that he doesn't understand ; does the sake of victory means that they will not save the people in front of them. Jing Lie replies saying that this battle involves the hundreds of lives of Lu Ling's citizen. He asks Jiu Niu to think how many people are there in that room? Jiu Niu replies that what if there are 50? 100? or 200 people in that room? How many people to decide if Jiu Niu & Jing Lie should abandon them or save them. There was once in Jiu Niu's village when Wave Dragon King's men killed a friend of Jiu Niu. After the villians' left, the villagers were saying that "luckily they did not killed more" and did not even shed a tear for Jiu Niu's friend. After hearing this Jing Lie remembers that this isn't war. He and Jiu Niu then proceed to save the women . Jing Lie grabs a multi colored robe and heads up the mountain while he tasks Jiu Niu on bringing the women back safely.
- Wang Shou Ren and 2 of the scholars are walking on the streets of Lu Ling at night. To prevent a night sneak attack, lanterns are light up and put all over LuLing. From young, Shou Ren was fond of reading military war books . When he was 15 , he was once determined to become a general. Looking at the crumpled houses' walls he knows that even if the walls are perfect, it would be very difficult to defend against the enemy ; considering the people are too afraid of Wave Dragon King. Shou Ren is reminded of someone ; Meng Qi He (a name which just appeared in this volume). He asks a citizen if Meng Qi He listened to him and went to join the military. The citizen replied that Meng Qi He gathered some of his men and became outlaws 6 months after Shou Ren left . Shou Ren sighs and shakes his head. Yan Heng is doing night watch on a nearby house. Shou Ren climbs up and sits next to him. Yan Heng is now 18 years old; he passed his birthday while on his way to Jiang Xi. Shou Ren knows Han Shi
Zi ; in the past Shi Zi refuses to sharpen Shou Ren's sword because it is just an ornament. Fei Hong arrives and wants to swap with Yan Heng but Yan Heng refuses. Fei Hong tells Yan Heng that in Xi An, he did not kill Wudang people. But here he must drop such thinking cause now it's not a martial arts duel but war. He must kill the enemy even if it means surrounding the enemies with many people. Should they live, many more innocent people will die.
They talk for a while before Yan Heng leaves.
- There is a person's painful cry. Ling Lan and Tong Qing wakes up. Ling Lan heads towards the source of the sound. At the prefecture office. 2 of the guards are dead. Outside the prison cell. Ling Lan meets up with Huo Yao Hua who is dressed in black garbs. Yao Hua is holding on to the heads of 2 of the Wave Dragon King's men who was captured. Yao Hua is staring at Ling Lan's nodachi. Yao Hua has never seen a woman who uses a blade longer then hers. And she cannot forgive Ling Lan for that. She attacks, both blades clash. Yao Hua Vs Ling Lan. Yao Hua changes to a stance whereby she holds her blade over her head, it reminds Ling Lan of Wudang's Bing Ya Div's Li San Yang. Ling Lan is surprised at Yao Hua's super human reaction speed. Yao Hua has got such good reaction speed is because she has been taking Zhao Ling Dan for a long period of time. Zhao Ling Dan is a drug mixed by Wave Dragon King that boosts human senses. Yao Hua swallows another Zhao Ling Dan. As Chu Lang Blade Sect's disciple and having learnt martial arts from Wave Dragon King , she has never thought that she would meet a woman stronger then her. At Chu Lang Blade Sect, Yao Hua used her looks to exchange for their martial arts; she even mangaes to seduce Chu Lang Blade Sect's leader Su Qi Shan. After which when everything is exposed, they intents to cripples 1 of her arms. But Yao Hua kills Su Qi Shan and escapes. She has been chased many times by Chu Lang Blade Sect. She manages to form her own bandit crew till finally she met Wave Dragon King and served under him. Just before Yao Hua's attack connects Ling Lan's nodachi, her left hand lets go of the blade's handle and attacks Ling Lan with an iron needle.
- On his way back, Yan Heng feels that there is something wrong. All the lanterns have been extinguished. The chinese word of death is written on 1 of the walls. Yan Heng looks up at the house and find Wave Dragon King looking at him.
- Jing Lie is hiding outside Pure Lotus Temple. There are many Wave Dragon King's men gathered around a huge bonfire. They are all singing and dancing to Wu Yi Cult's song. Jing Lie estimates that there are 60-70 people. About 100 feet left of the temple is a deep valley and to the right are very steep cliffs. It is difficult to climb on either sides. The place where the wave dragon king's men are standing on is a very big and open space. But just in front of the doors it is very narrow. (imagine a bottleneck terrain) Be it sneaking up the mountains or storming the front, both would be very difficult to pull off and most likely many lives would be lost in the process. Jing Lie untie some of his plaits and spread them over his face. He heads forward till about 20 feet away from the temple's gate before heading left to climb on to the cliff. He climbs down about 6-7 feet downwards ,making sure that he has proper footing. It is possible for Jing Lie to continue climbing this way to sneak into the enemy camp. But doing so will take about 1 hour and Jing Lie don't have much time ( previously he killed 3 enemy sentries and throws their bodies down the cliff. The enemy will surely get suspicious when they change shift). He takes out the chain with the spear head and throws it at the cliff in front. Because of the loud singing the Wave Dragon King's men did not hear the sound of the chain hitting the cliffs.. Jing Lie takes out a small hunting blade and swings across. Halfway through, the chain came off the cliff but Jing Lie continues 'flying' across. When Jing Lie thinks that he is reaching the wall, he strikes the blade at the cliff. Jing Lie does this 1 more time before climbing up the cliff. Jing Lie comes across 1 Wave Dragon King's man but kills him. Before that guy died, he says that he has never seen Jing Lie before. This shows that the Wave Dragon King's men are close and with just the multi colored clothing alone it wouldn't be enough to bluff Wave Dragon King's men. Jing Lie continues walking towards Pure Lotus Temple. In front of the temple is a river bridge. The temple's left ,right and back are surrounded by cliffs. Jing Lie is memorizing the terrain and is trying to find a weak spot . Jing Lie wants to find out about the important enemy figureheads . Mei Xin Shu walks out of Pure Lotus Temple. Even thought Jing Lie have never seen Xin Shu fight, he estimates that Xin Shu is stronger than Er Han. All of Wave Dragon King's men quieten down. None of them dare to speak ; they know that even if Xin Shu kills all of them here, Wave Dragon King would not raise an eye brow. He tells them that half of them are to go to sleep while the other half are to stay awake and keep a look out. Just as he is going to step back into the temple, he glances at Jing Lie's position. Jing Lie stops moving in the vegetation and believes that Xin Shu cannot see him. It is true that Xin Shu did not see anything but he feels that something is wrong, and tells them to release 'man dog'. Jing Lie starts retreating slowly . ' Man Dog' is actually a human who crawls on the floor. The 'man dog' is wearing multi colored clothing, both of his eyes are red. 'man dog' is formed due to having a few Wu Yi Cult's drugs being used on him, increasing his senses especially his sense of smell, which is more sensitive then dogs. But as a result his intelligence drops to that of a beast. Because the drugs deal heavy damage of his heart and body, usually 1 'man dog' dies after 5 years. Jing Lie starts running away the moment he sees 'man dog' chasing after him. Xin Shu takes Wave Dragon King's men along with him and chase after the intruder ( they don't know that its Jing Lie though). ' Man Dog' chases up to Jing Lie.
- Ling Lan Vs Yao Hua. Yao Hua shoots out a black needle at Ling Lan. Ling Lan is busy blocking Yao hua's attack and it looks like she didn't see the incoming concealed weapon attack. Thinking that attack was successful , Yao Hua goes on to attack Ling Lan's left arm. But Ling Lan changes her horizontal slash to a vertical slash to attack Yao Hua's right ear. Yao Hua dodges with her heightened senses and reaction speed. Yao Hua blocks and jumps out of Ling Lan's range. Yao Hua is surprised that Ling Lang can use such a big blade with such speed. Yao Hua then realize that Ling Lan is fine, just that the cloth covering her face is gone. Back then, even though Ling Lan can't see the needle flying . She did notice Yao Hua's small movement of her left hand leaving the blade handle, and the movement of her left wrist being lowered to point at Ling Lan's face is similar to the movements of that of Wave Dragon King's men when they are firing their sleeves arrow. Ling Lan aims her Nodachi's handle at Yao Hua's wrist, as a result her Nodachi's Tsuba deflected the incoming attack and thus the needle only hit the cloth covering Ling Lan's face. Yao Hua looks at Ling Lan and finds that Ling Lan is more beautiful then she thought and gets jealous.. As time passed, Zhao Ling Dan's effect starts to slowly kick in. They continue fighting, and both are heavily injured. Ling Lan relies more on her strength while Yao Hua relies more on her inhuman reaction speed. Because of Zhao Ling Dan's effect Yao Hua's body is more sensitive than usual, and thus the pain inflicted by Ling Lan hurts alot but she uses the pain to boost her determination to cut down Ling Lan. They then heard a woman shrieking. That woman's voice was full of despair . Ling Lan is thinking if that woman is Tong Qing. That voice stirs Yao Hua up. Because it reminds her that Wave Dragon King is starting his killing spree in the city.
- Yan Heng Vs Wave Dragon King. After taking about 8 breaths, Yan Heng is panting. The Wudang sword that Yan Heng was previously carrying has already been knocked out of his hand, and Yan Heng has been slashed 2 times. Yan Heng draws out Hu Pi (he tries to draw Long Ji but is unable to do so due to Wave Dragon King's relentless attack). Wave Dragon King's attack isn't slow, but his movement and foot work is even faster. Yan Heng can see that Wave Dragon King's movement is similar to that of Fan Zong, he deduce that Wave Dragon King is using Wudang Sect's Qing Gong . But Wave Dragon King is so tall and has such long legs and thus able to cover a even bigger distance. After awhile Yan Heng is finally able to draw out Long Ji. Wave Dragon King mentions that Yan Heng has fought with Wudang sword technique before, if not earlier on Yan Heng would have died within 5 strikes. Yan Heng knows that he is facing a real Wudang martial arts expert even more powerful than the Bing Ya and Zhen Gui people that he met in Xi An. A surge of fear slowly creeps into Yan Heng. Wave Dragon King smiles, he has a intuition like that of a dog when it comes to sensing other peoples fearful state of mind. He enjoys inducing intense fear into others the most, even more then killing a person. Yan Heng wonders if his master has ever been afraid before . Yan Heng starts thinking about 3 years ago when another Qing Cheng disciple asked He Zi Sheng if it was worth it losing one of his fingers. For those who don't remember He Zi Sheng lost one of his fingers when getting rid of Chuan Xi Qun Gui ( Western Sichuan Group of Ghost, basically they are evil doers . And He Zi Sheng starts practising Female & Male, Dragon & Tiger Sword technique at the age of 23 ) He Zi Sheng replies that there is nothing worthy or unworthy,. In every fight you must be prepared to lose something important. If you don't have such a mentality then don't learn sword fighting from the first day. Yan Heng then asks He Zi Sheng why did he fight with Chuan Xi Qun Gui? Zi Sheng replies that they deserve to die and since that is the case, let him test his skills against them. Yan Heng then asks Zi Sheng if he at that time is afraid of death? Zi Sheng did not reply and walk away as if Yan Heng's question is not worth replying. Back to the present. Yan Heng remembers Shou Ren telling him that people who walks the path of righteous path, dies without any worries. Yan Heng stops shaking. Wave Dragon King is surprised. So far all those who fought against him, once they feel afraid they will sink deeper into their fear . Yan Heng is the 1st one who manages to get back up. Yan Heng feels that there is a burning hot energy in his body and that his eyes and ears become more sensitive and alert. He isn't thinking about life and death but only to defeat his enemy. This isn't the first time Yan Heng has gotten into such condition : he did in when he was in Ma Pai Gang headquarters and when he was fighting against Liao Lian Zhou in the brothel. What he doesnt know is that every time he does this his mental and physical capabilities have a big improvement. Wave Dragon King can feel Yan Heng changes and smiles. He loves this kind of staunch enemy , because it will be very fun later on when he defeats his enemy and rips all hopes from his enemy . They continues fighting. Wave Dragon King is surprised by Yan Heng's reaction and sword speed. He increases his attack speed and continue using Wudang's Line sword technique to attack. This time round Yan Heng not only manages to block but also counter attack. Yan Heng keeps using different Qing Cheng sword techniques 1 after another. Although they are different sword techniques , Yan Heng uses them seamlessly one after another. Yan Heng seems to realize something but in that moment is unable to figure it out. Wave Dragon King feels that its insult to himself for exchanging more than 10 strikes against Yan Heng. Wave Dragon King uses Wudang Force Sword Technique to pin Yan Heng against a wall. That's when Yan Heng realizes why he was able to use his different Qing Cheng sword techniques seamlessly; all of Qing Cheng Sect's sword techniques originally is 1 sword technique, the Female & Male, Dragon & Tiger Sword technique. Yan Heng starts believing in himself. Yan Heng uses Jie Xiang- Fire Burning Body (egscans translate it as Burning Fire. The attack that Song De Hai used against Xi Zhao Ping on Qing Cheng Mt, though this time Yan Heng is using it with a sword) to force Wave Dragon King's sword away from him. After fighting a while, Wave Dragon King uses Tai Ji Sword technique to knock Hu Pi out of Yan Heng's hand. Yan Heng tries to imitate He Zi Sheng's Shaking Scales to counter Tai Ji Sword technique but fails. Wave Dragon King smiles and stop using Tai Ji Sword Technique. Wave Dragon King lands 6 hits on Yan Heng causing Yan Heng to lose blood. Lian Fei Hong arrives in time and throws 3 flying blades , 1 after another at Wave Dragon King forcing him to take a few steps back.
Hall Of Mastery #25 : About Female & Male, Dragon & Tiger Sword technique. All of Qing Cheng Sect sword techniques are derived from Female & Male, Dragon & Tiger Sword technique. Qing Cheng Sect has 6 basic sword techniques:
•Wind Fire Sword : Teaches the fundamentals of using swords, footsteps, movements ,speed. 70 % are attack moves.
•Shuang/Long Wo Sword : Teaches method of releasing power.
•Water Cloud Sword : Defensive technique. It is a 'soft technique' compared to Wind Fire Sword's 'hard technique'
•Fu Xiang Sword ( Subduing sword): Request practitioners to concentrate on every sword strike. At this time practitioners start to grasp Jie Xiang's method.
•Yuan Suo Sword : Fundamentals of using 2 swords.
•Shang Mi Sword: Sword technique that uses short swords. Able to use fists as replacement should a sword is not available. It is the fundamentals of using Hu Pi.
After all these sword techniques are high level techniques that are taught to Dao Chuan Disiciples:
•Xun Zhao Sword
•Ba Yin Sword
•Jia Bi Dual Sword
Basically it mixes all the earlier 6 sword techniques together. Additionally it teaches the methods of reacting to different combat situations ; like dealing with different kind of weapons, night time battles etc. Even if someone is proficient in all of the sword techniques above, it doesn't mean that person would know everything about About Female & Male, Dragon & Tiger Sword technique. There is also a set of sword secrets that is of esoteric nature.
-Fei Hong Vs Wave Dragon King. Fei Hong feels that base on Wave Dragon King's martial arts, he is among the top 5 of the strongest people Fei Hong has ever fought. Wave Dragon King is getting excited ; ever since leaving Wudang Sect, this is the first time in 5 years that he has meet such strong enemies. Wave Dragon King lures Fei Hong into a house. Yan Heng is following them from behind. Fei Hong draws out his metal fan with his empty hand. ( earlier on Fei Hong uses Ri Lun Blade and Tong Bi Sword technique against Wave Dragon King, before using Flying Method to throw his blade at Wave Dragon King) He finds Wave Dragon King among a group of people, he is holding onto a mid aged lady. To take precautions, Shou Ren had the city's citizens located together in this house and now all of them are Wave Dragon King's hostages. Fei Hong tells Wave Dragon King that this place isn't fun says that they should go out and fight till their hearts content. But Wave Dragon King replies saying that this place is fun. He then kills the woman. The woman's scream is the same scream that Ling Lan heard. He then throws the corpse at Fei Hong. Wave Dragon King was once part of Wudang Sect's Shou She Division's Brown Snake.
- 'Man Dog' keeps on biting on to Jing Lie's cloth ,not letting go. Jing Lie slices off part of his clothes and keeps on running. The alarm is sound (via a wooden whistle).Jing Lie manages to bluff 10 of Wave Dragon King's men by saying that the enemy is over at another side. But 1 of them questions Jing Lie identity. Knowing that he has been busted, he kills that guy and keeps on running. Jing Lie intents on getting past the temple's gate ; past the gate is the forest and it will hard for the enemy to track him there. Mei Xin Shu shouts for the gate to be blocked. Alot of Wave Dragon King's men gather in front of the gate. 20+ of them prepares to attack Jing Lie. But knowing that he cannot go pass this way, he heads towards the right. Mei Xin Shu & 50 of his men arrive at the gate and start to surround Jing Lie. Many of Wave Dragon King's men know how powerful Jing Lie is and thus they intent to use long weapons to attack him. Jing Lie uses his blade to block some of the attacks, but knowing that he cannot block all of them he retreats and heads towards the cliffs. There are about 100 Wave Dragon King's men and they are split into 3 group and manage to surround Jing Lie. They launch 2 waves of attack at Jing Lie and Jing Lie manages to kill some of them, though at the same time he is injured. Mei Xin Shu is spinning his chain with his right hand. Jing Lie asks Xin Shu if he is from Wudang Sect's Bing Ya Division? Xin Shu smiles a little and then throws the chain at Jing Lie. The speed at which the chain is thrown is faster than that of a crossbow. Jing Lie rolls to 1 side and dodge it. Xin Shu immediately pulls back the chain and throws the other end of the chain with his left hand at Jing Lie. But this time instead of throwing it straight, the chain travels in a vertical motion like a whip slashing at Jing Lie's forehead. This time round, Jing Lie couldn't dodge it and could only use his blade to block the attack. The chain wraps itself against the blade. Jing Lie attempts to pull and retrieves his blade but Xin Shu being very familiar with this chain robbing technique has already adopted the horse stance and is using both of his arms to pull. Using only 1 arm, Jing Lie is no match for Xin Shu's strength. As a result he got pulled into taking 1 big step. If this were a normal 1 Vs 1 fight, Jing Lie shouldn't be wrestling with Xin Shu but rather take advantage of this opportunity to gain distance on Xin Shu so as to reduce the chain's long range advantage. But right now there are many Wave Dragon King's men, should JIng Lie move forward he would thrust himself into their attacks. Some of the Wave Dragon King's men take this opportunity to attack Jing Lie. Knowing that he cannot get past this group of enemies , Jing Lie abandons his blade . Due to the force at which the chain is being pulled, the blade hits 1 of Wave Dragon King's men. Jing Lie retreats to the edge of the cliff. Xin Shu reveals an expression full of pity; there are few such opponents back on Mt Wudang and Xin Shi didn't get to have a 1 on 1 duel with Jing Lie. Jing Lie jumps down. Xin Shu asks for light, one of his men gets a stick on fire and throws it down the cliff. Jing Lie is hanging on to his chain ( which is stuck on the wall). As the fire past Jing Lie, he can no longer be seen. But by then Xin Shu has already remembered his position. He lets go of the chain and prepares to throw the blade that is attached to his chain. During this time , Jing Lie throws his blade up. Xin Shu dodges it and it hits one of his man beside him. Xin Shu then throws the blade but it did not hit Jing Lie. The rest of the Wave Dragon King's men then fire their sleeve arrows down the cliff. When more fire is gathered, it is revealed that there is no one hanging on the chain.
-Ling Lan Vs Yao Hua. Ling Lan manages to stop Yao Hua's attack on her left waist with 1 of her hand. Attack manages to hit Ling Lan's waist but at the crucial moment, she uses her hand to stop Yao Hua's attack. She has been using the big blade of hers for so many years, thus strengthening her hands' grip. And in such a critical situation it manages to save her life. Using her other hand, she used the Nodachi's grip to whack Yao Hua's head. Ling Lan is surprised that Yao Hua is in such pain ; she whacked Yao Hua as a reflex and she did not even used much strength. Yao Hua keeps on taking many steps back, many images are appearing in her mind ; Ling Lan seems to become more then 10 feet tall, her nodachi seems to be alight with blue flames etc. Yao Hua is having such a reaction because she went straight into battle after eating Zhao Ling Dan. As a result of the vigorous movements the drugs are moving at a faster rate , which is twice as intense compared to her normal dosage. Zhao Ling Dan increases the body senses and reaction speed which is advantageous in fights , but at the same time it makes the brain more sensitive. A sudden assault to the brain causes excessive stimulation to the brain causing Yao Hua to have hallucinations. Years ago when Wudang Sect destroyed Wu Yi Cult, they obtained many strange drugs like Zhao Ling Dan. Many of the drugs can enhance the human body functions and is very good for fighting in battle . But Wudang Sect abandoned most of them after some experiments. 1 of the reasons is that many such unpredictable weaknesses arise. Yao Hua sinks deeper in a frantic state, even more then those Wave Dragon King's men who are hypnotized. Occasionally she absent mindedly brandishes her blades, laughs loudly and saliva flows down her mouth . This would be a good time to kill her, but Ling Lan has lost quite a lot of blood and she is unsure if she should attack Yao Hua during this period of time. Yao Hua runs away. Ling Lan walks towards the origin of the woman's scream that she heard earlier. Every time she tries to run , she is in a lot of pain and couldn't gather the energy to do so.
- Back to Wave Dragon King Vs Lian Fei Hong. Wave Dragon King uses only 1 hand to throw the lady's corpse at Fei Hong. If the incoming corpse was other non living object, Fei Hong would have smash or dodge it and let the object smash into the wall. But Fei Hong is unwilling to do so, and so he 'catches' the corpse into his bosom. Wave Dragon King anticipated this and strikes at Fei Hong's waist. However Fei Hong is a man with many experience, he knew Wave Dragon King's intention when he threw the corpse. Fei Hong has always been a man who do not bother about trifles , he hasn't reach the stage where he would rather take the hit then to save a dead body. And so he uses the corpse's waist to take the incoming hit while attacking Wave Dragon King's throat with his sword. Wave Dragon King never wanted to fight Fei Hong in close combat, after seeing that his strike wouldnt hit Fei Hong he pulls back his blade and returns to his place among his hostages. Wave Dragon King slashes a nearby boy's neck, and then strikes Fei Hong's eyes. Fei Hong dodges and thinks that if he doesn't stop Wave Dragon King in time , it wouldn't be long before everyone else in the rooms die. Fei Hong attacks Wave Dragon King's chest but he dodges it. If it wasn't for Wave Dragon King using the hostages as meat shields, Fei Hong could have press on with his attacks. Unlike Fei Hong who is afraid of hurting the hostages, Wave Dragon King doesn't care about all of these and continues attacking. In such a situation, Fei Hong is unable to fully utilize his martial arts because his most specialized techniques , Flying Method and Hua Fa (refer to Hall of Mastery #23 if you forget what they are) can only be used in a wider area. They continue fighting. Wave Dragon King keeps on attacking the innocent citizens, Fei Hong isn't absolutely confident that he can defeat Wave Dragon King so he tries to push away the people who are in Wave Dragon King's attacks. Fei Hong abandons his sword and uses ' Hua Zhan Chui ' technique on Wave Dragon King. Wave Dragon King stabs through a boy and attacks Fei Hong's chest. Fei Hong manages to use his metal gloves to raise the incoming sword attack which misses Fei Hong vital parts but it still hits the muscle above Fei Hong's collarbone. Wave Dragon King could have cause more damage to Fei Hong had Yan Heng not interfered in time. Wave Dragon King blocks the attack and kicks a boy at Yan Heng. Yan Heng stops his attack and grabs on to the boy. Wave Dragon King then attacks Yan Heng but Fei Hong assists Yan Heng by attacking Wave Dragon King's back of the knee using his metal fan. Previously Wave Dragon King's attack on Yan Heng is actually a feint.He is anticipating Fei Hong to come forward ( he knows that between Yan Heng and Fei Hong, Fei Hong is the 1 that is more troublesome to deal with)and uses Wudang Form Sword Technique's Zhui Xing Jie Mai ( Chasing to cut arteries). However in just a moment after the sword barely touches Fei Hong's wrist's arteries , he manages to turn his wrist away. As a result the sword did not hit the vital points but the sword still manages to cause a deep wound in his right forearm causing blood to shoot out. Just before he loses control of his right arm, he manages to throw the metal fan using Flying Method. Wave Dragon King stops his pace and moves away. But the metal fan stills manages to cause a shallow wound to his right leg. This is the first time he is bleeding tonight, and is also the first time he is bleeding after leaving Wudang Mt 5 years ago to become Wave Dragon King. Yan Heng attacks from the back but Wave Dragon King blocks it , in his men's eyes he is like a god and god cannot bleeds. Wave Dragon King looks so agitated that his expression looks quite exaggerated. He looks at the 2 people who have injuries all over their bodies and thinks that he hasn't fought against people with such determination for a very long time. Even in normal fighting conditions , he wouldn't necessarily lose against these 2 people , not to mention now that he has got this house full of hostage, he is in a situation where he wouldn't lose . And now a thought crosses his mind ,could it be that tonight he is unlucky? He believes firmly in Wu Yi Cult. Though he is confident that the gods favor him, but now that he has met with many unexpected resistance today , he can't help but to doubt his own fortune and starts chanting and kills 1 of the citizens as a sacrifice to the gods. Yan Heng and Fei Hong attacks Wave Dragon King , Fei Hong tells the citizens to leave when they have the chance. Wave Dragon King uses 'Wudang Form Sword Technique' to forced their swords away. Fei Hong uses Hua Fa to attack and shouts for Yan Heng to use Qiong Cang Po. ( Yan Heng remembers how He Zi Sheng uses that attack) Wave Dragon King feels an unexpected aura and it's the 1st time he feels that his life is being threatened. He ignores Fei Hong and engages Yan Heng. If Wave Dragon King was Ye Chen Yuan , he would have used Tai Ji Sword Technique's Yin Jin Luo Kong to intercept the attack just like Chen Yuan did when he was dealing with He Zi Sheng. But Wave Dragon King did not use Tai Ji Sword Technique. Back when he still part of Wudang Sect, even though he already had the qualifications of wearing the Tai Ji symbol on his clothes, in actual fact he has only been practicing Tai Ji for only a year. And against such a ferocious attack, he is not confident in his own Tai Ji . In the end he chooses to use 'Wudang Force Sword Technique' that he is more confident in using. From the start of the battle till now, his strength has always been above Yan Heng's , but he underestimates the energy generated by Yan Heng's determination. Due to the force of the attack, the web between the thumb and forefinger of Wave Dragon King's hand bleeds. He is surprised by the force of the attack and tries to use his footwork to relieve the strength of the attack. But the attack breaks his balance causing him to kneel on the floor. Fei Hong tries to use this opportunity to attack but having used up too much energy his attack is too slow. Now that Yan Heng is using up his strength , all Wave Dragon has to do is to endure and he can regain his balance. But Tong Qing arrives and attack. Wave Dragon King has no time to distinguish how strong Tong Qing is and decides to abandon fighting against Yan Heng and rolls to the side . But Tong Qing manages to strike his head scarf and at the same time drawing blood . Having being injured twice tonight, he is unable to clearly see the situation and thus escapes out of the building. Outside the building stands Wang Shou Ren and his 6 pupils holding sword. As Wave Dragon King does not know who they are , he is surprised that there are still so many fighters. The 7 of them did not un sheathe their sword. Wave Dragon King is thinking about Yan Heng; that in just a short amount of time is able repeatedly unleash strength that he miscalculated. He then spend his thoughts on the 7 newcomers and if they had the same kind of sword technique as Yan Heng... He is thinking that even Yao Hua who is out to do such a small thing is not back yet. He wonders if the gods do not protect him? He says that he will be back and when he comes back he will slaughter everyone in Lu Ling to worship the gods. And he leaves. The plan of having the 7 of them stand there and not move comes from Shou Ren, he remembers Jing Lie saying that a martial arts expert is able to deduce how powerful one is by looking at one's posture so Shou Ren suggest that the 7 of them do not move during the 'showdown'. Ling Lan meets up with them. Fei Hong is revealed to be 62 years old.
-E Er Han, Han Si Dao and some of Wave Dragon King's men are at a village gathering the villagers while preparing to kill them so as to complete the task given by Wave Dragon King. Yuan Xing then arrives on a carriage pulled by 4 bandits. The bandits are very scared after seeing the Wave Dragon King's men. Si Dao loves killing monks. Si Dao then attacks Yuan Xing thinking that Yuan Xing will use his staff to block the attack . Si Dao intends to use the same strategy that he used on Yan Heng. But Yuan Xing uses his fists which is fitted with armor to break the sword and uses Shaolin's 5 Form Fist Technique's Dan Long Chu Hai ( Single Dragon Goes Out To The Sea) and whacks Si Dao's face. Si Dao tries to stand but can't, blood is flowing profusely down his nose. Yuan Xing says that they must be those Wudang Disciples that he has heard about. Yuan Xing and Er Han prepares to fight.
- Back to Lu Ling. Jiu Niu has just recently returned to Lu Ling with the previously captive women. Even though Yan Heng has more bandages on him then Fei Hong , his wounds are more shallow compared to Fei Hong's. Shou Ren looks at the injured and feels that he too should shoulder the burden of protecting Lu Ling. Yan Heng feels that after yesterday's fight he has figured something out. He feels that his sword cannot be filled with only vengeance, vengeance is now half of it with the other half being filled with the heavy responsibility of reviving Qing Cheng Sect. And that having such strong powers he should be thinking on how to use it for the world. And he believes that is the true Qing Cheng way of sword. Shou Ren wants to go out of Lu Ling to do something and wonders if Yan Heng could follow him. Yan Heng follows him, Yan Heng asks Shou Ren where are they going and what are they doing? Shou Ren replies that they are going to borrow army.
The end.
Important characters that appeared in this volume:
•Jing Lie
•Ling Lan- The japanese lady who wields a nodachi
•Yan Heng - From Qing Cheng Sect
•Fei Hong - Ex Kong Tong Sect Leader. Age: 62.
•Tong Qing - Ming Jiang Gang's Leader's Daugther
•Shou Ren - Lu Ling's ex- magistrate.
•Wave Dragon King
•Mei Xin Shu - Wave Dragon King's Shi Di
•Yao Hua - Female Bandit
•Er Han- Wave Dragon King's lackey
•Si Dao - Wave Dragon King's lackey
