Jinlun Fawang dared to release his weapon because he thought that his enemies had no way to receive the wheel; if the opponent used their weapon to strike out against the wheel, even if it was a heavy whip or saber, once it meets the wheel the weapon will be knocked from the opponent’s hand. He could not have predicted that Yang Guo had the ability to redirect the wheel! Jinlun Fawang was furious, he caught the wheel and secretly used his spin technique and sent the wheel flying out again. This time his internal energy was more pressing, the wheel made no sounds because the iron wheel was spinning too fast and the spheres in the wheel could not collide with each other. When Yang Guo struck the wheel for the first time, he used the techniques of the “Nine Yin Manual” unwittingly, this time when he stretched out his sword to strike the wheel; a ‘dang’ noise was heard as the sword shook out of his hands. Jinlun Fawang immediately used “The Falling Obelisk Hand”, heavily smashing towards him. Yang Guo wasn’t completely familiar with the techniques of the “Nine Yin Manual”; this time the force he put behind his strike was incorrect. When Xiao Longnu saw Yang Guo was in danger, she twisted her trim waist and urgently thrust her sword forward. The force of this stance had an assured lethalness, the appearance attractive and extremely graceful; she was actually using the martial arts of the final stage of the “Jade Heart Manual”. Huang Rong and her daughter watched with joy and both called out; “Wonderful!” Jinlun Fawang took back his palm and leapt away, he used his wheel to fend off the sword. Yang Guo took this opportunity to recover his sword. Yang Guo really had escaped from the death’s clutches just now, but when one is at death’s door they are especially alert. He suddenly had a thought, “When Gu Gu and I both use the “Jade Maiden Swordplay”, it was difficult for us to defend against him. But when I used the “Quanzhen Swordplay” and Gu Gu the “Jade Maiden Swordplay” we actually managed to turn danger into safety. Could it be that the final stage of the “Jade Heart Manual” is used this way?” He immediately called out, “Gu Gu, “The Traces of Waves at Heaven’s Cliffs”!” As he said this he slanted his sword and thrust forward. Xiao Longnu didn’t give it much thought and followed his instructions and used the “The Traces of Waves at Heaven’s Cliffs” as stated in the manual, she waved her sword and chopped forward. The names of the stances are the same but they had a difference, one of them was a lethal sword stance from the “Quanzhen Swordplay”, the other a dangerous stance from the “Jade Maiden Swordplay”. When the two were used in unison, the power of it immediately increased to a frightening level. Jinlun Fawang had no way to block both of the swords so he quickly moved back; two ‘chi’ sounds were heard as the swords thrust at his body. Luckily, he dodged appropriately, the two sword tips brushed past him and just made some holes in his clothes. He broke out in a cold sweat from the shock. Jinlun Fawang urgently moved back another two steps to avoid the tip of the swords. He then heard Yang Guo call out, “‘Flowers under the Moon’!” The attack came downwards, like an icy wheel hanging in the air; a light glimmering crossed the floor. Xiao Longnu’s sword quivered, like a flower fluttering in the wind, cutting across to and fro, dazzling Jinlun Fawang’s eyes, he didn’t know where the attacks were coming from, he could only leap back to avoid it. Yang Guo called out, “‘Drinking Wine Purely’!” The sword handle was raised, the sword tip aimed downwards, like raising a wine jug and pouring the wine. Xiao Longnu’s sword was the opposite, the tip aiming upwards towards her cherry lips, like raising a cup of wine and drinking it. Jinlun Fawang saw that the sword stances of the two were becoming stranger and stranger, but they were matching each other; all the weaknesses of one were covered by the strengths of the other, and the lethal aspects of the stances were increasing without end. He was becoming more and more frightened, thinking, “The world is a large place, indeed there are many able people; how could I ever dream of such unimaginable swordplay in Tibet? Ai! I’m just a frog at the bottom of the well; I have seen little of the world’s heroes.” He was disheartened and looked even more like a defeated man. Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu had studied this final level of swordplay many times without reward, now they were in extreme danger, the two of them concerned for each other. Both put the other’s life above theirs as they rescued their lover first, fulfilling the main aim of this swordplay. Every stance of this swordplay displays actions done by two, perhaps “Stroking the Zither and Playing the Flute”, or maybe “Sweeping Snow and Preparing Tea”, or perhaps “Playing Chess under the Pine” or “Exchange of the Cranes by the Pond”, all of them show a male and female together. The gracefulness and exquisiteness of the stances really was indescribable. Lin Chaoying, lost in the game of love, spent the rest of her life in the tomb. She was versed in all the martial arts and literature, music and other arts; in the end she incorporated all the things she had learned in her life into this set of martial arts. When she was developing this set of martial arts, she was trying to comfort herself; how would she know that tens of years later, a pair of lovers would use this set of martial arts to fight off a strong enemy. This was something that she could never have predicted. At first Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu did not completely understand the swordplay’s ingenuity but eventually as they kept on using it, their proficiency in the swordplay kept on getting better. If the male and female who used this set of sword plays weren’t lovers, there would be many aspects of the swordplay they would not be able to comprehend. The two would not have a feeling of being linked with each other. If it were friends who were teaming up they would be too polite, if it were a senior and junior it wouldn’t be suitable to rely on each other. However, if it were a husband and wife, they would be able to use some of the Masterly aspects of this swordplay, but without the feelings of being drowned in love, the shyness, the feeling of being close yet far, the pain of gains and losses, they would be a level lower. Now Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu were deeply in love but they had yet to marry, their hearts were concerned about the hardships of the future, they were joyous and sad, sweet and bitter, this feeling of gradually being linked with each other was what Lin Chaoying had intended to create when she developed the “Pure Heart of the Jade Maiden Sword”. Huang Rong watched from the side and she saw Xiao Longnu’s cheeks going red, looking shy; Yang Guo would glance over at her all the time, returning her affection. Though they were fighting a strong enemy, they displayed their delights and joys, and the appearance of being deeply in love. Huang Rong couldn’t stop from being startled, but at the same time she was infected by the two and she began to remember feelings and events when she fell in love with Guo Jing. The restaurant was filled with the noise of a life and death battle, but in the midst of this, unexpectedly, there were the boundless feelings of love showing. Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu were now in tune with each other, it was even harder for Jinlun Fawang to defend. He regretted the fact that he had smashed up the chairs and tables earlier on, otherwise, with the table and chairs as obstructions, the enemies’ attacks would not be as lethal and swift. He saw that if he continued, he would definitely lose his life. He retreated down the stairs, step by step. Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu attacked from above and they saw that they were about to drive him away. Huang Rong called out, “Rid the evil completely, Guo’er, don’t let him go.” She saw that the reason why Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu could beat Jinlun Fawang was because of this ingenious swordplay. It was somewhat fortunate that they had come up with this. If they spared Jinlun Fawang today and let a person with such abilities in martial arts go back and study for a way to defeat this swordplay, when the need to take his life arises again in the future, the task would be extremely difficult. Yang Guo agreed and launched a fatal attack, “Cultivating the Chrysanthemum in the Little Garden”, “Speaking at Night at the Western Window”, “The Couplet in the Willow’s Shade”, “Bamboo Falling into the Pond”, when these stances came out, Jinlun Fawang nearly wasn’t able to evade these attacks let alone trying to counterattack. Yang Guo had originally listened to Huang Rong’s instructions to take his life, but what he didn’t know was that when Lin Chaoying developed this particular swordplay, she was doing this to comfort herself, there was no intention to wound or kill the enemy especially with a heart filled with love. Though this swordplay was powerful, it did not aim to take the opponent’s life. Though Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu managed to force Jinlun Fawang to scramble around in a pathetic manner, taking his life was not an easy task. Jinlun Fawang did not know about the background of this swordplay, he just saw that the opponent’s extraordinary stances folded in on each other, he knew that the enemy had yet to unleash their most powerful move. If the two attack, his old life would be lost. In this danger, a plan came into his mind; he used strength in his legs and snapped a stair step. He knew that with the obstruction of the hole in the stairs between him and the two, they would have no way to advance. By the time that a third step was snapped, the long swords could not reach his body. Jinlun Fawang raised his iron wheel and said, “Today, I have seen the martial arts of the central plains, I am completely in awe. What is the name of your swordplay?” Yang Guo said seriously, “The martial arts of the central plains are led by the “Dog Beating Stick Technique” and the “Donkey Piercing Sword”, our swordplay is the “Donkey Piercing Sword”.” Jinlun Fawang was startled and said, ““Donkey Piercing Sword”?” Yang Guo said, “Yep, a swordplay that pierces bald donkeys.” Jinlun Fawang then knew that Yang Guo was insulting him, he was furious and shouted, “Rude punk, you’ll get to know the power of Jinlun Fawang.” The iron wheel rang out with ‘lang lang’ noises as he left taking large steps. All they saw was his body floating away quickly like a flash, disappearing in the shadows by the corner. Yang Guo knew it would be difficult to catch up; he turned around and saw Da’erba stand up holding up Huo Dou, his face pale. He said, “Senior apprentice brother, are you going to kill me?” Yang Guo saw that the two looked pitiful; he said to Huang Rong, “Auntie Guo, should we let them go?” Huang Rong nodded. Yang Guo saw that Huo Dou looked like he was in unbearable distress; he took out a bottle of Jade Bee honey from his pockets and pointed to Huo Dou. He took medicine to Da’erba and gave the jar to him. Da’erba was delighted and he chatted with Huo Dou for a while. Huo Dou took out a packet of medicine and gave it to Yang Guo, he said, “The Senior who used the pen fell under my poison nails; this is the antidote.” Da’erba saluted Yang Guo and said, “Thank you Senior apprentice brother.” Yang Guo copied his actions and smiled as he imitated his Tibetan, “Thank you senior apprentice brother.” Da’erba was surprised, “Why did Senior apprentice brother call me Senior apprentice brother?” A thought went through his mind and then he understood, “He’s reincarnated as another person and is allowing me to be the senior apprentice brother; he doesn’t want to fight for this position with me.” He was even more touched and bowed deeply, he stretched out his arms and picked up Huo Dou and then left with the rest of the Mongolian warriors. Yang Guo gave the antidote to Huang Rong and made a salute, he said, “Auntie Guo, nephew will leave now. Auntie and Uncle Guo take care.” He felt sad as he thought about how this would be the last time he would see her. Huang Rong asked, “Where are you going?” Yang Guo said, “Gu Gu and I are going to live in seclusion in a place where there will be no people, never leaving again to avoid bringing shame to your and Uncle Guo’s name.” Huang Rong thought, “Today he has risked his life saving me and Fu’er, this is not a small deed; now I’m watching him going down this dark path, how can I not save him?” So she said, “There’s no need to rush, we’re all tired; we’ll rent some rooms and rest for the night, we could part tomorrow.” Yang Guo saw that she was earnest and sincere, it would be inappropriate to reject her offer so he agreed. Huang Rong took out some money and gave it to the restaurant owner for the damages done, and then they went to an inn to rest. That night after supper, Huang Rong got rid of Guo Fu by telling her to go and talk with the Wu brothers; she called Xiao Longnu into her room and said, “Sister, I have something to give to you.” Xiao Longnu said, “What?” Huang Rong pulled her in front of herself and took out a comb and brushed her hair, seeing her black silk hair hanging down across her shoulders, soft and shiny, extremely cute. She carefully rolled up her hair and removed a golden hair clasp from her own head and said, “Sister, I’m giving you this to wear.” The gold hair clasp was exquisitely produced; the body of it resembled the stem of a rose, the stem and flower looped around; the place where it connected formed an unfolding rose. Huang Yaoshi collected countless treasures, out of them she had picked out this golden hair clasp of masterly artisanship. Xiao Longnu had never worn any type of jewelry, to tie her hair she used a pine hairpin; though she saw the hair clasp was striking, she did not think anything of it, she just thanked her casually. Huang Rong fitted the hair clasp on her hair and then immediately chatted with her in a leisurely manner. After talking to her for a while, she found that Xiao Longnu was very innocent and na?ve, she didn’t know a thing about the ways of the world. Under the candlelight she saw her elegant and beautiful face, an extraordinary beauty; if she and Yang Guo weren’t Master and disciple, the two really were a great match. She asked, “Sister, you really love Guo’er, don’t you?” Xiao Longnu beamed and said, “Yes, why won’t you people allow him to be with me?” Huang Rong was startled, she remembered the times when she was young, her father wouldn’t allow her to marry Guo Jing, the Jiang Nan Seven Freaks called her a ‘little witch’, only after many trials and tribulations did she and Guo Jing finally marry. She saw that Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu really loved each other; could she make herself stop them? But the fact is that they are a Master and disciple, if they become lovers it would be greatly unethical, what face would they have left with the heroes of the world? She gave a sigh and said, “Sister, there are many things that you don’t understand about the world. If you and Guo’er become husband and wife, others will look down on you for a generation.” Xiao Longnu gave a slight smile and said, “What’s so important about others looking down on me?” Huang Rong was startled again, she felt that her words had the same attitude as that of she and her father, a real feeling of ‘I do whatever I want’; not caring about the views of the world. When she thought about this, she nodded, such a character would not confine herself to the views of the world, but she then thought about the deep love and affection of her husband for Yang Guo. It wouldn’t matter whether Yang Guo was going to become her son in law or not, she just hoped that his character and morals would be perfect, so she said, “What about Guo’er? Others will look down on him as well.” Xiao Longnu said, “He and I will live in a place where no one can see us for rest of our lives, happy for ever, why should we care about others?” Huang Rong asked, “What place where no one can see you?” Xiao Longnu said, “It is a large ancient tomb, I have always lived there.” Huang Rong was stunned and said, “Could it be that you would live in there forever and never come out?” Xiao Longnu was very happy, she stood up and paced back and forth across the room and then said, “Yes, why go outside? The people outside are so bad.” Huang Rong said, “Guo’er has always roamed about since he was young, won’t he be bored staying in an ancient tomb forever?” Xiao Longnu smiled and said, “With me by his side, why would he get bored?” Huang Rong sighed and said, “At first of course he won’t be bored. But after a few years he would start to remember the beautiful outside world, if he can’t come out when he gets older, he would be greatly troubled.” Xiao Longnu was originally very happy and delighted; when she heard these words her heart sank and said, “I’m going to ask Guo’er, I don’t want to speak with you anymore.” She left the room. Huang Rong saw that her beautiful face suddenly showed signs of being disturbed, her words just now had really hurt the heart of this innocent and na?ve girl. She immediately felt rather regretful but she had another thought, she had seen many things but this pair of young lovers were deeply in love, even if these words aren’t nice to the ear, it’s the heart that matters. She thought, “What would Guo’er say?” So she quietly went over to Yang Guo’s window to listen to their conversation. She heard Xiao Longnu ask, “Guo’er, would you be troubled if your spent the rest of your life with me? Would you get tired of it?” Yang Guo said, “Why are you asking me again? You know that there isn’t anything more I want in this world. We’ll be together until we’re old, our hair white and our teeth falling out, we would still love each other as we do now, not ever parting.” His words were said earnestly and with real sincerity. When Xiao Longnu heard this, her heart was moved, she couldn’t stop herself from being overwhelmed, after a while she said, “Yes, my feelings are the same.” She took out a rope from her bag and hung it across the room, she said, “Go to bed!” Yang Guo said, “Auntie Guo said, tonight you should go and sleep in the same room as she and her daughter, I with the Wu brothers in another room.” Xiao Longnu said, “No! Why does she want two boys to be with you? I want to be with you and sleep with you.” She waved her hand out and extinguished the oil lamp. When Huang Rong heard these words outside, she was extremely startled, “Those two really are doing such things! Then the words of that old Taoist Zhao Zhijing weren’t a lie!” When she thought about the two of them sleeping together on the same bed, she felt that it would be inappropriate to eavesdrop on them and was about to leave when she suddenly saw a white flash going across the room. Someone was lying in midair, after moving for a bit, they stopped. Huang Rong was surprised and used the moonlight in the room to see what was going on. She saw Xiao Longnu lying on a rope in midair while Yang Guo slept on the bed. Though the two slept in the same room, they kept their respect. Huang Rong stood in the courtyard, she felt that the actions of these two were greatly different to others, it really was difficult to discuss their rights and wrongs. She stood there for a while and was about to enter her room to rest when she heard footsteps, Guo Fu and the Wu brothers had returned. Huang Rong said, “Dun’er, Xiu’er, you brothers go and get another room to rest in, don’t stay with brother Yang.” The Wu brothers agreed. Guo Fu asked, “Mother, why?” Huang Rong said, “It’s none of your business.” Wu Xiuwen laughed and said, “I know why. Those two are a Master and disciple yet they aren’t; that dirty couple is sleeping in the same room.” Huang Rong reprimanded him; “Xiu’er, what dirty things are you saying?” Wu Dunru said, “Master wife, you are too kind, why should you care about those sorts of people? I won’t speak to him.” Guo Fu said, “Those two saved us; that was a great deed.” Wu Xiuwen said, “Huh, I rather die by the hands of Jinlun Fawang than suffer a favour from animals.” Huang Rong didn’t look happy, she said, “Stop talking, go and rest.” Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu heard all this. Yang Guo had never gotten on with the Wu brothers ever since they were kids; he just snickered and didn’t take it to heart. But Xiao Longnu was carefully thinking, “Why is it that if Guo’er and I are together, he becomes an animal and us a dirty couple?” She couldn’t grasp this and in the middle of the night she woke Yang Guo up and asked, “Guo’er, there is one thing that you must answer truthfully. After living with me in the ancient tomb for a few years, would you start to think about the outside world?” Yang Guo was startled and didn’t reply for a while. Xiao Longnu continued to ask, “If you don’t go out, would you become troubled? Though your love for me will never change, would you get bored living in the tomb for such a long time?” Yang Guo felt that it was difficult to answer these questions, as he thought about it, living with Xiao Longnu forever really would be better than living as a god; but in a cold and dark tomb, even if he didn’t get tired of the tomb in ten or twenty years, what about in thirty years? What about forty years? Replying casually, “I would never get bored” would be easy but he has always been frank and true towards Xiao Longnu, he had never said half a lie to her. He pondered for a while and said, “Gu Gu, if we get bored and tired of living in the tomb, we’ll go out together.” Xiao Longnu gave an ‘en’ sound, not saying anymore. She thought, “Mrs. Guo’s words weren’t a lie. In the future he will get bored and will leave the tomb, and then everyone will be looking down on him, how can he live like that? Why do people look down on him if he and I get together? It looks like I’m an ominous person. I love him, I care for him; I would give my life for him. But these feelings will lead him to have an unhappy life; it looks like it would be better for him not to marry me. It must be for that reason that he refused to agree to marry me that night on Mount Zhongnan.” She kept on going over this in her mind for a long while. Yang Guo’s breathing slowed; he was in deep sleep. Xiao Longnu leapt down lightly and went to his bedside, she stared at his handsome face, her heart was in a mess, her emotions kept on turning over, she couldn’t stop tears from flowing. Yang Guo woke up the next morning and felt his shoulder and head was wet; he was slightly surprised and saw that Xiao Longnu wasn’t in the room. He sat up and saw some words carefully carved on the table with a golden needle. ‘Take care, forget about me.’ Yang Guo’s mind immediately became a confused; he stood there stunned and was at his wit’s end. He saw that the tears on the table had yet to dry, the dampness on his shoulder and head were also caused by her tears. He wasn’t thinking straight, he opened the window and leapt out, calling out, “Gu Gu, Gu Gu!” The waiter of the inn came over to serve him. Yang Guo asked him when the girl in white left and which direction she headed in. The waiter stared at him; he didn’t know how to reply. Yang Guo knew that the opportunity to find her was ever diminishing, if he can’t find her today; then there may not be a chance to see her ever again. He went to the stables and leapt onto the skinny horse. At this time, Guo Fu came out of her room and asked, “Where are you going?” Yang Guo heard but didn’t reply, he hurried to the main road and galloped north, in a short while he had gone over tens of li. He kept on calling out, “Gu Gu, Gu Gu!” on the way but where was Xiao Longnu? After a little while, he saw Jinlun Fawang and his followers on horseback heading west. They all felt shocked when they saw him riding by himself. Jinlun Fawang pulled his reigns and galloped towards him. Yang Guo had not brought a weapon with him, meeting the enemy like this was extremely dangerous but the only thing on his mind right now was Xiao Longnu, he didn’t even consider his own safety. When he saw Jinlun Fawang coming towards him, he actually turned his horse towards him and went forward to meet him, he asked, “Have you seen my Master?” Jinlun Fawang was surprised that he didn’t run away, he was even more startled when he heard him ask this, he casually replied, “No, isn’t she with you?” At first both of them didn’t really think too deeply as they asked and replied, but shortly after, both of them thought about how Yang Guo, being by himself, was not a match for Jinlun Fawang. The two of them looked each other in the eye and both knew. Yang Guo kicked his legs as Jinlun Fawang sent out a hand to grab him. But the skinny horse was exceptionally spirited; it galloped like the wind past him. Jinlun Fawang tried to catch up but Yang Guo and the horse had galloped afar, it would be difficult to catch up with him. Jinlun Fawang had a thought and reigned in his horse, “Since he and his Master has separated, what more have I got to be afraid of? If Chief Huang hasn’t gotten far… ha-ha...!” He then gathered his men and led them back. Yang Guo searched for another while and still there was no trace of Xiao Longnu within tens of li. Emotions stirred in his heart, he felt dizzy and shaky and almost fainted on the back of the horse. He thought with sadness and lamented, “Why did Gu Gu leave me again? How have I offended her again? She cried many tears before she left, she’s not angry with me.” He suddenly thought of something, “Ah, yes, it must be because of what I said about getting tired of the ancient tomb, she thought that I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life with her.” His eyes glistened as it became clear as to what he should do, “She’s returning to the tomb. I’ll just go back and be with her.” Yang Guo’s tears turned into smiles and he flipped over a few times on the horse’s back. Now, as the horse dashed and galloped, he wasn’t thinking straight and didn’t clarify which direction he was heading in. Then he settled down, he determined where north was and turned the horse around and headed for Mount Zhongnan. The more he thought about it the more he believed this was most likely as to where she would be. Most of the pain and despair had now disappeared. He opened his mouth and sang a mountain song. After midday, he arrived at a small roadside eating place. He finished eating some buns but remembered that when he left in a rush, he forgot to bring money with him. When the owner of the shop was off guard, he quickly leapt onto the horse and galloped away. He heard the insults of the owner from faraway, but what could he do to Yang Guo? He couldn’t stop himself from laughing inside. He continued traveling until ‘shen pai shi fen’ (evening), all he saw in front of him now was a dense, dark and deep forest, shouts and insults could be heard from within the forest. He was slightly alarmed and listened closely; it was the voices of Jinlun Fawang and Guo Fu. He knew something was wrong and leapt off the horse. He placed the reigns on the saddle and hid behind trees. He slowly followed the voices and after about a hundred feet or so, he saw Huang Rong and her daughter with the Wu brothers fending off Jinlun Fawang in a pile of jumbled rocks deep in the forest. He saw bloodstains on the faces and clothes of the Wu brothers, Huang Rong’s and Guo Fu’s hair was in a mess, and they looked wretched. It appeared that if it wasn’t for the fact that Jinlun Fawang wanted to keep them alive, they would have long ago died by his iron wheel. Yang Guo watched for a while and thought, “Gu Gu is not here, if I go up and help them I could lose my life for no reason. What should I do? How can I save Auntie Guo? He suddenly saw Jinlun Fawang send his wheel smashing out; Huang Rong had no way to receive this attack and retreated backwards behind the pile of rocks. Jinlun Fawang hovered around the outside of the rocks, he actually couldn’t attack her. Yang Guo was surprised, he took a closer look and saw that Guo Fu and the Wu brothers also relied on the rocks to avoid danger, in the midst of this danger all they had to do was hide behind the rocks. Da’erba and the others circled from afar, they could close in from any direction; at that time, Guo Fu and the others would hide behind another pile of disorderly rocks. Yang Guo was extremely surprised, those normal looking pile of rocks actually had such an ingenious use; it really was uncanny. It looked like Huang Rong and the others would be safe from danger but there was no way for them to leave the rock formation. Jinlun Fawang kept on attacking without stop, though he managed to injure the Wu brothers, it wasn’t life threatening, and on their side, one of the Mongolians died by Guo Fu’s sword. He saw that there was something strange with this pile of rocks formed by Huang Rong; he first had to grasp and see through the theories behind it before he could get to the four. He had always thought highly of his intelligence, it’s not too urgent at the moment since they can’t escape his clutches. Once he’s seen through this formation he’ll break into it and capture them, showing his power. So he waved out his left hand and ordered his men back, he also retreated back ten feet or so, staring at and studying the rock formation. Most formation uses variations of the ‘Wu Xing Ba Gua’ trigram; Jinlun Fawang was well versed with these types of tactics, he thought that although the formation was strange, it won’t be too far off from the theories of the five elements. He studied it for a long while, when it looked like he saw through an aspect of the formation, he pondered on it further and it then didn’t make sense. The left wing was correct but the right wing changed, when he seemingly saw through the front of the formation, it was difficult to understand the back of it. He was taken aback by this, he was startled and in awe. He excelled in everything, a real outstanding person of the world; with this difficult problem in front of him, he wanted to rely on his own intellect to solve it. Yang Guo watched as Jinlun Fawang stood there without moving, his eyebrows raised; suddenly his eyes glistened and he flashed over, breaking into the formation, grabbing Guo Fu’s arm and quickly retreated. Huang Rong and the brothers were extremely shocked with this sudden change of events. They were at their wit’s end, if they left the formation to rescue Guo Fu, they would definitely suffer under his hands. What had happened was that Guo Fu became careless when she saw the enemy frozen like that; she didn’t follow her mother’s instructions as to where to stand and was out of the formation’s protection. When Jinlun Fawang saw this opportunity he immediately went over and captured her; he then sealed a pressure point on the side of her body and placed her down on the ground. He deliberately kept her mute pressure point unsealed, letting her call out and plead, wanting her to agitate Huang Rong into exiting the formation. Guo Fu felt her body ache unbearably and she couldn’t stop herself from calling out. How could Huang Rong not know what the enemy was planning, but when she heard the calls of her daughter, her heart ached unbearably, she could only bite down on her lips and endure it. From behind a tree Yang Guo understood what was happening. He saw Huang Rong raising her stick, about to come out from the rock formation and rescue her daughter; this was extremely dangerous, he didn’t give it much thought and suddenly leapt out and grabbed Guo Fu from behind, throwing himself forward into the rock formation. Jinlun Fawang’s iron wheel flew out towards Yang Guo’s back. Yang Guo was in midair, it would be difficult to dodge this attack; he pushed Guo Fu towards Huang Rong and used the “Thousand Kilogram Fall”. His body dropped straight down and fell down solidly onto the pile of rocks, he heard the ‘qiang lang lang’ sound of the iron wheel brushing past his head, the wheel circled around and came back into Jinlun Fawang’s hand. Huang Rong hugged her daughter lovingly. She saw Yang Guo pick himself up from the rocks, his eyes were green and nose bruised, she quickly stretched out her stick and led him into the formation. Jinlun Fawang’s plan had failed and again it was due to Yang Guo, but instead of being angry he was actually pleased, he gave a chuckle and said, “Fine, coming here now saves me the trouble of finding you later on.” Yang Guo risked his life for this rescue out of righteous indignation; only after entering the formation did he see that by doing this, his life would most probably end soon. He would never have the opportunity to see Xiao Longnu ever again. He couldn’t stop himself from feeling regret. Huang Rong asked, “Where’s your Master?” Yang Guo gloomily said, “She suddenly left in the middle of the night, I was in the middle of searching for her.” Huang Rong sighed and said, “Guo’er, why did you have to risk your life again?” Yang Guo gave a bitter laugh and shook his head, he said, “Auntie Guo, I’m not too bright, once my emotions get the better of me I can’t control myself.” Huang Rong said, “Good child, you have a great heart, your father…” She stopped mid sentence. Yang Guo’s voice trembled, “Auntie Guo, my father was a bad person, wasn’t he?” Huang Rong’s head hung down and said, “You want to know about it?” She suddenly called out, “Careful, come over here!” She pulled him over two piles of rock and avoided Jinlun Fawang’s sneak attack. Yang Guo took a look at the rock formation in awe, he said, “Auntie Guo, there isn’t anyone one else in the world who has your intelligence and wisdom.” Huang Rong unsealed her daughter’s pressure point and massaged her; she gave a slight smile but didn’t reply. Guo Fu said, “What do you know? My grandfather taught my mother’s skills. My grandfather is as intelligent.” Yang Guo had seen the handwriting and articles of Huang Yaoshi before when he was on Peach Blossom Island but then he was young, he didn’t understand the intricacies within it. When Guo Fu reminded him, he nodded and drifted away, he sighed and said, “When will I be able to greet this Senior? If I do my life won’t be all in vain.” Suddenly Jinlun Fawang charged past two rock formations and attacked. Yang Guo didn’t have a weapon and quickly picked up the stick that Huang Rong had flung on the ground and dashed out to stop him, he sent out two strokes with the stick, using the “Dog Beating Stick Technique”. Jinlun Fawang saw that his stick technique was profound, he concentrated and fought with him, after a few stances, both of them suddenly tripped up on the jumbled rocks, both stumbled. Fawang was afraid that he would be ambushed and leapt out of the formation. Huang Rong led Yang Guo back and ordered Guo Fu and the Wu brothers to move the stones and change the formation. She asked Yang Guo, “Where exactly did you learn this stick technique from?” Yang Guo told her the truth about how he met Hong Qigong on Mount Hua, how the Northern Beggar dueled with Western Poison, how Hong Qigong taught him the “Dog Beating Stick Techniques”. He then told her of the passing of both Hong Qigong and Ouyang Feng. Huang Rong felt deep sorrow at this news, but then sighed and said, “You’ve come upon such extraordinary meetings; it really is rare to come across such events.” She suddenly had a thought, and said, “Guo’er, you are very clever, think of a way to escape today’s dangers.” Yang Guo looked at her, judging from her expression she had already thought of a plan, he pretended he didn’t know and said, “If you were feeling well, me and you could beat Fawang; or if we could get my Master to come here, then that would be a way as well.” Huang Rong said, “How can my health recover over such a short period of time? We don’t know where your Master has gone. I have another plan; it involves the rock formation. This formation was devised by my father, there are hundred of variations; we haven’t used even twenty percent of them yet.” Yang Guo was shocked and pleased, he sighed in awe as he thought about the knowledge that Huang Yaoshi possessed. Huang Rong said, “My Master only taught you the stances of the “Dog Beating Stick Technique”, and you’ve only heard the main points of the formulae while you hid in the tree. I’m now going to teach you all the profound and subtle variations and changes of this technique.” Yang Guo was delighted but he pretended to dismiss this, he said, “I’m afraid that won’t do, the “Dog Beating Stick Technique” is passed onto the Beggar Clan’s Chief only, it has never been passed onto an outsider.” Huang Rong rolled her eyes, she said, “What are you trying in front of me now? My Master has taught you thirty percent of this technique, you learnt another twenty percent when you eavesdropped, today I’ll teach you another twenty percent. The final thirty percent relies on your intelligence and how you grasp and understand the technique; no one can teach you this. One, no one is teaching you the whole thing, two, today’s situation is desperate, just follow the order.” Yang Guo knelt down on the ground and bowed to her, he smiled and said, “Auntie Guo, when I was young you said you were going to teach me martial arts, today you are teaching me.” Huang Rong gave a subtle smile and said, “You’ve always bitterly kept this in your heart, haven’t you?” Yang Guo said, “How would I dare?” Huang Rong then quietly imparted all the aspects of the “Dog Beating Stick Technique” to him. From outside the rock formation, Jinlun Fawang saw Yang Guo kowtowing to Huang Rong, the two of them laughed as they talked, he didn’t know what on earth they were trying now. It appeared that they were confident about the situation, and it looked like they weren’t even giving him a second thought. Though he was angry, he had always been careful and meticulous; though he knew that their martial arts could not compare with his, the two of them are extremely crafty. Why should he be careless and fall into their traps? He wanted to see through what they had in mind and then make his decision. Luckily, he slowed his attacks; without the distraction of the enemy, Huang Rong passed on everything to Yang Guo in under an hour’s time. Yang Guo’s intelligence and perception was a hundred times better than Lu Youjiao; if you asked him one thing he knew ten, if you ask him to raise one point he raised three. He had spent a great deal of effort in learning this technique and had pondered hundreds of times on the things he didn’t understand. Because of this fact, when Huang Rong advised and pointed him in the right direction, he immediately understood and grasped everything about the technique. From afar, Jinlun Fawang saw that Huang Rong looked at ease, her lips moving slightly yet Yang Guo was scratching his ear and touching his cheeks; he didn’t know what the two were conjuring up, most probably it wasn’t to his best interests, he should break up their conversation. After listening to the important aspects, Yang Guo asked ten or so difficult questions. Huang Rong explained it all to him. She said, “Good, since you can ask these questions then that means you understand a great deal. The second stage is to trap the monk in the formation.” Yang Guo was startled and said, “Capture him?” Huang Rong said, “What’s so hard about that? With you and I teamed up, we’ve got more intelligence and strength than needed. Right now, I’m going to explain the key points of this rock formation to you. You most probable won’t be able to understand it in such a short time but luckily you have a great memory, all you’ve got to do is remember thirty six different types of changes.” She then started to list them: how the green dragon appears as the white tiger, how the black forces transforms into the vermillion sparrow. The rock formation was derived from Zhuge Liang’s ‘Central Map of the Eight Formations’. Years ago, Zhuge Liang had set up a formation on the shores of the Changjiang River using stone slabs. After Dong Wu’s general Lu Xun entered the formation, it was difficult for him to escape. Now, Huang Rong had set up one of Zhuge’s methods, but because time was pressing, Huang Rong did not set up the formation completely, however only a few things were missing. Even so, the formation disturbed Jinlun Fawang, he stared at the five of them but he didn’t dare make a move. The thirty-six variations of this formation were very complicated, even with Yang Guo’s intelligence he could only remember ten or so changes. It was now evening, Jinlun Fawang slowly waited to make his move. Huang Rong said, “With these ten or so changes; it’s enough to trap him. Go out and lure him into the formation, I’ll then change it and trap him in there. Yang Guo was delighted and said, “Auntie Guo, if I visit Peach Blossom Island again, would you be willing to teach me this type of skill? Huang Rong gave a smile, and said, “If you are willing to visit the island, why wouldn’t I be willing to teach you this? You risked your life and saved Fu’er and I twice now, could I still treat you the same way as before?” When Yang Guo heard this, he was filled with an extremely relaxed and comfortable feeling throughout his chest; what does it matter whether Huang Rong teaches him or not? He felt that even if he had a hundred deaths he would not have any regrets. He raised his bamboo stick and exited the formation calling out, “Rusty old Jinlun Fawang if you’ve got guts then come over and go through three hundred stances with me!” Jinlun Fawang was worried that they had planned something in the formation to ambush him; he couldn’t have asked for more when he saw Yang Guo coming out of the formation. The iron wheel rang ‘qiang lang lang’ as he chopped out. He was afraid that Yang Guo would escape back into the formation if he started to lose; after the first two stances, he had already blocked his path back, forcing him as far away from the formation as possible. How could he know that after Yang Guo learned the important aspects of the “Dog Beating Stick Technique” his technique was superb? When he used the eight key formulae of ‘trip’, ‘chop’, ‘coil’, ‘poke’, ‘stir’, ‘seal’, ‘lead’ and ‘turn’, the variations and changes were indeed subtle and ingenious. When he made a careless attack, Yang Guo poked him in the leg, though he managed to shut his pressure point to the danger and stop injury, the pain lasted a long time. He didn’t dare be careless after he suffered that attack, he spun his wheel and concentrated on the battle; though his opponent was just a young man in his teens, he treated him as formidable enemy. He attacked with respect and defended tightly, looking upon him as a great Master. When he did this, Yang Guo immediately felt he couldn’t hold on; though the “Dog Beating Stick” was ingenious, it is difficult to perform straight after learning it. Yang Guo used the ‘seal’ formulae to block the attack of the iron wheel and then shifted his legs, suddenly going east and then surging west. Jinlun Fawang followed the changes of his bamboo stick, he felt that it was about time to act. When he saw Yang Guo surging and attacking away from the formation Fawang kept on moving backwards to lure him as faraway from the formation as possible. He didn’t predicted that after moving back over ten or so steps, his right leg suddenly tripped over a large rock; he had unwittingly been lured into the formation. He knew something was wrong. He then heard Huang Rong call out, “The Vermillion Sparrow Displaces the Green Dragon, the ‘Xun’ position changes to the ‘Li’, wood into water.” Guo Fu and the Wu brothers shifted the rocks and changed the formation. Jinlun Fawang’s face lost it’s colour from shock, he stopped his wheel to inspect the surroundings, while Yang Guo’s bamboo stick coiled its way around towards him. Though Yang Guo’s “Dog Beating Stick Technique” wasn’t good enough to meet him head on, it was more than enough to confuse and distract him. Fawang’s legs were tripped up a few times and he almost couldn’t stand up. He knew that this formation was powerful, the longer he was in it the more confusing it became. In this danger he shouted and leaped up on top of a pile of rocks. Normally, being on top of the rocks keeps one from being trapped and confused by the formation and allows them to regain their sense of direction. He thought that if he went forward in a straight line he will be able to get out of the formation. But he didn’t know that he just went from east to west, north to south, and had circled around a couple of times over an area of a hundred feet. Eventually his vigor was depleted and he stopped on the rocks. As soon as he landed on top of the pile of rocks, Yang Guo waved out the bamboo stick to his leg. Fawang’s weapon was short and couldn’t be used to protect all of his body; he could only drop down back to the ground and sweep out his wheel to counterattack. After another ten or so moves, the sky had darkened, he was surrounded by rocks everywhere; the formation seemed to give off an eerie air. Even someone as bold as he couldn’t stop himself from being slightly frightened, suddenly his mind lit up; he had a plan. His left leg lifted up, a twenty plus kilo (44lb) stone was lifted in the air and sent flying. His right leg came out and another large stone went flying. He darted around, his legs kept on kicking out, the rocks collided with each other and sparks flew. In a flash, the formation had been broken. Huang Rong, Yang Guo and the others were extremely shocked by this and they had to keep on moving to avoid the rocks falling from the sky. If Jinlun Fawang just wanted to leave the formation it couldn’t be easier, but he turned defense into attack and his left palm came searching out to capture Huang Rong. Yang Guo sent the tip of the stick towards his back, Fawang swerved his iron wheel and repelled it; however, his left palm had hung onto Huang Rong’s shoulder. If she leapt back she could have avoided this but she heard a urgent gust of wind coming down, a large rock was smashing down behind her at that time, she could only use the “Great Trapping Hand” to reverse his grab and hooked onto his left wrist. Jinlun Fawang said, “Good!” He let her hook his left wrist and waited for her to use force to fling him away; he suddenly circulated his strength and pulled her towards him. If it was any other time, Huang Rong could have circulated her internal energy and escaped from this pull, but right now she didn’t have sufficient internal energy, she called out, “Ai ya!” and fell. Yang Guo was extremely alarmed; he threw away any care for his life and threw himself forward, grabbing Jinlun Fawang’s legs. The two of them started to fall. Jinlun Fawang’s martial arts were much higher than his, before they hit the ground, his right palm had come waving out towards Yang Guo’s chest. Yang Guo quickly stretched out his left arm to block it; a ‘pai’ sound was heard as their palms struck. Yang Guo felt blood surging upwards from his chest; his body flew away like a rock. Just at this time, the last remaining rock fell down fiercely from the sky; a ‘peng’ sound was heard as it struck Jinlun Fawang on the back. It was an extremely heavy collision, even if Jinlun Fawang’s internal energy were higher, he would not be able to take it, though he circulated his internal energy to divert the rock away, his body wobbled a few times and he eventually fell forward onto the ground. In a short period of time, the formation had been broken and stones had rained down. Huang Rong, Jinlun Fawang and Yang Guo were all on the ground injured.
Citric acid monohydratefood additivePotassium citratefood additiveSodiumcitrate
Topic: Little help (Read 3974 times)