The Smiling, Proud Wanderer 45 Chapter Twenty-Five: Information

The disciples were so anxious that they started to inquire about the location of the Sword-forging Valley as soon as they entered Zhejiang's border. However, none of the villagers they asked knew the location of the valley. When they finally arrived in Dragon Spring, they saw numerous sabre and sword forges. But surprisingly, none of the blacksmiths knew the location of the Sword-forging Valley.

Everyone was now feeling very worried. They asked two old nuns they met on the road but they didn't hear about any fighting. All the blacksmiths they asked also didn't hear about any fighting. As for nuns, the blacksmiths said that they frequently saw nuns around and that there was a Water Moon Temple near the east wall of the city. The disciples asked for the location of the Water Moon Temple before rus.h.i.+ng there on horseback.

But when they arrived there, they saw the temple's main door was tightly shut. Zheng E went up to knock on the door but no one answered even after a long time. Yihe saw Zheng E knocked on the door again but they still didn't hear any sounds coming from the inside. She couldn't bear to wait anymore so she pulled her sword out and jumped over the wall to go inside. Yiqing also followed her in jumping over the wall.

"Look at it. What's this?" Yihe said as she pointed to the ground. They saw on the courtyard around seven to eight bright pieces of sword points. It looked like that they had been cut off. "Anyone inside the temple?" Yihe shouted while going inside the hall. At the same time, Yiqing opened the main door to let Linghu Chong and the other disciples come in. Yiqing then picked up a piece of broken sword point and gave it to Linghu Chong. "Martial brother Linghu, there was some fighting here."

Linghu Chong examined the broken piece and saw that the break was very smooth. He asked, "Do Martial uncle Dingxian and Dingyi use some kind of treasured swords?"

"They don't use any treasured swords. My Master once said that we must practice our sword art till we're very good at it then we would be able to win even if we're using a wooden sword or a bamboo sword. She also said that treasured sabres and treasured swords are too overbearing. If our hands were to slip slightly then we might take someone's life or disable a person's limbs…" answered Yiqing.

Linghu Chong hummed and said, "Then these swords were not broken by martial uncles?"

Yiqing nodded her head.

They then heard Yihe shouted from behind the main hall, "There are also broken swords here."

Everyone then went towards the back courtyard through the main hall. When they got inside the hall, they saw that the tables and everything in the hall were thick with dust. In all the temples in the world, there were always people to sweep the hall and keep it clean. So judging from the amount of dust collected in the hall, it seemed the temple had been uninhabited for several days already.

In the back courtyard, Linghu Chong and the rest of the disciples saw several trees hacked by weapons. They examined the places where the trees had been hacked and realised that they were at least a few days old. There was a hole where the back door was and the door planks were tens of feet away. It looked as if the door had been kicked open. Outside the door was a small path leading to the mountains. They followed the path and after more than a hundred feet, the road branched into two. Yiqing called out, "Everyone, separate and look around. See if there's anything unusual."

Not long after, Qin Juan shouted from the right branch, "There's a projectile here." And another one also called out, "Iron awl! There's an iron awl here!"

They saw this branch of the road pa.s.sed through a mountain range that went up and down. Everyone quickly rushed towards that small road. Along the road, they often saw projectiles and broken pieces of sabres and swords lying around. Suddenly, Yiqing uttered an "ah" and picked up a long sword from the bushes. She said to Linghu Chong, "It's our school's sword." Linghu Chong reasoned out loud, "Dingxian and Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai must have fought here. They must have come towards this direction."

Everyone knew that the Abbess and Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai had fled towards this direction because they could not handle the enemies. What Linghu Chong said was only to make things sounded better. They saw a lot of weapons scattered about on the road and guessed that the fighting must have been fierce here. They had received the urgent call for help many days ago; they did not know whether there was still time to rescue them. Everyone was worried as they hurriedly went forward.

As they climbed further up, the road became more rugged as it circled around the mountain. Amongst the Heng-Shan School's disciples here, Yilin and Qin Juan had the lowest martial art and they fell behind as they kept going. After several li, the road became rocky and there was no more road to follow and also no more weapons to give them some direction. So they stopped paying attention to the road. Suddenly, they saw thick smoke rising from the back of the mountain on their left.

Linghu Chong said, "Let's go there to have a look." and they rushed towards the smoke. They saw the thick smoke getting higher and higher as they get nearer. Finally they rounded a hillside and saw a big valley. In the middle of the valley, there was a big fire roaring up into the sky. The burning woods and leaves crackled loudly. Linghu Chong hid himself behind a rock and then turned around and waved his hand telling the others not to make any sound. Just then, they heard an old person shouted, "Dingxian, Dingyi. Today, I'll send you both into the Buddhist's paradise to confirm your spritual progress in Buddhism. You don't even need to thank us."

Linghu Chong felt happy hearing this, "The two s.h.i.+ Tai are still alive. Lucky we didn't arrive too late."

Another male joined in, "Chief Dongfang sincerely advised you to surrender but you persistently don't want to listen. From today, there wouldn't be a Heng-Shan School anymore."

The previous person shouted, "You mustn't blame our Divine Sun Moon Sect for being cruel and merciless. You should blame yourself for being obstinate and getting those young disciples killed in vain. What a pity. Haha, haha!"

They now saw the fire in the middle of the valley was getting larger as it burned. They knew that Dingxian and Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai were surrounded by the fire. Linghu Chong grasped his sword and drew a breath before shouting loudly, "Fearless Devil Sect thief, you dare to give trouble to Heng-Shan School's s.h.i.+ Tai. Five Mountains Sword Schools' masters have come from everywhere to help. Thieves, you're still not surrendering?" His shout was heard everywhere in the valley.

At the valley, the firewood, stacked twenty to thirty feet hight, was blocking the road. Linghu Chong didn't think deeply before he jumped inside the fire. Fortunately, the firewood in the middle wasn't burning that much. He went forward a few steps and saw two stone ovens but there was no one around. He shouted, "Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai, Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai, Heng-Shan School's force has arrived to help!" At this time, Yihe, Yiqing, Yu Sao and the rest of the disciples were outside the fire shouting, "Master, martial uncle, disciples have arrived!" This was followed by the enemies shouting, "Kill them all!" "They're Heng-Shan School's nuns!" "They're bluffing, there's no Five Mountains Sword Schools' masters." This was followed by the clas.h.i.+ng of swords between the enemy and the Heng-Shan School's disciples.

Linghu Chong saw a tall shadow of a person coming out of the stone oven. Her whole body was covered with blood. It was Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai. Her hand was holding a sword and she stopped at the entrance of the stone oven. Even though her gown was ragged and her face was caked with dirt and blood, she still stood there looking proud and powerful. She had not lost the aura of a master at all. When she saw Linghu Chong, she was greatly startled. "You… you are…"

Linghu Chong bowed, "Disciple Linghu Chong."

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai said, "I know you are Linghu Chong…" She had seen his face before through the window from the outside of the Jade House brothel.

"Disciple will open the way. We'll fight our way out," said Linghu Chong as he stooped down to pick up a branch for swatting away the burning woods. Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai said, "You already joined the Devil Sect…" She said till here when they heard someone shouted, "Who has come here to disturb us?" The sabre was lightning fast as it chopped down.

Linghu Chong saw that the fire was getting more intense and the situation was desperate. But Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai was being suspicious towards him and unexpectedly didn't want to rush out with him. In this situation, he had to move fast and kill as many enemies as possible. Only then would he be able to save them out of danger.

He took a step back to avoid the sabre chopping down and that person followed his first move with a second slash. Linghu Chong countered this move by cutting off his arm holding the sabre. Then he heard a female disciple shouting sharply in misery from the outside. It was a Heng-Shan School's disciple who had met with a disaster. Linghu Chong was startled and hurriedly jumped out of the fire.

He saw a group of people on the east hillside and another group on the west hillside. The enemy had more than a hundred people with them. Some of the Heng-Shan School's disciples were already in groups of seven using the sword formation to fight the enemies. But there were still some disciples who were fighting alone as they didn't have time to form the formation. Even though those who were fighting in formation didn't have the upper hand, they were still able to hold their own. But the situation was extremely dangerous for those who were fighting alone. Two female disciples had already been killed.

Linghu Chong swept his eyes across the battlefield to a.s.sess the situation. He then saw Yilin and Qin Juan fighting back to back against three men. He gathered his qi and rushed towards them when he suddenly saw a bright light moving towards him. A long sword was being thrust towards him but Linghu Chong promptly killed him by piercing his throat.

He leaped a few times and arrived in front of Yilin. He pierced the back of one man killing him. He killed the second man by piercing the side of his body. The third person lifted his steel whip to smash it down towards Qin Juan's head but Linghu Chong reversed his sword and slashed upwards cutting off that person's arm at the shoulder. Yilin was looking pale but now there was a slight smile on her face, "Amituofo, big brother Linghu."

Linghu Chong now saw that Yu Sao was being attacked by two good fighters. He rushed towards her and slashed twice. The first slash hit the person on his lower abdomen killing him. The second slash cut off the second person's right wrist.

He turned around and rushed towards Yihe and Yiqing who were fighting against three men. Linghu Chong wielded his swords and the three men cried out miserably before they dropped dead to the ground.

Suddenly he heard an elder shouted, "Join forces and kill this servant first!"

Three grey shadows responded to this call and three swords were thrust towards his throat, chest and lower abdomen. These three sword moves were really wonderful and their positioning was masterful. These were first-cla.s.s sword art. Linghu Chong was startled, "This is Songshan School's sword art! Could it be that they are from Songshan School?" As Linghu Chong thought of this, the three swords were closing in on his three fatal points. Linghu Chong used the sword-breaking stance from the Dugu Nine Swords as he circled his sword towards the three attacking swords to neutralise them. His sword intention had not finished yet as he forced the enemies to retreat a couple of steps. He saw that the enemy on his left was a fat looking Han Chinese around forty years old with a short beard on his face. The one in the middle was a thin old man with dark skin and bright-looking eyes. He didn't have the time to look at the third person clearly before he slanted his body and escaped.

With two thrusts, he killed the two people attacking Zheng E. The previous three people roared out and chased him. Linghu Chong had already made a decision, "These three people's martial arts are high and I probably won't be able to finish the fight quickly. If I fight too long with them, a lot of disciples from Heng-Shan School would be injured." He gathered his qi and started running non-stop to the east and west thrusting here and there. His sword was everywhere. With each thrust, an enemy either fell down to the ground or was killed.

Those three masters were still chasing him but the distance between them stayed around ten feet as they weren't able to close in on him. In the time to drink a pot of tea, thirty people had been injured by Linghu Chong's sword. They were being routed as not a single person was able to stop a single move from him. As thirty of the enemies were injured in such a short time, the situation was now reversed. For every enemy that Linghu Chong killed, he slowly managed to free some Heng-Shan School's disciples from the fighting, enabling them to go help the other disciples. In the beginning, the Heng-Shan School was outnumbered greatly by the enemy but now they were gradually turning the situation around and were getting the upper hand. Linghu Chong knew that this fighting today was very dangerous for everyone. He decided that he couldn't spare anyone. If he didn't manage to push the enemy back in a short time then the fire would get even bigger and Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai and everyone else inside the stone oven would be unable to escape.

It was as if he was flying, he was sometimes rus.h.i.+ng forward and sometimes rus.h.i.+ng at an angle. All the enemies within ten feet of him had no way of escaping. Not long after, another twenty enemies had dropped to the ground. Dingyi was surveying the battle scene standing on top of the stone oven. She saw Linghu Chong appearing and disappearing like a demon killing those enemies. His sword art was wonderfully skillful and she had never seen it before. She felt really happy and astonished at the same time. There were around forty to fifty enemies left and they had seen Linghu Chong rampaging like a demon with no one able to resist him. Suddenly, someone sent out a cry and around twenty people escaped into the surrounding grove. After Linghu Chong had killed several more people, the remaining enemies lost their will to fight. Before long, all the enemies who were able had escaped.

Only those three masters still remained as they chased after him but the distance between them was gradually getting farther. It seemed that they were also afraid of him. Linghu Chong stopped suddenly and turned around. He shouted, "You're from Songshan School, aren't you?" Those three people quickly jumped back.

That tall Han Chinese shouted, "Sir, who are you?"

Linghu Chong didn't answer him but called out to Yu Sao and the other disciples, "Quickly open up a way to save your master, martial-uncle and the others."

The female disciples cut some tree branches and started to beat on the burning firewood while Yihe and a few other disciples jumped inside the fire. The dry branches were already burnt through to the core that they weren't able to extinguish the fire. But everyone worked together to beat on the firewood and before long a gap had been opened up in the fire. Yihe and the others quickly helped the suffocated nuns get out from the inside of the stone oven.

"How's Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai?" Linghu Chong asked.

He heard an elderly female's voice answered, "Thank you for your concern." as a nun of medium stature slowly walked out of the ring of fire. Her white gown wasn't stained at all with blood or dirt. There was no weapon on her right hand. In her left hand, instead of a weapon, she held a strand of Buddhist prayer beads. Her appearance was kindly with her spirit calm and her aura leisurely. Linghu Chong was surprised, "Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai is so serene. Even after all the difficulties she went through, she still managed to keep her calm countenance. She really lives up to her reputation." He approached and bowed to her, "Linghu Chong pays his respect to s.h.i.+ Tai." Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai returned his propriety but warned, "Someone's attacking. Be careful."

"Yes!" Linghu Chong calmly answered.

Without turning his body, he reversed his sword and slashed it backwards blocking that fat Han Chinese's sword and said, "Disciples was late in coming to help. s.h.i.+ Tai, please forgive this sin." He blocked a few more thrust from that fat Han Chinese when two more swords were thrust at his back.

At this time, more than ten nuns came out of the fire ring carrying their martial sisters' corpses. Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai took large strides to emerge from the fire while saying fiercely, "Shameless traitor, that wolf's wild schemes…" The bottom of her gown had caught on fire but she didn't care about it at all. Yu Sao went to her to beat on the gown and extinguished the fire.

Linghu Chong exclaimed, "Both s.h.i.+ Tai are well! This is a joyous occasion." Just then, the sounds of "chi, chi" could be heard behind his body as three long swords were thrust simultaneously at him. At this time, Linghu Chong's sword art was not only one of the best but also not many in this world could match his internal energy strength. Not only did he hear the edge of the swords splitting the air, his internal energy also felt it and he automatically knew the enemies' sword paths. He wielded his long sword and countered the enemies' strikes. But those three people's martial arts were very high and their movements were lightning fast, which enabled them to escape from Linghu Chong's thrust. But the back of the tall Han Chinese's hand was still slashed and fresh blood started to flow. Linghu Chong questioned, "s.h.i.+ Tai, Songshan School is the leader of the Five Mountains Sword Schools. Also, they have brotherly ties with Heng-Shan School, why would they suddenly attack your school? I don't understand a single thing."

"Where's martial sister? How come she didn't come?" Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai asked.

Qin Juan cried as she answered, "Master… master was besieged by evildoers. She fought vigorously until… until she perished…"

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai was grieved and indignant as she scolded, "Good thieves!" and started to take large strides forward. But after only a few steps, she started to sway that she had to sit down on the ground heavily and threw up some blood from her mouth.

Even though the three Songshan School's masters were cooperating to fight Linghu Chong, they were still unable to endure his attack. Throughout the fight, they had only been looking at the back of his body while Linghu Chong was fighting with the long sword reversed in his hand. His sword art was marvellous and unpredictable. If he actually had turned around to fight them, they would not be his match at all. The three people were secretly feeling miserable and they were thinking of running away.

Suddenly, Linghu Chong turned around and started to attack them. He attacked the enemy on the left from the left and the enemy on the right from the right forcing them to crowd together. His one sword was able to encircle them and after eighteen moves they were unable to return another move. All three people were using Songshan School's wonderful sword art. But under the unceasing attack of Dugu Nine Swords, they were unable to return another move. Linghu Chong actually forced them to use their own school's sword art so they wouldn't be able to deny their a.s.sociation any further. He saw that even though sweat was flowing down on their faces, their expressions were still fearsome and their sword arts were still executed properly. It seemed that each of them had at least practised their sword art for at least ten years; it was really amazing.

"Amituofo. Martial brother Zhao, martial brother Zhang, martial brother Sima, my Heng-Shan School and your respectable school has no enmity with each other. Why did the three of you attack us and wanted to burn us to death? Poor nun doesn't understand and would like to consult with you," Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai said.

Those three Songshan School's masters really did have the surnames of Zhao, Zhang, and Sima. The three of them rarely traveled in Jianghu and their positions in the school were a secret. Linghu Chong had already given them so much trouble and now suddenly Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai called their surnames out. They were startled.

"Qiang lang", "qiang lang".

Two of them were hit on the wrists and dropped their swords. Linghu Chong pointed his sword at the short person's throat and commanded, "Drop the sword!" That old short person sighed and exclaimed, "The world unexpectedly has this kind of martial art, this kind of sword art! Zhao has been defeated by your sword and I wouldn't regard it as injustice." After saying this, he gathered his qi, pa.s.sed it into his hand and broke his sword into seven or eight pieces. Linghu Chong moved back a few steps and Yihe with six other disciples drew their long swords and surrounded these three people.

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai slowly said, "Your respectable school wishes to combine the five mountains sword schools into one and create the Five Mountains School. Heng-Shan School has been around for several hundred years. Poor nun doesn't dare to end the school at my hand so I refused your school's proposal. We've already exhausted the discussion on this matter already. But now you disguised yourself as the Devil Sect and tried to wipe out my Heng-Shan School. Isn't this method too high-handed?"

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai indignantly b.u.t.ted in, "Why is martial sister saying so much to them? Just kill them so they won't give us anymore trouble in the future… " She then coughed a few times and vomited blood again at the same time.

That tall person surnamed Sima said, "We were just following an order to dispatch a message. We didn't know any details at all…"

"Let them kill us or peel our skins off, why do you need to talk to them?" that old man Zhao indignantly chided.

Sima shut his mouth and stopped talking after being scolded. He looked ashamed.

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai said, "Thirty years ago, the three of you were running amuck in Hebei but suddenly you just disappeared without a trace. Poor nun thought that the three of you had turned away from your unruly ways. But I didn't expect that you would join and conspire with the Songshan School. Ai, Songshan School's leader Zuo is a respected person of our generation but he has accepted many unorthodox… Jianghu's unusual warriors, and together with them cause problems. This is really harboring evil… Ai, I don't understand this." Although she had changed her mind at this time, she still didn't want to offend anyone with her speech. She felt that she might have spoken too much and immediately stopped talking. She sighed, "My martial sister Dingjing s.h.i.+ Tai, was she harmed by your respectable school as well?"

That cowardly person with the surname Sima wanted to make up for before so he said in a loud voice, "Right, that's martial brother Zhong…"

"Hey!" rebuked that old person surnamed Zhao as he indignantly stared at him.

That person surnamed Sima realised that he had said the wrong thing, but he still continued, "Now that it has come to this, what's there to hide anymore?

Leader Zuo divided our forces into two. Each force came to Zhejiang to handle the matter."

"Amituofo, amituofo. Leader Zuo is already the head of the Five Mountains Sword Schools. What higher honour does he want by joining the five schools and becoming its leader? So he wages a war and destroys our alliance, wouldn't the Jianghu heroes laugh at this?" asked Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai.

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai fiercely said, "Martial sister, this thief's wild scheme is insatiably greedy… you…"

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai waved her hand then said to those three people, "The net of Heaven stretches everywhere, they might be loose but they never miss. You will suffer retribution for these unrighteous conducts. Get out of here! I'd bother the three of you to tell Leader Zuo that from now on, Heng-Shan School will no longer receive his order. Although my humble school only has weak females, we would not yield under his violence. We won't follow Leader Zuo's order to combine the schools."

Yihe called out, "Martial uncle, they're… they're very malicious… "

"Withdraw the sword formation!" ordered Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai.

"Yes!" replied Yihe. Complying with the order, she lifted her sword which was followed by the other six disciples. They then retreated several steps.

Those three masters from Songshan School never expected that they would be released so easily. They couldn't help but feel appreciative as they bowed towards Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai. They then turned around and flew off. When they were tens of feet away, that old man Zhao stopped and turned around. He asked in a clear voice, "May I ask the young hero with the G.o.dly sword art for your honourable surname and given name? I was defeated today though I don't dare hope to take revenge. But I would like to learn the name of the great hero who taught you and the name of this sword art."

Linghu Chong laughed, "This General is from Quanzhou prefecture. I'm called General Wu Tiande! Let's exchange names." That old person knew that Linghu Chong's answer was fake so he sighed and turned around to go.

At this time, the fire had gotten larger. There were many dead people from the Songshan School lying on the ground. More than ten of the Songshan people who were lightly injured had slowly crawled out of the valley while those who were heavily injured were lying in pools of blood. They saw the fire was getting closer but they were too powerless to move away. Some of them shouted for help. Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai said, "They didn't do this on their own accord. It was Leader Zuo who ordered them to come here because of an error in his thought. Yu Sao, Yiqing, help them." They knew that their Abbess was a merciful person and they didn't dare to disobey her. They separately started to check on the injured Songshan School's people. Those who were still breathing were helped to the side and given some medicine.

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai looked towards the south and there were teardrops falling down her cheeks. She cried out "Martial sister!" She then swayed a few times and fell forward.

Everyone was startled and quickly rushed to her side to support her. They saw fresh blood flowing down from the side of her mouth. It seemed that her injuries were just as serious as Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai. The disciples were all frightened and didn't know what to do. They all turned around and looked at Linghu Chong wanting to hear his idea.

Linghu Chong instructed, "Quickly give the two s.h.i.+ Tai medicines for their wounds. For the injured, wrap their wounds first to stop the bleeding. The fire is still going strong in this place. Everybody, let's go there to rest. Can I ask a few martial sisters to go and look for some fruits to eat?"

The disciples responded to his order and separately did the tasks. Zheng E and Qin Juan attended to Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai, Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai, and the injured disciples. They got some water from the creek with a kettle for them to drink with the medicine. During the Dragon Spring fight, thirty-seven of the Heng-Shan School's disciples died. When the disciples thought of how Dingjing s.h.i.+ Tai and the other disciples had died, their hearts were full of grief.

Suddenly, a few people started to cry and this affected the rest of the disciples. They all started to cry. All of a sudden, the valley was filled with cries of sorrow. Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai fiercely scolded, "The dead are already dead, why do you take this so hard? You have all read the Buddhist's sutras and comprehend this matter of "life and death". What's so good about this smelly sack of leather?" The disciples knew that Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai's nature was like a raging fire. No one dared to go against her wish. In a short time, the weeping sounds ceased but many of them were still sobbing. Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai continued, "How did martial sister finally meet her end? E'er, why don't you report to Abbess and tell us clearly what happened."

"Yes," answered Zheng E. She stood up and started to narrate how they were ambushed in the Xianxia mountain range, how Linghu Chong helped them, how they were captured in Nianbapu town with the use of confusion poison, how Dingjing s.h.i.+ Tai was threatened by Songshan School's Zhong Zhen and then besieged by masked men, how Linghu Chong luckily caught up and drove them away, and how Dingjing s.h.i.+ Tai finally succ.u.mbed to her heavy injuries. She narrated everything to them.

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai uttered, "That's how it is. Songshan School's thieves were pretending to be Devil Sect to compel martial sister to agree to the merger. Hng, how vicious. If you had all been captured by Songshan School and martial sister didn't agree, it could've been disastrous." As she said this, she ran out of breath and her voice became weak. After taking a breather, she continued, "When martial sister was besieged on the Xianxia mountain range, she knew that the enemies weren't easy to handle so she dispatched the pigeons asking for us to send help. Unexpectedly… unexpectedly… this matter, was already antic.i.p.ated by the enemies."

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai's second disciple, Yiwen, said, "Martial uncle, please rest, disciple will narrate how our group met with the enemies."

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai indignantly retorted, "What's there to tell? Water Moon Temple was attacked by the enemy at night. And we've been fighting continuously till today."

Yiwen said, "Yes."

It was just a simple narration of how they had been fighting with the enemies for many days. That night, Songshan School's people raided the temple wearing masks and pretending to be the Devil Sect. The attack on Heng-Shan School that time was so swift that the nuns were worried of being annihilated. Luckily, Water Moon Temple was an artery of Wulin and it stored five treasured swords from the Dragon Spring. In that critical situation, Abbess Qingxiao distributed the treasured swords to Dingxian and Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai to fight the enemies. Dragon Spring's treasured swords were able to cut through iron as if it were mud. They used the treasured swords to cut many weapons and injured many enemies. They retreated as they fought until they reached this valley. Qingxiao s.h.i.+ Tai died in protecting them.

This valley used to produce fine iron and several hundred years ago metals were cast here. Later, the iron ran out and the sword forges were moved somewhere else. The only remaining things in this valley were a few stone ovens for smelting. It was lucky that those stone ovens were around as it enabled the Heng-Shan School to fight with the ovens at their back. By doing this, they were able to hold out for many days and averted a big disaster. When Songshan School was unable to break through with their attack, they collected firewood and tried to use fire to burn them. If Linghu Chong and the other disciples had arrived half a day late, it would have been very difficult to save them. Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai was impatient to get to the end of Yiwen's narration of the events of the past few days. She stared at Linghu Chong and suddenly said, "You… you are good. Why did your Master expel you from his school? He said that you were colluding with the Devil Sect."

Linghu Chong answered, "Disciple wasn't careful while traveling and became acquainted with a few Devil Sect's people."

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai uttered an "hng" before saying, "Songshan School is even more ambitious and vicious compared to what Devil Sect is capable of. Hng! Are people from the orthodox schools better than those from the Devil Sect?"

Yihe said, "Martial brother Linghu, I wouldn't dare to judge whether you master was right or wrong. But he… he knew clearly that my school was facing a difficulty but he just put his hand in his sleeve and would rather be a spectator. Given this… given this… maybe he already approved of Songshan School's plan of combining the schools together."

Linghu Chong's heart was moved and he thought that what Yihe said was not unreasonable. But he had grown up under his respected master and had always looked up to him. So he didn't dare to have any disrespectful thought towards his master. He said, "My respected master wasn't putting his hand in his sleeve and acting as a spectator. It's most likely that he has another matter… this…"

Up until now, Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai had her eyes closed to meditate. Now, she slowly opened her eyes and said, "My humble school has met with a few big difficulties and young hero Linghu has helped us get through them. This virtue and kindness…"

Linghu Chong hastily said, "I didn't do much. Martial uncle's words flatter me too much. I don't deserve it."

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai shook her head and said, "Why must young hero be so modest? Martial brother Yue is unable to come himself so he sent his eldest disciple to represent him. That's just the same. Yihe, don't talk nonsense and be rude to your elders."

Yihe bowed, "Yes, disciple doesn't dare. But… but martial brother Linghu has already been expelled from Huashan School. Martial uncle Yue doesn't want him anymore. So he didn't really come here to represent martial uncle Yue's school."

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai smiled slightly, "You still don't want to give in and want to keep debating it."

Yihe sighed, "It would be good if only martial brother Linghu were a female."

"Why?" asked Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai.

"He's already been expelled from Huashan School and couldn't go back there again. If he were a girl then he could join our school. We've shared a lot of trials and tribulations together, he's already like our own people…" answered Yihe.

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai shouted, "Nonsense. You're grown up already, but you're still speaking like a child."

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai smiled slightly, "Martial brother Yue must have misunderstood something. Later in the future, he will see clearly and would accept young hero Linghu back into his school. When the news of Songshan School's plot spread, he would not be able to just sit back any longer given the situation. Then Huashan School would need young hero Linghu to rely on. Also, if he couldn't go back to Huashan, with his martial art, he could just establish his own school and no one would blame him."

Zheng E said, "What martial uncle said is true. Martial brother Linghu, Huashan School's people treated you so badly. Why don't you just establish a… a "Linghu School" and show it to them. Hng, then why do you still have to return to Huashan School?"

Linghu Chong smiled bitterly and said, "Martial uncle speaks so highly of me. Disciple is not worthy of your praise. If only my respected master would forgive my faults in the future and permit me to reenter the school, then I won't have anything more to ask from him."

"Nothing more to ask from him? How about your little martial sister?" Zheng E asked.

Linghu Chong shook his head and changed the topic, "Shall we bury the remains of martial sisters or cremate them and take the ashes back to Hengshan?"

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai answered, "Cremate them!" and her voice started to choke as she saw the dead bodies of her disciples lying on the ground. Even though she completely understood the human affairs, they had been her disciples for many years and she couldn't help but feel sad. A few of the disciples started crying again on hearing this.

Some of the disciples had been dead for several days already and some were hundreds of feet away. While the disciples were moving the bodies, they all kept scolding Songshan School's leader Zuo Lengchan for having sinister intentions and methods. After they had finished cremating their martial sisters' bodies, the sky had turned dark, so they stayed the night in the wild mountain under the stars.

At dawn, the disciples carried Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai, Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai, and their injured martial sisters on their backs. When they arrived at the Dragon Spring town, they went to the harbor and hired seven black boats to travel to the north. Linghu Chong was still afraid that Songshan School might attack them while traveling on water so he followed them north. Now that there were two elders traveling with the Heng-Shan School's party, Linghu Chong controlled himself and didn't dare to talk nonsense to the female disciples anymore.

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai, Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai, and the injured disciples' injuries were not light but luckily Heng-Shan School's medicines were very effective. By the time they had pa.s.sed Qian Tang River, their injuries were not life threatening anymore. As many of the Heng-Shan School's disciples were injured, they didn't want to encounter any incidents on the road and also wanted to avoid meeting anyone from Jianghu. When they reached the Yangtze River, they hired different boats to go upstream towards the Jiangxi Province. They traveled slowly in this manner. When they arrived in Hankou, about six or seven out of ten of the injured had already recovered. So they went back on the road and continued going north towards Hengshan.

On the day they arrived at the bank of Poyang Lake, there were several boats anch.o.r.ed at the mouth of the Nine River. These riverboats were really big and all of them were able to fit into two boats. At midnight, Linghu Chong was sleeping at the stern of the boat with the sailors when he suddenly heard light clapping from the bank of the river. They clapped three times, stopped for a moment, then clapped for another three times. This was followed by clapping from a boat west of them. A person on that boat clapped three times, stopped for a moment, then clapped for another three times. The sound of the clapping was very light but Linghu Chong still managed to hear it, as his abundant internal energy made his hearing superb.

He immediately woke up upon hearing these unusual sounds as he knew that these were the signals of Jianghu's people greeting each other. For the last few days, he had been watching attentively for unusual signs to protect against any surprise attack. He thought, "No harm in having a look. If it's unrelated to Heng-Shan School then it's good. Otherwise, I'll just take care of it in secret. There's no need to bother Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai and the rest of them." He squinted his eyes to look at the boat at the west and saw a black shadow with average qinggong jumping for around ten feet repeatedly till he reached the sh.o.r.e. Linghu Chong lightly flew off and landed on the sh.o.r.e noiselessly. He then went around the back of a row of big baskets filled with oil on the east side. As he hid himself behind the baskets, he heard a person said, "Those nuns on the boat must be from Heng-Shan School."

The other person asked, "What should we do?"

Linghu Chong slowly got nearer and the glimmering light from the stars and moon allowed him to see the faces of the two people. One of them had a face full of beard while the other one had a long and pointed face which was not only oval but was also like an open sunflower seed face. He then heard that Han Chinese with the pointed face said, "White Flood Dragon Clan is the only one doing this. Although we have a lot of people, our martial art isn't higher than other people so we shouldn't trade blows with them."

(Translator's note: Flood Dragon is a mythical creature capable of invoking storm and flood.)

"Who said we're going to trade blows? These nuns' martial art might be good but on water, their water skill might not be that good. Tomorrow, we'll get a boat to go over to their boat. Then we'll go under water to bore some holes in their boats. Then we'll just capture them one by one," That bearded person said.

That pointed-faced Han Chinese happily said, "This plan is very clever. We two brothers would've done a great service for the Nine River's White Flood Dragon Clan. From now on, our names would be heard throughout Jianghu. But I'm still worried about one thing."

"What are you worried about?" asked the bearded person.

"They're in the Five Mountains Sword Schools alliance. They have a saying, same root different branches. If Mr. Mo Da found out about this, he wouldn't let the White Flood Dragon Clan get away with it," replied the pointed face.

"Hng, for the past several years, we've always endured with Hengshan School's influence. Enough already! This time if we don't do this thing for our friend and with all our hearts then if we met with a problem in the future, they won't help us. When we're done with this, maybe Hengshan School would be annihilated, why are you still afraid of Mr. Mo Da for?" said the bearded face.

"Alright, that's the plan then. Let's look for some help who can swim well," said the pointed face agreeing to the plan.

Linghu Chong leapt out and used his sword handle to hit the pointed face at the back of his head knocking him out. That bearded face person threw a punch but Linghu Chong extended his sword handle and hit his left Taiyang acupoint, which made him spin around a few times like a screw before plunking down heavily on the ground. Linghu Chong extended his long sword across to open the lids of the two oil baskets. He picked those two people up and separately squeezed them into the baskets. The baskets were filled with vegetable oil and each weighed around three hundred catties. They were actually for that day's s.h.i.+pments. As the two people were dunked into the basket, their whole bodies were immersed in oil and oil entered their nose and mouth. The cold oil woke them up immediately and made them gasp for air but they only managed to swallow some oil instead. Suddenly, someone at Linghu Chong's back said, "Young hero Linghu, don't kill them."

It was Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai's voice. Linghu Chong was slightly alarmed, "When did Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai get behind me? I wasn't aware of it." He quickly took both of his hands off their heads and replied, "Yes!" As soon as their heads were released, they wanted to jump out of the basket but Linghu Chong hit the top of their heads forcing them back in and laughingly commanded, "Don't move!"

Those two people had their knees bent to crouch inside while the oil reached up to their necks and they were having trouble opening their eyes. They were entirely confused about how they had gotten into such difficult circ.u.mstances. They then saw another grey shadow leapt from the boat towards the bank. It was Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai and she asked, "Martial sister, did you catch some thieves?"

"They're the hall leaders of the Nine River's White Flood Dragon Clan. Young hero Linghu is playing a joke with them." replied Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai. She then turned her head towards the bearded face person and asked, "Sir, is your surname Yi or Qi? Is clan leader well?"

That bearded person's surname really was Yi and he asked, "My… my surname is Yi, how did you know? Our clan leader is well."

Dingxian smiled, "White Flood Dragon Clan's hall leader Yi and hall leader Qi are famously known in Jianghu as "Yangtze River's Pair of Flying Fish". Old nun has heard of your names, they're like thunder entering the ears."

(Translator's note: "Like thunder entering the ears" is an idiom that means "have long resounded in my ears".)

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai was very meticulous; although she rarely went out of the temple, she kept detailed knowledge of all the personalities from every school and every sect. Otherwise, how could she have recognised those three masters from Songshan School previously? The bearded person surnamed Yi and the pointed-faced person surnamed Qi were third or fourth cla.s.s personalities in Wulin. But as soon as she saw their countenances, she was able to guess their backgrounds correctly.

That pointed-faced Han Chinese felt proud of himself that Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai had recognised him and said, "Like thunder entering the ears? I wouldn't dare." Linghu Chong used his sword to press the top of the pointed face's head, forcing him to submerge in the oil and then released his hold. He then laughed, "I've long admired your name, like oil entering the ears." That Han Chinese indignantly said, "You… you… " He wanted to scold Linghu Chong but he didn't dare.

Linghu Chong said, "I have one thing to ask, why don't you answer truthfully. If you lie in the slightest bit, then your nickname "Yangtze River's Pair of Flying Fish" will change into "Mud Loaches Dead in Oil"." He then also pressed that bearded fellow into the oil. But that bearded fellow was already prepared for this so he didn't swallow any oil but the vegetable oil still entered his nose. So he was still feeling distressed over this. Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai and Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai couldn't hold back their smiles and both thought, "This youth is really naughty. But this can be regarded as a good method to get information."

Linghu Chong asked, "When did your White Flood Dragon Clan start colluding with Songshan School? Why did you want to trouble Heng-Shan School?"

That bearded person was confused, "Collude with Songshan School? That's weird. We don't even know any hero from Songshan School."

Linghu Chong said, "Aha! The first word that came out of your mouth is false. I'll give you a mouthful of oil to drink!" He used his sword to press down on the bearded person forcing him to enter the oil. Although this bearded person was not a first cla.s.s master, his martial art wasn't that weak. But Linghu Chong transferred his abundant internal energy into his sword. It was as if a thousand catties stone was being pressed onto his head making him unable to move up. The vegetable oil covered both his nose and mouth and exposed both of his eyes. He was feeling very miserable.

Linghu Chong said towards the pointed face man, "Quickly tell me! You want to remain 'Yangtze River's Flying Fish' or become 'Mud Loach Immersed in Oil'?"

That person surnamed Qi answered, "Now that I've met with Hero, even if I don't want to be 'Mud Loach Immersed in Oil', I might still have to become one. But brother Yi didn't lie; we really don't know anyone from Songshan School. Also, Songshan School and Heng-Shan School are allies and everyone in Wulin knows this. Why would Songshan School tell our White Flood Dragon Clan to make life difficult for… your respectable school?"

Linghu Chong released his long sword letting that person surnamed Yi to lift his head above the oil. He then asked, "You said that tomorrow in the middle of Yangtze River, you were going to sink Heng-Shan School's boats. What has Heng-Shan School done to wrong you?"

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai arrived late so she didn't know why Linghu Chong treated those two people in this manner. But hearing what he said, she became angry and shouted, "Good thieves. You want to kill us in the middle of the river." Her Heng-Shan School's disciples were mostly from the north and they couldn't swim. If the boats were sunk then many disciples would inevitably die. As she thought of this, her body trembled with fear.

That Yi person was afraid that Linghu Chong might push him under the oil again so he quickly said, "Heng-Shan School and our White Flood Dragon Clan have no enmity. We're only a small gang in Nine River's dock. What kind of skills do we have to look for trouble with all the s.h.i.+ Tai from Heng-Shan School? It's just… it's just that we know that you Buddhists are all one family and we saw your respectable school going westward. So we thought that you were going there to help. That's why… this… we overrate our own ability and concoct this evil plan. We don't dare anymore."

As Linghu Chong heard more, he became even more confused, "What do you mean Buddhists are one family and who do we help by going west? You're not speaking clearly!"

That Yi person said, "Yes, yes! Although Shaolin Temple isn't part of the Five Mountains Sword Schools, we thought that monks and nuns are of one family…"

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai shouted, "Nonsense!"

That Yi person was startled and he involuntarily pulled back and swallowed a mouthful of oil. He was speechless with his mouth feeling so greasy. Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai held her smile and said to the pointed face person, "Explain it clearly."

That Qi person said, "Yes, yes! That "Ten Thousand Miles Loner" Tian Boguang, does s.h.i.+ Tai know him well?"

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai was indignant as she thought in her heart why would she be well acquainted to such a notorious rapist in Jianghu as "Ten Thousand Miles Loner" Tian Boguang and that this servant actually dared to ask her this question. It was really the greatest insult to her. She lifted her right hand to smash his head open. Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai lifted her hand to hinder her and said, "Martial sister, don't be angry. These two have been indulging themselves in the oil basket for a long time now, their brains are probably not too clear right now. Furthermore, don't lower yourself to their level."

That Qi person asked, "What's wrong with Tian Boguang? That "Ten Thousand Miles Loner" Tian Boguang, uncle Tian is a good friend of our clan leader. These last few days, uncle Tian…"

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai indignantly said, "What uncle Tian? You should've killed this despicable evildoer a long time ago. But you're making friends with him instead, I think White Flood Dragon Clan isn't a good clan after all."

That Qi person agreed in a hurry, "Yes, yes, yes. We're not… not good people."

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai questioned, "We asked you before, why did you want to trouble Heng-Shan School? Why do you mention Tian Boguang regarding this?"

Tian Boguang had been inappropriate with her disciple Yilin once before. But Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai had yet been unable to kill him to vent her anger so she felt that this was a shameful matter to her. So she didn't wish this person to mention Tian Boguang's name.

That Qi person said, "Yes, yes. Everybody's going to rescue young lady Ren. We were afraid that the orthodox schools are going to help the monks. That's why we two brothers didn't think properly and confusedly cooked up this plan. This method that we wanted to employ towards your respectable school…"

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai still didn't understand in the slightest bit what he was going on about. She sighed, "Martial sister, I'll just let you question these two muddy people."

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai smiled and asked, "Young lady Ren, is that the Devil Sect's previous Chief's daughter?"

Linghu Chong was shocked, "They're talking about Yingying?" His face turned pale and his hands started to sweat.

That Qi person answered, "Yes. Uncle Tian… no, that Tian… Tian Boguang came to Nine River some time ago to drink wine with clan leader s.h.i.+. He said that on the fifteenth day of the twelfth month, we are all going to go to Shaolin Temple to make some disturbance and get young lady Ren out of there."

Unable to tolerate what was being said, Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai interfered, "Disturb Shaolin Temple? What kind of skills do you think you have to provoke the best there is in the martial world?"

That Qi person replied, "Yes, yes. Of course we're inadequate."

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai said, "That Tian Boguang has the fastest qinggong so he's acting as a messenger, isn't he? Who's presiding over this matter?"

That Yi person answered, "When we heard that young lady Ren was being kept in the Shaolin Temple by those thieves… no, by the Shaolin monks, we all took action separately without consulting each other. We all wanted to save her but there's no one presiding over this matter. We remembered young lady Ren's kindness, so we all said that we're willing to sacrifice ourselves for her."

A moment later, Linghu Chong's heart was filled with countless doubts, "That young lady Ren they're talking about, is it really Yingying? Why would the Shaolin monks detain her? She's so young; what kind of kindness could she have given to these people? Why did so many people want to go and save her without caring about their own life after hearing news of her trouble?"

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai said, "You were afraid that my Heng-Shan School would go and help Shaolin School. That's why you wanted to sink our boats, didn't you?"

"Yes, we thought that monks and nuns… this… that…" That Qi person stammered.

"What this that?" Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai indignantly said.

"Yes, yes. This… that… I don't dare say it. I can't say…" That Qi person hastily said.

"On the fifteenth of the twelfth month, your White Flood Dragon Clan is also going to Shaolin?" Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai asked.

They both answered at the same time, "We'll obey clan leader s.h.i.+'s command."

That Qi person went on, "Since everyone else is going, our White Flood Dragon Clan couldn't be left behind."

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai asked, "Everyone? Who's everyone?"

That Qi person answered, "That Tian… Tian Boguang said, Zhejiang's West Sea Sand Clan, Black Wind of East Mountain a.s.sociation, Western Hunan Sect, …" In a single breath, he was able to say the name of thirty clans from Jianghu. This person's martial art was only average, but he was able to remember the name of all the clans involved.

Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai scowled, "They're all unorthodox clans. Even though they have lots of people, they're not necessarily a match for Shaolin School."

Among the names mentioned by that Qi person were Heavenly River Faction's Chief "Silver-Bearded Dragon" Huang Boliu, Long Whale Island's Chief Sima Big, and a few other people that Linghu Chong had met before on top of the Five-Tyrant Ridge. He had no more doubt that the person that they wanted to save really was Yingying and he was happy to have gotten news of her. But she was currently detained in Shaolin School and she had killed a few of their disciples before, so he felt really worried. He asked, "Why did Shaolin School want to detain this… this young lady Ren?"

"I don't know about that. Maybe those Shaolin monks have been eating too much and have nothing else to do. So they just look for trouble and detain her," That Qi person said.

"Please pay my respect to your respectable clan leader s.h.i.+ and tell him that Heng-Shan School's Dingxian, Dingyi and a good friend pa.s.sed by the Nine River. We've been impolite for not paying a visit to clan leader s.h.i.+; please ask clan leader s.h.i.+ to excuse us. Tomorrow, we'll keep going to the west by boats. Please pardon us and don't dispatch people to sink our boats," Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai said.

Those two people immediately answered, "We don't dare."

Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai said to Linghu Chong, "It's a fine night, the moon is white and the air is clear. Young hero, please enjoy the night scenery at the sh.o.r.e slowly. Forgive poor nun for not accompanying." She then held Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai's hand and slowly went back to the boat.

Linghu Chong knew that she intentionally left him alone so that he could question these two people further. But for the moment, he was utterly confused and didn't know what else to ask. He just walked back and forth on the riverbank and didn't say anything for a long time. He saw half of the moon's reflection in the middle of the river. The river was flowing to the east and the moon's reflection was trembling incessantly. He suddenly thought, "Today is already the third week of the eleventh month. There's not much time left till the fifteenth of next month when they're going to the Shaolin Temple. Shaolin School's Great Master Fangzheng and Fangsheng treated me very well. When these people go to save Yingying, a big fight is bound to happen there. No matter who wins or who loses, the injuries to both sides will be enormous. Why don't I go in front of them and ask Abbott Fangzheng to release Yingying and avoid this bloodbath. Wouldn't this be better?"

He thought more, "Dingxian and Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai's injuries are almost fully healed. Although Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai's outward appearance is just like any other nun, she's actually very knowledgeable and her experience is vast. She's actually one of Wulin's great masters with very high skill. She's leading them back north; I don't think they'd meet another large number of Songshan School people attacking them. So they'd be able to deal with any kind of calamities they might face. But how can I just say goodbye to them?"

He had gone through a lot of trials and tribulations with these nuns and ladies. They treated him very respectfully and they were also very close and dear to him. Also, although he never mentioned about the time when his master expelled him or when his little martial sister abandoned him, he could tell from their expressions that they shared his sadness as if it was their own. In the Huashan School, besides Lu Dayou, there was no one else that close to him. Now, he suddenly had to say goodbye to them, it was really hard for him to speak up. He heard the light footsteps of two people coming closer to him. They were Yilin and Zheng E. When they were still twenty to thirty feet away from Linghu Chong, they called out, "Big brother Linghu." and stopped coming closer.

Linghu Chong went up to welcome them, "You were also woken up?"

Yilin said, "Big brother Linghu, martial uncle Abbess asked us to come to tell you…" She pushed Zheng E and said, "You tell him."

"Martial uncle Abbess wants you to say it," Zheng E said.

"You say it, it's the same," Yilin said.

"Big brother Linghu, martial uncle Abbess said, we don't need to say thanks for your kindness. After today, no matter what kind of matter you have, Heng-Shan School will follow your order. If you want to go to Shaolin to save that young lady Ren, everyone will help you with all their hearts," Zheng E said.

Linghu Chong was surprised and thought, "I didn't say that I was going to save Yingying, how on earth did Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai know? Ayo, Yes! Groups of heroes gathered on top of the Five-Tyrant Ridge to treat my illness. They must've done it in respect to Yingying. These two "Yangtze River's Pair of Flying Fish" knows about it, why wouldn't Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai know?" As he thought of this matter, his face turned red with embarra.s.sment.

Zheng E went on, "Martial uncle Abbess also said that it's best not to do this by force. Abbess and Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai have already gone ahead to Shaolin Temple to meet Great Master Fangzheng to request for her release. She asked that big brother Linghu lead us to go to Shaolin."

When Linghu Chong heard this, he felt dumbfounded and speechless. He lifted his eyes towards the middle of the river and saw a small boat with a small white sail cruising to the north. He felt appreciative towards them but he also felt ashamed. "These two s.h.i.+ Tai are learned and virtuous Buddhists with high positions in Wulin. Yet, they're willing to go by themselves to ask for Shaolin's compa.s.sion. This is probably the best way. Compared to me, an unrestrained, improper, and nameless person of Wulin, their reputations are a hundred times better. It's most likely that when Abbott Fangzheng saw the two s.h.i.+ Tai, he would have to consider their reputations and agree to release Yingying."

As he thought of this, he felt relieved. He turned his head around to look at those two, Qi and Yi, person who are still immersed in the oil baskets as they were afraid to climb out. He saw that these two were enthusiastic in saving Yingying so he felt that he had wronged them and felt quite sorry for them. He went up to them and cupped his hands. He solemnly offered, "I was being rude before and offended the two "Yangtze River's Pair of Flying Fish" heroes from the White Flood Dragon Clan not knowing your reasons. Please forgive me."

Those two "Yangtze River's Pair of Flying Fish" were greatly surprised as they saw him turned respectful towards them so suddenly. They hastily returned his propriety and also cupped their fists. In their haste, the vegetable oil splashed everywhere and some was actually splashed on Linghu Chong. Linghu Chong smiled and nodded his head.

He turned towards Yilin and Zheng E saying, "Let's go!" and returned to their boat. Heng-Shan School's other disciples unexpectedly didn't say anything when they got back. Even Yihe and Qin Juan, who were usually curious, didn't ask him anything. It was because Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai had ordered them not to ask questions to save Linghu Chong from embarra.s.sment. Linghu Chong appreciated this inwardly but he saw shadows of a smile on a few of the female disciples. Unavoidably, he now found himself in a difficult situation. He thought, "They must be thinking that Yingying is my sweetheart. Actually, there's nothing between Yingying and me. But since they're not asking me anything, how do I explain?" When he saw Qin Juan's bright and cunning eyes smiling at him, he couldn't endure it anymore and said, "It's not like that at all. Don't… don't let your imagination run wild."

Qin Juan giggled, "What am I imagining?"

Linghu Chong blushed, "I've already guessed it."

Qin Juan teased him, "Guess what?"

But Linghu Chong didn't answer her. Yihe reproached, "Martial sister Qin, don't say it anymore. Have you forgotten Martial uncle Abbess' order?"

Qin Juan pursed her lips holding back her laugh, "Yes, yes, I didn't forget."

Linghu Chong turned his head away to avoid her eyes only to see Yilin sitting alone in the boat's cabin. She was looking pale and her expression was indifferent. He felt anxious, "What is she thinking? What did I say to upset her?"

He was startled when he suddenly remembered that day outside Hengshan. He recalled her expression while she was running and carrying him until they reached the wilderness. At that time, she was deeply troubled and excited, unlike her very indifferent expression right now. Why? Why?

Yihe suddenly said, "Martial brother Linghu!" But Linghu Chong didn't hear her so he didn't answer her. Yihe called out louder, "Martial brother Linghu!"

Linghu Chong was startled and turned his head around, "Hmm, what?"

Yihe said, "Martial uncle Abbess also said that we should listen to Martial brother Linghu's plan whether we should go by road or boat tomorrow."

Linghu Chong actually wanted to go by land to learn about Yingying. But looking from the corner of his eyes, he saw tears flowing down Yilin's cheeks looking very pitiful. So he decided, "Martial uncle Abbess told us to just go slowly so we'll just travel in this boat then. I don't think those people from White Flood Dragon Clan would dare to bother us."

Qin Juan giggled, "You're not worried?" Linghu Chong blushed and didn't answer her.

Yihe shouted, "Martial sister Qin, you're just like a child, can you stop talking?"

Qin Juan giggled, "I can! Why can't I? Amituofo, I feel worried."

At dawnbreak, the boat sailed westward and Linghu Chong ordered it to stay close to the sh.o.r.e to protect against a potential White Flood Dragon Clan's attack. But everything was quiet as they entered Hubei's border. These last few days, Linghu Chong didn't chit chat much with Heng-Shan School's disciples. Every night when they dropped anchor, he went ash.o.r.e by himself to drink wine until he got drunk.

That day, the boat went pa.s.s Xiakou and turned north going to the Hanshui River. At night, they stopped at the dock of a small town. He again went ash.o.r.e and drank wine at a small store. After a few bowls of wine, he suddenly thought, "I wonder how little martial sister's injuries are? Martial sisters Yizhen and Yiling delivered Heng-Shan School's medicine to them. So her injuries should be healed by now. I wonder if martial brother Lin has recovered from his injuries? If martial brother Lin's injuries didn't get better, how would she react?" As he thought till here, he was startled, "Linghu Chong, Linghu Chong, you're such a contemptible person! Even though you're hoping that little martial sister would recover, but inside you're also hoping that martial brother Lin would die. Even if martial brother Lin is dead, little martial sister still wouldn't marry you."

He was feeling bored and after he finished three bowls of wine, he again thought, "I don't know who killed Lao Denuo and eighth martial brother? Why did that person also want to harm martial brother Lin? I wonder how Master and Master-wife are doing recently?"

He picked up another bowl of wine and grabbed some salty peanuts to eat. He suddenly heard someone sighing behind him and said, "Ai! All the males in this world have no feeling at all."

Linghu Chong turned his head around to see who spoke those words. Under the candlelight, beside himself in that small store, there was another person crouching beside a table in the corner. On top of the table were also a wine pot and a wine cup. That person's gown was ragged and he looked shabby. He didn't look like an educated or elegant person. So Linghu Chong ceased paying any attention to him and continued to drink another bowl of wine. He then heard that voice spoke behind him again, "A person has been confined in a sunless place because of you but you're spending every single day together with those girls. Young ladies, bald nuns, old grandmas, they're all together with you. Ai, what a shame, what a shame." Linghu Chong knew that this ragged person was talking about him but he didn't turn around. He thought, "Who's this person? He said that a person has been confined in a sunless place because of me. Is he talking about Yingying? Why was she confined because of me?"

He again heard that person said, "Even people who have no connection to this thing are saying that they want to sacrifice themselves to help her. Everyone wants to be the alliance chief. The person hasn't been rescued yet but there's already fierce fighting inside the group. Ai, old person has never seen this kind of matter in Jianghu before."

Linghu Chong picked his wine bowl up and went over to sit opposite that person, "There are a lot of matters that are not clear to me. Old chap please teach me what to do."

That person still lay prostrated on the table. Without raising his head, he said, "Ai, how much is because of a weakness for women, how much is sin? Heng-Shan School's ladies and nuns will be in real trouble because of this."

Linghu Chong was even more startled that he quickly stood up and saluted earnestly. "Linghu Chong pays his respect to senior. Please bestow your guidance."

Standing there, he suddenly saw a very old, deep yellow-coloured huqin on the chair. A thought flashed in his mind and he realized who this person was. He immediately paid respect to him, "Junior Linghu Chong is lucky to have met martial uncle Mo from Hengshan School. Sorry for my inappropriateness."

That person lifted his head and his bright eyes swept across Linghu Chong's face. It was really Hengshan School's "Xiao Xiang Night Rain" Mo Da. He uttered an "hng" before saying, "You called me martial uncle. You flatter me. Hero Linghu, these last few days you've been really happy!"

Linghu Chong bowed, "Martial uncle Mo is wise. Disciple received martial uncle Dingxian's order to accompany Heng-Shan School's martial sisters to go to Shaolin. Although disciple is ignorant, I don't dare to be inappropriate with martial sisters from Heng-Shan School."

Mr. Mo Da sighed, "Please sit! Ai, how could you not know that the rumours being spoken by all these people in Jianghu can even melt metal?"

Linghu Chong smiled bitterly, "Junior's behaviour was imprudent and I didn't check myself. I can't even show my face in front of my own school. But I don't think we should care too much about these idle talks in Jianghu."

Mr. Mo Da laughed coldly, "Your name is already dragged through the mud, who would pay any attention to you? But Heng-Shan School's hundreds of years of reputation will be ruined by your conduct. This does not move you at all? There are many talks in Jianghu about how you're an adult male mixing with all the ladies and nuns from Heng-Shan School. So many of their names are damaged by you, even… those two very disciplined old s.h.i.+ Tai are being laughed at. This… this won't do at all."

Linghu Chong retreated two steps and grasped his sword handle, "I don't know who dare to spread these rumours and say all these shameless words. Martial uncle Mo, please tell me."

"You want to kill them? The number of people who says this in Jianghu is around eight thousands. You want to kill them all? Hng, everyone is envious of your luck in love, what's not good about that?" Mr. Mo Da said.

Linghu Chong dejectedly sat down and thought, "Whenever I do things, I never thought about the past or the future but I only ask myself to have a clear conscience. But I never thought that I would implicate everyone from Heng-Shan School. How… how can this be good?"

Mr. Mo Da sighed and warmly said, "For the last five days, I've been prying into your boats every night…" Linghu Chong let out an "ah" and thought, "Martial uncle Mo has been prying into our boats for five nights already but I didn't even notice him. I'm really incompetent."

Mr. Mo Da went on, "I saw you slept on the stern of the boat every night, you don't even chat with any of them. Your conduct is irreproachable with these Heng-Shan School's female disciples. Brother Linghu, you're not only not a loafer, but you're actually a real gentleman. Even though the boat is full of young nuns and pretty maidens, you never showed any interest in them. Not even one night, but for tens of nights you didn't show any interest. Your type of person, a gentleman, is really rare nowadays. I, Mo Da, really admire you." He raised his right thumbs up praising him. He then slammed his fist down, "Come, come, come! I, Mo Da, am saluting you." He picked up the wine pot and poured wine for them.

Linghu Chong said, "Martial uncle Mo's words scares nephew here. Little nephew's conduct is mostly improper; that's why I wasn't tolerated in my own school. But these Heng-Shan School's martial sisters who I'm traveling with, why would I dare to offend them?"

Mr. Mo Da laughed a few times before answering, "To be frank, this is actually the true colours of males. If I, Mo Da, were still in my twenties and had to accompany all these ladies every night, I wouldn't be able to follow your example in maintaining my moral integrity. This is rare, very rare! Come, bottoms up!" The two of them lifted their wine bowls and gulped them down. Then they laughed together.

Linghu Chong saw that Mr. Mo Da's appearance was unrestrained and his clothing and personal adornments were poor. He didn't look like an earth-shattering figure of a school leader in Jianghu. But as his eyes swept across, it was sharp as a knife-edge. But this fierce look disappeared immediately and he again became a sleepy old man. Linghu Chong thought, "Heng-Shan's leader Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai is kind and gentle. Taishan's leader Priest Tianmen is dignified and sincere. Songshan's leader Zuo Lengchan is like a dangerous bird of prey. My respected master is a refined gentleman. Martial uncle Mo's appearance, on the other hand, is common and humble, just like any other ordinary person. However, within the five mountains sword schools' five leaders, he's actually the wisest one. I, Linghu Chong, am only a crude-fellow; compared to them I still lack by a long distance."

Mr. Mo Da said, "When I was in Hunan, I heard about you mixing together with the nuns and ladies from the Heng-Shan School. I was really surprised. I wondered how Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai could allow this matter to arise from her school? Later, I found out your whereabouts from the White Flood Dragon Clan and caught up with you. Brother Linghu, when you made that disturbance in Hengshan's Jade House, at that time I, Mo Da, firmly believed that you were a frivolous young man. Later, after you helped my martial brother Liu Zhengfeng, I held a good opinion of you. I wanted to catch up to give you some advice. Who would've thought that I would meet a hero of this generation. Unexpectedly, brother, you're such a great young hero. Very good, very good! Come, come, come! We'll drink three cups!"

He then called out to the shop servant to add more wine to drink with Linghu Chong. After a few bowls of wine, a sad and poor looking Mr. Mo Da suddenly became cheerful and energetic as he continuously called for more wine. But his tolerance for wine was far less than Linghu Chong. After a few more bowls, his face had become bright scarlet.

"Brother Linghu, I know that you really like to drink wine. Mo Da didn't consider my own position and accompanied you to drink many bowls of wine already. Hey, hey, in Wulin, Mo Da hasn't accompanied many people to drink wine. That day at a meeting in Songshan, there was this Songyang Palm Fei Bin. This person was really bossy and arrogant, the more Mo Da looked at him, the more I didn't like him. So I didn't even drink a drop of wine. The words coming out of his mouth were also rude. d.a.m.n it, don't you think he's annoying?"

Linghu Chong laughed, "Yes, this kind of person overrates his own ability and his conduct's really overbearing. At the end, he didn't have a good fate."

"Later, this person just suddenly disappeared. His whereabouts is also unclear and no one knows where he's gone. This is really strange," Mr. Mo Da said.

Linghu Chong wondered about that day outside the walls of Hengshan city. He clearly saw Mr. Mo Da used his wonderfully divine sword art to kill Fei Bin then and he was also sure that Mr. Mo Da saw him there witnessing the whole event. But how come Mr. Mo was saying he didn't know what happened to Fei Bin? Linghu Chong didn't want to appear as if he knew something about it so he said, "Songshan School has no other people who they can rely on. So probably this Fei Bin is holed up somewhere in a cave on Songshan mountain diligently practising his sword art."

Mr. Mo Da's eyes suddenly flashed with a cunning look. He laughed lightly and slapped the table, "That must be it! If brother didn't mention this, I would've racked my brain trying to figure out where he's gone to and still wouldn't have figured out the reason." He drank a mouthful of wine before asking, "Brother Linghu, why are you really mixing with Heng-Shan School's disciples? Devil Sect's young lady Ren has deep feelings towards you. So you should never disappoint her."

Linghu Chong's face turned red when he heard this. "Martial uncle Mo is wise. Little nephew is already frustrated in love. This matter of male and female, I've long been indifferent to this already." As he thought of his little martial sister, Yue Lingshan, his heart turned sour and his eyes couldn't help but turn red. Suddenly, he laughed loudly and in a clear voice said, "Little nephew is already disillusioned with this mortal world and wanted to become a monk. But I'm afraid that the regulations for the monks are too strict. Like can't drink wine. So I didn't go and become a monk. Haha, haha!" Even though he was laughing loudly, it sounded mournful.

After a while, he related the story of how he met Dingjing, Dingxian, and Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai and how he helped them. He just thoughtlessly described every event while playing down his role in it.

Mr. Mo Da calmly listened to his story till the end. He then just dumbly stared at the wine pot for a long time before saying, "Zuo Lengchan's desire is to annex the other four schools into his own to make one big school. This one big school would then be able to match the two big schools of Shaolin and Wudang and stand as their equal. He hatched this secret plot a long time ago. Although he's concealed it deeply, I've seen clues of it for a long time now. His granny, he didn't allow my martial brother Liu to wash his hand and also helped the sword branch of Huashan School to challenge and usurp Mr. Yue's leaders.h.i.+p. All these things happened because of this reason. But I never thought that he would be so rash as to brazenly attack Heng-Shan School."

Linghu Chong said, "He didn't attack openly with boldness. Originally, he pretended to be from the Devil Sect to force Heng-Shan School to have no other alternative but to agree to combine their schools."

Mr. Mo Da nodded his head agreeing with him, "Correct. The next step he'll be taking must be to deal with Taishan School's Priest Tianmen. Hng, even though Devil Sect is vicious, they're not necessarily more vicious than Zuo Lengchan. Brother Linghu, you're no longer in Huashan School, you're free like the cloud and cranes in the field. You're unrestrained. So you don't need to care about this orthodox school and Devil Sect matters anymore. I advise you, don't become a monk and also don't grieve because of this. Go and rescue that young lady Ren out of Shaolin and marry her. Even if other people don't want to come and drink your celebration wine, I, Mo Da, will come and drink three cups. d.a.m.n Zho Lengchan! Does he think we're afraid of him?"

Mr. Mo sometimes talked in a refined manner but sometimes he talked really vulgarly. He didn't look like a leader of a school at all.

Linghu Chong thought, "He thinks that I'm discouraged about love because of Yingying. But it's not good talking to him about the matter of little martial sister." He then asked, "Martial uncle Mo, why did the Shaolin School imprison young lady Ren?"

Mr. Mo Da's mouth dropped open. He eyed Linghu Chong intensely with his expression full of amazement, "Why did the Shaolin School imprison young lady Ren? You really don't know, or you already know but you are still asking? Everyone in Jianghu already knows why, you… you… what are you asking for?"

"For the past several months, little nephew was imprisoned by some people and didn't hear of any news from Jianghu. After that young lady Ren killed four disciples of Shaolin School, little nephew was together with her for some time. But I didn't know how we got separated later and how she ended up being captured by Shaolin School?" Linghu Chong explained.

Mr. Mo Da answered, "If that's the case, you really don't know the whole story then. Your body's internal injury was incurable by any medicine. I heard that the unorthodox sects a.s.sembled thousands of people on top of the Five-Tyrant Ridge to flatter this young lady Ren and to heal your injury. The result is that no one was able to do anything for you, is this right?"

"Right," replied Linghu Chong.

"This whole event shook Jianghu. Everyone was wondering how this kid Linghu Chong got so much good fortune. Unexpectedly, it was because the Dark Wood Cliff's Sacred Lady Miss Ren favours you. So even though your illness couldn't be cured, it wasn't all in vain," Mr. Mo Da said.

"Martial uncle Mo is teasing me," said Linghu Chong while he thought, "Although Old Man and Zhu Qianqiu had good intentions, their method was really crude and they announced this matter to everyone. No wonder Yingying was angry."
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"So how did you finally get better? It's Shaolin School's "Tendon Altering Sutra" divine art, wasn't it?" Mr. Mo Da asked.

"It's not. Shaolin School's Abbot Fangzheng was merciful and forgave old animosities. He agreed to impart Shaolin School's unsurpa.s.sed internal energy cultivation method to me. It was little nephew who didn't want to join the Shaolin School. This Shaolin's divine martial art wasn't allowed to be imparted to outsiders so I had to disappoint Abbott Fangzheng's kindness," Linghu Chong answered.

"Shaolin School is Wulin's most respected school. At that time, you have already been expelled from the Huashan School, so it was by chance that you were able to join Shaolin. This is once in a lifetime opportunity. Why didn't you take into consideration about that and about your own life too?" Mr. Mo Da said.

"Little nephew has been with my respected Master and Master-Wife since I was young. Even if my body is grounded till dust, I still hope that someday my respected Master would allow little nephew to correct myself and join the Huashan School again. I didn't want to be greedy to preserve my life and be afraid of death and join another school," Linghu Chong said.

Mr. Mo Da nodded his head, "So that's the reason. In that case, your internal injury was healed by another method."

"Yes! Actually little nephew's internal injury isn't completely healed yet," Linghu Chong answered.

Mr. Mo Da stared at him and said, "Shaolin School never had any relations.h.i.+p with you. Although Buddhist people are merciful, they wouldn't just casually pa.s.s on their divine martial art to anyone. When Great Master Fangzheng promised to teach you "Tendon Altering Sutra", you didn't know the reason behind this?"

"Little nephew really don't know. I hope that martial uncle Mo can tell me," Linghu Chong said.

"Alright! Everyone in Jianghu says, that day, Dark Wood Cliff's young lady Ren carried you on her back and went to Shaolin Temple. Once there, she begged to see the Abbott and told him that he must save your life and she would leave herself to the mercy of the Shaolin temple. If they wanted to kill or peel her flesh, she wouldn't object," Mr. Mo Da said.

"Ah!" uttered Linghu Chong as he jumped up and turned over the wine bowls on the table. His whole body was suddenly covered in cold sweat and his limbs were trembling. His voice trembled, "This… this… this…" His mind was confused. He thought back to those days when his body was getting weaker as days pa.s.sed by. One night, when he was sleeping, he heard Yingying wept sorrowfully. She said, "You're getting thinner every day. I… I…" She was saying this very sincerely and he appreciated her concern. Then he vomited some blood and lost consciousness. When he became clear-headed, he was already inside the Shaolin temple and Great Master Fangsheng had already pa.s.sed him countless amount of inner energy to save him. But he didn't know how he ended up in Shaolin or where Yingying had gone. She had actually risked her own life to save his own. He couldn't help as tears filled his eyes and finally flowed down his cheeks.

Mr. Mo Da sighed. "Although this young lady Ren's family background is from the Devil Sect, she treated you with sincerity and pa.s.sion. From Shaolin School, Xin Guoliang, Yi Guozi, Huang Guobo, and Jueyue had all fallen under her hand. So when she went to Shaolin, she didn't expect to return alive, but in order to save you, she… she disregarded her own life. Seeing this, Great Master Fangzheng didn't want to kill her but he also couldn't just let her go. That's why she was imprisoned inside a cave at the back of the Shaolin temple. This Young lady Ren has many generations of subordinates from various clans. Of course they all wanted to save her. I heard these last few months, Shaolin School hasn't had one day of peace. From the day they captured her till now, some people said more than a hundred people had gone there to rescue her."

Linghu Chong's mood surged when he heard this and he couldn't control it for a long time. As his feelings subsided, he asked, "Martial uncle Mo, you said before everyone was vying for the Chief position and there's already fierce fighting inside the rescue group. How is this matter?"

Mr. Mo Da sighed. "I heard that these people from the unorthodox sects usually just follow young lady Ren's order. Without someone with authority to order them around, they're just madly running and fighting with each other. None of them would submit to anyone. Now they're going to Shaolin temple on a rescue mission. They all know that Shaolin temple is the realm's oldest martial art school and matters would be difficult to handle there. Moreover, if they go there one by one then they know they would never be able to go back out alive. That's why they gathered so many people to form an alliance before going. After this alliance was formed, then there must be a leader. I heard in these last few days, they've been fighting over this leaders.h.i.+p position. Several people have died and been injured and they've lost many people because of this. Brother Linghu, I think you should rush over there and control them. Whatever you say, who would dare to disobey you, haha, haha!"

Mr. Mo Da was laughing happily while Linghu Chong's face turned scarlet red. He knew that what he said was correct, but the alliance would only submit to him because of their respect towards Yingying. Later, when she found out about this, she would surely throw a big tantrum. Suddenly, he thought, "Yingying has very deep feelings towards me but she's very thin-skinned. What I'm afraid most is if people joke at her saying that her love towards me is unrequited and I can't repay her kindness. I must repay her kindness but when news of this spread throughout Jianghu, people will say that Linghu Chong is pa.s.sionately devoted to her, then she probably don't want to live anymore because of embarra.s.sment. It's best if I just rushed into Shaolin by myself and rescues her. If I couldn't rescue her, then they can just say that I made a disturbance there to beg for alms." At this thought, he said, "Heng-Shan School's Dingxian and Dingyi s.h.i.+ Tai already went to Shaolin temple to seek for Abbott Fangzheng's compa.s.sion to release Young lady Ren. They're doing this in order to avoid a bloodbath in the Shaolin temple."

Mr. Mo Da nodded his head. "No wonder, no wonder! I found it really strange that Dingxian s.h.i.+ Tai wasn't worried that you were left alone with her school's young ladies and nuns. So it was because of you that she's going to Shaolin."

Linghu Chong said, "Martial uncle Mo, little nephew now knows about this matter and feels really worried. I wish I could fly to Shaolin temple to see how the two s.h.i.+ Tai are doing with their request. It's just that Heng-Shan School's martial sisters are all women and I'm worried that they might meet some difficulties en route to Shaolin."

Mr. Mo Da answered, "You can go!"

Linghu Chong happily said, "There's no harm if I go first?"

Mr. Mo Da didn't answer but picked up his huqin instead, and started playing it. Linghu Chong knew the meaning behind his word was that he was going to tend to Heng-Shan School's disciples. Martial uncle Mo's martial art and experience was not ordinary. No matter whether he was protecting them in secret or not, Heng-Shan School would be safe. He immediately bowed and said, "Thank you for your kindness."

Mr. Mo Da replied, "Five Mountains Sword Schools, same root different branches. Why do you need to thank me for protecting them? If that Young lady Ren found out, I'm afraid she'll drink vinegar because of this."

Linghu Chong said, "Goodbye. Little nephew will bother martial uncle Mo to look after Heng-Shan School's martial sisters then." As he finished saying this, he rushed out of the shop.

He halted a step and looked towards the middle of the river. He saw lights from the windows on the boat spilled over and reflected on the Hanshui River. In the shop behind him, the sound of Mr. Mo Da's huqin rapidly disappeared. He could only hear the calm of the night. It was really peaceful.