Demi-Gods & Semi-Devils Chapter 1 – Part 1

The righteous scholar travelled the perilous peak.

The dark steel blade glimmered as it caught the sunlight. The young man feigned a thrust of the sword at the left shoulder of his middle-aged opponent, then he struck at the man’s right neck. The man parried. The swords clashed loudly and hummed audibly as the blades vibrated from the force of the impact. 

The swords flashed again and three rapid moves were exchanged even before the hum faded. The older man suddenly swung his sword downwards at his head. The young man side stepped to the right to dodge the strike, and guided his opponent’s blade with his left hand toward his opponent’s thigh.

Their swordplay was fast and they fought with all their might.

Two persons sat on the eastern boundary of the practice ring. A Daoist nun about forty years old sat ashen-faced in the left seat with her lips tightly sealed. An old man in his fifties sat in the right seat. He stroked his beard with his right hand, seemingly pleased with what he saw.

Around twenty male and female disciples stood behind each of them. The western boundary was lined by ten over guests sitting in a row of chairs. The attention of the spectators was focused on the duellists in the practice ring.

The duellists exchanged over seventy moves. Each move was faster and closer to hitting the target than the previous, but neither had the upper hand. The middle-aged man suddenly misjudged the force of his strike and appeared to lose his balance. A boy in blue sitting in the western guest seats could not help but chuckle. Realising he was being rude, he quickly stifled his laugh with a hand over his mouth.

The younger duellist struck with his palm at his opponent’s exposed back. The older man stepped forward and avoided the attack. His sword suddenly swung in a circle and he shouted, “Strike!”

The sword struck the young man’s left leg, making him stagger. He stabbed his sword into the ground and steadied himself to continue the duel. However, his opponent had sheathed his sword and smiled, “Zhu shidi,¹ thanks for going easy on me.² Are you badly hurt?”

The younger man’s face turned pale upon hearing those words. He bit his lower lips and replied, “Thank you for being merciful,³ Gong shixiong.”⁴

‘The Eastern Branch has won three matches. It appears that Sword Lake Palace⁵ will house the Eastern Branch for another five years. Xin shimei,⁶ do we still need to continue the contest?’

The nun sitting to his left could barely suppress her anger. “Zuo shixiong has indeed nurtured capable disciples. But I wonder if Zuo shixiong’s has gained great insight from studying the Wuliang Cliff⁷ in the past five years?”

The old man stared at her and his tone became stern. “How can you forget the rules of our school, shimei?”

She snorted with displeasure and dropped the issue. The old man was Zuo Zimu,⁸ head of the Wuliang Sword School’s Eastern Branch. The nun was Xin Shuangqing,⁹ head of the Wuliang Sword School’s Western Branch. They were on the mountain that shared the school’s name, Wuliang Shan,¹⁰ in the Dali Kingdom¹¹ and it was the Yuanyou¹² era of the Song Dynasty.¹³

The Wuliang Sword School¹⁴ was split into the Northern, Eastern and Western Branches. The Northern School has been in decline in the past decade, while the Eastern and Western Branches flourished with talent. The Wuliang Sword School was founded on Wuliang Shan, Nanzhao¹⁵ during the reign of the fifth Tang Emperor. The head of the school resided in the Sword Lake Palace on Wuliang Shan.

Since the splitting of the school into three Sects during the Song Dynasty, these Sects held a duelling contest in the practice arena of Sword Lake Palace every five years. The winning School would reside in the palace for the next five years. When the sixth year comes, the Sects would meet again to compete for the right of residence in the next five years. The best of five round was the winner. 

During the five years between the contests, the defeated branches would train hard in hope of erasing the shame of their previous loss in the next contest. Likewise, the winners did not dare to become complacent.

The Northern School won forty years ago but was evicted from the palace after their defeat five years later. The furious head of the Northern School led his people to the western face of the mountain, ending their participation in the contest and severing all communications with the other branches. 

In the thirty-five years since the exodus of the Northern School, the Eastern and Western Branches each had their share of victories and defeats. The Eastern Branch was the champion of four contests, while the Western Branch had two wins to their name. This was the ninth contest. The duel between Gong and Zuo was the fourth match. Gong’s victory gave the Western Branch three wins. Thus, a fifth bout was unnecessary.

Guests from other schools sat along the western boundary of the practice ring. Some of the visitors were witnesses invited by the heads of the Wuliang Sects, while the others came to watch the competition. They were notable individuals from the martial arts scene in Yunnan. The exception was an unknown youngster dressed in cyan sitting at rightmost end of the boundary. It was him who laughed when Zuo appeared to lose his footing during the duel.

The youth arrived in the company of the elderly wushi,¹⁶ Mawu De, from Pu’er, southern Dian.¹⁷ As a successful tea trader, Mawu was rich and influential. He was known for his hospitality and his easy-going nature. When any wushi in the jianghu¹⁸ was in dire straits, they count on his unrestrained assistance. This made him very popular. However, his martial arts skills were mediocre.

When Zuo Zimu welcomed Mawu De,¹⁹ the latter introduced the youth with the family name Duan. That was the royal family’s name of the Dali Kingdom. Countless individuals bear the Duan family name within the boundaries of the kingdom, so Zuo Zimu did not think much of it. He assumed that he was probably Mawu’s disciple. Since Mawu’s martial arts skills were average, his apprentice would be no better. Zuo did not bother to say ‘I’ve long admired you’²⁰ but simply raised his hands with his left palm over his right fist in greeting before leading them into the guest seats.²¹

Zuo did not expect the youth to have the nerve to mock when his favoured disciple feigned a move to create an opening.

‘The four disciples fielded by Xin shimei this year made impressive advancements in their swordsmanship. Especially in the fourth match, which we were lucky to win. Zhu shizhi²² is young but has made good progress in his training. With such potential, his future is bright indeed. Perhaps the Eastern and Western branches will have to swap places five years from now.’

Zuo let out a hearty laugh, before abruptly turning to stare at Duan. ‘Young Brother²³ Duan seems to disapprove when my second-rate disciple used the Staggering Step feint to win. Could Brother Duan please step into the ring and give my disciple a pointer or two? Brother Mawu has a resounding reputation in southern Dian. As the saying goes, there is no weak soldier under the command of a strong general. Brother Duan must be highly skilled.’

Mawu De flushed as he hurriedly said, “Brother Duan is not my disciple. How can I take in a disciple with my superficial skills? Please don’t tease me, young brother Zuo. Brother Duan came to my humble abode in Pu’er and discovered that I was going to Wuliang Shan. He has heard of the peaceful and scenic Wuliang Shan, hence he came along to enjoy the sights.”

Zuo Zimu thought to himself, ‘If Duan were Mawu’s disciple, I would have gone easy on the former out of respect for the latter. Since he was just an ordinary guest, there was no need to be tactful. When someone ridicules the gongfu²⁴ of Wuliang Sword School’s Eastern Branch, how can I maintain my credibility if I don’t teach him a good lesson and chase him off the mountain?’

Zuo Zimu sneered, “How do I address you, Brother Duan? Who is your esteemed master?”

The youth had delicate features and looked like a scholar. He did not seem like someone skilled in martial arts. Duan smiled, “My name is simply Yu. I have never learnt any kind of martial arts. I saw someone trip. Regardless of whether it was real or feigned, I can’t help but laugh.”

The lack of respect in his tone infuriated Zuo Zimu. “What’s there to laugh at?”

Duan Yu²⁵ gently fanned himself with his folding fan and explained with studied understatement, “There’s nothing to laugh at if a person is sitting down. There’s also nothing to laugh at if he’s lying in bed. However, it is very funny if he’s lying on the ground. The only exception is if he’s a three year old baby.”

His tone was increasingly disrespectful. Zuo Zimu could not contain his fury. “Brother Mawu, is Brother Duan your good friend?”

Mawu De and Duan Yu were new acquaintances and knew nothing about each other. Mawu was an amicable person. Therefore, when Duan Yu wanted follow him to Wuliang Shan, he did not refuse and brought him along. Sensing frustration in Zuo Zimu’s tone, Mawu knew that he would hurt Duan Yu if they were to duel. Duan Yu was a pleasant young man and Mawu did not want him to be harmed. “Although Brother Duan and I do not have a profound friendship, we came here together. Brother Duan seems like a refined gentleman. I doubt he knows any martial arts. His laughter earlier must be unintentional. Come on, I’m hungry. Please prepare the feast, Brother Zuo. We’ll drink three toasts to you.²⁶ It’s an auspicious day today, let’s not ruin it by arguing with a junior.”

Zuo Zimu said, “Since Brother Duan is not a good friend of Brother Mawu, Brother Mawu’s reputation will not be tarnished if I offend you in any way. He was mocking you, Guangjie. Step into the ring and spar with him to get some pointers.”²⁷

The middle-aged Gong Guangjie²⁸ had been eagerly waiting for his shifu²⁹ to say that. He drew his sword instantly and made his way to the centre of the ring. Holding the sword backwards, he raised his hands with his left palm over his right fist to salute Duan Yu. “Duan Yu, my friend. After you.”

“Very well. You go ahead and practice. I’m watching.” Duan Yu remained in his seat. Gong Guangjie’s face turned purple with rage immediately. “What… what did you say?”

Duan Yu said, “You are swinging a sword in your hand. I assumed you wanted to practice your swordplay. So, go ahead. I’ve always disliked watching others duel. However, since I came all the way here, I should try to enjoy. There’s no harm watching anyway.”

Gong Guangjie yelled, “My shifu wants you to enter the ring as well and duel with me, brat!”

Duan Yu gently fanned himself and shook his head. “Your shifu is your shifu. Your shifu isn’t my shifu. Your shifu can order you around, but your shifu can’t order me. Your shifu wants you to duel and you did. Your shifu wants me to duel with you. First, I don’t know swordplay. Second, I’m afraid of losing. Third, I’m afraid of pain. And fourth, I’m afraid of death. Therefore, we don’t need to duel. I don’t want to duel, hence we don’t duel.”

His switching between “your shifu” and “my shifu” sounded like a tongue twister, making many people in the arena break out in helpless laughter. Wuliang Sword School’s Western Branch had an even split of male and female disciples. Several of the female disciples let out girlish giggles. The tense atmosphere in the practice arena vanished instantly. Gong Guangjie strode across the practice ring and pointed his sword at Duan Yu’s chest. “Do you really have no knowledge of swordplay or are you just feigning it?”

Footnotes

1. 师弟 — shīdì. Male junior. Both apprenticed to the same shifu. Shī means teacher. Dì means younger brother. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

2. This phrase expresses humility in victory and is a sign of respect to the opponent. Victor claims to have won not because he is the better but because his opponent allowed him to. This can be used to indirectly mock the opponent, especially if it is obvious that the victor’s skills is far superior. ↩

3. This is to acknowledge that the opponent did not use his full strength and spared him from being more grievously hurt. ↩

4. 师兄 — shīxiōng. Male senior. Both apprenticed to the same shifu. Shī means teacher. Xiōng means older brother. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

5. 剑湖宫 — Jiànhú gōng. Name of a palace. Jianhu literally means Sword Lake. Sword refers to the residence being a palace to learn swordsmanship. Lake refers to the presence of a lake near the palace. ↩

6. 师妹 — shīmèi. Female junior. Both apprenticed to the same shifu. Shī means teacher. Mèi means younger sister. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

7. 无量玉壁 — Wúlìang Yǜ Bì. Wuliang means infinite or limitless. It is the name of the mountain where the palace is built. Yǜ literally means jade and Bì means cliff. When combined, the compound word means a beautiful cliff. So a proper translation would be the Beautiful Cliff of Wuliang. I have chosen to simply call it Wuliang Cliff. ↩

8. 左子穆 — Zǔo Zǐmù. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

9. 辛双清 — Xīn Shuāngqīng. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

10. 无量山 — Wúliàng Shān. Mountain range in modern Yunnan Province. See Wikipedia (Chinese). ↩

11. 大理国 — Dàlǐ Guó. Kingdom in southwest China, modern-day Yunnan, ruled by the Bai people of the Duan Clan from 937 to 1253 CE. See Wikipedia. ↩

12. 元祐 — Yuán yoù. Regnal era (1086–1094) of Emperor Zhezong of Song. See Wikipedia (English). ↩

13. 宋 — Sòng. Song dynasty, lasting from 960 to 1279 CE. See Wikipedia. ↩

14. 无量剑派 — Wúlìang Jiàn Pài. Wuliang refers to Wuliang Shan, where the school is located. Wuliang means infinite or limitless. Wú means no or without. Liàng means limit or measure. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

15. 南诏 — Nán zhào. Kingdom that flourished in what modern day southern China and Southeast Asia during the 8th and 9th centuries. It was centred on present-day Yunnan in China. See Wikipedia. ↩

16. 武师 — Wǔshī. Person practising martial arts and is involved in the matters of the martial arts scene. ↩

17. Pu’er (普洱 — Púěr) is a city in the southern part of Yunnan (云南 — Yúnnán). Dian (滇 — Diān) is another name for Yunnan. See Wikipedia. ↩

18. 江湖 — jiānghú. Literally rivers and lakes. Itinerant world beyond settled society and official reach, holding not only martial artists but the trades that travel with them, including pedlars, physicians, fortune-tellers, entertainers, boatmen, beggars, outlaws and the like. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

19. 马五德 — Máwǔ Dé. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

20. 久仰 jiǔyǎng. This is a courtesy phrase used when meeting someone for the first time. Literal translation is ‘long admired’ and it means having heard of someone and have been looking forward to meet for a long time. ↩

21. 抱拳 — bàoquán. Literally embraced fist. Left palm over right fist used in the jianghu to show respect. ↩

22. 师侄 — shīzhí. Lineage nephew or niece. Disciple of one’s shixiong, shijie, shidi, or shimei. Shī means teacher. Zhí means nephew or niece. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

23. 世兄 — Shìxīong. Friend or acquaintance who is two or more generations younger. I chose to translate it as young brother to avoid confusion with shixiong (male senior). Note that the shi here hass the fourth tone compared to the first tone of shixiong. ↩

24. 功夫 — Gōngfu. Martial arts, commonly translated as kungfu but we use the pinyin translation here. ↩

25. 段誉 — Duàn Yù. See Wuxia Wiki ↩

26. 三杯酒 — Sānbēijiǔ. Three cups of wine. This is usually as a sign of respect or apology. ↩

27. Note: He was pretending to be polite by asking his disciple to learn from Duan Yu, when he actually mean it as getting his disciple to teach Duan Yu a lesson. ↩

28. 龚光杰 — Gōng Guāngjié. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

29. 师父 — shīfù. Teacher responsible for technical instruction and moral guidance. Shī means teacher. Fù means father. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩