Suddenly Reverend Yideng’s countenance changed, his body swayed and he fell to the ground. The four disciples, along with Guo Jing and Huang Rong were extremely shocked; they rushed forward trying to help. They saw his face twitching like he was trying to suppress a great pain. The six of them were very anxious, they stood around with their hands hanging down, nobody dared to make any noise.
About the time needed to drink a cup of tea later Yideng’s face showed a faint smile, he said to Huang Rong, “Child, did your father personally make these Nine Flowered Jade Dew Pills?”
“He did not,” Huang Rong replied, “It was my martial brother Lu Chengfeng who made them according to my father’s secret recipe.”
“Have you ever heard your father said that these pills would be harmful if taken excessively?” Yideng asked further.
Huang Rong was stunned, she thought, “Is there something wrong with these Nine Flowered Jade Dew Pills?” She hastily said, “Father said the more the better; only because these pills were not easy to make, he did not want to take too much.”
Yideng lowered his head and knitted his brows for half a day; finally he shook his head and said, “Your father can be considered a genius, but his actions are unpredictable; how can I guess what he is up to? Could it be that he was punishing your Martial Brother Lu by giving him a fake recipe? Or could it be that your Martial Brother Lu had a grudge against you and mixed some poison into the pills?”
Hearing the word ‘poison’ everybody called in alarm in one voice. “Shifu, are you poisoned?” the scholar asked.
Yideng smiled and said, “It’s a good thing your Shishu [Martial (younger) Uncle] is here; even a more lethal poison won’t kill anybody.”
The four disciples could not hold their anger anymore, they cursed Huang Rong, “Our Shifu was so kind to save your life, but you have the guts to actually harm other with poison?” They surrounded Guo Jing and Huang Rong, ready to strike.
This turn of events happened so abruptly that Guo Jing was at a loss; he did not know the best action to take. Ever since Yideng’s first question Huang Rong had correctly guessed that the Nine Flowered Jade Dew Pills had caused a disaster. Her mind quickly recalled the succession of events concerning these pills since she received them at the Cloud Manor [gui yun zhuang]; when she arrived at the thatched hut in the Black Marsh forest she remembered how Ying Gu brought the pills to the other room and examined them for quite some time before she re-appeared. Suddenly a thought came into her mind like bright light. “Uncle, I know it!” she called out, “It was Ying Gu.”
“It was Ying Gu?” Yideng asked.
Immediately Huang Rong told him everything that happened inside the thatched hut in the Black Marsh forest. She furthermore said, “She repeatedly warned me not to take any of these pills; apparently it was because she had already mixed some poison in them.”
“Hmm,” the farmer sneered angrily, “She was really good to you; she was afraid you might die.”
Ever since she learned that Yideng was poisoned Huang Rong’s heart was full of regrets; she did not feel like arguing. She lowered her head and said, “She was not afraid to kill me, but she was afraid that if I take the pill then Uncle would not be poisoned.”
Yideng could only sigh, “Karma, karma,” he said. His face turned gentle. He turned toward Guo Jing and Huang Rong and said, “This is the result of my own sin; it has nothing to do with you. It was that Ying Gu; and I am reaping what I sow. You go ahead and take some rest, then you can go down the mountain, there is no need to worry over me. Although I am poisoned, my martial brother is here and he is an expert in healing poison related sickness.” He finished speaking; he closed his eyes and did not say another word.
Jing and Rong two people bowed. They saw Yideng’s face showed a smile, he waved his hand lightly. Two people did not dare to tarry much longer, they slowly turned around and went out. The young monk was waiting outside, he led two people to rest at a small building in the rear courtyard. The little building was also empty except for a couple of bamboo couches and a small bamboo table. Not too long afterwards two older monks came in with some vegetarian dishes; “Please eat,” they said.
Huang Rong was still concerned over Yideng’s condition. “Is Reverend well?” she asked.
“Xiao Seng [lowly monk] does not know,” the old monk replied with a sharp voice. He bowed and went out the door.
“Listening to their voice I thought they were women,” Guo Jing said.
“They are eunuchs,” Huang Rong said, “They must be Emperor Duan’s former attendants.”
“Oh,” Guo Jing muttered. Their minds were filled with concern, how could they eat?
The courtyard was secluded and very quiet, with light breeze occasionally stirred the bamboo leaves. After a long time Guo Jing broke the silence, “Rong’er, Reverend Yideng’s martial art skill is very high.
“Hmm,” Huang Rong mumbled. Guo Jing continued, “Our Shifu, your father, Zhou Dage [Big Brother Zhou], Ouyang Feng and Qiu Qianren, these five people’s martial art is also high, but they won’t necessarily superior to Reverend Yideng.”
“In your opinion, which one among these six is the Number One in the world?” Huang Rong asked.
Guo Jing hesitated for half a day before answering, “I think each one of them has their strengths and weaknesses, it’s really difficult to judge. This one is stronger than that one, yet that one is fiercer than this one.”
“What about ‘wen wu quan cai’ [well versed in both literature and martial art]? Who’s the best?” Huang Rong asked.
“Without question your father is the best,” Guo Jing replied.
Huang Rong was very proud; she smiled showing her dimples, beautiful as flowers. But then suddenly she sighed and said, “That’s why it’s very strange.”
“What do you mean ‘strange’?” Guo Jing hastily asked.
“Just think about it,” Huang Rong replied, “Reverend Yideng has such high skill; the fisherman, the woodcutter, the farmer and the scholar, his four disciples’ skills are not superficial either. Why would they hide themselves in fear in this remote mountain? Why is it that every time they hear somebody’s coming they shiver in fear? Among those six experts, perhaps only Ouyang Feng and Qiu Iron Palm are their enemies; but they are people of high reputation. Could it be that they will disregard their ranks and join hands in making things difficult for him?”
“Rong’er,” Guo Jing said, “Even if Ouyang Feng and Qiu Qianren join hands to seek enmity, we don’t need to be scared.”
“How come?” Huang Rong asked in surprise. Guo Jing’s face showed embarrassment, he looked bashful. Huang Rong laughed, “Ah! Why are you embarrassed all of a sudden?”
Guo Jing answered, “Reverend Yideng’s martial art is not inferior to the Western Poison. To say the least they are even. I think his backhand acupoint sealing technique is the Toad Stance’s black star.”