The Return of the Condor Heroes Chapter 12 – Part 6

Everyone knew Huang Rong was resourceful and cunning. Without any prior agreement, they all turned their eyes toward her, thinking: These few dozen men, no matter how strong their martial arts, can hardly be a match for several thousand of us here. Whether in single combat or group battle, we will not be at a disadvantage. Let us simply follow Chief Huang’s commands.

Huang Rong knew that without a contest of force, this could not be resolved peacefully. A mass battle would certainly end in victory, but it would not make the other side submit in their hearts. She declared in a clear voice, “The heroes here have already elected Old Chief Hong as alliance leader. Now this Mongol gallant comes disrupting matters, wanting to elect some Golden Wheel National Preceptor whom no one has ever heard of or met. If Old Chief Hong were here, he could naturally display his divine skills against the National Preceptor to determine who is superior. But he is travelling the world, putting Mongol barbarians to death and rooting out Han traitors who serve as the tiger’s claws.¹ He could not have anticipated that you would come here today, and so he was unable to be present to receive you. When he learns of this later, he will surely regret it. Fortunately, both Old Chief Hong and the Golden Wheel National Preceptor have passed on their arts to disciples. Let the disciples of each side compete on their masters’ behalf. What do you say?”

Most of the Central Plains heroes knew that Guo Jing’s martial arts were astonishing. In the prime of his life, he was perhaps already the finest in the world. Even Hong Qigong himself might not surpass him now. If he fought the Golden Wheel National Preceptor’s disciple, victory was assured beyond any doubt. They roared their approval. The sound shook the roof tiles. The heroes drinking in the side halls and rear halls, hearing the news, came flooding in. Soon the corridors, the courtyard, even the doorways were packed with people, all shouting encouragement. The Mongol fighters, far fewer in number, were utterly outmatched in the din.

Huo Du had fought Guo Jing once before, at the Chongyang Palace, and had been defeated in a single exchange. At the time, he had thought Guo Jing was a Quanzhen disciple, but after making inquiries later, he naturally learned the truth. His shixiong Darba was roughly his equal. Even if the two of them fought together, they would probably be no match for Hong Qigong’s disciple, the great hero Guo Jing. But if he refused Huang Rong’s proposal, the alliance leadership today would be lost. This turn of events was something he had never anticipated, and he found himself at a loss.

The Golden Wheel National Preceptor said, “Very well. Huo Du, go down and test your skills against Hong Qigong’s disciple.”

His voice was thick and turbid, and he spoke the entire sentence in a single breath, without the slightest pause for air. He had been living in Karakorum,² the Mongol court’s seat, where he was supported by the Empress Dowager who ruled as regent and had been enfeoffed as National Preceptor. He had assumed that with the martial arts of his personally trained disciple Huo Du, there would be few rivals in the Central Plains, at most, he might not match a handful of old masters like the Northern Beggar, Eastern Heretic, or Western Venom. He had no idea that Huo Du had already been defeated by Guo Jing.

Huo Du answered his assent, then said quietly, “Master, that old beggar’s disciple is extremely formidable. This disciple fears he may not be able to win and bring shame upon your name.”

The Golden Wheel National Preceptor’s face darkened. He snorted. “You cannot even defeat someone’s disciple? Get down there.”

Huo Du was in an awkward spot. He had kept his defeat by Guo Jing hidden from his master, and now, with the moment upon him, he dared not confess. He had assumed his master’s abilities reached to heaven and penetrated the earth, that no man alive could match him, that the mere presence of his master’s dharma-form at the Hero Assembly would make the alliance leadership fall into their hands as easily as reaching into a bag. He had never imagined he would be ordered to fight Guo Jing himself.

Just as he was growing frantic, a stout, burly man in Mongol official robes came close and whispered a few words in his ear. Huo Du’s face lit up with joy. He rose, flicked open his fan and fanned himself a few times, then declared loudly, “I have heard that the Beggars’ Guild’s treasured heirloom is something called the Dog-Beating Staff Technique. Old Chief Hong’s most formidable art. This prince, unworthy as I am, wishes to use this fan of mine to break it. If I succeed, it seems Hong Qigong’s abilities are nothing extraordinary after all.”

At first, Huang Rong had paid no attention to the man whispering in Huo Du’s ear. But when Huo Du suddenly mentioned the Dog-Beating Staff Technique, brushing aside Guo Jing, the strongest fighter present, with a few light words, she wondered who had offered this clever stratagem. She looked at the Mongol and recognised him at once: it was Elder Peng,³ one of the Beggars’ Guild’s four great elders. He had gone over to the Mongols, changed into Mongol attire, and grown a thick, bushy beard. His hat was pulled low over his eyes. Without careful scrutiny, he would have been hard to recognise. And only he would know that the Dog-Beating Staff Technique was passed exclusively to the Beggars’ Guild chief, that Guo Jing, for all his martial prowess, did not know it.

Huo Du’s words were clearly a challenge directed at herself and Lu Youjiao. Lu Youjiao had only just learned the staff technique and his grasp of it was still limited. He could not possibly use it in combat. She would have to step forward herself.

Guo Jing knew his wife’s Dog-Beating Staff Technique was wondrous beyond compare and believed she could defeat Huo Du. But in recent months, her pregnancy had unsettled her foetal energy, and her internal breath was unsteady. She absolutely could not engage in combat. He therefore stepped out from his seat and stood in the centre of the hall. In a ringing voice, he declared, “Old Chief Hong’s Dog-Beating Staff Technique is reserved for the finest masters under heaven. I fear your meagre skills are not worthy of witnessing it. Come, experience his Eighteen Palms of Dragon Subduing instead.”

The heroes roared their approval.

The Golden Wheel National Preceptor, his eyes still half-open and half-closed, watched Guo Jing step forward and stand there. He was like a deep pool and a towering peak, his presence was extraordinary. The National Preceptor was secretly taken aback. This man is truly formidable.

Huo Du gave a hearty laugh. “At the Chongyang Palace on Mount Zhongnan, this prince had the honour of meeting you once. That day, you claimed to be a disciple of Ma Yu,[^ma yu] Qiu Chuji,⁴ and the other Taoists. How is it that now you are posing as Hong Qigong’s disciple?”

Guo Jing was about to answer, but Huo Du cut him off. “A man studying under several masters is, of course, nothing unusual. But today is a contest between the Golden Wheel National Preceptor and Old Chief Hong. Your martial arts, sir, are strong indeed, but your skills span many schools. You cannot demonstrate Old Chief Hong’s true abilities.”

This argument was not without reason. Guo Jing had never been good with words, and for a moment he could find no rebuttal.

But the heroes were shouting: “If you have the guts, fight Hero Guo! If you are a coward, tuck your tail and run!” “Hero Guo is Old Chief Hong’s direct disciple. If he cannot stand in, who can?” “If you insist on tasting the Dog-Beating Staff Technique, you are admitting you are a dog!”

Huang Rong declared clearly, “The alliance we form today is the ‘Resist the Mongols and Defend the Nation Alliance’. What we resist is the Mongols. The nation we defend is the Great Song. If you three wish to contend for the alliance leadership, you must first join the alliance. Is the National Preceptor prepared to resign his position as the Mongol Empire’s foremost National Preceptor and join our alliance, to resist the Mongols together and defend the Great Song together?”

The heroes roared with laughter. “Right, right! Come join us in resisting the Mongols and defending the Song! You would be welcome!”

Huo Du tilted his head back and laughed. As he laughed, he secretly circulated his neili, and peal upon booming peal of it drowned out the crowd’s chaotic shouting. The candles in the great hall flickered unsteadily. The heroes exchanged glances, alarmed. Who would have thought that this young man, with his aristocratic bearing, possessed such formidable neili? In an instant, silence fell.

Huo Du declared loudly, “What my master wishes to be is the alliance leader of all heroes under heaven. Once he becomes alliance leader, whatever he says, everyone will obey without question. If he says defend the Mongols, everyone will defend the Mongols. If he says destroy the Song, everyone will destroy the Song.”

The heroes shouted back: “First make it clear: do you three wish to join our Resist the Mongols and Defend the Nation Alliance? Do you wish to resist the Mongols and defend the Song?” Someone bellowed, “Excellent! We welcome the Mongol National Preceptor to abandon darkness for light, to understand the great righteousness, and to join us in resisting the Mongols and defending the Song!”

Huo Du swept his hands apart and declared, “Whether we resist the Mongols and defend the Song, or serve the Mongols and destroy the Song, that will be decided by a single word from the alliance leader. You nominate Hong Qigong, Old Chief Hong. We nominate the Mongol Empire’s Sacred Monk, the Golden Wheel National Preceptor. I am the National Preceptor’s disciple. I wish to test myself against Old Chief Hong’s signature art, the Dog-Beating Staff Technique. Whichever member of the Beggars’ Guild knows this technique, step forward at once and fight on Old Chief Hong’s behalf. Otherwise, let everyone acknowledge my master as alliance leader and obey the alliance leader’s commands. The Beggars’ Guild need only admit defeat to my master, surrender, and abandon darkness for light. We Mongols may yet show mercy and forgive your ignorance.”

Amid the Central Plains heroes’ jeers and curses, Lu Youjiao raised his bamboo staff and strode to the centre of the hall. “I am the Beggars’ Guild’s new chief, Lu Youjiao. I have not yet mastered even one part in ten of the Dog-Beating Staff Technique and should not be using it. But since you insist on tasting what it feels like to be beaten by the Dog-Beating Staff, I will strike you a few times.”

Lu Youjiao’s martial arts were already quite refined. Though he had not fully mastered the Dog-Beating Staff Technique, it had still enhanced his existing skills considerably. He saw that Huo Du was barely thirty and assumed that even with instruction from an expert, his power could not be deep. He knew Huang Rong was unwell, he could not let her take the risk.

Huo Du wanted only to avoid fighting Guo Jing. Anyone else, he feared not. He clasped his fist in salute and bowed. “Chief Lu, an honour, an honour. Sparring with you could not be better.”

Huang Rong was secretly anxious, but she thought, Lu Youjiao is the new chief. Since he has already issued the challenge, I cannot obstruct him. That would damage his prestige and make it seem as though my authority still exceeded that of the Beggars’ Guild chief. She could only let him fight for a while and see what happened.

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The Lu Manor’s steward directed the servants to move aside the banquet tables, clearing a space of seven or eight tables in the centre of the great hall. More red candles were brought in, making the centre of the hall as bright as day.

Huo Du called, “Begin!” The two words had barely left his mouth when he swept his fan forward. A gust of forceful wind rushed toward Lu Youjiao’s face, and strangely, the wind carried a faint, delicate fragrance. Lu Youjiao, fearing the wind might be poisoned, quickly turned his head aside to evade it. Huo Du’s fan swept past, then. cha, the fan folded into an eight-inch point-striking pen, thrusting toward his opponent’s ribs.

Lu Youjiao raised his bamboo staff and, ignoring the point strike entirely, used the Entwine formula⁵, a hook and a lift. The Dog-Beating Staff Technique was truly wondrous beyond compare, its trajectory arriving from angles no one could possibly anticipate. Huo Du leapt lightly to evade, but the bamboo staff suddenly flipped and struck his shin. He stumbled, retreating three steps before regaining his balance. The watching heroes roared in approval. “The dog has been struck!” “Now you have tasted the Dog-Beating Staff Technique!”

This setback flushed Huo Du’s face red to the ears. He spun lightly and launched a palm strike with his left hand. Lu Youjiao kicked out with his left foot as his bamboo staff swept across. Staff shadows flew in all directions, endlessly transforming. Huo Du was secretly alarmed. The Dog-Beating Staff Technique truly lives up to its reputation! He summoned every ounce of concentration, fan in his right hand, palm in his left, giving his all.

But Lu Youjiao’s staff technique was, after all, incomplete. Several times he had victory within reach, only to fall short at the last moment. Guo Jing and Huang Rong watched from the side, silently lamenting: What a pity!

After another dozen or so exchanges, the flaws in Lu Youjiao’s staff technique grew increasingly obvious. Yang Guo, watching every move clearly, could not help frowning. Fortunately, the Dog-Beating Staff had seized the initiative from the start, striking Huo Du’s shin on the very first exchange. Huo Du, wary of it, dared not press too close, otherwise, Lu Youjiao would have been defeated long ago.

Huang Rong saw the situation turning dangerous and was about to call him back when Lu Youjiao suddenly launched the move “Striking the Dog’s Back at an Angle.”⁶ The bamboo staff flickered and struck Huo Du across the left cheek. But this strike was too heavy-handed and lost the lightness of touch the move required. Huo Du, burning with humiliation and pain, reached out and seized the staff. With nothing left to fear, he slammed a palm squarely into Lu Youjiao’s chest, then followed with a sweeping kick. Crack. Lu Youjiao’s leg bone snapped. A mouthful of fresh blood sprayed from his lips as he pitched forward. Two Seven-Pouch⁷ disciples rushed forward to catch him and carry him away.

Seeing the vicious ruthlessness of Huo Du’s attacks, the heroes were seething with fury. Their curses filled the air.

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Huo Du held the crystalline green bamboo staff horizontally in both hands, looking immensely pleased with himself. “So the Beggars’ Guild’s treasured heirloom, the Dog-Beating Staff, is nothing special after all.” Intent on humiliating this great clan of the Central Plains chivalric tradition, he gripped both ends of the staff, preparing to snap it in two.

Suddenly, a green figure flickered. An elegant, beautiful young woman stood before him. “Wait!” she said. It was Huang Rong.

Huo Du was startled by her uncanny speed. He managed only a single “You…” before Huang Rong’s left hand swept gently aside and her right hand darted toward his eyes. Huo Du hurriedly raised his hands to block, and in that instant, Huang Rong had already plucked the bamboo staff from his grasp with effortless grace.

This move for seizing the staff was called “The Mastiff Snatches the Staff,”⁸ one of the most advanced techniques in the Dog-Beating Staff repertoire. Years ago, at the Beggars’ Guild assembly on Mount Jun by Lake Dongting,⁹ Huang Rong had used this very move to snatch the staff from Yang Kang’s¹⁰ hands three times in succession. The move was so unpredictable that it never failed, even the strongest masters could not evade it.

Footnotes

1. Serving as the Tiger’s Claws (为虎作伥). Chinese idiom: the ghost of someone killed by a tiger helps the tiger find new victims. Metaphor for helping an evildoer do evil. ↩

2. Karakorum (和林). Capital of the Mongol Empire, located in present-day Mongolia. ↩

3. Elder Peng (彭长老). One of the Beggars’ Guild’s four great elders who betrayed the clan and joined the Mongols. ↩

4. 丘处机 – Qiū Chǔjī. His name meaning “dwelling in opportunity”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

5. 缠字诀 – Chán Zì Jué. One of the eight formulae of the Dog-Beating Staff Technique, using coiling motions. ↩

6. Striking the Dog’s Back at an Angle (斜打狗背). One of the thirty-six stances of the Dog-Beating Staff Technique. ↩

7. Seven-Pouch (七袋). Senior rank in the Beggars’ Guild hierarchy. Number of pouches on a beggar’s garment indicates their rank, with nine being the highest. ↩

8. Mastiff Snatches the Staff (獒口夺棒). Advanced Dog-Beating Staff technique for disarming an opponent and seizing their weapon. ↩

9. 洞庭湖 – Dòngtíng Hú. Great lake in Hunan province. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

10. 杨康 – Yáng Kāng. His name meaning “health” or “peace”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩