The Return of the Condor Heroes Chapter 2 – Part 7

The moment this grab landed, all three were shocked at once. Ouyang Feng felt a sharp pain in his fingertips, he had grabbed the spikes of her Soft Hedgehog Armor.¹ He released his grip in a panic. At that very instant, Guo Jing’s palm force arrived again. Ouyang Feng swung his palm back to meet it. In the crisis, both put forth their full strength, peng!, and both were hurled backward simultaneously. Dust and grit flew everywhere. Walls collapsed and the roof caved in. It turned out that both had used hard palm strikes in that final exchange. Unable to see each other clearly in the darkness, the tremendous force of the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms and Toad Skill had both landed on the other’s shoulder. The two men burst through the wall, and half the roof collapsed. Huang Rong’s shoulder had taken that grab, though she was not injured, her face had gone pale with fright. In the chaos, just as the roof was about to cave in completely, she shot out at an angle. She saw Ouyang Feng and Guo Jing standing half a zhang apart, motionless, both had clearly suffered internal injuries.

Huang Rong had no time to attack the enemy. She immediately took up a position beside her husband to guard him. She saw the two men close their eyes and regulate their breathing. Wa, wa, almost simultaneously, both spat out a mouthful of blood. Ouyang Feng cried, “Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms, heh, impressive! Impressive!” He laughed wildly and strode away, vanishing without a trace in the blink of an eye.

By now, the inn was in utter chaos, with people shouting for their fathers and mothers. Huang Rong knew they could not stay here any longer. She took her daughter from Ke Zhen’e’s arms and said, “Shifu, carry Jing gege. Let’s go!” Ke Zhen’e hoisted Guo Jing onto his shoulder and limped northward. After walking for a while, Huang Rong suddenly remembered Yang Guo, she had no idea where the boy had fled. But her concern for her husband’s severe injuries took precedence. Other matters would have to wait.

Guo Jing was fully conscious, but Ouyang Feng’s palm force had blocked his qi, and he could not speak. On Ke Zhen’e’s shoulder, he regulated his breathing and circulated his energy through his meridians. After they had travelled about seven or eight li, his meridians cleared. “Eldest shifu,” he said, “I’m all right now.” Ke Zhen’e set him down. “Are you sure?” he asked. Guo Jing shook his head. “Toad Skill is truly formidable!” Seeing his daughter sleeping soundly on her mother’s shoulder, his heart seized. “Where’s Guoer?” he asked. Ke Zhen’e could not think for a moment who “Guoer” was and stared blankly, unable to answer. Huang Rong said, “Don’t worry. Let’s find a place to rest first. I’ll go back and look for him.”

By now, dawn was approaching, and the trees and houses along the road were becoming dimly visible. Guo Jing said, “My injury isn’t serious. Let’s all go look for him together.” Huang Rong frowned. “That child is clever enough, no need to worry about him.” Just as she spoke, she saw a small head poke out from behind a white wall by the roadside, then quickly withdraw. Huang Rong darted over and grabbed him, it was Yang Guo. “Auntie Guo!” he called with a grin. “You’ve only just arrived? I’ve been waiting here for ages.” Many doubts swirled in Huang Rong’s heart, but she only answered casually, “Good. Come with us.”

Yang Guo smiled and followed behind. Guo Fu opened her eyes and asked, “Where did you go?” Yang Guo said, “I went to catch crickets. Now that was fun.” Guo Fu said, “What’s so fun about that?” Yang Guo said, “Hmph, who says it’s not fun? A big cricket was fighting an old cricket. The old cricket was losing, so two little crickets came to help, three against one. The big cricket hopped all over the place, kicking here, biting there, heh heh, it was really something…” He stopped there and said no more. Guo Fu had been listening, entranced. “What happened next?” she asked. Yang Guo said, “You said it wasn’t fun, why are you asking me?” Guo Fu had been rebuffed and was very angry. She turned her head away and ignored him.

Huang Rong had understood that his words were clearly taking Ouyang Feng’s side, mocking her and her husband and Ke Zhen’e. “Tell Auntie,” she said, “who won in the end?” Yang Guo smiled and said lightly, “I was just getting to the good part when you all showed up, and the crickets all ran away.” Huang Rong thought to herself, Like father, like son, indeed. She could not help feeling a bit vexed.

As they talked, the group arrived at a village. Huang Rong sought an audience with the master of a large estate. The master was very hospitable. Hearing that someone was injured and ill, he quickly ordered the servants to prepare a side room to receive them. Guo Jing ate three large bowls of rice, then sat on the couch, closed his eyes, and rested. Huang Rong saw that her husband’s breathing was calm and his spirit settled, and she knew the danger had passed. She sat beside him, keeping watch. Reflecting on everything that had happened since they met Yang Guo, she felt that although the boy was young, there were many strange and puzzling things about him. But if she questioned him in detail, he would probably not tell the truth. She decided she would simply keep a careful eye on his actions. The day passed without incident. After the evening meal, everyone retired to their rooms.

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Yang Guo shared a room with Ke Zhen’e. In the middle of the night, he quietly rose. He heard Ke Zhen’e snoring loudly, sleeping soundly, so he opened the door and slipped out. He walked to the wall, climbed a sweet osmanthus tree, leapt up, grabbed the top of the wall, and dropped down lightly on the other side. Two dogs outside caught his scent and began to bark. Yang Guo had come prepared, he took out two meat bones he had hidden during the day and tossed them over. The dogs seized the bones and chewed vigorously, immediately falling silent.

Yang Guo got his bearings and headed southwest. After about seven or eight li, he arrived at Iron Spear Temple. He pushed open the temple door and called, “Papa, I’m here!” A grunt answered from within, it was Ouyang Feng’s voice. Yang Guo was overjoyed. He felt his way to the offering table, found a candleholder, and lit the stub of a candle. Ouyang Feng was lying on several rush cushions before the deity statues, his expression weary, his breathing weak. His injuries were similar to Guo Jing’s, but Guo Jing was in the prime of life and recovered quickly, while Ouyang Feng was older and his vitality had already declined considerably.

The previous night, Yang Guo had been sharing a room with Ke Zhen’e at the inn when Ouyang Feng had come to see him in the middle of the night. Ke Zhen’e had awakened immediately and begun fighting with Ouyang Feng. Afterward, Huang Rong and Guo Jing had joined the battle in succession, and Yang Guo had watched from the sidelines the entire time. Finally, Ouyang Feng and Guo Jing had both been injured, and Ouyang Feng had fled. In the chaos, Yang Guo had seen that no one was paying attention to him and had quietly followed Ouyang Feng. At first, Ouyang Feng had moved extremely fast, and Yang Guo naturally could not keep up. But later, as his injuries took hold and every step became a struggle, Yang Guo caught up and supported him to rest by the roadside. Yang Guo knew that if he did not return, Huang Rong, Ke Zhen’e, and the others would surely come looking for him, and he feared bringing disaster upon his sworn father. He had arranged with Ouyang Feng to meet at Iron Spear Temple. This temple held great significance for both of them, so they understood each other at once. Yang Guo had waited alone by the main road and, after reuniting with Guo Jing and the others, had not come to visit until the middle of the night.

Yang Guo took seven or eight steamed buns from his bosom and placed them in Ouyang Feng’s hands. “Papa, eat,” he said. Ouyang Feng had gone hungry all day, afraid to go out and encounter enemies. He had hidden in the temple the entire time, enduring. After eating a few buns, his spirits revived somewhat. “Where are they?” he asked. Yang Guo told him everything.

Ouyang Feng said, “That fellow Guo took a palm strike from me, he won’t recover within seven days. His wife has to tend to her husband and won’t dare leave his side. Right now, we only need to worry about Ke the Blind. If he doesn’t come tonight, he’ll come tomorrow. It’s just a pity I don’t have a shred of strength left. Ai, it seems I killed some brothers of his. I can’t remember if it was four or five…” He broke into a violent coughing fit.

Yang Guo sat on the ground, chin propped on his hands, his small head spinning with ideas. Suddenly he thought, I’ve got it! I’ll set some sharp things on the floor. If that old blind man comes in, I’ll make sure he gets hurt first. He took four candleholders from the offering table, pulled out the old candles caked with years of dust, and placed the candleholders at the entrance. He left the temple door slightly ajar, then moved an iron incense burner, climbed up, and set it on top of the door.

He looked around, thinking of more traps to set. He saw that in the eastern and western side halls, a great iron bell hung in each. Each bell was so large that three people with arms linked could not encircle it, they must have weighed over a thousand jin. At the top of each bell was an extremely thick iron hook connected to a frame of massive timber. Iron Spear Temple had fallen into disrepair over the years, crumbling and dilapidated, but the great bells and their timber frames were both sturdy and still perfectly intact. Yang Guo thought, If that old blind man comes, I’ll climb up onto the bell frame, he’ll never find me.

Holding a candleholder, he was about to go to the rear hall to find a weapon for self-defence when he heard du, du, du from the main road, the rhythmic striking of an iron staff against the ground. He knew Ke Zhen’e had arrived. He quickly blew out the candle, then remembered: The blind man can’t see, I didn’t need to blow it out. So he let the candle stay lit and placed the holder on the offering table. The du-du-du sound grew closer and closer. Ouyang Feng suddenly sat up, gathering every last shred of strength in his body into his right palm, ready to strike first and kill the blind man with one blow. Yang Guo picked up another candleholder, its iron prong facing outward, and stood guard beside Ouyang Feng, thinking, Though my martial arts are meager, I must at least help Papa fight that old blind man.

Ke Zhen’e had originally known that his martial arts were far, far inferior to Ouyang Feng’s, he could never match him. But he had heard Guo Jing and Huang Rong say that Ouyang Feng had been severely injured in their palm exchange and could not have gone far. Iron Spear Temple was nearby, and it was a place Ouyang Feng had frequented in the past. Ke Zhen’e guessed that Ouyang Feng would not dare lodge with civilians and would most likely be hiding in the temple. Remembering how his five sworn siblings had died cruelly at this man’s hands, and that today he had this chance for revenge, how could he let it slip? In the middle of the night, he had softly called, “Guoer! Guoer!” Hearing no answer, he assumed the boy was sleeping soundly and did not even go near to check. He climbed over the wall and left. The two dogs were still gnawing on the bones Yang Guo had given them. Seeing him come out, they only whimpered a few times but did not bark.

He made his way slowly to Iron Spear Temple and cocked his ear to listen. Sure enough, there was the sound of breathing inside. “Old Poison!” he shouted. “Ke the Blind has come for you! If you’ve got the guts, come out!” He struck the ground with his iron staff. Ouyang Feng feared losing the qi in his dantian and did not dare make a sound.

Ke Zhen’e called out several times but heard no response. He raised his iron staff and smashed open the temple door, then stepped inside. Hu!, a heavy object came crashing down on his head. At the same moment, his left foot stepped onto the iron prong of a candleholder, which pierced through the sole of his boot, sending a sharp pain through the centre of his foot. For an instant, he could not comprehend what was happening. He swung his iron staff, dang!, with a deafening clang, knocking the iron incense burner aside. Then he rolled on the ground to keep the iron prong from driving deeper into his foot. But there were more candleholders nearby, he felt a stab of pain in his shoulder as another prong pierced his flesh. He grabbed the candleholder with his left hand and pulled it out. Blood gushed forth. Not daring to be careless now, he listened for the sound of Ouyang Feng’s breathing and crept forward step by step, the soles of his feet scraping against the ground. When he was three feet away, he raised his iron staff high and shouted, “Old Poison, what do you have to say for yourself now?”

Ouyang Feng had already channelled what little strength remained in his body into his right arm. The moment the iron staff came down, he would strike out with his palm simultaneously, taking the blind man down with him. Ke Zhen’e knew his enemy was severely wounded, but he did not know exactly how severe the injuries were. His staff hung in the air,迟迟不落 — he hesitated to strike, wanting Ouyang Feng to make the first move, which would reveal how much strength he had left. The two faced each other in stalemate, neither moving.

Ke Zhen’e heard the heavy sound of Ouyang Feng’s breathing. Suddenly, in his mind, he heard the voices of his sworn brothers, Zhu Cong, Han Baoju, Nan Xiren², as if they were urging him in unison to strike quickly. He could hold back no longer. With a great roar, he executed the move “The King of Qin Wields the Whip,”³ bringing his iron staff crashing down towards Ouyang Feng’s head. Ouyang Feng shifted his body slightly and was about to release his palm strike, but his arm had only extended half a foot when his breath failed him, and it dropped limply. Peng!, with a thunderous crash, sparks flew everywhere as the head of the iron staff shattered several floor tiles.

Ouyang Feng had dodged in time. Ke Zhen’e’s first strike missed, and the second followed immediately, the iron staff swept horizontally at Ouyang Feng’s midsection. On an ordinary day, Ouyang Feng could have deflected it with a light tug, sending the staff flying from Ke Zhen’e’s hands, or at the very least leapt over it. But now his entire body was weak and limp. He could not muster the slightest strength. He could only roll on the ground to evade. Ke Zhen’e unleashed his Demon-taming Staff techniques,⁴ each move faster than the last. Ouyang Feng’s dodges grew slower and more sluggish, until finally Ke Zhen’e’s move “Pestle Subdues the Yaksha”⁵ struck his left shoulder.

Listening from the side, Yang Guo’s heart pounded and his flesh jumped. He wanted to rush forward and help his sworn father, but he knew his own martial arts were too meager, he would only be throwing his life away.

Footnotes

1. 软猬甲 – Ruǎn Wèi Jiǎ. Soft Hedgehog Armour, a protective garment made of interlocking metal plates covered with sharp spikes, worn under clothing. It was passed down through Huang Rong’s family and has saved her life many times. ↩

2. 朱聪、韩宝驹、南希仁 – Zhū Cōng, Hán Bǎojū, Nán Xīrén. Three of the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan, Ke Zhen’e’s sworn brothers. All except Ke Zhen’e were killed by Ouyang Feng and Yang Kang at Peach Blossom Island. ↩

3. 秦王鞭石 – Qín Wáng Biān Shí. King of Qin Wields the Whip, a staff technique named after the legendary King of Qin (Qin Shi Huang), who was said to have used a magic whip to drive stones into the sea to build a bridge. ↩

4. 伏魔杖法 – Fúmó Zhàngfǎ. Ke Zhen’e’s signature staff technique, wielded through his iron crutch with devastating effectiveness despite his blindness and lameness. ↩

5. 杵伏药叉 – Chǔ Fú Yào Chā. Pestle Subdues the Yaksha, a staff technique named after the Buddhist imagery of subduing yakshas (malevolent nature spirits) with a ritual pestle. ↩