The Return of the Condor Heroes Chapter 3 – Part 8

Guo Jing fretted inwardly. “His two greater formations are arranged as orthodox and unorthodox, opposing each other. How can I alone seize the North Star Position? Today’s challenge is truly formidable.”

Before he could settle on a plan, the ninety-eight Daoists of the two Greater Big Dipper Formations had already closed in from left and right, their sword gleam interweaving so tightly that not even a fly could slip through. The long-bearded Daoist called out, “Draw your weapon! The Quanzhen Order does not harm the unarmed.”

Guo Jing thought, “This Greater Big Dipper Formation is naturally difficult to break, but whether it can actually harm me is another matter. The formation has many members and great power, but their individual skill levels vary, there must be weaknesses. Let me observe their formation first.” Suddenly, he spun like a top and dashed towards the northwest. He used the move “Concealed Dragon, Do Not Act”¹ from the Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms,² his palm extending and retracting as he pushed diagonally with fierce force. Seven young Daoists passed their swords to their left hands, linked together, and simultaneously thrust out their right palms, using the combined strength of seven men to block his strike. Guo Jing had trained this palm technique to the point of divine mastery, the forward-pushing force was certainly tremendous, but the even more formidable part was the retraction that followed. The seven Daoists strained to block his powerful push, never expecting that a great force would immediately pull them forward. Unable to keep their footing, all seven pitched forward involuntarily and fell flat on their faces. Though they sprang up at once, every one of them was covered in dust and deeply ashamed.

The long-bearded Daoist, seeing how formidable his attack was, felling seven shizhi³ with a single move, was alarmed. He gave a long whistle and led the fourteen Big Dipper Formations to link together in overlapping layers, reasoning that even if the enemy’s palm strength were ten times greater, he could never push ninety-eight men with both hands.

Guo Jing recalled the great battle at Junshan,⁴ where he and Huang Rong had fought against the Beggars’ Gang. Though their opponents’ individual martial arts were not strong, once they joined forces, they were extremely difficult to overcome. Now, he dared not engage the Daoists in a direct contest of strength. He deployed his qinggong, weaving and darting through the formation, searching for gaps.

He dashed east and leapt west, forcing the formation to shift and change. After only the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, he knew that relying on his strength alone, breaking this formation would be extremely difficult. First, he was unwilling to use heavy, injurious techniques. Second, the formation was so flawlessly tight that it seemed to have no weaknesses at all. Third, his mind was slow, while the formation’s transformations were fast, even if there were gaps, he could not spot them in time. Under the bright moonlight, steel flowed like water, human shadows surged like a tide, coming and going without end.

After fighting for a while longer, the formation gradually tightened, and it became harder and harder to dart through the gaps. He thought, “Why don’t I just break out of the formation and go straight into Chongyang Palace to see Masters Ma and Qiu?” He looked up and scanned the area. On the western side of the mountain were twenty or thirty buildings, several of them grand in construction, Chongyang Palace must be among them. He dashed east, and with a few leaps, had already turned and headed west.

The Daoists saw his movement technique suddenly accelerate, a grey blur streaking through the formation like a shooting star or flash of lightning, almost impossible to track. They grew dizzy, and their attacks momentarily stalled. The long-bearded Daoist called out, “Everyone be careful! Don’t fall for the lecher’s tricks.”

Guo Jing was furious. He thought, “Over and over, they call me a lecher. If this reputation spreads through the jianghu, what kind of man will I, Guo Jing, be considered?” He also thought, “This formation is directed by him. If I can take him down, I may be able to break the formation.” He parted his palms and charged straight at the long-bearded Daoist. But one of the subtleties of this formation was precisely to lure the enemy into attacking the commander, while the smaller formations seized the opportunity to envelop from east and west, surround from south and strike from north, the enemy would then fall into the trap. Guo Jing had only advanced seven or eight steps when he sensed the danger. The pressure behind him surged, and attacks rolled in from both sides. He was about to turn right when fourteen swords from two small formations directly ahead thrust at him simultaneously. The timing and positioning of these fourteen thrusts were so perfectly coordinated that there was no way to dodge.

Trapped in danger, Guo Jing felt no fear, only growing rage. “Even if you’ve mistaken me for some villain or lecher, you’re men of the cloth who should be compassionate. Why is every move a killing blow? Do you really want my life? And what was that about ‘the Quanzhen Order does not harm the unarmed’?” He suddenly lunged diagonally, his right foot flying out as his left hand reached forward. He kicked one young Daoist into a somersault while simultaneously seizing his sword. Seeing seven swords coming at his right side, he swept his left hand out. Eight blades met with a sharp crack, and all seven opposing swords snapped in half, while the sword in his own hand remained perfectly intact. The sword he had taken was no different from the others, not a particularly sharp or treasured blade. He had simply channelled his neili into the blade’s edge, shattering all seven opposing swords at once.

The seven Daoists were so terrified their faces turned the colour of earth. In that moment of shock, two adjacent Big Dipper Formations immediately rotated in, raising their swords to protect them. Guo Jing saw that these fourteen men each had their left hand on the right shoulder of the Daoist beside them, the strength of all fourteen had been united into one. He thought, “Let me test the true depth of my power.” He swung his sword and adhered it to the blade of the fourteenth Daoist.

That Daoist pulled back desperately, but his sword seemed welded to a bronze cauldron or iron anvil, it would not budge. The other thirteen each exerted their strength, trying to combine the power of fourteen men to neutralise the enemy’s adhering force. Guo Jing had been waiting for them to combine their strength. The moment he felt the pulling force on his hand surge, he shouted, “Careful!” He vibrated his right arm. A series of cracks rang out, like some great object being toppled. Twelve swords shattered. The last two, however, flew into the air. The fourteen Daoists, terrified beyond measure, scrambled to leap away. Guo Jing sighed inwardly. “After all, my skill is not yet perfectly refined, two swords escaped being shattered.”

This development added another layer of caution to the Daoists’ hearts, and their attacks grew even steadier. Though twenty-one Daoists had lost their weapons, their palm strikes carried the force of wind, their power undiminished. Guo Jing’s sword-shattering strike had not fully met his expectations, and he sensed the enemy formation growing ever more solid and stable. He thought: who knew what new innovations Ma Yu, Qiu Chuji, and the others had made to the Big Dipper Formation over these years? If the enemy suddenly produced some brilliant new variation that he could not counter in time, he might well be captured by the Daoists. There was no time to lose, he must seize the initiative. He called out loudly, “Fellow Daoists, if you do not make way, do not blame me for showing no mercy.”

The long-bearded Daoist, seeing that his side was gradually gaining the upper hand, assumed Guo Jing’s skills had reached their limit. He thought: even if you shatter all ninety-eight of our swords, you still cannot escape the Quanzhen Order’s Greater Big Dipper Formation. Hearing Guo Jing’s shout, he merely gave a faint, cold smile and said nothing, instead driving the formation even tighter.

Guo Jing suddenly dropped low and darted to the northeast corner. He saw two small formations from the southwest shadowing him like a reflection and, in that instant, his fingertips trembled. His sword thrust fourteen times in the span of a breath, fourteen points of cold starlight seeming to shoot out simultaneously. Each thrust struck a Daoist on the outer side of the right wrist, precisely at the “Yang Valley”⁵ acupoint. This was the most advanced level of swordsmanship, the blade moved like wind, swift as lightning, yet its landing points were accurate to the finest hair, as if fourteen hidden projectiles had been launched at once.

His strikes were extremely light. Each Daoist felt only a numbness in the wrist, their fingers losing strength, and fourteen swords clattered to the ground together. Terrified, they scrambled backward to examine their wrists. They saw only a faint red mark at the Yang Valley acupoint, with not a drop of blood seeping out. Only then did they realise that their opponent had used the tip of his sword to perform acupoint-sealing technique,⁶ the force penetrating the acupoint without damaging the skin. The Daoists were secretly astonished, all thinking: though this lecher is shameless, he is not entirely cruel. Had he not shown mercy, severing our hands would have cost him no more effort than blowing away dust.

By now, a total of thirty-five swords had left their owners’ hands. The long-bearded Daoist was deeply angered. He knew full well that Guo Jing had not used lethal force, but the Quanzhen Order had indeed lost face. Moreover, if they allowed such a powerful opponent to force his way into the palace, the consequences would be grave. He issued a rapid series of commands, tightening the formation, thinking: with ninety-eight Daoists closing in from all sides, we’ll crush you to death if nothing else.

Guo Jing thought, “These Daoists truly don’t know what’s good for them. It can’t be helped, I’ll have to give them a serious setback.” He drew his left palm diagonally and pushed his right palm to the left. One Big Dipper Formation’s seven Daoists rotated forward to receive it. Guo Jing dashed to the North Star Position, and a second Big Dipper Formation immediately attacked. There were now fourteen Big Dipper Formations, and thus fourteen North Star Positions. Guo Jing had no ability to divide himself and could not possibly occupy fourteen critical positions at once. He deployed his the skill of lightness, the moment he seized the first formation’s North Star Position, he immediately shifted to the second formation’s North Star Position. After several such shifts, the formation began to show signs of chaos.

The long-bearded Daoist saw the situation turning unfavourable and urgently transmitted orders, commanding the Daoists to spread far apart, stabilise their positions, and use stillness to counter motion. He knew that if everyone followed the enemy in wild rotation, the enemy’s speed would allow him to exploit the gaps and disrupt the formation. But if they held their ground, the fourteen North Star Positions were far apart from one another, no matter how fast the enemy’s movement technique, he could not seize them all at once.

Guo Jing silently applauded. “This Daoist brother understands the essentials of formation tactics, he certainly adapts quickly. Since they’re standing still, I’ll take this chance to head for Chongyang Palace.” But then another thought struck him. “Ah, no, could it be that Masters Ma and Qiu are not in the palace? Otherwise, after fighting with these Daoists for so long, how could Master Qiu and the others not know about it?” He looked up towards Chongyang Palace and suddenly saw flashes of white light at the corners of the temple buildings, as though people were fighting with weapons. The distance was too great to make out their forms, and he could not hear the clash of blades.

Guo Jing’s heart stirred. “Who would be so bold as to start a fight at Chongyang Palace? Tonight’s events are truly strange.” He wanted to rush over and see what was happening, but the fourteen Big Dipper Formations pressed closer, tangling with him ever more tightly. Anxious, he used “The Dragon Appears in the Field”⁷ with his left palm and “The Arrogant Dragon Repents”⁸ with his right, employing the Technique of Mutual Hands⁹ to attack left and right simultaneously. He saw the forty-nine men of the left Greater Big Dipper Formation blocking his left move, and the forty-nine men of the right blocking his right move. Before his moves were fully executed, he changed them midway, “The Dragon Appears in the Field” became “The Arrogant Dragon Repents,” and “The Arrogant Dragon Repents” became “The Dragon Appears in the Field.”

Using the Technique of Mutual Hands to execute different moves with each hand was already extraordinarily difficult, but to swap the moves midway, this was something the Daoists had never seen or even heard of. The left Greater Big Dipper Formation had been blocking his “The Dragon Appears in the Field,” while the right blocked his “The Arrogant Dragon Repents.” These two moves went in opposite directions, and the Daoists on both sides were straining to resist them. How could they have anticipated that in the blink of an eye, he would swap the moves? Guo Jing’s figure flickered, and he had already slipped through the gap between the two formations. The forty-nine Daoists on the left and the forty-nine on the right were just then pouring their strength into a forward charge, how could they possibly stop now? There was a thunderous crash as the two formations collided. Some had broken swords and injured arms, others had swollen noses and blackened eyes, and more than thirty had knocked each other down in the collision.

Though the long-bearded Daoist commanding the formation had dodged quickly and avoided being injured by his fellow Daoists, he was already in a wretched state. In his fury, he shouted orders repeatedly, hastily reorganising the formation. Seeing Guo Jing heading towards the great pool at the mountain’s foot, the Jade Clarity Pool¹⁰, he led the fourteen small formations in pursuit. The martial arts of the Quanzhen Order originally emphasised tranquillity and non-action, using softness to overcome hardness. For the commander to lose his temper was to violate the greatest taboo of Quanzhen martial arts. With his heart restless and his qi coarse, there could be no talk of assessing the enemy’s situation or adapting to circumstances.

Guo Jing had just reached the edge of the Jade Clarity Pool when he saw the water stretching before him. He swung his right-hand sword and cut a thick branch from a willow tree by the pool, then threw down the sword. Grasping the branch with both hands, he hurled it far out into the water. He pushed off with his feet, his body soaring into the air, and tapped the tip of his right foot on the branch. The branch sank straight down, but he had already borrowed the force to leap to the opposite shore.

The Daoists were running at full speed and could not stop in time. A series of splashes rang out as forty or fifty of them tumbled into the water. The last few dozen managed to stop at the edge by stepping on the backs of those ahead. Some Daoists could not swim and bobbed up and down in the pool, while those who could swim hurried to rescue them. By the Jade Clarity Pool, the Daoists dragged through mud and water, shouting and yelling, the scene one of utter chaos.

Footnotes

1. 潜龙勿用 – Qiánlóng Wùyòng. Concealed Dragon, Do Not Act, the first move of the Eighteen Palms of Dragon Subduing. Name comes from the first line of the Yijing hexagram for the Creative. ↩

2. 降龙十八掌 – Xiánglóng Shíbā Zhǎng. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

3. 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. ↩

4. 君山 – Jūn Shān. Island in Lake Dongting, site of the Beggars’ Guild assembly where Huang Rong became chief. ↩

5. 阳谷 – Yánggǔ. Yang Valley, an acupoint on the outer wrist. Striking it precisely can numb the hand and cause the opponent to drop their weapon. ↩

6. 打穴 – dǎ xué. Acupoint-sealing technique, the martial art of striking specific acupoints on the body to disable, paralyse, or kill an opponent. Requires extreme precision and knowledge of the body’s meridian system. ↩

7. “The Dragon Appears in the Field” (见龙在田). Jiàn Lóng Zài Tián. Second move of the Eighteen Palms of Dragon Subduing, a defensive technique. Name comes from the Book of Changes (I Ching). ↩

8. 亢龙有悔 – Kànglóng Yǒuhuǐ. Literally the soaring dragon has regrets. First stance of the Eighteen Palms of Dragon Subduing. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

9. 左右互搏 – Zuǒyòu Hùbó. Zhou Botong’s technique of fighting with each hand independently. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

10. 玉清池 – Yùqīng Chí. Jade Clarity Pool, a large pool at the foot of the mountains near Chongyang Palace. Jade Clarity is one of the Three Pure Realms in Daoist cosmology. ↩