The Heavenly Sword & the Dragon Sabre Chapter 4 Part 3

Zhang Cuishan’s¹ heart filled with bewilderment. His left hand drew the tiger-head hook² from his sash whilst his right held the candlestick high, and step by cautious step he surveyed his surroundings. Bodies lay scattered east and west, inside and out, several dozen in all. Corpses strewn across the floor. Not a single living soul remained within the vast Dragon Gate Armed Escort.³

Zhang Cuishan had seen his share of gruesome sights roaming the jianghu,⁴ but to stumble upon such a scene of wholesale slaughter set his heart pounding. His shadow upon the wall would not cease its trembling, for his arm shook and the candle flame flickered, casting his silhouette into spasms.

He stood motionless, hook held across his body, when two phrases suddenly surfaced in his mind: “Should half a mishap befall you on the road, I shall slaughter every last soul in your Dragon Gate Armed Escort, not even the dogs and chickens shall be spared.”

Before him now lay the corpses of the entire armed escort. Clearly this massacre had been wrought because Du Dajin⁵ had failed to protect Yu Daiyan⁶ adequately. He mused, Whoever struck this blow did so on Third Brother’s account. From this, one might surmise he must be an exceedingly close friend of Third Brother.

Yet if his skills so far surpass Du Dajin’s, and he knew that dangers might lie along the route, why did he not escort Third Brother to Wudang himself? Third Brother is benevolent and upright, despising evil as though it were his mortal enemy. How could he befriend someone with a heart as venomous as a serpent’s?

The more he pondered, the more perplexed he became. He stepped out of the western hall. In the candlelight, two monks in yellow robes leant against the wall, staring at him with fixed grins, teeth bared.

Zhang Cuishan retreated two swift paces, bringing his hook to bear.

“What business have you two here?” he demanded. Seeing that neither monk stirred, realisation dawned. They too had long since perished. A sudden chill gripped his heart. “Ah! This bodes ill! A blood feud, a blood feud…”

Those four monks earlier had spoken of “such cruelty, such viciousness. If you call yourself a man, leave your name.” And again, “This blood feud cannot be settled today.”

It seemed the blood debt of these dozens of lives at the Dragon Gate Armed Escort would be laid upon his own head. At the time, not understanding the situation, he had not only given his name but had revealed the very weapons that had made him famous, the Silver Hook and Iron Brush.⁷ Who were those four yellow-robed monks?

Earlier, he had struck too swiftly. With but four strokes of the Word of Bù,⁸ he had felled all four monks without time to discern their martial lineage. Yet when the four had lunged at him, their force had been fierce and unyielding, unmistakably the external style of the Shaolin Order.⁹ Du Dajin was himself a Shaolin disciple. These monks had likely come at the Dragon Gate Armed Escort’s invitation to render aid. But where were Second Brother and Seventh Brother? Shifu¹⁰ had dispatched them to protect the armed escort’s dependents. How was it that despite Second Brother’s prowess, the enemy had still struck?

Zhang Cuishan pondered for a long while, yet his confusion only deepened. For now, let nothing here be disturbed. Finding Second Brother and Seventh Brother is what matters.

He blew out the candle and made for the wall, then vaulted over.

Before his feet touched ground, a tremendous gust of wind struck, a heavy weapon sweeping at his waist. Someone bellowed, “Zhang Cuishan, down you go!”

Suspended in mid-air, there was no way to dodge. The enemy’s blow was both ruthless and powerful. In that desperate instant, he pressed his left palm against the weapon, borrowed its momentum, and somersaulted lightly onto the wall’s crest. This was the single horizontal stroke from the Word of Wǔ¹¹, as the ancients wrote: “The swallow rises askew, the wild goose soars swiftly; in peril one commands restraint, in danger one seizes opportunity.” At the brink of mortal danger, he turned catastrophe into deliverance.

In his extremity he had gambled on this newly learnt technique, yet the skill weighed heavy as crumbling stone and light as drifting mist, and without the slightest effort it dissolved the enemy’s thunderous strike. His left foot touched the wall’s summit; already his Judge’s Brush¹² was in his right hand. That ambusher’s blow had been fierce and unyielding. No opponent to take lightly.

The assailant, seeing Zhang Cuishan evade with such ease, was caught off guard. He could not help but exclaim in surprise, then called out, “Not bad, boy! You’ve got real skill!”

Zhang Cuishan crossed hook and brush before his chest, their tips angled downward, a stance called Respectfully Awaiting Instruction,¹³ the deferential posture one assumes when facing an elder of the jianghu. The attacker’s sudden ambush had filled him with fury. Had he not inadvertently learnt from his shifu this calligraphy-derived martial art, his waist would now be shattered, his bones broken, his body grievously wounded. Yet he remained mindful of his shifu’s teachings and dared not show disrespect to a master of the jianghu.

In the darkness, two monks in yellow robes stood below the wall, one to the left, one to the right, each gripping a massive bronze staff. The monk on the left drove his staff into the ground with a resounding clang. “Zhang Cuishan, you of the Seven Xias of Wudang¹⁴ are counted among the famous figures of the jianghu. How could you act with such cruelty?”

Hearing the monk address him by name alone, neither “Zhang the Fifth Xia” nor even “Zhang the Fifth Xia”, Zhang Cuishan felt his temper rise. He replied coldly, “Master, you neither ask the circumstances nor the right and wrong of the matter, yet you lurk beneath the wall to launch a sneak attack. Is that the conduct of a hero or a worthy man? The Shaolin Order’s martial arts are renowned throughout the realm. I had not realised your mastery of underhanded tactics was equally unparalleled.”

The monk let out an enraged roar, raised his staff level, and leapt toward the wall. Before he arrived, the staff’s head was already upon Zhang Cuishan. Zhang Cuishan felt a surge of forceful wind strike his chest. His tiger-head hook swept diagonally, sealing the staff’s advance, and his Judge’s Brush shot forth. With a sharp clang, the brush tip struck squarely against the staff’s shaft. The monk felt a violent shock through his arms. He could not gain the wall and fell back to earth. In that single exchange, Zhang Cuishan’s own arms had gone numb. This monk possessed prodigious strength. He demanded, “Who are you? State your dharma names!”

The monk on the right spoke slowly: “I am Yuanyin.¹⁵ This is my shidi,¹⁶ Yuanye.”¹⁷ Zhang Cuishan lowered his hook and brush, then cupped his fist in salute. “So you are two masters of the Shaolin Order’s ‘Yuan’ generation. I have long heard your esteemed names. Might I ask what instruction you have for me?”

Yuanyin’s speech seemed to lack all vigour, his breath coming in wheezing gasps. He said, “This matter concerns the prestige of both the Shaolin Order and Wudang Order. We are but juniors of the Shaolin Order and have no standing to speak of such things. Yet having stumbled upon this affair today, I would ask one question. The dozens of lives at the Dragon Gate Armed Escort, and my two shizhi¹⁸, all died at Zhang the Fifth Xia’s hand. As the saying goes, human life is as weighty as heaven. How does Zhang the Fifth Xia propose to settle this?”

His words seemed humble and deferential, yet they pressed relentlessly. He was a far more formidable man than Yuanye.

Zhang Cuishan scoffed. “The murders at the Dragon Gate Armed Escort, I too find most bewildering. Master, you insist that I struck the blow. Did you witness it with your own eyes?”

Yuanyin called out, “Huifeng, come and confront Zhang the Fifth Xia.”

From behind the trees emerged four monks in yellow robes, the very four Zhang Cuishan had earlier felled with a single Word of Bù. The one named Huifeng bowed and said, “Reporting to Shibo,¹⁹ the dozens of lives at the Dragon Gate Armed Escort, and Huitong shixiong and Huiguang shixiong, all were… slain by this villain surnamed Zhang.”

Yuanyin said, “Did you see it with your own eyes?”

Huifeng replied, “I saw it with my own eyes. Were it not that we four escaped swiftly, we too would have died at this villain’s hands.”

Yuanyin said, “Disciples of the Buddha must not speak falsehoods. This matter involves both the Shaolin Order and Wudang Order. You must not speak carelessly.”

Huifeng dropped to his knees, pressed his palms together, and said, “The Buddha is above. What I, your disciple Huifeng, have said is the truth. I would never deceive Shibo.”

Yuanyin said, “Then tell us everything you witnessed.”

Zhang Cuishan, hearing this, drifted down from the wall.

Yuanye thought Zhang Cuishan meant to harm Huifeng. He swung his bronze staff in a fierce sweep toward his head and neck. Zhang Cuishan ducked and darted forward, already standing behind Huifeng. Yuanye’s first strike had missed. By the rules of the Demon-Subduing Staff,²⁰ he should have whipped the staff around to strike Zhang Cuishan’s shoulder. But Zhang Cuishan now stood behind Huifeng. If the staff swung back, it must first strike Huifeng. In his alarm, Yuanye forcibly halted his staff and bellowed, “What do you want?”

Zhang Cuishan said, “I wish to hear every detail of how he saw me murder the people in the armed escort.”

Huifeng saw Zhang Cuishan standing barely two feet behind him. He need only move his weapon to end Huifeng’s life instantly. Though his two shibo were beside him, they could not save him in time. Yet fury filled his heart, and he was unafraid.

In a clear voice he said, “Yuanxin shishu²¹ received an urgent letter from Du Dajin shixiong in Jiangbei.²² He immediately dispatched Huitong shixiong and Huiguang shixiong to ride through the night to assist. Later, another order came commanding me to lead three shidi here to the Dragon Gate Armed Escort. When we arrived, Huiguang shixiong said that a powerful enemy might come tonight, and ordered us four to lie in ambush beneath the eastern screen wall to meet the attack. He also warned us to beware of the enemy’s diversion tactics and not to move rashly.”

Yuanyin said, “What happened then? Continue!”

Huifeng said, “Shortly after nightfall, I heard Huitong shixiong shouting and cursing, fighting someone in the rear hall. Then he gave a long, agonised cry. He seemed grievously wounded. I rushed over, and saw that he… he had already passed. This villain surnamed Zhang—”

He sprang to his feet, thrusting a finger at Zhang Cuishan’s nose. “I saw with my own eyes. You struck Huiguang shixiong with a palm, smashing him against the wall and killing him. Knowing I was no match for you, I crouched by the window. I saw you rush to the rear courtyard to kill. Then eight people from the armed escort fled from the rear courtyard. You pursued them and killed each one with a single finger strike. Only after you had slain every last soul in the armed escort did you leap over the wall and leave.”

Zhang Cuishan stood motionless. As Huifeng spoke, spittle flew from his lips, spattering Zhang Cuishan’s face. He neither dodged nor struck back, merely saying coldly, “What happened then?”

Huifeng said furiously, “Then? Then I returned to the eastern wall and discussed matters with my three shidi. We all agreed your martial arts were too strong for us to defeat. We could only wait and see. Little did we know that before long, you would break down the door and enter again, this time specifically seeking Escort Chief Du. I asked your name, and did you not announce yourself as Zhang Cuishan the Silver Hook and Iron Brush? At first I could scarcely believe it. I thought you, as one of the Seven Xias of Wudang, could never commit such murderous atrocities. But you revealed your weapons. How could those be false?”

Zhang Cuishan said, “I announced my name and revealed my weapons, that much is true. And you four were indeed felled by my hand. But say it again: the dozens of lives in this armed escort, you saw with your own eyes that I, surnamed Zhang, killed them all?”

Yuanyin flicked his sleeve, sweeping Huifeng’s body aside and pushing him several feet away, removing him from danger lest Zhang Cuishan, in his rage, suddenly kill him to silence a witness. “Say it again. Let this illustrious Zhang the Fifth Xia, whose name shakes the world, be left without denial.”

Huifeng said, “Very well, I shall say it again. I saw with my own eyes: you struck Huiguang shixiong and Huitong shixiong dead with your palm. I saw you kill the eight from the armed escort with your finger.”

Zhang Cuishan said, “Did you clearly see my face? Was I wearing these same clothes?”

He struck a fire-starter alight and held it to his own face. Huifeng stared at his features, hate blazing in his eyes. “You were wearing these same clothes—a long robe and a scholar’s cap. Yes, and at that time you held a folding fan in your left hand. That fan—now you’ve tucked it into your collar!”

Fury surged through Zhang Cuishan. He could not fathom why Huifeng was so determined to frame him. Raising the fire-starter high, he took two steps forward. “If you dare, say it once more—the killer was I, Zhang Cuishan, and no other!”

A strange light suddenly gleamed in Huifeng’s eyes. Pointing at Zhang Cuishan, he said, “You… you… you’re not—”

Abruptly his body toppled backward, and he lay sprawled upon the ground. Yuanyin and Yuanye cried out in unison and rushed forward to help him up. They saw his eyes wide open, his face filled with bewilderment and terror. But he had already ceased to breathe.

Footnotes

1. 张翠山 – Zhāng Cuìshān. His name meaning “Verdant Mountain.” Fifth disciple of Zhang Sanfeng and member of the Seven Xias of Wudang. His epithet is the Silver Hook Iron Brush. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

2. 虎头钩 – hǔtóu gōu. Literally tiger-head hook. A hooked weapon with a tiger-head design, paired with Zhang Cuishan’s Judge’s Brush. ↩

3. 龙门镖局 – Lóngmén Biāojú. Literally Dragon Gate Armed Escort. An armed escort armed escort. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

4. 江湖 – jiānghú. Literally rivers and lakes. The world of martial arts. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

5. 都大锦 – Dū Dàjǐn. His name meaning “Great Brocade.” Escort Chief of the Dragon Gate Armed Escort. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

6. 俞岱岩 – Yú Dàiyán. His name meaning “Daiyan” references Mount Tai, one of the Five Sacred Mountains. Third disciple of Zhang Sanfeng and member of the Seven Xias of Wudang. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

7. 银钩铁划 – Yíngōu Tiěhuà. Literally silver hook iron brush. Zhang Cuishan’s epithet, derived from his weapons and calligraphy-based martial arts. ↩

8. 不字诀 – Bù Zì Jué. Literally “bù” character formula. A martial technique derived from the strokes of the character 不 (bù, meaning “no” or “not”), part of Zhang Cuishan’s calligraphy-based martial arts. ↩

9. 少林派 – Shàolín Pài. The Shaolin Order, the martial arts tradition originating from Shaolin Monastery. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

10. 师父 – shīfu. Master or teacher; specifically, one’s personal martial arts instructor. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

11. 武字诀 – Wǔ Zì Jué. Literally “wǔ” character formula. A martial technique derived from the strokes of the character 武 (wǔ, meaning “martial” or “military”), part of Zhang Cuishan’s calligraphy-based martial arts. ↩

12. 判官笔 – pànguān bǐ. Literally Judge’s Brush. A short, cylindrical weapon resembling a large brush handle, named after the underworld judge. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

13. 恭聆教诲 – gōnglíng jiàohuì. Literally respectfully awaiting instruction. A defensive stance that shows deference to a martial elder. ↩

14. 武当派 – Wǔdāng Pài. The Wudang Order. A Daoist martial arts tradition founded by Zhang Sanfeng. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

15. 圆音 – Yuányīn. His name meaning “Perfect Sound.” A Shaolin monk of the Yuan generation. ↩

16. 师弟 – shīdì. Male junior. Both of them were apprentice to the same master. Shī means teacher. Dì means younger brother. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

17. 圆业 – Yuányè. His name meaning “Perfect Karma.” A Shaolin monk of the Yuan generation. ↩

18. 师侄 – shīzhí. Disciple of one’s senior or junior (i.e. one’s shifu’s other disciples’ students). Shī means teacher. Zhí means nephew or niece. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

19. 师伯 – shībó. Senior martial uncle. Elder sibling of one’s shifu. Shī means teacher. Bó means father’s elder brother. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

20. 伏魔杖 – Fúmó Zhàng. Literally Demon-Subduing Staff. A Shaolin staff technique. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

21. 圆心 – Yuánxīn. His name meaning “Perfect Heart.” A Shaolin monk of the Yuan generation. ↩

22. 江北 – Jiāngběi. Literally North of the River. Region north of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River​, historically encompassing parts of modern Jiangsu and Anhui provinces. As opposed to Jiangnan. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩