"That's the boat," one of the men whispered. "I made a mark on the mat of the boat earlier. Right after that old fellow from the Huashan School hired the boat. It's gotten to be it."

"That's great! Let's report back to Uncle-Master Zhu then. Senior apprentice brother, when did our 'Hundred-Toxic Faction' start a feud with the Huashan School? Why is Uncle-Master Zhu going through so much trouble to intercept them in such a big way?" the other one asked in whispers.

As soon as Yue Buqun heard the words "Hundred-Toxic Faction," his heart skipped a beat as a slight chill shot down his spine. Because of the slight distraction, the power of the "Divine Art of the Violet Twilight" decreased, and all he could pick out were pieces of words from the conversation.

"…not intercepting…Uncle Master Zu owed someone a favor, and that someone has asked him to inquire about somebody…it wasn't…" the previous one replied.

The man spoke in such a low voice that Yue Buqun could only hear fractions of the sentence and couldn't put the meaning of the words together. By the time he reloaded his "Divine Art of the Violet Twilight," all he heard were sounds of footsteps descending further and further. The two men had faded into the darkness.

"How did our Huashan School start a feud with the 'Hundred-Toxic Faction'?" Yue Buqun thought aloud. "That Uncle-Master Zhu they mentioned most probably is the Head Master of the 'Hundred-Toxic Faction.' This man has a nickname called 'Non-lethal Man.' It is said that this man possesses outstanding skills in the art of poisoning. To kill someone with poison is simple. Anybody can achieve that easily. But when this man poisons someone, the victim won't die, instead, he will feel such great torment as if he has been cut thousands of times or as if there are tens of thousands of bugs chewing and feasting on his flesh. The misery is going to be so immense that the victim would have been better off dead, yet he won't even have enough strength left to commit suicide and would have no other choice but to suffer more. Together with the 'Five-Sylph Sect' in Yunnan Province, the 'Hundred-Toxic Faction' has been named the Ultimate Two Poisonous Clans in the Martial World. Although it is said that the 'Hundred-Toxic Faction' is still inferior to the 'Five-Sylph Sect,' it is certainly no trivial matter. Why would this Master Zhu give me trouble in a big way? Who has asked him to do it?"

Yue Buqun pondered the question over and over but could only come up with two explanations: number one, Feng Buping of the Sword-Branch must have asked the Hundred-Toxic Faction to give trouble to him; number two, among the fifteen a.s.sa.s.sins Linghu Chong had blinded, someone must have been friends with the Hundred-Toxic Faction.

Suddenly a girl's whispering voice from ash.o.r.e caught his attention.

"Does your family really have that whatever 'Evil-Resisting Sword Ma.n.u.script' after all?"

It was the voice of his daughter – Yue Lingshan. Yue Buqun didn't even have to listen on to figure out whom she was talking to. It of course had to be Lin Pingzhi. They must have sneaked ash.o.r.e earlier sometime. Yue Buqun suddenly realized that his daughter's feelings towards Lin Pingzhi had been growing day after day lately. The two dared not show their affection during the day, afraid that people would make fun of them; so instead, they went ash.o.r.e for a date late at night. If it weren't because he had detected enemy coming ash.o.r.e and used his "Divine Art of the Violet Twilight" to spy on them, this would have certainly slipped by him. To load the "Divine Art of the Violet Twilight" would exhaust a good amount of inner energy. He wouldn't have used it under ordinary circ.u.mstances. He certainly didn't expect to find his daughter's little secret together with the origin of the enemy? Then he heard Lin Pingzhi's voice.

"We do have the 'Evil-Resisting Sword Art' and I've shown you the moves several times. But we really don't have the sword art ma.n.u.script."

"Then why do your grandpa and your two uncles keep suspecting big apprentice brother for embezzling your sword art ma.n.u.script?" Yue Lingshan asked.

"Well, they suspected him, but I didn't," Lin Pingzhi answered.

"Humph, how convenient! Let others suspect for you and save yourself the trouble," Yue Lingshan said.

"If my family really had some kind of brilliant sword art ma.n.u.script, our Fortune Prestige Escort House wouldn't have been bullied so much by the Qingcheng Sword School and my family wouldn't have been broken up." Lin Pingzhi sighed.

"That's true. Then when your grandpa and your uncles suspected big apprentice brother, why didn't you defend him against the charge?" Yue Lingshan asked.

"I didn't hear my mom and dad's words with my own ears. I wouldn't have any ground to defend him from," Lin Pingzhi argued.

"So you do suspect big apprentice brother after all," Yue Lingshan concluded.

"Don't say that. If big apprentice brother hears this, it will certainly hurt the brotherhood of fellow apprentices," Lin Pingzhi suggested.

"Why do you have to put up so much affectation?" Yue Lingshan sneered. "Either you do suspect him or you don't. If I were you, I'd have asked big apprentice brother a long time ago." She paused for a second and then spoke again. "You are so much like my father. Both of you suspect big apprentice brother in your hearts and believe that he had embezzled your family's sword art ma.n.u.script…."

"Master suspects him, too?" Lin Pingzhi intercepted.

"If you don't suspect him, why did you use the word 'too'? Didn't I say that your personality is almost identical to my father's? Both of you keep your thoughts to yourself but never speak it out directly." Yue Lingshan chuckled.

Suddenly, a croaked voice roared from the boat right next to the boat of the Huashan members.

"You shameless scoundrels! What a bunch of c.r.a.p! Linghu Chong is a true hero. Why would he want your G.o.d d.a.m.ned sword art ma.n.u.script? Do you know what kind of lowlifes I hate the most? The kind that talks garbage behind one's back!"

His voice exploded like thunders from the sky. Not only were pa.s.sengers from the many boats along the river bank waken up, even the many birds sleeping on the tree branches along the river bank were startled and began chirping loudly. Immediately following the shout, a huge shadow leapt out of the boat and glided toward Lin Pingzhi and Yue Lingshan rapidly.

Neither Lin Pingzhi nor Yue Lingshan had brought a sword when they came ash.o.r.e, so both of them could only rush to defend themselves with kicks and punches. As soon as Yue Buqun heard the man's roar, he could tell that this man must have had resourceful inner energy. And the leap and the glide the man demonstrated clearly showed that he possessed first-cla.s.s Kung Fu skills. Seeing that the man had launched the attack against his daughter, Yue Buqun shouted out in desperation.

"Please, show mercy!"

Hastily, Yue Buqun threw himself at the window and crashed through it to leap toward the riverbank. Still in the mid air, he could already see that the giant man had grabbed hold of both Lin Pingzhi and Yue Lingshan and darted forward with one in each hand.

Yue Buqun was astounded. As soon as his right foot touched the ground, he dashed forward using his Qing-Gong techniques at once. Wielding a move named "White Aurora Shooting the Sun," he thrust his sword toward the man's back.

The man had a very big and tall body, so of course his steps were much bigger than average. He took a step forward and the stab from Yue Buqun was out of range. Without any delay, Yue Buqun followed with a move called "Zhong-Ping Sword" and shot his blade forward a second time. The giant man just happened to take another giant step forward, and once again the attack missed the target.

"Look out!" Yue Buqun let out a crisp roar and shouted out as he stabbed his sword out swiftly using a move named "Cool Breeze Brings Comfort."

When the tip of the blade was within one foot from the man's back, suddenly, a strong wind embraced Yue Buqun as someone charged against him from the side, poking two fingers towards his eyes viciously. It was at the end of the street; a row of houses by the street blocked the moonlight and cast a long shadow on the street. Yue Buqun quickly turned his body aside and dodged the attack. Swinging his long sword with an angle, he sliced the blade out as his counterattack before even catching a glimpse of the enemy. The attacker lowered his head and then stepped forward with a clawed hand striking towards Yue Buqun's "Zhong-Wan Point" on his stomach. Yue Buqun threw a front kick. The man spun around and struck toward his back. Without turning back, Yue Buqun shot a speedy thrust backward with a backhand, but the man dodged the thrust once again and then charged forward to punch at Yue Buqun's chest. Yue Buqun was infuriated. How dare this man be so disrespectful to fight his long sword with bare hands yet using all attacking moves? In the fury, he made a circular motion with the sword and then poked upward all of a sudden toward the enemy's forehead. In a rush, the man flicked the sword with his finger, which changed the direction of the poke slightly. Following the flow of the force Yue Buqun turned the poke into a slice, and with a slight tearing sound he had chopped the man's hat off, exposing a shaven head. The man turned out to be a monk. Blood gushed down from his head; obviously, the slice had injured him. Giving the ground a hard push, the monk leapt backward hastily.

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Seeing that he fled in the opposite direction from the giant who kidnapped Yue Lingshan, Yue Buqun didn't chase after him. By then Madam Yue had caught up with him, sword in her hand.

"Where's Lingshan?" she asked distractedly.

"This way!" Yue Buqun pointed with his left hand and the couple immediately chased on following the road the giant had taken. But soon the road intersected with many other roads and they couldn't tell which way the enemy had taken.

"What now! What now!" Madam Yue cried in despair.

"The man that kidnapped Lingshan is a friend of Chong. I suppose he…he won't go so far as to hurt Lingshan. Let's go ask Chong to find out more about it," Yue Buqun suggested.

"That's right. That man shouted out loud saying that Lingshan and Pingzhi were defaming Chong. I wonder what made him say that." Madam Yue nodded.

"It's about the 'Evil-Resisting Sword Ma.n.u.script' again," Yue Buqun explained.

When the Yue couple arrived back at the riverbank, they found Linghu Chong and the many apprentices all standing by the river looking deeply concerned. After Yue Buqun and Madam Yue walked back into the middle cabin and were just about to send for Linghu Chong for further inquiries, a voice suddenly rose in a distance from ash.o.r.e.

"Here's a letter for Yue Buqun."

Lao Denuo and a few male apprentices unsheathed their swords immediately and leapt back ash.o.r.e. Only moments later, Lao Denuo returned to the cabin and reported.

"Master, we found this piece of cloth under a rock on the ground. The messenger left before we got there." He presented the piece of cloth.

Yue Buqun picked the cloth up and took a good look at it. The cloth was apparently torn from a robe, and someone had written some tremulous words in blood using his finger. It read, "We'll return your stinking daughter on the Five-Tyrant Ridge."

"That monk wrote this," handing the cloth over to his wife, Yue Buqun claimed dryly.

"Whose…whose blood is this?" Madam Yue asked anxiously.

"Don't worry. I gave him a cut on the forehead," Yue Buqun comforted her. He turned to the boatman and asked, "How far are we from the Five-Tyrant Ridge?"

"If we set sail early in the morning, after the Copper-Tile Town and the Jiuhe Town, it's Dongming Town. The Five-Tyrant Ridge is to the east of Dongming next to Heze. It's right on the border between Henan province and Shandong province. If misters want to go there, we can probably get there by dusk tomorrow," the boatman answered.

Yue Buqun answered with a hum as he thought aloud, "They are asking me to meet them on the Five-Tyrant Ridge. This is an appointment I simply can't refuse. But who knows how many people they will have there. Besides, they have Lingshan in their hands. I guess this is a battle I am destined to lose." He couldn't help but hesitate.

Suddenly someone shouted from ash.o.r.e. "Peach Valley's Six Goblins, you d.a.m.n b.u.t.theads, I am your lord Zhong Kui[1] here to hunt you bunch of goblins down."

There was simply no way the Peach Valley's Six Fairies would be taking those words lightly. All six of them instantly cursed back with streams of abuses. Except for Fruit Fairy who couldn't move, the remaining five Fairies all leapt ash.o.r.e without any delay. What they saw was a man with a needle hat holding a long narrow white banner. [2] At the sight of the five Fairies, the man turned around immediately and started running away.

"Peach Valley's Six Goblins are all cowards! I dare you to come after me," he shouted without slowing down his steps.

Bellowing furiously, Root Fairy and the rest of the four Fairies darted after the man. But the man certainly had first-cla.s.s Qing-Gong skills. Within seconds, the six of them had been swallowed by the darkness.

At the time, Yue Buqun and the many Huashan School members had all come ash.o.r.e. Suddenly Yue Buqun shouted.

"This is a trick to lure us away. Get back to the boat right away, everybody."

Right at the moment, a ball shaped shadow suddenly rolled out from nowhere and grabbed onto Linghu Chong's collar in a swift maneuver.

"You come with me!" he shouted. It was none other than that meatball man.

In his tight grips, Linghu Chong had no way of defending himself. Suddenly, another man dashed out from behind a street corner and threw a flying kick toward the meatball man. It was Branch Fairy. Turned out that after he chased after the man with the needle hat for a few hundred feet, he suddenly remembered that his brother Fruit Fairy was still onboard. Afraid that his brother might be taken away by that G.o.d d.a.m.ned "Lord Zhong Kui," he rushed back in guard. And when he saw that the meatball man had taken Linghu Chong prisoner, he immediately rushed over in rescue.

The meatball man instantly dropped Linghu Chong and, in a flash, had entered the cabin and leapt by Fruit Fairy's bed. Lifting his right foot, he a.s.sumed a posture of stepping down on Fruit Fairy's chest.

"Don't hurt my brother!" Branch Fairy shouted in shock.

"Old Man is calling the shot here. Why do I have to listen to you?" the meatball man mocked.

Wasting no time, Branch Fairy leapt into the cabin and with a quick pull, he had both Fruit Fairy and the bedplate in his arms. That was exactly what the meatball man had wanted – to draw him away from Linghu Chong. Leaping back ash.o.r.e speedily, he had Linghu Chong in his grips once again. Throwing Linghu Chong onto his shoulders, he ran away in a scoot.

Branch Fairy suddenly remembered. Ping One-Finger had asked them, the five brothers, to take good care of Linghu Chong, and now Linghu Chong had just been kidnapped. How would they ever justify themselves to Ping One-Finger? Certainly, Doctor Ping would ask them to kill Fruit Fairy as the punishment. But if he left Fruit Fairy unattended, how would Fruit Fairy be able to defend himself at all in his injured state if any enemy were to attack him? At that thought, he held Fruit Fairy in his arms and chased after the meatball man, at once.

Yue Buqun waved a beckon to his wife. "You take care of the apprentices. I'll go take a look," he said.

Madam Yue nodded. Both of them knew too well that with so many tough enemies hidden in the dark, if both of them were to chase after the enemy, perhaps all the apprentices would be in harm's way.

The meatball man's Qing-Gong was really far less than that of the Branch Fairy, but with Linghu Chong on his shoulder, he was able to run with all his might, while Branch Fairy didn't want to risk aggravating Fruit Fairy's wounds and had to carry Fruit Fairy with both arms while running in steady steps, thus simply couldn't gain any distance in the chase. Yue Buqun also used his Qing-Gong techniques and gradually caught up with them. Then, he was able to pick out Branch Fairy's shouting voice, bellowing again and again, demanding the meatball man to let Linghu Chong go, or else, he wouldn't let it go at that. Even though Fruit Fairy couldn't move his body, he definitely didn't want to give his mouth a rest and kept arguing with Branch Fairy along the way.

"Even if you really can catch up with him, none of our other brothers are here, what'cha gonna do? And if there's nothing you can do about it, what you just said, that you wouldn't let it go at that, is only bluffing then," he said.

"Even if I am bluffing, it will at least scare the enemy and slow him down. It's still better than not bluffing," Branch Fairy argued.

"Can't you tell that the meatball is still maintaining a good running speed and is not slowing down at all? I don't think your bluffing is getting us anywhere," Fruit Fairy mocked.

"Well, he hasn't slowed down yet, but trust me, he will slow down after a while," Branch Fairy disagreed. Even with Fruit Fairy in his arms and while debating endlessly, he was still able to maintain his speed and showed no sign of slowing down.

One after another, running in a straight line, the three of them kept running toward the northeast, and the road gradually turned into a rugged and rough mountain path.

Yue Buqun suddenly thought of something. "If the meatball man had set up an ambush here in the valley, and as soon as I run into their trap, the many elite fighters suddenly launch an all out attack, it would be extremely dangerous."

At the thought, he slowed down and pondered over the possibilities, meanwhile, the meatball man had run toward a house by the hillside and quickly climbed over a wall into the house. After a quick check around, Yue Buqun resumed the chase. By then, carrying Fruit Fairy in his arms, Branch Fairy had also climbed over the wall and went in. Suddenly he uttered a loud cry, apparently falling into some kind of a trap. Yue Buqun sneaked closer to the wall and then heard Fruit Fairy's voice.

"Didn't I tell you before to watch out for yourself? See, you just wouldn't listen to me. Well, I guess you like being trapped in this fis.h.i.+ng net like a big fis.h.!.+"

"First of all, it's TWO big fish, not A big fish. Secondly, when the h.e.l.l did you tell me to watch out?" Branch Fairy said sulkily.

"Remember that time we went to that courtyard to steal guavas on the tree when we were still kids, and I told you to watch out for yourself. Don't you remember?" Fruit Fairy reminded him.

"That was like thirty years ago. What has that gotten anything to do with right now?" Branch Fairy disputed.

"Of course it does. That time you were so careless and fell off the tree. Then you got caught and took a good beating. Only after big brother, second brother, fourth brother, and fifth brother came by in time were they able to rescue you and kill that entire family. Now you are being careless again and got caught again," Fruit Fairy said.

"What's the big deal? At the most we'll just have to wait till the rest of our brothers get here and kill this entire family, once again," Branch Fairy replied.

"Humph, you two Peach Valley's Goblins, even just moments before your own death you are still thinking about killing people. Now shut the h.e.l.l up and spare my ears some peace," the meatball man said in a chilling tone. Some m.u.f.fled voices from Branch Fairy and Fruit Fairy followed and soon they both fell silent. Apparently the meatball man had placed some kind of anesthetics in their mouth to shut them up.

Yue Buqun inclined his head and listened warily for a good while, but all he heard was silence on the other side of the wall. He crept closer to the wall and found a big jujube tree right next to the wall, so he gently leapt up the jujube tree and then looked inside. A small hut stood about a dozen feet from the wall. Since Branch Fairy fell into the fis.h.i.+ng net right after he climbed over the wall, Yue Buqun figured that the s.p.a.ce between the hut and the wall most probably had all kinds of b.o.o.by traps. Hiding himself behind the dense leaves of the jujube tree, he loaded the "Divine Art of Violet Twilight" and listened carefully.

The meatball man set Linghu Chong down in a chair. "How the h.e.l.l are you related to Zu Qianqiu that old rascal?" he asked in a low and deep tone.

"I've only met Zu Qianqiu the first time today. Why should I be related to him?" Linghu Chong asked.

"Even now you are still lying!" the meatball man roared angrily. "Don't forget that you are in my hands now. I guarantee you a most miserable death."

"I accidentally ate your precious catholicon. It's only natural that you are mad at me. But to be honest with you, I really doubt that your pills are as great as how you have described them. See, after I took them, there's no improvement at all," Linghu Chong answered with a grin.

"What made you think the result has to be immediate?" the meatball man rebuffed angrily. "The common saying says, 'Illness comes in overwhelming force as if a mountain has collapsed, but will only recede little by little as if reeling the silk thread off a coc.o.o.n.' Only after ten to fifteen days will the medicine show its efficacy."

"Then how about we wait ten to fifteen days to find out?" Linghu Chong suggested.

"How about you kiss my a.s.s? You ate my 'Life-Extending Eight Pills' on the sly. Old Man is gonna waste you right now," the meatball man roared furiously.

"But if you waste me right now, then my life would have ended right now. That just proves that your 'Life-Extending Eight Pills' doesn't extend life after all." Linghu Chong grinned.

"I am killing you. It has nothing to do with the 'Life-Extending Eight Pills'," the meatball man replied.

"If you are going to kill me, help yourself. I have no strength left in me and am incapable of self-defense, anyhow." Linghu Chong sighed.

"Humph, you want it quick? It's not gonna be that easy. But I have to straighten something out first. G.o.d d.a.m.n it! Zu Qianqiu is my decades-long friend. There has gotten be a good reason behind this that made him betray me. Your Huashan School is worthless in the eyes of the 'Old Ancestor of the Yellow River,' so of course he didn't steal my 'Life-Extending Eight Pills' for you just because you are an apprentice of the Huashan School. How odd! Really odd!" While talking to himself, he stamped his feet to the floor angrily.

"Oh, I see. So your nickname is 'Old Ancestor of the Yellow River.' Sorry I didn't know you before," Linghu Chong said.

"Nonsense! How can I be the 'Old Ancestor of the Yellow River' all by myself?" the meatball man chided.

"Why can't you?" Linghu Chong asked curiously.

"One is surnamed Old and the other is surnamed Zu. [3] It of course takes two to make up the 'Old Ancestor of the Yellow River.' You can't even figure this out. What a moron! I am Old Lord, Old Man, and he is Zu Ancestor, Zu Qianqiu. Since we both live by the Yellow River, that's why we are called the 'Old Ancestor of the Yellow River'."

"Why is one called Old Lord and the other one Zu Ancestor?" Linghu Chong couldn't help but ask.

"That's because you are too ignorant and don't know that there are surnames like Old or Zu. My last name is Old, my middle name is 'Lord,' and my first name is 'Man.' So when others call my name, they either call me Old Lord, or Old Man…," the meatball man explained.

Linghu Chong simply couldn't help himself and burst into laughter.

"I bet that Zu Qianqiu's middle name is Ancestor then," he said.

"Of course," the meatball man Old Man answered. He paused for a moment and then muttered in surprise, "What? You don't even know Zu Qianqiu's name? Then maybe you are not related to him. Well…wait, are you Zu Qianqiu's son?"

"How the heck did you get that idea? His surname is Zu, and my surname is Linghu. How did you mix that up?" Linghu Chong found this even funnier.

"How bizarre! I went through so much painstaking effort, by hook or by crook, and finally was able to make the 'Life-Extending Eight Pills' so I can use them to cure my darling daughter's illness. If you aren't Zu Qianqiu's son, why would he steal my precious pills to feed you?" Old Man muttered to himself.

By then, Linghu Chong finally became aware. "So these pills of yours, Mister Old, are for your daughter's illness. I am so, so sorry that I had taken them by mistake. May I ask what kind of illness does your daughter have? Why don't you ask the 'Killer Doctor' Doctor Ping to treat her?"

"Pah! Pah!" Old Man spat in aversion. "Consult Ping One-Finger when one has hard-to-cure disease, of course I know that. I live here in Kaifeng, you dummy! He has this rule that after he cures one, another one must be killed to even the numbers. In order to get him to treat my daughter, I went ahead and killed the entire family of five of his in-laws. By then he finally couldn't reject and devoted himself in diagnosing my daughter's disease. He found out that even before my daughter was born, she already had this weird disease, so he prescribed the instruction for the 'Life-Extending Eight Pills' for me. Otherwise how the heck would I know how to make the eight pills?"

The more Linghu Chong heard, the more surprised he felt. "If senior master you wanted Doctor Ping to treat your daughter, why did you kill his in-law's entire family?" he asked, utterly confused.

"Man, you are so dumb! Let me explain. Ping One-Finger didn't have many foes to start with. And in the last several years, even these few have been wipe out by his patients. Out of all the people in the world, Ping One-Finger hated his mother-in-law the most. But because he fears his wife, he couldn't kill his mother-in-law himself or sent anyone to do it for him. Old Man here is his neighbor, and a fellow martial man in the same region. Of course I know what's on his mind, that's why I did it for him. After I killed the entire family of his in-laws, Ping One-Finger was filled with joy, that's why he worked his b.u.t.t off to diagnose my daughter's illness and prescribed me the treatment," Old Man explained.

"I see," Linghu Chong nodded. "Master Old, your pills are wonderful medicine, but they don't suit my illness. How is your daughter doing right now? Is there enough time to collect the ingredients and make new pills for her?"

"My daughter will only have one year left at most. What makes you think there's still time to make new pills?" Old Man roared angrily. "Alas, having no other alternatives, I guess I'll just have to give it one last try."

He took out several ropes and firmly tied Linghu Chong's wrists and ankles to the chair. Tearing open Linghu Chong's robe, he exposed Linghu Chong's chest.

"What are you doing?" Linghu Chong asked.

"Don't worry, you'll see," Old Man answered with a fleer.

Picking Linghu Chong up together with the chair, he walked through two rooms, and after lifting a heavy cotton curtain, he went into the third room.

As soon as Linghu Chong entered the room, he felt the extreme mugginess inside. The room was completely sealed; even the windows were covered with cotton sheets, making sure that no wind would sneak in from any crack of the window. Two large basins, filled with charcoal fire, occupied the middle of the room. The bed was by one side of the room with curtains hanging low, almost touching the ground. The entire room was filled with a strong smell of herb medicine.

Old Man set the chair down in front of the bed and then lifted the curtain.

"Not-Dead, my sweet girl, how are you feeling today?" he asked gently.

Linghu Chong couldn't believe what he had just heard. "What? The name of Old Man's daughter is 'Not-Dead'. Wouldn't that make the girl's full name Old, Not-Dead? Ah, I see. He mentioned that his daughter had this weird disease even before she was born. He probably was very afraid of losing her, hence naming her 'Not-Dead' as a lucky charm, because it would certainly be a very fortunate thing if one can live till he's very old. Wait, her name starts with the word 'not', then she must have been a member of my Master's apprentice cla.s.s. "[4] The more he thought about this, the more amused he became.

A girl lay on the bed with her eyes shut tightly. She was probably around seventeen years of age. Her face was completely pale and her long hair scattered all over the quilt looking somewhat yellowish and unhealthy.

"Daddy!" the girl murmured without opening her eyes.

"Not-Dead, my sweetheart! The 'Life-Extending Eight Pills' Daddy has been preparing for you are finally ready today. After you take them, you will get better in no time, and you'll finally be able to get up and play," Old Man said gently.

The girl answered with a hum and didn't seem to be very concerned.

Seeing the seriousness of the girl's disease, Linghu Chong felt very sorry for her.

"Old Man must have loved her daughter so very much that he couldn't bare to bring himself to speak the truth and had to lie to her to cheer her up," he thought to himself.

Old Man put his arm under his daughter's neck. "Why don't you sit up a little? It will be easier this way when you take the medicine. The medicine didn't come easy at all. We'd better not waste any of it," he explained.

The girl slowly sat up and Old Man immediately placed two pillows behind her back to make it a little more comfortable for her. The girl opened her eyes and then caught the sight of Linghu Chong. Utterly surprised, she rolled her eyes and stared at Linghu Chong.

"Dad, who…who is he?" she asked.

"Him? He is no human. He is medicine," Old Man beamed.

"He is medicine?" the girl was baffled.

"Yes. He is medicine indeed. The effect of the 'Life-Extending Eight Pills' are way too strong for you, my darling, that's why I had this man take the pills instead so I can draw blood from him as medicine for you," Old Man replied.

"Draw blood from him? Won't that inflict pain for him? That's…that's probably not a good idea." The girl murmured.

"This man is a r.e.t.a.r.d. He won't feel any pain," Old Man comforted her.

The girl answered with a hum and then closed her eyes.

With a feeling of mingled shock and fury, Linghu Chong almost broke out swearing, but then on a second thought, he changed his mind.

"Although I didn't take the girl's life-saving pills intentionally, if she dies because of it, there's still fault on my part. Besides, I don't want to live on like this, anyway, so it wouldn't be a bad idea to atone for my mistake by saving her life with my blood." At that thought, he let out a mournful smile and kept his silence.

Old Man stood next to Linghu Chong, ready to seal his Silence Point as soon as the first word came out of his mouth. But to his great surprise, he found a well-composed and unconcerned Linghu Chong smiling at him quietly, instead. Of course, he had no clue that Linghu Chong had remained disheartened ever since Yue Lingshan had fallen in love with someone else. Especially when Linghu Chong heard the mysterious man chiding Yue Lingshan and Lin Pingzhi for defaming him behind his back, and then seeing them dating secretly ash.o.r.e, he had completely lost the desire to live on and couldn't have cared less about his own life.

"I am going to cut open your heart and use your warm blood to treat my daughter now. Aren't you afraid?" Old Man asked.

"Why should I be afraid?" Linghu Chong replied calmly.

Old Man cast a side glance at Linghu Chong for a moment, and sure enough, there was no trace of fear to be found anywhere on Linghu Chong's face.

"After I cut your heart open and draw your blood out, you are going to die. Now don't blame me for not telling you that beforehand!" Old Man said.

"Everyone will die sooner or later. It's really not that big of a difference whether one dies a few years earlier or a few years later. It would be great if my blood can save your daughter's life. Definitely beats me dying for nothing, and no good for anybody," Linghu Chong replied indifferently.

He could almost see in his imagination how apathetically Yue Lingshan would have reacted to the news of his death. She might even throw in a few comments on top of that like "that's got to serve him right" or "he's got what he deserves." A strong feeling of self-pity welled up in Linghu Chong's heart.

Old Man raised his thumb. "You are a real tough guy! Man, I've never seen anyone like you before," he praised. "It's too bad that my daughter will definitely die if she doesn't drink your blood, otherwise, I'd have let you go."

Making a trip to the kitchen, Old Man returned with a basin of boiling hot water. While holding a sharp knife with his right hand, he soaked a towel in the hot water using his left hand and then placed it on the pit of Linghu Chong's stomach. Suddenly, Zu Qianqiu's voice shouted from outside.

"Old Man, Old Man, open the door. I've got some good stuff for your daughter Not-Dead."

Old Man frowned. With a swift swing, he sliced the hot towel in half, and then stuffed half of it into Linghu Chong's mouth.

"What good stuff?" he murmured to himself as he set down the knife and the basin before opening the front door to let Zu Qianqiu in.

"Hey, Old Man, how are you going to thank me for this?" Zu Qianqiu spoke excitedly as soon as he entered the room. "It was in such urgency, but I couldn't find you, so I took your 'Life-Extending Eight Pills' and fooled him into taking them. If you had known about it, you would have brought those catholicons of yours to him, yourself, but I bet you he wouldn't take the pills that way."

"What nonsense…." Old Man rebuked. But after Zu Qianqiu whispered something right next to his ear, he jumped up all of a sudden.

"Is this real? You…you…are not joking about it?" he asked loudly.

"Why would I joke about it? From what I heard, it is absolutely true. Now Old Man, we have been bosom friends for decades long. Tell me, did I do it the way you would have wanted me to or not?" Zu Qianqiu replied.

"Right, right! d.a.m.n, d.a.m.n!" Old Man shouted, stamping his foot to the ground in agony.

"Wow…what's going on? What right and what d.a.m.n?" Zu Qianqiu was confused.

"You are right, and I am d.a.m.ned!" Old Man answered.

"Why are you d.a.m.ned?" Zu Qianqiu was even more confused.

Dragging Zu by the hand, Old Man led him straight into his daughter's bedroom. As soon as he saw Linghu Chong, he dropped onto his knees and started kowtowing frantically.

"Young Master Linghu, Grandpa Linghu, I must have been so d.a.m.ned blind to have offended you today. Thank Heavens that Zu Qianqiu got here just in time. If I had cut you open and killed you, I would have been d.a.m.ned to h.e.l.l. Even if someone had roasted me to death and stewed all my fats into grease, it wouldn't have been enough punishment worth of my crime."

With the half towel still stuffed in his mouth, Linghu Chong only answered with some indistinguishable grunts. Zu Qianqiu hurriedly dug the towel out of Linghu Chong's mouth and asked.

"Young Master Linghu, how did you get here?"

"Senior Master Old, please, please get up! I am certainly not worth of such etiquette from you. You are really embarra.s.sing me now," Linghu Chong spoke hurriedly as soon as the towel was out of his mouth.

"I had no idea about the relations.h.i.+p between Young Master Linghu and my savior. How dare I to offend you like this? Alas, I am such a moron. Alas, I should have gone to h.e.l.l. Even if I had a hundred daughters and all of them are dying right now, I dare not to even imagine having Young Master Linghu to shed one drop of blood to save their cursed lives," Old Man mumbled on.

"Old Man, why did you tie Young Master Linghu up here?" Zu Qianqiu rolled his eyes.

"Alas, in a word, it was I who have committed all kinds of outrages and perverse acts. Can't you just shut up and spare me some embarra.s.sment?" Old Man replied.

"And why do you have a basin of hot water and a sharp knife over here?" Zu Qianqiu asked again.

Old Man didn't answer his question; instead, he raised his hand and started slapping his own face hard. His fat face already looked like a pumpkin to start with, now after the strong slaps, it puffed up even more.

"I must have been very muddle-headed that I have no clue about what has happened recently. Will you, senior masters, please shed some lights for me?" Linghu Chong beseeched.

"Why don't we talk that over some drinks?" suggested Old Man as he and Zu Qianqiu untied the rope around Linghu Chong hastily.

Casting a side-glance toward the girl on the bed, Linghu Chong asked, "Would your daughter's illness get any worse?"

"No, it will not. Even if it does, alas, well…that's…." Old Man kept murmured to himself words that no one except himself could recognize.

After ushering Linghu Chong and Zu Qianqiu to the front hall, Old Man filled three bowls with wine and also took out a large plate of pork strips to go with the wine. Raising his wine respectfully, he proposed a toast to Linghu Chong. Linghu Chong poured the wine down his throat in continued gulps. The wine only had a light taste and was quite ordinary. But if compared to the wine he had drunk from Zu Qianqiu's wine cups, it tasted at least ten times better.

"Young Master Linghu, I am such a stupid muddle-head to have offended you. Alas, this…that…really…." Speaking with a terrified face, Old Man was out of words to express his sincere regrets.

"Young Master Linghu is a large-minded man. He won't blame you. Besides, if the 'Life-Extending Eight Pills' of yours are truly effective and could mend Young Master Linghu's health, then you will be the one to thank for," Zu Qianqiu comforted him.

"Well, I don't…deserve the credit. Brother Zu, we've got to thank you," Old Man answered.

Zu Qianqiu grinned. "Since I took your eight pills, I was afraid that it might hinder niece Not-Dead's recovery. Here are some ginsengs for her to take as a tonic." He stooped down and then took out a basket. After removing the lid, he pulled out holds of ginsengs, some thick and some slender. There were perhaps at least ten pounds of them.

"Where did you get so much ginsengs?" Old Man asked.

"Where else? From the medicine shop, of course. I borrowed some," Zu Qianqiu answered with a mischievous grin.

"Like when Liu Bei borrowed the city of Jinzhou,[5] there's no returning," Old Man burst into loud laughter. Even though he forced a smile, he still couldn't completely hide the grief and worries written on his face.

"Mister Old and Mister Zu," Linghu Chong said, "although you had good intentions trying to mend my injures, one of you tricked me and the other one tied me up. Now isn't that a bit disrespectful for me?"

Hearing that, both Old Man and Zu Qianqiu stood up immediately and bowed to Linghu Chong with their hands folded in front. "Young Master Linghu, we are so sorry. You can punish us anyway you see fit; we certainly deserve it," they answered in unison.

"Fine! I have a question. You must give me a straight answer. Will you please tell me who is behind all these that have made you show such great respect to me?" Linghu Chong asked.

Old Man and Zu Qianqiu exchanged a stare at each other.

"Well…that…that's your question?" Old Man murmured.

"Young Master Linghu, of course you know this person. Please forgive us for daring not to mention this person's name," Zu Qianqiu answered after a pause.

"But I swear that I don't know who he is," Linghu Chong a.s.sured them. He couldn't help but ponder. "Is it Grand Uncle-Master Feng? Or is it Great Master No Commandment? Or even Tian Boguang? How about Elder Bamboo-Green? It doesn't seem to be any of them. Grand Uncle-Master Feng certainly has such respectful reputation and prestige, but he is living a secluded life and didn't even allow me to let out his whereabouts? How could he have left Mount Huashan for this?"

"Young Master, what you are asking here, brother Old and I most definitely dare not to answer. Even if you kill us, we wouldn't dare answer just the same. You already know the answer in your heart, why do you have to force us to spill it out?" Zu Qianqiu replied.

Hearing the firm tone in his voice, Linghu Chong knew that it would be of no use to try to force the answer out from him. So he said, "Fine. Your not answering my question is certainly not helping with venting my fury. Mister Old, you tied me up to a chair and scared the wits out of me. It's my turn to tie the two of you up this time. And maybe I still wouldn't be relieved and would want to cut out your hearts."

Old Man and Zu Qianqiu exchanged another stare and then answered in unison, "If you want to tie us up, we dare not resist in any way."

Old Man took out two chairs and a bunch of thick ropes. The two of them first tied their own feet to the legs of the chairs tightly and then placed their hands behind their back. "Young Master Linghu, if you will," they said, both thinking that Linghu Chong wasn't really going to tie them up to vent his anger and most likely he was just joking. But to their great surprise, Linghu Chong actually picked up the rope and tied their hands behind their backs as tightly as he could before picking up Old Man's knife.

"I can't seal your pressure points with my finger because I lost all my inner energy. But I am afraid that you would try to get out of the ropes. That's why I am gonna strike your pressure points with the knife handle to seal them that way," Linghu Chong explained.

He turned the knife over and then struck the two with much strength at the Huan-Tiao, Tian-Zhu, and Shao-Hai points using the knife handle. It took him a while to finally seal the pressure points. Stunned, Old Man and Zu Qianqiu looked at each other in speechless despair, and soon felt tickles of fear growing into swarms of terror, not knowing what Linghu Chong had planned next.

"You wait here for me," Linghu Chong exclaimed as he turned and walked out of the hall.

Holding the knife in his grip, Linghu Chong walked until he was outside of the girl's bedroom. He cleared his throat and then asked.

"Miss Old…um…miss, how are you feeling?"

He had wanted to address her as "Miss Old," but then he decided against that. Even though the girl's family name was Old, in her young age, it wouldn't sound very appropriate to call her "Miss Old," and "Miss Old Not-Dead" would simply be unimaginably queer. The girl didn't answer, and only let out a slight snort.

Linghu Chong lifted the cotton curtain and then entered the room. He could see her still in a sitting position, leaning against the pillows, her eyes slightly open, half awake and half asleep. Linghu Chong took two steps forward. Now he could see that her skin on her face almost looked like crystal. Blue veins could clearly be seen underneath the light yellowish muscles; it almost appeared as if he could see blood flowing slowly along the veins. It was so quiet in the room. Everything was in a standing still, not even a trace of brisk wind, as if the blood inside her was also coagulating drop by drop, except her tender breathing, so weak that it seemed as if every time when she breathe out, that was one less breathe for her.

"This young girl could have survived if I didn't take her medicine pills by mistake. I don't have many days left anyway. It doesn't make much difference whether I live a few days more or a few days less, does it?" Linghu Chong thought aloud.

He reached out and grabbed a china bowl. Placing it on the small bed table, he raised his left wrist and then sliced it open with the knife. Blood immediately gushed out like a spring and poured down into the china bowl. Noticing that the basin of hot water Old Man had prepared earlier was still letting out hot steams, he set the knife down and then splashed some hot water over the cut on the wrist so the blood wouldn't start clotting too soon. Within moments, blood had filled more than half of the bowl.

Even in the wooziness, the girl soon noticed the strong smell of blood and as soon as she opened her eyes, the sight of blood dripping all over from Linghu Chong's wrist terrified her. She let out a shriek in shock.

Seeing that the bowl was almost filled with blood, Linghu Chong walked next to the bed and then held the bowl right next to the girl's mouth.

"Hurry, drink this. There are panaceas in the blood that will be able to cure your decease," he urged gently.

"I…I…I am scared. I don't…want to drink that," the girl rejected.