Return of Condor Heroes (179 page)

Li Mochou answered: “Mrs. Guo is chief of the Beggar Clan and a leading personality in the martial realm, junior regrets not having met you much sooner.”

After both sides exchanged the usual pleasantries, Huang Rong asked: “Elder Li, the baby you carry is very sweet and cute. Whose baby is it?” As she said that, Huang Rong had already thought of ways to get the baby back before they began the duel.

“This is very shaming for Gu Mu Pai” [Ancient Tomb Sect], the demoness answered. “Junior has not been able to guide my shi mei (younger apprentice sister) on the right path. This is Long shi mei’s baby ....”

Huang Rong was surprised. She couldn’t guess why Li Mochou was lying.

But the demoness wasn’t deliberately lying. She did believe the baby was Yang Guo and Xiao Longnu’s child. Because she was enraged that her shifu only taught the Jade Heart Manual to her shimei, she used this opportunity to mention her shimei’s sins.

“I thought Miss Long a decent girl”, Huang Rong said. “It’s unbelievable such a thing has happened. Who’s the father?”

“The father?” the demoness said. “Hmm…It’s definitely shameful to mention! The father of this child is Yang Guo, my shimei’s disciple.” Huang Rong, who was usually good at faking, couldn’t help reddening, and anger swelled up.

But she only changed colour briefly and instantly her expression returned to normal. She said: “That is deliberately creating trouble. But the baby is so cute. Elder Li, may I hug it?” She took an apple from her bosom and moved it to-and-fro in front of the baby. “Good child, your round face certainly resembles this apple.”

After stealing Guo Xiang, Li Mochou hid herself in the woods and happily played everyday with the baby. Each morning she would milk the leopard to feed the baby. Li Mochou had committed abundant crimes, but basically she wasn’t cruel at heart. Because of rejected love, she hated the world and its inhabitants, she turned cruel. Since meeting the cute and sweet Guo Xiang, her inborn mother instinct was awakened. Often in the deep of the night she would think about the baby. Deep in her heart she was uncertain that she would agree, in case Xiao Longnu wanted to exchange the ‘Jade Heart Manual’ for the baby.

As Huang Rong wanted to hug the baby, like all mothers, who were always pleased if their babies were praised, she also was happy and was ready to give in.

Huang Rong’s hands barely touched the baby’s clothes, she couldn’t hide the loving expression on her face, the radiant expression of a loving mother who had thought of her missing child day and night without knowing its fate and whereabouts. Now the child in question was at arms length. Li Mochou noticed the look and thought: “If she only wants to hug the baby, why that sudden change?” She hurriedly pulled back and leapt two zhangs backwards. She barely touched the ground as Huang Rong followed closing on her. Expecting an attack, Li Mochou heaved the sack at Huang Rong’s face.

Huang Rong leapt to evade, causing the rice and salt to scatter on the ground. Li Mochou, whisk in the hand, said with a smile: “Mrs. Guo, do you intend to help Yang Guo get his child back?”

Huang Rong, reasoning the demoness to be suspicious already, now had decided to use force. She said smilingly: “I only want to hug that lovely child, you think too lowly of me.”

Li Mochou said: “Guo Family’s renowned name shook the martial realm, junior admired it greatly. Today I have seen the display of skills; the fame is really not an empty one. But junior has to deal with another matter and must leave.” She was afraid that Guo Jing would appear, she turned and walked away.

Huang Rong leaped up and in midair drew her bamboo stick. The original “Dog beating Stick” was passed on to Lu Youjiao, the stick she had now was of the same length and weight but of a light-yellow colour. In midair she aimed at an Accupoint on Li Mochou’s back. Li Mochou angrily thought: “We don’t have any enmity for each other. Today we’ve met for the first time, I’ve talked with due respect to you, why do you attack me without any reason at all?” She checked the stick with her whisk. Huang Rong attacked continuously with six or seven moves, forcing Li Mochou to the defensive. Li Mochou’s wugong was actually slightly below Huang Rong’s and further, she carried a baby, a few stances more and she was in great difficulty.

After several moves Li Mochou saw that Huang Rong didn’t aim her attack at the baby, she thought: “Each time I fight carrying this baby seems to be an advantage.” She said smilingly: “Mrs. Guo, the world is vast and there will be other occasions, why do you choose here and now to try my skills? Should you make a mistake, you will hurt this lovely child.”

Huang Rong thought: “Doesn’t she really know this baby is mine, or is she just pretending? I’ll try her first.” She said: “Thinking of this child, my first ten moves were not seriously executed, if you still want to carry that baby it’s not my fault should she get hurt.” With her stick she aimed at Li Mochou’s right leg, the latter used her whisk to parry, before both weapons clashed Huang Rong already changed direction to the left chest. The attack threatened both Li Mochou and the baby. If it was successful, not only would Li Mochou be injured but the baby would lose its’ life.

Using the stick, Huang Rong had natural control, the stick’s end neared Guo Xiang’s clothes and it seemed the baby couldn’t be saved. But in reality Huang Rong had perfect control on the force and reach of the stick. Li Mochou, who was very worried, surely didn’t know that, she hurriedly evaded to the right, unavoidably revealing a flaw, the stick touched her left shin. Nearly tripping she took two steps before regaining her balance again. She wielded the whisk in front of her body for protection, turning around she said angrily: “Mrs. Guo, you are so famous; how can you be that cruel to a baby?”

Huang Rong, who saw Li Mochou wasn’t pretending, felt great happiness and mused: “You want to protect my daughter; I’ll frighten you a bit.” With a faint smile she said: “Elder Li said this child is illegitimate, why should you want to keep it alive?” With that she launched a chain of attacks all aimed at Guo Xiang. Li Mochou hopped to the left and right frantically, holding the baby tightly. The baby, who now cried loudly, was feeling uncomfortable due to the jolting movements. Huang Rong said silently: “My clever child, don’t be startled. To rescue you, mom is forced to do this.” Although in her heart she felt pity, she launched several swift and lethal attacks in the direction of Guo Xiang. Li Mochou anxiously drew back several steps lifting the whisk in front of Guo Xiang to protect her and called out: “Mrs. Guo, what do you really want?”

Huang Rong said smilingly: “In this era, the martial realm only acknowledges Elder Li and junior as the outstanding female fighters. This time we met by chance, why not use this occasion to arrange a little try out between us?”

The attacks on Guo Xiang had angered Li Mochou; the challenge had angered her even more. She thought: “If your husband was here I will probably be afraid, but we are both females, do you think I fear you?” Immediately she humphed, saying: “Mrs. Guo intends to grant me a lesson; that is what junior always has hoped for.”

Huang Rong: “If you carry a baby during the duel and I win, it won’t satisfy either of us. Put it aside, and then we can move more freely.”

Li Mochou thought: “Guo husband and wife are renowned for their righteousness, but judging her ferocity towards a mere baby makes me believe that fame is much too exaggerated.” She looked in all directions and saw in the East several big trees with a strip of thick grass beneath. She put the baby on the grass, patted it to sooth it, turned and invited Huang Rong to begin.

After ten stances Huang Rong realized that their wugong was about the same level. If she tried now to snatch Guo Xiang away and fight the demoness, then it was probable that Guo Xiang might get hurt. If she killed the demoness first, she wouldn’t have any trouble at all. This female had committed all sorts of crimes, thinking of that, Huang Rong developed a killing intent. Li Mochou thought that her adversary would stop at nothing, seeing Huang Rong often glancing at the baby, she was worried that Huang Rong would carry out a sudden, fake attack and hurt the baby instead. That’s why she positioned herself between Huang Rong and the baby.

During the fight Huang Rong had thought up seven or eight stratagems, each of them would dispatch Li Mochou but unavoidably also endangered Guo Xiang. She pondered: “Looks like this demoness truly cherishes Guo Xiang. If the baby is in her hands and I couldn’t snatch it for a while, it wouldn’t matter much, whereas if I take risks the baby could be endangered.” Suddenly she had an idea: “Elder Li, our wugong doesn’t differ much, a decision would take some time. If meanwhile a wild animal appears and devours the child, wouldn’t it divert our concentration? The best way is to take that little bastard’s life now, and then we could fight at ease.” After saying that, she bent, picked up a pebble, and with her middle finger flicked it, whizzing in the direction of Guo Xiang.

She had used the unique Huang family skill “Divine Flicking Finger” (dan zhi shen tong). Li Mochou, who knew that lethal skill, hurriedly fended off the pebble with her whisk and shouted: “What has this child done to you? Why do you repeatedly try to kill her?”

Huang Rong secretly thought this was funny, she actually flicked with a retracting force, as soon as the pebble was in the vicinity of Guo Xiang, it would fly back. Huang Rong smiled and said: “Elder Li, you certainly defend that child with all your might. People who don’t know would certainly think it is...it is your...”

Li Mochou: “.... is my child?” After saying that, she blushed.

Huang Rong said smilingly: “You are single, so naturally you can’t have a child. I mean people would think it is your younger sister.” Li Mochou humphed, thinking nothing of it. She didn’t realize that the competitive Huang Rong also wouldn’t want to lose even in a battle of insults. If Guo Xiang was Li Mochou’s sister, then Guo Jing and Huang Rong would be Li Mochou’s parents. That’s Huang Rong’s hidden revenge for Li Mochou’s recent remark that Yang Guo was the father of Guo Xiang.

Li Mochou: “Let’s start again!”

Huang Rong: “You are thinking about the child and can’t concentrate, even if I win, it wouldn’t be a fair win. I’ll surround the child with thorn canes, so wild beasts can’t come near her, and then we can both concentrate on the fight.” Saying that, she took a golden knife from her waist to cut canes and wound them around the big trees surrounding Guo Xiang.

At first the demoness was wary but she observed that Huang Rong did it very meticulously and she thought: “In the Jianghu realm Mrs. Guo is praised as multi talented, she really lives up to that reputation.” But seeing Huang Rong’s face bearing a mocking smile she got scared again and shouted: “That’s enough!”

Huang Rong: “If you say it’s enough, that’s all right with me. Elder Li, you’ve met my father, haven’t you?”

Li Mochou: “Yes, I have.”

Huang Rong: “Yang Guo told me you’ve composed a poem of four lines to ridicule my father, haven’t you? It sounds like this:

Li Mochou thought: “Stupid of me not to think about that. Now I understand that she hampers me because of those four lines.” She retorted coldly: “That day it was five against one, wasn’t it?”

Huang Rong: “Today it’s one against one; we’ll see who will be the laughing stock of the Jianghu realm.”

Li Mochou: “Stop being arrogant! I’ve seen a lot of Peach Blossom Island’s wugong (martial arts), it’s mediocre at the most.”

Huang Rong sneered: “Not to mention the Island’s wugong, I think you can’t even cope with the Island’s non-wugong. If you don’t believe me, just try to get that child back.”

Li Mochou was startled: “Has she injured the child?” Hurriedly she jumped in the cane circle following its turns, hearing the baby cry she felt relieved, but after several turns she ended up out of the circle again. She was puzzled, trying to leap in again she was not careful enough, a thorn had ripped her Taoist robe. She didn’t dare to be careless again, looking where to land her feet she suddenly saw Huang Rong standing in the middle of the circle bending down to hug the child. She was shocked and immediately shouted: “Put the child down!” She deliberately tried and tried to bridge the circle to get in but ended on the outside again. The seven or eight big trees occupying an area of about several zhangs formed a maze. She saw Huang Rong putting the child down and dexterously leaping to the East and the West to leave the circle easily.

The ‘Scarlet Serpent Deity’ now remembered the fight against Yang Guo and Chen Ying with them using piled earth before the hut, preventing her from attacking them directly. Now Huang Rong probably also had used the “Eight Diagrams of the Nine Palaces Divine Method” (Jiu gong ba gua shen shu) of Tao Hua Island in arranging the cane circle. Li Mochou decided to beat the enemy first and rescue the child later. She leapt several zhangs away and was ready to fight again. When Huang Rong saw her adversary confused she secretly rejoiced but seeing Li Mochou’s firm decision she also felt a kind of admiration. After successfully securing her daughter in a safe place, she attacked Li Mochou with the stance “To Push the Dog to Lower its Head” (an gou di tou). Li Mochou entangled the stick with the whisk and further attacked Huang Rong. Both had swiftly exchanged several stances.

Li Mochou changed her fighting tactics but her adversary’s bamboo stick technique was really incomparable, with much effort she managed to resist about ten stances, this was already a rare feat in the martial realm. The bamboo stick was a light weapon and could by no means kill like a sharp weapon, but it managed to threaten all main 36 accupoints on the body. Li Mochou again managed to resist several stances; there was sweat on her forehead. Li Mochou put the whisk in front of her body to protect it then leapt backwards, saying: “Mrs. Guo, your Bamboo Stick Technique (zhu bang fa) is really superb, junior admits defeat. But junior has a question which needs an explanation.”