Baby Girl in the Besieged City.

Guo Jing¹ and Yang Guo² had given up all hope of escape when the Mongol cavalry suddenly scattered. An elderly, lame man burst through the line, his left hand bracing himself on an iron crutch while his right swung a red-hot iron hammer. “Young Master Yang, break out now!” he shouted. “I will cover your rear!”

In the chaos of battle, Yang Guo caught a glimpse of the man and recognised him. It was Feng Mofeng, the blacksmith disciple of Peach Blossom Island.³ He was astonished, but in the heat of combat, he had no time to wonder how this man had suddenly appeared.

It turned out that Feng Mofeng had been conscripted by the Mongol army to forge and repair weapons. While in their service, he had secretly assassinated a Mongol commander of a thousand and a commander of a hundred. His methods were so stealthy that he had never been discovered. That day, hearing the clamour of battle, he had climbed to a high vantage point and seen Guo Jing and Yang Guo surrounded. Without hesitation, he thrust his great iron hammer into the forge until it glowed red, then charged in to the rescue. He swung that massive hammer with a roar like the wind. The Mongol soldiers, seeing this blazing, red-hot hammer hurtling toward them, scattered far and wide, not daring to stand in his path. In an instant, he had carved out a road of blood.

Yang Guo’s heart surged with joy. He thrust forward with his sword, fighting to break through. But the Imperial Preceptor spun his golden wheel and caught both Yang Guo’s sword strokes and Feng Mofeng’s hammer strikes at once. Only when Xiaoxiangzi thrust his Mourning Staff toward Guo Jing’s back did the Imperial Preceptor ease his pressure on Yang Guo, allowing him to turn his sword back in rescue. But whenever the Imperial Preceptor’s wheel swung toward Guo Jing, Xiaoxiangzi would use his staff to deflect it.⁴ Neither man wanted the other to kill Guo Jing and claim the title of “Foremost Warrior of the Mongols.”⁵ Had it not been for this rivalry, Yang Guo could have fought to the death and it would not have mattered. Guo Jing would already have lost his life. When Kublai Khan had proclaimed the honour of “Foremost Warrior of the Mongols,” he had hoped to inspire every man to valour. Little did he imagine that each would hinder the others, producing the opposite effect. This was something even he had not foreseen.

For the moment, Guo Jing’s life was preserved. But the Mongol army had already formed an encirclement around them like walls of bronze and iron. The Imperial Preceptor and Xiaoxiangzi pressed their attacks, each vying to be first. Nimoxing, gritting his teeth against the pain of his wounds, still sought openings, striking here and there with vicious, venomous moves.

By now, Guo Jing and Yang Guo had been fighting amidst ten thousand troops for over half a shichen.⁶ The sun had begun to dip westward. The Imperial Preceptor whirled his golden wheel, and his attack pattern suddenly changed. With a clang, the wheel met Yang Guo’s longsword. The Gentleman’s Sword could shear through iron as if it were mud, and the golden wheel immediately showed a notch where the blade had bitten. The Imperial Preceptor paid it no mind, continuing to press forward. The wheel bore down with a fierce surge of wind-force. Yang Guo, fearing he might injure Guo Jing, dared not sidestep. He raised his sword to parry. The golden wheel tilted slightly, and with a soft hiss, it sliced across his right forearm. The wound was not deep, but it had cut a blood vessel. Blood gushed forth. After a few more exchanges, Yang Guo felt his legs and arms growing steadily weaker, his strength ebbing. The enemy’s attacks were relentless, how could he spare a hand to bind the wound and stop the bleeding?

Xiaoxiangzi saw an easy advantage and seized it. He swung his staff to knock aside Nimoxing’s iron serpent, then suddenly leaped up, bringing his staff down toward Guo Jing’s head, preparing to release his poison sand.⁷

Yang Guo was horrified. In desperation, his left hand shot out and seized the tip of the staff. His right hand thrust the longsword forward in the same motion. At that moment, his entire body was exposed. The Imperial Preceptor needed only to give his wheel a gentle turn and Yang Guo’s life would have ended on the spot. But the Imperial Preceptor had his own designs, he wanted to use Yang Guo’s hand to drive Xiaoxiangzi away. He struck out with his palm, forcing Feng Mofeng back, then reached toward Guo Jing’s back, intending to capture him alive and claim a monumental achievement.

Xiaoxiangzi had never imagined Yang Guo would fight with such reckless disregard for his own life. Before he could land, his staff had been seized. Suspended in midair, he had no leverage. A flash of white light before his eyes, the sword tip was already at his chest. He had no choice but to release the staff and throw himself backward, preserving his life.

Feng Mofeng attacked with hammer and crutch together, smashing toward the Imperial Preceptor’s back. The Imperial Preceptor swung his wheel back to block. Two ringing clashes shook Feng Mofeng until the webs of both hands split open. The Imperial Preceptor’s left palm reached for Guo Jing’s back. With a tiger’s roar, Feng Mofeng swung his iron hammer at the Imperial Preceptor’s spine. The Imperial Preceptor spun his left palm back to strike. This blow carried the full force of his neili⁸, he expected to send this strange man vomiting blood in death. But to his shock, there came a sizzling sound and searing pain in his left palm. His hand had stuck to the red-hot iron hammer. The Imperial Preceptor yanked his hand back in haste, but the flesh of his left palm was already burned to a crisp. Feng Mofeng, seeing his opponent flailing, spotted the opening at his back. He reached both arms around from behind the Imperial Preceptor and locked them tight around his body. The two men tumbled to the ground together.

Under normal circumstances, the gap between their martial arts was vast. But the Imperial Preceptor had slammed his palm onto a red-hot iron hammer, searing his palm to the bone and sending agony through his heart. And Feng Mofeng fought with utter disregard for his own life, throwing himself at his enemy with suicidal abandon. The Imperial Preceptor found himself locked in the man’s embrace, unable to break free. His palm was in agony, he had lost the chance to capture Guo Jing, and the one thwarting him was an old man of mediocre martial skill, how could he not be furious? He drove his left fist into Feng Mofeng’s shoulder, shaking him until his internal organs felt as though they had been overturned. But Feng Mofeng, who had witnessed firsthand the Mongol army’s cruelty and savagery as they drove civilians against Xiangyang, and had seen Guo Jing fight to the death to repel the enemy, though he had never met Guo Jing before and had no idea this man was his own school’s esteemed son-in-law, knew one thing: if this man died, Xiangyang was doomed. So he had resolved that he would rather suffer a thousand cuts himself than let Guo Jing come to harm. The Imperial Preceptor’s palms struck with blinding speed. Slap, slap, slap, in moments, Feng Mofeng’s tendons were snapped, his bones shattered, his internal organs grievously wounded. Yet his hands never loosened. His ten fingers sank deep into the flesh of the Imperial Preceptor’s chest.

The Mongol soldiers had been standing around watching the fight, assuming the Imperial Preceptor and his allies would surely succeed, and so none had intervened. But now, seeing the Imperial Preceptor thrown to the ground and Xiaoxiangzi driven back, they surged forward as one. Yang Guo sighed inwardly: It is over. It is over. He swung Xiaoxiangzi’s staff wildly, striking and smashing at random. By chance, his hand triggered a mechanism. With a soft puff, a plume of black smoke shot from the tip of the staff. A dozen or so Mongol soldiers ahead of him breathed the poison smoke and collapsed on the spot.

Yang Guo paused, startled, then understood at once. Carrying Guo Jing on his back, he strode forward. Mongol soldiers surged toward him like a tide. He pressed the mechanism again. Black smoke spewed forth, and another dozen soldiers dropped, poisoned. The Mongol troops were battle-hardened, but every one of them believed in spirits and sorcery. Seeing him wave that staff and spray black smoke, and seeing a dozen men fall senseless each time, they cried out in unison: “His staff has dark magic! Flee! Flee!” But Kublai Khan’s personal guard were fearless beyond measure. With their prince’s orders as unyielding as a mountain, they pressed forward to seize Yang Guo despite the danger. He pointed the staff, released another burst of black smoke, and poisoned another dozen.

Yang Guo pursed his lips and whistled. The yellow horse stretched out its long legs and came galloping toward him. With his last reserves of strength, Yang Guo heaved Guo Jing onto the horse’s back. But he felt his own limbs go weak and numb, he no longer had the strength to mount. He could only pat the horse’s rump gently and call out, “Horse, horse, go now, quickly!” The yellow horse was remarkably intelligent. Seeing that its master lacked the strength to climb on, it raised its head and let out a long neigh, refusing to move. Yang Guo watched the Mongol troops closing in from all sides. He knew that although the poison sand in the staff was fearsome, it would eventually run out. He raised his sword, thinking to stab the horse’s rump and force it to bolt, but he could not bring himself to do it. “Horse, go!” he shouted. He jabbed the staff toward the horse’s hindquarters. But his strength was spent, his aim wavered, and the staff struck Guo Jing’s leg instead. Guo Jing had been drifting in and out of consciousness. The sudden jab of the staff jolted him awake. He opened his eyes, immediately bent down, seized Yang Guo by the chest, and hauled him onto the horse’s back. The yellow horse gave a long, joyful whinny and broke into a gallop.

Horns blared in urgent succession, one rising as another fell. Guo Jing gave a low, drawn-out whistle. The Sweat-blood Horse came running. But a great mass of Mongol cavalry charged in pursuit as well. The red horse ran alongside the yellow one, constantly brushing against Guo Jing’s body. Yang Guo knew that although the yellow horse was a fine steed, it could not compare with the red one. He drew a deep breath, wrapped his arms around Guo Jing, and together they leaped onto the red horse. At that very moment, he heard a dreadful humming sound from behind, the golden wheel was hurtling toward them through the air. A pang struck Yang Guo’s heart: Feng Mofeng has died at the Imperial Preceptor’s hands. The thought had barely formed when the golden wheel’s hum grew louder, closer. Yang Guo pressed himself flat against the horse’s back, hoping the wheel would pass overhead. But the sound stayed low, it was aimed at the red horse’s legs.

The Imperial Preceptor had beaten Feng Mofeng to death, then risen to see Guo Jing and Yang Guo already mounted and beyond pursuit. He had hurled his golden wheel, but aimed it low. He could see that Yang Guo sat behind Guo Jing. Even if the wheel killed Yang Guo, the red horse would still carry Guo Jing to safety. Only by severing the horse’s legs could he succeed.

Yang Guo heard the golden wheel drawing closer and knew he had to turn and parry. He was well aware that his strength was spent, that his sword could never hold against it. But pressed to the extreme, he could only do his utmost. The wheel was now barely two chi from the horse’s legs, its hum so terrifying it shook the heart and soul. Yang Guo lowered his sword to shield the horse’s legs. But the red horse, once it found its spirit, ran faster and faster. A moment passed. The golden wheel was still two chi from the horse’s legs, it had drawn no closer. Yang Guo was overjoyed. He knew the wheel’s momentum could only weaken with time. Sure enough, in the blink of an eye, the wheel was three chi away. Then four, then five, farther and farther, until with a clang, it dropped to the ground.

Yang Guo was exultant. But suddenly, from behind him came a mournful whinny. He turned to see the yellow horse, an arrow through its belly, sinking to its knees. Its eyes were fixed on its master, filled with boundless, lingering devotion. A bitterness rose in Yang Guo’s heart, and he could not hold back his tears.

The red horse raced like wind chasing thunder, swift as a shooting star. In moments, the pursuers were left far behind. Yang Guo held Guo Jing close. “Uncle Guo,” he asked, “how are you?” Guo Jing grunted in response. Yang Guo felt his breathing, it was heavy and laboured, but for now there was no danger. Relief flooded through him. The tension gone, he could no longer hold on. He slumped forward over the horse’s back, drifting in and out of consciousness, letting the red horse run where it would.

Suddenly, he saw ahead countless more troops coming to capture Guo Jing. He flailed his longsword, shouting, “Don’t hurt my Uncle Guo!” He stabbed and slashed wildly left and right. Before his eyes, everything blurred, a face here, a figure there. He swung his sword a while longer, then tumbled from the horse. He was still shouting, “Kill me! Kill me! It is my fault! Don’t hurt Uncle Guo!” Then the heavens spun and the earth turned, and he knew no more.

He did not know how long it was before he drifted back to consciousness. He cried out, “Uncle Guo! Uncle Guo! How are you? Don’t hurt Uncle Guo!” A gentle voice beside him said, “Guoer, be at ease. Your Uncle Guo will be fine after some rest.” Yang Guo turned his head. It was Huang Rong⁹, her face full of gratitude. Behind her stood someone whose eyes glistened with tears, gazing at him with tenderness and love. Xiaolongnü¹⁰. Yang Guo cried out in alarm, “Gugu¹¹, how did you get here? Did the Mongols capture you too? Flee, quickly! Don’t worry about me.” Xiaolongnü said softly, “Guoer, you have come back. Do not be afraid. We are all safe and sound in Xiangyang.”

Yang Guo let out a long sigh. He felt every bone and sinew in his body limp and without anchor. He closed his eyes again. Huang Rong said, “He has awakened. There is no danger now. Stay here with him.” Xiaolongnü nodded, her eyes never leaving Yang Guo.

Huang Rong rose and was about to leave the room when she heard a faint click from the rooftop. Her expression shifted slightly. With a wave of her left palm, she extinguished the candle. The room plunged into sudden darkness, and Yang Guo sat up with a start. His injuries were only external, he had lost a great deal of blood and exhausted himself in fierce combat, which was why he had fainted. But half a day had passed since then. Huang Rong had given him the Peach Blossom Island’s secret healing medicine, the Nine Flower Jade Dew Pills.¹² Young and robust, he had already recovered more than half his strength. Alerted that there was trouble on the roof, he immediately roused himself, ready to rise and fight. Xiaolongnü moved in front of him, drew the Gentleman’s Sword from its place by the bed, and said in a low voice, “Stay still. I will guard you here.”

From the rooftop came a hearty laugh. A voice rang out: “This humble one has come to deliver a letter. Can it be that Southern Dynasty etiquette requires receiving guests in the dark? If there is something shameful to hide, this humble one can return later.” The accent belonged to the Imperial Preceptor’s disciple, Huodu. Huang Rong answered, “Southern Dynasty etiquette adapts to the person. In broad daylight, we receive honourable guests who come in the open. On nights when candles are snuffed and stars sink, we meet villainous guests who skulk and sneak.” Huodu was struck speechless. He leaped lightly down into the courtyard and said, “A letter, to be delivered to Guo Jing, Great Xia Guo.”¹³ Huang Rong opened the door and said, “Please, come in.”

Huodu saw the room was pitch black and did not dare step straight in. He stood outside the door and said, “The letter is here. Please take it.” Huang Rong said, “You call yourself a guest. Why not enter the room?” Huodu sneered. “A gentleman does not place himself in danger. One must guard against hidden arrows.” Huang Rong said, “Is there a gentleman in this world who measures others by his own petty heart?” Huodu felt his face flush. This Chief Huang has a formidable tongue, he thought. In a battle of words with her, I would surely come off worse. Better to hide my inadequacy. He said nothing more, fixed his gaze on the doorway, and extended both hands holding the letter.

Huang Rong thrust out her bamboo staff, darting it toward his face. Huodu was startled and leaped backward several chi. But he felt his hands were empty, the letter had vanished. Huang Rong had touched the tip of her staff to the letter and, using adhesive force, drawn it toward her as he jumped back. She was close to giving birth and her belly was large. She did not wish to meet any outsider face to face, and so she never showed herself to the enemy. Huodu, shaken, felt his spirits plummet. The aggressive confidence with which he had entered the city was now eight or nine parts gone. He called out loudly, “The letter has been delivered. We shall meet again tomorrow night!”

Huang Rong thought, This city of Xiangyang, does he think he can come and go as he pleases? Is that not contempt, as though our city had no one in it? She reached for the teapot on the table and flung its contents outward. A pot of freshly brewed hot tea shot from the spout in a single thread-like stream.

Huodu had been on full alert, fearing some hidden projectile from the room. But this stream of tea flew out without a sound, unlike ordinary projectiles that announced themselves with a whistle of wind. By the time he sensed it, the tea had already splashed across his neck, chest, and right hand. The scalding heat made him cry out in shock. “Aiyo!”, and he scrambled to dodge aside. Huang Rong, standing by the door, seized the moment before he could steady himself. She extended her bamboo staff and employed the “Tripping” formula of the Dog-beating Staff Technique.¹⁴ With a thud, she sent him sprawling. Huodu tried to spring up, but the Tripping formula struck faster with each successive blow. If you could evade the first strike and immediately dodge away, only then could you hope to parry the second. But having been tripped on the very first strike, how could he possibly avoid the second? His feet felt as though they were mired in a swamp, tangled in countless vines. He fell, scrambled up, and fell again.

Huodu’s martial arts were by no means weak. In a formal duel with Huang Rong, though he would ultimately be a notch below her, he would not have been thrown into such disarray from the very start. But the sudden scalding tea had made him believe he had been doused with some terrifying, lethal poison. He feared for his life, once the poison took effect, who knew how hideously his flesh would rot? While his soul was still reeling in terror, Huang Rong struck without warning. The first blow had already broken his footing, and he had no chance against the second. In the darkness, he was battered until his nose was bruised and his face swollen.

By now, the Wu brothers had arrived, drawn by the noise. Huang Rong shouted, “Seize this little thief!”

In his desperation, Huodu’s wits sharpened. He knew that the moment he stood up, he would be tripped yet again. With a great cry of “Aiyo!”, he feigned a heavy fall and lay on the ground, refusing to rise. The Wu brothers pounced together, trying to pin him down. Huodu’s iron-framed folding fan suddenly shot out. Tap, tap, he struck the acupoints on both their legs. He shoved both of them forward simultaneously, using their bodies to block Huang Rong’s bamboo staff, then leaped into the air and landed on the wall. Cupping his hands in salute, he called out, “Chief Huang, what formidable staff technique! What worthless disciples!”

Huang Rong laughed. “Since your body is soaked in poison water, how could anyone else dare lay a hand on you?” Huodu’s heart nearly burst with terror. This poison water scalds the skin, yet carries the scent of tea leaves. What kind of fearsome, bizarre drug could this be? Huang Rong, guessing his thoughts, said, “You have been struck by a lethal poison, and yet you do not even know the name of the poison water. To die in such ignorance. I imagine you would find it hard to close your eyes in peace. Very well, it will do no harm to tell you. This poison is called the Midnight Bone-baring Tea.”¹⁵

Huodu murmured, “Midnight Bone-baring Tea?” Huang Rong said, “Indeed. A single drop on the skin, and your entire body will rot until the bone is laid bare. Between the hour of the Rat and the hour of the Horse, or between the hour of the Horse and the hour of the Rat, you have but six shichen left to live.¹⁶ Hurry home now.”

Huodu had long known that Chief Huang of the Beggars’ Sect not only possessed formidable martial arts, but wisdom and cunning that none could fathom. Her father, Huang Yaoshi, was a man of boundless erudition, his very name contained the character for “medicine,” and to that was added the character for “master.”¹⁷ Of course he was a supreme expert in pharmacology. With her inherited learning and her own brilliant mind, concocting this Midnight Bone-baring Tea would be as easy as turning over her palm. For a moment, Huodu stood frozen on the wall, uncertain whether to go home and await death, or to lower his head and beg her for the antidote.

Huang Rong knew that Huodu was no fool. The poison-water tale could only deceive him for so long, given time, he would surely see through the ruse. She said, “I had no grudge against you to begin with. Had you not spoken with such insolence, you would not have thrown your life away for nothing.” Huodu caught a thread of hope in her words. All thoughts of dignity and pride vanished. He leaped down from the wall and bowed so deeply his head nearly touched the ground. “This humble one was insolent. I beg Chief Huang to forgive my offence.” Huang Rong, concealed behind the door, flicked her finger. A Nine Flower Jade Dew Pill shot out. She said, “Swallow this quickly.” Huodu caught it in his hand. This was a life-saving elixir, how could he delay? He hurriedly put it in his mouth. A pure, refreshing fragrance penetrated straight through to his dantian. A comfort beyond description spread through his entire body. He bowed again and said, “My thanks to Chief Huang for the medicine!” By now, all his arrogance had evaporated. He backed away slowly until he reached the wall, then flipped over it and hurried out of the city.

Huang Rong watched him disappear into the distance and gave a soft sigh. She unsealed the Wu brothers’ acupoints. Huodu’s words echoed in her mind: “What formidable staff technique! What worthless disciples!” Though she had outwitted the enemy, her heart held no pride. The Dog-beating Staff Technique she had used to trip Huodu had required subtle force, and even that had pulled at her belly, causing a dull ache within. She sat down in a chair and regulated her breathing for a long while.

Xiaolongnü lit a candle. Huang Rong opened the letter and read:

“The Mongol Empire’s First Protector of the Faith, the Great Lama Jinlun, sends greetings to the feet of Great Xia Guo: Just now I paid an unworthy visit and was able to behold your noble bearing, which has truly fulfilled a lifelong wish. I had hoped to converse by candlelight through the night, but alas, your esteemed regard was not easily won. How is it that this old monk is so unworthy of your instruction that our meeting was so hurried, coming and going in such haste? The ancients spoke of heads turned white as though still newly met, and of carriages tilting together as though old friends.¹⁸ Long have I pondered, and deeply do I long for you. Tomorrow I shall return to pay my respects. I pray you will not keep a man a thousand li away.”

Huang Rong was alarmed. She passed the letter to Yang Guo and Xiaolongnü to read, then said, “The walls of Xiangyang may be strong, but they cannot stop masters of the jianghu¹⁹. Your Uncle Guo is gravely wounded, and I cannot exert my strength. With the enemy preparing to launch a major assault, what are we to do?”

Yang Guo began, “Uncle Guo…” Xiaolongnü shot him a sideways glance, her eyes full of reproach. Yang Guo knew she was angry at him for risking his life to save Guo Jing, and he fell silent at once. Huang Rong’s suspicions stirred. She asked, “Miss Long, Guoer has not yet fully recovered either. We can only rely on you and Brother Zhu Ziliu to repel the enemy.” Xiaolongnü had never learned to dissemble. Whatever she thought, she said. Flatly, she answered, “I will protect only Guoer. The life or death of others is no concern of mine.”

Huang Rong grew even more puzzled, but she thought it best not to press further. To Yang Guo, she said, “Your Uncle Guo told me that this time, everything depended on your efforts.” Yang Guo recalled how he had once resolved to harm Guo Jing, and shame filled his heart. “Your nephew is useless,” he said. “I have only brought Uncle Guo grave injury.” Huang Rong said, “Rest well now. When the enemy comes, if we cannot match them in strength, we will use cunning.” She turned to Xiaolongnü. “Miss Long, come. I have something to say to you.”

Xiaolongnü hesitated. “He…” Ever since Yang Guo had returned to Xiangyang, she had not left his bedside for a single moment. Hearing Huang Rong call her out, she feared Yang Guo might come to harm again. Huang Rong said, “The enemy has declared they will attack tomorrow, so tonight will surely be quiet. What I have to say concerns Guoer.” Xiaolongnü nodded. In a low voice, she told Yang Guo to be on his guard, then followed Huang Rong out.

Huang Rong led her to her own bedroom and shut the door. “Miss Long,” she said, “you want to kill my husband and me, do you not?”

Xiaolongnü was pure-hearted by nature, but she was by no means a fool. She had resolved to kill Guo Jing and his wife to save Yang Guo’s life. If Huang Rong had tried to coax the truth out of her with words, how could she possibly have revealed it? But Huang Rong had read her character precisely and asked the question directly, like a blade thrust straight to the point. Xiaolongnü froze. Stammering, she said, “I… I… You have treated me so well. Why… why would I want to kill you?” Huang Rong saw the flush rising on her cheeks, the awkwardness in her manner, and grew even more certain. “You need not hide it from me. I already know. Guoer says my husband and I caused his father’s death, and he wants to kill us both in revenge. You love Guoer, so you want to help him fulfil this wish.”

Xiaolongnü had been struck to the heart. She could not lie, and besides, Yang Guo had already let something slip. She was silent for a long while, then sighed and said, “There is one thing I do not understand.” Huang Rong asked, “What do you not understand?” Xiaolongnü said, “Why, then, did Guoer risk his life today to bring Grand Uncle Guo back? He had made an agreement with Jinlun Guoshi and the others, they were to strike together and kill Grand Uncle Guo.”

Huang Rong was deeply shocked. She had guessed that Yang Guo harboured malicious intent, but she had never imagined he would go so far as to collude with the Mongols. She kept her composure, pretending she had known all along. “Perhaps he saw how deeply and righteously Grand Uncle Guo cares for him, and when the moment came, he could not bear to do it.”

Xiaolongnü nodded, her expression mournful. “There is nothing more to say now. He would rather give up his own life, that is his choice alone. I have always known he is the best person in the world. He would rather die himself than harm his enemy.”

In a flash, several thoughts raced through Huang Rong’s mind, but she could not unravel the meaning behind Xiaolongnü’s words. Seeing the deep sorrow on her face, she offered comfort: “The matter of Guoer’s father’s death, there are complications in between. We will explain it to him clearly in time. His injuries are not severe. A few days of rest and he will be well. You need not grieve.”

Xiaolongnü stared at her blankly for a moment. Then, suddenly, two streams of tears rolled down her cheeks like pearls slipping off a broken string. Sobbing, she said, “He… he has only seven days left to live. What… what rest are you talking about?”

Huang Rong was stunned. She asked urgently, “What seven days? Tell me quickly. We will surely find a way to save him.”

Xiaolongnü slowly shook her head. At last, she told the story of what had happened in Passionless Valley²⁰, how Yang Guo had been poisoned by the Passion Flower, how Qiu Qianchi²¹ had given him only half a Passionless Pill,²² how she had set him a deadline of eighteen days to kill the two of them and bring back proof in exchange for the other half. She described how the Passion Flower poison caused such agony when it flared, and how the only thing in the world that could save Yang Guo’s life was that remaining half of the Passionless Pill.

The more Huang Rong heard, the more astonished she became. She had never imagined that the Qiu Qianzhang²³ brothers had a younger sister, Qiu Qianchi, and that this had led to such a calamity. When Xiaolongnü finished, she said, “He has only seven days left. Even if he killed you both tonight, he might not make it back to Passionless Valley in time. Why would I still want to harm you? I only want to save Guoer. As for his father’s revenge or whatever else, none of it matters to me at all.”

Huang Rong had initially thought Yang Guo’s dark intentions were purely about avenging his father. She had never imagined there were so many twists behind it. Seen in this light, his desperate protection of Guo Jing was essentially self-destruction. Such a spirit of self-sacrificing chivalry was truly rare beyond measure. She rose slowly and paced back and forth across the room. For all her peerless cunning, trapped in this dilemma, she could find no good solution. In a few more shichen, the enemy’s top masters would launch their assault. She had reassured Yang Guo by saying, “If we cannot match them in strength, we will use cunning.” But what cunning? What cunning?

Xiaolongnü’s entire heart was consumed by her love for Yang Guo. Huang Rong’s heart, however, was split in two, half for her husband, half for her daughter. All she could think was: How can I keep Jing Gege and Fu’er safe? Then a thought struck her: Guoer can sacrifice himself for others. Can I not do the same? She turned around and said with fierce resolution, “Miss Long, I have a plan that can save Guoer’s life. Will you agree to it?”

Xiaolongnü was overcome with joy. Her whole body trembled. “I… I… even if it means my death… Ah, what is death? Even if it were ten times harder than death… I… I would…” Huang Rong said, “Good. This matter must be known only to you and me. You must not breathe a word of it to anyone, not even to Guoer. Otherwise, it will not work.” Xiaolongnü agreed at once. Huang Rong said, “Tomorrow, you and Guoer will join forces to protect Grand Uncle Guo. Once the crisis has passed, I will give you my head. Let Guoer ride the Sweat-blood Horse and rush to exchange it for the Passionless Pill.”

Xiaolongnü stared blankly. “What did you say?” she asked, bewildered. Huang Rong said gently, “You love Guoer more than your own life, do you not? As long as he is safe and sound, you would be happy even if you died yourself, would you not?” Xiaolongnü nodded. “Yes. How did you know?” Huang Rong gave a faint smile. “Because I love my husband just as you do. You have no child, so you do not know that a mother’s love for her children is no less than the love between husband and wife. I ask only that you protect my husband and daughter. What else would I care about?” Xiaolongnü was silent, not answering.

Huang Rong continued, “Unless you and Guoer join forces, we cannot repel Jinlun Guoshi. Guoer has risked his life to save my husband and me several times. Can I not save him even once? The Sweat-blood Horse can cover a thousand li in a day. In less than three days, he can reach Passionless Valley. Let me tell you. Qiu Qianzhang and Guoer’s father were both wounded by me alone. It has absolutely nothing to do with Grand Uncle Guo. When Qiu Qianchi sees my head, even if she is not fully satisfied, she will have no choice but to give Guoer the antidote. After that, if the two of you can serve the nation and defend the people against the enemy, that would be best. Otherwise, you can retreat to some remote mountain valley and live in seclusion, and I would be grateful all the same.”

These words were spoken with perfect clarity. Beyond this, there truly was no other path. In recent days, Xiaolongnü had been thinking constantly about how to kill Guo Jing and Huang Rong to save Yang Guo’s life. But now, hearing Huang Rong speak these words from her own lips, she felt an overwhelming sense of guilt. She could only shake her head, saying over and over, “No! That cannot be!”

Huang Rong was about to explain further when she suddenly heard Guo Fu²⁴ calling from outside the door: “Ma! Ma! Where are you?” Her voice was frantic. Huang Rong was startled. “Fu’er, what is it?” she asked. Guo Fu pushed open the door and entered. Ignoring Xiaolongnü’s presence entirely, she threw herself into her mother’s arms and cried, “Ma! Big Brother Wu and Little Brother Wu…” She burst into tears. Huang Rong frowned. “What now?” Guo Fu sobbed, “They… the two of them… have gone outside the city to fight.”

Huang Rong was furious. In a harsh voice, she demanded, “Fight? The two brothers are fighting each other?” Guo Fu had rarely seen her mother so angry. Trembling with fear, she said, “Yes. I told them to stop, but they would not listen to a word. They said… they said they would fight to the death. They… they said only one would come back. The loser, even if he survived, would never return to see… to see me.”

The more Huang Rong heard, the angrier she became. With a great enemy at our gates, the lives of everyone in this city hanging by a thread, these two brothers are fighting over a girl, killing each other. Her rage agitated the pregnancy within her, and the pain was so intense that sweat beaded on her forehead. In a low, controlled voice, she said, “You must have stirred up trouble between them. Tell me everything in detail. Do not hide a single thing.” Guo Fu glanced at Xiaolongnü, a faint flush rising on her cheeks. “Ma…” she said.

Xiaolongnü’s thoughts were with Yang Guo. She had no interest in hearing about the Wu brothers’ quarrel. She turned and left, returning to Yang Guo’s side. All the way, she turned Huang Rong’s words over and over in her mind.

Once Xiaolongnü had gone, Guo Fu said, “Ma, they went to the Mongol camp to assassinate Kublai Khan. They were caught, and it was all my fault that Father was badly wounded. If I do not tell you about this, would I not have been unworthy of all the love you and Father have given me?” She then told the whole story, how the Wu brothers had both been courting her at the same time, and how she had told them to win merit by killing the enemy, and that would decide whom she chose. Huang Rong was filled with frustration and anger, but she could not vent it. She only shot her daughter a bitter glare.

Guo Fu said, “Ma, what was I supposed to do? Each of the brothers has his good points. How could I say which one I like more? I told them to kill the enemy and win merit, was that not exactly what you and Father wanted? Who could have known they would be so useless, getting captured the moment they went over there?” Huang Rong spat in disgust. “You knew perfectly well that the Wu brothers’ martial arts are not strong.” Guo Fu retorted, “Then what about Yang Guo? He is only a few years older than them. How is it that he can fight the Imperial Preceptor and charge through enemy camps without ever getting captured?”

Huang Rong knew her daughter had been spoiled by her since childhood. Even when Guo Fu knew she was wrong, she would argue stubbornly to justify herself. Huang Rong did not pursue the past. She asked, “They were released and came back. Why go outside the city to fight again?” Guo Fu said, “Ma, it is your fault. It was because you said they were the disciples of a worthless teacher.” Huang Rong was taken aback. “When did I ever say that?”

Guo Fu said, “I heard Big Brother Wu and Little Brother Wu talking. When Huodu came to deliver the challenge earlier, you ordered them to capture him, but he sealed their acupoints instead. Then you called them worthless.” Huang Rong sighed. “When your skill is not equal to the enemy’s, what can you do? The words ‘disciples of a worthless teacher’, those were Huodu’s words.” Guo Fu said, “That is exactly it. You did not argue with Huodu, so you tacitly agreed. The two brothers were furious. They kept talking about it, and then they began arguing with each other. One blamed the elder brother for being too slow when they tried to capture Huodu. The other said the younger brother had been in the way, blocking his movements. They quarrelled more and more fiercely, and finally drew their swords. I said, ‘You are fighting inside Xiangyang city, what will people think if they see you? Besides, Father is wounded. If you anger him, I will never look at either of you again for the rest of my life.’ So they said, ‘Fine, we will fight outside the city.’”

Huang Rong was silent for a moment, then said bitterly, “With a thousand tangled threads before my eyes, I cannot deal with these things now. If they want to make trouble, let them.” Guo Fu threw her arms around her mother’s neck. “Ma, what if one of them gets hurt?” Huang Rong said angrily, “If they were wounded fighting the enemy, then we would have reason to worry. They are blood brothers, and they are fighting each other. If they die, they deserve it.” Guo Fu saw how stern her mother looked, so different from her usual indulgence. She dared not say more. Covering her face, she ran out.

By now, dawn was breaking. White light had appeared at the window. Huang Rong sat alone in the room. Though she was angry with the Wu brothers, she had raised them since they were small and could not help worrying about them. Thinking of the great peril that lay ahead, she could not hold back her tears. Then she remembered Guo Jing’s injuries and went to his room to check on him.

Guo Jing was seated cross-legged on the bed, quietly circulating his energy. His face was pale, but his breathing was even and steady. She knew that with a few days of rest, he would fully recover. Seeing him like this, she could not help recalling their youth, when the two of them had healed their wounds together in the secret chamber of the Niu Family Village in Lin’an.²⁵

Guo Jing slowly opened his eyes. Seeing the traces of tears on his wife’s face, and the faint smile at the corner of her lips, he said, “Ronger, you know my injuries are not serious. Why worry? It is you who must rest properly.” Huang Rong smiled. “Yes. These past few days, the baby has been moving fiercely. Your Guo Polu, or Guo Xiang, will soon meet her father.”²⁶ She was afraid Guo Jing would worry, so she said nothing about Huodu’s challenge letter or the Wu brothers leaving the city. Guo Jing said, “Tell the Wu brothers to intensify the patrols on the city walls. The enemy knows I am wounded and may seize this chance to attack.” Huang Rong nodded. Guo Jing added, “How are Guoer’s injuries?”

Before Huang Rong could answer, footsteps sounded outside the room. Yang Guo’s voice came through: “Uncle Guo, my injuries are only external. After taking Auntie Guo’s Nine Flower Jade Dew Pills, they are nothing at all.” He pushed open the door and entered, saying, “I have already made a round of the city walls. The brothers are all in high spirits. Only the Wu brothers…” Huang Rong coughed and shot him a look. Yang Guo understood at once and said, “The Wu brothers said that since you suffered grave injuries for their sake, when the enemy comes to attack again, they will fight to the death to repay your kindness.” Guo Jing sighed. “After this ordeal, those two brothers should have learned a lesson, not to treat the affairs of the world as too easy.” Yang Guo said, “Auntie Guo, is Gugu not with you?” Huang Rong said, “We spoke for a while. She must have gone back to rest. Since you were wounded, she has not closed her eyes once.”

Yang Guo grunted in acknowledgement. He thought that after Xiaolongnü had spoken with Huang Rong, she would surely have come to tell him about it. But when she returned, he must have been making his rounds on the city walls. The truth was that when he had first entered Xiangyang, his single-minded purpose had been to assassinate Guo Jing and his wife. But after spending several days in their company, witnessing how they served the nation with utter sincerity, risking their lives at every turn, he had been deeply moved. Then, during the battle in the Mongol camp, when Guo Jing had risked his own life to save him, Yang Guo had completely and irrevocably cast aside all thoughts of killing him. Instead, he had resolved to do everything in his power to repay him. He knew that in seven days, the Passion Flower poison would erupt. He might as well set everything else aside. If he could do one or two good deeds in these seven days, his life would not have been lived in vain. He had also anticipated that with Guo Jing gravely wounded, the enemy would surely strike while they were weak. That was why, as soon as he had recovered some strength, he had gone to inspect the defences on the city walls.

Now, thinking of Xiaolongnü, he was about to go look for her when he suddenly heard someone give a long, ringing laugh from a rooftop some ten zhang away.²⁷ It was followed by two resounding clangs, metal striking metal. Jinlun Guoshi had arrived.

Guo Jing’s expression flickered. He reached out to pull Huang Rong behind him, wanting to shield her with his body. Huang Rong said in a low voice, “Jing Gege, which matters more, the city of Xiangyang, or the love between you and me? Your body, or my body?”

Guo Jing released Huang Rong’s hand. “You are right,” he said. “The nation’s affairs come first!” Huang Rong took out her bamboo staff and stood blocking the doorway. She was thinking about the words she had spoken to Xiaolongnü just moments ago, had Xiaolongnü yet relayed them to Yang Guo? She did not know whether he would step forward to fight the enemy, or whether he would seize this moment of crisis to exact private revenge and obtain the antidote at the same time. This young man’s heart was volatile, his nature hovering between good and evil. If he truly turned against them, all would be lost. So although she stood guard at the door with her staff, her eyes were fixed on Yang Guo.

Those few brief words that Guo Jing and his wife had exchanged fell upon Yang Guo’s ears like a thunderclap that shook the heavens. He had resolved to help Guo Jing, but it had only been out of admiration for his great benevolence and righteousness, the idea of repaying a kindred spirit with his own death. But now, suddenly hearing the words “the nation’s affairs come first,” and recalling what Guo Jing had said outside Xiangyang a few days ago. “For country and for people, that is the mark of a true hero,” and “Serve with utmost devotion until the last breath, and only in death shall his duty end”, his heart suddenly opened wide.²⁸ He saw how deeply this husband and wife loved each other, yet in the face of mortal danger, they put the nation before everything. And what of himself? He had been consumed by his father’s death, by private grudges, by his love for Xiaolongnü. When had he ever given a single thought to the great affairs of the nation? When had he ever thought of the suffering of the common people? Compared to them, he was utterly contemptible.

In that instant, the lessons Huang Rong had taught him as a child on Peach Blossom Island came flooding back, phrases like “sacrifice oneself to fulfil benevolence” and “give one’s life to achieve righteousness”²⁹, they became startlingly clear in his mind. He was drenched in shame, yet at the same time his spirit soared. Facing the onslaught of a powerful enemy, with life and death hanging by a single thread, many thoughts he had never entertained, never considered before, suddenly crystallised with perfect clarity. As his aspirations rose, his entire being seemed to grow taller. A radiance suffused his face, as though he had become a different person entirely.

Though many thoughts raced through his mind, only an instant had passed. Huang Rong watched his expression shift from confusion to shame, from agitation to calm resolve, though she could not fathom what he was thinking. Then she heard him say in a low voice, “Rest assured.” With a clear, ringing cry, he drew the Gentleman’s Sword and rushed to the doorway.

Jinlun Guoshi stood at the edge of the roof, holding one wheel in each hand. Smiling, he said, “Brother Yang, you sway east and lean west, changing sides morning and night, a man who cannot keep his word. Tell me, how does that taste?”

In the past, Yang Guo would have flown into a rage at such words. But now his thoughts were lucid, his heart clear. He said to himself, What you say is true. Only today have my intentions become firm. From now on, whether I live to be a hundred or have only one shichen left, I will never waver again. Aloud, he laughed and said, “Imperial Preceptor, you are quite right. I do not know what demon possessed me, but I actually helped Guo Jing escape back here. The moment he reached Xiangyang, he vanished. I have no idea where he is hiding. I have been regretting it ever since. Do you know where he might be?” As he spoke, he leaped onto the roof, landing just a few chi in front of the Imperial Preceptor.

The Imperial Preceptor eyed him sidelong, thinking: This boy is full of tricks. I cannot tell if his words are true or false. Smiling, he asked, “And if you did find him, what then?” Yang Guo said, “I would run him through with one stroke of my sword.” The Imperial Preceptor said, “Ha! You would dare kill him?” Yang Guo said, “Who said anything about killing him?” The Imperial Preceptor was baffled. “Then who would you kill?”

With a hiss, the Gentleman’s Sword thrust toward his left flank, carrying fierce wind-force. Yang Guo laughed as he struck. “You, of course!” Amid bantering words, he had suddenly launched a sword strike, the move was not only ferociously sharp but also a surprise attack delivered at close range. Had the Imperial Preceptor’s martial arts been even slightly weaker, had he been on par with Nimoxing or Xiaoxiangzi, this single stroke would have ended his life. As it was, his reflexes were swift. In that critical moment, he channeled force into his left arm and swept it outward, deflecting the blade. But the Gentleman’s Sword was piercingly sharp, and it still carved a long gash along his arm, nearly an inch deep. Blood flowed freely.

The Imperial Preceptor had known Yang Guo was cunning, but he had never imagined the boy would strike at this particular moment. To be wounded the instant he entered Xiangyang, his edge was blunted. Furious, he swung his right-hand golden wheel twice in rapid succession, attacking with two moves, while his left-hand silver wheel thrust forward at the same time. Yang Guo did not retreat a single step. For every three moves the enemy launched, he returned three sword strokes. Laughing, he said, “In the Mongol camp, you wounded me with your golden wheel. Only now have I returned the favour with one sword stroke. There is something peculiar about this sword of mine, do you know what it is?” The Imperial Preceptor pressed his attack with the silver wheel, unable to resist asking, “What peculiarity?” Yang Guo laughed. “This peculiarity, you cannot blame me for it.” The Imperial Preceptor said, “Glittering words, deceitful brat! What do you mean, I cannot blame you?” Yang Guo said with an air of satisfaction, “I took this sword from Passionless Valley. Gongsun Zhi³⁰ is an expert in poisons. If by some stroke of luck you survive the poisoning, you can go settle accounts with him.”

The Imperial Preceptor was secretly alarmed. He had seen with his own eyes that this sword had indeed been taken from Passionless Valley. Had that old man Gongsun coated the blade with poison? His attacks slowed as suspicion and uncertainty gnawed at him. In truth, there was no poison on the sword at all. Yang Guo, remembering how Huang Rong had frightened Huodu with hot tea, knew his own martial arts were no match for the Imperial Preceptor. So he seized this chance to disturb the enemy’s mind with words. Seeing that his words had taken effect, he focused on defence, returning a stroke whenever an opening appeared, determined to prevent the Imperial Preceptor from finding a moment to bandage his wound. The injury to the Imperial Preceptor’s left arm was not severe, but the blood would not stop flowing. Even if the sword carried no poison, over time his strength would inevitably wane. He assessed the situation and concluded that speed was essential. He urged his twin wheels into a furious onslaught.

Yang Guo understood his intent. He wielded his longsword with extraordinary tightness in defence. The force behind the Imperial Preceptor’s wheels grew greater and greater. Suddenly, the golden wheel struck upward while the silver wheel swept across. Yang Guo saw he could not withstand it and leaped away. The Imperial Preceptor tore a strip from his robe to bind the wound, but Yang Guo immediately thrust his sword forward again. This pattern repeated several times. Then a scheme came to the Imperial Preceptor. When Yang Guo leaped back to evade, the Imperial Preceptor leaped back at the same time, then hurled his silver wheel, forcing Yang Guo to retreat even farther. With the distance between them widened, by the time Yang Guo attacked again, the Imperial Preceptor had used that fleeting instant to wrap the torn cloth around his left arm, binding the wound. He also noticed that the wound merely ached, there was no numbness or itching. It seemed the sword carried no poison after all. His heart settled.

Just then, from the southeast corner came the urgent clashing of weapons, blade striking blade in rapid succession. Yang Guo looked over and saw Xiaolongnü wielding her longsword, locked in combat against both Xiaoxiangzi and Nimoxing. Xiaoxiangzi’s Mourning Staff had been seized by Yang Guo during the battle in the Mongol camp. In his stupor, Yang Guo had lost it somewhere. Now Xiaoxiangzi held a different staff, identical in shape to the previous one. Yang Guo could not tell whether this one also contained poison sand. He thought that Guo Jing and his wife were in the room below. If the Imperial Preceptor discovered them, the consequences would be dire. He needed to lure him as far away as possible, but he had to do it without leaving the slightest trace, or the scheme would backfire. He called out, “Gugu, do not panic! I am coming!” In a few bounds, he reached Nimoxing’s rear and thrust his sword at him.

The Imperial Preceptor was furious at having fallen for Yang Guo’s sneak attack, but he reminded himself that the purpose of this mission was to assassinate Guo Jing. Revenge for this cunning boy’s sword stroke could wait. He bellowed, “Guo Jing! Great Xia Guo! This old monk has come to call. Why do you not receive your guest?” He called out several times, but no one answered. Only from the northwest came the sounds of shouting and combat, his two disciples, Da’erba³¹ and Huodu, were besieging Zhu Ziliu. He could see that the battle between Yang Guo, Xiaolongnü, Xiaoxiangzi, and Nimoxing would not be decided quickly. Below, the noise of human voices was growing denser, the garrison troops had learned that enemies had infiltrated the city and were rushing to capture the spies.

The Imperial Preceptor thought that these common soldiers could not leap and bound as the martial artists could, so they could not harm him. But once their numbers swelled, they would get in the way. He called out again, “Guo Jing! Oh, Guo Jing! For all your lifetime of heroic fame, how is it that today you have become a turtle hiding in its shell?”

He shouted challenge after challenge, trying to provoke Guo Jing into showing himself. His insults grew more and more vicious, but still there was no sign of Guo Jing. He thought, Xiangyang has tens of thousands of households. How am I supposed to know where he is hiding? If this man is willing to endure humiliation until his wounds heal, killing him afterward will be far harder. After a moment’s thought, a vicious scheme came to him. He leaped down from the roof, found the firewood pile in the rear courtyard, took out his flint and steel, and started a fire. Leaping east and west, he set four or five fires in quick succession, then returned to the rooftop. Once the fire spreads, he thought, you will have no choice but to come out.

Yang Guo was engaged with Xiaoxiangzi and Nimoxing, but his eyes kept darting toward the Imperial Preceptor. Suddenly, he saw him setting fires. Smoke and flames were already rising from both the north and south sides of Guo Jing’s quarters. His heart jolted, and he barely avoided Nimoxing’s iron serpent as it swept toward his chest. He sucked in his chest just in time. Uncle Guo is gravely wounded, and Auntie Guo is about to give birth. Once this fire spreads, if they do not come out, they will be trapped in the flames. But if they flee outside, they will run straight into that bald villain Jinlun. He judged that Xiaolongnü, fighting two top masters alone, could hold out for now. He thrust two swift strokes at Xiaoxiangzi, then leaped off the roof. Through smoke and flame, he searched for Guo Jing and his wife.

He found Huang Rong sitting by Guo Jing’s bed. Thick smoke was pouring in through the window. Guo Jing sat with his eyes closed, circulating his energy. Huang Rong’s brows were slightly furrowed, but her expression was perfectly composed. Seeing Yang Guo enter, she merely smiled faintly. Yang Guo’s heart settled a little at the sight of their calm. In a flash, an idea came to him. He said in a low voice, “I will draw the enemy away. Quickly help Uncle Guo to a safe place to hide.” As he spoke, he reached out and gently lifted the hat from Guo Jing’s head, then leaped out the window.

Huang Rong was puzzled. She had no idea what trick he was up to. The smoke and fire were closing in. She reached out to support Guo Jing and said, “Let us move somewhere else.” But the moment she began to exert force, a sudden, searing pain tore through her belly. She could not help crying out. “Ai-yo!”, and sank back onto the bed. Inwardly, she cursed: Little brat! Not early, not late, you have to choose this very moment to come into the world. Are you trying to get your parents killed? Her due date was still several days away, but the constant shocks and disturbances of recent days had agitated the pregnancy, forcing the child to arrive ahead of time.

The moment Yang Guo was out the window, he saw soldiers everywhere, shouting at the tops of their lungs. Some carried buckets to fight the fires. Some shot arrows at the rooftops. Others brandished weapons on the ground, stomping their feet and cursing. He leaped beside a small soldier in grey, sealed his acupoint with a touch, clapped Guo Jing’s hat onto the soldier’s head, then hoisted him onto his back. Flourishing his sword in a spray of flashing light, he leaped onto the roof.

By now, Xiaoxiangzi and Nimoxing were fighting Xiaolongnü two against one, while Da’erba and Huodu had joined forces against Zhu Ziliu. Both pairs already held the upper hand. Jinlun Guoshi had trapped Guo Fu between his two wheels, the sharp edges slicing back and forth just inches from her face, as he relentlessly demanded to know where her parents were. Guo Fu’s hair was dishevelled, the tip of her longsword had been smashed off by the golden wheel, but she clenched her teeth and fought on fiercely, ignoring the Imperial Preceptor’s questions as though she had not heard them. Inwardly, she was seething: If Big Wu and Little Wu had not gone off to kill each other, the three of us could face this bald villain together. Why should we fear him? The words burst from her lips before she could stop them: “Fine! The two of you keep fighting over me! No matter who wins, when you come back, all you will find is my corpse!” The Imperial Preceptor said, puzzled, “What are you saying? Where is Guo Jing?”

He was waiting for Guo Fu’s answer when he suddenly saw Yang Guo fleeing toward the northwest with someone on his back. The figure on Yang Guo’s back was motionless, it had to be Guo Jing. The Imperial Preceptor immediately abandoned Guo Fu and gave chase. Xiaoxiangzi, Nimoxing, Da’erba, and Huodu all saw this and likewise abandoned their opponents, racing after him. Zhu Ziliu did not hesitate, he followed to help Yang Guo protect Guo Jing.

As Yang Guo passed Xiaolongnü on the roof, he shot her a meaningful glance and smiled, a strange, sly expression. Xiaolongnü knew he was up to another trick, but she could not guess what scheme he had devised. The enemy was strong, and she could not set her mind at ease. She wanted to follow and help, but suddenly, from the room below, came the sound of a baby’s cry. “Wah, wah!” Guo Fu cried out joyfully, “Ma has given birth to a little brother!” She leaped down. It is a truth of womanhood the world over: when you hear someone has given birth, the first question is always whether it is a boy or a girl. Xiaolongnü’s curiosity was no different from anyone else’s. Besides, Yang Guo was full of stratagems, that smile seemed to suggest he had the upper hand. She decided to go see Huang Rong’s baby first, and followed Guo Fu inside.

Jinlun Guoshi gathered his breath and pursued at top speed. He was drawing closer and closer to Yang Guo, and his heart swelled with joy. Let us see you escape my grasp this time, he thought. He could see that the hat on the person Yang Guo was carrying was the very one Guo Jing had worn the day before. It was Guo Jing, beyond any doubt.

The qinggong of the Ancient Tomb School that Yang Guo had learned was arguably unmatched under heaven. Even with someone on his back, the thought that every step he took put Uncle Guo one step farther from danger drove him forward. He ran with desperate, life-or-death urgency. For a time, the Imperial Preceptor could not catch him. Yang Guo dashed across the rooftops for a while, then, hearing the footsteps behind him drawing nearer, leaped down to the ground. Through the alleys and lanes, he dodged east and burrowed west, running in great circles, playing hide-and-seek with the Imperial Preceptor.

Yang Guo’s qinggong was slightly superior to the Imperial Preceptor’s, but with a person on his back, had they been on open ground, he would have been caught long ago. By sticking to the darkest, most twisting lanes and alleys, hiding and darting, he kept the Imperial Preceptor from catching him. As the two of them circled around, Xiaoxiangzi, Nimoxing, and Zhu Ziliu arrived one after another.

The Imperial Preceptor said to Nimoxing, “Brother Nimoxing, you guard this alley entrance. I will go in and flush that brat out.” Nimoxing rolled his strange eyes and barked, “Monk’s words are for monk to hear himself. Nimoxing will not listen, not at all.” The Imperial Preceptor thought, This Indian dwarf is beyond reason. He leaped onto a wall and scanned the area. He spotted Yang Guo, carrying Guo Jing, crouched in a corner catching his breath. Delighted, he crept along the wall, preparing to pounce down and seize them. But Yang Guo suddenly let out a great cry, sprang to his feet, and vanished into the smoke, disappearing without a trace.

The Imperial Preceptor had started the fires precisely to force Guo Jing out. But now, with smoke and flames everywhere, it was harder than ever to find anyone. He was peering this way and that when he heard Da’erba shout, “Here!” The Imperial Preceptor followed the voice and found Da’erba swinging his golden pestle, locked in combat with Yang Guo. The Imperial Preceptor leaped forward and cut off Yang Guo’s retreat. Yang Guo charged ahead, slipping past Da’erba in a blur. At that moment, the Imperial Preceptor’s silver wheel was already in flight.

The silver wheel came like the wind. Yang Guo had no time to dodge. With a ripping sound, it grazed Guo Jing’s shoulder, slicing a deep gash across his back. The Imperial Preceptor was exultant. “Got him!” he cried. But Yang Guo, ignoring whether Guo Jing was dead or alive, kept running at full speed.

Yang Guo burst out of the alley to find a sinister voice ahead: “Boy, surrender!” It was Xiaoxiangzi, holding his staff and blocking the alley exit. Yang Guo now had no path forward and pursuers behind. He looked up. On the wall above crouched a dark, huddled shape. Nimoxing. Yang Guo leaped onto the wall. Nimoxing’s strange serpent struck down at his head, trying to force him back into the alley. Yang Guo calculated that enough time had passed. Guo Jing and Huang Rong must surely have escaped by now. He reversed his grip on the soldier on his back and thrust him into Nimoxing’s hands, shouting, “Here is Guo Jing for you!”

Nimoxing was overcome with shock and joy. He thought Yang Guo had flipped yet again, suddenly switching sides to deliver a monumental prize into his hands. He reached out and seized the figure. Yang Guo lashed out with a fierce kick, striking Nimoxing square in the buttocks and sending him tumbling off the wall. Nimoxing bellowed in triumph, “I have captured Guo Jing! I am the Foremost Warrior of the Mongol Empire!” Xiaoxiangzi and Da’erba would never let him claim the glory alone. They rushed over to fight for the prize. The three of them each seized one of the small soldier’s limbs and pulled with all their might. All three possessed tremendous strength. With that single wrench, the soldier was torn into three pieces. His hat fell off, and the three of them saw clearly that it was not Guo Jing. They stood frozen in place, speechless.

The Imperial Preceptor had seen Yang Guo abandon Guo Jing and flee, and had known from the start that something was amiss. He had not joined the scramble. Seeing the three of them suddenly freeze, he snorted and cursed, “Idiots!” Then he resumed his pursuit of Yang Guo. Even if I cannot take Guo Jing today, he thought, if I can kill this treacherous, deceitful boy, this trip to Xiangyang will not have been in vain.

But by now, Yang Guo had vanished without a trace. Where could the Imperial Preceptor search? After a moment’s thought, he reasoned: That brat Yang Guo carried a fake Guo Jing and ran with such desperate effort, obviously, he wanted to lead me on a wild chase. The real Guo Jing must be somewhere near where I started those fires. Since he used a trick, I will use a counter-trick to draw him out. He headed straight for the area where the fires burned fiercest.

Yang Guo was hiding under the eaves of a house, watching the Imperial Preceptor’s movements. He saw him racing back toward Guo Jing’s residence. Not knowing whether Guo Jing had already escaped to safety, his heart was filled with worry. Quietly, he followed. He watched the Imperial Preceptor reach the vicinity of the large house, then leap down, shouting, “Ah, Guo Jing! So you were here all along! Come with this old monk now!” Yang Guo was horrified and was about to leap down after him when he heard the clashing of weapons. ping-ping-pang-pang, and the Imperial Preceptor’s shout: “Guo Jing! Surrender at once!” The sounds of metal striking metal continued without pause. Yang Guo’s eyes rolled. He laughed to himself: You stinking bald villain. I nearly fell for your trick. How laughable, trying too hard and ruining your own scheme. What weapon-clashing sounds are you faking? Uncle Guo is wounded, how could he cross weapons with you? And how could there be such a continuous clatter of combat? You want to trick me into showing myself. I will stay right here and watch you make a fool of yourself.

Then he heard the Imperial Preceptor bellow, “Yang Guo! You are dead this time for sure!” Yang Guo was puzzled. What does he mean, I am dead this time? Then he understood. He cannot draw me out, so he wants to make Uncle Guo rush out to save me. He heard the Imperial Preceptor laugh heartily and say, “Yang Guo, ah, Yang Guo! To lose your miserable life at my hands today, you can hardly complain.”

The words had barely left his lips when a white figure flickered through the smoke. A young woman burst out and threw herself at the Imperial Preceptor, sword thrusting. Yang Guo shouted, “Gugu! I am here!” But the Imperial Preceptor had already swung his wheels to intercept Xiaolongnü. The Imperial Preceptor’s shouting and clamouring had made it sound as though Yang Guo was in mortal danger. Xiaolongnü, hearing this, had been overcome with concern and rushed out to fight. Yang Guo raised his sword and leaped to her side. The two exchanged a smile, then launched into the Pure-hearted Jade Maiden Swordplay,³² enveloping the Imperial Preceptor in a net of sword light. The Imperial Preceptor groaned inwardly: Now I have brought disaster upon myself, letting these two combine their swords again. All around them, heat billowed and steamed. Pillars of fire and beams of smoke collapsed and fell.

The Imperial Preceptor fought with all his might, using his wheels to fend off their twin swords as he retreated toward the northwest corner. Yang Guo called out, “We cannot let him escape today! We must eliminate this root of disaster!” His longsword trembled, and his body rose with the blade as he thrust toward the Imperial Preceptor’s back.

Since his last defeat under the Pure-hearted Jade Maiden Swordplay, the Imperial Preceptor had devoted himself to deep contemplation and had developed a set of techniques specifically to counter this sword art. The only problem was that when the two swords combined, their mysteries were boundless. The two practitioners’ minds merged into one, becoming a single martial arts adept with four legs and four arms. Whether his new techniques could truly break this was something he had never been able to confirm. Now, with the situation desperate, he could no longer worry about the many flaws still present in his Five Wheels Divine Palm.³³ He had no choice but to try. Reaching into his robes, he produced a ringing clatter as three more wheels flew into the air, while he still held one wheel in each hand. These five wheels, gold, silver, copper, iron, and lead, varied in weight and size. He caught and flung them in succession, the wheels emerging now straight, now askew.

Yang Guo and Xiaolongnü were immediately dazzled and disoriented. Inwardly alarmed, Yang Guo thrust two sword strokes to the left while leaning right. Xiaolongnü understood at once. She struck repeatedly to the right with her Lady’s Sword, shifting her footwork to close the distance between them. Facing such strange techniques, they dared not attack immediately. They would first secure their defence, study the patterns of the enemy’s moves, then plan their counterattack.

The Imperial Preceptor’s five wheels spun like the wind. But he saw that the two opponents’ sword energy crisscrossed, forming a net of light. Though the combined might of his five wheels was formidable, they could not penetrate that sword light. He sighed to himself: Even with all five wheels deployed, I still cannot overcome the combined swords of these two youngsters. Just as his spirits were flagging, two sharp cries. “Wah, wah!”, came from within Xiaolongnü’s robes. A baby was wailing. This startled not only the Imperial Preceptor but Yang Guo as well. All three froze for a moment, their attacks slowing.

Xiaolongnü patted the baby gently with her left hand and said, “Little one, do not cry. Watch me drive away this old monk.” But the baby only cried harder. In a low voice, Yang Guo asked, “Auntie Guo’s?” Xiaolongnü nodded, then thrust a sword stroke at the Imperial Preceptor.

The Imperial Preceptor blocked with his golden wheel. He had not caught Yang Guo’s question and could not fathom why Xiaolongnü was carrying a baby. But he reasoned that the added encumbrance would surely diminish the power of her swordplay. He urged his golden wheel forward, attacking Xiaolongnü with ferocity.

Yang Guo launched several sword strokes, taking over the Imperial Preceptor’s attacks. He turned his head and asked, “Are Uncle Guo and Auntie Guo all right?” Xiaolongnü said, “Chief Huang helped Grand Uncle Guo escape from the burning building…” Clang! She parried the Imperial Preceptor’s left-hand copper wheel and continued, “The situation was desperate, the main beam was about to come crashing down. I snatched this baby girl from the bed…” Yang Guo swept a horizontal slash at the Imperial Preceptor’s right leg, neutralizing the lead wheel being pushed toward Xiaolongnü. “It is a girl?” he asked. Guo Jing already had one daughter. Yang Guo had expected a boy this time. Another daughter was somewhat unexpected. Xiaolongnü nodded. “A girl. Quick, take her…” She reached her left hand into her robes, wanting to hand the baby to Yang Guo.

But amid the baby’s cries, the Imperial Preceptor’s attacks grew fiercer. Three wheels whirled overhead, waiting for a chance to strike down. The two wheels in his hands grew even more relentless. Yang Guo was exerting every ounce of his strength just to hold him off. How could he spare a hand to take the baby? Xiaolongnü cried, “Take the child, quickly! Ride the Sweat-blood Horse to…” Clang, clang! The Imperial Preceptor’s twin wheels drove them both into peril. Xiaolongnü could not finish her sentence. By now, their hearts were each preoccupied with different thoughts, and the power of the Pure-hearted Jade Maiden Swordplay could no longer manifest.

Yang Guo thought that only by taking the baby himself could Xiaolongnü stop dividing her attention and avoid a fatal mistake. He edged closer to her side. Xiaolongnü was also about to hand the baby to Yang Guo. Their intentions aligned, and in that instant, the power of their twin swords surged. The Imperial Preceptor was forced back two steps. Xiaolongnü passed the baby over with her left hand. Yang Guo was reaching out to take it when a black shadow flashed, the iron wheel came slicing diagonally toward the infant. Fearing the baby would be hurt, Xiaolongnü released the child, flipped her palm up, and grabbed at the iron wheel. The wheel’s momentum was ferocious, its edge sharper than a blade. But Xiaolongnü wore her gold-thread gloves.³⁴ As her palm met the wheel, she pushed outward, using oblique force to neutralize its spinning momentum, then lifted upward and seized it, a perfect application of deflecting a thousand jin with four taels.³⁵

At that very moment, Yang Guo caught the baby. Seeing Xiaolongnü snatch the iron wheel, he cried, “Excellent!” Had the Imperial Preceptor hurled the wheel directly at Xiaolongnü, she would have had great difficulty catching it. But because it had been aimed at the baby, she had been able to seize it from the side. Xiaolongnü was delighted to have captured the wheel. She gave a soft laugh and, imitating the Imperial Preceptor’s own technique, raised the iron wheel and hurled it at her enemy, repaying him in his own coin. The Imperial Preceptor was both shocked and humiliated. With one of his five wheels lost, the Five Wheels Divine Palm was instantly broken. He decided to withdraw the other two, keeping only the gold and silver wheels in his hands. Slashing horizontally and thrusting vertically, his power increased further.

Yang Guo held the baby in his left arm. “Let us kill this bald villain first,” he said. “Everything else can wait.” Xiaolongnü said, “Good!” She held the iron wheel across her chest as a shield and, together with Yang Guo, attacked with both swords. With a formidable new weapon in hand and freed from the encumbrance of the baby, her power should have doubled. But to her shock, after just a few moves, her swordplay and Yang Guo’s were jarringly out of sync, they could no longer combine their swords. The more she fought, the more alarmed she became, unable to understand why. She did not realise that the wondrous essence of the Pure-hearted Jade Maiden Swordplay lay purely in the joyful communion of two hearts, free of all impurity. Now, with an iron wheel thrust between their twin swords, it was as though a third party had inserted itself between a pair of lovers, disruption upon disruption. How could their minds still flow as one? How could her heart become his heart? Neither of them grasped this truth in the heat of the moment. They fought several more exchanges, and now there was even more obstruction than if each had been fighting alone. Xiaolongnü grew desperate. “We cannot beat him today! Take the baby and go to Passionless Valley, quickly…”

A thought stirred in Yang Guo’s mind, and he understood her meaning: if he rode the Sweat-blood Horse out of the city now, he could reach Passionless Valley within seven days. Though he could not bring the heads of Guo Jing and Huang Rong, he would be bringing their daughter. He could tell Qiu Qianchi that Guo Jing and his wife, devastated by the loss of their beloved daughter, would surely come to Passionless Valley, and then he could find a way to exact his revenge. Under those circumstances, Qiu Qianchi would have no choice but to hand over the remaining half of the pill. Once the lethal poison in his body was neutralized, he could then risk everything to rescue the infant from danger. This delaying tactic, he calculated, was something Qiu Qianchi would have to accept. Two days ago, Yang Guo would not have hesitated for an instant. But now, his admiration for Guo Jing’s wholehearted devotion to the nation had reached its peak. He could not bear to put Guo Jing’s daughter in danger for his own sake. To seize the man’s infant daughter and deliver her to Passionless Valley, no matter how you looked at it, it was exploiting someone’s misfortune. It was not what a true man of honour should do. So after a brief pause, he said, “Gugu, that will not do!”

Xiaolongnü cried out urgently, “You… you…” She had only spoken two words when, with a ripping sound, the Imperial Preceptor’s golden wheel tore through the cloth on her left shoulder. Yang Guo said, “To act in such a way, how could I face Uncle Guo? How could I have the face to wield this sword?” He raised the Gentleman’s Sword as he spoke. His sudden change of heart was something Xiaolongnü could not have known. Her entire being was devoted to one thing: curing the poison in Yang Guo’s body. Hearing him say he wanted to honour the man who had killed his father, that he wanted to be a virtuous gentleman, she was utterly bewildered. With their thoughts now at odds, their swordplay became even harder to coordinate. The Imperial Preceptor seized the advantage, stepped forward, bent his arm, and drove an elbow strike into Yang Guo’s left shoulder.

Yang Guo felt half his body go numb. The baby slipped from his arms. The three of them were fighting fiercely on the rooftop. The moment the infant left Yang Guo’s embrace, it plummeted straight toward the ground. Yang Guo and Xiaolongnü cried out together in horror, wanting to leap down and save it, but how could they possibly make it in time?

The Imperial Preceptor had pieced together the truth from the fragments of their conversation. He knew this baby was the daughter of Guo Jing and Huang Rong. Though I could not capture Guo Jing, he thought, if I take his daughter as a hostage and use her to force his surrender, would that not be an extraordinary achievement? Seeing the critical danger, he swept his right hand out. The silver wheel flew forth and landed perfectly beneath the baby’s swaddling clothes.

The silver wheel caught the infant, holding her five chi above the ground, and glided forward on a level plane. All three leaped down from the roof, racing to seize the wheel. Yang Guo was the closest. He saw the silver wheel descending lower and lower, soon it would touch the ground. He kicked off with his right foot, throwing himself into a roll, intending to cushion himself beneath the wheel and catch both wheel and child together, so the baby would not suffer the slightest harm. But suddenly, an arm reached in from the side, seized the golden wheel with the baby still upon it, and drew them away. The figure immediately turned and fled.

Yang Guo flipped to his feet. The Imperial Preceptor and Xiaolongnü rushed to his side. Xiaolongnü cried out, “It is my senior sister!”

Yang Guo saw the figure draped in a pale yellow Daoist robe, a horsetail whisk in her right hand, it was Li Mochou³⁶’s back, unmistakably. How had this woman come to Xiangyang at such a moment? She was vicious by nature, her methods deadly beyond measure. If this infant fell into her hands, what good could possibly come of it? Yang Guo gathered his breath and gave chase at top speed.

Xiaolongnü shouted, “Senior Sister! Senior Sister! This baby is of great consequence! Why are you taking her?” Li Mochou did not turn back. From the distance, her voice drifted back: “Our Ancient Tomb School has been virgins for generations. Yet you have gone and had a child. Have you no shame?” Xiaolongnü called out, “It is not my child! Give her back!” She shouted several more times, but the effort cost her breath, and she immediately fell a dozen zhang behind. She watched Li Mochou and the other two heading north, and she pursued.

By now, troops and horses were everywhere in the city, with shouts and commands filling the air, some directing the firefighting, others hunting for spies. Xiaolongnü saw and heard none of it. She was just reaching the city wall when she spotted Lu Youjiao leading a contingent of Beggars’ Sect members on patrol at the north gate, on guard against the enemy exploiting the chaos of the fires to attack. The moment he saw Xiaolongnü, he asked urgently, “Miss Long, are Chief Huang and Great Xia Guo safe?” Xiaolongnü ignored his question and asked instead, “Have you seen Young Master Yang and Jinlun Guoshi? Have you seen a woman carrying a child?” Lu Youjiao pointed beyond the city wall. “All three jumped down from the wall.”

Xiaolongnü was stunned. The city wall was so high, even the strongest martial artist would break bones leaping from it. How could all three have jumped? Then her eye fell on a Beggars’ Sect disciple who was brushing down Guo Jing’s Sweat-blood Horse. A chill ran through her: Even if Guoer manages to seize the baby, without this horse, how can he reach Passionless Valley in time? She rushed forward and grabbed the reins. Turning to Lu Youjiao, she said, “I have urgent business outside the city and need this horse immediately.”

Lu Youjiao’s only concern was for Huang Rong and Guo Jing. He asked again, “Are Chief Huang and Great Xia Guo safe?” Xiaolongnü swung onto the horse’s back. “They are both safe,” she said. “But the baby Chief Huang just gave birth to has been snatched away by that woman. I must go and get her back.” Lu Youjiao was alarmed and immediately ordered the city gate opened.

The gate had barely opened a few chi, and the drawbridge had not yet been lowered, when Xiaolongnü spurred her horse through. The Sweat-blood Horse was a steed of divine calibre. Its hind legs thrust, and it soared over the moat as though riding clouds and mist. The soldiers on the wall, seeing this, burst into a unified cheer.

Outside the city, Xiaolongnü found two soldiers lying dead at the base of the wall, their bodies a mess of blood and flesh. A warhorse lay nearby, its legs broken, its head split. She gazed into the distance, all she could see were the grey-blue mountains and the vast, open plains. How could she know which way the three had gone? Desperate and at a loss, she patted the horse’s neck and said, “Horse, oh horse, I am going to save your young mistress. Quickly, take me to her!” Whether the horse truly understood her words or not, it raised its head and gave a long neigh, then stretched out its four legs and galloped away toward the northeast.

What had happened was this: Yang Guo and the Imperial Preceptor had pursued Li Mochou all the way to the top of the city wall. Both had assumed that the wall was far too high, she had no way out, and they could certainly intercept her here. But the moment Li Mochou reached the top of the wall, she grabbed a soldier and hurled him off the edge, then leaped down after him. Just as the soldier was about to hit the ground, she placed her left foot on his back, neutralizing the force of her descent. Her body shot forward, and she landed as light as a feather, even the baby in her arms was not jostled. The soldier, however, had his neck snapped and his bones shattered. He did not even have time to groan before he was dead.

The Imperial Preceptor cursed under his breath: What a formidable woman! He copied her method, throwing a soldier off the wall and leaping down after him.

Yang Guo could not bring himself to use another human being as his cushion. Seeing how urgent the moment was, an idea struck him. He shoved a warhorse off the top of the wall. Before the horse hit the ground, he leaped onto its back. The horse was smashed to pulp, but he landed safely and continued his pursuit behind the Imperial Preceptor. The day before, during the great battle in the Mongol camp, the Imperial Preceptor’s wheel had cut him in two places. Though the wounds were not serious, he had lost a great deal of blood, and his body was weak. He had fought fiercely again all this day, and he was truly past the point of endurance. But the thought that Guo Jing’s infant daughter, whether in Li Mochou’s hands or the Imperial Preceptor’s, faced mortal danger drove him on. Though he felt his heart pounding harder and harder, he gripped his sword and pressed forward in pursuit.

All three were naturally fast runners. But Li Mochou now carried a baby, and the Imperial Preceptor’s arm bore a sword wound, he still could not be certain whether the blade had been poisoned and was constantly worrying that the wound might fester. Neither dared exert full power, so each was running slower than usual. After several li, Xiangyang was far behind, yet the three were still separated by about a dozen zhang each. The Imperial Preceptor could not catch Li Mochou, and Yang Guo could not catch the Imperial Preceptor.

Li Mochou ran on. Ahead, the ground rose in rolling hills. In a few more li, they would enter the mountains. She quickened her pace, once she was in the valleys, it would be easy to hide and slip away. Although she had heard Xiaolongnü say this was not her child, seeing Yang Guo chase with such desperate determination, she concluded it must be his and Xiaolongnü’s bastard, beyond any doubt. With the baby in her hands, she could force Xiaolongnü to trade the secret manual of their school, the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra.³⁷ The last time, in the Ancient Tomb, Xiaolongnü had tossed a book into an empty coffin. After Xiaolongnü had gone, Li Mochou had retrieved it from the coffin, only to find it was a common Daoist text, the Cantong Qi.³⁸ Her disappointment had only intensified her obsession with her shifu’s Jade Maiden Heart Sutra.

The three climbed higher and higher. The trees around them grew thick and dense, the mountain paths rugged. The Imperial Preceptor thought that if he did not intercept her soon, she would vanish into the deep woods and hidden gorges, and then she would be impossible to find. He had never crossed hands with Li Mochou before, but seeing her qinggong, he knew she was a formidable opponent. He had already lost two of his five wheels and had not wanted to throw any more. But the situation was pressing, he could no longer hesitate. He bellowed, “Hey, woman! Put down the child and I will spare your life! If you refuse to listen, do not blame this great monk for showing no mercy.” Li Mochou gave a tinkling, seductive laugh and ran even faster. The Imperial Preceptor swung his right arm. The wind howled as the golden wheel traced a golden rainbow through the air, hurtling toward her back.

Li Mochou heard the wheel’s ferocious approach and dared not ignore it. She had no choice but to turn and swing her horsetail whisk, intending to flick it against the wheel. But she suddenly saw the wheel spinning at blinding speed, its golden glare dazzling her eyes. If her whisk made contact, it would surely snap. She twisted her body and leaped aside, evading the wheel’s direct strike. The Imperial Preceptor advanced two steps and launched his copper wheel, this time sending it outward first, then using its return arc to smash back inward. Li Mochou still dared not meet it directly. She retreated three steps, bent her slender waist, and used the highest level of qinggong to dodge. But with this advance and retreat, the distance between her and the Imperial Preceptor had shrunk to less than three zhang. The Imperial Preceptor caught the golden wheel with his left hand, advanced several more steps, and brought his right-hand lead wheel smashing down toward her left shoulder.

Li Mochou slanted her whisk, transforming it into a myriad golden needles that sprayed toward the Imperial Preceptor’s eyes. The Imperial Preceptor threw his lead wheel upward, deflecting this attack, while his right hand caught the copper wheel as it flew back. He crossed his hands, and the gold and copper wheels collided with a resounding clang that echoed endlessly through the valley. In that moment, the golden wheel was now in his right hand and the copper wheel in his left. During this shift, he launched a flurry of killing moves. Li Mochou had met a truly formidable opponent, and her spirit rose to the challenge. She had never imagined this tall, gaunt monk would possess not only profound strength but also such startling speed. She drew upon everything she had learned in her life and fought with all her might.

The two had exchanged only a few moves when Yang Guo caught up. He stood several zhang away, watching from the periphery while regulating his breathing, waiting for a chance to snatch the baby. The two fighters grew faster and faster. Amid the dance of three spinning wheels, a single horsetail whisk rose and fell.

In terms of martial skill and neili, the Imperial Preceptor held the advantage in both. Moreover, Li Mochou was carrying a baby. By all logic, within a hundred moves, she should have been defeated. Yet at first, she had been protecting the baby, afraid it would be harmed by the Imperial Preceptor’s sharp wheels. But she noticed that whenever a wheel came close to the infant, he would hurriedly pull back his attack. After a moment’s reflection, she understood: This bald villain wants the child alive. Naturally, he does not want to harm her. With her ruthless nature, she cared nothing for the lives of others. Once she had seen through the Imperial Preceptor’s intentions, whenever he launched a killing move that was hard to parry, she would simply raise the baby as a shield. In this way, the infant was not a burden at all, she had become an immensely powerful shield. All she had to do was lift the baby, and no matter how fierce or lethal the Imperial Preceptor’s attack, he would pull it back.

The Imperial Preceptor launched several wheel attacks in succession, each deflected by Li Mochou using the baby as cover. Yang Guo watched in mounting horror. If either of the two fighters used even slightly too much force, what chance would the baby have? He was about to charge in and seize the child when he saw the Imperial Preceptor’s right-hand golden wheel suddenly swing inward from the outside, while his left-hand copper wheel pushed forward horizontally. The two wheels formed an encircling embrace, trapping Li Mochou between his arms. A faint blush rose on Li Mochou’s cheeks. She spat in disgust, cursing inwardly at this bald villain for using a move so unbecoming of a monk’s dignity. Her whisk swept backward, deflecting the golden wheel, while her left arm raised the baby to shield her chest. But the Imperial Preceptor had already calculated his follow-up when he made that embracing motion. He loosened his left fingers, and the copper wheel suddenly shot upward at an angle, smashing toward her face.

The wheel was barely a chi away from her when it suddenly flew out, its momentum fierce and urgent, incredibly difficult to defend against. But Li Mochou had roamed the jianghu all her life, surviving hundreds of battles large and small. Her combat experience was far richer than the Imperial Preceptor’s. In that critical moment, she threw her body backward while her feet remained planted firmly on the ground, and her whisk struck back at the enemy’s shoulder. The Imperial Preceptor jerked his right shoulder back. The whisk swept past, but a few strands still grazed his shoulder. With his left palm now free, he followed through and chopped into Li Mochou’s left arm. Her arm immediately went numb and weak. She gasped. “Aiyo!”, and leaped into the air. But she felt her arms were empty. The baby had been snatched away by the Imperial Preceptor.

The Imperial Preceptor was exultant. But then he felt a rush of wind beside him. Yang Guo threw himself forward and seized the baby. He rolled across the ground, his longsword weaving a net of light to guard his rear, then flipped to his feet. With a single stroke of his sword. “Pushing the Boat with the Current”, he held both enemies at bay. Yang Guo had seen the baby fall into the Imperial Preceptor’s hands and knew that if he delayed even a moment, reclaiming her would be a thousand times harder. So he had pounced with the “Sky-soaring Azure” technique,³⁹ risking everything in a single motion, and it had worked. The baby had passed through three sets of hands in the span of a single instant.

Li Mochou also knew this body technique. Seeing him execute it so nimbly, she called out in admiration, “Little Yang Guo, that was beautifully done!” The Imperial Preceptor was enraged. He struck his two wheels together with a sound like a dragon’s cry, lingering and unbroken. With a sweep of his left sleeve, he thrust his right-hand wheel at Yang Guo. Yang Guo feinted with his longsword and turned to flee, but he suddenly heard a rush of wind behind him. Li Mochou had swung her whisk to block his path. Laughing, she said, “Not so fast, Yang Guo! Let us play with this great monk a while longer.” Yang Guo saw the Imperial Preceptor’s copper wheel already within a chi of his chest and had no choice but to turn and parry.

The two had fought bitterly for days now. Each knew the other’s strength and techniques inside out. The moment they clashed, both fought speed with speed. Their figures flickered, three streaks of white light dancing up and down. In the blink of an eye, they had exchanged over twenty moves. Li Mochou watched, secretly astonished: How is it that in so short a time, this boy’s martial arts have reached such a level? And how is this wicked monk so formidable?

In truth, Yang Guo’s martial arts had indeed advanced considerably. But half the reason was that he knew his life was nearly over. To repay Guo Jing’s kindness in raising him, he had resolved to fight to the death. When faced with lethal moves, he often did not defend himself, instead answering danger with danger, forcing the Imperial Preceptor to change his attacks. However, while Yang Guo could disregard his own life, he had to consider the baby’s safety. He could never do what Li Mochou had done and use the infant to shield his own vital points. Though he had seen how the Imperial Preceptor’s attacks avoided the baby when he fought Li Mochou, the thought that this was Guo Jing’s daughter made him unwilling to take the slightest risk. Precisely because he was protecting the baby at every turn, as time wore on, the Imperial Preceptor pressed him into one desperate situation after another.

The Imperial Preceptor saw that Li Mochou had ignored the baby’s safety, so his attacks had carefully avoided the infant. But he saw that Yang Guo feared harming the child, so he aimed more of his wheel strikes at the baby than at Yang Guo himself. This threw Yang Guo into even greater disarray. Unable to hold out, he shouted, “Senior Aunt Li! Help me drive off this bald villain! Everything else can wait!”

The Imperial Preceptor glanced at Li Mochou and saw her standing idly by, smiling, watching the tiger fight from the mountain,⁴⁰ helping neither side. He was deeply puzzled: Xiaolongnü also called her Senior Sister. This woman is indeed his martial aunt. Why does she not lend a hand? There must be some scheme behind this. I must wound this boy quickly and seize the baby. He increased his force, pressing Yang Guo until he could barely cope. Li Mochou knew the Imperial Preceptor would not harm the baby. No matter how desperately Yang Guo shouted for help, she paid no attention, standing with her hands clasped behind her back, the picture of leisurely ease.

They fought on. A dull ache began to rise in Yang Guo’s chest. He knew his neili could not match his opponent’s, and this kind of reckless fighting could not last. He had not heard the baby cry for some time and feared something was wrong. In the midst of the frantic battle, he glanced down at the infant. He saw a delicate little face with clear brows and fine features, an exquisitely pretty countenance. She was gazing at him with a pair of jet-black, glistening eyes. Yang Guo had never gotten along with Guo Fu, but toward this infant in his arms, a strange feeling suddenly welled up in his heart: I am fighting to the death for her right now. If heaven grants that I save her life, seven days from now I will be dead. Someday, when she grows to be her elder sister’s age, will she remember me? A pang of sorrow gripped his heart, and he nearly wept.

Li Mochou watched from the side as his strength flagged, as his life hung by a thread beneath the twin wheels. She considered stepping in to help, but then thought, This boy’s martial arts have advanced so greatly. It would be best to let this monk finish him off. Otherwise, I will never be able to control him in the future. She kept her hands tucked in her sleeves, unmoving.

Among the three, the Imperial Preceptor’s martial arts were the strongest, and Li Mochou was the most vicious. But when it came to cunning and stratagems, Yang Guo was supreme. His moment of grief passed, and he immediately began calculating how to escape. He thought, When Auntie Guo told me the tales of the Three Kingdoms, she said that at the time, Cao Wei was the strongest. For Shu Han to resist Wei, it had to ally with Sun Quan.⁴¹ Since Li Mochou refused to help him, he would have to help Li Mochou instead. He parried two sword strokes, blocking the Imperial Preceptor, then retreated two quick steps and suddenly thrust the baby into Li Mochou’s arms. “Here!” he said. “Take her!”

This move caught Li Mochou completely off guard. For a moment, she could not fathom his intent and instinctively took the baby. Yang Guo shouted, “Senior Aunt, take the child and flee! Let me hold off this bald villain!” He stabbed out two fierce sword strokes, keeping the Imperial Preceptor from closing in. Li Mochou thought, So he believes I still have some regard for our school ties and would not harm the child. In this crisis, he has handed her to me. Nothing could be better. It never occurred to her that this was one of Yang Guo’s schemes to shift disaster onto someone else. She had just started to move when the Imperial Preceptor spun around and smashed his golden wheel at her, abandoning Yang Guo to strike at her back. This move came with terrifying speed. She had barely begun to move when the wheel was already upon her like a shadow. Li Mochou had no choice but to turn and block with her whisk.

Yang Guo saw that his scheme had worked and immediately breathed a sigh of relief. But he cared about the baby and was not willing to stand by with folded arms like Li Mochou, waiting for the two to wear each other down. As soon as his breathing steadied, he raised his sword and attacked the Imperial Preceptor.

By now, the red sun hung high in the sky, and shafts of sunlight still pierced through the dense forest. Yang Guo’s spirits lifted, and his swordplay grew even more fluid and effective. With a clang, the Gentleman’s Sword sheared a piece off the copper wheel. The Imperial Preceptor was secretly alarmed, and his attacks grew sharper. A new scheme formed in Yang Guo’s mind. He called out, “Senior Aunt Li, be careful of this monk’s wheel! The notch my sword cut into it is coated with lethal poison. Do not let it touch you.” Li Mochou asked, “Why?” Yang Guo said, “The poison on my sword is extremely potent!”

Earlier, when the Imperial Preceptor had been cut by Yang Guo’s longsword, he had been constantly worrying that the blade was poisoned. But after fighting for so long without any unusual sensation from the wound, he had set his mind at ease. Now, hearing Yang Guo bring it up again, his heart could not help but tremble: Gongsun Zhi is treacherous and sinister. Perhaps the sword truly is poisoned. His fighting spirit immediately deflated.

Li Mochou suddenly lashed out with her whisk and called, “Guoer, use your poison sword on this monk!” She flicked her hand as though launching a hidden projectile. The Imperial Preceptor whirled his wheels to shield his chest. But Li Mochou’s gesture had been nothing but empty posturing. She had seen the Imperial Preceptor’s martial arts and knew her Soul-freezing Silver Needles⁴² could not hit him. She had only meant to slow him down for an instant, and in that instant, she escaped the range of his twin wheels, turned, and fled.

Although Jinlun Guoshi suspected Yang Guo’s sword was poisoned, the wound neither itched nor swelled. He was loath to return from this expedition empty-handed, having achieved nothing but injuries. Seeing Li Mochou flee, he set off in pursuit.

Yang Guo thought that this pattern of fighting and chasing could go on forever. If this newborn baby was exposed to the wind and cold of the wilderness, even if they rescued her, she might not survive. Only by joining forces to drive off the Imperial Preceptor first could they then devise a proper plan. He shouted, “Senior Aunt Li, there is no need to run! This bald villain has been struck by lethal poison. He does not have long to live!” The words had barely left his mouth when he saw Li Mochou dart forward and disappear into a cave in the mountainside.

The Imperial Preceptor froze, not daring to rush in after her. Yang Guo had no idea what Li Mochou intended to do with the baby and feared she might suddenly strike a fatal blow. He had long since placed his own life and death aside. Shielding his chest with his longsword, he charged into the cave. Immediately, he saw a flash of silver light and struck down three Soul-freezing Silver Needles with his sword. “Senior Aunt Li, it is me!” he called. The cave was pitch black, but his eyes could see in the dark. He saw Li Mochou holding the baby in her left hand, several more silver needles pinched between the fingers of her right. To show he meant no harm, he turned his back to her and said, “Let us join forces to drive off this bald villain first.” Sword raised, he guarded the cave entrance.

The Imperial Preceptor calculated that the two of them would not dare rush out for the time being. He sat cross-legged beside the cave entrance, opened his robes, and examined his wound. The blood around the sword cut was bright red, there was no sign of poisoning. He pressed the wound and felt only a slight ache. He secretly circulated his neili through one revolution and felt not the slightest obstruction in any limb or meridian. His heart was filled with both joy and fury, joy that Yang Guo’s sword carried no poison, fury that he had been deceived by this boy and had worried for nothing for half the day. He studied the cave entrance. It was hidden by long grass, and the opening was barely wide enough for one person. His own frame was large and tall. If he rushed in recklessly, the tight turns inside would put him at a disadvantage, he might fall victim to an ambush from the two inside.

He was at an impasse when he suddenly heard a strange voice call out from behind the hillside: “Great monk, what are you doing here?” The accent was unmistakably that of the Indian dwarf, Nimoxing. The Imperial Preceptor kept his eyes fixed on the cave entrance. “Three rabbits have scurried into this hole,” he said. “I am going to flush them out.”

Nimoxing had caused nothing but chaos in Xiangyang and was retreating empty-handed. On his way back to camp, he had spotted the Imperial Preceptor’s gold, copper, and lead wheels spinning through the air in the distance and knew he was fighting someone. He had followed the signs to this spot. Seeing the Imperial Preceptor staring intently at the cave entrance, his heart leaped with joy. “Guo Jing has fled into this cave?” he asked. The Imperial Preceptor snorted. “One buck rabbit, one doe rabbit, and one little bunny.” Nimoxing was even more delighted. “Ah! Besides Guo Jing and his wife, there is also that boy Yang Guo.” The Imperial Preceptor let him ramble on, paying no attention. He looked around, and an idea came to him. He gathered dry branches and withered grass and piled them at the cave entrance, then struck a flame. The southwest wind was blowing hard, and thick smoke immediately poured into the cave.

Yang Guo had guessed the Imperial Preceptor’s plan the moment he began piling the kindling. He said to Li Mochou in a low voice, “Let me check whether this cave has another exit.” He walked deeper inside. After about seven or eight zhang, the cave came to a dead end. He turned back and said quietly, “Senior Aunt Li, they are smoking us out. What do you suggest?” Li Mochou thought that forcing their way out would certainly not shake off the Imperial Preceptor, and hiding here was no solution either. When things truly became hopeless, she could always abandon the baby and escape alone. This monk had no grudge against her, he was after the baby. At that point, he would not keep pursuing her. So she was not alarmed, merely smiling coldly to herself.

Before long, the smoke in the cave grew thicker and thicker. Yang Guo and Li Mochou held their breath and could endure for the time being, but the baby began to cry and cough. Li Mochou laughed coldly. “Does your heart ache?” Yang Guo had fought a desperate, life-or-death battle while carrying this baby girl, and in the process, a feeling of tender affection for her had grown in his heart. Hearing her cry so miserably, he said, “Let me hold her.” He extended both hands and stepped two paces closer. Li Mochou lashed out with her whisk, striking at his arm, and shouted, “Stay away from me! Are you not afraid of the Soul-freezing Silver Needles?”

Yang Guo leaped back. At the words “Soul-freezing Silver Needles,” a thought suddenly occurred to him. He remembered his very first encounter with her as a child, merely holding one of those needles in his hand for a moment had poisoned him severely. He tore a strip of cloth and wrapped it around his right hand. Then he went to the cave entrance, picked up the three silver needles Li Mochou had shot at him earlier, and inserted them into the ground with their tips pointing upward, leaving only an inch of needle exposed above the soil. He sprinkled a little sand over them to hide the glint of the metal. By now, the cave entrance was piled with firewood, and thick smoke filled the air. He worked hunched over, and neither the Imperial Preceptor nor Nimoxing noticed a thing.

His preparations complete, Yang Guo retreated and said in a low voice, “I have a plan to drive off the enemy. Keep the baby quiet.” Then he called out loudly, “Wonderful! There is an exit at the back of the cave! Let us go, quickly!” His voice was brimming with joy. Li Mochou was startled, thinking there really was another way out. Yang Guo leaned close to her ear and whispered, “It is a lie. I want to trick that bald villain.”

The Imperial Preceptor and Nimoxing heard Yang Guo’s jubilant shout and were taken aback. Then silence fell inside the cave. Even the baby’s cries gradually faded. They never imagined that Yang Guo had covered the infant’s face with his sleeve. They assumed he had truly escaped through the back of the cave. Without a second thought, Nimoxing darted around to the rear of the hillside to cut them off. But the Imperial Preceptor was more meticulous. He listened intently. The baby’s cries were only muffled and faint, they were not growing more distant. He knew this was another of Yang Guo’s tricks, trying to make him go around to the hillside so Yang Guo could burst out of the cave entrance with the baby. He sneered inwardly: This paltry trick of luring the tiger from the mountain,⁴³ and you think you can use it on this old monk? He hid beside the cave entrance, raising his gold and copper wheels, waiting for Yang Guo to emerge.

Yang Guo said, “Senior Aunt Li, that bald villain has left. Let us go out together.” Then, suddenly, he whispered, “We will cry out in alarm together and lure him into the cave.” Li Mochou did not know what trick Yang Guo was planning, but she had long known this boy was cunning, she herself had suffered at his hands more than once. Since he had devised some clever scheme, it was probably worth following. Besides, the baby was in her arms. As long as they could drive off the Imperial Preceptor first, she had no fear that Yang Guo would not trade the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra for the child. She nodded.

The two of them cried out in unison: “Aiyo!” Yang Guo pretended to be gravely wounded, groaning loudly. He cried, “You… how could you strike me with such a venomous blow?” Then he immediately whispered, “Pretend your life is slipping away.” Li Mochou said angrily, “You… today I may… die at your hands, but I will make sure… you little wretch… do not live either.” Toward the end, her voice grew broken and halting, as though she was gasping her last.

The Imperial Preceptor, listening outside the cave, was overjoyed. These two are fighting over the baby, he thought. Before they have even left the cave, they have already wounded each other. It sounds as though both are badly hurt. He feared the baby might die along with them, then he would have no hostage to use against Guo Jing. Without hesitation, he pushed aside the burning brush and charged into the cave. He had taken only two steps when he felt a faint sting in the sole of his left foot.

His reactions were astonishingly fast. Before his foot could fully land, he pushed off with his right foot and leaped backward out of the cave. But when his left foot touched down, his calf went numb, and he nearly toppled over. With his profound neili, even if someone had slashed him several times with a blade, he would not have stumbled like this when leaping. In a flash, he understood, the sole of his foot had been pierced by something highly toxic. He was about to pull off his shoe and examine it when Nimoxing came back around from the hillside, shouting, “That boy is a liar! There is no exit behind the mountain! Guo Jing and his wife are still in the cave!” The Imperial Preceptor stopped and did not remove his shoe. Keeping his expression perfectly neutral, he said, “Your assessment is correct. But there is no sound from inside the cave. They must all have been overcome by the smoke.”

Nimoxing was delighted. This time, he thought, the glory of capturing Guo Jing alive will finally fall to me. It never occurred to him to wonder why the Imperial Preceptor was not claiming this prize for himself. Brandishing his iron serpent to protect his vital points, he plunged straight into the cave entrance. Yang Guo’s three silver needles had been planted directly in the path, no matter how large or small a person’s stride, they could not avoid stepping on at least one. Nimoxing was short and took small steps, and he moved quickly. His right foot came down squarely on a silver needle. The pain made him flinch, but before he could pull back, his left foot had already landed on another needle tip. In India, the weather is hot, and people go barefoot by custom. Nimoxing wore no shoes. Although the soles of his feet were toughened like cowhide through training, the Soul-freezing Silver Needles were piercingly sharp and had already sunk an inch deep. Nimoxing was fierce and hardy by nature. A minor injury like this meant nothing to him. He swept his iron serpent across the ground ahead and found no more upturned needles. He was about to continue into the cave to capture Guo Jing and his wife alive when a sudden numbness seized both his legs. He could not stand. He toppled over. Only then did he realise the poison on those needles was terrifyingly potent. In a panic, he scrambled and crawled his way back out of the cave. Outside, he saw the Imperial Preceptor, who had removed his shoe and sock and was cradling a swollen, blackened left foot, circulating his energy to stop the poison from rising.

Nimoxing was enraged. “Wicked bald villain!” he roared. “You were clearly poisoned and wounded! Why did you not tell me? You let me fall into the same trap!” The Imperial Preceptor gave a faint smile. “I fell for one trap. You fell for one trap. Now we are even.” Nimoxing’s fury blazed beyond control. He bellowed, “I do not want Guo Jing anymore! Nimoxing and wicked monk, today we fight to the death!” His legs had lost all strength. He propped himself up with his left hand and threw himself at the Imperial Preceptor, his right-hand iron serpent smashing down toward the monk’s head. The Imperial Preceptor raised his copper wheel to block the iron serpent, then swung his arm across in an elbow strike. Nimoxing was in midair and could not dodge. The Imperial Preceptor’s move came with blinding speed, and the elbow hammered into his shoulder.

Though Nimoxing’s bones and sinews were exceptionally tough, the blow sent agony tearing through him. In his berserk rage, he ignored whether he lived or died. He hurled himself forward and locked his arms around the Imperial Preceptor, then opened his mouth and bit down, his teeth sank into the Qishe acupoint⁴⁴ just below the monk’s neck. Under normal circumstances, with the Imperial Preceptor’s martial prowess, how could Nimoxing have gotten close enough to embrace him? And even if he had, how could he have bitten such a critical acupoint? But the Imperial Preceptor knew the poison from the needle in his foot was no ordinary toxin. Every bit of his neili was devoted to resisting the poison, forcing it not to rise past the Ququan acupoint between his thigh and calf.⁴⁵ As long as he held that pass, the worst outcome would be losing one leg, his life would not be in danger. By the time Nimoxing threw himself at him, the Imperial Preceptor had essentially lost all his neili and could only fight with external techniques. Nimoxing, by contrast, was attacking with full force. Once his teeth clamped onto the acupoint, he did not let go.

The Imperial Preceptor hooked his right foot outward. Nimoxing’s legs had long since lost all strength, and he pitched forward. The two of them tumbled to the ground together. The Imperial Preceptor reached up to tear Nimoxing off, but with his vital acupoint bitten, the strength in his hands had greatly diminished, he could not pull him away. He had no choice but to reach back and clamp his hand onto the Dazhui acupoint⁴⁶ at the back of Nimoxing’s neck, guarding against a sudden lethal move. Both men were originally first-rate masters, but poisoned and grappling at close quarters, they fought like street thugs brawling in the dirt, all dignity forgotten.

The two rolled and tumbled across the ground, drawing closer and closer to the cliff edge beside the valley. The Imperial Preceptor saw clearly what was happening and shouted, “Let go, now! One more step and both of us will be smashed to pieces!” But Nimoxing had lost all reason. He was not using his energy to resist the poison, so his neili was far deeper than the Imperial Preceptor’s at this moment. He pushed forward with all his might, and the Imperial Preceptor could not hold him back. The cliff edge was now only a few chi away, beyond it, the deep valley. In his desperation, the Imperial Preceptor’s wits sharpened. He bellowed, “Guo Jing is here!” Nimoxing started. “Where?” he demanded. The moment he spoke those words, his mouth opened, releasing the Imperial Preceptor’s acupoint. The Imperial Preceptor channeled force into his left palm and struck forward with a roar. Nimoxing knew he had been tricked and ducked his head to evade, then lunged forward, bending at the waist.

The Imperial Preceptor’s palm strike had been meant to force Nimoxing to dodge backward. But he had forgotten that his opponent’s legs were poisoned and no longer obeyed him, how could Nimoxing leap backward? He saw the man come forward instead of retreating. In his shock, the two became entangled again. Then, suddenly, he felt nothing beneath him. Together, the two of them plunged straight down into the valley below.

Li Mochou had watched Yang Guo’s cunning plan succeed and secretly admired how capable this boy truly was. She heard the two men outside cursing and brawling and knew the danger had passed. She was about to stride out of the cave when she suddenly heard the Imperial Preceptor and Nimoxing cry out together in the strangest of voices. This was the sound they had made when they fell off the cliff. But the cliff was over ten zhang from the cave, blocked from view by a rocky outcrop. From inside the cave, they could not see what was happening outside and had no idea why the two had cried out like that. Li Mochou said, “Hey, boy, what are they doing?” Yang Guo, too, had not expected the two to fall into the valley. He said thoughtfully, “That bald villain is treacherously cunning. We pretended to wound each other. They might be copying our trick to lure us out.”

Li Mochou thought this made sense. In a low voice, she said, “Mmm. He must be trying to trick me into coming out so he can seize my antidote.” She edged slowly toward the cave entrance, wanting to peek outside. Yang Guo said, “Careful of the silver needles on the ground.” The moment the words left his mouth, he regretted them: Why am I kindly warning this demoness? It was simply that his nature was fundamentally good, and having fought alongside Li Mochou against a common enemy, he had momentarily forgotten that this woman was his foe.

Li Mochou was startled and hurriedly pulled back her foot. By now, the fire at the cave entrance had died out, and the cave was once again pitch black. She could not see in the dark as Yang Guo could and had no idea where the three silver needles were planted. If she stepped out recklessly, she would almost certainly step on one. She had the antidote, but the poison on those needles was terrifyingly potent, and treating it would be agonising. Moreover, if she was pricked in the foot, Yang Guo would surely seize the chance to attack, and she would not be able to spare a hand to treat the poison. She might well lose her life to her own venomous needles. “Hurry and pull out those needles,” she said. “What are we still doing in here?” Yang Guo said, “Wait a little longer. Let the poison take effect and kill those two. There is no rush to leave.” Li Mochou snorted. She was deeply wary of Yang Guo. Being shut in this dark cave with him, every moment was a crisis. Her martial arts might no longer surpass his, and in cunning, she was certainly no match. She lowered her head and pondered how to get out.

Outside the cave, all was silent. Inside, the two were each lost in their own thoughts, saying nothing. Suddenly, the baby burst out crying. “Wah!” She had not had a single drop of milk since she was born. She was hungry.

Li Mochou laughed coldly. “And where is your dear Junior Sister? Does she not care if her own child starves to death?” Yang Guo said, “Who says it is Gugu’s child? This is the daughter of Guo Jing, Great Xia Guo.” Li Mochou said, “Ha! You think using Great Xia Guo’s name will frighten me? If it were someone else’s child, you would not be fighting so desperately for her. This is clearly the bastard spawn of you and your shifu.”

Yang Guo was enraged. “That is right,” he shouted. “I am determined to marry Gugu. But we have not yet wed. Where would a child come from? Keep your mouth clean.” Li Mochou gave another cold laugh, curling her lip. “You want me to keep my mouth clean? Perhaps you should start by keeping your own behaviour with your shifu clean.” Yang Guo had always revered Xiaolongnü as a heavenly being. He could not tolerate such slander. Even more furious, he roared, “my shifu is pure as ice and clean as jade. Do not speak such filthy nonsense!” Li Mochou said, “Pure as ice, clean as jade, and gives birth to a child before she is even married.”

With a sharp hiss, Yang Guo thrust his sword straight at her chest, shouting, “Curse me all you want, it does not matter! But you have insulted my shifu. Today, I will fight you to the death!” He launched three swift sword strokes in succession. His swordplay was exquisite, and his eyes could see clearly in the darkness. Li Mochou had to rely entirely on listening to the wind to parry. She did not miss by a hair, but after several moves, danger pressed in on all sides. Fortunately, Yang Guo was mindful of the baby. He feared that if his swordplay grew too fierce, she would strike a lethal blow against the infant. So he held back his killing moves.

The two had exchanged over ten moves inside the cave when the baby suddenly let out a sharp cry, then fell silent for a long while.

Yang Guo was horrified. He immediately withdrew his sword. In a trembling voice, he asked, “Did you hurt the child?” Seeing how deeply he cared about the baby, Li Mochou grew even more convinced it was his own flesh and blood. “She is not dead yet,” she said. “But if you do not do as I say, do you think I lack the nerve to crush this little brat to death?” A chill ran through Yang Guo. He knew well that this woman killed without blinking. Never mind a newborn, if she harboured even a slight grudge, she would slaughter an entire household, leaving neither chicken nor dog alive. He said, “You are my Senior Aunt. As long as you do not insult my shifu, I will naturally obey your instructions.” Li Mochou heard the yielding in his tone and knew that as long as the baby was in her hands, he could not resist her. “Fine,” she said. “I will not insult your shifu. Now you will listen to me. Go outside and see how badly the poison has affected those two.”

Yang Guo did as he was told. He went out and looked around. There was no sign of the Imperial Preceptor or Nimoxing. Fearing the Imperial Preceptor’s cunning, he hacked and slashed at the nearby trees and undergrowth with his sword to make sure no one was hiding. Finding no one, he returned to the cave and said, “They are both gone. The poison must have driven them far away.”

Li Mochou said, “Hmph. Once struck by my silver needles, even if they fled, how far could they get? Pull out the needles at the cave entrance and place them in front of me.” Yang Guo, hearing the baby crying without pause, thought it was time to go outside and find something for the child to eat. He wrapped his hand in cloth again, pulled out the silver needles, and returned them to her.

Li Mochou placed the three needles back in their holder and strode out of the cave. Yang Guo followed. “Where are you taking the baby?” he asked. Li Mochou said, “Back to my own home.” Yang Guo said urgently, “What do you want with her? She is not yours.” Li Mochou’s cheeks flushed red. Immediately, her face darkened. “What nonsense are you talking about? Bring me the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra of our Ancient Tomb School, and I will return the child to you. I guarantee not a single hair on her head will be harmed.” With that, she launched into her qinggong and sped northward.

Yang Guo ran after her, calling out, “You have to feed her first!” Li Mochou spun around, her face burning crimson. “You insolent boy!” she shouted. “How dare you speak to me with such disrespect, taking liberties?” Yang Guo was baffled. “Huh? How am I taking liberties? If the baby gets no milk, she will starve to death.” Li Mochou said, “I am a virgin who guards her purity like jade. How would I have milk for this little brat to drink?” Yang Guo gave a slight smile. “Senior Aunt Li, I meant you should find some milk for the baby to drink. I was not saying that you yourself…”

Hearing this, Li Mochou could not help but laugh. She had remained unmarried and chaste all her life, spending her days amid swords and blades. The business of raising an infant was something she knew absolutely nothing about. She said thoughtfully, “But where do we find milk? Would it work to feed her rice?” Yang Guo said, “Look, does she have any teeth?” Li Mochou peered into the baby’s mouth and shook her head. “Not even half of one.” Yang Guo said, “Let us find a village and look for a woman who is nursing. We can have her feed the baby until she is full. Would that not be good?” Li Mochou was delighted. “You truly are full of schemes.”

The two climbed a hill and looked around. In the distance, to the west, a wisp of cooking smoke rose from a mountain hollow. Both were swift of foot, and in moments, they had reached a small hamlet. The area around Xiangyang had been ravaged by war for years. The villages and market towns along the main roads had all been reduced to barren waste by Mongol hooves. Only in these remote, desolate valleys did a few mountain folk still gather.

Li Mochou went from door to door, pushing each one open to look inside. At the fourth farmhouse, she found a young woman nursing a child just over a year old. Li Mochou was overjoyed. She snatched the child from the woman’s arms and tossed it onto the brick bed, then thrust the baby girl into her embrace. “The baby is hungry,” she said. “Feed her until she is full.”

The young woman’s son landed on the bed, flailing his arms and legs, howling at the top of his lungs. The mother’s heart ached for her child, and she hurriedly reached out to pick him up. Yang Guo, seeing the woman’s chest exposed, immediately turned his back. But he heard Li Mochou shout, “I told you to feed my baby! Did you not hear me? Who told you to pick up your own son?” A heavy thud followed. Yang Guo jumped in fright and turned back. The farmer’s child had been hurled against the foot of the wall, his head covered in blood. Whether he was dead or alive, Yang Guo could not tell. The young woman was stricken with grief and panic. She set down Guo Jing’s daughter and threw herself onto her own son, weeping and screaming. Li Mochou was furious. Her whisk rose, poised to strike down on the young woman’s back.

Yang Guo hurriedly raised his sword to block it. Is there any woman in the world more overbearing than this? he thought. Aloud, he said, “Senior Aunt Li, if you beat her to death, a corpse produces no milk.” Li Mochou said angrily, “I am doing this for your child’s sake, and you interfere!” Yang Guo thought, This is clearly not my child, yet you keep insisting it is. But if it were truly mine, how could you say I am meddling? With an appeasing smile, he said, “The baby is starving. Feeding her is the priority.” He reached toward the brick bed to pick up the infant. Li Mochou raised her whisk and blocked his hand. “You dare try to take the child?” she shouted. Yang Guo stepped back and laughed. “All right, all right! I will not touch her.”

Li Mochou lifted the baby girl and was about to place her back in the young woman’s arms when she turned around and found the woman had vanished. While the two of them had been arguing, the woman had slipped out the back door with her son. Li Mochou’s fury erupted. She burst out the door and saw the young woman running for her life, baby clutched to her chest. Li Mochou snorted, leaped into the air, and brought her whisk down on the woman’s head. The wind of the blow passed, and mother and child both collapsed, their skulls shattered, dead where they fell. Li Mochou searched for another nursing woman, but there were only men in the village. Her rage swelled. She killed a few more people at random, then went to the kitchen, took a firebrand, and set the thatched farmhouses ablaze. She lit several fires in quick succession, then strode swiftly out of the village.

Yang Guo watched her murderous rampage and sighed to himself. He followed at a distance, neither too close nor too far. The two walked through the wilderness for several dozen li. The baby cried until she was exhausted, then fell into a deep sleep in Li Mochou’s arms.

As they walked, Li Mochou suddenly stopped with a soft exclamation. Before them, two spotted leopard cubs were tumbling and playing. She stepped forward, intending to kick the cubs aside, when suddenly, from the underbrush beside them, came a thunderous roar. A blur of motion, a great golden leopard had sprung out at her. Startled, she leaped diagonally to the left. The leopard immediately turned and pounced again, raising a paw to strike. Li Mochou raised her whisk and, with a whoosh, struck the leopard squarely between the eyes. The beast howled in agony, its ferocity redoubled. It bared a mouthful of gleaming white fangs, crouched low to the ground, and fixed its pair of jade-green eyes on its enemy, waiting for an opening to strike.

Li Mochou flicked her left hand. Two silver needles shot out like lightning, aimed at the leopard’s eyes. Yang Guo shouted, “Wait!” He swung his longsword, knocking the needles aside. At that very moment, the leopard had already sprung, soaring over a zhang into the air before plunging down. Yang Guo leaped up as well, first using his sword to deflect two more of Li Mochou’s silver needles, then driving his right fist, bang!, into the back of the leopard’s neck, just above the spine. The leopard roared in pain. It landed, then immediately sprang at Yang Guo again. Yang Guo sidestepped and struck out with his left palm, putting fifty percent of his neili into the blow. The leopard was sent tumbling backward in a somersault.

Li Mochou was puzzled. Her two silver needles could have killed the leopard in an instant. Why had he saved the beast, only to spend so much effort fighting it hand to hand? She watched as he struck again and again, left palm, right palm, battering the leopard until it fell and scrambled up, scrambled up and fell, utterly battered and wretched. Yet every blow avoided the leopard’s vital points. The beast’s roars grew fainter and fainter. After taking more than a dozen palm strikes, the leopard could endure no more. It turned and fled up the hillside. Yang Guo had anticipated this and had planned to grab its tail and drag it back. But the leopard’s spirit was utterly broken, its tail drooped, clamped between its hind legs. Yang Guo’s grab met only empty air. He was about to use his qinggong to chase it down when he saw the leopard, several zhang away, turn back with a mournful growl, calling its two cubs to flee. A thought struck Yang Guo. He reached out with both hands and seized the two cubs by the scruff of their necks, lifting them high.

The mother leopard’s love for her young was fierce. Seeing her cubs captured, she forgot her own safety and lunged at Yang Guo again. Yang Guo tossed the two cubs toward Li Mochou, shouting, “Catch them! And do not kill them!” His body rose with his voice, leaping even higher than the leopard, the very essence of the “Sky-soaring Azure” technique. He calculated his descent from midair and landed perfectly astride the leopard’s back. He seized its ears and forced its head down with all his strength. The leopard struggled with all its might, but with its vital points controlled, its great jaws were buried in the sand.

Yang Guo called out, “Senior Aunt Li, quickly, use tree bark to braid two ropes and bind its four legs!” Li Mochou snorted. “I have no time to play games with you,” she said, and turned to leave. Yang Guo said urgently, “Who is playing? This leopard has milk!” Li Mochou understood at once. Overjoyed, she laughed and said, “Trust you to think of that.” She immediately tore off a dozen strips of bark and hastily twisted them into several ropes. First, she bound the leopard’s great jaws tightly shut, then tied its front and hind legs separately.

Yang Guo brushed the dust from his clothes and stood up, smiling. The leopard, now utterly immobilised, had terror in its eyes. Yang Guo stroked its head and said, “We are only asking you to serve as a wet nurse for a little while. We will not harm your life.” Li Mochou cradled the baby and brought her to the leopard’s teat. The infant had long been ravenous. She opened her tiny mouth and began to nurse. The mother leopard had abundant milk, and in no time, the baby was full. Her eyes closed, and she drifted into sleep. Li Mochou and Yang Guo watched her nurse and fall asleep, their eyes never leaving her delicate, beautiful little face. As she slept, a faint smile appeared on her lips. The two of them felt a joy rise in their hearts and exchanged a smile.

That shared smile dissolved more than half the wariness they had felt toward each other. Li Mochou’s face was suffused with an expression of gentleness. Humming a soft tune, she patted the baby lightly and held her close. Yang Guo gathered some soft grass and made a little nest on a large rock under the shade of a tree. “Put her down here to sleep,” he said. Li Mochou immediately gestured for him to be quiet, afraid of waking the child. Yang Guo stuck out his tongue and made a funny face. Seeing the baby sleeping so peacefully, he could not help but let out a long breath. Turning, he saw the two leopard cubs snuggled against their mother, nursing.

All around them, the fragrance of flowers drifted on the air. A gentle breeze brushed against their clothes. The killing intent had dissolved entirely. Human and beast rested together in peace.

Yang Guo had endured countless upheavals over the past few days. Only now did he feel some small measure of calm in his heart. Yet beside him was a demoness who killed without blinking, and beside her, a savage beast. It was a strange scene indeed.

Li Mochou sat beside the sleeping baby, slowly waving her horsetail whisk to drive away the forest insects. This whisk had taken countless lives, the mere sight of it made the hearts of all in the jianghu tremble. Yet now, for the first time in her life, she was using it to perform an act of kindness. Yang Guo watched her gaze at the baby, her face sometimes smiling, sometimes sorrowful, now agitated, now serene. He could tell her heart was surging with thoughts, remembering the events of her life. Yang Guo did not know her history. He had only heard fragments from Cheng Ying⁴⁷ and Lu Wushuang⁴⁸. He imagined that for her to have become so ruthless and extreme, she must have endured some immense suffering. He had always hated and resented her, but now, unexpectedly, a faint sense of sympathy and pity stirred within him.

After a long while, Li Mochou raised her head. Her eyes met Yang Guo’s, and her heart gave a slight start. Softly, she said, “It will be dark soon. What shall we do tonight?” Yang Guo looked around. “We cannot very well take this great wet nurse with us on the road. Let us find a cave to shelter in for the night and decide tomorrow.” Li Mochou nodded.

Yang Guo searched around and found a cave that was barely large enough to hold them. He gathered some soft grass and made two beds inside, one large, one small. “Senior Aunt Li,” he said, “rest for a while. I will go find something to eat.” He went around the hillside to hunt for game. In less than half a shichen, he returned with three mountain hares and a dozen wild fruits. He loosened the rope around the leopard’s jaws and fed it one of the hares. Then he gathered dry grass and dead branches, built a fire, and roasted the remaining two hares to share with Li Mochou. “Senior Aunt Li,” he said, “sleep well. I will keep watch outside the cave.” He took out a long rope and strung it between two large trees, then lay suspended in the air upon it.

This was a technique for cultivating the Ancient Tomb School’s inner arts. Li Mochou saw it and thought nothing of it, it was familiar to her. Except for the times she travelled with her disciple Hong Lingbo⁴⁹, she had spent her entire life alone, coming and going by herself. Tonight, with Yang Guo as her companion, he had attended to her comfort so thoroughly. It was utterly different from the nights she had spent alone in the wilderness. She could not help but sigh quietly to herself once more.

郭靖 – Guō Jìng. His name meaning “tranquillity” or “pacification”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
杨过 – Yáng Guò. His name meaning “fault or transgression”; his courtesy name Gaizhi means “to correct it”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
冯默风 – Féng Mòfēng. Huang Yaoshi’s sixth disciple, the Smith. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
潇湘子 – Xiāoxiāng Zǐ. Literally Master of the Xiao and Xiang rivers. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
蒙古第一勇士 – Foremost Warrior of the Mongols. Title promised by Kublai Khan to whoever killed Guo Jing, designed to spur his recruited martial artists to greater efforts. Instead, it created destructive competition among them. ↩
时辰 – shíchén. Traditional Chinese unit of time equal to two hours. Day was divided into twelve shichen, each named after one of the Earthly Branches. ↩
毒砂 – Poison Sand. Hidden weapon mechanism inside Xiaoxiangzi’s Mourning Staff. When triggered, it releases a cloud of toxic particles that can incapacitate or kill anyone who inhales them. ↩
内力 – nèilì. Literally internal force. Kinetic manifestation of cultivated qi. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
黄蓉 – Huáng Róng. Her name meaning “lotus” or “hibiscus”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
小龙女 – Xiǎolóngnǚ. Literally little dragon maiden. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
Gugu (姑姑) — Literally “paternal aunt,” but used here as a term of respectful address for a young woman of the older generation. Yang Guo uses this to address Xiaolongnü, his shifu. ↩
九花玉露丸 – Jiǔhuā Yùlù Wán. Peach Blossom Island healing medicine. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
大侠 – Great Xia. Honorific title for a great hero or chivalrous person. “Xia” refers to a martial hero who acts with righteousness and protects the weak. Guo Jing is widely known as “Great Xia Guo” for his defence of Xiangyang. ↩
绊字诀 – Tripping Formula. One of the eight core formulae of the Dog-beating Staff Technique. Tripping formula delivers a rapid sequence of strikes that repeatedly trip the opponent, each successive blow coming faster than the last. ↩
子午见骨茶 – Midnight Bone-baring Tea. Completely fabricated poison name invented by Huang Rong on the spot. “Zi” (子) refers to the hour of the Rat (11 PM — 1 AM) and “Wu” (午) to the hour of the Horse (11 AM — 1 PM), together suggesting a poison that kills within half a day. ↩
六个时辰 – Six Shichen. Twelve hours. Huang Rong claims the fictional poison kills within six shichen — from the hour of the Rat to the hour of the Horse (midnight to noon), or from noon to midnight. ↩
黄药师 – Huáng Yàoshī. His name meaning “medicine master”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
白头如新，倾盖如故 – “Heads turned white as though still newly met, carriages tilting together as though old friends”. Classical Chinese proverb from the Records of the Grand Historian (《史记》). It means that some people can know each other until their hair turns white yet still feel like strangers, while others can meet for the first time — their carriages tilting toward each other on the road — and feel like old friends. Imperial Preceptor is making a literary allusion to suggest a deep, instant connection with Guo Jing, despite their brief encounter. ↩
江湖 – jiānghú. Literally rivers and lakes. Term refers to the jianghu: the subculture of wandering knights-errant, martial artists, and sect members who live outside mainstream society, governed by its own codes of honour, loyalty, and vengeance. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
绝情谷 – Juéqíng Gǔ. Hidden valley ruled by Gongsun Zhi, known for its deadly Passion Flowers and the Passionless Divine Palm technique. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
裘千尺 – Qiú Qiānchǐ. Gongsun Zhi’s wife and Qiu Qianren’s younger sister; known as Iron Palm Lotus. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
绝情丹 – Juéqíng Dān. Antidote for passion-flower poison from the Passionless Valley. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
裘千丈 – Qiú Qiānzhàng. Qiu Qianren’s elder twin brother. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
郭芙 – Guō Fú. Her name meaning “lotus”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
牛家村 – Niu Family Village. Village near Lin’an (modern Hangzhou) where Guo Jing and Huang Rong once hid in a secret chamber to recover from severe injuries, as recounted in The Legend of the Condor Heroes. This was one of the most intimate and formative periods of their relationship. ↩
郭襄 – Guō Xiāng. Daughter of Guo Jing and Huang Rong. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
丈 – zhàng. Traditional Chinese unit of length, about 3.3 metres. Ten chi make one zhang. ↩
鞠躬尽瘁，死而后已 – Jūgōng Jìncuì, Sǐ Ér Hòu Yǐ. Zhuge Liang’s most famous phrase, from his “Second Memorial on Sending Out the Troops.” It expresses the ideal of serving one’s cause with total commitment, regardless of outcome. ↩
舍生取义 – “Sacrifice oneself to fulfil benevolence” (杀身成仁) and “Give one’s life to achieve righteousness”. Core Confucian concepts from the Analects and Mencius respectively. They represent the highest moral ideal: giving up one’s life when necessary to uphold moral principles. ↩
公孙止 – Gōngsūn Zhǐ. His name meaning “to cease” or “to stop”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
达尔巴 – Dá’ěrbā. Golden Wheel National Preceptor’s second disciple. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
玉女素心剑法 – Yùnǚ Sùxīn Jiànfǎ. Paired sword technique of the Ancient Tomb School. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
五轮大转手 – Wǔlún Dàzhuǎn Shǒu. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
金丝手套 – Jīnsī Shǒutào. Protective gloves woven from fine gold thread, impervious to blades; equipment of the Ancient Tomb School. ↩
斤 – jīn. Traditional Chinese unit of weight, approximately one pound or half a kilogram. ↩
李莫愁 – Lǐ Mòchóu. Her name meaning “do not sorrow”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
玉女心经 – Yùnǚ Xīnjīng. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
参同契 – Cān Tóng Qì. Fully the Zhouyi Can Tong Qi (周易参同契), “The Kinship of the Three in Accordance with the Book of Changes.” A foundational text of Daoist internal alchemy. ↩
夭矫空碧 – Yāojiǎo Kōngbì. Qinggong technique from the Ancient Tomb School involving dramatic high leaps and swooping descents. ↩
隔山观虎斗 – Watching the tiger fight from the mountain. Chinese idiom meaning to stand aside and watch others fight, waiting to benefit from their mutual destruction. Phrase originates from the Warring States period strategy of letting two enemies exhaust each other. ↩
Three Kingdoms alliance strategy. During the Three Kingdoms period (220—280 CE), the kingdom of Shu Han (led by Liu Bei and his strategist Zhuge Liang) allied with the eastern kingdom of Wu (led by Sun Quan) to resist the much stronger northern kingdom of Wei (led by Cao Cao). Yang Guo is applying this strategic principle to his current predicament. ↩
冰魄银针 – Bīngpò Yínzhēn. Li Mochou’s signature concealed weapon. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
调虎离山 – Luring the tiger from the mountain. One of the Thirty-Six Stratagems of ancient Chinese military thought. Strategy involves drawing an enemy away from their position of strength, making them vulnerable. ↩
气舍穴 – Qishe acupoint. Located on the neck, just above the collarbone, along the Stomach meridian. This is a critical acupoint; striking or biting it can severely disrupt the flow of qi. ↩
曲泉穴 – Ququan acupoint. Located at the medial end of the transverse crease of the knee, on the Liver meridian. Imperial Preceptor is using this point as a barrier to prevent the poison from spreading from his lower leg into his thigh and torso. ↩
大椎穴 – Dàzhuī Xué. GV-14 acupoint on the Governing Vessel meridian, located below the seventh cervical vertebra at the base of the neck. Major acupoint governing the flow of qi between the upper body and head. ↩
程英 – Chéng Yīng. Her name meaning “heroine” or “outstanding”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
陆无双 – Lù Wúshuāng. Her name meaning “peerless” or “without equal”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩
洪凌波 – Hóng Língbō. Her name meaning “treading the waves”. See Wuxia Wiki. ↩

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