Smiling Proud Wanderer Vol 01 Page 17

  Everyone couldn’t help thinking, “Tian Boguang’s nickname is ‘Ten Thousand Miles Loner.’ He enjoys great fame in the Martial World with his outstanding Qing-Gong skills. Now someone comes along and says ‘his Qing-Gong skills are not too good,’ he must have intentionally said it to irritate Tian Boguang.”

  Yilin continued, “The villain Tian Boguang suddenly turned around and gave my face a hard pinch. I screamed in pain. Then he ran out of the cave and shouted, ‘Damn punk, let’s see whose Qing-Gong is better.’ But he was tricked. The man had been hiding by the opening of the cave, and as soon as Tian Boguang rushed out, he sneaked in.

  “‘Don’t worry. I am here to save you. Which of your acupoints were sealed?’ he whispered to me.

  “‘My right shoulder and my back,” I said. “It seems to be the Jian-Zhen Acupoint and Da-Zhui Acupoint! Who are you?’

  “‘Let me open up your sealed acupoints first,’ he said, then started massaging at my Jian-Zhen and Da-Zhui Acupoints.

  “Perhaps I didn’t tell him the right acupoints; although he tried very hard, he still couldn’t release my acupoints. We heard Tian Boguang’s shouting coming back toward us, so I said, ‘You’d better run away quickly. If he sees you when he comes back, he will kill you.’

  “He replied, ‘Five Mountains Sword Alliance; the same root, different branches. When an apprentice sister is in trouble, how can I not try to help?’”

  “Does he belong to the Five Mountains Sword Alliance?” Dingyi asked.

  “Master, he is Linghu Chong, Big Brother Linghu.”

  Dingyi, Priest Tian-Men, Yu Canghai, He Sanqi, Mr. Wen, and Liu Zhengfeng all said “oh” and nodded. Lao Denuo let out a long breath. Some people had already thought that this man might be Linghu Chong, but no one was very sure until Yilin confirmed it.

  Yilin went on with the story, “Hearing Tian Boguang’s shouting getting closer and closer, Big Brother Linghu said, ‘Pardon me!’ Then he carried me out of the cave and hid inside the high grass. Right after we hid ourselves, Tian Boguang ran into the cave. He could not find me and became really angry, so he began swearing and saying lots of bad words. I didn’t quite understand what he was saying. He picked up my broken sword and started slashing wildly at the high grass. Luckily it was raining that night, and there was no light from either the moon or the stars, so he could not see us. But he figured that we could not have gone far, and must have been somewhere nearby, so he kept chopping and slashing. Once the sword was so close to me that it went only a few inches above my head.

  “He chopped and swore, and walked around randomly. I suddenly felt some warm drops of liquid fall on my face, and at the same time, I smelled blood. I was quite startled and asked in whisper, ‘Are you wounded?’ Big Brother Linghu covered my mouth with his hand. After a long while, when we heard the sound of chopping grass going further and further away, he whispered back, ‘No problem,’ and then took his hand away from my mouth. But the warm blood just kept dripping onto my face.

  “‘You are badly wounded; we’ve got to stop the bleeding,’ I said. ‘I have Heavenly Connecting Glue.’

  “‘Don’t speak,’ he ordered. ‘He’ll find out where we are if we move!’ and then he covered his wound with his hand.

  “After a while, Tian Boguang ran back. ‘Ha-ha, so here you are. I can see you. Stand up!’ he shouted.

  “Hearing his words, I could only groan inwardly. I was ready to stand up, but I simply could not move my legs….”

  “You were tricked. Tian Boguang was trying to fool you. He didn’t see you at all,” Sister Dingyi cried.

  “That’s right. Master, how did you know? You weren’t there at that time!” Yilin asked in surprise.

  “Was that so hard to guess?” Dingyi explained. “If he had really seen you, he would have come over and killed Linghu Chong with a single chop. Why bother shouting out loud? So the lad Linghu Chong was naive too.”

  Yilin shook her head. “No, Big Brother Linghu thought of that as well. He immediately covered my mouth with his hand, afraid that I would scream. Tian Boguang shouted for a while and did not hear any response, so he went about slashing some more grass. Big Brother Linghu waited until Tian Boguang went far away, then he whispered to me, ‘Apprentice sister, if we can last another half an hour, when the blood and energy flows better around your sealed acupoints, I will be able to open them up. But since Tian Boguang will definitely turn back, we might not be so lucky again. I’d say let’s just take our chances and hide inside the cave.’”

  At these words, Mr. Wen, He Sanqi, and Liu Zhengfeng all clapped their hands. “Excellent! Brave, yet smart!” Mr. Wen praised.

  Yilin went on, “I was scared to go back to the cave, but I already had great confidence in and admiration for Big Brother Linghu. If he said so, then it must be a good idea. So I said, ‘Okay.’ He picked me up again and rushed into the cave.

  “After he put me down on the ground, I said, ‘I have Heavenly Connecting Glue in my pocket. It is a miraculous medicine for sealing wounds. Please…please take it out and use it on your wounds.’

  “‘It’s not a good time to take it out,’ he objected. ‘I’ll wait till you can move your hands and legs again, then you can give it to me.’ He drew his sword and cut off a section of his sleeve to wrap the wound on his left shoulder.

  “I finally understood that when we were hiding in the grass, in order to protect me, when Tian Boguang cut his shoulder, he didn’t move at all and didn’t let out any sound, and in the darkness, Tian Boguang didn’t notice it. I felt so sorry for him and didn’t know why it was not a good time to take the medicine out….”

  “So as you have said, Linghu Chong is actually a gentleman?” Dingyi let out a snort.

  Yilin looked at her Master, her bright eyes filled with surprise. “Of course, Big Brother Linghu is a first-class gentleman. I didn’t even know him, and he stood up and rescued me, risking his own life,” she said.

  Yu Canghai said coldly, “You did not know him, but he probably had seen you before. Otherwise, how could he have such a ‘kind’ heart?” He was implying that Linghu Chong acted bravely because of her extreme beauty.

  “No! He said he had never met me before. Big Brother Linghu never lies to me; he never does!” Yilin rebutted. These words were spoken with such assurance, that although her voice was still gentle, the meaning was very resolute and decisive. All the people in the hall were moved by her pure confidence and all truly believed her.

  Yu Canghai thought, “That rascal Linghu Chong was always reckless in a crazy way; if he didn’t act so fearlessly for beauty, then it must have been for fame. He wanted to gain fame by fighting Tian Boguang.”

  Yilin continued, “After wrapping his wound, Big Brother Linghu continued massaging the acupoints on my shoulder and back. Soon we heard the chopping and slashing noises coming closer and closer. Tian Boguang had slashed his way to the opening of the cave. My heart was thumping very hard.

  “Tian Boguang came into the cave and sat down on the ground silently. I held my breath and didn’t even dare to breath. Suddenly, a great pain came from my shoulder. It came so unexpected that I couldn’t help groaning. That spoiled the whole thing. Tian Boguang laughed loudly and walked toward me with big steps. Big Brother Linghu just squatted by the side and did not move.

  “‘Little lamb, so you are still hiding in the cave, huh!’ Tian Boguang said with a smile. He stuck his hand out to grab me.

  “I heard the sound of a sword thrust, and then I found that Big Brother Linghu had stabbed Tian Boguang. Tian Boguang was startled and dropped the broken sword. But the thrust didn’t hit his vital parts. What a pity! Tian Boguang jumped back in a hurry, pulled out the knife by his waist, and began to swing it at Big Brother Linghu. The knife and the sword hit each other with a clang; the two started fighting. In the dark, neither of them could see. After a couple of clangs, both of them jumped backward. All I could hear was the sound of their breathing. I was scared to death.”

  �
��How many rounds did Linghu Chong fight him?” Priest Tian-Men interrupted.

  “I was scared senseless at the time, and didn’t notice how long they had fought,” Yilin answered. “I heard Tian Boguang laughing and saying, ‘Ha, you are from the Huashan Sword School! The Huashan Sword Art is no match for my skills. What’s your name?’

  “Big Brother Linghu said, ‘Five Mountains Sword Alliance; same root different branches. Either Huashan Sword School or Heng-Shan Sword School, we are all after you, evil rapist….’ Before he could finish his words, Tian Boguang had already started his attack. It turned out that he tricked Big Brother Linghu into talking in order to find out where he was. After several more rounds, Big Brother Linghu let out a cry of pain. He was wounded again.

  “Tian Boguang laughed. ‘I told you. Huashan Sword Art is no match for my skills. Even if your old Master Yue had come himself, he’d lose too.’ But Big Brother Linghu did not answer him again.

  “Earlier, when I had a great pain on my shoulder, it turned out it was because the acupoints on my shoulder opened up by themselves. I felt some more pain on my back; those acupoints were opening up too. I slowly struggled up while moving my hands around looking for the broken sword. Big Brother Linghu heard the sound and said happily, ‘Your acupoints are open now! Run away! Hurry up!’

  “‘Apprentice brother of the Huashan Sword School, let’s fight the villain together!’ I declared.

  “‘You run away! Hurry up! We will still be no match for him even if we fight together,’ he demanded.

  “Tian Boguang laughed. ‘Glad you know that! Why waste your life for no reason? Hey, I really like your courage. What’s your name?’

  “‘If you had asked for my respectful name nicely, I would tell you, but since you asked your old man so rudely, he won’t pay any heed to you,’ Big Brother Linghu answered.

  “Master, don’t you think that was funny? Big Brother Linghu wasn’t his father, but called himself his ‘old man’.”

  “That was just a rude word; it doesn’t really mean ‘his old man’!” Dingyi let out a disgruntled snort as she explained.

  “Ah, I see. Big Brother Linghu then said, ‘Apprentice sister, you can run to the town of Hengshan. We have lots of friends there; I am sure this villain wouldn’t dare to go there looking for you.’

  “‘What if he kills you?’ I asked.

  “‘He is not good enough to kill me!’ Big Brother Linghu yelled. ‘I will tie him up here. Why are you still here? Run! Ouch!’ With two metallic sounds made by their weapons hitting each other, Big Brother Linghu was wounded once more.

  “He got mad and started yelling at me, ‘If you don’t leave right now, I am going to start cursing you!’

  “By then I had already found the broken sword on the ground, so I shouted, ‘Let’s fight him two to one.’

  “‘Nothing could be better! Tian Boguang, one man and one knife, here to fight both the Huashan Sword School and the Heng-Shan Sword School,’ Tian Boguang laughed loudly.

  “Big Brother Linghu started to scold me. He yelled, ‘You foolish little nun, you are an idiot. Go away! If you don’t go away, next time I see you, I’ll slap you!’

  “Tian Boguang laughed. ‘This little nun doesn’t want to part with me. She won’t go.’

  “Big Brother Linghu got really mad. He shouted, ‘Are you leaving or not?’

  “I said, ‘No way!’

  “Big Brother Linghu then said, ‘If you don’t leave now, I am going to call your Master names! Dingxian you idiotic old nun, look how you’ve taught such an idiotic little nun!’

  “‘Uncle-Master Dingxian is not my Master,’ I explained.

  “‘Fine, then I’ll call Sister Dingjing names!’ he said.

  “‘Uncle-Master Dingjing is not my Master, either,’ I said.

  “‘Bah! You’re still not leaving! I’ll call Dingyi an old idiot…!’”

  Dingyi made a sour face and looked very displeased.

  “Master, please don’t be angry,” Yilin said hurriedly. “Big Brother Linghu meant well for me. He didn’t really want to call you anything.

  “I said, ‘I am foolish by myself. It wasn’t taught by my Master!’

  “Suddenly, Tian Boguang jumped forth at me and poked his finger at me. I waved my sword wildly in the darkness and forced him back.

  “Big Brother Linghu shouted, ‘I have a whole bunch of dirty words that I am going to use on your Master now. Aren’t you afraid?’

  “‘Don’t call anyone any more names. Let’s run away together!’ I said.

  “‘Your standing beside me is already blocking my moves,’ Big Brother Linghu shouted. ‘I can’t use my best Huashan sword moves. Once you get out, then I can kill this villain with ease.’

  “Tian Boguang laughed hard and said, ‘You’ve really got some affection for this little nun, too bad that she doesn’t even know your name.’

  “I thought these words from the villain were quite right, so I asked, ‘Apprentice brother of the Huashan Sword School, what’s your name? I will tell my Master when I go to Hengshan that you saved my life.’

  “Big Brother Linghu said, ‘Go away! Hurry up! You are too wordy! My name is Lao, Lao Denuo!’”

  Hearing his own name mentioned, Lao Denuo was stunned. “Why did Big Apprentice Brother assume my identity?” he thought to himself, feeling utterly confused.

  “This Linghu Chong does kind things and walks away from the fame. That is the true characteristic of us chivalrous people,” Mr. Wen nodded and murmured to himself.

  Sister Dingyi glanced at Lao Denuo and murmured, “This Linghu Chong was so rude, and even dared call me names. He was probably afraid that I would go after him because of that, so he wanted to pin the blame on somebody else.”

  “Hey, so you’re the one who called me an old idiot?” she glared at Lao Denuo.

  Lao Denuo bowed hurriedly. “No, no! I dare not!”

  “Sister Dingyi,” Liu Zhengfeng cut in with a smile, “Linghu Chong had his reasons for using his apprentice brother Lao Denuo’s name. This nephew apprentice Lao joined Huashan Sword School with previously learned skills. Although his seniority is low, his age is not. With a great bush of a beard, he could pass of as Yilin’s grandfather.”

  Dingyi immediately understood that Linghu Chong only wanted to protect Yilin’s reputation. At that time, it was totally dark in the cave; no one could recognize anyone else, even when face- to-face. If Yilin got away and mentioned that it was Lao Denuo of Huashan Sword School who saved her, no one would think up snide comments to defame her with such an old man. This not only protected Yilin’s reputation, but also protected the reputation of the Heng-Shan Sword School. At this thought, she could not help letting a little smile creep into her face.

  “This lad really is thoughtful.” She nodded. “Yilin, what happened after that?”

  Yilin answered, “By then I still didn’t want to leave. I said, ‘Big brother Lao, you got yourself into danger all because of me, how can I leave you in danger? If my Master learned that I was such a coward and didn’t care about fellow apprentices, she would kill me herself. Master always taught us that although we are all females in the Heng-Shan Sword School, with regard to chivalry, we are never bettered by any man!’”

  “Excellent, excellent! You said it right!” Dingyi applauded and shouted out. “For us Kung Fu practitioners, whoever does not exercise chivalry is better dead than alive. No matter whether man or woman, it’s all the same.”

  Seeing the solemn expression on her face when she said these words, everyone could see that the spirit of the old nun was really no less than that of any man.

  Yilin continued, “But then Big Brother Linghu began to scold me profusely. ‘You darn idiotic little nun,’ he said, ‘all you do is talk and talk and talk, and stop me from being able to use my unbeatable Huashan Sword Art. My old life is destined to be lost in Tian Boguang’s hands. So you’re in league with Tian Boguang and purposely set me up. I, Lao Denuo, am so unlucky today, seei
ng a nun right after I start my trip. And it is a rotten little nun that will have no son, no grandson, no nothing. Even with the super strong and super powerful magical sword arts I know, I am unable to use them, because I fear that the energy of my sword strikes would hurt the little nun’s life. Alright! Very well! Tian Boguang, just give me a good chop and let’s finish it off. This old man is just fated to go today!’”

  All of Linghu Chong’s dirty words told in Yilin’s sweet and gentle voice brought inadvertent smiles of amusement to the lips of the listeners.

  Then Yilin said, “After hearing these words, I realized I couldn’t do him any good because my Kung Fu skills were so poor, and my staying in the cave would block his way and prevent him from using his magical Huashan Sword Art….”

  “He was just bragging! His Huashan Sword Art is just average. What makes it so invincible in the Martial World?” Dingyi snorted.

  “Master, he was just trying to scare off Tian Boguang,” Yilin said. “Hearing more and more abuses coming out of his mouth, I said unwillingly, ‘Big brother Lao, I am leaving! Hope to see you later!’

  “‘Get lost you smelly rotten duck egg,’ he scolded. ‘The further you get lost, the better! ‘Once a man sees a nun, he loses all his bets!’ I didn’t see you before, and I will never see you again. Gambling is my favorite hobby; why would I ever want to see you again?’”

  Hearing this, Dingyi could not contain her anger. She stood up and yelled in a stern voice, “That scum! Did you leave?”

  “I was afraid to make him even angrier, so I left,” Yilin said. “Once I stepped out of the cave, I heard the clash of weapons getting more and more intense. I figured that if the villain Tian Boguang won, he would be after me again. If ‘big brother Lao’ won, after he came out and saw me outside of the cave, he would ‘lose all his bets’ because of me, so I clenched my teeth and ran as fast as I could to catch up with you, respectful Master. Then I could ask you to help fight the villain Tian Boguang.”

  Dingyi hummed and nodded.

  “Master, Big Brother Linghu later lost his life; was that because of…of seeing me, and getting bad luck?” Yilin suddenly asked out of the blue.