1
Just as the young couple had agreed, without a word spoken, to enjoy their moment together and resist their natural curiousity, they heard snatches of conversation drifting over from the martial strangers:
"… Urchin … duped by Brother Peng … nothing to fear…"
Could they mean the Hoary Urchin? Guo Jing and Lotus leaped into action.
The men's kung fu was average at best, so they were oblivious to the travel companions they had gained. The landscape grew hillier as they followed the men farther and farther from the market town. After five or six li, they arrived at a valley where echoes of obscenities and insults could be heard ringing in the night.
A couple of torches flickered in the pitch-black wilderness, picking out a group of shadowy figures gathered around two men sitting crossed-legged on the ground. Guo Jing recognized Zhou Botong straight away in the half-light, but it took him a little longer to place the bulky form wrapped in crimson vestments … Lama Supreme Wisdom! The two sat facing each other, stiff and catatonic, without the slightest hint of movement. Nothing to suggest that either man was still breathing.
Never had Guo Jing seen the Hoary Urchin so still … so corpse-like. His appearance, along with the exchange they had overheard earlier, led the young man to assume the worst. He tensed, ready to jump to his sworn brother's aid, but Lotus seized his arm and yanked him back down behind a rock.
"Wait," she said quietly. "Just watch."
The slurs they had overheard were being hurled from the mouth of a cave to the left of Zhou Botong. The opening was so small that an adult man would have to bend double to venture inside, and yet the foul-mouthed men kept their distance, visibly wary of what was lurking within.
It took some time for Guo Jing and Lotus to pick out the detail of what they were seeing in the gloom, and, when they did, they could hardly believe their eyes. So many familiar faces: the Ginseng Codger Graybeard Liang; Hector Sha, Dragon King of the Daemon Sect; Tiger Peng, Butcher of a Thousand Hands; Browbeater Hou the Three-Horned Dragon, who had lost an arm and gained three more cysts on his forehead since they had last come across him, in Ox Village, a month before.
The group was completed by the two men who had unknowingly guided the young couple to this valley. When they turned toward the firelight, Guo Jing recognized them as Old Liang's students, one of whom he had sent flying with a Haughty Dragon Repents when he had first learned the Dragon-Subduing Palm.
A sense of unease gnawed at Lotus as she peered around, trying to make out if anyone else was skulking in the darkness.
How come they've got the Urchin in their power? she asked herself. He could handle this lot with one hand tied behind his back. For a Master like him, they're mere playthings.
"I think Viper Ouyang is here," she whispered into Guo Jing's ear.
She was trying to think of a way to confirm her suspicions when she heard the guttural growls of Tiger Peng:
"Come into the open, dog, or we'll smoke you out!"
"Go on, do your reeking worst!" came the booming retort.
A voice Guo Jing knew well. His first martial teacher, Ke Zhen'e, the eldest of the Freaks.
"Shifu, I'm here!"
Guo Jing darted out of his hiding place, without a care for Viper Ouyang or anyone else who might be lurking nearby, for protecting his Master was his only concern. He grabbed the man nearest to him—Browbeater Hou—and tossed him aside.
Though taken by surprise, Hector Sha and Tiger Peng were the quickest to recover and react. They pounced as one, while Graybeard Liang sneaked into position behind Guo Jing a moment later, poised to deal a stealthly knockout blow. But, before he could raise his hand, he sensed the air near his back parting and he ducked.
Ke Zhen'e had heard, from inside the cave, the sound of footsteps circling his disciple and let fly a poisoned devilnut.
The projectile whizzed by, passing just above the crown of the Ginseng Immortal's head, scorching his skin. In one great leap, Graybeard Liang distanced himself more than a zhang from the fight and examined his scalp gingerly. He heaved a sigh of relief. No blood, but the brush with danger had shaken him—his undershirt was drenched in sweat. The memory of Tiger Peng falling victim to the potent poison delivered by the blind man's secret weapon was fresh in his mind.
Not one to let an affront pass, he pulled several Bone-Piercing Needles from his robe and tiptoed over to the cave. He extended his arm across the entrance, taking care not to make a sound, and readied himself for sweet vengeance.
A numb spot appeared on his wrist. Needles clinked as they hit the ground.
Girlish giggles. "On your knees, or taste the cane."
Old Liang snapped round and found Lotus grinning at him, bamboo stick in hand. Growling, he thrust his left hand at her shoulder and grabbed her weapon with his right. She veered away from the palm strike, but did not shift the cane, so he was able to wrap his fingers around its tip.
Ha! Let go, little girl, or I'll pull you in too! he thought with glee.
He tugged, drawing her weapon toward him. The instant he thought he had taken control of it, the bamboo cane juddered to life and slipped from his grip. Rattled, he flapped his arms to bat it away, but it was a futile gesture, for he had brought her weapon inside his circle of defense himself. All he could do was to follow with his eyes an emerald blur he had no hope of catching, for the tip of the cane was closer to his core than his hands. Thwack! A crack on the head.
He let his legs buckle, then tucked himself into a roll, going along with the force of the clout out of instinct. Once he had pulled away by ten paces or so, he sprang to his feet and gaped at the bright-eyed girl who had just made a fool of him—his head smarting, his mind a whirl, his body awash with shame.
"You've been graced by my cane technique, now tell me what that makes you," Lotus said, beaming. "I know you're familiar with the name of this kung fu."
Beaten like a mangy cur … Graybeard Liang thought as he rubbed his sore head. His body convulsed at the reminder of his mortifying treatment at the hands of Count Seven Hong and that very same Dog-Beating Cane.
"We shall give Chief Hong face and retreat." He signaled to his disciples and the three of them melted away into the darkness.
Guo Jing, meanwhile, was having no trouble repelling the joint assault from Hector Sha and Tiger Peng. A jab of his left elbow, and Sha shrank three steps back. Guo Jing, riding the impetus of that attack, then swung his forearm out, aiming for Peng.
Tiger Peng dodged the blade-like edge of the flying palm and shifted his stance for a counterattack, but Guo Jing was faster. A hook of his right wrist, and he had the Butcher of a Thousand Hands hoisted up by the back of his collar.
The stout man's legs dangled in the air. He punched and kicked, but his blows contained no sting. His strength seemed to be blunted by the way he was being held up and he could do nothing but watch as Guo Jing's fist fell like a hammer blow on his chest.
This is it … He braced himself as he squealed, "What day is it today?"
"Huh?"
"Aren't you a man of your word?"
"What do you mean?" Guo Jing's fist hovered above Peng's sternum, but he was not ready to let him touch firm ground just yet.
"Is it Moon Festival today? Are we in Jiaxing? Have you forgotten our contest? We agreed to test each other's kung fu on the fifteenth day of the eighth moon, at the Tower of Mist and Rain, in Jiaxing. How can you hurt me now, before the appointed day and time?"
There was a logic to his argument that Guo Jing could not dispute. He was about to set the Butcher down when the fragments of conversation that had brought him here surfaced in his mind.
"What did you do to Brother Zhou?"
"Nothing. The Urchin made a wager with the lama. The first to move loses."
Guo Jing regarded his sworn brother with relief and called into the cave, "First Shifu, I trust you are safe and well."
All he got in reply was a grunt.
He flung Tiger Peng ten paces away from him, so the mean-spirited man could not deliver a sneaky kick to his abdomen.
But Peng was in no mood to prolong their scuffle.
"The winner of this fight shall be decided on the fifteenth, in Jiaxing," he said after jumping farther back. Then he cupped his hands in farewell and took off with the help of his fastest lightness qinggong. As he cursed Hector Sha and Graybeard Liang for deserting him, he wondered what it was that was making the young upstart's kung fu improve by leaps and bounds each time they met. Could he have uncovered some magical elixir? Perhaps there was sorcery at play …
2
Lotus stood between Zhou Botong and Lama Supreme Wisdom, desperate to know why the lama had not made off with the rest of his cronies. They were glaring at each other. Not so much as a flicker of recognition or a flutter of their eyelids as her face loomed over theirs.
Duped by Brother Peng … The words echoed in her head.
This must be Tiger Peng's ploy to deprive the Old Urchin of his martial abilities, she said to herself. How else could the lama and his lackluster skills hold the legendary Zhou Botong the Hoary Urchin back—all on his own—giving the others the chance to harass Ke Zhen'e? The Urchin, being the Urchin, must have regarded it as an amusing game. He would never have guessed their nefarious motives. That must have been the reason why, when the brawl broke out just now, he sat as steady as Mount Tai and did not deign to lift even his little finger.
"Holla! Urchin!" Lotus bellowed into Zhou Botong's face.
Of course, he could see her and hear her very well, but he could not picture a fate more tragic than losing a wager.
"Isn't it tedious, just sitting there? We're still hours from declaring a winner. Let me make this more exciting. I'll tickle your laughter pressure points. And I'll be fair, triggering them at the same time, with the same force. Who laughs first, loses. Agreed?"
Lotus's suggestion could not have come at a better time for the Hoary Urchin. Sitting still for so long had stretched his patience to breaking point. He was desperate to shout in agreement, but, after some fierce mental wrestling, he managed to suppress the urge.
Not expecting a reply, Lotus sat on her haunches halfway between the two men, set down the Dog-Beating Cane and extended her arms, aiming her index fingers at the acupoints on their waists. For once, she managed to be impartial and let an equal amount of internal energy flow into each hand. She knew the Old Urchin's neigong was far superior and would be able to withstand her probing, yet she was mystified as to why she was unable to elicit even a hint of reaction from the lama.
If I were in his place, I'd be bent double and howling in hysterics by now. Eyeing the monk with grudging respect, she channeled more power into her fingers.
Zhou Botong bore down with all his inner strength, but Lotus was poking her fingers into the very base of his rib cage where the muscles were the softest, and, as a result, the least receptive to his inner power. He could push out his midriff a touch as a countermeasure, but what if he misjudged the minute adjustment and ended up shifting his whole torso? He could not risk losing the wager that way. The only option left to him was to gird his mind against the onslaught, but his young friend would not ease off, piling on more and more force.
At last, the Urchin could tolerate it no more and flexed his tummy, bouncing Lotus's finger away. He sprang to his feet with a guffaw.
"Fat monk, you've trounced the Hoary Urchin!"
Lamenting her uncharacteristic impartiality, Lotus straightened up and turned to Lama Supreme Wisdom. "You've won. We won't make trouble for you, this time. Off you go!"
No response. No movement.
She gave him a tap on the shoulder. "Get up!"
It was a light push, without any internal strength, and yet it was enough to topple his hefty bulk over. As he lay on his back, facing the heavens, the monk's hands were touched together as before, and his legs were still crossed midair, as if he were a painted clay statue of the Buddha.
Did he suffocate himself keeping his pressure points sealed? Lotus put a finger under his nose. She could feel his breath.
"Urchin, oh Urchin, you've been tricked."
"What?" Zhou Botong's eyes bulged at the news.
"Unbind him and I'll tell you all about it."
It took the Old Urchin a few moments to comprehend her words. He bent down to feel the lama's body. Eight major acupressure points had been bound.
"It doesn't count! It doesn't count!" Zhou Botong yelled, hopping from foot to foot. "Those scoundrels locked his movement when he sat down. The fat monk could stay like that for another three days and three nights!" He squatted on his heels and called to the lama. "Come, come, come, let's do it again!" But the man was still stuck on his back in the same position, unable to move, unable to respond. Muttering about a rematch, the Old Urchin worked to remove the binds, his hands flitting over the monk's pressure points.
Lotus's eyes followed him as he bustled about. "Hey, what happened to my shifu? What did you do with him?"
"Oh!" The Urchin shot to his feet and scampered into the cave, almost running straight into Guo Jing, who was guiding Ke Zhen'e out. Once the youth had heard his sworn brother prattling away in boisterous spirits, evidently unharmed by the antics of the night, he had slipped inside to check on his teacher.
When they were outside, Guo Jing was shocked to see in the gloom that the First Freak was donned in mourning white, with a strip of cloth the same color wound around his head.
"Master, did someone pass away in your family? Where are my other shifus?"
Ke twisted his face toward the heavens. Two streams of tears coursed down his withered cheeks. Guo Jing had never seen his mentor so distraught and he swallowed his follow-up questions.
Just then, Zhou Botong emerged with someone else on his arm, who had a drinking gourd in one hand and a half-eaten chicken in the other.
"Shifu!" Guo Jing and Lotus cried in unison, and they rushed over to greet Count Seven Hong.
The Divine Vagrant Nine Fingers nodded at his students, grinning through the chicken thigh clamped between his teeth.
Darkness descended over Ke Zhen'e's features. He swung his metal staff down, swift and savage. The Exorcist's Staff technique he had perfected in Mongolia as a means to tackle Cyclone Mei. Designed to bludgeon with blistering, ferocious force, it made a terrifying sound as it descended on its victims, but left them no time to evade its wrath—it was his wish that the blind woman would hear the coming of her end.
Needless to say, Lotus had let her guard down since Tiger Peng and his pack had fled the valley. Why would anybody here wish her harm? By the time she sensed the gust whipped up by the staff, it was already too late.
Guo Jing reached out without a second thought. He knocked the heavy weapon off target with one hand and grabbed it with the other. How could let it crush Lotus's skull? He intercepted his mentor's strike on instinct, not realizing how much his strength had improved in recent weeks, or that the simple move contained all the power of the Dragon-Subduing Palm.
A mighty wave of energy crashed into Ke Zhen'e. It tore the staff out of his hands and swept all anchorage from his feet, throwing him facedown to the ground.
"Shifu!" Guo Jing stooped to help his teacher. He felt sick to see what he had inflicted upon a man he held in the highest regard.
Ke's nose was bruised and swollen. His lips, bloodied. In his mouth, a dark gap where his two front teeth had been.
The sightless man shook off his student's arms and spat into his open palm. "Yours!"
Guo Jing stared at the grim mess in his shifu's hand and cast himself to his knees. "Your student deserves the harshest punishment!"
"Take them!" The eldest Freaks shoved his hand toward Guo Jing.
"Master!"
Guo Jing collapsed into panicked sobs, while Zhou Botong burst out laughing. "Shifu beating his disciple, a common sight. Student thrashing his teacher, a special treat!"
"Very well…" Ke Zhen'e tossed the teeth into his mouth and threw his head back, gulping them down.
The Hoary Urchin cheered, applauding the Freak's literal demonstration of an age-old martial saying: Teeth smacked from the mouth, knock them back with blood.
Shaken to the core, Lotus shuffled over to Count Seven Hong to cling to his arm. She could not fathom why Ke Zhen'e wanted her dead, but she could sense the grief and bile seeping from every pore of his person.
Guo Jing was still kowtowing fervently. "I would never dream of striking you, Master. It was a sincere mistake. Please, chastise me."
"Master? Who are you calling Master? Now that you've got the Lord of Peach Blossom Island for a father-in-law, you need no other! The tricks of the Seven Freaks of the South are too trifling for a great man like yourself, Lord Guo."
Guo Jing knocked his head hard against the ground, but it did not soften the wrath of the man who had initiated him into the world of kung fu. The man whom he held in the same high esteem as his own father. The man who was his teacher, his mentor, his shifu.
"Great Hero Ke." Count Seven Hong at last opened his mouth to speak. The chicken thigh he had been savoring fell from his lips and he caught it in the same hand that was holding the rest of the bird. "The boy is a novice. Students sometimes fail to control their strength and hurt their master. I taught him that move, so this Old Beggar is at fault too. Please accept my humble and heartfelt apologies." He finished with a bow, bringing his gourd and the chicken carcass together in some rough semblance of a gesture of respect.
Zhou Botong, fearing that he might be left out, parroted Count Seven Hong's words and action, substituting "Old Beggar" with "Old Urchin" and explaining that he had given Guo Jing lessons in channeling his energy. But his playful echo of Count Seven's words turned the well-meaning remark into a grating scoff in the blind man's ears.
"Pah! You Greats are powerful, but to what end? Not one of you acts with righteousness, and that will be your downfall!" And, in the heat of his fury, Ke Zhen'e cursed the Heretic, the Venom, the King and the Beggar—the four most powerful Masters of the wulin.
"Wait, why do you curse the King of the South? Has he wronged you too?" Zhou Botong never knew when to keep quiet.
"Hey, Old Urchin, someone's here to see you!" Lotus was aware that Ke Zhen'e's ire would be hard enough to quench without Zhou Botong's meddling, and it would be a hopeless task if he were around. "The lovebird has taken flight."
"What?" The shock of those words sent the older man three feet into the air.
"She's here to bathe your scarlet feather in the chill of dawn." Another reference to Madam Ying's poem.
"Where?" the Urchin shrieked.
"Just over there."
"I won't see her—never, never, never, never, never. Good Miss Huang, dear Miss Huang, please don't tell her you've seen me," Zhou Botong begged. "I'll do anything you ask of me…" His voice trailed off. He had already sprinted so far north, he was almost out of earshot.
"I'll hold you to your word!" Lotus shouted after him.
"When a word bolts from the Hoary Urchin's mouth, not even eight horses can chase it down!" The ghost of his voice was the only part of him that remained in the valley.
Lotus found Zhou Botong's reaction unsettling. It was extreme, even by his standards. She had hoped to coax him into seeking Madam Ying out. Who would have thought he would be so terror-stricken by the mere mention of her? Well, at least she had succeeded in getting rid of him before he could cause more trouble.
Kneeling by Ke Zhen'e, Guo Jing was speaking through his tears. "Shifu left the comforts of home and moved to the wilderness of Mongolia, all because of me. This kindness I can never repay, even with my death. Today, this hand injured you, and I will have nothing more to do with it!" He pulled out the golden dagger and chopped down.
Hearing the blade cut through the air, the sightless man twisted his staff sideways. Sparks flashed as the weapons clashed.
The boy put all his force into the blow, Ke told himself as numbness dulled his grip.
"I know you speak from the heart," he said, somewhat breathless from the exchange "I hereby ask you to do one thing for me."
"I shall most certainly oblige," came Guo Jing's eager reply.
"If you refuse, the bond between us shall be severed for eternity."
"Your command will be my lifelong mission."
Ke struck the Exorcist's Staff against the ground. "Bring me the heads of Heretic Huang and his daughter Lotus."
Reeling, Guo Jing spluttered, "What hap—how—?"
The Freak cut his student off with a snort. "I wish the heavens would grant me sight for this one moment. I would love to see the face of this ungrateful little bastard!"
He swung the metal staff at the crown of Guo Jing's head. The young man stayed on his knees, rooted to the spot.
Lotus had had an inkling of what Ke Zhen'e might demand of Guo Jing and was poised for action. She thrust the Dog Beater in a Rabid Dog Blocks the Way. The instant it made contact with the metal staff, the bamboo cane slipped a touch to the side, twirled round and flicked out. The intricate move turned Ke's force back onto him, flipping the staff to the side and rocking his footing.
The eldest Freak made no attempt to disguise the impact of Lotus's intervention. Instead, he beat himself in the chest twice in anguish and took off in the same direction Zhou Botong had taken.
Guo Jing went after him. "Shifu! Shifu!"
The old man halted, turned back and snarled, "Does the Great Lord Guo wish to take my life?"
The savageness of Ke Zhen'e's tone stopped Guo Jing dead in his tracks. Head hung low, he listened to the diminishing thud of the metal staff against the ground as his First Master hobbled away. Recalling their years together in Mongolia, Guo Jing curled up on the ground and wept.
3
Taking Lotus's hand, Count Seven Hong approached Guo Jing. "Another bitter feud between Hero Ke and Heretic Huang," he sighed, "fueled by their fiery tempers. This Old Beggar will do his best to bring peace."
Guo Jing dried his tears and sat up. "Shifu, do you—do you know why?"
"My stomach has been growling most of the day. We'll talk after I've had a good meal."
They walked Count Seven to their guest house. Lotus found some meat and wine in the kitchen and conjured up a quick but delicious late-night feast. When the Beggar was sated, he began to tell them how the scene they had happened upon had come about.
"You saw the Hoary Urchin just now. He was gulled into that bet with the lama. With him out of action, the gang was ready to do away with me, but the stars were on our side. Your first shifu came across us and stood by me until we found refuge in that cave. The villains were wary of his poisoned devilnuts and did not try to force their way in, which gave us a reprieve. And then you two arrived.
"Master Ke stands firm by his principles. He stayed by my side, putting my life before his, ready to defend me to the death." Count Seven heaved a sigh and glugged down two large gulps of wine. After that, he stuffed a chicken drumstick into his mouth. A couple of chews later, he spat out the bone. Satisfied, for the moment, he wiped his greasy lips on his sleeve and resumed his tale.
"Things were rather precarious until you came along, and obviously I was no help at all in my current state, so Master Ke and I didn't have time for idle conversation. But this much I know for sure: his rage doesn't stem from that simple fall. He's a hero and adheres to the moral code of xia. He wouldn't be so small-minded. There must be another reason. Well, we're only days away from Moon Festival. Once we've taught those blackguards a lesson at the Tower of Mist and Rain, I'll speak to Master Ke and resolve this misunderstanding."
Waving Guo Jing's tear-flooded gratitude away, the Beggar said, with a twinkle in his eye, "Now, tell me everything that's happened to you two in the past weeks. How come your kung fu has improved so much? Master Ke is much admired in the wulin for his craft, and yet one wave of the hand from you young 'uns sent him tottering!"
It was too complex a story for Guo Jing to tell, and he was still haunted by the disgrace he had subjected his teacher to, so Lotus happily brought Count Seven up to date with their adventures. He applauded Yang Kang for ridding the world of Gallant Ouyang, but let rip a succession of expletives when he heard what had happened at the Beggar Clan Assembly.
"That knave! And the Four Elders—woolly old clods! Surefoot Lu has dung for brains! I'll squeeze the life out of Elder Peng!"
He grew subdued and distant when Lotus told him how she had been brought back to life by Reverend Sole Light and how Madam Ying came to take her revenge in the dead of night. He sucked in a breath when she described how the former consort of the Dali Kingdom went berserk at Blue Dragon Shoal.
"Do you know her?" Lotus inquired, noticing her Master's odd reaction. Perhaps he too had been seduced by her charm. Is that why he never married? What's so special about Madam Ying? She's obsessive and odd. How did she make so many martial Masters fall for her? Was it her beauty? Her intelligence? Maybe she cooks well? I wonder how we compare …
"No, I don't know Madam Ying." Count Seven's voice interrupted her musings. "But I was there when King Duan took his monastic vows—I was standing right next to him.
"He wrote to me one day, inviting me to Dali. I knew it must be for a matter of great import. He wouldn't have got in touch about a mere trifle. Anyway, the thought of Yunnan dry-cured ham, crossing-bridge soup noodles and pounded rice cake sent me on my way instantly.
"When I got there, King Duan looked wretched. Wasted away. A changed man. He was so full of life and energy on the summit of Mount Hua, just a few years before. A couple of days into my stay, he invited me to spar, but, in fact, he wanted to teach me Cosmos neigong and Yang in Ascendance.
"This Old Beggar is no dullard. We are martial equals. Each of us Greats has an unparalleled skill that no ordinary man can withstand. I have the Dragon-Subduing Palm; King Duan, his Yang in Ascendance acupressure jabs; the Venom, the Exploding Toad; and the Heretic actually has two, Splitting Sky Palm and the Divine Flick.
"Now, King Duan had been granted the knowledge of Cosmos neigong by Wang Chongyang. There was no doubt who would claim the title of the Greatest Martial Master Under the Heavens when we all met again. Why on earth would he want to teach me those two supreme repertoires? And why didn't he want me to demonstrate the Dragon-Subduing Palm in return? Something was amiss. I made up some excuse about needing time and privacy to think things over, and held a secret conference with his four disciples. I worked out what he had been planning: he would commit suicide once he had finished teaching me. We had deduced that he was heartsick, but the why and wherefore eluded us."
"King Duan feared that no one would be strong enough to face Viper Ouyang after his death," Lotus commented.
"Yes, I had inferred that too, so I stood my ground, refusing to learn anything from him. In time, he started to open up. He told me that, although his four students were earnest, loyal and hardworking, their hearts were torn between running the kingdom and kung fu training. And that, though they were born with some martial intuition, they were not truly gifted and would never become supreme Masters. As he understood it, the Seven Disciples of the Quanzhen Sect were much the same—they would never attain the heights of their mentor Wang Chongyang. He could live with my refusal to learn Yang in Ascendance, but, if he did not share Cosmos neigong with a Master worthy of it, how would he face the Double Sun Immortal when he passed on to the next world?
"It was clear that he'd thought the matter through and there was nothing I could say to change his mind, other than digging in my heels and rejecting his offer. That was why he abdicated and became a monk—it was a way to leave this life without physically killing himself. I was right by him when he received the tonsure—and that was more than ten years ago…" Count Seven's tone was uncharacteristically wistful. "Well, it's for the best that this tangled affair has at last been resolved."
"Now it's your turn to tell us your adventures," Lotus urged.
"My adventures? Well, I enjoyed the Contrast of Five Treasures four times in the imperial kitchens, which, I have to say, did satisfy my cravings. I was also treated to lychee pork kidney, quail potage, goat tongue slips, ginger and vinegar whelks, and goat tripe stuffed with oysters—" As Count Seven rattled off the palace's most famous delicacies, he could feel his mouth watering and the glorious flavors came flooding back.
"How come the Old Urchin couldn't find you?"
Count Seven chuckled at the memory. "The imperial chefs started to notice their prized creations going missing, and rumors that the fox demon had returned to haunt the kitchens began to circulate. They offered me a great deal of candles and incense sticks in homage. Not long after that, the stories of the fox demon reached the commander of the Imperial Guard, and he sent eight of his men to the kitchens to catch the crafty old thing.
"Now, as you will recall, this Old Beggar has lost his kung fu, and the Old Urchin was nowhere to be seen, so these guards were very bad news. I scuttled off and found a quiet part of the palace, to lie low. I ended up in a place called the Hall of … Virescent Sepal. That's it. Virescent, ha! It's got a courtyard full of plum trees. Our weedy Emperor comes here every winter to admire the blossoms. Of course, not a soul goes anywhere near this spot at the height of summer, apart from a few old eunuchs who come every morning to sweep and prune.
"Beautiful, delicious food could be found in every corner of the palace. You could let loose a hundred Old Beggars in there and none of us would ever go hungry. The perfect place to convalesce in peace. I ate like the Emperor, I slept like the Emperor, but I had an even better life than the Emperor himself, because no one troubled me about anything. Until I heard the Old Urchin's voice in the middle of the night, that is. He shrieked like a vengeful ghost, screeched like a cat in heat and bayed like a pack of mad dogs, rousing everybody from their beds, turning the palace upside down. Amid this chaos, I heard men shouting: 'Master Hong! Count Seven Hong!' I tiptoed out of my little paradise, and who should I find? Tiger Peng, Hector Sha, Graybeard Liang and their cursed little throng of flunkies."
"Huh? Why were they looking for you?" Lotus asked in surprise.
"I was as baffled as you are now. One peek at those faces was enough to send me scurrying back to my courtyard, but the Hoary Urchin had already spotted me. He ran up and folded me in his arms. 'Thank the heavens and earth! I've found you at last,' he cried into my ear. Then he yelled at Graybeard Liang and his wretched mob to bring up the rear—"
"He was commanding them?"
Count Seven laughed. "Yes, it was incredible. I couldn't make head nor tail of what the devil was going on. The scoundrels seemed to be scared witless and followed the Urchin's every word. With the Ginseng Codger and his ragtag rabble standing guard, he slung me on his back and off we went to Ox Village look for you two.
"On the way, he told me how he'd panicked when he couldn't find me, and, when he came across Graybeard and his posse, he beat them into submission and made them search every lane and alley of the capital, day and night, until they'd tracked me down. He told me he had also searched the palace high and low several times, but it was such a sprawling complex, and I had hidden myself so well, they hadn't been able to locate me until that night."
"I can't imagine the Urchin bossing anyone around. How did he tame those dogs and keep them on a leash?"
"The Hoary Urchin has his ways and means. He rolled little balls of grime and dead skin from his body and stuffed three of them into each of their mouths. He then claimed that he had force-fed them a deadly toxin that would only reveal its potency after forty-nine days, and he was the only person in the whole world with the antidote. If they behaved and obeyed him, he would grant them the cure on the forty-eighth day. To be honest, they weren't entirely convinced, but when your life is at stake … Well, you know the saying, 'Better to believe the worst will happen than assume it can never come to pass.' So, they swallowed the Urchin's tall tale and ended up at his beck and call, running around to placate his every whim."
At this point, even the stricken Guo Jing managed a smile.
"Once we left the city, the Old Urchin decided to put them to use searching for you two. But, earlier tonight, when they returned once again without any news, the Urchin got carried away berating them and gave the game away. 'If you don't find my little brother Guo Jing and the lass Lotus,' he said, 'I'll feed you a few more pills of piss and grime!' They hounded the poor man with trick questions and eventually pieced together the truth. There had never been any poison. They had been duped.
"Those rascals would never let such an affront slide, and I told the Urchin quietly that he needed to dispatch them once and for all. We all knew it would take the lot of them to get the better of the Urchin, and, even then, it might not be enough. It was Tiger Peng who came up with the ploy you happened across. Tricking him into a wager with the fat monk from Kokonor.
"Of course, I tried to stop the Urchin from taking the bait, but can you imagine him saying no to the chance of winning a bet? So, I ran—as fast as I could—and, as luck would have it, I came across Hero Ke. He offered me protection and kept me company as we fled from Tiger Peng and his cronies to the cave where you found us. The Urchin might be foggy in the head sometimes, but he did realize that he shouldn't let me stray too far, so he hurried after us too. But the swine wouldn't let him be and heckled him into taking part in the contest."
"It's lucky we overheard those students of Graybeard Liang, otherwise the Urchin would have wagered your life away." Lotus found herself amused and annoyed in equal measure by the infantile martial Master.
"It's a marvel that I'm still clinging on to life. It makes no difference who gives it away."
"Ah! Remember when we were sailing back to the mainland from Rosy Cloud Island—"
"Ghost Crushing Island," Count Seven corrected her.
"Alright, whatever you say. Ghost Crushing Island it is … I suppose it's more fitting now that Gallant Ouyang has become a ghost in every sense of the word. Anyway, when we fished the Ouyangs onto our raft, the Venom said that your injury could only be healed by one person under the heavens, but you refused to tell us his name. Now that we've been to western Hunan, we know you were talking about King Duan—or Reverend Sole Light, as he is now known."
"He could reconnect the energy flow in my Eight Extraordinary Meridians using Yang in Ascendance and Cosmos neigong, but it would damage his elemental qi and he'd need at least three years to recover from the exertion. He may not be weighed down by the troubles of this world. He may not care about winning the next Contest of Mount Hua. But he is in his fifties. How many more years has he got left in which to recover? Could this Old Beggar demand that from a friend?"
"Shifu, you can reconnect the meridians by yourself, without anyone's help," Guo Jing said.
"Really?"
"Remember the gibberish at the end of the Nine Yin Manual? Reverend Sole Light has translated it for us," Lotus explained. "He bade us tell you that you can use the method to heal yourself." She then recited a portion of the translation, followed by the explanation the monk had shared with them.
Count Seven sat pondering her words for a long time. "Yes!" he cried, jumping to his feet. "It'll work, but it'll take a year or so."
"I suppose Tiger Peng will get Viper Ouyang to help them at the contest on Moon Festival," Lotus said, changing the subject. "The Urchin's kung fu is every inch the Venom's equal, but we can't guarantee he won't have one of his episodes. We should get Papa to come, so victory is assured."
"You're right. I'll go to Jiaxing. You head to Peach Blossom Island to fetch your father."
Guo Jing wanted to escort Count Seven to Jiaxing, but the Beggar brushed aside his concerns. "Time is of the essence. I'll take Ulaan. I couldn't possibly run into any trouble with him. One little tap on his rump and no living creature can keep up with us."
4
The next day at dawn, Count Seven Gobbled a big bowl of noodles and guzzled an equally sizeable bowl of wine to fuel him for the road. He mounted Ulaan and tensed his legs ever so slightly. Sensing the subtle change in pressure, the colt neighed at Guo Jing and Lotus, as if to bid them farewell, and sped north.
Guo Jing stood in silence, long after the Beggar had disappeared over the horizon. Everything that had happened the night before was gnawing at him. Why did First Shifu want to kill…?
Lotus left him to his thoughts and went to the waterfront to arrange their passage to Peach Blossom Island.
The voyage did not take long. This time, she sent the boatman back to the mainland once they had disembarked.
"Guo Jing," she asked, when they were alone. "Will you grant me one thing?"
"Do you mind telling me what it is first? I don't want to make a promise I can't fulfill."
"I'm not asking you to bring me the heads of your six shifus."
"Why do you have to bring that up?"
"Why can't I? You can push it to the back of your mind, but I can't. I like you, but not enough to let you cut my head off."
Guo Jing heaved a sigh. "I don't understand why First Shifu was so angry. He knows I love you more than anyone. He knows I'd rather die a thousand, ten thousand times—or let you cut my head off again and again—than do anything to harm even a hair on your head."
Moved by this earnest admission, Lotus took his hand and leaned into him.
"Do you think it's pretty here?" She pointed at a line of weeping willows by the water.
"If I were to picture the home of celestial immortals, it would look like this."
"I want to live, and I want to live here. I don't want you to kill me…"
He stroked her hair to reassure her. "Why would I ever do that?"
"What if your shifus, your mother and all your good friends wanted me dead? Would you listen to them?"
"The whole world could want you dead, but I'll always be on your side. I will always protect you."
"So, you're willing to give up everyone—for me?" She gripped his hand tighter.
Hesitation. Silence.
She looked up, into his eyes. Yearning for an answer. Frightened of what it would be.
"Lotus, I told you I want to spend my life with you. Here, on Peach Blossom Island. I meant it when I said it. They weren't just empty words."
"Good. Then, from now on, from today, you will stay on the island."
"Today?"
"Yes. Today. I'll ask Papa's help with the contest in Jiaxing. I'll get Papa to kill Wanyan Honglie with me, so we can avenge your father. I'll go to Mongolia with Papa to bring your mother here. I'll implore Papa, I'll persuade him to apologize to your shifus. I'll make sure nothing's left undone—you'll never be bothered by any unfinished business. There'll be nothing to disturb your peace of mind."
Recognizing the note of peculiar desperation in her tone, Guo Jing tried to dispel her fears. "Lotus, you know I'd never break any of my promises to you. You don't have to be like this. You can set your mind at ease."
She sighed.
Silence.
At length, she said, "It's hard to speak with certainty about anything that happens in this world. When you accepted your troth-plight to the Mongolian Princess, you didn't imagine that you would break it one day. All my life, I've always done what I want, whenever I want, but now I realize…" She trailed off and lowered her head as her eyes welled up. "You think you've got it all planned out, but the heavens will always trip you up."
Guo Jing had no answer. His heart was going through the same upheaval. On the one hand, he wanted to spend his life with her on the island, as he had pledged, to honor her love; on the other, he could not simply cast aside every association with the outside world, every human connection in his life, though he could not explain to himself why it would not be possible for him to meet that demand.
"It's not that I don't believe you." Lotus's voice was barely above a whisper. "It's not that I'm forcing you to stay, it—it's just—I'm … terrified." She buried her face in his chest, and her body quivered as she sobbed.
Guo Jing had not realized how much she was troubled by the uncertainties ahead. After a moment's thought, he asked, "What's disturbing you?"
Her tears just fell faster.
He thought of their time together, the dangers and difficulties they had lived through by each other's side. Never once was she afraid. She had taken every situation in her stride, with a giggle and a rejoinder. Yet, right now, on her beloved island, about to see her father, she was in floods of tears. Why?
"Are you worried something bad might have happened to your papa?"
A shake of the head.
"Are you scared that, if I leave this island, I'll never come back?"
The same response.
Four or five questions later, he was still nowhere near the answer.
At last, she turned to face him. "I can't put into words what terrifies me. It's just, whenever I think of your first shifu—when he was attacking me—something in his eyes makes me flinch, even now Something makes me think that, one day, you'll heed his words, and take my life. That's why I beg you to stay on the island. Do it for me, please!"
"Is that it? I thought it was something really bad." He gave her a smile. "Remember when we were in Zhongdu? My shifus called you 'she-demon' at first, but they relented afterward. They may seem stern on the outside, but they're really very gentle and kind. Once you get to spend more time with them, you'll see, and I know they'll like you very much. You've seen Second Shifu's sleight of hand; I'm sure he'd be thrilled to teach you a trick or two. And Seventh Shifu has the sweetest temper—"
"So you're determined to leave?"
"No, we'll leave together, and we'll kill Wanyan Honglie together. After that, we'll go to Mongolia together for my mother, and we'll all come back together. Wouldn't you like that?"
"That means we'll never come back together. We'll never spend our lives together." Her enunciation was slow and dispassionate.
"Why?"
"I can't explain it." She shook her head. "It's something I saw in your first shifu's face. And I knew then. Killing me isn't enough for him. He loathes me from the core of his being. It comes from the marrow of his bones."
Guo Jing could feel her heart cracking a little more with each word she uttered. Even though her features were unchanged, the twinkle of carefree mischief had been dulled by a shroud of brooding anxiety, as if she could already see with her own eyes the horror that was to come.
Her intuition has never failed us. If I don't listen to her now, and something bad happens later, what will I do then?
Guo Jing's heart tightened at that thought and the words rolled off his tongue before he realized what he was saying.
"Come what may! I won't leave."
Lotus gazed at him, her cheeks marked by two bright rivulets of tears.