Hou Tonghai bit his tongue, thinking, “It's good that I wasn't able to hit that ‘smelly boy’!”
Sha Tongtian said, “I'll get her back!”
Hou Tonghai looked at him and said, “Shi Ge, she... You can’t touch her body.”
Sha Tongtian, “Who asked for your opinion? I can still grab her hair.”
Hou Tonghai replied, “Right, right, why didn't I think of that? Shi Ge, you are truly intelligent.”
Then both apprentice brothers and Peng Lianhu gave chase.
o0o
By now, Prince Zhao Wanyan Honglie heard the worried report from his son and learned that the princess had been taken prisoner. Angered, both father and son, together with their personal guards left the palace to chase after the culprits. At the same time, Tang Zude led another group of armed guards to search for and arrest the intruder. The palace was on full alert.
o0o
Guo Jing had run into Liang Ziwong near the wall, but how could he just extend his neck and let him drink his blood? Shocked, he turned around and fled. He did not know which way was north or south so he decided to hide someplace. Liang Ziwong really wanted to drink his blood and did not slow down in the slightest. It was a good thing that Guo Jing's lightness kung fu was good; otherwise, even though the night was dark, he would have been captured a long time ago. The light from the torch died and he could no longer see where he was going; only sensing that he had somehow stepped into a thorny area where the ground was rugged and rocky. More people were coming out of the palace, so there was no time for Gou Jing to deliberate. The bristling thorns cut his legs, but when he thought about Liang Ziwong biting his throat, he could not let the tiny thorns bother him. Not even a mountain or forest of swords could stop him.
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Suddenly, he felt the ground beneath him disappear, causing him to call out as he started to drop, falling some 45 feet into an extremely deep pit. While his body was in midair, he circulated his internal energy so that he would not lose his balance when he landed and to prevent himself from getting injured. But who would have thought that his feet would land on round stones? He lost his balance and fell down on his rear. His hands, which supported him, clutched one of these round stones. Fear shot through him as he felt these round stones with his fingers; he realized that these stones were actually the skulls of dead people. It seemed that this deep hole was where the corpses of people executed at the Zhao Palace were dumped. He heard Liang Ziwong call out from above,
“Boy, come up here!”
Guo Jing thought, “I'm not stupid enough to come up only to die!” With that, he raised his hand trying to touch the back of the pit, but he felt nothing. He moved forward, ready to defend himself against Liang Ziwong, who might follow him and try to kill him.
After shouting several curses, Liang Ziwong thought that perhaps Guo Jing could not get back up and shouted angrily, “Even if you run all the way to hell, this old man will still come after you!”
Taking a deep breath, he jumped down.
Greatly surprised, Guo Jing took several steps back only to find empty space behind him. He turned around and stretched both his arms out trying to feel his way. As he continued on, he discovered that it was actually a tunnel.
Liang Ziwong also noticed the tunnel. His boldness was brought on by his high skill so that even though it was so dark that he could not see his five fingers, he was not afraid that Guo Jing would be laying an ambush for him. He followed, liking the situation even more, thinking, “This is just like seizing a turtle in a jar. This boy can't get away again. How can I not drink his blood now?”
Guo Jing was quite worried. Tunnels always have a dead end! Liang Ziwong was laughing loudly, both arms spread as he traced the tunnel walls. He was not impatient and took his steps slowly, one at a time.
Guo Jing ran several feet forward when he realized that the tunnel had ended, revealing an earthen cavern. Liang Ziwong also followed, laughing, “The peasant boy wants to run away but to where?”
Suddenly, from the left corner came an eerie, raspy voice which said, “Who is it that acts unruly in here?”
Neither of them expected that someone lived in this black pit; but they could not deny this sound.
The voice, though raspy, actually rumbled like thunder in their ears. Guo Jing was frightened and his heart was pumping madly. Liang Ziwong also could not restrain himself from feeling absolutely terrified. They heard the gloomy voice say, “Those who enter my cave are already rotting. Are you that impatient to die?” The voice now began to resemble that of a woman, anxious and breathing heavily as though she had contracted a serious illness.
When the two people realized that the voice did not belong to any ghost, their fears subsided. Guo Jing listened to her words and hurried to explain, “I did not mean to come here; some people are after me...”
Before he could finish his words, Liang Ziwong was able to discern where he was. He dashed forward, stretching his hands out to take him. Guo Jing heard the rustle caused by his palm and 278
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hastily dodged. Liang Ziwong changed directions at once, forcing Guo Jing to dodge once more to the right. It was pitch dark, so one could only grab aimlessly, while the other could only dodge blindly. Suddenly, there was a ripping sound. Liang Ziwong had taken hold of Guo Jing's left sleeve. The woman angrily said, “Who dares to capture a person here?”
Liang Ziwong scolded, “You disguise yourself like a crafty ghost. Are you trying to frighten me?”
Sounding asthmatic, the woman began to breathe heavily as she said, “Hmph, the young fellow can come here and hide."
Guo Jing had thought that the situation he was in was hopeless and extremely critical, but when he heard her say that, without hesitation, he jumped to her just as he felt Liang’s five icy cold fingers touch his wrist. They were much stronger than him so that when he was pulled by her, his body was not able to resist being thrown forward and felt himself growing numb. Gasping for breath, the woman said to Liang Ziwong, “You were able to grasp him adeptly which means your strength is not trifling. You are from beyond the mountain pass?”
Liang Ziwong was shocked as he thought, “I cannot see even half of her, how is it possible she was able to recognize my martial arts? Is she capable of seeing things in the dark? This woman must be an old eccentric who's proud and strict!” He did not dare to say anything careless or indiscreet and instead said pleasantly, “This lowly one, who is an invited guest here from Guandong, is surnamed Liang. This boy stole something from me and I'm trying to get it back. I ask your Excellency not to interfere.”
The woman said, “Ah, is the ‘Ginseng Immortal’ Liang Ziwong trying to right a wrong? The other person seems unaware of it. I have no desire to interfere but after he came into my cave, the crime cannot be pursued. Lao Liang, you are an expert martial artist, don't you understand the rules of Wulin?”
Liang Ziwong was even more surprised and asked, “May I ask the name of your Excellency?”
The woman said, “I... I...” Guo Jing felt the hand grasping his wrist shiver violently, the fingers slowly beginning to loosen and he also heard her trying to keep down a groan as though she was in extreme pain. He asked, “You are sick?”
Liang Ziwong's high kung fu allowed him to hear her groan and surmised that this person had lost her skills, not from a sickness, but from an injury which greatly weakened her. He immediately applied strength to his arms, sending both hands together to grasp Guo Jing's chest. He managed to brush against his clothing, waiting for his fingers to grab hold, when he suddenly felt a strong force meeting his wrists. Shocked, Liang Ziwong discovered that when he sent out his left hand, he’d managed to grab the woman's arm. The woman shouted angrily, “Prepare yourself!” A palm hit Liang Ziwong’s back which forced him to take several steps back. Fortunately for him, his internal energy was good enough so that he was not injured.
Liang Ziwong said, “Mother-in-law of a thief [Hao zei po]! (The thief in question is Guo Jing.) Come here.” When the woman continued gasping for breath and remained motionless, Liang Ziwong realized that she could not move the lower part of her body. His fear was immediately reduced and he began to slowly approach. He was just about to jump forward to attack when he suddenly felt something curl around his ankles. This thing was like a soft whip; silent and un-Eagle Shooting Hero
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noticed. Greatly alarmed, he quickly tried to resist it, but the whip was able to lift his body in a flash. He tried to aim a kick at the woman just as the top of his head hit the earthen wall.
His leg kung fu was of a high level, unmatched in Wulin, which gave him more than twenty years of great prestige outside the mountain pass. This leg move, when executed, was incomparably fierce. Who would have thought that before the tip of his toe met its target, he would suddenly feel his ‘Flushing Out the Sun’ accupoint [Chong Yang Xue] growing numb. He immediately dodged, greatly alarmed. This ‘Flushing Out the Sun’ point is located five inches from the instep of the foot.
If this vital point was sealed by an opponent, his whole leg would grow numb. Luckily, he was able to withdraw his foot quickly; but the action of kicking and suddenly withdrawing caused his knee to ache.