i’en’s ears and gave the other two to Guo Xiang; signaling her to put them in her ears. Guo Xiang understood and immediately did as she was told.

Yang Guo then exerted his internal energy and gathered his ‘chi’ in his ‘dan tian’. [The ‘dan tian’ is somewhat below the navel and between the kidneys. It’s somewhere in the centre of the cross-section of the body. All the ‘chi’ arises from this central point].

He bowed in front of Yideng and said, “Disciple will show off my lack of ability, I hope Reverend won’t laugh at me.”

Yideng clasped his hands and said, “Not many people in this world can match Brother Yang’s skill. This old monk has long wanted to see it.”

Yang Guo put his hand on his waist, looked up, and he shouted loud and long. The shout was loud and sharp, slowly becoming unbearable. It was like earth shattering thunderbolts. Even though her ears were stopped, Guo Xiang’s heart pounded and her face paled. Not too long after there came a sound like the waves of the tide, continuously crashing onto the shore. One after another, the next one was louder than the previous one.

“Big Brother, stop! I can’t take it any longer!” shouted Guo Xiang. But her cries were overcome by Yang Guo’s cry so that she could not even hear her own voice. She felt like her spirit was snatched out and her body was swaying. At that time she suddenly felt Yideng holding her hand and out of his hand came a warm energy flowing into her body. Guo Xiang understood Yideng was helping her with his profound internal energy. Therefore, she quickly exerted her own energy and calmed her perturbed heart. A moment later her heart was steadied and her mind cleared.

After the time needed to eat a bowl of rice Yang Guo’s voice had not weakened. On the contrary, the intensity was increased. Yideng was very impressed, because he had not achieved that level when he was Yang Guo’s age.

In the time it took to light a joss stick a black shadow came out of the Black Dragon Marsh; immediately Yang Guo shook his sleeve and stopped the roar.

“Emperor Duan,” a voice was heard. “You are too much! You forced me to come out. What do you want?”

“It wasn’t me. It was Brother Yang’s voice,” said Yideng.

While still speaking the shadow kept coming near and when it stopped, all could see that it was Yinggu.

She looked puzzled. “Is that true, that there is someone besides Emperor Duan who possesses internal energy that profound?” she asked in her heart. “Even though he is wearing a mask, I can tell from his hair that he is only thirty-something. It’s amazing for him to reach this level.”

She was forced to come out of her lair by the loud roar. She realized that if she refused, the roar would get louder and she will be heavily injured, possibly her nervous system ruined. So even though she was irritated, she had to comply. Little did she know that the roar came out of Yang Guo’s throat.

After calming herself she turned to Yang Guo and coldly said, “Take my fox. I admit defeat. But I want you to leave immediately.” She lifted the fox by the scruff of its neck and gave it to Yang Guo.

“Hold a moment,” Yang Guo said. “The fox can wait. Reverend Yideng wants to talk to you. Please listen to him.”

Yinggu looked coldly at Yideng. “Very well, I await the Emperor’s decree.”

“Let bygones be bygones,” said Yideng. “Why do you still use that term? Yinggu, do you know him?” He pointed to Ci’en who was still lying on the ground.

Ci’en was wearing a monk’s robe. His face had changed much from the Mount Hua [Huashan] Sword Meet of 30 years ago. Yinggu looked at him for a minute and then said, “How would I know this monk?”

“Who hurt your son then?” Yideng asked.

The granny’s body shuddered, her fair countenance turned red, and from red it turned back to white. “That scoundrel Qiu Qianren,” she answered. “Even if he’s turned into dirt I will still remember him.”

“It has been tens of years yet you have not rid your heartache.” Yideng sighed. “This man is none other than Qiu Qianren. You don’t recognize his face any longer, but your heart is still full of hatred.”

Yinggu leaped and stretched her fingers like claws, she was going to pierce Ci’en’s breast. Before her hands reached their target, she looked at him again. That face only slightly resembled the Qiu Qianren that she knew. He was lying motionless, no different than a corpse. “If he really is Qiu Qianren, why did he want to see me?” she asked doubtfully.

“He is indeed Qiu Qianren,” explained Yideng. “He repented his great and many sins, shaved his head and became my disciple. His Buddhist name is Ci’en.”

The granny snorted. “Great sinners always think they can redeem their sins by becoming a monk,” she said.

“You are wrong,” said Yideng patiently. “Sin is sin. By becoming a monk he is still a sinner. But he is heavily injured and is dying. He remembered his sin toward you in the past. He knew he injured your child and his heart is troubled; if he doesn’t see you, he won’t die peacefully. Therefore, enduring his pain, we have come from thousands of li away to ask for your forgiveness.”

The granny looked at Ci’en for a long time. Her eyes shone with unleashed hatred. Guo Xiang was really frightened. Slowly the granny lifted her hands up to hit Ci’en. Even though Guo Xiang was scared, her valiant heart prevailed. “Stop it!” she shouted. “He is heavily injured. It’s not proper for you to hit him.”

Yinggu coldly laughed. “Not proper?” she asked. “He murdered my child and made me suffer for tens of years. Right now – even though it is a bit late, I have a chance for revenge. Not proper? What do you mean ‘not proper’?”

“He has repented and regretted his sins,” said the girl. “Why do you insist?”

Yinggu looked up and laughed maniacally. “Child, don’t talk rubbish!” she snapped. “What would you do if he killed your child?”

“I … I … I don’t have a child,” Guo Xiang stammered.

The granny made a noise with her nose. “What if he killed your husband, your lover … your big brother? What would you do?” she asked again.

Guo Xiang blushed. “You talk rubbish,” she said, “Where did my husband or my lover come from?”

Yinggu was seething with anger. She ignored the girl and lifted her hands again to hit her archenemy’s head. Suddenly Ci’en sighed and opened his eyes. A smile formed on his lips. “Thank you Yinggu, for helping me.”

The granny was stunned, her hands stopped mid-air. “Help you what?” she barked. But then she realized Ci’en’s intention. She now knew that the monk was dying, he wanted it finished by her hands. ‘An eye for an eye’… He would pay his old debt.

Yinggu then coldly laughed. “Hmm! How could you die that easy?” she said. “Now I don’t want to kill you, yet I don’t want to forgive you either!” That word left her mouth with such a cruelty that all who heard her shivered.

Yang Guo was certain that, as a monk, Reverend Yideng would not use force against his ex-concubine who was mad with anger. Guo Xiang was still too young to be regarded by the granny. He was the only one who could do something, anything. He thought for a moment and then said, “Senior Yinggu, I do not know the details of your enmity toward Ci’en. But I can tell from your words that you are a little bit too involved. Therefore, whether I want it or not, I’ll have to intervene.”

Yinggu was startled and looked at Yang Guo with flame in her eyes. She recalled her three failed attacks, and she recalled his magnificent roar. She realized her skill was not on par with the Eagle Hero, who, judging from his words, would resort to force against her. She also remembered her suffering. From anger she turned sad, and then sobbed uncontrollably.

Yang Guo and Guo Xiang, even Yideng, were perplexed; they didn’t understand why the granny cried. A little while later she said, still sobbing: “You! You wanted to see me and I ignored you, but you used force against me. But that person is not willing to see me and none of you care about it.”

“Who?” asked Guo Xiang quickly, “Who doesn’t want to see Senior? We can help you.”

“You can only bully women,” said Yinggu. “But you are afraid to meet a highly skilled pugilist.”

“I am indeed useless,” said the girl. “But with Reverend Yideng and Big Brother here, we are not afraid of anything.”

After thinking for a while, Yinggu stood up. “If you can bring him to see and talk to me, I will do whatever you want me to do,” she said. “You want a fox, you want me to make peace with Qiu Qianren, whatever.”

“Big Brother,” Guo Xiang turned to Yang Guo. “What do you think?”

“Whom do you want to see? Why is it so difficult?” asked Yang Guo.

“Ask him,” said the granny, pointing to Reverend Yideng.

For an instant Guo Xiang thought the granny was blushing. She was surprised and asked in her heart, “She is this old, yet she is still shy?”

Realizing Yang Guo and Guo Xiang were looking at him, Reverend Yideng softly said, “It was the Old Urchin, Brother Zhou Botong.”

“The Old Urchin?” Yang Guo asked. He was delighted. “I know the old man well. Very well, I will try to find him.”

“My name is Yinggu,” the granny said. “You have to tell him up front that the person who wants to see him is me. If not, he will run away as soon as he sees me; and if that happens, don’t ever think of finding him again. If you succeed, I will do whatever you want me to.”

Yideng was shaking his head. Yang Guo saw that, and realized what he’d got himself into. He guessed that there must be an unusual affair between Yinggu and the Old Urchin that made the old man unwilling to see her. But he also knew that Zhou Botong was capricious and loved to play. Yang Guo hoped to somehow trick him. And so he asked, “Where is the Old Urchin? Does Senior know?”

“If you walk for about two hundred li (around 100km) north, you will arrive at a valley. It’s called the ‘Hundred-Flower Valley’ [bai hua gu],” explained the granny. “He hid himself in the valley, spending his days keeping bees.”

Hearing the words ‘keeping bees’ Xiao Longnü immediately came into Yang Guo’s mind. He remembered that sixteen years ago Zhou Botong had learned how to keep the Jade Bees from his wife. Because of this thought tears welled up in his eyes. “Very well,” he said. “Junior will try to find him. Please wait here.” Having said that he asked a clearer direction to the valley and immediately set foot. Guo Xiang followed behind him.

“You’d better stay here,” whispered Yang Guo. “That grandpa has a very high martial arts skill, and he is kindhearted too. You can use this opportunity to ask him for a lesson or two. I believe you will gain tremendous advantage for the rest of your life.”

“No, I want to come with you to see Zhou Botong,” said the girl.

Yang Guo frowned. “Ah, you are wasting a golden opportunity,” he said, regret in his voice.

“After we see Zhou Botong, I can go home alone if you have to go someplace else,” said Guo Xiang, “But for now, let me come with you.”

Yang Guo was touched. “Ah! If only I had a little sister like her, I wouldn’t feel so lonely roaming Jianghu,” he said in his heart. He smiled and said, “You didn’t have any sleep last night. Aren’t you tired?”

“I am, but I still want to come,” she answered.

“Very well,” said Yang Guo, grabbing her hand. Utilizing their lightness kungfu they ran to the north.

With Yang Guo pulling her along, Guo Xiang felt she could run faster without using too much energy. “If only I could run this fast without your help,” she said, laughing.

“Your kungfu base is excellent. If you keep training, you will reach this level someday,” said Yang Guo. Suddenly he looked up and shouted. The girl was startled, but then she understood. He was calling his bird. “Brother Eagle,” Yang Guo said, “We need to go north for some business. You’d better come along.” Whether the bird understood his words or not he chirped and followed behind them.

About one li later the eagle ran faster and even with Yang Guo pulling her, Guo Xiang could not keep up. The eagle lost its patience. He bent his knees to make his body shorter. Yang Guo chuckled and said, “Brother Eagle wants to carry you. Say ‘thank you’ to him.”

Guo Xiang did not dare to be disrespectful toward the Divine Eagle. She bowed in reverence and then mounted the bird’s back. The eagle immediately stretched his legs and ran like the wind; Guo Xiang felt like the trees along the way, were dancing past them. Yang Guo exerted his energy and ran alongside them. He talked and told Guo Xiang what he knew about the places they were passing. The girl was ecstatic! She had never experience this much fun. She wished in her heart the eagle would not run too fast so that she could enjoy the ride longer.

About midday they had run for two hundred li. By following Yinggu’s direction they entered a path way between two hills. Beyond this path they found a very beautiful valley. It was beautiful because it was full of colorful flowers. They slowed down and walked leisurely. In between the flower bushes they could see ponds with water clear as the sky. They felt like the place was out of this world.

Guo Xiang clapped her hands and exclaimed, “The Old Urchin is so lucky. How could he find a place this beautiful? Big Brother, how could this place be so pretty?”

“This place is facing south, so the mountains act as a barrier to the cold north wind,” explained Yang Guo. “Besides, I think there are sulfur or other mineral springs underground, and that is why the ground is warmer so spring comes early. While other places are still covered with snow, the flowers are already blooming here.”

Guo Xiang slid down from the eagle’s back and said, “Brother Eagle, many thanks to you.” Then she walked side-by-side with Yang Guo entering the valley. After a few turns they saw a couple of stone walls on each side of the path, with three pine trees in between, forming two natural gates. As soon as they came near the gates, they heard buzzing sounds and saw thousands of Jade Bees flying around amidst the trees and flowers.

Yang Guo knew Zhou Botong must be around, so he called, “Old Urchin! Your younger brother Yang Guo and little sister have come to visit you and play.”

If we look at the proper level, Yang Guo was actually three levels below the old man. He should have called ‘Great Grand Martial Master’, but he knew that the old man did not care much about ‘propriety’ and might not like to be called ‘Great Grand Martial Master’; therefore, he called him ‘Old Urchin’.

A moment later an old man came out from one of the gates. Yang Guo was startled. He had not seen Zhou Botong for more than ten years. He thought he would see an old man with white hair and beard. Contrary to his thought, Zhou Botong’s face had not changed a bit, and his hair and beard had more black than white. In short, Yang Guo saw a younger Zhou Botong!

As soon as he saw Yang Guo, the old man laughed heartily. “Brother Yang, what business do you have with me? Aha! You are wearing a mask to scare me off?” Having said that his hand moved toward Yang Guo’s left side to snatch his mask. Yang Guo lifted up his right shoulder a little bit and slanted his head to the left. Zhou Botong’s attack fell to an empty space. The old man was surprised, but he laughed and shouted, “Little Brother! Good! You are really good! I did not reach your level when I was your age.”

In that short encounter both experts had exchanged their skills. Zhou Botong’s snatch, while it looked like an ordinary snatch, had actually blocked Yang Guo’s movement. Even if he were to leap back, he shouldn’t be able to elude that attack. If it were not Yang Guo, the opponent would parry the attack with another attack. But Yang Guo had used a more sophisticated move. When he lifted his right shoulder up, his right sleeve made a move like it was going to attack Zhou Botong’s chest. As an expert Zhou Botong could see the move and readied himself to fend off the attack. Because his concentration was now split, his snatching power was reduced so Yang Guo was able to neutralize Zhou’s snatching by merely slanting his head a little bit.

Guo Xiang was inexperienced; she could not see the exchange between these two experts. But she was delighted to hear the old man praising her big brother. “Grandpa Zhou,” she said, “Tell me, is your skill higher now than when you were younger, or the other way around?”

“When I was young, my hairs were white, but now my hairs are black,” he answered, grinning. “Of course my skill is much higher now than when I was younger.”

“If you can’t beat my big brother now, how you could beat him then?” said the girl.

Zhou Botong was not offended, he laughed and said, “Little girl, don’t speak rubbish!” Suddenly his hands flew toward Guo Xiang’s back and waist. He lifted her up to the air, spun her around, threw her up in the air, held her back and slowly put her back on the ground.

His mischievousness had angered the Divine Eagle. Suddenly the eagle swept at Zhou Botong with its wings. Zhou Botong saw the wings’ attack and said to himself: “Let me try this winged beast’s strength.” He exerted his energy and fended off with both hands. Crash! Two formidable forces collided. The old man was still standing and the eagle’s wings passed his side. The eagle was about to attack again when Yang Guo suddenly shouted, “Brother Eagle, don’t be rude! We are in the presence of a highly skilled senior.”

The eagle halted his attack and stood proudly still. “His strength is indeed formidable, no wonder he is so arrogant,” said the Old Urchin, laughing heartily.

“Brother Eagle is more than a hundred years old. He is much older than you are,” said Yang Guo. “Uh, Old Urchin, how did you become young again and your hairs turned black?”

The old man laughed heartily. “My hairs and beard have their own will; I cannot control them,” he said. “From black they turned white, and now turned back to black again.”

Guo Xiang giggled hearing his foolhardy answer. “Old Urchin, I think you are going to turn to a young boy,” she said. “After you shrink to a young boy then people will pat your head and call you ‘little brother’. It will be fun!”

Hearing that the old man was worried and he stood staring blankly. Actually, there were a couple of real reasons behind this change of hair color. First, he was always happy, his body was healthy, and his internal energy was profound. Second, he ate a lot of energy-booster foods like Poria mushroom filaments [Fu Ling], Jade Bee’s honey, and the like. But probably the main reason was simply because his body was different from average people; even though his age was close to a hundred, he was not getting weaker, but on the contrary, he was getting stronger.

Listening to their conversation Yang Guo had an idea. “Brother Zhou,” he said. “If you agree to see someone, I guarantee you won’t get smaller.”

“Who…Who?” he asked hastily.

“Before I tell you, you have to promise me one thing,” Yang Guo answered, “You have to promise you won’t run away as soon as I mention this person’s name.”

The Old Urchin Zhou Botong was capricious and naïve, but he was not stupid. If he were, how could he reach such a high level in the martial realms? Therefore, as soon as he heard what Yang Guo said, he deduced correctly. “In this whole wide world there are two people I do not dare to see,” he said. “The first one is Emperor Duan; the other is Concubine Yinggu. Other than these two, I am not afraid of anybody else.”

“Looks like I’ll have to provoke him,” Yang Guo thought. So he said, “You do not dare to see them because you were defeated at their hands.”

“No, it’s not like that,” the old man contradicted. “Old Urchin sinned against them; that was why I don’t have face to see them.”

Yang Guo was surprised. Now he understood why the old man acted like he did. Yang Guo tried approaching from a different direction. “They are in grave danger and their lives are threatened,” he said. “Do you have the heart not to do anything?”

Zhou Botong was shocked. He loved and respected Yideng and Yinggu very much. If they were in trouble, he wouldn’t hesitate to help up to the point of sacrificing his own life. However, he saw Guo Xiang was smiling, and her countenance did not show any sorrow. He realized Yang Guo’s trick and laughed heartily. “Are you trying to trick me?” he asked. “Emperor Duan has a very high level of martial arts. How could he be in grave danger? Even if he is facing a formidable enemy and he lost, do you think I could win?”

Yang Guo didn’t know what to do. “All right, let me just tell you the truth,” he said. “Yinggu has been thinking about you, she wants to see you and talk with you.”

The old man’s face changed abruptly. “Brother Yang!” he snapped. “If you mention that name one more time, you’ll have to leave “bai hua gu”. Don’t blame me if I don’t make an exception.”

Even though he had been through a lot of things, Yang Guo was still a proud man. He waved his sleeve and with a loud voice said, “Brother Zhou, I don’t think you’ll easily achieve your desire to drive me out of this valley.”

“Huh! Huh! Do you want to fight with me?” asked the old man.

“Yes, I want to ask a lesson or two from you,” he answered. “Let us make a bet: if I lose, I will leave this valley without further ado. But if you lose, you’ll have to see Yinggu.”

“No! Can’t be!” shouted the Old Urchin. “First, how could I lose to a kid? Second, if I did, I still don’t want to see Concubine Liu [Liu Gufei].”

“Aren’t you ashamed?” asked Yang Guo irritated. “If you win, you are free not to see her, but if you lose, you still don’t want to see her, what kind of bet is that?”

“Just shut your mouth up!” snapped the old man. “I don’t want to see her, I am not going too. Protect yourself!”

This time the Eagle Hero was really dumbfounded. He could not be persuaded, he could not be forced. If they really fight, Yang Guo didn’t have any confidence of victory. He stood there blankly, uncertain of what to do.

As we know, Zhou Botong was crazy about martial arts. Even when he lived alone at the “Hundred-Flower Valley” he trained everyday. He always wanted to find a sparring partner; however, with his high level of martial arts, where could he find a suitable match? Therefore, seeing Yang Guo was willing to spar with him, he was itchy to start the fight. Without wasting a single moment Zhou Botong cried, “Watch out!” and started the fight with his “Vacant Fist”. Yang Guo parried with a palm but felt there was something wrong with the power of the fist; it seemed as if it wasn’t there. He considered using soft palms as a response but decided against it, as it would be too risky so he used hard palms even though it wouldn’t match. He used the palm techniques that he developed over the years against the tide’s waves. Three stances later, flower petals were flying around everywhere and after another three, branches from trees fell. At first Yang Guo was worried that Zhou would not be able to take his fierce and overbearing palm because of his advanced age. He withdrew the power from his palm as soon as he sent it out, but after six stances, Yang Guo knew Zhou’s internal energy was very profound and so did not hold anything back. The “Vacant Fist’s” ingenuity was above the martial arts that he was using.

“Good! You are very good!” shouted Zhou Botong. “This is a match I have always wanted.”

The perimeter of their forces was getting larger as the fight progressed, which forced Guo Xiang to step back. The eagle stayed close to Yang Guo, protecting its breast with its left wing while the right wing was a little bit open. The eagle understood the fierceness of this match and it never took its piercing gaze from Yang Guo, ready to step in if Yang Guo had any trouble.

After a while, Zhou had used all seventy-two stances of his “Vacant Fist”. He had the advantage of better technique but his internal energy could not compare with the overbearing and boundless force of Yang Guo. With eyes open wide Guo Xiang watched these two people exchanging blows. She knew they weren’t fighting as enemies; still, a fight between two highly skilled martial artists was very unpredictable. The slightest mistake could mean death. Cold sweat poured out of her body.

After seeing his “Vacant Fist” could do nothing to Yang Guo, he secretly praised him and then suddenly changed stances and used his left-right technique to fight. His left and right hands used different fist techniques, so that suddenly, Yang Guo was fighting against two Zhou Botongs.

Yang Guo was already at a disadvantage when it was one hand versus two, now it became even more so. One time, when Xiao Longnü fought Jinlun Fawang, she had just learned the “Dividing Ones Mind” skill from Zhou. When the couple met again, Yang Guo had lost his right arm. Xiao Longnü was afraid she might make him sad, so she did not say anything about the technique. Yang Guo was slightly alarmed and could only increase the power in his palm and used his sleeve to take some of the attacks.

As somebody who had trained in martial arts since she was little, Guo Xiang did not understand the fist techniques being exchanged, but she could see who had gained the upper hand and who was having difficulty. She was flustered. Then Guo Xiang remembered her father’s lesson on the ‘Dividing Ones Mind” skill, which he demonstrated before Guo Polu and herself. She saw what Zhou Botong was doing and it looked to her he was using her father’s skill. She wasn’t sure whether her father learned the skill from this old man, or the other way around. Anyway, she saw an opportunity to give Yang Guo a hand, so she shouted, “Old Urchin! Stop! Not fair! Big Brother does not want to fight you anymore!”

Surprised, Zhou Botong leaped back. “Why not fair?” he snapped. “You stole that skill from my father and used it against Big Brother,” she answered. “Aren’t you ashamed?”

After hearing the young girl called Yang Gou ‘Big Brother’ naturally Zhou Botong thought she was Yang Guo’s younger sibling. And because he did not know Yang Guo’s father, he only laughed and said, “This skill was my own invention. How could you say I stole it from your father?”

“Fine,” said the young Miss. “Even if what you said was true, you still used two arms, while Big Brother only has one. Is that fair? If my Big Brother had two arms, you would’ve been beaten a long time ago.”

“What you said is true,” the old man confessed. “But I am sure that even if he had two arms; he still could not use this skill of mine.” Then he laughed jovially.

Guo Xiang grunted. “Shame on you!” she mocked, “You just said that because you know Big Brother’s arm cannot re-grow. If you are a valiant man (ying xiong), you wouldn’t take any advantage of your opponent’s disability.”

“Fine… In that case I am going to use only a one fist technique,” said the old man.

Guo Xiang stuck out her tongue. “Still shame on you, still unfair, because you use two arms against Big Brother’s one,” she snickered.

“Darn it!” shouted the old man, annoyed. “What should I do then? Shall I ask a woman to chop off one of my arms?”

Guo Xiang was shocked, “Which woman had chopped off Big Brother’s arm?” she wondered in her heart. Then she smiled and said, “It’s OK then. You don’t have to chop off your arm. It would be fair if you just tie up one arm and fight Big Brother using only the other one.”

The Old Urchin laughed a big laugh. He thought that this way of fighting would be fun. Besides, he thought that he wouldn’t necessarily lose even if he is using a single arm. So he placed his right hand in his belt prepared to fight. He said, “Come now! This way you will not regret it even if you lose.”

When Zhou Botong and Guo Xiang were having their debate, Yang Guo didn’t say anything. He was never afraid others would mock him because of his disability. On the contrary, he was proud because with only one arm he could beat anybody. Therefore, he was slightly miffed when he saw Zhou Botong do this because he felt he was looking down on him. “Old Urchin!” he said, “By doing that you are looking down on me. Aren’t you thinking that a one-armed Yang Guo couldn’t beat you? Huh! If I lose, I would immediately …” Lashing his anger out, he was going to say that he would immediately kill himself right then and there. But suddenly he remembered his upcoming rendezvous with Xiao Longnü. He stopped before finishing his sentence.

Guo Xiang regretted her words. She was childishly thinking that she was doing Yang Guo some good. She did not remember that Yang Guo was a Chivalrous Hero (Da Xia), therefore, he would not want anybody to look down on him. Quickly she approached Yang Guo and said, “Big Brother, my mistake …” and then she came to the old man and took his arm out of the belt. She said, “Old Urchin, with his single arm Big Brother will defeat you. If you don’t believe me, go ahead and try.”

Without waiting for his answer, Yang Guo leaped and chopped out a left palm. Zhou replied with a left fist and didn’t use his right arm. He felt it was unfair to use both arms.

Twenty stances passed. Yang Guo was upset since even with one arm the Old Urchin was not easy to defeat. The ‘yang’ness [from yin-yang: yin – soft, cold, yang – hard, hot] in Zhou’s fist and palms gradually surfaced. This type of energy was opposite to Zhou Botong’s ‘yin’ energy of the “Vacant Fist” technique. Yang Guo noticed the change and suddenly recognized the “Demon Subduing Fist” of the “Nine Yin Manual” in the tomb. Yang Guo shouted, “What’s so special about the ‘Demon Subduing Fist’? Use two hands and take my ‘Melancholic Sad Palms [An Ran Xiao Hun Zhang].

Zhou was shocked; one, Yang Guo actually knew what technique he was using and two, what in the world was ‘An Ran Xiao Hun Zhang’? Zhou was knowledgeable in the martial arts from the various sects of the world but he had never heard of this martial art before. He looked at Yang Guo and saw him with his arm bent, his eyes seemingly far away. His legs seemed to float and his front was completely open