as the Sect Leader of Emei Pai. He did not want to show the least bit of disrespect.

Noticing that Yin Liting was using the ‘Taijijian’ [Taiji Sword] to face the opponent; Yu Lianzhou knew that his sixth brother was prepared to unleash the full potential of their school’s most powerful skill to contend with the most powerful enemy. He slowly retreated from the arena.

“You may start!” Zhou Zhiruo said.

Yin Liting thought that the opponent’s movement was lightning fast. If he let her took the initiative, he might never be able to regain his momentum. Thereupon as his left foot took a step, he switched the sword to his left hand, and launched the ‘san huan tao yue’ [three rings around the moon]. This first stance was a mixture of truth and deceit; the sword in his left hand lunged toward the enemy, the blade flickered with rays of light, ‘swish, swish, swish’, the sword produced light swishing noise. The crowd of heroes broke into an earth-shattering applause.

Zhou Zhiruo turned her body sideways to evade; Yin Liting followed with ‘da kui xing’ [the Great Bear Constellation] and ‘yan zi chao shui’ [swallow hunts over the water]. His sword drew a big circle in the air, his right hand pierced straight forward, surprisingly, it also carried light ‘swish, swish, swish’ noise.

Zhou Zhiruo swung her slender waist like a pendulum, dodging the attacks one by one. “Yin Liu Xia,” she said, “I gave you three stances to repay your kindness on Mount Wudang in the old days.” As the last word came out of her mouth, the flexible whip in her hand shook like a cobra and struck directly into Yin Liting’s chest.

Yin Liting quickly evaded to the left; but the whip changed its course midway and curved toward him. Yin Liting countered with ‘feng bai he ye’ [the wind sweeps lotus leaves]. His sword pared down. The whip and the sword collided, creating a light scratching noise. Yin Liting felt a burning sensation on the palm of his hand; the sword nearly fell off.

He was greatly shocked. “I thought her stances were strange but her internal energy was in par with mine,” he mused, “Who would have thought that her internal energy is also strange beyond measures.” Refocusing his attention, he launched the Taiji Sword by creating random circles, generating an extremely tight defense around his body.

The flexible whip in Zhou Zhiruo’s hand was like a string of soft silk thread, like a weightless object. Her body flashed to the east and to the west, dashed forward and backward, yet the whip was always fluttering around Yin Liting.

Zhang Wuji’s amazement grew as he watched the battle. “The way she moves the whip is entirely different from Du E, Du Nan and Du Jie, three eminent monks.” At first, he thought that Emei Pai still had some heretical martial art that he was unaware of, but as he watched she move with demon-like agility, which differed greatly from Mie Jue Shitai’s movements, against his will, a vague feeling of fear crept into his heart.

Suddenly Fan Yao exclaimed, “She is a ghost, she is not a human!”

His words echoed what was in Zhang Wuji’s mind that he shivered involuntarily. If he were not in the field where the sun was still shining brightly and people were standing all around him he would have thought that Zhou Zhiruo had died and her ghost picked up a whip and fought with Yin Liting.

In all his life, he had seen countless of strange martial arts, but Zhou Zhiruo’s footwork and whip technique, which was like the wind blowing willow branch, or the water floating duckweed, was truly beyond anybody’s imagination. In that moment, he felt as if he was awakened from a nightmare and was shivering from fear, “Could it be that she practices some kind of demonic skill? Or she is being possessed by some monster?”

Zhou Zhiruo’s movements were strange, but Taiji Sword was developed from Zhang Sanfeng’s Taijiquan [Taiji fist], which he created in his later years. It was the pinnacle of the sword technique, which came from the culmination of his life-long comprehension of martial art theory. Yin Liting unleashed his entire strength and skill into his continuous sword movements. Although he was unable to injure the opponent, his defense was flawless, enough to hold his ground.

Suddenly, someone called out with a strange voice and strange intonation, “Aiyo! Song Qingshu is about to breathe his last. Zhou Da Zhangmen [great sect leader], if you don’t pay your last respect to your husband, you will considered a dishonorable widow!”

Everybody turned their eyes toward the voice. It was Zhou Dian. He knew that in their entire lives, Wudang disciples put great emphasis to the internal energy cultivation to control their breathing. In facing the enemy, they were like ‘the Mount Tai collapsed in front of their eyes, their countenances would not change; an elk hit their left ears, their eyes did not blink.’ So he intended to help Yin Liting by disrupting Zhou Zhiruo’s attention.

“Hey, hey, Miss Zhou Zhiruo of the Emei Pai,” he called again, “Your husband is about to die, he has some last words for you. He says he has three times seven, twenty-one, and four times seven, twenty-eight, illegitimate children outside. He wants that after he dies, you will take a good care of them, so that he won’t die with open eyes. Will you or will you not consent to his request?”

As the crowd of heroes heard him blabber such nonsense, some of them could not help but snicker. But Zhou Zhiruo acted as if she did not hear anything.

“Aiyo,” Zhou Dian called out, “It’s too bad! Miejue Lao Shitai, how have you, Senior, been doing? Long time no see. You, Senior, has never looked better. Your spirit must have possessed Miss Zhou; the way she plays this flexible whip is indeed very attractive!”

Suddenly, Zhou Zhiruo’s shadow flashed several ‘zhang’s backward. She lashed her long whip over her right shoulder. The tip of the whip curved up from the ground toward Zhou Dian’s face. Initially she was more than a dozen ‘zhang’s away from the Ming Cult’s thatched shelter, but just like a dragon swooping down from the sky, the flexible whip suddenly arrived at his face like an arrow.

Zhou Dian was happily blabbering with spittle coming out of his mouth. He did not expect in the middle of a fierce battle, Zhou Zhiruo was able to launch a sudden attack with her whip. As he was stunned, the long whip had already arrived at his face. Zhou Zhiruo did not even turn her head, but it was as if the back of her head grew a pair of eyes; the tip of the whip was pointing right on his nose.

As Zhou Zhiruo flung the long whip backward, two of her left-hand fingers repeatedly pierced toward Yin Liting. Within seven of such attacks, she had covered the entire vital acupoints on Yin Liting’s head, face and the front of his chest.

Yin Liting was unable to attack the opponent. He also could not turn back his sword to pare her arm. With no other choice, he launched the ‘feng dian tou’ [nodding phoenix] by bending his knees to dodge the attacks.

In the meantime, from the Ming Cult’s thatched shelter came a loud ‘bang!’ followed by a series of crashing noises. Turned out Yang Xiao, who was standing on the side, and had keen eyes and quick hands, hurled the wooden table in front of him to block Zhou Zhiruo’s whip. As the whip struck the table, wooden splinters flew all over the place. The teapots and teacups on the table were also thrown to all directions, splashing hot tea to numerous people around them.

As her attack missed, Zhou Zhiruo no longer paid Zhou Dian any attention. Her flexible whip coiled back and stormed toward Yin Liting.

Holding the hilt of a sword in his hand, Yu Lianzhou had been standing on the side. But after watching for half an afternoon, he still could not predict the essence of her whip technique. “Even if I have to fight, in Taiji Sword technique I am not any better than Liudi [sixth younger brother]. But if the fight is prolonged, this woman’s internal energy might be insufficient, and then relying on our resilience, we might score a victory.”

He saw Yin Liting’s sword going back and forth, opening and closing, the ‘yin’ and ‘yang’ elements intertwined with each other. Yin Liting was unleashing the instructions given by their benevolent master, Zhang Sanfeng to the fullest. He thought that in all his life he had never seen his Shidi [younger martial brother] unleash this kind of brilliant swordsmanship. Today, while facing a life and death situation, he was able to display the most refined of their school’s sword technique. Wudang Pai’s martial art paid particular attention to resiliency; the longer the fight, the stronger they were. The longer they were able to hold their ground, the greater the chance they would not get defeated.

Suddenly Zhou Zhiruo’s long whip vibrated, creating circles, big and small circles, surrounding Yin Liting’s entire body with these circles. Taiji Fist and Taiji Sword also based on transmitting strength through circles. Surprisingly, Zhou Zhiruo’s long whip was also vibrating strength through circles. The rotational direction of the whip and Yin Liting’s sword were the same, but the whip was several times faster.

As Yin Liting’s sword was entangled by her whip, it lost its strength and did not want to follow its master’s command. The sword was swirled several times and then a blue ray flickered as the sword was thrown upward. Zhou Zhiruo’s long whip coiled down to smash the crown of Yin Liting’s head.

Yu Lianzhou immediately jumped forward. His right hand caught the tip of the flexible whip. From inside her gown, Zhou Zhiruo’s leg flew out, threatening Yu Lianzhou’s waist.

From the start, Yu Lianzhou had always had difficulty predicting the direction of Zhou Zhiruo’s whip strange movements. However, when he saw her shook the whip to create the circles and snatch Yin Liting’s sword, it suddenly it dawned on him, “Turns out her skill is only mediocre. Her technique in vibrating the whip to make circles is far inferior to our Taiji Fist.”

As he grabbed the tip of the whip, ignoring the attack toward his waist, his left hand struck Zhou Zhiruo’s lower abdomen using the ‘hu zhua jue hu shou’ [‘tiger claw disappears into the door’ hand].

Zhou Zhiruo was unable to block. Like a lightning, this thought came into her mind, “I’ll die under Yu Er Shu’s [second (younger) uncle] hands today.” Releasing the whip handle, the five fingers of her right hand came down on top of Yu Lianzhou’s head, hoping that in her death, she would take Yu Lianzhou along.

Yu Lianzhou wanted to lean his head sideways to evade, but unfortunately, the ‘tui hou xue’ [lit. ‘behind the leg’ acupoint] on his waist was sealed by Zhou Zhiruo’s kick that his neck stiffened and he could not turn his head. However, the strength of his left hand did not diminish.

At the time when both people’s lives were hanging by a thread, someone suddenly darted in from the side; his right hand blocked Yu Lianzhou’s ‘hu zhua jue hu shou’, his left hand stopped Zhou Zhiruo’s fingers, which were about to pierce Yu Lianzhou’s skull. It was Zhang Wuji who decided to save them.

Zhou Zhiruo combined the forces of her palms to strike Zhang Wuji’s chest. If Zhang Wuji dodged the attack, this pair of palms would strike Yin Liting’s face, therefore, he had no choice but parry her palms with his left palm.

As these two people’s three palms struck each other, Zhang Wuji suddenly felt that Zhou Zhiruo’s palms were void of any strength. Zhang Wuji was stunned. “Aiyo, not good!” he thought, “After fighting ferociously with Liu Shu [sixth uncle] for more than 200 stances, she is like a lamp which oil has dried up. If I continued sending out my strength, she would certainly die on the spot.” In desperation, he hastily pulled back his strength.

When he sent out his left palm, he only knew that Zhou Zhiruo’s martial art did not differ too much from his own, that she was a powerful opponent; therefore, he did not dare to be negligent. With one palm blocking two, he had sent his entire strength. As the force was just about to come out, he realized the opponent was devoid of any strength, so he hurriedly pulled back his power. He was well aware that by doing so, he had violated an important principle of the martial art theory. It was equal to attacking his own body with his entire strength. In addition, he needed to use more strength in order to pull back the outgoing power. Fortunately, he had reached a level where he could send out or pull back his power at will. This sudden withdrawal of his strength would only stop the flow of his ‘chi’ momentarily, but would not greatly harm him.

Unexpectedly, as he pulled his strength, he suddenly felt like a burst of flooding water breaking a dam, the opponent’s strength surged into his body with an irresistible force. Zhang Wuji was greatly shocked; realizing that he had fallen into the enemy’s trap. ‘Bang!’ his chest was squarely hit by Zhou Zhiruo’s palms.

Zhang Wuji was stricken by his own strength plus Zhou Zhiruo’s palm power. It was as if two martial art masters joined hands to attack him. Although his Jiu Yang Shen Gong protecting his body was profound, it was simply too much for him to bear. Much less, the power of Zhou Zhiruo’s palms seized the opportunity to burst in when his defense line was wide open; right when his previous strength was pulled back and before the new strength was generated.

This technique was actually Emei Pai’s specialty. In the past, Miejue Shitai had used it to strike him until he spurted blood and fell down to the ground. It was just that in the past, he was completely ignorant on how to withstand the attack. This time however, he misread Zhou Zhiruo’s intentions and thus had fallen under the deceit.

Zhang Wuji was thrown backwards. His vision blackened and he spurted a mouthful of blood.

As Zhou Zhiruo’s sneak attack succeeded, her left hand followed with five fingers aimed at the pit of his stomach. Zhang Wuji was heavily injured, but he had not lost consciousness. Seeing the claw was about to rip his throat and chest open, he strained himself to inch backward some more. ‘Rip!’ Zhou Zhiruo’s claw scratched the front part of his clothes open, revealing Zhang Wuji’s bare chest. Zhou Zhiruo’s right hand claw swiftly followed.

At this moment, Yu Lianzhou’s acupoint was sealed by her kick so he was unable to move. Yin Liting was some distance away so even though he pounced forward, he would be too late to save him. It looked like Zhang Wuji would not be able to escape this calamity.

As she was glancing down, Zhou Zhiruo suddenly saw a deep scar on his chest. It was the scar when she stabbed him with the Yitian Sword at the Brightness Peak. Her five fingers were less than half a foot from his chest, but mixed emotions suddenly surged up in her breast. Her eyes turned red and her claw stopped midair.

While she was hesitating, Wei Yixiao, Yin Liting, Yang Xiao, and Fan Yao, four people had already arrived. Wei Yixiao flew and blocked in front on Zhang Wuji. Yang and Fan, two people launched a converging attack from left and right. Yin Liting quickly grabbed Zhang Wuji and took him away.

The crowd around the field was thrown into chaos. Emei Pai disciples and Shaolin monks shouted and grabbing their weapons, and rushed into the arena. Yang Xiao and Fan Yao only fought Zhou Zhiruo for several stances before they stopped. Wei Yixiao helped up Yu Lianzhou, taking him back to their shelter. Emei Pai and Shaolin Pai also returned to their positions as they saw that the fight had ceased.

Zhao Min was actually also rushing into the arena, but her speed was inferior to that of Wei Yixiao, Yang Xiao, and the others. By the time she was halfway, Zhang Wuji was already carried back. As she saw blood seeping out from his mouth, she was so frightened that her face turned sheet-white.

Forcing a smile, Zhang Wuji said, “I am all right. I only need to circulate my ‘chi’ for a while.”

Everybody helped him to sit in the shelter. At once Zhang Wuji slowly circulated his Jiu Yang Shen Gong to treat his internal injury.

Zhou Zhiruo called out, “Which hero will come up to grant me instruction?” Tightening his belt, Fan Yao went out in big strides.

“Fan You Shi,” Zhang Wuji quickly called out, “Listen to my order: you must not fight. We … we admit defeat …” As he opened his mouth, he vomited two more mouthful of blood.

Fan Yao did not dare to defy his Jiaozhu’s order. Supposing he insisted on fighting, he would inevitably make Zhang Wuji’s injury worse. Besides, even if he fought with everything he had, he might only deliver his life in vain without any advantage to their own Cult.

Standing in the middle of the field, Zhou Zhiruo asked two more times.

The fact that Zhang Wuji was injured by his own pulled-back strength was known to him and Zhou Zhiruo only. Others believed that Zhou Zhiruo’s power was so strange that Zhang Wuji was not her match. The spectators only saw that Zhou Zhiruo did not continue her claw and thus they believed that she spared Zhang Wuji’s life. As a young woman, she successfully defeated Yin Liting, Yu Lianzhou and Zhang Wuji; three prominent martial art masters of this age. Everybody believed that her martial art was simply too strange; totally beyond anybody’s comprehension.

Although there were more than a handful warriors among the crowd of heroes who were quite skillful in martial arts, upon self-introspection, these people realized they could not be compared to Yin, Yu and Zhang, three people; therefore, they decided there was no need for them to lose their lives for nothing.

Standing in the field, Zhou Zhiruo’s gown was blown by the mountain breeze, giving the impression that her gentle and frail figure was swaying by the wind. All around the field there were several thousand heroes and warriors from all over the world [orig. ‘san shan wu yue, si mian ba fang’ – three hills and five mountains, four faces and eight directions. Five sacred mountains of the Taoism are: Tai Shan, Hua Shan, Heng Shan, Heng Shan (different characters) and Song Shan.], yet not a single one dared to come down and challenge her.

Zhou Zhiruo waited a while longer, still nobody stepped forward. The old monk from Damo Hall walked into the field. Joining his palms together he said, “The skill of Emei Pai Zhang Men Ren [sect leader], Mrs. Song surpasses the crowd of heroes. Her martial art skill is number one in the world. Is there any hero who disagrees?”

Zhou Dian called out, “I, Zhou Dian, disagree.”

“In that case,” the old monk said, “I invite Zhou Yingxiong [hero Zhou] to come down and have a competition with her.”

“I am not her match,” Zhou Dian replied, “What can I compete with her?”

“Zhou Yingxiong,” the old monk replied, “Since you are aware you are not her match, aren’t you submitting to her?”

“I know that I am not her match,” Zhou Dian said, “But I do not submit to her. What’s wrong with that?”

The old monk no longer argued with his twisted logic. He asked, “Aside from this gentleman, Zhou Yingxiong, is there anybody else who do not submit to her?”

He repeated the question three times. Zhou Dian also voiced his disagreement three times. But nobody else made any noise to challenge the decision.

“Since nobody is going to challenge her,” the old monk said, “Then according to the prior agreement of this great assembly, Jin Mao Shi Wang Xie Xun will be handed over to Emei Pai Zhang Men Ren, Mrs. Song. Whoever has the precious Tulong Saber in his possession should also hand over the control of the said Saber to Mrs. Song. This is the agreement reached by the heroes present and nobody will be allowed to dissent.”

Zhang Wuji was in the middle of treating his heavy injury by dispersing his internal energy and activating his Jiu Yang Zhen Qi. He was slowly entering the ‘clear’ and ‘void’ state of mind. But as he suddenly heard the old monk say ‘Jin Mao Shi Wang Xie Xun will be handed over to Emei Pai Zhang Men Ren, Mrs. Song’, his mind was shaken and he nearly threw up another mouthful of blood.

Zhao Min was sitting close to him, caring for him with complete attention. Seeing Zhang Wuji suddenly shiver and his face greatly change, she understood his concern.

“Wuji Gege,” she said in a soft voice, “Nothing could be better than Yifu falling into Zhou Jiejie’s hands. She did not have a heart to kill you just now; obviously, she still has deep feelings for you. I am sure she will not harm Yifu. Please set your heart at ease and just concentrate on treating your injury.”

Zhang Wuji thought she was right. He felt relieved.

In the meantime, the sun was slowly setting behind the western mountain. The field gradually turned dark. The old monk said, “Jin Mao Shi Wang Xie Xun is confined somewhere in the back of the mountain. Right now, the sky has turned dark, Gentlemen and Ladies must be hungry. We will gather here again tomorrow afternoon. Lao Seng [old monk, referring to himself] will lead Mrs. Song to release the prisoner. That time we will witness Mrs. Song’s unparalleled martial art skill once again.”

Yang Xiao, Fan Yao, and the others cast their glances toward Zhao Min. They all thought, “Exactly as you predicted. Shaolin Pai indeed has another plot. Even if Zhou Zhiruo possessed stronger martial art skill, there is no way she would be able to defeat Du E and the others, three eminent monks. I am afraid she would lose her life on top of that small hill. By showing off their power, Shaolin Pai will still dominate over the Wulin world.”

By this time Zhou Zhiruo had already returned to her thatched shelter. By defeating the heroes that day, Emei Pai’s prestige soared high. Seeing their Sect Leader return, there was not a single Emei disciple who did not show profound respect.

Although the crowd of heroes had seen Zhou Zhiruo win the title ‘Number One Martial Artist under the Heavens’, the most important matter had not been brought to completion yet, its conclusion was still left to everybody’s guess. Therefore, nobody went down the mountain that day.

The old monk said, “By visiting our Temple, all heroes are Shaolin Pai’s esteemed guests. If there is any resentment in your midst, we respectfully request for our sake that you do not settle it up on the Shaoshi Mountain. Otherwise, we will consider you as looking down on Shaolin Pai. After dinner tonight, you may visit the front part of the mountain as you wish. The rear part of the mountain, however, is where our Sect keeps our scriptures and manuals. We ask you to stay away from that part.”

Immediately Fan Yao took Zhang Wuji and carried him back to the Ming Cult camp. Although Zhang Wuji’s injury was very heavy, after taking nine of his own ‘miracle pills’ plus circulating his Jiu Yang Shen Qi, deep into the night, around the second hour [between 1 – 3am], he vomited three mouthfuls of blood and his internal injury was completely healed.

Yang Xiao, Fan Yao, Yu Lianzhou, Yin Liting, and the others were pleasantly surprised. They all praised his internal energy cultivation as unparalleled in the world. If someone else suffered such a heavy injury, even if he was under a master physician’s care, he would need at least one or two months before he could comfortably circulate his ‘chi’ again. The fact that Zhang Wuji was able to recuperate in a matter of hours was simply too incredible. It would be hard for them to believe if they did not witness it with their own eyes.

Zhang Wuji ate two bowls of rice. After resting for a moment, he stood up and said, “I need to get some air.”

He was the Cult Leader. Even though he did not tell them what he was going to do, nobody dared to inquire. Yin Liting only said, “You have just recovered from a serious injury; you must be very careful.”

“I will!” Zhang Wuji replied. Noticing a great concern on Zhao Min’s face, he gave her a faint smile as if he was saying, “Don’t worry!”

As Zhang Wuji walked out the shed and looked up, he saw the bright moon and sparse stars in the sky. He took a deep breath and felt that his ‘zhen qi’ [real/genuine ‘chi’] was flowing freely around his body. His spirit rose as he walked toward the Temple gate.

“I [orig. zai4xia4 – ‘under’] have something I’d like to discuss with Emei Pai Zhang Men [sect leader]; would you please show me the way?” he said to the monk in charge of the reception of the visitors.

The monk on duty knew he was the Ming Cult Jiaozhu. “Yes! Yes!” he said, full of respect, “Xiao Seng [humble monk – referring to self] will show the way. Zhang Jiaozhu, this way, please.”

Leading Zhang Wuji to the west, they walked for approximately a ‘li’ [0.5km] before he pointed toward several little huts some distance away.

The monk said, “Emei Pai stays over there. Monks and nuns are not supposed to mingle. Xiao Seng feels uncomfortable to get too close this late at night.” Actually, he was afraid Zhang Wuji might fight with Zhou Zhiruo again. If two masters of the present age involved in a battle, he might get unlucky and would be hurt as an innocent bystander.

With a smile Zhang Wuji said, “If you returned and mentioned this matter, you would unavoidably alarm the others. I’d better seal your acupoint. What do you say?”

The monk hastily said, “Xiao Seng will not dare to open my mouth. Jiaozhu, don’t worry.” Hurriedly he turned around and left

Zhang Wuji strolled leisurely toward the huts. He stopped about a dozen of ‘zhang’s away from the huts. Two nuns immediately flew in. Holding their swords horizontally across their bodies they shouted, “Who’s there?”

Zhang Wuji cupped his fists and said, “Ming Cult’s Zhang Wuji wishes to have an audience with your precious Sect’s Sect Leader, Mrs. Song.”

The two nuns were very apprehensive; the more senior of the two haltingly said, “Zhang … Zhang Jiaozhu, please wait here, I … I have to report it first.” Although she tried to act calm, her voice trembled. She turned around and started to walk. But only several steps later she took out a bamboo whistle and blew it.

Emei Pai was very happy and proud that day. Their Sect Leader had defeated three of the great masters of the present age in front of the world heroes. She had scared the several thousand fierce warriors so that none dared to challenge her. That was indeed an unprecedented grand occasion in the history of their Sect. However, the Emei Pai had killed two Elders of the Beggar Clan, defeated two heroes of Wudang, and injured the Cult Leader of the Ming Cult. The number of people they had offended today was truly not a few. In addition, with Zhou Zhiruo winning the ‘Number One Martial Artist in the World’ title, there would be many heroes who were angry or envious. Thus, that night they set up tight sentries and patrols around their camp to guard against any threat from the outside.

As the nun blew the whistle, more than twenty people rushed in immediately from all directions. Their blades flickered under the moonlight. Zhang Wuji ignored their presence. He stood still with his hands behind his back.

The nun disappeared into a small hut. She reappeared a moment later and said, “Our humble Sect’s Zhang Men Ren says: Men and women are not supposed to mingle, especially this late at night. Zhang Jiaozhu, please return.”

“I have a rather acceptable medical skill,” Zhang Wuji said, “I only wish to treat Song Qingshu Shaoxia’s [young hero] injury; nothing more.”

The nun was startled. She went back into the hut to convey the message. After a long time, she returned and said, “Zhang Men Ren invites you to come in.”

Zhang Wuji patted his waist to show that he did not carry any weapon before walking behind the nun to enter the hut. He saw Zhou Zhiruo sitting by a table on the side; her cheek rested on her palm. She was lost in thought so that she did not turn her head although she heard him. The nun poured a cup of green tea and set it on the table then she retreated and gently closed the door. There were no other people in the room. A flickering white candle on the table illuminated Zhou Zhiruo’s plain dark green attire. The overall scene was sad and gloomy.

Zhang Wuji’s heart ached. In a low voice he said, “How is Song Shige’s condition? Let me take a look at him.”

Without turning her head, Zhou Zhiruo coldly said, “His skull is smashed, his injury is very heavy. Most likely he won’t survive. I don’t even know if he would survive the night.”

“You know my medical skill is not too bad,” Zhang Wuji said, “I will do my best to save him.”

“Why do you want to save him?” Zhou Zhiruo asked.

Zhang Wuji was startled. “I did you wrong,” he said, “In my heart, I am very ashamed. Moreover, you have showed me mercy today by letting me live. Song Shige is injured; I want to make it up to you somehow.”

“You showed me mercy first, do you think I did not know it?” Zhou Zhiruo replied, “If you can bring Song Dage back to life, how do you want me to repay?”

“A life for a life,” Zhang Wuji replied, “I am asking you to show mercy on my Yifu.”

Pointing toward the inner chamber Zhou Zhiruo indifferently said, “He is inside.”

Zhang Wuji walked toward the inside chamber. But as he saw the room was pitch-black without any light, he took the candlestick and went in. Zhou Zhiruo did not move; she was still sitting motionless with her cheek on her palm.

Zhang Wuji raised the dark green mosquito net up. Under the candlelight, he saw that Song Qingshu’s eyes were bulging, his facial features [orig. ‘wu3guan1’ – five sensory organs: nose, eyes, lips, tongue, ears] were distorted, making his countenance hideous. His breathing was very weak and he had lost consciousness long ago. Zhang Wuji held his wrist only to find his pulse was chaotic; sometimes fast, sometimes slow. His skin felt ice-cold. If he was not treated immediately, indeed he would not survive the night. Zhang Wuji lightly touched his skull and felt that four pieces of Song Qingshu’s skull, the forehead and the back of his head, were disintegrated. Zhang Wuji thought abou