The big fellow had a thick beard and a very powerful appearance, but the look in his eyes was chaotic and he was behaving like crazy. Obviously this was a madman. Xiao Feng saw that the pair of broad axes in his hands seemed to be made of pure steel and very heavy. When the man separated them, brought them together, attacked and defended with them, his movements were rather disciplined, and the defense at his front was excellent and strict, just like the style of a master. Xiao Feng was acquainted with very many people of wulin in the Central Plains but he did not know this big fellow. He thought: ‘This big fellow’s skill in using axes is very outstanding. How come I’ve never heard of such a man?’

That man brandished his broad axes faster and faster, and repeatedly roared loudly: ‘Quick, quick, quickly go and report to our Lord that the enemy has come.’

He was standing at a place where there were roads on all sides and was chopping horizontally and hacking vertically with his 2 shining axes so passersby certainly stayed away from him. Who dared come near him? Xiao Feng saw that he was having a hysterical expression and kept executing move after move with the axes. Gradually, he no longer had enough strength, but he desperately continued and only shouted: ‘Brother Fu, quickly retreat! Don’t care about me. It’s important to report to our Lord.’

Xiao Feng thought: ‘This man loyally protects his Lord. He’s a brave man. But losing energy like this, he’ll certainly suffer very serious internal injuries.’ He walked up to that big fellow at once and said: ‘Old chap, can I treat you to a cup of wine?’

The big fellow glowered at Xiao Feng then all of a sudden he shouted: ‘Prime villain, don’t harm my Lord!’ As he finished, he raised the axes and brought them down towards Xiao Feng’s head. Seeing that Xiao Feng was in an extremely dangerous situation, all the bystanders cried ‘A’yo.’

Hearing the words ‘prime villain’ Xiao Feng was also startled: ‘I and A’Zhu are looking for the prime villain to get revenge. So the enemy of this man is also a prime villain. Even though he calls him the prime villain, that man may not necessarily be the one that I and A’Zhu call the prime villain. Anyway, I’m gonna save him first then talk later.’ He immediately moved straight forward and stretched out his hand to block an acupuncture point on the part of the ribs around his waist.

Unexpectedly, even though this man had lost sanity, his martial arts remained intact, so he turned the axe in his right hand around and tried to hit Xiao Feng directly in the lower abdomen with the handle. This move was very effective and clever. Were Xiao Feng not very many times better than the man in martial arts, he would be hit by him. He immediately stretched out his left hand, grabbed the handle of the axe and snatched it. Already very weary, how could that big fellow withstand that? His whole body shook, and at once he threw himself on Xiao Feng. Who would have expected that he would disregard his own life and want to perish together with his adversary?

Xiao Feng moved his right arm over and gripped that man. He slightly exerted his power and rendered him immobile. All of the idle men who were watching for fun on the street applauded when they saw Xiao Feng subdue the madman. Half dragging, half carrying, Xiao Feng took that big fellow in the main hall of the inn. He pushed him down on a seat and said: ‘Old chap, drink first and talk later!’ Then he ordered the bartender to fetch wine.

That big fellow fixed his eyes on Xiao Feng. Only after a good while did he ask: ‘You… Are you a good person or a villain?’

Xiao Feng was startled, not knowing what to reply.

A’Zhu laughed and said: ‘Of course he’s a good person. I’m a good person too. And you’re also a good person. We’re friends. We’ll go fight the prime villain together.’ The big fellow stared at her for a while then stared at Xiao Feng for a while. It seemed he both believed and did not believe them. After a short while, he said: ‘That… That prime villain?’ A’Zhu continued: ‘We’re friends, let’s fight the prime villain together!’

That big fellow suddenly rose and said loudly: ‘No, no! The prime villain is very formidable. Quick, quickly go report to the Lord and ask him to think of a way to hide. I’m gonna hold back the prime villain and you’re gonna report.’ As he finished speaking, he rose and grabbed the broad axes.

Xiao Feng stretched out his hand and pressed down on the man’s shoulder, saying: ‘Old chap, the prime villain hasn’t come. Who’s your Lord? Where is he?’

The big fellow shouted loudly: ‘Prime villain, come here, come here, come here, your father’s gonna fight you 300 bouts. Don’t you dare harm our Lord?!’

Xiao Feng and A’Zhu exchanged a look, both being at the end of their wits. A’Zhu suddenly said loudly: ‘A’yo, no good. Let’s quickly go report to our Lord. Where is the Lord? Where has he gone to? We mustn’t let the prime villain find him.’

The big fellow said: ‘Yes, yes, you go report. He’s gone to the Square Bamboo Forest by the Little Mirror Lake. You… You quickly go the Square Bamboo Forest by the Little Mirror Lake to report to the Lord. Go, go!’ As he finished, he urged continuously, looking very anxious.

While Xiao Feng and A’Zhu were still uncertain about their plan, suddenly the bartender said: ‘Go to the Little Mirror Lake? It’s not gonna be a short journey.’ Hearing that there was really a place with the name ‘Little Mirror Lake’, Xiao Feng hurriedly asked: ‘Where is it? How far is it from here?’ That bartender replied: ‘If you ask other people, they may not necessarily know. Luckily for you, you’ve asked me, the very right person. I’m a man from the area around the Little Mirror Lake. This is really as coincidental as you can get. You’re totally lucky!’

Hearing him babbling on about irrelevant subjects, Xiao Feng stretched out his hand, gave the table a hit and said loudly: ‘Quickly say, quickly say!’ The bartender at first wanted to mooch a tip before saying, but after being thus frightened by Xiao Feng, he no longer dared keep other people guessing, saying: ‘This master is so impatient, ha-ha, if it were not for you meeting me by chance, even if you were more impatient, it’d still be useless, right?’ He wanted to make some complaints, but seeing that Xiao Feng was not having a nice expression, he said: ‘The Little Mirror Lake is to the northwest of here. First you go straight west. After going 7 and a half li (0.5 km), you’ll see around 10 big willow trees. 4 trees each row. There’re 4 rows in total. One times 4 equals 4. Two times 4 equals 8. Three times 4 equals 12. Four times 4 equals 16. There’re 16 willow trees altogether. Then you quickly go north. After going 9 and a half li, you’ll see a big bluestone bridge. You mustn’t cross the bridge. It’ll be a mistake if you cross it. I say you can’t cross the bridge but you’ll need to cross a bridge. But you can’t cross that big bluestone bridge on the left-hand side. You must cross the small wooden bridge on the right-hand side. After crossing the small bridge, you go west for a while then go north for a while then go northwest for a while. In short, it won’t go wrong if you follow that footpath. Going like this for 21 and a half li, you’ll see a big lake that looks like a mirror. It’s the Little Mirror Lake. To get there from here, everyone says that it’s 40 li, but in fact it’s only 38 and a half li. It’s less than 40 li.’

Xiao Feng was able to repress his temper to hear the bartender say till the end. A’Zhu said: ‘This big brother said so clearly and plainly. One li is one coin. At first I wanted to give you 40 coins, but it’d be a little bit wrong. How about not giving you? But I must give you. One times 8 equals 8. Two times 8 equals 16. Three times 8 equals 24. Four times 8 equals 32. Five times 8 equals 40. 40 li of road minus 1.5 li should be 38.5 li,’ then she counted out 39 coins and ground the last coin on the blade of an axe, creating an imprint. Next she pressed it with 2 of her fingers. With a snap, the coin was broken in half. Then she gave the bartender 38.5 coins.

Xiao Feng could not help laughing, thinking: ‘This young girl is always up to mischief whenever she’s got a chance.’

The big fellow was still glaring at them and repeatedly urged: ‘Go report, quick. There’s no time for delay. The prime villain is very formidable.’ Xiao Feng asked: ‘Who’s your Lord?’ The big fellow mumbled: ‘My Lord… my Lord… he…. I mustn’t tell other people where he is. You’d better not go.’ Xiao Feng said loudly: ‘What’s your surname?’ The big fellow replied thoughtlessly: ‘My surname is Gu. A’yo, My surname isn’t Gu.’

Xiao Feng became suspicious: ‘Could it be that this man is playing some trick and deliberately lures me into going to the Little Mirror Lake? Why is he both surnamed Gu and not surnamed Gu?’ He had another thought: ‘If the enemy sends him to trick me into going, I’ll most welcome it. I’m about to go find him. Even if the Little Mirror Lake is as dangerous as a dragon’s pool or a tiger’s den, what’s there for me to fear?’ He turned to A’Zhu and said: ‘Let’s go to the Little Mirror Lake to have a look and see if something happens. If this brother’s Lord is there, I think we’ll find him.’

That bartender cut in: ‘There’s only a wilderness around the Little Mirror Lake, nothing to see. If you two want to go sightseeing and widen your knowledge, I guarantee that the pavilions, terraces and towers in the gardens of the rich families here will greatly expand your horizons…’ Xiao Feng waved his hand and told him to stop blabbering on. Then he turned to the big fellow and said: ‘Old chap, you’re very tired, just rest here a little. I’m gonna report to your honored Lord on your behalf that the prime villain will come in no time.’

That big fellow said: ‘Thanks a lot, thanks a lot! I, Gu, sincerely appreciate it. I’ll stop the prime villain. I mustn’t let him pass.’ As he finished, he stood up and stretched out his hands to lift the broad axes, but his strength had been used up and his 2 arms were numb and aching, so after taking fast hold of the handles, he was unable to lift the axes up.

‘Have a rest, old chap,’ said Xiao Feng. After paying for the wine and the rent, he and A’Zhu went out of the door. Following the words of the bartender, they went westward along the main road. After going 7 or 8 li, as expected, they saw 4 rows of trees on the roadside. There were 16 big willow trees in total. A’Zhu laughed and said: ‘That bartender is talkative, but there’re good things in his garrulousness. Like this, we definitely won’t go wrong, right? Oh, who’s there?’

She extended her finger and pointed to a willow tree. A peasant was sitting under the tree by leaning against it. His feet were being immersed in the muddy water in the ditch beside the tree. This should be just a common scene in the countryside, but one side of the peasant’s face was being covered with blood, and on his shoulder was resting a glittering staff which was made of refined copper and did not seem to be light.

Xiao Feng walked up to that peasant and noticed that he was breathing heavily. Obviously he had suffered serious internal injuries. Xiao Feng came straight to the point, asking: ‘Big brother, a broad-axe wielding friend entrusted us with the mission of going to the Little Mirror Lake and delivering a message. May I ask if the Little Mirror Lake is on this side?’ That peasant raised his head, asking: ‘Is the broad-axe wielding friend dead or alive?’ Xiao Feng replied: ‘He only exhausted his power. There’s no big problem.’ The peasant let out a sigh of relief and said: ‘Thank Heavens and Earth. You two please go north. I’ll definitely never forget this kindness of delivering the message.’ Judging from the way the peasant talked, Xiao Feng knew that he was no common peasant in the countryside, so he asked: ‘May I ask you respected surname? What is the broad-axe wielding friend to you?’ That peasant replied: ‘My surname is Fu. Sir, please go quickly to the Little Mirror Lake. That prime villain already rushed past here. It’s a shame that I couldn’t hold him back.’

Xiao Feng thought: ‘This man’s serious injury really isn’t false. If this is the enemy’s plan to trick me, he must’ve spent a big amount of money.’ Seeing the honest appearance of the man, Xiao Feng took a liking to him. He said: ‘Big brother Fu, your injury is serious. What weapon did the prime villain use to harm you?’ That man replied: ‘It’s an iron staff.’

Seeing fresh blood oozing unceasingly from his chest, Xiao Feng unfastened his clothes to take a look. He saw a hole in the man’s chest. Even though the hole was not bigger than a fingertip, it was very deep. Xiao Feng extended his finger and blocked several important acupuncture points around the wound to help the peasant stop bleeding and reduce his pain. A’Zhu torn the front of his robe and bandage his wound.

That man with the surname Fu said: ‘I can’t repay you two for this great debt of gratitude with words. I only hope you would go to the Little Mirror Lake as quickly as possible and report to my humble Lord.’ Xiao Feng asked: ‘What’s the name of your honored Lord? How does he look like?’

That man said: ‘Sir, when you reach the side of the Little Mirror Lake, you’ll see a bamboo forest to the west of it. All the bamboo trees are square. There’re several bamboo houses in the forest. Please call out some words from the outside of the houses: ‘The number 1 villain under Heaven has come. Hide quickly!’ That’ll be okay. It’d be best if you don’t enter the houses. As for the name of my humble Lord, someday in the future I, Fu, will certainly inform you.’

Xiao Feng thought: ‘Who’s the number 1 villain under Heaven? Could it be that he’s Duan Yanqing of the ‘4 Arch-Villains’? Judging from the words of this man, obviously he’s unwilling to say so there’s no need to ask him more.’ However, this time he was no longer on the alert. He thought: ‘If the enemies want to trick me into advancing, of course every sentence would sound reasonable. They definitely wouldn’t make me suspect. This man hesitates in speech and is unwilling to say the truth so he doesn’t have any ill will.’ He then said: ‘Alright. I’m gonna follow your instructions.’ That big fellow struggled to crawl up then knelt down to express his gratitude.

Xiao Feng said: ‘You and I feel like old friends at the 1st meeting. Brother Fu doesn’t need to be excessively courteous.’ He raised the man up with his right hand. Then he gave his own face a wipe with his left hand, removing the make-up, and met him with his true face, saying: ‘I’m Xiao Feng, a Khitan. We’ll meet again some day.’ Without waiting for the man to say anything, he held A’Zhu’s hand and went with quick steps.

A’Zhu asked: ‘So we don’t need to disguise and make up anymore?’ Xiao Feng replied: ‘I don’t know why, but I like this straightforward big fellow very much. I wanted to make friend with him, so I couldn’t meet him with a false face.’

A’Zhu said: ‘Alright, I’m gonna revert to wearing female clothes as well.’ She went to the side of a brook and hurriedly washed the make-up off her face. Then she took off her hat, revealing her black hair, and removed her baggy robe, showing the original female clothes inside.

The 2 of them went 9.5 li without taking a break. They saw a lofty bluestone bridge in the distance. When they came near the bridge, they only saw a scholar bending down on the surface of it. This man had spread a large sheet of white paper on the bridge, and using the bluestone of the bridge as inkstone he had prepared a big puddle of ink. The scholar was holding the brush in his hand and was writing on the paper. Xiao Feng and A’Zhu found it strange. Who could have expected that someone would take paper, ink, brush and inkstone to a bridge in the wilderness to write?

Only when they got near him did they see that he really was not writing, but drawing. What he was drawing was the scenery around. The small bridge, the running water, the old trees and the distant mountains all could be found in the picture. He was bending down on the bridge and was not facing Xiao Feng and A’Zhu, but what strange was that the scenery in the picture was obviously directed towards the 2 of them. They saw that every stroke of his was executed in the opposite way to normal and he was drawing contrariwise.

Xiao Feng did not understand painting and calligraphy at all but A’Zhu had lived in Mister Murong’s home for a long time and had seen a great many excellent works of painting and calligraphy. She saw that even though the ‘inverse drawing technique’ of that scholar could not be considered superb, it was really hard to draw in reverse like this. When she was about to go forwards to ask him several sentences, Xiao Feng lightly pulled a corner of her gown, shook his head and walk towards the small bridge on the left-hand side.

That scholar asked: ‘Why didn’t you two pay any attention when seeing me drawing in reverse? Could it be that this trifling skill of mine has defiled the eyes of you two?’ A’Zhu replied: ‘Confucius did not take a seat on an askew mat and did not eat irregular meat. An upright gentleman doesn’t see ‘inverse drawing’.’ ‘Ha-ha!’ That man loudly laughed and withdrew the sheet of white paper, saying: ‘Right on, please cross the bridge.’

Xiao Feng had already guessed what the scholar’s intentions were. He had spread the sheet of white paper on the bridge to catch other people’s eyes. Firstly, he wanted to delay them. And secondly, he wanted to make what was false look like the true one, deliberately tricking other people into crossing the bluestone bridge. So Xiao Feng said: ‘We want to go to the Little Mirror Lake. If we stepped on the bluestone bridge, we would go the wrong way.’ That scholar said: ‘If you follow the bluestone bridge, it’ll merely be going around in a circle. After going an extra 50 or 60 li, you’ll still arrive. The 2 of you had better go up the bluestone bridge.’ Xiao Feng said: ‘When everything is all right, why go an extra 50 or 60 li?’ That scholar laughed and said: ‘More haste and less speed. Could it be that you don’t understand the reason behind this sentence?’

A’Zhu also realized that this scholar was intentionally delaying them. She stopped bothering herself with him and immediately stepped on the wooden bridge. Xiao Feng followed her. When the 2 of them got to the middle of the bridge, suddenly they felt that the board of the bridge under their feet was rather weak, with ka-la-la sounds it snapped, and their bodies fell downwards the river. Xiao Feng stretched out his left hand and gripped A’Zhu’s body by the waist. His right foot slightly pressed on the board. Thus making use of it, he leaped forward and arrived at the other shore. After that, he sent a palm attack backwards in case the enemy sneakily attacked from behind.

‘Ha-ha,’ the scholar laughed loudly and said: ‘Good skill, good skill! Why are you two quickly going to the Little Mirror Lake?’

Noticing that there was panic in his laughter, Xiao Feng thought: ‘This man looks handsome and refined, yet he’s on the prime villain’s side.’ He paid no attention to him and went forwards with A’Zhu without delay.

After going several zhang (1 zhang = 3.333 m), he heard footsteps at his back and turned his head around to take a look. It was none other than the scholar who was catching up from behind. Xiao Feng turned around and asked with a darkened face: ‘Sir, what do you want to instruct me?’ That scholar replied: ‘I also want to go to the Little Mirror Lake. It just so happens that I and you two have the same journey.’ Xiao Feng said: ‘This can’t be better,’ then put his left hand on A’Zhu’s waist. Raising his internal energy, he took her along and went as if floating. His movements were really smooth and noiseless and did not stir up even light dust. The scholar quickly rushed after Xiao Feng but the distance between them became farther and farther. Seeing that his martial arts were mediocre, Xiao Feng did not care about him anymore. He continued raising his internal energy and going as if floating. Even though he was taking A’Zhu along, he was still much faster than the scholar. Within the time to finish a meal, Xiao Feng already left the scholar far behind himself and did not see any trace of him anymore.

After crossing the small wooden bridge, the path became very narrow. Sometimes the grass was as high as the waist and it was very hard to recognize the path. If the bartender had not said clearly, Xiao Feng would really have had a hard time finding this path. After going for less than 1 hour, he saw a clear lake. Xiao Feng slowed down and went up to the lake. He saw that its water was blue like jade and its surface was calm like a mirror. It was really worthy of the 3 words the ‘Little Mirror Lake.’

When Xiao Feng was about to look for the Square Bamboo Forest, suddenly he heard 2 sounds of chuckling in a thicket of flowers on the left of the lake, then a stone flew out. Looking in the flying direction of the stone, Xiao Feng saw a fisherman who was wearing a large bamboo hat and was fishing beside the lake. His fishing rod had just lifted up a black carp when that stone arrived. Without the least bit of inaccuracy, the stone hit the fishing line squarely. A ‘chi’ sound was heard, the fishing line was broken in two and the black carp fell back into the lake.

Xiao Feng was secretly startled: ‘The power of this person’s hand is very strange. The fishing line is soft and isn’t affected by blunt force. There’s nothing unusual if missiles such as flying knife and sleeve-hidden arrow are used to cut it off. But obviously it was a round stone. Who could have expected that the fishing line would be broken? This person’s Yin soft skill in using missiles definitely doesn’t belong to the Central Plains.’ The person who had thrown the stone did not seem to possess high-level martial arts, but they had an air of intense evil. It was simply an unorthodox technique. Xiao Feng thought: ‘This is probably a subordinate of that prime villain. Judging from the laughter, this person seems to be a young girl.’

That fisherman was also startled when his fishing line was broken. He said loudly and clearly: ‘Who played a trick on surnamed Chu me? Please show yourself.’

With several se-se sounds, the thicket of flowers was split apart and a young girl came out. She was dressed in all-purple clothes and was only 15 or 16 years old. Compared to A’Zhu, she was still younger by a few years. She had a pair of big shiny black eyes and her face was full of mischievousness. As soon as she saw A’Zhu, she ignored the fisherman, skipped up to her, pulled her hand, laughed and said: ‘This zizi (older sister) will be very pretty when grown-up. I like you very much!’ She sounded somewhat tongue-tied when saying, and her pronunciation was not correct, just like a foreigner who had just started to learn the language of the Central Plains.

Seeing that the young girl was lively and innocent, A’Zhu laughed and said: ‘It’s just you who’ll be pretty when grown-up. I like you even more.’ A’Zhu had lived in Gusu for a long time, and now she was saying in Mandarin of the Middle Land (Henan). Therefore, even though she sounded gentle and lovely, her pronunciation was also not very accurate.

The fisherman at first was about to get mad. But seeing that the young girl was so lively and lovely, the anger that was filling his bosom disappeared. He said: ‘This girl is so naughty. But the technique that you used to break the fishing line is very good.’

That young girl said: ‘What’s so interesting about angling? It’s boring to death. If you wanna eat fish, wouldn’t using this fishing rod to jab at the fish be better?’ As she finished, she received the fishing rod in the hand of the fisherman and conveniently gave the water a poke. The tip of the fishing rod pierced through the abdomen of a fish. When the fishing rod was lifted up, the fish was still writhing and twisting. From the wound, fresh blood fell into the green water drop after drop. The red and the green served as foils to each other, looking bright and beautiful, but there was also cruelty in the beauty of the colors.

Xiao Feng saw that when she executed this convenient poke, first her right hand slightly bent to the left, then drew a small arc and thrust out from the right side. This move was rather clever and undoubtedly pleasing to the eye. However, if she used it to attack and defend when facing an enemy, she would be a little late. Xiao Feng was really unable to guess what school or family possessed this martial arts technique.

That young girl continuously lifted the rod up and thrust it down. She pierced through 6 black carps and white fish in a row, creating a chain of fish on the rod. Then she gave it a shake, flinging all the fish into the lake. With a displeased expression on his face, the fisherman said: ‘You’re a very young girl, yet you act so cruelly. If you want to catch fish, then that’s fine. But you stabbed dead the fish not for food. Why did you kill them for no reason?’

The young girl clapped her hands, laughed and said: ‘I like killing for no reason. What do you wanna do?’ Then she exerted herself to break the fishing rod in two with both hands. Unexpectedly, this fishing rod was very tough and firm, and the young girl was unable to bend it. That fisherman sneered: ‘You want to snap my fishing rod? It’s not so easy.’ That young girl pointed to the back of the fisherman, saying: ‘Who’s coming?’

The fisherman turned his head around to have a look, but he saw no one. Knowing that he had been fooled, he hastily turned his head back, but he was already a little late. He only saw his fishing rod fly off more than 10 zhang (3.333 m) then, with a ‘chi’ sound, pass into the center of the lake and disappear without a trace at once. Furious, the fisherman shouted loudly: ‘Where are you from, brat?’ and stretched out his hand and to grab her shoulder.

The young girl laughed and said: ‘Help me! Help me!’ and hid at the back of Xiao Feng. The fisherman jinked sideways to come and catch her. His movements were light and neat. In a glance, Xiao Feng saw that there was an object in the hand of the young girl’s. It seemed to be a transparent cloth and was indistinct. Xiao Feng did not know what it was. The fisherman rushed at her, but somehow he suddenly slipped and threw himself on the ground. After that, his body became a heap. Only now was Xiao Feng able to see clearly that what the young girl was having in her hand was a sheet of exceedingly thin silk fishing net. The silk threads were as thin as hair, and they were also transparent, yet they were exceptionally tough and pliable. Moreover, when they came into contact with something, they immediately contracted. In the fishing net, the more the fisherman struggled, the tighter it became. In a short while, he become a cylindrical glutinous rice cake and was wrapped around by the net to the point of being immovable.

The fisherman cursed loudly and severely: ‘Brat, what dirty trick are you playing? What are you plotting by using evil techniques to capture me like this?’

Inwardly, Xiao Feng was astonished. He knew that the girl really was not using any evil technique, but this fishing net was rather evil indeed.

The fisherman kept cursing loudly. That young girl laughed and said: ‘If you curse another sentence, I’ll hit you in the buttocks.’ The fisherman was startled and stopped talking at once. His face has swollen to a deep red.

At that time, in the west of the lake, someone said from a distance: ‘Brother Chu, what happened?’ Then a person went out along the lakeside path with quick steps. Xiao Feng saw that this man had a rectangular face and was between 40 and 50 years old. He was mighty in appearance, but was wearing rather rakish and informal attire consisting of a light robe and a loose belt.

This man came near. Seeing the fisherman being bound, he was very surprised, so he asked: ‘What happened?’ The fisherman replied: ‘This little girl used evil techniques…’ The middle-aged man turned his head and looked at A’Zhu. That young girl laughed and said: ‘Not her. It’s me!’ The middle-aged man uttered an exclamation of doubt then stooped down, lifted the huge body of the fisherman up and stretched out his hand to pull at the fishing net. Who would have known that the threads of the net had a very strange nature? The more force he used to pull, the tighter the fishing net became. And so, no matter what the middle-aged man did, he was unable to untie it.

That young girl laughed and said: ‘If you say to me ‘Miss, I’ve lost to you!’ 3 times in a row, I’ll set him free.’ The middle-aged man said: ‘You have offended my brother Chu. This won’t have any good result.’ The young girl said laughingly: ‘Really? I just don’t want any good result. The worse the result is, the more interesting it will be.’

The middle-aged man held out his left hand to grab her shoulder. The young girl suddenly slightly fell back and jinked towards one side to dodge. Unexpectedly, even though her movements were fast, that man was even faster. He slightly lowered his hand and caught her shoulder.

The young girl tilted her shoulder to get rid of his power, but the left palm of this middle-aged man seemed to have been firmly fixed to her shoulder. The young girl scolded in a sulky voice: ‘Let go of me!’ She waved her fist to hit him, but before the fist had gone 1 chi (33.33 cm), her arm became powerless and drooped down weakly. Very astonished, the girl cried: ‘What evil technique are you using? Quickly let go of me.’ The middle-aged man smiled, saying: ‘If you say ‘Master, I’ve lost to you’ 3 times in a row then untie the fishing net around my brother’s body, I’ll let you go.’ The young girl said angrily: ‘You’ve offended me. This won’t have any good result.’ The m