Chapter 249
Within a few days, the news spread like wildfire throughout the Jianghu of Shandong: outside Tai’an City, 鈥淟ittle Knife King鈥� has challenged the Demon-Destroying Nun to a duel!
This Wang Hong, who grew up with his father in the army, may not be well-known elsewhere, but in this instance, it was Wang Hong who, clad in armor and emerging from retirement, charged into battle for Pu Yan’s cause.
In just a few months, he became famous in the Shandong villages, and no less than ten heroes fell at his hands. Just in Shandong and Hebei, the name 鈥淟ittle Knife King鈥� still has a certain intimidating power.
As for the Master of Disaster, last year at Wudang Mountain, she challenged the Three Divine Monks to a fight, one against three. Although it didn’t come to pass, her heroic spirit alone, coupled with the fact that her disciple Ye Guhong had defeated Jiu Yuan, prompted the people of the martial world to willingly add the word 鈥渄ivine鈥� to her title, calling her the Divine Nun of Disaster.
Of course, my hero is their enemy. It is only right that the Yuan court or Shaolin faction refer to Master as the Demon Nun of Disaster or the Evil Nun of Disaster.
From Qufu to Tai’an, a distance of more than 100 li, on the second day of their journey, someone followed the Master and her disciple from afar.
At first, they thought they were enemies, but Ye Guhong asked them and they were so eager to answer that they were on their knees. They were all martial arts figures from all over Shandong Province who had rushed to the event to support the teacher.
The respectful chief of the village even invited the Master and his apprentice to rest in the carriage to recuperate and prepare for the battle.
At this point, the Master of the End of Calamity was too lazy to distinguish between friend and foe, so he simply ignored everyone and did not allow anyone to get close. Ye Kuhong was in charge of arranging food and lodging for the group, and he made sure that they did not come into contact with anyone else.
On the third day, when he looked again towards Tai’an, he saw a group of people waiting in a pavilion by the roadside. At first glance, they all looked extraordinary, and among them he recognized the Shandong magnate Xia Shou, the ‘Thunderbolt’, and his old friend Situ Zhong, the ‘Drunk Immortal’.
Xia Shou led the group in greeting from afar, bowing and saying, 鈥淒ivine Nun, since we last parted at Wudang last year, I see that your style is even more impressive. I, Old Xia, am truly happy.鈥�
He bowed deeply.
He is a well-known figure in the underworld and a familiar face, so he doesn’t act big when he extinguishes disasters. He jumped off his horse, put his palms together, and returned the greeting: 鈥淟ong time no see, Xia Daxia.鈥�
Situ Zhong’s nose was red, obviously from drinking, and he giggled, 鈥淗oly nun, behind us are all the famous figures in Shandong martial arts. That 鈥楲ittle Knife King鈥� is presumptuous and recklessly challenged the Holy Nun, so the Holy Nun should just casually pat him to death. But we are afraid that the dog-faced court will play tricks, so we have come to stand up for the Holy Nun. If the court sends soldiers to hang us, we Shandong heroes are not very capable, but we are not willing to be second to anyone in killing the Tartars.”
After the 100th day banquet for Zhang Sanfeng last year, Zhang Songxi once told Ye Guhong about the origins of the people who came that day, and among them was this Situ Zhong.
According to Zhang Songxi, this person does not know the origin of his martial arts school, does not take disciples, does not join any martial arts school or gang, and rarely fights with others. Therefore, no one knows the details of his martial arts skills. However, this person speaks with sarcasm, and although he often hits the nail on the head, he also often annoys people.
Therefore, when he spoke, Ye Guhong paid attention and listened. After he finished speaking, he couldn’t help but smile, thinking to himself, 鈥淲here is this person speaking with sarcasm?鈥� These words are clearly very appropriate.
Mie Jie couldn’t help smiling either, nodded, and said, 鈥淭he hero of Shandong has a chivalrous heart. The poor nun thanks you in advance.鈥�
Then he heard a bearded Taoist priest behind Xia Xun call out, 鈥淗oly nun, let’s be clear. The Yuan court has spread the news that the holy nun came to Shandong this time to subdue the heroes of all walks of life, unite everyone, start a rebellion, take over Shandong and Hebei, and attack Dadu. Is this true or not?鈥�
Upon seeing that the person was unfamiliar, Mie Jie asked, 鈥淲ho are you, Daoist priest?鈥�
Xia Xun immediately said, 鈥淚 have come to introduce the Holy Nun. This person, whose Dharma name is Yuchouzi, is the current head of the Taishan School.鈥�
Mie Jie was awed upon hearing this.
It turned out that the founder of the Taishan School, Donglingzi, had single-handedly established the Taishan Iron Sword Sect, which was later renamed the Taishan School. He was a famous and powerful figure in the martial arts world at the time.
During the Battle of Xiangyang, the then-head of the Taishan Sect led 57 people from the Taishan Sect to Xiangyang to fight the Tartars. None of them survived, and the Taishan Sect was left with only a few young disciples under the age of 20.
It was almost lost forever. Later, it was Guo’er, who travelled to Taishan with several elders of the Taishan Sect, who wrote down the sword manuals and exercises despite their serious injuries. They travelled to Taishan to pass on the skills, which allowed the Taishan Sect to barely continue, but it also fell into obscurity as a small and unremarkable sect.
Therefore, although Emei and Taishan schools had never interacted, they both knew that they had a unique friendship with each other.
Mie Jie immediately clasped his hands together in greeting: 鈥淚t turns out to be you, Master Chu, I’m sorry for my rudeness.鈥�
The master also hurriedly returned the greeting, his tone even more respectful: 鈥淚 dare not, if it weren’t for your ancestor back then, our school’s lineage would have almost been extinguished, Emei school has truly been a second chance for our Taishan school. If you really want to make a difference, the 22 of us at Taishan Sect will do whatever you say!”
Mie Jie shook her head and said, 鈥業’m afraid I’ve let you down. To be honest, I came north this time for a personal vendetta. My master and I are going to the far north to find Xie Qian, the 鈥橫ad Lion with Blonde Hair’. Somehow, this news got leaked.鈥�
When everyone heard this, they looked at each other with different expressions.
Ruyu Zi was obviously disappointed, while many others looked relieved. They were obviously unwilling to work for someone else, but were afraid to speak out due to the reputation of the Demon of Destruction, and now they could finally let go.
Situ Zhong shook his head and sighed, 鈥淭hat’s a pity. Now that Shandong is in an uproar, all that’s missing is a famous hero to lead the people. Alas…I think the Yuan court sensed that you were heading north and became paranoid, so they spread this news.鈥�
Xia Xun, however, exclaimed in surprise, 鈥淢aster is looking for the traitor Xie Qian? That traitor and I have a blood feud, a feud that cannot be reconciled. Xia Xun is willing to go with Master to kill this scoundrel.鈥�
The nun shook her head again and said, 鈥淴ia Daxia, it’s not that I’m being presumptuous, but it’s a very long journey to the far north, more than 10,000 li. As a monk, I’m not comfortable travelling with other men. I hope you understand.鈥�
Xia Shun was disappointed to hear this and forced a smile, saying, 鈥淚t was an indiscretion on my part, forget it. Holy Nun, since you are not here to lead us in a rebellion, do you still want to go to the duel with the Dagger King?鈥�
Mie Jie laughed contemptuously, 鈥淗e has pointed the finger at me, if I don’t go, the world can look down on me, but the name Emei Sect cannot be looked down on.鈥�
The heroes burst into applause, all shouting, 鈥淲hen the Holy Nun strikes, she will surely leave that man with no place to bury his body.鈥�
Mie Jie gradually grew impatient with all the chatter, and nodded, saying, 鈥淟et’s wait until I deal with that man, and then we can talk about it in detail.鈥�
She then mounted Ye Guhong’s horse and continued on their journey. Xia Shou and the others met up with the people and horses from the various villages who had come to watch the fun. They were introduced to each other by people they knew, and discussed what to do if the dog-like Tartars had set up an ambush.
They laughed and chatted, creating a lively atmosphere. After travelling for another ten or so miles, Tai’an County could already be seen in the distance. However, there was a three-storey restaurant by the roadside, with the three characters 鈥淗eroes’ Building鈥� written on the plaque.
There were a few smart young men at the door. When they saw that Mie Jie and Ye Guhong were approaching on horseback, they hurriedly entered the building to report. In a short while, an extremely loud voice came from inside the building: 鈥淣un Mie Jie, you dare to keep your appointment, you do have some guts! Come in and sit down. I, Wang, will toast you, nun, and we will see who is the best.鈥�
Ye Guhong’s eyebrows twitched. This Wang didn’t make a point of raising his voice, but his voice rolled out far and wide. This internal strength was really not bad, so it was no wonder that he had the courage to challenge Mie Jie.
Mie Jie sneered, didn’t answer, and glanced at Ye Guhong.
Ye Guhong understood, laughed heartily, and responded, 鈥淢y master also drinks, but only drinks the wine that heroes and good men offer. How could a mongrel dog like you offer wine to my master?鈥�
His voice was loud and clear, deafening, and it also revealed his amazing internal strength.
Then there was a loud noise from the building, as if a table had been kicked over, and then a group of people quickly rushed out of the building, led by a large man in his early fifties, broad-shouldered, with a fierce look on his face, shouting, 鈥淲ho dares to speak such nonsense in front of me?鈥�
Ye Guhong raised his leg and floated off his horse like a leaf. Standing upright with his chest puffed out, he said indifferently, 鈥淒isciple of Emei, Ye Guhong! Are you Wang Hong? I see that you are quite old, so why do you still call yourself the Dagger King?鈥�
Wang Hong shouted, 鈥淟ittle brat, stop barking. I’ll teach you how to speak to an adult after I’ve defeated your master.鈥�
Ye Kuhong shook his head and said, 鈥淚 heard that your father is known as the King of Swords. Compared to my master, it would be more appropriate to have your father come. As for you, Little King of Swords, I will defeat you.鈥�
Mie Jie suddenly shouted, 鈥淲ang, my disciple is nicknamed the 鈥楨mei Jade Knight鈥�, and he is the most outstanding among my disciples. Don’t use his age as an excuse. How about the White-Feathered Condor? How about the nine Shaolin Temple monks of the Yuan generation? My disciple is no ordinary loser!”
Ever since the young monk Hongye had come up with the nickname 鈥楯ade Hero鈥� for Ye Guhong, Mie Jie had been determined to make a name for her disciple. Otherwise, such a heroic young man would always be called the 鈥楨mei Golden Boy鈥�, and even she felt that it was a little inadequate.
When the names 鈥淲hite Feathered Eagle鈥� and 鈥淣ine Shaolin Monks鈥� were announced, Wang Hong’s momentum did indeed falter. After a moment of silence, he nodded viciously and said, 鈥淓vil nun, since you don’t care about your disciple’s life, today I will use his neck blood to sacrifice my double swords!鈥�
鈥淪word!鈥�
Wang Hong shouted, and the two men behind him each held up a heavy broadsword. Wang Hong drew his hands back and clanged! The two long swords came out of their sheaths.
His two swords are not ordinary single swords, but are somewhat like nine-ringed machetes. Although they do not have rings, they are thick and long, with a handle that is no less than six feet long and a little wider than a palm. If one is not a person of great strength, it would be difficult to wield even one of them, let alone both.
Ye Guhong looked at it for a moment, and then laughed, saying, 鈥淭hese double swords of yours are a sharp weapon in battle. If I win by using petty tricks, I would not be considered a hero. I am skilled in both the palm and sword techniques of Emei, so today I will let you taste the battle formation spear technique of our school!鈥�
After saying this, he took off a bundle from the side of his horse, opened it with a shake, and there in his hand was a heavy spear!
It turned out that when he saved Lu Tijiu in Yangzhou, he thought at the time that if the news leaked and the Yuan court sent troops to chase after him, it would be difficult to break through the enemy’s battle formation without a long weapon.
So when Lu Tijiu gave him his horse, he simply asked for an iron spear and kept it with him at all times. He thought that even if he couldn’t use it in the near future, when he got to the far north, where there were giant bears and tigers everywhere, the iron spear would be more useful than a sword.
Taking a leave of absence and working overtime without returning