Episode 27 : Martial Challenge – Chapter 1

Some people shouted asking for Xie Tianhu's whereabouts and some asked Huang Zhe to invite his master to come forward and answer Jinshui's challenge. However, no one came out to answer the challenge. Huang Zhe also appeared to be breaking out in cold sweat, desperately trying to stay calm.

Li Zuyang beside him also looked tense, knowing that if today Xie Tianhu really wasn't present and the Yumen descendants had no match, then he who had openly declared hostility just now might have a hard time escaping.

"I am Hua Jinshui, the primary descendant of Yumen and the son of the late Wu Jiaozhu, among those present, there may be those who attended the meeting in Yiling District a few months ago and already know me," Jinshui spoke to the crowd. "Han Shaobangzhu, the rumors regarding the white steel fan left behind by Liangtian Jian Shen might damage your Jianyin Bang's name a bit, but hope you can trust me," he said to Han Budian first.

Han Budian nodded his head once, expressing his trust.

"Everyone here may have known that when Liangtian Jian Shen met my father for the first time, he brought a conciliatory message, advising my father to stop the Yumen atrocities at that time," Jinshui said again to the crowd. "At that time they agreed to form a friendship, and then my father gave Liangtian Jian Shen a map so that he could come back here to drink wine with him anytime. That map is a map of a storage room in Baiyu Shan, where my father and Liangtian Jian Shen, apart from drinking together, can also discuss various kinds of martial arts and manuals, and have a bit of a duel match without being disturbed by anyone."

Han Budian had originally thought that Jinshui would be forced to mention that his grandmaster had acted underhanded for secretly drawing a map and keeping it without Wu Youwei's knowledge, but in fact, Jinshui said that the map was given in person, thus not damaging Liangtian Jian Shen's name. He nodded admiringly.

"When Liangtian Jian Shen was reported to have died, this map fell into the hands of his second disciple," Jinshui continued. "But because this second disciple was not the person who had the right to benefit from the map, he couldn't find the storage room or any treasure as drawn. Of course, he was very curious, so he made a copy of the map, and distributed it to all of you, hoping that you would all search for the storage room and retrieve its contents. At that time, snatching the treasures from your hands will be much easier."

Those who came back whispered to each other, some believed, but more were unsure. The reputation of Jinshui and Yumen descendants had become known in the past few months, but the true story of Zhang Zheliang's relics was indeed very obscure.

"Huang Gongzi, is that true?" one of two men wearing white and grey uniforms asked.

The two men hadn't arrived for long but had heard enough. The two of them immediately stepped forward and stopped beside Han Budian, followed by dozens of other men who were dressed in similar outfits. Some people whispered that the people in white and grey clothes were followers of the Meng Family from Dayue Mansion, and those who were present there seemed to be a bit reluctant about the Meng Family of Dayue Mansion, one of the families that were still quite influential to this day.

"I am Ye Menghao, along with my brother Menghan, came here with a message from the master of Dayue Mansion, to prevent anyone who wants to wreak havoc on Baiyu Shan," the man in white and grey introduced himself to Jinshui.

"Baiyu Shan is the residence of the late Gu Daxia's family, and we from Dayue Mansion have promised to guard this place until the Meng Family's lineage is finished," his brother continued, "thirteen years ago we didn't do our job properly and let the Yumen base here be destroyed. Today we from Dayue Mansion will not allow anyone to act outside the rules of the martial world."

"If Xie Tianhu really has any intention of fighting the Yumen descendants, go ahead, we will be willing to be the judges to ensure a fair fight," Ye Menghao continued. "Whatever the outcome, we hope that all those present here can accept and leave well."

"What about Zhang Zheliang's inheritance?" the hunchbacked man asked anyway. "We all came here because we didn't want the Sword God's creation to be overrun by the descendants of the heretic sect."

"Hua Shaoxia, would you mind giving up the yin shou yang zhang manual to our Dayue Mansion?" Ye Menghan asked Jinshui. "We will take care of it and later give it to whoever will become the head of the martial world and be worthy of being the descendant of Liangtian Jian Shen."

"I already handed over the white fan left by Zhang Laoqianbei to Han Shaobangzhu just now. You all here saw it yourself," Jinshui said. "The yin shou yang zhang manual will also be returned to him. It will be up to him to be used to rebuild the Jianyin Bang or help us carry forward our Yumen."

"Hua Jinshui," Han Budian protested his saying to help carry forward his sect.

Han Budian and his reputation had become widely known over the past few years. The people of Dayue Mansion had knowledge about various notable figures and they knew everything that happened in the martial world.

"Han Shaobangzhu," Ye Menghao said to Han Budian, "I heard that Liangtian Jian Shen's second disciple, Xie Tianhu, already died three years ago during the Huofeng Lou's Xu Family massacre. Until now, no one has been able to confirm who killed him, but we heard that at that time you and your master were the ones to bury him."

"Then how can this Huang Gongzi say that his master, Xie Tianhu, can fight Yumen descendants now and that is the last chance to stop the revival of the demonic sect?" Ye Menghan continued pointing at Huang Zhe, saying Xie Tianhu's name in the exact same way as his brother.

"My second martial uncle is still alive," Han Budian replied. "He was also the one who was present at Jianyin Bang base in Wuzhang City a few months ago, killed my master Zhong Shaoyan and massacred the entire clan. I witnessed everything myself, barely escaped his ruthless."

Jinshui had asked Han Budian for permission before dismantling the affair of the white steel fan left behind by Liangtian Jian Shen which would definitely offend the name Jianyin Bang, but he still took care not to disparage the name of the extinct clan. Han Budian hated the fact that his grandmaster had a traitorous disciple, but since Xie Tianhu had already killed his own master, he didn't hesitate to tell the truth.

"We also heard about what happened in Wuzhang City," a huge tall man answered, "however, there are rumors that the massacre in Jianyin Bang base was carried out by Banye Xiake Lin Tongtian with a number of young people, who are said to be the descendants of Yumen."

This man was tall, carrying a huge blade in his hand. There were scars on his face, and on his open arms, there were also some distinctive scars. Those present recognized him as Liang Shaoren, and he was known as a mercenary fighter who was often hired to kill people. He had no friends or followers, for dozens of years he had always acted alone. The crowds in Chen-an City and Baiyu Shan naturally attracted him greatly.

"My son was injured while practicing his inner energy, and my granddaughter was used to threaten him," Lin Laotai took a few steps forward and joined in, people's attention immediately fell on the old granny, quite a number of people recognized her as Lin Tongtian's mother. "What happened in Wuzhang City was not his will, but because someone else was controlling him."

Some of the crowd fell silent, and some whispered to each other. Some people seemed to retreat quietly, somewhat reluctant to deal with Baiyu Shan, or get involved in trouble with the descendants, feeling that it would be better to leave before being recognized.

"At the gathering at Yiling District a few months ago, the Yumen descendants already proved that they are people with chivalry," Yunhe shouted among the remaining Haitang Jian Pai followers who had come with her, "what happened in Wuzhang City, I'm sure it wasn't them. They were just trying to get in the way."

Yunhe was Yuan Wancui's direct disciple and now she had been appointed as the head of Haitang Jian Pai to replace her master. She and her seventh sister Yunli were rescued by Jinshui and friends in Wansui Gu some time ago. Recently, she received a lot of advice from her three aunts who had become nuns, to forget the enmity with Yumen and felt indebted to Jinshui. Her arrival today was the same as the people of Dayue Mansion, obstructing and pacifying in case of unnecessary strife and fighting.

"Son, is your master actually here or not?" one of the two old men of Wine Valley shouted at Huang Zhe. "You shouldn't challenge the Yumen descendants with mere words, the truth is that you only want to get the yin shou yang zhang manual, using us to ensure you can snatch it away from Hua Jinshui and the others."

"Yeah, right, ask your master to come out now," the skinny shabby man yelled too.

"The original manual of yin shou yang zhang is here, who wants to get it, laoniang is willing to serve up in a fight."

Gu Chenhui's voice answered the crowd, followed by the owner of the voice stepping among the people in the ruins of Yumen headquarters. The crowd stepped aside, allowing that old woman to come forward.

Gu Chenhui did not come alone as she was followed by his disciple Ma Yongtao. A carved wooden box was seen clutched in Ma Yongtao's hand, shown to those present. It could be interpreted that the yin shou yang zhang manual was in that box.

"That is Wu Furen, the wife of the late Yumen leader, demon Wu Youwei," several people recognized her and whispered to each other. "She is still alive."

"Wu Furen," Ye Menghan greeted by folding his palm.

"Gu Xiaojie," Ye Menghao called Gu Chenhui miss Gu for still respecting her as the daughter of the late hero Gu Qiongnan.

"Today's business is Yumen's business, the two Envoys are just spectators," Gu Chenhui said to the two envoys of Dayue Mansion. "Laoniang is present here as the wife of the late Yumen leader, not as the daughter of Gu Daxia."

"Then we won't hesitate," one of the men of Wine Valley replied, with his brother then also stepping forward with weapon raised in hand.

The two leaders of Wine Valley, one with a hunched body and a long beard, the other tall but with a limp, both of them carrying jars of wine on their waists which were quite prominent. It was the two old men who were known as Jiuya Ersheng, named Shi Wen and Shi Gang.

Gu Chenhui stepped away from Jinshui and his friends. A moment later, she already clashed her weapon with the two old men.

Other members of the Wine Valley also came forward and wanted to snatch the manual from Ma Yongtao's hands. At the same time, the hunchbacked man who was recognized by Jinshui as Zhou Sangong suddenly dashed past their heads. He threw numerous small objects in his way. Small explosions rang out, and a thick layer of smoke immediately enveloped Ma Yongtao and the two envoys of Dayue Mansion.

Ma Yongtao never lost his guard, in that chaotic state he had quickly covered his breath to avoid being affected by the smoke, then together with Ye Menghao and Ye Menghan surrounded the hunchback who was about to snatch the carved box from his hand. The sounds of clanking weapons rang out amidst the smog, none of those present could clearly see what was happening. The followers of the Wine Valley seemed to be scattered by the ghostly palm.

In this chaotic situation, a tall, broad-snouted figure appeared out of nowhere, and darted quickly ahead of Zhou Sangong, straight for Ma Yongtao to take the box in his hands. Ma Yongtao was dodging the secret needle attack released by Zhou Sangong, giving the tall broad figure a chance to grab the box and snatch it.

That tall person was fast and precise, obviously already prepared to seize the box, nothing else, then immediately jumped again to escape.

The shrill sound of a secret weapon was heard. Huang Yu had already released his chess pieces to prevent the tall person from escaping. Simultaneously Liao Xian and Zhu Baique had also dashed to his left to block him. Li Qian and Qin Liangjie blocked from the right, forcing the tall man to turn around and face Jinshui and Huang Yu.

"Xie Tianhu, you are already here for the challenge, why rush to leave again?" Jinshui announced the identity of the tall person in a loud voice. "The disciple of the dignified Sword God, snatching manual and leave, aren't you afraid of being laughed at by the world?"

The person who snatched the box was indeed Xie Tianhu. Jinshui and his friends recognized his figure and had been waiting for his presence.

The smog faded. The hunchback who failed to get the box was about to run away, but three men with different body sizes were in front of him. One of them immediately hit him in the jaw with a bow in hand while another kicked him until he fell on the ground.

The three men were members of Liangshan Liu Mo. Zu Ye Niang, Li Bai Xun, and Fuchang Long. The three of them had apparently been mingling with those present. By that time it was already dusk and the sky was slightly overcast, and their presence did not attract the attention of those present.

Yanzi ran from among those standing around the place followed by her older sister Zhou Xiangnu and Yang Lei. She immediately knelt in front of her father before the three members of Liangshan Liu Mo stroke another punch.

For the second time, this youngest daughter begged for his life to be spared, while the eldest daughter who was his favorite only watched emotionlessly, more or less affecting Zhou Sangong's mind.

"He's my father," Yanzi begged. "Don't kill him...."

The three members of the ruthless demon group looked at Yanzi for a while. They sighed to think that Zhou Sangong still had a daughter who was willing to defend him at the last moment, and so only dragged Zhou Sangong towards Gu Chenhui.

At that exact moment, the sound of a guqin musical instrument was faintly heard from a distance, suddenly attracting the attention of everyone standing on the ruins of Yumen Headquarters.

The sound of that musical instrument was melodious and at the same time brought some certain feelings to anyone who heard it. The sounds were heard from a distance, possibly coming from the peak of Baiyu Shan, but there was no sign of any human figure playing it.

Presumably, this voice was transmitted using extraordinary internal energy. Nowadays there were not many people who still had such abilities. Some of those present still quite remembered the stories of previous generations about the female character who lived in Baiyu Shan, who was able to play the guqin musical instrument beautifully and melodiously and would bring a certain feeling to others.

"Wu Furen, did you tell us, SHE was dead," Liang Shaoren asked Gu Chenhui. "This sound...."

At that time, Gu Chenhui was still fighting Shi Wen and Shi Gang, the two leaders of Wine Valley. The inhabitants of Arak Valley were known for making poisoned wine and killing people just to see the results of their poison experiments. The reputation of the two old leaders of this valley was even more terrifying, namely their rotating twin blades that can cut off an opponent's arms and legs without mercy.

Gu Chenhui pointed one finger at the two opponents, her movements were extremely fast. Only one finger was used to break each opponent's attack, while her left hand holding the staff was tucked behind her back. Everyone who present fell silent, only a few could recognize the movement used by the old woman. This was one of Baiyu Shan's signature skills named yi dian shui (water drop manual).

One move against two sabers definitely required very special skills. Moreover, Gu Chenhui mastered her move so fluently, without the slightest hesitation, her move was so precise and beautiful. Of course, no one would expect that this old woman's ability had already been halved since she had already given half of her inner energy to Ma Yongtao years ago.

The move she played was actually just a stance without significant inner energy. If her opponent conjured just a little more power, she wouldn't be able to handle the situation so calmly.

The two elders Jiuya Ersheng attacked from her right to left, their sabers slashed like they were chopping up weeds playing the style of zhan cao qing yuan (slashing the grass to clean the garden). Facing an ordinary opponent, it would be easy to slash both opponent's arms apart, but Gu Chenhui was not the least bit touched. The old woman knew she had to act quickly before anyone noticed her half-strength weakness.

There was a ringing sound, and the sabers in Shi Wen's and Shi Gang's hands clashed with each other. Gu Chenhui had unknowingly moved her body behind them, the left hand that held the staff stretched out. With just one more move, the old woman would definitely be able to slam into the backs of the two Jiuya Ersheng and make both of them fall down with cracked bones. But they still stood in place, sabers intertwined with each other.

The sabers belonging to the two elders were sharp and unbelievably strong, plus the energy the owner expended while fighting, so if they met another weapon, they would break it easily. But the saber collided with its own partner, the result was a small fracture in each. Gu Chenhui actually had enough time to beat the two elders before they could let go of the weapon.

"Just now I used only Baiyu Shan's signature moves," Gu Chenhui again faced the uninvited guests, standing with the eight Yumen descendants without showing any signs of exertion. "I think there are some of you here who still know this place and its reputation in the past."

She spoke using a voice that was filled with her inner energy. Some people around her immediately felt their ears hurt. The atmosphere in the place suddenly calmed down. All eyes were on the old woman. This place was indeed the Baiyu Shan territory. Gu Chenhui could single-handedly defeat Jiuya Ersheng in just a few moves, breaking their weapons without harming anyone, among those present here who had trouble with the Yumen in the past also none had the guts to be so strong as to be able to challenge the descendants.

"She really is Baiyu Shan's person!" Shi Wen exclaimed. He had succeeded in removing his saber from his brother's. "What is your relationship with Bai Qiuyi, the great master of Baiyu Shan?"

"Bai Qiuyi died a long time ago, but the present great master of Baiyu Shan is my mother," replied Gu Chenhui.

"The people of Baiyu Shan have not interfered in the affairs of the martial world for decades," Shi Gang also said. "Apparently there is still an heir. People said that Baiyu Shan had joined the Yumen Sect years ago. Wu Furen, next time we will ask you for more lectures!"

The two elders Jiuya Ersheng retreated to their places again with embarrassed expressions on their faces. They clearly knew just now that not only were they helpless against the old woman, their terrifying skill could be broken easily, in fact, their lives had been spared.

But apparently, they were too proud to admit defeat and immediately took the four students who were with them away from there. Their purpose in coming here was to hunt down Zhang Zheliang's inheritance, not wanting to have anything to do with the people of Baiyu Shan because they already knew its reputation, and just now also experienced its cunning.