Gouge led the little beggar northward. All along the way, the little beggar looked somewhat gloomy, so Gouge asked her what was wrong.
The little beggar said, "Big meat-bun brother, is that Elder Sister Axiu really a woodcutter too?"
Gouge smiled gently and said, "You could say that. Otherwise, how would the Snow Mountain Sect make a living? They definitely have to cut firewood inside Lingxiao City to make fires and cook meals."
The little beggar opened her wide, watery eyes and asked, "What is the Snow Mountain Sect? And what on earth is Lingxiao City? I've heard storytellers say that the Hall of Heavenly Brilliance is where the Jade Emperor lives. Could that Miss Axiu possibly be a fairy from heaven?"
Hearing her say this, Gouge couldn't help remembering the first time he met Axiu, and said to the little beggar, "At that time, Dingdang had wrapped me up like a big rice dumpling and tossed me onto the boat. Axiu and Mother Shi were also unable to move, the three of us locked in a stalemate inside the small boat. It was Grandfather Ding Busi who stepped forward to break the deadlock and hauled me out. Grandfather Ding Busi even said—he said, 'The Dragon Boat Festival just passed, so why did she hide a big rice dumpling in her quilt?'"
The little beggar couldn't help giggling, letting out a chuckle.
Gouge scratched his head, grinned sheepishly, and continued, "Come to think of it, it was truly embarrassing. Back then, Mother Shi didn't know the whole story and hadn't figured out who I was, so she kept saying she wanted to kill me. Yet I was terrified in my heart, dreading that the young lady beside me might actually have murder on her mind, so I tried to scare her by saying, 'If you don't even have the strength to draw your blade, that couldn't be better. I can't move right now, but if you kill me, I'll turn into a zombie and lie right beside you—how terrifying would that be? I can't move while I'm alive, but once I become a zombie, I'll be able to move, and my two ice-cold zombie hands will grip your throat!'"
The little beggar gasped, "Would you really turn into a zombie? If so, I wouldn't dare walk with you anymore."
Gouge laughed heartily and said, "Of course not, I was just trying to scare her. She was so funny; as soon as I scared her, she didn't dare do it anymore. Later, Mother Shi said she wanted to jump into the river and drown herself, which scared Axiu into sobbing and crying. She even apologized to me, saying, 'I'm so sorry, my tears fell on your face.' I had never seen such a gentle and polite young lady before. Lady Shi, Ding Dingdang, Shijian, and Miss Hua Wanzi whom I knew earlier were all quite brisk and spoke with a bold air, but Axiu was different. Oh, she is just too lovely!"
The little beggar was completely absorbed in the story. Breaking in eagerly, she said, "I know, Elder Sister Axiu is terribly lovely. Not only is she not crude, but she's very polite, so you fell in love with her, right? Big meat-bun brother."
Gouge sheepishly scratched his head and nodded in admission. "I truly haven't seen such a tenderness-like-water girl. I really, really like Axiu—more than all the girls I knew before combined. Hey, talking about her with you like this makes me really miss her."
The little beggar asked, "Big meat-bun brother, what is it about Elder Sister Axiu that you miss?"
Gouge said, "I can't quite put my word to it. My feeling toward Lady Shi and Master Shi is respect; as for my Big Brother and Second Brother, they really are just like blood brothers—haha, if there's a chance, I must introduce you to them. We even ate wild boar meat together and drank brotherhood wine. That wine was sometimes cold and sometimes hot; you should drink a few cups of it when the time comes."
The little beggar didn't understand the situation, but simply smiled and nodded in agreement. How could she possibly know that was the world's rarest poisonous wine used for practicing martial arts?
Gouge continued, "I really miss Axiu right now. She said to me, 'Many thanks to you, big brother. What is your honorable surname and great name? I wonder how I should address you, for I have been most discourteous.' Hehe, it was only then that I realized the name Gou Zazhong wasn't nice to hear and couldn't be spoken in front of a refined and dignified young lady. Later on, I went to pick persimmons for them to eat."
Gouge remembered that day in the woods, with a light mist and sunlight filtering through the trees in a hazy blur. The grass, the trees, and Axiu herself all seemed draped in a thin veil—it was remarkably beautiful. Tears brimming and glistening slid down her jade-white face, and a moment later her smiling countenance blossomed with vitality, possessing an indescribable, delicate beauty. In all his life, he had never seen such a good-looking girl, so gentle and shy. Even just thinking of her now, he couldn't help falling into a trance.
The little beggar squatted down, sized up the dazed Gouge, and asked curiously, "So that means, big meat-bun brother, you really like her. I heard people in the town say that if you like someone, you should marry her. Do you want to marry this Miss Axiu as your wife too?"
Gouge blankly nodded and said, "Whenever I see Axiu, I feel an indescribable joy. Just now when I saw Dingdang on that old man's mountain, I didn't feel a thing in my heart. But now when I think of Axiu, I feel an indescribable fondness; I truly want to look at Axiu like this every single day. Hehe, that would be wonderful indeed. Hehe."
Delighted beyond measure, the little beggar said, "Shall we go find this Miss Axiu then?"
Gouge was overjoyed and said, "I've been so dizzy with busyness lately. I originally planned to go to the Snow Mountain Sect anyway, but that place is freezing—can you handle it? If not, once we reach the town ahead, I'll help you find a family, and you can live there from now on."
Terrified, the little beggar said, "Big meat-bun brother, do you not want me anymore? I don't want to go, I'm afraid they'll beat me and scold me."
Gouge shook his head and said, "You need someone to look after you after all. Days without parents are not easy; I also met a great benefactor like the old man, otherwise, if I couldn't find my mother, I truly wouldn't know how I'd make a living by myself."
The little beggar shook her head desperately and said, "No, no, no, they aren't my mother. I won't stay with them, I want to follow you."
Gouge squatted down and said earnestly, "Be a good girl, little puppy. When we reach the town ahead, I will definitely find you a good family. I'll come back to see you in the future, you understand?"
The little beggar nodded half-believingly, afraid that refusing further would displease Gouge. From a young age, she had been forced to learn how to read people's expressions and please others. In her childhood, pleasing others was merely for a piece of meat or a steamed bun. Now, pleasing Gouge was simply in the hope that he wouldn't abandon her. When all was said and done, it was merely for survival.
Sure enough, upon reaching the town ahead, Gouge made inquiries all around and found a household that had been married for several years without children, and they were also renowned throughout the surrounding villages for their kindness. He believed they wouldn't beat or scold a child casually. Reassured, Gouge approached the master of the house to speak of the matter. At first, the little beggar was still reluctant, but as the mistress of the house looked at her more and more fondly, eventually treating her as dearly as a child bestowed by a bodhisattva, the little beggar finally let down her guard.
Gouge stayed for a few days, settled everything properly, and only then took his leave. The little beggar escorted him farther and farther, all the way to the edge of the town, where she stood staring blankly for a long time before finally turning back with a reluctant look every few steps.
As Gouge walked alone, every image that surfaced in his mind was Axiu's pretty and delicate appearance. He wished he could see Axiu immediately and give her a kiss. His pace grew faster and faster; driven by his inner energy, his strength and spirit unconsciously merged, and power arose naturally from his heart. An incomparably mighty internal energy surged from the soles of his feet straight through his limbs and bones, making his body lighter and lighter, effortlessly swift, until soon he was moving just like a gust of wind.
By this time, Shi Potian's internal cultivation had reached a heaven-defying, earth-shattering level. Even if Bodhidharma were reborn or Zhang Sanfeng returned to the mortal realm, they wouldn't necessarily surpass him in internal strength. Yet Gouge remained completely unaware of this, merely assuming that the Taixuan Scripture was supremely miraculous, and gave it no further thought.
Shi Potian walked straight toward the northwest. Passing through a stretch of rural outskirts, he suddenly heard shouts and the clashing of iron ahead. Clearly, someone was engaged in a fierce battle. Gouge hid behind a clump of bushes and cautiously poked his head out to look.
He saw two factions fiercely fighting in an open clearing. Their swords and sabers were entangled so closely they were hard to separate. Thrusting, parrying, sweeping, hooking, slashing, chopping, blocking, and lifting—they displayed the moves of a master swordsman. Their strikes were ferociously swift and viciously lethal, clearly intended to take lives.
The opponent was no pushover either. Wielding a ghost-head saber that whistled with the force of a tiger, he wove a golden barrier of glittering light around himself, defending his perimeter so thoroughly that despite the enemy's rain-dense attacks, they could find no way to pierce his blade's defense. In their stalemate, neither could gain the upper hand for the moment.
The swordsman said coldly, "Your martial arts are still far inferior to mine. I'm afraid that ever since you returned from Xiake Island, you've grown lazy and neglected your practice, Old Man Han."
The saber-wielding man flew into a rage and shouted, "Bullshit! Looking at your crooked, distorted swordplay, let alone cutting down a man, you probably couldn't even split a green melon!"
The swordsman sneered, "If your saber technique had even one percent of the competence of your mouth, you wouldn't be in such a sorry state."
The saber-wielding man let out an angry howl and countered with a slanted, slashing blow, clearly willing to trade mutual destruction.
Startled, the swordsman hurriedly withdrew his sword, blocking and deflecting the saber with a sharp *clang*. Everything happened in the flash of a spark, leaving no time for careful thought.
The saber-wielding man laughed skyward and said, "I thought you were something special, but it turns out you're just another coward who clings to life and fears death. If you've got the guts, let's fight it out fair and square: you poke a transparent hole in me, and I'll hack you horse and rider alike. Let's see who falls first—whoever falls first is no true hero."
The swordsman sneered, "Who do you think I, Fang Dongbai of the Eight-Armed Divine Sword, am? Why would I risk my life with a good-for-nothing old ghost like you?"
The saber-wielding man cursed furiously, "Bah, corpse by the roadside! Do you think I, Han Liyong of the Blood-Drinking Furious Saber, am living off free meals? Come, come, come, let's fight another three hundred rounds!"
With a derisive sneer, the swordsman pressed the attack once more. His sword danced into an impenetrable web, resembling a web of blades wielded simultaneously by eight arms, dazzling the eyes. Yet the saber-wielding man was no whit inferior; following a fierce and forceful path, he swung his heavy saber with tremendous weight, executing a horizontal chop from a perilous angle to shatter a thousand jun of force with brute power. For the moment, Fang Dongbai could not gain the upper hand.
Gouge looked on in utter bewilderment, thinking to himself: *You two keep claiming you're fighting to the death, so why do you repeatedly miss a chance to finish each other off? Take that last moment, for instance—the swordsman's thrust was heading straight for Han Liyong's chest and stopped a mere three inches short of piercing his heart. And while the saber-wielding man's chopping strike was blocked, if he had followed up with a horizontal slash to the opponent's palm, he surely could have forced Fang Dongbai to drop his sword.*
Gouge did not realize that his own martial arts had reached the pinnacle of perfection, so naturally, everything he looked at appeared exceptionally slow and weak.
It was just like an eagle watching a tiger fight, wondering why it didn't swoop down from the sky when victory would be a hundred percent certain.
Or an elephant watching mountain goats butt heads, puzzled as to why it didn't simply use its massive body to charge the opponent, which would undoubtedly smash through anything.
From Gouge's elevated realm, no matter whose moves he watched, they were riddled with flaws. Although these two men were first-rate experts, they could not escape Gouge's discerning eyes; in his view, it was nothing more than children playing house.
Fang Dongbai said, "Old Han, tell me, what on earth does that phrase from Xiake Island, 'Swift as shooting stars,' actually mean?"
Han Liyong angrily retorted, "I told you years ago, it clearly refers to applying force with vicious ruthlessness and pursuing supreme speed."
The Eight-Armed Divine Sword flew into a rage and said, "Nonsense! It plainly means the sword moves must be fast, dazzling like shooting stars. You've strayed onto the wrong path."
The Blood-Drinking Furious Saber said, "Then let's prove it with our true skills. Today it's either you die or I live—I refuse to believe my comprehension of the Taixuan Scripture is lower than yours!"
Hearing this, Gouge realized these two old men were fighting over differing interpretations of the Taixuan Scripture, and he couldn't help being amused yet exasperated.
Having been enlightened by the Two Masters of Long and Mu Islands, he already understood that the annotations and characters on those walls were not only useless but actively harmful. They were merely movement diagrams drawn in accordance with the acupuncture points on the human body. Hearing that the two of them were going to risk their lives, a wave of deep compassion welled up in him. He thought to himself: *Since Xiake Island has already sunk, why add two more lives for this?* With that, he leaped out from the side.
At that moment, their sabers and swords were clashing, leaving them no time to spare a glance. Fang Dongbai thrust his sword toward him, but Gouge's hand coiled around it like a fish, striking hard along the blade's edge and sending a numbing shock through Fang's tiger's claw. With another kick, he deflected the incoming diagonal slash. Han Liyong was struck dumb with shock, thinking to himself: *My saber strike carries the force to split boulders—where on earth did he get such immense strength to kick it away?*
Exchanging a glance, Han and Fang realized that if they didn't unleash their ultimate techniques today, they would lose face completely. Ignoring their aches, they let out a fierce shout. The sword grew so fast it left afterimages, attacking as if from eight directions simultaneously, while the saber delivered a deceptively simple chop that contained countless variations, leaving Gouge with nowhere to hide. Yet Gouge simply wove back and forth through the flashing steel, stretching out his hands to grab and snatch at random until both saber and sword were tossed to the ground. The two men felt a jolt in their arms as their weapons were knocked right out of their grips.
Gouge spoke up, saying, "Both of you seniors possess formidable martial arts, and I deeply admire you. Since today's match is a draw, why not call it a truce and make friends?"
Seeing how Gouge moved like the wind and stripped away their weapons in the blink of an eye, Fang Dongbai already knew that the other's martial arts far surpassed his own. Continuing the fight would be utterly futile; no matter how much resentment he felt, it was useless now. He could only let out a long sigh.
Han Liyong, on the other hand, let out exclamations of amazement and said, "Truly, heroes come from the youth! This little brother is barely in his twenties, yet he possesses such consummate martial arts. I'm old, the Yangtze River's waves push the ones before them. Old Fang, what on earth are you and I still fighting about?"
Fang Dongbai sighed long and hard. "My skills are inferior, and I gracefully concede defeat. I wonder how the little brother is addressed, so as to make us both submit wholeheartedly."
Gouge smiled gently, remembering what Axiu had told him: when sparring with martial artists, one must maintain etiquette at all times, give people a bit of face, and avoid making enemies, lest there be endless trouble later on. So he replied generously, "My name is Shi Potian, and I am the son of Hero Shi and Lady Min of Xuansu Manor."
Old Han was stunned for a moment, then laughed heartily and said, "Ah, Little Brother Shi! I truly admire the fast sword of the Shangqing Sect."
Fang Dongbai nodded and said, "Daoist Tianxu of the Shangqing Sect indeed possesses the demeanor of a martial arts master. You and I haven't lost unjustly."
Gouge said sheepishly, "Are you two seniors also experts returning from Xiake Island?"
Fang Dongbai nodded. "Little Brother, ever since Xiake Island sank, this old man lived quite a spell of leisurely days after returning home. Unfortunately, for those of us who practice martial arts, losing that wondrous, fathomless Taixuan Scripture is like an imperial scholar being banned from the imperial examinations for life—we lose our appetite and cannot sleep in peace. That's why we started fighting."
Han Liyong nodded as well. "This isn't the first time this old ghost and I have fought; every time he loses to me by a move or half a move, it's always because I let him win."
Fang Dongbai flew into a rage. "Are you asking for a beating with a noodle-cutter, Old Han?"
Han Liyong said, "Only a coward would fear you! If you've got the guts, come again. Little brother is watching—let's see who's a hero and who's a coward today!"
Gouge pressed a hand to his forehead and laughed bitterly, thinking that these two men were truly martial arts fanatics. Everyone who returned from Xiake Island seemed just as bewitched and combative.