The Legend of the Condor Heroes: Starting from the Bodyguard

Chapter 1: Li Mochou's First Appearance

As dusk fell, the clear, beautiful scenery was instantly obscured by dark clouds, and a misty rain enveloped the distant mountains and nearby waters. As the rain intensified, water droplets fell like beaded curtains from the eaves of the old restaurant's tiles, and the ripples on the bluestone ground mirrored Zhou Yan's mood at that moment.

Two memories, like intertwined, cold, icy rain, slapped haphazardly across my face.

One section is about past lives.

After graduating from university, I became a delivery rider in the food delivery industry. It was during a time of thunder and lightning and heavy rain that an out-of-control electric vehicle crashed into me, and that's how this time travel happened.

His current profession is a bodyguard, commonly known as a bodyguard or escort, and he works for the Fu'an Escort Agency in Daxing Prefecture, the capital of the Jin Dynasty.

The original owner shared the same surname as himself, lost his parents at a young age of seventeen, and was a descendant of the martial arts master Iron Arm Zhou Tong. He was skilled in "Yanqing Fist" and "Taizu Long Fist".

Zhou Tong was famous for his archery skills. The original owner of this body had a good physique, outstanding arm strength, and was proficient in archery. He was the youngest bodyguard to be promoted in the escort agency.

"Yanqing Fist" and "Taizu Long Fist" are widely known. Street performers would first demonstrate their skills to attract onlookers before revealing their special tricks to earn money. However, the original owner was highly skilled in both styles of boxing. Zhou Yan remembered that in "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils," Qiao Feng had used "Taizu Long Fist" to fight against a group of heroes at Juxian Manor.

The transmigration happened in the morning, with a clap of thunder, and his soul was transferred. He spent the rest of the day adapting to this body and integrating the memories.

Based on some memories of his predecessor's travels, Zhou Yan was certain that he had arrived in Mr. Jin Yong's world of Condor Heroes.

Because there are currently the Beggars' Sect, the Quanzhen Sect, and the Eastern Heretic and Western Poison, whose predecessors went to Hengyang to escort goods, and he had even heard of the Iron Palm Clan leader Qiu Qianren "annihilating the Hengshan Sect with his palm." But Zhou Yan is now unclear about the timeline.

The only certainty is that the Jin Dynasty had not yet reached its decline, so it was probably in the early stages of The Legend of the Condor Heroes.

Based on fragmented memories of Mr. Jin Yong's Condor Trilogy, Zhou Yan roughly deduced that, if his judgment was correct, the "Middle Finger Peak" of Iron Palm Mountain contained the "Martial Arts Manual of Yue Fei." The ancient tomb in Zhongnan Mountain contained the "Nine Yin Manual." Little Dragon Girl was definitely a Little Dragon Girl. Li Mochou might still be practicing martial arts in the ancient tomb, or she might have already wandered the martial arts world, but she certainly hadn't become the Red Serpent Fairy yet.

Also, the Shaolin Temple's Fire-Worker Monk should have gone to the Western Regions. It's hard to say whether Bai Sun Daoren is still around, but the *Lankavatara Sutra* in the Shaolin Temple's Sutra Repository definitely contains the *Nine Yang Manual*. Near Xiangyang, there's also Dugu Qiubai's "Sword Tomb," but I don't remember the exact location.

In this martial arts world where "half a lifetime of power and half a lifetime of love, heroes emerge from the Mount Hua Sword Tournament," Zhou Yan, having transmigrated here, is naturally unwilling to be ordinary. What kind of world does he see from the original owner's memories?

In a world of war and chaos, where bandits roam freely and life is as cheap as an ant, even if one cannot become a great hero who serves the country and its people, being a wandering knight-errant who serves friends and neighbors is still acceptable. Furthermore, martial arts are the means of survival in this world, especially for someone like him who is currently a镖师 (bodyguard/escort).

Zhou Yan's thoughts returned to reality.

Fu'an Escort Agency was located in Changxing Prefecture, the capital of the Jin Dynasty. The agency handled a wide variety of escort services, including letter escorts, silver escorts, grain escorts, and personal escorts. Letter escorts carried letters and silver coins. Grain escorts carried grain. Personal escorts, as the name suggests, provided protection for personal safety.

Zhou Yan had just been promoted to bodyguard. This trip was a messenger escort mission to Guanzhong. There was no risk involved, and he traveled alone. On his return journey, the weather suddenly changed when he approached Datong Prefecture, forcing him to seek shelter at an inn.

Escort companies also have many rules, such as the "three no-stay" rule for escorting goods.

Newly opened shops are off-limits. Shops that have changed hands are off-limits. Brothels are off-limits. There are many other minor rules, such as not meddling in other people's business while on a mission, sleeping fully clothed at inns, and keeping personal items with you at all times.

The original owner was able to become the youngest bodyguard in the escort agency at the age of seventeen. In addition to his talent in martial arts, it was also related to his meticulous and rigorous personality. He strictly followed the rules all the way back and forth.

When you're out in the world, there are always mountains beyond mountains and people beyond people. The original owner had taken many precautions, such as...

Zhou Yan touched the packet of lime powder mixed with ginger powder in his pocket with his right hand, and then looked at the bow quiver standing in the corner. He sighed inwardly. From this day forward, this Zhou Yan was not the same Zhou Yan. It truly lived up to the words that the Red Serpent Fairy Li Mochou often used: "The wind and moon are heartless, and people secretly change."

The heavy rain hindered Zhou Yan and also stopped hurried pedestrians.

Suddenly, a crisp, sweet voice rang out, "Waiter, bring me a few of your best dishes and a pot of fine tea."

Zhou Yan followed the gaze and saw that the woman who was speaking had just taken off her bamboo hat. She looked to be about eighteen years old, wearing a light blue dress with a wide white jade belt around her waist. She had a charming demeanor, bright and beautiful eyes, rosy cheeks, and fair skin.

"What a beautiful woman," Zhou Yan thought to himself, no longer paying attention to the woman. He listened to the sounds of the wind and rain, sipping his tea and waiting for the downpour to stop.

As dusk settled, the sound of hooves thundered. Zhou Yan saw from the window that more than ten riders rushed out of the rain and mist and stopped as they approached the restaurant.

The four men dismounted with agility and entered, each wielding an iron whip, a short axe, a long knife, and a spear, accompanied by their voices.

“In all my years of traveling around, I’ve never seen such a pretty young lady. No wonder Young Master Ouyang has taken a liking to her,” said the tall, thin man holding a flower-spear.

"Second Brother is right. That woman is stunningly beautiful, and it's rare that she's still a virgin. However, she's quite skilled and managed to escape. What a pity." The burly man in black with the axe was clearly mentioning the heinous crime of robbery, but he spoke of it as if it were a trivial matter of everyday life.

The burly man with the iron whip said, "Don't dampen the spirits of the Four Ghosts of the Yellow River. I think that girl's martial arts are mediocre. She just took advantage of our carelessness. If we encounter her again..." Suddenly, all the talking stopped, and the Four Ghosts of the Yellow River, who had entered the restaurant, stared intently at the woman in green.

Zhou Yan racked his brains but couldn't find out who the Four Ghosts of the Yellow River were from the Legend of the Condor Heroes world. However, the Ouyang Gongzi mentioned by the other party might be the philandering and somewhat lewd Ouyang Ke. A thought suddenly struck him: could the woman these four were talking about be Huang Rong?

When the four ghosts of the Yellow River turned their gazes to the woman in green, his heart sank. He had guessed wrong; this woman was likely in grave danger.

Among the diners were merchants from the south and north, as well as figures from the martial arts world. Zhou Yan overheard someone at the next table whispering, "They are disciples of the famous martial arts figures, Ghost Gate Dragon King Sha Tongtian: Soul-Severing Blade Shen Qinggang, Life-Chasing Spear Wu Qinglie, Soul-Snatching Whip Ma Qingxiong, and Death-Slaying Axe Qian Qingjian. It's a pity that this woman has been targeted by these four."

"Can you help?"

"Is the Ghost Gate Dragon King someone we can afford to offend?"

Zhou Yan overheard the conversation clearly; it turned out to be Sha Tongtian's apprentice, Guo Jing's mortal enemy when he first entered the martial arts world.

As he thought this, Qian Qingjian, the "Death Axe," burst into laughter: "Haha, this is what they call a narrow road in the martial world, little girl, we meet again."

The woman was not afraid. She grabbed the long sword on the table with her right hand and glared at him with her almond-shaped eyes: "In broad daylight, you bully men and women. Is there no law anymore?"

Wu Qinglie, the master of the "Life-Chasing Spear," sneered, "Is the law you're talking about the law of the Song Dynasty or the law of the Jin Dynasty?"

The woman, lacking experience in the ways of the world, was unable to refute him for a moment.

Duanhundao, a seasoned and prudent man, had failed to subdue the woman before him, fearing she might be from a prestigious family. He said, "State your name. We are also well-known figures in the martial world. If we recognize you as a member of your sect, we will let you go."

"I am Li Mochou from Zhongnan Mountain. I am truly afraid of you."

Zhou Yan almost choked to death on a mouthful of tea.

Li Mochou, the Red Serpent Fairy? This art style is off.

After careful consideration, he understood a thing or two. Li Mochou must have just entered the martial arts world and traveled south from Zhongnan Mountain. She happened to encounter Ouyang Ke, who was lustful. The Four Ghosts of the Yellow River then had the idea of ​​capturing Li Mochou as a way to establish a friendship.

Upon hearing this, Ma Qingxiong, the Soul-Snatching Whip, asked, "Are you a disciple of the Quanzhen Sect?"

Li Mochou scoffed: "Who cares about the Quanzhen Sect?"

“If you are not a disciple of the Quanzhen Sect, then don’t blame us brothers for resorting to force.” With his mind at ease, Duanhun Dao Shen Qinggang said to the diners, “Let’s speak openly and conduct business behind closed doors. When we’re out in the world, all we want is to make money and profit. Today, we brothers are doing our thing, so please give us the favor and let’s make money together.”

As soon as Duanhundao finished speaking, everyone stood up and rushed outside, not caring about the heavy rain, as far away from this place of trouble as possible.

Through the rain, eight or nine well-dressed men surrounded the restaurant.

Zhou Yan remained unmoved. With the original owner's martial arts skills, dealing with the Four Ghosts of the Yellow River wouldn't be a problem. Since Li Mochou had only just started out and was currently facing numerous crises, how could he stand by and watch her die?

In an instant, only the Four Ghosts of the Yellow River, Li Mochou, Zhou Yan, and six others remained in the restaurant.

Li Mochou looked at Zhou Yan.

The young man had a chiseled face, sharp eyebrows, and bright eyes, exuding a heroic and dashing air.

"Hey, aren't you leaving? You'll get hurt if a fight breaks out."

Qian Qingjian, the man with the "Death Axe," inwardly mocked Li Mochou, thinking that this young man must have something to rely on if he didn't leave. However, he didn't think Zhou Yan could cause any trouble, considering how young he was.

"Grandpa will see you off." Qian Qingjian strode forward and reached out to grab him. Zhou Yan also stretched out his left hand and grabbed the other's fingers. With a pull and a drag, his body quickly retreated.

He was already strong, and Qian Qingjian was caught off guard and dragged up, landing on the table with a thud. Zhou Yan swiftly drew a dagger and stabbed the man in the waist.

"careful!"

Wu Qinglie's warning came too late. He attacked Zhou Yan with his gun. Li Mochou slammed her hand on the table, which moved silently and then flew up, crashing into the pursuing gun.

(End of this chapter)