The Legend of the Condor Heroes: Starting from the Bodyguard

Chapter 195 Ancient Tomb Lightness Skill, Formidable Enemy at Hand

Sunrise and sunset, autumn arrives in the blink of an eye.

Once you leave Xianyang, you can see the Zhongnan Mountains shrouded in mist and rain.

Even someone as remarkable as Ouyang Feng couldn't help but sigh, lamenting the changes of time and the loss of Wang Chongyang.

When Ouyang Ke arrived in Kaifeng from western Hunan, he found himself with some free time and told Ouyang Feng about the ancient tomb.

He was obsessed with Li Mochou, and Ouyang Feng was naturally willing to step in and grant his nephew's wish, who was actually his illegitimate son.

Another reason is curiosity about the martial arts of the ancient tombs.

He agreed to Wanyan Honglie's request to go south to Lin'an to find the "Wumu Legacy," his true aim being the martial arts of the Yue family. His trip to Zhongnan Mountain also served this purpose.

He knew Ouyang Ke'er's martial arts like the back of his hand. Although he had not practiced the "Toad Stance", he was already one of the top masters among the younger generation in the world. The only one who could compare with him was that kid who had a great relationship with the old beggar and knew the "Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms".

However, even with the help of Helian Chuncheng, Nimo Xing and others in Zhongnan Mountain, my nephew still suffered a defeat and had to retreat, which shows the uniqueness of the sword techniques of the male and female pair in Zhongnan Mountain.

If forced to reveal their martial arts skills and then analyzed, it might become a surprise attack during the Mount Hua Sword Tournament.

Ouyang Feng did not seek to establish a dynasty or achieve hegemony; he only cared about the reputation of being the best in the world.

Of the group of more than thirty people, only a dozen or so were bodyguards from the Changfeng Escort Agency; the rest were Jianghu figures recruited by Yang Kang after he arrived in Kaifeng.

The Taihang Hero, the Tongbai Heroes, and the River Valley Heroes, among others.

The martial arts world is vast and full of hidden talents. Among these people are those whose martial arts skills rival those of Sha Tongtian and Lingzhi Shangren.

The group left Xianyang in a grand procession. Ouyang Ke looked at the misty rain over Zhongnan Mountain, and the image of Li Mochou, whose every smile and frown was full of charm, kept replaying in his mind. He wished he could sprout wings and go to the Ancient Tomb.

……

A light drizzle was falling. Li Mochou, dressed in a green robe and wearing a bamboo hat, darted through the bamboo forest like a bluebird. Occasionally, her toes would touch the ground, causing water lilies to bloom.

With a single swing of her sword, she seemed to unleash a series of fan-shaped streaks of light. Zhou Yan's figure moved like a dragonfly skimming the water or a butterfly flitting among flowers. Their sword techniques complemented each other, and as the two swords danced and swirled in the swirling sword light, their figures could be seen from all directions.

Suddenly, Zhou Yan raised the hilt of his Qingfeng sword, pointing the tip downwards as if pouring wine from a pot. Li Mochou, as if by telepathy, flipped the sword tip upwards, pointing it at her own cherry lips, as if raising a cup to drink herself.

The move "A Light Drink," though different in style, was executed flawlessly. Li Mochou smiled sweetly, a hint of shyness in her eyes.

It was already the fourth day since Zhou Yan arrived at Zhongnan Mountain. During this time, the two practiced diligently and finally mastered the external martial arts of the "Jade Maiden Heart Sutra." They had also each mastered the "Complete True Swordplay" and the "Jade Maiden Swordplay."

When Li Mochou had some free time, she would practice the "Beauty Fist" and "Heavenly Net Formation." Zhou Yan watched and gained a lot from it, constantly comprehending and integrating the martial arts of the Ancient Tomb, the Hengshan Sword Technique, and the acupoint striking secrets.

Unbeknownst to him, the Five Divine Swords of Hengshan that he had learned from Liu Qingzhou had undergone some changes.

After the rain stopped and the sky cleared, misty clouds rose from the mountains.
The birdsong was melodious in the bamboo grove.

Li Mochou suddenly flashed away, catching up with a sparrow in the woods. The sparrow was unpredictable, its movements elusive, but Li Mochou followed it closely, her palms weaving a net that trapped the sparrow within.

Among the Condor Trilogy, if we're talking about lightness skills within a few feet, Zhou Yan thinks the Ancient Tomb Lightness Skill and Wei Yixiao's unique skills are the best, while others such as "Golden Goose Skill," "Ladder Cloud Leap," and "Water Float" each have their own merits.

Li Mochou was already skilled in lightness skills, and her internal strength had improved by leaps and bounds since she began practicing the True Scripture Heart Method. This time, when she used the Ancient Tomb Lightness Skill, it was truly elusive and unpredictable, a delight to behold.

Li Mochou took the sparrow to Zhou Yan's side and handed him the water pouch.

"Thank you."

"No need to be so polite."

Li Mochou smiled and said, "Let me tell you about the light-footed skill for catching sparrows."

"Isn't this a private transmission of martial arts?"

"With a formidable enemy at hand, why bother with so many calculations? Master gave us the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra to practice external martial arts. My skill has improved so much thanks to the internal martial arts method you taught me. Oh, and I also passed it on to my junior sister."

Zhou Yan was overjoyed. Little Dragon Girl was exceptionally talented. She had been practicing the "Yi Jin Duan Gu Pian" since childhood to improve her physical constitution. When she came of age, her skills would be extraordinary.

"Very good!"

Li Mochou laughed and said, "She said I wouldn't teach her, so she came to you to learn. She's so clever and shrewd at such a young age."

Zhou Yan let out a snort.

Li Mochou explained in detail: "The Ancient Tomb Lightness Skill is practiced through the Foot Three Yang Meridians."

Zhou Yan sighed upon hearing this. The Quanzhen Sect's "Golden Goose Skill" uses Qi to circulate through the Foot Shaoyin Kidney Meridian, one of the three Yin meridians of the foot. The Ancient Tomb Lightness Skill, on the other hand, uses the three Yang meridians of the foot, which include the Foot Yangming Stomach Meridian, the Foot Taiyang Bladder Meridian, and the Foot Shaoyang Gallbladder Meridian, as well as other meridians and tendons. The methods of circulating Qi and moving acupoints are incredibly complex and profound.

"I have only tempered and unblocked the Stomach Meridian of Foot Yangming, so my lightness skill is only at the beginner level and is far from being perfect." Li Mochou said this, and then she went on to talk about the specific method of circulating qi.

There are hundreds of acupoints distributed along the three main meridians of the foot. The method of guiding qi in the ancient tomb lightness skill only involves thirty-six of these acupoints. Even so, after hearing about it and circulating his qi once, Zhou Yan felt that it would be quite difficult to master it in a short period of time.

Seeing that Zhou Yan had grasped the essence of the technique, Li Mochou got up and went to the ancient tomb to fetch some honey.

Upon arriving at the ancient tomb, she still had to have some conversations with Lin Chaoying's maid and Xiaolongnu. After half an incense stick's time, Zhou Yan rose up and guided his Qi through the three Yang meridians of his feet. One after another, pure internal energy gushed out from the thirty-six major acupoints like a spring. His figure suddenly swayed and transformed into a shadow, appearing in another location.

This "shifting" effect delighted Zhou Yan. Having grasped the basics, he practiced diligently until he reached a high level of proficiency, having mastered the "Snake Walk and Fox Leap," "Golden Goose Skill," and "Ancient Tomb Lightness Skill," thus completing the three basic techniques.

Li Mochou emerged from the ancient tomb carrying a porcelain jar. Seeing Zhou Yan standing tall and deep in thought, she knew he had gained some insight. She praised his exceptional talent, recalling how she herself had progressed step by step, from one sparrow, two sparrows, ten sparrows... like water dripping on a stone, until she achieved her current level of lightness skill.

The head镖师 (bodyguard/escort) had already begun his enlightenment and spiritual practice. He was truly extraordinary.

Before she could retract that thought, a shrill scream suddenly rang out from the foot of the mountain.

Li Mochou was startled.

Zhou Yan also came to his senses and called out, "Ouyang Feng is here."

She turned and slipped into the ancient tomb with the pottery jar in her arms to report to her master. When she reappeared, it was just the two of them, master and disciple.

Li Mochou held a long sword in her hand, and a delicate deerskin pouch hung at her waist, containing jade bee needles.

Zhou Yan reached the entrance of the ancient tomb in two leaps and took out a bottle of "Tongxi Pills" that he had obtained from the vice leader of the Five Poisons Sect.

"The Western Poison Master is skilled at controlling snakes. Just in case, the elixir can prevent snakes and insects."

Lin Chaoying's maidservant's expression remained cold, but her tone became much kinder, "Thank you, Chief Escort."

"I'll go take a look first."

"Be careful."

"Ah."

Zhou Yan wore a straw hat, and his gray figure rose and fell as he flew into the forest, quickly disappearing from sight.

"Master, what should we do?"

"Leave the task of attracting the jade bees to me. You focus on fighting the enemy. If anything happens, retreat to the ancient tomb."

"What about the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort)?"

"what ever."

……

The leaves rustled, the wind blew through the forest, carrying away the stench of blood from the air.

Helian Chuncheng's face was gloomy.

The deceased was a bodyguard from a security escort agency. He was pierced directly by a bamboo arrow that shot out from the forest and instantly lost his life.

It takes at least four or five years and nearly a thousand taels of silver for a security escort agency to train a skilled bodyguard.

But he was killed by a trap made of a rope and a bamboo arrow.

Unpleasant memories resurfaced in Helian Chuncheng's mind.

Ouyang Ke also thought of Zhou Yan's assassination attempt when he first visited the ancient tomb.

"Uncle, it must be that kid we met last time."

“But how did they know we were coming back?” Ouyang Feng looked at the bamboo arrows on the corpses on the ground. “This mechanism was clearly set up recently.”

An unnoticed detail startled Ouyang Ke. Yes, how did that thief know we were coming?

"Be careful, everyone." Ouyang Feng's voice rang out as if scraping with a dull knife, but he walked forward without paying any attention.

"Everyone, watch out for ropes and vines on the ground," Nemo shouted, holding a snake whip.

The mountains are high and the forests are deep. When the branches of the ancient trees dozens of feet away sway, Zhou Yan’s gray figure is revealed.

He looked around and saw Ouyang Feng, Nemo Xing, Yin Kexi, Lingzhi Shangren, Hou Tonghai, and Sha Tongtian. A dozen or so burly men in tight-fitting black suits, each wielding a gleaming longsword, their faces exuding a wild air, were easily identifiable as bodyguards or escorts from the Changfeng Escort Agency. There were also a dozen or so others, their clothing and weapons a jumble of characters, clearly figures from the martial arts world.

Zhou Yan was somewhat certain of the strength of Changfeng Escort Agency.

They traveled to the Western Regions and beyond the Great Wall, recruiting or training many bodyguards. The extent of the Longmen Escort Agency's resources in Lin'an Prefecture is unknown, but in terms of the number of bodyguards, neither Fu'an nor Zhenwei could match Changfeng.

He felt that Changfeng Dongjia Helian Zhantai was somewhat like Zuo Lengchan.

The dozens of mechanisms were not set up along the path to the ancient tomb, but were scattered on both sides of the mountain road.

Zhou Yan's current task is to use the giant ox-horn bow and arrows to disrupt the formation and lure the enemy in.

Keep an arrow's distance from Ouyang Feng, what can he do to me?

(End of this chapter)