The Legend of the Condor Heroes: Starting from the Bodyguard

Chapter 63 The Ancient Evil, the King of Hell on Earth

The wind, carrying snow, was like a rising tide, pounding against the round-walled oil-paper windows, making a rustling sound that was particularly jarring in the otherwise silent night.

The young镖师 (bodyguard/escort) got up from the kang (heated brick bed), walked to the window, and looked out through the crack in the window.

The north wind howls, snowflakes swirl, and dogs bark and whine in the night.

Su, the bodyguard, picked up the porcelain bowl, drank the wine in large gulps, and then said, "Don't be so suspicious. Do you think Zhang Wangyue would come here so arbitrarily? This is Daxing Prefecture, not Fenglingdu."

When Su, the镖师 (bodyguard), mentioned Fenglingdu, Lu An, the镖师 (bodyguard), looked grim again.

In the Battle of Fenglingdu, Hou Tonghai, the three-headed dragon of the Yellow River Gang, headed straight for Lin'an Prefecture as instructed by his senior brother, the Ghost Gate Dragon King, before setting off, while being urged on by Huang Rong who was always following him.

Two of Thousand-Handed Butcher's disciples, "Iron-Armed Arhat" and "Rolling Tiger," were captured and interrogated by Zhou Yan, and the caravan was killed as soon as they crossed the Yellow River. In addition, all the capable men of the Yellow River Gang and Peng Lianhu's forces who participated in the battle were wiped out, and the remaining small fry and crab generals did not even know where their boss was if they wanted to send a message.

The owner of Sihai Escort Agency, the head escort, and the three escorts who planned this affair experienced a rollercoaster of emotions. The Fu'an escort team set off, their spirits soaring, confident of their success. However, while the survivors of the Fu'an escort team, having been kidnapped, should have been returning to Zhongdu like stray dogs, Fu'an remained as stable as ever, bustling with merchants.

Lei Luo, the head镖师 (bodyguard), Lu镖师 (bodyguard), and others experienced a rollercoaster of emotions.

When Lu, the镖师 (bodyguard/escort), first went to the Zhao Prince's residence to inquire, Sha Tongtian replied that there was no need to worry unnecessarily. A month later, when he went to inquire again, he still hadn't seen a trace of them. In this state of unease, Fu'an's镖队 (bodyguard/escort team) entered Zhongdu City.

The three met that evening. Now that they knew the Yellow River Gang had failed, and that it wasn't the time to look for Sha Tongtian, their immediate priority was to devise a plan.

Lu, the bodyguard, was teased by Su, so he walked over sheepishly and sat down on the kang (a heated brick bed).

Su, the bodyguard, said, "Even if the Yellow River Gang fails, Fu'an doesn't know that we paid people to do it. What's there to be afraid of? We'll find out everything by asking Cui Changshun tomorrow."

Lu, the bodyguard, nodded slightly with a somber expression: "That's the only way."

"Why don't we find a boss first and hire a few ruthless men to keep order at the escort agency?" suggested Master Lu.

Lu An said, "No, that would be like trying to hide something obvious. Brother Su is right, we can't panic. Tomorrow we'll find out from Cui Changshun first."

“But I just can’t shake this feeling of unease,” said Lu the镖师 (bodyguard/escort).

"Even if the sky falls, the boss and the head镖师 (bodyguard/escort) will hold it up."

“That’s true,” Lu the镖师 agreed, picking up his wine bowl.

The faint sound of barking dogs could be heard. Lu, the bodyguard, was about to get up again when Lu An glared at him. The young bodyguard sat down, but felt extremely uncomfortable.

The wind was strong and the snow was heavy. A faint light shone through the window and fell into the courtyard. The buildings stretched out along the courtyard wall. Zhou Yan, Zhang Wangyue, and Hu Yanlei appeared and disappeared into the white expanse. They were moving up and down and had already approached the courtyard where Su the镖师 lived.

Zhou Yan and his companions first went to the Sihai Escort Agency. The guard on night duty was an ordinary escort. The three of them then went to escort Lu's place. His wife and concubines were sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed), but they did not see their enemy.

It was common knowledge that both the bodyguards, Su and Lu, were unmarried. The three of them sneaked over in the snowy night.

Zhou Yan peered through the crack in the door and saw the lamplight reflected on the oil-paper window. He whispered to Zhang Wangyue and Huyan Lei, "It's right here."

"Three cobblers, they'll definitely figure out how to cover this up after the caravan returns," Hu Yanlei cursed.

Zhou Yan chuckled softly and said, "I'll go in. The rest of the time will be over in a hundred breaths."

Hu Yanlei chuckled: "So confident."

Zhou Yan certainly had it. During the escort competition, he knocked Su the镖师 (bodyguard) to the ground and seized Lu the镖师's spear. During his trip to Jingzhou, he gained opportunities to improve his internal strength. What difficulties could there be?

Zhang Wangyue naturally trusted Zhou Yan. With his extraordinary martial arts skills, how could he not notice the changes in Zhou Yan's aura after seeing him again?

"Go quickly, we'll keep watch."

"okay!"

Zhou Yan touched the ground with his toes, unleashing the "Golden Goose Skill," his figure as light as a feather, and swept through the snow-covered, ten-foot-high courtyard wall.

Hu Yanlei's mouth gaped open: "Head镖师, he doesn't know any light-body skills."

“That was before.” Hu Yanlei looked back at the footprints the three of them had left in the snow.

The snow was half a foot deep. The footprints of the dart-headed man were three inches deep in the snow, while Zhou Yan's were about four inches deep. He himself was firmly planted on solid ground.

The bodyguard with the leopard-like head and piercing eyes chuckled, "Brother Zhou, you really give us a pleasant surprise."

……

Zhou Yan landed, his figure advancing like a ferocious beast, the snowflakes on the ground flying everywhere, forming white snow lotuses that stretched towards the brightly lit room.

Hearing the commotion, the already suspicious镖师 (bodyguard/escort) jumped off the kang (heated brick bed), took a step to the window, and the instant his eyes peered through the crack, the window frame shattered with a loud crash. Like a dragon's head reaching in, sharp claws gripped his shoulder. Then, the镖师 felt an immense force generated in his shoulder, pulling him into the air and crashing him into the window.

"who?"

"presumptuous!"

Lu and Su, the bodyguards, suddenly sprang up. However, the next moment, Lu, whose body had already been pulled out halfway, paused in mid-air before being pushed towards Zhou Yan with a move called "The Dragon Regrets".

With a "thud," two figures rolled together inside the room.

Zhou Yan burst through the window, and before Su Biaoshi could even raise his fist, the "Yue Family Freehand" elbow strike landed heavily on his opponent's head.

Su, the bodyguard, had his hair stand on end. He staggered backward, and Zhou Yan's leg swept out like a sweeping leaf. The bodyguard from Sihai Escort Agency was sent flying into the air, crashing heavily against the wall before bouncing back onto the kang (a heated brick bed).

Lu, the bodyguard who leaped into the air with a "flip-like somersault," had eyes that were practically bloodshot:

“Zhou Yan…”

Lu the镖师 suddenly locked his hands together, and white mist burst into the air. Zhou Yan used the "Black Tiger Cuts Tail" move of the "Yue Family Scattered Hand" to shift his weight to his left leg. As his body swayed, he chopped out his left palm to the left front.

Lu, the bodyguard, recognized the sound and took a step back. Zhou Yan darted forward, his palm strike transforming into an elbow strike, and he raised his right leg with his knee bent.

Elbows struck like knives, knees like spears, landing on Lu, whose eyes were blinded by lime, with thuds that sounded like the booming of a cowhide drum.

With an incredulous expression, Lu, the bodyguard, was slammed against the wall. As his body slumped to the ground, he cried out in grief and indignation:

"lime!"

"Zhou Yan, you despicable scoundrel! You shameless wretch!"

“Keng”.

Zhou Yan pulled the long sword that Lu the镖师 (bodyguard) had hung on the wall, and Lu the镖师's grief-stricken voice instantly turned into an emphasis, "You dare to kill me? Ah... let's talk this out!"

The blade sliced ​​through the snowflakes that flew in through the broken window, making a "plop" sound, and the blood splattered and changed color.

Zhou Yan's fingers moved swiftly, striking the "Yamen" acupoint between the "Renying" and "Shuitu" acupoints on the back of Lu and Su's necks.

His ability to strike acupoints stemmed from his enhanced internal strength and the human meridian and acupoint diagrams given to him by Zhang Wangyue.

Lu and Su, the bodyguards, felt as if something was stuck in their throats, making a hoarse sound and unable to speak. Zhou Yan pulled a quilt from the kang (a heated brick bed), wrapped the two of them in it, and rushed out the door, heading straight for the courtyard wall.

Zhang Wangyue silently counted to ninety breaths, and suddenly, the quilt was thrown out.

Hu Yanlei caught it with lightning speed.

Zhou Yan leaped over the wall and asked:
"How many breaths?"

“I thought you could come out in eighty breaths,” Zhang Wangyue said.

Zhou Yan smiled apologetically: "Next time!"

The wind and snow intensified. The burly Hu Yanlei carried the blankets wrapped around the two bodyguards, and the three headed straight for the Fu'an Escort Agency.

(End of this chapter)