The Legend of the Condor Heroes: Starting from the Bodyguard

Chapter 79 Tibetan Monk and Escort, Cymbals and Green Bricks

The lights were as bright as day, and the figures moved with lightning speed, their movements as swift as lightning.

In the spacious hall, Ouyang Ke demonstrated a simplified version of the "Divine Camel Snow Mountain Palm," his movements as graceful and agile as a dragon, dazzling and mesmerizing to behold. At the most exquisite moment, he executed three consecutive moves—"Playing the Sheng in the Small Building," "Falling Maple Leaves," and "Flowing Water Swallowing Back"—creating multiple arcs, his palms accompanied by a soft, whistling sound as they cut through the air.

"Mr. Ouyang, your palm technique is excellent."

"Its momentum is like a sudden snowfall, unpredictable and ever-changing, excellent."

The room was filled with ancient books, simple desks, and intricately carved eaves. The handsome young man, the tall monk, and the white-haired old man, all sitting in chairs, praised it in unison.

The young man, wearing a golden crown to tie his hair, a red robe, and a gold belt, was none other than Wanyan Kang. The monk and the old man were, of course, Lingzhi Shangren and Liangzi Weng, whom Wanyan Honglie had hired.

Among the five masters, the "Ghost Gate Dragon King" Sha Tongtian, who dominated the Yellow River and traversed Shanxi and Shaanxi, and the "Thousand-Handed Butcher" Peng Lianhu are missing.

The Jin prince hired five top experts with the intention of obtaining the "Wumu's Legacy". Wanyan Honglie was determined to get his hands on this military treatise, so he planned to personally go south to seize it.

He had a meticulous plan. While on a mission to the imperial court in Lin'an Prefecture, he secretly dispatched Sha Tongtian and Peng Lianhu to meet with "Three-Headed Dragon" Hou Tonghai, to scout out the location and gather information, employing a two-pronged approach.

The reason why Liang Ziweng and Lingzhi Shangren still lingered in the Prince's Mansion was that their identities were inconvenient, their appearances were peculiar and they attracted attention, which was far less convenient than Peng Lianhu and Sha Tongtian, who were mingling in the Jianghu.

As for Ouyang Ke, given his status, he certainly wouldn't act as a scout.

Wanyan Honglie was confident that his arrangements were foolproof, and he was just waiting to lead the delegation south after the Lantern Festival when spring was in full bloom.

Wanyan Kang took this opportunity to cultivate a good relationship with Ouyang Ke and to warmly entertain Lingzhi Shangren and Liang Ziweng. Although young, he was quite shrewd and calculating, and he persuaded Wanyan Honglie to speak well of him, instruct him on martial arts, and even expressed his desire to become a disciple of the Western Poison.

Nobody is easy to deal with.

Ouyang Ke, Lingzhi Shangren, and Liang Ziweng all hoped to leverage the power of the Great Jin Prince to achieve something and gain recognition and favor. While they wouldn't pass on their most secret and ultimate techniques, they did impart many of their more advanced methods. Liang Ziweng, in particular, was an expert in pharmacology and prepared medicinal meals to nourish Wanyan Kang's blood and energy. Over this period, the Great Jin Prince's physique and martial arts skills had both significantly improved.

Aside from being indifferent to the investigation of Zhou Yan, Wanyan Kang was always willing to grant Ouyang Ke's requests. He even turned a blind eye when the young master of White Camel Mountain arranged for beautiful women to abduct women from the capital city.

Ouyang Ke knew that the other party was being so eager because he wanted to become his uncle's disciple, but the martial arts of White Camel Mountain were never passed on to outsiders, so he didn't say anything. Anyway, his uncle would arrive in Zhongdu soon, so he could let his uncle tell the young prince.

Although everyone had their own thoughts, what was presented on the surface was a harmonious scene of Wanyan Kang humbly seeking knowledge and being taught by Ouyang Ke, Liang Ziweng, and others.

However, whenever Liang Ziweng thinks of his precious snake, he still grits his teeth.

Ouyang Ke also had his mind on Zhou Yan, who had twice tried to assassinate him, but Wanyan Kang's information was that there was no one in Zhongdu riding the "Night-Shining Jade Lion" and that he had promised to send over a horse of the same kind. So the young master of White Camel Mountain could only put the matter aside for the time being.

When Wanyan Kang investigated Zhou Yan's matter, he was perfunctory. He was afraid of his master Qiu Chuji. When he saw Wang Chuyi stand up for Zhou Yan, how could he be wholeheartedly devoted to it?

Wanyan Kang was intelligent and had an outstanding talent for martial arts. When Ouyang Ke demonstrated the "Divine Camel Snow Mountain Palm," he had almost grasped its essence. He first poured tea and then said, "In your hands, this palm technique is like a thousand arms and ten thousand palms, a net of heaven and earth. I admire you greatly. I lack that kind of momentum and charm."

Ouyang Ke was very pleased to hear this and said, "Young Prince is naturally intelligent. Given time, he will surely reach this level."

"Thank you for your encouragement, Mr. Ouyang," Wanyan Kang said with a smile.

The wind blew in like the tide, pattering against the windows with a whooshing sound. On the roof of the hut where the four were, a petite woman wearing a white cloak and a blue dress moved slightly.

The snow then made a slight crunching sound.

The woman looked at the scholar beside her.

The two exchanged a glance, yet understood each other perfectly. White Camel Mountain was in the Western Regions, the Ginseng Immortal was from beyond the Great Wall, and the monk was a member of the Tantric sect. Now that these individuals had gathered at the Prince's Palace, surely they had a grand scheme in mind.

Upon hearing this, Ouyang Ke and Lingzhi Shangren, who were inside the hermitage, had a slight change in expression.

Zhou Yan's guess was absolutely correct. "Yue Maiden Sword" Han Xiaoying and "Master Scholar" Zhu Cong had indeed come to the Prince's Mansion to scout it out. The two sneaked in and followed the light to this exquisite residence, where they happened to encounter Wanyan Kang arranging for his men to invite Ouyang Ke and others. They then hid on the roof to investigate.

Only then did they clearly hear the conversation between Ouyang Ke, Lingzhi Shangren, Liang Ziweng, and Wanyan Kang. However, because Han Xiaoying moved slightly, she pressed down on the snow, which was noticed by Ouyang Ke and Lingzhi Shangren, who had profound internal strength.

Ouyang Ke looked at Master Lingzhi. The monk in the red robe smiled slightly, stood up from his chair, and took out a pair of copper cymbals from under his robe.

Wanyan Kang was about to ask a question, but then he changed his mind and remained silent.

Suddenly, Master Lingzhi's cymbal slipped from his hand and flew swiftly toward the roof beam.

With a loud bang, dust billowed everywhere, and the cymbals lifted off the entire roof.

……

"bang"

Splinters of wood shot out from one end of the roof, cymbals spun through the air, and Han Xiaoying tumbled out rapidly. A spurt of blood shot from her waist and landed on the pristine snow.

"Let's go!"

Zhu Cong shouted.

Despite the excruciating pain from her physical injuries, Han Xiaoying tumbled into the courtyard and used her "Swallow Three Skimming Waters" light-foot technique to swiftly dart towards the outside of the Prince's Mansion.

Zhu Cong followed closely behind and landed. From the hut behind them, Ouyang Ke, Liang Ziweng, and Wanyan Kang leaped out, while Lingzhi Shangren burst out of the roof and stood high on the eaves.

Zhu Cong threw out a pair of bone-piercing nails to cover Han Xiaoying's retreat.

Wang Chuyi and Ma Yu happened to appear in the courtyard of the hermitage at that moment.

The scene before them was something the two Taoist priests could never have imagined. Following the light, they arrived only to find that the roof of a house not far away exploded with a bang as figures flew about and suddenly clashed.

Ma Yu knew Han Xiaoying and Zhu Cong.

He paused for a moment, then said, "It's the Seven Heroes of Jiangnan. Lady Han seems to be injured. Stop these people."

Wang Chu asked, "Do you want to cover your face?"

"Let's cover it up," Ma Yu said. "Don't cause trouble for young friend Zhou."

The two men covered their faces with handkerchiefs and lunged at Ouyang Ke and Liang Ziweng.

On the roof of the hermitage, Master Lingzhi took a cymbal and, with the form of a large bird, suddenly flew out, chasing after Zhu Cong and Han Xiaoying like a shadow. At the same time, the Wang Mansion was filled with the sound of gongs, as noisy as boiling water.

……

As Zhou Yan walked around the main gate of the Prince's Mansion to the backyard, he suddenly heard the sounds of gongs and drums and the calls to capture the assassin all around him.

He was startled; Han Xiaoying and Zhu Congzhen had indeed arrived at the Prince's residence and been discovered.

In the wind and snow, with a thud, a woman fell heavily to the ground, staggered a few steps and ran forward, followed closely by a scholar who landed and chased after her.

"Where to go!"

Zhou Yan saw a monk in a red robe, holding a cymbal, chasing after them menacingly between the buildings a few dozen feet away.

He is Master Lingzhi.

Without hesitation, Zhou Yan pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket, covered his face, and ran out along the wall.

After a few steps, he stopped, bent down to pick up half a brick from the ground, and jumped up and ran away.

(End of this chapter)