Yang Guo: I defied death and reached the heavens in The Return of the Condor Heroes

Wu San Niang's funeral was scheduled for the early morning of the following day.

Guo Jing bought a riverside burial plot outside Jiaxing City and hired a stonemason to carve a tombstone.

It was drizzling on the day of the burial.

The fine raindrops, like sifted rice flour, barely touched the face, but gently soaked the clothes in an instant.

Da Wu and Xiao Wu knelt down and kowtowed before the tomb.

Their lips were pressed tightly together and turned white, as they suppressed their grief. No one cried out loud; only their shoulders trembled slightly.

Xiao Wu buried his mother's old silver hairpin in the soil on the grave mound. The faint light of the hairpin tip flickered in the rain and mist, as if it were his mother's parting words.

Guo Jing stood before the grave for a long time, and finally raised his hand to gently pat the two men's shoulders: "Before we find your father, come with me to Peach Blossom Island."

The Wu brothers obediently nodded in agreement.

Yang Guo stood at the end of the crowd, the cold rain brushing against his face, a chill seeping into his heart.

He gazed at the brand-new grave, his mind preoccupied with other thoughts.

The mantra for reversing fortune states, "Following the trend can help avoid calamities caused by scheming."

Although I had a rough understanding of the general principles in the past, it was only after this near-death experience that I began to vaguely grasp some of the true meaning.

When the group returned to Jiaxing city, it was already dusk.

Guo Jing had already found an inn in the west of the city and booked the entire backyard.

Huang Rong, Guo Fu, and Cheng Ying lived in the west wing, while Guo Jing, along with Yang Guo and the Wu brothers, settled in the east wing.

Throughout the journey, Da Wu and Xiao Wu remained silent.

After entering the room, they lay down on their beds, facing the wall, whether they fell into a deep sleep or were secretly saddened, it was unclear.

Guo Jing stood in front of the door for a moment, then sighed softly and gently closed the door.

Yang Guo returned to his room and sat cross-legged on the bed.

He skillfully applied the Reverse Life Technique, integrating the insights he had just gained into his practice.

I feel that I am one step closer to what I desire.

The next morning.

Yang Guo was squatting in the courtyard, eating a sesame seed cake.

Suddenly, a steady tapping sound came from the entrance of the inn. It was the sound of an iron cane striking the bluestone ground, clearly the sound of a blind man exploring the way.

Looking up, I saw a blind old man standing alone in front of the door, leaning on an iron cane.

His hair and beard were completely white, his eyes were sunken, and the lines on his face were as if carved by a knife, each line a testament to decades of weathering.

The visitor was none other than Ke Zhen'e, Guo Jing's mentor.

"Master." Guo Jing hurried out from the hall to greet him, his voice filled with joy and excitement. He stepped forward to help the old man by the arm, but was gently stopped by the iron staff.

"Jing'er, I am not so old that I need someone to help me." Ke Zhen'e snorted coldly, tapped his iron staff on the ground, and strode into the courtyard.

Despite his blindness, his steps were firm and resolute, and the rhythm of his iron staff striking the stone slabs was perfectly steady, as if he had already traversed this courtyard a hundred times.

Upon reaching the center of the courtyard, Ke Zhen'e suddenly stopped, turned his head slightly, and twitched his nose gently, as if he had detected an unusual scent in the air.

"Jing'er".

Ke Zhen'e's voice was hoarse and deep.

"Are there other living people in the courtyard?"

Guo Jing was taken aback and looked in the direction the old man was facing.

His gaze fell on Yang Guo, who was squatting down, and he quickly explained:

"Master, this is Guo'er, the child of Brother Kang and Miss Mu. I found him by chance outside Jiaxing City yesterday, which can be considered a comfort to Brother Kang's spirit in heaven."

Ke Zhen'e's expression suddenly darkened.

His already angular face, weathered and etched with the marks of time, suddenly hardened like cast iron, his expression revealing deep resentment.

Ke Zhen'e did not exchange a single word with Yang Guo.

The iron staff slammed heavily onto the ground, cracking a thin line in the bluestone floor.

He turned and stepped into the hall, the cracks stretching out in a winding pattern, pointing directly toward the direction Yang Guo was in.

Yang Guo remained squatting in the same spot, slowly munching on the sesame seed cake.

He knew that Ke Zhen'e and Yang Kang had a deep-seated grudge, and he had read books in his previous life and was familiar with this entanglement.

Years ago, Yang Kang conspired with Ouyang Feng to secretly infiltrate Peach Blossom Island.

Having caused the deaths of four of the Seven Heroes of Jiangnan—Zhu Cong, Han Baoju, Nan Xiren, and Quan Jinfa—Han Xiaoying committed suicide in grief and indignation. Of the Seven Heroes, only Ke Zhen'e survived by sheer luck.

Decades of resentment had been brewing in his heart, deeply ingrained in his very being.

However, he knew in his heart that the old man's decades of resentment and hatred could not be resolved by a few words from a young man.

Just like how Huang Rong harbored resentment towards him, it's best to take it easy.

Do not dwell on it silently, lest you exhaust yourself mentally.

For two consecutive days, the days passed uneventfully, yet a sense of melancholy and loneliness permeated everything.

Guo Jing tried to track down Li Mochou's whereabouts, hoping to find an opportunity to rescue Lu Wushuang.

Unfortunately, the Crimson Fairy was cunning and mysterious, and her whereabouts in the martial world were nowhere to be found, so in the end, nothing was gained.

Meanwhile, they busied themselves arranging boats and making preparations for everyone's return to Peach Blossom Island.

Huang Rong then instructed her Beggars' Sect disciples to travel to and from Jiaxing's markets to purchase the necessary supplies for the island.

With the sudden increase in the number of people, the island's living conditions have become strained, and the old food and supplies are no longer sufficient, requiring a complete replenishment.

The Wu brothers remained depressed and taciturn.

At mealtimes, the two would always sit silently at the corner of the table, each holding a bowl of white rice, heads bowed, eating in silence, never uttering a word.

The two merely echoed and agreed with what others were doing, without asking any questions whatsoever.

Only when facing Guo Fu did his brows soften slightly, revealing a hint of a smile.

Cheng Ying's injuries were gradually healing, but she became increasingly quiet and taciturn.

She often sat alone on the veranda, lost in thought.

He gripped the silver curved short blade tightly in his hand, his thumb unconsciously rubbing the fine lines on the hilt repeatedly, a faint sense of bewilderment hidden between his brows and eyes.

Guo Fu was pampered on Peach Blossom Island from a young age, receiving all kinds of indulgence. Her mind was pure and innocent, and she was unaware of the turmoil of the world.

She had long since forgotten the terrifying events of the past few days and was still acting like a spoiled and carefree young lady, without a care in the world.

Yang Guo stayed by Guo Jing's side all day long, listening to him recount his past stories, including his youthful entanglements and connections with Yang Kang.

Although he had no attachment whatsoever to this biological father he had never met, he listened quietly and without saying a word, letting all the words of his conversation pass by.

After his encounter with danger in the dense forest, Yang Guo became even more diligent in his cultivation.

He no longer simply followed the rules and circulated his energy in a conventional way, but instead carefully studied the Reverse Life Technique, memorizing every word and delving into its inner meaning.

After two days of arduous practice, he felt his strength had increased considerably, and the scope of his reverse-generation of Qi had also expanded.

Previously, only the fingertips could concentrate Qi, but now most of the palm can be used.

Although there is still a long way to go before breaking through to the second level.

Yet, this tangible and visible progress still secretly delighted him.

As dusk approached, a cool evening breeze began to blow.

"I'll be setting off for Peach Blossom Island tomorrow. I wonder when I'll be able to return here," Yang Guo muttered to himself as he walked slowly forward, gazing at the city of Jiaxing before him.

This was the first place he became familiar with upon arriving here, and a sense of nostalgia for his homeland began to stir within him.

As I passed through a narrow alley in the city, I suddenly heard a strange noise.

The noise sounded like someone was rummaging through something.

Instead of being as careful as thieves, they roughly overturned boxes and moved cabinets, causing items to fall to the ground with the sound of billiard balls.

His speech was interspersed with mumbled murmurs, his tone fluctuating, sometimes sounding like he was arguing with someone, and sometimes like he was cursing incessantly.

Yang Guo stopped and looked sideways into the alley.

Nearby was the entrance to a pharmacy, half of the door panel still missing, leaning crookedly against the wall. The shopkeeper and his assistants were nowhere to be seen.

Inside the shop, an oil lamp flickered, casting a tall figure's shadow.

The man squatted on the ground, rummaging through the pile of medicinal herbs haphazardly, his actions rough and anxious, like a disaster victim searching for relatives and friends among broken walls and ruins.

As if sensing that someone was spying on him, the person suddenly turned his head, and Yang Guo was able to see the other person's appearance clearly.

He was tall and robust, yet curled up in a ball.

With a high nose and deep-set eyes, and a unkempt, grimy brown beard and hair, he was definitely not the appearance of someone from the Central Plains.

His clothes were tattered and ragged, his hair was disheveled like a bird's nest, and his face was covered with dust and medicine residue.

His feet were bare, the insteps covered in mud and old scars, and the spaces between his toes were filled with black mud.

He squatted on the ground, clutching a handful of herbs in each hand, bringing them to his nose and sniffing them intensely, muttering incoherently, the meaning of which was unreadable to anyone.

Yang Guo's pupils suddenly contracted, his mind filled with a myriad of thoughts.

This appearance and demeanor is Ouyang Feng!

Ouyang Feng, also known as the Western Poison, was once considered one of the Five Greats of the Central Plains, alongside Wang Chongyang, Huang Yaoshi, Hong Qigong, and Duan Zhixing, during the Mount Hua Sword Tournament.

The old poisoner who once dominated the martial arts world and struck fear into the hearts of all.

Now he is insane, reduced to destroying pharmacies and searching for a nonexistent antidote like a headless fly.

Yang Guo withdrew his gaze and quietly stepped back to leave.

He quickly recalled the original text: This person practiced the Nine Yin Manual in reverse, causing his meridians to become disordered, his mind to become muddled, and he would sometimes be lucid and sometimes insane.

In the original story, in his madness, he mistook Yang Guo for Ouyang Ke and taught him the basics of Toad Stance.

However, the current Yang Guo is not the same person as in the book, and has no intention of recognizing this crazy old man as his godfather.

Suddenly, footsteps could be heard coming from the street corner again.

The person who came was not alone, but accompanied by several strong men.

Their steps were neat and rapid, striking the bluestone with a clanging sound, interspersed with the tinkling of sword sheaths hitting their belts.

Yang Guo turned his head and saw a patrol of soldiers coming from the street corner.

The leader was a middle-aged man dressed in patrol uniform, with a knife hanging from his waist.

Behind him were seven or eight soldiers, all of whom wore long swords at their waists. Beside them was a man who looked to be over forty years old and was dressed in brocade clothes.

"Sir, that madman is vandalizing the shop. My shop assistant has been injured. I beg you to do me justice!"

The man in brocade robes cried out to the leading patrol officer, presumably the owner of the local pharmacy.

The inspector remained silent and led his men to the shop entrance.

Seeing the pharmacy with its lights on and its doors askew and broken, his expression grew even more grave.

He suddenly drew his long sword and strode toward the pharmacy, with the soldiers behind him drawing their swords in unison, their blades gleaming coldly in the twilight.

"Listen up, you people inside!"

The inspector shouted loudly into the house.

"Damaging a shop and stealing medicinal herbs, according to the laws of the Great Song Dynasty, shall be punished with eighty strokes of the cane. Immediately go out and surrender!"

Ouyang Feng didn't even look up, continuing to play with the gastrodia elata in his hand, examining it repeatedly, as if this dried medicinal herb was far more interesting than the soldiers standing outside the door.

He brought the gastrodia elata close to his nose and smelled it. Suddenly, he let out a muffled growl, slammed the herb to the ground, and stomped on it several times.

"No...none of them!"

He roared hoarsely, clutching his head and curling up in a ball.

"The antidote...where is the antidote...?"

The inspector's face grew increasingly grim. He raised his hand and waved, and two soldiers with knives rushed straight into the pharmacy.

Two muffled thuds followed shortly afterward.

The two soldiers were suddenly sent flying backward, not thrown, but slapped through the air by a palm strike.

The two men, along with their swords, tumbled several times in mid-air before crashing heavily onto the bluestone ground.

The weapon broke in two, and the blade rolled away with a clatter.

The two lay on the ground, one clutching his wrist and the other hugging his shoulder, groaning in pain, but fortunately, they were not in any danger.

Yang Guo's eyebrows twitched slightly, and he understood.

Although Ouyang Feng was mentally unstable, his martial arts foundation remained undiminished.

In his madness, he acted without restraint, yet a trace of instinctive restraint remained.

The two soldiers were only knocked away by the residual force of the palm strike, and their internal organs were not injured.

If Ouyang Feng had been sober at that moment, the two would probably have been bleeding from all seven orifices and dead.

The inspector's face turned deathly pale.

Swallowing hard, he knew he had encountered a formidable opponent. He took several steps back and shouted sternly at Ouyang Feng:

"Who are you? I am a constable of the patrol office, ordered to patrol the city walls. How dare you assault a public servant! You have violated the law! Immediately step outside and surrender! Do not continue your violent behavior, or your punishment will be even more severe!"

Before he could finish speaking, Ouyang Feng's figure blurred, and he had already flashed onto the door frame.

He stood with his feet touching the sky, his hands supporting the ground, his body in an upside-down position, his head slightly tilted as he looked up.

He didn't look at the inspector, nor did he notice the two soldiers lying on the ground groaning.

His gaze swept past the alley entrance, past the trembling inspector, and landed directly on Yang Guo at the back of the crowd.

Their eyes met across the distance, and Yang Guo's heart skipped a beat, his breath catching in his throat.

He quickly averted his gaze, slowed his steps, and deliberately slowed his breathing, knowing that the madman had already noticed him.

However, Ouyang Feng's murky eyes were fixed on Yang Guo's figure.

The blood vessels in his eyes seemed to be burning, revealing an eerie crimson hue under the dim yellow oil lamp.

Ouyang Feng's figure flashed several times.

Before others could even make out his tracks, he had already darted to Yang Guo's side.

"You...were looking at me just now."

Ouyang Feng raised a finger and pointed at Yang Guo, his voice hoarse and short.

Seeing Ouyang Feng rush in front of him in an instant, and with disaster suddenly looming, Yang Guo calmed his mind and dared not make a rash move.

A countermeasure was rapidly being calculated in his mind:

"If he had fled, we wouldn't have been able to catch a glimpse of this madman just now."

If they were to fight, I'm afraid I wouldn't last more than three moves.

Should he call for help? The Beggars' Clan is spread all over the world, and there are beggars secretly watching from street corners. Presumably, word of this has already reached Guo Jing's ears.

"If we can just delay for a moment and wait for Guo Jing to arrive, the crisis can be resolved. For now, the only option is to deal with the situation slowly and methodically."

"Please forgive me, senior. I was just passing by and stopped to take a look when I heard the noise inside the shop. I had no intention of offending you in the slightest."

Yang Guo remained calm and composed, his tone steady and normal.

Ouyang Feng tilted his head, as if trying to discern the words, his cheek muscles twitching slightly before he suddenly grinned.

The smile appeared abruptly, like a thunderclap suddenly flashing across a dark, cloud-covered sky—brief and blinding.

"You've got some nerve."

His speech suddenly became exceptionally clear, showing no signs of madness, but rather like that of a martial arts master examining his juniors.

"Everyone else flees in panic when they see me, why don't you run away?"

"I have no grudge against you, senior. Why should I flee in such a panic? Someone as skilled as you, the number one expert in the world, would never harm me without reason."

Yang Guo could only respond gently.

He smiled bitterly to himself, unable to admit the predicament he had just been in, unable to escape.

Ouyang Feng was slightly taken aback, then burst into loud laughter:

"Number one in the world? You call me number one in the world! Hahahaha, I am number one in the world!"

Laughter echoed through the narrow alley, causing loose dust to flutter down from the walls.

The inspector and his soldiers retreated several steps in fright, somewhat bewildered and at a loss.

Before the laughter had subsided, Ouyang Feng tilted his head again.

His cloudy old eyes were fixed on Yang Guo's face, as if searching for something he had been searching for in this unfamiliar face.

The young man had sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and a straight nose.

His facial features were clearly outlined by the afterglow of the setting sun, causing Ouyang Feng's hand to tremble violently.

Yang Guo felt a chill run down his spine from being stared at, unable to fathom the other's intentions, and secretly activated the Reverse Life Technique in preparation for any unforeseen circumstances.

"Kerr?"

Ouyang Feng's voice suddenly softened, as if afraid of disturbing the young man before him.

"Is that you, Ke'er?"

Yang Guo felt somewhat relieved and pondered to himself:

"Ouyang Ke was the young master of White Camel Mountain and Ouyang Feng's nephew. He had already died in Niujia Village."

In the original novel, when Ouyang Feng was insane, he would often mistake himself for Ouyang Ke.

Just now, my biggest fear was being mistaken for Yang Kang, but thankfully, the situation is still manageable.

He silently took half a step back:

"Senior, you must have mistaken me for someone else. I am not Ke'er."

Ouyang Feng ignored all explanations and braced himself against the ground with one hand.

He gripped Yang Guo's wrist tightly with terrifying force, but his fingertips trembled slightly.

"Nonsense! You are Ke'er! These eyebrows, these eyes, this nose... not a single detail is different! Ke'er, where have you been all these years? Your uncle has searched for you so hard!"

As he finished speaking, his voice choked up, and tears welled up in his cloudy eyes.

Yang Guo's mind raced.

Ouyang Feng's mind was sometimes clear and sometimes confused; at this moment, he was deeply mired in madness.

If we insist on arguing, we might provoke this madman.

If they turn on us and start a fight, given my current shallow cultivation level, I will find it extremely difficult to withstand their attacks.

It would be better to agree to this for now and delay until Guo Jing arrives.

"Senior, please don't be impatient."

Yang Guo softened his tone.

"Since you say I am Ke'er, may I please state my full name?"

Ouyang Feng was taken aback, his lips parted, and he racked his brains trying to recall.

My mind was completely blank, without a trace, like a tangled mess of threads, with no clue whatsoever.

He could only growl, his face gradually contorting into a grimace, as he hissed in a low voice:

"Ke'er...it is Ke'er..."

"It is Ouyang Ke, the young master of White Camel Mountain." Seeing that he was in an unstable state and seemed to be out of control, Yang Guo quickly spoke up to clarify.

"Yes! It's Ouyang Ke!"

Ouyang Feng was overjoyed, gripping Yang Guo's wrist tightly and shaking it repeatedly, like a child receiving sweet treat, and said with delight:

"Ke'er, you're back! Your uncle remembers everything!"

"That's right, I am Ouyang Ke. Uncle, please put your hands down for now, and let's talk slowly."

Yang Guo looked at his dazed eyes and feigned agreement.

"wrong……"

Ouyang Feng's joyful gaze suddenly froze, his brows furrowing as if he were arguing with the phantom in his mind.

He stared blankly at Yang Guo's face, his lips moving, his eyes flickering, sometimes clear-headed, sometimes confused.

Suddenly he roared angrily, his teeth clenched with boundless hatred:

"You're that brat surnamed Yang! Yang Kang! You little bastard, you're the one who killed Ke'er!"

He gripped Yang Guo's wrist tightly, and his body suddenly leaped into the air.

With his other hand, his five fingers curled into sharp claws, carrying a wisp of bloody wind as he lunged straight at the boy's throat.

Yang Guo was suddenly startled and tried to pull away to dodge.

Unfortunately, her wrist was firmly restrained, so she could only hurriedly call out:

"Uncle! I am not Yang Kang! I am your nephew, Ouyang Ke. Look at me carefully, don't be confused!"