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

"I can no longer practice martial arts..."

Yin Zhiping repeated it in a low voice, and the last glimmer of light in his eyes dimmed instantly.

As Qiu Chuji's top disciple, he devoted half his life to martial arts and Taoist cultivation, but now his martial arts path is ruined, and he has become a real cripple!

What made him even more bitter was that, having ended up in such a crippled state, he feared he would never even have the right to catch a glimpse of that white-clad figure again.

Overwhelming despair and humiliation brought tears to his eyes, but his dignity as the chief disciple of Quanzhen Sect made him clench his fist and forcefully suppress the hot tears welling up in his eyes.

Seeing his pitiful state, Sun Bu'er felt even more sorry for him and gently comforted him:

"Zhiping, don't think too much. Focus on recovering from your injuries. All your senior brothers are very concerned about you. The sect leader and Senior Brother Ma just left here a short while ago. I'll go tell them the good news that you've woken up."

Yin Zhiping nodded gently, closed his eyes, and concealed the myriad emotions surging within them.

Before long, Sun Bu'er returned, followed closely by Qiu Chuji and Ma Yu, who hurriedly arrived.

The two entered the room and saw that Yin Zhiping had indeed woken up, and they both breathed a sigh of relief.

"Zhiping, how are you feeling now?"

Qiu Chuji walked quickly to the bedside, looked at his disciple's pale face, and his tone became unusually gentle.

He was always strong-willed and strict with his disciples, but seeing his most valued disciple in such a state, he could not hide the grief and heartache in his heart.

"Thank you for your concern, Master. Your disciple... is fine."

Yin Zhiping responded in a low voice, struggling to get up and bow, but Qiu Chuji reached out and pressed him down.

"Just focus on recovering and don't worry about following social customs."

Qiu Chuji spoke gently, and after a slight pause, he asked again:

"Zhiping, tell me in detail what happened at the rocky hill last night. What exactly happened? What did those four bandits who injured you look like? And the dark figure who killed Zhijing, did you see where it came from?"

Yin Zhiping forced himself to calm down and, enduring the excruciating pain from his wounds, slowly recalled the events.

But when he heard the last syllable of Qiu Chuji's voice, he was suddenly stunned and exclaimed in surprise:

"What? Zhao Zhijing...is dead?"

Standing to the side, seeing Yin Zhiping's astonished expression, Ma Yuli spoke up at the opportune moment:

"Zhiping, you didn't witness Zhijing's murder last night?"

Yin Zhiping stared blankly for a long time before slowly shaking his head:

"I did not see Senior Brother Zhao being killed. At that time, I was already severely injured and delirious."

Qiu Chuji and Ma Yu exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of seriousness in each other's eyes. Yin Zhiping had not seen the dark figure, making it even more difficult to find out the person's identity.

"Then tell your master everything you know about what happened," Qiu Chuji said gently again.

Yin Zhiping paused briefly, the image of Zhao Zhijing coercing him step by step last night flashing through his mind, and a chill ran down his spine.

But now that Zhao Zhijing is dead, and the two were once fellow disciples, he couldn't bear to expose the other's despicable behavior in public.

Firstly, it would damage the reputation of the deceased, and secondly, it would bring shame upon the Quanzhen School of Taoism.

So he skipped over the relevant details and only picked out the remaining parts, slowly recounting the events of the previous night to Qiu Chuji and Ma Yu.

After listening to Yin Zhiping's account of the entire incident, Qiu Chuji and Ma Yu's furrowed brows finally relaxed a little.

"According to Zhiping, the names, appearances, and physical characteristics of the bandits who call themselves the 'Four Fiends of Zhongnan' have been clearly identified. I will now order people to draw portraits and send disciples down the mountain to capture them with all our might."

Ma Yu slowly stood up and began to speak.

Although Qiu Chuji's gloomy expression eased slightly, the anger in his eyes grew even stronger.

He gripped the armrest of the chair tightly with all his might, his knuckles turning white, and he growled in a low, deep voice:

"Hmph! Once we capture them, we'll make these four despicable scoundrels know the consequences of harming my Quanzhen disciples!"

Seeing that he was emotional, Ma Yu gently patted his shoulder and said:

"Junior brother, the most urgent task right now is to bring the 'Four Fiends' back to Chongyang Palace. We also need to carefully consider the identity of that shadowy figure. Zhiping also needs to rest and recuperate. Let's not disturb him here."

Qiu Chuji took a deep breath, nodded, and then bent down to tuck the blanket around Yin Zhiping, his voice deep and resolute:

"Zhiping, focus on recovering and don't worry about anything else. I will definitely get justice for you!"

Yin Zhiping lay on the couch, gazing at his master's graying hair. His throat bobbed several times, but he ultimately couldn't utter a word.

He merely nodded heavily with difficulty, then slowly closed his eyes. A drop of warm, moist water slid down from the corner of his eye, disappeared into the pillow, and vanished in an instant.

It's unclear whether he was grateful for his master's solemn promise or saddened by the prospect of never seeing that unforgettable figure in white again.

Seeing this, Qiu Chuji said no more and left the room with Ma Yu and Sun Bu'er, leaving him alone to rest.

Just as the three reached the courtyard gate, a disciple rushed over to report:

It is said that Uncle Hao has finished inspecting the site of the rocky hill and has also found the whereabouts of the four bandits, who are heading towards the town at the foot of the mountain.

However, the town was crowded with people, and the trail went cold. Uncle Hao was currently leading his men to search the town house by house.

Qiu Chuji nodded slightly, about to give some instructions and tell him the names and physical characteristics of the "Four Fiends," when he suddenly caught a glimpse of a figure in a green robe walking quickly towards him.

He immediately stopped speaking, turned his head and looked at the person who came in a hurry, with a slightly worried expression. It was Li Zhichang, Yang Guo's substitute teacher.

Qiu Chuji didn't think much of it, only that he had come to take care of Yin Zhiping after hearing that Yin had regained consciousness.

But when Li Zhichang walked up to him and said something, Qiu Chuji's heart, which had calmed down a little, suddenly trembled again.

"Reporting to the Sect Leader, this disciple...this disciple has urgent news to report: Yang Guo...that child Yang Guo has disappeared!"

Li Zhichang's voice was trembling and rapid, and he couldn't even regulate his breathing.

Upon hearing this, Ma Yu's expression tightened, and he hurriedly stepped forward to ask:

"What? Yang Guo is missing? That boy is always calm and well-behaved, how could he just disappear without a trace? Did he ask the steward for leave and go down the mountain?"

Li Zhichang was so anxious that the veins on his forehead bulged, and his hands were clenched tightly together as he hurriedly replied:

"I have already inquired with the guards at the mountain gate, and Yang Guo did not report his departure from the mountain."

"This morning's class was the first time he was late. At first, I thought he had caught a slight cold and was feeling unwell, so I sent a junior disciple to his residence to check on him."

"But when the young disciple arrived, he found that the bed and bedding in the room were neat and tidy, with no signs of anyone having slept there."

"This disciple sent his men to search all morning, but they still couldn't find even the slightest trace of Yang Guo."

His tone was anxious, and after a slight pause, he swallowed hard. The rest of his words almost came out off the cuff:

"A murder occurred on the back mountain last night, leaving both Senior Brothers Zhao and Yin severely injured. He's just a teenager, and now he's nowhere to be found. I'm truly worried about him..."

The atmosphere at the courtyard gate froze instantly upon hearing this.

Qiu Chuji frowned, closed his eyes, and shook his head. His thoughts were in turmoil due to the series of misfortunes.

Sun Bu'er's eyes shifted slightly, as if she was pondering something to herself.

Ma Yu thought to himself: Yang Guo was someone Guo Jing personally entrusted to him on the mountain, so he hurriedly asked in a deep voice:

"When and where was he last seen?"

"Yesterday evening, a disciple saw him come out of the meditation room and return to his residence alone. After that, no one saw him again."

Li Zhichang's lips moved rapidly, clearly having rehearsed these questions countless times in his mind.

"Are there any signs of a struggle inside the residence? Are the doors and windows damaged?"

"There were no signs of a struggle inside the house, and the doors and windows were intact. It didn't look like the house had been forcibly taken away."

Upon hearing this, Ma Yu stroked his long beard with his fingertips, his expression growing increasingly solemn.

There were no signs of a fight, nor any indication that outsiders had forcibly entered—enough to show that Yang Guo had left on his own earlier this morning.

But just last night, a murder occurred in the back mountain, and the two events happened at the same time.

While he secretly worried about Yang Guo's safety alone abroad, he couldn't help but feel a bit suspicious; this was just too much of a coincidence...