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

The person who rushed into the courtyard was Guo Fu.

Her pretty face was flushed red, her forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat, a few strands of hair were stuck to her temples with sweat, her chest was heaving, and her heavy breathing was surging, obviously she had run all the way here and hadn't even had time to catch her breath.

Upon hearing this, Guo Jing abruptly stood up from his chair, not even putting down his teacup, and asked in a deep voice:

"Fu'er, what's wrong? Speak slowly. With your father here, the sky won't fall."

Guo Fu braced herself on her knee with one hand, took deep breaths to regulate her breathing, and said urgently:

"Father, in the front yard... there are several Taoist priests fighting with some other martial arts practitioners at the front gate!"

Guo Jing's thick eyebrows furrowed, and his expression darkened.

"Taoist priests? Which temple are they from? Why are they fighting?"

Guo Fu shook her head repeatedly, her tone anxious but completely clueless:

"I don't know! Brother Da Wu just told me that there was a fight at the door and told me to come and tell Father right away. He didn't have time to tell me anything else."

Upon hearing this, Guo Jing frowned even more deeply.

He casually placed the teacup back on the table and said in a deep voice:

"Guo'er, you sit and rest in the courtyard for now. Uncle Guo will go and check on the front gate."

Having said that, he was about to leave, but Yang Guo had already stood up, his expression solemn:

"Uncle Guo, I will go with you. Right now, all the heroes have gathered, and the situation is chaotic and unpredictable. One more person means one more helper. If someone causes trouble, we can stabilize the situation in time."

Without hesitation, Guo Jing nodded in agreement: "Alright, let's go."

As soon as he finished speaking, he strode out of the hall and courtyard and walked towards the outside.

Yang Guo turned his head and exchanged a glance with Xiaolongnu. Without needing to say a word, the two followed behind in tacit understanding.

Guo Fu led the way, turning back to say as she went:

"Father, Brother Dawu said those people were beating us really hard, showing absolutely no mercy. Uncle Lu was standing by helplessly, pacing back and forth anxiously!"

Guo Jing did not respond, but his steps quickened, and his clothes fluttered in the wind.

The group walked through the crisscrossing corridors, but had not yet stepped out of the passageway leading to the main entrance.

A cacophony of shouts and curses, along with the clanging of metal against metal, swept in on the wind, making one's ears tremble slightly.

When everyone arrived at the open space in front of the Lu family's main gate.

The scene before them was one of utter chaos and devastation, with the fighting raging fiercely.

On the open plain in front of the village, four men dressed in coarse cloth and short brown robes were locked in a fierce battle with three Taoist priests in gray robes.

The four men each had a fierce appearance: one was burly and fierce, one was as thin as a monkey, one was slightly fat and slovenly, and one was short and thin. At first glance, they looked exactly like a troupe of street performers who performed at a temple fair.

The three Taoist priests opposite were two men and one woman, all with white hair at their temples.

The Taoist robe he wore was made of simple fabric, but the cuffs were embroidered with neat cloud patterns. It was not the attire of a wandering Taoist monk from an unknown mountain temple, but rather the clothing worn by an elder of the Quanzhen School.

Guo Jing stopped in his tracks, his eyes fixed on the faces in the arena, and he exclaimed in a low voice:

"So it's Uncle Qiu, Uncle Hao, and Uncle Sun. Who are those four men?"

Yang Guo took a closer look at the people fighting in the arena and sighed inwardly:

It really is true what they say, "enemies meet on a narrow road."

The four men in the field are the "Four Fiends of Zhongnan" who appeared together on the back mountain of Zhongnan Mountain and severely injured Yin Zhiping on the rainy night four years ago when Yang Guo sneaked into the ancient tomb!

Back then, the four of them sneaked into the heart of Zhongnan Mountain, intending to enter an ancient tomb and steal martial arts manuals. However, they were stopped by Yin Zhiping, who had also secretly gone to the ancient tomb in the back mountain. The two sides fought a bloody battle.

In the end, Yin Zhiping suffered severe injuries and even completely lost his humanity.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Yang Guo successfully entered the Ancient Tomb and staged a classic case of the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind, by ambushing and killing Zhao Zhijing, who was watching the fight from the sidelines.

After this bloody incident, the Quanzhen Sect had been making every effort to capture these four people, but they never expected to be able to bring them to justice. Instead, they met here today.

Now that enemies have met, their eyes are filled with intense hatred, and a strong killing intent has already risen in the eyes of Qiu Chuji and the others.

The three shifted their positions, and although only three people were operating the Big Dipper Formation, it still wove a dense and heavy sword net, firmly trapping the four evil spirits in the center of the formation, determined to capture and kill them on the spot!

However, the Four Fiends, who should have been suppressed by the formation, were now fighting with a good balance of offense and defense, and were able to hold their own against the three Taoist priests of Quanzhen. Their martial arts skills had improved many times over compared to four years ago.

Clearly, these four people had obtained some inexplicable opportunity while on the run and in hiding, and learned superior martial arts.

As Shi Mang parried Qiu Chuji's longsword strikes with his sword, he roared in a rough voice:

"You old Taoist priest! You came up here and attacked without even asking what happened, do you really think we brothers are made of clay!"

Qiu Chuji's face turned ashen. The peaceful state of mind he had cultivated over decades of Taoist practice was stirred up by the old bloody case of the Four Fiends, filling him with rage.

He drew his longsword in a sharp arc and shouted sternly:

"You four wicked creatures! You committed a bloody crime in Zhongnan Mountain years ago, severely injuring my Quanzhen disciples! I have been searching for you for four whole years, and today I will bring you to your knees on the spot!"

Before the shout had even finished, Qiu Chuji's wrist suddenly trembled, and a condensed sword aura burst forth from the tip of his sword.

The sharp, piercing sound cut through the air, heading straight for Shi Mang's vital throat.

Shi Mang hurriedly dodged to the side, the sharp sword energy grazing past his body and slamming into an old locust tree behind him.

A deep crack appeared in the tree trunk, and branches and leaves flew everywhere, breaking off and scattering wood chips and fragments in a shocking sight.

The fighting on the field intensified.

Although the Four Fiends were trapped within the Big Dipper Formation, they refused to surrender and fought desperately.

Each clash of swords produced a piercing metallic clang and sparks flew everywhere, with dust billowing up in the wind from the weapons.

Liu Erxi's figure moved like an eel through the sword light, occasionally shooting out several bone-piercing darts from his sleeves at tricky and ruthless angles, forcing the three opponents to be unable to concentrate on parrying or dodging.

The nine-section soft whip in Hu Xizu's hand was like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, sometimes sweeping across a large area, sometimes suddenly stabbing straight at vital points, the whistling sound of the whip tip cutting through the air was sharp and piercing.

A whip lashed the stone steps beside him, shattering the entire step into pieces, with fragments scattering and rolling in all directions.

The remaining two, Shi Mang and Chen Cunding, also unleashed a series of ruthless moves.

Qiu Chuji and his group were all filled with rage, secretly cursing the thieves for their advanced cultivation.

The two sides traded blows, and for a time neither could gain the upper hand.

However, in the short time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the main gate of Lu Family Manor was completely unrecognizable, as if it had just experienced a terrible catastrophe.

One of the two large red lanterns in front of the door had been knocked down, and scraps of red paper were scattered all over the ground; large pieces of the stone drum next to the steps had been cut off by the blade, and pebbles were scattered everywhere; the walls, the ground, and the trees were covered with deep and shallow marks from sword cuts, hammer blows, and whips, and the wounds were hideous and terrifying.

Among the crowd of onlookers were many martial arts practitioners who had come with their families to participate in the Heroes' Gathering.

The women and children had never seen such a fierce life-or-death struggle before. They were all terrified and turned pale. They hurriedly retreated to a distance, and chaos reigned in the crowd.

A seven or eight-year-old boy was grazed on the forehead by flying pebbles and immediately burst into tears. His mother quickly hugged him tightly, gently comforting him while hastily retreating away.

Several elderly martial arts masters frowned and whispered among themselves, their words filled with dissatisfaction:

"This is outrageous! The Heroes' Gathering hasn't even officially started, and they've already smashed the main gate like this. If word gets out, won't they become a laughingstock?"

"The Taoist priests of the Quanzhen Sect are acting far too hastily. Any old grudges can be settled privately after the meeting. Why bother fighting in front of the manor where so many heroes have gathered?"

Guo Jing took in the chaos around him, the guests' fear, and the damage to the manor.

Although he did not know the full details of the conflict between Qiu Chuji and the other men and these four men, the current situation was already out of control.

If the two sides are allowed to fight to the death, casualties are inevitable, which will disturb the guests attending the gathering and tarnish the dignity of this heroes' gathering.

Just as he was pondering, Hu Xizu's soft whip swept across with all its might once again.

The remaining red lantern shattered with a crash, sending red paper fluttering like snowflakes. The crowd stirred again, retreating in unison.

Seeing this, Guo Jing no longer hesitated. The true energy between his chest and abdomen slowly sank into his dantian, and the powerful internal energy circulated throughout his body.

He raised his head and let out a clear and long howl, the sound deep and resonant, overpowering the clash of weapons and the clamor of the crowd, causing the surrounding air to tremble slightly.

The loud shouts echoed throughout the open space in front of the main gate:

"Gentlemen, please stop!"