in a day. Burning Guo Xiang alive was like killing an ant to them. He raised his head and saw that his daughter was thin and pale and was greatly distressed. He shouted, “Xiang’er, you’re a good girl of Great Song, don’t be afraid. If Father and Mother can’t save you today, we’ll kill this bald bastard to avenge you! Understand?” Guo Xiang cried and nodded, saying, “Father, Mother, I’m not afraid!”

Guo Jing said, “This is my good daughter!” He took out a metal bow and shot three arrows simultaneously, hitting three soldiers at the top of the tower and the arrows went right through them. They screamed and fell to the ground. Guo Jing’s archery skills were taught by the legendary Mongolian General Jebe [Zhe-be] and he’d practiced for many years. He was standing out of range of the Mongolian archers yet he managed to hit the 3 men on the tower. The Mongol troops yelled and quickly raised their shields to protect themselves. Guo Jing said, “Let’s go!” He turned the horse around and went back to the city.

They got back up to the city wall. Huang Rong blankly stared at the tower and her heart was beating rapidly.

Yideng said, “Their formation is solid, if we want to save Xiang’er we must first break and destroy the formation of the forty thousand men.”

Huang Yaoshi said, “Exactly.” He thought for a while then said, “Let’s use the “Twenty-eight Star Formation” and battle them.”

Huang Rong hung her head and said, “Even if we win, they will set the tower alight, what do we do then?”

Guo Jing said, “We’ll try our best. Whether Xiang’er lives or dies we’ll leave it to fate. Father-in-law, how do we use the “Twenty-eight Star Formation”?”

Huang Yaoshi laughed, “The formation’s changes are complicated. When I saw the “Big Dipper Formation” of the Quanzhen Sect, I thought deeply and came up with this formation to counter their “Big Dipper Formation”.”

Yideng said, “Old Heretic Huang is a master of the Five Elements so I think this “Twenty-eight Star Formation” must be incredible.”

Huang Yaoshi said, “My formation was originally intended for a fight consisting of only a few dozen Wulin fighters. I never expected to use it in a battle involving thousands of men. But apart from a few changes, it can be used roughly as is. Unfortunately we lost the two eagles.” Yideng said, “Let’s hope for the best.”

Huang Yaoshi said, “If the eagles had not been killed by that bald bastard, we could send them in to rescue Xiang’er by air when the formation is in action. This “Twenty-eight Star Formation” follows the changes of the Five Elements and we need five skilled fighters to head this formation. We already have suitable people for the north, south, east and central. But Zhou Botong is injured so he can’t fill the last position. If only Yang Guo were here. His martial arts are not below Ouyang Feng’s, but where can we find him now? This last position is really giving me a headache.”

Guo Jing looked at the tower then looked far out into the north. His heart flew to the Passionless Valley, and muttered, “I’m worried about Guo’er, I don’t even know if he’s alive.”

On that day Yang Guo was totally heartbroken and thought he would never see Xiao Longnü again and so he jumped down into the gorge, wanting to smash himself up and end it all. However after falling for some time there was a splash and he found himself in a deep lake. He had fallen from a great height and so he sank deeply into the water. Suddenly he noticed a light in front of him which looked like an underwater cave. He wanted to look closely at it but the water’s buoyant pressure was too high and he rose back to the surface. At this time Guo Xiang also fell into the lake.

Yang Guo did not hesitate and immediately dragged Guo Xiang to the surface and pulled her to the bank and asked, “Sister, how did you fall down here?”

Guo Xiang said, “I saw you jump down and so I followed suit.”

Yang Guo shook his head saying, “Nonsense! Are you not afraid of death?”

Guo Xiang laughed, “If you’re not afraid, neither am I.”

Yang Guo’s heart trembled and he thought, “Don’t tell me that at such a young age she already has deep feelings for me?” He shivered slightly.

She then took out the last needle saying, “Brother Yang, on that day when you gave me the three golden needles, you said I could ask for a wish for every needle and you would promise to do it. Today I’m telling you my third wish: Whether or not you get to meet Sister-in-law, you will not commit suicide.” She then placed the needle on his palm.

Yang Guo looked at the needle and said, “You came all the way from Xiangyang just to ask for this?”

Guo Xiang was delighted and said, “Yup. You’re a man of your word. You won’t break your promise to me.”

Yang Guo sighed. He had just gone from life to death, then from death back to life. No matter how strong his will to die, he would not repeatedly attempt suicide. He examined Guo Xiang and saw that she was shivering and her teeth were chattering. Her face was void of colour. He picked some dried leaves and wanted to start a fire but their flints were wet and rendered useless, so he said, “Sister, circulate your internal energy to get rid of the cold so you won’t get a chill.”

Guo Xiang was still worried and asked, “So you promise not to attempt suicide again?” Yang Guo said, “I promise!” Guo Xiang was overjoyed and said, “Let’s circulate our energy together.”

They sat down together and circulated their chi. Yang Guo had practiced his internal energy on the “Chilled Jade Bed” when he was young and did not fear the cold so he placed his palm on Guo Xiang’s back and sent a stream of ‘yang’ chi to her. Before long Guo Xiang felt warm and stopped shivering.

When she was well-rested, Yang Guo asked how she ended up here in the Passionless Valley. Guo Xiang told him. Yang Guo angrily said, “That Fawang is so ruthless, when we get out of here I’m going to beat him to a pulp.” Then they saw a large white eagle crashing down into the lake, appearing to be severely injured. Guo Xiang was surprised and said, “That’s my family’s eagle.” Then another eagle flew down and landed near them after previously retrieving it’s injured mate and Yang Guo placed Guo Xiang on its back. He thought the eagle would be back to pick him up so he waited for some time but it did not show up. Little did he know that the eagle was dead.

Yang Guo looked around and saw a few bee hives on a large tree. The bees were larger than normal and were of the same species that Xiao Longnü reared back at the Ancient Tomb. Yang Guo exclaimed in surprise and stood rooted to the ground. He then went over to examine the hives closely. He saw that they were man-made and the workmanship looked like Xiao Longnü’s doing.

He thought, “Could Long’er have lived here after she jumped down?” He paced around the bank and felt that the gorge was like the bottom of a deep well. The place hardly received any sunlight.

He walked around and found that some of the trees had much of their bark stripped off and then he saw some flowers and stones arranged neatly. He suddenly became happy and worried at the same time. His heart beat rapidly as he felt that Xiao Longnü must have lived here before but after sixteen years he did not know what might have happened to her. He had never believed in divine intervention but now he was consumed with anxiety and knelt down and prayed, “O’ Heaven, please let me meet Long’er again.”

After praying, he looked around again but did not find any more traces of her. He sat under a tree and thought, “Even if Long’er is dead there would surely be some remains left behind, unless they have sunk to the bottom of the lake.” He then remembered the light beneath the lake’s surface and wanted to explore it, so he jumped into the lake.

He shouted, “I must get to the bottom of this. I’ll never give up until I find out what happened to her.” He dived into the lake and it got colder as he went deeper. Soon the water was icy-cold. Yang Guo did not mind the cold but the buoyant pressure was too high and he could not dive any deeper. He was now out of breath so he surfaced and grabbed a large stone and tried again.

This time he sank rapidly and saw the light again. He quickly swam towards it and strangely felt a swift current sweeping him into a cave. He threw the stone aside and found that the cave floor was going upwards. Soon he broke the surface with a splash. He saw brilliant sunlight and the fragrance of flowers filled his nose. It was like another world. He looked around and saw beautiful flowers and bright green grass – it was as if he entered a large garden. However the place was still and quiet and there was no one around. He got out of the water and saw a thatched hut several meters away.

He dashed forwards but slowed down after a few steps and thought, “What if I don’t find out anything here?” His heart sank and feared that his last hope would soon be dashed. He stopped outside the hut and listened carefully but there seemed to be no one inside. He only heard the bees buzzing.

After a while he plucked up his courage and trembled, saying, “I’ve come for a visit. Please pardon my intrusion.” He repeated this but there was still no response. He lightly pushed open the door and it creaked open.

Stepping in, he looked around and was stunned. The furniture was simple but the house was sparkling clean. There was only a table and chair but its arrangement was very familiar, exactly the same as the arrangement in the Ancient Tomb. He did not examine the place and naturally turned left and he saw a small room. After passing the small room, he found himself looking into a bigger room. In the room the bed, table and chair also had exactly the same arrangement as in the Ancient Tomb. The only difference was that the furniture in the Ancient Tomb was made of stone while the furniture here is made of wood.

On the left was a bed which looked like the “Cold Jade Bed” he’d practiced his Internal Strength on. In the middle, a long rope was suspended through the room like the one he used to practice his Qing Gong (Lightness Skill). Near the window was a small stool which was like the one where he learned to read and write. On the left was a rough wooden cabinet; when he opened it he saw children’s clothes made of tree bark which was exactly of the same design Xiao Longnü made for him years ago. He walked into the room and touched the bed. The tears had already welled up in his eyes but now he could not hold them back and the tears rolled down his cheeks and fell onto the bed.

Suddenly he felt a smooth hand lightly stroking his hair, gently asking, “Guo’er, what’s making you unhappy?”

The tone and the manner his hair was stroked was similar to how Xiao Longnü cajoled him when he was young. Yang Guo jerked around and saw a fair and extremely beautiful girl standing gracefully in front of him. She looked exactly the same as the Xiao Longnü he thought of daily and missed terribly for the past sixteen years.

The two of them stared at each other then exclaimed “Ah!” and embraced each other tightly. It seemed so real yet it seemed like a dream.

After a long while Yang Guo finally broke the silence. He said, “Long’er, you’ve not changed a single bit. But I have aged.” Xiao Longnü stared at him and said, “No, it’s just that my Guo’er has grown up.”

Xiao Longnü was slightly older than Yang Guo by a few years but she lived in the Ancient Tomb since young and learned internal strength techniques from her master, which required her to purge her emotions. Yang Guo however more readily expressed his emotions, so at their wedding the two already looked about the same age.

The “Jade Maiden Skill’s” cultivating techniques from the Ancient Tomb sect concentrates on the essential rules of the “Twelve Nothingness and Twelve Plentifulness” which support each other. The ‘Twelve Nothingness’ refers to the restrictions regarding thought, love, desires, matters, words, laughter, worries, fun, happiness, anger, good and evil. The ‘Twelve Nothingness’ will inevitably become part of one’s life. The ‘Twelve Plentifulness’ states: that if one thinks too much, the concentration will be disrupted. If one loves too much, the energy will break down. If one desires too much, one will lose one’s knowledge. If one has too many matters at hand, one will look weary in appearance. If one talks too much, it will affect one’s breathing. If one laughs too much, one will strain one’s organs. If one worries too much, it will affect one’s nerves. If one plays too much, it will affect one’s ideas. If one is too happy, it will result in complacency and trouble. If one is too angry, it will affect one’s pulse. If one experiences too much good, one will despair. If one experiences too much evil, one will invite chaos. If one does not rid the ‘Twelve Plentifulness’, one would not reach enlightenment.

Xiao Longnü had practiced this skill since young and had no happiness or worries, so she was even more emotionless than the founder Lin Chaoying. Once Yang Guo entered the Ancient Tomb things changed and as they got closer she found it harder to follow the ‘less speech’, ‘less action’, ‘less happiness’ and ‘less worries’ rules. After their marriage they were separated for sixteen years. Yang Guo traveled around and roamed Jianghu and missed her terribly. Xiao Longnü, on the other hand, was forced to live in this deserted valley and could not totally avoid thinking of him. She found herself practicing these principles again to combat her boredom. When they finally met again it appeared as though Yang Guo was older than her.

Xiao Longnü had not spoken for the past sixteen years and now when she started speaking again she was not very fluent. So they did not speak and just stared at each other smiling. Yang Guo could not contain his excitement any longer and took her hand and ran out of the hut, saying, “Long’er, I’m extremely happy.” He jumped up into a big tree and somersaulted several times.

In his excitement he forgot everything and somersaulted just like he did when he was young in the Ancient Tomb. He never thought about this before and never expected to do something like this as a middle-aged man. The only difference was that his qing gong (lightness skill) was excellent and he could somersault effortlessly. Xiao Longnü laughed heartily and cast all the ‘less laughter’ and ‘less happiness’ into the wind.

Xiao Longnü took out a handkerchief. Yang Guo finished somersaulting and walked to her grinning. Xiao Longnü would always wipe his sweat with a handkerchief; but now his face was not flushed and he was not breathless, of course he was not sweating. But she wiped his forehead all the same.

Yang Guo took the handkerchief and saw that it was made of tree bark and was rather rough and thought she’d had an uncomfortable life here and was very regretful. He stroked her hair gently and said, “Long’er, you have suffered much these past sixteen years.”

Xiao Longnü sighed and said, “If I hadn’t grown up in the Ancient Tomb, the past sixteen years would not have been easy for me.”

They sat shoulder to shoulder beside a stone and talked about past events. Yang Guo asked her every single detail. As Xiao Longnü talked for a while, her speech became more fluent; then she slowly narrated her story of the past sixteen years.

That day when Yang Guo threw the half-pill down in the gorge Xiao Longnü knew he did not want to be left alone since her condition was supposedly fatal. That night she thought carefully and decided to die first and kill off his thoughts of suicide so that he would neutralize the “Passionless Poison”. She was afraid that if she left traces of her suicide it would only hasten his suicide. She thought for half a night and then she finally went to the Broken Heart Cliff and carved the words. She purposely made a sixteen-year long appointment and then she jumped into the gorge. At that time she thought that if Yang Guo’s life could be saved, after sixteen years he would have forgotten her and dispelled his thoughts of suicide.

When she said this, Yang Guo sighed, saying, “Why did you think of sixteen years? If you said eight years wouldn’t we have been reunited eight years ago?”

Xiao Longnü said, “I’m aware of your deep feelings for me and eight years would be too short to ease your feelings. Ah, I didn’t expect that even after sixteen years you would still jump down.”

Yang Guo laughed, “That’s the advantage of having such profound feelings. If I got over you and only cried at the Broken Heart Cliff then went off, I would never see you again.”

Xiao Longnü said, “This is fate.” Both of them came back from death to life and were finally reunited, so they were very thankful for their good fortune.

They felt sad for a while. Yang Guo then asked, “Then what happened after you jumped down?”

Xiao Longnü said, “I was swept unconscious into the cave and carried to this place, so I lived here. This place is devoid of animals but there were plenty of fish in the lake and fruits on the trees but there was no cloth so I had to use tree bark to make clothes.”

Yang Guo said, “When you were struck by the “Soul Freezing Needles” and the poison entered your major accupoints, your condition was near-fatal. How did you get well down here?” Yang Guo looked carefully at her and saw her snow-white face had no traces of blood and the black cloud between her eyes had disappeared.

Xiao Longnü said, “After I lived here for several days the poison took effect and my whole body was on fire and I almost could not take it, but I remembered that on our wedding night you taught me how to reverse my chi flow on the “Chilled Jade Bed”. It couldn’t neutralize the poison but could relieve the symptoms. The water here is icy cold and the chill could penetrate the bones, so I got back into the water and stayed for a while and found that the effects were amazing. Thereafter I often went to the lake’s bank and looked up, hoping to get some news from you. One day a few Jade Bees flew down to the lake. They were left behind by the Old Urchin (Zhou Botong). I treated them like friends and built a few nests for them. Soon they multiplied. I consumed the Jade Bees’ honey and the white fish in the lake and found my discomfort decreasing. So the Jade Bees’ honey and the white fish have anti-poison properties and when consumed as food would increase the time interval between the poison’s reactions. At first it reacted twice a day, then once every few days, then once every few months, then for the past five or six years it never reacted again, so I guess I’m cured now.”

Yang Guo happily said, “So good will be rewarded with good. That year if you hadn’t given the Jade Bees to the Old Urchin he wouldn’t have brought them here and you wouldn’t have been saved.”

Xiao Longnü said, “When I got better, I missed you but the cliff walls were several hundred meters high and were straight and sheer, how could I get up? So I used the thorns on the flowers and tattooed the words ‘I’m at the bottom of Passionless Valley’ on the bees’ wings. I tattooed several thousand bees but I got no response so I feared that I would never see you again.”

Yang Guo slapped his leg and said, “I’m too careless. Every time I came to the Passionless Valley I always saw the bees but I never caught one to examine it or I could have kept you from a few years of misery.”

Xiao Longnü laughed, “This is just a plan I used because I couldn’t think of anything else. Actually who would think a bee would have words on its wings? The words are also so small; even if a hundred of them flew past your eyes you wouldn’t notice the words. I was just hoping that a bee might get trapped in a spider’s web and then you would see the words. When you saw them you would remember our relationship and rescue me.” What she did not know was that the words were discovered by Zhou Botong, who did nothing, and the meaning was deciphered by Huang Rong when she saw them.

They chatted for half a day and Xiao Longnü went back into the hut to grill a big fish. The lake’s water was very cold and the white fish were smallish but tasty and filling. Yang Guo ate the fish and felt some warmth in his stomach, making it very comfortable. He then told her what he did for the past sixteen years. He roamed Jianghu and did many heroic deeds so his life was more action-packed than Xiao Longnü’s who lived in the lonely valley. Xiao Longnü never bothered about all the action and was contented with just looking at Yang Guo. So she smiled and listened to his exciting adventures and forgot everything he said soon after. Yang Guo however was very inquisitive and asked everything, including how she caught the fish and built the hut and showed great interest in every detail, making it seem like the small valley was actually more interesting than the whole world. The two of them talked throughout the night and into the next morning before sleeping. They woke up in the afternoon and Yang Guo said, “Long’er, should we stay here until we’re old or should we go back to the wonderful world?”

Xiao Longnü would have preferred to live here peacefully with Yang Guo but she knew he liked noise and excitement. Although she loved him deeply she was reluctant to leave this place so she said, “Let’s go up and take a look, if things are bad out there we can always come back, but… but it’d be difficult to get up.”

They dived back into the lake, through the cave and went back to the bank. They saw a long rope going all the way up and many random footprints by the bank. There was even a makeshift fireplace which had not died out. Yang Guo said, “Ah, some people came to look for us but couldn’t get past the lake.” He walked around and saw some words carved on a large tree which said, “Yideng, Yaoshi, Botong, Yinggu, Rong, Ying and Wushuang couldn’t find Yang Guo so we went back.”

Yang Guo was touched and said, “They’ve not forgotten me.” Xiao Longnü said, “No one would forget you.” Yang Guo said, “Although they came here, they did not fall into the lake with great speed and hence couldn’t go deep enough to see the underwater cave. If I also came down with a rope, I wouldn’t have been able to find you either.” Xiao Longnü said, “I already said all this coincidence is due to fate.” Yang Guo shook his head and laughed, “This is called ‘With sincerity, one can cut rocks or gold’.”

He tugged the rope to test it and it felt firmly attached, so he said, “Let me go up first to see if that Fawang is still there.” But he remembered that Reverend Yideng, Island Master Huang and Zhou Botong were all present so Fawang must be miles away by now. Then he asked, “Do you still have any martial skills? If you can’t climb, I can carry you up.” Xiao Longnü smiled, “Although I didn’t improve even slightly for the past sixteen years, I still retain much of my old skills.” Yang Guo laughed. He grabbed the rope and jumped, moving several meters a second. Xiao Longnü followed suit and they got out in no time.

They stood side-by-side at the Broken Heart Cliff and looked at the words carved into the rock face by Xiao Longnü years ago; it seemed like a lifetime ago to them. They looked at each other and giggled with joy and forgot all their troubles of sixteen years ago.

Yang Guo plucked a Dragon Girl Flower and placed it in her hair and the color contrasted with her face beautifully. He could not decide if the flower added vibrancy to her or she added beauty to the flower.

Huang Yaoshi was explaining the “Twenty-eight Star Formation” at the top of Xiangyang’s city wall for the battle with Fawang. Guo Jing found Lu Wenhuan and requested him to give the order for Huang Yaoshi to take command of the soldiers. At this time many of the heroes who attended the ‘Heroes’ Meet had already left, but there were still many able people in the city.

Huang Yaoshi said, “The Mongolians are using 40,000 soldiers to surround the tower. If we use more soldiers to defeat them it wouldn’t require much skill. So we’ll also use forty thousand soldiers. In Sun Zi’s Art of War, using surrounding the enemy when you outnumber him ten to one is no big deal, but it needs some skill to surround the enemy one on one.” He stood on the command post and said, “This “Twenty-eight Star Formation” follows the Five Elements.” He waved the command flag and briefed them. Then he said, “The changes are complex and you can’t be familiar with this in a single day. So for this battle we must appoint five skilled martial arts experts familiar with the Five Elements to command the five divisions. Everyone is to obey their commands to carry out the formation.” They all waited eagerly.

Huang Yaoshi said, “The central division represents Earth and it shall be commanded by Guo Jing with eight thousand troops. Its mission is to rescue Guo Xiang and not to battle the enemy. All the soldiers are to carry a bag of sand on their backs to put out the fire if necessary.” Guo Jing received the order and stood aside.

Huang Yaoshi continued, “The south division represents Fire and it shall be commanded by Reverend Yideng with eight thousand troops. One thousand men will escort the commander and the other seven thousand will be split into 7 battalions commanded by Zhu Ziliu, Wu Santong, The Fisherman, the Wu brothers, Yelu Yan and Wanyan Ping.” Reverend Yideng accepted the command.

Huang Yaoshi continued, “The north division represents Water and it shall be commanded by Huang Rong with eight thousand troops. One thousand men will escort the commander and the other seven thousand will be split into seven battalions commanded by Yelu Qi, Elder Liang, Guo Fu and other senior Beggar Clan members.” Huang Rong accepted the command. This division was made up mainly of Beggar Clan members and all were tried and valiant veterans.

Huang Yaoshi then said, “The east division represents Wood and it shall be commanded by me, Old Heretic Huang, and there shall also be eight thousand men under me. All my disciples are dead with the exception of Cheng Ying and Sha Gu, but they are not present.” So he appointed six heroes who had attended the ‘Heroes’ Meet to command the battalions in his division. He said, “The east division shall also be divided into eight battalions of one thousand men each and 1 battalion will escort me.”

Finally he appointed the west division’s commander, saying, “This division shall be commanded by Quanzhen Sect Leader Li Zhichang…” As he said this, everyone felt that in terms of martial arts, this division’s commander had the weakest martial arts among the five divisions. Suddenly someone shouted, “Old Heretic Huang, how could you ignore me?” Everyone turned around and saw Zhou Botong. Huang Yaoshi said, “Brother Zhou, you’re injured, you shouldn’t exert yourself, I originally wanted to appoint you to this position but…”

Zhou Botong said, “It’s such a minor injury; it’s not important. I’ll take it. Zhi Chang, you dare to vie with me?” Li Zhichang bowed and said, “I do not.” Zhou Botong laughed, “Good, I knew you wouldn’t dare.” He then took the command token from Li Zhichang. Huang Yaoshi just said, “Brother Zhou, be careful. You shall take eight thousand troops and one thousand of them shall be under Yinggu to escort you. The other seven battalions shall be commanded by Li Zhichang and other third Generation Quanzhen disciples. Your division represents Metal.”

After appointing the commanders he ordered the sergeant-major to prepare the weapons and equipment. He then waved his command flag and the forty thousand men got into formation. He shouted, “Legend has it that “Twenty-eight Celestial Generals” subdued the Demons long, long ago. Although we are not some Heavenly Army, we shall repel the invaders and protect our land from the Mongolians or we shall die trying!” Everyone cheered like thunder and the five divisions left the city in all directions.

The west division marched out and each soldier carried a wooden pole on his back and they attacked the tower. One thousand of them carried shields and warded off the arrows while the remaining seven thousand threw down their poles and quickly built a structure which followed Huang Yaoshi’s diagram based on the Five Elements and Eight Trigrams. Soon they blockaded off the eastern side of the tower.

The west division was made up mainly of Quanzhen disciples and they were familiar with the Dipper Formation, so their swords flashed like lightning and they formed groups of seven and platoons of forty-nine darting left and right, causing the Mongolians to see blurry images and could only fend them off with arrows.

The north division roared in and Huang Rong, together with the Beggars’ Clan members, brought hoses with them and they sprayed poison onto the Mongol troops. The poison caused severe pain and corroded the skin. The Mongols could not take it and retreated south.

The south division appeared through a great cloud of smoke and the 8,000 troops led by Yideng attacked with fire. The soldiers had some sort of fire thrower which spewed out flames at the enemy soldiers. The Mongol troops saw that things were really going wrong and were pushed towards the centre. Guo Jing and his eight thousand troops moved forward gradually and when they saw the Mongol soldiers thrown into confusion, they charged straight to the tower.

Suddenly an alarm was sounded and many heads popped up from the ground. The Mongols were also well-versed in warfare and they also placed more than ten thousand troops in ambush. Guo Jing saw this and knew it was a trap. The Mongol troops were already in chaos under the onslaught of the “Twenty-eight Star Formation” and the Song troops were about to reach their objective; but now they could not advance.

The drums rolled like the rumbling thunder and the Song troops were engaged in a bitter fight with the Mongol troops. The soldiers protecting the tower were some of the best archers and their arrows descended like rai