a night.”

By now Zhao Min was awake; in a low voice she said, “Perhaps some enemy are coming. Let us hide and see what kind of people they are.” As she was saying that, she grabbed some snow outside the cave and quenched out the fire with it.

By that time the sound of hoof beats ceased, but they heard four people walking on the snow toward the cave. In a short while they have came within a dozen ‘zhang’s away [1 zhang is approximately 10 ft or 3.3 meters] from the cave mouth.

In a low voice Zhang Wuji said, “These four people’s movement is very agile, they must be very high skilled martial art masters.” If they went out to cave to seek hiding place, they would definitely be detected by these four people. Without argument Zhao Min pulled his hand to enter further into the cave.

The deeper they went, the narrower the cave became, but surprisingly the cave was very deep. About a ‘zhang’ later there was a bend on the passageway. Suddenly they heard one of the people outside say, “There is a cave here.”

The voice sounded very familiar to Zhang Wuji, since it belonged to his Si Shishu [fourth martial (younger) uncle] Zhang Songxi. While he was pleasantly surprised, the other man said, “The hoof prints and footprints are indeed heading towards this cave.” It was Yin Liting.

Zhang Wuji was about to call when Zhao Min reached out to cover his mouth. She whispered in his ear, “It would be very awkward if they saw you and I in this cave together.”

Zhang Wuji realized she was right; Zhao Min and he did not do anything shameful, but if the various martial uncles saw a young man and young woman pair sleeping together in a cave, how could they explain? Moreover, Zhao Min was a Mongolian princess who had held Zhang Songxi, Yin Liting, and the others captive at the Wan An Temple, where they were disgraced. It would be extremely awkward if the enemies meet here. He thought, “I’ll wait until Zhang Sishu [fourth (younger) uncle Zhang, Yin Liushu [sixth (younger) uncle Yin] and the others leave the cave, and then I’ll appear alone and meet them; and thus avoiding this awkward situation.”

He heard Yu Lianzhou’s voice saying, “Uh! There is a remnant of some firewood in here. Hmm, and some blood-soaked roebuck skin too.”

Another voice responded, “My heart has always been disturbed. I hope nothing bad happened to Qidi [seventh (younger) brother].” It was Song Yuanqiao’s voice.

Learning that his four martial uncles, Song, Yu, Zhang and Yin, were going out at together to find Mo Shenggu, and hearing from the tone of their voices, Zhang Wuji deduced that his Qi Shishu [seventh martial (younger) uncle] must have met some powerful enemy; he was somewhat anxious.

He heard Zhang Songxi laugh and say, “Da Shige [first martial (older) brother] always takes a good care of Qidi, just like when he was the inexperienced, teenage martial brother; while in fact, for the past few years Mo Qixia [seventh hero Mo] has earned an awe-inspiring fame for his fighting prowess. He has early on surpassed his own former prestige. Even if he met a powerful enemy, Qidi alone would not necessarily be unable to deal with it.”

Yin Liting said, “I do not worry over Qidi as much as I worry over that child Wuji. His whereabouts is unknown. Currently, he is the Ming Cult Jiaozhu. A tall tree invites strong wind. A lot of people want to deal with him. Although his martial art skill is high, he is too naïve, he does not understand the sinister crisis of the Jianghu. I am afraid he might fall into some villain’s wicked scheme.”

Zhang Wuji was touched, thinking that his martial uncles’ kindness to him was very deep; they kept thinking about his safety all the times. Zhao Min put her mouth on his ear and whispered, “I am a villain and at this moment you have fallen into my wicked scheme. Do you know it?”

He heard Song Yuanqiao say, “Qidi is heading north to look for Wuji. Apparently, he has picked up some scents on his whereabouts. Only, the eight-character message he left in a hurry in that Tianjin’s inn is confusing.”

Zhang Songxi said, “’A change in our Sect, needs to be taken care of urgently’. [men2 hu4 you3 bian4, ji2 xu1 qing1 li3 – eight characters] Could it be that there is a scum in our community? Could it be that that child Wuji …” Speaking to this point, he suddenly stopped. His voice was filled with deep anxiety.

Yin Liting said, “This child Wuji is not the kind who would corrupt his own Sect, I am sure of that.”

“I am afraid that little witch Zhao Min is too treacherous for him,” Zhang Songxi said, “Wuji is still too young and hot-blooded; he might be seduced by a pretty face like his father, who in the end brought ruin and shame upon himself …”

Four men no longer talked; they all sighed deeply. A moment later, Zhang Wuji heard the sound of flint as they lighted the wood to build a fire and cook their meals.

The fire light reached the back of the cave. Although they were hidden behind the bend, Zhang Wuji was still able to see Zhao Min’s face vaguely. Her expression showed resentment and anger; he thought Zhang Songxi’s words earlier must have angered her very much. Zhang Wuji understood her resentment, yet he was also startled, “What Zhang Sishu said is reasonable. My mother did not do anything evil, yet my father was implicated by her actions. This Miss Zhao has killed my Biaomei, disgraced my Tai Shifu [grand master] and my numerous martial uncles. But how can she be compared to my Mama?” Thinking to this point, his heart was thumping madly, he thought, “If they find out Miss Zhao and I are in here, the entire water of the Yellow River would not wash me clean.”

He heard Song Yuanqiao speak with a trembling voice, “Sidi [fourth brother], there is suspicion in my heart, but I feel uncomfortable to say it out loud. I am afraid I am offending our own deceased Wudi [fifth (younger) brother].”

Zhang Songxi slowly said, “Is Dage [first brother] afraid that Wuji might suddenly harm Qidi?”

Song Yuanqiao did not answer, but although Zhang Wuji could not see him, he thought that Song Yuanqiao must have nodded his head slowly.

He heard Zhang Songxi continue, “This child Wuji is honest and generous. Reasonably speaking, that is very unlikely. I only worry that Qidi is hot-tempered and acts rudely. He might force Wuji and put him into a difficult position. Add to the fact that little witch Zhao Min is very crafty, she might incite those two against each other. If that happens, then … then … Ay, a man’s heart is unfathomable, the matters of this world are difficult to predict. Till from the ancient times, it is difficult for a hero to resist a beautiful face. I only hope Wuji will be able to control his emotions well when facing important matters.”

“Dage, Sige,” Yin Liting said, “You are talking empty talk, isn’t that a groundless fear? [lit. 杞人忧天 – the man of Qi fears the sky falling] Qidi might not necessarily face a grave danger.”

“But after seeing the sword Qidi used to carry, I cannot help but feel fearful and apprehensive; I can’t eat and sleep in peace,” Song Yuanqiao said.

“This matter is very unclear,” Yu Lianzhou said, “For people like us, martial arts practitioners, we can’t casually leave our weapon anywhere. Let alone this sword was given by Shifu. The sword exists the person exists, the sword perished, the person …” Speaking to this word ‘person’, he suddenly stopped; he could not endure to say the word ‘perishes’.

Hearing that Mo Shenggu abandoned the sword given by his master and that his four martial uncles suspected he had something to do with it, Zhang Wuji was very concerned, but he was also angry.

A moment later, he faintly smelled a whiff of aroma coming from inside the cave, mixed with the smell of wild beast. Apparently, the cave was very deep and either at that moment there was a wild beast hiding inside, or the cave was actually some wild beasts’ den. He was afraid that Song Yuanqiao and the others might also smell the aroma and investigate and then he would be found out. Without daring to open his mouth, he pulled Zhao Min’s hand, quietly taking her deeper into the cave. He stretched out his left hand forward to guard against bumping into some protruding rocks.

They only walked for three steps when they rounded another turn. Suddenly Zhang Wuji’s left hand bumped into something soft and smooth; it felt like a human body. He was shocked, as if a lightning stroke him, “It doesn’t matter whether this person is a friend or foe, as soon as he makes the slightest noise, Da Shibo [first martial (older) uncle] and the others will know we are here.”

Immediately his left hand moved downward to press the five vital acupoints on that person’s chest and abdomen, followed by a grab towards that person’s wrist. To his surprise, Zhang Wuji felt as if he was touching an ice-cold object. It turned out that person had given up his breath for a long time. Under the very dim light from outside, he focused his eyes to look at that man’s face and vaguely recognized this lifeless body as his Qi Shishu [seventh martial uncle] Mo Shenggu. In his shock, without thinking whether Song Yuanqiao and the others might hear him, he carried the corpse several steps toward the mouth of the cave. Under the brighter fire light, he could see clearly that it was indeed Mo Shenggu. He saw that Mo Shenggu’s face was bloodless and his eyes had not been closed yet, as if he was afraid of what he saw before death. Zhang Wuji was shocked and grieved, and stared blankly for a moment.

As he was walking, Song Yuanqiao and the others heard the noise. “There is someone inside!” Yu Lianzhou shouted. Cold rays flashed as the Four Heroes of Wudang unsheathed their swords at the same instant.

Zhang Wuji groaned inwardly. “I am carrying Mo Qishu’s [seventh uncle Mo] body while hiding in here. I cannot escape the accusation of being his murderer in any way.” Recalling how Mo Shenggu had always treated him lovingly, and now he had lost his life in such a miserable state, Zhang Wuji’s mind was extremely sorrowful. Within that short period of time, 1,100 thoughts flashed in his mind; he actually did not give any thought on how he was going to defend himself against Song Yuanqiao and the others.

Zhao Min was able to think a lot quicker than Zhang Wuji; brandishing her sword she dashed out toward the exit. ‘Swish, swish, swish, swish!’ four times, she executed Emei Pai’s staking-it-all sword stances toward the Four Heroes of Wudang. While the Four Heroes raised their swords to parry, Zhao Min had already broken through the cave entrance, and leaped on one of the horses the Four Heroes rode. As Song Yuanqiao’s sword arrived, she blocked it backhandedly while giving the horse’s stomach a good kick. The horse neighed in pain and galloped away.

While Zhao Min was still basking in her successful attempt to escape, suddenly she felt so much pain on her back that she saw stars and was not able to breathe, as Yu Lianzhou flew and struck his palm down. She heard the Four Heroes of Wudang utilizing their qing-gong [lightness kungfu] to pursue. She thought, “If I can escape farther, he’ll have time to get away from the cave. Otherwise, how can we wash away this undeserving injustice? Luckily all these four people are pursuing me, they do not think that there is someone else in the cave.” Yet she felt the pain on her chest was unbearable. Stretching the sword behind, she pricked the horse’ butt; the horse let out a long neigh and ran even faster.

At first Zhang Wuji was startled to see Zhao Min break through, and then he realized she was luring the tiger out of the mountain to give him a chance to escape. Thereupon he hurriedly went out the cave carrying Mo Shenggu’s body. He heard Zhao Min and the Four Heroes of Wudang were heading east; thus he ran to the west.

After running for about two ‘li’s, he hid the body behind a large rock, before returning to the main road, and then jumped to the top of a big tree. His heart was still beating madly even after a long time. He thought about Mo Shenggu’s tragic death and could not restrain his tears from flowing down his cheeks.

“Our Wudang Pai has never experienced a disaster like this,” he thought, “I wonder who might have killed Qi Shishu? The ribs on his back are broken, obviously he was killed by a palm strength.”

About an hour later, he heard three horses coming from the east. By the light reflected from the snow, he could see Song Yuanqiao and Yu Lianzhou each riding a horse, while Yin Liting and Zhang Songxi shared a mount. He heard Yu Lianzhou said, “This witch has eaten my palm. Both the rider and the horse fell into a ravine, I don’t think they are going to live.”

“Only today can we pay back the disgrace of the imprisonment at the Wan An Temple,” Zhang Songxi said, “To think that she was unexpectedly hiding in that cave, human affairs are like a fantasy, totally beyond anybody’s guess.”

“Sige [fourth brother],” Yin Liting said, “What do you think she was doing, sneakily being alone in that cave?”

“That is hard to guess,” Zhang Songxi said, “Killing that witch is nothing; we will be really happy if we can find Qidi.”

Four people went farther and farther away, until their voices could not be heard anymore. Zhang Wuji waited until Song Yuanqiao and the others went far before he hastily jumped down the tree and rushed to the east, following the horse hoof prints on the snow. All along, his anxiety was unbearable, he thought, “Although she is crafty, this time she was risking her life to save me. If because of this she met her fate, I … I …” He ran faster and faster that in a short moment he had covered four, five ‘li’s until he finally reached the edge of a cliff.

He saw blotches of dark red blood on the snowy ground, with random footprints all around him. There was a large indentation, where a large rock was perched by the edge of the cliff. It seemed like when she reached this place, in her confusion Zhao Min could not see the way, and thus both she and her horse had fallen together into the ravine below.

“Miss Zhao, Miss Zhao!” Zhang Wuji called out. He repeated his call four, five times, but there was no answer. He was even more anxious. Looking down from the edge of the cliff, he saw a deep ravine, but in the dark of the night, he could not see the bottom. The cliff wall was very steep; there was no place for him to set his feet on.

Taking a deep breath, he stepped over the edge with his face against the cliff wall, and then slid down. After sliding about three, four ‘zhang’s, he slipped even faster. Immediately he exerted his strength on his ten fingers, trying to grab the snowy cliff wall, and thus he manages to slow down before coasting down again.

By doing this five, six times, finally he reached the bottom of the ravine. He felt his feet were landing on a soft object. Hastily he leaped sideways. Turned out he was stepping on the horse’s belly. He saw Zhao Min was still seated on the saddle, with her hands tightly grabbed the horse’s neck. Zhang Wuji reached out to feel her breath, and to his relief he felt a slight breathing, but she was unconscious.

The bottom of the ravine was dark, the winter snow had not yet melted, and the accumulation of snow actually reached his waist. He presumed since Zhao Min was seated on the saddle, the horse took the full brunt of the falling momentum and died from the impact, but Zhao Min’s live was saved, she only fainted. Zhang Wuji checked her pulse and found out that although she was heavily injured, her life was not in danger. Thereupon he embraced her in his bosom with their four palms holding each other, and he transmitted his internal energy to treat her internal injury.

Since the injury Zhao Min received was from his own Wudang Sect, treating it was not too difficult. In less than an hour she slowly squirmed and regained her consciousness. Zhang Wuji kept sending out the Jiu Yang energy steadily into her system.

In more than an hour later, the sky gradually brightened. ‘Wah!’ Zhao Min vomited a mouthful of blood. “Are they gone?” she said in a weak voice, “Did they see you?”

Zhang Wuji was very appreciative and grateful that her main concern was whether he could escape the undeserved accusation. “They did not see me,” he said, “You … you have suffered a lot.” His mouth was speaking, but the stream of energy flowing out did not stop.

Zhao Min closed her eyes. Although her limbs were void of any strength, her chest and abdomen felt very warm and comfortable. After the Jiu Yang energy circled her system several times, she turned her head and smiled. “Take a rest, I feel much better,” she said.

Zhang Wuji’a arms encircled her waist and pressed his right cheek to her left cheek. “You have saved my reputation,” he said, “That is more important than saving my life ten times.”

Zhao Min giggled and said, “I am a treacherous, evil little witch. To me, reputation is nothing; life is more important.”

Right at that moment, they suddenly heard an angry voice from above the cliff, loud and clear, “Damn witch! So you have not died yet. How did you kill Mo Qixia [seventh hero Mo]? Quickly admit it!” It was Yu Lianzhou’s voice.

Zhang Wuji was very shocked; he did not expect his four martial uncles would return. Zhao Min said, “Turn your head around, don’t let them see your face.”

“Thief witch!” Zhang Songxi shouted, “If you don’t answer, we’ll smash you with big rocks!”

Zhao Min looked up and saw Song Yuanqiao and the others, four people, were all holding a big rock in their hands. They only need ready to throw the rocks down, and Zhang Wuji’s and her own lives would be difficult to protect. She whispered into Zhang Wuji’s ear, “Tear off your leather coat, cover your face, and carry me out of here.”

Following her instruction, Zhang Wuji tore off a piece of his leather coat and covered his face by tying a knot behind his head; he also pushed down his fur hat on his forehead, until only his pair of eyes was exposed.

The Four Heroes of Wudang had been successful in chasing Zhao Min and forcing her to fall into the ravine, but these four men were veterans of the Jianghu; they were vastly experienced and well-informed. They knew with her honorable position as a princess, she would not wander alone without any bodyguard. Four people pretended they went far away on horsebacks, but after several ‘li’s, they tied the horses on a tree by the roadside, and then quietly came back. They returned to the cave first and lighted some torches to explore the inside. They saw the carcasses of two ‘fragrant deer’ [香獐, xiang1 zhang1 – I don’t know what kind of animal this is], which were covered with blood after being bitten by some wild beast, the fragrance from their bodies was still lingering in the air. Four people continued exploring around the cave, and finally found Zhang Wuji’s tracks. They followed the tracks and found Mo Shenggu’s body, but saw his hands and feet were badly bitten by some wild animals. The Four Heroes’ grief and indignation was indescribable; Yin Liting broke out in crying.

Wiping the tears from his eyes, Yu Lianzhou said, “This witch Zhao Min’s martial art is not weak, but she could not possibly kill Qidi based on her skill alone. Liu Di [sixth (younger) brother), don’t be too sad. We will look for all the murderers, and kill them one by one to avenge Qidi’s life.”

Zhang Songxi said, “Let us wait in hiding around the cave. Come daybreak, that witch’s subordinates might come here looking for her.” His thought was usually full of wisdom and strategy, Song Yuanqiao and the others had always listened to his counsel; therefore, suppressing their sadness, they looked for large rocks on either side of the cave and went hiding.

When dawn came and they still did not see anybody looking for Zhao Min, the Four Heroes returned to the cliff where Zhao Min fell to take a look. They faintly heard voices from down below, and when they looked down, they saw a man in brocade clothes was holding Zhao Min in his arms; turned out this witch had not died yet. The Four Heroes wanted to find out the cause of Mo Shenggu’s death, hence they did not want to kill these two with the rocks.

This snow covered ravine was shaped like a deep well, with steep cliff all around it. The only way out was a narrow crevice on the northwest corner. Zhang Songxi shouted, “Yuan dogs! Hurry up and climb from that crevice. If you tarry, we’ll throw the rocks down.”

Zhang Wuji realized his Si Shibo [fourth martial (older) uncle] did not recognize him and thought he was a Mongolian, which was not surprising, considering he was wearing a fancy-looking clothes, also because he was with Zhao Min. But looking around, he did not see any place he could hide; if the Four Heroes threw the rocks down, he might be able to jump and escape, but Zhao Min’s life would be difficult to protect. Therefore, his only choice right now was go up and take whatever comes one step at a time. Consequently, he carried Zhao Min and slowly crawled up via the narrow crevice.

He made deliberately made his martial art skill look weak, he would walk several steps, then slipped back down again. It turned out that this narrow crevice was really difficult to climb, he pretended to be even weaker by loudly gasping for breath and looked to be in a very difficult situation. Within an hour he had fallen down seventeen, eighteen times, before he finally reached the level ground.

Initially he was thinking of running away with Zhao Min as soon as they were out of the snowy valley. He thought relying on his qing gong, although he carried one person, the Four Heroes might still not able to catch up with him. But Zhang Songxi was very smart, he had already noticed that the way this man climb up the mountain in a distressed manner was somewhat artificial; he then informed his three martial brothers to spread out on four corners; as soon as Zhang Wuji set his foot on the ground, the tip of four unsheathed swords were less than half a foot from his body.

“Thief Tartar,” Song Yuanqiao hatefully said, “Do you think you can escape alive by covering your face with fur? Who killed Wudang Pai’s Mo Qixia? Quickly tell us! If you lie even for half a word, I am going to cut your Tartar dog’s flesh a thousand slashes, ten thousand pieces; open up your belly and split open your chest.”

Actually, Song Yuanqiao was a calm and composed man, but seeing how Mo Shenggu died in such a wretched way, he could not bear not to use such hateful language; which did not happen too often in the last dozen of years.

Zhao Min sighed and said, “General Yalupuwa, things have come this far, you can just tell them!” And then she whispered in a low voice, “Use the martial art from the Sheng Huo Ling.”

Zhang Wuji did not want to fight his four martial uncles, but looking at their current state, he truly did not have any other way to escape this awkward situation. Thereupon he gritted his teeth and rolled on the ground, while tossing Zhao Min toward Yin Liting. He shouted and grunted in a hoarse voice while leaping to the air, somersaulting, and stretched out his arm to grab Zhang Songxi. Yin Liting caught Zhao Min without any trouble. He hesitated for a moment before sealing her acupoint and put her down to the ground.

In this very short period of time, Zhang Wuji had unleashed the strange martial art from the Sheng Huo Ling; his fist struck Song Yuanqiao, while his leg kicked Yu Lianzhou. At the same time his head hammered toward Zhang Songxi, while his hand reached backward to snatch the sword in Yin Liting’s hand. His movements were as swift as a falcon catching a rabbit, very fast and very strange.

The Four Heroes of Wudang’s martial arts were refined and strong, they could be considered as first class fighters of the Wulin world; but facing these successive seven, eight strange attacks, they were thrown into confusion and were forced to defend themselves with difficulty. On the Lingshe Island, although Zhang Wuji’s martial art skill was high, he could not hold up against the Persian’s Liuyun, three emissaries’ martial art from the Sheng Huo Ling. By this moment, he had already mastered the martial art from all six Sheng Huo Ling tablets; his skill was several levels higher compared to the Liuyun, three emissaries, how could the Four Heroes hold up against him?

Actually, the martial arts contained in the Sheng Huo Ling were not the most profound or even intricate martial art techniques, only, they was very strange and unpredictable. If they were fighting one on one under normal circumstance, it would not be a match for Wudang Pai’s orthodox martial art based on strong inner power. But Zhang Wuji was using the Jiu Yang Shen Gong as his foundation, Qian Kun Da Nuo Yi as the general scheme of his movements, on top of that he possessed a profound knowledge of Wudang Pai’s martial art; stance by stance, form by form, he attacked the weakest point on Four Heroes’ defense.

After about twenty stances or so, the Sheng Huo Ling’s martial art was getting more and more fantastical. Lying down on the snowy ground, Zhao Min called out, “General Yalupuwa, these Han people are always proud of their own ability; they did not know we, the Mongolians, have inherited this divine wrestling technique, let them taste it today!”

“Use Taiji fist technique for self defense!” Zhang Songxi called out, “This Tartar’s fist technique is very strange.” Immediately the four people’s fist technique changed; they all used the Taiji fist technique to create a watertight defense.

Suddenly Zhang Wuji dropped down and sat on the ground, both of his fists fiercely pounding his own chest. During their entire lifetime, the Four Hero of Wudang had fought countless powerful enemies, and they had encountered countless strange stances. Zhang Wuji’s Qian Kun Da Nuo Yi could be regarded as the pinnacle of martial art study, yet not only they had never seen something like this Tartar sitting down on the ground and beating his own chest, they had never heard about it as well.

The Four Heroes were using swords to form a tight defense line with the Taiji Fist technique. This time, with a sudden movement the three swords of Song Yuanqiao, Yu Lianzhou and Zhang Songxi were thrust into Zhang Wuji’s torso. Yin Liting’s sword was snatched by Zhang Wuji earlier, but he had Mo Shenggu’s thin saber on his side, which he pulled out and thrust toward Zhang Wuji. Suddenly Zhang Wuji’s leg swept horizontally, scattering the snow on the ground toward the Four Heroes.

It was one of weird martial art stances recorded on the Sheng Huo Ling, which originated from the Old Man of the Mountain, Hassan-i-Sabah. Before founding his Hashhashin Sect, he used to rob and plunder merchants traveling along the Persian desert. Whenever he saw a caravan from the distant, he would sit on the ground and beat his on chest, while crying out to the Heaven. The passing caravan would then stop to inquire. Hassan would suddenly kick the sand toward their eyes, and immediately his long saber would kill dozens of merchants, spilling their blood on the yellow sand, scattering their corpses on the great desert. It was a truly malicious technique.

This time Zhang Wuji kicked the snow, but the efficiency was the same as if he was kicking sand. The Four Heroes of Wudang suddenly felt snow flying into their faces, rendering them blind for an instant. Four people reacted fast by leaping back immediately, but Zhang Wuji moved even faster; he rolled around and grabbed Yu Lianzhou’s legs. His hand reached out and sealed three major acupoints on his legs. After that he somersaulted and while his body was still mid-air, his right knee knocked the top of Yin Liting’s head, unexpectedly hitting the ‘wu chu’ [lit. five spots] and ‘cheng guang’ [lit. light receiver] acupoints on the top of his head. Yin Liting was dazed and fell to the ground.

Song Yuanqiao flew to the rescue, but Zhang Wuji stepped backward and bumped into his chest. Song Yuanqiao could not use his sword, his left hand withdrew the sword and his right palm struck out, but before his palm reached its target, his chest had already been numbed, as both of Zhang Wuji’s elbows hit his acupoint.

Zhang Songxi was shocked; in a blink of an eye, from four people, he was the only one still standing. He realized he was not this man’s match, but his martial brothers were in distress, he determined not to escape alone. Raising his sword straight up, ‘swish, swish, swish’ he thrust it toward Zhang Wuji three times. Zhang Wuji noticed that although he was facing a difficult situation, his steps were unflustered, the sword stance was not in the least chaotic; these three attacks came swiftly and fiercely, but each stance strictly followed Wudang principle.

Zhang Wuji secretly acclaimed, “If I have not learned this strange martial art, resisting four martial uncles’ converging attack would have been not an easy matter at all.”

Suddenly Zhang Wuji moved his head randomly, swaying back and forth, and making circles. But Zhang Songxi remained unmoved; he was not affected by Zhang Wuji’s attempt to distract his attention. With a ‘chi’ noise his sword was splitting the air, straight toward Zhang Wuji’s chest.

Zhang Wuji lowered his head, aiming his skull toward the tip of the incoming sword. Suddenly he dropped to the ground and pounced forward; all acupoints on Zhang Songxi’s lower abdomen and left leg were sealed and he fell down to the ground. The acupoints Zhang Wuji sealed could disable only the lower part of Zhang Songxi’s limbs; he was about to reach the ‘zhongshu’ [lit. center or hub] acupoint on Zhang Songzi’s back when suddenly Zhang Songxi cried out miserably, his eyes turned white and his upper body convulsed, and then he dropped down stiffly.

Zhang Wuji was scared out of his wits. He thought he did not use too much force in sealing the acupoints just now; certainly it was not a deadly attack, it would not even cause any minor