(Hiss of the Tiger, Moan of the Dragon)

Within the warm pavilion of the South-Subduing Palace, the Marquis of Virtuous Enlightenment Gao Shengtai, returned and reported that Zhong Wanchou, his wife, and Qin Hongmian had departed the palace grounds. The South-Subduing Princess Dao Baifeng, concerned about her son, said, “Emperor, do you know the location of the so-called Ten Thousand Calamities Gorge?” Duan Zhengming, also known as the Emperor Baoding, replied, “Today isn’t the first time that I’ve heard of this place. But up until now, it has had no interactions with Dali”.

Dao Baifeng worriedly said, “From what Zhong Wanchou said, it seems this place is very remote and hidden. I’m worried we might not be able to find it. If Yu’er remains in enemy hands for too long…” Emperor Baoding let out a small smile. “Yu’er has been sheltered all his life. He doesn’t understand how dangerous and sinister the world can be. For him to undergo some hardships and gain some endurance and experience may not necessarily be an altogether bad thing.” Dao Baifeng’s mind was filled with anxiety, but she did not dare rebut him.

Emperor Baoding said to Duan Zhengchun, “Little brother Chun, could I trouble you to have some wine and dishes brought out?” Duan Zhengchun said, “Yes!” He sent the orders, and in a short amount of time an entire banquet was prepared with all sorts of exotic delicacies. Emperor Baoding ordered everyone present to partake of the banquet, feasting and drinking.

Dali was a small, rustic nation of the south where hundreds of minorities lived. The Han people were not necessarily in the majority. The South-Subduing Princess, Dao Baifeng, was herself of the Baiyi tribe. The people of the country accepted the teachings of the central plains as profound, but even the daily rituals of the imperial court were much more casual and simpler than that of the far away Song dynasty. In addition, Emperor Baoding had a very compassionate, gentle character. Aside from when he was visiting monasteries or temples, he never liked to stand on ceremony. Thus Duan Zhengchun, his wife, and Gao Shengtai sat next to him at the head of the table and kept him company.

While eating and drinking, Emperor Baoding refused to bring up the previous matter. Dao Baifeng’s eyebrows were tightly knit with worry. To her, the food had no taste at all. At dawnbreak, the guards outside said, “Minister Ba has come to pay his respects to the Emperor.” Duan Zhengming said, “Enter!” The curtain screen was parted, and a short, skinny black man entered. He knelt before Emperor Baoding and said, “Reporting to your majesty, to arrive at the Ten Thousand Calamities Gorge, one must first pass the ‘Benevolent Man’s Crossing’, then go through the ‘Iron Rope Bridge’. To enter the gorge itself, one needs to pass through a hole in a gigantic tree.”

Dao Baifeng clapped her hands and laughed. “If I had known that Minister Ba had been sent out, why would I possibly have worried about being unable to locate the enemy’s lair? I wouldn’t have had to be worried for so long either!” That black man bowed slightly and said, “Princess, you flatter me. Ba Tianshi is embarassed and not deserving of such praise.”

Although the skinny black man, Ba Tianshi, had a rustic appearance, he was an extremely intelligent and capable person. He had gained great merit from accomplishing many tasks for Emperor Baoding. Presently, his position was that of the ‘Sikong’, Minister of Soil and Water. The three ministerial positions of ‘Situ’, Minister of Education, ‘Sima’, Minister of War, and ‘Sikong’, Minister of Soil and Water, were the foremost positions in the imperial court, of exceeding glory and honor. Ba Tianshi’s martial arts were absolutely outstanding, and he was an expert in qinggong. This time, he had been sent out by Emperor Baoding’s decree to locate and investigate the enemy’s base of operations. He secretly followed behind Zhong Wanchou’s party and actually managed to find the location of the Ten Thousand Calamities Gorge.

Emperor Baoding smiled a little. “Tianshi, sit down and eat your fill. Then we’ll go together.” Ba Tianshi knew that the Emperor hated when others acted too worshipfully or formally towards him, and that he loved and addressed his subjects and his officials as though they were his brothers or friends. If he acted too formally or respectfully towards the Emperor, he might actually cause the Emperor to be angry with him. He immediately assented.

Lifting up his rice bowl, he began to eat. He didn’t touch a single drop of wine, but the quantity of food he ate was astonishing. In a twinkling of an eye he consumed eight large bowlfuls of food. Duan Zhengchun, Gao Shengtai, and himself had known each other for a long time, and so the other two weren’t surprised at all. After Ba Tianshi had finished eating, he stood up and wiped away the grease from his lips. “Your vassal, Ba Tianshi, will lead the way.”

He left, taking the position of vanguard. Emperor Baoding, Duan Zhengchun, his wife, and Gao Shengtai followed behind him. After leaving the South-Subduing Palace, they found the Four Imperial Guards, Chu, Gu, Fu, and Zhu standing outside the door, waiting for them with horses already prepared. Dozens of swordsmen who had sworn to follow Emperor Baoding were there as well.

Before founding their country, the Duan family was originally part of the wulin of the central plain’s. In the past hundreds of years, their descendants had never lost the customs and manners of their ancestors. Although the two brothers Duan Zhengmin and Duan Zhengchun had boundless riches, they often strolled about incognito in plain clothes. If any members of the wulin community came to visit or to carry out a vendetta against them, they always treated the visitors according to the rules of the wulin, never putting on imperial airs.

Thus, everyone present was long since used to the sight of Emperor Baoding was personally leading an expedition, and weren’t startled. From Emperor Baoding on down, everyone changed into ordinary clothes. They no longer appeared like gentry, dressed in fine red silks, but rather just a group of ordinary people roaming about.

Dao Baifeng saw that out of the people whom Ba Tianshi had selected, twenty or so of them were carrying large hatchets and long saws. Laughing, she asked, “Minister Ba, are we disguising ourselves as carpenters on our way to building a large house?” Ba Tianshi replied, “We’re sawing down trees and tearing apart houses!”

The party were riding on fine stallions, and thus moved like the wind. They arrived at the forest outside the Ten Thousand Calamities Gorge before noon. Ba Tianshi ordered his men to chop down the obstructing trees one at a time. Arriving at the mouth of the gorge, Emperor Baoding pointed at the large tree upon which was painted the words, “Any person surnamed Duan who enters this gorge shall be mercilessly killed.” He laughed. “What a great enmity the master of the Ten Thousand Calamities Gorge has with our family!”

But Duan Zhengchun knew that Zhong Wanchou was afraid that he would enter the Ten Thousand Calamities Gorge to seek out Gan Baobao. He glanced at his wife out of the corner of his eye, and saw that she only smiled coldly.

Four men carrying large hatchets rushed over to that large tree. In a short period of time, that large tree, with a trunk so wide that many people would be needed to wrap their arms around it, was felled.

Ba Tianshi ordered everyone present to wait with their horses at the mouth of the gorge.

The Four Imperial Guards, Chu, Gu, Fu, and Zhu led the way. Behind them was Ba Tianshi and Gao Shengtai. Following them was the South-Subduing Prince and Princess. Last of all was Emperor Baoding. Upon entering the gorge, they noticed that everything was quiet and still. No one came to greet them. According to the rules of the jianghu, Ba Tianshi, holding the name placards of the two brothers Duan Zhengming and Duan Zhengchun, strode boldly forth and made his way to the front of the main house. In a clear voice, he said, “The two brothers of Dali’s Duan dynasy have come to pay a visit to the gorge-master Zhong!”

Just as the sound of his voice was dying away, a long shadow suddenly appeared from the trees to the left. It rushed towards Ba Tianshi with rapid speed, extending his hand and snatching at the two name placards in Ba Tianshi’s hands. Ba Tianshi retreated three steps to the right and shouted, “Who are you, honored sir?” It was none other than ‘Thoroughly Cruel and Evil’, Yun Zhonghe! His first snatching attempt having missed, he sped up even more, once more pouncing towards Ba Tianshi.

Ba Tianshi saw that his qinggong was exceptionally formidable and wanted to compete with him a bit. He immediately rushed forward three more steps, and Yun Zhonghe pursued for three steps. With a kick of his feet, Ba Tianshi begin to run quickly, with Yun Zhonghe chasing directly after him. A short man, pursued by a tall man. In the blink of an eye, they had circled the room three times. Yun Zhonghe’s stride was unnaturally long, but Ba Tianshi kept jumping and leaping about. The rise and fall of his footsteps were much quicker than that of Yun Zhonghe. Throughout the race, a distance of a few meters was maintained between the two. Yun Zhonghe knew that he would not be able to catch up, but Ba Tianshi, in turn, knew he wouldn’t be able to shake him off. Both of them had long fancied themselves as having the best qinggong in the world. At this moment, upon meeting such a formidable opponent, both of them were secretly startled. Their movements became faster and faster. The lapels of their clothes fluttered in the wind, releasing a series of ‘hu’ sounds. Although there were only two people chasing after each other, from an outsider’s perspective, it looked as though five or six people were running around in a circle. As the contest continued and as the distance between their two bodies grew slightly, it turned into a circular race around the room. No one could tell if Yun Zhonghe was chasing Ba Tianshi, or if Ba Tianshi was chasing Yun Zhonghe. If Ba Tianshi managed to catch up to Yun Zhonghe, then he naturally would have won this qinggong competition. But with a burst of strength, Yun Zhonghe once more increased the distance between himself and Ba Tianshi.

But suddenly, the main door opened with a cracking sound, and Zhong Wanchou walked out. Ba Tianshi did not stop. Secretly generating his internal energy, he shot out with his left hand. The name placards smoothly flew towards Zhong Wanchou.

Extending his hand, Zhong Wanchou received the placards. He roared, “You! The one surnamed Duan! Since you have come to visit me in accordance with the rules of the jianghu, why did you destroy the trees that served as my gate?”

Chu Wanli called back, “How could a person of the Emperor’s stature lower himself to tunnel his way through the hole in that tree?”

Dao Baifeng was worried for her beloved son the entire time. She couldn’t help but call out, “Where’s my son? Have you hidden him here?” Suddenly, a sharp female voice came out from the room. “You came a bit late. We’ve already ripped apart the stomach and torn the chest of that kid surnamed Duan, and fed his body to the dogs!” This woman gripped a blade in each hand. The blades were as thin as a willow leaf and gleamed with a blue light. It was the deadly Asura Sabres, which would quickly take the life of any person whose blood it tasted!

Eighteen years ago, these two women hated and were jealous of each other, laying down a deep enmity and a strong feud. Dao Baifeng knew that Qin Hongmian was lying, but upon hearing her claim that her beloved only son had died in such a miserable fashion, felt the flames of her old hatred rise and stir anew. She coldly replied, “My question was directed towards gorge-master Zhong. No one will speak with such a cheap s.lut as yourself, to avoid lowering their own dignity!”

Suddenly, with two ‘dang’ sounds, Qin Hongmian struck out with her twin sabres, her attack coming as fast as the wind. This attack, the ‘Character Ten Chop’ [the Chinese character for ‘ten’ is a cross, so this would be a cross chop], was her finest skill with which she had become famous in former days. No one knows how many heroes had died under this venomous stance of her Asura sabres. Dao Baifeng pulled out her flywhisk and hurriedly moved backwards, spinning around as she did so and sending the tail of her flywhick towards Qin Hongmian’s heart.

Duan Zhengchun felt extremely awkward and conflicted. One was his current beloved wife; the other was his former sweetheart. His love towards Dao Baifeng was truly deep and profound, but was also unable to forget what he and Qin Hongmian had once shared. He knew that if the two women started fighting, they would be using vicious, life-taking techniques. No matter who was harmed, he would have hated the outcome. He called out, “Stay your hand!” Slanting his body, he quickly moved closer, pulling out his sword and trying to separate the two women.

As soon as Zhong Wanchou saw Duan Zhengchun, his belly had filled with anger. With a clattering sound, he pulled out his large ringed sabre and chopped towards him. Chu Wanli called out, “Prince, no need to personally deal with this. I’ll take care of him!” Striking out with his iron staff, he attacked Zhong Wanchou’s neck. His previous iron staff had been broken in two by Ye Erniang, so he had ordered a new one be forged.

Zhong Wanchou cursed at him. “I always knew that the one surnamed Duan only knew how to rely on winning via superior numbers!” Duan Zhengchun laughed. “Wanli, stand down. I was just about to test out gorge-master Zhong’s martial arts!” His long sword struck out, deflecting Chu Wanli’s iron staff. At the same time, he dragged his sword down the back of Zhong Wanchou’s large-ringed sabre, nicking his fingers. In one stroke, he ‘deflected,’ ‘dragged down’, and ‘nicked’, not revealing even half of a flaw or opening. Zhong Wanchou was startled. “What a formidable sword skill this thief surnamed Duan has!” He immediately clamped down his anger. In front of such a powerful opponent, he dared not be careless or reckless.

Duan Zhengchun’s straight sword continued to attack. Zhong Wanchou saw that the power in his attack was lively and powerful, difficult for him to block. He leapt three steps backwards. Duan Zhengchun had only wanted him to stop intervening, and with him gone, moved sideways to stand next to Dao Baifeng and Qin Hongmian. Qin Hongmian’s sabre techniques were becoming slightly disorganized, and Dao Baifeng kept advancing and pressing onwards. With a series of ‘chi’ sounds, Qin Hongmian suddenly shot out three poisoned quarrels. Her quarrels were identical to those shot out by Mu Wanqing, but her skill in shooting them out was much higher.

These quarrels were aimed to three parts of Dao Baifeng’s body; the left, the right, and the center. This was an extremely difficult attack to dodge. Dao Baifeng leapt into the air and all three quarrels passed by underneath her feet. But just as her body was in mid-air, three more quarrels were shot out. The first was aimed at her abdomen. The second was aimed between her two legs. The third was aimed at her foot. At the moment, Dao Baifeng was unable to ascend any higher, and as her body descended, these three quarrels were perfectly positioned to strike at her head, chest, and stomach. This attack was vicious to the extreme.

Fear filled Dao Baifeng’s heart and she attacked hurriedly with her flywhisk, managing to deflect the first poisoned quarrel. Her body was descending rapidly, and it seemed as though the second and third quarrels, aimed at her chest and stomach, would be impossible for her to dodge or deflect. Suddenly, a white light flashed, and the hilt of a long sword flashed by her face, chopping these two poisoned quarrels into four pieces. At the same time, someone placed his own body protectively in front of hers. It was Duan Zhengchun who had rushed over and saved her life. If he had been even slightly slower and been unable to chop the quarrels in half, then they would have struck his own body instead.

Upon seeing those, both Dao Baifeng and Qin Hongmian were so terrified that their faces turned pale, and their hearts thumped frantically. Dao Baifeng called out, “I don’t want your help!” She sidestepped past her husband, striking towards Qin Hongmian with her flywhisk. She despised the venomous, cruel techniques which Qin Hongmian employed, and her flywhisk attacked with extreme speed. It swept towards Qin Hongmian, preventing her from using those poisoned quarrels again. Moments ago, Qin Hongmian had almost hit Duan Zhengchun with those poisoned quarrels and saw him protect his wife’s body without a care for his own life, showing extreme bias in this fight. In her heart, panic had intermingled with bitter misery, and for the moment she was unable to block the attack of the flywhisk.

Dao Baifeng’s flywhisk technique, “Phoenix Alights on the Parasol Tree”, descended towards the crown of her head. Qin Hongmian hurriedly dodged to the right, just as Dao Baifeng struck out with her left palm in that direction. It seemed as though she was about to be struck right on the pit of her stomach and suffer a severe enough injury that she would vomit blood. The palm was only inches away from her abdomen, but suddenly a male palm appeared and blocked, diverting Dao Baifeng’s palm. It was Duan Zhengchun who had saved her. He said, “Dearest phoenix, don’t be so fierce against her.”

Qin Hongmian was startled, then angrily replied, “What’s with the ‘dearest phoenix’, ‘beloved peacock’ crap? You’re so affectionate towards her!” Her left sabre chopped towards Duan Zhengchun’s neck. Dao Baifeng was also furious at her husband rescuing his former mistress. She withdrew her attacking flywhisk, redirecting it and sending it sweeping towards Duan Zhengchun’s face.

The two women struck at the same time, and saw each other’s attack at the same time as well. They simultaneously cried out, “Oh no!” Both of them wanted to protect their lover. Dao Baifeng’s flywhisk changed direction once again to block the Asura sabre; Qin Hongmian, on the other hand, sent out a flying kick towards Dao Baifeng, wanting to force her to retract the flywhisk.

Duan Zhengchun slanted his body to dodge, but with a ‘peng’ sound, Qin Hongmian’s kick landed on his buttocks. Dao Baifeng angrily said, “Why are you kicking my husband?” Qin Hongmian said, “My darling Duan, I didn’t do that on purpose! You…are you hurt?” Duan Zhengchun decided to put on an act, and loudly cried, “Ouch! Ouch!! You kicked me to death!” He squatted down.

Zhong Wanchou, seeing the situation, thought to seize the advantage and raised his sabre to hack at Duan Zhengchun. Dao Baifeng called out, “Stay your hand!” Qin Hongmian cried out, “Hit him!” The flywhisk and the Asura sabres struck out at Zhong Wanchou simultaneously, forcing him to retract his strike to defend against them. He loudly shouted out, “The stinking thief surnamed Duan! You useless pretty boy, you’re relying on women to save your life! What type of hero are you?” Duan Zhengchun burst out into loud laughter. He suddenly leapt up, and with three ‘shua’ sounds, sent out three sword attacks that forced Zhong Wanchou to stumble and stagger backwards.

Qin Hongmian was startled, then angrily called out, “You aren’t injured at all! You were faking it!” Dao Baifeng was also angry. “This bastard excels at scamming others. How could you have believed him?” Qin Hongmian cried out, “Beware my sabres!” Dao Baifeng also cried out, “Hit him!” The two women joined together to attack Duan Zhengchun.

Emperor Baoding, seeing his brother getting entangled in the dispute with the two women, turned his head away and laughed secretly. He said to Chu Wanli, “Go inside and check the place out.” Chu Wanli replied, “Yes sir!”

The Four Imperial Guardians Chu, Gu, Fu, and Zhu rushed into the room. Right as Gu Ducheng’s left foot crossed over the threshold, he felt a cold wind rush towards the crown of his skull. Before his left foot had touched the floor, his right foot had already leapt backwards. He saw an extremely thin but broad sabre slice downwards in front of his face. The distance between him and the blade was but a few inches. If he had been but a moment slower to dodge, even if he had lucked out and his head wasn’t split in twain, his nose would have been sliced off at the very least. Cold sweat trickled down his back. He saw that the hidden figure was a middle aged woman with elegant features. It was ‘No Evil Left Undone’, Ye Erniang. Her thin sabre was rectangular in shape. In all four directions, the blade was surpassingly sharp. Holding on to the short sabre-handle, she brandished it about, forming a circular halo about her.

Gu Ducheng was extremely startled at first. After calming himself, he let out a loud cry, then with a wave of his broad axe, chopped towards her thin blade. Ye Erniang’s thin sabre continually spun around, not daring to directly meet such a heavy weapon as an axe. Gu Ducheng executed the seventy two strokes of his “Chaotic Whirlwind Hatchet” technique, his twin axes chopping upwards and downwards towards her. Ye Erniang was possessed of a weird temperament, and alternated between gently cooing towards Gu Ducheng and speaking boldly towards him. Zhu Dancheng, seeing how leisurely she fought and how strange her sabre techniques were, conjectured that if the battle went on for too long, Gu Ducheng wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer. Immediately, he struck out with his twin judge’s pens in a pincer attack towards her.

At this time, Ba Tianshi and Yun Zhonghe were still happily running around in circles. Their qinggong abilities were on par, and it would take a long time before victory or defeat could be determined. At this time, what they were really competing in was the relative superiority of their internal energy. After having ran over a hundred circles, Ba Tianshi knew that although Yun Zhonghe’s skill in his lower legs was abundant and graceful, he was unable to center himself perfectly. In this respect, Yun Zhonghe was inferior to his own movements, with its elegant and perfectly executed leaps and bounds which had no left-over energy. All he had to do was to come to a sudden halt and strike with three palms, and Yun Zhonghe surely would not be able to take it. But Ba Tianshi was determined to defeat Yun Zhonghe solely through superior qinggong, and not through superior fighting ability. Thus, he continued to run with all his might.

Suddenly, a coarse voice let fly a stream of curses. “Goddamnit, you guys are kicking up such a racket that your old man here can’t even sleep. What type of rabbit whelp has come?” The Divine Crocodile of the Southern Seas suddenly appeared, Crocodile Maw Scissors in hand, as he leapt closer and closer.

Fu Sigui called out, “Your master’s father has come!” The Divine Crocodile yelled back, “What are you talking about, ‘my master’s father’?” Fu Sigui pointed towards Duan Zhengchun. “The South-Subduing Prince is the father of young lord Duan. Young lord Duan is your master. Are you trying to deny it?” Although the Divine Crocodile had done many vile things, he had one good quality. He never reneged on anything he said or agreed to. Upon hearing these words, he was so angry that his face turned bright yellow, but couldn’t deny them. He angrily replied, “What ****ing business is it of yours, you son of a turtle, with regards to what goes on between me and my master?” Fu Sigui laughed. “I’m not your son. Why are you calling me the son of a turtle?”

The Divine Crocodile was confused. Only after a long moment had passed did he realize that the other person had insulted him and called him a turtle in a roundabout way. After coming to this realization, with a series of loud ‘wa’ cries, he repeatedly opened then chomped closed the two sides of his Crocodile Maw Scissors, then attacked Fu Sigui. He was a dim-witted person, but truly capable in martial arts. The Crocodile Maw Scissors were filled with a forest of white ‘teeth’, similar to the sharp needles on top of a wolf’s fang cudgel. Fu Sigui received three of his attacks using his copper truncheon, and already felt his two arms turn sore. Chu Wanli waved his long pole, flourishing the soft steel-wire whip attached to the top of the pole and attacking the face of the Divine Crocodile. The Divine Crocodile drew his Crocodile’s Tail Whip and blocked the attack.

Watching the battle scene, Emperor Baoding felt that none of his people were in any real danger. He said to Gao Shengtai, “Stay here and watch over things.”

Gao Shengtai replied, “Yes sir!” He stepped aside.

Emperor Baoding entered the room and called out, “Yu’er! Are you here?” But no one responded. He opened the door to a side-room and called out again. “Yu’er! Yu’er!” Only to see a fifteen or sixteen year old girl come out from behind the door and ask, “You…who are you?” Emperor Baoding replied, “Where is Duan Yu?” The girl replied, “Why are you looking for him?” Emperor Baoding replied, “I’m going to rescue him.”

The girl shook her head. “You won’t be able to rescue him. He’s been locked inside a stone house, and sealed in with a large boulder. Someone is guarding him too.” Emperor Baoding replied, “Take me to him. I’ll knock down the guard and push aside the boulder. Then I’ll rescue him.” The girl shook her head again. “I can’t! If I took you there, my daddy will kill me.” Emperor Baoding asked, “Who is your father?” The girl replied, “My surname is Zhong. My daddy is the master of this gorge.” The girl was Zhong Ling, who had escaped from Mt. Wuliang.

Emperor Baoding nodded. He thought that for such a little girl, using words to threaten her or martial arts to force her to reveal the secret would be degrading to his stature and position. Since Duan Yu was definitely in the gorge, it wouldn’t be too hard to locate him. He immediately exited the room, intending to find someone else to take him to Duan Yu.

Inside the stone room, upon hearing that the freak in green was actually the most vile man in the world, he who was known as ‘Evil Beyond Human Capacity’, Duan Yu and Mu Wanqing were terrified. In their shared fright, they rushed over and embraced each other. Duan Yu said in a low voice, “So we fell into the hands of ‘Evil Beyond Human Capacity’, the most evil man in the entire world. This is really, really bad.” With a ‘wu’ sound, Mu Wanqing rested her head against his chest. Duan Yu gently stroked her hair. He consoled her, “Don’t be afraid.”

Both of their clothes were moist with sweat, as though they had just climbed out of a pool of water. Their bodies were burning hot, as though filled with steam. Smelling each other’s breath, they were even more attracted towards each other. One was a healthy and vigorous male youth; the other was a young woman filled with deep love. Even if they hadn’t been excited by the aphrodisiac, it would be difficult for them to control themselves. Much less now, having eaten the ‘Yin and Yang Conjoining Powder’, which had an abnormally powerful effect and possessed a despotic might. It was enough to turn an honorable scholar into a lewd lowlife, a chaste woman into a prostitute. It bewildered minds, turning even virtuous sages into beasts. At this moment, everything depended on one thing remaining bright in Duan Yu’s mind; the pure and honorable reputation of the Duan dynasty. Only this allowed him to restrain himself.

The man in green was extremely pleased. His strange voice laughed. “You two, brother and sister! Hurry up and become husband and wife. The sooner you two have a baby, the sooner you will escape your imprisonment. I’m leaving!” After speaking, he leapt over the tree wall.

Duan Yu yelled loudly, “Yue Number Three! Yue Number Three! Your master is in trouble! Hurry up and help out!” He called out for a long time, but how could there be any response?

Duan Yu thought to himself, “We’re in such a critical state. I can’t even accept him as my master now, even if I wanted to. If I had made a wrong choice and accepted an evil man as my master, that would only be my personal business. I wouldn’t have implicated my uncle and my father in this.” Following this train of thought, he loudly shouted, “Divine Crocodile of the Southern Seas! I’m willing to accept you as my master now! I’m willing to be the heir of the Southern Seas sect! Quick, come and rescue your apprentice! If I die, you won’t have a student anymore!”

He wildly shouted and cried out for a time, but never heard the Divine Crocodile’s voice. He suddenly thought to himself, “Oh no! Not good! The one person whom the Divine Crocodile fears the most is his superior, the most evil person in the world, ‘Evil Beyond Human Capacity’. Even if he heard me shouting, he wouldn’t dare to come rescue us.” His heart was filled with pure bitterness.

Mu Wanqing softly said, “My darling Duan, after we become husband and wife, do you want for our first baby to be a boy or a girl?” Duan Yu replied, in a dazed voice, “A boy!”

Suddenly, the sound of a female voice drifted in from outside the stone house. “Mr. Duan, you’re her big brother! You definitely can’t marry her!” Duan Yu was startled. “You…are you Miss Zhong?” That girl was indeed Zhong Ling. “Yes, it’s me! I eavesdropped on what that evil man in green said. I’ll definitely find a way to rescue you and Miss Mu!” Duan Yu was ecstatic. “That’s great! Quick, find and steal the antidote to the poison for me!” Mu Wanqing angrily shouted, “Zhong Ling! You little devil, scram! Who wants you to save us?” Zhong Ling said, “It’d be best if I first thought of some way to push this boulder away and rescued you two.” Duan Yu replied, “No, no! You go find the antidote. I…I can’t hold on much longer. I’m…I’m about to die.” Fri