Chapter 40: Every Arrow Finds Its Mark, White Stripe in the Waves
The escort carts were all ferried across, and the mules were led onto the ferryboat via the plank. Zhang Wangyue let out a slight sigh of relief.
He had traveled extensively, acting with extreme caution. Ever since he escorted the infant for a personal safety escort, he had replaced his original spear with the heavy sword he now used, from the Dragon Gate Escort Agency in Lin’an Prefecture to the Fu’an Escort Agency in Daxing Prefecture. He worried that others might recognize his identity from his techniques. In this era, it wasn’t difficult for knowledgeable individuals to identify a sect from someone’s martial arts.
Caution ensures a thousand years of safety; this was ingrained in the escort head’s bones.
With the escort carts across the river, this escort mission was almost safe.
Even if something were to happen now, it could be salvaged. At least the mules and horses could swim, so there was no worry about the spices and medicinal herbs in the escort chests being ruined by soaking.
Zhou Yan was also largely at ease, but after escorting several times, he felt something was off about the boatman.
He hadn’t noticed it at first. The boatman was unremarkable in appearance and strong; that wasn’t suspicious. Years of ferrying on the Yellow River would build muscle from rowing.
Working as a boatman at a busy ferry crossing like Fengling Ferry, as long as one didn’t have bad habits, making a living was not a problem, so they wouldn’t be gaunt. He had taken the same boat several times, and after repeated trips, Zhou Yan always felt the boatman’s gaze would intentionally or unintentionally drift towards a fishing boat docked not far from the ferry.
The ferry could only transport two mules at a time, which was time-consuming. As the ferry returned from the south bank again, Zhou Yan lay back on the bow, his flat-top hat covering half his face. He feigned sleep, but his eyes were narrowed, observing the boatman.
The flat-top hat, which protected runners from the sun and windblown sand, proved its worth. He could see the boatman’s expression with perfect clarity, while the boatman couldn’t see his gaze.
As the ferry approached the dock, the boatman’s eyes darted towards the fishing boat.
There was definitely something wrong. Zhou Yan adjusted his gaze and looked over, but the boat’s canopy blocked his view, making it impossible to see what was inside.
Should I disembark and have the escort head arrange for someone to investigate? Zhou Yan thought, then quickly dismissed it. If there were truly ill-intentioned individuals, the entire escort team was under surveillance. Wouldn’t the other party notice someone approaching the fishing boat or any unusual activity from the escort team?
After a moment’s consideration, Zhou Yan said to the boatman, whose gaze had not yet returned, “When do we make our move?”
The boatman was greatly startled, his expression changing instantly.
Zhou Yan saw through him like a clear pane of glass. He slapped the boat plank with his right hand, and his body sprang up, lunging at the boatman. The boatman let out a yell and turned to jump into the river.
Under the bright daylight, Zhou Yan grabbed the right ankle of the boatman, who was already suspended in the air. His arm muscles bulged, and with a twist of his waist and hips, the boatman’s body spun in an arc in the air with two cracking sounds before being thrown onto the deck.
Zhang Wangyue, on the wharf, his eyes narrowed sharply.
Amidst the crowd at the ferry crossing, a young man whose gaze had been constantly shifting between Zhou Yan’s ferry and Hou Tonghai’s fishing boat suddenly chuckled. He thought to himself that the horse owner had seen through the ruse and made the first move; how interesting. He then shouted loudly, “Yellow River Gang, why haven’t you made your move? You’ve already been exposed.”
On the boat and on the shore, the Yellow River Gang disciples and Peng Lianhu’s men were all on edge. Robbery and murder were like this; the longer one waited, the more anxious one became. Under extreme tension, any unusual sound could trigger a sudden attack, let alone Zhou Yan’s action and the young man’s shout.
There was a teahouse at the ferry crossing. Several Yellow River Gang disciples, who had been drinking tea to alleviate their anxiety, quickly drew steel knives from under their tables. Someone shouted, “Let’s go together!”
The bustling crowd at the ferry crossing suddenly became like a boiling pot of soup. Some people rushed out of teahouses and restaurants, and some Yellow River Gang disciples, hidden among the crowd, shed their burdens and charged towards Zhang Wangyue.
The young man, who had ignited the atmosphere like a string of firecrackers, kept his eyes fixed on Zhou Yan, who was more than ten zhang away from the ferry crossing. Within his line of sight, the escort, who had thrown the boatman onto the boat’s head, flipped off the cloth bag with his right hand, held his bow with his right hand, and drew an arrow with his left, all in one fluid motion.
The iron bow instantly drew taut like a full moon. With a “bang” that split the air, the arrow shaft pushed through the air, heading straight for the boatman on the ferry, five to six zhang away.
…
As Zhou Yan shot the first arrow, the second arrow was already held between his fingers. The iron bow was once again drawn into a soul-stirring arc. With a “bang,” the long arrow disappeared into the sunlight.
The bow and the person on the fishing boat spun simultaneously, completing a half-arc, aiming at the ferry that was originally behind Zhou Yan. The third arrow shot out.
The first arrow pierced a water ghost from the Yellow River Gang who was attacking a runner. The second arrow landed on a water ghost who had leaped from the side of the boat. The water ghost let out a scream and fell into the water with a “bang,” creating a magnificent splash. As for the third arrow’s trajectory, the water ghost had already entered the river. The long arrow, like a persistent bone spur, entered the water, and the river water was pressed into a clear ripple.
With a “thud!” sound, a wisp of blood spread in the water.
Besides Zhou Yan, the fastest to react was the escort Wang Kui. As the water ghost disguised as a boatman on the boat moved, his long saber was drawn, following like a shadow. It descended like Mount Tai. With a “thud!” sound, viscous blood gushed from the entire back of the opponent.
The most intense conflict had erupted at the ferry crossing.
In ground combat, even the least skilled runner would not necessarily lose to a Yellow River Gang disciple, and runners were also extremely adept at fighting in formations of three to five people.
Fishing nets and lime powder flew through the air. Bone-piercing nails, iron caltrops, locust stones, and throwing darts whistled. Astonishing blood instantly burst from the charging Yellow River Gang disciples.
Zhang Wangyue’s body leaped from his horse like a giant bird, covering a distance of two zhang before landing on the ground. He rapidly closed in on the ranks of disciples under Peng Lianhu. As a man stepped forward, his “Black Tiger Steals Heart” move not yet fully executed, the escort head leaped and landed, crushing the opponent’s knee with his foot. He then darted away, his elbow striking the chest of the man in front with a “boom” sound.
The man’s chest instantly caved in. The escort head seized the saber, and with a backhand slash, delivered a strike that was as untraceable as a sheep hanging its horns. Blood sprayed from the neck of the man who had attempted to ambush Zhang Wangyue.
With mere gestures, the escort head killed three people using “Yue Family Scattered Hands” and “Five Tiger Severing Gate Saberplay” respectively.
It was at this moment that Zhou Yan shouted from the ferry, “Escort head, the bandit leader is on the fishing boat.”
Zhang Wangyue followed the sound and looked towards the fishing boat indicated by Zhou Yan’s finger. His body moved with the whistling sound of wind and thunder as he charged forward.
The fishing boat was several zhang from the shore. Three-Headed Flood Dragon Hou Tonghai was furious, his carefully laid plan ruined by a runner and a young man in green.
Especially the latter, who was he? Why was he meddling?
Hou Tonghai leaped from the cabin, his brows furrowed, and pointed his finger, cursing, “I’ll curse your mother, who the hell are you, kid?”
The young man was stunned, then snapped back to anger, “Three-Headed Ghost, what are you cursing about?”
“I’ll curse your mother, what about it!”
The young man’s eyes reddened. “Three-Headed Ghost, you actually cursed my mother, you’re dead.”
“I’ll curse your father too, and your ancestors!”
The young man in green moved like a fluttering butterfly, flashing a few times to the riverbank. He plunged into the water with a “splash,” and without even a ripple, a green shadow moved like a streak of light towards the fishing boat underwater.
Zhou Yan also saw the young man in green. He recognized him as the young master he had seen at the inn a few days prior, who had failed to buy a horse. He desperately tried to recall who the “White Stripe in the Waves” was in the Jianghu of Legend of the Condor Heroes, a handsome youth of fifteen or sixteen.
Suddenly, Zhou Yan slapped his thigh. Huang Rong, the young man was Huang Rong, dressed as a man.
The Three-Headed Flood Dragon had actually insulted the Eastern Heretic and his wife, as well as Huang Yaoshi’s ancestors.
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