Chapter 13: Practicing a Form as Light as a Swallow
Outside the sparse woods of distant trees, half of the autumn mountains basked in the midday sun.
At noon, the wind stopped, and the leaves ceased to sway.
The layered mountain range stretched into the distance under the sunlight. After the sound of vigorous footsteps, Zhou Yan appeared in a valley.
He did not rush towards Zhongdu but instead went in the opposite direction, entering the deep mountains.
The blood of the Treasure Snake, meticulously raised by Liang Zi Weng, had been completely consumed. At this moment, he felt his entire body was hot, as if he were sitting by a fire, his blood vessels surging. Even when he squatted down and dipped his hands into the icy stream water, they still felt burning hot.
He took off his blood-stained clothes, washed them clean, and laid them out on the river stones. Following the memories of the original owner, he passed through the valley and sat cross-legged in a simple makeshift shelter built in the forest.
Ignoring the fishy bitterness in his mouth and the taste of medicine, he silently circulated the Qi Guiding Method of Taizu Long Fist, gifted by Zhang Wangyue. He held a breath in his chest, allowing it to slowly flow with his boiling Qi and Blood. Soon, the thick Qi and Blood nurtured by the snake’s blood was guided and drawn, becoming increasingly turbulent and intense, with the feeling of a great river surging endlessly.
Blood is the mother of Qi, and Qi is the commander of blood. Qi and Blood can carry the Dai Meridian’s Qi, and conversely, when the Meridian Qi moves, it can mobilize Qi and Blood. Because Qi and Blood store strength, the Meridian Qi moving Qi and Blood can unleash Internal Force. This is the method of cultivating Qi from external to internal within the External Style of Taizu Long Fist, given by Zhang Wangyue.
Zhou Yan cultivated Qi tirelessly for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn. Suddenly, his Dantian stirred, and a wisp of Internal Force was born. This wisp of Internal Force was not strong, but it was extremely pure. It was equivalent to five or six days of diligent practice at this moment.
Zhou Yan was overjoyed and continued to cultivate Qi, continuously using the method of mobilizing Qi and Blood to temper and refine pure and exquisite Internal Force.
…
The sunset hung over the distant mountains, and the wind rustled through the dense leaves of the trees in the mountains.
A heartbroken roar erupted from the old man with white hair and a youthful face: “My Treasure Snake.”
Suddenly, the old man moved, kicking and punching. Several men dressed as Ginseng Guests cried out and were sent flying. The remaining personnel dared not dodge, trembling like sieves.
“Who is it?”
Such a violent reaction indicated that this old man, who looked quite like an immortal, was none other than the Ginseng Immortal Old Freak Liang Zi Weng. After visiting a friend, he had gone straight to Zhongdu to report to the Zhao Wang Manor and meet the Great Jin King. However, he was informed that none of his disciples had arrived beforehand. A bad premonition immediately struck Liang Zi Weng. Before he could leave to search, a disciple rushed back to report that something had happened: the Treasure Snake had escaped and could not be found, and five of his disciples had been killed. There was a dead, plump wild boar at the scene.
It turned out that this Jin King was Wanyan Honglie. In the past, the Great Jin marshal Wuzhu was skilled in warfare, but he always suffered defeats when facing Yue Fei. Mongolia rose, and the Jin Dynasty, weakened by continuous wars, was unable to launch a large-scale invasion southward.
Wanyan Honglie was an ambitious man. Accidentally, he found a document left by a previous dynasty in the imperial palace archives. It contained Yue Fei’s handwritten notes. After much deliberation, he concluded that Yue Fei had written down the secrets of military strategy, troop deployment, and combat that he had learned throughout his life and hidden them in Lin’an as a military treatise.
Wanyan Honglie then recruited skilled individuals from the Jianghu with heavy rewards, intending to steal the military treatise. Liang Zi Weng was one of the hired individuals, as were Sha Tongtian, the Ghost Gate Dragon King, and Hou Tonghai, the Three-Headed Flood Dragon, whom Zhou Yan encountered in the suburbs of Datong Prefecture. Other personnel included the notorious Thousand Hand Butcher Peng Lianhu, the Esoteric Buddhism master Monk Lingzhi, and Ouyang Ke from White Camel Mountain in the Western Regions.
Ouyang Ke was someone who coveted Li Mochou’s beauty.
When Liang Zi Weng arrived, everyone except Ouyang Ke had already entered the manor. Upon hearing that the Treasure Snake had escaped and his disciples had met misfortune, he rushed out of the prince’s manor in a hurry. The Three-Headed Flood Dragon Hou Haitong and the Ghost Gate Dragon King accompanied him enthusiastically.
In reality, the two of them had no good intentions. These people were secretly competing. Their apparent loyalty was merely a way to find a sense of balance after the Yellow River Four Ghosts were killed.
Liang Zi Weng was furious. His eldest disciple knelt down with a thud: “Master, that Treasure Snake must have been taken by the thief who killed the junior brothers. I led people to search over ten li around, but we found no trace of the thief. It is not that your disciple is incompetent, but the thief is truly elusive and cunning.”
“Useless beast.” Liang Zi Weng kicked his eldest disciple away. The disciple who got up again knelt down, muttering a sigh of relief, his life saved.
Sha Tongtian felt much better. He had lost four disciples, and Old Liang had lost five disciples, as well as a seemingly very precious snake. Young Master Ouyang had also suffered losses on the way; when he tried to abduct a beautiful young woman, he encountered people from the Quanzhen Sect, and two beautiful concubines died. No one was in a worse state than the others.
While thinking this, he put on a show of concern and advised: “Immortal, do not be anxious. There are traces left by the thief at the scene. The Prince has vast powers; perhaps he can track down the thief by following the clues.”
As he spoke, he walked to the corpse of Liang Zi Weng’s deceased disciple and looked at the steel knife embedded in his head. Imagining the technique used by the attacker, Sha Tongtian’s expression suddenly changed.
“What is it?” Hou Tonghai asked, seeing Sha Tongtian’s displeased expression.
The Ghost Gate Dragon King murmured to himself: “Look at the footprints on the ground, and then look at the angle of the strike. Doesn’t it resemble the saberplay of my disciple, ‘Soul Severing Blade’ Shen Qinggang?”
“It’s not just similar; it is his saberplay.”
“How can this be?”
“Let me see.” Hou Tonghai also began to analyze. He looked at Liang Zi Weng’s disciple who had died from a punch, examined the injuries for a long time, and stated with certainty: “This person died from the fist techniques of a master skilled in ‘Yanqing Fist’.”
Yanqing Fist was widely spread, and Hou Haitong recognized the techniques. From the footprints on the ground and the characteristics of the impact points, he easily determined the fist techniques.
“Immortal, I have a lead.” Hou Tonghai was overjoyed, but he saw Liang Zi Weng whose beard was trembling.
The eldest disciple kneeling on the ground cautiously said: “My Master is proficient in ‘Yanqing Fist’.”
Liang Zi Weng’s mind was filled with what Sha Tongtian had said: the murderer used Shen Qinggang’s skilled saberplay.
Hou Tonghai, suddenly snapping back to reality, said: “Immortal, you don’t think we did it, do you?”
Liang Zi Weng’s gaze became even more suspicious.
…
Whoosh!
Zhou Yan had been cultivating Qi for about half an hour, and no more Internal Force was generated. He knew that the efficacy of the Treasure Snake’s blood had been completely absorbed.
His body had undergone obvious changes. His heart beat like a drum, his muscles were like taut bowstrings, and when his strength and bones stretched, he felt a sense of exhilaration throughout his body. After half a day of mobilizing Qi and Blood and stimulating Internal Force, his Internal Force had accumulated as if he had cultivated for several years.
“Liang Zi Weng’s Treasure Snake not only gave me four to five more years of Internal Force but also strengthened my muscles and bones. No wonder in Legend of the Condor Heroes, after Guo Jing consumed the snake blood, the Ginseng Old Freak still tried to suck human blood. It’s a pity that a lot of it was wasted.”
Zhou Yan did not think about taking Guo Jing’s opportunity. What is lost in one place may be gained in another, or perhaps the Golden Saber Consort had even greater opportunities.
Shi Baichuan, an escort from the Fu’an Escort Agency, said that the Qiao Meridian had the effect of making one light and agile. Zhou Yan had obtained the fist manual the night before and was already familiar with the paths of the Extraordinary Meridians.
He guided Qi with his intent. The Internal Qi in his Dantian circulated along the meridians, starting from the Shenmai acupoint on the outer side of the heel in the Foot Taiyang Meridian, ascending along the posterior edge of the outer side of the lower limb to the abdomen. It followed the posterior and outer side of the chest, passed through the shoulder and the outer side of the neck, then along the sides of the mouth, reaching the inner corner of the eye. It met with the Foot Taiyang Meridian and the Yinqiao Meridian, then ascended along the Foot Taiyang Meridian and converged with the Foot Shaoyang Meridian at the Fengchi acupoint behind the neck.
The pure Internal Qi passed through twelve Major Acupoints such as Shenmai, Pushen, Fuyang, and Juliao without any obstruction, opening up the entire Yang Qiao Meridian.
Continuing his efforts, Zhou Yan opened the Yin Qiao Meridian.
Shi Baichuan said that when both meridians are open, one is as light as a swallow.
His Achilles tendons were now strong and elastic. Overjoyed, he stood up and ran out. With a powerful leap, he went ten feet, far lighter and faster than the day before.
