Chapter 215: White Lotus in Chaotic Times, the Conflict Between Two Sects
“Bang!”
Cheng Hu’s body slammed heavily onto the ground. After rolling several times on the bluestone floor, he leaped up. Zhou Yan’s figure suddenly enlarged, and he punched Cheng Hu in the abdomen.
Cheng Hu felt his physique, cultivated through “Iron Shirt,” shatter like white porcelain under Zhou Yan’s punch. His meridians and blood vessels became like spiderweb cracks, his viscera shifted, and his insides churned.
“Ugh,” he spat out a mouthful of blood, his body curling as he fell to the ground. Zhou Yan grabbed him like a dead dog, pressed his acupoints, and looked towards the meeting hall.
Liu Qingzhou’s narrow sword glowed with white light, spinning slightly. He parried the long saber strikes of a leader several times in quick succession, then his sword whipped up a flurry of sword rain to envelop the opponent.
The leader wailed and fell out, stabbed countless times, his body as if washed in blood.
A scream of “Ah!” erupted hysterically at this moment. The Yanbo Diaosou’s fishing hook pierced the back of another leader. The burly man flew up from the ground like a fish, was flung towards the wall, and slammed into it with a thud, losing consciousness upon landing.
In just over ten breaths, only one leader remained in the meeting hall.
The man shouted, like a stray dog, but had only escaped ten feet when the whistling fish hook caught him by the back of the neck. The Yanbo Diaosou’s fishing rod vibrated.
With a “crack,” the man’s head tilted at a strange angle. He collapsed to the ground, twitching.
“Let’s go.”
Zhou Yan, carrying Cheng Hu, leaped out of the window. His gray figure disappeared into the white snow curtain as if breaking through it.
Three figures moved swiftly. They quickly left the meeting hall. By the time they reached the woods by the arrow tower, the water village finally erupted with harsh, urgent gongs and drums. The torchlight extended along the footprints on the snow.
Zhou Yan paid no mind. He entered the woods and met up with Liang Xiaowu and the Indian Monk. The group descended the cliff using ropes and boarded a small boat to leave.
The small boat now carried five people, making it slightly crowded and slowing its speed considerably. However, on this snowy night, it was impossible for the people in the water village to find a single small boat on the vast Poyang Lake.
Zhou Yan, Liu Qingzhou, and Yanbo Diaosou entered the cabin. He released Cheng Hu’s acupoints and asked, “Who is your Cult Leader?”
Before Cheng Hu could speak, Yanbo Diaosou said grimly, “Think carefully before you answer, or my fishing hook will pierce your cervical vertebrae, and you’ll never be able to hold your head up again.”
Compared to Zhou Yan’s acupoint striking with a sword, Yanbo Diaosou’s method of piercing the body with a fishhook and flinging people around like fish was even more terrifying to Cheng Hu. He knew that in the hands of Zhou Yan and the others, he was like “fish on a chopping block.”
Cheng Hu’s eyes filled with malice. He glanced at Yanbo Diaosou and said, “Our Cult Leader is Yu Huacheng.”
This was a name Zhou Yan was still unfamiliar with.
“Where is Zhang Sanqiang?” he asked.
Cheng Hu was startled. He realized and asked, “You know Zhang Sanqiang?”
Zhou Yan felt a cognitive dissonance. He changed the subject and asked, “Which faction are you from?”
Cheng Hu said proudly, “The Holy Cult’s Poyang Lake Branch.”
“Explain in detail.”
“The White Lotus Holy Cult, Poyang Lake Branch.”
The White Lotus Sect? Zhou Yan was astonished. Could the Demonic Cult that he and Liu Qingzhou had spoken of actually be the White Lotus Sect? He began to meticulously analyze. The way Cheng Hu addressed Zhang Sanqiang suggested a deep connection between the White Lotus Sect and the Ming Cult. Otherwise, why would he ask if Zhou Yan knew Zhang Sanqiang?
Liu Qingzhou and Yanbo Diaosou were clearly also quite surprised. They knew of the Demonic Cult, but this White Lotus Sect was the first they had heard of.
Zhou Yan asked, “Tell me about the White Lotus Sect.”
Cheng Hu hesitated slightly. Yanbo Diaosou’s fishing hook appeared in his hand. Cheng Hu hurriedly began to explain.
After nearly the time it took to eat a meal, Zhou Yan finally understood the whole story.
The White Lotus Sect, like Manichaeism （ and the Ming Cult ）, was a secretly circulating folk religion with deep origins in Manichaeism. It evolved from a mixture of various religions such as Manichaeism, Maitreya Buddhism, Taoism, and Buddhism. In the early Jianyan period, a monk named Mao Ziyuan, whose dharma name was Cizhao, from Yanzhen Temple in Suzhou, officially founded it after absorbing the doctrines and rituals of Manichaeism.
Zhou Yan sighed upon hearing this. So, the White Lotus Sect and the Ming Cult had such a complex, intertwined relationship.
“Tell me about Yu Huacheng,” Zhou Yan asked.
Cheng Hu did not know that Zhou Yan and his companions were here for the Indian Monk. He made some judgments. Zhou Yan directly addressing the Ming Cult Leader as Zhang Sanqiang clearly indicated he was not a major enemy. Thus, Cheng Hu became less guarded and said, “The son of the former Ming Cult Leader.”
“Who was the former Demonic Cult Leader?” Liu Qingzhou asked.
“Cult Leader Yu Wupo.”
Zhou Yan suddenly understood.
In the Jianghu of Heaven Sword, Bu Daibudai, one of the Five Great Protectors of the Ming Cult, once said, “During the Jianyan era, Cult Leader Wang Zongshi rebelled in Xinzhou. During the Shaoxing era, Cult Leader Yu Wupo rebelled in Quzhou. During the Shaoding period of Lizong, Cult Leader Zhang Sanqiang rebelled in the Jiangxi and Guangdong regions.”
Yu Huacheng was Yu Wupo’s son. When Monk Cizhao founded the White Lotus Sect, he incorporated many Ming Cult doctrines and had close interactions with Yu Wupo, who lived at the same time.
After Yu Wupo’s rebellion failed, Zhang Sanqiang became the next Ming Cult Leader, while Yu Huacheng became the White Lotus Sect Leader.
Cheng Hu referred to the Ming Cult Leader as Zhang Sanqiang. The two sects had common origins, but the White Lotus Sect was expanding its influence in Jiangxi. Cheng Hu showed no respect for Zhang Sanqiang, which indicated conflict between the two sects.
Zhou Yan thought this over and then asked, “Are there conflicts between the White Lotus Sect and the Beggars’ Sect?”
“There are also conflicts between the Beggars’ Sect and the Ming Cult,” Cheng Hu said without hesitation, dragging the Ming Cult into it.
“Why?” This time, the question came from Yanbo Diaosou, who was based at Dongting Lake. He knew about the Beggars’ Sect’s conference in Yuezhou. Because of the Beggars’ Sect’s vast influence in Yuezhou, he asked.
“Two tigers cannot share one mountain,” Cheng Hu replied directly.
Yanbo Diaosou did not believe him and was about to stab his fishing hook towards the man’s neck.
“I am merely a Hall Master, how would I know about major sect affairs?” Cheng Hu shouted.
“Who gave you orders to act?”
“A White Lotus envoy.”
“What is their name?” Zhou Yan pressed.
“How would I know? We always address them as ‘Envoy’.”
“Are there grudges between the White Lotus Sect and the Ming Cult?”
“Yes.”
“Explain specifically.”
“I don’t know. We all act on orders.”
Zhou Yan had no more questions. He pointed his finger like a sword and pressed it onto the “Shanzhong” major acupoint on the opponent’s chest, taking his life. The information he obtained from Cheng Hu left him filled with emotion. He never expected the White Lotus Sect and the Ming Cult to have such a complex web of grudges and entanglements.
Logically, Yu Huacheng should have succeeded the Ming Cult Leader. However, Zhang Sanqiang was currently in charge of the Ming Cult. As expected, Yu Huacheng and Zhang Sanqiang had significant conflicts, perhaps even a struggle for leadership.
The small boat moved along the lakeshore. Yanbo Diaosou swung his fishing rod, and Cheng Hu’s body was flung ashore.
The Indian Monk clasped his hands together and chanted, performing a ritual for his soul.
Yanbo Diaosou returned to the cabin. Liu Qingzhou said, “In this snowy weather, if you can catch a Golden Doll, then you’re truly skilled.”
“We’ll see,” Yanbo Diaosou grinned.
Zhou Yan went out of the cabin to the Indian Monk and mentioned Yanbo Diaosou’s intention to help him find the Golden Doll. The Monk expressed his gratitude repeatedly.
He thought that after reaching the inn, he would rest for two days until the snowstorm subsided. Then, he would accompany Yanbo Diaosou to search for the Golden Doll. He had already informed Zhang Wangyue about his resignation, so there was no rush. Liang Xiaowu and the others could return to Zhongdu first.
The small boat sailed through the snowstorm. As they were about to enter the river mouth, Zhou Yan, who was in the cabin, suddenly heard the runner at the bow shout, “There’s someone in the water!”
Zhou Yan, Liu Qingzhou, and Yanbo Diaosou leaped out of the cabin. Following the runner’s direction, they saw on the riverbank not far away a person lying on their back, their body bobbing with the tide, their life uncertain.
Before he could speak, the Indian Monk quickly said, “Amitabha, quickly row over to take a look.”
Liang Xiaowu took a long bamboo pole to propel the boat.
As they got closer, a woman in Mongolian attire came into view.
“Strange, why is it a Mongolian woman?”
Zhou Yan leaped, his figure soaring over twenty feet, landing on the riverbank.
He saw that the woman had heroic eyebrows and eyes, but she was unconscious.
Is this Hua Zheng?
Zhou Yan was not entirely sure. He had seen Hua Zheng from afar when the Mongol Army attacked Zhongdu, but he didn’t know her specific appearance.
Subtle clues laid out over a thousand li. Guo Jing had once said he was summoned by the Big Man to return to the desert. He speculated that Mongolia intended to ally with the Lin’an Court to attack Jin. If his deduction was correct, judging by the time, this was likely the period when the Mongol Imperial Envoy was heading south. Combined with the clues in Legend of the Condor Heroes where Hua Zheng also traveled to Jiangnan while searching for Guo Jing, he naturally reached his conclusion.
Zhou Yan bent down to check her breathing. Her breath was faint, with a sliver of life. Without hesitation, he picked her up and carried her onto the small boat, saying to the Indian Monk, “Master, please save her.”
The Indian Monk took her pulse, his expression quite grave. He said, “Please, everyone, move outside.”
Zhou Yan, Liu Qingzhou, and Yanbo Diaosou nodded and left the cabin. Zhou Yan said to the other two, “This woman bears a strong resemblance to a close relative of a friend of mine. I don’t know why she’s by the river. I’ll go ashore to investigate.”
Liu Qingzhou and Yanbo Diaosou spoke in unison, “Let’s go together.”
Zhou Yan knew that without his mediation, the two would engage in a verbal duel. He smiled and said, “Alright!”
After instructing Liang Xiaowu and the monks to treat her, he took the woman directly to the inn to wait. The three leaped onto the ground and searched along the riverbank.
Half an hour later, the three returned to the inn without success.
Liang Xiaowu, who was waiting in the lobby, stepped forward and said, “The young lady is still unconscious. The monk said she was in the water for too long and caught a chill, so she won’t wake up anytime soon. I had the innkeeper’s wife change her clothes.”
“Well done. I’ll go take a look.”
…
In the guest room, the bean lamp flickered like a firefly. Hua Zheng’s face was as pale as paper, her breathing uneven, clearly not yet out of danger.
The Indian Monk, having seen Zhou Yan use his Internal Force to help Fu’an’s Boss Duan Huai’an relax his muscles and activate his collaterals in the Western Regions, said, “Head Escort, perhaps you could use your Internal Force to nourish her internal organs. She might wake up sooner.”
“Alright, I’ll try.”
He helped Hua Zheng up, placed his right hand on her back at the “Tiantu Acupoint,” and used the Quanzhen Sect’s Internal School cultivation technique to channel the gentle qi emitted by the Jade Guanyin into Hua Zheng’s body.
Although Hua Zheng was unconscious, her condition was much better than Huang Rong’s when she was severely injured in the past. Moreover, the Jade Guanyin’s qi was gentle, relaxing muscles and activating collaterals, nourishing the internal organs, and also had the effect of dispelling internal cold.
After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Hua Zheng’s body trembled. She coughed violently several times and suddenly cried out, “Guo Jing!”
