Jianghu Qimen Lu

Chapter 17, Second Hall Master

Huo Shaoyun frantically circulated his internal energy throughout his internal organs and meridians, attempting to use his powerful internal force to break through the acupoints that had been struck. Unexpectedly, Liu Quan's hands moved like lightning, giving him no chance to breathe. He grabbed Huo Shaoyun's shoulder blade and twisted it, causing Huo Shaoyun to scream in agony. He felt as if his entire body had fallen apart, unable to support himself any longer, and collapsed to the ground, trembling in pain. Liu Quan chuckled, reached into Huo Shaoyun's robes, and pulled out the rare book "Complete Guide to the Martial World," handing it to Xiang Quan who approached. Xiang Quan opened the book, read for a moment, and then smiled and sighed, "Finally, it's returned to its rightful owner!" The crowd gathered around, and Bai Shandian said, "This fellow is extremely despicable; don't let him escape again!" Liu Quan laughed heartily, untied the bandages, and quickly bound Huo Shaoyun tightly! He tied him up skillfully, tightening the vital acupoints, making the pain even more intense than if they had been struck. Although the thin gauze was flimsy and not very strong, the feeling of having all the acupoints on his body sealed was worse than death. Even the slightest movement caused excruciating pain. Despite Huo Shaoyun's high level of martial arts, he dared not use his internal energy again! He could only grit his teeth and endure it, waiting for another opportunity to make a plan. Liu Quan smiled and said to him, "I told you you were badly injured. See? I wasn't wrong. Now I'm bandaging you for free. Shouldn't you thank me? Hmm?" Huo Shaoyun snorted angrily and closed his lifeless eyes. Everyone burst into laughter.

"Take him back to the General's Mansion and lock him in the water dungeon with Stinky Feet!" Bai Shandian commanded. Zhang Kuang limped over—luckily, he had only suffered a minor injury from Huo Shaoyun's Iron Palm strike, thanks to his superior internal strength. He immediately directed his soldiers to form ranks and escort Huo Shaoyun away to carry out the order. Bai Shandian and Xiang Quan locked eyes, their gazes filled with tenderness. Huo Shaoyun's antics, their near-death experiences, had made them realize the brevity of life and the importance of family. Without warning, they embraced Xiao Baijin, the three of them tightly bound together, tears streaming down their faces, unwilling to part for a long time…

Just then, a fast horse galloped along the winding mountain road. Although the crowds of tourists were thronging the area, they all hurriedly scattered at the sight. It was a messenger from the Hangzhou General's Mansion reporting. The man and his horse rushed straight into the Heavenly King Hall. Upon seeing Bai Shandian, he dismounted, and Bu Tong knelt on the ground, reporting: "Reporting to Your Excellency, General Hong of the Hangzhou General's Mansion urgently decrees: The Mo Qing Society rebels openly stormed this prison this morning at noon. Our General's Mansion is outnumbered and requests that General Bai lead the Green Standard Army to rescue us! General Hong Chen of Hangzhou kowtows." Bai Shandian was greatly surprised. He and Xiang Quan exchanged glances, both thinking, "This stinky little brother really doesn't know his place! He originally planned to deal with the officials himself and see how things went..." The opportunity was to smooth things over and get him released. But now, things have gotten out of hand—it's one thing for the Moqing Society to quietly rescue Stinky Feet in the dead of night, but why this blatant prison break in broad daylight? And the hostage situation is the Hangzhou General's Mansion! This is a serious crime! Bai Shandian snatched the horse's reins from the constable, instructing his wife, "You quickly take our son and leave this place of trouble. I'll go to the General's Mansion to check the situation!" Then he leaped onto his horse, spurred it, and rode away in a cloud of dust! Xiang Quan shouted loudly at his retreating figure, "You must protect yourself! Don't let them hurt you!" She was torn between wanting her husband to protect her brother and worrying that her brother's men might harm her husband; she was truly conflicted and unable to control herself.

The general's mansion was completely surrounded by the Eight Banners cavalry. Inside the courtyard, thirteen men were desperately trying to break through. Among them was a tall, fat, bald monk carrying the blood-soaked Stinky Foot on his back. He had been freed from his shackles, but due to a broken shoulder blade, he was temporarily unable to circulate his internal energy, rendering him like an ordinary person. Despite carrying him, the fat monk wielded his axe with lightning speed, his movements as agile as a tiger. In the blink of an eye, he had cut down two Eight Banners soldiers, and with a loud shout, he charged towards the mansion gate! A young man dressed as a page, handsome and nimble, carrying a dagger, leaped and bounded about like a monkey, closely guarding Stinky Foot's side. He was none other than Heartbroken Blade, the sole leader of the Moqing Society, and also Stinky Foot's personal page. The other twelve were the twelve renowned hall masters of the Moqing Society, each a master of martial arts, dominating their respective regions in the martial world. The man with the smelly feet was quite famous; he was the woodcutter monk from the Northern School of Shaolin Temple on Mount Song, known for his splitting of wood. Though an ordinary woodcutter, he was a lifelong martial arts enthusiast, often sneaking into the training hall to watch his fellow disciples practice, gradually developing his own woodcutter's skills. Once, during a temple-wide martial arts competition, masters vied to demonstrate their skills. As the competition reached its climax, it seemed the title of champion was about to be snatched by a monk from the training hall. Unexpectedly, he stepped forward and, with a single move, cleaved the monk in two with his axe! This caused a sensation throughout the temple and even alarmed Abbot Xu Ming. According to the temple's rules, martial arts competitions were to end with a point, not a fatal one. Abbot Xu Ming immediately ordered him to be apprehended, but the executioner was also cleaved in two by his axe! The entire Shaolin Temple's martial monks set up a wooden alley formation and a bronze figure formation, but he cleaved them all in pieces with his great axe, leaving them in a sorry state. He finally broke out of the Shaolin Temple, and thus his name quickly spread throughout the martial arts world. People forgot his real name and instead gave him a nickname: Splitter! This young man was just over thirty years old, in the prime of his life. At this moment, he strode forward, his great axe flying, truly a force to be reckoned with, a rare and fierce general in the Moqing Society! He was appointed the eighth leader.

In the blink of an eye, he burst out of the mansion gate, his big feet kicking as he ran into the street! Hongchen, fully armored in golden helmet and longsword, personally led the Eight Banners soldiers in battle. Seeing Pi Liangban's ferocity, he roared, "Surround him! Hold him off even if it kills us! Our reinforcements will be here soon!" Hundreds of Eight Banners soldiers, their iron hooves thundering and horse bells jingling, charged through the fleeing civilians, layer upon layer, re-surrounding Pi Liangban and his men. A flash of cold light, swords and spears raised, an unbreakable net was instantly woven!

Seeing that his hands were numb from the impact of the axe being cleaved in two, and that he was still unable to break through the encirclement, a burly, dark-faced man behind him let out a strange howl of anger. Grabbing a thick bronze mace, he leaped to the front like a tiger leaping over a mountain gate, brandishing the mace. A whirlwind suddenly arose from the ground, sending sand and dust flying. The Eight Banner soldiers were blinded by the swirling dust, and in their momentary daze, screams erupted as several corpses fell from their horses. The man had carved a bloody path through the enemy lines and broken free. The remaining members of the Mo Qing Society shouted and followed, fighting their way out of the encirclement!

"Who is this big, dark-faced guy? He's so powerful!" Hongchen asked a captain on horseback. The captain, probably from the martial arts world and well-informed, bowed and said, "This is the infamous Northern Desert Hacker, Tornado, who is feared throughout the martial arts world. He holds the sixth seat in the Moqing Society. It is said that he is invincible in the Northern Desert with his copper wolf tooth weapon. Moreover, he is ruthless and cold-blooded. To be defeated by him is like meeting the King of Hell, and it is difficult to escape death!" Hongchen gasped and waved his hand, ordering, "Crescent Blade, you lead two groups of men from the Plain Yellow Banner and the Bordered White Banner to immediately surround and intercept the villain Tornado and his gang!" It turns out that the Eight Banners are divided into the Upper Three Banners and the Lower Five Banners. The Bordered Yellow Banner, the Plain Yellow Banner, and the Plain White Banner are the Upper Three Banners. Every member of them is a first-class martial artist with strict discipline. They are personally led by the Emperor and are in charge of the main gates and key passages of the palace to prevent any unusual changes in the capital. The Lower Five Banners were all commanded by princes and nobles of various imperial clans, and Hongchen, as the General of Hangzhou, was one of them. The Lower Five Banners, in order of rank, were the Plain Red Banner, Bordered White Banner, Bordered Red Banner, Plain Blue Banner, and Bordered Blue Banner. Undoubtedly, the Plain Red Banner and Bordered White Banner were the most outstanding, possessing the best martial arts skills and the most disciplined training among the Lower Five Banners. The captain named Crescent Blade clasped his hands in a fist salute: "Understood!" He immediately led two detachments of men and galloped away!

Tornado looked back and saw the enemy instantly left far behind. He laughed loudly, "Brothers, we've finally broken through the encirclement of these Tartars!" Unexpectedly, the young pageboy, Heartbroken, cried out in a shrill voice, "Sixth Brother, don't be too happy yet, look—" Everyone heard his hurried voice and knew that something was wrong. They all looked up and saw dust flying in front of them, the neighing of men and horses, as a large troop of Green Standard Army soldiers charged towards them!