Chapter 123: Heroes' Trial, Beauty's Gate

Li Mochou rushed out of the town, hearing a gurgling stream, she turned and went over a mountain hollow.

At this time the sky was already dark; under the faint moonlight and starlight, a mountain stream wound its way down like a silver-white ribbon.

Li Mochou passed through a grove, the stream in sight; she darted to the stream bank, washed her face, sat by the stone, took out a comb from her bosom, and slowly combed her hair that had been blown loose by the wind.

Gazing at the flowing water, gradually, she fell into a daze.

Suddenly she heard a sigh, seeming far away yet also near.

Li Mochou smiled faintly and said, "You've come."

"I've come."

Feng Yi walked to the stream bank; under the veil of moonlight and starlight, the stream water was clear and silver-white, reflecting Li Mochou's lovely figure.

The water rippled, her face bore a smile; truly a picture of a beauty unmatched in the world, a lady at her toilette.

She had just been in a daze, perhaps also because she felt herself beautiful.

Feng Yi saw Guo Jing arrive and, with Yang Guo, staged a scene of uncle and nephew recognizing each other; naturally he had no mind to watch, and followed Li Mochou to this place. Seeing the stream clear and icy, he also bent down to wash his face.

Li Mochou kept gazing at him and asked again, "What are you sighing about?"

Feng Yi shook his head and said, "Nothing, I just feel you shouldn't have come."

Li Mochou coldly said, "Let me resist Mongolia, defend home and country—isn't that what you hoped for?"

Feng Yi's heart leapt; he felt a bit of joy, yet also bitter, and he said wistfully, "Formerly I thought I understood human nature, believing that what I did was right.

Actually my words and deeds were laughable, yet I was smug, considering myself extraordinary.

In fact I relied on martial skill, imposing my ideas on your conduct; I myself was pitiable, and those I arranged were not happy either.

It's like someone demanding I live according to their ideas—I truly resent it!

Li Mochou glanced at him, her heart filled with bitter anger: "You have such feelings just because that Miss Cheng left you?"

Their eyes locked for a long time, neither blinking; Feng Yi gazed for a while, then frowned and said, "I don't even know whether you look down on me in your heart or are jealous, to be able to say such words!"

Li Mochou's gaze was like water; she glanced up and down at him, then suddenly gave a "puchi" laugh and said softly, "You really are different from ordinary people, hard to fathom..." She stopped short, the words "hard to fathom what?" turning in Feng Yi's throat into a sigh, and she whispered, "Formerly I thought all grudges in the jianghu could be resolved."

But after the affair of Cheng Ying and Lu Wushuang, and seeing the Wu brothers and you, even Yang Guo's treatment of Ha Datong, I realized I had been taking things for granted.

According to my thinking, Cheng Ying and Lu Wushuang couldn't kill you, nor did you kill them; I saved them! Yet they resent me for playing with their hearts, and you also feel that leaving two calamities in the world wouldn't make you happy.

And the father of the Wu brothers, Wu Santong, a disciple of the One Lamp Grand Master, fell in love with his adopted daughter; the mother of the Wu brothers, in order to prevent her husband from harming the Lu family, rushed to stop him and died saving her husband.

Yet the Wu brothers do not resent that father, who fell into an irredeemable karmic obstacle due to his deformed lust, but instead seek revenge on you.

Fairly speaking, I think the one who deserves death is he, Wu Santong, not you; he is neither a qualified father nor a qualified husband.

But Wu Santong is the father of the Wu brothers; regardless of whether they understand, they can only seek revenge on you, and from the brothers' standpoint, it cannot be said to be wrong.

As for Yang Guo's hatred of Ha Datong, he cursed him as a shameless thief before many, only because Granny Sun died under his palm.

Little did they know that Ha Datong is a Quanzhen adept; he never killed an innocent indiscriminately in his life, nor ever thought of harming Granny Sun; it was she who secretly schemed and attacked him, and Ha Datong was merely an instinctive reflex.

Examples like this are too many; the former chief of the Beggars' Sect, Xiao Feng, a great hero of his time, once nearly struck his own younger aunt's daughter dead with a palm, yet who hated him? But Yang Guo feels Granny Sun treated him well, while the Quanzhen Sect treated him poorly, so Ha Datong deserves death, without considering causes and effects.

And they are all considered outstanding figures of the younger generation, all like this; let alone others.

At this very moment, with the nation's survival at stake, I am truly weary of all these jianghu grudges.

Li Mochou sensed the subtlety, smiled faintly, and said, "You must be guessing in your heart whether my actions today are intentional like this!"

Feng Yi replied slowly, "Yes."

Li Mochou lightly laughed and said, "Then you guessed right. I did it on purpose!"

Feng Yi sighed deeply and said, "Why do you put yourself through this again?"

Li Mochou said softly, "You fear that if I go to the Heroes' Assembly, someone will kill me and I cannot resist; if you protect me, you will inevitably become an enemy of the martial world, and then we cannot unite to resist Mongolia."

Feng Yi gave no direct answer, only saying, "You have too many enemies in your life; even without grudge, many wish you dead, and these people are not necessarily righteous heroes nor petty villains, but merely ordinary folk; you stir up trouble, harming others and yourself."

Li Mochou chuckled and said, "I can understand enemies killing me, but why would others want me dead?"

Feng Yi fixed his gaze on her: "You really don't understand?"

Li Mochou suddenly smiled faintly and said, "Can't I just hear you say one thing?"

Li Mochou is in her thirties but looks about twenty, beautiful as a flower; facing her smile, Feng Yi felt his heart stir a little, and he nodded slightly, saying, "Spoken plainly, it's not worth mentioning.

Just as the most vicious way to frame someone in the market is neither to accuse them before officials nor to throw a few stones at their house at night, but to whisper abroad that their cellar holds countless gold and silver; before long that family will surely face ruin, yet they won't know why! The same in the martial world: if one bears grudge against another, they spread rumors that the person hides martial arts manuals, divine weapons, or claims to be number one under heaven; serious consequences bring family destruction and death, lighter ones bring endless trouble.

And this trick, anyone with a bit of judgment knows it's a deceitful nonsense, not to be trusted; yet this poisonous scheme works every time—why?

It is because of human nature's arrogance, greed, and jealousy.

They want to become the second him, think they can, yet also think they cannot and must destroy you; why should you be allowed to roam free? This evil in human nature cannot be changed by anyone.

Kublai Khan lightly said he was number one under heaven; he thus gave an account to Mongolia and stirred the nerves of the Central Plains martial folk.

This made many people dissatisfied, bearing grudges against me; among them were plain followers like Guo Fu and the Wu brothers, but also those who couldn't bear to see me well; you say if they harbored such thoughts they should die? No!

Yet such thoughts will surely make hearts disunited; for instance, in battle, could Guo Fu and the Wu brothers obey my orders? If they err, should they too die?

He said with a long sigh: "Your beauty like a flower, your high martial skill—how many in the martial world harbor designs on you?"

Merely because your martial skill is high, your reputation bad, and you have no other men in your eyes, you have long become a target of public criticism; those who wish you dead are far more than just righteous heroes of the orthodox path.

But if you provoke Huang Rong like this, someone will surely exaggerate it without limit, go to the Heroes' Assembly, and inevitably bring trouble upon yourself.

Although you have practiced the martial arts from Chongyang's Legacy, your inner energy has advanced, yet you are ultimately not what you once were, and even formerly you were no match for Huang Rong!

You openly declare you will go to the Martial World Assembly—how is that not like Kublai Khan saying he is number one under heaven, stirring human nature and merely increasing killing karma! Alas!

The meaning contained in that final long sigh is unknown—whether it is grief and indignation or regret.

Feng Yi knew Li Mochou had once been severely wounded, her strength greatly diminished; although she had practiced Chongyang's Legacy and her inner energy had greatly improved, the time is still short, still not reaching her former level, so how could she be a match for Huang Rong? As for wit, she is even less his equal!

Unless Huang Rong, as in the original story, is pregnant; but if so, Huang Rong would not contend with her either!

Li Mochou listened silently, reaching out to stroke her long hair that fell down, almost reaching her waist like clouds, and suddenly smiled softly: "Not bad; I once, to deal with my junior sister, deliberately claimed the Ancient Tomb held a divine skill manual, luring a bunch of heretical sects to attack her. Now too, I just want to see how many will come to kill me!"

Feng Yi quietly watched her; only seeing her slowly rise and say, "But it's not to create killing karma; I merely want to see what you would do—I am very curious."

Feng Yi's eyes brightened; Li Mochou, dressed in secular attire, bathed in night's darkness, actually possessed an otherworldly beauty.

At this moment, in Feng Yi's heart, she was no less than Xiao Longnv, also beautiful like a fairy.

Feng Yi couldn't help sighing inwardly: "Why didn't I meet her sooner!" Yet he lowered his head and remained silent.

Li Mochou sneered: "Why aren't you speaking?"

Feng Yi sensed a faint fragrance drifting over; even without raising his head, he knew Li Mochou had come to his side.

Li Mochou said softly: "I know you've guessed this much—you don't want to see me die, nor do you wish to become enemies with the martial world for my sake, so you came just to let me go, to keep me from the Heroes' Assembly and spare you trouble; your idea is quite beautiful!"

Feng Yi said solemnly: "I let you go only because I feel some disputes are utterly unnecessary! Besides, your help resisting the Mongols may not change much; if you just stop killing people at the drop of a hat, you could live happily, find release, and I wouldn't have wasted saving you—why make things difficult, yet it's not that bad!"

Li Mochou said coldly: "You think it's unnecessary, not that bad, but you're not me!" Hearing this, Feng Yi's thoughts tangled in confusion.

Li Mochou continued: "You just said a lot, and it's all true. Your martial arts are peerless, you understand human nature deeply, you're exceptionally wise—but you don't understand love, nor hatred!"

Feng Yi shook his head: "Peerless martial arts, deep understanding of human nature, unmatched wisdom—I dare not claim that," yet he nodded: "But you're right that I don't understand love and hatred."

Li Mochou's eyes smiled, her waist bent slightly as she sat beside him, stretched lazily, looked up at the sky, and murmured: "You once said, Lu Zhanyuan doesn't want me, and even if he were right, there's nothing left."

Feng Yi coughed dryly twice, then said hesitantly: "When I said that, it was in desperation—don't take it to heart!"

Li Mochou gave a bitter smile: "Later I also thought, I once deeply loved Lu Zhanyuan, yet I reduced his bones to ashes, killed his brothers' families and his servants—such conduct, how could a man like you not find it horrifying, nor understand it?"

Saying this is hardly surprising!

Her tone was full of self-reproach; Feng Yi sighed: "Lu Zhanyuan is just one person—you blame his faults on others—who wouldn't fear that?"

Li Mochou said wistfully: "So you don't understand. Back then Lu Zhanyuan told me he wanted to marry someone else and invited me to his wedding. My heart felt as if torn apart—a feeling I had never known before.

I have cultivated the Severed Emotion, Desireless internal art since childhood. That was the first time I felt heartbroken for a man—I vomited blood, fainted, and my strength greatly diminished.

After I woke up, I hated—why should he be happy? I naturally couldn't let him off easy, so I decided to wreck the wedding! And on that day, Wu Santong joined me in causing havoc at the ceremony.

Heh, I did it for my lover; he did it for his beloved adopted daughter—we were fellow sufferers. Then a high monk from Tianlong Temple appeared—I couldn't beat him, and Wu Santong, a retainer of the Dali Duan clan, dared not fight him either.

Thus we were forced by him to swear a poison oath: for ten years we must not cause trouble for a single blade of grass or tree of the Lu family!

Feng Yi wanted to speak, but Li Mochou didn't let him interject, saying slowly: "That old monk's action back then was actually the same as your attempt to resolve my hatred toward Lu Wushuang and Cheng Ying.

You think that since their martial arts now can't match mine, even if they still harbor hatred, if they spend time training, perhaps it will fade.

And that old monk also assumed that after ten years we'd forget, but he doesn't understand men and women's emotions at all!"

Feng Yi glanced sideways, seeing much resentment gathered in her brows and eyes, felt strange, and said: "Can't it fade? If you truly loved Lu Zhanyuan that deeply, how could you treat his family like that? I don't think you love him much! As I've heard, love is about fulfillment."

Moonlight filtered through the treetops, scattering onto Li Mochou's face; she drew a breath, sighed softly, and said slowly: "What is love? Perhaps I don't even know!"

But if that day I had disrupted his wedding to the He-surname, that resentment vented, released—perhaps even after ten years it could be forgotten!

But no—I was forced to swear that poison oath, to endure ten years, forced to watch them love each other for ten years!

Seeing her twisted face and vicious gaze, Feng Yi felt a chill arise and thought grimly: "No wonder it's like this!"

Li Mochou gritted her teeth, eyes full of killing intent, snarled: "Every day, every moment I'm calculating the arrival of that ten-year deadline—the agony of waiting is like being sliced by a thousand blades; you probably wouldn't believe it! I know, if that resentment isn't vented, I'll end up like my ancestress, dying young in middle age! Even if Wang Zhongyang is lacking, he too left home for the Dao, stayed beside my ancestress, and his traces are everywhere in the ancient tomb!

But what about me? A woman in the prime of life, bound by oath, alone and solitary, while they enjoy marital bliss—how could I be like that? So, at the slightest displeasure I kill; only thus can I endure ten years!"

Li Mochou's eyes kept shifting, recalling that painful, tragic memory, as if catching the faint light filtering through the trees, then she said: "So when the ten-year period ends, I will slaughter the entire Lu household.

Because when I was forced to swear, it was ten years of not moving a single blade of grass or tree of the Lu family; now that the oath is over, how could I settle accounts with just Lu Zhanyuan alone? Is there such a cheap deal in the world?

Feng Yi suddenly understood everything.

Why Li Mochou and Wu Santong both became mad.

One madness is venting madness.

One madness is repressed madness.

Originally Li Mochou and Wu Santong were merely feeling wronged, planning to cause a scene, which might not have led to murder—but the Tianlong Temple high monk intervened, forcing them to swear the ten-year poison oath.

Their resentment gathered in their hearts, with no outlet. Li Mochou, young and full of vigor, thus unleashed her wrath without restraint, turning a lovely beauty into a man-eating demon.

Wu Santong himself not only had a wife, his beloved was his adopted daughter, and he was a notable figure in the martial world—formerly a prominent official of the Dali state.

He could not vent his resentment like Li Mochou onto others; he could only suppress it in his heart. This resentment, unable to be released, festering inside, causes one to lose reason and will.

Upon this thought, recalling his own deeds that day concerning Li Mochou, Cheng Ying, and Lu Wushuang, Feng Yi couldn't help shuddering. He sighed deeply and said softly: "The past is past; you shouldn't live in it!"

Li Mochou's killing intent faded, her manner grew gentle, and she said softly: "I thought I would spend this life immersed in hatred; if someone killed me one day, that would be the end, and I wouldn't have to live for love anymore!"

Having said that, her gaze turned strangely icy, and she gave a sharp, cold laugh: "But now there's you!"

Feng Yi stared, then said: "I..."

Without thinking he asked: "You mean you like me?"

Li Mochou smiled softly again, saying: "Then do you like me?" She lightly brushed her hair with her palm, then slowly rested it on Feng Yi's shoulder.

Feng Yi knew her feelings were complex and changeable, yet in her words and actions she was likewise—his cheeks flushed slightly, but he spoke earnestly: "Not bad, I do have some liking for you. After all, a woman as beautiful as you—what man could remain unmoved?"

At this moment, their thoughts were truly unfathomable, and the subtlety of their relationship was beyond description.

Only see Li Mochou raise her palm, gently stroking the hair at her temples, and sigh: "One person injured my body, the martial arts I painstakingly cultivated—he destroyed them with a single palm! My reputation and person were also harmed innocently by him; such a person I ought to cut to pieces!"

The more she spoke, the more grief-stricken and fierce she became; her voice, originally icy, turned into a hoarse, exhausted shout.

Feng Yi let out a long sigh and quickly averted his gaze.

Li Mochou turned her gaze to the bright star in the azure heavens and said: "Those ten years I felt as if I were still living in a lightless ancient tomb, wasting the best decade of my life, yet that person was like a beam of light—overbearing and domineering, wherever it shines, it fills everything.

My heart wants to leap with joy, yet thinking of the distance between us makes me ache unbearably.

Her voice then became infinitely wistful and tender; this feeling made Feng Yi recall the night Cheng Ying played the flute for him—lovely yet full of thoughts.

Feng Yi unconsciously forgot Li Mochou's cold-blooded aloofness and obstinacy, for his heart was now full of sympathy; he sighed deeply and said: "It's only that we met too late. If I had come twenty years earlier, that would have been perfect!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted them—such an answer seemed to admit he could not be with Li Mochou.

Li Mochou's expression shifted slightly: "Because I'm twenty years older than you?"

Feng Yi said: "No, it's because of Lingbo!"

Li Mochou stared, then suddenly said: "I can kill her!"

Feng Yi's head buzzed, then went blank—right, she's a fanatic; a flame shot to his head, he sprang up and shouted sternly: "What did you say?"

"I said!" Li Mochou's eyes flashed with ruthlessness: "Her life is mine to spare; what's wrong if I kill her?"

"You dare!" Feng Yi blurted: "I'll kill you with one palm!" He raised his palm, and the palm wind blew her side's long hair flying like tangled clouds.

Li Mochou's eyes were bloodshot, she glared at him fiercely, and shouted: "Everything I have is yours, and I have given everything I have to you; this is also good!"

Feng Yi's arm, which had been held straight up, now unconsciously bent and slowly lowered.

At that very moment, Li Mochou suddenly reached out and grabbed toward Feng Yi's pulse point.

Her martial arts were not weak, and it was just when Feng Yi was distracted; the pulse point is a vital spot, his body went numb, and Li Mochou had already seized it.

Although Feng Yi possessed invincible martial arts and invincible wit, he never expected Li Mochou to suddenly strike treacherously; but having cultivated divine skill, as soon as his acupressure point was restrained, he reacted instantly—Li Mochou only felt heat in her tiger's mouth, her body swayed, and she was almost broken free by him.

But she only needed that instant; moreover, she was seated while Feng Yi stood, and his earlier struggle left an opening.

Bang bang bang bang—Feng Yi's dantian qi sea point, left flank abdominal knot point, right flank Zhangmen point, and right knee blood sea point were struck four times.

Feng Yi's body felt sore and numb, his true qi impeded, he involuntarily dropped to one knee, though he did not fall; just as he was about to muster strength to rise, a white flash appeared—his own blood dagger at his waist had already been drawn by Li Mochou and placed against his neck.

Li Mochou laughed "keke" and said: "Feng Yi, Feng Yi, now do you know my methods?"

Hearing her triumphant laugh, Feng Yi's face turned blood-red; at this moment he suddenly understood what it means: "a hero finds it hard to pass the beauty's gate."

(End of chapter)