Chapter 197: with translation of chapter title

Heaven-topping Ox

Ma Yu's stifled gaze had just been withdrawn when his pupils suddenly shrank and a gasp escaped his mouth instantly.

Yellow Medicine Master

Only the sword in his hand gleamed brightly in the sunlight, still seeming substantial, as it thrust toward Qiu Chuji with extreme speed.

The warning sounded in his ears, Qiu Chuji's heart suddenly turned cold; the sword technique already swung toward Han Baoju's wrist abruptly halted, he gritted his teeth and instantly flourished a sword flower, thrusting back to block the direction behind his heart.

The opponent's speed was too fast, there was no time left to dodge; this move relied solely on instinct.

The attacking sword tip struck straight against the sword blade; under the fierce impact, Qiu Chuji's sword hilt tilted slightly, yet it also gave him the chance to bend his body to dodge.

Han's Treasure Colt

The next moment, blade scraped blade, a piercing metallic screech rang out on the platform, and a fierce spark shot straight onto his neck.

Blind Ke

After missing the strike, Han Xiao Ying let out a soft cry; at the same time, a phantom flickered, her body nearly skimmed the ground as she sped past, her sleeves fluttering, and another sword light swept toward Qiu Chuji.

Tan of Good Fortune

Su of Lu

Old Man Su

Han Xiao Ying unleashed four consecutive swords, the sword light swift as lightning; having learned from the previous lesson, Qiu Chuji defended with utmost care.

Yan Embracing Dusk

But just as that final sword was about to thrust, a loud shout came from Ke Zhen'e, who was skirmishing at the side, and he vigorously waved his sleeves toward the arena.

Qiu Chuji instinctively used his body to dodge the sword and his sword to block the lance; Ke Xiazi's poisonous lance contained deadly poison, a lesson he had learned years ago when sparring with the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan.

Flame of Grand Longevity

Damn it!!! Qiu Chuji, in extreme rage, almost swore. At that moment, Han Xiao Ying's fourth sword suddenly accelerated, straight for his shoulder; its speed was such that he could no longer dodge.

White Tiger Palace

Seventy-two Forms of the Void and Clarity Fist

"Despicable!"

Qiu Chuji, seeing the situation, hurriedly darted to the side of the high platform, quickly pressed the hemostasis acupoint, then gripped his sword with his right hand and used that wrist to press the wound on his left shoulder, angrily shouting at Ke Zhen'e.

Han Xiao Ying gave a slight start; seeing the situation, a hint of hesitation flashed in her eyes, and she did not press the attack.

Ke Zhen'e snorted coldly: "Each to his own, you act openly and shamelessly; what's it to me, a blind man, to be a little despicable? The jianghu is treacherous; I, Ke Zhen'e, will give you a lesson while you're still alive."

"Seventh Sister, with your sword, we three brothers can easily handle this old Taoist! Stay on the side and guard."

"Old Two, Old Three, attack together!"

Having said that, Ke Zhen'e greeted his two brothers on either side, then took the lead in swinging his staff and attacked.

If it weren't that the three brothers truly could not withstand Qiu Chuji, he would not have wanted to let this Seventh Sister get involved today.

All are seasoned jianghu veterans with clear minds; no matter how foul their tempers, how could they not see that Niu Dingtian is only backing them out of consideration for Seventh Sister?

Moreover, after being reminded by Old Two Han Baoju, Ke Zhen'e also feared that his trio, seeking revenge, would drain the affection between Niu Dingtian and Han Xiao Ying.

"Sorry for the offense!"

Seeing their senior brother in peril, Wang Chuyi and Tan Churu didn't hesitate, clasped fists in a salute, then launched a joint sword attack at Su Lu'zhi.

The old man Su narrowed his eyes, lifted his foot and shifted his stance lightly, then flicked his robe sleeves; in an instant, several strong surges of force, wrapped in his sleeves, burst forth, shaking Wang Chuyi and Tan Churu's joined sword defense, forcing them to retreat repeatedly.

It was precisely their earlier salute that caused this old man to pull back his lethal intent a bit, but letting him go is absolutely out of the question.

Seeing their own moves making no progress and only retreating, with no chance of victory, Wang Chuyi and Tan Churu shouted at the happily fighting Zhou Botong: "Uncle Zhou! If you keep going, Senior Brother Qiu will be dead in a moment!"

Seeing his nephew's perilous situation, Zhou Botong then launched a left palm, right fist, a horizontal chop and straight thrust; when he reached Huang Yaoshi's face, he suddenly burst out laughing, his fist turning into a palm, his palm into a fist, exchanging horizontal and vertical.

Huang Yaoshi never expected him to pull out such a strange move; hastily raising his arm to block, the tip of the palm grazed his brow, and though he was uninjured, he felt a sharp burst of pain.

White Tiger Palace, on the second-level eaves.

Several women were watching the fight below: Miss Huang, Chen Jin'er, Yan Huai xi, and the newly arrived He Yuanjun, among other ladies.

Seeing her father accidentally afflicted, Miss Huang couldn't help but shout loudly toward the opposite rooftop: "Old Urchin! You're using techniques from the Nine Yin Classic to spar with my father; what would your senior brother say down in the underworld?"

Zhou Botong burst out laughing, extremely pleased, and shouted: "Do you think I'm using the techniques from the Classic? I went to great lengths to forget the text!"

"Hehe, learning is easy, but forgetting is a hassle! I'm using the Seventy-Two Ways of the Empty Bright Fist, with both hands sparring in the Urchin Fist, which I, the Old Urchin, came up with myself—what does it have to do with the Nine Yin Classic?"

"Nonsense Urchin Fist!" Miss Huang shouted in anger, raising her fair right hand, pointing the bamboo flute in her hand far away, and cried: "After fighting all this time, you haven't scratched my father at all; your last move just now wasn't the Flying Fluff Force from the Classic, so what was it? How can you shamelessly pat yourself on the back?"

Niu Dingtian had transmitted the Nine Yin Classic to her for over two years; at first he even personally explained it to her in detail, whereas her father had merely skimmed the Classic for two days, so she naturally knew the moves she had just seen very well.

Zhou Botong's face suddenly stiffened; in the midst of combat, his left hand suddenly slapped his own right wrist with a crack, and he cursed:

"I really deserve to die, I really deserve to die—I forgot it was a technique from the Nine Yin Classic! I'm not fighting anymore! I'm not fighting!"

Huang Yaoshi gave a slight start; wanting to withdraw his palm, it was already too late—this move was also incredibly swift, silent, and it struck Zhou Botong's shoulder.

Zhou Botong bent his waist and sank his shoulder; the pain made him hiss as he drew in a cold breath, and he shouted: "I've returned it, I've returned it—the Old Urchin won't fight you anymore!"

Before his words even faded, his figure darted swiftly, rushing up to the high platform, bursting into laughter as he cried: "What's the point of bullying the few with many, you little brats? Come play with the Old Urchin!"

"Junior generation settling grudges—what are you, an old brat, sticking your hand in for? Old man, I'll play with you!"

"Old man, I'm coming too!"

Though the Old Urchin's speed was indeed extreme, just as he was about to rush onto the platform, he saw a red flash like a swift flying cloud, a palm thrust horizontally blocking his path; then a white shadow followed, likewise pushing out a palm. These were Yan Hongshou and Jin Buhuan, who had received Niu Dingtian's orders that no outsider may interfere in the platform duel. Anyway, even if I don't act myself, I will make my subordinates act.

"Pah! Pah! Pah! Shameless!"

The Old Urchin shouted loudly, his hand without hesitation—his left hand turned from palm to fist, and both fists shot out simultaneously, indeed two bursts of the Seventy-Two Ways of the Empty Bright Fist, pure as refined fire.

"Boom!"

The two fists and two palms parted upon contact, then suddenly burst forth a strong surge of force that inflated the three's robes in an instant, after which each leapt back into the air, opening a distance of eight zhang between them.

"Hey hey hey, if you've got guts, fight one-on-one! What kind of hero is it to gang up two against one?" Zhou Botong shook his fists, hands on hips, and shouted.

Jin Buhuan, however, ignored him, merely lowering his gaze to guard the platform below, and did not resume fighting.

Su Lu Zhi suddenly exerted force, his two palms blasting Wang Chuyi and Tan Churui off the platform, then he leapt down and stood shoulder to shoulder with Yan Hongshou.

Yan Hongshou flicked his red robe sleeves, looked at Zhou Botong, and chuckled: "Let the juniors settle their grudges; we just watch. If you all keep taking sides like you, the jianghu would fall into chaos."

He pointed to Ouyang Feng and Hong Qigong fighting fiercely in the distance and said: "If you want to fight, go practice with our sect leader, or wait until these two tire out and then you can step up."

Zhou Botong knew that if the three teamed up against him, he could not resist; if they really fought, he would surely lose face.

"Old Urchin is here just to watch the fun, how did I get tangled in this dogshit trouble!" Seeing the novice junior's shoulder bleeding more and more on the high platform, Zhou Botong paced back and forth, his face twisted into a grimace, and he couldn't help but tug his beard and mutter a curse.

He stomped his foot, suddenly flung open his robe, and shouted angrily at the high platform: "What grudge can't be let go? Hey, you blind man, Old Urchin lets you strike him three times with your iron staff—release that Qiu!"

"Martial Uncle Zhou must not!"

Ma Yu led a group of junior brothers and sisters running quickly to Zhou Botong's side, still wanting to urgently advise him, but saw his own martial uncle give him a meaningful glance.

Ke Zhen'e, true to his old jianghu reputation, kept sweeping and smashing at Qiu Chuji's left shoulder; after his staff swept out, Ke Boju followed up with an attack.

"Pah!"

Hearing Zhou Botong's words, he spat on the ground below, roaring angrily: "Stop acting crazy and stupid in front of the blind man; I killed your martial brother—let go and try!"

"You..."

Ma Yu pointed a finger, glaring angrily.

Zhou Botong chuckled as he stepped before the junior disciples, shouting loudly: "Old Urchin's martial brother is already dead; if you want to kill him, you must go to Mount Zhongnan, dig up his coffin—what a hassle. Old Urchin lets you strike him five times, no more!"

As he finished speaking and was about to feel proud, he suddenly heard Niu Dingtian's loud voice echo across the whole square: "Old Urchin, look who that is!"

"Definitely not my martial brother!" Zhou Botong thought, then turned his head, following the direction of his finger along with everyone else.

"Botong... is it you?"

A woman's voice, mixed with joy and resentment, came—first half startled delight, second half extreme sorrow—making the lone lamp on the stands hear it and his face instantly froze.

Zhou Botong froze on the spot, not yet seeing the figure clearly, he was so frightened his soul fled, turned and ran away, shouting: "Not me! Not me!"

"Botong! Wait for me!"

Seeing his lover vanish in the blink of an eye, Yinggu on the roof panicked and hurried, quickly leapt to the ground, and chased after the direction he disappeared.

"Heh heh, even the Quanzhen Sect's monastics aren't all that pure." The surrounding crowd chattered, and Ke Zhen'e, while fighting, couldn't help but sneer a remark.

"Impudent!!"

Hearing this, Qiu Chuji, whose heart had been stifled, suddenly surged with evil fire; in his angry shout, he dispelled Ke Boju and Zhu Chong with two moves, his sword a white rainbow piercing the sky thrusting straight at them.

"Ding!"

"Si——"

The sword blade struck the iron staff; Qiu Chuji shifted momentum, slanting cut, his precious sword drawing a spark as it sliced toward Ke Zhen'e's neck.

"Big brother, be careful!"

Ke Boju and Zhu Chong cried out in warning.

Just then, Xiao Ying, who had been skirmishing at the side, narrowed her eyes slightly, raised her hand, and her precious sword shot out again, straight toward Qiu Chuji's right shoulder.

"Puchi——"

A clear sound of flesh being pierced rang out; the snow-white sword blade, stained with blood, passed through his shoulder.

Qiu Chuji felt intense pain assault him; his right-hand sword momentum instantly softened, that terrifying blade could no longer advance even half an inch toward Ke Zhen'e's neck.

"Martial brother!"

"Master!"

"Qiu martial brother!"

The Quanzhen Sect members shouted in shock and anger.

"How could Quanzhen tolerate your humiliation!!"

Qiu Chuji's eyes turned resolute; the Three Flowers Gathered at the Top palm surged into his left hand, heedless of the wound bleeding profusely, he thrust it with all his might toward Ke Zhen'e's solar plexus.

"Big brother, be careful!" In desperation, Xiao Ying fiercely drew her sword sideways, deflecting that palm blade by half a fraction.

No one expected Qiu Chuji to employ a mutual-destruction tactic. The three siblings were about to rush forward to rescue him, but Ke Zhen'e neither dodged nor avoided, his face ferocious as he roared: "Die!!"

The next moment——

"Boom!"

"Pfft!"

"Puchi……!" (End of chapter)