A chorus of curses erupted behind her. Chu Tong turned around and saw the Four Heroes of Nanhuai had already run out the door, mounted their horses, and were chasing after her.
Partridges fly deep in Tianyu Mountain
Yun Yinghuai spurred his horse and galloped straight into the mountains. As he ran, Chu Tong suddenly felt a warm sensation on her neck. Reaching down to touch it, she found her hand covered in blood! Chu Tong was horrified. Turning her head, she saw Yun Yinghuai with a furrowed brow, a deathly pale face, and crimson spots around his mouth. A chill ran through her: "Hero Yun is seriously injured! And there are pursuers behind us, what should we do?" At that moment, Yun Yinghuai turned his horse around, and it galloped into a dense forest.
The forest was lush with vegetation, the branches obscuring their figures. Chu Tong felt the branches piercing her eyes and stinging her cheeks. She heard Yun Yinghuai whisper, "Hold me tight!" Chu Tong was startled, then immediately wrapped her arms around Yun Yinghuai's waist, burying her head against his chest. Suddenly, Yun Yinghuai exerted his strength, releasing the reins and leaping upwards, then slamming Chu Tong to the ground. They rolled a few times before landing in the grass. The horse, however, galloped deeper into the forest.
Chu Tong was dizzy and disoriented from the fall, feeling as if all the bones in her body were about to fall apart. After a while, she came to her senses and realized that Yun Yinghuai was lying on the ground with her on top of him. Her face flushed, and she tried to push Yun Yinghuai up, saying, "Hero Yun, are you alright? Yun..."
Before she could finish speaking, Yun Yinghuai reached out and covered her mouth and nose, whispering, "Shh, someone's coming." Just then, the sound of approaching hooves could be heard, and the ground trembled slightly. Yun Yinghuai quickly lowered his head, and Chu Tong felt a surge of heat at her earlobe, her nose filled with a refreshing and masculine scent. She felt an indescribable ambiguity, and her whole body trembled slightly, her face instantly burning.
Once the horse had ridden far away, Yun Yinghuai released Chu Tong, turned around, and collapsed to the ground, panting heavily. Chu Tong got up and saw that Yun Yinghuai's face was ashen, with beads of sweat rolling down his cheeks. Chu Tong quickly went over and asked, "Hero Yun, how are you?" Then she went to help him up.
Yun Yinghuai struggled to sit up, took out a small porcelain bottle from his pocket, frowned, and sprinkled the powder in the bottle onto the wound on his arm. He slowly said, "Fortunately, we should leave here quickly and find a place to hide. The Four Heroes of Nanhuai will definitely come back to look for us when they find that no one is on horseback."
Chu Tong nodded, about to help Yun Yinghuai up, when she heard the sound of approaching hooves. She quickly crouched down and saw Bai Xiaolu riding towards her, her face filled with anxiety. Bai Xiaolu stopped, looking into the distance. The setting sun was blood-red, and darkness was falling. Looking at the dense shadows of the trees ahead, Bai Xiaolu hesitated, thinking, "It's getting late, and I don't know the way through the forest. I can't hear the hooves anymore. If I get lost in the forest, being cold and hungry is secondary; I'm most afraid of becoming prey for wild beasts... But, but if I don't chase after them, what if my senior brothers kill Hero Yun? I, I..." Thinking this, she gritted her teeth and tried to spur her horse to catch up, but a glance caught a glimpse of several drops of blood on the grass, extending deep into the undergrowth. She spurred her horse forward and could see Chu Tong's yellow clothes.
Bai Xiaolu's heart skipped a beat. She jumped off her horse, calling out, "Hero Yun! Hero Yun!" as she slowly approached. Chu Tong turned her head and saw that Yun Yinghuai had already closed his eyes and collapsed to the ground. Chu Tong was shocked and rushed over, shaking him, crying, "Hero Yun! Hero Yun!"
At this moment, Bai Xiaolu had already walked over. Seeing Yun Yinghuai's handsome face pale as he collapsed to the ground, she couldn't help but gasp and rush forward, her eyes filled with tears, saying, "Hero Yun! Hero Yun! Brother Yun, Brother Yun, wake up!" While crying, she took off the gold thread earring from her left ear, broke the bead open, poured out a pill, and stuffed it into Yun Yinghuai's mouth.
Chu Tong retorted angrily upon hearing Bai Xiaolu's words: "What Brother Yun? Who is your Brother Yun? It was clearly those four cowards from the Nanhuai Sect and those seven bastards from the Taoyuan Sect who killed Hero Yun!"
Bai Xiaolu glared at her and said, "What did you say? What do you mean, a coward from the Nanhuai School?"
Chu Tong retorted defiantly, "Those four identical bears! You killed Hero Yun, and now you're here feigning compassion!"
Bai Xiaolu sneered, "How could we have killed him? It was clearly you who carried the Jianghu kill order and offended the Seven Sages of Peach Blossom Spring, which led to Brother Yun's life being in danger!"
Chu Tong was furious and thought to herself, "Pah! This little wench, she just stood by and watched those four bears from Nanhuai assassinate Hero Yun, and now she's pretending to be a good person? She loves Hero Yun... No way, I'll make her furious!" Thinking this, she pointed at Yun Yinghuai and shouted, "He's my husband, whom I married years ago. It's only natural for a husband to protect his wife, how did I implicate him!" Then, with a stern face, she said to Bai Xiaolu with disdain, "Pah! Shameless! Calling someone else's husband 'Brother Yun'!"
Bai Xiaolu's expression immediately changed, and she said, "You, what did you say?"
Seeing the drastic change in her expression, Chu Tong felt a sense of satisfaction. Just as she was about to say something, Yun Yinghuai coughed a few times and slowly opened her eyes. Chu Tong quickly leaned down and asked, "Are you feeling better?"
Yun Yinghuai struggled to sit up with the help of the two men, and said after catching her breath, "I feel much better. Just now I felt like my insides were being crushed, but now I feel a warmth in my dantian, and my internal organs feel much more comfortable."
Bai Xiaolu said, "I just gave you a Great Rejuvenation Pill. Now sit cross-legged and practice your internal energy, and your internal injuries will heal."
Yun Yinghuai looked at Bai Xiaolu with surprise in his dark eyes and said softly, "The Great Rejuvenation Pill? You actually gave such a precious medicine to me..." After saying that, he sighed deeply and said, "It seems that I owe you a favor again."
Bai Xiaolu hurriedly waved her hands, saying, "No, no, Master Yun, I'm doing this willingly." Realizing her rashness as soon as the words left her mouth, Bai Xiaolu's pretty face flushed red, and she lowered her head, clutching the hem of her clothes, remaining silent. Yun Yinghuai was stunned for a moment, silently observing Bai Xiaolu's girlish charm, his autumn-water eyes filled with thoughtful contemplation. Chu Tong, watching from the side, wrinkled her nose and whispered, "Hmph, it seems this girl is definitely his lover! With so many crises ahead, he still has the leisure to meet his little sweetheart!"
Yun Yinghuai glanced at Chu Tong and said to Bai Xiaolu, "Miss Bai, I owe you a great favor, which I will repay in the future. But today I am in danger, so I can only take my leave now." After saying that, he said to Chu Tong, "Little girl, let's go."
Chu Tong rushed over to help him up. Just then, the sound of horses' hooves rang out from not far away, followed by several voices shouting, "Yun Yinghuai, spare your lives!" Chu Tong and the others' expressions changed drastically. They saw that the Four Heroes of Nanhuai had already ridden back, and it was too late to escape. Bai Xiaolu rushed forward, spreading her arms to block them, saying, "Senior Brother, Second Senior Brother, Third Senior Brother, Fourth Senior Brother, please let Hero Yun go! I won't be willful anymore, I'll go back to Nanhuai with you!"
Zhong Ren reined in the reins and said, “Junior Sister, this scoundrel just killed people from the Peach Blossom Sect. Our sect is of one heart and one mind with the Peach Blossom Sect, so naturally we must avenge them!”
Zhong Yi said, "This villain is a remnant of the Cloud Peak Sect, a member of an evil cult. Every righteous person like us has the right to kill him!"
Zhong Li said, "That's right, besides, he also betrayed his master and ancestors, and committed immoral and disgraceful acts!"
Zhong Xin said, "Junior sister, step aside! We are determined to rid the martial arts world of this scourge today!"
Having said that, the four of them jumped off their horses and drew their swords together. Bai Xiaolu stepped forward, tears streaming down her face, and said, "Senior brother, I'm begging you, isn't that enough?" Before she could finish speaking, Zhong Ren struck her pressure points. Zhong Ren said, "Junior sister, we've offended you. We'll apologize to you after we kill this villain!"
Bai Xiaolu was unable to move, but she kept pleading, tears streaming down her face.
Yun Yinghuai laughed heartily, coughing a few times before saying, "Good, very good!" He looked down at Chu Tong, turned around, took out a money pouch from his pocket and placed it in her hand, then whispered, "I'm sorry, I've dragged you into this. There's silver in this pouch. While I'm fighting those four, try to hold out for as long as possible. When they're not looking, find a horse and escape. Head towards the direction of sunset; you should be out of this valley in about half an hour." After saying this, he took out a small gold token from his pocket and stuffed it into Chu Tong's hand, saying, "Take this token to the Tonghua Society and find Manager Hua. Once he sees the token, he'll definitely arrange your future."
Chu Tong felt a chill run down her spine upon hearing this. Yun Yinghuai's words were clearly a prelude to his death! She stared up at him with wide, cold eyes, only to see a calm expression on Yun Yinghuai's handsome face, though a hint of resolute determination flickered in his deep, autumn-water-like eyes. Chu Tong gritted her teeth, clutching Yun Yinghuai's sleeve, and said, "I, I..." But she couldn't bring herself to say the rest, "I will definitely avenge you in the future," and her eyes reddened.
Yun Yinghuai smiled slightly, patted her head, and said, "I haven't been very good to you along the way, so please don't blame me." After saying that, he turned around, took a few steps, and shouted loudly, "Who wants to be the first to die?"
The Four Heroes of Nanhuai shouted in unison, "You ignorant fools!" With that, they attacked together.
Chu Tong, clutching the lotus leaf Yun Yinghuai had given her, turned and took a few steps away, tears welling in her eyes. But when she looked back, she saw Yun Yinghuai surrounded by flashing swords, his face deathly pale, blood streaming from his mouth. Chu Tong fiercely wiped away her tears, thinking, "Bah! Hero Yun risked his life to save me, how can I leave like this, so heartless!" Just then, she suddenly noticed Bai Xiaolu standing beside her like a stone tablet. Her eyes darted around, and an idea immediately formed in her mind. She secretly slipped over, knocked Bai Xiaolu down, dragged her back a bit, then grabbed Bai Xiaolu's sword and held it to her neck, shouting to the Four Heroes of Nanhuai, "Stop right now, or I'll kill her!"
The five men were still fighting when Yun Yinghuai shouted, "Little girl, you should leave quickly. Don't hurt Miss Bai. I owe her a favor!"
Chu Tong said, "The favor you owe her is not the favor I owe her. I only care about saving you, nothing else matters!"
At this moment, the Four Heroes of Nanhuai's moves became faster and faster. The four of them thought to themselves, "Chu Tong is just a weak girl of fifteen or sixteen years old. How could she dare to kill someone?" So they said in unison, "Let's kill this villain now, and then kill that little rascal to collect the bounty!"
Chu Tong sneered, "Fine! Then let your beautiful junior sister be buried with us!" With that, she raised her sword and slashed.
Bai Xiaolu closed her eyes and screamed, "No!"
Hearing their junior sister's scream, the Four Heroes of Nanhuai became anxious, realizing that Chu Tong was not just putting on an act. Zhong Xin feinted an attack, intending to escape, finish off Chu Tong, and then fight back. Yun Yinghuai saw through this and quickly used a move to block him, but was caught off guard by Zhong Ren's sneak attack, a sword wound to his left shoulder, blood staining his clothes.
Chu Tong was shocked to see this scene and thought to herself, "Oh no! I've made things worse!" In her panic, she kicked Bai Xiaolu and said, "Hey, stop crying. Do those four bears have any weaknesses? Tell Master Yun quickly so he can win, and then I won't have to kill you."
Bai Xiaolu said, "My four senior brothers are quadruplets. Because they are of one mind, their swordsmanship is perfectly coordinated. How could they have any weaknesses?"
Upon hearing this, Chu Tong had a sudden inspiration. She threw down her longsword and exclaimed, "Oh dear, I dare not kill anyone! I won't kill her!" Then she shouted, "What? Miss Bai, what do you want to tell me?" After saying this, she silenced Bai Xiaolu by pressing her pressure point, then leaned down beside her and pretended to listen for a while. Then she shouted to the group, "Miss Bai just told me that she doesn't want you to kill Hero Yun not because she likes him, but because she is pregnant and doesn't want the father of her child to commit murder!"
Upon hearing this, the Four Heroes of Nanhuai exclaimed in unison, "What?!"
Chu Tong continued loudly, "Miss Bai has been in a relationship with one of the Four Heroes of Nanhuai for many days now. They are deeply in love and spend every night together! But she is afraid that the other three will be dissatisfied, so she has not said anything! She is just using her feelings for Hero Yun as a pretext to deceive people!"
Chu Tong's words immediately unsettled the four heroes of Nanhuai. They all wondered, "Who? Who? Who is our junior sister having an affair with?" They had been inseparable from Bai Xiaolu since childhood, their bond deeply ingrained. While their brotherly affection was unbreakable, the mere thought of their beloved having a romantic relationship with one of their own comrades ignited a surge of jealousy and suspicion. Their once perfectly synchronized sword formation instantly crumbled.
Yun Yinghuai was gritting his teeth and holding on when he saw that his opponent had made a mistake. He quickly struck with his palm and with a "Ah!", Zhong Li was knocked to the ground.
Zhong Ren, regaining his senses, said angrily, "Don't listen to her nonsense! She's trying to sow discord!"
Chu Tong continued her nonsense, pointing to the sky and shouting, "How could I possibly sow discord? Your junior sister said herself that she's two months pregnant! If you don't believe me, feel her pulse! She said she only loves one of the Four Heroes of Nanhuai. She and the other senior brothers are destined not to meet in this life or the next. In the next life, she'll be with her lover just like in this life, under the flowers and moon, in the boudoir. You touch my hand, you kiss my lips, we'll be like birds flying wing to wing and branches intertwined! She also said, if the next life doesn't work, there's the next life after that, and if the next life after that doesn't work, there's the next life after that. Oh dear, in short, everyone among the Four Heroes of Nanhuai will get a share!"
Chu Tong, standing nearby, spouted loud, incoherent nonsense, completely disrupting everyone's concentration. The remaining three heroes of Nanhuai, though not entirely convinced by Chu Tong's words, harbored some doubts. The four heroes of Nanhuai were not originally particularly skilled in swordsmanship; their power only came from their coordinated attacks. Now, one of them was missing, significantly reducing their strength. Furthermore, the remaining three harbored suspicions, further diminishing their power. Yun Yinghuai seized the opportunity, striking Zhong Yi and Zhong Xin down with two consecutive palm strikes. He was now completely exhausted, swaying precariously. Seeing Zhong Ren's ferocious expression as he thrust his sword forward, Yun Yinghuai thought, "Hold on a little longer! No, I absolutely cannot die lying here!" Just then, Zhong Ren suddenly froze. A sword pierced through his chest from behind, then was pulled out and thrust in again. Zhong Ren's knees buckled, and he knelt, the sword clattering to the ground as he collapsed into a pool of blood.
Yun Yinghuai stared intently and saw Chu Tong standing behind Zhong Ren with a sword in her hand. Tears streaming down her face, she dropped the sword and ran over, saying, "Hero Yun! Hero Yun, are you alright?" Yun Yinghuai felt a deafening roar in his ears, and Chu Tong's voice seemed to be very, very far away. He swayed twice and then collapsed to the ground.
In a hazy state, Yun Yinghuai vaguely heard a woman's voice beside him, but it wasn't very clear. Immediately afterward, a wave of excruciating pain swept through his entire body, his internal organs feeling as if they were being burned alive. At that moment, he heard footsteps, and someone squatted beside him, prying open his mouth and stuffing a pill inside. Then, they murmured, "That little girl was wearing two beaded earrings; I guessed she had two pills. Hehe, I was right." The voice was extremely sweet; one could immediately recognize it as the little girl, Yao Chutong.
After swallowing the pill, Yun Yinghuai immediately felt a warm sensation rising from his dantian, making his whole body feel comfortable. He tried circulating his internal energy, and the pain lessened considerably. At this moment, Bai Xiaolu sobbed, "It's all my fault! It's all my fault! I've dragged my senior brother into this! If I hadn't been so stubborn and insisted on going to the inn to watch the commotion, my senior brother wouldn't have died..."
Chu Tong asked, "What do you mean, going to the inn to watch the excitement?"
Bai Xiaolu choked back tears, saying, "My senior brothers and I were originally ordered by my father to travel from the Great Zhou to Huaizhou in Beiliang to celebrate the birthday of the Peach Blossom Sect leader. I got carried away and asked my eldest senior brother to change our route to visit the capital of Beiliang, where we stayed for a day before leaving. On our way, we encountered that hunchbacked old man at the inn. He was talking loudly with someone by the roadside, saying there was a young girl in the inn ahead whose head was worth a hundred taels of gold. He then produced a portrait. He also said that the Seven Sages of Peach Blossom had just passed by, saw the portrait, and cursed it, saying the person in the painting insulted their reputation. The seven immediately went to the inn to seek revenge. My senior brothers didn't want to go, but I insisted on joining in the fun. I never expected... I never expected..." At this point, she burst into tears.
Chu Tong snorted and said, "What's wrong with joining in the fun? It's your senior brothers who are wrong. Like the Seven Scoundrels of Peach Blossom Spring, they pretend to be noble and righteous, like upright scholars, but in reality, they do all sorts of shady things behind the scenes. Shameless villains!"
Just then, a rustling sound came from the side. Chu Tong turned around and saw Zhong Xin struggling to his feet, gripping his sword and walking towards Yun Yinghuai. Chu Tong was shocked and rushed forward, slashing Zhong Xin in the back with her sword. Zhong Xin fell to the ground, groaning, "Junior sister, go back and tell Master, let him avenge us!"
Bai Xiaolu was immobilized by acupressure and lay on the ground, unable to move. She cried out anxiously, "Fourth Senior Brother! Fourth Senior Brother!" Then she pleaded with Chu Tong, "Please, please spare my Fourth Senior Brother!"
Chu Tong ignored his pleas and cursed, "Pah! Shameless! You killed people for no reason and then expect your master to avenge you?" With that, she plunged her sword into his chest with a "thud," coldly saying, "If you want revenge, come find me as a ghost!"
Bai Xiaolu gasped in shock, and then saw Chu Tong stabbing the other corpses one by one with her sword. She cried out, "My senior brothers are all dead. Why are you desecrating their corpses?"
Chu Tong glared at her and said, "What if there are still some alive? If a gust of wind blows and they wake up again, they might hurt me and Master Yun when I'm not paying attention. Do you think I want to stab these bears?"
Bai Xiaolu glared at Chu Tong, tears streaming down her face, and cried, "It's all because of you, you scoundrel! If it weren't for you, Hero Yun, you wouldn't have fought with the Seven Sages of Peach Blossom Spring, and my senior brother wouldn't have lost his life!"
Chu Tong thought to herself, "This little vixen is so unreasonable!" She sneered, her eyes flashing with cold light: "If it weren't for the fact that you've done a favor for Hero Yun, I would have sent you to the Western Paradise to find your senior brother long ago. Who gave you the right to whine here? If you keep making a fuss, don't blame me for being impolite!"
Bai Xiaolu, tears streaming down her face, said, "Just kill me! At this point, I don't want to live anymore!"
Chu Tong blinked her big eyes a few times and chuckled, "I won't kill you. Killing you wouldn't be fun. I'll strip you naked in a bit, then call a whole bunch of people to watch. We'll say that the Nanhuai Sect is putting on a live sex show, that the heroine Bai is in love and running away in a wanton manner, and that the fourth senior brother is fighting to the death over her! Hahaha, it'll be a sultry tale if it gets out!"
Bai Xiaolu was furious: "Pah! How could you say such a thing! Shameless!"
Chu Tong walked over and patted Bai Xiaolu's face, then put on a nonchalant expression and said with a sly smile, "I'll strip you naked in a bit, then you'll see who's more shameless." With that, she reached out and started to pull at Bai Xiaolu's collar.
Bai Xiaolu screamed and shouted, "If you insult me again, I'll bite my tongue and kill myself!"
Chu Tong winked and said, "Fine, you can die so I don't have to do it..." Just as she finished speaking, she felt a pat on the shoulder and a deep voice said, "Don't be silly."
Chu Tong turned around and saw Yun Yinghuai standing behind her, his handsome face pale, but his spirits much improved. Chu Tong opened her clear eyes and exclaimed happily, "Hero Yun, are you alright?" Overwhelmed with excitement, she stood up and grasped Yun Yinghuai's hand.
Yun Yinghuai was stunned for a moment, then patted Chu Tong's head and laughed, "Much better." His smile was like a spring breeze, and even his usually stern eyes were rippled with emotion. Chu Tong was momentarily dazed by his smile. When she looked down, she saw that she was still holding Yun Yinghuai's hand. She quickly let go, but her face burned.
Yun Yinghuai, oblivious to Chu Tong's embarrassment, bent down to release Bai Xiaolu's pressure points, coughed a few times, and said, "Miss Bai, today I fear I have incurred a deep-seated hatred with the Nanhuai Sect. I must take my leave now. I will never forget your kindness in providing the medicine, and I will certainly repay you." Bai Xiaolu sat up, hugged her knees, and wept bitterly. In one night, she had lost four of her senior brothers, and the lover she longed for had become the sect's mortal enemy. Her love was unrequited, and now her pain was compounded.
Yun Yinghuai sighed, then said softly, "The sun is almost setting, Miss Bai should leave this forest as soon as possible." After saying that, she said to Chu Tong, "Little girl, let's go."
Chu Tong followed behind Yun Yinghuai, and the two of them mounted a horse and headed deeper into the forest.
After walking for a while, Yun Yinghuai noticed that Chu Tong kept glancing at him with her bright eyes, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated. He turned his head and asked, "What's wrong with you?"
Chu Tong pouted and said, "I've already done you a favor by not killing Bai Xiaolu, by helping you repay the kindness of giving me medicine. There's no need to repay her anymore."
Yun Yinghuai glanced at her indifferently, his handsome face expressionless: "Do you think I don't know? You were afraid that killing Bai Xiaolu with one sword would displease me, so you deliberately teased and humiliated her, trying to strip her clothes and force her to commit suicide. You thought that once she died, everything would be over, and if the Nanhuai Sect investigated this matter in the future, we could deny everything, right?"
Chu Tong was immediately taken aback, thinking to herself, "Good heavens! How does he know what I'm thinking!" She was filled with astonishment, staring at Yun Yinghuai's handsome profile in disbelief.
Yun Yinghuai looked ahead and said, "Even if she's dead, it's no use. The Four Heroes of Nanhuai were struck by my Yunding Sect's 'Great Cloud-Searching Hand.' This palm strike ruptures the internal organs, and any expert can tell at a glance. There's no denying it. Besides, Bai Xiaolu has been kind to me, and I can't let you kill her no matter what." At this point, he coughed loudly a few times and frowned, saying, "The Taoyuan Sect already has an old grudge against my master, so I went all out from the start. But I still showed mercy to the Four Heroes of Nanhuai at the inn. I didn't expect them to push me so far, chasing me all the way into the woods to kill me!" He turned to look at Chu Tong and said, "Luckily, you're quick-witted, otherwise you really wouldn't have escaped this time."
Chu Tong was stunned for a moment after hearing this, then her eyes flashed with cold light as she shouted, "Hero Yun, you've been so loyal to me, of course I have to save you too! Even if, even if you die, I will avenge you at the Nanhuai Sect and kill that whole bunch of cowards!"
Under the hazy moonlight, Chu Tong's eyebrows were curved and her lips were upturned. Although she was travel-worn, her beauty and radiance were still undeniable. Yun Yinghuai coughed lightly and looked away.
The two walked in silence for a while. Chu Tong faintly heard the sound of gushing spring water and couldn't help but ask, "Hero Yun, where are we going now? It's pitch black, so we mustn't get lost."
Yun Yinghuai looked up at the Big Dipper and said, "Don't worry, we're on the right track. This place is called Tianyu Mountain. There's a valley in the mountain that's surrounded by miasma and poisonous fog. If anyone accidentally wanders in, they're doomed. So we have to head west to avoid this dangerous place and get out of this forest. If we travel through the night, we can leave Tianyu Mountain by tomorrow morning."
Chu Tong frowned, blinked her clear eyes, and asked, "Master Yun, you are from Southern Yan, so how come you are so familiar with Tianyu Mountain in Northern Liang?"
Yun Yinghuai glanced at Chu Tong and said, "Before I turned fourteen, I would come to Tianyu Mountain with my master every year to worship our ancestral master. It is said that Yun Banhe, the founder of the Yunding Sect, disappeared from this world by the waterfall on Tianyu Mountain, which should be more than a hundred years ago." After saying that, he sighed deeply. At this moment, the sound of water became clearer, and after walking a little further, the scenery in front of them suddenly opened up.
As soon as Chu Tong emerged from the woods, her eyes widened in shock. In the dim moonlight, she found herself upstream of a waterfall. The rushing stream roared down like a thousand horses galloping before plunging into the abyss below. Chu Tong looked down with trepidation. A misty haze rose from halfway up the waterfall, ethereal and mysterious, making the bottom of the falls impossible to see in the dim light.
Yun Yinghuai turned to Chu Tong and said, "The valley is below this waterfall, filled with miasma. You must be careful."
Chu Tong spurred his horse back a little and called out loudly, "Hero Yun, since it's so dangerous, let's hurry up and leave."
Yun Yinghuai smiled reassuringly at Chu Tong, "I want to stay a little longer." He then jumped off his horse and walked silently to the water's edge. He recalled a childhood visit to this place with his master, Yun Zhongyan, to pay respects to their ancestors. Yun Zhongyan had once again guided him in swordsmanship and martial arts by the water's edge. Though they were master and disciple, their bond was like that of father and son. Now, time had passed swiftly; the scenery remained the same, but his beloved had departed. Yun Yinghuai's expression grew somber.
Chu Tong also jumped off her horse. She picked up a large rock and threw it down from above. It took a while to hear the sound of the rock hitting the water. She realized that the height of the waterfall was probably beyond her imagination, and she became a little timid. She went forward to pull on Yun Yinghuai's clothes, trying to urge him to leave quickly. Just then, she heard a strange voice say, "Hero Yun Yinghuai, I knew you would stop at this waterfall! I have been waiting for you for a long time!" As soon as the words were spoken, a palm wind came whistling.
Yun Yinghuai was taken aback. He grabbed Chu Tong and scrambled to the side. Once he was standing still, he looked around and saw that the hunchbacked old man standing not far away was the same one who had been in the inn.
Yun Yinghuai put Chu Tong down and shielded her behind him, then clasped his hands in a respectful greeting and said, "Senior, I wonder if I have ever been reckless and offensive, which has led you to chase me here."
The hunchbacked old man chuckled and said in a shrill voice, "I have countless grudges against your master, Yun Zhongyan. Now that he is dead, you shall pay for it! I have come here today to take your head!"
Chu Tong glanced at Yun Yinghuai and thought to herself, "I have a lot of enemies. I've been chased like a stray dog all the way here. I didn't expect you to be just as bad as me. No wonder God arranged for us to meet. We are truly kindred spirits, sharing the same fate, destined to live and die together, and fellow sufferers in this world!"
Yun Yinghuai raised his dark eyebrows and said, "Since you have a grudge against me, then let this girl go. She is just a friend of mine who is traveling with me, and she has nothing to do with our grudges."
The hunchbacked old man laughed heartily, his eyes turning sinister. "This little girl's head is worth a hundred taels of gold. How can I let her go just because you say so? You two, stop talking nonsense and prepare to die!" With that, he raised his hand to attack.
Yun Yinghuai pushed Chu Tong aside and swung his palm to meet the attack. Chu Tong darted into the nearby dense forest, hiding behind a bush and peering out. Her heart was filled with anxiety as she muttered, "This is bad, this is bad. Four bears just left, and now a giant monkey is here! This monkey seems very skilled. Master Yun is still recovering from his injuries, what should we do?" Just then, Yun Yinghuai grabbed the old man's attacking right arm. Taking advantage of his unhealed injuries, the old man channeled his inner strength into his right arm and exerted a sudden force, causing Yun Yinghuai to stagger back several steps, immediately spitting out blood. The old man let out a strange laugh, drew a soft sword from his waist, and thrust forward. Yun Yinghuai hurriedly dodged, his figure already showing signs of distress.