Jianghu (un mundo de artes marciales) - No te cortes

Capítulo 13

"Whoever keeps chasing those three people, I'll wipe out their entire gang!" the leader of the Qingtan Society roared furiously.

It's a joke. The lives of countless disciples and relatives are still in the hands of the itinerant doctors of Ning Shuang Sect. Even if the people who are chasing Shuang Jing and the others have powerful backgrounds, they still have Chong Chong Lou of Che Shui backing them up.

Murong Jin was just putting on an act. The itinerant doctors who were originally going to return to Yunwan Valley hesitated for a few days, but stopped going home after being repeatedly persuaded by the patients' families. Ning Shuang Sect also received countless gifts during this period.

Thus, the gangs that were hunting down Shuang Jing and the others had to slow down amidst a barrage of insults and threats.

Murong Jin's multi-pronged approach earned him a new nickname in the martial arts world: "That damned fox from Yunwan Valley."

Ligu is located in the center of Qigong Peak. Legend has it that during the Yun Dynasty, seven loyal ministers protected the young prince and hid him here during the chaos of the world. When the dynasty eventually perished, they remained in the deep mountains, unaware of the outside world. They stood firmly to protect the young prince until their deaths. Over time, they transformed into towering mountain peaks, silently watching the world pass by, sunrise and sunset.

Another legend says that the new emperor later sent his eldest son to this area to search for the orphans of the previous dynasty. The prince got lost in the deep mountains and met the crown prince of the Yun Dynasty, who was dressed as a farmer. The two hit it off immediately and chatted happily, each concealing their true identities from the other.

One night, while enjoying the moon and drinking, they revealed the truth. The prince couldn't bear to take the pure and gentle young man from the fallen kingdom back to the palace. He originally planned to leave that very night, but his heart was filled with reluctance. The next morning, he finally hardened his heart and decided to bid farewell to the Crown Prince of Yun Dynasty. Unexpectedly, he followed the sound of the young man's flute and found him smiling back at him in the morning mist, before gradually transforming into a pear tree.

They take root in the earth and are unwilling to leave.

I have no country, but I refuse to be without a home.

The prince, heartbroken, inscribed a poem on the tree:

"Under the full moon, we drink together, yet sorrow remains; alone, the pear blossoms bloom after dusk by the eastern fence. Every year, spring comes from the seven peaks, and pear blossoms, like snow, cover the ten provinces."

Legend has it that in that valley full of exotic flowers and rare herbs, there was no other pear tree to be found, and the only one that bloomed never withered throughout the year.

Because the prince of the Yun Dynasty had the courtesy name Li, which is similar in sound to "pear", he was named Ligu.

"I said..."

Che Shui looked at Shuang Jing, who was smiling and telling the story behind Xuan Sheng's back, with a mournful gaze: "This is all a lie, isn't it?! Huh?!" He roared indignantly, pointing at the scenery before him and shouting angrily: "Where are there any exotic flowers or rare herbs?! It's all rocks, rocks!! Even a small flower would be nice! Do you know what it means if it's all rocks?!" He gritted his teeth: "No animals will come! I'm so hungry!!!"

The other three were already used to his crazy behavior when he was hungry, and they continued on their way as if nothing was wrong.

The mountain road to Ligu was very difficult to travel. They had been in the mountains for a day and a night and still hadn't reached their destination. Fortunately, Ligu was famous for its medicinal herbs, and they could see the marks left by previous travelers along the way.

Before them, another mountain path wound its way forward, with countless vines growing and flourishing alongside. As they walked, they saw several pine trees with gnarled trunks and branches, each unique in its own way, some following the contours of cliffs and ravines, others winding around rocks, and still others emerging from crevices and cracks in the stone. A wisp of white mist drifted among them, like ribbons fluttering in the air, ethereal and otherworldly. They walked and gazed intently, causing Che Shui to bump into tree trunks or trip over loose stones several times.

"Huh? Wait!" Plum Blossom, who was walking in front, suddenly stopped and hurriedly reached out to stop the people behind her. Che Shui didn't see clearly and bumped into her back, unconsciously touching his nose and crying out in pain.

"What's wrong?" Shuangjing poked her head out from Xuansheng's back and asked curiously.

"Don't make a sound, I want to listen... to all around... shh..." Plum Blossom said, raising her hand to silence them. She turned her head slightly, listening intently and carefully to the sounds around her.

The others exchanged glances, and followed her in listening carefully to the sounds around them.

All around was utterly silent, save for the faint sounds of the wind whistling through the rocks, the cries of monkeys and beasts, and the chirping of insects and the flight of birds, which drifted from afar.

They had reached deep into the mountains, where the sunlight was blocked by towering peaks. Looking up, all they could see were wisps of mist surrounding the gray-green mountains and the rugged, strangely shaped peaks and rocks.

Given this terrain, it would be highly unlikely that anyone would come to attack. Besides, they are all martial arts masters; while their alertness may not be as sharp as Plum Blossom's, it is still exceptional.

"What's wrong?!" Che Shui, whose brain turns to mush when hungry, pouted and asked.

Mei Hua suppressed her impatience and glared at him irritably: "There's no way out."

"Huh?" Che Shui was taken aback and turned to look, only to see that the thick fog surrounded the area and the mountain shadows were dark, making it impossible to see anything clearly.

Upon hearing this, Shuangjing tugged at Xuansheng's sleeve, climbed down from his back, and looked ahead curiously.

"Listen." Plum Blossom threw a stone forward. It rubbed against the ground and spun forward, making a rustling sound. Suddenly, it went silent, then suddenly, with a loud bang, as if it had hit something. Then it fell silent again.

"Is that a cliff ahead?" Xuan Sheng asked, hearing the voice.

"It should be. Let's go ahead and take a look, but be careful," Plum Blossom replied. After saying that, she broke off a piece of dead wood from the side and, like a blind person using a cane, slowly groped her way forward.

There was a deep abyss and ravine thousands of feet deep. Looking down, a hazy mist spread around like a river. The edges of the cliffs were sharp as swords, and a few ancient pine trees hung upside down on the precipice, adorning this place.

Only a dilapidated bridge connects the two banks, its structure bound tightly with hemp rope, swaying in the wind. The wooden planks at the bottom of the bridge are cracked and broken, with several sections already fallen off, leaving only empty gaps.

Suddenly, several birds flew by, their sharp cries echoing throughout the quiet, ethereal valley.

"..."

"..."

The group stared speechlessly at the scene before them, their faces stiff.

Shuangjing carefully picked up a stone from the edge of the cliff and threw it into the valley. The stone sank silently all the way down, without making a sound for a long time before hitting the ground.

"...Are we really going to cross?" Che Shui looked at the wooden bridge, which was only half visible and was obscured by thick fog and white clouds, with a face full of resentment (if it could still be called that): "Can't we eat first?!" If we're going to die, we should at least fill our stomachs first.

"Shall we do it now?" Shuangjing said, glancing at the sky. "Judging from the terrain, there are at least trees and grass on the other side, which would be more comfortable if we were to spend the night there. If it gets any darker, we won't be able to get across."

"Ugh! How annoying!" Che Shui frowned and pouted, then turned to look at Mei Hua: "Then you have to share your food with me later!"

"Why should I? What does it have to do with me!" Plum Blossom kicked him angrily.

"Because Xiao Jing insists on eating a lot, and then..." The Lord of Chongchonglou glanced at Xuan Sheng, silently thinking to himself, "I wouldn't dare to compete with him for food." >_<

“In that case, let’s go first,” Xuan Sheng said calmly. “Besides, this place is cold and damp, and the wind is strong…” He suddenly stopped, pursed his lips, and did not continue.

The cold, dampness, and strong winds were really bad for Shuangjing's health. He didn't say that out loud.

Because I don't know why I have to worry about this.

Shuang Jing didn't notice anything amiss. She glanced at the wooden bridge ahead and frowned, saying, "This wooden bridge is too fragile for you to carry me across. I can walk by myself. Xuan Sheng is the fastest, so how about you walk behind me?"

"?" Xuan Sheng snapped out of his daze, immediately regained his composure, and nodded firmly: "Sect Master, there's no need to worry. Try to walk quickly and steadily. Wasting time in the same place will only make things more dangerous."

"Um."

“Well then, let’s go…” Plum Blossom frowned, looking at the wooden bridge, and said, “We’d better keep the same distance. How about this, that guy and I will scout ahead first, and you guys follow behind.”

Thump!

At that moment, a faint sound came from the bottom of the valley, and the stone that Shuangjing had just dropped landed on the ground.

"..."

"..."

Everyone stared silently at the dilapidated wooden bridge, and involuntarily took a step back.

Che Shui sighed first: "Let's go, it'll be dark soon." After saying that, she bravely walked towards the bridge, but looking at the swaying wooden planks, she couldn't help but swallow.

Holy crap, this is harder than climbing towering buildings... TAT

Pear Blossom Valley: Homes Amidst the White Clouds (Part 4)

Squeak— Squeak—

The sound echoed through the empty mountains. The four people walked carefully across the wooden bridge, holding their breath. Occasionally, a few planks would break under their feet, and with a creak, they would tumble into the bottomless cliff and smash to pieces.

After walking for a while, they realized that this wooden bridge was not an ordinary long one. When they reached the middle section and looked back, the bridge behind them was shrouded in white mist, while in front of them, a layer of light smoke still lingered. Without the shadow of the cliffs to obscure it, a lot of sunlight shone down, making them sweat profusely from their tension and attention.

"When will we finally arrive..." Che Shui kept muttering to herself, her stomach growling loudly in the quiet mountain cliffs.

"If you ask me, your stomach is really noisy!" Plum Blossom, who was not far behind him, rolled her eyes and complained.

"Do I have a solution? Huh? I'm starving too!" Che Shui turned around angrily, then pouted, "I told you we should eat before crossing the bridge."

"Sect Master, are you alright?" Xuan Sheng's slightly worried voice came from behind. He looked at Shuang Jing, who was bent over and tightly gripping the ropes on both sides, and looked at her with some concern.

"I'm fine..." Shuangjing waved her hand without turning around. "I really want to swing this wooden bridge back and forth and play with it..." she thought, suppressing the urge.

"It shouldn't be far, Sect Master, just hang in there a little longer..." Even though they had been together for dozens of days, Xuan Sheng's guilt towards this slender woman had not diminished in the slightest. Although she often said things that made him want to kick her away, he was still filled with pity and guilt when he saw her pale face and her fleeing with them without complaint.

They even had a wish for her cheeks to become rosy and healthy again.

If she makes any requests of him in the future, he will surely agree without hesitation.

Of course, aside from requests like "Xuansheng, let me see if the wound on your thigh has healed" or "Let's have a competition to see who takes off their clothes first."

He suppressed a smile and continued to move forward cautiously.

Unexpectedly, the wooden plank under the feet of the two clean-cut men walking ahead suddenly shattered!

Then, before she could react, the two or three wooden planks in front and behind her all shattered as her foot got stuck. She instinctively grabbed the ropes on both sides, but the ropes had been eaten by insects for a long time and only lasted a few seconds before they began to break bit by bit!

"!"

Shuangjing gritted her teeth and held on. Her body was already half-hanging in the air. Several planks of wood had long since fallen into the deep valley. If she had also grabbed the other rope with her left hand, it would have accelerated the breaking of the rope, and then Xuansheng behind her...

"Sect Master!" Suddenly a shout came from behind, and Xuan Sheng rushed over like the wind, running straight ahead!

Just as the rope Shuangjing was holding with her right hand was about to be torn, Xuansheng let out a low shout and pounced on her!

"Hold on!!" He grabbed Shuangjing with both hands, lightly touched the ground with his toes, and carried Shuangjing forward.

With a snap, the rope at the bridgehead behind them broke!

A long, creaking sound echoed through the valley, and the wooden planks shattered one after another with a series of cracking sounds.

"Huh?" Che Shui and Mei Hua turned around at the same time, only to see Xuan Sheng rushing toward them for his life.

"Ah!" Che Shui's nose was hit and hurt a lot, but before he could react, he felt something hit him from behind Mei Hua. It turned out that Xuan Sheng was holding Shuang Jing and, relying on the last support of the wooden bridge, kicked hard and crashed into the two people in front of him!

"Ah...!" Mei Hua cried out in pain, and Che Shui in front of her also groaned. Xuan Sheng hugged the girl in his arms tightly, and Shuang Jing naturally did not want to be left behind, so she pressed herself against him and wrapped her limbs around him.

The four of them grabbed and hugged each other, forming a huge ball of flesh, and flew towards the other side of the bridge!

"Hold on tight!" Mei Hua suddenly shouted, seeing that she could not reach the other side and that the wooden bridge beneath her feet had already fallen.

With a flick of her left hand, several silver threads flew out and tightly wrapped around the thick trunk of a pine tree growing on the edge of a cliff.

The other three felt their bodies freeze in mid-air for a moment before they immediately plummeted downwards!

How could the four of them feel at ease? In an instant, they were hanging in mid-air. If it weren't for the silver thread in Mei Hua's hand, they would have fallen into the deep valley long ago.

Xuan Sheng looked up and saw that the branch was being stretched more and more bent, as if it would break at any moment. He looked down at Shuang Jing in his arms and saw that she was also staring at the top in a daze, but the corners of her mouth looked like she was about to smile at any moment.

Suddenly, the branch stopped stretching, and the four men's expressions changed drastically. Before they could react, the thick branch suddenly threw them upwards!

"Waaaaahhhhhh—!" With Che Shui's shout echoing through the sky, everyone was thrown into the air by the tree branch!

As everyone continued to rise, Che Shui opened his eyes wide and saw...

A small white bird was leisurely flying overhead when it saw a large ball of flesh approaching from below. It paused for a moment, then quickly spread its wings and flew away.

Ugh... He was speechless... Why didn't he see a hidden master in the mountains? TAT

Before he could even exclaim in surprise, he felt his body plummeting downwards!

"Hold on tight!!!" Plum Blossom shouted fiercely, the silver thread in her hand was still intact, and everyone could still be saved!