THE SMILING PROUD WANDERER by Jin Yong

Energy Streams Part 5

"Master, Feng Buping and the other Sword-Branch expelled apprentices have all gone on the evil route. They are really no different from members of the Demon Cult. We should never even let them come back to join our Huashan School, how can we ever let them take the Head Master post of our school with their wishful thinking?" Gao Gengming commented.

"We'll never let their audacious plot succeed!" Lao Denuo, Liang Fa, Shi Daizi, and the rest of the apprentices exclaimed all together.

Seeing that all the apprentices' feeling ran high, Yue Buqun let out a slight smile. "It's really not important whether I am the Head Master or not. But if the heterodox people from the Sword-Branch ruled our school, all the hundreds of years worth of Huashan School's vast comprehensive and profound Kung Fu techniques would all be destroyed in a moment. When we one day return to the underworld, how would we ever face the spirits of many generations of Huashan School senior masters? And the reputation of our Huashan School would be held in contempt by everyone in the Martial World."

"That's right! How can we ever let that happen?" Lao Denuo and the bunch of apprentices said in unison.

"I wouldn't worry too much about Feng Buping and the rest of the Sword-Branch expelled apprentices," Yue Buqun went on. "But since they were able to bring the Command Flag of the Five Mountains Sword Alliance and also able to collaborate with people from Songshan, Taishan, and Hengshan those schools, this is no small matter. That's why...." He swept his eyes over the apprentices and then spoke again. "We'll be leaving today to see Alliance Chief Zuo at Mount Songshan, and have it out with him."

All the apprentices were shocked. The Songshan Sword School was the leader in the Five Mountains Sword Alliance, and the Head Master of the Songshan School, Zuo Lengchan, was considered a top notch in the Martial World. Not only had his Kung Fu skills reached the acme of perfection, his reputation as a quick-witted and resourceful mind was also well known. Anytime when the name "Alliance Chief Zuo" was mentioned, everyone would get a shiver of cold. In the Martial World, when one had it out with someone else, the dispute normally wouldn't stop at an oral discussion. Any heated word might lead to a fierce physical fight. All the apprentices couldn't help but thinking the same thought.

"Master's Kung Fu is excellent, but he most likely is still no match for Alliance Chief Zuo. Besides, the Songshan School's Alliance Chief Zuo has twelve apprentice brothers. People in the Marital World call them the 'Thirteen Guardians of Songshan.' Even though 'Great Songyang Palm' Fei Bin has passed away, there are still a total of twelve of them left. And each of the twelve is a first-class elite fighter – someone a second-generation Huashan apprentice would have no chance of resisting. Isn't it a bit too reckless to stir up trouble on Mount Songshan?"

Every one of the apprentices thought so, yet no one dared to speak up.

Hearing what her husband had just said, Madam Yue immediately praised inwardly. "This idea is awesome! We are leaving our base, Mount Huashan, so we could avoid the five Peach Valley's freaks. Once the news spreads out, Huashan School would have no face left. But if we were heading up Mount Songshan to have it out with Alliance Chief Zuo, others would only admire our courage. Alliance Chief Zuo is not the unreasonable type. Once we get to Mount Songshan, it's not necessary that we'll end up in a deadly fight. There's gonna be a lot of rooms and cushions in between." So she immediately picked up the line.

"That's right! Feng Buping did bring the Command Flag of the Five Mountains Sword Alliance up Mount Huashan. But who knows, he could very possibly have stolen or robbed the Command Flag from someone else. Even if it's true that Alliance Chief Zuo did award them the Command Flag of the Five Mountains Sword Alliance, this is the internal matter of our Huashan School. The Songshan School has no say in this at all. Sure, Songshan School has a lot more members, and Alliance Chief Zuo has superb Kung Fu skills, but we, Huashan School members, would rather die than submit. Any one of you who has no guts and is afraid might as well stay."