Chapter 26: The Pitiful Master Kongwen

Zhang Cuishan stopped his master, choosing to face the forces of the Five Great Sects alone.

“Everyone, today you wish to force me to reveal the whereabouts of my sworn brother, the Golden-Haired Lion King. In truth, your goal is none other than to seize the Dragon-Slaying Saber from him, to become the supreme master of the martial world, to reign over all under heaven. Why bother making so many excuses? Ha ha…”

At this moment, Zhang Cuishan’s feelings were beyond words. On one side was his sworn brother; on the other, the Wudang Sect which had raised and taught him. If he spoke, he would betray his brother; if he remained silent, a bloody battle was inevitable. Though Zhang Sanfeng’s martial arts were unmatched in the world, today he faced the elite of the Five Great Sects. Even if the Wudang Sect could annihilate all of them, so what? These sects had not brought their entire forces; more men waited back at their own schools. Then, with Wudang’s strength greatly diminished, how could they stand alone against the whole martial world?

Li Daniu felt immense sympathy for Zhang Cuishan. Among everyone present, only he knew that Zhang Cuishan would soon take his own life, yet there was nothing he could do to prevent it. As for those with the power to stop him—Zhang Sanfeng, Abbess Miejue, Master Kongwen of Shaolin—they never imagined such an outcome.

The reason no one expected Zhang Cuishan to end his own life was that such an act could not resolve the matter. Yin Susu also knew the whereabouts of Xie Xun, the Golden-Haired Lion King; if a man could not find a perfect solution, could he simply push the burden onto a woman?

Moreover, in the eyes of Zhang Sanfeng and the others, Zhang Cuishan still had many unresolved matters: the grudge between Yin Susu and Wudang, as well as Zhang Wuji’s injury.

As Li Daniu lamented Zhang Cuishan’s fateful and unfathomable choice, he heard Zhang Cuishan speak again.

“I do not wish, for my own sake, to unleash slaughter between Wudang and the martial world. Nor can I bear to betray my sworn brother for my own peace. Since you all demand an answer, then behold—here is my answer. Pfft…”

With his words, a mouthful of fresh blood spurted from his lips.

“Cuishan?”

“Fifth Brother?”

Cries of alarm rose from the Wudang disciples. Zhang Sanfeng, the fastest among them, rushed to Zhang Cuishan’s side and caught him just as he collapsed.

“Are you…satisfied now?” Supported by Zhang Sanfeng, Zhang Cuishan glared fiercely at the representatives of the Five Great Sects and laughed bitterly.

“Do not speak,” Zhang Sanfeng urged, pressing Zhang Cuishan’s pulse. He immediately realized that Zhang had destroyed his own heart meridian—a wound beyond even the legendary skills of Hua Tuo to heal. Nevertheless, he desperately channeled his own inner strength to keep Zhang Cuishan alive a moment longer.

At this moment, Yin Susu also rushed to Zhang Cuishan’s side, her tears already staining her face.

“I’m sorry, Susu… I’m sorry, Master…” With the last of his strength, Zhang Cuishan blocked Zhang Sanfeng’s inner force, severing the thread that tied him to this world forever.

“Father?”

Li Daniu heard a heartrending cry from nearby. Turning, he saw that Zhang Wuji, who had come to the window unnoticed, had witnessed everything.

Though still a child, Zhang Wuji saw his father collapse, his mother in tears, and he understood that something terrible had happened. He immediately rushed outside.

Yin Susu, seeing that Zhang Cuishan had died, felt utterly hopeless. When she saw her child running toward her, she hastily embraced him—he was her very life.

“Lady Yin, now that Zhang Cuishan is dead, only you know the whereabouts of the Golden-Haired Lion King, Xie Xun. Please tell us; let us avoid further needless bloodshed.” Master Kongwen intoned a Buddhist chant and stepped forward to voice the demand of all Five Sects.

“Bald monk, my disciple is dead—is that not enough?” Zhang Sanfeng roared in fury, deeply regretting his decision to let Zhang Cuishan handle this affair himself. His fifth disciple, who had always valued chivalry above all, had been forced to make an impossible choice. Zhang Sanfeng had never imagined he would choose death. Yet now, after his death, the Five Sects still refused to relent.

“Master Zhang, it is not that I am unreasonable, but this matter cannot simply end here,” Master Kongwen replied calmly. Though monks value compassion, true renunciants are best able to sever the ties of kinship and friendship.

“Master Kongwen, if I tell you where Xie Xun is, can you guarantee to let my son and me go? Will the Five Great Sects never trouble us again?” Yin Susu suddenly stood and spoke.

Zhang Sanfeng, hearing Yin Susu’s words, was at a loss. By rights, he should prevent her from divulging the secret his disciple had died to protect. But Yin Susu was not of Wudang—she belonged to the Heavenly Eagle Sect. Since she made her demand for her and her son’s safety, what could he say?

“Lady Yin, I swear: if you tell me where the Golden-Haired Lion King is, the Five Sects will never trouble you or your son again.” Master Kongwen had not expected Yin Susu to yield so easily. As for his promise, he could make it without hesitation; he believed the other sects would agree as well.

After all, behind Yin Susu and Zhang Wuji stood the Heavenly Eagle Sect and Wudang. Without sufficient gain, who would want to make enemies of such powerful factions? Their enmity with the Ming Cult was a matter of life and death, but the Heavenly Eagle Sect was separate from the Ming Cult and might not be allied with them. Why create more enemies needlessly?

“Very well, since Master Kongwen has promised, I will trust you.” Yin Susu set Zhang Wuji down and walked alone to Master Kongwen’s side. “For safety’s sake, please lean closer. I will tell only you.”

Master Kongwen suspected nothing. To him, Yin Susu was cornered, and he was quite happy to have the information for himself. If the other sects had objections, it would simply be a matter of negotiation. As for any attempt at revenge, he had no fear; though Yin Susu was the daughter of the White-Browed Eagle King, he was confident he could defeat her single-handedly.

Yin Susu whispered a few words in his ear, then announced loudly, “I have told Master Kongwen where Xie Xun is. Please keep your promise.”

“What? You told me nothing!” Master Kongwen was so enraged he nearly cursed aloud. He realized too late that he had been too naïve—how could a woman’s revenge be as simple as a physical attack?

Ignoring Master Kongwen’s protests, Yin Susu walked straight back to Zhang Wuji.

Master Kongwen tried to pursue her, but was quickly surrounded by members of the Kongtong and Huashan Sects.

“Master, you can’t keep this to yourself!”

“Master, please tell us where Xie Xun is—I must avenge my disciple!”

The sect members besieged Master Kongwen with questions, leaving him unable to explain himself.

Yin Susu knelt down and said to Zhang Wuji, “Wuji, remember these people well—they are our enemies. When you grow up, you must avenge us.”

In her view, Zhang Wuji’s injury was not a true concern; she had arrived too late to realize that even the combined efforts of the Five Wudang Heroes had failed to heal him. She told Wuji to seek revenge in the future because of his natural talent. With Zhang Sanfeng as his teacher, if not the greatest under heaven, he would surely have nothing to fear from the Five Sects.

Besides, by the time Zhang Wuji grew up, these people would be old. Hadn’t it always been said that the fist fears the young? Apart from rare exceptions like Zhang Sanfeng, who could maintain their peak into old age?

“Mother, I understand. But why did you tell them where my godfather is? Didn’t Father say you mustn’t?” Zhang Wuji remembered his father’s teaching.

“Wuji, I lied to them. Remember, never trust women—especially beautiful ones, for the more beautiful they are, the better they lie.” Yin Susu gave a tragic laugh, then quietly drew a dagger from her bosom and plunged it into her own heart.

“Mother!” Zhang Wuji cried out in anguish, drawing everyone’s attention to Yin Susu’s suicide. With her death, even those who had doubted her, such as the Emei Sect, flocked around Master Kongwen.

She had killed herself—how could they claim she had lied? They would never believe it.

Li Daniu watched through the window as the scene unfolded, sighing to himself that the most skilled deceivers in the world are indeed those beautiful women. What a performance!

Still, Yin Susu’s fate was truly pitiable. Loving the wrong man, she had fallen out with her own father, the White-Browed Eagle King, and been driven to suicide.

Of course, Li Daniu did not mean that Zhang Cuishan was a bad man, only that his character was flawed. Had he not sworn brotherhood with Xie Xun, his life with Yin Susu could have been happy; the feud with Wudang could have been resolved. But meeting Xie Xun, and then being pressed by the Five Sects, he chose death—an act that, viewed charitably, was a matter of principle; viewed harshly, was an evasion of reality, a weakness that doomed his wife and left his child with enemies throughout the martial world. If Zhang Wuji’s character had not been shaped by Zhang Sanfeng, who knows but that he might have become a great villain in the future?

“Leave at once!” Zhang Sanfeng roared, infusing his shout with his inner strength. Its force was not less than the Lion’s Roar of Shaolin. Li Daniu could even see visible ripples in the air. Fortunately, the power was aimed at the Five Sects—apart from a few top experts like Master Kongwen and Abbess Miejue, who merely staggered back a few steps, the rest were knocked to the ground, crying out in pain.

The disciples of Wudang behind Zhang Sanfeng felt only a deafening noise.

Even Abbess Miejue, with her formidable disposition, dared not offend the enraged Zhang Sanfeng. She quickly led her disciples away, supported by one another, as did the other sects.

Once outside Wudang’s gates, Master Kongwen was surrounded once more.

“Master, if not now, then when will you speak?”

“…” Master Kongwen was speechless. Would he have to take a vow of silence from this day forward?