Chapter 3: The Golden Body Arhat Fights Against the Dark Flame Mandarin Ducks, Helpless in Encountering the Ghost Wall
A cloud of dust dispersed, Zheng Can held a freshly pulled out Mount Song golden bamboo and propped up the four-split stone table, shielding Xia Jin and Xiao Kui behind him. The scattered palm winds blew against Xia Jin's and Xiao Kui's cheeks, making them sting. Xiao Kui was frightened pale and hid in Xia Jin's arms, trembling with fear. Xia Jin narrowed his eyes, staring fixedly at the black-clad man, and shouted loudly: "You sneak into a civilian's home at midnight, the authorities won't let you off! Leave quickly, we'll consider this matter settled, lest it lead to a disaster of imprisonment!"
Zheng Can was crying and laughing at the same time, this little kid still had a sour taste in his mouth. The black-clothed man laughed instead of getting angry: "Haha, Xia surname kid don't be proud of your eloquence, really brilliant! A good tiger cub, you've raised him to be a nagging wife with a mouth full of nonsense. Kid, today I'll take the life of your uncle and send your little wife on her way, let's see how you can still play with words. Today, I'll make you speechless!" After finishing speaking, he rushed towards Zheng Can again with another palm print.
A huge black palm print condensed in the air, burning with waves of black flames. Before it could solidify, Zheng Can flew up and struck it with a powerful blow, shattering it with a loud "huff". The man in black let out a cold hum: "It seems that the Shaolin Dragon Subduing Stick you've been practicing for over a decade is still not bad." Zheng Can stood proudly in front of Xia Jin and Xiao Kui, his tall body shielding the two behind him. He shouted: "Qin Tianwei, you old scoundrel! I have no grudges with you, yet you investigated my family to the point of exhaustion. Today, you come knocking on my door without a word, starting a fight directly. What's your intention? Don't think that just because I've been retired for over a decade, I'm afraid of trouble!"
Qin Tianwei snorted: "I'm not that kind of person, I came to ask for someone today because I was entrusted by others, let's not talk nonsense! I'll show you the depth of this old bald donkey!" As soon as he finished speaking, he pressed out a palm, and Zheng Can became furious, grabbed his staff, and swept it forward. The staff moved like a dragon, wrapping around Qin Tianwei like a green dragon. Qin Tianwei lightly raised his left palm to press down on the staff, with the momentum of capturing a dragon. He dodged and weaved, not daring to collide head-on with the staff, but instead used its force to wander around Zheng Can. Xia Jin and Xiao Kui hid behind Zheng Can, also not daring to move much.
For over a decade, Zheng Zan had not engaged in battle. Today, he encountered a great war with Qin Tianwei, a renowned master known as the "Great Black Flame Hand". His physical strength was no longer what it used to be, and he felt somewhat exhausted. The green dragon transformed from his staff seemed to have lost its vitality, as if trapped in a quagmire, struggling desperately.
Zheng Zan thought to himself that if things continued this way, he would be dragged down by this old scoundrel until he was exhausted. His own death was of no consequence, but he pitied the two poor mandarin ducks. He thought for a moment and let out a loud shout: "Old scoundrel, come and take my life!"
As soon as he finished speaking, his Golden Arhat body flashed into appearance, with dragon patterns flashing on his body. A five-clawed golden dragon seemed to be about to leap out from Zheng Zan's body. Zheng Zan's entire body was radiating a brilliant light, like gold and copper clashing together.
Qin Tianwei did not dare to underestimate him, thinking that previously Zheng Zan had pretended to be weak, selling himself short for a long time before revealing his true strength. He thought to himself that he wasn't foolish enough to fall for this old bald donkey's trick. Having roamed the jianghu for decades, he was already an old hand, so how could he still make the mistake of underestimating his enemy?
Moreover, his own ears were once the Dragon Subduing Stick that shook the world. Qin Tianwei couldn't help but withdraw his hand and take a step back, transforming into a defensive stance, with all his muscles tense, staring tightly at Zheng Can. Only to see Zheng Can's eyes bulging in anger, like an Arhat descending from heaven, his hands' blue veins bursting forth, gathering momentum for one stick strike. The stick rose with wind and clouds, a long dragon roar resounded, the originally calm Qing Long now seemed to have gained new life, constantly rolling in Zheng Can's hand, as if it had escaped Zheng Can's grasp, really about to fly and transform into a dragon.
Qin Tianwei saw the situation was not good, so he raised his hands and condensed a pair of huge black handprints in mid-air. He thought to himself, "I didn't get to experience this bald donkey's signature move back then, but today I'll take it head-on with my Great Bright Inverse Dragon Flipping Heaven Rod!" As soon as he finished speaking, the rod transformed into a green dragon swirling with wind and clouds, and a series of wild gusts gathered around the rod, forming whirlwinds. Zheng Can angrily shouted, and his rod, like a green dragon roaring with a force of ten thousand kilograms, swept towards Qin Tianwei.
Just as he was about to speak, the situation changed rapidly. Before the stick even arrived, its momentum had already reached him. Qin Tianwei concentrated his palm strength to defend against the incoming stick, but unexpectedly, the stick's momentum was like a gentle breeze on his face, completely powerless. Qin Tianwei couldn't help but think that this bald donkey must have already entered the realm of gathering momentum and shaping it into form, with not even a hint of external leakage.
In the midst of Qin Tianwei's stunned expression, Zheng Can lightly wielded his stick, sweeping it towards his own backside. With a flick of his wrist, a gentle gust of stick wind pushed Xia Jin and Xiao Kui out of the courtyard.
Once outside the courtyard walls, Xia Jin and Xiao Kui were still in a daze. Such martial arts skills truly rivaled those of the gods! Using his stick to control the wind, he must be on par with the immortals!
Zheng Can let out a loud shout: "Still not leaving quickly?" The two finally came back to their senses. Xia Jin had initially wanted to find the authorities and report the incident, but after some thought, he realized that such martial arts skills would likely be beyond the capabilities of ordinary officials and constables. His uncle had worked at the Fushan Building for over a decade and must have left behind a hidden path.
Thinking this, Xia Jin pulled Xiao Kui towards the Fushan Building as they fled.
It wasn't even midnight, yet the streets were eerily silent. In the distance, the sound of a night watchman's drumming echoed through the air, "Dong... dong... dong..." The lanterns that normally hung outside every household were nowhere to be seen today, leaving only the faint moonlight to illuminate Xia Jin and Xiao Kui's path ahead. The sudden drop in temperature on this early spring evening sent shivers down Xia Jin and Xiao Kui's spines as they ran wildly, their bodies covered in cold sweat.
Two people exhaled mist, and suddenly disappeared under the moonlight. Xia Jin pulled Xiao Kui to run for a while, stood at the crossroads panting heavily, and then thought more and more that something was wrong. The two had gone to Shu Yue Lou many times before, but today they ran wildly for a long time and still hadn't arrived. What's going on? Xia Jin pinched Xiao Kui's icy small hand, and the two looked up at each other without speaking. Xiao Kui's face had already turned pale with fear.
Suddenly, a piercing screeching sound came from beside their ears, like someone was dragging an iron tool on the ground, scraping and scratching, as if it was scratching at the hearts of the two people. The two hearts were beating rapidly, the iron tool seemed to be moving back and forth, sometimes near, sometimes far. Xiaojing's lips touched Xiaoqi's ear, and she was so frightened that she couldn't speak. Xiaojing thought for a moment, wondering if they had encountered the "ghost hitting the wall" that old people often talked about. According to legend, only a child's urine could resolve it. Xiaojing whispered a few words into Xiaoqi's ear, and Xiaoqi's face turned red with shame, thinking that in such a situation, this bad person Xiaojing actually wanted her to pee on the street, how humiliating!
No more words, covered his eyes and hid to one side, urging Xia Jin: "You bad guy, always thinking of some despicable tricks, hurry up and let's escape early!" Xia Jin trembled and repeatedly responded, took a few steps forward, found a small corner where the wall was not visible, pulled down his pants and started forcing himself against the wall. The more urgent this matter is, the more uncomfortable it becomes, in the cold night of early spring, Xia Jin was so anxious that he was sweating profusely, but only managed to squeeze out a few drops of water. After finishing, he tidied up his clothes, turned around and looked for Xiaoguo, searched all around for a long time but couldn't find him, raised his head and saw a white figure standing under the pale moonlight not far away.
Xia Jin didn't think much and quickly stepped forward, grabbing Bai Ying's hand. The hand was abnormally cold, like a bone-chilling frost. Xia Jin couldn't help but shiver, thinking that Xiao Kui must have been scared stiff and dragged away for two steps before realizing that Bai Ying stood still on the spot. When Xia Jin looked up again, a pale and distorted face suddenly appeared in front of him, with a pair of bloodshot eyes staring at him fiercely. The corners of his mouth were pulled to the base of his ears, as if he was smiling strangely. A bright red tongue hung from his lower jaw. This person was none other than Wang Changqing, who had previously encountered Shu Yue!
Wang Changqing's face twisted, suddenly exerting force, one hand grasping Xia Jin tightly, the other hand pinching towards Xia Jin's throat, a gurgling laugh emerging from his throat. Another strange laugh, Xia Jin was already frightened out of his wits, luckily he had practiced martial arts since childhood and had a strong physique, managing to pry open Wang Changqing's hand that was grasping him. Upon closer inspection, the hand that was just grabbed by Wang Changqing left a black handprint. A long punch struck Wang Changqing's abdomen, but he remained motionless, still letting out a strange laugh, his face even more twisted, with blood seeping from his ear canal, as he leaned forward, attempting to hug Xia Jin.
Xia Jin desperately dodged and weaved, his heart growing more anxious by the second as he wondered what had become of Xiao Kui. He wanted to shout out loud, but his throat felt like it was being choked, and all that came out were hoarse gasps. Wang Changqing let out a strange cry and pounced on Xia Jin, who struggled with all his might, punching and kicking at Wang Changqing. But Wang Changqing was as hard as bronze or iron, seemingly impervious to the blows, although his white robes were torn in many places. A faint green flame began to emanate from Wang Changqing's body, casting an eerie glow over his twisted face. His hands, once slender and refined like a scholar's, now gripped Xia Jin's throat like iron pincers. Wang Changqing pressed his face against Xia Jin's, his eyes bulging as he stared at him with an unblinking gaze, his throat emitting a low, ominous humming noise.
Xia Jin was choked, his consciousness gradually blurred, thinking of Xiao Kui, thinking of his uncle, why the originally happy life, encountered such a strange thing, Xiao Kui had not yet passed the door, his uncle's life and death were unknown. Xiao Kui, I'll go first...and have a next life, willing to leave worldly feelings, not disappointing each other's thoughts. Thinking about it, Xia Jin couldn't help but tear up, dripping onto Wang Changqing's hand. Wang Changqing's hand felt like it was being burned, making a hissing sound, Wang Changqing cried out in pain, unable to bear it, loosening his grip, constantly clutching his hands, the pair of hands were scratched until they were bloody and swollen, deeply visible bones. Xia Jin weakly crawled back two steps, previously struggling for a long time, his whole body exhausted, the sound of Wang Changqing's ear-piercing screams came from beside his ears, gradually losing consciousness.
