Chapter Fifty-Two: The Duel to the Death on the Martial Stage

Because of Meng Xiaoli's martial arts tournament, the city of Yanzhou attracted a great number of martial artists from across the rivers and lakes. For a time, the inside and outside of Yanzhou City surged with an endless stream of people, and the streets and alleys teemed with continuous traffic and bustling crowds.

When the appointed day arrived, Meng Xiaoli led a group of disciples, including Wuyu, Li Yaorao, and Gu Youyou, to attend the gathering.

Around the temporarily erected arena outside Yanzhou City, heroes and masters had already gathered. Some stood in tight clusters, while others stood aloof and alone, whispering to one another and exchanging polite greetings. Their attire varied greatly, and they belonged to numerous different sects and factions.

When Meng Xiaoli arrived with her disciples, everyone present cast contemptuous glances, staring with disdain and murmuring in low voices.

Meng Xiaoli and her disciples leaped up onto the platform and surveyed their surroundings. She recognized hardly any of the demons and monsters gathered below, and she truly had no idea where they had all suddenly crawled out from. The area beneath the stage was packed so tightly that not even water could trickle through, yet people continued to arrive in a steady stream from afar.

Before Meng Xiaoli could speak, a man in pink robes in the front row, with a fair complexion, an oily face, roving affectionate eyes, and thin pinkish lips, held a bright red withered flower branch. He sniffed it while calling out, "I never expected so many people would refuse to submit to you, the Demonic Yama Ghostess!"

As soon as the man finished speaking, a lean, haggard fellow with a prominent scar running horizontally across his face and a missing left earlobe chuckled at the pink-robed man and said, "Refuse to submit? I wager even more people are simply here to gawk and join the commotion. A flower-picker like you, Drunken on a Single Stem, must have come solely to take advantage of the women of the Red-Clad Cult! Everyone says the Red-Clad Goddess Cult is the largest brothel in the Great Ming; surely it cannot escape your flower-destroying hands now, can it?"

Hearing this, Tao Zui felt no shame whatsoever; instead, he took it as a compliment. He chuckled, cupped his fists in a salute, and smiled, "The Divine Monkey of the Northwest possesses peerless martial arts; how would I ever dare to show off my meager skills before you? You flatter me, truly you flatter me." Upon hearing this, the Divine Monkey of the Northwest realized that Tao Zui's words seemed like praise but were actually veiled insults, and any further conversation would yield nothing pleasant, so he had no choice but to shut his mouth.

Listening to their back-and-forth, and noting how the Divine Monkey of the Northwest had once again slung mud at the Red-Clad Cult, Meng Xiaoli did not fly into a rage. She had heard similar remarks far too often. For now, she merely maintained a faint smile. Only after they finished speaking did she raise her voice and declare, "Gentlemen, since you have come to challenge me, we must naturally determine a victor. But this victory will not merely be a contest stopped upon the touch of a point; today, we shall decide both victory and defeat, as well as life and death. How about it?"

Hearing this, the crowd below exchanged glances and broke into a buzz of discussion. Most of them had merely come to test their martial arts; who among them did not wish to gain a sterling reputation by challenging Meng Xiaoli? To lose still brought renown, and to win meant becoming famous throughout the four seas—why wouldn't they want that? Yet they had not expected Meng Xiaoli to be someone who refused to suffer a loss; if they wanted a good reputation, they would have to stake their lives for it. For the moment, the crowd could not make up their minds, glancing back and forth at one another to gauge reactions.

Meng Xiaoli continued, "Since we are testing our martial arts, I, Meng Xiaoli, will accompany you through the entire ordeal. So, what happens if you win? And what happens if you lose? Surely you do not expect me to accompany you in a pointless game for nothing?"

Just as her voice trailed off, a string of mournful funeral music sounded in the distance, and everyone turned their gazes toward the source of the noise. Standing high above, Meng Xiaoli was the first to spot a procession. Every member wore coarse hemp and filial mourning garb, carrying ten wooden coffins. The leading coffin was lavishly adorned and glittered with gold; it looked heavy, yet the men carrying it bore it with effortless ease, as if it weighed nothing at all.

At the very front of the procession, a young man was weeping bitterly as he cradled a spirit tablet upon which Meng Xiaoli's name was conspicuously inscribed. On both sides of the coffins, people held funeral banners, scattered paper money, played suonas and dirges, and wept aloud, creating the unmistakable spectacle of a funeral procession.

Everyone present cleared a path for this funeral procession. Tao Zui, the flower-picker, tucked the flower branch into his hair, unfurled his paper fan, and gently waved it as he sighed, "The Crossing Spirit Gate of western Hunan—they exclusively make a living off the dead."

An old man headed the procession, his hair and beard snow-white, his face deeply lined, yet full of vigor and light-footed. In the blink of an eye, he reached the front of the stage, turned around to halt the funeral band, and cut the crying short. He then cupped his fists toward the others on both sides of the procession, bowing left and right as he called out, "Fellow martial artists, may you strike it rich upon seeing a coffin! Strike it rich upon seeing a coffin, indeed!"

When the Divine Monkey of the Northwest spotted the old man, he chuckled and said, "True to form, the Crossing Spirit Gate fears nothing more than a peaceful world. Old Ghost Qi, you truly show up wherever there is a commotion."

This Old Ghost Qi instructed his disciples to set the coffins down on the ground, then replied, "Today, I, Old Ghost Qi, am not handling anyone else's business; I am exclusively handling the business of her Red-Clad Cult." With that, Old Ghost Qi looked up at Meng Xiaoli on the stage and smiled. "Demonic Yama Ghostess, we meet for the first time. I, Old Ghost Qi, have no grand gift to offer, so I specially present you with ten coffins. The rest are complementary for your disciples, but this large golden coffin," he patted the first coffin as he continued, "is prepared specifically for you. Look, I've even had the spirit tablet made for you already. Isn't that thoughtful?" At this, the surrounding crowd broke into applause and cheers for Old Ghost Qi, who flashed an intensely sinister and eerie smile as he stared at Meng Xiaoli.

Standing behind Meng Xiaoli were Wuyu and Gu Youyou. Hearing Old Ghost Qi speak thus, Gu Youyou's temper flared instantly. Cursing aloud, "What kind of dog droppings are you spouting!" she drew her sword and made to charge down the stage, but Meng Xiaoli stopped her. Meng Xiaoli knew full well that these old foxes in the crowd had roamed the rivers and lakes for many years; their martial arts were unfathomable, and their skill with mere words was formidable indeed.

With a cold expression and a maintained smile, Meng Xiaoli looked back at Old Ghost Qi and calmly said, "With dozens of you people here, I'm afraid these few coffins won't be enough."

Old Ghost Qi was not angered in the least. He burst into hearty laughter and said, "Rest assured, these coffins are gifts presented to your Red-Clad Cult; those lackeys of yours don't even qualify for them. My Crossing Spirit Gate has nothing else, but we have as many coffins as you could possibly want. However, let's be clear: these ten are gifts. If you want any extra, you'll have to pay silver according to the rules." This remark once again provoked a wave of laughter from everyone present.

With a wave of Old Ghost Qi's hand, the Crossing Spirit Gate disciples began playing the dirge once more, while another group of disciples resumed their sham weeping. The wailing shook the heavens, sounding as though it could cry the living to death.

Meng Xiaoli raised her voice and said, "Since you curse me to die so bitterly, you must hate me to the bone. In that case, you shall be the first to spar with me today."

"Not at all, not at all," Old Ghost Qi repeatedly waved his hands and replied, "Fighting is your affair; my Crossing Spirit Gate is here to conduct business."

"If he won't go, I will!" The Divine Monkey of the Northwest had a fiery temper. He leaped onto the stage immediately, rubbed his palms together, and shouted loudly, "Isn't it just a battle of life and death? Although I, the Divine Monkey of the Northwest, have never crossed paths with the Ten Great Sects, I have yet to suffer a defeat in the rivers and lakes. I do not treat you as a woman, so losing to you brings no shame, and defeating you does not betray the orthodox path. Come on!"

With that, the Divine Monkey of the Northwest assumed his stance, channeling his internal energy into his palms. He alternated his hands across his chest, waiting for Meng Xiaoli to respond. Meng Xiaoli waved her hand to signal her disciples to step down and watch the battle, then fixed her eyes on the Divine Monkey of the Northwest. The two of them first circled the stage once, mutually sensing each other's internal strength.

Immediately afterward, the Divine Monkey of the Northwest lunged forward, unleashing a flurry of strikes known as the "Gale Palms." He delivered a continuous chain of blows, and Meng Xiaoli instantly employed the "Water Ripples" technique of the "Defense" principle. Dropping her stance, she swept her leg in a circle along the floor to evade the force of his palms while cutting off his lower path.

The Divine Monkey of the Northwest pursued Meng Xiaoli for several moves, but every palm strike missed its target. Seizing the opportunity, Meng Xiaoli braced her hands against the floor, kicked her legs up, and thrust outward. Reacting with lightning speed, the Divine Monkey of the Northwest instantly sidestepped to avoid it.

He then unleashed the "Sudden Rain Palms." The wind of his strikes was fierce and swift, pelting the upper half of Meng Xiaoli's body like a sudden downpour. Adopting a defensive posture, Meng Xiaoli dodged over a dozen of the Divine Monkey's palm strikes. Every blow grazed past her by a hair's breadth in a series of hair-raising moments. She hoped to catch him off guard by using the "Probe" principle to strike the center of the Divine Monkey's defense, but she had not anticipated his exceptional agility and lightning-fast reflexes. He instantly leaped far away, then suddenly bounced back to Meng Xiaoli's side in a flash. Meng Xiaoli countered by cutting off his advance with the "Sunny Day Parasol Shield" technique.

The Divine Monkey of the Northwest had always been renowned for his nimble palm techniques, astonishing speed, and an endless, ceaselessly powerful style of combat. He executed his "Falling Rain Palm Technique" to perfection; a fraction of a second's difference in reaction time would leave one with no opportunity to counterattack.

The spectators below watched Meng Xiaoli trade blows with the Divine Monkey of the Northwest. The Divine Monkey launched aggressive attacks while Meng Xiaoli primarily defended before counterattacking. Neither had gained any real advantage, yet the sheer ferocity of the Divine Monkey's moves led many to fear that Meng Xiaoli might fall into a disadvantageous position.

However, after a few dozen moves, the true characteristics of Meng Xiaoli's martial arts gradually emerged. All the initial pacing and probing were meant to test her opponent's martial arts traits. Once she found the right opening, her later accumulated momentum would deal a devastating blow—against someone like the Divine Monkey of the Northwest, whose fierce initial onslaught left him lacking in stamina, this meant he would suffer heavy losses.

Seeing that the Divine Monkey of the Northwest's moves were beginning to slow down, Meng Xiaoli knew her opportunity had arrived. She successively employed the "Seize" principle, shifting from defense to offense. First, she provoked the upper body of the Divine Monkey of the Northwest; and since he handled the upper-body defense with ease, Meng Xiaoli would periodically harass his lower quarters.

Realizing that Meng Xiaoli's feints at his upper body were merely intended to draw his focus away from his weaker lower quarters, the Divine Monkey of the Northwest kept his guard up to defend both high and low. Unexpectedly, after a few dozen more moves, just as he had grown accustomed to Meng Xiaoli's patterns, she suddenly used the "Probe" principle to feint toward his head, followed by a strike to his solar plexus using a technique called "Thunder-Smitten Wood." Her Golden Scale Blood Armor pierced forward with lightning speed, thrusting straight toward the pit of the Divine Monkey's stomach. Instantly withdrawing her hand, she lashed upward, plunging directly into the lower jaw of the Divine Monkey as he lowered his head to look at his wound.

In an instant, the Divine Monkey of the Northwest lost all combat capability. His eyes wide with shock, he stared blankly at Meng Xiaoli, wanting to say something, but his lower jaw and tongue had been pierced through by the Golden Scale Blood Armor, leaving him unable to speak.

Meng Xiaoli retracted her hand and swept it forward with ferocious force. The Golden Scale Blood Armor sliced through the windpipe and throat of the Divine Monkey of the Northwest. It all happened in the blink of an eye. Watching the Divine Monkey, who had consistently held the upper hand, fall victim to Meng Xiaoli's hands in a split second, the crowd looked on as he collapsed to the ground with a thud. Meng Xiaoli gazed at the Golden Scale Blood Armor, which was still dripping with blood.

Everyone below stared in a daze at the corpse of the Divine Monkey of the Northwest. The folk master, who had been full of life and utterly arrogant just moments before, had died far too cleanly. Stunned into speechlessness, they gasped, "He really killed him? The Divine Monkey of the Northwest was killed? How ruthless!"

Tao Zui, the flower-picker, closed his fan and sighed, "A martial artist strives for a lifetime, only to surrender his life in a single lost battle. One can only lament that the rivers and lakes are a savage wilderness where the strong prey upon the weak—nothing more than that."

Meng Xiaoli took a silk handkerchief handed to her by a disciple, wiped her palms, and said to the bewildered crowd below, "I said it before: our duel decides both victory and defeat, as well as life and death. Surely you cannot expect everyone to scream for my blood day after day while considering my self-defense to be brutal and lawless?"

The crowd exchanged uneasy glances.

Before arriving, Tao Zui, the flower-picker, had indeed intended to take advantage of the women of the Red-Clad Cult. However, having witnessed the duel between Meng Xiaoli and the Divine Monkey of the Northwest, he felt deeply inadequate. Moreover, realizing he had no personal grudges against Meng Xiaoli, he wondered why he should risk life and limb, so he abandoned the notion of challenging her to avoid ending up with nothing. Although he considered dying at a woman's hands to be the ultimate luxury, this was certainly not the way he wished to die. He promptly clapped his hands and said, "Well said! I am deeply impressed. As the saying goes, literature acknowledges no first, and martial arts acknowledge no second. Since certain people came here aiming to kill the Demonic Yama Ghostess, they ought to have been prepared to be counter-killed by her."

On the platform, Meng Xiaoli finished wiping her hands and ordered her disciples to toss the corpse of the Divine Monkey of the Northwest in front of Old Ghost Qi, the master of the Crossing Spirit Gate. Then, flashing a sinister smile, she said, "Since you are in the business of serving my Red-Clad Cult, our cult is not devoid of principles either. The Divine Monkey of the Northwest died at my hands, and he accepted his loss like a man. I admire him as a true fellow, so I shall present him with a single coffin. I must trouble Gate Master Qi to help prepare him for burial."