THE SMILING PROUD WANDERER by Jin Yong

Invitation Part 4

"Why did you kick the wine-jars down, brother Linghu?" Tian Boguang asked in shock.

"Tian Boguang," Linghu Chong answered, "we don't belong to the same sides of the society. You have committed numerous crimes and harmed many innocent people. Everyone in the Martial World hates your guts. I drank three bowls of wine with you because I think you are someone upright and not some kind of shameless filthy scoundrel. Our relationship stops right here. You've brought me two jars of great wine, but even if you put all the precious jewels and treasures right in front me, do you think you can buy Linghu Chong to be your friend?" He yelled as he drew his long sword, "Tian Boguang, let me try your fast knife chop moves one more time!"

Tian Boguang didn't draw his knife. He shook his head with a slight smile on his face. "Brother Linghu, your respectful school's sword art is brilliant, but you are still too young and haven't grasped the depth of it. Right now with your sword skills, you are still no match for me."

Linghu Chong thought for a second and then nodded in agreement. "What you said is very true. Within the next ten years, Linghu Chong would stand no chance of ever killing you, brother Tian." With a loud clanking sound, he sent his long sword back into the sheath.

"Whosoever understands the times is a great man!" Tian Boguang burst into loud laughter.

"Linghu Chong is only a nobody in the Martial World. I suppose you made nothing of hardships to Mount Huashan not for my head on my neck. We are enemies, not friends. No matter what you want me to do, I won't do it." Linghu Chong announced.

"But you haven't even given yourself a chance to hear my proposal yet." Tian Boguang was amused.

"Precisely!" Linghu Chong said. "No matter what you propose, I won't agree. Since I can't beat you in a fight, I'd better lubricate my heels and have the run for it." Before the word even faded in the air, he had already turned around the corner to the back of the cliff.

Linghu Chong knew well that Tian Boguang could run very fast. That was how he got his nickname "Ten Thousand Miles Loner." He had good knife skills, but there were plenty of people in the Martial World who could beat him. He had been committing various crimes for the last ten years or so. Yet because he was always on good alert and had first-class Qing-Gong skills, during the several times when the Chivalry Side gathered a good amount of people to hunt him down, no one was even able to touch him. For this reason when Linghu Chong started running, he ran with all his strength.

He thought he was fast, but Tian Boguang was even faster. Only after Linghu Chong dashed out some thirty feet, he already found Tian Boguang blocking the way in front of him. He turned around immediately heading toward the front of the cliff, thinking that he might be able to jump down the cliff to the lower slope, but only after about ten steps, Tian Boguang had caught up with him again and blocked in front of him with his arms stretching out, laughing hectically.

"No chance of running away, I guess we'll have to pick a fight! Brother Tian, you can't blame me if I call for help now!" Linghu Chong took three steps back and shouted.

"Well," Tian Boguang said with a grin, "if your respectful Master can come, then it would be my turn to lubricate my heels and take the run for it. Too bad Mr. and Madam Yue are in Eastern Shanxi right now, which is at least a hundred and fifty miles away from here, and would have no chance of coming back to save you. You do have some apprentice brothers and sisters, but if they come up the cliff, none of them would make a decent opponent. All the guys would lose their lives for nothing, and all the girls...ha-ha, ha-ha." The tone of his laughter was filled with ill intentions.

Linghu Chong gasped. He thought to himself, "The 'Cliff of Contemplation' is far away from the Huashan Sword School's main hall. Even if I shout with all my might, the apprentice brothers and sisters probably still won't be able to hear a thing. This fellow is an infamous rapist, what if he bumped into little apprentice sister...oops! That was a close call! Luckily I wasn't able to run away earlier, or else, Tian Boguang would have gone to the main hall of Huashan Sword School to look for me for sure, and then naturally he would bump into little apprentice sister. If the pretty and lovely little apprentice sister had fallen into the evil rapist's hands, I...I'd deserve ten-thousand deaths." He rolled his eyes and quickly made up his mind. "Right now the best thing to do probably is to muddle with him perfunctorily and to stall him for more time. Hence I can't take him by force, I'll have to take him by strategy. As long as I can stall him till Master and Master-Wife make it back to Mount Huashan, then everything would be fine."