Chapter 438 - What is Love? (13)

Translator: wuxiasociety

“That’s right,” said Yang Guo, “Be careful! That stone is slippery.”

They immediately walked back down and told everything they knew to Huang Rong.

She was silent for a moment, frowning deeply. Suddenly her eyes lit. Clapping her hands she exclaimed, “Guo’er, Congratulations, congratulations!”

Yang Guo was flabbergasted. He was shocked but a bit thrilled at the same time, “What…Why…What for?” He stammered.

“Congratulations! How can I not congratulate you!” his auntie was laughing ecstatically. “Sister Long has met the ‘Divine Nun of the South Sea’ [nan hai zhen ni]. This is a very extraordinary destiny.”

Yang Guo’s face looked puzzled: “Divine Nun of the South Sea? Who’s that?”

“Nan Hai Shen Ni is a divine Buddhist nun with a very high level of martial arts,” she explained, “Just how high her skill is, nobody can tell. Because she seldom comes to the mainland, almost nobody in the Central Plains knew her big name. My father met her and was taught a very high-level fist technique. That was sixteen, thirty-two … yes, it was thirty-two years ago.”

“Thirty-two years ago?” Yang Guo repeated absent-mindedly.

“Yes,” she continued, “I think the ‘Divine Nun of the South Sea’ is almost a hundred years old now. According to my father, she always visits the mainland once every sixteen years. Woe to the evil men who crosses her path. She has a benevolent heart and is always ready to help anybody in need. I am sure Miss Long has met her, was taken as her disciple, and was taken back to the South Sea.”

“Sixteen years … sixteen … Reverend, is there such person?” Yang Guo turned to Yideng. His voice was hoarse.

Yideng was about to answer with an “hmm” when Huang Rong quickly cut him off. “The ‘Divine Nun of the South Sea’ excels in martial arts, but her character is a bit weird. Reverend, have you ever met her?”

“The old monk is unfortunate, he has not met her,” he answered, shaking his head.

Huang Rong sighed. “Ah, that Senior is really ignorant,” she said, “to separate a young couple like that…and for sixteen years! Sister Long already possesses a level high martial art. After sixteen years, wouldn’t her husband looked like chicken compared to her?” Then she burst out in laughter.

“No, Auntie Guo, I don’t think that was what she had in mind,” countered Yang Guo.

“What then?” asked the aunt?

Without further ado Yang Guo reminded her, that Guo Fu unintentionally struck her with a “Soul Freezing Needle” while his wife was reversing her blood flow to cure her injury. That caused the poison to attack her internal organs. “If what you said is true, I think the Shen Ni is trying to cure her within that sixteen years period.” He sighed, “You know, before this new development, I thought Long’er’s condition was terminal.”

“That spoiled brat of mine truly has caused you two too many troubles,” said Mrs. Guo. “I think you are right. That poison has resided inside Sister Long’s body for too long. Even if she was given a miracle cure, she would certainly need a long time to recover fully. Guo’er, let us hope that Sister Long will recover sooner, and that the ‘Divine Nun of the South Sea’ will release her sooner too.”

Yang Guo was lost in thought with a heart full of questions. It was hard to believe his auntie, yet the Xiao Longnü’s letter seemed to corroborate her argument. If she killed herself, why would she say sixteen years? Suddenly he turned his gaze toward Huang Rong and asked, “Auntie Guo, how do you know Nan Hai Shen Ni took Long’er away? Why didn’t Long’er say so in the message, so that I wouldn’t worry?”

“I came to that conclusion because of the words ‘sixteen years later’,” she explained. “I know this for a fact, that the ‘Divine Nun of the South Sea’ visits the mainland only once every sixteen years. Nobody else has that peculiar habit. Reverend, have you known anybody else with that custom?”

“No,” he answered.

“Father said that the Shen Ni does not like to be mentioned,” Mrs. Guo continued, “so it’s understandable if Sister Long did not mention her name in the message. My only concern is that I am not sure the ‘Severed Intestine Grass’ will save your life. If … Ay! … if sixteen years pass and Sister Long comes back and she cannot see you, it is very possible that … that she would not want to live any longer.”

Yang Guo shed some more tears. He could see clearly in his mind a shadow of things to come. He saw a white shadow; it was his wife, comeback to meet him sixteen years from now. He then saw his wife was grieving because he was no more.

A gentle breeze blew and Yang Guo shivered. “Auntie Guo,” he said, “I think I’d better go to the South Sea to find her. Do you know where the Shen Ni lives?”

“Guo’er, don’t be silly,” rebuked his auntie softly, “The ‘Great Wisdom Island’ [da zhi dao] where the Shen Ni lives has never been visited by strangers. Woe to the man who visits the island uninvited. My Father received her tutelage, but even Father has never set foot on this island. Now that she’s taken Sister Long under her wing, I am confident that someday you two will meet again. What is sixteen years anyway? It will pass in the blink of an eye. Why do you have to rush?”

Yang Guo looked intently at Huang Rong’s face and asked, “Auntie Guo, are you telling me the truth?”

“You go and examine that message,” she countered, “If that message was not written by Sister Long, you can say whatever you want.”

“It was indeed written by Long’er herself.” Yang Guo said, “Every time she writes the character ‘Yang’, she always add a short stroke on the right. Nobody writes it like that.”

“Very good, then,” said his auntie, clapping her hands. “Honestly, I wasn’t sure myself. I thought it was too much of a coincidence. I thought it was Brother Zhu’s doing trying to comfort you.”

Yang Guo was lost in thought again, his eyes stared hard at the Broken Heart Cliff. “Very well,” he finally said, “I will take the ‘Severed Intestine Grass’. If it fails, I hope sixteen years from now Auntie will tell my poor wife everything.” He turned to Zhu Ziliu and asked, “Uncle Zhu, how do I take the grass?”

Zhu Ziliu only knew the ‘Severed Intestine Grass’ was a poisonous plant. He had no idea on how that poison would neutralize other poisons. Therefore, he turned to Yideng and asked, “Shifu, I think we need your insight on this matter.”

Extending his right hand forefinger, Yideng quickly sealed four of Yang Guo’s accupoints: the ‘shao hai’ [lit. lesser sea], ‘tong li’ [lit. open inside], ‘shen men’ [lit. divine gate], and ‘shao chong’ [lit. little highway]. These four accupoints can be classified as the basic positive passages of the ‘shou shao yang xin jing’ [elementary positive heart manual(?)]. Yang Guo felt a warm feeling flowing from these accupoints toward his chest, and loosened the tightness in his breast. “The Passionless Poison mostly attacks the organs closely linked to the feelings or emotions,” Yideng explained, “The ‘Severed Intestine Grass’ poison would most likely attack your heart as well. Therefore, I sealed your four accupoints to protect your heart. Go ahead, take some strands.”

Yang Guo bowed to express his gratitude.

Yideng sighed, “If my Martial Brother were here, he would know how to take it properly, so that we would not have to make a wild guess.”

When the Divine Indian Monk was killed by Li Mochou, Yang Guo thought Xiao Longnü was beyond hope, so he desired to die; but now he was determined to live for at least sixteen years longer. He put the grass into his mouth and started to chew, then swallowed it. The ‘Severed Intestine Grass’ was very bitter, but he endured it. He thought of how miserable Xiao Longnü would be if, sixteen years from now, she came back and did not see him. He quickly sat down and exerted his internal energy to protect his heart, liver, and other sensitive organs.