Chapter 24: The Appointment of Thirty Moves

  Tian Boguang carried a load of things up the cliff, laughing and saying: "Linghu brother, Ling brother, I heard that you have been punished on this Thinking Cliff, so I specially brought some fine wine to see you."

  Ling Jing only then discovered that Tian Boguang's shoulder pole actually had several jars of fine wine, and said: "In that case, I must thank Brother Tian for his kind intentions."

  Linghu Chong smiled and said, "Brother Tian's footwork is indeed swift. I heard that just a few days ago you were still lingering in northern Shaanxi, how did you arrive at our Mount Hua today?"

  He looked at Tian Boguang, but in his heart he thought: My master and mistress are chasing you down the mountain, I didn't expect you to be so bold, still daring to come alone to our Mount Hua, really don't know what you want to do.

  Tian Boguang burst out laughing, put down his carrying pole, took out a wine jug from the load and placed it on the stone table, saying: "Yue Zhengyi and Madame Yue wanted to come down the mountain to deal with Tian, but unfortunately Tian's martial arts skills are really mediocre, so he had to escape in a hurry."

  Ling Jing looked at him with a smile that was not quite a smile, knowing in her heart that he had been coerced by Wu Xie and had no choice but to use the "borrowing a tiger's might" tactic. He had first tricked the Yue couple into going to Shaanbei, only then daring to invite others up the mountain. Seeing his cunning words, she didn't expose him, merely saying: "Brother Tian, your martial arts skills are impressive, why be overly modest?"

  Tian Boguang was given a glance by Ling Jing, and he felt his whole body hair stand on end. He thought to himself that Ling Jing must have seen through his thoughts. However, he quickly changed his mind, thinking that although this time he had been made a fool of and forced into a difficult situation by that stinky monk, the matter was hidden and it was impossible for others to know about it.

  At that time, he didn't think much and smiled: "Today Tian Mou is specially coming to visit two good friends. Let's just talk about old times and not discuss martial arts." He handed the wine jar to the two of them and said, "Come on, let's have a drink first and then talk."

  Linghu Chong was a heavy drinker, and although this wine was a gift from Tian Boguang, he didn't care about that at the moment. As soon as he took the wine jar, he immediately broke open the mud seal and started drinking heavily.

  Ling Jing held up the wine jug and toasted Tian Boguang from afar, saying: "Brother Tian, you didn't decline the hard work of sending us wine with our fellow disciples. I, Ling, appreciate your kindness, so let's first drink to show respect."

  Tian Boguang humbly declined and hastily started drinking with Ling Jing.

  Three people drank together, the "gurgling" sound didn't stop until dozens of breaths later, it turned out that each had used their own inner strength, and one mouthful was incredibly long.

  Linghu Chong's internal energy was not as deep as the other two, and after a while, he had to stop, took a deep breath, looked at the two again, and flashed a hint of helplessness and loss on his face.

  Ling Jing saw Linghu Chong stop and immediately put down the wine jar. Although with his current internal strength, this one breath would not be much shorter than Tian Boguang's, but today Tian Boguang's purpose in climbing the cliff was not simple, a fierce battle was likely to be unavoidable, so how could he reveal his depth for a momentary impulse?

  Tian Boguang drank without stopping, and Ling Jing looked at him with a smile: "Brother Tian indeed has a good capacity for wine and inner strength."

  Tian Boguang burst out laughing and wiped his mouth lightly, saying: "Too kind, too kind."

  Just then, Ling Jing suddenly threw the wine jar in his hand into the deep valley, and Lin Hu saw it and said a word of regret, and then threw away the beautiful wine in his hand.

  Tian Boguang exclaimed in surprise: "What are you two brothers doing?"

  Ling Jing looked at him and said, "Brother Tian, as the saying goes, 'different paths don't make for good company.' Your character is not upright, you've wronged many innocent people, and who knows how many virtuous women have been ruined by you. My fellow disciples and I respected you for being straightforward and generous, which is why we had a drink with you. This meeting has fulfilled the necessary courtesy, so now, Brother Tian, you can tell us, what's the real reason you've come to Si Xing Ya?"

  He naturally knew the purpose of Tian Boguang's visit this time, but this time Tian Boguang came, it was his own great opportunity. For now, he didn't want to talk nonsense with him too much, just wanted to bring out Feng Qingyang as soon as possible, that was the main thing.

  Linghu Chong said, "Brother Tian, since you know that my master and his wife are chasing after you at the foot of the mountain, then you should also know that everyone in the Mount Hua School is your enemy. Although our martial arts skills may not be as high as yours, Brother Tian, we cannot help but ask for your guidance."

  Tian Boguang sneered and said, "Two brothers, although Tian Mou has done many bad things in his life, but today he came up the mountain with good intentions, only wanting to help you achieve a good thing, why must you be so impatient and want to fight me?"

  He paused, then said: "Furthermore, your Huashan martial arts are indeed impressive, but you two are still young and inexperienced. Even if we consider the events at the Returning Goose Tower, if I hadn't shown mercy, would you two have survived till today?"

  Ling Jing naturally understood what Tian Bo Guang meant by "good things", and felt that this matter was somewhat absurd, but just smiled without comment. However, Linghu Chong said: "Brother Tian's good intentions, I'm not worthy of receiving, even if you put all the treasures of the world in front of us, don't think we'll join forces with you."

  Tian Boguang's face sank, and he sneered: "The two brothers are from a prestigious family with high integrity, and Tian naturally doesn't dare to overstep his bounds. However, today's matter concerns Tian's life and death, so no matter what, you must follow me down the mountain." At the same time, he was also puzzled in his heart - this monk who wanted to find a son-in-law didn't seem like a big deal, but why did he want him to bring these two kids down the mountain? Was he planning to find two husbands for Yilin or something?

  Ling Jingdao said, "Brother Tian, there's no need to say more. No matter what you say now, we won't agree with you." He spoke with great confidence, for although Tian Boguang's martial arts were strong, they were slightly inferior to those of his own master, Ning Zhongyan. His own internal energy had already advanced to the third rank, and after months of arduous practice, he had finally broken through the 400-point barrier. With his superior swordsmanship, although he didn't have absolute confidence in defeating Tian Boguang, he was determined to give it a try.

  Ling Jing's voice had just fallen, and then he heard Linghu Chong say in a firm tone: "I'd rather die than obey. If you want to force us, Tian brother, just go ahead and make your move. Let's see if we two brothers are really afraid of death."

  Tian Boguang furrowed his brow upon hearing this, and felt that this matter was quite troublesome. He himself was being coerced by the monk who had taken a vow of abstinence, and he had to invite these two down the mountain, but at the same time, he couldn't harm their lives. It really gave him a headache.

  He thought for a moment and said: "Two brothers, Tian Mou's trip to the mountain this time is indeed a good intention, why do you have to refuse people from afar?"

  After finishing speaking, seeing these two people with a calm face, it was clear that they had not taken their words to heart. He felt somewhat annoyed in his heart and thought to himself: although he had a bad reputation on the rivers and lakes, he was still a well-known figure. Now, however, he had to lower himself to speak to these two young whippersnappers, which was truly stifling. So he coldly laughed and said: "You two claim to be from a reputable family, but why do you insist on provoking that little nun Yilin, causing others to be distracted all day, worried and anxious."

  Ling Jing's heart sank as he thought this matter had finally reached the crux, and he focused his mind to respond, preparing for the upcoming trouble. However, Linghu Chong suddenly became furious and said: "Tian Boguang, do not speak nonsense! We are innocent and clean with Yilin Shimei. The reason we saved her that day was simply because we didn't want her to be bullied by an evil person like you. Just based on this sentence alone, I, Linghu Chong, will never let you off easily."

  Tian Boguang chuckled and said, "Alright, let's do it this way. If any of you can withstand my thirty moves, I'll leave the mountain by myself and never bother you again. But if I win, you must follow me down the mountain to meet that little nun Yilun."

  He drew out the short knife from his waist and looked at Ling Jing with a proud smile: "Brother Ling, it's not that I look down on you, but your martial arts are far inferior to Linger's. If I were to fight you, it would be an unfair victory. I don't want to take advantage of you either, so just pack up and leave by yourself. Wait until I defeat Linger, then follow me down the mountain."

  Linghu Chong suddenly burst out laughing and thought to himself, "This Tian Boguang doesn't know that my junior brother's martial arts have improved greatly recently. Even if he can fight on par with Shifu, it's fine. I'll just fight him first, and if I can't hold on for thirty moves, it won't be too late to let my junior brother take over."

  He was confident in Ling Jing, and thought that Tian Boguang was really arrogant. Even if it were Shifu's wife, she wouldn't dare say that she could definitely win over her younger brother, this Tian Boguang was truly presumptuous.

  Ling Jing heard this but only smiled slightly and didn't say much. Since Tian Boguang underestimated him, he could take advantage of it to catch him off guard.

  Toothache, can only drink porridge, feeling depressed...