The Seven Freaks of Jiangnan, also known as the Seven Heroes of Jiangnan, are: "Flying Bat" Ke Zhen'e, "Miraculous Scholar" Zhu Cong, "Horse King God" Han Baoju, "Woodcutter of Nanshan" Nan Xiren, "Laughing Buddha" Zhang Asheng, "Hidden Hero of the City" Quan Jinfeng, and "Swordswoman of Yue" Han Xiaoying. They are the seven masters of the great hero Guo Jing.
Although none of the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan possessed particularly high martial arts skills, each had a unique technique, making them renowned figures in the martial arts world.
Among them, "Flying Bat" Ke Zhen'e is skilled in hidden weapons; "Masterful Scholar" Zhu Cong possesses the unparalleled skill of stealing; "Horse King God" Han Baoju is skilled in judging horses; "Woodcutter of Nanshan" Nan Xiren is calm and composed with considerable internal strength; "Laughing Buddha" Zhang Asheng is skilled in hard skills, but died early at the hands of "Copper Corpse" Chen Xuanfeng; "Hidden Hero of the City" Quan Jinfeng is skilled in weapons and taught Guo Jing the Huyan Spear Technique, which counters the Yang Family Spear; and the only woman among the Seven Freaks, "Yue Maiden Sword" Han Xiaoying, is skilled in swordsmanship, just as her name suggests.
Seeing these six, along with a simple-minded young man, emerge from the crowd, Lin Qi knew he was about to complete his mission.
"This junior, Yin Zhiping, a disciple of Qiu Chuji, the Changchun Master of the Quanzhen Sect, has come on my master's orders to deliver a letter to the Seven Heroes of Jiangnan." With that, Lin Qi took out an envelope from his robes.
"Oh! So you're a esteemed disciple of Master Qiu. Follow me."
It's unclear what Ke Zhen'e said to the burly Mongolian men, but they withdrew. Ke Zhen'e didn't lead Lin Qi into Temujin's tribe, but instead walked outside.
They stopped behind a hill.
"I wonder what important matter Master Qiu sent you for?" Ke Zhen'e asked.
"My master sent me to confirm whether the six of you have found the descendants of the Guo family. Also, the agreed-upon martial arts competition is approaching, and my father asked me to deliver a letter to the six of you." Lin Qi then took out the envelope and handed it over. "
Hmph! Probably a challenge letter from Master Qiu?" Ke Zhen'e said irritably.
Since Ke Zhen'e was blind, his second son, Zhu Cong, accepted Qiu Chuji's letter on his behalf.
After reading the letter, Zhu Cong whispered a few words in Ke Zhen'e's ear. Ke Zhen'e nodded and turned to Lin Qi, asking,
"I wonder if Master Qiu has found the descendants of the Yang family?"
"Master found Senior Brother Yang Kang nine years ago, and has been teaching him for nine years," Lin Qi replied, but didn't elaborate on that Yang Kang now resides in the Jin Kingdom's princely mansion, being a minor prince of the Great Jin Kingdom. After all, he still had to consider his master Qiu Chuji's reputation.
"Very well, you can go back and tell Master Qiu that we siblings will not forget our promise. We will definitely be there on time at the Misty Rain Pavilion in Jiaxing," Ke Zhen'e said coldly.
In truth, he was quite uncertain. Guo Jing was dull-witted and simply not cut out for martial arts, while Lin Qi, though blind, possessed considerable martial arts skills. Therefore, Yang Kang, Lin Qi's senior brother, was likely no less skilled.
However, not wanting to lose face, Ke Zhen'e still responded forcefully to Qiu Chuji's probing.
Lin Qi realized they were trying to get rid of him, not even offering him a cup of tea. Come to think of it, there didn't seem to be any tea in the desert.
But since the mission was complete, he figured he should hurry back. As for testing Guo Jing? Lin Qi had no intention of doing so; it would feel like bullying a child.
However, just as Lin Qi was about to leave and return to the Quanzhen Sect, he suddenly realized that the manual for the Dugu Nine Swords was missing from his possession.
Lin Qi immediately knew who had done it; he couldn't possibly have lost something so important for no reason.
"Six seniors, please wait!" Lin Qi called out to the six monsters who were about to leave, then looked at "The Masterful Scholar" Zhu Cong and said, "Please, Senior Zhu, return my things to me."
"This…" Ke Zhen'e and the others immediately understood what had happened. Zhu Cong must have been irresponsible and taken something from Lin Qi.
However, the six monsters were all very proud. They might have let it go with others, but Yin Zhiping was Qiu Chuji's disciple, a junior to the six of them. Stealing from a junior like that wouldn't do them any good.
Therefore, Zhu Cong was the first to deny it, saying, "Nephew Yin, have you misunderstood? If you've lost something, you should hurry back the way you came and look for it; perhaps you can still find it."
The other five monsters also denied it, with "Horse King God" Han Baoju even sarcastically saying, "Nephew Yin, you haven't lost something important and are trying to blame it on us, have you?"
Only sixteen-year-old Guo Jing knew what was going on, but he remained silent. Zhu Cong had once wanted to teach him this special skill, but he immediately refused. Although Zhu Cong said it was about robbing the rich to help the poor, Guo Jing felt that stealing was still wrong no matter what.
Lin Qi looked at the Six Heroes of Jiangnan with a cold smile. He finally understood why, despite being positive characters, he always disliked these people when watching The Legend of the Condor Heroes. They
were obsessed with saving face; even though they were incompetent and wrong, they always insisted on putting on a brave face, and they were also extremely righteous, meddling in everything.
"Are the six seniors going to deny it?" Lin Qi asked coldly.
"Boy, stop talking nonsense! We said we didn't steal! We didn't steal! Get lost, or we'll have to teach our disciple a lesson on behalf of Master Qiu!" Han Baoju, the most hot-tempered of the group, shouted, showing no respect for Lin Qi, this junior.
"Well done, Seven Freaks of Jiangnan!" Lin Qi sneered, drawing his Qingfeng sword.
"Looks like I'll have to retrieve it myself. Then, seniors, don't blame me for being impolite."
"What an arrogant brat, not taking us siblings seriously! Watch me—"
Before Han Baoju could finish speaking, Lin Qi charged forward with his sword.
"Alright! I'll teach you a lesson, you little bull-nose!" No longer uttering threats, Han Baoju picked up his Panlong Whip and fearlessly met the attack.
"Sigh! I never thought we six siblings would stoop so low as to bully juniors." Ke Zhen'e sighed from the side, causing Zhu Cong to awkwardly rub his nose.
After all, he was the one who caused this, but he could only say it was a matter of habit, a lack of self-control.
"Huh!"
Just as the group was immersed in guilt, the youngest, "Yue Maiden Sword," Han Xiaoying, suddenly exclaimed in surprise.
"Such exquisite swordsmanship! Third Brother seems to be losing!" Han Xiaoying said in disbelief.
"What?" The others also cried out in surprise. How could Han Baoju be defeated by a junior?
However, when they turned to look at the battlefield, they found that Han Baoju was indeed at a disadvantage and could only struggle to hold on.
"This..." The group was speechless with shock; it was simply unbelievable.
Han Baoju, as the person involved, was even more horrified. His Panlong Whip Technique specialized in attacking the lower body and was unpredictable.
But facing Lin Qi, he felt helpless. No matter how he attacked, Lin Qi could easily break through his defenses.
And facing Lin Qi's sword, he could only dodge, each time in grave danger, risking being stabbed in the back.
This was the Dugu Nine Swords—Breaking Whip Style—that Lin Qi had cultivated!
Lin Qi wandered across the desert for several months, and he wasn't without his gains.
Most importantly, he thoroughly mastered the martial arts techniques he had acquired. Although he hadn't yet perfected them, they were more than enough to deal with characters like the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan.
The Dugu Nine Swords, in particular, could break through all martial arts techniques, making it ideal for opponents like
the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan, whose internal energy was low but whose techniques were exquisite. With these unique skills, even though Lin Qi's internal energy was only at the first-rate level, he could easily defeat early-stage acquired masters like the Seven Immortals of Quanzhen.
This demonstrates the importance of a peerless martial arts manual to those in the martial arts world.
"Brother, what do we do? Third Brother can't hold on much longer!" Zhu Cong anxiously asked Ke Zhen'e. Han Baoju was in danger at any moment; who knew if this Quanzhen Sect brat would kill him in resentment?
He now regretted stealing Lin Qi's things, but it was too late to undo the damage.
"Sigh! It seems we have no choice but to outnumber them. Let's rescue our third brother first. Let's make our move!"
After Ke Zhen'e finished speaking, Zhu Cong took the lead, unfurling his iron fan and charging into the battlefield.
The other three monsters looked on and followed suit. Morality could wait; their brothers' lives were the most important.
One against five!
Lin Qi's pressure suddenly increased. The Seven Monsters' martial arts were already quite strong, and with their combined efforts, they were even more in sync and coordinated perfectly.
Lin Qi wasn't a master like the Five Greats, and facing these people was truly troublesome. However, this was a good opportunity to test his strength. After cultivating for so long, Lin Qi still didn't really know his own strength. Now was the perfect chance, and Lin Qi decided to go all out and show his power.
"Dugu Nine Swords - Whip-Breaking Style!"
Lin Qi's sword speed suddenly increased significantly.
A cold light flashed!
Han Baoju's Panlong Transformation was instantly released, and his hands were covered in blood.
"Third Brother!"
"Third Brother!"
Han Xiaoying and the others cried out in shock upon seeing this.
"You, Yin Zhiping! How dare you hurt someone!" After the initial shock, the Six Monsters glared at Lin Qi, seemingly wanting to devour him alive.
"Heh!" Lin Qi chuckled disdainfully. What's the point of fighting if you don't hurt someone? Are you playing house with me?
Han Baoju was injured and withdrew from the battle. The other four monsters, except for Ke Zhen'e, surrounded Lin Qi, attacking with all their might to avenge Han Baoju.
Lin Qi unleashed a series of attacks with his Dugu Nine Swords. Although surrounded, he was still holding his own.
Using both Spiral Nine Shadows and Serpentine Leap Technique, the four monsters couldn't even touch the hem of Lin Qi's clothes.
"Whoosh!"
Suddenly, a sound
of air being cut came. Lin Qi, who was entangled with the four monsters, twitched his ears, using the method of listening to the wind to locate the enemy.
"Hmph! Arrow-Breaking Style!"
Lin Qi swung his sword back.
"Clang!"
The flying hidden weapon "Poisonous Dart" was immediately knocked away and returned along its original path.
"Pfft!"
Ke Zhen'e, in the distance, screamed and fell to the ground.
"Big Brother!"
The Four Eccentrics, forgetting about Lin Qi, immediately ran towards Ke Zhen'e.
While everyone was looking at Ke Zhen'e, Guo Jing, who had been silently standing by, stealthily approached Lin Qi from behind with a dagger.
(End of Chapter)