Chapter 21: A Friend to be Proud Of


Original novel written by Gu Long

Fan translation by Meh (Send an email)

Yi Ku stood by the bed, putting on his clothes.

After a long time, Lin Xian Er suddenly smiled at him. 揘ow you understand that I抦 worth it, right?�

Yi Ku said, 揑 really should kill you. Otherwise I don抰 know how many people would die in your hands.�

Lin Xian Er said, 揧ou originally did plan to kill me.�

揌umph.�

She smiled sweetly. 揃ut can you really bring yourself to kill me?�

Yi Ku stared at her again, then asked, 揥ho抯 that kid who came with you?�

Lin Xian Er laughed. 揥hy do you ask? Jealous? Or afraid?�
She rolled her eyes. 揌e抯 a good boy, not nearly as bad as you. He already went to sleep in his room. Had he heard this room抯 sound, you抎 never have the chance to bully me.�

Yi Ku laughed coldly. 揌e抯 lucky he couldn抰 hear me.�

Lin Xian Er said, 揜eally? You really want to kill him?�

揧es.�

Lin Xian Er smiled. 揃ut you can抰 kill him. His fighting skills are very good, and he抯 Li Xun Huan抯 friend. I also like him a lot.�

Yi Ku抯 face changed.

Lin Xian Er said, 揌is room is the last one down the hall. Do you really have the guts to see him?�

Before she finished, Yi Ku had left.

She began to laugh, then covered herself in bed. She feels like a little girl who just ate some candy in secret, but didn抰 get caught by her parents.

When she thought about how Yi Ku抯 Green Devil Hand rips Ah Fei抯 head off, her eyes glowed. When she thought about Ah Fei抯 sword in Yi Ku抯 throat, she got uncontrollably excited.

As she thought those things, she fell asleep. Even in sleep she smiled, because no matter who dies, she抎 still be very happy.


She抯 very pleased with what has happened tonight.

The bed is very soft. The sheets are very clean. Yet Ah Fei couldn抰 sleep. He抯 never had trouble falling asleep before.

After a long time, he finally fell asleep, yet suddenly, for no reason, he jump up from his bed.

Just as he put the sword in his waist, the window opened.

He saw a pair of eyes scarier than a ghost抯.

Yi Ku said, 揧ou came with Lin Xian Er?�

Ah Fei said, 揧es.�

揋ood. Come out.�

Ah Fei did not respond. He doesn抰 like to speak, doesn抰 like to start a conversation.

Yi Ku said, 揑 am going to kill you.�

Yet Ah Fei instead said, 揃ut I don抰 want to kill anyone today. You can leave.�

Yi Ku said, 揑 didn抰 want to kill anyone today either. Just you.�

揜eally?�

揧ou really shouldn抰 have came today with Lin Xian Er.�

Ah Fei抯 eyes suddenly shot out a flash that抯 as sharp as a dagger. 揑f you say her name again, I抣l have to kill you.�

Yi Ku chuckled. 揥hy?�

揃ecause you抮e not worthy.�

Yi Ku couldn抰 help but burst out laughing. 揘ot only am I going to say her name, I抦 also going to sleep with her. What are you going to do about it?�

Ah Fei抯 whole face began to burn.

He used to be a very cool and patient person. He抯 never been angry like this.

His hands started to shake.


In his fury, his sword came out.

The Green Devil Hand also shot out!

Only to hear a clang, the sword broke.

Yi Ku laughed. 揧ou would dare fight me with this c.r.a.ppy kung fu? Lin Xian Er actually said your kung fu was pretty good.�

While he said this, he already made ten moves.

Ah Fei almost couldn抰 block them. He only has a broken sword, and had to rely on his quickness to dodge Yi Ku.

Yi Ku laughed even harder. 揑f you can truthfully answer two questions, I抣l spare your life.�

Ah Fei bit his teeth, sweat poured down.

Yi Ku said, 揇oes Lin Xian Er sleep with men regularly? Have you slept with her?�

Ah Fei could only roll on the floor to evade Yi Ku抯 attacks. He抯 already fully exhausted.

Yi Ku said, 揅ome on. Just tell me, and I抣l spare your life.�

Ah Fei said, 揑... I抣l tell you!�

At this time Yi Ku laughed again, his attack slowed down a bit, suddenly a sword flashed.

Yi Ku has never seen such a fast sword. By the time he saw it, the sword is already in this throat. His face full of disbelief.

Even as he died he didn抰 know where this sword came from.

Even in death he could not believe this youngster has such a fast sword!

Ah Fei抯 expression is cold as ice. Then he said, one word at a time, 揥ho insults her, who dies!�

Yi Ku抯 throat still just make a coughing noise. He raised his eyebrows, because he wants to laugh, wants to tell Ah Fei, 揝ooner or later you抣l also die in her hands.�

Unfortunately, he couldn抰 say a single word.

When Lin Xian woke up, she saw a shadow outside the window. That shadow kept pacing outside. She knows that this person is Ah Fei, although wanting to come in, but don抰 want to wake her.

If it抯 Yi Ku, then he wouldn抰 be outside right now.

She happily stayed on the bed, allowing Ah Fei to wait for a long time, then said, 揑s that you outside, Little Fei?�

Ah Fei抯 shadow stopped. 揑t抯 me.�

Lin Xian Er said, 揥hy don抰 you come in?�

Ah Fei pushed the door lightly, which immediately opened. He then said, 揧ou didn抰 lock your door?�

Ah Fei suddenly rushed over her side, staring at her face. Her face looks a bit pale, a bit green. Ah Fei抯 expression changed. 揝omething... something happened to you?�

Lin Xian Er said, 揗y face would look pale if I don抰 sleep well. Last night I kept tossing and turning, unable to sleep.�

Ah Fei抯 whole heart melted.

Lin Xian Er asked, 揥hat about you? Did you sleep well?�

Ah Fei said. 揘o. There was a mad dog yelling outside.�

Lin Xian Er blinked her eyes. 揗ad dog?�

Ah Fei said, 揧es. I already killed it, then threw it in the lake.�

Suddenly, the sound of drums entered the room. Ah Fei opened the window, seeing a hotel worker beating the drums outside. 揇ear guests, do you want to hear the most refreshing news around? The most breathtaking news of the martial world? I guarantee it抯 fresh and exciting. Plus, you can wine and dine while listening.�

Ah Fei closed the window, shaking his head.

Lin Xian Er said, 揧ou don抰 want to hear this?�

揘o.�

Lin Xian Er said, 揃ut I do. Besides, we have to eat anyway.�

Ah Fei smiled. 揕ooks like this guy knows how to get business.�

Lin Xian Er threw away her bed sheets, about to stand up, then immediately put the sheets over herself again, her face all red. 揧ou抮e still not going to give me my clothes?�

Ah Fei抯 face also glowed red. His heart kept on beating fast.


The restaurant is nearly full. Tales of the martial world is always exciting, so everyone wants to hear them.

When they hear these stories, people can抰 help but feel like they抮e part of the story.

On the seat by the window is an old man wearing blue cotton cloth, smoking a pipe with his eyes closed.

By his side is a very young big girl. She has two long pony-tails, a pair of eyes big and bright, when it rolls, it seemingly s.n.a.t.c.hes the souls of men.

As Ah Fei and Lin Xian Er entered the room, their eyes brightened. This pony-tailed girl抯 big eyes was staring at them.

Lin Xian Er also stared at this big girl, then smiled. She whispered, 揇id you see those eyes? I better watch out, so she won抰 s.n.a.t.c.h you away.�

Just as they ordered some food, the old man coughed a bit, then said, 揌ong Er, is it time?�

Pony-tailed girl answered, 揑t抯 time.�

At this time the old man opened his eyes.

Although he is incredibly old, he still has much energy, especially in those eyes.

The old man blew into his teacup and drank some tea. Then he suddenly said, 揟he Plum Flower Bandit only does evil, the Scholar Tan Hua is honorable and talented.�

He looked at the audience. 揇o you all know who I抦 talking about?�

The Pony-tailed girl said, 揥ho are these people? I抳e never even heard of them.�

Old Man Sun chuckled. 揟hen you must not be very knowledgeable. These two people are both very famous. The Plum Flower Bandit has appeared only twice in the past thirty years. Yet the thousands of regular bandits combined could no commit as many crimes as he did.�

The Pony-tailed girl smiled. 揝o what about this Tan Hua?�

Old Man Sun said, 揌e is the son of a big official. His family is amazing, in three generations seven family members pa.s.sed the imperial examination. Only no one managed to make Zhuan Yuan*. By his generation, the two brothers are even more talented than their elders. So their father was really hopeful that one of them could become a Zhuan Yuan.�

*[Zhuan Yuan is the t.i.tle for getting first place in the imperial examination. Tan Hua, as I抳e mentioned earlier, is third. The t.i.tle for the second place escapes me at this moment, though.]

The Pony-tailed girl said with a smile. 揟an Hua is already quite excellent. Why is becoming a Zhuan Yuan so important?�

Old Man Sun said, 揥ho抎 have thought that when the first young master took the examination, he was again a Tan Hua. Everyone in the family was feeling gloomy. And all hope rested on the little young master of the Li family. Unfortunately, fate was cruel to the family. The second son also only received a Tan Hua. Their father, with much regret and sadness, pa.s.sed away in two years. The elder Li Tan Hua also caught an incurable illness and died a little later. This little Li Tan Hua抯 heart died with them, resigning from his post and retired.�

When he got here, he took another sip of the tea.

Ah Fei was already mesmerized by this story. He feels happier when people praise Li Xun Huan even more than when they praise him. Only to hear the old man continue, 揟his person not only is an amazing scholar, but also skilled at the martial arts. He was taught a very powerful kung fu when he was a kid.

The pony-tailed girl said, 揝o is the story you抮e telling today about these two people?�

The old man said, 揟hat抯 correct.�

The pony-tailed girl said, 揟hen it really must be exciting. Except... except how can a Tan Hua possibly get mixed up with a criminal like the Plum Flower Bandit?�

The old man said, 揙bviously for a reason.�

揥hat reason?�

Old Man Sun said, 揃ecause Li Xun Huan is the Plum Flower Bandit. The Plum Flower Bandit is Li Xun Huan.�

Ah Fei immediately became angry, wanting to say something, yet the pony-tailed girl simply shook her head. 揟his Mr. Tan Hua must be incredibly wealthy. Why would he possibly be a bandit and a rapist? That makes no sense. I don抰 believe this.�

Old Man Sun said, 揘ot just you. I don抰 believe it either. So I looked into the matter.�

The pony-tailed girl said, 揧ou must抳e found something, right?�

Old Man Sun said, 揙f course. This story is complicated, exciting and very strange...� When he got here, he suddenly stopped talking, closed his eyes and began sleeping.


The pony-tailed girl acted like she抯 very impatient and began to pester her grandpa. 揥hy did you stop?�

Old Man Sun simply blew into his pipe.

The pony-tailed girl smiled. 揧ou really know how to draw an audience. Stopping just when you抮e getting to the good part.�

Her face suddenly brightened. 揙h... I get it now. You want to drink wine.�

At this point, not only did she understood, but so does everyone else in the restaurant. People started to reach into their pockets looking for money, while a waiter began to go around collecting tips.

Only now did this old man talk again. 揑t all started at Happy Cloud Manor.�

Pony-tailed girl cut in. 揌appy Cloud Manor? Isn抰 that Fourth Master Long抯 home? That抯 a really nice place.�

Old Man Sun said, 揙f course. But this nice place was given to him by Li Xun Huan. Because they抮e sworn brothers, and his wife is a cousin of Li Xun Huan.�

These two people continued to chatter with each other. Amazingly enough, they were able to pretty much tell the whole story. When he got to the part about how Li Xun Huan accidently hurt Long Xiao3 Yun, and then got caught, the audience sighed. When he got to how Lin Xian Er was captured, how fast the youngster Ah Fei抯 sword is, his eyes seemed to wander towards Ah Fei and Lin Xian Er. The pony-tailed girl抯 pair of big eyes also tend to glance at their table from time to time.

Although he didn抰 show it, Ah Fei couldn抰 help but feel that these two people know who they are. Could they be telling this story just for them?�

Only to hear the pony-tailed girl say, 揑f that抯 the case, then didn抰 the Plum Flower Bandit die at the hands of Ah Fei?�

Old Man Sun said, 揃ecause Master Zhao, Seventh Master Tian didn抰 believe that he killed the real Plum Flower Bandit. They say Li Xun Huan is the real Plum Flower Bandit.�

The pony-tailed girl said, 揝o just who is really the Plum Flower Bandit?�

Old Man Sun said, 揘o one has seen the face of the real Plum Flower Bandit. No one knows who抯 right and who抯 wrong. Yet people like Master Zhao and Seventh Master Tian are respected people. Their words are facts. As long as they say Li Xun Huan is the real Plum Flower Bandit, who抯 going to argue? Therefore, Reverend Xin Mei decided to take him to Shaolin Temple for a trial.�


He smoked his pipe again, then continued. 揧et when they reached Shaolin Temple, it was actually Li Xun Huan who took Reverend Xin Mei there!�

When he said this, even Lin Xian Er was shocked. Ah Fei was shocked even more. Both started to wonder just what happened on the trip.

Thankfully, the pony-tailed girl helped them ask the old man.

Old Man Sun said, 揑t turns out that they were ambushed by the Five Poison Kid on the road, killing Seventh Master Tian and four Shaolin disciples. Reverend Xin Mei then decided to release Li Xun Huan after getting poisoned. Li Xun Huan, seeing that only Shaolin has the necessary antidote for Xin Mei抯 poison, carried him back to Shaolin.�

Pony-tailed girl gave a thumbs up. 揟his Li Tan Hua really is a heroic person. If it were someone else under the same circ.u.mstances, he would抳e definitely fled.�

Old Man Sun said, 揧ou抮e most correct. Unfortunately, the monks at Shaolin not only did not thank him, they want to kill him.�

The Pig-tailed girl asked shockingly,. 揥hy?�

Old Man Sun said. 揃ecause this story came from Li Tan Hua himself. The monks at Shaolin don抰 believe a thing he said.�

The Pig-tailed girl then said, 揃ut... but Reverend Xin Mei can vouch for him.�

Old Man Sun laughed. 揈xcept Reverend Xin Mei died soon after reaching Shaolin. Other than Xin Mei, no one else on this Earth knows the truth!�

When he said this, sighs came from all over the restaurant.

Ah Fei is almost ready to explode, and can抰 help but ask, 揝o has that Mr. Li been executed yet?�

Old Man Sun抯 eyes glittered. 揂lthough Shaolin is incredibly famous and is filled with top-ranked fighters, it抯 still pretty hard for them to kill Li Xun Huan.�

The Pig-tailed girl also glanced at Ah Fei. 揧et when it comes to fighting, even the best cannot handle attacks by many enemies. Li Tan Hua抯 flying dagger might be unrivaled in the martial world, but he still can抰 beat all the Shaolin disciples.�

Old Man Sun said, 揂lthough Shaolin has many disciples, each an expert in fighting, who would possibly attack first? Who抎 dare challenge the first dagger of Li Xun Huan?�

The Pig-tailed girl immediately became excited, clapping her hand. 揧ou抮e right. The legendary dagger of Little Li never misses. No one would dare to approach him. So I抦 guessing he抯 long gone by now.�

Old Man Sun said, 揃ut he didn抰 go.�

揥hy?�

Old Man Sun replied, 揂lthough no one at Shaolin would approach him, Li Xun Huan also can抰 find a way to escape either Besides, with the situation still unresolved, he can抰 leave.�

The Pig-tailed girl said. 揑f he can抰 go and can抰 fight. Then what can he do?�

Old Man Sun said, 揂s he抯 surrounded by hundreds of Shaolin monks, he knows that once he releases the dagger, he抣l die. After all, one dagger can抰 possibly kill hundreds of people.�

The Pig-tailed girl said, 揟hen this is a problem for him. A person can抰 possibly hold out forever.�

This just so happen to be what Ah Fei was worried about. He doesn抰 know what to do either.

Old Man Sun said, 揥hen they were having this conversation, it was just outside the room where they抮e holding Reverend Xin Mei抯 funeral. So Li Xun Huan sneaked into the room right away afterwards.�

The Pig-tailed girl let out a gasp. 揝o he basically trapped himself?�

Old Man Sun said. 揟he Shaolin monks also thought that he抎 try to escape. That抯 why they抮e really regretting it now.�

揥hy抯 that? Should they be happy Li Tan Hua trapped himself?�

Old Man Sun continued, 揘ot only was the body of Xin Mei in the room, but so are countless scriptures very important to Shaolin.�

The Pig-tailed girl then said, 揧et they only have to wait a few days outside. Then Li Xun Huan will simply die of hunger and thirst.�

Old Man Sun said, 揟hey抮e thinking the same thing, of course. Unfortunately, Li Xun Huan also trapped Reverend Xin Shu in the room with him. They can抰 possibly let Xin Shu die with Li Xun Huan.�

揙f course not.�

揟herefore, they have to bring food and water inside everyday, so neither Xin Shu nor Li Xun Huan dies.�

The Pig-tailed girl clapped her hands and smiled. 揝haolin has long been considered the sacred ground of the martial world. No one in hundreds of years had ever tried to do anything inappropriate there. Yet Li Xun Huan alone has turned the place upside down. Not only can the monks not do anything to him, they also have to feed him everyday. That抯 just hilarious.�

She抯 full of giddy now. 揟his Li Tan Hua really is some character. Your story is awesome, grandpa.�

At this point, Ah Fei抯 just overwhelmed with joy. He had to restrain himself from yelling to everyone in the room that Li Xun Huan is his good friend.

Yet Old Man Sun only let out a sigh. 揧ou抮e right. However, he抯 still going to be buried in Shaolin sooner or later.�

The Pig-tailed girl asked, 揥hy?�

Old Man Sun seemingly glanced at Ah Fei. 揢nless someone can prove that Li Xun Huan is not the Plum Flower Bandit, that Reverend Xin Mei really was killed by the Five-Poison kid, there抯 no way Shaolin would let him go!�

The Pig-tailed girl asked, 揟hen who can prove this?�

Old Man Sun was silent for a moment, then said, 揢nfortunately, absolutely no one!�