Chapter 34: Arriving at Peach Blossom Island

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Returning with the Seven Disciples of Quanzhen to the Taoist temple where they were staying—the mysterious Xuanyao Temple in Jiaxing—Qiu Zhiqing helped Tan Chuduan tend to his wounds while listening to their conversation. Naturally, it was their fifth senior uncle, Qiu Chujie, who spoke first.

Qiu Zhiqing thought to himself, whenever Uncle Qiu speaks, it’s never good news! Sure enough, Qiu Chujie angrily declared, “The treacherous Huang Lao Xie has killed our senior uncle. Once the second senior brother recovers, we must go to Peach Blossom Island and demand justice! This grudge cannot be tolerated!”

Qiu Zhiqing timidly asked, “Uncle, shouldn’t we first find our great-granduncle’s remains and bring them back to Zhongnan Mountain for a proper burial?”

Unexpectedly, this question provoked Qiu Chujie’s wrath. “How could we find his remains now? That scoundrel Huang Lao Xie surely destroyed the body to cover his tracks. Once the second senior brother recovers, we will storm Peach Blossom Island, wipe out that villain, and bring back his head to Zhongnan Mountain to honor our late senior uncle’s spirit! Zhiqing, are you afraid?”

Having said that, Qiu Chujie fixed his gaze on Qiu Zhiqing with such intensity it seemed he might beat him up on the spot just to vent his anger!

Fortunately, at that moment, Yin Zhiping returned and pulled Qiu Zhiqing out of the severe interrogation from Uncle Qiu’s fiery stare. Sun Bu’er asked anxiously, “Why are you the only one back? What about Sister Cheng?”

Hearing this, everyone turned their eyes to the newly returned Yin Zhiping.

Yin Zhiping stammered, “Sister Cheng, she…”

Seeing his hesitation, Sun Bu’er snapped, “Just speak plainly! What’s with all the stammering?”

Under this pressure, Yin Zhiping quickly recounted everything that had happened earlier at the tavern that day to their master. Everyone listened in shock—Huang Lao Xie not only killed their senior uncle but also took his disciple’s granddaughter as his wife!

This was simply intolerable! The Seven Disciples of Quanzhen were furious and resolved that once Tan Chuduan’s wounds healed, they would go to Peach Blossom Island to settle the score with Huang Lao Xie.

...

Time flew by until August. Tan Chuduan had fully recovered, and Qiu Chujie instructed Yin Zhiping to stay at the temple while he and the other senior brothers, along with Qiu Zhiqing, would set off for Peach Blossom Island to avenge their master.

Qiu Zhiqing, reluctant to travel far, tentatively asked, “Uncle, it might be inconvenient for Brother Yin to stay here alone. How about I stay with him at the temple while the rest of you go?”

None of the others noticed Qiu Zhiqing’s reluctance, but Qiu Chujie saw it clearly. He believed that under such circumstances, he himself could not have saved Brother Tan. He was sure Qiu Zhiqing’s martial skill was at least on par with his own. Though Qiu Chujie was mockingly called “the blunt-headed man of the martial world” by later generations, he could still do simple math.

Seeing Qiu Zhiqing’s unwilling “homebody” expression, Qiu Chujie refused without hesitation: “No! If you don’t come with us, who will cook for me? Do you think with disciples around, we old fellows still need to cook ourselves?”

This reasoning was powerful, as it both saved face for Yin Zhiping and used filial piety to silence Qiu Zhiqing’s protest.

Early the next morning, Qiu Zhiqing accompanied his master as they took a boat from the Qiantang River to the sea, arriving at Peach Blossom Island by afternoon.

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To their surprise, a silly, dazed young woman came out to greet them. Not wanting to bother with a foolish girl, they followed her to the guest hall, where the Seven Freaks of Jiangnan were also present.

Qiu Chujie, seeing the Seven Freaks, approached and greeted them warmly: “Six of you, what a coincidence to also be on the island! Have you seen that villain, Huang Yaoshi?”

The Seven Freaks were equally surprised to see the Seven Disciples of Quanzhen and rose to greet them.

Flying Bat Ke Zhen’e spoke up upon recognizing Qiu Chujie’s voice:

“To be honest, we old fellows originally came to the island to propose for Jing’er, that foolish lad. But now, Huang Yaoshi has appeared, and instead, we meet the Seven Disciples of Quanzhen. May I ask the purpose of your visit?”

Hearing their intent to propose for Guo Jing, the Quanzhen disciples’ faces darkened instantly. Qiu Chujie was particularly displeased and said, “That treacherous Huang Lao Xie killed our senior uncle. We are here to avenge him!”

Without waiting for the stunned Seven Freaks, he shouted at the top of his lungs, “Huang Lao Xie, the Seven Disciples of Quanzhen demand you settle this debt! If you are a man, come out and face us!”

The Seven Freaks exchanged uneasy glances. It had been a good day; the six of them had come to Peach Blossom Island to propose, but now they had unexpectedly run into a group bent on revenge. What bad luck!

Before the Seven Freaks could intervene, Qiu Chujie, seeing no response, jumped onto the roof and cursed loudly: “Huang Lao Xie, you despicable scoundrel! If you have any courage left, come out and fight us properly…”

He shouted three times in a row. Watching this bullying, even Qiu Zhiqing, a mere bystander, was growing impatient. Unsurprisingly, Huang Lao Xie, being the central figure and pushed to his limit, finally appeared.

“You old ragamuffins, insulting me over and over again, do you think I have a gentle temper? Don’t you even know how to write the word ‘death’?”

Qiu Zhiqing quietly munched on the melon seeds that the mute servants had just served to the Seven Freaks. He wasn’t heartless—it was just that the Seven Disciples of Quanzhen had formed the Heavenly Big Dipper Formation, which was no match for Huang Lao Xie. Since he didn’t know the formation, joining the fray would only cause chaos. It was better to wait quietly with the Seven Freaks and watch how things unfolded.

Well, the Seven Freaks, seeing the Seven Disciples had set the Heavenly Big Dipper Formation to surround Huang Yaoshi and were about to attack, went up to mediate. Now, Qiu Zhiqing was the only one left watching the spectacle...

“Brothers, Master Huang, why can’t we talk this through? Why must you resort to fighting as soon as you meet?” This was Ke Zhen’e speaking. Qiu Zhiqing felt he was the least qualified to say this, as both he and Uncle Qiu shared the same trait: quicker to fight than to talk, and very skilled at interrupting others.

For example, Qiu Chujie immediately cut off Huang Yaoshi’s chance to speak: “The murder of our master is a grudge that cannot be tolerated! Brothers, no need for words. Today, we take his life to comfort our late senior uncle’s spirit!”

Huang Yaoshi was furious beyond measure. Was there no one who could speak here? Is this your turf or mine? Why don’t you become the lord of Peach Blossom Island yourself? With this sarcastic thought, he sneered, “Are you saying I killed Zhou Botong?”

Seeing the Quanzhen disciples glaring at him with anger and the Seven Freaks exchanging doubtful looks, they all ignored the bystander Qiu Zhiqing.

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Huang Yaoshi scoffed, “I, Huang, have suffered countless prejudices and slanders all my life. Since you say I killed Zhou Botong, then so be it—I killed him. What do you old ragamuffins intend to do about it?”

Indeed, Huang Lao Xie was masterful. Even if he wasn’t the culprit, why should he waste time explaining to these biased fools? And even if he admitted it, what could they do to him?

Qiu Zhiqing thought, well, I’ve learned something—the true demeanor of a master! Truly admirable! Eh, wait, why do I feel like I and the Quanzhen disciples are the wrongly accused villains being confronted by these righteous ones?

Just as the fight was about to erupt—mainly because Qiu Chujie was about to lose control—Zhu Cong of the Seven Freaks spoke fairly:

“Brothers, Master Huang, with the Drunken Immortal Pavilion competition on the fifteenth of August approaching, why not resolve your grievances then? You can also search for your master’s remains first. Once everything is settled, you can fight without worries. What do you think of my suggestion?”

Huang Yaoshi had no intention of agreeing. Who would let people come to their doorstep, serve them food and drink, and then leave without a fight?

At that moment, a white eagle flew over the island, dropping a tattered cloth. Huang Lao Xie quickly leapt up, caught the cloth, and examined the message on it. His expression suddenly changed.

It read: “Very well, as the Seven Freaks suggested, August 15th, Drunken Immortal Pavilion in Jiaxing. Don’t miss it!”

Before the words finished, Huang Lao Xie vanished into the air, leaving the two groups staring at each other.

The Seven Disciples of Quanzhen turned and saw Qiu Zhiqing still quietly eating melon seeds. They snorted coldly. Embarrassed, Qiu Zhiqing stuffed some seeds into his mouth and stood respectfully by his master’s side, awaiting their next move.

When it came to fighting, rely on Qiu Chujie; for decisions, it was Ma Yu’s call. Seeing all eyes on him, Ma Yu said, “Let’s return to Xuanyao Temple for now and decide on the final battle on August 15th.”

With that, the Seven Disciples of Quanzhen bowed to the Seven Freaks. “We are returning to Jiaxing. Will you be accompanying us?”

Ke Zhen’e pondered briefly. Since they had come to propose and hadn’t yet told Huang Lao Xie about it, leaving now would make it hard to explain to Jing’er when he returned from the Beggars’ Sect conference on Jun Mountain.

He replied, “You brothers go ahead. We still have business here and will wait for Master Huang’s return on Peach Blossom Island.”

“In that case, the green mountains remain, the flowing waters endure. Farewell!”

“Farewell!”

Qiu Zhiqing silently followed the Seven Disciples of Quanzhen, doing his best to keep a low profile. Getting caught slacking by his masters was utterly embarrassing...

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