Chapter 24 Chapter 23
It turns out that Xicheng martial arts is different from any other martial arts in the world. Liang Siqin fought all over the world with the help of "Zhou Liu Liu Xu Gong".Flowing around the six voids, the law uses all things, borrows the power of the heaven and the earth, and hurts people invisible.This martial art is extremely difficult to practice, if one's talent is not enough, one's life will be in danger after practicing it.For this reason, Liang Siqin divided "Zhouliu Liuxu Gong" into eight, and turned them into eight inner strengths, which were taught to the masters of the eight divisions respectively.
Ba Jin is in harmony with the innate gossip, and its characteristics are completely different.Wan Sheng practiced "Zhou Liu Tian Jin", Qiu Tao practiced "Zhou Liu Earth Jin", Lan Zhui practiced "Zhou Liu Feng Jin", Su Chengguang practiced "Zhou Liu Electric Jin", Zhou Lie practiced "Zhou Liu Fire Jin", Mu Containing ice is "Zhou Liushui Jin", Shi Chuan is "Zhou Liu Shi Jin", and Buliu is "Zhou Liu Ze Jin".
The eight types of internal energy have their own strengths, but their power is scattered, far inferior to the "Zhouliu Liuxu Gong" which combines the eight strengths.The Lord of the Eight Parts also understands this truth, but it is a pity that his talent is limited and he can't count his strengths.
Liang Siqin had made many enemies throughout his life, and he was afraid that his disciples would not be able to deal with them once he died, so he thought hard and came up with a "Zhouliu Baji Formation", which uses the formation method to fuse the power of eight people.Once the internal energies of the eight people are fused, not only will each person's internal energies be greatly increased, but they can also use any two of the eight energies at the same time.Just like the change of "wind and thunder are weaker than each other", the master of the eight parts used "wind strength" and "electricity strength". "Mountain and Ze ventilation" uses the two forces of stone and water, "heaven and earth net" is related to the two forces of sky and earth, and "combination of water and fire" uses the two forces of water and fire that are never incompatible at ordinary times.
Once the "Zhouliu Baji Formation" is rotated, it can be attacked or defended, and it is extremely powerful.The "Shenxian Great Formation" of the Salt Gang was nothing more than a mob. At first, there was a plan. Once the offensive was frustrated, it immediately became a mess. Although there were thousands of people, none of them could approach the formation of Xicheng.
The sound of killing on Chongming Island was loud, and the masters of the Eight Tribes changed formations and fought forward again and again. Below Chukong Mountain, the Salt Gang tried their best to stop them, but to no avail. Seeing that the eight people were getting closer and closer to the river.
Here on Chongming Island, they are all the elites of the Salt Clan, with a thousand enemies and eight, they have the absolute advantage. If Xicheng and his party are allowed to leave this island and spread to the rivers and lakes, the prestige of the gang will be completely wiped out, and everyone will be angry for a while. Everyone is anxious.Suddenly Wang Zikun shouted loudly: "Everyone, don't be afraid, they won't kill people." He uttered his voice with internal force, even though he was shouting to kill, he could still hear it clearly.
Everyone paid attention to their reputation, and as Wang Zikun said, although some people were injured, none of them died.There are many scoundrels in the Yan Gang. Seeing this situation, they are so courageous that they rush forward without thinking about Babu magical powers.
The Lord of the Eight Divisions obeyed Wan Sheng, and he did not want to kill more lives. Unexpectedly, at this moment, his good intentions turned into a burden. The opponent lost his fear and rushed towards him like a tide. No matter how hard I try, I can't stop it.Shi Chuan couldn't help shouting: "Senior Brother Wan, do you want to hold back?"
Wan Sheng was greatly hesitant, Xicheng came to the capital because of other important matters, and Su Chengguang's involvement with the Yan Gang was purely incidental.Killing Qi Haoding was no longer his intention, and if he killed the disciples of the Yan Gang, the hatred would only deepen.
Suddenly Wang Zikun called again: "Are you confused? There are more than eight people in Xicheng." When everyone heard this, their eyes fell on Shui Lianying and the others.Lan Yun supported Shui Lianying, Lian Hang supported Le Zhiyang, and followed Qiu Tao, moving with the "Zhou Liu Ji Zhen".Chu Kongshan pretended to be lofty, and refused to avoid the strong and bully the weak, but he was the strongest in martial arts, and everyone took aim at him, so he blindly attacked the master of the eight tribes, and did not hurt others. He turned around and rushed towards Le Zhiyang and the others.
There was a crowd of people, dozens of Yan Gang masters rushed to the front, Wan Sheng hurriedly turned the formation to meet him, unexpectedly Prince Kunyue rushed out in front of Lianhang, and swung his iron crutches to hit him on the head.
Lianhang supported Le Zhiyang with one hand, and raised the bamboo fence with the other to resist.The two weapons collided, and with a click, the penny broke in two.Lianhang's mouth was bleeding, and he slammed into Qiutao.Qiu Tao couldn't imagine, put away his palm, and caught the girl. Unexpectedly, Lian Hang's blood was surging, and his left hand softened. surrounded by circles.
This is the eye of the "circular flow eight-pole array", just like the heart of a person, once the eye of the array is broken, it is bound to collapse.Before, Qiu Tao's internal energy was densely covered and formed a barrier. Now, in order to save Lianhang, the internal energy was withdrawn, and the barrier revealed a flaw, so Le Zhiyang rolled in.
Qiu Tao was taken aback, and wanted to drag the boy back, but the "Zhouliu Baji Formation" needed eight people to work together to be effective.Once Qiu Tao's internal energy changed, the formation was disturbed, and the Yan gang's masters took advantage of the emptiness to enter. Qiu Tao had no choice but to put down the lotus root, and sent out several palms in a row, forcing the enemy back. Covered up, Qiu Tao had nothing to do, so he had to continue to fight the enemy.
When Le Zhiyang entered the formation, the other chiefs were aware of it, but the foreign enemies were strong and dared not be distracted, so no one pulled him out.Le Zhiyang lost control of his internal energy, his adversity was overwhelmed, and his body was suffering unspeakably. At this time, he broke into the eye of the formation, as if he had crashed into a pile of cotton, and his true energy surged in all directions, overlapping and dense, like a big cocoon, wrapping him Get up.
These infuriating qi come from the "eight forces of circulation", soft and soft, rigid and rigid, cold and hot, some condensed, some erratic, some walk like the wind, some stagnant and not flowing. Like many big hands, pushing him inward, the strength is as great as a thousand weights.
Le Zhiyang's tendons contracted. The bones and bones were intertwined, the muscles and bones were twisted, and there was a crackling sound, the internal organs were crowded together, and the adversity was like a caged animal, rampant, wanting to break out of the cage.
With the joint efforts of the masters of the eight parts, ordinary people entering the formation will be squeezed into a meatloaf for the "eight powers of Zhou Liu".But Le Zhiyang is full of rebellious energy, he gets stronger when he encounters a strong force, and when he encounters an external force, he immediately counterattacks, like a rubber ball, trying to bulge outwards to offset the external pressure.
Wan Sheng yelled, the eight energies merged and separated, and suddenly pulled in all directions.Le Zhiyang stretched out his body, his joints were painful, as if he had been tortured by "eight horses to divide his corpse".Fortunately, Ni Qi is unruly and unruly. When the eight strengths are pulled outward, it will shrink inward. The two forces compete repeatedly, and the joy is as straight as a fully drawn bowstring.
The attack of the Salt Gang was even more urgent, Wan Sheng changed the formation again and again, and as the formation changed, the true energy in the formation's eyes also changed, so it was stretched for a short time, and then squeezed inward again, this time the attack was more violent, with eight vigor like a drill. Chisel, rush into the meridians.The adversity in the body fights back vigorously, the two forces use the meridians and acupoints as the battlefield, you come and go, there is no way to attack or defend.Although the Ni Qi is strong, it is insignificant compared to the "Circular Flow Eight Strengths". It collapses in an avalanche and retreats acupoint by acupoint.
Such internal and external difficulties, Le Zhiyang was in extreme pain, but instead he came to his senses, he felt force rushing from all directions, like a tornado and a hurricane, lifting him up.He was hanging upside down in the air, unable to use any strength, sometimes it was unbearably hot, sometimes it was extremely cold, sometimes it was numb all over, sometimes it was unbearably sore. Le Zhiyang couldn't bear it anymore and moaned loudly.
When Qiu Tao heard the groan, he couldn't help hesitating, and turned to look at Wan Sheng, seeing him staring in front of him, with a cloudy expression on his face.At that time, the Yan Gang was under heavy siege, and the Eight Divisions were unable to move an inch, so they were not defeated, all thanks to the supernatural power of the formation, if the formation stopped, there would be casualties.Therefore, the master of the eight parts is caught in a dilemma, if he lets go of Le Zhiyang, he must stop the formation, and if he doesn't let go of Le Zhiyang, under the circulation of the eight energies, the young man will undoubtedly die.The eight people were distracted for a while, the momentum of the formation weakened, the Yan Gang took the opportunity to press forward, shouting and fighting fiercely, Wan Sheng changed the formation again and again, and only then did they repel them.
Ba Jin is mighty, like a tiger and a wolf driving a flock of sheep, forcing the rebellious energy to retreat into the dantian of the lower abdomen.At this point, Ni Qi has taken hold of his dantian, and he refuses to retreat any more.Zhou Liu Ba Jin continued to come in, two strands of internal energy were blocked in the dantian, Le Zhiyang's abdomen seemed to have a ball, which swelled up like blowing.
If things go on like this, Le Zhiyang will definitely explode and die. Just when he can't survive or die, a voice as thin as a gnat suddenly comes from his ear: "Turn to Yinjiao, walk through the stone gate, go up and down. , Nine turns to break through..."
Le Zhiyang was half-drowsy and half-awake. When he heard the voice, he thought it was an auditory hallucination, so he was indifferent. After a while, the voice said again: "Are you deaf? Come back, break through the nine turns', those who want to survive, do so quickly."
This voice is as sharp as a needle, every word seems to be stabbed in the heart.Le Zhiyang suddenly realized: this voice is not an illusion, but a real person speaking.He went to the doctor in a hurry, and according to what the man said, he channeled the qi of Dantian into the "Yinjiao point".
The qi in the pubic region originally swelled back and forth, with no place to vent, and when the joy flowed to the heart, it suddenly poured into the "Yinjiao" like water breaking a dike.But when it came to "Yinjiao", the zhenqi stopped suddenly, Le Zhiyang directed the zhenqi to the "Shimen acupoint", the zhenqi surged up, and when it reached the "Shimen", it rushed wildly, like a knife cutting.Le Zhiyang couldn't stand it anymore, so he hurriedly guided back to the "Yinjiao Point", and went up and down nine times, Le Zhiyang suddenly felt the "Yinjiao Point" jump suddenly. Mosai suddenly opened up, and his true energy rushed out, pouring into the "Guanjiao Point" all at once. Yuan Point".
At this time, the voice sounded again: "Exit Guanyuan, go to Zhongji, enter Yangguan, break the gate of life..." Le Zhiyang guided according to the words, and acted according to his thoughts. "Zhou Liu Ba Jin" urges behind, driving the true energy forward continuously.
The voice was intermittent, intermittent, and every word was in harmony with Le Zhiyang's movement of true energy.According to that person's method, the true energy does not go straight in the right way, sometimes flows forward, sometimes flows backward, sometimes goes forward and sometimes goes against it, and suddenly stops.If "Zhou Liu Ba Jin" is like a stormy sea, the speaker is a very skilled fisherman, and Le Zhiyang's own true energy is a small boat. The fisherman drives the small boat and uses the power of the waves to rush up and down, sailing freely.
The voice became faster and faster, Le Zhiyang guided the true qi, converging the eight energies, entering along the veins, and exiting through the acupuncture points, linking the inside and outside, and going through hundreds of acupuncture points all over the body.After walking like this for a full week, the true energy suddenly descends, passes through the "Huiyin point", breaks through the Lulu pass, goes up along the Du channel, and reaches the bottom of the "Yuzhen point", twists a few times like a big snake, and suddenly goes up With a buzzing sound, Le Zhiyang's eyes went dark, his mind went blank, he had ears but couldn't hear, eyes couldn't see, the surroundings were vast, as if he was in nothingness.
Outside the circle, the fierce battle was still raging. Suddenly, there was a long howl from above the Yangtze River, and someone shouted loudly: "Brothers on the island, please stop for now!"
Everyone followed the prestige and saw a small boat sailing across the river, cutting through the waves and approaching the shore in a short while, the moonlight was like snow falling on the bow of the boat one after another, reflecting two figures of a man and a woman.The man was in his early thirties, with a flowing white robe and a good appearance.The woman is also dressed in white, fluttering in the wind, like smoke and clouds, with a beautiful appearance, like a fairy Lingbo, and even more like a Luoshen out of water.
Qiu Tao recognized the man in white robe, and said: "This is the 'White Salt Messenger' Huating, who is this woman?" Su Chengguang sighed, and said with a wry smile: "She is my creditor." Everyone changed their faces, Wan Sheng asked: "Is she the woman from the Star-chasing Building?" Su Chengguang nodded silently.
Huating yelled "Stop" twice again, but everyone in the Yan Gang was still fighting and turned a deaf ear.The woman in white frowned, and stood up, like a white cloud floating across the river, landed in the reeds, the reeds sank slightly, but did not fall down.The girl twisted her slender waist, tapped the reed under her feet, half like sliding, half like flying, after a few ups and downs, she reached the top of the island.
Everyone was moved, and Lan Zhui, who was conceited in his life, couldn't help uttering the word "good".I saw the woman in white floating down, rushing into the crowd without touching the ground, striding away like a dragon and snake, snatching Chunyuying in front of her, with a flash of light in her hand, she released a dark, cold and soft sword, brushing the ground With a sound, it pierced the Qingyan messenger's throat.
Chunyuying was attacked suddenly, and hurriedly raised the short halberd, before he could see the path of the sword, he heard a "ding" sound, the short halberd came out of his hand, turned into a silver light and flew towards the sky.Chunyuying couldn't help taking two steps back, her left hand was empty, and she looked stunned.
The girl ignored him, her white clothes fluttered, and she galloped forward. Du Youyang's eyes blurred, and the sword energy was blowing like a north wind. The gray hair on the head fell down.
The square scarf was still on the tip of the sword, and the woman suddenly rushed into the "ground formation" of the three talents, with both swords and guns, fists and feet coming together, the white shadow flickered, like a flying fish in a raging sea.Gao Qi yelled, swung his stick and rushed out, the girl dodged lightly, the soft sword hit the iron stick, borrowed a little force, and flew up, over the top of the elder's head, and kicked him in the back with his left foot. Heart.
Gao Qi felt a sharp pain in his back, and he threw himself forward, and in his panic, he swung his mace down, only then did he stabilize his figure. Most of the disciples of "Dizhen" came from the five northern provinces. Seeing that the elder suffered a disadvantage, they rushed towards him with roars.The girl kept on stepping, like flying smoke, and rushed towards the "people's formation" of the three talents. The disciples couldn't cover them, couldn't stop them, and became angry for a moment, and they just chased after them.
Sun Zhengfang presided over the "People's Front", seeing the woman in white rushing towards the front, she hurriedly ordered to stop her. The disciples of the "People's Formation" moved in response to the sound, abandoning the eight parts of the West City, and rushed towards the girl one after another.The ground and the people moved in opposite directions, like two human walls, pressing towards the girl one behind the other.At this time, a clear howling was heard suddenly, the woman in white rose into the sky, hundreds of people couldn't hold back their momentum and collided with each other.
Sun Zhengfang stared in a daze, but before she could recover, the girl stepped on the head and ran all the way.After Sun Zhengfang was defeated by Le Zhiyang, her self-confidence was shaken, her vigor was exhausted, and seeing the girl's supernatural powers, she no longer wanted to fight, so she took a puff of tobacco and spit it out as much as she could, trying to hide herself, but the smoke hadn't dissipated yet. The woman rushed over, swept her sleeves back, and the thick smoke poured back, condensing into a ball, covering his head and face.
Smoke poured into his eyes and nose, and Sun Zhengfang burst into tears, and in a hurry, his neck felt cold, and there was more - a long black gleaming sword in his mouth.Elder Hai was stunned and stunned, suddenly heard an angry shout, Meng Feiyan descended from the sky, and punched six times with the move "Jade Girl Scattering Flowers".
The woman in white didn't raise her head, but raised her left hand, her slender hand met Meng Feiyan's fist the size of a vinegar bowl.The fists and palms met with a fluttering sound, Meng Feiyan blocked all six punches in a row, her ugly face flushed like blood, but she felt that her opponent not only had fantastic palm techniques, but also had extremely strange internal strength, every time she received a palm, she felt Feeling qi and blood churning, the move was over, suddenly the girl raised her face and smiled at her.Meng Feiyan was stunned for a moment, feeling something was wrong, Fang was about to turn over and back away, but the girl rolled her hand and firmly clasped her wrist.
Meng Feiyan hurriedly used the move "Broken Mirror Reunion", and kicked the girl in the heart.This move is the killer in "Jade Cherishing Steps", used to turning defeat into victory and surviving death, but unexpectedly, the girl in white twisted her waist and threw her out.
Meng Feiyan is tall and strong, weighing more than two hundred catties. She fell into the girl's hands, but she was as light as a scarecrow. Just as she kicked out her front foot, her body had already bumped into two disciples of the Salt Gang. He fell into the crowd while somersaulting, and knocked several people to the ground.
The woman in white kept the long sword on Sun Zhengfang's neck with her right hand, and grabbed Meng Feiyan with her left hand, pointing east and west.Meng Feiyan was ashamed and angry, and wanted to struggle to get away, but the other party's hands were as thin as iron, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get away.In desperation, Meng Feiyan felt unbelievable, she couldn't imagine why this delicate and timid girl possessed such supernatural power.
Sun Zhengfang stood upright, the sword edge on his neck flitted back and forth, sometimes far away, sometimes close, his heart was jumping with fear, his mouth was extremely bitter, suddenly he couldn't hold back, and shouted: "Everyone stop."
His prestige has always been, this sound is like thunder on the ground, everyone stopped and looked back.Although Chu Kongshan was unwilling, it was a pity that he was single and weak. As soon as everyone retreated, he had no choice but to retreat, and looked back at the girl in white, with a trace of doubt flashing across his face.
The girl smiled slightly, suddenly withdrew her long sword, waved her left hand lightly, and put Meng Feiyan back to the ground.One person and one sword, she broke into the "Shenxian Grand Formation", defeated five masters in a row, and roamed like a dragon and a phoenix, as if she had entered the land of no one.Everyone looked at the girl, and everyone held their breath for a while, and the huge island was completely silent.
Huating abandoned the boat and went ashore, holding a bag, and said loudly: "Brothers, please listen to me."
Sun Zhengfang narrowly escaped death and lost all face. When he thought that the woman in white was attracted by him, he immediately became angry and said sharply: "Huating, what the hell are you doing? Letting the enemy go, what should you do?"
Huating glanced at him and asked: "Who is the enemy?" Sun Zhengfang said impatiently: "Of course it is the Eighth Division of Xicheng." Huating shook his head and said: "No." He immediately asked, "How do you say this?"
Huating looked around at the crowd, and said seriously: "The death of the gang leader has nothing to do with Xicheng, the murderer is someone else."
Before the words were finished, the crowd was in a mess, and the master of the Eight Parts was also surprised.At this moment, the Yan Gang backed away, the eight departments withdrew their formations, Qiu Tao caught up a step, helped Le Zhiyang up, and checked his inner breathing pulse, but he felt that his breathing was faint, but the pulse was strong and powerful, and he couldn't help but secretly marveled in his heart.She wanted to ask in detail, but the enemy was in front of her, she didn't dare to slack off, and Le Zhiyang kept her eyes closed, so she pressed her curiosity, moved him out of the formation, and handed it to Shui Lianying to watch.
At this time, Meng Feiyan suddenly said: "Huayan envoy, the matter is very important, you say that the murderer is someone else, do you have any evidence?"
"Yes!" Huating pointed at the girl in white clothes, "This Miss Ye Ling, Su Ye, trapped Su Chengguang in the Zhaixing Tower because of her ingenuity."
Everyone in Yanbang knew about this matter, but very few had seen Ye Lingsu.Meng Feiyan was stunned, nodded and said: "I also know this girl, what does this have to do with the murderer?"
Huating said: "For more than half a month, I have been looking for Miss Ye's trace. It was not until yesterday that I found her. Miss Ye didn't want to come here, but after I persuaded her, she agreed to go. We disembarked by boat, and when we arrived at Songjiang Mansion, we suddenly saw someone walking on the river..."
"What?" Sun Zhengfang couldn't believe her ears, "Emissary Huayan, where did you say you were walking?"
"Walk on the river." Huating looked serious, without any hint of joking.Sun Zhengfang was stunned, and suddenly heard Wan Sheng say: "Hua Yan envoy, are there really people walking on the river?"
Huating nodded silently.Wang Zikun snorted angrily, and said coldly: "Wan Sheng, you are the master of the Tianbu, and you should be a sensible person. Could it be that you also believe such nonsense?"
Wan Sheng didn't answer in silence, turned to look at Qiu Tao, the two looked at each other with strange expressions.Su Chengguang chuckled, and shouted loudly: "The world is so big, there are so many wonders, maybe there are really strange people who can walk on water."
Wang Zikun let out a "bah" and said, "It's nonsense! What kind of strange person? I think it's hell."
"It's not a ghost, it's a human." Ye Lingsu said suddenly, "He walks on the water, and he can make the sound of treading water." There was an uproar on the island, and many people showed disbelief on their faces.
With no external force applied to his body, Le Zhiyang gradually woke up, but felt that his body was as empty as a bamboo, and the true energy in it was flowing, without internal or external, flowing along the meridians, and there was no danger of retrograde flow.
This sudden change made Le Zhiyang really startled, but in a hurry, he couldn't figure out what happened.While he was wondering, he suddenly heard the woman's voice, which was delicate and crisp, very familiar.He couldn't help but opened his eyes, seeing the girl in white, his heart skipped a beat and he almost cried out.
When we parted that day, Ye Lingsu had said cruel words that we would never meet again, but now that we meet each other rashly, I'm afraid that it will scare her away.When Le Zhiyang was hesitating, he suddenly heard someone calling, and looking back, Shui Lianying looked at him with concern in his eyes.
Le Zhiyang hurriedly stood up and said: "Miss Shui." Shui Lianying couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief seeing that he behaved as usual, and asked, "Are you okay?" Le Zhiyang smiled and said: "It couldn't be better! "Speaking of this, I couldn't help looking at Ye Lingsu again, but I felt that I hadn't seen her for half a month, and the girl became more and more beautiful. Standing by the river under the moon, she looked like a narcissus Lingbo and Chang'e Luochen. .
Suddenly Wang Zikun said: "Okay! You said it was a human being, so let me ask you, is it old or young, male or female?" Ye Lingsu shook his head and said, "I only see the back, it should be a man." Wang Zikun He sneered and said, "You didn't even see his face, so why are you talking about a man or a ghost?"
Ye Lingsu frowned slightly, and suddenly heard Huating say loudly: "Everyone, I, Huating, have never lied about my life." Everyone faced each other, and Du Youyang murmured: "Huayan envoy is an upright person, as far as I can remember, it is true that I have never lied." lie."
Huating nodded and said: "Seeing that man walking on the water, I couldn't believe my eyes, so I urged the boatman to catch up. Not far away, I suddenly saw many boats in front of me, with flags and bright lights. I Looking at the flags and numbers, I was very surprised. It turned out that these ships were all sailors of the imperial court.
There was a commotion on the island, and everyone looked towards the river, the river was pitch black, and they didn't know what was going on.Meng Feiyan couldn't help asking: "Are these boats coming to the east?"
"Yes." Huating smiled bitterly, "I was afraid that the navy would be bad for our gang, and I was feeling anxious when I suddenly saw the man walking on the water jump into a big boat. At this moment, I suddenly understood that this man must have some kind of plan , deliberately lured us here. Miss Ye made a decisive decision and asked me to guard the boat, but she performed lightness kung fu and boarded that big boat."
After everyone heard this, they all looked at Ye Lingsu. Meng Feiyan asked, "Miss Ye, have you found the man on the water?" While on the boat, the guards were all down on the ground, and their personnel were unknown. However, someone was talking in the cabin. I was curious and listened to a few words. It turned out that the people inside were talking about your gang..."
Wang Zikun said angrily: "It's unreasonable, how can there be such a coincidence?" Ye Lingsu glanced at him, and said with a slight smile: "Why are you so anxious, I haven't finished my words yet." Wang Zikun snorted angrily, and said with a sneer: "It's okay not to say anything."
Ye Lingsu's eyes flickered, and he said with a smile: "Emissary Wang Yan won't let me speak. Could it be that there is a ghost in my heart?" No ghost, what does it matter if I say a few words?"
Before Wang Zikun could speak, Meng Feiyan interjected, "It's important, Miss Ye, but it's okay for you to say so." Ye Lingsu smiled and said, "One of the people in the cabin is named Chang, and the other is the commander of the navy. Liu is the commander of Jinyiwei. They said two things. The first thing is that this army is indeed coming to Chongming Island to wipe out the elites of the Salt Clan."
Everyone was in an uproar, doubtful in their hearts.Ye Lingsu said again: "The second thing is related to the leader of the Qi gang. I heard from them that the leader of the Qi gang was poisoned to death by spies in the gang."
These few words were earth-shattering, and the crowd erupted immediately.Wang Zikun said angrily: "Little girl is talking nonsense, the head of the Qi gang was killed by Su Chengguang, why do you say that he was poisoned to death?"
"Yes!" Ye Lingsu nodded lightly, "Just to be cautious, I captured the two dog officials and forced them to do two things."
"Which two things?" Meng Feiyan asked eagerly.
"The first thing is to force them to order the navy to return,"
Everyone was overjoyed and applauded.Ye Lingsu said again: "The second thing is Ning, forcing them to reveal the spies in the gang..." She paused for a while and smiled at Wang Zikun. "Wang Yanshi, you look bad , did you suffer from the wind and cold?"
Wang Zikun snorted coldly and said, "I'm fine. Well, who is that spy?" Ye Lingsu smiled and said, "I told you, but you might not believe it, it's better to let the dog officer and the spy face to face. "
Wang Zikun was stunned, and blurted out: "Where is the dog officer?" Ye Lingsu pointed to the pocket in Huating's hand: "Isn't it there?" All eyes looked around, and the pocket was bulging, and there were living things in it.
Huating unbuttoned his pocket, and two middle-aged men emerged from the pocket, one in a purple robe and long beard, the other in a short armor.The two turned their heads and looked around, with fear in their eyes.Huating kicked away their acupoints and shouted: "You two, repeat what you said earlier."
The man in armor let out a "bah" and cursed: "You salt dealers who have been paid a thousand dollars, once the court navy arrives, you will be chopped into pieces..." Before he could finish speaking, Huating punched and kicked, His mouth and nose were bleeding from the beating, and he fell to the side humming endlessly.
The purple-robed man looked panic-stricken and lowered his head.Huating stared at him and said, "Speak or be beaten, you choose one."
"Speak, I'm talking..." The purple-robed man tremblingly said, "My surname is Liu, and I'm the commander of the Jinyiwei. I was ordered to destroy the Salt Gang..." Huating said impatiently: "Who asked you this, who is the spy? ?”
"Yes, yes." Commander Liu turned to the crowd and said, "He is..." Before he finished speaking, Wang Zikun paused on his crutches, and suddenly jumped out, grabbing behind Gao Qi.Elder Tu was completely defenseless, his back hurt, he was restrained, Wang Zikun flipped his left hand, and pointed an extra dagger at his throat.
Everyone turned pale, Du Youyang said angrily: "Wang Yanshi, what are you doing?" Wang Zikun gritted his teeth and stared, without saying a word.
"Need to say?" Ye Lingsu sneered slightly, "This old man is the spy who poisoned the leader of Qi."
There was a lot of noise on the island, and the leaders of the Salt Gang were all moved.Chunyuying raised her eyebrows upside down, and shouted sharply, "Wang Yanshi, are you serious?"
Wang Zikun's face was ashen, and he was silent for a while, then said slowly: "So what?" As soon as the words came out, everyone was inexplicably sad and angry, and they grabbed their weapons one after another.Wang Zikun hurriedly swiped the dagger back and forth, and shouted sharply, "Who dares to come up? I will die with this Gao."
Everyone stopped in response, and Qian Si said angrily: "Wang Zikun, when you first joined the gang, you committed a murder and were hunted down by the government. It's as heavy as a mountain, why did you poison him?"
Wang Zikun said coldly, "Man dies for money, and birds die for food. Hmph, Qi Haoding has been lawless all his life, and in his old age, he pretends to be benevolent and righteous. He doesn't even want gambling houses or brothels for the sake of a stinky woman." Yes. Hmph, he didn't want to think about it, how much painstaking effort I have put into these gambling halls and brothels, according to his words, my half-life business, wouldn't it turn into waste?"
After hearing this, the crowd became even more angry. Chunyuying roared and raised his short halberd.Wang Zikun took a step back and said with a sneer, "Chunyuying, don't you care about Gao's life or death?" Chunyuying touched the two halberds and said loudly: "The Five Salt Messenger takes it as his duty to protect the leader of the clan. Chunyuying doesn't care about anything else. The old gang leader takes revenge."
When everyone heard this, they all nodded. Wang Zikun's eyes flashed with despair, and suddenly he smiled bitterly and said, "Okay, okay, there are companions on the road to Huangquan." Gao Qi's face changed violently, and he screamed: "Old Wang, I have something to say!" It's easy to say..." Wang Zikun snorted angrily, raised the dagger, and was about to stab it, but unexpectedly his forearm was stabbed, and the strength of his five fingers disappeared, and the dagger fell to the ground with a clang.
Wang Zikun was startled and angry, he fixed his eyes and saw a golden needle nailed to the "Waiguan Point", the end of the needle has not dissipated, and he trembled slightly.
After a moment of stupefaction, the Qing Chi sword rushed straight to Gao Qi's chest.Elder Tu looked at the tip of the sword, his face pale, and Wang Zikun looked at the sword for no reason.When he was stunned, the soft sword suddenly twisted in the air, bent into a big arc, bypassed Gao Qi's body, and pierced Wang Zikun with a whoosh.
Wang Zikun only felt a cold under his armpits, and immediately lost all strength.Gao Qi took the opportunity to push his elbow backwards, Wang Zikun flew more than one foot away, fell to the ground, and did not move.Someone stepped forward and saw that the sword wound pierced through the heart and lungs, before Gao Qi's elbow came out, the old man was already dead.
There was a moment of silence on Chongming Island, and everyone looked at the girl with great surprises.The joy was that the spy was killed and Gao Qi was rescued, but the surprise was that Wang Zikun, as the leader of the Five Salts, was quite unique in martial arts, but at a critical moment, he couldn't stop Ye Lingsu's light blow.
Chunyuying brandished a short halberd and said loudly: "The spy is dead, and these two dog officials will not survive." The expressions of the two men changed drastically, and they huddled together.Chunyuying was about to step forward, but Ye Lingsu stopped him with a sword, Chunyuying frowned and said, "Miss, why is this?"
Ye Lingsu said: "Mr. Chunyu forgive me, I promise these two people, as long as they are obedient, I will spare them from death."
"Be obedient?" Chunyuying was taken aback, "What do you listen to?" Ye Lingsu smiled but did not answer, but Huating clapped his hands and laughed, "Brother Chunyu, actually, the two of them don't know who the spy is."
Chunyuying was taken aback again, and blurted out: "I don't know the spies, so how can I identify them?" Huating said with a smile: "What kind of person is Zhu Yuanzhang, how could he easily reveal the identity of Wang Zikun? The two dog officials are not high-ranking, and they don't want to It's very clear, we can't find out through torture, Miss Ye saw these two dog officials are greedy for life and fear of death, and forced them to falsely identify the murderer, tricking Wang Zikun into jumping over the wall and committing suicide."
Everyone heard tut-tuts, and Chunyuying smiled and said, "Good guy, don't talk about Wang Zikun, I have been fooled by you too." Meng Feiyan also felt admiration, and clasped her fist at Ye Lingsu and said, "Young lady is really smart and brave. How offending, please don't take offense."
Ye Lingsu said indifferently: "My sister has won the award. Lingsu is just brave. If this spy can hold his breath, my method will not work. It seems that the heroic spirit of the leader of Qi is immortal, and he will protect us in the dark. We will find it." The real murderer."
Meng Feiyan saw that she didn't take any credit at all, her heart became more and more respectful, and thinking of Qi Haoding's great kindness, her brows and eyes were red with tears.Just when he was feeling sad, he suddenly heard Huating laughing: "Meng Yanshi, do you still remember the old gang leader's will?"
"Remember." Meng Feiyan wiped her tears and said, "The old gang leader said that whoever can avenge him is the leader of the gang."
"Okay." Huating clapped his hands together, "Miss Ye killed Wang Zikun, does that count as revenge for Chief Qi?"
The crowd was silent for a while, and the disciples of the Salt Gang faced each other.Sun Zhengfang coughed suddenly, and said slowly: "Huayan Envoy, your words are not thoughtful. Of course, Miss Ye killed Wang Zikun, and the leader of Qi Gang did leave a will, but the 300,000 disciples of my Yan Gang, Most of them are good men, and it would be a bit embarrassing for them to obey a woman."
Qian Si also nodded again and again: "What Elder Sun said is that Miss Ye looks like a fairy and has high martial arts skills, but she lacks a bit of majesty in order to subdue the heroes."
Meng Feiyan couldn't hear it, and sneered, "Speaking of it, you all look down on women? I'm also a woman. A woman can be a salt envoy, so why can't she be a gang leader?" She was loyal, and Ye Lingsu avenged Qi Haoding , Meng Feiyan was grateful, and already regarded her as the choice for the master in her heart.Sun and Qian used men and women as an excuse. She was annoyed and couldn't help but refute.
Sun Zhengfang glanced at her, and said with a chuckle, "Meng Yanshi is different. In my heart, you are more majestic than a man."
Meng Feiyan's face turned pale with anger, what Sun Zhengfang said was clearly ridiculing that she was more ugly than a man.Meng Feiyan stomped her feet and was about to refute, when Gao Qi said coldly: "Sun Zhengfang, whoever is the leader of the gang, you have nothing to say." Sun Zhengfang rolled his eyes and said, "Okay, then tell me, Who said it?"
"Leader Qi has the final say!" Gao Qi raised his head, his voice was like a bell, "Our Salt Gang walks the rivers and lakes, relying on the word 'loyalty', if we can't even complete the will of the previous leader, and pass it on to the rivers and lakes, What kind of faith is there? There are 300,000 disciples of the Salt Clan, if all of them keep their promises, who can be the leader of the Clan?"
The three elders each lead one side, and they have always been dissatisfied with each other.Gao Qi thought to himself that he was inferior to Sun and Qian in terms of martial arts and power, so it was almost hopeless to fight for the leader of the gang.Furthermore, Ye Lingsu was kind enough to save Prince Kun by killing him.Gao Qi weighed it over and over again, and instinctively felt that instead of taking advantage of the two old enemies, it would be better to promote Ye Lingsu as the leader of the gang. Firstly, to repay the favor, and secondly, to make meritorious service. With the merits of support, he will definitely become the confidant of the new gang leader.
His words were high-sounding, Sun and Qian couldn't refute them, and they felt depressed.Regardless of their faces, Gao Qi turned his head and asked sharply: "Du Youyang, Chun Yuying, what do you think?"
Du Youyang has been in the gang for a long time, and has a good friendship with Qian Si. He glanced at Elder Jing, pretending to ponder and said: "What Elders Sun and Qian say is not unreasonable. She is a woman, and it is really difficult to convince everyone."
Gao Qi snorted coldly, then looked at Chun Yuying, who said, "Emissary Du Yan said it was wrong, the old gang leader only said that the avenger will inherit the position of the gang leader, but he didn't say whether the avenger is a man or a woman."
"Well said." Gao Qi clapped his hands and laughed, "Du Yanshi, Sun, and Qian are on one side, and Meng Yanshi, Chunyu Yanshi, and Huayan envoys are on the same side. Three oppose and four agree. We It is announced that from today onwards, Miss Ye is the thirteenth generation head of the Salt Gang."
Sun and Qian were both angry and impatient. Looking around, Ye Lingsu was standing in the distance, frowning in silence.Sun Zhengfang's heart moved, and she raised her voice and said: "Gao Qi, don't talk to yourself. Miss Ye hasn't said whether she will be the leader of the gang. With her pure and clean body, how can she be willing to be with my filthy man?"
Gao Qi was stunned. Thinking about it carefully, Ye Lingsu never promised to be a gang leader from the beginning to the end. For a moment, his heart became tense, and he hurriedly stepped forward and said with a smile: "Miss Ye, I don't know what you want to be a gang leader. ?”
Ye Lingsu raised his head, his eyes were as clear as crystal, he glanced over everyone, suddenly smiled slightly, and said casually: "Elder Sun, if I become the leader of this sect, will I not be able to convince everyone?"
孙正芳一愣，欠身笑道：“自古男尊女卑，本帮之人又多是男子，说好听些是盐帮，说不好听，就是一帮盐枭。枭雄之性，桀骜不驯，孙某虽也佩服姑娘，可是人多心乱，下面的弟子未必买账。”
叶灵苏瞥他一眼，点头说：“贵帮之事，我本无意插手，只是华盐使说了，苏乘光因我被擒，西城为了救人，必然要和盐帮决一死战。我心想，此事因我而起，西城如来，我责无旁贷。本想真凶査明，立马袖手而去，可你偏又说什么男尊女卑。哼，我倒不信了，男子能当帮主，女子为何不能？好啊，我就做一回这个劳什子帮主，看一看这些尊贵男儿，到底服不服我管束。”
盐帮之中，女弟子屈指可数，众男子听了这话，一个个神气古怪。孟飞燕却是眉飞色舞，不待孙正芳回应，快步走到叶灵苏身前，取出一支青玉令牌，恭声说道：“这枚'青帝令牌'，出自第一代帮主黄巢公之手，乃是历代帮主的信物。四海之内，盐帮弟子见令如见人，听令驱驰，不得违抗。齐帮主临终前托我看管，天可怜见，今日终于有了主人。”说完郑重地双手奉上。
叶灵苏接过一瞧，令牌正面镌刻一行金字：“青帝秋风、百花肃杀”，背面镶嵌一朵九瓣金菊，花瓣绽放舒展，透出一股凛冽之气。她审视片刻，环顾四周，高高举起令牌，岛上静了一下，忽然之间，发出一片欢呼。
孙、钱二人听见欢呼，无不一脸诧异，不明白一群桀骜男儿，为何推崇一名外来的女子。原来，叶灵苏只身闯阵、锄奸救人，武功之高，早已震慑群雄。自古尊崇强者，也是人之本性，众弟子又不比长老、盐使，对于帮主之位并无私心，但觉这少女美貌惊人、武功又高，做这一帮之主，未必就是一件坏事。
淳于英上前一步，朗声说道：“百花皆杀，千盐归一，帮主之位已定，还请各位撒盐效忠。”
各省堂主取出一只海碗，传给本堂弟子，众弟子伸手入怀，取出一个锦袋，拈出一撮细盐，撒入海碗之中。如此传递一圈，各省堂主又将盐碗交给所属长老。长老合并碗中之盐，送到淳于英面前，淳于英将三碗盐粒倒入一只锦囊，恭恭敬敬,送给叶灵苏。
众人撒盐之时，神情肃穆，举止凝重，分明就是一种仪式。少女大惑不解，微微皱眉，孟飞燕低声说：“本帮贩卖私盐为业，囊中的盐，均是各人私盐，合私为公，呈送帮主，以表忠心。”
叶灵苏接过锦囊，未及说话，忽听万绳说道：“姑娘新登帮主之位，委实可喜可贺。而今水落石出，齐浩鼎之死与苏师弟无关，贵我两派恩怨了了，时下夜长路远，本派暂且告辞。”
盐帮迭遭变故，忘了西城还在一边。听了这话，孟飞燕怒道：“齐帮主不是苏乘光所杀，却是因他而死，若不是他打伤了齐帮主，王子昆又岂有下毒的机会？”众弟子与八部一场大战，伤者众多，一听这话，纷纷随之起哄。
忽听淳于英说道：“孟盐使言重了，王子昆狼子野心，纵无苏乘光，也未必不会谋害帮主。他方才百般挑唆，正是想要盐帮、 西城火并一场。那时两败俱伤，官兵一到，必将我们一网打尽。”
众弟子听他一说，仔细想来，王子昆的言语，句句心怀叵测，无一不是挑唆之词，一时个个默然，数千道目光，全都落在叶灵苏身上。
少女轻轻皱眉，注视八部之主，扬声问道：“你们都是西城的人？”万绳点头道：“不错，在下天部万绳。”叶灵苏轻哼一声，又问道：“梁思禽没来么？ ”万绳摇头说：“城主没来。”叶灵苏冲口问道：“他在哪儿？ ”
万绳见她急切神情，目中闪过一丝讶异，沉吟道：“若问帮主下落，万某无可奉告。”叶灵苏皱眉：“那你们见到云虚岛王了么？ ”
万绳一愣，摇头说：“不曾见得。”叶灵苏俏脸发白，芳心一阵烦乱。云虚挑战梁思禽，也不知现在何处，西城八部是梁思禽的羽翼，云虚只人独剑，势单力薄，剑挑西城几无可能。叶灵苏对于云虚不无怨恨，可是血浓于水。十多年来，云虚与她名为师徒、实为父女，养育之恩未曾亏欠，叶灵苏纵有千般埋怨，也放不下这一段恩情，当下心想：我不能助他挑战梁思禽，但若斩断西城羽翼，也可稍稍报答养育之恩。
意想及此，她一咬银牙，说道：“万部主，我有一个不情之请。”万绳道：“叶帮主请说。”叶灵苏沉默一下，徐徐说道：“我想请各位前往本帮总堂，住上一年半载。”
此话一出，众人无不讶异，八部之主面面相对，盐帮首领也是莫名所以。秋涛打量叶灵苏，忽而笑道：“恕我冒昧，叶帮主这一番话，莫非想要软禁我等？ ”
叶灵苏淡然道：“你要说软禁，那就是软禁好了。”秋涛与万绳对望一眼，万绳笑道：“叶帮主，贵我两派还有梁子么？ ”叶灵苏摇头道：“没有。”万绳道：“既无梁子，为何要留下我们？ ”
叶灵苏瞥他一眼，说道：“你不知道我的来历么？”万绳略―沉默，忽地叹道：“不错，你是东岛高足，今日所为，该是为了当年的旧怨吧？”
叶灵苏不置可否，忽地举起青帝令牌，锐声叫道，“盐帮弟子，围住西城之人。无我号令，不得放走一个。”
眼看恩怨消解，忽又剑拔弩张，盐帮弟子均是一阵愕然，但帮主有令,不敢不从,当下重振“神咸大阵”，将西城诸人团团围住。阵势已定，孟飞燕恭声说：“下一步如何，还请帮主示下。”
叶灵苏摇了摇头，说道：“就这样好了。”孟飞燕莫名所以，忽见叶灵苏跨上一步，朗声说道：“八部里面，谁能做主？”万绳面沉如水，负手说道：“老夫能够做主，叶帮主有何指教？ ”
叶灵苏道：“西城八部，名动江湖，但我盐帮胜在人多，倘若拼死一战，必定死伤无数。”万绳笑道：“叶帮主既有好生之德, 何不化干戈为玉帛？”
叶灵苏轻哼一声，淡淡说道：“我有一个法子，既可减少死伤，又可决出胜负。”万绳心头一沉，盯着少女，只觉捉摸不透，当下笑道：“愿闻其详。”
“简单得很。”叶灵苏一手按腰，朗声说道，“你我一决胜负，你胜了，任由离开，我胜了，西城八部跟我去盐帮总堂。”
万绳大感意外，拈须沉吟：“叶帮主，刀剑无眼……”叶灵苏冷冷说：“是死是活，听天由命。”孟飞燕忍不住说道：“帮主，你万金之躯，岂可轻易犯险……”华亭也说：“老帮主去世已久，帮中百废待兴……”叶灵苏不待他说完，摆手说：“华盐使，我意已决。倘若不幸败亡，你可接替帮主之位。”
华亭不由动容，盐帮之中也起了一阵骚动。万绳暗暗吃惊，寻思叶灵苏闯阵之时，神出鬼没，所向披靡，放在东岛之中，也是一流人物，别说自己也没有必胜的把握，纵然能够胜她，也难保不会伤她。这女子一帮之主，或死或伤，都会激怒盐帮，惹来无穷后患。
霎时间，万绳心里转了百十个念头，忽地想出一条计策，大声说道：“叶帮主，八部地位相若，若是小事，万某还可做主，但事关各人自由，我也不能越庖代俎。”叶灵苏皱眉道：“这么说，非得大战一场了？”
“那也不用。”万绳摆手笑笑，“叶帮主方才闯入神咸大阵，矫若游龙，翩若惊鸿，风采绝世，叫人佩服。这样吧，本派也有一个小小的'周流八极阵'，叶帮主若不嫌弃，大可闯来一试，只要破了此阵，我等一行，任由处分。”
苏乘光变了脸色，冲口叫道：“万师兄，这个如何使得……”忽见万绳瞪眼望来，苏乘光迟疑一下，只好退了回去。
叶灵苏也不料万绳出此题目，愣了一下，未及回答，孟飞燕抢先说：“帮主不要上当，这个阵法古怪极多，四面围攻也无奈他何，帮主一人之力，万万不可入阵。”
叶灵苏一时默然，这些日子,她钻研《山河潜龙图》，日夜潜修，颇有所得，对敌八部之主，单打独斗，均有胜算，但要以一敌八，仍是力有来逮，她新任帮主，根基不牢，此刻一旦示弱，威望必定受损。
她心思果决，转念之间，就有决断，蓦地抬起头来，大声说道：“好，万部主，我就来闯一闯贵派的阵法。”
万绳脸色微变，叶灵苏武功再髙，也万无挑战八部的道理, 他出此难题，只想让她知难而退，不料这女子胆大包天，竟然一口应允。一时之间，万绳大大为难，可是话一出口，不能退让, 只好说道：“好啊，叶帮主气魄之大压倒须眉，无论胜败如何，万某都很佩服。”
叶灵苏略一点头，正要举步，忽听一个声音冷冷说道：“小丫头，我陪你走一趟如何？ ”
少女回头看去，楚空山襟袖潇洒，负手而出，目光转动之间，森森然有如利剑长戟。
西城众人也是一愣，卜留啐了一口，扯着嗓子大骂：“楚空山， 你他娘的凑什么热闹？你连祖传的宝剑也保不住，还要出来丢人现眼么？ ”
楚空山脸色一变，双眉倒立，厉声说道：“死胖子，你用诡计夺剑,这笔账还没算完。有能耐的，咱们一对一，看谁丢人现眼？”
卜留一面挥舞铁木剑，一面笑嘻哨说道：“若说诡计，天下的上乘武功，又有几样不是诡计？呵，听说九华楚家，代代都出色鬼。楚空山，这妞儿长得不赖，你想必见色起意，故意跟人家套近乎吧。”
“胡说八道。”楚空山勃然大怒，“死胖子，仔细你的舌头。”
卜留哈哈一笑，待要反唇相讥，忽听秋涛说道：“卜师弟， 楚先生一代宗主，又是城主的故交，你言辞之间，不要失了礼数。”卜留一愣，笑道：“秋师姐休怪，说了一人闯阵，楚老头强自出头，我看他不顺眼，取笑两句罢了。”
“无妨。”万绳淡淡说道，“两人就两人，楚先生，叶帮主，你们一起来好了。”
叶灵苏轻轻皱眉，回头说道：“楚先生，此事因我而起……” 楚空山摆了摆手，冷冷说道：“我不是为你出头，而是为了洗雪前耻，万绳和死胖子耍弄诡计，夺走了我的铁木剑，唯有破了这个鸟阵，才能出我一口恶气。”
叶灵苏略一沉吟，含笑道：“家师提到过贵派的'名花美人剑'，说这一路剑法空灵飘逸，精微莫测，今日良辰难得，小女子正好一睹楚先生的神技。”
楚空山微感得意，拈须说道：“令师是谁？”叶灵苏迟疑一下，轻声说道：“家师云虚。”楚空山动容道：“你是云岛王的嫡传，难怪，难怪。”他顿一顿又说，“盐帮、东岛也是有缘，当年张士诚出身东岛，啸傲三吴，可惜王运不终，到底败给了当今的皇帝。”
盐帮弟子也大多知道这一段往事，于是议论纷纷，发出长吁短叹。楚空山忽地举手弹剑，发出一声长啸，苍劲悠长，声震大江。叶灵苏与他并肩而立，俏脸映月，溶溶有光，青螭斜指下方，宛如一泓墨汁，注入茫茫夜色。
楚空山啸声不绝，势如峡江猿啼，又如雨打残花。啸声中，两道人影双双纵出，冲入“周流八极阵”，剑光一黑一白，有如双龙盘绕，矫矫划过长空。
八部之主神色肃然，左掌向内，右掌向外，按照先天易理，结成一个圆阵。楚、叶二人还未靠近，忽觉飞沙走石、电光闪耀，脚下地陷土涌，化为土蛇狂龙，两股劲风一冷一热，热风如烧，冷风如刀，交缠一处，卷起阵阵狂飙。
叶灵苏远在江上，也曾窥见过这一门阵法，此时深入其间，才知真正厉害。八劲交融变化，生生不息，势如惊涛骇浪冲决而来，其中风雷水火、天地山泽种种奇能使人应接不暇。叶灵苏身在其中，恍若狂风暴雨中一支蓬草，随风飞舞，难以自主。
楚空山见势不妙，挡在少女身前，身如流光掣电，快得不可思议，一口剑缠缠绵绵，有如秋夜细雨无所不至，无孔不入，仿佛失去形质，只在气机缝隙中游走，几度逼近八部之主，又被八人发出的劲气逼退。
借他之力，叶灵苏稳住阵脚，定一定神，使出平生本事，左掌右剑，大开大合，剑气锋锐绝伦，匹练般扫开狂沙乱石，掌力势如惊蛟腾龙，在八劲漩涡之中左冲右突，所过之处，对手衣袍为之动、须发为之飞，矫如飞龙，余势悠长，纵以八劲之威，也难令其消灭。
八部之主无不诧异，但觉叶灵苏掌力了得，生平未见，一时各各警惕，应付楚空山的劲气也不知不觉地移向少女。
叶灵苏顿觉吃力，四周气劲如山，狂风怒号，水火交锋，雷霆纵横。她不觉气为之闭、神为之摇，如在牢笼之中，处处施展不开。以“周流八极阵”之强，如果全力施为，十个叶灵苏也未必能胜，可是万绳主持阵法，不愿欺人太甚，不过小小示以神通，只盼少女知难而退。谁知道，叶灵苏天性倔强，遇强愈强，重压之下，武功越出越妙，飞影神剑、水云掌、夜雨神针，不但东岛武学层出不穷，就连《山河潜龙图》的心法也渐渐显露出来。
盐帮众人看得连连咋舌，一干盐使、长老、堂主的心中愧喜交集。叶灵苏武功神妙，不但胜过齐浩鼎，历代盐帮之主怕也无人能及，如此高手担任帮主，诚为盐帮之幸。可是盐帮弟子多为男子，她一介女流，压倒须眉，众男子羞愧之余，又觉大为不平。
场上的情形越变越奇，楚空山剑光霍霍，柔而不媚，狂而不乱，直如春风飒来、百花怒放，狂沙急电之间，不失从容风采。众人看得久了，眼里生出错觉，楚空山失去男儿形态，化身绝代佳人，徜徉于一片剑花光海，错步拧身，采摘俯仰，楚楚风姿，妙绝人寰。
叶灵苏的剑法恰好相反，她以女儿之身，挥洒长剑，劲力雄奇，大有吞吐日月之机，笑傲山河之势，使到精妙之处，人是人，剑是剑，西边剑光未敛，东边人影已现，神出鬼没，似有七八个叶灵苏在场中游走，剑光人影连成一气，直如一条气势浩荡的长龙，在阵势之中翻江倒海。
众人看得入神，只觉楚空山身为男子，剑法柔婉却如女子，叶灵苏身为女子，剑法气魄之大，胜似奇伟男儿，以旁人看来，这一男一女，手里的剑法真该换过来才是。
八部之主身当其锋，别有一番感受。楚空山外柔而内刚，剑法柔婉至极，反而生出一股刚强之气，叶灵苏外刚而内柔，看似大开大合，实则心思坚圆，无机可乘。一个柔极而刚，一个刚中有柔，刚柔并济，生出莫大威力，黑白双剑并力一向，只在八部之主身边弄影，八人迭遇险招，阵脚不觉微微动摇。
万绳见势不妙，沉喝一声：“分开他们！”其他人应了一声， 眼看楚、叶二人转到震、巽二位之间，阵中气机流转，注入苏乘光体内。苏乘光大喝一声，挥掌劈出，掌力如山，夹杂闪烁电光。
楚空山不敢硬接，闪身向右，阵中气机再转，又到兰追身上，兰追漫不经意，轻飘飘送出一掌。忽然罡气大作，天风飚来，叶灵苏抵挡不住，向左躲闪。就在这个当儿，阵法倏忽转动，插入二人之间，将两人生生隔断。
这一来，两人剑法再高，也只能各自为战，万绳又叫一声：“先男后女。”阵势转动，劲气铺天盖一般涌向楚空山。老头儿连连后退，不意大力涌来，虎口一热，长剑竟被蚕丝拽住，他运劲想要夺回，一道掌力排空而至。楚空山避开大半劲力，左肩却被余劲扫中，当真筋骨剧痛，半身酸麻，稍不留神，脚下陷入一个泥坑，四周泥沙拱起，化为土龙沙蛇，楚空山上下受敌，一时间手忙脚乱，只有招架之功，再无进击之能。
困住楚空山，阵中气机再转，又向叶灵苏涌来。叶灵苏孤掌难鸣，步步后退，转眼之间，已到芦苇荡边，倘若再退，势必掉落水里。原来，万绳存心逼她落水，那时叶灵苏一身泥水，狼狈万分，纵然有心破阵，也是无脸见人。
少女双脚落水，罗袜尽湿，万绳正要开口逼她认输，忽然生出一丝异感。这时间，叶灵苏忽然消失了，再也感知不到她的气机。万绳心头一跳，凝目望去，白影翩翩，宛然不远，奇怪的是, 女子明明可见，却又无法感知，叶灵苏的气机融入了那一片茫茫水泽。水光芦苇，含香弄影，一时间，众人眼里，女子即水，水即女子，叶灵苏与芦花荡，再也分不出彼此。
这感觉虽说微妙，其实不过一念之间。要知高手交锋，只因太过迅疾，往往手比眼快、心比手快，生死间无暇多看，多凭直觉感知气机。万绳为阵