17 The Secret Celestial Group (2/2)
The young pugilist said, ”You can call me 'Future Sword Saint'. That will be my fraternity name.”
Everyone laughed.
Another pugilist said, ”Great aspiration! You can call me 'The Invincible Ironfist'!”
Another young pugilist said, ”You can call me Tian Kui!”
When all the pugilists had finished introducing themselves, Xiao Shuai said. ”Let us form a secret group and do something crazy for a while. We should at least do something that is earthshaking in the fraternity.”
Han Shaodong asked, ”What do you propose?”
Xiao Shuai said, ”We need a leader of course. But if anyone wants to back off now, they can do it now. When the secret group is formed, we must be bound by our agreements. What does everyone think?”
The Invincible Ironfist smiled, ”If Sister Xian'Er is in the group, I will join for sure.”
Shui Yixian stammered, ”When did I become your sister?”
The Invincible Ironfist laughed merrily, ”If you are in the group, then you naturally will be our Sister Xian'Er.”
The Future Sword Saint added hastily, ”If she is in, I will be in the group too.”
Han Shaodong said to Shui Yixian solemnly, ”What do you think?”
Shui Yixian looked at everyone one by one. She could tell from their passionate eyes that they were all waiting for her to say yes to the idea.
Shui Yixian sighed and said, ”Do I even have a choice?”
The idea of a secret group intrigues everyone!
Xiao Shuai said, ”Excellent! Now we need to select a leader from among us or else we be a pile of loose sands. We also need to be bound by our holistic agreement on never to reveal our identities and what we have done in this group. Does everyone agree with it?”
The Future Sword Saint said, ”We must never kill the innocents too or go against the martial righteousness.”
The Invincible Ironfist said, ”We should really restraint from harming anyone. But as for martial righteousness, we already broken that protocol or else we wouldn't be here.”
Xiao Shuai said, ”Agree! Unless someone really wants us dead or else we must not kill anyone needlessly.”
Everyone nodded eagerly and was eager to know what exactly Xiao Shuai planned to do.
Han Shaodong said, ”It seems that you are our candidate for the group leadership. Anyone else want to be the group leader? I am all for Brother Shuai to be the group leader.”
The Invincible Ironfist said, ”I nominate Xian'Er of course!”
Everyone looked at the Invincible Ironfist in shocked horror.
Tian Kui said, ”What if she wants us to go up to the Heavenly Mountains to pick the Heavenly Mountain Lotus and other trivial things?”
Shui Yixian sighed softly, ”Don't you worry about that part. That will be the last thing in my mind.”
It seemed that Han Shaodong, Xiao Shuai and Shui Yixian got the most number of votes. In the end, Xiao Shuai was nominated the group leader.
Xiao Shuai said, ”We must show great unity in the show of adversity. Only then can our group be the most feared and powerful in the fraternity.”
To prove his point, he took out a chopstick and broke it into halve. ”If we are individual, our fates will be the same as this lone chopstick and will be easy to break by others.”
Next he took out a bunch of chopsticks and passed it to Shui Yixian, ”Now try snapping these chopsticks with your fingers.”
Shui Yixian took the bunch of chopsticks from him and snapped it into halves effortlessly.
Xiao Shuai and everyone looked at Shui Yixian in stunned silence…
Shui Yixian looked at Xiao Shuai and asked, ”Err…I am not supposed to break it?”
The Future Sword Saint asked merrily, ”So what the morale of this story?”
Xiao Shuai said after a while, ”If we are like a bunch of weak chopsticks, we will be easily be broken by others.”
He picked up a thick iron pole-arm from the ground and passed it to Shui Yixian, ”But if we are as united as this iron pole-arm, then nothing can ever breaks us!”
Everyone began to shout eagerly and clapping when suddenly the iron-pole arm was snapped into half by Shui Yixian.
Everyone looked at her again in stunned silence.
Shui Yixian protested innocently, ”Err…this iron pole-arm is of poor inferior quality…”
Xiao Shuai said, ”You know, I totally agree with you that this iron pole-arm is of poor inferior quality…”
The Invincible Ironfist nodded, ”Very, very inferior that even a lady can break it…”
Han Shaodong said, ”Let's hope that our leadership is not equally inferior too.”
Xiao Shuai looked at everyone and smiled bitterly, ”You know, even before this leadership has officially started, it is so hard already.”
Everyone laughed.
Now that the ice between the various pugilists had been broken, Xiao Shuai suggested. ”We will first need a fearsome name for the group. I have already a name in mind.”
Han Shaodong asked, ”Which is?”
Xiao Shuai smiled mysteriously, ”The Celestials from the Celestial Palace!”
Tian Kui said, ”We are using the name of the Celestial Palace and slandering them?”
Xiao Shuai laughed, ”Indeed. No one really knows if the Celestial Palace actually did exist so it doesn't really matter.”
Tian Kui said, ”I am from the Western Fraternity. My grand protégé master says it does exist…”
Xiao Shuai said, ”Whether it exists or not, it doesn't matter. This is the perfect name for us to spread our havoc!”
The Future Sword Saint asked, ”Havoc? What kind of havoc?”
Xiao Shuai smiled mysteriously, ”We will raid the various martial clans and sects for their secret manuals and then put it back secretly. We will start with the Infinity Sword Clan.”
The Future Sword Saint said hurriedly, ”You can't do it. That is something that only an unorthodox clan will do, not us!”
Xiao Shuai laughed, ”Remember, we are not aligned to either now. We will put it back as soon as we have finished with it. So why not?”
The Future Sword Saint said, ”That is because that is my clan you are talking…”
Everyone turned and looked at the Future Sword Saint, ”So you are from the Infinity Sword Clan!”
The Future Sword Saint looked awkward.
In the end, the fake Celestial Palace group was still formed. In less than six months, virtually the entire central plain martial clans were turned upside down by the Celestial Palace. In years to come, the terror effect of the Celestial Palace was still remembered by many of the pugilists.
After six months, the terror of the Celestial Palace mysteriously disappeared from the face of the fraternity as though it had never started.
One of the main reasons was that Shui Yixian was caught finally for sneaking out of the Eternal Ice Palace and was forced to return to the Eternal Ice Palace by her older protégé sister Shui Yichi. After her departure, Xiao Shuai lost interest in maintaining the group and without Shui Yixian to support the group, they begun to lose some of their founding members too.
Xiao Shuai had never expected to find her again after fifty years…
He said, ”Why is that you have not aged at all?”
The Celestial Fairy said expressionless, ”I had not age at all when I was with everyone and my age then was already twice as old as the majority of you…”
Xiao Shuai muttered, ”No wonder, you were always so cold to the whole lot of us except for Han Shaodong. Did he know?”
The Celestial Fairy replied, ”No, he doesn't.”
Xiao Shuai said, ”I don't mind at all, you know…”
The Celestial Fairy interrupted coldly and looked at Ding Yunzi, ”Why did you send her to the Heavenly Mountains to kill me?”
Xiao Shuai was startled, ”I didn't.”
Ding Yunzi said, ”I have never been to the Heavenly Mountains.”
The Celestial Fairy asked again, ”You didn't? Who else knows the Penetrating Hands?”
Xiao Shuai sighed, ”I think I know who you are looking for now. My late wife had a feud with the Eternal Ice Palace and my daughter inherited her hatred…”
The Celestial Fairy said coldly, ”Where is she now?”
Xiao Shuai said, ”I am also looking for her now. She has stolen something very important from me.”
The Celestial Fairy said slowly, ”I will find her and kill her.”
Xiao Shuai looked at her into her eyes, ”Xian'Er, you have changed. If you want to kill my daughter, don't blame me. I am now the protégé master of the Virtuous Palace. The martial skills and techniques that I have learnt and known exceeded your imagination. Even though your martial progression was higher than us in the past but you do not fight dirty. Your fighting style is too dead. That is your disadvantage and my advantage.”