EARTHLY DRAGON, SOARING PALM Read online

  Xun Da sat quietly for a moment without moving. Eventually he spoke in that same gentle tone. “Some might consider you stained, but not the kind I’d carry across that gorge back there. And the fact that you are willing to hold it up next to your face says a lot to me. As to whether the actions of your father and your mother were honourable or not, I don’t know. I’d have to know the particulars of their circumstances.”

  “Well, my father's cousin didn’t tell me. The Sitting Lotus doesn’t say much. He claims he shouldn't have to.”

  Xun Da’s eyes darted over to Bai Feng. “Sitting Lotus?”

  “That’s what he's known as. All those monks have flowery names.”

  “Sitting Lotus,” Xun Da repeated to himself as if struggling to remember something. Eventually, he let it go and sat forward, his tone changing to one of caution. “Bai Feng, there's a lot going on here. Even things I am unaware of. You will need to keep your wits about you. This is an old issue—one that predates your birth and even my own. As to if or where you fit in, I’m really not sure. But what I do know is that you have recently become a piece in this game.”

  “WHAT?” Bai Feng was astounded. “I’m nobody. I just came down from the mountains in the last few days, I know nobody and nobody knows me.”

  Fighting a smile, Xun Da was yet again left bewildered at how a mere child could speak in such a grown up manner. “Well, somebody knows you and, now, I do too. I’m not that important but, I assure you, the other person is.”

  “Who?” Bai Feng quizzed immediately.

  “Not now. First, get some rest. Then I’ll prepare some food.” Bai Feng made as if to protest but Xun Da’s gentle but firm glance said to leave it, so he did. Most men wouldn’t. Fewer children would. But Bai Feng did. Xun Da sighed inwardly with respect. Impressive, he thought.

  * * *

  Later on, after they ate some cold rice that Xun Da brought with him, they traversed the narrower second gorge in one jump. That jump, of course, was all Xun Da’s doing, Bai Feng was merely a passenger. They rose onto another narrow path that wound further up the mountain, ever into the mist.

  “How did you do that back there?” Bai Feng asked.

  “Do what?”

  “Jump so far, even while carrying me in your arms?”

  “Oh that. I used my internal strength. Do you know what that is?”

  “Brother Jing told me a little about that but I still don't understand where it comes from.”

  “Well, it comes from hours and hours of meditation.”

  “Just normal meditation?”

  “Not really, meditation designed to expand the body's awareness. It focuses on harnessing the main senses of vision, hearing, and physical sensation, learning to coordinate them so they mutually bolster one other.”

  “What do you mean by harnessing?”

  Xun Da smiled. “I mean it refines the senses—improves them.”

  Bai Feng frowned disbelievingly. “You can't improve your eyesight or hearing?”

  “Can't you? What about people who lose their sight. Doesn't their hearing become especially sensitive to compensate? Doesn't their ability to feel textures tell them more about the world than it did before they were blind? There are blind kung fu experts who know exactly where their opponents are standing simply by the sounds they make.”

  Remaining unconvinced, Bai Feng merely shrugged.

  “Well, think of it this way,” Xun Da said, enjoying the challenge of explaining the complex subject to the bright youth. “It's not about making the eyes or ears stronger. It's about becoming more sensitive to what they are picking up. You see, the vast majority of what we see and hear is dismissed by the mind. We simply learn to select certain things and focus on them. Meditation trains you to widen your selection, to remain sensitive to more of what your body and the world are telling you.”

  “But how does that allow you to jump great distances?”

  “Well, the better your senses become, the better you understand your own body not to mention the world it's interacting with. And the better you understand your own body, the more efficient your movements become. Your strength improves, you can run faster and longer, you can leap great heights. Hold your breath for extended periods of time and even take control of your internal organs like you heart and lungs.”

  “Hmm…” some of what Xun Da was saying made sense to Bai Feng. “Do all the best kung fu experts have these abilities?”

  Xun Da frowned briefly before continuing. “Many do. After all, kung fu involves hitting opponents and attempting to subdue them physically, so it's logical to assume that internal strength will make those hits more devastating. However, there are some who believe the two contradict each other.”

  “Huh?”

  “If you think about it, they have a point. Kung fu is about fluidity. It's about knowing how to manipulate an opponent through an awareness of body mechanics. True kung fu doesn't need power and strength. True kung fu should allow the smallest person to defeat the largest.

  “Moreover, the use of internal strength encourages egotistical thinking and there are some who believe that ego strangles pure kung fu. That kung fu should exist—can only exist—in the absence of ego.”

  Hearing ego mentioned in the context of fighting, Xun Da’s words began to resonate with Bai Feng. “Who says that?”

  “Well, the Earthly Dragon Sect for one.”

  “The Earthly Dragon!” Bai Feng was impressed enough to break off the conversation temporarily but Xun Da's words sat heavily on him as they continued to ascend the peak. Over the last few months, he had come to see the close connection between ego and fighting as nonsensical. Now, he learns at least according to Xun Da, there's an intricate relationship between ego and internal strength. This was important, he told himself. He just couldn't figure out why exactly. Eventually, his mind wandered back to his surroundings. Everything about them seemed old—the dark grey rock, the crooked branches of the trees, and the dank wet soil under foot that sat firmly between the hardened roots and stone.

  “Is this Earthly Mountain?” asked Bai Feng pointing upwards at the sheer rocks and cliffs.

  “Yes. But it's only one of several peaks that we must climb before we get to the sect’s headquarters.”

  “You’ve been there before, haven’t you?” Bai Feng flashed a knowing smile. “You’re a disciple.”

  “No, this is my first time here too. I don’t belong to a sect. My master is a wandering expert so I don’t even see him that much often anymore.”

  “What’s a wandering expert?”

  “Someone who wanders Wulin looking to constantly develop his skill in a less formalised way.”

  “Less formalised. What's that mean?”

  Xun Da smiled to himself. It’s not easy to remember I’m talking to a child, he thought. Turning to Bai Feng, he said, “Less formalised means he lets his learning happen naturally. I suppose you could say he’s an eccentric. There are times when he’ll go months without practising his kung fu. Then there are times when he’ll immerse himself in it. Then just as quickly, he'll go drinking and gambling for another few months.”

  “No offence, but he couldn’t be that good a master if he’s so undisciplined in his training.”

  Xun Da’s pleasant demeanour didn't change a bit. He simply continued to walk and then said in a matter-of-fact manner, “My master is one of the Ten Greats of the modern age. If I practice a lifetime, I’ll never reach the heights he has.”

  Knowing most disciples overrate their masters’ skills and often worship the ground they walk on, Bai Feng didn’t debate Xun Da on this last point. But nor did he believe it. Xun Da had impressed him so much that the boy was certain Xun Da, young as he was, must have already exceeded his master’s abilities. He was much more interested in hearing about these ‘Ten Greats’. “Are there really ten great masters who stand above all else?”

  “Of course,” Xun Da frowned. “Didn’t I just tell you my master was one of them?”


  “Then how come I’ve never heard of them?

  “How can a frog living at the bottom of a well know anything about the world above him?” Xun Da laughed. “Haven’t you been at the bottom of such a well all your life, little frog?”

  It seemed reasonable so Bai Feng just shrugged. “I heard the Earthly Dragon and the Shaolin Sects are the Mount Tai and Big Dipper of the martial world. Do the Ten Greats all hail from two these powerhouses?”

  “Only one is from Shaolin, the Reverend Tai, Infinite Sky, though some say he’s the most powerful of the ten. His ‘Boundless Palms’ shook Wulin for fifty years straight. He’s retreated into meditation for the past decades. Some say he’s passed on eternal but many reputable heroes say for certain he’s in rude health. If he is alive, he’ll be a hundred and fifty years old by now.”

  A stunned Bai Feng stopped in his tracks, “ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS OLD?”

  Xun Da cracked a smile but continued walking. “Internal strength has long been known to extend life in martial masters. And don’t think their skills diminish either. Their endurance will have certainly peaked long ago but their comprehension is boundless. Hence his name, ‘Infinite Sky’ and his signature form, ‘Boundless Palms’. If you were to find yourself on the receiving end of them you would feel as though you were swept to sea in a tidal wave of rocks and silt. Except the water would probably feel like molten metal, Ha-Ha!”

  “So a life of contemplation does in fact yield rich rewards, just like they say?”

  “Of course, but not only in martial skills, in all skills, wouldn’t you agree?

  “Then are all the Ten Greats monks of some kind?”

  “Not at all, does my master sound like a monk with all that drinking and gambling he does?” Xun Da laughed.

  “I didn’t want to say because he’s your master and everything.” Bai Feng was trying his best to be sensitive.

  Xun Da laughed loudly, “That’s all right, and it’s true I can get defensive over my master’s reputation. That’s only because I fear, well…” Xun Da trailed off. “But in truth, we have a very informal relationship. As I mentioned, he’s rather unorthodox. But he’s deeply respected in the world of Wulin. Of all the Ten Greats, he’s the only one who stands for the weak and helpless time and again. Whenever, someone is being bullied, they’ll do their utmost to locate the ‘100 Fists Majestic Vagabond’.”

  Bai Feng exploded in incredulous laughter. “He’s called ‘the 100 Fists Majestic Vagabond’! Who would dare call him that?”

  “Well... he would actually.” Xun Da frowned almost regretfully. “Firstly, the ‘100 Fists of Majestic Oak’ are the core of his uniquely powerful martial skill and, as he often points out proudly, he lives the life of a vagabond so nobody can hold him to anything. Having said that, most refuse to call him ‘Vagabond’ and refer to him simply as the ‘Majestic Wanderer’ out of respect for his forthrightness and valour.”

  “Your master is obviously powerful but... how does he rate against Infinite Sky?” Bai Feng had come far in his personal rebuking of ego but he was still a child after all and he couldn't help imagine all the colourful duels that might occur between these great masters.

  “That’s an interesting one,” Xun Da mused. “In truth, there’s little to separate most of the Ten Greats. When one reaches the pinnacle of martial ability, it comes down to small details. My master is only ninety-three years of age so it’s fair to say his comprehension isn’t as deep as the Reverend Tai’s but his 100 Fists are comparable in power to the Boundless Palms Form—perhaps, even stronger.”

  “So the Majestic Vagabond is stronger!” Bai Feng exclaimed, beginning to feel proud through association. At first, when Xun Da described his master’s behaviour, Bai Feng felt like he was hitching his wagon to the wrong star by following this Xun Da. However, having heard how well respected he was, he was now itching to conclude this Vagabond was in fact the Number One under heaven. Without his guard up, Bai Feng’s ego was slowly creeping back. He even began to skip alongside Xun Da as they talked.

  “In the physical sense—yes. However, the variation that lies within Reverend Tai’s Boundless Palms is far more complex than even my master’s 100 Fists. So, as to who is the more powerful of the two? Hmm, put it this way, I would be worried for my master if they confronted each other in a life or nothing battle.”

  Bai Feng felt his pride deflating somewhat but was willing to cling onto Xun Da’s evasion.

  “So your master isn’t a monk, are the rest?”

  “There is a Taoist priest among the ten named Tao Huiqing ‘Folding Wind’. His martial ability marks the pinnacle of his Shangqing School’s Kicking Style. He has miraculous speed in his feet and legs that some say can cause the wind to change direction. Whether that’s true or not, he is certainly a phenomenon. My master often compares my abilities to his. He even suggested I seek him out politely and receive pointers from him—although I haven’t had the opportunity yet.” A touch of regret flashed across Xun Da’s face as he said this.

  “As a man of deep reflection, he must be well respected in Wulin too.” Bai Feng continued with his questions. “Are the entire ten respected for their great deeds in the same way your master is?”

  Xun Da frowned as Bai Feng’s questions went down this line. “‘Good’ and ‘bad’, ‘virtuous’ and ‘disreputable’ are terms not easily applied to such characters. These people have diverged from what is considered the norm, even in the martial world. That takes extraordinary temperament that the rest of us might fail to appreciate. They also have a certain selfish streak within them. After all, they have turned their back on the world to improve their own abilities and most are happy to do so to the detriment of those they see as unimportant. With the exception of my master and Reverend Tai, I would say that not one of the remaining Ten could be considered a ‘hero’ in the traditional sense. They merely blow through Wulin like terrible storms and woes betide anyone who gets in their way.”

  Bai Feng was left feeling somewhat edgy at this.

  “That said,” Xun Da continued, “there are some who, I firmly believe, have their own code of ethics, counter-conventional as they may seem to us, and they adhere to them scrupulously. The Shrieking Blade Blue Lady has been known to go out of her way to help others—as has Tao Huiqing. Both, however, are exceedingly ruthless when dealing with people who offend them even over minor affronts.” Xun Da stroked his chin as he considered his answer further. “However, an absence of any negative marks can often be as validating as the presence of positive ones. For example, although Silver Phoenix has not committed any good deeds that I’ve heard of, I’ve equally never heard of even one person who she treated ruthlessly. These three all have definite standards which they never stray from. As such, it’s easy enough to avoid their wrath. Not like…” Xun Da trailed off, reluctant to finish that thought.

  Bai Feng was intrigued. “Not like…?”

  “Well,” Xun Da continued reluctantly, “not like some of the ten.”

  “Are some of the ten evil?” Bai Feng's voice quivered as he said that word.

  They had been walking for hours and, though the mountain rose steadily towards the clouds, it did so at its own leisure. Thus, Bai Feng felt like they hadn’t made good progress and his legs began to feel heavy. Xun Da noticed this. Furthermore, he wasn’t sure how much he should tell this insatiably inquisitive youth about the some of the more disreputable masters out there. So he opted for a tactful distraction. “It’s getting dark. Let’s rest up for the night.”

  “Yes!” blurted the boy gratefully, without a moment’s hesitation. “I'll build a shelter!”

  Bai Feng went off gathering sticks and began to tie them together with long grass and the pair soon had a makeshift canopy over their heads. Xun Da smiled as he watched him work with gusto and, after a while, he took some more rice out of his pack and divided it among them both.

  “You’re certainly a good natured kid.”

  “Me? I’m just li
ke any other kid.”

  “No, you’re not.” Xun Da responded more seriously but then seemed to have a change of heart and said nothing else. He merely stared into the fire.

  As he did so, Bai Feng noticed for the first time that Xun Da had a sharp intense light in the centre of his pupils. He was sure it wasn’t the reflection of the fire, because, even when he turned away from the flames, it remained present and unchanged. For the first time, Bai Feng felt nervous in Xun Da's company. Could this hero be some kind of fairy or ghost? he wondered. Now, in a state of outright fear, he naturally began to question his actions. What the hell am I doing here on some mythical mountain, where nobody has tread in decades, in the middle of the night, alone with a fairy ghost?

  His hackles up, he even began to sense the presence of something living in the trees around them. He couldn’t put his finger on it but he was certain he was only noticing it now because he had become more aware of Xun Da’s mysterious appearance. However, before he could move to ease his discomfort, Xun Da had silently lifted his foot and placed it on Bai Feng’s foot as if to indicate he shouldn’t make a sound. Bai Feng felt cold chills creeping up his leg and, at that moment, all hell broke loose. A dozen flying darts screeched across their camp followed by an explosion of movement from a belt of trees just in front of them. Bai Feng rolled over on his side as Xun Da spun straight into the air repelling the darts with an unbelievable flurry of feet and palms. The darts landed everywhere around Bai Feng but Xun Da kept sailing higher into the night sky eventually arcing towards the bushes. A dull thump was heard as he landed on a figure clad entirely in black and with a flick of Xun Da’s sleeves, that figure was propelled forwards. As it flew through the air, the light from the fire illuminated a face and Bai Feng could discern a grotesque scar slashed down its entire length. He immediately recognised him as the male half of the scarred couple from the cliff.