Chapter 15: The Valiant Senior Brother

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As the seasons passed swiftly over the years, Guo Zhenhu devoted himself wholeheartedly to caring for Bao Xiaotong, yet the young junior sister’s heart remained steadfastly fixed on the eldest senior brother, He Yunfei. This tormented Guo Zhenhu deeply; countless times he shouted silently within his heart: “Where do I fall short compared to the eldest senior brother? For you, I would sacrifice everything without hesitation!”

Guo Zhenhu sought out He Yunfei repeatedly, hoping to untangle the knots of his emotions, but each time the eldest senior brother responded helplessly, “Junior brother, this really has nothing to do with me; it’s all her own feelings.”

The more Guo Zhenhu thought about it, the angrier he became. All he wished was for the junior sister’s happiness—even if she ended up marrying the eldest senior brother, he would bear the pain silently. But such an indifferent attitude from the eldest senior brother was hard to understand. On several occasions, Guo Zhenhu nearly broke ties with He Yunfei for Bao Xiaotong’s sake.

In the end, unable to endure the torment any longer, Guo Zhenhu steeled his heart, bid farewell to his master, and resolutely descended the mountain to join the military, leaving behind this place filled with entangled emotions.

In truth, even now, Guo Zhenhu remained oblivious to the past between the eldest senior brother and the junior sister before they ascended Wudang Mountain. He had no knowledge that when He Yunfei brought Bao Xiaotong up the mountain, he had made her swear three strict rules—one of which forbade her from ever mentioning their past to anyone, or else he would sever ties with her forever. Because of this, that mysterious history lingered like a fog, shrouding Guo Zhenhu’s heart.

After leaving Wudang Mountain, Guo Zhenhu shone brilliantly in the military’s competition with his solid, exceptional skills, seizing the championship in both capture-and-control combat and wilderness survival. A certain group army recognized his exceptional talent and specially formed a secret special forces unit called the “Winged Tiger Assault Team” for him. Through his outstanding performance, he was honored with the lofty title of “King of the Winged Tiger” by the military commission.

In Guo Zhenhu’s belief, the phrase “No victory, no return” encapsulated his relentless pursuit of triumph. Yet sadly, until his discharge, he never had the chance to engage in true face-to-face combat on the battlefield for his country.

Now, Guo Zhenhu served as the personal bodyguard to the adventurer Bao Tianxi, following the elder Bao’s lead as they journeyed on treasure-seeking expeditions. This seemed his only outlet to showcase his talents. But as a top instructor in capture-and-control combat and wilderness survival training, his fiery spirit and fighting will never waned, always yearning for the day he could plunge into genuine battle, shed blood on the battlefield, and defend the nation’s honor.

At this moment, he drove the lead vehicle, charging boldly ahead. The vehicle’s front was nearly touching the sheep’s tail, yet the flock showed no signs of panic—simply running along their predetermined route. Only when a vehicle drew too close to a sheep would that sheep swiftly leap aside to avoid danger.

Bao Xiaotong drove another off-road vehicle, a shadow closely tailing behind the second senior brother Guo Zhenhu’s car.

At twenty-three, as the younger sister of the elder Bao Tianxi, she possessed a unique charm. Her oval face was delicately shaped, with refined brows and eyes, though her gaze often revealed a strong competitive streak, sometimes even a hint of aggressiveness.

Though she, Guo Zhenhu, and the eldest senior brother He Yunfei—all disciples of Wudang Mountain’s Golden Summit Taoist Master Li Xuanqing—Bao Xiaotong was apprenticed under the Wudang Mountain Xuan Du priestess Tang Yunru, earning her the title of “Princess of the Martial World.”

Everyone knew that Bao Xiaotong was a restless soul; every smile, every gesture stirred the hearts of those around her, even the most composed monks found her presence overwhelming. Guo Zhenhu was utterly captivated, willingly acting as her personal bodyguard. Anyone daring to harbor ill intentions toward the junior sister would surely face his wrath, as he would rush to defend her at any cost.

Now, Bao Xiaotong’s glossy black ponytail bounced wildly behind her with the vehicle’s violent jolts, resembling an unruly squirrel’s tail twitching and swaying.

Alongside her were her close friends—the internet celebrity Xiao Miao, Xiaodouzi Chen Miaomiao, and Hao Xiaoyu, a nurse from Kunming First Hospital.

Though the vehicles sped wildly forward, the three women inside displayed starkly different states.

Chen Miaomiao was already dizzy and weak, clutching her seatbelt tightly, her face pale as paper, lacking the strength even to call out “slow down,” silently cursing in her heart. Meanwhile, Hao Xiaoyu, a chubby girl with short hair and playful freckles who frequently participated in rescue missions, was flushed with excitement.

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Guo Zhenhu’s lead vehicle shot like an arrow from a bow, suddenly charging up a cliff.

Hao Xiaoyu shouted hoarsely, “Overtake him! Overtake him!!” Her voice rang out sharply amid the howling wind and roaring engine.

Bao Xiaotong refused to be outdone, flooring the accelerator, swiftly overtaking from the side to run alongside the second senior brother’s vehicle. For a moment, the two cars raced neck and neck, neither willing to yield an inch.

Just as she was about to fully surpass him, a sudden loud bang echoed—without warning, the hood of Bao Xiaotong’s vehicle was violently thrown open. Thick white smoke billowed instantly from the engine compartment, engulfing the entire front of the car and completely obscuring her vision.

“Not good!” Guo Zhenhu’s heart tightened. Without thinking, he slammed the accelerator, racing along the cliff’s outer edge.

Another heavy thud rang out as Bao Xiaotong’s vehicle was pushed back onto its original path by Guo Zhenhu’s collision. But the forceful impact caused Guo Zhenhu to lose control, and he plunged straight down the cliff with his car.

A thunderous explosion echoed through the valley.

The entire scene unfolded so suddenly that everyone was stunned into silence, as if time itself had frozen.

Old Cat Li Yanzhong, with his round face and somewhat shy demeanor, was the first to react, along with Monkey Meng Yang and Iron Hand Gu Dajun, anxiously rushing to the cliff’s edge.

Peering down into the deep valley, they saw thick black smoke billowing upward, accompanied by muffled explosions, as if the earth itself was groaning in pain.

“Such terrible luck—another car accident!” A grim premonition rose in everyone’s hearts.

A simple sheep-herding contest had resulted in a rollover accident, possibly even casualties! Meng Yang knew full well he had caused this disaster.

Reflecting on the journey, his compulsive gambling had never ceased, constantly dragging everyone into bets—on the weather, the authenticity of things, visual acuity tests, card guesses, coin tosses—anything imaginable became a wager. The bet he had set up was the root of this tragic accident.

He was filled with regret, but no amount of remorse could undo the dreadful situation.

Old Cat Li Yanzhong was filled with frustration, grumbling, “I told you all to stop gambling, but no one listened! Now look—big trouble! What do we do now? What do we do?”

He muttered as he paced nervously by the cliff’s edge, his gaze flicking anxiously between the valley bottom and the rapidly approaching vehicles.

Bao Xiaotong’s car was parked a short distance away. She jumped out without closing the door and dashed toward the cliff’s edge, crying out tearfully into the gorge, “Second senior brother... Second senior brother...”

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At that moment, her heart was filled with guilt and fear, her voice trembling.

Everyone was beside themselves with worry, convinced Guo Zhenhu’s chances of survival were slim—after all, the cliff was high and sheer, and falling meant near-certain death.

Just as despair settled over them, a familiar voice called up from below: “You lot, hurry up and throw down the rope!”

Surprised and relieved, everyone looked toward the voice to see Guo Zhenhu in military uniform, gripping a withered branch of a cliff juniper with one hand, while his other hand firmly held a long pipe deeply wedged into the cliff face.

The small but agile rat-like figure of Deng Da swiftly tossed down a climbing rope.

Guo Zhenhu, once a special forces soldier, used his years of training and nimbleness to leap with the rope, landing securely atop the cliff wall.

The crowd burst into cheers. “Pipe Guo” — a nickname that now rang louder than ever — had survived against all odds, a miracle in such dire straits.

As soon as Guo Zhenhu climbed up, Bao Xiaotong, like a frightened fawn finding refuge, ran up hurriedly and embraced him tightly. “Second senior brother...” Her voice choked with emotion, tears welling in her eyes.

This sudden intimacy left Guo Zhenhu both joyful and somewhat flustered. His thoughts instantly drifted back to those days on Wudang Mountain, stirring a bittersweet feeling.

He was well aware that the junior sister’s gesture was merely gratitude; her true affection still belonged to the eldest senior brother He Yunfei. The embrace was but a momentary impulse.

He bent to look down the cliff again. The fallen vehicle still spewed thick smoke. Turning his gaze toward the damaged vehicle and the shaken women nearby, he was filled with anger. He slammed his gloves onto the ground fiercely, shouting, “These foreign toys really are useless!”

Everyone understood he was referring to Bao Xiaotong’s imported high-end off-road vehicle, originally thought to be superior, yet so fragile when it mattered most.

Seeing Guo Zhenhu safe, Monkey Meng Yang approached sheepishly, carefully brushing dust off his comrade’s clothes, wearing a broad smile as he tried to appease him, “Brother Hu, are you alright?”