The Legend of the Condor Heroes Episode 41 Recap
> The Legend of the Condor Heroes Recap
After Guo Jing and Huang Rong found Yi Deng, who was the former Emperor Duan, Yi Deng selflessly used his formidable martial arts to heal Huang Rong, sacrificing his internal energy and turning his hair white. Guo Jing was appalled by Ying Gu's ruthless scheme, using Buddhist tales with ill intent and attempting to frame Huang Rong. Yi Deng, however, did not blame Ying Gu, stating that the "root cause is actually me."
Huang Rong then inquired about the long-standing animosity between them. Yi Deng began his tale, explaining that it all started many years ago at the Sword Meet on Mount Hua. Taoist Wang of the Quanzhen Sect, concerned about Ouyang Feng's potential to seize the Nine Yin Manual after his own impending death, traveled to Dali with his junior brother, Zhou Botong.
While Emperor Duan (Yi Deng) and Taoist Wang secluded themselves to exchange the Divine Finger and Xiantian Skill, Zhou Botong, an artless young man who didn't keep his distance from women, wandered the palace and inadvertently caused trouble. He befriended Noble Consort Liu (Ying Gu) and, out of good intention, began teaching her acupoint striking techniques.
Yi Deng explained that this martial art, with the exception of family members or spouses, is traditionally never taught between opposite genders due to the necessity of touching all acupoints on the body for proper instruction. Huang Rong interjected, noting that "Old Urchin is always horsing around regardless of severity." She then revealed that Zhou Botong had been trapped by her father on Peach Blossom Island for fifteen years but had recently escaped and even become Guo Jing's sworn brother.
As Yi Deng continued his story, Huang Rong, seeing his exhausted state from healing her, offered him some Nine Flowers Dew Pills. Yi Deng recalled that at the Sword Meet on Mount Hua, Huang Yaoshi had shared the elixir with the fighters when they were drained, and "it worked like a miracle." However, after taking the pill, Yi Deng suddenly coughed up blood. His disciples, witnessing this, immediately suspected Guo Jing and Huang Rong of poisoning their master.
Yi Deng assured them that the poison "only disables my self-healing ability temporarily. It can’t harm my body." Huang Rong then realized that Ying Gu had tampered with the pills, remembering how Ying Gu had handled the bottle and warned her not to take them. She deduced that Ying Gu did not want her to take the poison and discover the truth, thus foiling her plan to harm Yi Deng.
Yi Deng sighed, attributing the events to "bad karma," and described Ying as a "pitiful woman" seeking to "put an end to the vicious cycle." Yi Deng resumed his narrative, confirming that Ying was indeed Noble Consort Liu. After Zhou Botong and Noble Consort Liu became intimate, Zhou Botong, upon learning her true identity, confessed everything to Taoist Wang.
Taoist Wang, taking responsibility, brought Zhou Botong tied up to Emperor Duan, allowing the Emperor to punish him as he saw fit. Emperor Duan, however, chose to "let the matter rest" and even "blessed [their] marriage," stating that "martial artists should put the chivalric code before lust" and he wouldn't let a woman damage their friendship.
To Noble Consort Liu's dismay, Zhou Botong refused the offer, asserting that "real men don’t steal other people’s joy" and returned the mandarin duck embroidered handkerchief she had made for him, then left. Emperor Duan empathized with Noble Consort Liu, who was "first neglected by me. Then she was left behind by Zhou. It must hurt like being stabbed in the heart." Yi Deng explained that the pain she felt was not yet the worst.
After Zhou Botong's departure, Emperor Duan stopped formally seeing Noble Consort Liu but "still saw her in my dreams." One night, unable to control himself, he snuck to her bedchamber and heard a baby crying. He remained on the rooftop all night, understanding that the child was Zhou Botong's. Later, a masked man broke into her bedchamber, struck the baby, and fled. Noble Consort Liu, holding her wailing child, desperately sought Emperor Duan's help.
He examined the infant and found "all his meridians have been damaged." Saving the child would require him to "exhaust my energy," jeopardizing his chances at the next Sword Meet on Mount Hua and the Nine Yin Manual. He hesitated, but her persistent pleas swayed him, and he reluctantly agreed, believing "nothing is more important than saving lives." However, when he uncovered the baby's chest, he saw the mandarin duck embroidered handkerchief.
His compassion vanished, and he angrily confronted her, asking, "You gave birth to your lover’s child. Now you even want me to exhaust my energy to save him?" He then struck her acupoint, paralyzing her as she watched her child suffer, her hair turning white from grief. After he released her, Noble Consort Liu, to end the child's agonizing cries, took a dagger and killed her own baby.
As she left, she vowed that "one day I will stab you in the chest with this dagger!" Following this tragic event, Emperor Duan fasted for three days and nights, achieving enlightenment. He abdicated his throne to his eldest son and became a Buddhist monk, with his loyal disciples, the Fisherman, Woodcutter, Farmer, and Scholar, joining him in seclusion.
Yi Deng lamented that his "hardened heart" prevented him from saving the child, and that he seeks peace by saving lives, but truly believes only "repaying him with my own life" can end his bad karma. Huang Rong expressed her continued belief that Yi Deng wasn't entirely to blame. Yi Deng then revealed that after leaving the palace, Ying Gu traveled widely, seeking martial artists to learn skills for her revenge.
He deduced that the painting in her brocade pouch was created by Ouyang Feng, who likely knew the Buddhist story. Yi Deng concluded, "Ouyang Feng used Ying. Ying used me. It was a set of vicious plans to kill with a borrowed knife." He speculated that Ouyang Feng had planned this for over a decade, waiting for an opportunity, which presented itself when Huang Rong, injured by Qiu Qianren, needed Yi Deng's help, thereby consuming his energy.
Huang Rong wondered why Ying Gu hadn't used a deadly poison if her hatred was so deep. Yi Deng explained that "she must vent her hatred with her own hands." Guo Jing and Huang Rong offered to go down the mountain to intercept Ying Gu.
Yi Deng, acknowledging his deep debt to Ying Gu, asked them to help her if she ever encountered danger and, crucially, to "tie the knot between her and Zhou," for which he would be "deeply grateful." Earlier, a package containing a mandarin duck embroidered handkerchief was delivered from the foot of the mountain. Upon seeing it, Yi Deng knew Ying Gu had arrived.
Recognizing that the confrontation was imminent, Yi Deng asked everyone to leave so he could face Ying Gu alone. Unbeknownst to him, Guo Jing quickly struck his acupoint, immobilizing him. Ying Gu soon arrived on the mountain. Huang Rong tried to calm her, revealing that her father had set Zhou Botong free. Ying Gu was pleased to hear this but affirmed, "I just want to avenge my child today." She ignored Huang Rong's pleas, and a fight ensued.
Guo Jing, protecting the recovering Huang Rong, was distracted and quickly incapacitated by Ying Gu's acupoint strike. Her four disciples were no match for her. Ying Gu then reached the immobilized Yi Deng, who had been struck by Guo Jing earlier. She declared, "This day has finally come!" and stabbed him with the dagger. Believing her revenge complete, she laughed triumphantly.
However, a moment later, she questioned if she truly had her revenge, realizing that "the real killer wasn’t Duan Zhixing, but the masked man." At that moment, the real Yi Deng descended from behind, while the 'Yi Deng' she had stabbed was revealed to be Guo Jing, who had broken free from his acupoint blockade and courageously impersonated Yi Deng. Yi Deng calmly offered the dagger to Ying Gu, accepting his fate and telling her to stab him.
She raised the dagger high but, in the end, could not bring herself to strike. Ying Gu then fled, crying hysterically, lamenting that she couldn't avenge her child. The following day, Yi Deng was seen healing one of his disciples, who had been affected by the poison. Guo Jing apologized for his deception, but Yi Deng readily forgave him, acknowledging that he "risked your life to save me."
Huang Rong noticed a book in Yi Deng's hand written in an unfamiliar script. Yi Deng explained it was Sanskrit, a language he learned when a monk from India taught him detoxification from a Sanskrit text. Huang Rong then had an epiphany: the last chapter of the Nine Yin Manual, which Zhou Botong had made her memorize, was also written in Sanskrit. Yi Deng, surprised by the coincidence, offered to translate it for her.
