Or, Lotus Has an Adventure The action this week picks up right in the midst of all the chaos, with Count Seven and Viper Ouyang still battling as the ship burns down around them. Count Seven is pressing his slight advantage, and Viper decides to unveil his Sacred Snake Fist kung fu, something he had … Continue reading A Snake Lies Waiting – Read-along, Chapter 2

Or, Guo Jing and Count Seven’s Adventure on the High Seas The next volume in the Condor Heroes series starts off with a bang, literally throwing our plucky hero into the deep end. Guo Jing, Zhou Botong, and Count Seven discover what the mute crew has been trying to tell them. Lord Huang’s magnificent ship … Continue reading A Snake Lies Waiting – Read-along, Chapter 1

Or, Guo Jing Comes Over for Dinner Things are really building to a head now, as all interested parties converge on Peach Blossom Island for Lotus’ hand in marriage. Who will be her lucky guy? When we last left Guo Jing he was following a herd of snakes across the island. He finds Apothecary Huang … Continue reading A Bond Undone – Read-along, Chapter 9

or, Secrets are Revealed and No One Is Happy The conclusion of book two is upon us! Will Guo Jing and Lotus find happiness? Will they at least manage to not get beat up/killed by the feuding masters? Will anybody get off Lord Huang’s island?  Lotus and Guo Jing, our intrepid, and at times, stupid, … Continue reading A Bond Undone – Read-along, Chapter 10

Or, Guo Jing Levels Up Our intrepid couple, Lotus and Guo Jing, continue on their collision course with Lotus’ father, the fearsome Apothecary Huang, Lord of Peach Blossom Island. Trapped on Peach Blossom Island with Zhou Botong, Guo Jing helps his martial brother develop an entirely new style of kung fu! Zhou Botong, the Hoary … Continue reading A Bond Undone – Read-along, Chapter 8

Or, Guo Jing Gets Lost Guo Jing and Lotus make their way to Peach Blossom Island and we learn the provenance of the Nine Yin Manual that everyone is so hot to get their hands on. Spoilers ahead! Peach Blossom Island is actually a real place! See the end of the post for details. After … Continue reading A Bond Undone – Read-along, Chapter 7

Or, Gallant Ouyang Makes His Case to be the Biggest Jerk in the Story (spoilers ahead) Gallant Ouyang - Jerk Extraordinaire After Apothecary Huang and Lotus leave, the shattered remains of Zephyr Lu’s garden party are left to pick up the pieces. People are dug out from under the wreckage and dusted off. One of … Continue reading A Bond Undone – Read-along, Chapter 6

Once again, everyone ends up in the same room, and this chapter revolves around each group’s conflicting loyalties and goals. It’s at times confusing, but it is nice to see things happening, and the increased focus on Guo Jing and (I guess) Lotus helps keep the story grounded. Spoilers ahead! The Eastern Heretic, Apothecary Huang … Continue reading A Bond Undone – Read-along, Chapter 5

Or, Lotus and Guo Jing’s Lake Vacation. Spoilers ahead! Lake Tai - details on the real world lake at the end of this post! Satisfied with their matchmaking, Lotus and Guo Jing continue their travels, ending up at Lake Tai. (See the end for some interesting notes on Lake Tai.) They take a boat out … Continue reading A Bond Undone – Read-along, Chapter 4

In chapter three we see Guo Jing and Lotus advance their skills quite a bit due to the introduction of the Northern Beggar Count Seven Hong. Spoilers coming! The Northern Beggar Count Seven Hong, the Divine Vagrant Nine Fingers, Chief of the Beggar Clan So, this is the beginning of the chapter that I felt … Continue reading A Bond Undone – Read-along, Chapter 3