Aoyama

Chapter 404 Overlord
The remains were only five zhang away from the mountaintop.

He ran wildly towards the mountaintop, the centurion's oppressive presence making him dare not look back even for a moment.

Dozens of Wuchang soldiers pursued him, and the leaping fires in the mountains seemed to form a sea, threatening to burn him to ashes.

Chen Ji could hear his own heavy breathing, his heart pounding like thunder, and the mountain wind whistling in his ears.

The next moment, everything in front of me became clear.

The distant mountains and the sky are all visible at a glance.

For mountaineers, the moment of reaching the summit is an unparalleled sense of accomplishment, conquest, and joy.

But Chen Ji felt no joy.

He looked around blankly. The top of Incense Burner Peak, which was several tens of feet square, was flat. The top of the peak was covered with huge stones, like the foundation stones of a palace. He wondered who had the strength to transport the stones up there.

Perhaps he's a god from mythology who moves mountains? It doesn't matter anymore.

Importantly, there are no stone turtles or stone tablets here; it's bare and empty.

Where the mountains are ablaze with red leaves, a stone turtle swallows a sword... But there is no stone turtle here!
Chen Ji wondered if he had come to the wrong place. Could it be that the red leaves covering the mountains did not refer to Fragrant Hills, but rather to the foothills? Or perhaps the red leaves of Jizhou?

You made the wrong bet...

Chen Ji stood in the mountain wind, wondering if Miss Zhang had escaped her predicament, and whether there were any other people trying to ambush her on the way. He also wondered if Xiao Man and the little monk had managed to escape danger.

While he was pondering, the Five Witches' army had already climbed up from all directions and surrounded the mountaintop.

The centurion, wielding a long sword, guarded the south, while two Soul Collectors, holding white bone banners, guarded the northeast and northwest. The three formed a triangle, firmly locking down the traces of the past.

Chen Ji retreated step by step to the center, preparing to burn his markings in a desperate last stand... This was his last trump card.

But Chen Ji suddenly noticed that the Five Wraiths soldiers seemed to have restrained their murderous aura and seemed to have something to say but held back.

He urged two swordsmen to circle around him, warily surveying the Five Witches' army.

At this moment, the centurion snatched the bone spear from one of the altar-turning and temple-breaking men, tossed it to Chen Ji from a distance, and then said to another altar-turning and temple-breaking man, "Jiang Zi'an, go test him. If you beat him, you'll be the squad leader."

The bone spear was thrown from a distance.

Chen Ji raised his hand and caught the bone spear, puzzled.

A man who had been overturning altars and destroying temples walked up to Chen Ji with a bone spear in his hand, muttering, "What's the point of being a squad leader? Why don't you gamble on your centurion position?"

The Five Witches' soldiers laughed in unison: "You think you can be a centurion? You'll have to win first."

Jiang Zian spread his legs into a horse stance, and the moment he was in a stable stance, he gripped the spear with both hands and gave it a powerful shake, causing the spear tip to tremble incessantly.

Fake Step and Spear Strike.

Jiang Zian twisted the spear tip again, and it came to a complete stop. It only took half a breath to go from extreme motion to extreme stillness.

This is showing off skills.

A fire flickered in Jiang Zi'an's eyes as he asked Chen Ji, "How is it?"

Chen Ji stood leaning on his spear, breathing quietly, his gaze sweeping over Jiang Zi'an from head to toe.

A moon-shaped blade, a year-long staff, a gun for a lifetime.

To master the art of spearmanship is a lifelong endeavor; one can only truly be considered proficient when the spearhead becomes as sharp as a fingertip.

Even a random soldier like Jiang Zi'an, who wasn't even a squad leader, was already one of the best among the three imperial guards.

Chen Ji replied sincerely, "A master."

Jiang Zi'an became interested and said loudly to the Five Witches soldiers, "Did you hear that? He praised me as a master!"

The Five Witches' soldiers mocked, "We heard it, we heard it."

The next moment, Jiang Zi'an's spear shot out like a dragon, aiming straight for Chen Ji's throat.

The essence of a spear thrust lies in its straightness, with the center line as its core, breaking through all techniques with a single point.

Chen Ji raised his spear with one hand and deflected the bone spear thrusting at him.

Jiang Zian immediately flicked his wrist, trying to create a spear flower to bypass the block, but Chen Ji's bone spear followed closely, as if it were glued to Jiang Zian's bone spear.

No matter how hard Jiang Zi'an tried, he could never break free from the bone spear in Chen Ji's hand.

Suddenly, Chen Ji flicked his wrist, and the force of the bone spear in his hand was transferred to Jiang Zi'an's hand. Jiang Zi'an felt that the bone spear, which was usually obedient, suddenly became disobedient.

He tried to withdraw his spear and retreat, but Chen Ji's spear was about to strike him directly under the armpit.

Jiang Zian was startled, as if he himself had hooked Chen Ji's bone spear over.

The centurion whispered from outside the circle, "The unity of man and gun, striking the acupoints with the flow of energy, is called 'listening to the energy'."

As soon as the words "listen to the force" were uttered, the Five Witches' soldiers all became solemn, stood up straight, stopped joking, and the wildfire in their eyes stopped burning. Instead, they firmly locked onto Chen Ji's every move, memorizing it one by one.

The centurion warned in a deep voice, "All four points must be aligned!"

The so-called "four points in harmony" means that the toes, knees, nose, and spear tip are in perfect unison, with the waist as the axis. The thrust is like a drawn bow, and the retraction is like drawing silk. This is the purest method of generating power.

Jiang Zian leaped from beneath the white bone mask, his strength rising from the ground and penetrating the tip of his spear, forcefully shaking off Chen Ji's spear.

But just as he pulled away Chen Ji's bone spear, he saw Chen Ji suddenly imitate him, twirling his spear in a flourish.

Chen Ji's spear flourishes are more rounded and powerful than Jiang Zi'an's, and the spinning spear tip makes the air buzz.

Jiang Zian hurriedly held his spear in front of him, but Chen Ji's spear flashed, deflecting the spear in his hand and aiming straight for his wrist. Jiang Zian tried to forcefully pull the bone spear back to block, but the tip of Chen Ji's spear was already stopped at his chin.

The centurion calmly said, "Smooth and rounded movements, drawing arcs to deflect force, are 'a needle hidden in a circle'."

Chen Ji pressed his spear against Jiang Zi'an's chin and slowly looked around. All around was deathly silent; all the Five Witches soldiers stood ramrod straight, their gazes fixed on him, burning with intense intensity.

He slowly withdrew his bone spear, sparing Jiang Zi'an's life. Jiang Zi'an silently retreated back into the Five Witches' army. No one mocked him; it seemed that losing to Chen Ji was nothing unusual, and it would have been the same no matter who was in his place.

……

……

The centurion suddenly asked Chen Ji, "What is the essence of the broadsword?"

Chen Ji casually replied, "Wild."

The centurion was taken aback: "Wild?"

Chen Ji stood leaning on his spear and casually explained, "Danger is hidden in clumsiness, and ambush is found in defeat. One must charge forward and move with the blade following the man. If spearmanship emphasizes distance control, then the broadsword technique emphasizes breaking through distance. Without being wild, one cannot break through."

The centurion was silent for a moment, then took a broadsword from one of the Five Witches soldiers and tossed it to Chen Ji from a distance: "Jiang Ziheng, you come here."

Chen Ji tossed the bone spear back to Fan Tan Fa Miao and weighed the broadsword in his hand: "Here."

A warrior, having undergone surgery and broken his blood, led his troops out from the crowd.

Unlike Jiang Zi'an, Jiang Ziheng didn't start with a fancy move; instead, he immediately attacked with a swift, swift blade.

This time, however, Chen Ji only took a small step forward, as if he had rushed into Jiang Ziheng's arms, and with his broadsword, he slashed down and cut a two-foot-long gash in Jiang Ziheng's chest.

Jiang Ziheng silently stepped back: "Jiang Ziyan, you go."

Another soldier, who had just been wielding a blood-breaking sword, stepped forward and swung his blade. Chen Ji casually met the sword with his own, and the two bone swords collided cleanly. With a clang, the broadsword in Jiang Ziyan's hand snapped in two.

The centurion was astonished: "Inlaid gold!"

Jiang Ziyan stared blankly at the broken knife in his hand, muttering, "It's inlaid with gold."

One of the Soul Collectors stepped forward, carrying the severed head: "I'll do it..."

The centurion looked up at the sky: "Time is running out, I'll take over."

The Soul-Summoning and Imprisoning Technique was left with no choice but to retreat dejectedly.

The centurion walked up to Chen Ji with a long sword in his hand and handed it to Chen Ji, saying, "You use the long sword, I'll use the broadsword. You don't need the gold-inlaid sword, and I don't need the sword aura."

Chen Ji looked down at the long sword in his hand, surprised that the centurion had given him his weapon.

He frowned slightly, then looked up and stared directly at the centurion's bone mask and the fire in his eyes.

This was the first time Chen Ji had examined the other party so closely and seriously, and it was also the first time he had discovered that the white bone mask had patterns: the other party's left cheek was engraved with the fishbone-shaped comet tail banner in the hand of the Soul-Gathering and Immobilizing Banner.

Chen Ji gripped his longsword and handed the broadsword to the centurion: "What's this for?"

The centurion, seemingly unrelated to the question, asked, "May I ask, what is the essence of the longsword?"

Chen Ji said sincerely, "Wei."

The centurion muttered to himself, "Power..."

Chen Ji dragged his longsword and took a step back: "Its momentum is like thunder, like a blue dragon stirring the sea. The longsword is all about the domineering power to cut through a thousand armies, and it commands respect without anger."

He looked around at the Five Witches soldiers on the mountaintop again. They stood solemnly, looking like a group of students, listening attentively.

Chen Ji was somewhat dazed.

The centurion drew his broadsword: "Come."

In an instant, Chen Ji swept his longsword across the sea, the blade crashing down like Mount Tai.

This time, Chen Ji even explained as he swung his sword: "The sword strikes like the sky is falling, and the wind pressure cracks the armor even before the blade arrives."

The centurion easily parried the long sword with his broadsword, but Chen Ji and the Five Witches soldiers paid no attention.

One is at the Seeking Dao Realm, and the other is at the Innate Realm. Chen Ji's attempt to injure the other was simply wishful thinking. He was demonstrating "skill," not "strength."

Chen Ji twisted his body and swung his sword horizontally: "Sweeping through a thousand troops, severing horse legs, breaking through formations like tearing silk."

The centurion leaped lightly, dodging the blow.

Chen Ji swung his longsword, which was cutting through the air, from in front of him to behind him, spinning it continuously. As the longsword spun, it danced like a rotating crescent moon, twisting towards the centurion: "Use the handle as the pivot, and follow the momentum."

The centurion remained unfazed in the face of the winch-like longsword. Suddenly, Chen Ji leaped up, swung the longsword over his head, and brought it down with great force.

The long sword roared in the air, like a tiger howling in the mountains.

The centurion's expression changed, and he quickly retreated.

He should have been able to withstand that blow, but when the tiger's roar sounded, he dared not gamble.

The centurion murmured, "This is 'power'."

But just as Chen Ji leaped into the air, he looked up at the distant mountains and was suddenly startled.

and many more.

As Chen Ji looked around in the gradually brightening light, he felt that there was something strange about the distant mountains.

A stone turtle?

Stone turtle!

The ancients often said that the stone tortoise was one of the nine sons of the dragon, Bixi, also known as Baxia.

Legend has it that Bixi often carried the Three Mountains and Five Peaks, stirring up storms in rivers, lakes, and seas. Later, when Yu the Great was controlling the floods, he subdued Bixi, moving mountains, digging ditches, and dredging waterways. After the floods subsided, Yu the Great worried that Bixi would run wild again, so he moved a towering stone tablet, inscribed with Bixi's achievements in controlling the floods, thus suppressing Bixi and preventing it from causing trouble again.

However, in Xuanyuan's era, while there might have been a Bixi, it wouldn't carry a stele. Therefore, Chen Ji misunderstood from the beginning; the stone tortoise Xuanyuan spoke of was definitely not the stone tortoise carrying a stele.

(End of this chapter)