Aoyama

At 9 PM, the elite troops of Tokyo arrived at the foot of Changbai Mountain.

A scout knelt on the snow, examining the tracks: "Sir, the Right Guard has gone to Black Wind Pass."

"Why are you heading straight for Black Wind Pass? Have you received some news?" Jiang Zhuang unfolded the map and, by the moonlight, discerned the information. "Lin Xu, lead your men to Black Wind Pass and secretly follow the Right Martial Guard. Once they find the successor of the Sword Seed, report back immediately."

A soldier accepted the order and left.

Jiang Zhuang looked at Chen Ji: "Have you rested enough? Call out Third Master Hu to settle this matter."

Chen Ji pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, "Not yet, it has to be after 5 a.m.

Jiang Zhuang sneered, "You'd better not be lying to me, or I'll make sure you die here."

After saying that, he looked at the map and instructed, "Zhao Ke, you lead men to Ladder River, Wang Xuchen, you lead men to Breathing Slope... Remember, you must find the successor of that sword technique before Yuan Heng Li Zhen. Once you find him, immediately fire the whistling arrow. Remember, even if you don't find him, you must return to report before Mao Shi (5-7 AM)."

Once the military order was issued, soldiers went to carry it out.

Of the eight hundred armored soldiers Jiang Zhuang brought, only one hundred remained at the foot of the mountain, silently awaiting the whistling arrows. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was watching, Chen Ji quietly released dark clouds into the forest, disappearing without a trace.

Old Ears found a spot in the snow to sit down, then pulled out a cornbread from his clothes and started eating it. Chen Ji sat down next to him and said, "Let's talk about Lu Jin."

Old Ear glanced at him sideways: "Why are you talking about Lu Jin?"

Chen Ji said nonchalantly, "I've heard a lot about this person; I'm curious."

Old Ears chuckled: "According to the rules, one secret is exchanged for one secret. If you talk to this person, I'll give you three secrets. Collect seven more and you can exchange them for the secret of the sword seed."

Chen Ji said thoughtfully, "Change it, but I want to hear something that others haven't heard before."

Old Ears pondered for a moment: "In the twenty-fifth year of Jia Ning, Yuan Cheng originally had a chance to break through Chongli Pass, but a guerrilla force of the Wansui Army bypassed Chongli Pass and burned the grain supplies, forcing them to retreat. At first, everyone thought that the Wansui Army was powerful and had won the gamble, but in recent years, some people have dug up old accounts and suspected that Yuan Xiang was afraid that Yuan Cheng's achievements were too high and overshadowed his own, so he deliberately let Lu Jin give the Wansui Army a weakness."

Chen Ji shook his head: "That doesn't count. I want to hear about his private matters."

Old Ears shook his head: "Lu Jin is a man of few desires and no humanity. He only wants to unify the two dynasties. He is an extremely boring person. There is nothing to say about his private affairs."

Chen Ji pulled a cornbread from his clothes and started eating it: "Then I won't listen."

Old Ear nudged Chen Ji with his elbow: "Then are you going to listen to what Princess Li Yang is saying? I know you have some connection with her."

Chen Ji shook his head: "I won't listen."

Old Ears said with great interest, "Back then, you used the sword seed to cleave Yuan Heng Li Zhen's mask at Chongli Pass, which caused the Jing Dynasty's troops to go crazy searching for you. Princess Li Yang was also at Chongli Pass at that time, right? She was by your side, so she must have known the inside story. But after she returned to the Jing Dynasty, countless people tested her to see if she knew the identity of the sword seed's successor, and she said she didn't know."

Old Ears seemed to have discovered something interesting, clicking his tongue in amazement, "This Princess Liyang is quite an ambitious woman, determined to help her brother seize the throne, and she'll stop at nothing to achieve it. Now that she's back in the Jing Dynasty, completely isolated and helpless, she hasn't even betrayed you to gain the support of the Martial Temple?"

Chen Ji seemed to be deep in thought.

Old Ears nudged Chen Ji with his elbow: "Tell me why Princess Liyang didn't betray you, and I'll exchange a secret with you, how about it?"

Chen Ji leaned against the tree, closed his eyes, and fell asleep fully clothed, no longer paying attention to Old Ears.

……

……

By dawn, the elite troops of Tokyo had reported back one by one that they had not found any trace of the sword-wielding successor in the mountains.

Jiang Zhuang walked up to Chen Ji with a stern face and kicked him: "Wake up."

Chen Ji slowly opened his eyes, still sleepy, and asked, "What?"

Jiang Zhuang pointed to the mountain: "It's dawn. Please invite Grandpa Hu San out. I want to ask him where the successor of the sword lineage is."

Chen Ji looked around: "Wait a little longer."

Jiang Zhuang frowned: "What are you waiting for? I have been waiting for you politely all night. Are you perhaps holding a grudge and deliberately delaying?"

Old Ear nudged Chen Ji: "Hurry up, don't keep the general waiting."

Chen Ji looked at Old Ear speechlessly: "..."

Just then, a cat's meow came from the forest.

Chen Ji's eyes flickered, and he immediately stood up, holding the King Wen Drum and the King Wu Whip. He closed his eyes, shook his head, and began to beat them: "The sun sets in the west, and darkness falls..."

After a few moments of knocking, Chen Ji suddenly opened his eyes, pointed east with the Martial King Whip, and said hoarsely, "There!" Jiang Zhuang immediately perked up and mustered his men to set off eastward: "Quickly, go into the mountains to find them!"

Eight hundred armored soldiers surged eastward. Old Ears looked at the drum and whip in Chen Ji's hand and chuckled, teasing, "This Tokyo Road is quite something. No matter who comes, they have to step in. And I must say, your appearance is quite convincing. Did you really manage to get Hu Laosan to come?"

The next moment, Chen Ji suddenly closed his eyes and began to shake his head and tap: "The sun sets in the west and darkness falls, every household closes its doors..."

Old Ears stared in disbelief: "What's wrong with you?"

Chen Ji said in a hoarse voice, "What does Third Master Hu want with me here?"

Chen Ji asked in his own voice, "May I ask, Grandpa Hu, who exactly is Old Ears?"

Old Ears raised his eyebrows.

Chen Ji, his voice hoarse, asked and answered himself: "This man is an old scoundrel, shameless, opportunistic, opportunistic, cunning as a devil, and never tells the truth. He is a shameless villain."

Chen Ji's expression returned to normal, and he said sincerely, "Okay, thank you, Third Master Hu."

Old Ears, standing to the side, asked in surprise and doubt: "Did you just curse at me, kid?"

Chen Ji walked eastward expressionlessly: "It wasn't me who cursed, it was Third Master Hu who cursed."

The old man held his tongue for a long time, but couldn't utter a word.

The elite troops of Tokyo did not take the main road, but instead split into groups of ten and dispersed into the mountains, searching eastward. However, they searched from dawn until noon without finding a trace of anyone.

However, just as they were about to cross the mountain, a scout ahead suddenly blew a copper whistle. Jiang Zhuang's expression changed, and he immediately led his men to meet the scout.

Upon approaching, they saw two groups of people meet halfway up the mountain, facing each other from a distance of thirty paces.

The person coming up the mountain was none other than Yuan Hengli Zhen, who was leading five hundred Mo Dao soldiers in a search. His face was covered by a mask, and he held a seven-foot-long Mo Dao in his hand, looking down at the elite troops of Tokyo Road below the hillside.

Jiang Zhuang gripped the hilt of his sword and led a group of elite soldiers from Tokyo to confront him.

Old Ears glanced at Chen Ji silently, only to see Chen Ji's gaze passing over everyone and fixed on Yuan Henglizhen at the front. He lowered his voice and said, "Why did you bring the Tokyo Road here? Now is not the time to avenge the Imperial Guards."

Chen Ji said calmly, "If you put it off until tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow, you'll forget about the grudge. When you remember it, you'll comfort yourself by saying you just didn't have the right opportunity."

Old Ear looked at Chen Ji's profile and said, "They're all dead. Revenge won't bring them back to life. Yuan Heng Li Zhen has five hundred Mo Dao soldiers by his side. You haven't reached the Seeking Dao Realm yet. It's not too late to take revenge when you reach the Seeking Dao Realm."

Chen Ji remained calm: "This is a rare opportunity, let's collect some interest first."

Old Ears sighed, "You think you can reap the benefits without lifting a finger? Don't even think about it. Although these two sides are at odds, they are both Jing Dynasty forces. Neither of them will make the first move and leave any evidence against the other."

At this moment, Yuan Henglizhen on the hillside slowly spoke: "What are you doing here in Tokyo? Get out of Changbai Mountain immediately. This is not a place for you."

Jiang Zhuang sneered: "You're allowed to come, but we're not?"

Yuan Heng Lizhen said calmly, "Be careful not to lose your life."

“Give it a try,” Jiang Zhuang raised his left hand, and the elite soldiers behind him pulled back their bows.

At this tense moment, only the howling mountain wind could be heard in the forest, its eerie whistling echoing through the pine trees.

Jiang Zhuang slowly drew his sword, but before he could even unsheathe it, he heard creaking footsteps coming from the east.

The Mo Dao Battalion on the hillside and the elite troops of Tokyo Road below the hillside all turned to look.

A man's voice came from afar: "Master, let's sit down and rest for a while. We really can't walk anymore."

An old voice hissed, "What rest? Is this Changbai Mountain a place for us to stay? If you want to die, then stay here."

Old Ears slowly opened his mouth wide: "Old Fragrant Root?"

As they spoke, the group slowly made their way through the woods. When they saw the Mo Dao Camp and the elite troops of Tokyo Road, the old man at the front was suddenly startled.

Jiang Zhuang sized up the old man: "White hair, gray clothes... kidnapping people!"

The elite troops of Tokyo Road sprang into action, charging straight towards Lao Xianggen. Seeing them move, the Mo Dao Battalion also followed suit, charging towards Lao Xianggen.

When Old Ears turned to look at Chen Ji again, he found Chen Ji crouching low and sneaking towards the back of the Mo Dao Camp. (End of Chapter)