From a slave to the Great Qian Martial Saint

It was already evening when they returned to the Yongqiu Mountain military camp. Chen Shi asked the guards in front of the main tent, but Gu Tingshu did not look for him.

They must be focused on searching for the Qilin and have no time to care about anything else.

In fact, Gu Tingshu has been at Yongqiu Mountain for several days now, mobilizing a large force to conduct a large-scale search across the entire mountain, but so far, there is still no trace of the Qilin.

However, this was none of Chen Shi's business, and he didn't care.

Back at his lodgings, he took a breather and pulled out the old map from his pocket.

It was carefully unfolded on the table and examined closely by the candlelight.

"This is……"

It wasn't as complicated as he had imagined; Chen Shi quickly discovered the suspicious points.

A forest

Yongqiu Mountain is covered with lush forests, with groves of trees of all sizes scattered everywhere. But this particular grove is different, not because of the trees themselves, but because of its shape, which resembles a giant, outstretched dragon!

To others, it would surely seem like a mere coincidence. Nature's creations are wondrous; there's nothing strange about them. They would simply laugh it off and not care.

But Chen Shi knew that a dragon was imprisoned in Yongqiu Mountain, and that the array plate was also hidden somewhere in the mountain.

In this way, the dragon-shaped forest becomes too conspicuous.

Immediately afterwards, Chen Shi took out the previous map to compare it with the map.

"really."

If he remembered correctly, neither the latest version nor the old version from forty or fifty years ago had this forest.

It must have been for some reason, perhaps a natural disaster or a man-made one, that this forest was destroyed fifty years ago. Life is unpredictable, especially in this world where martial arts flourish; even mountains can be destroyed, let alone a forest.

"Definitely!"

Looking at the three words "Flying Dragon Forest" marked on this forest, Chen Shi became even more certain.

If one cannot break free from the lock, how can one soar like a dragon in the sky?

This grove of trees may very well hold the key to finding the array diagram.

Or perhaps this grove of trees is where the array diagrams were stored.

I cannot see the true face of Yongqiu, simply because I am in the mountain itself.

The clues provided by the two lines of poetry mean that the battle formation diagram is hidden in Yongqiu Mountain.

"In that case..."

Forcibly suppressing his excitement, Chen Shi focused his gaze once again on the grove of trees.

Although this forest isn't very large, it's not small either, so finding a map wouldn't be easy.

Moreover, the forest has been destroyed, and no trace of its original state can be found.

"here!"

Chen Shi stared for a long time, his pupils slightly contracted, and he pointed to a spot with his index finger.

It is precisely below the chin of the dragon formed by the forest.

A pearl worth a thousand pieces of gold must be found in the deepest abyss, beneath the chin of a black dragon.

Ancient texts have long stated that the dragon pearl is hidden below the chin and above the neck of a real dragon.

If this forest is a giant dragon, then the array diagram is the most precious dragon pearl, so the storage location is under the chin!

Having figured all this out, Chen Shi took a deep breath. His gaze darkened.

It's just speculation at the moment; we'll have to investigate further to find out for sure.

After putting away all the maps, Chen Shi sat cross-legged on the bed and began circulating the Changchun Gong once again.

As the saying goes, sharpening your axe won't delay your woodcutting.

Yongqiu Mountain is not what it used to be; various forces have converged, and it's almost in complete chaos. Even if Chen Shi wants to find the array diagram, he needs to heal his injuries first.

Otherwise, if they encounter an enemy, they will suffer losses themselves.

Chen Shi then focused on recovering from his injuries, and three more days passed in the blink of an eye.

With the combination of the Withered Wood Divine Body and the Everlasting Spring Technique, along with various healing pills, his injuries had healed by 90%.

Chen Shi tried to move around a bit and nodded in agreement. He felt that even if he were to fight someone, it wouldn't be a big problem.

After having breakfast early in the morning and packing his things, Chen Shi left the military camp and headed straight for Yongqiu Mountain.

Unlike previous searches, this time they didn't bring any subordinates; they were there to retrieve the array diagram. This meant they didn't need as many people, provided, of course, that the diagram was actually there.

Furthermore, Chen Shi's remaining men, after recovering from their injuries, have all been conscripted by Gu Tingshu and are now searching for the Qilin in Yongqiu Mountain.

Being alone was actually more convenient for Chen Shi. He fully utilized his movement techniques, using the "Leaving the String Step" to travel in flat areas and the "Soaring Through the Void" technique in complex terrain, making his movement extremely fast.

Feilong Forest is not located at the deepest part of Yongqiu Mountain. By noon, they had already completed half of their journey. At this pace, they should be able to reach it within a day.

Whoosh! Boom!

Chen Shi was rushing on his way when suddenly a sharp whistling sound pierced the air, followed by a thunderous roar.

Looking in the direction of the sound, one could see a thick cloud of smoke lingering high in the sky.

Signal cannon!

This is a signal cannon used by the garrison of Yongqiu Mountain to communicate with each other. All the personnel of the Jing'an Marquis's Mansion carried it with them during this search for the young Qilin, so that they could communicate and support each other.

At this point, someone sends out a signal, which means that trouble has arisen.

Chen Shi estimated that it was only two or three miles away from him.

After a moment's hesitation, he turned and left, continuing his journey towards Flying Dragon Forest.

It's better to avoid trouble. Chen Shi's top priority right now is to find the array diagram, as it concerns his and Gu Hanying's lives, and he absolutely cannot afford to cause any unforeseen complications.

As for the lives of others, that's a matter of fate. If you're going to be in this world, you have to be prepared to get hurt at any time.

"Run!"

Unfortunately, things don't always go as planned; sometimes, things just happen by sheer coincidence.

I hadn't gone far when I saw several figures running towards me in a panic.

"It's Steward Chen."

"The adults have come to save us."

Those people also saw Chen Shi, and their faces immediately lit up with excitement.

Chen Shi glanced at the group of people, sighed helplessly, and stopped.

He could pretend he didn't see the signal cannon, but now that everyone had arrived, it wouldn't be right to leave someone to die.

Besides, Zhang Sandao was among them; after all, Zhang Sandao was one of his men.

"What happened?"

When the group arrived, Chen Shi asked them a question.

"We've met our match."

Zhang Sandao took a breath and said with lingering fear.

"There were ten of us in the team. The rest of us were killed, and only the four of us escaped."

"If we hadn't met Steward Chen, we probably wouldn't have been able to escape either."

"They've caught up."

As they were talking, several figures rushed towards them.

In order to reduce competitors, Gu Tingshu, while searching for the young Qilin, ordered the garrison of Yongqiu Mountain to strengthen patrols and eliminate other forces.

But how can such a large mountain be completely protected?

Furthermore, although Yongqiu Mountain is the home ground of the Marquis of Jing'an, the strength of other forces should not be underestimated.

For example, the Marquis of Dingyuan's residence also lived in Yongqiu City, and the Yongqiu area was also their home ground.

For example, the Fufeng Society is known for being ubiquitous, with its members and henchmen found everywhere.

"Does Fufeng know how?"

When the group arrived, Chen Shi glanced at them, his gaze low and somber.

Although they weren't wearing masks with the Fufeng Association's emblem, these people either covered their faces with black cloths or wore ordinary masks, not daring to show their true faces, which was typical of the Fufeng Association.

"snort."

There were five people in total, and their strength was not bad.

He let out a cold snort. He had been injured by Feng Ji before, and the Fufeng Society took the opportunity to attack, killing many of his people. This time, he would return the favor!