Green Mountain

Outside the Vermilion Bird Gate, everything was ever-changing and deceptive. The two who fought life and death just ten breaths ago had already forgotten each other’s whereabouts and intentions.

Mrs. Lu and Lin Chaoqing lost their memories and could only act on instinct.

Over a dozen Imperial Guards, each carrying longbows, leapt from the watchtower, quickly running along the street rooftops, picking angles to shoot at the three hidden under the eaves.

The Imperial Guards first spotted Lin Chaoqing. As the feathered arrows whistled towards him, Lin Chaoqing flicked up a straw coat from the ground with his toe and spun it in his hand, so all the incoming arrows were caught within it.

The spinning straw coat was like a black hole, swallowing all the arrows, and then the arrows shot out from this black hole, killing most of the Imperial Guards on the roof ridge.

The faces of the Imperial Guards changed. They immediately shot arrows towards Mrs. Lu, but Mrs. Lu steadily caught them and threw them back in reverse.

Two Imperial Guards were hit in the throat by arrows and fell from the roof ridge, rolling a few times on the tiles before crashing heavily to the ground.

The Imperial Guards keeping watch from the distant watchtowers exchanged glances, their eyes inexplicable. Someone tentatively shot an arrow at Si Caogui, but Si Caogui easily dodged it.

The Imperial Guards’ pupils contracted... Three Seeking Dao Realm Officials? They shouted while hanging three lanterns, but even hanging three lanterns was not enough, and an Imperial Guard sounded the copper bell on the watchtower!

In Vermilion Bird Street, Si Caogui, Lin Chaoqing, and Mrs. Lu formed a triangle formation. Lin Chaoqing and Mrs. Lu slowly moved their steps under the eaves, instinctively distancing themselves from each other a little further.

The three heard the sound of armor and galloping horses growing nearer. Someone was shouting, "Surround the front, kill without exception!"

Si Caogui looked up anxiously, already seeing the light of torches flickering on the nearby street. He turned his head to look at Mrs. Lu, who was struggling to recall something, but her mind was still blank.

She recalled Si Caogui’s address, casually asking, "Ah Jie, where are we?"

Si Caogui was momentarily speechless, "We are in Shangjing."

Opposite, Lin Chaoqing, seeing Si Caogui answer Mrs. Lu, also probed Si Caogui, "Ah Jie, what are we doing here?"

Si Caogui: "..."

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t imagine that Mrs. Lu’s desperate strike would lead to this situation.

At this moment, Si Caogui had a thought and shouted to Lin Chaoqing, "Ah Brother, Ah Sister, what’s wrong with you both? The three of us siblings came to Shangjing to assassinate the Council Chief Executive Officer, how could you suddenly lose your memories? Quick, protect Ah Sister and leave, if you don’t leave now, it’ll be too late!"

With that, he gritted his teeth, stepped forward, and pulled Mrs. Lu’s wrist, running southwards.

Mrs. Lu initially wanted to struggle, but Si Caogui, without looking back, said softly, "Ah Sister, hurry and leave, you can’t die here."

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Lu was startled. Although she no longer recognized Si Caogui, she could discern the tone... he genuinely didn’t want her to die here.

The strength in her hands to resist suddenly diminished, allowing Si Caogui to pull her forward as they ran, "Ah Brother..."

Si Caogui smiled, "Ah Sister is calling me Ah Brother for the first time."

Mrs. Lu immediately fell silent, afraid of saying more and making more mistakes.

On the other side, Lin Chaoqing couldn’t discern whether Si Caogui’s words were true or false, but seeing the arrows stuck in the ground and the Imperial Guards nailed to death on the watchtower, he finally followed the two out, only fighting his way out.

The three broke through southward along Vermilion Bird Street. Si Caogui glanced at the watchtowers from time to time, only to see that the lanterns on the watchtowers always pointed in their direction.

At a crossroads, arrows shot at them head-on from the watchtower. Si Caogui immediately shielded Mrs. Lu, swatting away each arrow with his arm.

His arm was slashed by arrowheads, but after this block, the arrows only grazed his skin without reaching the bones. This Iron Body kung fu from Kujue Temple was such that even at the Ten Thousand Ghost Formation in Changping County, he could still escape unscathed.

Si Caogui turned left, not forgetting to call back to Lin Chaoqing, "Ah Brother, this way!"

Lin Chaoqing hesitated for a moment, initially wanting to part ways with the two, but ultimately followed once more.

He was much more ruthless than Si Caogui. As feathered arrows shot at him, he suddenly dodged forward, wielding the straw coat in his hand.

The dozen or more arrows, coming from somewhere and going somewhere, held down the nearby watchtowers, rendering them immobile, even piercing and snuffing out the lanterns on the watchtowers.

For a moment, with Lin Chaoqing at the forefront, he forced the Imperial Guards on the watchtowers along the road to dare not nock their arrows again.

The three of them bypassed the encircling Imperial Guard in Fengle Square, knowing full well there were too many Imperial Guards in Shangjing City, and with the watchtowers there, they could not escape whatsoever.

The sound of galloping hooves thundered ahead, as over ten Imperial Guards rode close.

Si Caogui released Mrs. Lu’s wrist and charged forward alone to meet the enemy.

He saw the approaching Imperial Guards raising long spears, mercilessly thrusting towards Si Caogui. Si Caogui shouted angrily, gripping the incoming spear tips with both hands, and with a strong shake, managed to pull the two Imperial Guards off their horses.

Lin Chaoqing also followed up, tossing a straw coat toward the leading man to block his vision. He lunged forward and delivered a punch, felling a warhorse with a thunderous crash.

In the chaos, Si Caogui grabbed the reins of a warhorse, stopping it beside him: "Ah Jie, get on the horse, I’ll protect you as we flee!"

Mrs. Lu mounted the horse, leaning over and extending her hand to Si Caogui: "Get on!"

Si Caogui looked up at Mrs. Lu, his expression faintly dazed for a moment, then smiling sincerely: "It would be great if you could remain forgetful, Ah Jie."

Mrs. Lu sensed something was amiss: "Aren’t you leaving?"

Si Caogui instructed on his own: "Ah Jie, don’t go to Lushun, head to Yingkou. Your son is waiting for you in Yingkou."

Mrs. Lu was puzzled: "Son..."

"Go quickly!" Si Caogui couldn’t afford to explain more to Mrs. Lu. He slapped the horse hard, and it charged off in a frenzy. As Mrs. Lu looked back from the uncontrollable horse, she saw Si Caogui waving at her and then turning to plunge into the battle.

Some Imperial Guards tried to pursue Mrs. Lu, but Si Caogui intercepted them all, standing guard like a towering iron statue.

Lin Chaoqing heard the sound of Mrs. Lu’s horse hooves fading away. He glanced at Si Caogui and then at the departing Mrs. Lu, immediately snatching a warhorse to escape, leaving Si Caogui behind.

On the long street in the dark night, he gripped the reins tightly, glancing back at Si Caogui behind him.

He saw several Imperial Guards trying to pursue him and Mrs. Lu, but Si Caogui blocked them one by one. An Imperial Guard urged his horse to leave from the side while Si Caogui was entangled, yet Si Caogui, disregarding his exposed back, pursued the flanking Imperial Guard.

An Imperial Guard Centurion stabbed at Si Caogui from behind with a spear. The sharp spearhead penetrated into his shoulder but was stopped after half an inch by his formidable iron body technique, unable to advance further.

Si Caogui, enduring the pain of the spear, reached the flank and leaped forward, punching the Imperial Guard’s helmet. With a crash, the helmet caved in with a bowl-sized dent, causing blood to flow from all the guard’s orifices. He had mashed the guard’s brain into paste through the helmet.

Lin Chaoqing watched this scene. He originally thought Si Caogui would seize a horse and catch up to flee together, but Si Caogui only shot him a glance and once again blocked the Imperial Guards’ path, leaving Lin Chaoqing with just a view of his back.

On Bluestone Long Street, amidst the white walls and black tiles, the man in grey cloth merely touched the blood on his shoulder without a change in expression.

The Imperial Guards, rather than continuing the pursuit, surrounded Si Caogui tightly: "They can’t escape. First, capture this one."

Si Caogui grinned: "Over a hundred spies from the Southern Dynasty’s Spy Department wanted to capture me but lost a dozen in the process! Come, try it, let me test your Central Forbidden Army skills!"

The Imperial Guards were momentarily confused: "Why does he sound like one of us?"

"Don’t let him confuse you! Kill him!"

At this moment, another group of Imperial Guards arrived, sealing off all exits around Si Caogui airtight. They held long spears, waiting for an opportunity, and in no time, stabbed more than a dozen bleeding holes into Si Caogui’s body.

Even with his copper skin and iron bones, Si Caogui couldn’t withstand such an onslaught; breaking through to escape is utterly different from covering a retreat.

The number of Imperial Guards surrounding Si Caogui increased, and he listened to the deafening shouts of battle around him, breathing heavily. For some reason, as he thought about dying here, he felt not sorrow but relief, as if a great burden would be lifted.

Si Caogui clamped onto a long spear with both hands, pulling the mounted Imperial Guard off his horse. He snapped the spear in half, wielding the pieces as clubs, roaring: "Come on!"

However, at that moment, the sound of horse hoofbeats echoed from the outskirts of the Imperial Guards. With a thunder, the charging warhorse crashed into the formation, forcibly breaking open a gap.

Si Caogui suddenly felt the pressure around him lessen. He turned back in surprise, only to see Lin Chaoqing inexplicably returning.

Lin Chaoqing seized two large halberds, striking with broad and sweeping motions, cutting a bloody path through the hundred Imperial Guards to reunite with Si Caogui.

Instinctively, Si Caogui said: "Ah Brother..."

Lin Chaoqing handed him a large halberd, coldly saying: "Fight our way out with me!"

Back to back, the two wielded a large halberd each, fighting their way out. For a moment, the hundred or so Imperial Guards couldn’t get close. Si Caogui’s blood surged, and he shouted loudly: "As a wanderer, I’ve never shamed anyone; soaked in rain, my iron bones; the bright moon shines on a solitary soul!"

Lin Chaoqing glanced back at him: "What nonsense are you reciting?"

Si Caogui laughed heartily.

Yet at that moment, the Imperial Guards surrounding them suddenly scattered. Shadowy figures gathered on the rooftops on both sides of the long street. Over a hundred crossbowmen half-crouched on the rooftops, pulling their strings, aiming at the two.

This was the best method to deal with the Seeking Dao Realm Official; a volley of arrows would pierce Lin Chaoqing too.

...

There will be another Chapter tonight.

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