Chapter 408: 霸下

Only five zhang remained to the mountaintop.

Chen Ji sprinted towards the summit, the oppressive presence of the centurion making him afraid to look back. Dozens of Wuchang soldiers pursued him, their torches flickering like a sea of fire across the mountainside, threatening to engulf him and burn him to ashes. Chen Ji could hear his own heavy breathing, his heart pounding like thunder, and the mountain wind rushing past his ears.

The next moment, the view ahead opened up dramatically. Distant mountains and the vast sky were laid out before him. For a climber, reaching the summit brings an unparalleled sense of accomplishment, conquest, and joy.

But Chen Ji felt no joy!

He looked around in confusion. The peak of Xianglu Peak, dozens of zhang square, was a flat expanse. Massive stone slabs paved the summit, resembling the foundations of a palace. He wondered who possessed such immense power to transport these stones up here! Perhaps it was mountain-moving gods from myths—that was no longer important. What mattered was that there was no stone turtle here, nor any stone tablet; it was bare and empty!

"At the end of the mountain of red leaves, the stone turtle swallowed the sword!"

There was no stone turtle here.

Chen Ji was puzzled. Had he come to the wrong place? Could "mountain of red leaves" not refer to Xiangshan? Perhaps it was in Qianshan, or... He had bet wrong on the region's red leaves!

Chen Ji heard the footsteps of the Wuchang soldiers drawing close, as if they would storm the summit any second! Suddenly, he felt a little tired! He wondered if Miss Zhang Er had escaped, if others were ambushing Xiao Man and the young monk on the road, and if they had managed to avert danger.

As he pondered, the Wuchang soldiers had already ascended from all directions, encircling the mountaintop! The centurion stood guard to the south, holding a long blade. Two Soul-Collecting Enforcers, carrying white bone banners, guarded the northeast and northwest. The three formed a triangle, firmly trapping Chen Ji!

Chen Ji retreated step by step to the center, preparing to burn his speckles for a desperate fight! This was his last resort!

However, Chen Ji suddenly noticed that the Wuchang soldiers did not continue their assault. They seemed to have reined in their killing intent, replaced by a heightened sense of vigilance! He activated two famous 'sword seeds' to circle around him, warily surveying the Wuchang soldiers.

At this moment, the centurion snatched a bone spear from a Ritual Breaker and tossed it to Chen Ji: "Jiang Zian, you test him. If you win, you can be a squad leader!"

The bone spear flew through the air! Chen Ji raised his hand and caught the bone spear. Out of the corner of his eye, he scanned his surroundings, hoping to find an opportunity to break through the encirclement, but the Wuchang soldiers had him tightly locked down, leaving no chance!

Chen Ji remained silent for a moment, then simply recalled his sword seeds back into his speckles. Then, a Ritual Breaker, holding a bone spear, walked up to Chen Ji, muttering, "What's the point of being a squad leader? Why don't you bet on the centurion's position instead?"

The Wuchang soldiers all burst into laughter: "You? Win first, then talk!"

Jiang Zian widened his stance. The moment his horse stance was set, he gripped the spear with both hands and vibrated it fiercely, making the spearhead tremble continuously! Void Step Exploding Spear! With a casual twist, Jiang Zian brought the spearhead to a complete standstill—from extreme motion to absolute stillness in just half a breath! This was a show of skill! Wildfire flickered in Jiang Zian's eyes as he asked Chen Ji, "Well?"

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

"A month for the saber, a year for the staff, but a lifetime for the spear!" Mastering long weapons is no easy feat; it's a lifetime's work. True mastery is achieved only when the spear tip becomes as agile as a finger! Among these Wuchang soldiers, a random Jiang Zian, not even a squad leader, was already a rare master, one in ten thousand, from the Imperial Guard's three great camps!

Chen Ji honestly praised, "A master!"

Jiang Zian, now enthusiastic, declared loudly to the Wuchang soldiers, "Did you all hear that?"

The next moment, Jiang Zian's spear lunged forth like a dragon, directly thrusting at Chen Ji's throat! The essence of spearmanship is directness: the centerline is the soul, and a single point can break all techniques! Chen Ji raised his spear with one hand, parrying the incoming bone spear outwards, keeping close contact. Jiang Zian immediately flicked his wrist, attempting to create a 'spear flower' to bypass the block, but the bone spear in Chen Ji's hand followed his every move, as if magnetically attached to Jiang Zian's spear! No matter how hard Jiang Zian tried, he couldn't break free from the bone spear in Chen Ji's hand!

Suddenly, Chen Ji flicked his wrist, transferring the force from his bone spear into Jiang Zian's hand. Jiang Zian felt that his usually obedient bone spear was suddenly disobedient! He tried to withdraw his spear and retreat, but Chen Ji's spear, following the momentum, was about to thrust directly into his armpit. Jiang Zian's heart jolted; it felt as if he himself had hooked Chen Ji's bone spear towards him!

From outside the circle, the centurion murmured, "Man and spear as one, following momentum to strike acupuncture points—that's 'listening energy'!" The moment the words 'listening energy' were uttered, all the Wuchang soldiers became solemn, standing straight, no longer joking. The wildfire in their eyes ceased flickering, instead focusing intently on Chen Ji's every move, memorizing each detail!

The centurion gravely reminded him, "The Four Points Align." The 'Four Points Align' refers to the tips of the toes, knees, nose, and spear tip, acting as one. The waist serves as the axis; a thrust is like a bursting bow, and a retraction is like drawing silk. This is the purest method of generating power!

The wildfire beneath Jiang Zian's bone mask flickered. Immediately, power surged from the ground, through the spear shaft to its tip, and he forcefully shook off Chen Ji's spear! But just as he pulled his spear free from Chen Ji's, he saw Chen Ji suddenly mimic his earlier move, executing a 'spear flower'! Chen Ji's spear flower was smoother and more powerful than Jiang Zian's; the rotating spear tip made the air hum! Jiang Zian hurriedly moved his spear to block in front of him, but Chen Ji's spear flower burst past his long spear, aiming directly for his wrist! Jiang Zian tried to forcefully pull his bone spear back to block, but Chen Ji's spear tip had already stopped at his chin!

The centurion calmly stated, "Effortless rotation, drawing an arc to dissipate force—that's 'Needle in the Circle'!"

Chen Ji held his spear against Jiang Zian's chin and slowly scanned his surroundings. The area was silent. All the Wuchang soldiers stood ramrod straight, their gazes fixed on him, intensely fervent! With a slight stir in his heart, he slowly withdrew the bone spear, sparing Jiang Zian's life. Jiang Zian silently retreated back among the Wuchang soldiers. No one mocked him; it seemed losing to Chen Ji was not a disgrace!

The centurion suddenly spoke to Chen Ji, asking, "Young one, what is the essence of the Pukdao?"

Chen Ji casually replied, "Wildness!"

The centurion paused, "Wildness?"

Chen Ji stood leaning on his spear and casually explained, "Danger hidden in clumsiness, ambush in defeat, breaking through defenses to get close, the blade following the person. If spearmanship emphasizes control of distance, then Pukdao artistry emphasizes breaking distance. Without wildness, there is no breaking through!"

The centurion remained silent for a moment, then took a Pukdao from another Wuchang soldier and tossed it to Chen Ji from a distance: "Jiang Zihang, you're next!"

Chen Ji tossed the bone spear back to the Ritual Breaker, then weighed the Pukdao in his hand: "Come on!"

A Blade-Opening Blood-Breaking Wuchang soldier stepped forward from the crowd! Jiang Zihang didn't bother with a fancy display like Jiang Zian. He immediately came with a chopping strike, his blade swift as a mountain wind! But this time, Chen Ji only leaned forward a small step, as if rushing into Jiang Zihang's embrace. The Pukdao in his hand swept up from below, carving a two-chi long cut across Jiang Zihang's chest! Jiang Zihang retreated silently: "Jiang Ziyan, you go!"

Another Blade-Opening Blood-Breaking Wuchang soldier stepped forward and swung his blade. Chen Ji casually met the attack, and the two bone blades collided crisply with a clang. Jiang Ziyan's Pukdao snapped just like that!

The centurion was stunned: "Cross-graining." Jiang Ziyan looked down blankly at the broken blade in his hand, murmuring, "It's Cross-graining!"

A Soul-Collecting Enforcer, carrying a severed head, stepped forward: "My turn!"

The centurion looked up at the sky: "There's not much time left. I'll do it!" The centurion, holding a long blade, walked up to Chen Ji and actually handed his blade to him: "You use the long blade, I'll use the Pukdao. You won't use Cross-graining, and I won't use Blade Aura!"

Chen Ji looked down at the long blade in his hand. He hadn't expected the centurion to swap weapons with him! He frowned slightly, then looked up directly at the bone mask on the centurion's face, and the fire in his eyes! This was the first time Chen Ji had looked at the centurion so closely and intently. It was also the first time he noticed that the bone mask actually had patterns, and engraved on the centurion's left cheek was the fishbone-shaped comet-tail banner held by the Soul-Collecting Enforcers!

Chen Ji gripped the long blade and handed the Pukdao to the centurion: "What is this for?"

The centurion answered with a question: "May I ask, what is the essence of the long blade?"

Chen Ji honestly replied, "Awe!"

The centurion muttered to himself, "Awe!"

Chen Ji dragged the long blade, stepping back. His stance was like thunder, like a 'Green Dragon Stirring the Sea'. The long blade emphasized the dominating force to cleave through a thousand armies with ease, projecting an intimidating power that needed no anger to inspire awe! He once again surveyed the Wuchang soldiers on the mountaintop. They stood solemnly, appearing to listen intently, like a group of students! Chen Ji felt a little dazed.

The centurion raised his Pukdao: "Come!"

In an instant, Chen Ji whirled his long blade, a 'Sea-Splashing' technique. The descending long blade was like Mount Tai pressing down! This time, as Chen Ji swung his blade, he even offered an explanation: "The blade's momentum descends like a falling sky; the wind pressure alone can split armor before the blade even arrives!" The centurion effortlessly parried the long blade with his Pukdao, but Chen Ji didn't care, nor did the Wuchang soldiers! One was in the Dao-Seeking Realm, the other in the Xiantian Realm. For Chen Ji to want to injure the centurion was originally a pipe dream. What he was demonstrating was 'skill', not 'force'!

Chen Ji twisted his body with the momentum, sweeping his blade horizontally: "Sweeping through a thousand armies, severing horse legs, breaking formations like tearing silk!" The centurion lightly leaped, dodging the strike! Chen Ji spun the long blade through the air, whirling it continuously from in front of him to behind him. As the long blade rotated, it danced like a spinning crescent moon, entangling the centurion: "Using the hilt as the divine pivot, moving with the flow!" The centurion remained unfazed before the long blade that spun like a grinding wheel!

Suddenly, Chen Ji leaped high, swinging the long blade over his head, bringing it down with a powerful cleave! The long blade roared through the air, like a tiger's roar echoing through the mountains! The centurion's expression changed, and he quickly retreated! By all accounts, he should have been able to block this strike, but when that tiger's roar sounded, he dared not gamble! The centurion murmured, "This is 'Awe'!"

However, just as Chen Ji leaped into the air, his gaze swept over the distant mountains, and he was suddenly startled!

Wait!

Chen Ji examined the distant mountains in the brightening light, always feeling an inexplicable strangeness about them!

Stone turtle.

Ancient people often referred to stone turtles as 'bixi' (bì, xì), one of the Dragon's Nine Sons, also known as Baxia! Legend has it that Bixi often carried the Three Mountains and Five Sacred Peaks, creating storms in rivers, lakes, and seas! Later, during Yu the Great's flood control efforts, he subdued Bixi, moving mountains, digging trenches, and clearing riverbeds everywhere! Once the floods were tamed, Yu the Great, fearing Bixi would cause trouble again, brought a sky-piercing stone tablet. He engraved Bixi's flood control achievements upon it, weighing down Bixi so it could no longer wreak havoc!

However, Bixi might have existed in the era of Xuanyuan, but Bixi would not carry tablets! Therefore, Chen Ji had misunderstood from the beginning. The stone turtle Xuanyuan spoke of was definitely not a tablet-carrying stone turtle!