Wuxia: Become the 100-Victory Sword King at the Beginning

Chapter 375. A Love Affair in the Phoenix Palace: Two Beauties' Tribulations, A Heartbreak Locked in the Nine Heavens.

"You henchmen of the imperial court, return my father's life!" Chen Nan's voice was devoid of any emotion. He unleashed the "Three Blades of Avici Hell - Infernal Fire" technique, and the steel blade suddenly split into three phantom images, enveloping the three of them like vengeful ghosts.

Yue Shan roared, unleashing seven dazzling spear blossoms with his Overlord Spear. But the blade easily pierced through the spear's shadow, leaving a wound a few inches deep on his shoulder armor. Amidst the splattering blood, he smelled a putrid stench—the blade was coated with a poison far more potent than his Overlord Spear!

"What an eerie swordsmanship!" Heshen unleashed "Divine Blade Slash - Nine Heavens" with his crescent-shaped saber, nine blade energies colliding violently with Chen Nan's sword light. The tables and chairs in the private room shattered, and amidst flying wood chips, Chen Nan's second strike arrived.

The flashes of the blades transformed into countless sharp blades, as if turning the entire space into a mountain of knives and a sea of ​​fire.

Lu Fangtian's Bagua Steps sent sparks flying, and the twelve Heavenly Gang Finger Forces formed a shield of energy, but it was shattered by the blade light. The finger winds backfired on him, tearing three bloody gashes in his chest.

Chen Nan's steel knife suddenly stopped, the blade no more than three inches from Heshen's throat. She stared at the culprit who had killed her father, and images of the blood-soaked ground at Hanshan Temple and her father's clenched fist in his dying moments flashed through her mind.

Hatred erupted like a volcano, and the eerie blue light on the steel blade surged: "Go to hell!" "Want to kill me? Not so easy!" Heshen gripped the crescent-shaped blade that exuded wisps of demonic energy and unleashed the "Divine Blade Slash," the blade's light dancing so powerfully that water could not penetrate it.

Chen Nan's third strike came down like a thunderbolt, and the image of the Avici Hell faintly appeared in the light of the blade, with countless evil spirits howling in the shadow of the blade.

Despite his shoulder injury, Yue Shan thrust out his Overlord Spear with all his might, but the spear tip shattered the moment it touched the blade. Lu Fangtian used his last bit of inner strength, condensing his Heavenly Gang Finger Force into a Bagua diagram to block in front of him, but he was still slashed in the shoulder by the blade, coughing up blood and flying backward.

Heshen swung his crescent-shaped scimitar wildly, the blade's energy colliding with Chen Nan's blade light, sparking dazzling flames.

But he gradually lost his strength, his tiger's mouth cracked, and blood dripped down the blade.

"Father, your daughter has avenged you!" Chen Nan's voice was choked with sobs as she thrust her steel blade straight at Heshen's heart.

At the critical moment, a sharp whistle suddenly rang out outside the inn. Chen Nan's heart skipped a beat, knowing that Qing reinforcements were approaching.

She glared fiercely at Heshen, her steel blade slicing through the air in a bloody arc before severing the roof beam and bursting out of the window, disappearing into the rain.

Heshen slumped down amidst the mess, staring at the blood gushing from his wound, his triangular eyes filled with terror.

Yue Shan clutched his wound, looking at the broken spear in his hand, a chill running through him—the Three Slashes of Avici Hell were truly unstoppable, even by gods and demons.

Lu Fangtian lay in a pool of blood, staring at the hideous knife mark on the ceiling, and muttered, "This is not the swordsmanship of a human... it is clearly the work of a demon crawling out of hell..." The rain fell harder and harder, gradually washing away the bloodstains inside and outside the inn.

But the chilling glint of Chen Nan's blade as he left was forever etched in the hearts of He Shen and the other two, like the Sword of Damocles hanging over their heads, ready to fall and take their lives at any moment.

The cold rain had just stopped, and the glazed tiles of the Forbidden City were covered with frost. Heshen knelt on the blue bricks of the Imperial Study, his wounds wrapped with blood-soaked white cloth, his triangular eyes fixed on the urgent secret report in Shi Feiyang's hand—on which was drawn the eerie sword shadows of Chen Nan wielding the Three Slashes of Avici Hell.

"Your hands, my dear minister, have indeed revealed the true extent of the remnants of the Heaven and Earth Society to me." Shi Feiyang toyed with the jade dragon hook, his voice casual. "I've heard that the Three Knives of Avici Hell can stir up the deepest fears in people's hearts?"

Before he could finish speaking, a mournful owl's cry suddenly rang out from outside the window, startling the copper bells under the eaves. At the same time, in a dilapidated temple outside Suzhou, Chen Nan knelt before his father's memorial tablet, the eerie blue light on his steel sword flickering.

Since the battle at the "Si Meng Inn", her swordsmanship has become increasingly bizarre, and every night, the blade would emit a ghostly wail.

"Father, I will make them pay for their crimes in blood." Her fingertips traced the blade, and blood began to seep from the wound on her palm, flowing along the lines of the blade and emitting an eerie red glow.

Half a month later, in the secret chamber of the Sticky Rod Office, the twelve bronze lamps positioned according to the Eight Trigrams suddenly went out, their candle wax condensing into eerie strings of beads on the cold blue bricks. Lu Fangtian's back was pressed against the stone wall engraved with trigrams, his Heavenly Gang Finger power surging in his palms, when he heard the clear, resonant sound of a steel blade being drawn from its sheath behind him—a sound like a venomous snake flicking its tongue, sending chills down his spine.

"Tell me, if I were to slit your throat right now..." Chen Nan's voice was tinged with the stench of the East China Sea, the icy blade already pressed against his carotid artery, "Can your Heavenly Gang Finger still form a qi shield?"

The girl's breath brushed past his ear, but Lu Fangtian felt colder than if he were in an ice cave. As his Adam's apple bobbed, he heard himself swallowing hard.

"Miss Chen, do you think that by killing us you can..." Before she could finish speaking, the steel knife had already slashed out half a bloody arc like a serpent.

Lu Fangtian closed his eyes, awaiting death, when he suddenly felt a strong gust of wind, and a bright yellow figure appeared like a ghost between the two. Shi Feiyang's palm shone brightly with white light, and he used the "Shifting Flowers and Receiving Jade" divine skill to redirect the fatal blow towards the blue brick ground. Sparks flew everywhere, and the knife wound was three inches deep.

Chen Nan's pupils contracted sharply. She had clearly calculated Lu Fangtian's weakness, but at the moment the blade touched her flesh, it was as if an invisible hand had reversed her direction. Looking up, she saw Shi Feiyang surrounded by a pale golden aura, his skin gleaming with a jade-like luster in the shadows—a sign of the Mingyu Gong's "Supreme Forgetfulness: Ice Soul Cold Prison".

"What a fine three-blade technique from the Avici Hell." Shi Feiyang stood with his hands behind his back, his voice as cold as ice tempered with iron. "Unfortunately, before my divine skill, it is nothing more than a child playing with a knife." He reached out and grabbed at the air, and twelve golden dragon shadows roared out from his palm. Wherever the dragon tails swept, the blue bricks shattered.

Chen Nan felt his blood and qi surge, and the steel knife in his hand fell to the ground with a clang. He was pulled toward Shi Feiyang like a kite with a broken string.

"Let me go!" Chen Nan struggled, but found that the suction force from Shi Feiyang's palm was like a vortex, suppressing all her internal energy. Even more terrifying, the chill spread along her meridians, and frost flowers appeared wherever it passed.

She was then shocked to realize that the other party's skill had reached a transcendent level, not only able to absorb people's internal energy, but also able to transform true energy into an icy prison.

Heshen strolled over, fanning himself with a folding fan. His triangular eyes stared at Chen Nan's loose black hair. As he bent down to pick up the steel knife, he deliberately used the tip of the blade to lift her chin: "Your swordsmanship is nothing special! This knife, however, is a pretty good thing."

The back of the knife grazed her cheek. Chen Nan turned her head to bite, but he slapped her hard across the face, leaving five bloody welts. Shi Feiyang withdrew his hand, and Chen Nan fell heavily to her knees.

The girl stubbornly raised her head, her eyes filled with hatred that almost materialized. Shi Feiyang sneered, "Take her away, just like Wen Tailai. Send this woman to Li Kexiu's dungeon in Hangzhou. I want those bastards from the Heaven and Earth Society to taste the bitterness of being a moth drawn to a flame!"

The guards from the Sticky Rod Office pounced like wolves and tigers, and as the iron chains entangled them, Chen Nan suddenly sprang up.

She used the remaining moves of the Three Blades of Avici Hell, her body radiating a blood-red blade aura, which actually shook off two guards.

Shi Feiyang snorted coldly, unleashing the full power of his Mingyu Gong, his skin becoming almost transparent. He lightly struck out with his palm, the force of "splitting mountains" carrying the momentum of an overturned sea, directly sending Chen Nan flying three zhang away, crashing into the Bagua stone wall, coughing up blood mixed with bone fragments.

"Take him away!" Heshen sneered and ordered his men to lock Chen Nan in a specially made iron cage. As the prison cart rolled over the threshold of the secret chamber, Chen Nan stared in the direction where Shi Feiyang's bright yellow robe had disappeared, the blood bubbles that spilled from the corner of his mouth condensing into dark red ice beads on the iron chains.

The autumn wind blew past the prison cart, lifting a strand of her hair, but it couldn't blow away the deep finger marks on the iron bars—the vow of revenge she had carved with her last strength.

In the late autumn, the Hall of Mental Cultivation was bathed in twilight. The ambergris emanating from the bronze crane incense burner, mixed with the stench of blood, eerily lingered in the winding corridors.

Shi Feiyang strode in, his footsteps clattering through the fallen leaves like scattered gold dust. The hem of his bright yellow dragon robe swept across the white marble railing, startling the crows roosting beneath the eaves. Suddenly, he heard a palace maid's heart-wrenching cry from within the hall: "Summon the imperial physician! Quickly!" The sound pierced the twilight, causing the bronze bells on the eaves to jingle. His heart tightened, and he rushed into the bedchamber. There he saw Kalis reclining on a carved rosewood couch, her moon-white nightgown stained with dark red blood. Her fingertips still bore traces of blood, like red plum blossoms painted on a blank sheet of paper.

"Kalis!" Shi Feiyang rushed forward and grasped her icy hand, only to feel a jade-like chill—the unique aura of the Mingyu Gong when it was in operation, which was now faintly seeping from her wrist.

Kalis slowly opened her eyes, tears still clinging to her eyelashes, and for a moment she felt as if she were back on the grasslands at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains. Looking at Shi Feiyang's anxious face, she suddenly laughed, a laugh tinged with an indescribable desolation: "Does Your Majesty know that the nights in the Forbidden City are colder than the snows of the Tianshan Mountains?"

She coughed violently, blood seeping from between her fingers again. "This body of mine should have been returned to that grassland long ago..."

Shi Feiyang's brows furrowed into a deep frown, and he quietly activated his Mingyu Gong under his dragon robe, attempting to channel his true energy into her body. But Kalis suddenly pulled her hand back, the violent movement shaking off the pearl earring beside her pillow, which clattered onto the blue bricks.

"Don't waste your energy." She looked out the window at the darkening sky. "My heart died the day I stepped into the Forbidden City."

Outside the palace, You Ning, dressed in a crimson brocade palace gown, hid behind a vermilion pillar. She watched the scene inside the palace, a hint of barely perceptible pleasure flashing in her phoenix eyes, her fingertips unconsciously caressing the kingfisher feather phoenix hairpin at her temple.

"If you're going to die, then die quickly." She muttered to herself, when suddenly she caught a glimpse of a pale blue figure flash by—it was Su Dai, the always meek and obedient imperial concubine, who was now walking hurriedly, as if she had something important to do.

Su Dai clutched her sweat-dampened handkerchief as she hurried through the shadows of the palace walls. Her embroidered shoes crunched softly over the fallen paulownia leaves.

As she turned the corner tower, a pebble suddenly flew from the shadows and struck her ankle.

She endured the pain, pretending to have sprained her ankle, and stumbled towards the palace wall.

At the foot of the wall, a masked man in black quietly handed over a secret letter: "The news of Miss Chen's arrest must be delivered to the Heaven and Earth Society."

Su Dai's nails dug deeply into her palms as she recalled Chen Nan's stubborn gaze as he was being led onto the prison cart. She hid the secret letter in her sleeve, her voice trembling: "Hongli's martial arts have reached a state of perfection. Going to rescue him... I'm afraid it will be a perilous journey."

The masked man remained silent for a moment, then took out a jade pendant from his pocket—the very token that Chen Jialuo had given to Kalis years ago.

Seeing this, Su Dai's eyes suddenly reddened. When she took the jade pendant, she felt that it was still warm from her body and said in a low voice, "Third Brother, don't worry! Even if we die, we will rescue Miss Chen. It's just that Kalis is terminally ill and I'm afraid it will be difficult to cure. Please let the Chief be prepared!"

The masked man was none other than "Thousand-Handed Buddha" Zhao Banshan. He sighed softly, "Unfortunately, the Red Flower Society has suffered heavy losses, and we are powerless to enter the palace to rescue Miss Kalis. Alas!" With a long sigh, he flew away.

Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the imperial physicians knelt on the ground, their foreheads pressed against the blue bricks.

The head physician, Wang, said in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty is suffering from excessive worry and emotional distress... Please forgive our lack of medical skills; we are powerless to help."

Shi Feiyang slammed the medicine bowl to the ground. As the porcelain shards flew, he looked at Kalis's increasingly pale face and suddenly remembered the way she rode her horse across the grassland when they first met. At that time, her eyes were shining.

"Issue my decree: seal off the inner palace!" Shi Feiyang's voice echoed throughout the hall. "If any news leaks out..."

He paused, and a faint white light emanated from the Mingyu Gong technique beneath his dragon robe. "Kill without mercy!"

The guards outside the palace responded in unison, but none of them noticed that Su Dai had quietly disappeared into the twilight.

As night deepened, the Forbidden City was shrouded in a deathly silence.

You Ning stood in front of her palace, gazing at the flickering candlelight in the direction of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, a cold smile curling at the corner of her lips.

Outside the palace walls, Su Dai hid the secret letter in a carrier pigeon's feather and watched it flap its wings and fly into the night sky.

Under the moonlight, the carrier pigeon, like a shooting star, carried the secrets of the Forbidden City and the fates of countless people, disappearing into the vast night. Inside the South Study of the Qianqing Palace, the bronze beast-shaped incense burner emitted wisps of ambergris incense, and the twelve ram-horn palace lanterns illuminated the gold-brick floor with a cold light.

Shi Feiyang stood with his hands behind his back before the "Landscape of Mountains and Rivers" painting. The five-clawed golden dragon on his bright yellow robe seemed to be baring its fangs and brandishing its claws in the candlelight, creating a striking contrast with the dark cloud between his brows. The glaring crimson stain of blood that Kalis had coughed up when she coughed up blood still lingered in his mind.

"May Your Majesty be well!" With a chorus of greetings, Wei Nianhua, the Minister of the Imperial Study, Chen Feng, the Minister of Revenue, and others filed in.

Wei Nianhua's white beard trembled slightly as he broke the silence: "Hearing that Your Majesty is unwell, this old minister has specially presented a thousand-year-old ginseng, hoping..." "Enough!" Shi Feiyang turned around abruptly, the gust of wind from his sleeve causing the memorials on the table to rustle loudly. "What I want is a cure, not these mundane things!"

His gaze swept over the crowd, finally landing on Heshen, the chief of the imperial guards—a man who had just distinguished himself in the battle to wipe out the Heaven and Earth Society, now wearing a python robe and jade belt, his triangular eyes revealing undisguised smugness.

Just then, a figure in crimson flashed past the beaded curtain.

You Ning moved with light, graceful steps, the kingfisher feather phoenix hairpin at her temple trembling slightly with each step: "Your Majesty's health is of utmost importance; please do not worry about me." She deliberately emphasized the word "you," and as her eyes flickered, she caught a glimpse of the curve at the corner of He Shen's mouth. "However, speaking of sharing burdens, I must commend Lord He. This time, without Lord He's brilliant strategy, how could the annihilation of the Heaven and Earth Society's headquarters have been so successful?"

Heshen knelt down with a thud, his python robe spreading out on the blue bricks like a black cloud: "This servant is merely following the imperial edict, how dare I claim credit?"

When he kowtowed, his forehead almost touched the ground. "It is Your Majesty's concern for the country that is a blessing for our Great Qing!"

These words flattered You Ning while subtly praising Shi Feiyang, leaving everyone present speechless. Minister of Revenue Chen Feng coughed and stepped forward: "Your Majesty, Lord He has indeed rendered great service this time. However, such an exceptional promotion might..."

Before he could finish speaking, Mu Tie'a, the Commander of the Nine Gates, interrupted him gruffly: "Lord Chen, you're wrong! Lord He is both wise and brave; let alone a few official positions, he'd be fit to be a king or prime minister..."

"Silence!" Shi Feiyang suddenly burst into laughter, the sound so loud it shook the swallows' nests on the beams, causing them to fall to the ground. "My mind is made up! Heshen, receive your appointment—" He paused, his gaze sweeping over the shocked and resentful faces of the crowd. "He is hereby promoted to Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, Grand Councilor, Minister of the Imperial Household Department, concurrently Deputy Commander of the Manchu Bordered Yellow Banner, and Vice President of the National History Museum. He is awarded a first-rank court hat, and given overall command of the officers and soldiers of the three banners of the Imperial Household Department. He is also granted the privilege of riding a horse within the Forbidden City and concurrently serving as Commander of the Infantry!"

As soon as the decree was issued, the room fell silent. Lu Fangtian, the commander of the Sticky Rod Office, gripped the Heavenly Gang Finger Gloves in his sleeve tightly, while Yue Shan, the commander of the Imperial Guard, clenched his knuckles until they turned white. Only Heshen remained prostrate on the ground, but the corners of his mouth involuntarily turned up in a smile.

"Thank you for your great favor, Your Majesty!" He kowtowed heavily, his forehead hitting the ground with a dull thud. "This servant is willing to go through fire and water for Your Majesty, even unto death!" As he stood up, his triangular eyes swept over the crowd, his smugness almost overflowing.

You Ning stepped forward at the opportune moment, her voice as sweet as honey: "Your Majesty is wise! With Lord He being given such an important position, he will surely help Your Majesty create a prosperous era!"

She deliberately moved closer to Shi Feiyang, the scent of ambergris mixed with rouge wafting towards him. "But I've heard that remnants of the Heaven and Earth Society are still active in the shadows. I wonder if Lord Heshen has any countermeasures?" Heshen lightly waved his folding fan and spoke eloquently: "Your Majesty, this servant has already laid a trap in Jiangnan. Although Chen Jinnan's daughter, Chen Nan, has been captured, the Heaven and Earth Society will surely come to her rescue. This servant is just planning..."

He lowered his voice and whispered to Shi Feiyang for a moment.

Upon hearing this, Shi Feiyang clapped his hands and laughed, "Good! We'll do as you say, my dear minister!"

He surveyed his surroundings, his gaze sharp as a hawk's. "You must all follow Lord He's example. If you have any disloyal intentions..."

Before he could finish speaking, a muffled clap of thunder suddenly came from outside the hall, and a torrential downpour drowned out the rest of his words.

Inside the Southern Study, everyone harbored their own secrets. Heshen was smug, calculating his newly acquired power; You Ning was secretly delighted, satisfied with the success of his scheme; while Wei Nianhua, Chen Feng, and others sighed inwardly.

Jiangnan.

Hidden in a bamboo grove outside Hangzhou, a rustic bamboo building looms in the swaying bamboo shadows. Lin Jinghong, the newly appointed leader of the Heaven and Earth Society, holds a bamboo flute and plays a somber melody. The flute's sound seems to carry a thousand sorrows, yet also conceals a murderous intent.

Suddenly, a series of hurried footsteps approached from afar, and a disciple dressed in black rushed over, kneeling on one knee: "Chief! Su Dai sent a secret letter that Miss Chen is imprisoned in Li Kexiu's dungeon in Hangzhou. Hongli is setting up a trap to lure us in!"

Lin Jinghong abruptly stopped playing his bamboo flute, a flash of anger crossing his eyes: "You dog emperor! How dare you bully my Heaven and Earth Society like this! Miss Chen is imprisoned for avenging her father, how can we sit idly by?" He stood up abruptly, his bamboo flute tracing a sharp arc in his hand, splitting the bamboo table beside him in two. "Send the order to summon the branch leaders from all over the country for a meeting at the summit of Mount Huangshan in three days!"

Three days later, the summit of Mount Huangshan was shrouded in mist, resembling a fairyland. However, the mountaintop was filled with a somber atmosphere. The leaders of the various branches of the Heaven and Earth Society gathered together, including many renowned figures in the martial arts world.

"Chief, this is clearly Hongli's treacherous scheme! Before, when the heroes of the Red Flower Society went to rescue Wen Tailai, they lost tens of thousands of men at Li Kexiu's hands." Zhao Zhen, the leader of the Hongshun Hall, slammed his hand on the table, making the teacups on it vibrate. "If we rashly go to rescue them, we will surely fall into an ambush!" "Chief Zhao is absolutely right," He Ruyan, the leader of the Qingmu Hall, lightly stroked the soft sword in her hand, her eyes flashing with cold light. "But Miss Chen is the daughter of the venerable Chen Jinnan. If we stand by and watch her die, wouldn't we be ridiculed by all the heroes of the world? What will become of the Heaven and Earth Society's reputation?"

Lin Jinghong pondered for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "Chief Liu is right, we must overcome this calamity! But we cannot act rashly. Hongli now heavily relies on Heshen, that villain is full of tricks, we must use his schemes against him."

He unfolded the secret letter sent by Su Dai and examined it carefully. "Li Kexiu's dungeon is heavily guarded, and there are experts from the Sticky Rod Bureau stationed there. If we launch a frontal assault, we will suffer heavy losses. We need someone to infiltrate the dungeon and coordinate an attack from the inside."

"Chief, I am willing to go!" The speaker was Zhou Fengyun, the best light-footed martial artist in the Heaven and Earth Society, known as "Treading Snow Without a Trace." He was thin and had eyes like an eagle. "I can sneak into the dungeon at night and rescue Miss Chen. However, the dungeon is full of traps and we will need the help of brothers who are proficient in traps and mechanisms."

"I'll go with Brother Zhou!" a simple, honest voice rang out. The burly "Iron-Armed Vajra" Wang Feimeng stepped forward. His arms were twice the thickness of an average person's, and his knuckles cracked when he clenched his fists. "Those mechanisms are nothing but trifles in front of me! I want to see just how capable the experts at the Sticky Rod Station really are!"

Lin Jinghong nodded: "Alright! You two must be careful. At the same time, we will ambush elite troops outside Hangzhou. Once we succeed, we will immediately provide support. If Hongli sends troops to pursue us, we will engage them in a fierce battle outside the city."

He scanned the crowd with a determined look. "Furthermore, we need to spread false information so that Hongli will think we will attack by water, thus diverting his forces." While the Heaven and Earth Society was busy preparing the rescue plan, a different scene unfolded in Heshen's mansion.

Heshen sat on a gilded armchair, toying with the steel knife he had snatched from Chen Nan, his triangular eyes gleaming with cunning: "Those rats from the Heaven and Earth Society have finally gotten restless. Send down the order to have Li Kexiu set up the 'Eight Trigrams Life and Death Formation' in the dungeon, with experts from the Sticky Pole Division hiding all around. Once the Heaven and Earth Society arrives, we'll wipe them all out!"

He suddenly chuckled sinisterly, "Especially that Lin Jinghong, if we could take his head, the Emperor would be overjoyed!"

As night deepened, dark clouds gathered over Hangzhou, and a bloody storm was about to erupt.

During the plum rain season in Hangzhou, a fine drizzle, like sorrowful silk threads, clung to the city walls. Li Kexiu's dungeon was hidden deep beneath the governor's office, its bronze door tightly shut at the entrance, the yazi beast head carved on the door knocker seemingly poised to devour anyone at any moment.

Tang Qiaoqiao, the "Thousand-Faced Fox" undercover agent of the Heaven and Earth Society, blended into the team transporting ingredients. Her face under the bamboo hat subtly changed, and she had now transformed into a hunched old woman, with wrinkles at the corners of her eyes hiding the vicissitudes of time.

"Get out of the way! Are you blind?" The jailer raised his leather whip and lashed it at the sack full of coarse rice. Tang Qiaoqiao shrank to the side with her head down, her silver needles already quietly slipping into her palm from her sleeve—these were "death needles" soaked in the juice of Tianshan snow lotus, capable of killing instantly without any strange smell.

After the jailer finished inspecting the food, she feigned a stagger, the needle grazing his ankle. The jailer groaned and collapsed to the ground, black blood spilling from his mouth. "My leg ailment has flared up again, please don't take offense," Tang Qiaoqiao said with a forced smile to the other jailers. She ran her fingertip along the corpse's waist and pulled out a bronze plaque engraved with the character "prisoner."

A series of mournful howls echoed from the depths of the dungeon, accompanied by a stench of decay. Holding her breath, she passed through three iron gates and suddenly saw the eyes of a beast head protruding from the wall flash with a ghostly blue light—a sign that the "Eight Trigrams Life and Death Formation" was about to be activated.

Tang Qiaoqiao took out half of a jade pendant engraved with a Tai Chi diagram from her bosom. This was a token she had stolen from Lu Fangtian's personal bodyguard three years ago when she infiltrated the Sticky Pole Bureau. The moment the jade pendant embedded itself in the beast's mouth, the ground suddenly cracked open, revealing a spiked trap more than ten feet deep. She lightly touched the ground with her toes, using her "Swallow Skimming Three Times Over Water" lightness skill to barely glide past the gleaming spikes, but then she heard a mechanism rattle above her head.

"Oh no!" She rolled on the spot, three bone-piercing nails flying past her ears, emitting green smoke as they embedded themselves in the wall. The dungeon passage flickered with light, and Tang Qiaoqiao took out a bamboo tube from her bosom and scattered a handful of fireflies.

A ghostly green light illuminated her surroundings, allowing her to see the Bagua (Eight Trigrams) directions carved on the ground. She immediately stepped into the "Leaving Position" to dodge the poisoned crossbow bolts shooting from the cracks in the wall. Turning through the winding corridor, Chen Nan's cell finally came into view. Inside the iron bars, the girl's white clothes were stained with blood, and the iron chains on her wrists gleamed with a ghostly blue—these were "Soul-Locking Chains" forged from Tianshan cold iron, capable of freezing one's inner strength upon contact.

Tang Qiaoqiao took out the special key she had obtained from Su Dai and was about to unlock it when she suddenly heard a cold laugh from behind her: "The capable people of the Heaven and Earth Society are indeed worthy of their reputation." Li Kexiu was wearing black iron armor, with a sword at her waist that rang out with a dragon's roar, and twelve experts from the Sticky Pole Division were following behind her.

"However, do you think this dungeon is so easy to break into?" He raised his hand and waved it, and the surrounding walls suddenly burst open. Eight swordsmen wielding Bagua shields surrounded Tang Qiaoqiao in a Bagua formation, the cinnabar talismans on the shields flashing in the firelight.

Tang Qiaoqiao's pupils contracted sharply, and she shot out silver needles like a storm. The expert at the sticky pole waved his sleeve to deflect the hidden weapons, and the Heavenly Gang Finger Force condensed into a net of energy to cover them.

She threw the key and steel knife into Chen Nan's cell: "Catch, girl! The brothers outside are in position!" The moment Chen Nan caught the key, the Soul-Locking Chain snapped. She grabbed the steel knife, and the sword spirit of the Three Blades of Avici Hell awakened within her body; wherever the blade passed, the air emitted a piercing shriek.

Li Kexiu raised her sword to meet the attack, but felt that the wind from the blade carried thousands of wronged souls and vengeful ghosts, and the blade began to crack inch by inch.

"Take him down!" he roared, and the axemen in the Bagua Formation attacked simultaneously, unaware that outside the dungeon, the horns of the Heaven and Earth Society had already sounded like thunder.

At the Heaven and Earth Society headquarters outside the Governor's Mansion, Lin Jinghong unfolded the crumpled secret letter. His gaze swept over the densely packed, tiny characters, and his eyes suddenly flashed with a sharp light: "So Li Kexiu concentrated his main force in the 'Qian' and 'Kun' positions of the Bagua Formation, leaving the eastern tunnel entrance so poorly guarded!" "Chief, this is likely a trap!" Zhao Zhen, the leader of Hongshun Hall, snatched the defense map, his rough fingers slamming heavily on it. "If the defenders are so lax, aren't they deliberately luring us into a trap?"

He Ruyan gently stroked her soft sword, a cold glint in her eyes: "Chief Zhao, don't be hasty. Miss Tang risked her life to send back intelligence; there must be a hidden secret within it." She drew her soft sword from her waist and drew a Bagua diagram on the ground. "You see, this Bagua formation seems impenetrable, but it actually contains a hidden escape route. If we can sneak in from the eastern tunnel and directly attack the 'Kan' position, the key to the formation, we can break this great mechanical formation!"

Lin Jinghong pondered for a moment, then slammed his hand on the table: "That's it! Zhou Fengyun and Wang Feimeng, you two lead three hundred elite troops, carrying thunderbolts and oil, and infiltrate through the tunnels. At midnight, blow up the array's core!"

He turned to the Green Wood Hall members, "Chief He, lead five hundred brothers in a feigned attack on the dungeon's main gate, making sure to keep the main force of the defenders firmly occupied!" The night was as dark as ink, and the Heaven and Earth Society members outside the Governor's Mansion were already fully prepared. Zhou Fengyun and Wang Feimeng led their elite troops silently towards the tunnel entrance. Under the moonlight, two guards at the tunnel entrance were dozing against the earthen wall.

Zhou Fengyun lightly touched the ground with his toes, and like a ghost, he rushed forward, his dagger precisely piercing the guard's throat.

Wang Feimeng grabbed the heavy stone slab with both hands, shouted loudly, and lifted the tunnel entrance, revealing a bottomless hole.

The tunnel was damp and dark, filled with a stench of decay. The group proceeded cautiously when they suddenly heard footsteps ahead. Zhou Fengyun raised his hand to signal them to stop, then used his lightness skill to stealthily approach.

Three patrolling Qing soldiers were slowly walking towards him, carrying lanterns. A cold glint flashed in his eyes, and he unleashed a flurry of hidden weapons. Before the three Qing soldiers could even make a sound, they fell into pools of blood.

As midnight arrived, the feint attack team led by He Ruyan suddenly sounded the war drums. The shouts of battle shook the heavens, and torches illuminated half the night sky.

At this moment, Zhou Qiaoqiao and Chen Nan were trapped in a large encirclement by government troops.

Li Kexiu ran out of the dungeon, looked at the densely packed Heaven and Earth Society members below the city, and a cold smile appeared on her lips: "As expected, we fell for their trap! Pass down the order to guard the prison gates to the death!"

However, before he could finish speaking, a loud noise suddenly came from the depths of the dungeon.

Flames shot into the sky from the "Kan" position of the Bagua formation, and the formation's core was shattered.

The members of the Heaven and Earth Society surged in like a tidal wave, and Li Kexiu's expression changed drastically: "How is this possible? The tunnel entrance was clearly..."

Zhou Fengyun and Wang Feimeng led the elite troops of the Heaven and Earth Society like tigers descending the mountain. With the swing of their weapons, Qing soldiers fell to the ground one after another.

Wang Feimeng swept his iron arm across, smashing the steel knife of a master of the Sticky Rod Division into two pieces; Zhou Fengyun's figure was unpredictable, and his long sword was used to stab the enemy's vital points.

Chen Nan's Avici Path Three Blades were even more powerful than before; wherever the blades passed, blood rained down.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Li Kexiu wanted to retreat, but Lin Jinghong blocked her way.

"Li Kexiu, today is your death day!" Lin Jinghong pointed his long sword straight at the other's throat, the sword energy as cold as frost. Li Kexiu drew her sword and barely managed to defend herself, but after ten moves, she disappeared into the wall's recesses.

In this battle, the Heaven and Earth Society achieved a resounding victory. They not only successfully rescued Chen Nan but also destroyed Li Kexiu's painstakingly constructed dungeon defenses. All of this was thanks to the intelligence Tang Qiaoqiao risked her life to relay. This victory greatly enhanced the Heaven and Earth Society's prestige.

As the torrential rain subsided, the turbid waves of the Qiantang River lapped against the nameless island.

As the members of the Heaven and Earth Society waded ashore, the moonlight shone coldly through the gaps in the clouds, turning the rising mist in the forest a ghastly white.

Chen Nan leaned against the ancient pine tree, panting heavily. Bloodstains on his steel blade mixed with rainwater, dripping down the hilt onto the charred, decaying leaves—the marks left by the expert who had cut down the sticky pole during their breakout.

"Enter the cave!" Lin Jinghong's bamboo flute struck the tree trunk heavily, producing a crisp warning. The group filed in, and the sound of dripping water came from deep within the cave, exceptionally clear in the deathly still night.

He Ruyan tore off a piece of her skirt to bandage Chen Nan's wounds. The silver needles gleamed with a ghostly blue light under the tinderbox. "The cold poison of this Soul-Locking Chain has penetrated too deeply into his body, I'm afraid..." Before she could finish speaking, Chen Nan suddenly coughed violently, the blood he spat out freezing into ice crystals. "I won't die yet." A smile forced across the girl's pale face as her gaze swept over the surrounding branch leaders. "Hongli will never let this go, this island..."

Her words were interrupted by a sudden rumble of thunder.

Outside the cave, Xiang Ruixiang and Xiang Ruiyun exchanged a glance. The elder brother deliberately staggered and steadied himself against the rock wall, his knuckles subtly drawing marks on the damp moss. These two young princes were specially arranged by Shi Feiyang to enter the martial world for training.

The two brothers are the sons of Shi Feiyang, Zhou Weirou, and Lin Ruoxue.

Yu Wanting, Chen Jialuo, and the heroes of the Red Flower Society want to restore the Han Chinese rule, right? They can't rush it! However, Shi Feiyang, through his identity as "Hongli," can subtly change the essence of this rule.

"You two young brothers must be exhausted?" Tang Qiaoqiao, a beautiful and talented detective from the Heaven and Earth Society, handed over a water pouch, but her heart skipped a beat when she touched Xiang Ruiyun's wrist—this young man looked exhausted, but his pulse was unusually steady, clearly indicating that he possessed superior internal strength.

Xiang Ruiyun hurriedly lowered her head to cover up, and as the water bag tilted, a few drops of water happened to fall on the mark on the rock wall, fading most of the mark.

At 11:45 AM, Lin Jinghong lit a campfire inside the cave. As sparks shot up to the ceiling, they illuminated the winding cracks in the rock wall.

“This cave has three exits, arranged in a triangular pattern.” He pointed to the ground with his bamboo flute. “Chief Zhao will lead his men to guard the east side, Chief Liu will guard the west side, and Miss Chen and I will provide support in the middle.”

Before he could finish speaking, Xiang Ruixiang suddenly interrupted, "Reporting to the Grand Master, there is a cliff in the dense forest north of the island, perhaps..."

"Shut up!" Chen Nan suddenly stood up, coughing up blood from her wound. "You two followed us from the Hangzhou dungeon. Do you really think we're blind?" She drew her steel sword, its cold light pointing directly at the young prince. "The dungeon is heavily guarded. How could an ordinary person blend in with us and escape unscathed?" Xiang Ruiyun's expression changed drastically, but the soft sword at her waist was drawn in an instant.

The sword strike was as swift as lightning, aimed straight for Chen Nan's throat, but was blocked by Lin Jinghong's bamboo flute. The flute and sword clashed, producing a sound like metal striking stone. Taking advantage of the moment, Xiang Ruixiang threw out a rope, which snagged a stalactite on the cave ceiling, and used the momentum to swing out of the cave entrance.

"Damn it! There's a traitor! Stop this little scoundrel!" Wang Fei roared and chased after him.

But then they saw the boy leaping through the forest like a monkey, disappearing into the thick fog in the blink of an eye.

(End of this chapter)