A man stands before the heavens, his sword emerges from the Emei Mountains.

The restaurant was bustling with diners, who were drinking and chatting, some loudly, others whispering.

Suddenly, a sound reached Chen Yu's ears.

"White Tortoise Longevity..."

Chen Yu focused his mind and guided his Qi with his intention. The warm Emei Nine Yang Internal Force rose from his Dantian, flowed along the Foot Shaoyang Gallbladder Meridian, and entered the Fengchi acupoint behind his ear, amplifying his senses.

Immediately, I felt my ears were much wider, and all the noise from the outside world became clear and was captured.

The sound of raindrops pattering on the eaves, the conversation of several men at a corner table a few feet away, and even the noises from the soy milk shop across the street outside the building.

"Bai Guishou is indeed cunning. With the remnants of Zhou Ziwang's army, he has caused us to be entangled with the Tartars, making our lives miserable."

Be careful what you say.

"Understood, Senior Brother Jian."

Chen Yu didn't look around, but his mind was quickly analyzing. It seemed that Bai Guishou had indeed been in Guanluo earlier, and the information from the Changwei Escort Agency's镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) was correct. However, Bai Guishou's association with the Maitreya Sect might not necessarily be a case of using someone else to do his dirty work, as these people claimed. In the novel *The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber*, it is explained that Zhou Ziwang started an uprising in Jiangxi, and Yin Tianzheng was providing support in Zhejiang. Perhaps Bai Guishou came to Guanluo from Jiangxi with Chang Yuchun.

The man was called Brother Jian. Could he be Jian Jie from the Kongtong Sect? This man was of bad character and no good. He once met Zhang Wuji and Yang Buhui in Anhui. Because they were starving for several days, he had the idea of ​​eating them. His behavior was worse than that of pigs and dogs.

Just as Chen Yu was thinking this, he suddenly heard footsteps coming from downstairs.

There was a slight commotion inside the building. Chen Yu looked around and saw eight or nine people going upstairs. In the middle was a woman dressed in green, with phoenix eyes that seemed to hold spring, long eyebrows that reached her temples, and a green skirt. She was quite beautiful, and her white jade-like wrists were adorned with two jet-black rings of unknown material.

I wonder which school or sect this belongs to. Chen Yu withdrew his gaze and thought to himself.

The waiter led everyone to their seats. One of the men ordered food and drinks, while the woman looked around. Her gaze swept over Chen Yu, then quickly returned to him. She looked him up and down, frowned in thought, and then whispered a few words to the man next to her.

The man also looked over, stared at her carefully for a few moments, then got up and walked towards Chen Yu.

Chen Yu's senses were sharp, and he immediately had a bad feeling.

Could this group be members of the Green Bamboo Gang or the Five Poisons Sect?

"How should I address you, young man?" The man sat with an imposing posture, his hands on the table, his legs together under the table, his knees slightly bent, his back straight, as if he were about to draw his sword at the slightest provocation.

"What's going on, bro?"

"Let me tell you, whether it's right or wrong. Chen Yu, a year ago, made a living by fishing in Hengyang." The man had a smile on his face, but I could see through his mocking expression.

Chen Yu sighed inwardly. The Five Poisons Sect was right, but he didn't know which of the five altars was led by that woman. If she was the altar leader, it would be troublesome. With his current skill, he might not be a match for the Five Poisons Sect.

Seeing that Chen Yu remained silent, the burly man chuckled and poured wine for Chen Yu from the jug. "Warm yourself up with a drink, then come with us to a place."

"Where to?"

The man picked up the bowl, drank it all in one gulp, wiped the wine stains from the corner of his mouth, grinned, and said, "You'll know when we get there."

"Is that so?"

As soon as Chen Yu finished speaking, the long street erupted in commotion. He and the man couldn't help but glance over out of the corner of their eyes and saw several riders galloping by, pursued by soldiers. The horses' hooves, as big as bowls, pounded the muddy ground, splashing up water droplets.

Chen Yu's pupils contracted slightly as she encountered Chang Yuchun again.

In a flash, the pursuing Tibetan monk threw a boomerang, its silver light flashing briefly in the rain and mist, and blood splattered from the head of Chang Yuchun's horse.

The galloping yellow horse neighed and, propelled by inertia, charged forward several feet before crashing to the ground with a thud.

The moment the horse fell to the ground, Chang Yuchun leaped out and landed, rolling around with the boy in his arms, while the horse crashed straight into the soy milk shop.

Rain splashed everywhere, and tarpaulins flew about.

"Father!" a girl cried out in surprise, followed by a man's aged voice, "Zhiruo."

Chen Yu's heart skipped a beat.

Zhiruo?

Han River, Chang Yuchun, Zhou Zhiruo?

shuh...

Chen Yu and the man leaped up at the same time. In an instant, Chen Yu's body sank back down. The wooden table and wine rolled towards the man with a loud bang, and the man was thrown away.

"Where do you think you're going?" Several men from the Five Poisons Sect at a table a little further away suddenly sprang up, drew their swords, and lunged at Chen Yu. He jabbed and kicked back, sending the chair flying through the air and landing in mid-air on one of the men who had leaped at him.

Another roar filled the air. Chen Yu's figure blurred as he burst through the window, twisting and turning like a dragon, rising ten feet into the air and landing on the roof of the green-tiled house. One after another, members of the Five Poisons Sect leaped out and fell to the ground.

Below Chen Yu's field of vision, a Tibetan monk leaped off his horse and landed, his robes billowing like waves, and a heavy fist struck Chang Yuchun.

Suddenly, another unexpected turn of events occurred. A muscular figure burst out from the street, like a rampaging leopard, his fist striking the foreign monk like a tornado. Chang Yuchun, meanwhile, ran towards the dock.

"White Tortoise Longevity".

Such a voice rang out from inside the tavern, looking out onto the street from among the martial arts practitioners. Chaos began to spread like a tidal wave, and Bai Guishou and the foreign monk clashed violently.

The man surnamed Jian led his men towards Bai Guishou. The boatman and the girl ran towards the dock through the chaotic crowd.

Chen Yu moved with lightning speed through the densely packed houses, while the charming woman in green behind him caught up. In an instant, the two figures, one in front and one behind, were leaping and chasing each other, creating an astonishing scene.

Just as the boatman and the girl reached the dock, a burly Tibetan monk lifted them up and lunged at Chang Yuchun.

Pfft!

Water splashed everywhere. The boatman, who had been knocked into the Han River by the Tibetan monk, was swallowed by the turbid waves in the blink of an eye. The girl who was thrown from the boatman's hand landed on the boat awning and was bounced up. Chen Yu, who came at lightning speed, caught her and placed her on the bow of the boat.

Without giving any instructions, Chen Yu somersaulted and fell into the Han River.

"This little thief is cunning." The woman chased after him, leaping between several covered boats at the dock. Not seeing Chen Yu, she knew he was good at swimming, so she turned and wielded a long whip towards Bai Guishou.

……

Splash!

The water surface suddenly parted, and Chen Yu, who had been searching for the boatman in the water without success, emerged. Looking around, he saw Chang Yuchun speeding along the riverbank and disappearing into the misty rain.

The Tibetan monk who had knocked the boatman away started cursing loudly from a small boat a few feet away from the dock.

After a little thought, Chen Yu understood the reason: Chang Yuchun must have lured the Tibetan monks onto the boat, then leaped ashore between the boats, while the other boat was swept to the surface of the river.

Chen Yu shifted his gaze to the tavern, where the woman in green was already locked in combat with Bai Guishou. Martial arts practitioners, Tartar military officers, foreign monks, Bai Guishou, and members of the Maitreya Sect were all fighting each other.

Chen Yu submerged himself in the water and swam toward the small boat where the Tibetan monk was.

The Tibetan monk was not good at swimming. He tried to paddle left and right, but the small boat was out of control and kept spinning on the river. The monk was very anxious and shouted for help.

Chen Yu's left hand suddenly emerged from the water like a fish and grabbed the oar. In the instant his body flew out, a water arrow shot from his mouth toward the Tibetan monk, and at the same time, the Longquan sword was thrust out.

Caught off guard, the Tibetan monk was shot in the face. He instinctively swung his fist and smashed it open as the Longquan sword advanced.

"Ah!" The Tibetan monk screamed and staggered backward. Chen Yu rushed out of the water, touched the edge of the boat with his feet, leaped into the air, and slashed at the head with his sword.

"Pfft!" The sword cleaved open like a spit, and blood splattered.

The Tibetan monk stumbled backward and fell headfirst into the river.

"Father..."

Amidst hysterical screams and sobs, a small boat approached.

What came into Chen Yu's view was a girl with delicate features, dressed in patched coarse cloth clothes and straw sandals.

"Father, thank you so much... uh..."

The girl wanted to thank Chen Yu, but she felt that he was only a few years older than her, so she couldn't say the words of thanks to the hero. She was also overwhelmed with grief and felt chest tightness and hiccups.

"I'm sorry, we didn't find him in the water. That evil monk was killed."

"Yes," the girl nodded, and began to cry at the bow of the boat.

In that brief moment, more disciples of the Five Poisons Sect saw Chen Yu board the boat and rushed over with weapons. Chen Yu leaped onto the girl's small boat and said, "My enemies are coming. I'm afraid they might hurt you. Would you like to come with me for a while?"

"Mmm." The girl glanced timidly at the menacing Five Poisons Sect members in the direction of the dock, then turned around and nodded.

Chen Yu rowed the boat, displaying his excellent rowing skills. In just over a hundred breaths, he widened the distance and disappeared into the misty rain.