Jianghu Qimen Lu

Yu Ruyi frowned slightly and said, "Auntie, do you mean the tunnel entrance is at the bottom of the pool?" Hong Yueliang pointed to the water filling the entire floor and said, "The pool is built against the wall, and the interior is surrounded by muddy water. Besides the bottom of the pool, where else could there be a secret passage?" Yu Ruyi looked around and saw that this watchtower was different from others. The walls on the first floor were airtight, without windows or even a narrow lookout point! There was only one entrance, which was now surrounded by a crowd. Due to the oppressive air, a musty smell from a damp crocodile pond wafted over, making one feel nauseous.

White Lightning pondered for a moment, then suddenly said, "Have you considered this question: Since the large lock on the door is severely rusted, proving that the tower is closed year-round, then here's the question! Why doesn't the water in the pool dry up? And what do so many crocodiles rely on for survival? They're all so plump and strong, eating quite a lot of food every day. Who feeds them? And from where?"

Huang Miwu smiled slightly and said, "No wonder Lord Bai worked as a secret agent in the Imperial Palace for many years, with keen insight and unique vision! Indeed, the water in this pool is flowing water, connected to the lakes and rivers outside. There are sluice gates at the bottom of the pool that automatically change the water periodically."

Liang Erji suddenly realized, "Now I understand. No wonder there is a large garbage pit in the main building's kitchen that is used to collect leftover food. It is said that the garbage is never transported out, but is automatically transported to the feeding ponds of each watchtower through the secret passage."

Red Moon smiled and said, "That's right! The Chieftain's words coincide with my thoughts! I suspect there must be two secret passages here. One is under the pool, specifically for opening the sluice gates to change the water. The other is above the pool, specifically for feeding the animals! The passage under the pool only leads to the lakes and rivers outside the official residence, so we don't need to worry about it. We need to carefully search the one above the pool. Whether we can break this Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Maze is the crucial first step!"

He immediately ordered a large number of soldiers to search the outer perimeter of the watchtower, including the walls, the base of the walls, and the surrounding environment. Any unusual activity was to be reported immediately! He then leaped onto the wall, using his superb lightness skill, the Gecko Wall-Climbing Technique, to circle the interior wall once, searching for the switch. Red Moon truly lived up to her reputation as the world's number one thief. The Rong family's lightness skills had been unparalleled since ancient times, and what's more, she had also secretly learned the Phantom Ghost Step from the "Complete Guide to the Martial Arts World"! This display of her skill immediately drew gasps of amazement from everyone, opening their eyes in astonishment! It even caused a commotion among the crocodiles in the pool, who thought Red Moon was about to attack them. They raised their blood-red mouths, glaring angrily, ready to pounce at any moment.

As Red Moon crawled above the area teeming with crocodiles, a massive crocodile, over six meters long, suddenly lunged at her rear with its sharp teeth and jaws snapping open! This caused a collective gasp from the crowd at the entrance, everyone holding their breath in suspense! On flat ground, this wouldn't have been a problem, but this was on a wall, where she had to rely entirely on the coordinated movement of her limbs, gripping and digging into the wall to barely manage a slow crawl! If she were to free her hands to defend herself, it would be harder than climbing to heaven! A single misstep would send her tumbling into the pool, becoming a delicious meal for the crocodiles!

Unexpectedly, a figure flashed, and Red Moon plummeted against the wall. But in that split second, she swiftly leaped to another wall! In the instant of her fall, her toes, faster than lightning, struck the crocodile's eyes twice, instantly crushing its bulging eyeballs into two bloody, gaping holes! It was this single strike that propelled her to another wall. This move was called Phantom Heart Piercing Kick, a signature technique of the Phantom Ghost Step!

The Phantom Ghost Step is not only useful for evading enemies and escaping, but more importantly, its footwork is unpredictable and ever-changing, leaving enemies bewildered. While the enemy is disoriented, a swift attack can strike, decapitating them in an instant! The Phantom Ghost Step consists of eight moves and sixteen steps, each move truly deadly, each step a ghostly shadow. Those who have fought it have met with no good end in the martial arts world; they have either become paralyzed and vegetative or met their demise! This is the versatile and versatile light-footed skill that combines offense and defense—the Phantom Ghost Step!

Back then, in order to save White Lightning, Red Moon transferred all her internal energy to him, losing all her martial arts skills and becoming a cripple. However, after secretly learning the Phantom Ghost Step, she repeatedly escaped from the hunts of top martial arts masters such as Fragrant Fist and Tenglin Junke with ease, without breaking a sweat.

The crocodile, struck so hard through the heart by her kick, was instantly killed and sent to the Bridge of Helplessness! Seeing that she had so easily sentenced the crocodile queen to death, the crocodile swarmed away in terror, watching her every move from afar, but no longer daring to approach!

As the red moon climbed to the opposite side of the doorway, the user activated their night vision and suddenly discovered a bronze sword embedded in the center of the wall! Most of the sword was embedded in the stone wall, with only a third and the hilt remaining outside. The bronze sword was antique in appearance, and the hilt was carved with a lifelike, coiling golden dragon.

"Could this bronze sword be the switch to open the secret passage?" Red Moon was overjoyed. "Golden dragon playing in the water, resting and settling down! This must be the switch to the Rest Gate!" Instantly, she flashed and landed in the pool, using the Shaolin Temple's supreme lightness skill, the One Reed Crossing the River, to stand easily on the turbid water without sinking.

Then he grabbed the hilt of the bronze sword with both hands and pulled hard, but it wouldn't budge! Then he remembered: "The Xiu Gate is a place for rest and peaceful living, where tranquility and quiet are valued. How can one brandish swords and spears here? It shouldn't be about drawing the sword, but about sheathing it! There's no sheath here, so this wall is undoubtedly the sheath! I might as well give it a try!" He then gently pushed the bronze sword into the wall with both hands, inserting it deep into the hilt.

Then, a loud crackling sound filled the air, and the entire pool suddenly sank. Luckily, Red Moon was still gripping the sword hilt with both hands; otherwise, she might have been swept into the abyss along with the crocodiles! While she hung suspended on the wall, still reeling from the shock, she suddenly heard Jade Ruyi shout from the doorway: "Auntie, be careful! The pool that sank has disappeared, and a huge iron plate has risen up! Be very careful, don't let it hit you!"

Red Moon gave a bitter smile, thinking to herself, "I'm suspended in mid-air now, far from the doorway, and the iron plate is rising rapidly. Where can I escape to? Even if the iron plate crashes straight into me, I'm afraid I won't be able to avoid it! It seems that what is meant to be will be. I can only accept my fate—" She then closed her eyes and awaited her death.

The rustling sound abruptly stopped, and then Red Moon suddenly felt something hard beneath her feet. She quickly opened her eyes and exclaimed in surprise and delight, "It really is the entrance to the secret passage leading into the official residence!" The ground beneath her feet had transformed into an iron plate, allowing the people at the entrance to move freely inside the watchtower. The wall beneath the hilt of her sword, which she had been foolishly gripping, had suddenly opened up into a narrow passage, just wide enough for one person to pass through. Following a series of steps, one could descend into the underground passage. However, it was pitch black inside, and no one knew how deep or how far it stretched!

Yu Ruyi and the soldiers rushed over, excitedly embracing Hong Yueliang, saying, "Auntie, I've discovered how great and amazing you are! Really, just that Lingbo Weibu move you just used, very few people can do it!" Hong Yueliang lovingly stroked her hair, saying with lingering fear, "Yu'er, tonight we've come to crack this watchtower's Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams maze, unlike your previous clever capture of Xiaojinchuan's official residence! Because that time, the garrison commander Zhang Guangsi was completely clueless! But this time we're facing the cunning and ruthless Teng Linjunke. This old devil is not only proficient in formations, but also uses them flexibly and cleverly. Our old methods of entering the village won't work anymore. We have to study the formations while entering! The road ahead is still long, full of hidden dangers and perilous situations, everyone must be careful!"

Yu Ruyi smiled and said, "It's fortunate that we joined forces with Yangzhou this time; otherwise, Yu'er alone would have been powerless to help, only able to sigh in despair!" Hong Yueliang immediately gave the order to leave 500 men to guard the entrance of the watchtower to prevent the Japanese from launching a sneak attack from behind, with the valiant general Ai Hongbianye in command. The rest of the troops filed into the underground passage, with the vanguard still led by the six famous boxers of Jiangnan.

Seeing that it was pitch black below, Red Moon had no choice but to order the six men to each light a torch and hold it, leading the way. The six famous boxers descended the steps one by one, going down about ten meters deep, until the space suddenly opened up into a long tunnel, three or four meters wide, with many lanterns embedded in the stone walls on both sides, spaced about five meters apart, illuminating the underground passage as if it were daytime.

To conserve resources and preserve their strength, Red Moon ordered everyone to extinguish their torches. The six renowned boxers, each brandishing their weapons, cautiously led the way. Unexpectedly, after walking for about half a cup of tea's time, the passageway suddenly split into three, revealing three long paths extending forward!

Red Moon first stopped everyone from advancing. She took out a compass from her pouch and calculated the layout according to Zhuge Liang's Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams and the principles of mutual generation and restraint of the Five Elements. She avoided the five gates of Injury, Blockage, View, Death, and Shock. As she advanced step by step through the Rest Gate, she tried not to take any detours. It seemed that the fork in the road on the left was the correct route to the gate in the due north.

With a wave of his hand, he led the large group forward hastily. Unexpectedly, after turning several corners and walking for about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, an iron gate suddenly appeared ahead. Its width and height perfectly blocked the entire passageway, making it impenetrable, not even a fly could get through! Hong Quan rushed forward and threw a powerful punch. With a loud thud, her right wrist nearly broke, yet the iron gate remained completely unmoved! This caused everyone to gasp in astonishment: its thickness was unimaginable! It was either cast from thick, cold-rolled steel plates or hammered from indestructible shipboard steel!