Jianghu Qimen Lu

Upon hearing this, Yue Zhongqi couldn't help but shed tears. His body trembled uncontrollably, not from overwhelming emotion or grief, but from a deep sense of shock and fear: "Grand Marshal Zhang Guangsi has suffered over 100,000 casualties in this Xiaojinchuan camp, violating the laws of the Qing Dynasty and deserving execution! Now our army has lost 160,000. If the Emperor hears of this, won't he punish me and Bai Shandian together? This crime is no small matter; ten heads wouldn't be enough to behead us!"

Divine Medicine King and Bai Jin exchanged a glance, neither of them knowing what Yue Zhongqi was up to. They both agreed that he was so loyal and righteous that it was no wonder he was willing to risk his life to save Bai Shandian. They both secretly gave him a thumbs up, calling him a true hero with a chivalrous heart!

The Medicine King continued, "Right now, Commander Yu Ruyi has rallied his troops and is determined to settle scores with the Japanese. They must pay for their crimes in blood! I spoke up then and there, saying that they are unharmed and riding high, and they are hiding in the shadows. To challenge them would be like throwing an egg against a rock—suicide! The only thing we need to do now is escape as quickly as possible and preserve our strength! As long as we're alive, we can always rebuild! We can rise again and seek revenge!"

Commander Yu and many other generals thought I was too cowardly, urging me not to diminish our own prestige and boost the enemy's! However, the Red Moon Sect Master overruled their objections, agreeing with my reasoning and asking how I had found the exit from the formation. As the saying goes, "A master's skill is immediately apparent." I explained the secret to breaking the formation, and she was instantly enlightened, praising my explanation as extremely reasonable! She then discussed with me how to lead the remaining troops to escape this dangerous place unnoticed.

Upon hearing this, Yue Zhongqi couldn't help but feel a deep respect for the Medicine King, thinking to himself, "This reclusive master truly possesses extraordinary abilities. Even the Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams Bewildering Array, which even the Red Gate Master struggled with, was easily broken by him! Truly admirable!"

He continued, "I stroked my long beard, which fluttered across my chest, and pondered for a long while before finally proposing a battle plan. Upon hearing it, the Red Gate Master exclaimed in admiration, repeatedly praising, 'Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! A truly ingenious and unexpected counter-offensive tactic! Actually, my plan is quite simple: avoid their strong points and attack their weak points, returning the way we came! Because the exit we just entered through is clearly known to Teng Lin Junke, and he will undoubtedly guard it heavily with all his heavy weapons! If we change our strategy and go against them, returning to the front gate of the Xiaojinchuan official residence, we can catch them off guard and escape safely and easily!'"

Red Moon immediately ordered the troops to switch positions, with the front becoming the rear and the rear becoming the front, and quickly withdraw from the mass grave. Just as I had guessed, we didn't encounter a single Japanese ninja soldier along the way, and smoothly arrived at the entrance of the large cave where Tokugawa Munetake and a large number of Japanese ninja soldiers were imprisoned.

To everyone's surprise, the cave entrance was deserted. The two of the six famous boxing styles guarding the prisoners—the Cai Li Fo boxing style and the Mo boxing style—along with their troop of chieftain soldiers, had vanished without a trace! Yu Ruyi was greatly alarmed and hurriedly led the fourth of the six famous boxing styles into the cave. She couldn't help but gasp in shock! What she saw there filled the four of the six famous boxing styles with unbearable grief. They rushed forward, crying out loudly!

The cave was a scene of utter chaos. Illuminated by torches, it was littered with the bodies of the chieftain's soldiers. Deep within the cave, they found a hunchbacked, thin old man, impaled on a stone wall with a spear – none other than Cai Li Fo Quan, a lay disciple of Shaolin! Another man, dressed in Miao attire, had also been strangled with a brightly colored brocade rope, falling dead to the ground. Yu Ruyi recognized him as Mo Quan, the chieftain of the Miao tribe in Yunnan. That five-colored brocade rope, a legendary treasure of the Western Regions, impervious to fire and water, and unbreakable by swords, was his unique weapon, yet it had ultimately become the culprit that killed him!

Subsequently, Red Moon led his troops in, filled with righteous indignation, all cursing the Japanese for their cruelty! They hadn't left a single survivor! Red Moon was even more worried about the once-mighty warrior left guarding the watchtower entrance, his cries of agony echoing everywhere! He immediately ordered a swift advance.