Whale.
The blade body was three feet three inches, the hilt two feet two inches.
Where the blade met the hilt, an angry white tiger glared out. Resting it on the ground, it reached his eyebrows; raising it, it felt like a soaring tide.
Chen Ji slowly drew the blade in front of him. The Whale Blade did not hold a single drop of blood, smooth as a mirror.
Under the moonlight, he saw his reflection in the "mirror". The mountain wind swept up dead leaves behind him, and the strands of hair by his ears shifting slightly in the wind were all clearly visible.
The wind stopped.
A withered leaf slowly fell from the air onto the edge of the Whale Blade. Silently, it was split in two and drifted lightly back to the earth.
This blade had crossed ten thousand years to finally return to his hands.
Chen Ji suddenly thought, if this blade was real, if the inexplicable sense of familiarity when he held it was also real, then everything Xuanyuan had said must also be real.
But Guixu, peach blossoms, friends, teacher, student, the stars in the sky... why couldn't he remember a single thing?
Who exactly was he?
A rustling sound came from dozens of paces away. Chen Ji calmly looked around, but no figures could be seen in the gloomy mountain forest.
The other party didn't seem in a hurry to besiege him. They simply hid in the shadows of the mountain forest and asked, "Mister Feng asked me to ask you, have you made your decision?"
Chen Ji took a deep breath. "What decision?"
The questioner said calmly, "Mister Feng asked you, are you going to flee back to Luo City, or are you going back to the military town to save your friends?"
These black-clad assassins who had suddenly popped out were like lonely souls and wild ghosts, asking soul-piercing questions.
Chen Ji didn't answer anymore. He just dragged the Whale Blade and walked toward the direction of the military town, walking faster and faster.
As he passed by a large tree, a black figure was revealed as if the tree bark had peeled off, silently chopping a saber at Chen Ji's back.
But Chen Ji had seen this kind of ambush using light and shadow far too many times from Feng Huai.
In an instant, as if he had eyes on the back of his head, he turned around and delivered a backhanded slash. A spray of fresh blood splattered onto the ground, and the black-clad man slowly collapsed.
Clean and decisive, leaving no leeway.
When Chen Ji continued walking forward, he saw the indistinct figures in the mountain forest actually retreating backward.
Someone whispered, "He doesn't seem like he's in the Houtian Stage; he's in the Xiantian Stage."
Someone responded, "It's not the Xiantian Stage; it's that blade."
"Mister Feng has ordered: kill without mercy."
"Kill without mercy!"
The black shadows stopped retreating and immediately surged forward to surround and kill him, weaving a net around Chen Ji.
When Chen Ji moved left, the net moved left; when Chen Ji moved right, the net moved right, pulling tighter and tighter.
These four black-clad men who had been subjected to the Curse-Suppressing Technique far exceeded ordinary military elites. Even Chen Ji, who had stepped into a Practitioner's Pathway, couldn't shake them off; their physical qualities were virtually on par with his.
When the four black-clad men were only five paces away from Chen Ji, they all simultaneously erupted with matchless blade light. Four sabers, too many to handle at once.
Chen Ji suddenly lunged forward like a tiger. The Whale Blade in his hand swung out wide and sweeping to meet them. He completely ignored the blade lights from the left, right, and behind, only aiming to kill the person directly in front of him.
The black-clad man in front of him felt a jolt of alarm and immediately retreated backward.
But as soon as he retreated, Chen Ji immediately stopped pursuing him. He turned around to face the other three. The blade moved with his body, and his body drove the blade forward. The narrow, long Whale Blade drew a dazzling arc of light under the moonlight.
Clang, clang, clang
, three crisp sounds echoed, and three long sabers snapped in response!
The black-clad man he had scared back lunged forward again, swinging his saber to assist, attempting to force Chen Ji to turn around. But Chen Ji didn't even look back. Dropping to a half-kneel on the ground, he swung the blade upward with a backhand grip. The Whale Blade, like a halberd, sliced the wrist of the black-clad man behind him clean off.
Chen Ji half-knelt on the ground, quietly sweeping his gaze over them, like a fierce tiger crouching in the wild.
The four black-clad men exchanged a glance. Just as they were about to discard their broken sabers and fight to the death bare-handed, the ethereal sound of a flute suddenly drifted over from afar, its melody melodious.
It sounded as if a little shepherd boy was sitting sideways on the broad back of a black water buffalo, slowly crossing a stone arch bridge; nearby were the small bridge and the stream, and in the distance were white clouds and cliffs.
Mister Feng.
For some reason, even though Chen Ji hadn't seen the flute player, he subconsciously called out the other party's name in his heart.
It was as if as long as the other party appeared, no matter in what form, you would know it was definitely him.
One of the black-clad men supported his severed right wrist with his left hand and said with a calm expression, "Mister Feng wants to see you. Whether to see him or not, you decide for yourself."
Having said that, the four black-clad men retreated one after another, melting back into the shadows of the mountain forest.
Chen Ji stood up and looked in the direction the flute sound came from.
He pondered for a moment, then carried the Whale Blade and proactively walked toward the sound. As he got closer and closer, the flute sound suddenly overflowed with murderous aura, like sword qi hidden among bamboo shadows.
Chen Ji subconsciously looked around, almost thinking that hundreds of axemen and swordsmen were about to charge out from the mountain forest. However, there was nothing around. He suddenly realized with shock that the other party had actually played the flute in a way that created the illusion of an ambush on all ten sides.
After walking for dozens of paces, he saw Mister Feng, dressed in a green shirt, sitting on a low bluestone, holding a transverse flute. The fisherman who had previously appeared on the awning boat stood quietly by his side.
Chen Ji cupped his hands and bowed. "Mister Feng."
Mister Feng slowly lowered the transverse flute and looked at Chen Ji with a smile. "Why didn't you take the opportunity to run away?"
Chen Ji said calmly, "I can't escape."
Mister Feng clapped his hands in admiration. "Smart. But since you are a smart person, why did you return to the military town? You should know that as a minor Practitioner in the Houtian Stage, it's useless for you to go back. Besides, you haven't known the Prince Heir and Commandery Princess for long. Why throw away your life for someone else?"
Looking exhausted, Chen Ji leaned against a tree trunk and let out a long breath. "Maybe I'm just not smart enough."
Mister Feng sighed with emotion, "It's not that you aren't smart enough, but rather, it's for the sake of so-called youthful chivalry."
Chen Ji remained silent.
Mister Feng handed the transverse flute to the fisherman beside him. Smiling, he stood up from the bluestone and slowly walked toward Chen Ji. "Someone once said that using fame and fortune as his blade, he could chop away nine-tenths of the chivalry in the world. Over the years, the martial artists of the Jianghu have all been co-opted and granted amnesty by the imperial court, and the various sects have vanished without a trace. The cultivation Pathways of the world have all been shelved, and the Jianghu has become a boring place."
He sized Chen Ji up and said, "But seeing you today, I suddenly taste another layer of meaning in his words. It turns out that there is still one-tenth of chivalry left in this world that even he cannot chop away. Truly worthy of respect, worthy of sighs, worthy of songs, worthy of tears... and truly laughable."
Chen Ji was confused, not knowing who Mister Feng was talking about.
Using fame and fortune as his blade, to chop away nine-tenths of the chivalry in the world.
What a boastful tone.
Chen Ji asked, "Why does Mister Feng find it laughable?"
Mister Feng smiled and replied, "So-called chivalry is the courage to do what one knows is impossible. But since you know it's impossible, why still do it?"
Chen Ji said, "I don't understand what chivalry is, nor do I think chivalry is merely courage. I made my decision simply to have a clear conscience... Since Mister Feng is a smart person, why did you choose the Liu Family?"
Standing in front of Chen Ji, Mister Feng gave an intrigued "Oh?" "Tell me, why can't I choose the Liu Family?"
Chen Ji thought for a moment and said, "Although the Liu Family are imperial relatives by marriage and possess immense power and prestige, with the Empress Dowager and the Grand Secretary above them, and being a prominent family in Yuzhou below them, His Majesty has harbored grievances against the Liu Family for a long time. Their decline is only a matter of time. His Majesty ascended the throne at the age of eleven and has reigned for thirty-one years. If they couldn't outmaneuver that eleven-year-old child thirty-one years ago, can they outmaneuver him thirty-one years later?"
Mister Feng smiled. "Continue."
Chen Ji continued, "Leaving aside His Majesty and the Directorate of Ceremonial, let's talk about the world's aristocratic and prominent families. The Xu, Hu, Chen, Qi, Liu, and Yang families are entrenched like fierce tigers, and the Liu Family can only rank at the bottom among them. They might have possessed towering authority in their early years, but now they can't compare to the other five families. Am I right or wrong?"
Mister Feng nodded. "You are correct. The other families indeed look down on the Liu Family nowadays. The Liu Family's decline in power is also a result of being encroached upon by them."
Chen Ji looked up into Mister Feng's eyes. "Since Mister Feng can see through all this, why not change your allegiance? As the saying goes, a good bird chooses the right tree to nest in, and a wise minister chooses the right lord to serve. It's a pity for a smart person like Mister Feng to stay with the Liu Family."
Mister Feng threw his head back and laughed heartily. "Hahahahaha, no wonder you dared to face me directly! It turns out you wanted to coax me into going to the Chen Family. Young man, you truly are audacious and your courage is commendable. However, you've actually managed to forcefully think up a way out for yourself in a situation of certain death. Not bad, not bad!"
Chen Ji stood leaning on his blade and said calmly, "I am not finding a way out for myself, but rather, I have found a way out for Mister Feng."
Heaven and earth suddenly turned solemn; all sounds faded into silence.
In this mountain forest, even the chirping of birds could no longer be heard.
Under the cover of night, the young man was in a sorry state, yet his expression was firm. Long blade in hand, he stood indomitably between heaven and earth!
The fisherman behind Mister Feng immediately wanted to step forward to punish Chen Ji for his arrogant words.
But Mister Feng raised his hand to stop his footsteps and said to Chen Ji with a beaming smile, "The Family Head of the Chen Family is esteemed as a Grand Secretary of the Wenyuan Pavilion and the Minister of Revenue, and he also controls the two provinces of Shanzhou and Dongzhou. It does look like their prospects are brighter than the Liu Family's. However, you cannot make decisions for the Chen Family. Chen Ji, oh Chen Ji, as a lowly concubine's son who isn't even allowed to enter the ancestral shrine during ancestor worship, what qualifications do you have to talk about recruiting me?"
Chen Ji shook his head. "I am not trying to persuade Mister Feng on behalf of the Chen Family."
"Then for whom?"
"Prince Jing's Estate."
Mister Feng fell deep into thought.
Chen Ji said softly, "Mister Feng, the matter of the Liu Family colluding with the Jing Dynasty has already leaked. Even though there is no conclusive evidence, since when does the imperial court need evidence to act? Presumably, His Majesty's Ten-Thousand-Year Army massing troops in the northern part of Yuzhou right now is precisely to guard against the Liu Family. Under these circumstances, for the Liu Family to attempt a rebellion is as difficult as ascending the heavens; their great mansion is on the verge of collapse. Rather than being buried alongside the Liu Family, why not leave at the right time? If you let the Prince Heir and Commandery Princess go, Prince Jing will ensure you remain unharmed."
"Aren't you worried that Prince Jing is also involved in the treason?" Mister Feng asked curiously.
Chen Ji shook his head. "If Prince Jing was colluding with the Liu Family, Elder Liu wouldn't have needed to capture the Prince Heir and Commandery Princess as bargaining chips. Mister Feng, turn back to the shore."
Mister Feng gave him a somewhat amused look. "You really dare to think and dare to say. You are clearly about to die, yet you're still sprouting arrogant words here. How about this: stop trying to recruit me. I see that you are a talent; why not follow by my side and work for me? I can spare your life. If it weren't for this, I wouldn't have wasted all this breath on you."
He stared fixedly at Chen Ji and pursued the question, "Working for me, how about it?"
Chen Ji: "Alright."
The world fell quiet once more.
Mister Feng remained silent for a long time, then suddenly bent over and laughed loudly. "Interesting, incredibly interesting!"
(End of Chapter)