Amidst a pile of shattered tiles, the old ape’s ears twitched, catching a faint sound. He grinned, stooping to pick up a broken tile. After weighing it in his hand, he rose and hurled it with swift force. The tile, like a knife through tofu, effortlessly pierced through walls and roofs, whistling through the air with the sound of wind and thunder. Its destination: the source of the sound.

Alas, the old ape did not see the youth. With a tap of his toe, his massive frame shot upwards. He landed a foot on an old roof beam, using the rebound to leap high above the roof’s gaping hole, landing on the ridge.

The old ape spotted him far away. The youth, with a wooden bow on his back, stood atop a roof’s upturned eave, gazing solemnly at the white-robed old ape.

The old ape knew he had miscalculated. His earlier tile-throwing had been too loud, likely alerting the mud-legged boy from Mud Bottle Lane to the danger. It had deprived him of any advantage from the bow and arrow’s range. The old ape chuckled, spreading his hands to show he carried nothing. Then, he crooked a finger, inviting the youth to continue his tricks. He was willing to indulge him and stretch his muscles.

To accuse the old ape of deceit would be unjust. This guardian ape of Righteous Sun Mountain, with millennia of cultivation and a thousand-foot true form, possessed skills that could truly be called earth-shattering.

Throughout the old ape’s long journey of mountain-moving cultivation, especially in the early days of Righteous Sun Mountain’s founding, the weak sect had faced enemies on all sides, surrounded by tigers and wolves. After the Righteous Sun Mountain’s founder died in battle, the old ape, as his top general, had experienced countless life-and-death struggles. Today’s “minor skirmish” on the rooftops of the alleyway was, in essence, no different from those past battles. In those epic clashes, top cultivators and great Qi Refiners would use magical artifacts and heavy weaponry to restrain the old ape from afar, never daring to engage him in direct combat. Like the swift-moving Qiang cavalry on a human battlefield, they would never directly charge into a heavily armored Great Li infantry formation. Instead, they would slowly chip away at the iron-clad battle formation, searching for an opening, little by little.

Now, the old ape could be considered, besides the vassal king Song Changjing, one of the most suppressed beings by this land’s Heavenly Dao. That military strategist bearing the tiger tally, due to his unique status, was “favored” by this land, so even though his cultivation was considerable, his influence was not as obvious.

At this moment, facing an unusually agile youth who was unlike the town’s common folk, the old ape found a hint of the exhilaration he felt in those bloody battles.

The old ape did not deny that the youth had given him many surprises. He could calculate people’s intentions, set traps, and exploit the terrain. Most importantly, he was quite bold.

The old ape looked up at the sky. The setting sun cast long shadows, and his vision would be increasingly affected. He was also completely unfamiliar with the town’s geography. This was likely one of the youth’s advantages, a flimsy talisman of sorts.

The old ape began to run, his momentum like a galloping horse, each step covering over ten feet, a truly terrifying sight.

The youth, at the instant the old ape moved, turned and fled. He did not follow the continuous alleyways and rooftops toward the north. After all, that was where Fortune Prosperity Street and Peach Leaf Alley were located, with their wealthy households and hidden experts. If someone were to stand up for the old ape, Chen Pingan did not believe he could escape the encirclement. Therefore, Chen Pingan decisively fled westward. The Southern Arch Bridge offered an open view with no place to hide, and based on their relative speeds, Chen Pingan estimated that he would be easily caught by the mountain-moving ape if he lost the cover of obstacles.

Beyond the town to the west lay deep mountains and old forests, thick with vegetation and many hunter’s traps hidden on the secret trails.

The mountain paths were difficult to traverse, and even more so if one did not follow the existing routes. Chen Pingan knew this better than anyone.

The youth’s thoughts were not wrong, but he had misjudged the old ape. As the guardian ape of Righteous Sun Mountain, his understanding of the mountains and rivers was far deeper and more far-reaching than the youth’s.

As the youth leapt from the last rooftop and landed, bending his knees to skillfully absorb some of the impact, he quickly glanced back and continued to sprint forward.

During his run, the wooden bow and quiver vanished without a trace.

In the mountains and forests, once Chen Pingan chose to abandon the paths forged by generations and “panic,” they would inevitably become a burden.

Seeing the youth about to slip into the wilderness like a mudfish into water, the old ape felt a hint of frustration. He glanced back at the direction of the Li family mansion in Fortune Prosperity Street. Once in the mountains, the old ape dared not say he had every advantage, but he was certainly more comfortable than chasing the little brat around the town.

The old ape made a decision, quickly weighing the pros and cons. He took a deep breath of “fresh air,” no more, no less, just enough to kill. The old ape’s face rippled with shades of blue and purple, and his massive frame suddenly shot upwards without warning. The force of his foot shattered the pitiful house beneath him, collapsing most of it. Fortunately, the west side of town was inhabited by the poor, and the houses were far simpler than the buildings in Fortune Prosperity Street. For example, the wood used for the beams and pillars was sorely lacking. The house’s four occupants were, by a stroke of good luck, not inside at the time.

The old ape leaped high, drawing a massive arc in the sky, landing next to the youth. Two large craters appeared where his feet landed, sending loose spring soil flying in all directions.

The old ape threw a punch at the youth’s back.

The back was the location of all yang meridians, so the meridians and organs were connected to the back. Especially the center of the back, which was only inches away from the heart, was the most vulnerable.

His life hanging by a thread,

Hearing the sound beside him, the youth suddenly exploded with force, even faster than when he lured the old ape to step on the decaying roof!

This at least meant that the youth had been hiding his strength from beginning to end.

This caused the old ape’s punch to not only fail to pierce the youth’s back, failing to crush his heart, but only “brush” an inch below his back.

Although he did not directly endure the punch, the youth was sent flying like a bell struck by a hammer, his feet leaving the ground.

In the next scene, the youth’s astonishing agility was on full display.

The straw-sandaled youth, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, was about to fall headfirst into the ground in a humiliating manner, but as his hands reached out to brace himself, his elbows first bent and then exerted force. His entire body completed an effortless flip in the air, landing on his feet and continuing to sprint away with unabated speed.

Even the battle-hardened mountain-moving ape, who had seen so much, could not help but grit his teeth at the town youth’s resilience.

The old ape raised his hand, the back of it smeared with blood.

This small wound was nothing, the old ape brushed it off with a smile. But his determination to kill the youth only grew stronger.

The reason for the injury was not complicated.

In the chilly spring, the poorly dressed youth from the slum, when he appeared before the old ape today, was noticeably more bundled up. He had found a large, old coat belonging to the tall youth Liu Xianyang and wore it over his own clothes, with a secret between the two layers. The youth had made himself a “wooden-ceramic armor.” Six long strips of seasoned wood were drilled with holes and tied together with silk cords, three pieces in the front and three in the back. Most importantly, this crude wooden armor was embedded with a dense layer of small, broken porcelain shards.

The old ape felt terrible, like a high-ranking official who had accidentally stepped in a pile of stinking dog excrement and could not easily shake it off.

The old ape clenched his fists, held his breath, and stood still, suppressing the surging Qi within him. The purple-blue ripples on his face turned to a fleeting shade of purplish-gold.

The old ape was enraged. At that moment, a pebble shot out from the forest.

The old ape reached out and grasped the particularly hard stone, about the size of a fingernail.

Then, a rustling sound indicated that the youth was fleeing deeper into the woods.

The old ape’s face was extremely grim.

He glanced back at the darkening town.

He feared that this was the youth’s real plan, a diversion.

But instinct told the old ape that he had better kill the straw-sandaled youth in the mountains quickly.

—————

The Scholar Tree of Fortune Prosperity Street, having recently suffered from the young assassin’s climb, had its highest branch, capable of supporting a person’s weight, far above the rooftops. On it sat an uninvited guest, with another person standing slightly lower.

The sudden appearance of these two forced the nervous Li family mansion to pretend not to notice, as the white-robed man sitting there was none other than the Supervising Official. He had brought Song Jixin to the Scholar Tree, saying he would show him a good show. However, it was already the tail end of dusk, and Song Jixin’s eyesight was insufficient. He could only listen as Song Changjing recounted the ridiculous chase that began on the rooftops of Mud Bottle Lane.

The man rested an elbow on his knee, propping up his chin, and gazed into the distance. Between narrating the chase, he would occasionally intersperse it with unknown small-town secrets or some free-spirited insights on cultivation.

“If we don’t talk about fate and only about solid artifacts and magical treasures, that long-rumored famous Sword Manual can currently rank in the top three in this town. If we extend the timeline to the entire three-thousand-year history of this town, perhaps the top ten is a bit of a stretch, but top twenty is definitely no problem. Don’t think this ranking is low, it’s actually very high.”

“Adding that Pockmarked Armor, if the kid surnamed Liu can digest it all, in this King’s opinion, his fate is no worse than any of you five.”

Song Jixin did not look up because there was a guy dangling his foot directly over the youth’s head. The youth asked curiously, “Then why was he still killed by Righteous Sun Mountain’s old ape with one punch?”

Song Changjing chuckled nonchalantly, “His luck was too good, making people jealous, and he had no backing. Is it hard to understand?”

Song Jixin looked puzzled and asked, “Then why didn’t you try to win him over more thoroughly back in Mud Bottle Lane?”

The Great Li vassal king above the youth’s head laughed heartily, delighted. After laughing for a long time, he finally said, “This King… well, after you go out and hear one of this King’s nicknames, you’ll understand the reason.”

Song Changjing suddenly stood up, looking into the distance, his expression changing slightly. He lightly stroked the jade belt around his waist, his eyes burning with passion.

In the eyes of this martial arts grandmaster, who was nearly at the “I am the peak” of martial arts, the Qi in the far west of the town surged chaotically the instant the mountain-moving ape broke the rules, as if exploded and shattered porcelain fragments flying in all directions.

Song Changjing slowly said, “You might be curious as to why those outsiders all have a gaze that sees others as ants. Do you really think it’s just their arrogance? Eyes in the sky? Personality is a small part of it. It’s more of a matter of destiny. You haven’t left the town, so you don’t know the transcendent status of these immortals in the outside world.”

Song Jixin replied, “I’m not curious at all.”

“It’s tiring to talk to people who have read books.”

Song Changjing was not surprised and continued, “Because there is a line between you and them. This line isn’t big. To some people, it’s less than a small ditch. As long as you encounter it, you can easily step over it, like you and the previous Liu Xianyang, and that book-reading seed Zhao Yao, who was picked by a Daoist Grandmaster from another continent. But it’s not small either. Most people in the town, looking at that line, feel like they’re facing a chasm, unable to even generate the desire to cross it.”

“The gap between the two groups of people separated by that line is actually like… the difference between humans and plants, no different from the separation of yin and yang, even greater.”

As he said this, the Great Li vassal king suddenly made a sound of surprise, somewhat astonished, and then laughed with schadenfreude, “That old beast is a bit unlucky this time, actually provoking such a little hedgehog. He’s hiding very deeply. Song Jixin, this King now understands you a little. Anyone who faces such an opponent will feel uncomfortable. Apart from cleanly killing him with one punch, it’s a pretty disgusting problem.”

Song Jixin looked displeased.

Not far away, the Li family mansion shouted loudly, and even the hidden pillar of stability furiously made a move.

The straw-sandaled youth did have reinforcements responding to him.

And they were not ordinary people.

Song Changjing smiled. Even when the assassin’s figure flashed past under the Scholar Tree, this vassal king had no intention of stopping him.

In his sight, the old ape’s massive figure returned from the west, constantly “rising and falling” in the town. As for whether he would collapse houses or ruin other people’s courtyards when he landed, he did not care at all.

The Righteous Sun Mountain old ape seemed to have found a scapegoat.

Song Changjing suddenly frowned, then relaxed, and then his fighting spirit erupted instantly.

The Great Li warrior Song Changjing had three loves in his life: building Jingguan (mounds of skulls), killing geniuses, and fighting gods and immortals.

In the next moment, Song Jixin’s eyes widened. At some point, the man above him had landed on Fortune Prosperity Street, colliding with the massive old ape running towards him in a simple, almost barbaric manner.

The king of Dai-Hi region, the old monkey of the mountain.

One person, one fist, exchanged, hitting each other’s chests.

Song Changjing did not retreat but stepped forward, while the old ape took a step back.

Again, each landed a fist, this time striking each other’s foreheads.

Song Changjing strode forward, this time only he threw a punch.

With one step forward, heavily stomping on the ground, his knees slightly bent, his left hand reaching forward, his right fist pulled back.

The man was dressed in white robes, his sleeves fluttering, his feet crushing the blue stone slabs.

A punch went straight out.

The old ape could only extend a palm to block Song Changjing’s fist.

It seemed as if there were two distinct cracking sounds in the world.

The old ape slid back more than ten zhang (33 meters), plowing a shocking groove in the blue stone ground.

Song Changjing lightly waved his sleeve, one hand behind his back, one hand holding his white jade belt, smiling and said, “Qi Jingchun, aren’t you going to come out and stop this? Are you really going to let things go to pot? Don’t. Hold on a little longer.”

The old ape spat out a mouthful of foul air.

Song Changjing held up a palm, shaking it and smiling, “Let’s fight after this King goes out. For now, let’s mind our own business.”

The old ape grinned, “Song Changjing, then you’d better be able to beat me when the time comes, or the Great Li Southern Border Army will be in for a rough time.”

Song Changjing smiled, “As you wish.”

The old ape snorted coldly and went alone into the Li family mansion. The young lady was safe and sound, not even startled. After learning the details, the old ape realized it was just a clumsy trick. After a little thought, he grinned and hurried to the west side of the town.

To hunt in the mountains.