In the dark night, Han Tong, wearing a bamboo hat, plowed through layers of falling snow. As he ran frantically, it was as if a great dragon swirled around him; snowflakes were involuntarily swept into the air currents he created, forming a swirling vortex behind him.

Chen Ji followed closely behind him. His ears buzzed, and blood from his forehead soaked half his cheek, mixing with dirt to blur his features, making him look distorted and grim. The explosion at Green Bamboo Garden had been too violent, so violent that his internal organs still ached with a burning pain.

Chen Ji was not a professional demolitions expert and had no clear concept of gunpowder’s power. He only knew he had to keep Yun Yang and Jiao Tu occupied, to prevent them from stopping Liang Gou’er’s prison break. As for whether he would die in the explosion, whether Liang Gou’er would seek revenge later, or if Han Tong would accidentally kill him, he didn’t care.

At that moment, half of the secret agents went to rescue Jin Zhu, Yun Yang, and Jiao Tu, while the other half followed Chen Ji to pursue Han Tong. However, the two were too fast for the agents to keep up.

Chen Ji glanced back to see the agents, whom they had outrun, were now out of sight. Suddenly, he called out to Han Tong’s retreating back, “Stop. I have something to tell you.”

Han Tong stopped in the wind and snow and turned around. He angrily demanded, “Where is Bai Li? Your people said she would be brought to White Robe Lane tonight. Why isn’t she here?”

Chen Ji regained his breath and slowly walked up to Han Tong. Only at this close distance could he hear the other’s voice clearly over the ringing in his ears. “What did you just say?” he asked.

Han Tong angrily repeated, “Where is Bai Li?”

Chen Ji replied, “The Princess is still in the inner prison.”

Han Tong turned to leave. His voice, sharp as a blade, cut through the air: “You used me in Bai Li’s name. I will hunt every one of you down later.”

Chen Ji calmly stated, “Sect Master Han, do you know where the inner prison is? If you want to rescue the Princess, you can only do as I say.”

Han Tong stopped. “You, a mere boy, dare to order me around?”

Chen Ji continued, “Sect Master Han, tonight many people are risking their lives to rescue the Crown Prince and Princess. But if you think you can simply storm the inner prison and rescue them, you are too naive. The inner prison is a cage, but isn’t this vast Luocheng city itself another cage?”

Chen Ji promised, “Do as I say, and I guarantee you will see the Princess again.” Han Tong turned his head, looking back like a wolf in the snow, his gaze sharp as a knife. “What do you need me to do?”

Chen Ji instructed, “I need you to go to the Grand Canal docks immediately and prepare a fast boat that can leave Luocheng tonight. I don’t care how you do it, but this boat must be ready. As long as we can rescue her tonight, I will take her to Jing Dynasty to settle down, and we will never return to Ning Dynasty.”

Chen Ji was leaving Ning Dynasty, but when he left, he had to take Bai Li with him.

Han Tong weighed his options for a moment, then asked, “I will certainly have the boat ready, but how will you get the person to the dock?”

Chen Ji shook his head. “You only need to prepare the boat. You don’t need to know the rest.” Han Tong frowned. “How do I know you’re not lying to me?”

Chen Ji looked directly into Han Tong’s eyes and said softly, “I will definitely rescue her.”

Han Tong was startled, then said solemnly, “We, the people of the jianghu, keep our word, act decisively, and fulfill our promises. I hope you are not deceiving me.”

“Jianghu?” Chen Ji scoffed softly, recalling the Thousand-Year Army. He looked down at the disturbed snow on the ground. “Punch me with all your might to cover these footprints in the snow, then go to the dock and do what you need to do.”

“Good!”

At this moment, footsteps could be heard in the distant darkness. Chen Ji and Han Tong resumed their chase.

During this chase, Han Tong suddenly turned around, and in an instant, unleashed a ferocious punch. As his fist swung, the Buddha tattooed on his wrist glowed with golden light, and a massive golden phantom of a Buddha figure materialized behind him.

In the wind and snow, the Buddha extended an ethereal hand, and Han Tong’s punch merged with it, becoming one motion. Though the fist clearly hadn’t touched Chen Ji, he was already sent flying by an immense, surging force.

Chen Ji spat out a mouthful of blood in mid-air and landed on the ground in an arc. His body slid several yards across the snow, sending snow billowing up like waves, completely obliterating the scattered footprints where they had just stood. As he listened to Han Tong’s retreating footsteps, he knew that this final, crucial step had been completed. Whether it succeeded or failed now was up to fate.

Chen Ji lay flat in the deep snow, too exhausted to get up. In a daze, he saw snowflakes falling on his face. Then, Yun Yang and Jiao Tu’s disheveled faces appeared in his vision, looking down at him with cold gazes. Both were disheveled and covered in injuries, completely losing their former pristine appearances.

Chen Ji felt no ripple of emotion. When the explosion occurred, he hadn’t received a signal indicating their demise, so he already knew they weren’t dead. And now, whether they were dead or alive no longer mattered.

“My Lords,” Chen Ji said, “the one who injured me is Han Tong, Sect Master of the Luotian Sect. Go, pursue him quickly!”

Yun Yang snarled, “Were you trying to scheme against us?”

Jiao Tu knelt beside Chen Ji, tucking her disheveled hair behind her ear. She said with a grin, “I kindly accompanied you for drinks, and yet you tried to kill me?”

Chen Ji coughed up a mouthful of blood, wiped his mouth, and explained, “My Lords, Master Yun Yang chose the location. Why would you suspect me?”

Yun Yang wiped blood from the corner of his mouth with a sneer. “Whether it was you or not no longer matters.” With that, he looked at Jiao Tu and said, “Kill him directly.”

Just then, Jin Zhu arrived, pushing the two away forcefully. He said coldly, “Chen Ji was also inside the building at that time. If he wanted to kill you, wouldn’t he have to kill himself too? I will report this matter to the Imperial Grand Chancellor for his judgment!” He said fiercely, “If you want to harm a colleague indiscriminately, then come and try me first! If I don’t die today, you two will never have a peaceful day again.”

Yun Yang and Jiao Tu exchanged glances, seemingly weighing the pros and cons. Jin Zhu’s words were indeed reasonable: Chen Ji was inside the building when the firearms exploded. If this was truly Chen Ji’s doing, he would have had to die with them. They didn’t believe anyone would risk their life for others. They weren’t such people, and they had never seen such a person!

After a moment of thought, Yun Yang knelt in front of Chen Ji and said, “I’ll provisionally believe this matter has nothing to do with you, but you…”

At this point, Chen Ji pushed himself up in the snow and pointed to Han Tong’s footprints, saying, “My Lords, in this heavy snow, tracks cannot be hidden. If you just follow the footprints and capture Han Tong, interrogate him with Meng Ji, the truth will naturally come out. Furthermore, the Imperial Grand Chancellor wishes to eliminate the Luotian Sect. Capturing Han Tong would ease the Grand Chancellor’s worries and be a great service.”

Yun Yang looked at the footprints.

Chen Ji urged, “Be quick, or the fresh snow will cover the footprints.” Jiao Tu stood up and left immediately, with Yun Yang following closely behind.

Jin Zhu quietly asked, “Are you alright? Your injuries…”

“My Lord, don’t worry about me. Catching him is more important,” Chen Ji replied. Jin Zhu lowered his voice and angrily asked, “Was it worth it?”

Chen Ji lay back down in the snow without speaking. Someone had bought his life for six golden melon seeds, and he hadn’t intended to consider whether it was worth it.

Seeing he said nothing more, Jin Zhu gritted his teeth and eventually caught up with Yun Yang and Jiao Tu.

After the three had gone far, Chen Ji slowly stood up and looked into the distance. By the time the Secret Service captured Han Tong, he and Bai Li should already be on their way to Jing Dynasty. Chen Ji pulled a gray cloth from his inner pocket to cover his face. He turned and ran in another direction. The heavy snow, falling everywhere, slowly concealed his footprints in the dark night.