The patterns that suddenly appeared were like ribs growing out of nowhere, tearing through flesh and fascia, brutally forcing a path for themselves.

The bright furnace fires across Chen Ji’s entire body extinguished once more. Molten energy converged from all his limbs and body parts towards the patterns, causing even his hair to dry out.

At that moment, a saber hacked down from his right. Chen Ji frantically retreated within the core of the Plum Blossom Saber Array. His fluctuating physical strength made it impossible for him to adapt quickly, causing his legs to buckle uncontrollably. Another person behind Chen Ji swung a saber, forcing him to roll on the ground like a drunkard to evade.

The Yuan Caotang employees couldn’t help but be startled. How could he transform completely one moment, return to his peak state the next, and then be rolling around on the ground in such a sorry state?

Someone shouted in a low voice, “Don’t be fooled by him! Attack!”

Taking advantage of this moment, Chen Ji, covered in dust and looking disheveled, escaped through the gap he had just kicked open. He used his hands and feet to scramble to his feet, then stumbled towards the small mountain of grain. As the Yuan Caotang employees attacked, he dodged around the grain to avoid their pursuit. When they flanked him from both sides of the grain pile, he again scrambled up the stacked grain sacks.

Chen Ji stood atop the “grain mountain,” kicking sacks at the attacking Yuan Caotang employees, urgently shouting, “Wuyun, eat more!”

Wuyun meowed in response, “None left!”

Chen Ji was slightly startled. All that ginseng was gone already?

As they spoke, the Yuan Caotang employees again brandished their sabers and charged towards the top of the grain pile. While dodging, Chen Ji slipped, rolling down the pile like a ball and landing flat on his back on the flagstones. The pursuing Yuan Caotang employee leaped from the top of the grain pile, raising his saber with both hands above his head. The weapon whistled through the air as he brought it down on Chen Ji!

Chen Ji propped himself up and sat on the ground, but it was too late to dodge. That powerful blow would likely split him in two.

But at that moment, a black shadow flashed past. The employee frantically searched for the black shadow in mid-air. When he finally saw clearly, he realized it was a black cat that had come to Chen Ji’s side and touched his body with its paw. In an instant, a scorching, hot torrent seemed to surge through Chen Ji’s body. It felt as if getting any closer would cause one’s hair to dry out and curl from the intense heat.

The Yuan Caotang employee’s saber finally struck, chopping fiercely down on Chen Ji’s head.

Silence. The air in the courtyard seemed to freeze for a moment. There was no sound of chopping, nor any blood splattering. The saber, carrying immense force, was caught between Chen Ji’s hands and brought to a complete halt. Behind his clasped palms were Chen Ji’s calm, unruffled eyes.

The Yuan Caotang employee was inexplicably astonished. “You…”

A tremendous force surged through the weapon, forcing the Yuan Caotang employee to release his grip on the saber. He staggered backward, but the saber in Chen Ji’s hand had already turned, chopping down from his shoulder and cutting straight through his chest and abdomen. The employee looked down at the wound in disbelief, then searched for the black cat. Turning his head, he saw the black cat leaping agilely through the crowd. Wuyun darted to the wall, leaped effortlessly, then landed on a windowsill and pounced back. As its claws waved, a majestic saber light burst forth from them, like a crescent moon. The saber light passed through the bodies of four Yuan Caotang employees, literally splitting them in two!

The courtyard fell silent again. Chen Ji stood holding his saber, while Wuyun squatted nearby, silently licking its paws. Corpses littered the ground.

Chen Ji lifted the torn part of his clothes, looking at the three patterns on his waist and abdomen, and sensing the more than five hundred furnace fires within his body…

Why had his Master never mentioned the patterns? Although Old Man Yao was harsh, he wouldn’t joke about important matters. There had to be a reason why he didn’t mention this… But why? Could it be that only he would grow these patterns, and even his Master had never seen them?

Wait, the sword seed was still swimming freely within the first pattern, as if it was originally a part of the pattern. With a thought, the sword seed flew out of the pattern. Thin as a cicada’s wing, it etched the character “白” (white) onto the ground.

“Huh?” Chen Ji was startled. Originally, he could only control the sword seed to fly straight back and forth, or charge wildly. Earlier, when he killed the brothel madam, if the sword seed hadn’t been so clumsy, he should have killed her with the first strike. But now, writing was no longer difficult. He recalled the sword seed. The slender sword seed lightly leaped and spun between his fingers, yet it didn’t cut them.

Strange. The Mountain Lord’s path and the Sword Seed’s path were originally distinct and unrelated. Why could the Mountain Lord’s path help him master the Sword Seed’s path? Moreover, as sunlight poured down at that moment, some of the light that should have been entirely used for nourishing the sword was instead stored in the other two patterns… What did this mean? Could he cultivate new sword seeds again? For this matter, he probably could only ask Xuanyuan.

As he pondered, the sounds of crying and hooves gradually grew closer in the distance. Chen Ji woke with a start. He glanced back at the grain in the courtyard, then turned, hugged Wuyun, and leaped forcefully onto the eaves, effortlessly ascending as if a spring onion pulled from dry ground, no longer needing to cling to the roof for leverage. He stood on the rooftop, gazing south. He saw the Heavenly Strategy Army’s cavalry had already stormed into the city, rampaging, burning, killing, and looting, with flames rising to the sky. The people of Guyuan were being driven to flee north. At the city gate, an endless stream of black armored cavalry continued to pour in.

Just then, a sharp whistling sound cut through the air. Chen Ji’s cheek tilted slightly as a whistling arrow shot straight for his face. After severing the hair at his temple, its momentum continued unchecked. Chen Ji suddenly turned his head to look where the arrow had come from. A black-armored archer stood on a nearby building, looking at him from hundreds of paces away.

A Jing Dynasty divine archer!

As the whistling arrow flew, the nearby Heavenly Strategy Army cavalry seemed to receive a signal. Ten riders immediately broke off and galloped toward the sound. Chen Ji turned and ran, but the Jing Dynasty divine archer was relentless, continuously drawing and firing arrows, seemingly tireless, guiding the Heavenly Strategy Army cavalry. Chen Ji dodged the whistling arrows while looking back at his pursuers. He navigated the labyrinthine dirt alleys, and as he rounded one corner, he suddenly stopped.

Danger! A silent iron-tipped arrow shot just past him, piercing through the mud wall!

Chen Ji’s heart was chilled. This Jing Dynasty divine archer could actually predict his appearance here in advance; the arrow had been fired before he even arrived. Seeing that the first arrow missed, the opponent nocked another whistling arrow and fired it, using the arrow’s whistle to guide the cavalry.

At this moment, Wuyun, nestled in Chen Ji’s arms, asked, “Shall I kill him? It’s a sure thing.”

Chen Ji took a deep breath. “No need.”

Gradually, the ten Heavenly Strategy Army cavalrymen, riding their horses, wove a net. Following the divine archer’s guidance, it suddenly tightened around Chen Ji, blocking all his escape routes. But Chen Ji did not dodge or evade; instead, he charged straight towards one of the cavalrymen. As they met, the heavily armored cavalryman, imbued with the force of wind and thunder, thrust his spear!

In an instant, the Heavenly Strategy Army cavalryman’s expression changed. Chen Ji had firmly grasped his spear tip. “Get down!” The cavalryman on horseback had his weapon snatched by Chen Ji, who then used the butt end of the spear to sweep him off his horse. Chen Ji turned again, and the spear in his hand shot out, forcibly dismounting the cavalryman rushing from behind and pinning him to a nearby mud wall.

He calmly turned his head, looking distantly at the divine archer on the distant rooftop.