Wang Gui lay on the ground, clutching his waist. He writhed like a shrimp just pulled from the water, curling and stretching, but could not escape the piercing pain.

He cursed incessantly, “You little hussy, I’ll kill you!”

Meanwhile, on the inn’s roof, Zhang Xia lay at the edge of the eaves, looking down. Dozens of Tian Ce Army soldiers had removed their armor, held knives in their mouths, and were climbing up one by one.

Among the soldiers, several had removed their helmets, which were adorned with black pheasant tails, revealing hair less than an inch long, beneath which were visible monastic scars.

They were warrior monks from Kujue Temple!

They scaled the wall with their bare hands, literally carving handholds and footholds into the bricks to assist the other soldiers.

Zhang Xia frowned and said, “This is bad, they’re climbing up!”

Hearing this, Wang Gui disregarded his waist pain, quickly got up, restacked the tables and chairs, and climbed further up. He finally managed to squeeze into a crack in the roof just before the Tian Ce Army could reach them.

Wang Gui, lying on the roof, cursed loudly, “That little hussy next to Chen Ji…”

Zhang Xia angrily retorted, “Shut up!”

Zhang Zheng glared sideways at Wang Gui, “Xiao Man’s nature is still pure and kind. If it were me, I would have broken your leg just now. If you utter one more curse, I’ll push you downstairs right now.”

Zhang Xia peered into the crack and saw that the tables and chairs were still stacked together.

If anyone entered that room, they would immediately realize someone was hiding on the roof and might climb up to pursue them.

Zhang Xia gritted her teeth and slowly moved to reach down, trying to push over the chair stacked on the table, but she couldn’t reach it.

Qi Zhenzhuo squatted beside her and said, “I’ll do it!”

Zhang Xia got up and moved aside. Qi Zhenzhuo pried off a roof tile and threw it at the chair, which promptly fell to the ground.

Just as Qi Zhenzhuo was about to speak, Zhang Xia pulled him back by his collar. “Quiet!” she whispered.

The next moment, a warrior monk peered through the window of Room Tianzi Jia, cautiously surveying the interior. Upon hearing the sounds of Chen Ji fighting inside, he immediately climbed into the room and, holding his sword, rushed into the corridor.

Behind him, one Tian Ce Army soldier after another filed in, seemingly endlessly.

Zhang Xia looked anxiously at Guyuan City. Chen Ji was buying them time, but when would this delay end?

Inside the city, a great fire raged, with over half the buildings burned down by the Tian Ce Army. It was like a chessboard, where the black pieces had already conquered half the board.

In the distance, the Jing Dynasty’s Tian Ce Army cavalry, a black torrent, fearlessly surged back and forth under the guidance of their flags, forcing the border army into continuous retreat.

The border army and the Feathered Forest Guard, along the Xumei Alley line, moved bricks, stones, and earth to build defenses, trying to stop the Tian Ce Army cavalry’s rampage.

The Tian Ce cavalry did not force their way through. Instead, after charging within dozens of paces, they drew their bows and loosed a volley of arrows, mowing down a swath of border soldiers like grass.

The border army soldiers’ rattan armor was no match for the Tian Ce Army’s iron-tipped arrows!

The border army also drew their bows and returned fire, but their range was more than ten paces shorter than that of the Tian Ce Army. The Tian Ce Army cleverly used this distance to maneuver their horses.

When archers faced archers, a mere ten-pace difference in range became an insurmountable chasm.

The sound of vibrating bowstrings came from afar again. Li Xuan, gasping for breath, hid behind an earthen house. The weaponry of Guyuan’s border army was shocking; it was vastly inferior to that of the Three Imperial Camps. Forget firearms, they didn’t even have a decent hard bow!

Feeling frustrated, he looked at the border soldier next to him, who was also taking cover from the arrows, and couldn’t help but ask, “How did you win the battle at Quwu Mountain in the 25th year of Jianing? Did you have some hidden trump card?”

The veteran border soldier spat on the ground and shot him a sideways glance. “Are you still half-asleep, young master from the capital? There’s no fancy trickery on the battlefield. You just throw lives at it!”

“Throw lives at it…” Li Xuan took a deep breath, feeling a sudden surge of trembling heat deep within him. He quietly climbed onto the roof and silently made his way towards where the Tian Ce Army cavalry were concentrating their fire.

Inside the Dragon Gate Inn.

Chen Ji was breathing heavily as he walked through the corridor, carrying his Whale Blade.

Above him, Wuyun (the black cat) followed, leaping from beam to beam. Man and cat, one above and one below, moved like shadows.

As Chen Ji passed Room Tianzi Yi, a Tian Ce Army soldier burst out, swinging his sword towards Chen Ji’s face.

Chen Ji stepped back to evade the blade, then crouched and thrust backward, the blade piercing through the Tian Ce Army soldier’s jaw and skull.

He withdrew his blade and continued forward. As he passed the door of Room Tianzi Bing, a Tian Ce Army soldier had just rushed out.

Before the soldier could raise his arm to swing his sword, Chen Ji casually swept his long Whale Blade across the soldier’s neck, leaving a spray of blood on the corridor wall.

Chen Ji’s strength was waning; he aimed for one-hit kills to avoid prolonged struggles.

However, more and more Tian Ce Army soldiers were climbing up. Soldiers rushing out of room after room were like moles in a game of whack-a-mole; there was no end to them.

Chen Ji could only fight and retreat, but the inn was an octagonal building, and the corridors upstairs formed a large ring. As he retreated, he eventually found himself back at his starting point, surrounded by enemies both front and back.

He stopped and slightly hunched forward.

A drop of blood gathered on the tip of the Whale Blade, then splattered onto the wooden floor with a soft thud.

One drop, then another.

Chen Ji slowly raised his Whale Blade, looking at the dense mass of Tian Ce Army soldiers in front of him, then coldly turned to look at the equally dense mass behind him. Countless soldiers surrounded him in the corridor.

He stepped forward, and the dense ranks of soldiers advanced with him. He took a step back, and the soldiers followed him backward.

On the roof, Xiao Man hid in the shadows of the beams, silently watching the scene below, watching the young man among the soldiers.

In two years, her young master had become unrecognizable.

Was this still the timid, subservient Chen family’s illegitimate son? It seemed not.

Xiao Man pursed her lips. When she had sent Zhang Xia away and stayed behind alone, she felt resolute, remembering her aunt’s instructions to protect Chen Ji at all costs.

But when she saw so many Tian Ce Army soldiers burst in, she panicked slightly, only daring to hide on the beams and watch silently.

Should she go down and help her master? Going down would only mean dying together.

Xiao Man silently looked up. Suddenly, she saw Wuyun (the cat) crouching on a nearby beam, also silently watching below.

Wuyun looked up and saw her. She waved to Wuyun, gesturing for the cat to run away, thinking that these Jing Dynasty scoundrels were so wicked they might even kill a cat.

But Wuyun merely glanced at her, then its gaze returned to the corridor, as if searching for something.

At that moment, a voice like a great bell came from behind the crowd. The Tian Ce Army soldier wielding a heavy sword had also reached the third floor. “Your blade is slow, and your legs are heavy. Will you surrender or not?”

Chen Ji looked around, gripping the hilt of his Whale Blade tightly with both hands. Sweat dripped from his forehead. “No surrender.”

The voice from behind the crowd sneered, “Is fighting so desperately worth it?”

Chen Ji calmly replied, “Protecting those I wish to protect has nothing to do with ‘worth it’ or ‘not worth it’.”

Xiao Man, on the beam, froze.

Then she heard the Tian Ce Army soldier scoff from behind the crowd, “I suppose everyone else has hidden on the roof. Those Southern officials and nobles were quick to hide, but no one’s here to look after you.”

Chen Ji calmly retorted, “Aren’t you also hiding behind your infantry to speak?”

The other person fell silent for a moment, then coldly said from behind the crowd, “Kill him.”

In an instant, all the Tian Ce Army soldiers surged towards Chen Ji. Chen Ji raised his Whale Blade; he no longer cared about killing but could only desperately parry and fend off the attacks from all sides.

As Chen Ji defended against the frontal assault, an incredibly fast flash of a blade swept in, cutting viciously into his back, leaving a long, bloody gash deep enough to expose bone.

Blood streamed down his back, and piercing pain shot into his bones.

Chen Ji swung his blade back, but his attacker had already retreated back into the crowd of soldiers, waiting for another opportunity.

He could only endure the pain and push forward, forcing the dense mass of Tian Ce Army soldiers to retreat. But within a few breaths, another sword wound appeared on his back.

Wuyun watched this scene, several times itching to intervene, but remembering Chen Ji’s instructions, it crouched back down.

Amidst the struggle, the Jing Dynasty warrior monk hidden in the crowd struck again. Chen Ji’s back was turned to the monk, giving him no time to dodge!

Just as Wuyun was about to pounce, it suddenly saw a shadow flash by. It was Xiao Man, silently treading the beams with Taotie, passing by Wuyun.

Just as the blade was about to strike Chen Ji, Xiao Man and Taotie simultaneously leaped into the corridor. Taotie opened its gaping maw in mid-air and, from above, swallowed the warrior monk whole!

Xiao Man stood behind Chen Ji, looking at the bloody wounds on his body. “Young master, you…”

Someone interrupted, “Mandala Mudra, Taotie? Where did you learn my Northern people’s official pathways?”

Xiao Man turned back angrily and retorted, “None of your damn business! ‘Your Northern people’s official pathways,’ everything is ‘yours.’ Why don’t you just say I’m your Northern mother!”

“Sharp-tongued! Get out of the way!”

The Tian Ce Army soldiers behind Chen Ji, like a tidal wave, suddenly split to either side. The tower-like soldier swung his heavy sword, delivering a devastating, mountain-splitting blow!

Instantly, Xiao Man’s hair was swept back by the howling wind. She commanded Taotie to use its ram-like horns to block the oncoming sword. But the moment Taotie met the heavy sword, it was split in two!

It was unstoppable!

As Chen Ji turned his head, he clearly saw the sword, vast and overwhelming, engulfing Xiao Man. Xiao Man seemed paralyzed with fear. “Ah, ah, Young Master, save me…”

“Wuyun! Now!”

In that instant, a streak of blade light, like a bolt of silk, suddenly arced down from the roof beam. It was like a scimitar, like a crescent moon, and it viciously slashed towards the Tian Ce Army soldier holding the heavy sword!

“Seeking death!”

The Tian Ce Army soldier fiercely twisted his sword. His seemingly clumsy heavy sword surprisingly moved with an agile upward stroke, shattering the blade light.

He snatched a simple saber from a nearby soldier and hurled it with all his might towards the roof.

The saber, imbued with thunderous force, shattered the beam with a single strike. Sawdust rained down from the roof, and a black shadow flashed through it.

The Tian Ce Army soldier squinted, carefully scrutinizing the falling sawdust. He then saw a black cat drop from the sawdust, landing lightly on Chen Ji’s shoulder, its eyes coldly staring at everyone.