In the alley.

Masked Chen Wenren walked into the alley step by step, holding his spear pointed downwards. The distance of over thirty paces gradually shortened. Behind him, the masked Imperial Guards stood in perfect formation, advancing like a pressing black wall.

The street enforcers and the imperial ceremonial guards projected vastly different presences.

Chen Wenren laughed from a distance, saying, “Do you really think you can achieve anything with a few broken bamboo poles and these shoddy iron weapons? Aren’t you ashamed to stir up trouble in this outer city?”

Li Xuan said gravely, “You came here specifically for us, didn’t you? You’ve been watching us for days, looking for an opportunity to exact your revenge?”

Chen Wenren paused. Seeing his identity exposed, he dropped his pretense and taunted, “Some people are clearly live-in sons-in-law whose children take their wife’s surname, yet they still act like important figures every day. Others prefer to hide behind people’s backs but still pretend to be heroes. And then there’s someone who is clearly a concubine’s son, but instead of supporting his own family, he sides with outsiders.”

Qi Zhenzhuo couldn’t help but retort, “What about you? What are you then?”

Chen Wenren sneered, raised his spear, and continued forward. “Today I’ll teach you how to speak to me from now on.”

Li Xuan had killed Zhao Zhuofan, the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guards, making the two sides mortal enemies. At the Imperial Guard Commandery, they couldn’t engage in armed combat, so they had to bide their time.

Now, with such a battleground chosen, both new and old grievances would be settled.

At this moment, the narrow Lishamao Alley was packed with people.

To the west were Heji’s enforcers, to the east Chen Wenren and the Imperial Guards, and overhead, two sitting officers from Furui Xiang. Enemies were everywhere they looked.

Li Xuan and his group gradually closed ranks, standing back-to-back. Chen Ji’s gaze swept over Chen Wenren and his group. “Are there any Dao-seeking realm practitioners among them?” he asked.

Li Xuan calmly said, “Wang Fang, who is next to Chen Wenren, might have already entered the Dao-seeking realm.”

“Wang Fang?”

Qi Zhenzhuo explained, “He’s the one Chen Wenren incited to spar with you when you first became an instructor at the Commandery. He always claimed to have one foot in the Dao-seeking realm; since he dares to cause trouble for my brother-in-law today, he must have crossed the threshold.”

Chen Ji asked in a low voice, “Chen Wenren isn’t in the Dao-seeking realm? Didn’t the Chen family use money to elevate him?”

Li Xuan calmly said, “The threshold of the Dao-seeking realm isn’t something just anyone can cross with money. If you can’t overcome that hurdle, piling up silver is useless.”

With that, he looked up at the two officers in theatrical robes overhead. “The two ‘face-changing’ figures overhead are likely Innate Realm officers, not very high in cultivation,” he said. “However, their method is a bit strange: when they show a white face, they are unpredictable; with a red face, they possess immense strength; and with a black face, they are invulnerable to weapons. They are difficult to deal with.”

Chen Ji let out a long breath. “I’ll handle them,” he said.

Just then, Duobao suddenly turned and handed his spear to Qi Zhenzhuo.

Qi Zhenzhuo was startled. “What are you doing?” he asked.

Duobao said gravely, “Haven’t you always wanted to prove yourself? Today, you’ll be the formation’s core and defeat Chen Wenren. Although I’ve disliked him for a long time too, I’m giving you this opportunity today.”

Qi Zhenzhuo looked at the spear offered to him. “I… I haven’t killed a single Jing Dynasty bandit when I was in Guyuan. Do you trust me?” he asked.

Duobao chuckled, “If you prove useless later, we’ll just switch back, won’t we? But from now on, don’t expect the brothers to call you ‘Sir’ again. You’ll just have to quietly humble yourself in the yamen and serve tea and water to everyone.”

Qi Zhenzhuo snatched the spear from Duobao and handed him the iron wolf-bristle staff he had been holding. “The stakes are really damn high… Kill!” he roared.

The three Mandarin Duck formations suddenly moved. One, led by Qi Zhenzhuo, formed the vanguard, with the other two following behind. Thirty-eight Imperial Guards raised their spears like a forest and charged forward.

Chen Wenren sneered and said to the masked Imperial Guards beside him, “Today, let them know that returning from Guyuan isn’t so impressive. Stop looking down on people, don’t be afraid of anything, and fight!”

The two sides engaged.

Someone on Chen Wenren’s side was the first to thrust a spear. The weapon whistled and hummed as it thrust forward, its movement swift, clean, and pleasing to the eye.

However, before the spear reached Qi Zhenzhuo, it was parried high by the iron wolf-bristle staff in Duobao’s hand, forcing the attacker’s guard wide open and exposing his chest and abdomen to everyone’s view.

Duobao roared, raising the iron wolf-bristle staff high, “Flashy nonsense! Get him!”

Qi Zhenzhuo gripped the spear shaft with both hands, hesitating. Li Cen kicked him in the backside, forcing him to stumble forward a step. Qi Zhenzhuo gritted his teeth and, with a hardened resolve, ducked low, lunged forward, and thrust the butt of his spear into his opponent’s abdomen.

The opposing Imperial Guard dropped his spear in pain, curling up on the ground like a shrimp.

Chen Wenren saw Qi Zhenzhuo charge forward and raised his spear to thrust. But just as he raised his hand, Duobao’s sixteen-foot-long iron wolf-bristle staff swept over, forcing Chen Wenren to hastily retreat.

Duobao shouted loudly, “Can you do it, dammit? If not, I’ll take over?”

Qi Zhenzhuo tightened his grip on the spear. “It doesn’t seem that hard after all. Again!” he declared.

The Mandarin Duck formation repeated its tactic. The simple maneuver of the iron wolf-bristle staff blocking and screening, followed by a spear thrust, made it difficult for the opposing Imperial Guards to parry.

On Chen Wenren’s side, their previously orderly formation immediately fell into disarray.

He roared, “Zhang Li, Li Bin, come with me to break through their formation! You two block that iron weapon, and I’ll deal with Qi Zhenzhuo!”

As his words fell, the three advanced side-by-side. When two iron wolf-bristle staffs attacked from left and right, the Imperial Guards flanking Chen Wenren actively parried them upwards with their spears, lifting the staffs high.

Beneath the spears and iron wolf-bristle staffs, only Chen Wenren and Qi Zhenzhuo remained facing each other, without further interference.

Chen Wenren recognized Qi Zhenzhuo at a glance and immediately sneered, “Coward, get lost!”

Qi Zhenzhuo instinctively recoiled. Duobao, frustrated, exclaimed, “Damn it, stab him! What are you afraid of? You hid in Guyuan; how much longer will you keep hiding?”

Chen Ji’s voice suddenly came from behind Qi Zhenzhuo: “Attack his lower left.”

Hearing this, he felt a surge of energy. He finally thrust his spear towards Chen Wenren’s left knee. As Chen Wenren swung his spear to parry, he heard Chen Ji say again, “Withdraw your spear, target his right knee.”

Qi Zhenzhuo withdrew the butt of his spear, causing Chen Wenren’s swinging spear to miss its mark. As Chen Wenren’s strength was nearly spent, a sharp pain shot through his right knee, and his body lurched to one side.

Before he could react, a voice came again from behind Qi Zhenzhuo: “Sweep at his head.”

Chen Wenren heard the whistling wind approaching. Fortunately, Wang Fang, who was behind him, grabbed his collar and dragged him back into the formation. Qi Zhenzhuo’s spear butt narrowly swept past his nose.

If not for Wang Fang, that blow might have knocked him unconscious.

Qi Zhenzhuo’s excited voice rang out from the opposite Mandarin Duck formation, “Did you see that? Did you see that? I almost clubbed that bastard to death!”

Chen Wenren choked with rage. Just as he was about to get up and fight again, Wang Fang whispered, “My Lord, stay behind and command the formation. We’ll handle this.”

Chen Wenren said fiercely, “Defeat them, and I’ll request a Deputy Commander position for you, filling Zhao Zhuofan’s vacancy!”

Wang Fang clasped his fists and said, “As you command.”

With that, he pointed to two men on either side. “You two take the lead,” he ordered.

Wang Fang himself remained within the formation, his gaze fixed firmly on Li Xuan. If Li Xuan didn’t move, he wouldn’t move. However, Li Xuan’s gaze also pierced through the crowd, locking onto him.

In the surging crowd of fighting, two Dao-seeking realm officers stood, with no one else in their sight.

The next moment, Li Xuan walked through the crowd towards the front of the formation. Wang Fang, holding his spear pointed downwards, advanced to meet him. When both reached the front simultaneously, everyone instinctively pulled back, avoiding their sharp presence.

Li Xuan and Wang Fang simultaneously thrust their spears, directly targeting each other’s chests and abdomens without any flourish. The butts of their spears brushed past each other. Just as it seemed both sides would suffer mutual harm, Wang Fang suddenly roared, and a white giant python apparition lit up behind him, moving a fraction faster than Li Xuan.

Yet Li Xuan still didn’t dodge, seeming determined to endure mutual harm.

Just as the two were about to make contact, Wang Fang’s pupils constricted, and he suddenly pulled back his spear and retreated. Neither injured the other, but his imposing presence weakened by a third.

In the Spring Breeze Courtyard on the second floor, a young man clapped his hands with a smile. “Whether they’ve been on a battlefield or not is clear at a glance! I can probably guess where these people came from. A contingent of Imperial Guards just returned from Guyuan recently, didn’t they? Five hundred went, but only thirty-seven returned. It was truly tragic.”

Zhou Kuang smiled, “On the battlefield, there aren’t so many fancy moves; only those willing to die can survive. You’re right, My Lord. These thirty-odd people have been on battlefields and have many lives on their hands. I originally thought they would perish in this alley, but now… those eighty pampered soldiers probably can’t stop them.”

The young man stroked the stubble on his chin. “There’s also a ferocious individual mentioned in the memorials who killed over a hundred Heavenly Strategy soldiers. I wonder which one it is?”

In the alley, Wang Fang and Li Xuan exchanged over a dozen more blows. Although Wang Fang’s movements were slightly faster than Li Xuan’s, and Li Xuan held a spear instead of his preferred sword, Wang Fang was suppressed by Li Xuan at every turn, and even the apparition behind him gradually dimmed.

Sections of the green brick walls on both sides of the alley had collapsed, violently battered by the two men, creating an open space.

In the twentieth exchange, Li Xuan swung his spear horizontally, striking Wang Fang hard in the back. Wang Fang spat out a mouthful of blood.

Just then, a sitting officer who had been perched on a red lantern suddenly made his move. He dropped from above, heading straight for Li Xuan’s back.

This sitting officer, while still in mid-air, wiped his cheek, transforming his pale, narrow-eyed face into a red, long-bearded, ferocious, twisted, and eerie mask. But before he could land, a figure flashed out from the military formation. “Stand firm,” the figure said.

Chen Ji raised his spear and leaped, pushing off Li Xuan’s shoulder to spring into the air. He surged straight towards the descending sitting officer.

Green bricks, grey tiles, red lanterns.

Onlookers hidden in the shadows slowly opened their mouths wide. The masked officer, rising through the air, swung his spear in a full circle, bringing it down with a whistling rush of wind.

The Furui Xiang sitting officer hastily changed his face. His red face with a long beard transformed into a black face with a bushy beard, and he forcibly met the “blow” with both arms!

*Bang!*

The spear exploded into a shower of wood splinters in mid-air. The sitting officer was sent straight down into the alley, and the iron spearhead was flung high into the air.

Seeing his comrade knocked down, the other sitting officer immediately lunged at Chen Ji.

The moment he moved, from amidst the shower of wood splinters, the iron spearhead happened to fall from the night sky, landing in front of Chen Ji. Chen Ji twisted his waist in mid-air and, incredibly, kicked the falling spearhead towards his opponent.

The spearhead let out a sharp whistle. The sitting officer’s expression changed, and he hastily transformed into his black-faced persona to block. But the spearhead was unlike any they had encountered before; it actually pierced his invulnerable body, embedding itself into his abdomen.

The young man in the Spring Breeze Courtyard roared, “Good!”

In just this brief moment, with Li Xuan and Chen Ji working together, Wang Fang and both Furui Xiang sitting officers were incapacitated.

The young man looked at Zhou Kuang with great interest. “Pour me some tea… no, pour wine!” he said.

Zhou Kuang mused, “Judging by his build, he looks a bit like the young man you watched wrestling with at the Tianqiao Wine Shop.”

The young man was startled. “It’s him? I didn’t realize he had such skills then. Find a way to introduce me to him.”

Zhou Kuang reminded him, “My Lord, he injured our people.”

The young man came back to his senses. “Oh, right…” he murmured.

Just as Chen Ji was about to continue pursuing the two sitting officers, the young man called out loudly through the window crack, “Young man, I believe I’ve treated you to tea before? For my sake, let them off.”

Chen Ji paused, then looked up at the Spring Breeze Courtyard. “You treated me to tea once, so I can only spare one,” he said.

The young man thought for a moment. “Spare both,” he said, “and consider it a favor I owe you.”

Chen Ji agreed, “All right.”

The young man looked down at the Zuo brothers. “You always bragged endlessly,” he said. “Now get lost.”

The Zuo brothers got up, supporting each other, and wiped their cheeks. Their faces transformed back to pale with narrow eyes, and they ascended into the air again.

Before they could land firmly on the lantern, a window on the Easeful Pavilion above suddenly shattered, and a lean figure flashed out.

The guest who had been hiding alone in the Easeful Pavilion burst through the window. He flew through the air to the Zuo brothers’ side, grabbing them by their necks and holding them like small chickens while standing on a red lantern.

Chen Ji looked on in astonishment. “Precious Monkey!” he exclaimed.

How could Precious Monkey be guarding this place?

Above the alley, Precious Monkey, wearing a wooden monkey mask and holding the Zuo brothers, burst into laughter. “I knew there was a reason my cultivation speed wasn’t as fast as Black Serpent’s! Hahaha, it was because of you two!” he exclaimed.

The Zuo brothers, held in his hands, went limp. Their face paint faded, revealing their original appearances: a pair of twins.

Precious Monkey asked, as if no one else was around, “Where are your two masters? Are there any others who practice this method?”

The Zuo brothers struggled to say, “We don’t have masters; this inheritance was obtained by chance.”

Precious Monkey said, “Oh, no wonder your cultivation is incorrect!”

Seizing the opportunity, the Zuo brothers mustered their last bit of strength. They simultaneously swung their palms at Precious Monkey in the middle, striking his face. Precious Monkey did not dodge, letting them smash the monkey mask on his face.

The mask shattered into several pieces, falling into the alley from the air, revealing a strange facial pattern beneath.

This facial pattern had a golden base with fire patterns on the left cheek and silver-grey spiderweb patterns on the right. A central line drawn with human blood divided the face in two, and on each temple, three inverted ear-like patterns were drawn.

The Zuo brothers were stunned. “Six-eared Macaque?” they gasped.

Precious Monkey burst into laughter. “You can’t even cultivate your innate face patterns; don’t make a fool of yourselves!”

With that, he snapped their necks with his bare hands and tossed them into the air. Then, with a casual sweep of his hands in mid-air over their faces, he turned and leaped into the distant darkness.

When the bodies of the Zuo brothers fell among the two groups of Imperial Guards, all Imperial Guards instinctively took a step back. They saw that the skin had been peeled from the two men’s faces, leaving bloody muscles exposed, a truly gruesome sight.

Li Xuan whispered, “This is a battle of methods – there is only death, no survival.”

“Ugh!” The Imperial Guards on the opposite side bent over and vomited.

Dense footsteps sounded from a distance. Chen Ji roared, “Don’t linger in battle! Break out while you can! Furui Xiang’s enforcers are coming.”