The Azure Mountain

Chapter 127: Persistence

Chen Ji is a persistent person.

In order to achieve his goals, he could resort to any means, he could smash his head until it bled, not turning back until he hit the south wall. He recited Cloud Obscuring over and over again, insisting on birthing purple Qi within his meridians.

However, that brilliant Sword Qi, akin to a scorching sun, was even more persistent than him...

Sitting cross-legged in the dim apprentice dormitory, Chen Ji recited for a full two hours, a total of twelve times.

Without exception, every wisp of purple Qi that was birthed was mercilessly severed.

"How bizarre and strange."

Chen Ji muttered to himself: "The Mountain Lord Pathway and the Sword Seed Pathway can coexist peacefully; why is it that only Cloud Obscuring cannot?"

"Could it be because Sword Seed and Cloud Obscuring are both of the Way of the Sword, they cannot coexist!? I'll try again."

Just as he was about to recite for the thirteenth time, he heard urgent bird calls sounding from outside the courtyard.

Chen Ji recognized that it was the Copper Whistle of the Secret Spy Division.But whereas the bird calls in the past were crisp and pleasant like a magpie, this time the bird calls were so urgent it sounded like its nest was about to be raided.

He stood up and walked out of the medical clinic, only to see Jin Zhu's carriage parked diagonally across from the clinic.

Chen Ji skillfully slipped into the carriage. Before he could even open his mouth, Jin Zhu, covered in sweat, said with a ferocious expression: "If you can't cultivate it, then just stop cultivating it."

Chen Ji: "!!!"

He feigned confusion: "Lord Jin Zhu, how did you know I couldn't cultivate it? Could it be you are monitoring me?"

Knowing he had made a slip of the tongue, Jin Zhu hurriedly wiped the sweat from his forehead and said: "I was worried that you would act too hastily right after receiving the cultivation Pathway, so I made a special trip to remind you. You must know, although a cultivation Pathway can allow you to transcend the mundane and become refined, when cultivating, one must also balance tension and relaxation. You absolutely cannot blindly advance rashly."

Chen Ji let out an "Oh": "Thank you for your concern, Lord."

Jin Zhu rolled his eyes: "By the way, when you were cultivating, did you encounter any confusion? Perhaps I can help answer a thing or two for you."

Chen Ji shook his head: "No..."

Jin Zhu was heartbroken: "Think carefully again."

Chen Ji glanced at him, and explained casually: "Lord, when I cultivate this Pathway, I always feel a stream of Qi Mechanism is on the verge of being born but hasn't, ungraspable and untraceable."

Jin Zhu pondered for a moment and said with concern: "Perhaps you've been too exhausted these past few days, so you cannot calm your mind when cultivating. Think about it, adding up the past few days, you've only slept for three or four shi-chen in total; how could you possibly cultivate well? Why don't you get a good sleep first."

Chen Ji responded with an "Mm": "Lord's words are reasonable. I will go back and get a good sleep right now."

Jin Zhu instantly felt comforted: "Very good, very good. Go on."

Once Chen Ji got off the carriage, he leaned against the carriage cabin as if weak. Having twelve ribs extracted from across space within one shi-chen; what difference was there between this and extorting a confession through torture? I'm afraid falling into the hands of the Jing Dynasty thieves would only result in this kind of outcome.

At this moment, sitting in the dim carriage cabin, Jin Zhu solitarily enjoyed a moment of tranquility.

Without the heart-piercing pain, without needing to be on tenterhooks, he felt exceptionally relaxed.

After resting for a bit, he muttered softly to himself: "This kid is quite diligent, much more hardworking than Tian Ma was back then. It's just, what exactly is going on with his cultivation Pathway? He clearly has Grade A aptitude, why can't he cross the threshold? Could it be a problem with the cultivation Pathway?"

He patted the carriage cabin and said to Xi Feng guarding outside: "Return to the Inner Prison, we will continue interrogating that Jing Dynasty thief. ...Aiyo..."

Jin Zhu's expression changed drastically. Kid, didn't you agree perfectly well just now? Why did you start cultivating again instead of sleeping well after going back?!

Hearing his exclamation, Xi Feng hurriedly lifted the carriage curtain, poked his head in and asked: "Lord, what happened to you? Did you eat something bad and upset your stomach?"

Jin Zhu gritted his teeth in hatred: "Blow the Copper Whistle, call Chen Ji out."

Following the sound of the bird calls, a moment later, Chen Ji squeezed into the carriage cabin again and asked in confusion: "Lord, we just said goodbye, why are you calling for me again?"

Jin Zhu asked seriously: "Do you remember my exhortation to rest well?"

Chen Ji was frank and straightforward: "I remember. I went to sleep as soon as I went back. I didn't cultivate anymore."

Jin Zhu was dumbfounded.

He knew very well the allure of a cultivation Pathway to a youth. Back when he himself had just received his cultivation Pathway, didn't he also rack his brains day and night, thinking of how to cross that threshold?

He could understand the youth's feelings, but he truly couldn't endure it anymore.

At this time, Chen Ji cupped his hands and said: "Lord, if there is nothing else, I will return to the medical clinic to sleep."

Jin Zhu tightly grabbed Chen Ji's wrist: "No."

Chen Ji raised his eyebrows: "Hmm?"

Jin Zhu patted the wall of the carriage cabin and said loudly: "Xi Feng, return to the Inner Prison! Chen Ji and I are going to interrogate the Jing Dynasty thief one more time."

Chen Ji was puzzled: "Lord, didn't you want me to rest well?"

Jin Zhu spoke Earnest and Sincere: "I just remembered that we can definitely extract a lot more Intelligence from that Jing Dynasty Si Cao. If he spits out something more, you can also help me analyze it. If you want to sleep for a bit, just sleep in the carriage."

Having said that, he actually proactively took out a Copper Hand Warmer from beneath his seat, carefully poured in coal dust, ignited it with Fire Wood Strips, and then stuffed it into Chen Ji's embrace: "Hold this while you sleep, it's warm. Bringing down the Liu family and the Military Intelligence Division is the proper business. Think back to those years, in order to keep an eye on a Jing Dynasty thief, I went without sleep or rest for three days and three nights. Since you've entered the Secret Spy Division, you also have to slowly get used to it."

Chen Ji gave his thanks, slowly leaned against the carriage wall, and closed his eyes.

He successfully confirmed that the purple Qi he obtained when cultivating should be immediately fed back to Jin Zhu.

And the action of the brilliant Sword Qi severing the purple Qi must have brought Jin Zhu no small amount of harm, otherwise the other party wouldn't have guarded against it so strictly, even not daring to let him leave his line of sight.

He just didn't know whether the Mountain Lord and Sword Seed Pathways would also feed back to Jin Zhu immediately?

He would have to try again to know.

............

..................

The carriage swayed and bumped along the bluestone flag road. Chen Ji seemed to be living a drifting and unsettled life, coming and going all day long, drifting with the current.

Outside the carriage, the peddling cries of hawkers wandering the streets and alleys, and the laughter of children chasing and playing, gradually faded into the distance.

The carriage brought him into the afterglow of the setting sun, bringing him back into the Jianghu.

"Wake up!"

Jin Zhu patted Chen Ji.

Chen Ji opened his eyes and asked in a daze: "Lord, have we arrived at the Inner Prison?"

Jin Zhu said with a complex expression: "It's also been hard on you. At such a young age, having to live this life of licking blood from the tip of a blade... Rest assured, once we bring down the Liu family, I will make the decision to give you a long vacation."

Chen Ji smiled, got up, and jumped off the carriage: "Then I'll thank Lord in advance."

The two lowered their heads, ducked into the iron gate, and walked deep into the Inner Prison.

In the deepest cell of the Inner Prison, Shopkeeper Yuan had already changed into clean, white prison clothes. He was currently sitting beside a dark red Eight Immortals table, having a chopstick of beef and a sip of wine.

All ten of his fingers were a bloody mess with the nails missing, making his posture of holding chopsticks exceptionally bizarre.

Hearing the sound of the cell door opening, the expectant Shopkeeper Yuan looked up and smiled at Jin Zhu and Chen Ji: "Two Lords, how was the harvest last night? Looking at your expressions, you should have thwarted the Liu family's schemes."

Chen Ji leaned obliquely against the doorframe, unwilling to get close to this Jing Dynasty expert.

Jin Zhu, however, sat opposite Shopkeeper Yuan with a beaming smile, pinched a slice of beef, and tossed it into his mouth: "We fought to the death outside, yet your days are quite carefree and happy."

Shopkeeper Yuan spread his hands: "Just a prisoner. What talk is there of carefree and happy? Did the two Lords capture the mastermind behind the scenes, Liu Mingxian? If you caught him, that would be a great merit, and I ought to congratulate the two of you."

Having said that, he pinched the white porcelain wine cup and drank it all in one gulp.

Jin Zhu said calmly: "Liu Mingxian is dead."

Shopkeeper Yuan was puzzled: "Lord killed him?"

Jin Zhu replied: "No, the Liu family killed him."

Shopkeeper Yuan was momentarily stunned, and then began to laugh heartily, laughing so hard that the oil lamp on the stone wall swayed wildly.

Jin Zhu frowned: "What matter is so funny?"

Shopkeeper Yuan gradually restrained his smile: "Liu Mingxian was killed by the Liu family. That means from now on, what the two Lords will face is no longer that second-generation rich kid Liu Mingxian, but Elder Liu, who has stood tall and unfalling in the Imperial Court for over thirty years."

"What of Elder Liu?"

Shopkeeper Yuan said in a heavy voice: "Emperor Ning hates the Liu family to the bone, yet Elder Liu could still control the Ministry of Personnel for fifteen years and manage Yuzhou like an impregnable iron bucket. Facing this kind of giant figure, can the two of you outfight him?"

Jin Zhu pinched another slice of beef and tossed it into his mouth: "The two of us are not fighting alone. Behind this seat is the entire Directorate of Ceremonial of the Ning Dynasty, it's the Inner Chancellor! Rest assured, you cannot scare me off. That Mister Feng beside Elder Liu also cannot scare me off."

At this time, Jin Zhu wiped the oil stains from his fingers on his robe and changed the topic: "Do you want to get out of the Inner Prison?"

Shopkeeper Yuan laughed: "How could I not want to? By honestly revealing the Liu family's plan to the two Lords, isn't it precisely to exchange for my freedom?"

Jin Zhu stared fixedly at Shopkeeper Yuan: "Then spit out some more things. So that I can go request merits for you in front of the Inner Chancellor."

"What if I don't spit?"

"Do you still have a choice?"

The cell quieted down.

Jin Zhu and Shopkeeper Yuan confronted each other tit for tat, like two blade tips pressed together, neither willing to yield.

A moment later, it was Shopkeeper Yuan who relaxed his tone first: "I helped the two Lords establish a great merit, but up until now I still haven't seen any sincerity from the Secret Spy Division? If we are to treat each other with sincerity, you must at least let me see some hope, right?"

Only then did Jin Zhu draw a document wrapped in golden silk cloth from his sleeve: "This is the hand-written edict from the Inner Chancellor that just arrived in Luo City today. You should know, the letter I sent to the Inner Chancellor should have only arrived in the Capital City yesterday, yet the Inner Chancellor's edict arrived in Luo City today. Do you know what this means?"

"What does it mean?"

"For this edict to arrive in Luo City within a single day, it needed to exit the Capital City before sunset yesterday. All the way, it passed through six Relay Stations in Baoding, Hengshui, Handan, Hebi, Xinxiang, and Zheng County. Changing six warhorses, not resting for a quarter..."

Listening from the side, Chen Ji found it increasingly familiar.

He was somewhat torn between tears and laughter. This Lord Jin Zhu always managed to give him a little shock inadvertently.

Opposite Jin Zhu, Shopkeeper Yuan took the document, unrolled it, and quietly read it for a long time. His expression changed continuously, seamlessly struggling with something.

He put down the edict, looked up at Jin Zhu: "If I truly can become a Gyrfalcon of the Secret Spy Division, when the time comes, you guys will understand how correct today's decision is."

Chen Ji was puzzled, not knowing what was written on this edict to actually make Shopkeeper Yuan change his stance on the spot?

Holding the edict, Jin Zhu stood up, stood by the stone wall, and using the flame of the oil lamp, burned the edict to ashes: "Speak. What else can you do for us?"

Shopkeeper Yuan silently watched the burned edict, struggled for a long time, and then said: "I once made an appointment to meet with Chang Jing tonight; he agreed."

Jin Zhu abruptly turned his head: "Are these words true?"

Immediately following, he shook his head: "No, no. Now that Hundred Deer Pavilion is destroyed and the battle of Peony Bridge is known to everyone, how could Chang Jing keep the appointment?"

Shopkeeper Yuan said: "But on the day of the Peony Bridge battle, everyone saw me jump into the river to escape, but they did not see me captured alive on the mudflats. What if he keeps the appointment?"

Jin Zhu's eyes flickered with uncertainty: "Where is the appointment?"

Shopkeeper Yuan said calmly: "Take me there tonight. I will lead the way for the two Lords."

Jin Zhu chuckled, turned and walked outside, saying loudly: "Xi Feng, call all the secret spies here. No one is allowed to act alone tonight."

When the heavy cell door closed, he turned to look at Chen Ji: "What do you think?"

After thinking, Chen Ji said: "Lord should be able to see that he wants to take the opportunity to escape. Otherwise, he wouldn't need to personally lead the way for us. However, his appointment with Chang Jing should be true. If no one helps him create chaos, he won't be able to escape either."

Jin Zhu sneered as he walked outside: "Then we'll make the trip! I was just worrying about not being able to find these Jing Dynasty rats!"