Green Mountain
Chapter 237 - 185, Footprints

Chapter 237: 185, Footprints

In the dark night, Han Tong, wearing a conical hat, shattered the layers of snow curtains.

As he sprinted, a giant dragon seemed to whirl around him, involuntarily pulling snowflakes into its air stream, transforming them into a tornado trailing behind him.

Chen Ji followed closely behind, the buzzing in his ears deafening. Blood streamed down his forehead, soaking half of his face, the blood mixed with dirt distorting his features into a fierce mask.

The explosion at Bamboo Garden had been too fierce, so fierce that his innards were still burning painfully.

Chen Ji was not a professional blaster and had no clear concept of the power of gunpowder. All he knew was that he had to delay Yun Yang and Jiao Tu to prevent them from interfering with Liang Gou’er’s jailbreak.

As for whether he himself would die in the blast, whether Liang Gou’er would seek revenge afterward, or whether Han Tong would accidentally kill him, he did not care.

At this moment, the Spies split their forces, half going to rescue Jin Zhu, Yun Yang, and Jiao Tu, and half following Chen Ji to pursue Han Tong. But the two were too fast, and the Spies simply could not keep up.

Chen Ji glanced back at the Spies who had been left behind and were now out of sight, then suddenly said to Han Tong’s back, "Stop, I have something to tell you."

Han Tong stopped in the wind and snow, turned around, and demanded angrily, "Where is Bai Li? Your people said that Bai Li would be brought to Baiyi Lane tonight. Why is there no sign of her?"

Catching his breath, Chen Ji slowly approached Han Tong until he was close enough to hear him over the ringing in his ears, "What did you just say?"

Han Tong angrily repeated, "Where is Bai Li?"

Chen Ji answered, "The Commandery Princess is still in the inner prison."

Han Tong turned to leave, his voice cold as a blade’s edge, "You used Bai Li’s name to exploit me. In the future, I will surely hunt you all down."

Calmly, Chen Ji said, "Sect Leader Han, do you know where the inner prison is? If you want to save the Commandery Princess, you can only do as I say."

Han Tong stopped in his tracks, "You think you can order me around, you whelp?"

Chen Ji continued, "Sect Leader Han, many people are risking their lives tonight to rescue the Princely Heir and the Commandery Princess. But if you think you can just storm the inner prison and save them, you’re naive. The inner prison is a cage, and this vast Luocheng City is just another cage."

Chen Ji assured, "Do as I say, and I promise you will see the Commandery Princess again."

Han Tong turned back in the snow, his eyes sharp as knives, "What do you need me to do?"

Chen Ji instructed, "I need you to go to Caoyun Pier immediately and prepare a fast ship that can leave Luocheng City tonight. I don’t care how you do it, but the ship must be ready. If we can rescue her tonight, I will bring her to the Jing Dynasty to settle down peacefully, never to return to the Ning Dynasty."

Chen Ji had decided to leave the Ning Dynasty, but he had to take Bai Li with him when he departed.

Han Tong weighed his options for a moment and then asked, "I will make sure the ship is ready, but how will you get the people to the pier?"

Chen Ji shook his head, "You just need to prepare the ship, you don’t need to know the rest."

Han Tong frowned, "How do I know you aren’t deceiving me?"

Looking straight into Han Tong’s eyes, Chen Ji said softly, "I will definitely rescue her."

Han Tong paused, then spoke assertively, "We in Jianghu keep our word, act resolutely, and uphold our promises. I hope you haven’t lied to me."

"Jianghu?" Chen Ji recalled the Thousand-year Army and chuckled lightly. Looking down at the messy snow on the ground, he said, "Punch me with all your might, covering the footsteps in the snow, and then go to the pier to do what you must."

"Alright!"

At that moment, footsteps could be heard in the distance.

Chen Ji and Han Tong resumed their pursuit.

In the chase, Han Tong suddenly turned back, and in an instant, his fist erupted violently. As he swung his fist, the Buddha tattoo on his wrist radiated golden light, with a colossal golden Buddha appearing as a phantom behind him.

In the wind and snow.

Buddha extended his hand in a feigning motion, and Han Tong threw a punch, their movements merging into one. The fist hadn’t even touched Chen Ji yet, but Chen Ji was already hurled away by a formidable force.

In midair, Chen Ji spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, landing on the ground in a parabolic trajectory. His body slid several feet through the snow, stirring it up like waves, completely erasing the messy footprints where the two had previously stood.

He listened to the fading footsteps of Han Tong, knowing that this final and most crucial link had been completed. What remained—success or failure—was now in the hands of fate.

Chen Ji lay flat in the deep snow, too exhausted to think about getting up.

In a daze, he saw the snowflakes falling on his face, then his vision was filled with the disheveled and battered faces of Yun Yang and Jiao Tu looking down at him coldly.

The two were disheveled and covered in wounds, far from the pristine appearance of the golden child and pure maiden.

Chen Ji felt no ripples in his heart; he hadn’t received a warning from the Ice Flow of their deaths, so he already knew they hadn’t died. At this moment, whether they were dead or alive didn’t matter anymore.

Chen Ji said, "My lords, the one who injured me is Sect Leader Han of the Luotian Sect. Hurry after him!"

Yun Yang growled fiercely, "Are you plotting against us?"

Jiao Tu squatted beside Chen Ji, brushing her disheveled hair behind her ears, and said with a sly smile, "I kindly joined you for drinks. Were you actually trying to kill me?"

Chen Ji coughed out more blood, wiping his mouth as he explained, "Both of you, my lords, the location was chosen by Lord Yun Yang. Why suspect me?"

Yun Yang coldly wiped the fresh blood from his own mouth: "Whether or not it was you doesn’t matter anymore."

Then, looking at Jiao Tu, he said, "Just kill him."

But at that moment, Jin Zhu arrived, forcefully pushing them aside as he spoke sharply, "Chen Ji was also in the Covered Building at the time. If he wanted to kill you, wouldn’t he have to kill himself as well? I will report this matter to the Lord Prime Minister, and let him decide!"

He sneered, "If you want to harm a colleague without any evidence, try fighting with me first! If I don’t die today, you will never have peace again."

Yun Yang and Jiao Tu exchanged glances, weighing the pros and cons.

Jin Zhu’s argument made sense: with the explosion of the Firearms, Chen Ji was right there in the Covered Building. If this was really Chen Ji’s doing, he would have to die too.

They did not believe anyone would risk their life for others. They were not such people, and they had never seen such people!

After pondering for a moment, Yun Yang squatted in front of Chen Ji and said, "I will, for now, believe this has nothing to do with you, but you..."

By that time, Chen Ji had propped himself up in the snow and pointed toward Han Tong’s footprints in the snow, saying, "My lords, with the snowfall, no tracks can hide. Just follow the footprints. If you catch Han Tong and interrogate Meng Ji, the truth will out. Moreover, capturing Han Tong would relieve the Prime Minister of worries about the Luotian Sect—a significant achievement."

Yun Yang glanced at the footprints.

Chen Ji urged, "Hurry, before the new snow covers the tracks."

Jiao Tu stood up and walked away, with Yun Yang quickly following.

Jin Zhu quietly asked, "Are your injuries okay?"

Chen Ji responded, "My lord, don’t worry about me. Capturing him is what’s important."

Jin Zhu lowered his voice and barked, "Is it worth it?"

Chen Ji lay back down in the snow, not saying a word—someone had bought his life with six golden melon seeds, and he wasn’t about to consider whether it was worth it or not.

Seeing he wasn’t speaking anymore, Jin Zhu gritted his teeth and finally followed Yun Yang and Jiao Tu.

After the three had gone far, Chen Ji slowly stood up and looked into the distance, thinking that by the time the Spy Department caught Han Tong, he and Bai Li would already be on their way to the Jing Dynasty.

Chen Ji pulled a gray cloth from his breast and covered his face, then ran in another direction.

The heavy snow continued to fall, gradually concealing the traces in the dark night.