Chapter 10

Li Zhichang leaped over the palace wall and suddenly felt a cold sensation behind him. He didn’t dare to turn around and exerted all his effort to run, but the cold feeling clung to him like a bone-deep sore that he couldn’t shake off.

The sensation grew stronger, and it wasn’t until he reached the outskirts of the city, about ten miles from Yanjing, that Li Zhichang used the sword technique 'One Qi Transforms into Three Purities' to force back his pursuers. Exhausted and mentally drained, he knew he couldn’t escape his enemies. Instead of fleeing, he decided to stop and regulate his breathing, so he would be ready to fight or flee when the time came.

The moon was bright and the area was quiet and deserted, making it a suitable place for a final battle. He thought the person would arrive soon, and he could use his stillness to counter the movement. However, after half an hour, he saw a man in his sixties slowly approaching from a distance.

Li Zhichang was surprised to see that the man was a eunuch. Eunuchs, due to their physical deficiencies, rarely achieved high levels of martial arts. For this man to follow him from the imperial city, his martial arts skills must have been at least on par with his, which was truly extraordinary. Moreover, the man had anticipated that Li Zhichang would be regulating his breathing and didn’t rush over, but instead walked slowly, indicating that he had also regulated his own breathing during the journey.

Li Zhichang felt a mix of worry and relief. He was worried that the opponent was indeed a formidable adversary who had seen through his plans. He was relieved that the opponent hadn’t come directly, which meant his martial arts skills hadn’t reached the pinnacle. Otherwise, he would have pursued Li Zhichang immediately when he stopped. The mental and physical struggle between them was dangerous, and only the two of them truly understood the risks, even though they had never met before.

The old eunuch had a sallow complexion, a hunched back, and was constantly coughing, as if he were seriously ill. He slowly approached Li Zhichang and said in a high-pitched voice, "From the Quanzhen Sect?" The eunuch was just guessing; he knew the assassin’s identity was ultimately decided by the Emperor. His job was to catch the person and bring him back.

Li Zhichang tightly gripped the handle of his sword, Wuchang, with a blank expression. Of course, he was wearing a mask, so the eunuch couldn’t see his face. The eunuch bent over and moved slightly. Li Zhichang realized how fast he was; in that moment, the eunuch had already attacked seven times. His speed was so great that he returned to his original position immediately after each attack, creating the illusion of a single movement. Fortunately, Li Zhichang’s spiritual senses were far superior to those of ordinary people, and his body had been trained to a high level, allowing him to avoid the vital points.

Even so, the mask on his face had been shattered by the residual force, revealing a chiseled, serious face in the moonlight.

For a moment, the surroundings were completely silent, and Li Zhichang didn’t dare to breathe heavily. He slowly drew his sword, not daring to make any unnecessary movements. Any slight movement would expose a weakness, and in the hands of such a skilled opponent, that would mean death.

The old eunuch coughed again and sighed, "Why are you in such a hurry to meet me, young man? If you hadn’t, you might have become another Wang Chongyang in twenty years."

Li Zhichang, despite knowing the imminent danger, couldn’t help but laugh, "From the looks of it, you were injured in the lungs not long ago, and you’re so old, you don’t know how many more years you have left. Why not stay quietly in the palace and wait to die? Why come out to enjoy the moon with me in the middle of the night?"

The old eunuch coughed twice, "Young people don’t know their place." His face turned slightly red, and suddenly, his figure blurred as he thrust his hand, which was shaped like a sword, at Li Zhichang. After achieving great martial arts skills thirty years ago, the eunuch had believed he was invincible. He thought the Five Greats of Central Plains were just hype because they hadn’t left the palace. However, a few years ago, a highly skilled person infiltrated the imperial kitchen, and he couldn’t resist engaging in a fight. The person’s skills were incredibly powerful, and after a thousand moves, the eunuch was no match and was struck by a palm. Fortunately, the person, who was from the Jin Kingdom and had such high skills, decided not to kill him. Instead, he left after eating many delicious dishes in the palace, only injuring the eunuch. The person’s skills were so profound that even with the palace’s precious medicines, the eunuch was left with a lingering illness. This was a great humiliation for him, and he was furious that Li Zhichang had brought it up.

Li Zhichang’s words were meant to provoke him, and as soon as he saw the eunuch’s sleeve move slightly, he thrust his sword at his throat. The sword was so fast that if the eunuch didn’t dodge, he would be impaled immediately. But at that moment, Li Zhichang felt a slight pain on his left cheek, and his sword was deflected to the left. The eunuch’s speed was incredible; in that split second, he had already scratched Li Zhichang’s face with his fingernail and then retracted his arm to flick the sword away.

Fortunately, Li Zhichang’s sword was also extremely fast, and he attacked a point the eunuch had to defend. The eunuch, in his anger, was slightly careless, and his finger missed the vital point on Li Zhichang’s face. The eunuch’s ability to deflect the sword with his bare hand was truly astonishing.

Shocked, Li Zhichang realized he was facing the strongest opponent he had ever encountered. If he gave the opponent any chance to move, he would be dead. He immediately thrust his sword four times, all aimed at vital points. The eunuch’s body moved faster and faster, and in the moonlight, he appeared as a rolling shadow. The sword, filled with true energy, created a loud wind. The eunuch, however, made no sound.

They exchanged many moves, and Li Zhichang’s arms began to feel slightly sore. Suddenly, he became highly alert as a thin black shadow approached his left eye. There was no time to block or dodge, so in a desperate move, he thrust his sword at the eunuch’s left eye, aiming for a mutual destruction. Fortunately, his body was filled with energy, and as he closed his eyes, the small object barely pierced his eyelid.

It turned out to be a sewing needle, which lost its momentum and fell from his eyelid, then was shattered by the energy between them. Li Zhichang didn’t dare to be distracted, knowing that prolonged defense would lead to failure. He gathered all his strength, and his muscles bulged like those of a Yellow Turban warrior. His body rose slightly, and his left hand, now as large as a fan, struck the eunuch’s vital points. This was a secret technique of the Thirteen Protectors, 'Emulate Heaven and Earth,' which he could barely use at his current level, but in this situation, he had no choice but to risk everything.

The powerful strike was so intense that the eunuch couldn’t avoid it. He pushed his palms forward to meet the attack. Li Zhichang felt a continuous, unyielding palm force that gradually neutralized his devastating strike. He thought, "What a formidable Daoist soft palm! How can this old man be practicing Daoist techniques?"

Li Zhichang had initially thought the eunuch’s skills were only in his agility and that his real abilities might not be much higher than his own. However, the eunuch’s internal energy skills were clearly superior. Li Zhichang, in his youth and vigor, had poured all his true energy and external skills into the strike, which could split a boulder. The eunuch, despite his age and injuries, had managed to withstand it. This was truly terrifying and admirable. Li Zhichang couldn’t help but feel a deep respect for the eunuch.

Even his most powerful techniques couldn’t defeat the eunuch, so Li Zhichang knew he couldn’t afford to prolong the fight. As their palm forces neutralized each other and they were pushed apart, Li Zhichang shouted, "Old monster, see my 'Deadly Linked Three Immortal Swords'!" The eunuch thought, "Not good, this kid is going for a desperate move."

Li Zhichang channeled all his energy into his sword and swung it with a whoosh, striking three times in a life-or-death stance.