Peach Blossoms in Chang'an

The secret passage was winding and tortuous, like a mysterious passage leading to an unknown world. Wu Tao and Hu Bugui groped their way forward, and there was silence all around them, with only the sound of each other's breathing and heartbeats intertwined.

"Watch your step." Hu Bugui reminded in a low voice, and the sword in his hand swept around vigilantly.

After walking for about an incense stick of time, the view suddenly opened up. A huge cave appeared in front of them, with night-shining pearls inlaid on the walls, emitting a faint light that illuminated the entire cave.

"Here..." Wu Tao looked around. The cave was magnificent and filled with gold, silver and jewelry, like an underground treasure house.

"It seems we have found it." A hint of joy flashed in Hu Bugui's eyes.

However, before they could get close, the sound of a mechanism being activated was heard, and countless sharp arrows shot from all directions.

"Be careful!" Hu Bugui pulled Wu Tao over and swung his sword to block the rain of arrows.

Wu Tao was still frightened. She looked up and saw that the top of the cave was covered with densely packed small holes, which was obviously where the mechanism was.

"It seems that the treasure is not so easy to get." Wu Tao took a deep breath, calmed down and observed the surrounding environment.

"These mechanisms are ingeniously designed. We can't force our way in." Hu Bugui also realized the difficulty of the problem.

Wu Tao looked around and his eyes fell on a stone platform in the center of the cave. There were complex patterns carved on the surface of the stone platform, which seemed to be some kind of formation.

"Perhaps, the key to cracking the mechanism lies here." Wu Tao said, pointing at the stone platform.

She walked forward and looked carefully, and found many strange symbols carved on the stone platform. She had never seen these symbols before, but she felt inexplicably familiar with them.

"These symbols..." Wu Tao frowned slightly, and some fragments suddenly flashed through her mind. Those were the materials she had seen when she was studying ancient culture in modern times.

"Bagua Formation?" Wu Tao suddenly realized that these symbols were exactly the components of the ancient Bagua Formation.

She had seen records about the Bagua Formation in a book. This formation used the Bagua directions to set up various mechanisms and traps. Once you stepped into it, you would lose your way and eventually fall into the trap.

"I know how to crack it." A gleam of confidence flashed in Wu Tao's eyes.

She moved several movable bricks on the stone platform according to the eight trigrams in her memory. As the bricks moved, the mechanism in the cave made a rumbling sound, and the sharp arrows that were originally shot at them also stopped attacking.

"You actually understand formations?" Hu Bugui's eyes were full of surprise.

"I just have a basic understanding." Wu Tao smiled modestly.

However, just when they thought they had successfully cracked the mechanism, an accident happened again...

Just when they thought they had successfully cracked the mechanism, the top of the cave suddenly collapsed, and huge rocks rolled down, sealing the cave entrance. Hu Bugui was quick-witted and pushed Wu Tao away, but he was hit by a huge rock and fell to the ground with a muffled groan.

"Bugui!" Wu Tao exclaimed and rushed to Hu Bugui, only to see that his face was pale with a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth.

"I'm fine..." Hu Bugui endured the pain and wanted to get up, but it hurt his wound and he couldn't help coughing up blood again.

"Don't move!" Wu Tao held his shoulder and anxiously checked his injuries. The boulder hit Hu Bugui's left arm, the bone made a teeth-grinding sound of breaking, and blood stained his clothes red.

Wu Tao's heart tightened. Although she didn't know any medical skills, she had at least been influenced by modern medicine. She knew that the most important thing now was to stop the bleeding first and then fix the fracture, otherwise the consequences would be disastrous.

She quickly tore a strip of cloth from her lapel and tied it tightly above Hu Bugui's wound. Then she found a few pieces of wood and used the cloth to fix his broken arm.

After doing all this, Wu Tao was already sweating profusely, but she did not dare to relax at all, because she knew that Hu Bugui's injuries were very serious and she had to find a way out as soon as possible to buy him precious time for treatment.

"Taotao..." Hu Bugui called out weakly, his eyes full of worry, "Don't worry about me, just go away..."

"What nonsense are you talking about!" Wu Tao interrupted him, "I won't abandon you!"

Although her voice was gentle, it was filled with unquestionable firmness, which was also conveyed to Hu Bugui, igniting a glimmer of hope in his originally desperate heart.

At the same time, on the ground, Chun Tao was standing on a high platform, facing the many people in the base. She took a deep breath and said loudly: "Fellow villagers, I know that the current situation is very bad. We have lost our homes, our loved ones, and even our hope of survival is about to be shattered..."

At this point, Chuntao's voice choked up, and soft sobs were heard from the audience.

"But!" Chun Tao raised her head suddenly, with a determined light in her eyes, "We can't give up! Master Hu and Miss Wu are still in the secret passage. They must be trying their best to rescue us! We can't let them down!"

Chuntao's words were like a flash of lightning in the dark night, illuminating everyone's confused hearts and igniting the fire of hope that was about to go out in their hearts.

"Miss Chuntao is right, we can't give up!"

"We must trust Mr. Hu and Miss Wu!"

"We have to survive!"

There were bursts of shouts from the crowd, and the originally lifeless base seemed to be injected with new vitality.

Deep in the remote secret passage, Wu Tao keenly noticed that the soil above her head seemed to loosen a little. She was startled and wondered if it was Chuntao and the others?

At this moment, a wounded chivalrous knight stumbled over. Without even taking a breath, he said anxiously, "We found the exit! I'll take you out!"

"Have you found the exit?" Wu Tao was pleasantly surprised. He quickly helped Hu Bugui up and asked, "My hero, who are you..."

"I am one of the chivalrous knights in Jianghu, and I have been ordered to come to support Master Hu." The knight clasped his fists and saluted, his tone respectful, "We have found a secret passage leading to the outside world, but..." He paused, his face showing difficulty, "but the entrance to the secret passage is heavily guarded by the opposition. We suffered heavy losses, and I was the only one who escaped by chance."

"I see." Hu Bugui frowned, and while enduring the pain, he said in a deep voice, "Knight, do you know why the opposition went to such great lengths to block the news?"

The knight took a deep breath and lowered his voice and said, "According to the information we have gathered, the real purpose of the opposition's action this time is not a simple rebellion, but to obtain a legendary treasure - the 'Nine Dragon Jade Disk'."

"Nine-Dragon Jade Disk?" Wu Tao and Hu Bugui looked at each other and saw a hint of shock in each other's eyes.

"Yes, it is said that this 'Nine Dragon Jade Disk' has mysterious power, and whoever gets it can control the world." The knight continued, "The leader of the opposition believes in this legend, so he wants to get it at all costs. And as far as we know, the clue to this 'Nine Dragon Jade Disk' is in this mountain range."

"So that's it..." Hu Bugui muttered to himself. He seemed to have thought of something, but couldn't grasp the clue for a moment.

"Mr. Hu, there is no time to lose. Let's leave here as soon as possible." The knight urged anxiously, "The opposition will soon find out that I have escaped, and by then it will be too late for us to leave."

"Okay!" Hu Bugui made a prompt decision. He supported Wu Tao and, under the guidance of the knight, walked towards the entrance of the secret passage.

Along the way, they encountered many guards of the opposition, but they were all solved by Hu Bugui and the knights. Although Wu Tao had no martial arts skills, she was smart and brave, and often used the surrounding environment to help them avoid danger.

After a difficult journey, they finally arrived at the entrance of the secret passage, which was surrounded by the opposition and the shouts of killing were deafening.

"What should I do?" Wu Tao looked at the scene in front of him and couldn't help feeling a little worried.

"Don't be afraid, I'm here." Hu Bugui clenched the sword in his hand, with a determined light flashing in his eyes.

At this moment, a deafening cry of killing suddenly came from the distance, and then an army came like a tide, breaking the encirclement of the opposition into pieces.

"It's the emperor's reinforcements!" the knight shouted in surprise, "We are saved!"

Among the reinforcements, a large flag with the word "Tang" was fluttering in the wind, and a man in a dragon robe riding a tall horse appeared in front of everyone in a majestic manner.

"Long live the Emperor!"

Deafening cheers resounded through the sky, and the morale of the coalition forces was greatly boosted. Like a tiger descending from the mountain, they launched an unstoppable final attack on the opposition.

At this time, Wu Tao and Hu Bugui, who were hiding in the dark, did not relax their vigilance. They knew that the real danger had just begun... Chapter 71: Perseverance

Amid the deafening shouts and cries of killing, Wu Tao and Hu Bugui exchanged glances, and both chose to avoid the front battlefield and quietly sneaked into the depths of the secret passage. They understood that true victory did not come from force, but from finding the key to turning the situation around.

The secret passage was winding, and ancient murals were carved on the rock walls on both sides, which seemed to tell stories of the past that had been forgotten by history. Led by the knight, they came to a hidden cave. In the middle of the cave, on a stone platform, there was an old book. The cover was already mottled, but it exuded a mysterious atmosphere.

"This is..." Hu Bugui carefully turned the pages of the book, and a faint scent of ink wafted into his nose. What caught his eyes were lines of beautiful and neat words, as if written by a woman.

"This is a note left by our ancestors," the knight explained. "It is said that it contains the secrets of the treasure and the methods to fight against evil forces."

Wu Tao and Hu Bugui immediately became alert. They read the contents of the notes carefully, word by word, fearing to miss any details. The notes recorded the legend of the "Nine Dragon Jade Disk" and the conspiracy of the opposition leader to use its power to bring chaos to the world. More importantly, the notes also recorded in detail the method to crack the power of the "Nine Dragon Jade Disk" and how to use the formation in the mountains to fight against the opposition.

"So that's how it is..." Hu Bugui closed his notebook, his eyes gleaming with hope, "As long as we can master this knowledge, we can completely crush the opposition's conspiracy!"

However, at this moment, a burst of hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the cave, mixed with the sound of weapons colliding.

"Oh no! They are chasing us!" The knight's face changed, "We must leave here immediately!"

"It's too late!" Hu Bugui said in a deep voice, "They have surrounded this place, we must find a way to break out!"

"Taotao, do you still remember the formation recorded in the notes?" In desperation, Hu Bugui placed his hopes on Wu Tao.

Wu Tao took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, and quickly recalled the contents of the notes in his mind.

"I remember!" Wu Tao pointed to a corner of the cave, "There is a mechanism there that can activate the formation in the cave!"

"Okay! We will cover you!" Hu Bugui said without hesitation.

The three of them acted quickly. The knight and Hu Bugui drew their swords to fight the enemy, and engaged in a desperate battle with the opposition soldiers who rushed into the cave. Under their cover, Wu Tao braved the rain of arrows and moved towards the corner of the cave with difficulty.

Finally, she came to the location of the mechanism and pressed down a protruding stone with force.

Rumble!

The entire cave began to shake violently, with debris constantly falling from the top of the cave, and the opposition soldiers were suddenly thrown into chaos.

"Oh no! We've fallen into a trap! Retreat quickly!" The leading general realized that the situation was not good and hurriedly ordered a retreat.

However, it was too late.

With a loud bang, the entrance of the cave collapsed, completely sealing it off.

Inside the cave, Wu Tao, Hu Bugui and the knight stood back to back, watching the surroundings vigilantly. They knew that this was only a temporary respite, and the real battle had just begun...

 Chapter 71: Perseverance

The cave was completely silent, with only the crackling sound of torches illuminating the solemn faces of the three people.

"What should we do now?" The knight broke the silence first, with a hint of uneasiness in his tone.

Hu Bugui frowned and looked around. Although the cave was large, it was like a closed cage, leaving them nowhere to escape. "The notes only record the method of activating the formation, but not how to stop it."

"That is to say..." Wu Tao's heart sank, "We might have trapped ourselves?"

"Not entirely." Hu Bugui pondered for a moment, "Since the formation is set up to protect the treasure, there must be a way to break it, but we just haven't found it yet."

"But now we are trapped here, how can we find a way out?" The knight paced back and forth anxiously, the hilt of the sword in his hand creaking.

"There will always be a way." Wu Tao tried to keep herself calm. She walked to the stone platform and carefully observed the books and pictures on it, trying to find a clue from them.

Hu Bugui also joined her, and the two of them carefully studied every word and every picture in the notes, hoping to find clues to the solution.

As time went by, the atmosphere in the cave became more and more oppressive. Suddenly, Wu Tao pointed to a star map in his notebook and exclaimed, "I know! The solution is in this star map!"

Hu Bugui and the knight hurried forward and saw that on the star map, the Big Dipper was shining with a faint light, but the position of one of the stars was different from the other six.

"What does this star represent..." Hu Bugui carefully identified the position of the star, constantly recalling the knowledge about astrology in his mind.

"It's the Greedy Wolf Star!" Wu Tao said first, "I remember reading in ancient books that the Greedy Wolf Star represents change and destruction. If I'm not mistaken, this star represents the hub of the formation!"

"You mean, we have to find the position corresponding to this star in order to break the formation?" Hu Bugui's eyes lit up, as if he had grasped a life-saving straw.

"That's right!" Wu Tao nodded affirmatively, "Let's go find it now!"

The three of them rekindled their hope and began to carefully search for the position corresponding to the Tan Lang star in the cave. According to the guidance of the star map, they kept changing their positions and finally found a strangely shaped rock in a corner.

The surface of the rock is smooth, and some ancient runes can be vaguely seen, which are very similar to the patterns on the star map.

"It's here!" Wu Tao said excitedly.

Hu Bugui pressed his palm on the rock without hesitation. A powerful force instantly surged into his body, making him groan.

At the same time, the entire cave began to shake violently, and rubble from the top of the cave kept falling down, as if the sky was collapsing and the earth was splitting apart.

"Retreat quickly!" Hu Bugui shouted, pulling Wu Tao and the knight back quickly.

The rock emitted a dazzling light that illuminated the entire cave. Then the light gradually dissipated and the cave returned to calm.

The opposition soldiers were frightened out of their wits by this sudden change. They dropped their weapons and fled in all directions.

However, the exit of the cave had been blocked by huge rocks, and they had no way to escape.

"What should we do? What should we do now?" The soldiers were in chaos and fell into deep despair.

At this moment, a majestic voice came from the depths of the cave: "You have committed many evil deeds and your crimes are unforgivable. Today is the day you will die!"

As soon as the words fell, a dazzling sword light flashed, and the opposition soldiers fell in a pool of blood...