The Young Swordsman of Dalu

On his way to the far north, Wenfei discovered that many people were heading there.

"Strange! Why are so many people going to the far north?" Wenfei thought to himself.

When Wenfei came into close contact with these people, he noticed that they all seemed very wary, which aroused his suspicion.

Wen Fei deliberately approached a burly man and said, "Brother! What are you doing here at this time of year?"

The burly man glanced at Wen Fei warily and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Oh! Me? I went into the mountains to find a snow python. An old doctor told me that drinking the snow python's blood can cure all diseases. My father's cough hasn't gotten better, and winter is coming soon. I'm afraid he won't make it through, so I came here to find a snow python, to get some of its blood to take back as a medicinal ingredient for my father," Wenfei said.

"Can you catch that thing? It's said to be over a thousand years old and has become a spirit by now," the burly man said.

"We have to try, even if it doesn't work! I won't go back until I get its blood, unless it eats me," Wenfei said.

"I think it's more likely that I'll eat you up." The burly man laughed heartily.

"Brother! Has someone discovered some treasure in the far north this year? Look at all these people here," Wenfei said.

"Maybe!" the burly man said.

The burly man quickened his pace, intending to shake off Wen Fei, who followed closely behind. The burly man was clearly anxious; he winked at a passerby not far from him, signaling to deal with Wen Fei.

Wenfei had already seen through their intentions and was just waiting for them to make their move.

Wenfei felt a force closing in on him from behind, and the people in front of him and on his left and right also turned their heads and walked towards him.

Wenfei pretended to be scared and said, "Brothers! I'm just going into the mountains to find the snow python. Please let me through. I promise I won't steal your treasure."

"Take care of him!" the burly man said.

Those people attacked Wen Fei, and just as they were about to reach him, Wen Fei leaped up and flew upwards. Those people looked up at Wen Fei.

Wen Fei said, "Trying to deal with your grandpa isn't that easy!"

After Wenfei finished speaking, he unleashed his boundless divine power and beat the group of people to a pulp.

Wen Fei stepped forward and subdued the burly man, asking, "What exactly are you doing here in the far north?"

The burly man grunted and remained silent. Wen Fei increased the pressure on his hand, and the burly man cried out in pain, saying, "I'll talk! I'll tell you everything!"

"If you tell even one lie, I'll capture you and feed you to the snow pythons!" Wenfei said.

"We've been sent by Eunuch Liu from the Northern Dynasty to capture Ji Wuchang! We also want to take care of the Empress Dowager while we're at it," the burly man said.

"How did you find them?" Wenfei asked.

"We found the Empress Dowager and her entourage by following Baili Heng's men," the burly man said.

"Are there other people looking for them?" Wenfei asked.

“Our Northern Dynasty’s Baili Heng is a veteran minister. He openly supports our Emperor’s war efforts, but secretly he opposes them. He wants to ask the Empress Dowager to come out of retirement and stop His Majesty from waging war against the Great Lu Kingdom,” the burly man said.

“I won’t kill you! Go back and tell Murong Bo to think about how he will face the people of your Northern Dynasty after the defeat!” Wen Fei said.

"Thank you for sparing my life, sir! Let's go!" the burly man said.

"Get out! Don't let me see you here again!" Wen Fei shouted.

The burly man led his group away from the far north in a chaotic scramble.

Wen Fei quickened his pace, eager to see Ji Wuchang immediately. Although he had only been away for a few months, it felt like he had been gone for a long time.

Ji Wuchang was in a cave in the valley, enjoying tea and admiring flowers with Jin Yuanying.

“Ah Ying! Look, these flowers are even more beautiful than those in your palace,” Ji Wuchang said.

“This valley is a treasure. Outside, it snows all year round, but here it’s like spring all year round. It’s a wonderful place,” Jin Yuanying said.

"This is all thanks to the giant python!" Ji Wuchang turned around and glanced at the snow python resting on the ground.

The snow python heard the praise and stretched its head to Ji Wuchang's face, licking his face with its tongue.

"It itches so much!" Ji Wuchang said.

The snow python raised its head and slowly crawled out. When it reached the cave entrance, it looked out and saw a person walking towards the valley in the distance. As the person got closer, the snow python tilted its head and saw a familiar figure. It quickly crawled out of the cave and went to meet the person.

"What did the python discover? Could it be that those people are back again! How annoying! This time, I, Old Ji, will beat them so badly they can't get up." Ji Wuchang got up, walked to the cave entrance, and looked outside.

The snow python coiled itself around Wenfei and pinned him to the ground. The two of them rolled around happily on the ground.

"Brother Python! That's enough! Please spare me!" Wen Fei begged.

The snow python finally stopped. Wen Fei stood up from the ground and turned around to see Ji Wuchang.

Ji Wuchang also saw Wen Fei and excitedly shouted, "It's you, kid!"

"Master!" Wenfei excitedly ran over, picked up Ji Wuchang, and spun him around.

"I'm dizzy! You brat, put me down!" Ji Wuchang said.

Wenfei put Ji Wuchang down and looked at the white-bearded Ji Wuchang, saying, "Master! It's been a few months, and you've become a white-bearded old man. Did you and Senior Jin cultivate to become immortals in this valley?"

“We’re almost as good as immortals! Let’s go back to the cave!” Ji Wuchang said with a smile.

Back in the cave, Wenfei met with Jin Yuanying, who asked, "Wenfei, what happened to you that you came here at this time?"

"Has no one bothered you during this time, Senior Jin?" Wen Fei asked.

“Some people came, but I and the giant python chased them away,” Ji Wuchang said.

"Didn't the master ask them what they were doing here?" Wenfei said.

"There's really no peaceful place left in this world. It's so hard to spend the rest of my life in peace," Ji Wuchang said.

"It seems you two already know what's happening outside, even without me saying anything?" Wenfei said.

"Did you come here to ask me to go out and stop Murong Bo?" Jin Yuanying asked.

“Senior Jin, I came here because I was worried about your safety. I have no other intentions,” Wen Fei said.

"I've been torn these past few days! I don't know what to do," Ji Wuchang said to Wenfei.

“Senior Jin, there is no need to worry. Since Murong Bo insists on going to war with our Great Lu Kingdom, our Great Lu Kingdom will fight to the end. As for where the Northern Dynasty will ultimately go, it depends on whether you can choose an emperor for the Northern Dynasty who truly cares about the people,” Wen Fei said.

"I really misjudged Murong Bo! It's all my fault, I've let down the people of the Northern Dynasty!" Jin Yuanying said sorrowfully.

“Ah Ying, this isn’t your fault!” Ji Wuchang comforted her.

Jin Yuanying nestled into Ji Wuchang's arms, tears streaming down her face.