Chapter 660: with translation of chapter title

Everyone bid farewell to Zhou Jinhua and Wei Ming, then returned to the secret chamber of the Guoshi Residence.

"Three hundred Imperial Guard!" Xiao Ningyuan worried sick, "With just us few, how can we deal with three hundred Imperial Guard armed with swords and spears?"

Tuan Tuan thought for a moment: "Big brother, what if I make them all fall asleep, okay?"

Xiao Ningyuan shook his head: "This is Jingcheng, not the grasslands."

"If several hundred Imperial Guard collapse at once, the commotion would be too great; someone would notice in an instant."

"By then, we wouldn't even be able to get in the door; we'd have to turn and run."

Xiao Er recalled Xue Tong's secret medicine: "Too bad, if we had asked the Old Valley Master for some bewitching drug before leaving, it would have been perfect."

Lu Qi shook his head: "Even with a bewitching drug it wouldn't work; the three hundred are divided into three shifts, so at most we could knock out a hundred, the rest would still be awake."

Chu Yuan coughed, cleared his throat: "It's just three hundred Imperial Guard, isn't it?"

Tuan Tuan laughed upon hearing it, flung herself into his embrace: "Exactly! How could you forget my Master?"

She lifted her little face to look at Chu Yuan: "Master! You have a good plan, right?"

Chu Yuan smiled and pinched her cheek: "I can set up a Lost Soul Formation to trap them inside."

"Although it won't last too long, there are only a dozen or so people in the prison, right? As long as you move quickly and rescue the Ninth Prince, that'll be enough."

Feng Zhou widened his eyes: "The National Preceptor can also set up a Lost Soul Formation?"

Chu Yuan scooped up Xiao Feifei, who had passed by his feet, and placed her in Tuan Tuan's arms: "A Lost Soul Formation is merely a blindfold; this little bit of Daoist skill, I still have."

"Good!" Xiao Ningyuan slammed the table, "Excellent! Then we'll wait until tomorrow at the You hour, right after the prison locks are secured, and we'll move!"

"Tuan Tuan, get your treasure ready; I'll leave the lock-picking to you."

Tuan Tuan nodded vigorously: "All right!"

The next evening, at the exact You hour.

Xiao Er and Lu Qi changed into jailer uniforms, while Tuan Tuan lay on Xiao Er's back.

The three of them crouched motionless on the roof of a house not far from the prison.

The night was as dark as ink, swallowing their silhouettes completely.

In the quiet chamber of the Guoshi Residence, Chu Yuan sat alone on a futon.

He slowly closed his eyes, formed hand seals, and a faint light flowed at his fingertips.

"Taiji separates light, the five phases overturned. Borrowing the law of Qian and Kun, the Lost Soul Formation guides the way."

Before his eyes, in the empty air, a faint illusion of the prison's surroundings gradually appeared.

The patrolling Imperial Guard and the barracks were vaguely visible, every detail clear.

Chu Yuan's fingertip lightly tapped.

Outside the prison, the patrolling Imperial Guard's steps halted in unison.

They continued to walk, yet could no longer leave that small space.

Each had a calm expression, eyes staring straight ahead, yet before them lay an endless road.

Chu Yuan's fingertip tapped again.

In the barracks, the resting Imperial Guard froze one by one, their gazes dull and vacant.

Some held the posture of rising, some slumped sideways at the edge of the bed, some held teacups, like a frozen painting.

Chu Yuan withdrew his hand, slowly opened his eyes, and a fine sheen of sweat appeared on his forehead.

He curled the corner of his mouth slightly: "Boundless Heavenly Venerable."

On the roof, Xiao Er stared intently at the patrolling Imperial Guard: "Success! Let's go!"

He lifted Tuan Tuan up, then silently slid down from the roof to the ground, with Lu Qi following closely behind.

The two kept close to the wall base and quickly reached the prison door.

A huge copper lock hung on the heavy iron door.

Xiao Er crouched down and set Tuan Tuan down.

Tuan Tuan had already fished out a half‑broken small key from her little embroidered pouch and muttered softly: "Open this big lock!"

Having said that, she loosened her small hand; a faint light flashed and the tiny key vanished.

"Click."

The copper lock sprang open with a crisp sound that made Xiao Er's heart tighten: "Miss, come up!"

Tuan Tuan scrambled quickly onto his back.

Lu Qi pushed open the iron door and slipped inside.

Xiao Er reached back and gently closed the door.

Inside the prison it was dark and damp; the cells were pitch black, save for the oil lamps on the walls flickering feebly, casting the long corridor in shifting shadows.

Tuan Tuan hunched low behind Xiao Er's back.

Xiao Er followed the passage deeper into the main cell block, while Lu Qi hid in the shadows and trailed him.

They had taken only two steps when a jailer came toward them: "Who are you? Why do you look unfamiliar……"

Before he finished speaking, Xiao Er stepped forward and struck his neck with a palm.

The man didn't even grunt before collapsing softly to the ground.

"One." Xiao Er whispered.

Ahead there was a corner; a person stepped out from it, and Lu Qi sprang from the shadows, pressed him against the wall, flipped his wrist, and the man slid down.

Lu Qi counted: "Two."

"Three, four, five……"

Xiao Er and Lu Qi were like two silent phantoms; each strike was clean and decisive, precise and ruthless.

The main cell block was already dimly lit; the jailers didn't even get a clear look at their faces before they all collapsed.

"Fifteen, sixteen..."

When the count reached the sixteenth person, a figure appeared at the far end of the corridor.

The person wore a dark teal robe unlike the jailers', with a heavy string of keys hanging at the waist.

The two sides met eyes and simultaneously lunged.

"Who are you..." Zhao Hu squinted, his hand pressing the hilt of the knife at his waist.

Xiao Er and Lu Qi exchanged a glance; there were sixteen jailers in total, so this must be the warden Zhao Hu.

"Zhao Hu?"

Tuan Tuan poked her head out from Xiao Er's shoulder and whispered, "Uncle Zhao Hu? Thank you!"

Zhao Hu instantly understood something.

He craned his neck to look behind the two, seeing several figures lying on the ground not far away.

"Uh," he sighed, released the knife hilt, and whispered, "Brother, don't slap my face."

Xiao Er stifled a laugh, and Tuan Tuan's eyes widened.

Lu Qi almost lost his composure, raised his palm and said, "My apologies."

With the words done, he slapped the back of his neck.

Zhao Hu's eyes rolled, and he fell down limply.

Lu Qi hurriedly steadied him, pressing him against the wall.

Tuan Tuan asked, "Isn't he Uncle Zhao Hu? Why hit him?"

"Seventeen," Xiao Er smiled, "We hit him just for show; otherwise everyone else gets hit, and he stays fine. How will he explain tomorrow?"

"Oh, sorry, Uncle Zhao Hu." Tuan Tuan lowered her head toward Zhao Hu, "When Imperial Uncle returns, I'll make sure he grants you a big official title!"

The few continued forward, and the doorframes of the last few cells could already be faintly seen.

Xiao Er halted, crouched and placed Tuan Tuan on the ground, "Miss, it's your turn."

Tuan Tuan lowered her head, fished a grayish straw rod from the Embroidered pouch, and clenched it in her palm.

She whispered, "Unlock all the locks here!"

After speaking, she released her small hand, a faint light flickered, and the straw rod vanished.

The next moment.

"Ka—"

"Ka ka ka—"

Countless crisp sounds, like a downpour striking tiles, erupted simultaneously from both sides of the corridor!

The heavy iron doors burst open with a roar, slamming against the stone wall and emitting a deafening crash.

The shackles on the prisoners' wrists and ankles shattered in an instant, the iron chains clattering to the ground.

Everyone froze for a moment, and the next instant:

"The doors are open!"

"The locks are open!"

"Run—!"

No one knows who shouted first, and immediately, countless figures poured out of the cells.

In each person's eyes burned the same flame.

They shoved and ran, like a breached flood, surging toward the Great Prison's main gate.

Xiao Er scooped Tuan Tuan back onto his back and barked, "Move!"

The three took a few steps and reached the last cell.

The iron door had already swung open, and a figure sat quietly in the corner, back to the entrance, as if the outside clamor meant nothing to him.

Xiao Er and Lu Qi rushed inside, and Tuan Tuan slipped from Xiao Er's shoulder to the floor.

"Brother Jiu! Hurry, run! We're here to rescue you!"

The person slowly turned his head.

Xiao Er's whole body went rigid.

Lu Qi's breathing suddenly halted.

Tuan Tuan's eyes widened sharply, "Why is it you!"