[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-cursed-blade-s-walk":3,"chapter-the-cursed-blade-s-walk-the-cursed-blade-s-walk-chapter-755":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Cursed Blade's Walk",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2263060,4415,"Chapter 755","the-cursed-blade-s-walk-chapter-755",755,"\u003Cp>“Oh, so you’re a Laoshan Daoist…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kuai Dayou nodded slightly, satisfying his curiosity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for Lu San, he had no interest whatsoever and didn’t even look up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the two fall silent, Bai Laojiu’s fingers tightened around his wine cup, and he frowned as he whispered, “Forgive me for being abrupt.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“To be honest, since stepping into Tai’an and registering at the yamen, I’ve felt like a venomous snake is staring at the back of my neck—my skin crawls. The watcher’s movements are uncanny; had I not trained in ‘Listening to the Wind to Identify Objects’ in my youth, I’d never have noticed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He slammed back a gulp of cold wine, his Adam’s apple bobbing, “Even stranger—the four constables accompanying me vanished this morning from the inn. No signs of struggle. Even their swords were left beneath their pillows.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And the three covert contacts meant to meet us? Not a single reply. As if they vanished into thin air!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He lifted his eyes to Lu San and Kuai Dayou, coldness buried deep in his pupils: “This isn’t ordinary Jianghu  tactics. To snatch officials right under Tai’an’s yamen nose? Either it’s an old hand of mystic arts…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…or something supernatural is at work!” The oil lamp in the tavern suddenly spat a crackling spark, casting half his face in flickering shadow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He quickly rose, bowed low, “I’m outmatched—I can only beg your help, great heroes!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, no, no!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kuai Dayou winced, waving his hands frantically, “You keep calling us ‘great heroes’—are you trying to roast us on a spit?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If we refuse, we look unjust. But we’re not that close—it’d be like fooling a fool!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If we help, on what grounds?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Twelve Yuan Chen—can you afford the price?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kuai Dayou fired off questions in rapid succession, leaving Bai Laojiu speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d thought the two were young, so a few sweet words might soften them—but one ignored him, the other was sharp-tongued and relentless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This… I apologize.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of it, he sighed and turned to leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why the rush?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Kuai Dayou grabbed his arm, whispering, “I didn’t say I won’t help—but how we help, that’s another matter.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laojiu was a hardened old salted cabbage of the Jianghu—he saw right through Kuai Dayou’s bait.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But since he needed help, he played dumb: “I’d be grateful for details.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Simple.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kuai Dayou grinned, “You’ve spent years in the yamen, even earned the title ‘Divine Constable’—but aren’t you still just a servant to be ordered around?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This job belongs to the Kong family. Why risk your life for them? Let me teach you: use the Kong family’s name to write an IOU, saying you’ve hired the Twelve Yuan Chen, and they’ll pay after.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pfft!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laojiu nearly spat out his wine, grimacing, “Kuai Daxia, you’re joking—I don’t have that kind of face. What if the Kong family denies it later?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kuai Dayou laughed, “You don’t need to worry about that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Just write it. I guarantee it won’t touch you. What happens after is our problem with the Kong family—whether we collect the money? That’s ours too…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu San watched Kuai Dayou silently, offering no objection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He knew Kuai Dayou wasn’t a fool—there had to be a reason.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laojiu hesitated, but remembering his life hung by a thread, whether he angered the Kong family was a problem for later—he gritted his teeth and wrote the note.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Perfect!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kuai Dayou snatched the note, flicking it lightly, “There you go, Divine Constable Bai—go about your business as you please. We’ll watch from the shadows and drag out those bastards.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Bai Laojiu still uneasy, Kuai Dayou chuckled, clapping his shoulder, “Don’t worry—even if you don’t trust my nonsense, you know I wouldn’t dare misuse the Twelve Yuan Chen’s name.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bai Laojiu turned to Lu San. Seeing no opposition, he gritted his teeth and stood, “Fine. My life is in your hands, great heroes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t know what scheme Kuai Dayou was cooking up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he knew this was his only chance to escape!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching Bai Laojiu stride out of the inn, Lu San turned to the side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kuai Dayou didn’t waste words: “Mount Tai’s anomaly, and that killer Xuanwei showing up here—it’s likely connected. And from what he said, even officials are involved.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“With this justification, we can act freely. As for the Kong family—they can pay or not. The IOU is here. We’ll collect eventually.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Agreed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu San nodded without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Normally, decisions like this were made by Li Yan, Sha Lifei, and Wang Daoxuan—but Lu San didn’t plan, yet he could still weigh pros and cons.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Using Bai Laojiu’s hand was indeed their best way to break the deadlock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whoosh!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu San swiftly wrote a note. The hawk-like white bird shot out the window, wings flaring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, tossing down scattered silver coins, they both leapt through the window, stepped along the sill, executed a backward somersault, and landed atop the roof, sprinting swiftly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was deep night; no one noticed them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu San kept softly whistling, summoning rats from nearby alleys.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, they spotted Bai Laojiu moving cautiously down the street.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, Sha Lifei received word and arrived from the opposite side, forming a perfect encirclement with Lu San’s group.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The net was cast. What it would catch? No one knew…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…………\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Night, ink-black, howled with wind along Mount Tai’s stone path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mist swirled in the wind, eerie under the moonlight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yan held the Yuanjia Luo Pan, blending into the mountain path’s shadows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t take the main trail but hugged the cliffside, climbing a steep slope thick with vegetation and strewn with loose rocks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d climbed Mount Tai in his past life; though the buildings had changed, the terrain remained largely the same—he knew how to avoid patrol disciples.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Passing Hongmen Palace, the path ahead should’ve been a gentle slope leading to Wanxian Tower and Doumugong—but the moment his foot touched a common stone step, the mist around him thickened instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Darkness deepened. Though walking on stone, his mind grew foggy, his foot slipped into emptiness—he nearly tumbled off the cliff.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ghost wall?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yan’s heart tightened. He glanced again at the Luo Pan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure enough—he stood still, but the needle spun wildly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Life gate, death gate—left three, right four…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yan recalled Wang Daoxuan’s teachings on arrays, adjusting his steps as the Luo Pan’s needle turned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His body darted left, then right, sometimes reversing, sometimes doubling back—completely defying normal path logic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet precisely this way, he slipped through the array effortlessly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before him appeared a crooked old pine, beside a weathered stone inscribed with faint characters—the Jingshi Valley—where another stone path descended the mountain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This wasn’t an ascent route. Likely a sect’s cultivation ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yan ignored it, pressed forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he neared the rear of Doumugong, distant footsteps echoed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yan’s ears twitched. Without hesitation, he leapt—silent as a lynx—slipping into the dense forest, darting swiftly across the steep, jagged rock faces.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The path he chose was perilous beyond measure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this hour, Mount Tai’s non-main trails remained wild and treacherous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ridge he now climbed was called “Eagle’s Sorrow Gorge”—a near-vertical cliff carved by centuries of water flow, riddled with deep grooves slick with moss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Li Yan’s Dan Jing reached its peak.\u003C\u002Fp>",1208,"2026-06-19T18:28:35.913Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","d32cd0b48938dc96182b54ba429406e9c47a0021370a2276115845f96a6513ae","the-cursed-blade-s-walk-chapter-756","the-cursed-blade-s-walk-chapter-754",801,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-cursed-blade-s-walk-cover.jpg"]