Stone steps ran down from beneath the cave entrance. After Su Ziji jumped down, he pressed the stone wall inside the tunnel, and the opened stone door swiftly closed again.
This was a secret passage dating back to the previous dynasty. Even the people who had acquired this residence likely did not know of it. Su Ziji had only discovered its secret by chance, but now it came in handy.
The passage was not long, only a little over a hundred meters—just enough to bypass those watching Duke of Dai's Residence from outside and emerge into a small courtyard on another street.
Even the courtyard's current owner did not know of this passage. Su Ziji needed no torch. He made his way through the darkness and soon reached the end. Before he got there, he had already smelled dampness. At the end, he pressed another mechanism. The sealed stone door slowly opened, and Su Ziji clung to the opening and peered outside.
This exit was in the deep well of a small courtyard on a street outside. It was set into the well wall, some five or six meters below the mouth and about ten meters above the bottom. It was a deep water well.
A rope for drawing water hung down. For someone like Su Ziji, already considered an expert, climbing up from below was effortless. He quickly scaled the rope and leapt out from the well mouth.
Everyone in the courtyard was asleep. Su Ziji's arrival and departure passed without a sound.
Like a cat, he raced lightly across the rooftops. This swiftness differed from the lightness skill of legend; upon closer reflection, one could sense that wind had enveloped his body, as though it had become feathered wings, allowing him to "fly" high above.
This feeling had