Chapter 3052: Deathly Still

"The queen's pet cat demon escaped into Huang Daxian's garden, and now we're ordered to hurry and catch it!" The guard had a wry smile on his face, "Huang Daxian hates cats the most; if we're late, we might only find a corpse."

Wang Hou is the queen of Shen State, the emperor's stepmother, currently residing temporarily in Jucheng. The emperor, mindful of old feelings, took her and her grandsons to live in the Chixiao Golden Hall.

Pan Xincheng asked, "Is anyone else going to catch it together?"

"Yes, I see about seventeen or eighteen people, and a few palace maids are also rushing over on the way."

Pan Xincheng immediately said, "Then we can't delay; you go first, we'll be right behind."

The guard refused: "Let's go together, it won't waste these dozen or so breaths."

"Alright, then we..." Pan Xincheng had already seen Dongmu Heng secretly making a hand gesture, meaning:

Attack!

The night is long and dreams many; they have no time to linger here.

So in the next moment, he raised his hand, and a sleeve-arrow pierced the opponent's chest.

Another guard was startled, about to shout, but Weijia Shen exerted force from behind, and with a crack, twisted his neck.

Both guards had elemental protection, but the opponent was too strong, and it was a sneak attack, so they couldn't even withstand a single exchange.

The vegetation here is sparse, and no one else passes by, so Dongmu Heng immediately said: "Hide deep in the grass, quick!"

They threw the corpses deep into the grass, then continued forward toward the northeast.

But they didn't know that shortly after they left, the corpses in the grass turned into two paper figures.

"The trouble you wanted—hasn't it just come?" Weijia Shen asked Dongmu Heng, "Have we been exposed or not?"

"Hard to say." Dongmu Heng frowned, striding swiftly, "Let's hurry to Mei Lake."

As long as we reach Mei Lake, everything will be fine.

Chixiao Golden Hall, Lan Yue Pavilion.

Du Shan was watching the images in the Haoyuan Golden Mirror.

Three became four—these people really have problems! But they seem to have all their documents in order.

Du Shan furrowed his brows:

"Since the Between Between Between Beijia Demon Emperor was killed, our royal palace has launched several full-scale investigations, clearing out many people. But Pan Xincheng passes every time. I remember his father was an old man in the Black Armor Army—how could he become a spy for the Heavenly Palace?"

At this moment, the Wuyuan Golden Mirror zoomed in, giving the four people a close-up.

Du Shan exclaimed: "How are they heading northeast?"

That direction has neither forbidden grounds nor protected treasuries.

Someone nearby spoke up: "But that direction has something more important."

Liang Daoyuan, Commander of the Imperial Forest Guards, stood at attention: "I will immediately send people to capture these traitors and interrogate them thoroughly!"

"No, these people are probably not someone you can easily handle. From now on, the Chixiao Golden Hall enters first-level combat readiness, but do not alarm them. You go to the First and Second Camps of the Wu Wei Garrison and bring all the personnel to me."

Liang Daoyuan was startled: "All?"

The Wu Wei Garrison has four major camps, the garrison defending Jucheng, elite among elites, also called the "Royal Army." The First and Second Camps together number over twenty thousand. For these four people in the mirror, even if the Imperial Forest Guards poured out their entire force, could they not handle it?

"Really, still need to mobilize the Wu Wei Garrison?"

This person glanced at him: "Yes, hurry."

The two sides still lack coordination. Otherwise, Liang Daoyuan shouldn't have asked another question.

Liang Daoyuan composed himself, about to salute and retreat, when this person pointed at the mirror and said to him: "Go in, save time. You go to the Wu Wei Garrison, and you only need to summon this mirror."

This is the authorization given.

Liang Daoyuan answered "Yes," and rammed his head into the mirror.

Previously, passing through the mirror in the Chixiao Golden Hall was the exclusive privilege of the Nine Abysses Great Emperor. Others wanting to pass through this mirror must obtain the emperor's approval. The Wu Wei Garrison is stationed in the suburbs.

Being able to open the Wuyuan Golden Mirror directly to the suburbs to pick up people, then send them to the Chixiao Golden Hall—

Hehehe.

This person before you has the same command authority as the emperor.

After he left, Du Shan then asked: "What exactly are these traitors after?"

"The Chixiao Golden Hall. They're targeting the Chixiao Golden Hall."

"The entire palace?" Du Shan was startled.

"Exactly. Before the Nine Abysses Great Emperor left, he hid the core of the Chixiao Golden Hall at the bottom of Mei Lake. If these people succeed, stealing the core, they could take the entire Chixiao Golden Hall away."

Du Shan broke out in a sweat: "They have such audacity!"

Having obtained this useful clue, his mind raced: "No wonder you ordered the Imperial Forest Guards and the Wu Wei Garrison to mobilize together. These fellows are probably not as simple as they appear."

His mind was sharp, and he immediately deduced a paradox:

Infiltrating the palace, stealing the entire Chixiao Golden Hall—this is no small, earth-shaking plan. Lingxu Holy Venerable should have plotted it long ago; he wouldn't send only a few three-legged cats to execute it. So these people must have ability, backup plans, and reserve strategies. Relying solely on the inner palace's regular guard forces would likely be insufficient.

Currently, the Heavenly Palace's battle on the Between Between Between Beijia front is abnormally passive, so Lingxu Holy Venerable must regain face elsewhere, such as by fiercely making up for losses in the Ducheng of Cangyan.

"If this is the second battlefield Lingxu Holy Venerable is trying to open, then its intensity and importance are absolutely not inferior to the Between Between Between Beijia front."

This statement solidified, making Du Shan shudder:

"Indeed!"

If the Chixiao Golden Hall were truly seized by the enemy, he dare not imagine the consequences.

"But, how many people know the secret of the Chixiao Golden Hall's core, and how did it leak?" This secret even he doesn't know—how did the enemy find out?

The Nine Abysses Great Emperor kept it from him too, and Du Shan isn't disappointed. Some secrets are better off unknown even to him.

This person raised two fingers: "Just two."

One must certainly be the Nine Abysses Great Emperor himself.

"This..."

"Enough, things have come to this—let's discuss the next steps. Lingxu Holy Venerable has always been generous; I judge he has assigned plenty of strong ones for this infiltration plan. Wanting to leave them all behind would probably not be easy."

This person spoke while casually picking up two sheets of white paper from Du Shan's desk, folding them into paper figures, and blowing a breath into each.

The paper figures actually came to life, even scratching their heads, but to Du Shan, they seemed to be surrounded by a faint black aura.

This black aura made him feel wary, even instinctively leaning back to distance himself.

"What is this?"

"Death aura." The person glanced at him, "Have you ever heard the phrase 'death aura heavy and deep'?"

"Uh..." So it was the death aura that brought the paper figures to life?

Then, the two paper figures were thrown toward Wu Yuan's golden mirror.

They passed through the mirror surface, as if passing through air.

Du Shan watched helplessly as they landed on the floor inside the inner chambers of the Chixiao Golden Hall, immediately transforming into two people, who then strode forward.

The death aura that had originally surrounded them also vanished.

Such paper talisman puppets could easily be mistaken for the real thing.