Chapter 897

Hu Xiaotian was actually using for the first time the skills Bu Wu taught him; the sense of achievement in his heart was indescribable, the skills Bu Wu taught him were truly practical, even if his own father saw him he wouldn't dare recognize this hunchbacked, pigeon‑chested, sordid monk as his biological son.

Hu Xiaotian pressed himself against the roof tiles, listening to the sounds inside; the room transmitted even breathing, suggesting the false emperor had already fallen asleep. Hu Xiaotian's body clung to the sloping eaves like mercury pouring down; at the eaves he grabbed with both hands, his body hanging from the eave—this was using the Profound Dark Yin Wind Claw, landing silently on the ground without a whisper; he came to the window, pressed his ear close to the opening and listened carefully, and after a while detected nothing unusual.

At that moment movement came from the eastern meditation room; Hu Xiaotian panicked, leapt into the air, grabbed the eave and silently flipped onto the roof.

Light seeped out from the eastern meditation room; two people walked out, they were two of the eight experts of the Heavenly Secret Bureau; one headed straight out of the Puxian Courtyard, the other, carrying a lantern, patrolled back and forth around the compound once, then returned to the eastern meditation room.

Hu Xiaotian had thought the man would stop there, but the man instead sprang up again, placed one hand on the eave and flew his body onto the ridge.

Hu Xiaotian had intended to hide, but his mind suddenly changed; he kept his posture still and deliberately exposed himself before the man, who shouted, "Who goes there?"

Hu Xiaotian said nothing, bent his knees slightly, pushed off with his feet, and shot up from the roof, soaring more than two zhang in an instant, then flew westward.

That guard also leapt into the air, but his height was obviously no match for Hu Xiaotian; he tapped the courtyard wall with his toes and leapt again. The guard's warning cry woke the other guards and eunuchs resting inside, who all came out to see what was happening.

Hu Xiaotian had already plunged into the western bamboo grove; the guard pursued him relentlessly from behind.

Hu Xiaotian was not using his full strength; when he reached the center of the bamboo grove he embraced a bamboo stalk with one hand, his body pressed against it and spun around, coming to a stop there, coldly watching the guard who was tailing him.

Seeing Hu Xiaotian suddenly halt his flight, the guard also stopped about three zhang away; he grabbed a bamboo stalk with one hand, wrapped his legs around it, his deep-set eyes fixed on Hu Xiaotian, projecting a wolf‑like cold glare.

Hu Xiaotian said in a muffled voice, "Why are you chasing me?"

The guard coldly said, "Bold monk, if you want to save your life you'd better surrender quickly; otherwise don't blame me for not giving you a chance."

Hu Xiaotian let out a harsh, grating laugh, then his body broke free from the bamboo and shot straight at the opponent. The guard drew his long saber from his waist with a clang; the blade's light shimmered, dispersing the thin mist between them, and a freezing sword‑qi rushed straight at Hu Xiaotian's face.

Hu Xiaotian couldn't help silently praising himself; that blade's skill was absolutely top‑notch, showing that the Heavenly Secret Bureau truly hides dragons and crouching tigers—even a casually dispatched guard is this formidable. Hu Xiaotian did not choose to clash with him. Midway he abruptly turned, dodging the attack at an unimaginable angle, he climbed onto another bamboo stalk; the guard's slash missed, striking the bamboo where Hu Xiaotian had just stood, cleaving it in two, which then slowly toppled.

Hu Xiaotian said, "We're on the same side—why strike so viciously?"

The guard heard this, blinked in confusion, not understanding what Hu Xiaotian meant.

Hu Xiaotian said, "It's Mr. Hong who sent me here!" He was guessing and bluffing, saying this because he still couldn't determine whether the old emperor was actually Hong Beimo in disguise.

The guard, surprisingly, did not launch a second attack right away; his gaze toward Hu Xiaotian showed doubt.

Hu Xiaotian said, "Mr. Hong sent me here to meet you!"

"What evidence do you have?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "Let your boss come and talk to me!"

The guard nodded, then suddenly raised his long saber and chopped at the green bamboo on which Hu Xiaotian was standing.

At the same time a rustling came from the bamboo leaves overhead; a guard dropped down from above, thrusting his long spear straight down, aiming at Hu Xiaotian's crown, intending to pierce a bloody hole in that bald head of his.

Facing their pincer attack from above and below, Hu Xiaotian showed no panic; he retreated backward hastily, employing the Dog‑Dodging Eighteen Steps in the bamboo grove, moving like a ghost. His Dog‑Dodging Eighteen Steps were already marvelous and mysterious, and now, having mastered the Art of Soaring and absorbed the lifelong power of Monk Yuan Kong, the technique had improved even further, making it effortless to dodge the two guards.

Hu Xiaotian had no intention of lingering in battle; within a short time he shook off the two men and hurried back to the Five Observances Hall. Although the two guards were highly skilled in martial arts, their lightness skill paled beside Hu Xiaotian's, giving them no chance to catch him.

Hu Xiaotian, confident no one was following, returned to the meditation room of the Five Observances Hall; he exited and re‑entered through the window, quickly took off his rain‑soaked monk's robe, restored his original appearance, put on a fresh monk's robe, then opened the door to wake his subordinate guards, leading them out in the rain toward the Puxian Courtyard.

Hu Xiaotian's subordinate palace guards had no idea what had happened; only halfway did they hear the commotion from the Puxian Courtyard, then they realized something had occurred there, and each instantly grew tense, for their mission in coming to the Long Dragon Temple was to protect the emperor, and any mishap to him would also trouble them.

A group met the other palace guards outside the gate; being comrades they naturally shared what had happened. In fact, the few guards assigned to outdoor patrol hadn't seen clearly what occurred, only hearing that someone had sneaked into the Puxian Courtyard; the emperor's personal guards had sent two men to pursue, but they returned empty‑handed. Just earlier the emperor had issued an order forbidding any talk, yet unexpectedly Hu Xiaotian and his men still got the news and rushed over.

As the guards were arguing at the gate, the little eunuch Yin Zheng came out holding a lantern; seeing Hu Xiaotian and his party approach, Yin Zheng hurriedly waved at Hu Xiaotian, who walked over and stood beneath the rain‑proof eave of the Puxian Courtyard's main gate, where Yin Zheng gave a wry smile and said, "Sir Hu, why have you come?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "I had just stepped out to urinate, heard a disturbance here, worried the emperor might come to harm, so I immediately gathered my brothers and came over."

Yin Zheng said, "Nothing at all, nothing whatsoever!"

Hu Xiaotian snorted coldly, "Wasn't it said someone had sneaked into the Puxian Courtyard?" He grew ever more suspicious of Yin Zheng, believing the little eunuch was almost certainly a direct descendant of Hong Beimo; initially he had even regarded him as an elder brother, but now it seemed the eunuch was trying to fool him—Yin Zheng, if you dare conspire with Hong Beimo against me, don't blame me for setting aside sentiment; Hu Xiaotian felt a killing intent rise in his heart.

Yin Zheng perhaps sensed Hu Xiaotian's killing intent, his heart gave a sudden chill, and he whispered, "Brother, hurry away, whatever you do, don't let the emperor……"

By the time Yin Zheng said this, it was already too late; a eunuch stepped forward, his voice shrill and piercing, announcing, "The emperor summons Sir Hu for an audience."

Hu Xiaotian nodded and strode inside.

Inside the old emperor's meditation room the lights were blazing; two guards stood watch outside, and upon seeing Hu Xiaotian one of them remarked, "Chief Hu, you arrived quickly." This was the very guard who had just spotted Hu Xiaotian's trail and pursued him all the way to the bamboo grove; after that ordeal Hu Xiaotian had gained great confidence in his lightness skill, now considering himself a true expert in that art.

Hu Xiaotian gave a cold snort and entered the meditation room; the old emperor stood silently there, gazing out the window, which was now fully open, letting the night wind carrying fine drizzle continually seep inside, the candlelight flickering unpredictably, so the room's light wavered between bright and dim.

Hu Xiaotian bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I just heard a disturbance here, so I specially led my brothers over to guard you."

"At least you show some loyalty!"

Hu Xiaotian silently cursed, "What nonsense is this? What do you mean 'at least I show some loyalty'? I am loyal by nature, but you are a treacherous man." He then spoke carefully, "Your Majesty, what exactly has happened?"

Long Xuan'en kept his back turned to him and whispered, "Tonight someone has sneaked into the Puxian Courtyard."

"What? Who is so bold as to dare disturb the emperor's procession? Are these guards around the emperor all useless, letting an assassin slip in so easily?" Hu Xiaotian's remark instantly aroused the shared hatred of Long Xuan'en's personal guards, who glared at him with fierce eyes.

Hu Xiaotian acted as if he hadn't noticed and asked, "Your Majesty, did you see who it was?"

Long Xuan'en replied, "It should be a hunchbacked, pigeon‑chested monk with an ugly appearance."

Hu Xiaotian silently laughed, "A hunchbacked, pigeon‑chested, ugly monk? You'd never dream that the person before you—a handsome youth as graceful as a jade tree in the wind, with a face like a jeweled crown—is playing that role." He clasped his fists and said, "Your Majesty, I will immediately lead my men in a search; even if I have to comb every corner of the Long Dragon Temple, I will find that monk."

Long Xuan'en's heart stirred; he had originally wanted to cover up the incident, but Hu Xiaotian's words gave him a reminder—tonight's affair was actually an excellent opportunity. Rather than oppose it, he decided to go along and let Hu Xiaotian stir up the Long Dragon Temple into chaos, and then he nodded, saying, "If you cannot find that monk, I fear I shall not be able to rest or eat; Hu Xiaotian, this time you must absolutely not disappoint me again."

"Yes!"

Hu Xiaotian said, "Your Majesty, I have one more request."

"Speak!"

Hu Xiaotian glanced at the nearby personal guards and said, "When the emperor is in Huangcheng, our palace guards have always been responsible for his safety; there has never been such a major lapse. I had thought the experts of the Heavenly Secret Bureau would surely be extraordinary, but judging from tonight's events, they are nothing special."

Beside him, a guard with dark skin flared up first, unable to contain his anger, shouting, "If it weren't for you palace guards being utterly useless, why would Mr. Hong have sent us over?"

Hu Xiaotian coldly retorted, "Is the Heavenly Secret Bureau really that impressive? Dare they insult our palace guards?"

The dark‑skinned guard sneered, "Besides winning a war of words, what other abilities do you have?"

Hu Xiaotian stared fixedly at the guard's face and said, word by word, "Please, Your Majesty, grant me a chance to learn firsthand how formidable the experts of the Heavenly Secret Bureau really are!" (To be continued…^)