Chapter 332: Li Miao

"Ah—"

The broken blade hacked into the back of Li Miao's neck, leaving a gash, yet Li Miao seemed not to feel it at all. He merely flicked his hand behind him, and the broken blade let out a resonant clang.

"Ugh!"

The black-clad eunuch holding the broken blade felt a sharp pain in his palm; an irresistible force surged from it, splitting the web of his thumb. The broken blade flew from his hand, embedding itself into the ground dozens of feet away, still vibrating incessantly.

Cun Dong clutched his severed arm and retreated rapidly.

Li Miao had truly "plucked" his arm off, just as one would pluck a ripe fruit. With a *squelch*, there was not even much pain; only half the arm remained.

Li Miao held that severed limb, watching Cun Dong with an amused expression.

The five black-clad eunuchs ceased their assault, flashing back several feet to stand in focused readiness.

No one would flee.

Eunuchs who had clawed their way out of the palace environment were not stupid. They knew clearly what the consequences would be if they exposed their backs to Li Miao; scattering to flee would only allow Li Miao to hunt them down and kill them one by one. The only chance of survival now was for the five of them to join forces and fight Li Miao once more.

After all, Li Miao's injuries had not yet fully healed.

After all, they were not yet certain if Li Miao had cultivated Profound Observation to perfection.

After all, Li Miao had broken through in the heat of battle; from seeing the technique to mastering it had taken less than half an hour. Perhaps he had not yet grasped the miraculous nature of Profound Observation.

Cun Dong's gaze swept over Li Miao, his mouth twitching from the intense pain, and he forced himself to speak.

"The Commander is indeed highly skilled; we have fallen today! I wonder if the Embroidered Uniform Guard is still in need of Heaven-Man realm experts? We are willing to turn over a new leaf..."

As he spoke, he analyzed internally: "Which path of Life Gong does his Profound Observation connect to? The greatest possibility is Sumeru. He cultivates Yingzhou techniques and hails from Yingzhou; this is the path he could master most quickly."

"Must be careful of his protective Qi later. Fortunately, protective Qi has form, so it is not impossible to defend against!"

As his thoughts raced, he saw that Li Miao had not been swayed in the slightest by his plea. He actually pulled up his hem and knelt down on the ground with a thud.

He crawled toward Li Miao on his knees.

"My lord, we are no longer a threat to you. We are willing to plant poisonous insects in our bodies, and we are willing to reveal Liu Jin's entire plot in Shuntian Prefecture, if only you would spare—"

"That's enough."

Li Miao raised his hand and tossed Cun Dong's severed arm in front of him, then pulled the steel needle the black-clad eunuch had stabbed into his waist, throwing it to the ground with a crisp sound.

"Stop pretending."

Before the words had faded, Cun Dong suddenly sprang from the ground, hacking at Li Miao with a single palm!

He knew Li Miao wouldn't believe him, but given Li Miao's temperament, he likely wouldn't kill him while he was kneeling. As long as he got close to Li Miao, he could strike the moment before the protective Qi fully formed!

As for face... there is no such thing as a eunuch who cares about face in this world!

The palm wind whistled as it arrived, yet Cun Dong did not see any protective garment appear on Li Miao's body. He gritted his teeth, changed his move as he closed in, and his entire body coiled like a long snake, wrapping around Li Miao's arm!

It worked!

Li Miao was actually standing still, neither dodging nor parrying, letting Cun Dong wrap around his arm!

Cun Dong's bones and muscles linked together, and a bizarre internal energy began to circulate, instantly turning him into a human shackle, locking Li Miao's arm firmly!

"No protective Qi! Strike!"

Cun Dong shouted.

In truth, there was no need for him to speak; the other four black-clad eunuchs had already reached Li Miao's side, attacking his vital points in unison!

Cun Dong's face revealed joy.

This grappling technique was a secret of the palace; even those a level stronger than him found it hard to break free. The key was that it also allowed one to sense the condition of the person being trapped.

He clearly perceived—Li Miao's muscles and bones had not grown stronger, his Qi had not turned into tangible protective armor, and even the hidden injuries in his body showed no signs of healing.

His Qi, strength, and bones were exactly the same as before.

"Could it be that he hasn't mastered Profound Observation?"

Cun Dong felt a surge of joy.

Just then, Li Miao suddenly smiled at him.

"Have you finished making a scene?"

*Snap.

A crisp sound.

It was the sound of one of Cun Dong's major tendons snapping. Following that, Li Miao's arm slowly bent within his embrace.

*Snap, snap.

"Ugh, ugh!"

Cun Dong couldn't help but let out a wail. The technique originally used to trap Li Miao had now become a tool for Li Miao to inflict pain upon him. As Li Miao's arm bent irresistibly, his entire body folded in half along with it.

*Squelch.

Broken bones pierced through skin and flesh, and the blood and meat, squeezed into a pulp, scrambled to escape from the rupture.

"You... what Life Gong did you connect to..."

Fresh blood gushed from his mouth; Cun Dong choked and coughed as he forced himself to speak.

He was already certain that Li Miao had mastered Profound Observation. But his Qi and bones hadn't grown stronger—where on earth did such immense brute force come from!

Li Miao smiled.

"Jiezi."

"Jiezi!?" Cun Dong's eyes widened abruptly.

Diamond is for the body, Sumeru is for Qi, and Jiezi is for technique.

But why would Li Miao connect to Jiezi... didn't he cultivate the most violent and cruel path? Fighting to the death without retreating, paying blood with blood—shouldn't such a temperament connect to Diamond?

How could it be Jiezi?

If it were Jiezi, where did this inexplicable brute force come from?

Suddenly, Cun Dong heard a crisp "snap," but it didn't come from his own body; it came from Li Miao's arm.

It was the sound of Li Miao's arm muscles tearing.

A glimmer of realization finally appeared in Cun Dong's eyes: "So, that's it."

"Jiezi is mastery, and Profound Observation is also mastery. You connected to Jiezi, pushing the mastery of your own body to the peak... This is your, Profound Observation..."

"Suppressing instinct, trading injury for power, fighting to the death. You are just as ruthless to yourself... You really are a—"

*Snap.

"Thanks for the explanation."

Li Miao's arm bent completely, and Cun Dong, clinging to it, bent along with it, his head hanging limply.

Li Miao flung his hand violently, throwing Cun Dong out and smashing him into two other black-clad eunuchs.

The next instant, Li Miao's hands locked onto the heads of the remaining two black-clad eunuchs, the muscles on his arms bulging, even splitting his skin!

He slammed them into the ground!

*BOOM!!!

A massive sound reverberated; the ground seemed to leap up like a living thing. The tremor traveled along the ground to the high palace walls, startling the warhorses into rearing and neighing.

"What's going on..."

The officer of the Right Cavalry Guard frowned, looking toward the Huagai Hall.

He naturally couldn't just leave after such a head-lopping matter; he had only led his riders a short distance before stopping, waiting for the outcome of the struggle between Li Miao and the black-clad eunuchs.

Suddenly, he gritted his teeth.

"No, can't just wait."

"Must go and see. That Li Miao must die here today! Otherwise, everything is lost!"

He spurred his horse, intending to ride toward the Huagai Hall.

Suddenly, something above his head seemed to block the sunlight, casting a shadow over him.

"Clouds? Bad luck!"

He spat, not caring, and prepared to ride forward.

*Plop.

A drop of warm liquid landed on his face, followed by more liquid splashing down.

"Is it raining?"

He raised his hand to catch a drop, but what met his gaze was a sea of scarlet.

A chill climbed from his spine to the back of his head; he looked up abruptly, seeing clearly where the shadow above him came from.

It was a corpse hanging from the eaves of the palace wall.

Beside the corpse, Li Miao stood there, impaling another black-clad eunuch—whose chest was still heaving—onto the eaves, as if hanging a strip of cured meat for the winter.

Seeing him look over, Li Miao turned his head and smiled at him.

"No rush, no rush."

"You're next."