Chapter 210

After Huang Jin's injuries had largely healed, the two remaining attendants supported him and left directly.

Several members of the imperial clan who had been innocently implicated looked at each other, all of them stunned like wooden chickens.

Not to mention the fighting shrouded in the illusion earlier, the mere image of the Jianwen Emperor's corpse-like face appearing behind Huang Jin and then tearing open Huang Jin's throat without hesitation was enough to keep these imperial clan members from sleeping for months.

It goes without saying that for the few clan members accidentally killed by the attendants, one couldn't even find a decent-sized piece of them now; they were all mixed up together, and one would be afraid of crying for the wrong person even when burying them.

At this moment, they dared not leave, nor did they dare stay.

In the end, it was Zhu Zai who stood up and clapped his hands.

"Everyone, please listen to me."

"Let's put aside what just happened for now; it is better to hurry into the palace. In any case, the rebels should not dare to enter the palace to cause trouble. As long as we see His Majesty and explain this matter, we should have some protection."

With a backbone to rely on, the few clan members naturally had no objections.

It was just that their carriages had all been destroyed by the Jianwen Emperor, and by this time it was already late; the streets were pitch black, and the few of them dared not move forward at all.

It was only with Zhu Zai and Li Miao leading the way that the others dared to follow behind, walking together toward the imperial palace.

Glancing at the cowering clan members behind him, Li Miao lowered his voice and said to Zhu Zai.

"How about it, Commander, was it a good show?"

"Did your ancestor not give you a special face? Ten attendants, and he almost killed Huang Jin."

Zhu Zai's brows were tightly locked.

"This is... the Jianwen Emperor."

"Ten attendants, and they couldn't stop him from killing?"

Li Miao laughed.

"No, no, no. This thing of his, anyone who faces it for the first time will suffer. If you don't know how to guard against it, and he really uses it well, it naturally appears formidable."

"But he only picked the soft persimmons to squeeze, and didn't dare to touch those attendants, did he?"

"In my opinion, those eight attendants who chased after him will be able to make him suffer a not-so-small loss."

"If so..."

Zhu Zai breathed a sigh of relief.

He had also been frightened by the Jianwen Emperor's performance, and after hearing Li Miao's words, he was finally roughly at ease.

"However, the Jianwen Emperor cannot be left alive."

Zhu Zai said.

"Targeting the imperial clan and being difficult for several Heaven-Man Realm experts to guard against—if we really let him hide in Shuntian Prefecture, I fear that within a month, apart from the imperial family, my Zhu family's clan members will all be killed by him."

Li Miao said quite indifferently.

"Wait and see. Isn't the Emperor already looking for trouble with him? We don't need to be in such a hurry."

"Since things have come to this, let's finish tonight's meal first."

Zhu Zai let out a long sigh and nodded.

————————

Tianshou Mountain, Imperial Mausoleum.

The eight attendants chased and killed him all the way, clashing with the Jianwen Emperor several times during the process. Although they all suffered some losses, they gradually lost the sense of powerlessness they had felt while watching Huang Jin's throat being torn open.

The Jianwen Emperor was not impossible to deal with.

First, when he exerted his full strength, his mind was entirely focused on executing his moves, making it impossible to maintain the illusion.

Second, he had not succeeded in cultivating the Jiezi Realm, and his Wu Gong was only the most authentic "Ming Shen Martial Canon."

No matter how profound a school of Wu Gong is, it can only focus on one direction. To advance bravely, one cannot be sinister and treacherous; to be ever-changing, one cannot be incomparably fierce.

As long as there are characteristics and focuses, the eight attendants could naturally find a way to deal with him.

Third, the attendants discovered that as their fear of the Jianwen Emperor dissipated, the effect of the illusion on them also decreased accordingly.

They had stumbled upon the characteristic of Jizhao being "determined by the heart."

And the fourth point, which was also the most important point.

The attendants discovered that the Jianwen Emperor had injuries on his body, and they were extremely heavy.

Knowing that this was the best opportunity to hunt down the Jianwen Emperor, the eight attendants also became ruthless, starting to trade injury for injury to delay the Jianwen Emperor's movements.

Fighting and running, they chased him out of the city and arrived at Tianshou Mountain.

When the Imperial Mausoleum appeared before their eyes, the Jianwen Emperor's figure flashed, and he activated "Jizhao" to obscure their vision. By the time the attendants broke free from the illusion, they found that he had already vanished.

The attendants looked at each other.

"Eunuch Huang's prediction was indeed correct."

One attendant said.

"At this time, the garrison troops have not yet been recalled; there are only some garrison troops and the Xiaolingwei inside the Imperial Mausoleum."

"The Jianwen Emperor fleeing here is ironclad proof that Zhu Shoujing conspired to release him!"

An attendant frowned.

"But there are also several Heaven-Man Realm experts among the Xiaolingwei, and Zhu Shoujing is not beneath us. If the Jianwen Emperor joins forces with them and we rashly chase inside, I fear there will be trouble."

One of them shouted angrily.

"Everyone, is this the time to be hesitant? We don't have much 'time' left!"

"Having watched Eunuch Huang's throat being torn open before our eyes, we will inevitably be punished by His Majesty. If we don't make up for our faults with meritorious service, we will just be waiting to die of old age!"

Once these words were spoken, the attendants fell silent.

The imperial court's methods for controlling these attendants were not limited to life extension, relatives, and Gu insects.

There was also "time."

As mentioned before, these attendants had a "shelf life." The longer and more frequently they were awakened, the faster the Five Decays of Heaven and Man, suppressed by secret techniques, would progress.

Different tasks required different amounts of time for the attendants to be awake. Some tasks only required being awakened for an hour, some for a day, and some even for half a month.

An hour was a "superior task."

A day or two was a "middle-tier task."

Half a month or more was an "inferior task."

Wang Zhi was dead, and Huang Jin was the Emperor's most trusted attendant. Since something happened to him, these attendants would naturally face punishment.

That is, to go and do those "inferior tasks."

As the time they were awakened grew longer, the Five Decays of Heaven and Man progressed faster and faster, yet the imperial court would not use secret techniques to let them fall back into a deep sleep.

The outcome was often watching one's own skin and flesh gradually slacken, one's vision gradually blur, and one's limbs gradually lose strength, eventually collapsing into a heap, yet unable to die immediately because of the internal energy one had painstakingly cultivated, watching oneself wither away.

For Heaven-Man Realm experts who had practiced martial arts their whole lives and took pride in their Wu Gong, this was undoubtedly the most terrifying way to die.

Therefore, they dared not leave.

After a while, an attendant gritted his teeth.

"Let's go in together and look out for each other."

"Even if things go wrong, they won't be able to keep all eight of us here. Once we confirm the Xiaolingwei are rebelling, we will have an explanation when we return!"

"Let it be done!"

The few nodded one after another and walked together toward the encampment of the Xiaolingwei.

And in a room within the Xiaolingwei encampment, Zhu Shoujing was completely unaware that he had already become a rebel.

He was sitting at his desk, carefully writing a report on the events at the Imperial Mausoleum last night.

Suddenly, his gaze sharpened, and he raised his hand to grip the hilt of the blade beside the table.

"Who!?"

He looked toward the window.

There, a shadow was being cast by the firelight, swaying slowly.

(End of chapter)