Chapter 225: The Imperial Mausoleum

Mount Tianshou had already appeared within Zhu Zai's line of sight.

In another half an hour, they would reach the Imperial Mausoleum.

Whether they lived or died would be decided then.

Zhu Zai swept his peripheral vision around him.

The members of the imperial clan had already lost their spirit and vitality.

That morning in the side hall, they had all witnessed the young clansman being beaten until he vomited blood by the little eunuch. It was just that the Emperor had been so incredibly amiable to them the previous night that it gave them a glimmer of hope, making them feel that perhaps it was just the eunuch being arrogant and domineering for a moment; as long as they reported it to His Majesty, they could set things right.

But, on the street, those few clansmen who had run outside the Emperor's palanquin to lodge a complaint had already had their teeth smashed out and their legs broken; at that moment, they were being carried on horseback by several Imperial Guards, who were patrolling back and forth.

It was as if they were intimidating the clansmen: "Do not cause trouble, or this will be your fate."

The clansmen had completely extinguished their last shred of wishful thinking.

Although they did not know why, nor what the goal was, the Emperor was indeed going to take action against all members of the imperial clan. Regardless of gender, regardless of age. Even the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Grand Preceptor could not escape.

Yet, even though they already knew there was danger, the clansmen were powerless to resist.

On the way there, several young clansmen who had achieved success in martial arts wanted to take advantage of the patrolling Imperial Guards' lack of vigilance to rush into the forest by the roadside.

They succeeded.

The Imperial Guards not only did not stop them, they did not even pursue them, instead continuing to patrol here and there as if they had not seen the ecstatic expressions on the clansmen's faces as they rushed into the woods at all.

Seeing them successfully escape, a few other clansmen also became restless.

But, a moment later, their impulse was extinguished by the cold reality.

That little eunuch turned out from the dense forest ahead and coldly swept a glance over the clansmen.

In his hands, he carried the few young clansmen who were unconscious.

Their limbs were all bent and broken, yet not a single trace of blood was visible.

The clansmen knew that those few young clansmen had been knocked unconscious from the sheer pain.

For a time, an atmosphere of despair spread even further.

The middle-aged clansman who had colluded with Zhu Zai in the side hall sent a look over.

Zhu Zai understood his meaning instantly.

"We are almost at the Imperial Mausoleum; I fear there will be even more garrison troops there. His Majesty likely intends to strike at the mausoleum."

"Although the hope of success is slim now, are we really not going to act? In the chaos, we might be able to get a few people out. Once we reach the mausoleum, it will be even harder to escape."

Zhu Zai shook his head.

Others did not know, but he was crystal clear.

On the perimeter of the procession, those two Heaven-Man level retainers who looked as if they were on the verge of death had never once moved their gaze from Zhu Zai the entire way. If he showed the slightest sign of unusual movement, he would be pinned to the ground instantly without any power to resist.

And that little eunuch—although he did not know where he was at the moment, Zhu Zai was a veteran of the Embroidered Uniform Guard who had managed the organization for over twenty years; he could be called the ancestor of Great Ming's lurking and assassination. He had always been able to feel a cold, chilling gaze lingering on the clansmen.

That little eunuch had been watching them the whole time.

And there was the Emperor inside the palanquin, who had not spoken a word the entire journey.

At this moment, they absolutely had no possibility of escape.

"Li Miao..."

Zhu Zai let out a long sigh.

Although he had spoken with confidence during that collusion with Li Miao the previous night, Zhu Zai actually understood very well that all of this was floating in the air and had not landed on solid ground at all.

What exactly Ji Tianrui wanted to do, and whether she would cooperate with Li Miao.

Even whether Li Miao would be pinned down by the joint efforts of Ji Tianrui and the Jianwen Emperor the moment he appeared at the Imperial Mausoleum, Zhu Zai dared not be certain.

But he could no longer demand more from Li Miao.

As his thoughts turned a hundred times, the Imperial Mausoleum appeared at the end of Zhu Zai's line of sight.

The procession slowed to a stop.

The little eunuch appeared beside the palanquin at some unknown time, stepped forward, and lifted the sedan curtain.

The Emperor opened his eyes.

"We have arrived."

"Yes."

"Go and take a look."

"Yes."

The little eunuch turned back and called over several retainers, heading toward the Imperial Mausoleum with the speed of lightning.

After a while, the little eunuch returned.

He was carrying Wu Zhiheng, who was covered in blood.

"Your Majesty, the other retainers are still engaged in battle with the rebels. Wu Zhiheng has suffered heavy injuries and is currently regulating his breathing. This servant brought him back first."

"Retainer Wu, wake up. His Majesty has arrived."

Wu Zhiheng coughed up a mouthful of blood mixed with bits of flesh, barely managed to lift his head, looked at the Emperor with his one remaining eye, and then suddenly lowered his head, kneeling to the ground.

"Your Majesty... this subject is incompetent."

"Hmm."

The Emperor responded with a sound.

"You are indeed somewhat incompetent, though it is not surprising."

"Speak, what is the situation now?"

Wu Zhiheng did not answer for a moment.

After a long while, he slowly lifted his head and said in a low voice.

"Your Majesty, please dismiss those around you."

"Oh?"

The Emperor chuckled.

The little eunuch understood, hurriedly stood up, and drove away the people in the vicinity.

Once there was no one around, Wu Zhiheng slowly spoke.

"Your Majesty, this subject and the others actually already broke into the Imperial Mausoleum just now."

"It is just—"

The little eunuch spoke from the side.

"His Majesty is right here, and we have already dismissed those around as you requested; why are you still hesitating!"

"No, this subject just didn't know where to begin..."

Wu Zhiheng had already suffered heavy injuries and his mind was clouded; he was silent for a moment, and only after a long while did he sort out his thoughts and recount what he had seen and heard inside the Imperial Mausoleum.

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Wu Zhiheng flashed inside the Imperial Mausoleum.

The moment he entered, he had already activated his internal energy cultivation method to protect his body, guarding against the crossbows of the Xiaoling Guards inside the mausoleum.

He lowered his arms and looked around.

There was not a single shadow of a person around.

He turned to look at the top of the perimeter wall; those Xiaoling Guards who were shooting arrows at the Imperial Guards outside were clearly still there.

This proved that he had not fallen into the Jianwen Emperor's illusion.

The Xiaoling Guards and the Ming Sect really had not set up defenses inside the Imperial Mausoleum.

Wu Zhiheng looked behind him.

Zhu Shoujing had not chased him in either.

It seemed that the moment he entered this place, the Xiaoling Guards and the Ming Sect had completely abandoned their obstruction of him, allowing him to walk freely within the mausoleum.

"Something is wrong."

"When things are abnormal, there must be a demon."

Wu Zhiheng thought to himself.

If he were to charge and kill along the perimeter wall at this moment, the ordinary soldiers of the Xiaoling Guards would inevitably collapse; when the Imperial Guards outside killed their way into the mausoleum and surrounded Zhu Shoujing and these Heaven-Man level experts from inside and out, they wouldn't even have a place to run.

Zhu Shoujing had only chased him for a while before disappearing.

The Jianwen Emperor had not stopped him either, instead allowing him to enter the Imperial Mausoleum. He didn't even know where he had gone at this moment.

The less defense there was, the less Wu Zhiheng dared to act rashly; he stood in place, secretly pondering.

"At this time, I must not go and touch the ordinary soldiers of the Xiaoling Guards. The opponent at the very least still has a Jianwen Emperor hiding in the dark; if I strike at the flaw the opponent deliberately exposed, it will be easy to fall into a trap."

"It is possible that the Jianwen Emperor is hiding among those ordinary soldiers right now, just waiting for me to reveal a flaw when I charge, to deliver a fatal blow."

"His Majesty... wants a certain item inside the Imperial Mausoleum."

"What I should do now is to investigate the situation inside the mausoleum and report it after His Majesty arrives; that would be the greatest merit!"

Having reached this conclusion, Wu Zhiheng no longer hesitated; paying full attention to the movements around him, he slowly walked toward the depths of the Imperial Mausoleum.

(End of Chapter)