Chapter 270: The Illusion of the Five Decays of Heaven and Man

Inside the narrow mountain cave, Li Miao reached out and pressed his fingers onto Attendant Ruan Mei's pulse, slowly channeling his true energy into her.

After a moment, Attendant Ruan Mei slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air; her originally aged face gradually grew younger, revealing the heroic features she had possessed in her youth.

Li Miao withdrew his hand and stood up, smiling.

"After hiding for these past six months, the Five Decays of Heaven and Man have already stepped on your neck and started jumping around. Plus these injuries of yours—if it weren't for me, you'd be dead within a day."

Attendant Ruan Mei also slowly stood up and bowed deeply to Li Miao.

"Many thanks to you, my lord, for saving my life."

Li Miao waved his hand and looked around.

"This place of yours is quite hidden. Among all the places of refuge I have seen, this one of your Emei Sect can be considered the most useful."

At this moment, Li Miao was inside a mountain cave; although the entrance was small, the interior space was quite spacious, enough to accommodate dozens of people. In the very back, there was also a stone bed, and beside the stone bed were several sacks, which should contain food that is easy to store.

To carve out such a large cave on this steep stone wall, one must at least be at the level of a Two-Path Heaven-Man.

On one side of the stone wall, a soaked cloth strip was tied, extending into a clay pot, from which came the sound of dripping water. It was precisely this clear spring in the stone crevice that nourished the withered pine tree outside the cave.

This cave was located in the middle section of the Cliff of Abandonment, and with the stone wall and withered pine tree covering the entrance, there was not much light inside the cliff itself. If it weren't for Attendant Ruan Mei being unable to control her strength after being injured and breaking a few branches and leaves, even Li Miao would have found it difficult to locate this place.

Moreover, there was food and running water inside the cave, and mountain breezes to refresh the air; even if Li Miao hadn't come, these true-transmission disciples could probably have held out here for more than half a month.

Attendant Ruan Mei, however, shook her head.

"This place is where the founder of our sect practiced in seclusion, and later it was used as a place of refuge."

"It's just that this place is, after all, in the middle section of the cliff. Without a Heaven-Man to receive them from above or below, the people inside could only be trapped here to die, so this is the first time it has been used in hundreds of years."

"If I hadn't known that you, my lord, would definitely come, and would definitely be able to find this place after my death, I would have preferred to protect my disciples and flee down the mountain."

Speaking of this, Attendant Ruan Mei smiled.

"But I didn't expect you to come so quickly, my lord. I haven't died yet, and you have already arrived."

Li Miao raised his eyebrows.

"Oh?"

"So, you knew the news that I was heading toward your Emei Sect?"

Attendant Ruan Mei nodded.

"Yes, my Five Decays of Heaven and Man were about to erupt, so I rushed back to Emei before my time was up, and I also received the news that you had come down from the Huashan Sect."

"I have been waiting for you on Mount Emei."

"A few days ago, your subordinates arrived at the village at the foot of the mountain and deliberately appeared in front of the disciples who had come down to purchase supplies. I understood your meaning, so I have been waiting inside the mountain gate for you to come."

"But I didn't expect... sigh, I waited for a great disaster."

Attendant Ruan Mei raised her hand and pointed to the few true-transmission disciples beside her.

"Most of the disciples and elders of my Emei Sect have all been crippled. If it weren't for the fact that my sect-leader nephew was not in the sect, I fear that today, even he would have died."

"I risked my life to save only these few seeds."

Li Miao raised an eyebrow, raised his hand to stop Attendant Ruan Mei's words, turned his head to look at those few Emei Sect true-transmission disciples, and pointed to the corner of the wall.

"Children shouldn't listen to adult talk. Go crouch in the corner and plug your ears yourselves. Whoever hears what I say to your grandmaster will die."

The few true-transmission disciples hurriedly did as they were told.

Only then did Li Miao turn his head back to look at Attendant Ruan Mei.

"What did you mean by that question you asked me earlier, and that phrase 'this time it's real'?"

Attendant Ruan Mei smiled bitterly.

"The matter of the Imperial Mausoleum that day—even those of us who escaped, the honored guests, dared not tell anyone else, otherwise you would definitely have come to hunt us down yourself."

"Only the one who can answer this question is you."

"And the reason I recognized your voice, yet still had to confirm your identity again, is because the person who broke into our Emei Sect mountain gate today, whether in appearance or voice—"

"Was almost exactly the same as you."

Afterward, Attendant Ruan Mei told the story in detail.

After she escaped from Shuntian Prefecture, she hid from the eyes of the Embroidered Uniform Guard in the Jianghu while trying to deduce the formula she had obtained.

But the formula she obtained was very little, and because of her own nature, she was unwilling to collude with the other few evil-path honored guests, so she only hunted down some Jianghu bandits in the Jianghu to try to deduce the cultivation method, and her progress was extremely slow.

Therefore, realizing that she could never deduce the cultivation method no matter what, she returned to Emei before her time was up, wanting to return the Heaven-Man inheritance to the sect.

It was just that she didn't expect that as soon as she returned to the sect, she would receive news that the Embroidered Uniform Guard Commander had come down from Mount Heng and was heading straight for Emei. She immediately understood that this was Li Miao coming to find her, so from the moment she received the news, she had been waiting inside the sect for Li Miao to come to her door.

And then, it came to today.

"For these past few days, I have been sitting in the main hall waiting for you, and this morning, someone walked into the mountain gate."

Attendant Ruan Mei looked at Li Miao.

"Although he wasn't wearing the flying-fish robe, his figure, appearance, and even his voice were extremely similar to yours."

"Because I knew you were coming, and he happened to come up the mountain at this time, and was also a Heaven-Man, I subconsciously felt that it was you who had come, so I had no defenses."

"Caught off guard, I was seriously injured."

Attendant Ruan Mei let out a long sigh.

"It wasn't until he made his move that I realized his temperament and martial arts were completely different from yours, but by then, I had already been seriously injured and it was hard to recover."

"I could only barely stop him, let a few true-transmission disciples escape to the Cliff of Abandonment and use ropes to get down here, and then I fled over, cut the ropes and jumped down, used my blood-stained clothes to confuse him, and I myself used the withered pine to stop my momentum and hid here."

"And then, it came to the present."

Li Miao listened, but he laughed out loud and said slowly.

"You mean someone impersonated me to go up the mountain, ambushed and seriously injured you, and then wiped out your Emei Sect?"

"Hehe..."

The laughter echoed between the stone walls of the cave, and Attendant Ruan Mei suddenly felt a chill throughout her body, and sweat involuntarily seeped from her palms.

And the few true-transmission disciples facing the wall in the corner were already pale, their chests heaving, opening their mouths and noses to try to breathe, but their lungs felt as if they were being gripped by a large hand, unable to inhale even a bit of air.

"My lord..."

Attendant Ruan Mei said with difficulty.

"You... these few useless disciples of my Emei Sect can't take it anymore..."

Li Miao turned his head to look at Attendant Ruan Mei and smiled grimly.

"What method did that person use to be able to suppress over a hundred disciples in your sect at once, and also make your sect's peak expert die in your own main hall without even having time to draw their sword?"

Attendant Ruan Mei said slowly.

"A flute, that person used a flute."

"Using true energy contained in the sound to stimulate it, it's a high-level martial art similar to the Buddhist Lion's Roar. Those below the first-class will faint directly upon hearing it, peak experts might be able to hold on for a few breaths, and Heaven-Men will also be affected."

"And like us honored guests, who were already forcibly suppressing the Five Decays of Heaven and Man, we are even worse off than a One-Path Heaven-Man under this method."

"His flute was also extremely powerful; held in his hand, it was a staff technique, specializing in striking acupoints, far more brilliant than the inheritance of my Emei Sect. In just a few moves, he knocked away my Emei needles and seriously injured me."

"I have never seen the techniques of these two martial arts before."

Li Miao waved his hand.

"Understood, what else has he done?"

Attendant Ruan Mei hesitated for a moment, turned her head to look at the few true-transmission disciples standing in the corner, and lowered her voice.

"He asked me two things."

"Which two?"

Attendant Ruan Mei said in a voice that was barely audible.

"What happened during the New Year last year, and why we honored guests fled Shuntian Prefecture."

"And, you."

"He used the lives of all the disciples of my Emei Sect who had fainted as a threat and asked me these two questions."

Li Miao frowned and looked at Attendant Ruan Mei.

Attendant Ruan Mei's heart stopped for a moment, and her hands clenched tightly.

She understood that Li Miao already had the intention to kill her.

She hurriedly said.

"My lord, I didn't reveal a single bit of information!"

Li Miao looked her up and down and asked in a grim tone.

"You... don't you value your sect very much? Back then, you submitted to the imperial court precisely because you were afraid of harming your sect, right? He used your sect as a threat, and you still didn't say anything?"

"I seem to... have no friendship with you, right?"

Attendant Ruan Mei gave a bitter smile.

"Yes, my lord. I do indeed care about my sect, and I cannot speak of loyalty to the imperial court, and I have never known you."

"I didn't say it, not because of loyalty."

"It's because of fear."

Having said this, Attendant Ruan Mei immediately stopped, not daring to say any more.

Li Miao, however, understood her meaning.

If she didn't say it, there was still hope to save a few true-transmission disciples, and the current Emei sect leader was also away and had not returned. Although Emei was severely damaged, it could not yet be considered wiped out.

But if she had said it... she would have had to face Li Miao.

Who is Li Miao?

Speaking of martial power alone, he is a fierce man who killed five honored guests in one night and forced the Jianwen Emperor to flee in a panic. Speaking of temperament, he comes from the Embroidered Uniform Guard; as long as it is necessary, he has no hesitation in killing.

The matter of the Imperial Mausoleum, although the honored guests did not see it with their own eyes, it is an indisputable fact that Li Miao was rebelling at that time.

And looking at his current state of being in his prime, with his official position rising instead of falling, it is clear that he won the battle in the Imperial Mausoleum that day. It is not impossible that the Emperor is already a puppet controlled by him.

Power and strength are all in Li Miao's hands.

And not a single person who died at Li Miao's hands has been able to leave behind a complete corpse.

Leaking the matter of the Imperial Mausoleum and making an enemy of Li Miao... under any circumstances, is the worst choice.

Those seven honored guests who escaped from Shuntian Prefecture, whether righteous or evil, had different temperaments, but not one of them dared to tell anyone else about the Imperial Mausoleum. The reason lies precisely in this.

Attendant Ruan Mei said softly.

"My lord, that is all."

Li Miao looked at her deeply, turned around, and walked toward the outside of the cave.

"I will give you one day to handle the affairs of your sect, and after that, you will return to Shuntian Prefecture yourself."

"This disaster of your Emei Sect is half aimed at me. I will allow you to keep half of the Heaven-Man inheritance to prolong the life of your sect."

"From today on, your life is mine."

Behind him, Attendant Ruan Mei fell to her knees with a thud and lowered her head deeply.

"Yes."

When she looked up again, Li Miao had already disappeared without a trace.

————————

Li Miao leaped onto the cliff and walked slowly toward the Emei Sect mountain gate.

Although the person who killed his way into the Emei Sect did not reveal his identity, one can imagine that this person definitely has an inseparable connection with that invitation.

Although the Jianghu is large, the top experts are only a small handful. After many years of inheritance, they all know each other's roots and foundations. Even if some of them are hiding Heaven-Man inheritances, it is impossible not to see any roots at all.

Only the hidden sects that had already traveled overseas before the founding of the Great Shuo could achieve this.

According to what Ji Tianrui said, during the previous dynasty, Heaven-Men were not rare in the Jianghu.

If this force was a hidden sect that left the Central Plains before the founding of the Great Shuo and did not go through the "Zhu Family Iron Fist" disaster caused by the Taizu, Jianwen Emperor, Chengzu, and the current Emperor—then they are likely stronger than all the sects in the current Jianghu.

Moreover, unlike the inexplicable invitation from before, the act of killing into the Emei Sect had a very clear purpose—to investigate the roots of the Imperial Mausoleum and Li Miao.

No matter how big the commotion in the Jianghu is, it cannot shake Li Miao's foundation. Although the matter of sending invitations was mysterious, it did not show clear hostility toward any party. Therefore, Li Miao did not pay much attention to the invitation, only sending Wang Hai and others to verify the situation at various major sects.

Li Miao's initial plan was to wait until the 15th of the eighth month, when these people would take the initiative to show their heads, and then kill his way to their doors and solve them all at once.

But the plans of these people were clearly no longer limited to the Jianghu—they were aiming at the imperial court, and had even begun to aim at Li Miao himself.

Such people, no matter what their purpose or plan is, must die.

And the faster, the better.

Walking to the back door of the Emei Sect, Li Miao reached out to push open the room door, but suddenly smelled a bloody scent.

He frowned, pushed the door open and walked in, looking sideways.

Hong Chou was leaning against the corner of the wall, his hand tightly covering his chest, blood constantly gushing out, and his face showed all the signs of old age, already revealing a state of exhaustion.

Hearing the movement, he slowly raised his head and saw Li Miao in front of him.

The breath he had been holding suddenly relaxed, his vision went black, and he lost consciousness.

————————

When Hong Chou opened his eyes again, everything before him was dim.

It was morning when he went up the mountain with Li Miao, but at this time it was already late at night.

He felt under his body and touched a piece of extremely soft and silky silk cloth. He slowly propped himself up and looked around, only to find that he was lying in a guest room, with some blood-stained silk cloth and a few basins of bloody water on the ground, and he suddenly remembered that he had been injured.

Reaching out to touch his chest, Hong Chou was filled with shock and doubt.

The huge wound that had been cut open by the middle-aged man who came by boat in Taizhou had actually disappeared.

Suddenly, he noticed something, raised his hand in front of him, and observed it carefully.

The many scars left on his hands while walking the Jianghu in previous years had also disappeared. Even the aged, white skin on the back of his hands had regained its elasticity.

Hong Chou suddenly realized something, his pupils shrank, and his hands trembled as he reached toward his face.

No wrinkles.

His state of exhaustion had completely dissipated.

Hong Chou still remembered that the person he saw before losing consciousness was Li Miao.

That is to say, it was Li Miao who treated his injuries and even extended his life.

Hong Chou's face flushed red, he rolled off the bed, and without even having time to put on his shoes, he walked quickly to the door and pushed it open.

"Li... my lord!"

He shouted.

Li Miao, who was standing in the center of the square, turned his head to look at him and said lightly.

"Come over once you're awake."

Hong Chou nodded vigorously and walked quickly to Li Miao's side.

"My lord, that inner-sect disciple you saved..."

Li Miao waved his hand.

"He ran away long ago, let's not worry about him for now."

Hong Chou nodded, stood by Li Miao's side, and said nothing more.

A moment later, a noisy sound of footsteps came from outside the mountain gate, heading toward the square in a mighty force. One person rushed in first, flashed to Li Miao's front, knelt on one knee, and cupped his hands.

"Commander!"

Li Miao nodded.

Dozens of Embroidered Uniform Guards poured into the mountain gate, knelt on one knee in front of Li Miao, and shouted in unison.

"Commander!"

Hong Chou scanned these dozens of people; their martial arts were at least at the level of having entered the hall, and their bodies were full of murderous aura, clearly the elite of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Li Miao walked forward a few steps and reached out to press on the shoulder of the person who had entered first.

"You Zi'ang."

You Zi'ang lowered his head abruptly.

"Commander."

"There is a matter that I need you to handle."

Li Miao said lightly.

"You have been under my command for nearly a year now. Others, even An Ziyang who came later than you, are already Battalion Commanders. Only you are still a Platoon Leader."

"Your martial arts are insufficient, and although your aptitude is good, it is also unconventional, and it is difficult to find a task suitable for you to handle for a while, so I simply let you wander around and practice martial arts with a calm mind."

"Now, it is time to do some work."

You Zi'ang's face flushed red, and he said loudly.

"This subordinate will not refuse even at the cost of death!"

Li Miao said slowly.

"There is no need for you to risk your life, but you will have to work hard."

"You also know about the invitation matter that Wang Hai and the others are handling. Today, I discovered that this group of people is not aiming at the Jianghu, but at the Embroidered Uniform Guard—"

"Aiming at me."

Before You Zi'ang could speak, the Embroidered Uniform Guards behind him raised their heads abruptly, their eyes revealing a murderous aura.

"Since they are aiming at me, I cannot sit idly by and wait for them to cause trouble."

Li Miao said indifferently.

"The 15th of the eighth month, let us all join in the grand event."

"Heh, playing tricks."

"Didn't he hide it and not say what the grand event is, nor where it will be held."

"It doesn't matter, my Embroidered Uniform Guard will hold it for him. No matter what 'grand event' they have prepared, they will have to obediently come to participate in my Embroidered Uniform Guard's 'grand event'."

Li Miao turned around.

"Everyone, listen to my orders."

Click.

Dozens of Embroidered Uniform Guards cupped their hands in front of them, making a uniform sound of armor clashing.

"Depart immediately, one person with three horses, no stopping allowed. If a horse dies, go to the local government to seize one. If there are no good horses, use light-body techniques to run. Within five days, notify all Embroidered Uniform Guard strongholds in all the prefectural cities in the south."

"Yes! ——"

All the Embroidered Uniform Guards answered in unison.

"You Zi'ang."

You Zi'ang cupped his hands.

"Yes."

"Your aptitude is in light-body techniques, and I have taught you the high-level light-body techniques from the Heaven-Man inheritance. Now, your light-body techniques should be no less than that of an ordinary Heaven-Man."

"I want you to notify Wang Hai, Li Xiaosi, Mei Qinghe, and An Ziyang within ten days. And then rush back to Shuntian Prefecture."

"From today on, stop all tasks at hand. From the moment you receive the news, everyone must set off immediately. Even if you die, you must die on the road."

"Before the end of the month, I want all forces above the second-class in the world to receive this news."

Li Miao looked at the sky with his hands behind his back and said softly.

"Since last year, the Jianghu has been turbulent and uneasy."

"Since I took over the Northern Internal Security Division, I have not yet publicly appeared in the Jianghu. It happens to be the Mid-Autumn Festival, so my Embroidered Uniform Guard invites all the heroes of the world to gather at Mount Song to enjoy the moon."

"By the way, let's set the rules for the future of this Jianghu."

"Moreover, my rules will only be spoken once at this assembly. If anyone does not hear them and inadvertently crosses the line in the future, whether they live or die will be their own fault."

"For the sect leaders of each sect, if you are injured or sick, bandage your wounds and come. If you are dead, choose a new one and send them over."

"On the 15th of the eighth month, those who have not arrived at Mount Song are dissatisfied with the rules of my Embroidered Uniform Guard, dissatisfied with the laws of the imperial court, and dissatisfied with the Great Shuo."

Li Miao laughed lightly.

"Then, that would be a bit unappreciative."

"Go."

"Yes!!! ——"

Everyone answered in unison and left.

Li Miao looked at the sky with his hands behind his back.

"Join in the grand event... heh, you spent so much effort sending invitations, let's see how many people can participate in your 'grand event'."

"Hidden sects."

"Since you have already left the Central Plains, do you think you can come back whenever you want?"

"If you like to inquire about my news, there's no need for so much trouble. I will wait for you to come to my door at Mount Song—"

"And then, in a dignified manner, grind you into scum."

(End of chapter)