Chapter 375

Following Li Miao's calm voice, the complexions of the five black-clad eunuchs changed drastically!

How could they not hear that this was exactly the Yingzhou Xuanlan technique that Zheng Zheng Anqi had given them to cultivate! Not a single word was wrong!

But it shouldn't be; Li Miao shouldn't know it!

They were clear about the Imperial Mausoleum affair, where Li Miao killed the Jianwen Emperor and broke through in the heat of battle. To avoid repeating that mistake today, the manual they left in the Huagai Hall was only the second half, which had been deliberately modified.

What Li Miao was reciting was the beginning of the manual, which hadn't been left in the Huagai Hall at all!

Deduced it himself?

Impossible!

Yes, Li Miao had cultivated the Jiezi and created countless techniques himself. In the eyes of the black-clad eunuchs, Li Miao's comprehension was not just extraordinary, but at least outstanding.

But there's a limit to that, right!

If a Heaven-Man who cultivated the Jiezi could create cultivation mantras for other Heaven-Man realms, especially those he had never been exposed to, then the Great Ming's Heaven-Men would have erupted long ago. How could the Founding Emperor and the Chengzu Emperor have suppressed this Ordinary Jianghu? And why would the Jianwen Emperor and the Emperor have needed to use the royal family's Jizhao cultivation, only to end up dead?

Moreover, with mantras, a hair's breadth of difference leads to a thousand miles of error; not a single word can be easily changed. The half-manual they left was modified beyond recognition, and they had deliberately left many hidden, dangerous errors.

Even if Li Miao could deduce the correct technique based on this half-manual, it should have taken years, or even half a lifetime... From the time Li Miao entered the Huagai Hall until now, it had only been two or three sticks of incense!

Not to mention, they were in the middle of a fight!

Yet they clearly heard Li Miao, while deflecting their attacks, continue to recite leisurely.

"The second sentence: Intent wanders the eight poles, spirit illuminates the universe."

"The third sentence... hmm, palms unite yin and yang, wondrous truths born in pairs."

Cun Dong gritted his teeth and lunged forward, completely ignoring the fist Li Miao aimed at his shoulder, slapping both palms toward his chest, shouting angrily: "Traitor! Do you know that Eunuch Liu is already in Shuntian—"

The other black-clad eunuchs also went ruthless, charging in desperately, attempting to trade injury for injury.

Just at this moment, Li Miao lightly tapped his toes and flew backward into the ranks of the Right Brave Cavalry Guard that surrounded them.

Cun Dong was gnashing his teeth in hatred.

"Aren't you arrogant! Why are you running!"

Li Miao's mocking laughter came from the crowd.

"I have no interest in struggling and exerting myself now against people I can kill with a flick of my finger later. Fighting you is meaningless anyway—the fourth sentence..."

Cun Dong gritted his teeth and glanced at the other eunuchs. Their cheeks puffed out; they were clearly gnashing their teeth in hatred.

Using a military formation to surround and kill an expert is meant to wear them down with time and lives. If Li Miao hadn't pulled such tricks, even if he had charged into the formation, they would have been happy to use soldiers' lives to wear down Li Miao's strength.

But now the situation was reversed; the military formation had become Li Miao's cover, and they had become the ones fighting for time!

The five black-clad eunuchs charged into the formation, rushing left and right, but they couldn't catch up to Li Miao at all. In these few short breaths, Li Miao had already recited up to the tenth sentence. If they dragged it out any longer, he might even start cultivating!

Gritting his teeth and stomping his foot, Cun Dong slapped his palm onto the horse in front of him! As blood splashed, the warhorse wailed and fell, revealing Li Miao's figure.

"Scatter! Scatter!"

"Get out of the way, don't get in the way!"

The black-clad eunuchs shouted in unison, simultaneously letting go of their reservations and attacking the knights blocking their path, carving a bloody path through the formation and surrounding Li Miao.

The officer of the Right Brave Cavalry Guard saw the black-clad eunuchs slaughtering his own men within the formation, his eyes turning red, his grip on his sword hilt turning white. He almost turned his blade against the black-clad eunuchs.

But he endured it in the end, only shouting loudly.

"Scatter! Scatter!"

"To hell with it, let them fight!"

The whirlpool of cavalry suddenly scattered. As expected of an elite unit, even when scattering, they maintained their formation without the slightest disorder—but this only gave Li Miao an opportunity.

He shook off Cun Dong, who had entangled him, with a punch and gave a mischievous smile.

Then he suddenly flickered and hid among a squad of cavalry, continuing to deduce the technique, deliberately reciting it in a voice the black-clad eunuchs could hear.

"The twentieth sentence, oh, we're past the halfway point."

Cun Dong's teeth were almost shattered. Li Miao was forcing them to slaughter the Right Brave Cavalry Guard themselves!

To kill Li Miao, they had to pursue and kill the soldiers blocking their way; if they went soft and delayed for a single breath, Li Miao would deduce another sentence of the mantra, reciting it in their ears like a death knell, giving them no chance to catch their breath.

A single-minded plan had become a dilemma.

But the Huagai Hall had been burned, Nanjing had been abandoned, and Zheng Zheng Anqi was dead. Having paid such a high price just to kill Li Miao, how could they give up halfway?

So they had no choice but to continue the pursuit.

This repeated, and after the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the face of the Right Brave Cavalry Guard officer was so gloomy it could drip water—Li Miao had only killed one, but the black-clad eunuchs had killed nearly half of his men!

Without these subordinates, even if he killed Li Miao, he would just be discarded as a pawn by these eunuchs. He wouldn't get any deals or benefits.

Gritting his teeth: "Retreat! Withdraw the troops!"

He whipped his horse and left.

The knights of the Right Brave Cavalry Guard were already stifled, watching their comrades being killed one by one by the black-clad eunuchs, unable to attack them, and having to dodge Li Miao everywhere. They were also at their wits' end, their eyes turning bloodshot.

Hearing the officer's order, they actually let out a collective sigh of relief and followed the officer away.

Seeing them leave, the black-clad eunuchs immediately stepped forward to entangle Li Miao, preventing him from chasing after them and darting back into the formation.

Li Miao was not in the slightest hurry, just dealing with them while reciting the deduced mantra like a death knell.

"Form dissolves without stagnation, spirit returns to the Great Profound."

"Oh, wait, not Great Profound, it's Great Void; not without stagnation, it's without self... quite sinister, Eunuch Cun."

In the middle of the battle, Li Miao swept out with a punch, forcing the black-clad eunuchs back.

"If one were to cultivate according to the mantra you left, I'm afraid the true energy would go to the wrong major acupoints, damaging the heart meridian in the process. And this technique was modified for you by Zheng Zheng Anqi, right? Someone who hasn't cultivated the Xuanlan wouldn't be able to bury such a delicate and obscure trap."

"Tsk tsk tsk, truly impressive... it would be even better if the opponent wasn't me."

Cun Dong gritted his teeth.

He was now convinced that Li Miao was truly capable of deducing a Heaven-Man realm technique for nature cultivation that he had never practiced, all within a few sticks of incense while fighting five opponents who were only one step below him in realm.

The bait had instead become Li Miao's bargaining chip.

Between fist and palm clashes, he said hatefully.

"Fine, fine, fine, the Pacification Commissioner truly has great ability, but so what! You've deduced the full technique, so what!"

(End of chapter)