Chapter 1054

He signaled that he was not in pain, telling Luo Jusheng not to worry.

"You've done all this for me—how could I let you bear this calamity alone?"

Luo Jusheng no longer hesitated; he stepped forward and grasped the other part of the flower stem.

The moment he gripped it, the speed of the flower bud's blooming accelerated markedly.

"Good, good, good!"

Cao Zhengchun was overjoyed, repeating the word "good" three times in succession.

"Jusheng, Luo He Shi, you must return safely."

"Once this matter is settled, I'll risk my old reputation and go to the Emperor to petition for a title of honor for you."

A title of honor was an imperial bestowal, the height of prestige in the Great Ming.

Only those who had rendered great service could receive such a title.

Luo Jusheng and Luo He Shi might appear illustrious, but they were merely guest advisors of the Eastern Depot.

Strictly speaking, they were nothing more than the Emperor's household slaves.

Now, Cao Zhengchun was promising them a title of honor—he was going all in.

But Luo Jusheng and Luo He Shi heard none of this.

At this moment, they felt their entire primordial energy being steadily drained from their bodies and channeled into the flower bud before them.

After roughly one incense stick's time, both trembled violently, their primordial energy completely exhausted.

Then their bodies went limp, collapsing backward.

Seeing this, Cao Zhengchun prepared to reach out and catch his two loyal subordinates.

Suddenly, an exotic fragrance surged into the air, filling the entire stone hall in an instant.

On the stone platform behind the strange man, the flower bud that had never bloomed finally reached its critical threshold—and burst open.

Within its stamen lay a peculiar cardamom.

This was precisely the third Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom, long sought by countless forces!

And it was the final one on the Qinglong Society's mission objective!

"Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom! The third Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom!"

Seeing this, Cao Zhengchun forgot entirely about catching Luo Jusheng and Luo He Shi.

Gazing greedily at the Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom, he immediately activated his lightness skill and reached for the stamen.

"Ah… Eunuch, be careful…"

Just as Cao Zhengchun was about to grasp the Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom in the stamen.

Suddenly, his elite guards behind him shouted desperately.

Cao Zhengchun's mind was entirely fixated on the Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom—he never imagined danger at this moment.

Before he could react, he felt a claw pierce his official robe and slash toward his heart.

"Insolent!"

In this critical moment, Cao Zhengchun abandoned all thought of seizing the Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom.

He urgently gathered his Thunder Gang Qi, forming an invisible barrier of gang qi in an instant.

Not only did it form a protective shield around his body,

but also one directly over his heart.

Thus, the assassin's claw failed to strike home.

With a metallic clang, it snapped off just short of his heart.

Sensing the situation turning against him, the assassin ceased his assassination attempt.

Instead, he moved swiftly, slipping past Cao Zhengchun to his front, reaching out to snatch the Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom from the stamen.

Only then did Cao Zhengchun clearly see.

His attacker was none other than the Eastern Depot's Chief Clerk, one of his own trusted subordinates—Tiezhua Feiying.

"Are you mad? You dare assassinate me? Do you not know this is a capital offense?"

Cao Zhengchun activated his divine art, expelling the severed claw from his body, then swiftly pressed his meridians to stabilize his injuries.

Only then did he glare furiously at Tiezhua Feiying and demand an answer.

What sorcery is this?

Tiezhua Feiying no longer bore his former sly, wretched appearance; instead, his face radiated righteous fury.

One hand clutched the Heavenly Fragrance Cardamom tightly in his palm.

The other was held before him, warily watching Cao Zhengchun.

Hearing the question, Tiezhua Feiying spat contemptuously and said,

"Eunuch dog, did you truly think I served you as a pet?"

"I've longed to kill you, eat your flesh, drink your blood, and flay your skin!"

"You, a eunuch dog who rebels against your lord and conspires to overthrow the empire—how dare you expect my loyalty?"

"Tiezhua Feiying, you're asking for death…"

The remaining five Eastern Depot elites immediately stepped forward.

"Enough!"

Cao Zhengchun waved his hand, coughed, and signaled his subordinates to fall silent.

Tiezhua Feiying's ambush had not killed him, but it had wounded him.

"I'm not worthy of your loyalty? Then it seems you serve someone else?"

"So you're Zhu Tie Dan's dog?"

Cao Zhengchun, whose mind was meticulous, deduced Tiezhua Feiying's true allegiance in just a few words.

Correct!

Tiezhua Feiying was precisely Zhu Wushi's covert agent planted beside Cao Zhengchun.

He had long remained in deep concealment, even opposing the Shanzhuang at every turn.

His goal was to seize the position of Grand Director, maintaining the tightest possible surveillance over Cao Zhengchun.

Before Zhu Wushi gave the order, Tiezhua Feiying could not reveal his true identity.

But this time, the Tian Xiang Doukou was simply too important.

Tiezhua Feiying knew better than anyone how desperately Zhu Wushi wanted the Tian Xiang Doukou to save Su Xin.

Thus, he dared to defy Zhu Wushi's command and secretly struck out, seizing the Tian Xiang Doukou.

"Hah! You guessed it yet…"

The moment Tiezhua Feiying regained his true form, he shed all pretense.

Seeing Cao Zhengchun furious and coughing up a trace of blood, he felt immense satisfaction.

Just as he was about to speak, strange signs suddenly appeared all over his body.

For some unknown reason, his feet had turned to powder and dispersed.

Without feet, Tiezhua Feiying could not stand—he collapsed straight to the ground.

Before he could even comprehend what was happening, his entire body turned to powder and scattered upon impact.

Only the Tian Xiang Doukou he had clenched in his palm now hovered midair, glinting steadily.

"Th-this… what kind of demonic art is this?"

The five top experts behind Cao Zhengchun stared in utter shock.

Tiezhua Feiying's death was utterly Guiyixie Sect—far beyond anything these Eastern Depot experts had ever witnessed.

Added to which, the Tian Xiang Doukou, untouched by any hand, still floated in midair.

To any ordinary person, this could only be demonic art.

Cao Zhengchun himself was stunned, unsure what had truly occurred.

But his cultivation far surpassed that of the five experts—he knew no one had secretly attacked Tiezhua Feiying.

Therefore, Tiezhua Feiying's bizarre death could only be caused by the Tian Xiang Doukou.

How many years had the Yunzhou Shaolin's single Tian Xiang Doukou been enshrined in the Xue Damo Hall?

There had never been any record of such strangeness!

And after Zhou Zhiruo later broke into the Xue Damo Hall and supposedly swallowed that Tian Xiang Doukou, she suffered no ill effects at all?

Then why was this third Tian Xiang Doukou so bizarre?