Upon seeing Message One, Xu Qi An inexplicably felt a bit guilty and embarrassed, causing him to not respond immediately.
[Two: You have leads on Heng Yuan already? So quickly?]
“As expected of Lady Fei Yan, always eager to serve justice!” Xu Qi An silently praised.
At the same time, Xu Qi An’s spirits lifted. As expected of Huai Qing, worthy of being the top female scholar in Great Feng. Her efficiency was frighteningly high.
[One: During the process of killing Earl Ping Yuan, Heng Yuan inadvertently saw something he shouldn’t have. This is Three’s conjecture. So what exactly did he see? It’s impossible to guess. I’m therefore puzzled and even tossing and turning, unable to sleep.]
This spirit of obsessing over exam questions is the standard for top students. As expected of Huai Qing. If I had this level of dedication back then, Tsinghua and Peking University would have already been beckoning me… No, I can’t say that. I should say I never gave those prestigious universities a chance. No matter how good they were, I was always a student they couldn’t obtain… Xu Qi An gripped the Earth Book fragment, silently muttering.
One continued to send messages:
[Given His Majesty’s suspicious nature, he would certainly silence Heng Yuan. But since Daoist Jin Lian said he won’t die, for now, he must be imprisoned somewhere His Majesty can see at any time. However, after Prince Huai’s spy brought Heng Yuan into the inner city, he never reappeared. Where did the person go?]
Huai Qing is cautious enough, referring to “His Majesty” with every breath. That’s your imperial father… Xu Qi An now felt a strong urge to tease Huai Qing, even plotting how to lure her into social death situations.
[One: Later, Four’s guess about earth traversing made me break out of my previous mental block. There are dragon veins underground in the capital, which are interconnected. If one uses an earth traversing technique, it’s indeed possible to teleport based on the dragon veins.
[So, I investigated Earl Ping Yuan’s mansion and discovered that the residence was bestowed by the emperor. Residences bestowed by the royal family to meritorious officials have strict standards. For example, only places with extremely auspicious feng shui qualify for building such mansions.
[And in the capital, the place with the best feng shui is undoubtedly situated above the dragon veins. After infiltrating Earl Ping Yuan’s mansion, I found a secret passage in the rock garden…]
One detailed the process to the Tian Di Hui members.
So Earl Ping Yuan’s mansion had an “underground passage” that could reach the imperial palace directly through a fixed earth traversing array?
Although the Tian Di Hui members were surprised, it fits their original deductions, so they quickly regained composure and felt pleased with the case’s progress.
While One didn’t show off, her abilities and wisdom were trustworthy. In terms of investigation, she was second only to Xu Qi An… Li Miao Zhen puffed her cheeks, feeling a bit depressed.
Hmph! It must be that Xu Qi An is holding back, unwilling to teach her his skills, which is why her deductive and investigative abilities haven’t improved much.
Far in the north, Chu Yuan Zhen, aboard a warship, sent a message: [How should this stone disk be activated? Is it a specific item or some kind of incantation?]
[One: A specific item is needed to activate the earth traversing technique inscribed inside the stone disk. Additionally, the earth traversing technique itself is difficult to cultivate, and those who can inscribe it into an array can be counted on one’s fingers across the Nine Provinces.]
[Three: It can’t possibly be the Bureau of Astronomy and Calendars, right?]
When Xu Qi An asked this question, the mysterious group of occultists flashed through his mind. If not the Bureau of Astronomy and Calendars, the only ones who could set up such an array would be the mysterious occultist group closely connected to the court.
But if so, the mysterious occultist group was likely to have interactions with Emperor Yuan Jing, which was hard to believe.
The emperor having close ties with rebels?
The level of absurdity was like two love rivals suddenly getting along and abandoning the goddess to roll in bed together…
[Four: Oh? Xu Qi An, are you the master of the Earth Book now?]
The Tian Di Hui internal chat fell silent.
Xu Qi An felt like his hidden collection of erotic books had been exposed and publicly executed, making his scalp tingle slightly.
[Three: We’ll discuss that matter later. Let’s focus on the main issue first. One, I’d like to know how you determined that the array requires a specific item rather than an incantation?]
One ignored him.
Hmm, based on my years of experience as a veteran detective, she probably sought help from Chu Cai Wei. Huai Qing and Cai Wei are best friends in Great Feng… Come to think of it, I’ve never understood how the silly fat fish became best friends with the clever dolphin…
One avoided answering Three’s question and continued messaging: [I’ve fully grasped the method to activate the stone disk. The Earth Book fragment can accomplish this task.]
Seeing this message, among the other four, except for Chu Yuan Zhen and Li Na, Li Miao Zhen, and Xu Qi An immediately understood.
The formation of the Earth Book was closely related to the Mountain River Divine Seal, so it wasn’t surprising that the Earth Book could activate the “earth traversing” array.
What the two found strange was how One knew this so clearly.
[Four: Does the Earth Book serve as the key to activate the stone disk’s array? How is that possible?]
Although it was just text, one could sense Old Chu’s incredibly surprised expression from the “screen” on the other side. And for Xu Qi An, who knew him well, he could even imagine him launching into another earth-shattering bout of overthinking.
The common problem of smart people — overthinking!
Xu Qi An briefly explained the origin of the Earth Book.
[Four: Oh, so that’s how it is. I thought…]
For a moment just now, he had indeed associated many things, but now it seemed he had overthought it.
Seeing no one else speaking, One regained control of the topic and messaged: [The help I need is for a sufficiently powerful and trustworthy expert to hold the Earth Book fragment and activate the stone disk.
[This will be extremely dangerous because you don’t know what’s on the other side of the array. You might never return.]
The Earth Book chat group fell silent again.
A trustworthy person would preferably be an internal member of the Tian Di Hui.
As for having strong cultivation and sufficient self-protection abilities… probably only Xu Qi An qualified. His defense was already considered the strongest below the “Immortal Body” level.
Third-rank martial artists were also called: Immortal Bodies.
Xu Qi An sighed and messaged: [I’ll go!]
Even finding a fourth-rank martial artist might not be more suitable than him. Moreover, all the trustworthy fourth-rank martial artists in the Constabulary had gone on the expedition with Wei Yuan.
But Heng Yuan still needed to be rescued. This bald monk was a friend, a companion, and more importantly, Heng Yuan was a genuinely good person.
[Two: Be careful.]
[Four: If you sense danger, return immediately. Take care.]
Being thousands of miles away, he was helpless and could only offer some dry well-wishes.
One didn’t say anything, but Xu Qi An’s spirit was touched, receiving an invitation for a “private chat” from One.
[One: The method to activate the stone disk is simple. Place the Earth Book on the array and infuse it with qi. Before taking action, you’d better ask the Bureau of Astronomy and Calendars for a spell to conceal your qi, then use the Confucian ability of “words become reality” to hide your existence. This way, you might be able to slip past their perception silently.]
She finished speaking and fell silent. Just as Xu Qi An was about to put away the Earth Book, she suddenly messaged: [Each person has their fate.]
What did these words mean? Was she hinting that I shouldn’t risk my life to save Heng Yuan? Xu Qi An silently sighed.
If One was Huai Qing, in her eyes, how could an “online friend” she barely knew compare to him?
…
On the Grand Canal, over a dozen warships sailed in formation, neat and orderly.
On one of the warships, Chu Yuan Zhen put away the Earth Book fragment and knocked on Xu Er Lang’s door.
“Ci Jiu, you gave that thing to Xu Ning Yan, so I’ll act as the message broker. There are some things you must know.”
Chu Yuan Zhen spoke as he entered the room, saying in a low voice, “I understand you don’t want to discuss that matter openly. There are ears everywhere on the ship, so we…”
He spread out a piece of paper, quickly wrote on it, and then showed it to Xu Er Lang for a glance.
Hiss… A flame leaped up, burning the paper to ashes that slowly drifted down.
With too many sharp-eared and keen-eyed experts on the ship, Chu Yuan Zhen didn’t chat further and promptly left.
Watching Chu Yuan Zhen walk out the door, Xu Er Lang’s mind was full of question marks.
What else was he going to say?
What did he want to say?
Have I lost my memory?
Involuntarily, his mind flashed back to what his elder brother had privately instructed before departure:
“No matter what strange questions Chu Yuan Zhen asks you or what odd things he says, don’t pay any attention. Remain indifferent. Er Lang, I’m not asking you to say ‘Elder Brother’s Diao Chan is on his waist’ anymore, I just ask that you help preserve your elder brother’s lifelong reputation.”
Is this what elder brother meant by strange things and strange questions? Xu Er Lang pondered.
He didn’t think too much about it, sitting at the table to study military texts. Traveling by the Grand Canal, it wouldn’t even take ten days from the capital to Chu Prefecture, and now three days had already passed, with the fourth day approaching.
The brief expedition was already halfway through, and he was about to face the first battlefield experience of his life.
…
In the small courtyard of the widow, Xu Qi An sat in a rattan chair sunbathing, while the Princess sat on a small stool nearby, cracking melon seeds.
The two chatted casually.
It was mostly the Princess chattering away, talking about meeting Madam Wang today, Aunt Li yesterday, and of course, her closest friend, Aunt Zhang.
Always some trivial matters of daily life, mundane, but listening to them made one feel relaxed.
“The vegetables the peddler delivered yesterday weren’t fresh. I’m planning to replace him,” the Princess said calmly.
It was because she noticed a hint of admiration in that peddler’s eyes when he looked at her. Although well-hidden, who was Mu Nan Zhi? She was the most beautiful flower in Great Feng. She had seen thousands upon thousands of similar gazes.
In the past, even when she wore a veil, it couldn’t prevent men from developing feelings for her. As long as they interacted for a while, they would become infatuated with her as if blinded by lard.
That peddler came to deliver vegetables every day, and although they didn’t talk much or interact much, he was still affected by her incomparable charm. It was better to replace him early; otherwise, it would be too dangerous for a widowed woman like herself to encounter someone with ill intentions.
Sigh, who told me to be so beautiful? Being pretty is also a sin… The Princess wore a self-admiring expression.
“You’re the mistress of the house. If you want to change, then change,” Xu Qi An nodded.
The Princess immediately became happy. He always gave her the greatest freedom and authority, never questioning her decisions. The only downside was that he always looked unhappy when eating the food she cooked.
“Let’s eat out today,” Xu Qi An suggested.
“No, I want to eat at home,” the Princess acted coyly.
“I want to have a feast.”
“Simple meals are the way to live life.”
That’s not a simple meal, that’s mild dark cuisine… Xu Qi An frantically criticized internally.
It had been two days since the last internal meeting of the Tian Di Hui, and six days since the army set out on the expedition.
Xu Qi An was planning to rescue Heng Yuan, for which he had prepared four trump cards for himself.
Trump Card One: The Confucian Sage’s Engraving Knife!
Yesterday, Xu Qi An went to Yun Lu Academy to borrow the Confucian Sage’s Engraving Knife from Zhao Shou but was told the knife was not at the academy.
His ultimate trump card was gone, but he didn’t panic. Trump Card Two: The Supervisor!
He turned and went to the Bureau of Astronomy and Calendars, asking Cai Wei to inform the Supervisor that he was going to do something important.
That should be enough.
Trump Card Three: Aunt’s sword talisman.
The sword intent of a Second Rank expert could wound even a Third Rank martial artist, sufficient to save his life in a critical moment. Moreover, in a place like the capital, he only needed to create a big commotion to attract countless eyes, naturally including the Supervisor and Luo Yu Heng.
Trump Card Four: Monk Shen Shu.
Since returning from Chu Prefecture, that stinky monk had been in deep sleep, impossible to wake up. Whether this trump card could be used remained unknown, but it was a trump card nonetheless.
“Once Wei Yuan returns from the expedition, I’ll be leaving the capital, taking my family with me,” Xu Qi An reminded her, looking at her.
He didn’t know why he kept mentioning this to her repeatedly.
The Princess responded expressionlessly with an “Mm,” and said, “I wish you good luck.”
…
Deep in the night.
Dressed in night-walking clothes, Xu Qi An silently traversed the streets of the inner city. He made no effort to conceal his movements, but the Imperial Knife Guards around him and the night watchmen on the rooftops “tacitly” ignored him.
Using Confucian techniques to conceal his form, Xu Qi An soon reached Earl Ping Yuan’s mansion.
Following One’s information, he accurately found the artificial mountain in the back garden concealing the underground passage.
After activating the mechanism and waiting for the entrance to appear, he entered, quickly moving forward in the tunnel with a torch. There were no traps inside; One had already explored it.
Soon, Xu Qi An arrived at the stone chamber at the end of the passageway, seeing the stone disk with a diameter of two zhang.
“Such a large stone disk could transport dozens of people at once. Earl Ping Yuan used this to transport illegally abducted people into the palace…”
Xu Qi An stood by the stone disk, pondering for a few seconds. He took out the Earth Book fragment, placed it on top, and then infused it with qi.
The Earth Book fragment lit up with a faint, somewhat turbid glow. This turbid light flowed like water into one inscription after another, illuminating them all.
The array on the stone disk was activated.
Xu Qi An hurriedly stepped onto the stone disk. The next moment, his figure disappeared from the stone chamber.
The scene before his eyes blurred, and then Xu Qi An appeared in silent darkness without any light source.
“No sense of crisis…”
He tightly gripped Luo Yu Heng’s sword talisman in his hand, feeling slightly relieved.
He was currently in an “invisible” state, so he didn’t dare light the torch. The structure of human eyeballs determines that in a purely lightless environment, one cannot see anything.
No matter how high one’s cultivation, it wouldn’t help.
He also didn’t dare release spiritual energy to explore the surroundings, so he could only move forward step by step, slowly, waving his arms to probe the space ahead.
Fortunately, if there were a cliff or wall ahead, a martial artist’s intuition for danger would provide feedback.
It was like another form of detector.
After walking slowly for a quarter of an hour, Xu Qi An’s ears twitched, catching a strange sound.
“Hoo, hoo…”
From the darkness ahead came an eerie sound, as if something was breathing.
How large must its lung capacity be? Xu Qi An’s scalp tingled as he internally criticized.
The closer he got, the clearer the “breathing” became. Xu Qi An felt cold sweat forming on his forehead.
What was hidden beneath the imperial palace?
Xu Qi An’s hand gripping the sword talisman tightened involuntarily. Once he sensed any hint of danger, he would activate the sword talisman immediately, without any wishful thinking.
The movement in the deep darkness gave him an extremely dangerous feeling. The closer he got, the more his body couldn’t help but tremble.
Enduring the terrifying pressure, he walked forward another hundred steps, moving silently. Finally, a faint golden light appeared ahead.
This golden light exuded a solemn, masculine aura, somewhat similar to the Vajra Invincible Divine Skill, yet different.
Is it Buddhist golden light? Is it Heng Yuan? Was Heng Yuan brought here? What is that golden light, Heng Yuan’s support, his secret? Xu Qi An’s imagination ran wild.
He was about to move forward when suddenly an image appeared in his mind:
He took two steps forward, and then, without a sound, he died. He died without warning, his body withered, like a mummy…
A martial artist’s danger warning!
Xu Qi An silently retreated, backed away, and then turned around, slightly quickening his pace as he left this dangerous place.
In the underground stone chamber of Earl Ping Yuan’s mansion, the inscriptions on the stone disk once again emitted a turbid glow, and a human figure appeared out of thin air.
Xu Qi An bent down to pick up the Earth Book fragment and put it back in his bosom. He didn’t rush to leave but instead lit several oil lamps.
Then, leaning against the stone disk, he sat down and silently exhaled a breath of turbid qi.
“After investigating that dog emperor for so long, we finally have some progress.” Xu Qi An chuckled, unable to hide the smile on his face.
What was that movement from the deep darkness, the sound that seemed like breathing?
Was it a sound produced by the dragon vein? Hmm, that place, if not mistaken, should be the core of the Dragon Vein.
“Heng Yuan is imprisoned in the dragon Vein, and that golden light is resisting the Dragon Vein? Also, what is the force that would make me die silently? An array?”
Xu Qi An took out the Earth Book fragment and sent a message: [I’ve already teleported through the stone disk and conducted an initial exploration of the other side of the array. I’ve made some discoveries.]
[One: Is it the imperial palace? Is the place connected by the array of the imperial palace? Did you encounter any danger?]
[Two: What did you discover? Hmm, you’re not injured, are you?]
[Four: That was quick. Did you rescue Master Heng Yuan?]
Except for Li Na, who was sound asleep, and Daoist Jin Lian, who was in seclusion, the other members promptly responded to Xu Qi An’s message. It seemed they had deliberately stayed awake, waiting for his news.