Feng Miaojun had lived in Inzi City for a long time, so she naturally knew the location of Yao’s royal palace—the imperial garden. She headed straight there now.
All of Inzi City was under martial law. The outdoors had been cleared, and there wasn’t a single pedestrian on the streets. Only soldiers with solemn faces moved about. If not for the illusion formation of the White Board protecting her, she would have found it impossible to move even a single step.
The royal garden was in the northeast corner of the capital, occupying a considerable area. Feng’s business had delivered fruit there many times, so Feng Miaojun knew its ingenious layout, beautiful variety of flowers, and elegant buildings. Of course, all the essential elements of a royal garden—lakes, hot springs, rock formations, and wooded areas—were present here as well.
Such complex terrain now increased the difficulty of both offense and defense for the opposing sides. However, Feng Miaojun couldn’t enter at the moment because the place was heavily guarded. Along the way, there was a sentry every three steps and a lookout every five, watching each other, with magical devices installed to monitor disguises and illusion formations. Not even a mosquito could fly in—more importantly, nothing could fly out. The White Board glanced over and could immediately determine that at least four or five defensive formations were arranged along the short hundred-zhang path. The vigilance was so strict that it was many times stronger than the city gates.
Even using the Mustard Seed Formation, she would likely be discovered. How could she sneak in?
Moreover, inside those walls were Wei Kingdom’s cultivators, equally tense, hostile, and heavily defended. Even if she could climb over the wall, she would likely be treated as a living target.
Feng Miaojun wasn’t in a hurry and wandered around the perimeter. Yao Kingdom’s royal garden was the largest in the entire Northern Continent. Even riding a fast horse, it would take three to five hours to circle the outer perimeter. It was unrealistic for the Yao people to defend the entire line with the capital’s current military strength, so she would certainly find a weak point.
At that moment, a “boom” sounded from afar—the thunderous roar of artillery.
In the quiet Inzi City, this sound was like a thunderbolt from the blue, making Feng Miaojun’s heart tighten.
Had the battle already begun?
Several more huge explosions followed, making the ground tremble continuously.
This was terrible news for both Yun Ya and herself.
Would Mo Tizhun refuse to surrender? After all, not surrendering would be the most beneficial decision for the Yao Kingdom. If so, with Yun Ya trapped in the temporary palace, his situation would be perilous. Although Feng Miaojun knew this man was as slippery as a loach, there was always a possibility of the worst happening, wasn’t there?
Tongheart Palace.
The distant sounds of cannons and battle cries were getting closer.
Yun Ya had been standing here for nearly half an hour as if searching for something. Lu Ming had not dared to disturb him, but now couldn’t help saying, “Sir, we should withdraw.”
This place would be the focus of the Yao people’s attack. Even though the State Preceptor was formidable, being surrounded would be a major problem.
Yun Ya made a sound of acknowledgment and moved his feet, but instead of walking toward the main gate, he approached the flower rack under the eaves. It was planted with flowers and herbs of a single variety.
Plants knew nothing of human conflicts and remained vibrantly flourishing.
Then Yun Ya said, “Something’s wrong.”
Wrong? Lu Ming also came closer and looked carefully for a few moments. Apart from the gorgeous flowers, he didn’t notice anything wrong. “Is it poisonous?”
As soon as he spoke, Yun Ya’s gaze toward him was like looking at an idiot: “You can’t tell? The flowers on this rack are out of order.”
With a large army about to press in from outside, was the old man still concerned about flower pots being placed incorrectly? Of course, Lu Ming couldn’t voice this criticism directly. Instead, following his habit, he bowed slightly: “Please instruct me, sir?”
This was a small garden. Yun Ya casually pointed to nearby plants: “The local custom is to place delicate and precious varieties on the upper level while shade-loving and foliage plants are placed on the lower level.” This was also a common gardening technique. “Look at this flower rack again, look at this pot of dahlias.”
With his guidance, Lu Ming looked more carefully and indeed noticed that camellias, clematis, and lotus flowers were blooming magnificently on the second tier of the flower rack, but among them was a pot of dahlias.
The pot was large, with vulgar and gaudy colors, looking as if a vegetable-selling woman had squeezed in among noble young ladies.
“It is indeed out of place.” The owner of this place was no ordinary person, and this flower rack was right next to her residence. How could the gardener misplace a flower pot? “Why is this?”
Yun Ya gave a cool smile: “I fear that originally some kind of plant was placed on the second level, suddenly taken away by someone, leaving a space that seemed inappropriate, so they moved a pot of dahlias to fill it.” As he said this, he suddenly squatted down, and a beetle carrying something crawled out from under the rack and onto his palm.
It was holding a pinkish-white pearl, perfectly round, which should have been lustrous but was now covered with soil.
Yun Ya picked up the pearl, looked at it against the moonlight for a moment, and said, “Indeed, as expected.” He turned to Lu Ming, “This is a Water-Breathing Pill. After taking it, one can breathe underwater for a quarter of an hour.”
This meant that originally a pot of Water-Breathing Pills had been grown on this rack. “The owner here feared we would discover it, so she removed it and used dahlias to fill the space?” Lu Ming couldn’t understand. “If she went underwater, we’ve had fish spirits searching for two days without finding anything.”
Yun Ya smiled: “Could she have such a mind? Most likely someone else cleaned up for her.” After a pause, “Where are the people I asked you to find?”
“I’ll bring her right away.” Lu Ming was always reliable. “Madame Wu has served the royal family in the garden for forty years and is a veteran here.”
Madame Wu was in her fifties and was as white as paper when brought over. Yun Ya comforted her: “I only have a few small questions. Once you answer them, you can leave immediately.”
His voice had a naturally calming power, and Madame Wu’s hands stopped shaking so severely.
“Where are the servants who attended Tongheart Palace?”
“Dead,” Madame Wu carefully replied. “Killed by your subordinates, sir.”
“Not a single one left?”
Madame Wu nodded.
“How convenient,” Yun Ya changed the subject. “I saw a square stele by Moon Reflection Pond noting that this place has been renovated?”
“Yes.” Madame Wu was indeed thoroughly familiar with the garden. “That area is low-lying and was originally a maze of artificial mountains. Thirteen years ago, the ruler renovated the garden, digging deeper and filling it with water to create the Moon Reflection Deep Pond.”
Yun Ya’s eyes flickered: “Tell me about this mountain maze.”
It was all old business from many years ago, and only garden veterans like Madame Wu had clear memories. “From the outside, one couldn’t see any clues, but the artificial mountains were built according to the Eight Trigrams, making it difficult for ordinary people to find their way out. It’s said that the maze was originally built to train the royal family members in formation techniques, so there was a practice room in the maze, built under the waterfall.”
“A practice room under the waterfall?” Yun Ya casually dismissed Madame Wu and said to Lu Ming, “Go take care of it, as quickly as possible.”
Lu Ming had heard everything clearly and responded with a sound before rushing out.
Yun Ya turned around and leisurely walked toward the palace behind them.
Not long after, the Yao people charged in and recaptured the place.