Imperial Cultivation

Chapter 211: Chapter 208 Secret Shadow

As the secret passage was revealed, Huang Shiron drifted in swiftly, followed by Chu Zhiyuan, and Zou Fang quickly followed behind.

Chu Zhiyuan waved his hand: "Guo, you don’t need to come in; stay and prevent any Yuding Sect experts from pulling a surprise attack."

He signaled Guo Chi and the others with a glance, then looked at Wen Qianqian and Xu Mengyu, as well as two curious young women from the Auditing Department watching attentively.

"... Understood." Guo Chi reluctantly agreed.

They retreated, surrounding the four women in the middle.

...

Chu Zhiyuan and Huang Shiron entered the secret passage. When they emerged, it was still a small courtyard.

Chu Zhiyuan knew this was an adjacent alley, and also the courtyard at the end of it.

The two came to the central courtyard and the front yard.

It was evident that no one lived here, with cobwebs everywhere and thick layers of dust covering everything.

Dead branches and leaves covered the ground.

Clearly, although this was their escape route, they seldom came here; probably they had never encountered danger that necessitated using it.

Chu Zhiyuan suddenly furrowed his brows.

"What is it?"

Huang Shiron had been observing his changes in expression and couldn’t help but ask when she saw this.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "There’s a sneaky person."

"An accomplice?"

"I hope it’s just out of curiosity," Chu Zhiyuan said.

Their actions were swift, ending everything within just ten moves before the Yuding Sect experts could react.

They didn’t have the chance to exhibit any lethal moves or their Jade and Stone Burning techniques.

Thus, there was no commotion.

Only the old woman died suddenly, causing the crowd to scream in fright.

Yet no sound came from the alley.

In such circumstances, there were two sneaky figures in the shadows of the alley, watching the small courtyard at the alley’s end.

"Better to kill wrongly than to let go," Chu Zhiyuan pondered, looking at Huang Shiron: "There are two of them; let’s each take one. We can’t kill this time; only catch them."

"Two? Okay."

"The faster, the better."

He floated out of the courtyard, skimmed over a row of houses, and fell silently onto the previous alley.

Yet he still startled the two figures lurking in the shadows.

They bolted off like frightened birds.

Chu Zhiyuan, in mid-air, struck out a punch.

Great Heavenly Dragon Fist.

The Fist Gang slightly condensed, emitting from his fist into the air, vaguely forming a dragon shape.

A dragon roar seemed to echo in the void.

"Bang!" One figure halted abruptly in mid-air, then fell straight onto the wall, rolling down onto the blue stone ground with a "bang".

Huang Shiron’s figure suddenly blurred; before one shadow disappeared, the next appeared before the other person.

A flash of sword light flashed at her waist.

The person stiffened in mid-air, then fell straight down.

"Bang!" They hit the ground heavily, worse than the first person, utterly motionless, already having their acupuncture points pierced by the sword tip.

Chu Zhiyuan chuckled, "Good swordsmanship."

Huang Shiron smiled shyly, her face slightly pale.

This sword strike was her utmost effort, performing extraordinarily under the inspiration of Chu Zhiyuan’s Great Heavenly Dragon Fist.

At least ten percent faster than usual.

Lu Feihong and Zheng Xicai were dumbfounded not far away.

Their plan was to pursue the two escaping from the small courtyard, yet they hadn’t detected these two in the shadows.

Only when Chu Zhiyuan and Huang Shiron suddenly appeared, startling the two, did they realize their own dullness.

For experts in tracking and concealment techniques, this was a huge embarrassment, utterly unforgivable.

Chu Zhiyuan glanced at them, nodding: "Thanks for your effort."

"Princely Heir, is everything resolved inside?"

Lu Feihong asked hurriedly.

They had already learned Chu Zhiyuan’s identity at the Military Suppression Department main hall, with a few reminders from experts there.

Initially, they were quite anxious.

If the Princely Heir failed and too many Yuding Sect villains escaped, they wouldn’t be able to catch them all themselves.

Chu Qingfeng, the Great Grandmaster, might not blame the Princely Heir, but would certainly shift the blame onto them.

To their surprise, Chu Zhiyuan had managed the situation so swiftly and neatly that they even doubted if there were any people inside at all.

Moments later, two nimble young women floated out. Upon seeing Chu Zhiyuan, they glanced at the two fallen figures, blinking their big eyes.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "These two’s behavior is suspicious; we need to interrogate them first."

Originally about to leave, the two young women paused upon hearing him.

Chu Zhiyuan squatted down, examining the young man he had struck: "You’re not Yuding Sect disciples, are you?"

The young man looked ordinary, with extremely lively eyes.

Blood at the corner of his mouth, he showed a puzzled expression, as if bewildered by what had gotten him in trouble with Chu Zhiyuan.

Chu Zhiyuan chuckled, directly sealing his acupuncture point: "Are there any accomplices around?"

"Since you’re not Yuding Sect disciples, why spy on them? ...Are you their rivals? ...Or looking to collaborate?"

"Huh, a collaboration. Which sect are you from? Fearless Sect? ...Secret Shadow Sect? ...Lingxu Sect?"

"Ah, it’s the Secret Shadow Sect." Chu Zhiyuan frowned: "Secret Shadow Sect... This must be reported to the Uncle."

He gestured: "Zou Fang."

"My lord." Zou Fang emerged from the shadows.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Go inform Thirteenth Uncle; there’s involvement from Secret Shadow Sect, and we need to take precautions against them."

"Yes!"

Zou Fang disappeared into the shadows.

The two young women widened their eyes in fascination.

Lu Feihong and Zheng Xicai exchanged glances.

Was the Fourth Prince interrogating? Not really, considering the guy was mute from having his acupuncture points sealed and hadn’t said anything.

Instead, only the Princely Heir was talking, almost as if he were making things up as he went.

Huang Shiron frowned slightly: "Even Secret Shadow Sect is involved... Are they teaming up with Yuding Sect?"

Since entering the Military Suppression Department, this was her first time hearing of Evil Sects teaming up.

These Evil Sects were extremists, mostly acting alone. It was rare even to see one sect move out, let alone two teaming up.

This time, many experts from the Yuding Sect infiltrating Yujing was already uncommon.

Two Evil Sects together was more than rare; they’d usually fight among themselves first.

The alliance between Yuding Sect and Secret Shadow Sect entailed significant implications, but right now wasn’t the time for delving into it. Ensuring no surprises in the sweep was the priority.

Chu Zhiyuan said, "Lu Hero, Zheng Hero, please take these two back to the main hall discreetly."

"... Understood."

The two agreed reluctantly.

Chu Zhiyuan instructed: "They are the evil ones from the Secret Shadow Sect. Do not unseal their acupuncture points, and be cautious. In case something seems off, kill them first!"

"Understood!" The two nodded solemnly.

As Chu Zhiyuan spoke, he kicked each in the dantian.

It sounded like a hiss of air escaping.

The two on the ground glared resentfully at Chu Zhiyuan, their cultivation draining away swiftly, both strength and spirit waning rapidly.

Chu Zhiyuan nodded: "That’s about right now."

Huang Shiron glanced at Lu Feihong and Zheng Xicai: "When facing the evil ones from the Secret Shadow Sect, caution can’t be overdone. I saw one evil sect member, even after having his cultivation and limbs crippled, manage to unleash a secret technique, turning into a blood mist and killing two experts from the Military Suppression Department, perishing together."

Lu Feihong and Zheng Xicai’s expressions grew more serious.

They had inwardly laughed at Chu Zhiyuan’s excessive caution, but now realized their own negligence.

They were still too inexperienced.

Chu Zhiyuan cupped his hands: "I leave it to you."

"Your Highness, then we’ll be off." Each picked up one person, turned into two wisps of wind, and vanished in the blink of an eye.

Chu Zhiyuan and Huang Shiron returned to the small courtyard, where Wen Qianqian and Xu Mengyu, under the protection of Guo Chi and his group, had already gathered three piles of items.

One pile was weapons, another was various bottles and jars, and the last was books.

Seeing the two come back, Wen Qianqian waved excitedly: "Senior Sister, there’s something good!"

"What good thing?"

"Take a look at this!"