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Chapter 86: Chapter 84 Murals
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He had figured it out before he even spoke.
The last time Chu Zhiyuan had acted decisively, demonstrating his astonishing intuition, was because it involved his woman.
And this time, it merely concerned the Military Suppression Department. As the noble Princely Heir, Chu Zhiyuan was unlikely to act easily.
This time, did he act because from now on, whenever the Military Suppression Department encounters a hard-to-crack case, the Princely Heir must intervene? Would not intervening lead to resentment?
The Princely Heir is, after all, a Junior Minister, not a subordinate of the Military Suppression Department.
Instead of solving cases for the Military Suppression Department, wouldn’t it have been better to join them directly in the beginning, instead of going to the Ministry of Rites?
If it were me as Chu Zhiyuan, I definitely wouldn’t do such a thing.
Since Chu Zhiyuan is unwilling, if I spread this around, it would be equivalent to forcing him, and he would surely harbor dissatisfaction and look for opportunities to deal with me in the future.
Although the Sect Martial Department and the Military Suppression Department are not subordinate to each other, let’s not forget that he has a very good relationship with Huang Shiron. Wouldn’t Huang Shiron stand up for him?
In short, if you can avoid offending, then do not offend these people of noble birth.
"Sir!" A young expert from the Military Suppression Department entered from outside and said in a deep voice with clasped fists, "The disciples of True One Sect have started a commotion!"
"What’s all the commotion about!" A middle-aged man in brocade clothing said in a deep voice, "The investigation is still ongoing; what’s there to make a fuss about!"
"They demand severe punishment for the killer." The young expert, with a tall and handsome appearance and a serious expression, said, "I think the situation is rather unstable."
"How is it unstable?"
"The emotions of these disciples are too intense; with just a little provocation, they might resort to violence."
The middle-aged man in brocade clothing sneered, "Do they dare to hit us!"
"I’m just afraid they’ll attack the Flying Flower Sword Sect." The handsome young man lowered his voice, "I heard someone among them shouting that it was Song Feiqiong of the Flying Flower Sword Sect."
"Nonsense!... Utter nonsense!"
The face of the middle-aged man in brocade clothing changed instantly.
When it involves a Great Grandmaster, one must be extremely cautious; a single mistake could lead to big trouble. And these guys actually dared to call out Song Feiqiong’s name directly, utterly ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth!
Without any investigation, they dared to shout that it was Song Feiqiong.
There must be someone with ulterior motives instigating this. Thinking of this, he quickly said, "Find the provocateurs; capture the ringleaders first!"
"Hold on, Xiao Hu!" Another middle-aged man in brocade clothing hurriedly stopped him.
He looked at the two people who had come over and said to Wan Yang, "Don’t rush to take action yet. Taking action will only turn the anger and hatred towards us; for now, just persuade them not to really start fighting."
"...Makes sense."
"Yes, Hall Master, Deputy Hall Master, I’ll go then."
"Quick, go quickly."
After the handsome young man left, the Hall Master and Deputy Hall Master of the West Three Halls showed worried expressions: "Old Wan, think of something."
"...Then we can only invite Jing San." Wan Yang thought for a moment, "He’s the best at detecting energy and might be able to see something."
"Alright, then invite Jing San!"
"Luckily, Jing San just returned to the capital a few days ago!"
——
Chu Zhiyuan looked at Bai Jingrong beneath the steps.
Bai Jingrong had already wiped his face clean, his nose red, and said seriously, "Since you say so, I will trust you this time, believing that as a nobleman, you won’t succumb to Song Feiqiong’s tyranny."
Chu Zhiyuan smiled, "First, determine if it’s Song Feiqiong before making such statements."
"I’m just afraid that the Military Suppression Department, to avoid responsibility, might fear Song Feiqiong and turn black into white, not daring to say it was Song Feiqiong!"
"Elder Bai, you have misunderstood the Military Suppression Department," Chu Zhiyuan said, "The Military Suppression Department is only responsible for investigation and enforcement. Deciding the verdict is not within their power; it must be judged by our Ministry of Rites."
"..."
"Let’s go and see if there’s any result." Chu Zhiyuan looked up at the sky, eager to resolve the matter quickly to avoid delaying his important affairs.
Then he got up and walked out.
Gao Lingfeng hurriedly followed.
...
They soon arrived at the altar of True One Sect, within Elder Bai Jingmang’s courtyard.
The experts of the Military Suppression Department recognized Chu Zhiyuan, recognized Gao Lingfeng, and allowed them to pass while reporting inside.
When they entered the courtyard, the Hall Master Sun Xigu and Deputy Hall Master Chu Xingyao of the West Three Halls came over to greet them with clasped fists.
Wan Yang also bowed deeply.
Chu Zhiyuan exchanged a few polite words with a smile, nodding specifically to Wan Yang with a smile.
A burly man came out of the room with a somber face, "If I’m not mistaken, it should be He Jiujie!"
"He Jiujie?"
Everyone showed puzzled expressions, clearly having never heard of the name.
"Jing San, who is this He Jiujie? Never heard of him."
Jing San said in a deep voice, "A solitary assassin, many who died by his hands believed they had died by accident. He is skilled in the Heavenly Star Shattering Heart Palm, rupturing the heart as if by heart disease."
"Heavenly Star Shattering Heart Palm..."
Everyone shook their heads, having never heard of this hand skill.
"He’s always been killing in the Northwest, seldom coming to the capital. I didn’t expect that when I returned to the capital, he did too."
"Have you fought him?"
"Fought three times, his Qinggong is very good, couldn’t catch him... He’s an assassin, listens to whoever pays more, very troublesome."
"So, it’s not Song Feiqiong the Great Grandmaster?"
"I haven’t seen the Great Grandmaster, but this technique and energy are of the Heavenly Star Shattering Heart Palm, very faint, yet it couldn’t escape my detection."
Everyone’s eyes turned to Chu Zhiyuan.
Chu Zhiyuan looked at Bai Jingrong. 𝒏𝒐𝙫𝙥𝙪𝙗.𝒄𝙤𝙢
Bai Jingrong’s expression was uncertain.
Chu Zhiyuan stepped into the room, seeing an elder lying flat on the bed, with a rosy face as if asleep, showing no signs of death energy.
Chu Zhiyuan pressed his hand down.
Instantly, he saw the elder’s internal condition clearly, raising an eyebrow silently.
He closed his eyes, reaching to press the elder’s shoulder, arm, thigh, and calf, each in turn.
As if lost in thought.
Everyone stared at him.
After a long while, Chu Zhiyuan straightened up, opened his eyes, clapped his hands, and shook his head, "Can’t see anything, so let’s search for He Jiujie."
"Yes, pursue He Jiujie!" Sun Xigu said in a deep voice, "Jing San, since you recognize him, you’ll be in charge of the capture. There are plenty of experts in the department now; are six Grandmasters enough?"
"More than enough!" Jing San said solemnly.
Following that, Sun Xigu began deploying troops, dispatching six Grandmasters to pursue the assassin He Jiujie with Jing San.
Chu Zhiyuan said, "Alright, Elder Bai, calm the disciples within the sect, don’t cause trouble!"
"..."
"The Da Zhen Mission is here now, the capital is at its most tense moment. If your sect causes trouble, don’t blame the Court for being impolite!"
"Alright." Bai Jingrong agreed reluctantly.
Chu Zhiyuan directly left the main altar of True One Sect, sent Gao Lingfeng back, and went directly to the Heavenly Treasure Department under the entourage of Zou Fang, Guo Chi, Gao Jiong, Sun Yanwu, and Ji Dongxiao.
——
On the way to the Heavenly Treasure Department, Chu Zhiyuan walked slowly, his pace gradually slowing down.
His mind recalled the hidden chamber beneath Bai Jingmang’s courtyard.
The hidden chamber was more than a dozen zhang deep, nearly as tall as a ten-story building. No wonder his Super Sense hadn’t detected it when he passed by the True One Sect before.
He could tell the hidden chamber was ancient.
Filled with numerous mechanisms, judging from the situation, it seemed to have been unused for a long time, covered in dust and moss.
The chamber was almost empty, but on the wall was a fresco, over which a new layer of mud was applied.
Even with tapping, this fresco would be hard to detect.
The fresco depicted nine images.
Beside the images was a line of small words: "Qionghua Nine Chapters."
The image showed a full moon, with a man admiring flowers under it. In each of the nine images, the man’s posture differed.
Chu Zhiyuan saw at a glance that these were nine practice diagrams, similar to Posture Techniques.
Besides that line of small words, there were no other texts on the nine images.
This indicated two possibilities: either there were secret mnemonics not recorded in the images, or it was purely Posture Techniques without need for words.
More importantly, he knew this Qionghua Nine Chapters was an ancient martial art of the Yao Yue Palace.
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