Clues

The great hall was in ruins. Its former splendor had already become a heap of wreckage.

Yu Jin, the four chief eunuchs, and Gong Lishan had all suffered severe injuries. The other guards and eunuchs were badly hurt as well, while the rest had descended into complete chaos.

The gray-robed elder swept his gaze around, but in the end, he did not pursue the armored soldier. He was unsure whether the other party had accomplices.

Given Aurora Pavilion's current state, if he left and the enemy struck again, there was practically no one here who could stop them.

What no one noticed, however, was that as the armored soldier left, Li Musheng also silently vanished from the hall.

After fleeing Aurora Pavilion, the young armored soldier quickly darted through one secluded alley after another.

He gathered true qi around his wound to stop the bleeding from his severed arm, all the while remaining vigilant and watching behind him.

Seeing that the gray-robed elder had not followed, the young armored soldier visibly let out a sigh of relief.

He swiftly vaulted into a courtyard and began stripping off his clothes, intending to change into the garments hanging out to dry there as a disguise.

However, the sounds in the courtyard caught the homeowner's attention, and a woman hurriedly rushed out of the room to investigate.

The instant she saw the one-armed armored soldier stealing clothes, she was frightened out of her wits.

A vicious glint flashed through the young armored soldier's eyes, and he immediately prepared to smash the woman to death with a single punch to silence her.

Yet just as he raised his hand, a young figure suddenly appeared before him.

"It's you!"

The young armored soldier's pupils abruptly contracted. He had clearly recognized the newcomer.

"You were running for your life. Why did you have to distract yourself by changing clothes?"

Li Musheng shook his head, seemingly somewhat dissatisfied with the young armored soldier's actions.

The young armored soldier suddenly took a step back and warily scrutinized Li Musheng before him.

"Who exactly are you? When did you catch up to me?"

At that, Li Musheng's eyes flickered. He stroked his chin and asked,

"If I said we were actually on the same side, and that I followed you to save you, would you believe me?"

The armored soldier narrowed his eyes. The next instant, he suddenly threw a punch and sneered,

"I'd believe you when pigs fly!"

"Ah!"

A rather regretful sigh sounded beside the young armored soldier's ear.

Then he saw the woman, who had stood frozen in the courtyard, vanish from his sight in the blink of an eye, while the surrounding scenery rapidly swept away.

Only after reacting did he realize that Li Musheng was gripping him by the collar and running at an unimaginable speed.

The young armored soldier was utterly horrified and immediately tried to resist. Yet only then did he belatedly discover that he could not move in the slightest.

Before long, Li Musheng landed in an empty alley with the young armored soldier in hand.

"Who exactly are you?"

The young armored soldier opened his mouth in shock and suspicion, only to find that he could speak again.

Li Musheng casually threw him to the ground. After thinking for a moment, he went straight to the point.

"Do you have a key to open the Heavenly Revelation Secret Treasury?"

The reason he had followed this fellow was naturally because he valued the man's identity as a remnant of Great Qi.

After all, if anyone knew the Heavenly Revelation Secret Treasury best, it would certainly be people of the Great Qi Dynasty itself.

Remnants of Great Qi like this one were obsessed with restoring their nation. Perhaps they had hidden several keys to open the secret treasury in their hands.

"So you're after that."

The young armored soldier stared at Li Musheng for a while, then suddenly became fearless.

"Release my acupoints first, then I'll decide whether to tell you."

Li Musheng frowned and nodded.

"So you don't have one, then. I might as well throw you back into Aurora Pavilion."

As he spoke, he reached down to grab the other man by the collar.

Seeing this, the young armored soldier hurriedly said,

"Wait! If you hand me over, forget about obtaining the Key to the Heavenly Revelation Secret Treasury."

Li Musheng shook his head.

"My time is limited. I'll give you one chance. Speak if you want to speak. If not, forget it."

At that, the young armored soldier fell silent.

But the next moment, Li Musheng directly lifted him up and ran toward Aurora Pavilion, sneering,

"Time's up. You missed your chance to live."

The young armored soldier was clearly stunned for a moment, but he said nothing. He only assumed Li Musheng was trying to scare him.

But when he saw Aurora Pavilion drawing closer and closer, panic finally began to seize him, and he at last spoke.

"I don't have a key!"

Seeing that Li Musheng remained unmoved, and that they were now only one street away from Aurora Pavilion, he became visibly more anxious.

Yet soon afterward, the young armored soldier suddenly fell silent again.

He realized that in this situation, the more he said, the less value he had—and the closer he would be to death.

"Your mouth is pretty hard."

Li Musheng moved, carrying the young armored soldier to the rooftop of Aurora Pavilion's five-story building.

At that moment, more Heavenly Brocade Guard reinforcements could be seen arriving in the distance. They would likely soon seal off the entire Aurora Pavilion as tightly as an iron barrel.

But to Li Musheng, even the tightest guard was no different from an empty field. He could come and go as he pleased.

"Looks like I'm still not very good at interrogating people."

Li Musheng shook his head, carried the young armored soldier into Room Seventeen where he was staying, and casually tossed him beneath the bed.

The next instant, before the young armored soldier's stunned eyes, Li Musheng vanished from the room entirely, leaving only the door to slowly close on its own.

What kind of terrifying speed was that?

The young armored soldier wanted to open his mouth, but discovered that he could no longer speak.

Aurora Pavilion's great hall remained chaotic. Some of the younger people, along with several eunuchs and guards, were giving the injured simple treatment.

Yu Jin, Gong Lishan, and the other experts were all focused on circulating their power to heal and recover from their injuries.

Li Yuanling searched everywhere for Li Musheng, but found nothing.

At first, she thought Li Musheng had panicked and gotten separated, hiding somewhere else within Aurora Pavilion. But after failing to find him for so long, she began to grow anxious.

However, the instant she turned around, Li Musheng silently appeared before her once more.

"Brother Li, are you all right? Where did you go just now?"

Li Yuanling hurriedly examined him. Once she confirmed that he was unharmed, she visibly breathed a sigh of relief.

"It was too chaotic just now. I just wandered around to clear my head."

Li Musheng waved a hand, seeming somewhat distracted.

That armored soldier most likely had clues about the Heavenly Revelation Secret Treasury Key. He could not possibly hand him over to the Heavenly Brocade Guard.

Therefore, he could only turn to Cang Yinyue. After all, she came from the Hidden Spy Bureau—she should be able to pry open even the hardest mouth.

"But I can't keep relying on her. Once I have time, I'll study a martial art similar to the 'Life-Death Seal,' and everything will fall into place."

As Li Musheng thought this, his gaze swept across the hall before turning to Li Yuanling before him.

"Miss Li, there are too many eyes and ears here. Let's speak somewhere else."