HLnovel Chapter 443 The Southern Secret Assassins Infiltrate Tianqi, but Xiaotang Master Blocks Their Path!
Chapter 443 The Southern Secret Assassins Infiltrate Tianqi, but Xiaotang Master Blocks Their Path!
Xuanwu Street is located on the north side of the palace.
This was a place where high-ranking officials and nobles lived; the streets were wide and the mansions were imposing.
Wutuo and Ayue lay in the shadows of the street corner, like two stones melting into the night.
"At three quarters past Hai hour, a team of twelve men will patrol the streets, making one round every two incense sticks," Wu Tuo said in a low voice. "The shift will change at Chou hour, with a break of about half a cup of tea in between."
A-Yue nodded and added a few strokes to the sheepskin.
Suddenly, a slight rustling of tiles came from afar. Wu Tuo's eyes sharpened, and he pressed down on A Yue's shoulder: "Someone's there."
Three dark figures swept across the rooftops with incredible speed, landing silently as they headed straight for the Ministry of War.
Judging from their figures, they were three of the seven "scholars" in the third group.
“A Yuan’s men,” Wu Tuo squinted. “They’re going to the scout department.”
"Want to join?"
“No!” Wu Tuo shook his head. “We each have our own duties. The most important task right now is to find out the defenses around the palace.”
The two continued to lie in wait. After another incense stick's time, Wu Tuo's ears suddenly twitched as he heard an extremely faint whooshing sound – it was a crossbow bolt!
The sound came from the direction of the Ministry of War.
"A-Yue, A-Yuan is in trouble!" Wu Tuo pulled A-Yue up. "Let's go!"
As soon as the two left their hiding place, they heard the urgent sound of gongs coming from the Ministry of War, followed by shouts: "Assassins!"
The entire street was instantly illuminated by torches. Imperial guards surged in from all directions, their footsteps thundering.
Wu Tuo and A Yue slipped into a narrow alley, winding their way through the crowd and shaking off their pursuers.
Arriving at the backyard of an abandoned house, the two climbed over the wall and leaned against it, panting.
"Liu Wenyuan and his group have been exposed." A-Yue's face turned pale.
“Not necessarily,” Wu Tuo said in a deep voice. “If we had really been exposed, the whole city would have been under martial law by now. That crossbow bolt just now… was probably a commotion they made on purpose.”
"why?"
"A test," Wu Tuo sneered. "Testing the reaction speed of the Northern Li Imperial Guards, testing the weaknesses in the city's defenses. That kid Liu Wenyuan is cunning enough!"
Sure enough, half an hour later, the sound of the gong gradually subsided.
No further news came from the Ministry of War. Although the number of Imperial Guards patrolling the streets had doubled, they did not conduct a large-scale search.
Another hour passed, and Liu Wenyuan, along with two of his men, quietly slipped into the courtyard.
All three had injuries, but their eyes were filled with excitement.
“I’ve figured it out.” Liu Wenyuan lowered his voice. “The Ministry of War’s armory is in the east wing, guarded by thirty soldiers in two shifts.”
The west wing housed the administrative offices, which were manned by only two clerks at night. There was a drainage ditch in the back wall, two feet wide, large enough for a person to crawl through.
"What was that crossbow bolt about?" Wu Tuo asked, his face full of surprise.
"I ordered my men to deliberately miss!" Liu Wenyuan's lips curled into a smile. "The purpose was to lure them out and see their reaction. The Northern Imperial Guards are well-trained, but the Golden Guards are truly a complete mess!"
Moreover, there were gaps in coordination between their various battalions. When the Imperial Guard captain and the Golden Guard captain bumped into each other on the street, they almost came to blows!
Wu Tuo nodded: "If we've gained anything, then our efforts haven't been in vain. You guys focus on healing your injuries, and we'll continue tomorrow night."
The third night, at the hour of Chou (1-3 AM).
The Southern Secret Agents have figured out most of the defenses in Tianqi City, and the Wutuo Group has drawn up the locations of twelve hidden sentry posts around the palace.
The lame old man's group discovered the troop distribution and grain storage points of the four major battalions;
Liu Wenyuan's group even infiltrated the Ministry of War's nighttime meetings twice—disguising themselves as menial servants emptying chamber pots and loitering outside the window.
Everything was going so smoothly it was unsettling.
That night, Liu Wenyuan came alone to the south bank of the Tianqi River in the east of the city.
Merchant ships flock here, and the canal is bustling with activity. Even at night, laborers are still busy unloading cargo.
He wanted to probe the defenses of the Water Gate—the most likely weakness of Apocalypse City.
The river breeze carried the fishy smell of water, making the willow branches on the bank rustle.
Liu Wenyuan, disguised as a drunken merchant, staggered along the riverbank, his eyes scanning every moored cargo ship and every pier and sentry post.
Just as he was crossing a stone arch bridge, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
A person was standing under the willow tree at the bridgehead.
The man was dressed in red, with a white shirt over it, and wore a blue-faced, fanged Prajna mask.
He stood there quietly, as if he had been waiting for a long time.
Moonlight filtered through the willow branches, casting dappled shadows on him, obscuring his face. Only the eyes beneath the mask seemed strikingly bright.
Liu Wenyuan's heart tightened, and the effects of the alcohol instantly vanished.
He pretended to be nonchalant and continued strolling forward, his mind racing: 'When did this person appear? I didn't even notice! I don't know if they're friend or foe…'
As they brushed past each other, the masked man suddenly spoke, his voice clear and gentle, utterly incongruous with his狰狞 (zhengning - ferocious/hideous) mask:
"Your Excellency is in the mood for an evening stroll; would you like someone to accompany you?"
Liu Wenyuan continued walking, mumbling, "No...no need...I've had too much to drink, a walk will sober me up..."
"Is that so?" The masked man chuckled. "Then the 'Water-Dividing Thorn' you carry at your waist, is it also for sobering up?"
Liu Wenyuan froze.
He did indeed have two short, water-splitting daggers, a unique weapon of the Southern School, tucked into his waistband, hidden under his robes, making them virtually undetectable to ordinary people.
But the strange masked man in front of me is no ordinary person!
run!
The moment the thought crossed his mind, the masked man moved.
Without anyone noticing how he took a step, he had already blocked Liu Wenyuan's path, and with a flick of his red sleeve...
Liu Wenyuan felt a numbness in all the acupoints of his body and was unable to move.
“You…” Liu Wenyuan was utterly horrified.
He considered himself to be quite skilled in martial arts, having reached the realm of freedom, and was considered a top-notch expert in the army. Yet, he couldn't even withstand a single move from this masked man!
The man in red reached down and pulled the two water-splitting daggers from his waist, examining them in the moonlight:
"Forged from high-quality steel and even poisoned. Heh... This is the standard weapon of the Southern Jue Water Ghost Camp—just how many scouts did you Southern Jue send to the Northern Li?!"
Liu Wenyuan was utterly shocked. This masked man not only had a cultivation level far surpassing his own, but also seemed to have a great understanding of the Southern Technique!
It seemed that this masked man was no ordinary martial artist. Liu Wenyuan had no choice but to grit his teeth and remain silent.
The masked man didn't press for details, but simply said:
“Go back and tell your leader that the waters of Apocalypse City are deeper than you think. Retreat now and you can still save your lives… But if you linger…”
He paused, then flipped his wrist, and the water-splitting dagger broke into four pieces with a soft "ding".
"Next time, it'll be your necks that get broken!"
After saying that, he released Liu Wenyuan's pressure points and turned to leave.
The woman in red flashed in the night and disappeared into the depths of the alley, as if she had never been there.
Liu Wenyuan slumped to the ground, his back soaked with cold sweat.
After a long while, he staggered to his feet, picked up the broken water-dividing spike, and fled the riverbank without looking back.
……