Chapter 1648 - Trap!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
“Your Highness…”
Heaven Deaf and Earth Mute seemed to sense something and turned to Wang Chong. Before they could say anything, they were cloaked in Stellar Energy.
“Don’t talk. Let them come in.”
A familiar voice rang out in their ears, and as Wang Chong spoke, he brought the pair into a corner of the room while restraining his energy to the maximum.
Creeeak!
A few moments later, the main door to the hall opened and two figures walked in. Although the room was pitch-black, the two seemed extremely familiar with the place and walked up to one of the few tables left. One of them snatched a flint from the table, and with a crack, a dim light illuminated the room.
“Search carefully, and take away any of those small objects that we can. We can’t leave behind a single clue. In addition, tomorrow, call the palace maids to have them sweep the place again. We’ll have them move away anything we can’t take from here.”
In the light, one of the ‘Imperial Army soldiers’ took a brush rack from the table while carefully inspecting his surroundings.
“Mm. What a pity. When the time comes, it seems we’ll have to get vicious again,” the other Imperial Army soldier replied as he inspected his surroundings.
Whoosh!
Just then, there was a gust of wind, and before the second soldier could reply, a slender white palm seized his neck.
The soldier was alarmed and opened his mouth to call out, but his entire body was no longer under his control. At almost the same time, Heaven Deaf and Earth Mute shot out and seized the other soldier.
The mood in the room instantly turned tense.
“Answer me or die!” Wang Chong coldly said, lifting the man by his neck.
The soldier nodded, upon which Wang Chong relaxed his grip and released his throat acupuncture points.
“Don’t try to shout or bring anyone else here, as you’ll be dead before they get here.”
“Who… who are you?”
The Imperial Army soldier stared with fear-stricken eyes.
“This isn’t something you should be worried about. Where is Eunuch Gao being held?” Wang Chong asked. Wearing his assassination clothes, he had left only his eyes exposed, and it was impossible to tell his identity through solely his eyes.
“Eunuch Gao? I don’t know what you’re talking about, nor do I know where Eunuch Gao is being held,” the Imperial Army soldier said, shaking his head as if he was oblivious.
“Hmph, I only said Eunuch Gao, but not which one, so why are you so quick to deny? It’s like you’re saying that there’s not three hundred taels of silver buried here.”
Wang Chong coldly laughed.
There were quite a few eunuchs with the surname ‘Gao’ in the palace, and the title of Eunuch Gao was hardly enough to determine which was which. But given how fiercely the soldier shook his head, it was obvious that he knew which one Wang Chong was talking about.
Heaven Deaf and Earth Mute had been right. This really was the place where Gao Lishi had been held.
The soldier Wang Chong had seized immediately paled.
He had never imagined that his answer would reveal so much to Wang Chong.
Kaclack!
Wang Chong tightened his grip, and the soldier’s face turned red while immense pain emerged in his eyes.
“I’ll talk, I’ll talk! We’ve already moved Eunuch Gao to Tianxin Palace! We were just following orders and don’t know anything else.”
When Wang Chong relaxed his grip again, the soldier immediately told everything he knew.
“Your Highness, he’s not lying,” Heaven Deaf and Earth Mute suddenly declared after staring at the soldier this entire time.
This pair had reached an extremely high level of mastery in concealment and pursuit, and they were similarly accomplished in interrogation. They had a systematic and comprehensive method of determining whether what the other party was saying was a truth or a lie. When that soldier was replying, his heartbeat, blood flow, and Psychic Energy did not fluctuate, indicating that he was telling the truth.
Wang Chong sent his Psychic Energy into the mind of the soldier. A few moments later, his eyes flashed and he subtly nodded. He slapped his palm, causing the soldier to collapse, and then he shot out the door like a bolt of lightning.
“They aren’t real soldiers of the Imperial Army. Take them away and interrogate them about their origins! As for what comes next, let me handle that.”
Heaven Deaf and Earth Mute glanced at each other in surprise, but there was already no trace of Wang Chong.
……
In the northwest corner of the Imperial Palace, Wang Chong found the palace that ‘Imperial Army soldier’ had spoken of.
Tianxin Palace!
This was an extremely important building in the Imperial Palace, and when Wang Chong arrived, it was brightly lit.
“Everyone, be careful! Put down the things and then immediately leave!
“Do what you’re told and don’t look at what you shouldn’t! Move! Move!
“Hurry, hurry! Get out of here!”
At the door to the palace, several maids were carrying objects like blankets and cups into the palace while another set of maids was rushing out. These maids were staring at their feet and trembling in fear.
Meanwhile, an Imperial Army officer was harshly scolding and driving them on.
Farther off, countless Imperial Army soldiers had surrounded the entire palace.
Although these people wore the armor of the Imperial Army, they exuded the same aura as the two men Wang Chong had previously captured. It was clear that these people were not part of the Imperial Army, at least originally.
They had only moved Eunuch Gao here once night had fallen, and it was clear that many things had not been prepared.
Wang Chong was in no rush and silently waited. But it was only a few moments later that all the maids left and Tianxin Palace calmed down.
The palace remained brightly lit, and the countless soldiers continued to circle. It would normally be impossible for anyone to get inside.
But for Wang Chong, as long as he could find Eunuch Gao’s location, it didn’t matter how heavily guarded the place was. No one would be able to stop him.
Thwish!
Once the time was right, Wang Chong shot forward into the darkness.
He moved with incredible speed, and he was soon at the door.
Wang Chong wasn’t even trying to hide himself from these guards.
“Who goes—”
The guards at the door began to speak in alarm, but a moment later, their bodies went numb and they blacked out. Wang Chong was at the Subtle realm, and dealing with these experts of the Imperial Army was as easy as flipping his palm.
Wang Chong quickly took control over these soldiers and used his Stellar Energy to freeze them in place, a feat that perhaps only he was capable of.
Once this was done, Wang Chong continued deeper into the palace.
Less than half a second had passed, and there was only a gentle gust of wind to indicate that anything had happened.
The lights in the palace made the place gleam and shine. Wang Chong knocked two more guards unconscious as he advanced, and he was soon at the heart of the palace.
To his surprise, despite the many guards outside, the inside was abnormally peaceful.
The gentle light of the candles on the wall illuminated the rows of bookshelves, and not far from a bookshelf was a plump figure silently reading a book, his back to Wang Chong.
It was an atmosphere of peace and calm.
Eunuch Gao!
Although Wang Chong couldn’t see the man’s face, his clothes, his aura, and the slightly plump figure were an exact match with Eunuch Gao.
Wang Chong had far too many questions to ask Eunuch Gao. How was the Sage Emperor doing? Why had Eunuch Gao been attacked? And why was it that even though the First Prince had imprisoned him, he did not seem to have any restraints and was even able to read a book?
Only Eunuch Gao could answer these things.
“Eunuch Gao!” Wang Chong called out as he walked forward.
The reading Eunuch Gao seemed to hear what was going on behind him and turned around in ‘surprise’.
Buzz!
Time seemed to stop. Wang Chong suddenly halted several steps away from Eunuch Gao, and when he saw the face of ‘Eunuch Gao’, he instantly paled.
While the man had looked exactly identical to Eunuch Gao from the back, his face was not.
“Your Highness, His Highness the First Prince wishes me to pass a message to you: We’ve been waiting a long time!”
The man giggled as he spoke a set of disconcerting words. As he spoke, he put down his book, raised his hands into the air, and began to fall back.
His meaning was that he was merely a messenger and had nothing to do with anything else.
Fwoosh! Fwoosh!
The soft sound of countless torches being lit came from outside, and marching footsteps began to get closer and closer.
“King of Foreign Lands! Such audacity! To dare and intrude upon the Imperial Palace in the middle of the night!” A resounding and familiar voice came from outside.
Creeeeak! In the darkness, numerous master archers nocked their arrows and aimed.
These ‘Imperial Army soldiers’ had finally revealed their true selves.
All fell silent, except for the crackling of the candles on the walls.
Wang Chong’s heart sank. Even the slowest person could tell what was happening now.
A trap!
This was a trap, a trap targeted against him! All of this had been to lure him to this place.
Entering the Imperial Palace at night was a heavy crime, and as he was an important official, the charges were even worse. He could even be accused of harboring disloyal thoughts and fomenting rebellion!
