Hidden Shadow – CH 060

Chapter Sixty: Fragments of the Heavenly Book (2)

Lou Xiaowu raised her arm, her cloak concealing her movements, so no one saw her action. A short arrow, wreathed in blue light, flew towards the source of the light!

“Transcendent Realm?” Mei Tingyuan wondered. Lou Xiaowu looked rather weak; she was probably even weaker than her and definitely not at the Transcendent Realm.

“I will not tell you!” Lou Xiaowu held a grudge.

The short arrow was not very powerful, but it firmly embedded itself in the wall. Then, its tail exploded like fireworks, bursting into a small torch with a muffled thud, enough to illuminate the surrounding area for about ten feet.

Everyone could clearly see that the source of the faint light was a small hole about three inches wide.

“I did it.” Lou Xiaowu leaned closer to An Jiu, her eyes crinkling. “I am amazing, am I not?”

An Jiu glanced at Lou Xiaowu emotionlessly. Her expectant look, seeking praise and affection, left her momentarily at a loss for words. She was always more tolerant of harmless small animals.

Lou Mingyue, unfazed, went with Mei Tingzhu to examine the hole.

“It’s a new cave.” Mei Tingzhu pulled out a piece of black cloth, wrapped it around her hand, and pressed it against the surrounding walls. “Some parts are loose; someone must have been fighting inside, damaging the walls.”

Looking at the map, the first level of the giant tower was a concentric circle structure, like a maze, but not complicated. Just follow the doors to reach the center. This level had only one door; one entered through this door and exited through it, but the paths were not the same. It contained profound Buddhist theories, but An Jiu did not understand the purpose of this design.

“A fight broke out near the entrance… Could it be that the fragments of the Heavenly Book have already been obtained?” Qiu Yuntong leaned closer to examine the wall.

Lou Mingyue took two steps forward to avoid him.

Qiu Yuntong smiled helplessly; he’d actually been rejected by this little brat!

In the dim blue firelight, the entrance was not far. Everyone stared at the dark door, each pondering their next move.

From the outside, the tower had many caves, each containing a Buddha statue.

Each cave could be an entrance, but the map showed only one path leading to the second floor, and this path led directly to the center of the first floor. The tower was too large. If they searched for new exits bit by bit, the fragments of the Heavenly Book on the second floor might have already been taken.

The allure of the Heavenly Book fragments was as alluring to Qiu Yuntong and the others as treasure for a greedy person; they’d risk their lives for it.

After a moment’s hesitation, they entered one after another. The Heavenly Book fragments were not a concern for Lou and Mei; they only needed to choose a relatively safe path.

Lou Mingyue looked at Mei Tingzhu. “Which way?”

“What’s meant to happen cannot be avoided. Let’s follow the map,” Mei Tingzhu said.

If it really was the Emperor who was making a move, nowhere was safe.

“The people who ambushed us today, apart from one master of the Transcendent Realm, were not very skilled, and they did not seem to have much combat experience,” Mei Tingzhu said softly. “That’s strange, so let’s stick to the original route and deal with whatever comes our way.”

If the Emperor were going to make a move, there should be countless masters willing to risk their lives, right? And they would definitely fight to the death. How could they possibly retreat halfway? These few inexperienced people probably would not have survived this long.

“It’s hard to say. Although our families’ influence in the Konghe Army is not what it used to be, almost every branch still has people. If there’s any disturbance, we can at least get some information. Perhaps the Emperor knows this, which is why he deliberately avoided the Konghe Army?” Lou Mingyue paused, then changed the subject. “However, I think your choice is feasible. We cannot panic.”

Mei Tingjun agreed but added a reminder, “You just revealed Qiu Yuntong’s background. This involves the ‘Secret Manual,’ and I personally thought it’s best to be more discreet.”

Being lectured in front of everyone, Lou Mingyue was not angry at all. Instead, she laughed. “Even we juniors know that the current Emperor wants to discard us after we’ve served our purpose. Do you think hiding and cowering will please him? You may need to think about your escape route, but our Lou family line has long since ended.”

The Lou family always produced daughters; they had no male heirs in the previous generation. The few remaining male heirs in this generation were all sons of daughters who married into other families, and one of them died two years ago. Therefore, relatively speaking, the Lou family’s clan knowledge was not as strong.

An Jiu did not plan to act alone for the time being. Although she possessed strong mental power, her physical strength and internal energy were far inferior, making solo travel too risky.

The group decided to enter the tower, and An Jiu naturally accompanied them.

Inside, it was still a narrow passageway, no different from the outside, seemingly offering no place for an ambush.

Turning a corner, they saw the beam of light. Qiu Yuntong and the others stood there dumbfounded, only reacting when they sensed someone approaching.

“Ah!” Lou Xiaowu tried to rush over, but Lou Mingyue grabbed her, crying out, “Second Sister, look! This wall inside is broken too, and it’s an even bigger hole!”

It turned out that the inner wall, where it leveled with the breach in the outer wall, also had a hole. The wall there was even more severely damaged, allowing more light to stream in.

“I just peeked through the hole, and the third layer of the inner wall is also damaged. I wonder what kind of power that is!” Qiu Yuntong sighed.

“Was it an arrow?” Mei Tingyuan suddenly remembered the arrow shot by the master on the plank road.

Legends said that a single punch or palm strike could pierce through several walls, but that was just a legend. The most likely cause of such concentrated and penetrating destructive power was a weapon.

“What do you think?” Mei Tingyuan asked An Jiu for confirmation.

All eyes turned to An Jiu.

“What’s the point of knowing this?” An Jiu countered.

“…” Mei Tingyuan was speechless for a moment before reacting, “Of course, it’s to take more precautions!”

“Can you even take more precautions?” An Jiu ruthlessly exposed her. “So what you should do is… pray you do not run into this person.”

If they encountered such a master, they could probably only put up a token struggle. An Jiu’s confrontation with that Transcendent Realm expert on the plank road was partly due to luck. If that person had not been so arrogant and disregarded the mountain winds, she would have had a hard time escaping unscathed.

“Young lady, you have quite the spirit! If you were more attractive, perhaps we could arrange a time another day…” a lone traveler chuckled.

Lou Mingyue’s killing intent suddenly surged forth.

Caught off guard, the man was suddenly pressed down by this immense spiritual force; his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground.

Only after Lou Mingyue’s killing intent dissipated could everyone catch their breath.

Qiu Yuntong exclaimed, “Eighth Rank!”

“Once is acceptable. If there’s a third time, watch your head!” Lou Mingyue said coldly.

Entering the Konghe Army meant they were destined not to live normal lives, so many shadowy figures secretly formed partnerships, which were tacitly approved within the Konghe Army. The members of the Konghe Army lived on the edge every day, making them quite casual about other things and not so bored as to gossip about such matters.

These daughters of wealthy families were not as reserved and precious as ordinary noble ladies, but their dignity could not be mocked and trampled upon!

An Jiu remained unmoved by any verbal attacks.

“My second sister helped you!” Lou Xiaowu broke free from Lou Mingyue’s hand and moved closer to An Jiu.

“Let’s go,” Lou Mingyue said.

One person helped the person who had been dazed by Lou Mingyue’s mental attack. “My brother was just a bit glib; he meant no harm. I apologize on his behalf; please forgive him.”

Lou Mingyue nodded slightly, waiting for them to go first.

The group understood her meaning and turned to leave one after another. At this age, only a handful could reach the eighth rank, and Lou Mingyue’s strength was probably the strongest among this group of trainees. The strong were respected; this was an unwritten rule among them.

After turning several corners in the narrow passage, they discovered that each wall indeed had a corresponding hole, and the holes grew larger as they went deeper. At the eleventh wall, three feet of it had collapsed, allowing a person to pass through directly.

Upon reaching the very center, where the light was brightest, everyone finally witnessed the horrific battle—

The people looked as if they had been blown apart by something; the walls were splattered with blood, making their original colors almost unrecognizable. Shredded flesh and entrails covered the walls, and severed limbs and remains lay scattered everywhere, making it impossible to tell how many people were there.

The scene before them left them speechless for a moment.

A deathly silence fell, broken only by the slow, crimson stain of blood as it gathered and dripped from the stone wall.

An Jiu bent down to pick up a piece of cloth at her feet, and in the lamplight, she saw half of the blood-stained, blackened character “Cui.”

“The Cui Clan…” Even Lou Mingyue’s voice trembled.

An Jiu dropped the cloth and looked around.

It was an oval-shaped room, its longest diameter about seven zhang. Over a hundred candlesticks surrounded a stone shrine in the center. On the central stone platform sat a transparent box soaked in blood, radiating an eerie glow in the warm light.

The fragment of the Heavenly Book was gone, but the box remained.

According to the leader of the Konghe Army, the fragment of the Heavenly Book could enhance internal energy, while the box could purify spiritual energy. There was no reason to take only the fragment and not the box.

“What exactly is the fragment of the Heavenly Book?” An Jiu asked Lou Mingyue.

Lou Mingyue steadied herself and exhaled. “It is said that a Buddhist master sat in a cave for forty years, meditating on the Heart Sutra. Regular reading and contemplation are beneficial to the spiritual apertures and meridians, helping martial artists easily overcome bottlenecks. Forty-nine fragments exist in the world, and the Konghe Army has collected more than thirty over the years. It’s not surprising that they are offering twelve to attract attention.”

“Then what about this box? Why do others not care about it?” An Jiu pondered. Could it be that spiritual power was not important?

Lou Mingyue gave her a strange look.

Mei Tingzhu continued, “This item is even rarer than the fragments! There are countless people whose martial arts have reached the ninth level but whose spiritual power is still only at the third or fourth level. This shows how difficult it is to cultivate spiritual power. If one’s spiritual power cannot keep up, one can only reach the ninth level at most, remaining a martial artist for life, with no possibility of reaching the pinnacle!”

Martial arts could be mastered through diligent practice, but spiritual power was a very mysterious thing; effort may not necessarily be effective.

“It’s strange.” Mei Tingzhu frowned.

If the Emperor was targeting the descendants of the four great families, why would he need to take the fragments of the Heavenly Book?

Lou Xiaowu suddenly choked up, “Second Sister, is Cui Yichen dead too?”

Lou Mingyue was silent for a moment, about to raise her hand to touch her head, when the room suddenly became as bright as day.

Qiu Yuntong exclaimed, “Run!”