Whoosh!
A gust of wind blew in through the window, ruffling the books in the room and also a blue book on the table, causing it to clatter to the floor. Wang Chong bent down to pick it up, and the moment he touched it, he realized that it was the mysterious invitation that the Duke of E Residence's guards had delivered that night.
Wang Chong had no interest in visiting anyone, but just when he was about to place the letter back on the table, Wang Chong hesitated, patted the dust off the envelope, and took it back.
"There's no harm in looking."
Wang Chong sighed and slowly opened the invitation. The contents of the invitation were written in neat handwriting in a standard format:
'Duke of E Yuchi Xiong to His Highness, King of Foreign Lands:
'The King of Foreign Lands is devoted to his utmost and is a model for the country. Although the people of the world have been deceived by fools, justice exists in the hearts of men, and right and wrong will be clear in the future. In addition, Yuchi has been entrusted by another to invite Your Highness to a gathering at the Violet Forest Park in a small forest in the south of the city on the seventeenth day of the sixth month, at the Zi Period. King of Foreign Lands, please be sure to attend … '
"Entrusted by another?"
Wang Chong slightly creased his brow, his mind in turmoil. There was not much to this invitation, but the last part surprised Wang Chong. Wang Chong had originally believed that this letter was an invitation from the Duke of E, inviting him to the Duke of E Residence. But it now appeared that this was not the case at all.
Among the nobles, there had never been a case of someone writing an invitation on behalf of another. This was rather strange.
Just who could have the Duke of E write an invitation on their behalf? Moreover, they're all in the capital, so if there's anything, they can just do it themselves. Why would they need to invite someone else to do it?
Wang Chong gripped the invitation, his mind in turmoil.
The Duke of E's invitation was filled with strangeness. The person who had written the letter was not the person who had invited him, and even at the very end, the Duke of E had not said who the person was. He had never heard of such a strange invitation.
"Hehe!"
Wang Chong shook his head and chuckled. He was about to put the invitation card back on the shelf. However, in the next moment, Wang Chong's eyes inadvertently glanced at the end of the invitation and saw an inconspicuous golden mark. His pupils abruptly shrank, as if he had been pricked by a needle, and his heart suddenly surged with great waves.
"This, this is … how is this possible?!"
Wang Chong stared at the golden mark on the lower right corner of the invitation, his eyes filled with disbelief. It was a ball of golden flames that looked like a lotus. Within the flames, there were three golden axes and a twelve-section mace.
Boom!
Wang Chong's heart tightened, and in that instant, he felt all the blood in his body rush up. His ears were ringing and his mind was blank.
"How could it be … them!"
At that moment, time seemed to stop. In the blink of an eye, countless thoughts surged through his mind. Wang Chong's heart could no longer remain calm. He had never imagined that, after a lifetime, he would once again see this most important mark in his life.
In that instant, Wang Chong suddenly understood why the Duke of E had sent an invitation on behalf of someone else, and also why he had never revealed the other's identity in the invitation.
If it was the 'them' in his memories, then given their status, they would naturally be able to mobilize the Duke of E and would naturally not reveal their identity. Because in people's memories … they no longer existed in this world!
Putting down the invitation card, Wang Chong could no longer maintain his calm.
No matter what, he had to go and see them.
… …
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was the seventeenth day of the sixth month.
Deep in the night, the sky was pitch-black, with only a few stars hanging high in the sky.
At the appointed hour, Wang Chong, dressed in plain clothes, silently climbed over the wall without alerting anyone, all the way to the Violet Forest Park in the southern forest of the city.
There, the light was dim. A figure had been waiting there for a long time. It was the guard from the Duke of E Residence.
With him were several other members of the Ultimate Martial Army from the Duke of E Residence.
"Your Highness is truly trustworthy!"
Seeing Wang Chong, the guard from the Duke of E Residence finally smiled.
"Follow me!"
With these words, he immediately turned his head and leapt onto a tree branch, swiftly descending into the depths of the forest. Without another word, Wang Chong rose from the ground and swiftly followed. Amidst the dim starlight, Wang Chong followed behind the group, twisting and turning as they advanced. The entire journey was silent, with no one speaking. The only sound was the chirping of night owls.
After an unknown period of time, the group stopped in front of a dark forest.
"Your Highness is truly extraordinary. It's been so long. Have you not asked where we are going or who we are meeting?" “
The guard from the Duke of E Residence turned his head and looked at Wang Chong.
"There's no need. Take me there!"
Wang Chong calmly said.
The guards froze for a moment, and then they began to laugh.
"That's true. Given Your Highness's martial arts, how could you care about such things?"
With these words, the guards plunged into the dark forest, with Wang Chong quickly following. In the next moment, in the depths of the forest, an abandoned ancient temple appeared in front of them. The eaves of the ancient temple were very high, and the roof tiles were already broken. In the corners, there were layers upon layers of spider webs, and in the midst of the spider webs, statues of gods had fallen to the ground, and the ground was covered in dust.
"This is …?"
Wang Chong was stunned by the sight of this ancient temple. He had been born and raised in the capital, and for ten-some years, he had lived the life of a hedonistic scion, wandering around with ruffians like Ma Zhou. There was nothing in the capital that he did not know, but Wang Chong had no impression of this place.
He had no idea that there was such an abandoned temple in this forest!
Rumble!
As Wang Chong was thinking, the guard from the Duke of E Residence stepped forward, bent down, and grabbed a metal ring from the ground. With a rumble, a massive tunnel appeared before Wang Chong's eyes.
"King of Foreign Lands, before you enter, there are a few things that I hope that you will remember. First, you cannot speak of tonight's events to anyone other than you, me, and the Duke of E Residence. You cannot tell anyone else. In addition, you are not allowed to speak of this matter in the future. Even if you seek out our Lord Duke, he will never admit to it.
"Second, this tunnel can only be used once. Once it is used, the mechanism will be activated and the tunnel will immediately collapse. Your Highness will not be able to come here again. When you meet them, Your Highness must remember not to ask about their identities. This is a great taboo. Your Highness, if you agree to these conditions, I will take you down. "
The Duke of E Residence guard said. As he spoke, he gestured to the other two Ultimate Martial Army soldiers. A moment later, the two Ultimate Martial Army soldiers took out three torches from somewhere and quickly lit them with flint.
"Mm!"
Wang Chong said nothing, only firmly nodded.
The leading guard heaved a sigh of relief. He turned around and took the torch from one of the guards.
"The two of you stand guard here. Don't let anyone get close. King of Foreign Lands, please follow me! "
As he spoke, he swiftly entered the tunnel. A few moments later, the Duke of E Residence guard had vanished.
Without the slightest hesitation, Wang Chong moved like a gust of wind, brushing past the two Ultimate Martial Army soldiers as he followed them underground.
If it were anyone else, Wang Chong would never have followed them so unreservedly. Once the tunnel collapsed, there was a high chance that he would be trapped underground.
But this time was different. As long as the invitation card had that symbol, even if he had to climb a mountain of daggers or a sea of flames, Wang Chong would follow without hesitation. Wang Chong was confident that the people represented by that golden symbol would not have any intention of harming him.
Wang Chong quickly caught up to the Duke of E Residence guard.
Gusts of wind blew at Zhang Xuan's face as he descended the stairs. This underground passageway was much wider and cleaner than he had imagined. The tunnel twisted and turned, and gradually, not even Wang Chong could tell which way he was going.
After some time, just when the torch in the Duke of E Residence guard's hand was about to burn out, he finally stopped.
"Your Highness, we've arrived. Those people are waiting up ahead. I won't send Your Highness over! "
The Duke of E Residence guard suddenly stopped and pointed forward, a look of utmost respect on his face. From a certain perspective, it had already surpassed the realm of respect, reaching the level of reverence and worship.
But even so, Wang Chong did not find this strange. If it really was those people he was going to meet, it would not be excessive for them to show even the slightest bit of respect.
"Many thanks!"
Wang Chong nodded and looked in the direction the Duke of E Residence guard was pointing.
In the depths of the tunnel, he could faintly see a flicker of fire. Although Wang Chong did his best to remain calm, Wang Chong couldn't help but grow excited at this point. He could already smell a familiar scent in the air, a scent that he thought he had long since forgotten.
Wang Chong brushed past the Duke of E Residence guard, swiftly making his way toward the source of the fire. Wang Chong's pace was initially hurried, but gradually, when he was twenty to thirty steps away from the fire, Wang Chong's footsteps grew slower and slower.
Fear of approaching home!
On the outside, Wang Chong's heart had been filled with impatience for this reunion, but now that he was underground and he was getting closer and closer, Wang Chong couldn't help but feel anxious and slow.
Hiss!
Wang Chong took a deep breath, forcefully suppressed his emotions, and calmly walked forward.
Whoosh!
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