Deep into the night, the capital fell silent.
In the absence of his little sister, Wang Chong sat cross-legged in the study, breathing in and out. Strand after strand of Origin Energy immediately gathered and flowed into Wang Chong's body.
Peng! After an unknown period of time, Wang Chong's body suddenly jolted, as if something had opened up. Wang Chong's aura abruptly changed, as if he had grown stronger.
"Chi!"
Intrigued, Wang Chong opened his eyes and raised his finger. Chi! In the next instant, a piercing cold gleam shot out from the tip of his finger.
This cold gleam was only half a chi long, but it exuded an incomparably sharp aura.
"Opening the Guanyuan acupoint can indeed allow one to release sword qi and Sword Qi of Massacre!"
Wang Chong thought as he stared at the sword qi at the tip of his finger.
Cultivators below Origin Energy Tier 9 were unable to release their inner qi. However, this wasn't absolute. Wang Chong knew of a small trick. By opening a hidden 'Guanyuan acupoint', he would be able to release his inner qi and Origin Energy.
However, there was a flaw in this method. Only the few meridians near the Guanyuan acupoint could release Origin Energy.
At this moment, Wang Chong could only release sword qi through his index and middle fingers.
This referred to Sword Qi. Sometimes, it could display unexpected effects.
Ssss!
Suddenly, faint footsteps sounded from outside. They were as light as a cat's, and if one didn't pay attention, it would be impossible to tell them apart.
"Miyasame, come in!"
Wang Chong retracted his finger, dispelled the sword qi at the tip of his finger, and turned his gaze to the door.
Jiya, the door was pushed open, and a masked figure dressed in black walked in. It was Miyasame Ayaka.
"Gongzi, I've found their residence!"
Miyasame Ayaka dived straight into the topic after entering the room.
Wang Chong's shoulders trembled slightly, and he abruptly raised his head to look at Miyasame Ayaka.
…
To the southeast of the capital, near the edge of the city walls, a solitary courtyard quietly stood amidst the lush forest.
In the capital, foreign merchants would often purchase real estate here, and this sort of isolated, single-door courtyard was extremely common in the capital.
"Is this the place you've been investigating?"
In the darkness, Wang Chong said while hiding in the crown of a camphor tree. From his corner, he could see a few lights in the courtyard. He could vaguely see the silhouettes of people coming and going, but it seemed that there weren't many of them.
However, he could still see that the people in the courtyard were very vigilant. There were many open and hidden sentries. Wang Chong couldn't be more familiar with this.
The first thing a scout in the army had to do when investigating a military situation was to eliminate the enemy's open and hidden sentries.
"En. When we followed those people, this was the first stronghold we found. "
Miyasame Ayaka said. Only her eyes were exposed, and the rest of her face was covered by a veil, making it impossible to see her expression.
"This place doesn't look like a hideout. Where are the others?"
Wang Chong turned around and asked with a slight frown.
"There's no news yet. It's difficult to follow those people. Furthermore, most of them haven't left yet. "
Miyasame Ayaka lowered her voice and said with a troubled expression.
Following those Goguryeons was far more difficult than she had imagined. Those who dared to disguise themselves as Han were all formidable experts.
They were extremely familiar with the Tang dynasty.
Furthermore, after so many years, they had already formed a complete system.
The Goguryeons opened casinos, taverns, and taverns in the west of the city, and the Goguryeon assassins (or rather, soldiers) disguised themselves as wealthy merchants, bodyguards, and travelers of the Central Plains to stay in the taverns.
When Miyasame Ayaka noticed this, she was astonished.
The craftiness of the Goguryeons was far greater than she had imagined!
— — Everyone only paid attention to the casinos, restaurants, and inns, as well as the Goguryeons working in them. How many people would notice the Han customers and travelers staying in the lodgings of the inn?
Without a doubt, the Goguryeons had made use of this loophole in their thinking.
Upon understanding this point, Miyasame Ayaka finally understood why the royal court of the Tang dynasty was unable to find anything wrong with them.
Turning her gaze to Wang Chong, Miyasame Ayaka was even more astonished.
It was as if Wang Chong had known this answer from the start. Recalling the matter regarding the Spectre Steps, Miyasame Ayaka felt even more uneasy about it.
If not for Wang Chong's age, she would have worshipped him as a god.
"Have you checked the interior?"
Wang Chong asked.
"Un. There are roughly thirty people inside. The others are fine, but there's a particularly formidable expert in there. I dare not approach him. "
Miyasame Ayaka said with fear in her eyes.
"More than thirty people?"
Wang Chong frowned in contemplation. Sou! In the next instant, Wang Chong slid down the tree and disappeared without a trace.
"Gongzi …"
Before Miyasame Ayaka could react, she realized that Wang Chong was nowhere to be seen. Gritting her teeth, Miyasame Ayaka slid down the tree and hurriedly chased after him.
Wang Chong glanced around the perimeter of the courtyard, then carefully avoided the open and hidden sentries, circling around them.
Chi liu, Wang Chong climbed up the tree like a civet cat, climbed up the wall, and with a flip, he easily entered the courtyard. His movements were so agile that even Miyasame Ayaka was astonished.
"I'm here!"
Wang Chong landed lightly on the ground. "There are two at the corridor, two in the bushes, two on the tree, and three in the open. There are a total of eight patrolling guards. "
The courtyard was much larger than it appeared from the outside, and there were eight Goguryeon warriors patrolling the area, surveying the surroundings warily.
However, due to the size of the courtyard, it wasn't too difficult for Wang Chong to sneak in.
"Gongzi."
A gust of wind blew, and a familiar voice carrying a faint aroma sounded from behind. Miyasame Ayaka followed behind and crouched in the bushes beside Wang Chong.
"Gongzi, it's too dangerous here. I suggest that you leave immediately."
Miyasame Ayaka said worriedly.
She was an assassin, and she possessed the Spectre Steps, so it was easy for her to get around them. However, Wang Chong wasn't one of them. There were many Goguryeon experts here, and even she didn't dare to make a move recklessly, needless to say, Wang Chong.
If he were to be discovered and surrounded, he would be doomed.
"Don't worry, it's very safe here!"
Wang Chong faintly smiled.
It was true that these people were wary, but Miyasame Ayaka had underestimated his capabilities. If not for the fact that he had a weakness, Wang Chong wouldn't have dared to barge in alone.
Sou sou sou, Wang Chong scanned the surroundings, and before Miyasame Ayaka could react, Wang Chong had already gone around the periphery and sneaked in.
Unlike Miyasame Ayaka, Wang Chong's speed wasn't too fast. He made use of the shadows, the bushes, the blind spots of the Goguryeon sentries, and the time difference to sneak in.
Watching from behind, Miyasame Ayaka couldn't react for a long time.
Roughly seven to eight breaths later, Wang Chong successfully snuck into the depths of the courtyard and hid behind a fallen fake mountain.
— — The Goguryeons clearly didn't understand the art of fake mountains in the Central Plains. As such, the fake mountains in the courtyard were in the way, so they were pushed down directly. This made things easier for Wang Chong.
Wang Chong's sharp gaze swept across the courtyard. Even though it looked ordinary, Wang Chong noticed many obscure symbols in the courtyard.
On the pillar of the corridor, there was the image of a red flame, and on the paper window, there was the silhouette of a red boy.
And on the door of the opposite room, Wang Chong saw the symbol of an arrow cluster and quiver.
This is a temporary base of the Goguryeons, and its level isn't high. The person stationed here shouldn't be above True Martial Tier 5.
Wang Chong thought. He had come into contact with the Goguryeons and captured a few assassins before, so he knew some of their customs.
The flame represented the sun, and it was usually imprinted on the corridor. This way, it wouldn't raise any suspicions. On the other hand, the red boy on the paper window represented the Three-legged Crow.
The Goguryeons believed that the Three-legged Crow could be transformed into a red boy.
As the Three-legged Crow was too conspicuous in the Central Plains, and it would be weird if someone noticed it. Thus, it was much better to change it to a red boy.
Other than that, the arrow cluster and quiver on the door represented the level of the base. The more arrows in the quiver, the higher the level. But no matter how high the level was, it wouldn't exceed nine arrows.
Other than that, the arrow cluster also represented another meaning:
There was a master archer here, or more accurately, the Goguryeon's' Condor Shooters'!
The Goguryeon's Condor Shooters were even more formidable than the master archers of the Turks. Any Goguryeon gathering point or base with a Condor Slayer was equivalent to having a mobile fort.
No matter how many people there were in the encirclement, with forty to fifty arrows per arrow, they would surely suffer heavy casualties. At this point, Wang Chong couldn't help but rejoice.
Miyasame Ayaka didn't understand the meaning behind these words. It was fortunate that he had made a trip here to take a look. Otherwise, if he were to call for reinforcements to surround the base without any preparation, he would surely suffer heavy casualties. In the end, he might even allow them to escape.
"These Goguryeons sure are fearless. To think that they would even send their Condor Shooters here. They're treating this place as their own military base. "
Wang Chong was infuriated.
In the Central Plains, be it Ouzan, Mengshe Zhao, Abbasid Caliphate, Charax Spasinu, or the Turks, they all had their own spies. But the Goguryeons were the most thorough of them all.
The Goguryeon warriors were scattered all over the Central Plains like a spider web, and they had already formed a massive power within the framework of the Tang dynasty.
These Goguryeon warriors weren't a group of vagrants. Rather, they had received direct support from the Goguryeon empire. Even an esteemed existence like the Condor Shooters was sent to the Central Plains. From this, it was clear how deeply the Goguryeons had infiltrated the Central Plains.
"Looks like I have to find a way to eradicate them!"
Wang Chong thought.
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