Chapter 528
Chapter 528
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 528
>Chapter Title: Benevolent Prince's Mansion
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When Li Huowang took the painting from the tray, he discovered that it was actually a very detailed map of a compound.
The layout and purpose of every single room were marked clearly, and below it, in tiny characters, were three words inked in red: Benevolent Prince's Mansion.
“Benevolent Prince's Mansion?”
Li Huowang, brows furrowed tightly, looked up at Ji Lin.
“The Benevolent Prince is my second brother. Tread carefully. Rumors in the streets say that among his attendants are plenty of shady evil cultivators. The evil cultivators who killed my mother and imperial sister back then were his attendants.”
Hearing this, Li Huowang instantly understood what he needed to do next. Without a word, he performed a daoist salute toward Ji Lin and turned to leave with the map.
“Er Jiu, do a good job! As long as you help me ascend the throne, I swear I won't let you down!”
Though the capital was vast, finding the Benevolent Prince's Mansion was still quite easy.
“The prince's mansion isn't built on his fiefdom but right in the capital instead. That's truly strange.”
Kneeling on one knee atop a roof eave, Li Huowang silently gazed at the enormous plaque in the distance.
Suddenly, Li Huowang muttered to himself again.
“Yeah, that's right. Perhaps from the very start, the imperial family resolved to raise gu.”
As Li Huowang spoke, the shadow of his colored body slowly sank into the tiles, while his invisible body began stealthily making its way toward the Benevolent Prince's Mansion.
The towering high walls posed no obstacle at all to Li Huowang at this moment. Li Age's tentacles effortlessly vaulted over the top.
Li Huowang sensed the several hidden sentries behind the wall right away, but he didn't slip away quietly. Instead, he approached one of them.
After the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, Li Huowang stood atop a roof beam, looking down at the eunuch lying motionless by the window below.
This man was peering unblinkingly through a small hole in the window at the outside. This guy was one of the Benevolent Prince's Mansion's hidden sentries.
“Just test it on him.”
Li Huowang said this in his mind to Zhuge Yuan as he reached out and gripped the hilt of the spine sword.
“Slash!”
Li Huowang atop the beam swung forcefully downward. A silent slash of Da Qi's history swept toward the man below.
But this time, that strand of history didn't chop the man into three segments like usual. Instead, it directly enveloped his entire body.
“Wait, it didn't cover him completely. Half of this man's palm is still in Da Liang.”
“Brother Li, swing once more. See if that man is still alive in Da Qi.”
The composure of the past had vanished from his face. At this moment, Zhuge Yuan looked extremely grave.
After all, this was crucial to whether Li Huowang could counter the dice.
“Li Age, I'll swing the sword again shortly. Remember to stretch your eyeball in to take a look. And make sure to pull it out ahead of time—don't leave it stuck inside.”
“Dad, I got it. Don't worry.”
After carefully instructing Li Age, Li Huowang gripped the spine sword tightly once more and swung hard. The instant that invisible rift between Da Qi and Da Liang appeared, a black shadow burst forth from Li Huowang's body, streaking inside with afterimages.
Just before that rift vanished, the tentacle of Li Age's wrapped around the eyeball finally pulled free.
“Dad, he's there. He's still alive. He's clutching his severed hand, opening the window, and shouting something at the outside.”
“Perfect!”
Li Huowang excitedly clenched his fist tight.
“This means this sword can not only kill people—it can also safely send them to Da Qi! Not just others. If used properly, it could even send me to Da Qi!”
“Now we can carry out Zhuge Yuan's plan!”
Li Huowang seemed eager to give it a go, itching to head to Da Qi right then and there, but he forcibly held himself back.
“We're already here. Deal with the Benevolent Prince first. Can't afford to delay either side, or even if we find the dice, without Ji Lin's help, we still won't be able to resolve them.”
Thinking this, Li Huowang sheathed the broad spine sword on his back and snuck onward along the beam.
With the map from Ji Lin, Li Huowang didn't get lost for a second in this labyrinth of a mansion. He headed straight for the Benevolent Prince's sleeping palace.
Yet when Li Huowang arrived, he found the place empty. The Benevolent Prince wasn't there.
“Not sleeping in the dead of night—where could this guy have gone?”
Li Huowang unfolded the map again, studied it carefully for a bit, then put it away and felt his way eastward.
He searched several places in succession, finding nothing, but in the end, he did locate him—by following the sound of opera singing.
On the grand stage festooned with lanterns, all sorts of operas cycled through in performance. Each one featured over a hundred actors, and any singled out could headline on their own outside. This level was far superior to Lv Zhuangyuan's troupe by an unknown margin.
And with so many opera troupes coming and going, it was all for the sake of one man seated below.
For the first time, Li Huowang laid eyes on the Benevolent Prince's face. He was a middle-aged man with a deathly pallor and whitish lips. Were it not for the dragon-embroidered robe on his body, Li Huowang truly wouldn't have pegged him as a contender for the throne against Ji Lin.
At this moment, he lay with eyes half-closed atop a plump woman. The sharp nail guards of gold and jade on three of his fingers tapped rhythmically on his knee to the tempo of the opera music.
Perched on a tree branch, Li Huowang shifted his gaze from the prince's face and scanned the people around him.
Li Huowang had no idea what these so-called evil cultivator attendants were supposed to look like. For now, judging purely by appearances, not a single one resembled an evil cultivator.
“Strike directly here? No good. Too wide open, and with so many people. If the Benevolent Prince's attendants are hiding among them, it'd be far too easy for them to ambush me.”
“And I can't afford to eat the same loss twice. Maybe this Benevolent Prince is just like that Eldest Princess, playing the pig to devour the tiger.”
With these thoughts, Li Huowang silently crouched there, awaiting his chance.
Just like that, two hours passed. It reached the second watch of the night. Li Huowang was starting to think the Benevolent Prince meant to watch opera all night when the troupe onstage finally paused.
A lavish twelve-man palanquin was hoisted up. The Benevolent Prince set off for the sleeping palace, trailed by a large retinue of eunuchs.
Li Huowang shadowed the palanquin the entire way, yet still spotted nothing out of the ordinary.
Li Huowang refused to believe that someone bold enough to seize the throne lacked any defenses—especially after he'd killed the Empress Dowager and the Eldest Princess. He instantly sharpened his focus to the maximum.
As the Benevolent Prince entered the sleeping palace, the large crowd outside gradually dispersed.
Sensing his chance, Li Huowang cautiously slipped inside.
To Li Huowang's surprise, even within this sleeping palace meant for rest, the sound of opera singing hadn't ceased.
Following the sound, Li Huowang found the Benevolent Prince lying sideways on the bed. Standing before his bed was a woman currently singing opera.
Judging by the makeup on her face, this woman was a huadan.
Yet though this huadan's face was painted with full opera makeup, her body was stark naked.
(End of chapter)