Imperial Cultivation

Chapter 191: Chapter 189 Flaws

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”Your Highness, the twelfth Prince of Da Lie showed no issues,” Ma Tianhe remarked solemnly. ”Whether it be his appearance or martial arts, even his close aides have been investigated without any problems.”

”No issues...” Chu Zhiyuan mused.

Previously, he had sensed something amiss due to hostility, and then he noticed the absence of royal aura around him.

Now knowing Da Lie had issues, hostility felt normal.

The only reason was the royal aura.

After meeting Li Hongzhao, he was even more certain that there was a problem with this twelfth Prince. The royal aura is an elusive thing, but it does exist.

If someone lacks the royal aura, they likely aren’t members of the imperial family.

So why didn’t the Inspection Department discover it?

Da Jing may not prioritize Da Lie, but the Inspection Department still has personnel over there.

The methods of the Inspection Department are quite formidable.

”Your Highness...” Ma Tianhe hesitated and said softly, ”Unless he used top-level disguise and bone shrinking techniques, it’s hard to deceive so many people.”

”If he had such disguise and bone shrinking techniques,” Chu Zhiyuan said, ”coupled with the protection from the twelfth Prince’s aides, could he pull it off?”

”...That could indeed be possible,” Ma Tianhe nodded. ”If they went to such lengths, it truly could be indistinguishable from the real thing.”

”Does Da Meng have such secret techniques?”

”In Da Meng’s martial arts... as far as this humble one knows, Da Meng has quite a few disguise techniques. The topmost is the Great Formless Technique of the Wuxiang Sect, known for its lifelike illusions... but it’s too difficult to cultivate and rarely mastered.”

”Wuxiang Sect, one of Da Meng’s Four Great Sects,” Chu Zhiyuan nodded, ”How can we determine he’s a disciple of the Wuxiang Sect? There must be some flaw, right?”

He knew the Wuxiang Sect, one of Da Meng’s Four Great Sects, standing alongside Phoenix Sword Sect, Praying Spirit Sect, and Golden Saber Sect.

Flawless, flawless; if not heavenly, then it cannot be flawless.

No matter how great the disguise, it remains fake; there must be flaws.

The truly skilled disguise techniques just conceal these flaws so outsiders cannot see them.

”With the Wuxiang Sect, both appearance and aura, even inner strength can be mimicked, making it deceptively real, seemingly without flaws.”

”None?”

”This humble one hasn’t heard of any.”

”Then how could the Wuxiang Sect still exist?” Chu Zhiyuan laughed. ”It would’ve been abolished long ago, right?”

”The core of the Wuxiang Sect is the Great Formless Technique, a astonishingly powerful force, making it one of Da Meng’s Four Great Sects, indestructible.”

Chu Zhiyuan chuckled dismissively.

”The Court also has many noble children training in the Wuxiang Sect,” Ma Tianhe said. ”The Four Great Sects of Da Meng are different from our Four Great Sects, more intertwined with the imperial family, perhaps for self-protection?”

Chu Zhiyuan said, ”It seems I must see that Ninth Prince once more.”

The Wuxiang Sect is merely one of the Four Great Sects, not the strongest.

The Great Formless Technique, if truly flawless, unless they vowed never to use it against the Court or the other two great sects, would have been targeted long ago.

Let’s ask Li Hongzhao about it.

Chu Zhiyuan inquired, ”Any signs of Da Lie invading our Da Jing?”

Ma Tianhe, with stern demeanor, said slowly, ”Your Highness, the situation indeed seems off. We hadn’t thought about it this way earlier.”

”Something’s not right?”

Ma Tianhe said, ”With Your Highness’s reminder, we noticed Da Lie acting strangely, rearranging their army... initially thought they were preparing for war with Da Guang Dynasty.”

Da Lie does have rivals.

The equally insular Da Guang Dynasty is their sworn enemy, a thousand-year adversary.

Numerous skirmishes mark their ongoing feud, yet neither triumphs over the other.

Their cordiality with Da Jing, their eagerness to please, isn’t aiming for any gain from Da Jing; their end goal is merely to prevent Da Jing from assisting the other side.

Da Jing sees them as outlying lands, abstaining from involvement, aiding neither side.

Chu Zhiyuan inquired, ”What about Da Guang Dynasty? We must guard against their taking advantage as well.”

”They’re also mobilizing armies, which made us think a war is imminent between the two... could they possibly be colluding? Seems unlikely.”

”Anything is possible,” Chu Zhiyuan remarked. ”There’s no harm in investigating thoroughly.”

”Yes!” Ma Tianhe nodded solemnly.

These were considerations he’d never even envisioned.

Chu Zhiyuan continued surveying the dossiers, Li Hongzhao’s and others, all busy with their travels.

Ma Tianhe quietly left and returned, reporting to Chu Zhiyuan that Li Hongzhao was currently at Leisure Cloud Tower listening to music.

Leisure Cloud Tower is renowned for its performances, inviting famed artists from Yujing and even worldwide to perform when they visit.

Chu Zhiyuan set the dossier aside and headed straight for Leisure Cloud Tower.

——

He had already spotted the elegant room on the third floor where Li Hongzhao sat, from which he could view the central open stage of the restaurant.

On the central open stage, several veiled young women played instruments, while two others, veiled in white, sang alternately, one low and melodious, the other high-pitched and intense.

The high and low, clear and hoarse voices complemented each other, accentuating each other’s unique qualities.

The contrasting yet harmonious tones left a lasting impression, evoking a feeling of lingering music.

Chu Zhiyuan, extremely attuned to sound, noted inwardly that in any trade, experts emerge.

These two were truly masters of their craft.

He seated himself at a table on the second floor, with Zou Fang beside him.

Guo Chi and his three companions took the neighboring table.

None of them knew what Chu Zhiyuan intended, and he offered no explanation, simply allowing Zou Fang to order food and drink.

The Sword Control Technique continued to circulate within him, relentlessly assaulting the bronze tower with no change in its form.

The bronze tower remained unharmed.

Disregarding the surge of despair within, he maintained the constant assault, testing the pace of his progress.

With his exceptional aptitude and the Sword Control Technique, a supreme technique of the world, he sought to gauge how long it would take to break through a layer of the bronze tower.

Over the last two days of cultivation, because the bronze tower showed no change, his Super Sense couldn’t estimate how long the breakthrough would take.

As the song ended, applause burst forth, nearly overturning the entire Leisure Cloud Tower.

Chu Zhiyuan joined in the applause.

The song was a truly magnificent performance.

The Super Sense could discern the two women’s faces beneath the white veils, beautiful, though not on par with Xiao Ruoling, yet rare in their own right.

Such beauty was concealed.

Was it to avoid trouble, or to focus attention on their voices rather than their looks?

Moreover, both women possessed extraordinary martial arts, with cultivation at the Innate Third Realm or so.

This was likely a unique inheritance. During their performance, their breath circulated, continually enhancing their cultivation.

Singing was a form of their cultivation practice.

Such cultivation methods opened Chu Zhiyuan’s eyes.

Li Hongzhao and Su Qiuyan sat at a table, admiring the performance on stage.

Su Qiuyan suddenly remarked, ”The Fourth Prince is here as well.”

Li Hongzhao glanced around below but didn’t spot him.

Su Qiuyan said, ”He seems to be on the second floor.”

”...Forget it, let’s pretend we didn’t see him,” Li Hongzhao said.

Su Qiuyan was quite surprised.

Li Hongzhao sheepishly said, ”I truly want to gouge out that guy’s eyes; more than Cheng Tianfeng’s, I want to take his!”

”He is indeed too perceptive.”

”One dares not say anything in his presence for fear of slipping up and revealing something.”

”Then perhaps it’s better not to meet,” Su Qiuyan suggested.

”...Still, let’s meet,” Li Hongzhao gritted her teeth, deciding, ”I refuse to accept defeat to him!”

Su Qiuyan glanced at her, nodding.

Li Hongzhao smiled, ”This guy is trouble. I need to understand him well and find his flaws!”

”Yes, find his flaws.” Su Qiuyan nodded.

Internally, she nodded approvingly.

This was Li Hongzhao, never bowing down, never despondent.

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