Chapter 1071: Entry

“I’ll sketch a drawing for you,” Lu Xuzhou said. “The inside of the mausoleum has a similar arrangement to the Imperial House. The golden bodies are placed in three corners, one in Chong Wen Hall, one in the coffin chamber and another in Jing Tian Pavilion.”

He entered the house to take out paper and ink. Soon after he was done grinding the inkstone, he started to draw on the paper.

Although Lu Xuzhou was suspicious of this middle-aged man, he fulfilled his side of the promise. The Titanium Sarira itself was a valuable treasure. He had to live up to his side of the bargain.

Moreover, Lu Xuzhou might live if he provided sufficient and accurate information. The middle-aged man may come back to bite him if the information was less than accurate.

Lu Xuzhou was ready to risk everything with his back up against the wall.

He quickly drew a map of the Imperial Mausoleum’s inner and outer layer and carefully explained to the middle-aged man before telling him about the location of traps.

It was heavily boobytrapped inside the mausoleum with overlaying formations. Failing to follow a route accurately would have a potential risk of stepping into a formation and falling into a trap.

Everyone who gained entry into the mausoleum had gone through strict training. Outsiders who barged in would die before Protectors got to them. The formation was enough to handle these invaders.

The middle-aged man nodded pensively.

Of course, Chu Li was disguised as the middle-aged man.

He had carefully observed the Protectors in Adjacent Town through his Omniscient Mirror, reading their inner thoughts to nitpick the ones who fit the right profile.

Chu Li excluded those lacking in order as even if he were to provide sufficient benefits, they would not speak the truth and probably double-cross him. He also excluded Protectors who were contented with their current wellbeing.

He finally broke it down to three and Lu Xuzhou was one of them. Lu Xuzhou had great character and was not engulfed by the darkness. He was tired of the Imperial Mausoleum, wanting to escape from it all. Without a misdeed to be found, Lu Xuzhou was most suited to make the deal with.

Not all things could be accomplished through interrogation. There was bound to be an oversight no matter how meticulous Chu Li’s planning was. Hence, he sought out a willing Protector to walk him through. These people were proficient in the way of Protectors, which was something Chu Li was lacking.

He listened intently to Lu Xuzhou’s explanation and felt strengthened at the fact that his efforts of bringing Lu Xuzhou to the Fu Dynasty and gifting him two Titanium Sarira beads came to fruition. One of the Sarira beads was used on Lu Xuzhou’s concubine to ensure safe-proof detection from divine powers.

Chu Li strolled back and forth with his arms behind his back and fell into deep thought.

He did not foresee that the masters inside the mausoleum would be this skillful and large in numbers. It was impossible to force his way in. Even if Chu Li did not force his way in, he was not confident in entering the mausoleum disguised as Lu Xuzhou.

He was sinking in despair at the mention of these masters.

It was impossible to defeat these mausoleum masters regardless of how high his cultivation level was. As divine powers could not be used, Chu Li’s chances of survival were lower depending only on his martial arts. Everything pointed to disaster if he were to be discovered.

Chu Li believed that seizing the Enlightened Master’s energy inside the mausoleum was more difficult by multiple folds compared to when he faced the entire Heavenly Demonic Sect. He never even experienced this sort of despair against Fu Qingya.

Lu Xuzhou gazed at his ashen face. It would be best if Chu Li backed down.

Chu Li took a deep breath. There was no pulling back at this point. He had to find the Enlightened Master’s energy if he wished to survive in the hands of the Emperor. However, judging by the looks of it, looking for the Enlightened Master’s energy was no easier than going against the Emperor.

“Is there a loophole to take advantage of?” Chu Li frowned. “The defense can’t be the same everywhere. Surely, it’s varying and has emphasis in certain places?”

“Of course.” Lu Xuzhou nodded. “The most important is the Retired Emperor. Most of the Protectors are with the Retired Emperor while the Defense can be a bit lax on the remaining former emperors. However, it’s still hard to draw close with the formation around.”

‘Formation…’ Chu Li frowned as he pondered.

Chu Li was an expert in formations but the Imperial Mausoleum’s formation was the work of several formation masters. He was unsure if it could be destroyed.

Lu Xuzhou said, “There are Protectors apart from the formation. In short, it’s flawless. No one but Enlightened Masters has a chance from entering!”

Chu Li slowly nodded. “Alright, I’ll enter first to take a look.”

“Are you really going to enter?” Lu Xuzhou fixated his gaze on him. “A piece of advice — forget it. Since the Imperial Mausoleum was established, none of the intruders have been able to get out of the mausoleum alive.”

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Chu Li smiled. “I won’t be content unless I try.”

“Sigh…” Lu Xuzhou sighed. “It’s a suicide attempt.”

“A glimpse of an Enlightened Master’s bearing is worth the death,” Chu Li said.

Lu Xuzhou gave a bitter smile. “An Enlightened Master isn’t as great as you think. Fine, I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

“Do you have any friends?” Chu Li asked.

Lu Xuzhou shook his head. “I don’t have any friends.”

“Great, I’ll use you as a disguise to enter,” Chu Li said. “You can find a place where no one will look for you to live in.”

“Thank you.” Lu Xuzhou gestured a fist salute.

Chu Li smiled. “I gave you the Sarira beads and in return, you came up with ideas. We don’t owe each other anything. There’s no need for pleasantries. Right, Brother Lu, you won’t be needing your waist tag. If you could hand it to me.”

“The waist tag alone isn’t enough.” Lu Xuzhou forked out two waist tags and handed them over. “Even with waist tags, there will be a careful inspection to prevent impersonation.”

Chu Li answered, “I have a way around it.”

“Great, take care then.” Lu Xuzhou motioned a fist salute.

Chu Li bided him in fist salute before leaping up the wall and disappearing out of sight.

Lu Xuzhou stood in the courtyard, staring at the direction Chu Li disappeared. He sighed.

Yet another pursuer of Enlightened Master’s Boundary. It was a pity he was about to lose his life over it. He really did not understand what good there was in seeking the Enlightened Master’s Boundary. Try as one might, there was no way one could become an Enlightened Master.

Lu Xuzhou reflected whether to move. Should he remain here or leave?

After giving it much thought, he decided to move. The earlier man may be interrogated if he were to be captured. The man would not be able to hold his tongue under the influence of divine power. Lu Xuzhou might be captured as well if the man were to reveal his whereabouts then.

He immediately went to wake his concubine up. The duo left in a hurry to reside in another city.

…

Chu Li quickly altered his appearance when he returned to Adjacent Town. He transformed into an exact copy of Lu Xuzhou and lived in Lu Xuzhou’s residence.

It was dawn when he took strides out of the residence to a compound towards the west.

A few Protectors headed towards the entrance in pairs of twos and threes. Some greeted at the sight of Lu Xuzhou while others walked along ignoring him.

Lu Xuzhou usually kept to himself and found it tedious to greet anyone. This saved Chu Li the trouble.

He followed the crowd in and flashed his waist tag. There were two elders standing on both sides of a pedestal, examining waist tags.

Passing the inspection with ease, he went through the red gate.

After the gate was a vast compound that had a main hall. In front of the main hall was a martial arts field.

Protectors gathered together in twos and threes for a conversation on the martial arts field.

He joined one of the groups, lending an ear without speaking.

His Omniscient Mirror became invalid the moment he entered the gate. Chu Li could use it on himself but not beyond that. It seemed the formation was in effect upon entry. Apart from the formation, there was also the treasure that was suppressing divine powers.

Without the Omniscient Mirror, it posed as a challenge for him to observe the formation. He had to take his time in studying it. Hence, he pretended to listen to conversations as he carefully looked around.