A thousand enlightenments in one night, starting from being a menial apprentice.

Chapter 447: Autumn Hunting and Sacrifice to Heaven
Late at night, Gu Daoling sat cross-legged on the observatory, gazing at the starry sky.

The stars and the moon were low in the sky, and his eyes were clear.

The light of the stars and the moon seemed to be interweaving in the depths of his eyes...

"what!"

Gu Daoling, who was comprehending the orbits of stars and the moon, suddenly sensed a strange fluctuation of the power of laws appearing in the sky, more than 20 miles east of Shenyun City.

"That is……"

Only the strong ones in the Dongming Realm can comprehend and master the power of laws. Even in the Taiyi Sect, such strong ones are elders and seniors and rarely appear in the secular world.

Even if he showed up, what kind of thing could be worthy of a strong man in the Cavernous Realm taking action?

Moreover, although the wave from the Ancient Daoling Temple that rushed straight into the sky was obviously the aftermath, a glimpse of the whole picture shows that the power of the law located more than 20 miles east of the city has probably reached its full level.

Gu Daoling's figure suddenly rose up as if riding the wind, and flew into the sky. Facing the cold light of the stars and the moon, he turned into a ray of black light and shot towards the east of Shenyun Mansion.

The distance of more than 20 miles was just a flash for Gu Daoling!

A black light, like a meteor, streaked across the sky and hovered above the ten-zhang-square desert in the oasis.

Gu Daoling hovered high in the sky, looking at the strange desert in the wilderness below with the light of stars and moon. He stared at a striking point in the center of the desert.

The point seen from the sky is a small, intact circular piece of grass.

Gu Daoling's figure flashed, and the next moment he was hovering next to the round grass.

He stared at the edge of the round grass, his eyes moving slightly.

“It’s the dew-drinking cicada!”

A hint of doubt flashed across Gu Daoling's eyes. He scanned the area with his spiritual sense, but found that there was no trace of human beings around this empty wilderness.

The Dew Drinking Cicada is considered a treasure even in Taiyi Sect. Who on earth used the Dew Drinking Cicada here?

Moreover, looking at the aftermath left here, it is obvious that there is only one force of law.

"Could it be that someone encountered an attack from a Yuanqi Realm or Qixi Realm expert, and at the critical moment of life and death, used the Dew Drinking Cicada to save his life?"

However, now that the Dew Drinking Cicada has emerged, no matter if they are strong men in the Yuan Qi Realm or the Qi Cyclone Realm, they will be turned into dust in an instant and become nothing more than a scum...

Gu Daoling suddenly turned his head and looked in the direction of the Shenyun Palace.

"Could it be that someone in Shenyun Mansion actually possesses a treasure as valuable as the Dew Drinking Cicada?"

Gu Daoling's eyes were cold.

"What nonsense!"

"This dew-drinking cicada is the sect's last resort to protect the future prodigies of Taiyi Sect. Even among the elders in the Council of Elders, only three or four can obtain the cicada body from the ancestor, and they have to refine the dew of the law to feed the cicada."

"For something like this, those secular bloodlines of Shenyun Mansion are nothing but maggots struggling in the world of fame and fortune. How can they be worthy of possessing it?"

The reason why Gu Daoling stayed alone in the Observatory of Shenyun Mansion was that he couldn't stand some of the corrupt things in the sect. He was also upright by nature and couldn't suppress his anger, so he simply hid away, thinking out of sight, out of mind.

At this time, he thought that the Dew-Drinking Cicada was an elder in the sect, who gave it away out of pity for the younger generation of secular blood.

In Gu Daoling's view, this was a misuse of public resources for personal gain.

In Shenyun Mansion, Zhu Zhengfu's residence, a dark shadow flashed by like a ghost, as if silently.

It was Duan Rong who rushed back from outside the city.

His figure stopped beside the side window of the villa, and his spiritual sense enveloped the surroundings of the villa. The patrolling soldiers here would not approach. On the large bluestone in the front yard, Qiu Luan was lying on the large bluestone, and seemed to be asleep.

Duan Rong opened the window gently, fearing that the noise would disturb Qiu Luan who was taking a nap in the front yard.

He slid into the window like a big fallen leaf, floated to the ground silently, and the window behind him closed gently.

Only then did Duan Rong exhale a breath in the darkness and wipe the sweat from his forehead.

In the darkness, there was dead silence, but Ruyi's weak breathing could be clearly heard.

Duan Rong took off his clothes, shoes and socks, put them back to their original places, and lay back on the bed.

The Dew Drinking Cicada can only be used three times in total!

Such a valuable treasure! He had just wasted it for no reason in the wilds of the eastern suburbs!
If I say it doesn't hurt, that would be a lie!

It was because he had just personally experienced that kind of thrilling power that Duan Rong knew better what this Dew-Drinking Cicada was.
It is no exaggeration to say that it is a life-saving thing against all odds.

Even though it was painful, Duan Rong asked himself that it was worth it this time.

He had to confirm one thing. That was Zhu He really wanted to save his life, and not just use him as a pawn.

This matter is very important to him!

Whether it was Zhu He giving him the Dew-Drinking Cicada, or suddenly appointing him as a general and asking him to come to Shenyun Mansion to kill Li Shensi, it was all a bit weird and unreasonable.

It is especially strange that Zhu He gave up Wu Shidao, who seemed more suitable, and chose his general when there was a more suitable candidate.

Furthermore, Zhu He also specifically instructed him to contact Zhu Zhengfu and others in order to deliberately expose him.

People outside the situation may not feel deeply about these things, but Duan Rong, who is in the situation, feels deeply. This is obviously a situation. Moreover, it is closely related to him.

Although he couldn't see the whole picture of the game clearly, it was obvious that Zhu He was using him as a chess piece in a game with someone else.

Therefore, Duan Rong must make sure whether Zhu He really wants to protect him in this chess game, or let him live or die, or even use him as bait.

If it is the latter, he must make plans early and find a way to escape.

But now, it has been proven that although Zhu He regards him as his son, he really wants to protect him.

With the power of the Dew Drinking Cicada, he could protect himself even from a blow from a Cave Nether Realm expert. But if it was someone below the Cave Nether Realm, he would probably be crushed to dust on the spot with just a low cry of the cicada.

Although he had wasted one of the three opportunities to use the Dew Drinking Cicada tonight, he was sure that Zhu He was not using him as a discarded pawn. That was worth it!
The dew-drinking cicada could indeed save him in times of crisis.

So, he decided to follow Zhu He's chess game.

He also wanted to see what the whole picture of Zhu He's chess game was like, and who was the person playing against him?

As for the next few moves, it is to kill Li Shensi.

As far as these few moves are concerned, with Duan Rong's current vision, he still cannot see clearly Zhu He's true intentions.

Duan Rong found it difficult to understand why he was deliberately allowed to expose this point.

Now that he is sure that Zhu He has no intention of harming him, he will have to make the next few moves according to Zhu He's wishes and wait and see.

What he had to think about now was how to complete the two tasks that Zhu He had assigned to him on Yunfu Peak.

One is to kill Li Shensi without anyone noticing, and the other is to prevent the public opinion from fermenting into a political whirlpool...

During the day today, Duan Rong had basically read through all the information about Li Shensi and some of his possible plans in the near future.

At this moment, Duan Rong was lying on the bed, his hands behind his head, thinking a lot. Those streams of information were quickly intertwined and separated in his mind...

About half an hour later, he suddenly sat up from the bed, his eyes flickering in the darkness, and muttered to himself: "Autumn Hunting and Heaven Sacrifice..."

Just now, in the scene of the autumn hunting and offering sacrifice to the sky, a vague idea flashed through his mind, and Duan Rong keenly realized that the idea was the answer he was looking for.

The so-called autumn hunting and heaven sacrifice is an important annual ceremonial event in Shenyun Mansion.

The Temple of Heaven and the hunting grounds are both located on Wuji Mountain in the southern suburbs of Shenyun Prefecture.

In fact, Wuji Mountain is not a very high mountain, let alone a steep one. However, it is the highest mountain around Shenyun Mansion.

Therefore, the annual ceremony of offering sacrifices to the heaven was held on the top of this mountain. Moreover, this mountain is located in the south, which is the location for offering sacrifices to the South Gate of Heaven.

On the top of the mountain, a grand Temple of Heaven was built.

From the middle of the mountain to the top, after autumn, it is closed as a hunting ground for offering sacrifices to the heavens.

Farmers and hunters nearby are no longer allowed to enter Wuji Mountain.

After the prey is fattened, a grand ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven is held on three selected auspicious days. Citizens from all over the city will participate, and offer sacrifices together with the officials around the Temple of Heaven.

And the offerings are the prey from the hunting grounds.

After the ceremony, officials would cut up the sacrificial prey and distribute it to the surrounding people.

Therefore, the autumn hunting and offering sacrifices to the heavens have always been a celebration for the people to enjoy and cheer for. Everyone is proud to share the sacrificial prey, and it is said that eating it can ensure safety and keep away diseases and epidemics.

Such a grand ceremony, and Li Shensi has just been in office for two months, and he is also the Shangshu Ling among the Four Ministers, so he will definitely participate.

Just now, in this scenario, Duan Rong suddenly thought of a method...

The next morning, Duan Rong woke up slowly to the sound of birds chirping. He actually didn't sleep for very long last night, but seeing that it was already bright outside, he still struggled to get up.

He has something to do today and can't sleep any longer.

As soon as there was a movement from Duan Rong's side, Ruyi immediately walked in with shoes, socks and clothes.

She held the clothes in one hand and Duan Rong's shoes in the other.

Ruyi frowned. She clearly saw a lot of new dead grass on the soles of the two shoes. She was sure that there was no such thing when he put them there last night.

"Could it be that... the master went out last night..."

At this time, Ruyi had already walked up to Duan Rong. Seeing Duan Rong's tired face, she was more certain of her thoughts. However, she still helped Duan Rong change clothes and wash up calmly.

Duan Rong had just finished his breakfast, put down his bowl and rinsed his mouth with a cup of tea when Zhu Zhengfu and Zhu Cheng came to visit him.

As they entered the room, they knelt down to greet each other. Duan Rong made way for them, and then they both sat down. Ruyi served them tea and then left.

Duan Rong looked at the faces of the two men. They were obviously a little haggard, especially Zhu Cheng, whose eyes were red and bloodshot. Duan Rong guessed that he must have not slept all night.

Zhu Cheng placed the knife in his hand on the table in front of him.

That was exactly the Mo Dao that Zhu Zhengfu asked his steward Zhu Yu to hand over to him last night.

Zhu Cheng looked at Duan Rong cautiously and said, "My Lord, I have checked this knife and it is indeed from the Dali Temple."

Duan Rong remained silent. He was not surprised by this answer.

If it wasn't from the Dali Temple, why would the waiter bring it? If it was a forged Mo Dao, you would know it's wrong once you check the serial number.

Seeing Duan Rong remained silent, Zhu Zhengfu hesitated for a moment before asking, "Whose sword is this?"

Since Zhu Cheng has already confirmed that the knife came from the Dali Temple, he must have found out who the knife belongs to.

Zhu Cheng lowered his eyes slightly and said, "This knife is a knife for the dead."

"Dead man's knife?"

Duan Rong and Zhu Zhengfu were both slightly shocked when they heard this.

Zhu Cheng continued, "To be more precise, this knife is a piece of evidence."

"exhibit?"

"Yes." Zhu Cheng said, "This is a case from two years ago. According to the Dali Temple's practice, if a case is closed, the evidence will be moved out of the evidence room and transferred to the warehouse one year after the trial. Otherwise, the evidence room will be full after so many years."

Zhu Zhengfu frowned, looked at Zhu Cheng and asked, "Is the management in the warehouse strict?"

Zhu Cheng said: "It's not too strict, but anyone who can enter the warehouse must be from the Dali Temple."

Zhu Zhengfu said, "That is to say, the person who came to visit the other courtyard last night is most likely someone from the Dali Temple?"

Zhu Cheng said: "That's right."

Duan Rong sat there, smacking his lips in amazement.

It seems that the waiter's plan was quite thorough. If he had not used his spiritual sense to see his face last night, even he would have believed that the person who came to visit at night must be someone from the Dali Temple.

Duan Rong was thinking this when his eyes suddenly froze.

He thought of one thing. Just as Zhu Cheng said, the people who could enter the warehouse must be from the Dali Temple. Then who was it that gave the sword to the waiter in Taihe Tower?

Duan Rong suddenly thought of someone.

Just over half a year ago, he entered the Shenyun Mansion to assist in investigating the mysterious death of Shangshu Ling Zhu Shizhong.

Duan Rong knew that the clerk with pockmarks on his face in front of the Dali Temple was a spy lurking in the Dali Temple, and he obviously belonged to the side of Lu Zhongtang and Ge Rushong.

Now it seems very likely that this person was the one who stole the Mo Dao from the warehouse of the Dali Temple, handed it to the waiter of the Taihe Tower, and asked him to come for a night investigation with the knife.

Leaving this knife behind would disrupt their vision and thinking.

Duan Rong suddenly said in a deep voice: "Let's put aside the matter of Mo Dao for now! Let's talk about Li Shensi first." As he spoke, he looked at Zhu Cheng and asked: "Did Lord Zhu check those questions yesterday in detail after he returned?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Cheng immediately pulled out a stack of documents from his sleeve, stepped forward, and respectfully presented them to the table in front of Duan Rong, saying, "I have checked and supplemented all the questions from yesterday. After thinking about it yesterday, I have also made up for a few omissions and attached them to the end. Please have a look, Your Excellency."

"Very good!" Duan Rong looked at Zhu Cheng with appreciation after hearing this. Often, if you can have a cautious and steady assistant, you can often get twice the result with half the effort and save a lot of trouble.

He picked up the stack of documents and scanned them quickly.

Duan Rong has already achieved the twelfth level of the Taizang Sutra, and his mental strength has changed a lot. Both his memory and concentration have improved greatly, far exceeding that of ordinary people.

It was the same when he read the information. He was able to focus his mind and soul into it, reading ten lines at a glance and memorizing them by heart.

After reading it, Duan Rong closed the stack of supplementary information. There were still a few key points in this stack of information.

After Duan Fusion read the information, he looked up at Zhu Zhengfu and Zhu Cheng and said in a deep voice, "My Lords, I would like to know more about the Autumn Hunting Heavenly Sacrifice Ceremony in five days. You have been in the Central Government for a long time and must know a lot about this ceremony. Please feel free to teach me."

"Autumn Hunting Heavenly Sacrifice Ceremony?!"

When Zhu Zhengfu and Zhu Cheng heard Duan Rong suddenly ask about this, they looked at each other in surprise.

(End of this chapter)