Brocade Robe Unparalleled

Chapter 127 Returning to the Xuanwu Department

Longya Fort.

The banquet hosted by the head of the family tonight has begun.

More than a hundred people who were invited took their seats according to their assigned positions.

Before the banquet began, a major piece of news broke, causing a huge uproar.

Of the six new recruits from the Dragon Cliff Army who were invited to a banquet by the patriarch this month, three were actually undercover agents from the Jingye Division and the Nanzhao Secret Service, and have now been secretly apprehended.

Throughout the entire banquet, the head of the Yang family never appeared.

The banquet was hosted by the Fifth Master of the Yang family, who was another fourth-rank master in the Yang family besides the head of the family.

During the meal, no one mentioned the undercover operation.

The Yang family only rewarded the other three new recruits of the Longya Army. Among them, the centurion named Chen Yu received an extremely generous reward, including a thousand taels of silver, a precious sword from the Jiuli tribe, and armor. Many centurions who had served the Yang family for several years did not receive such treatment.

The banquet tonight ended in an awkward atmosphere.

Only then did a figure slowly walk in from outside.

Everyone stood up, clasped their hands in greeting, and said, "Greetings, Patriarch!"

Yang Yingtian slowly walked to the head seat at the front and sat down, saying in a deep voice, "Bring him up."

The next moment, heavy footsteps sounded from outside the hall.

Six menacing Dragon Cliff soldiers dragged three figures to the center of the main hall.

The three men, dressed in prison clothes and shackles, their white uniforms stained red and torn into shreds, were dragged up on their knees, leaving a long trail of blood on the ground as they passed.

It's not hard to imagine what kind of torment these three were going through while everyone else was enjoying the fine wine and food.

Several Longya soldiers roughly forced the three men to kneel on the cold, smooth floor. The hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Yang Yingtian slowly rose to his feet, his voice resounding throughout the hall: "Today's banquet was originally intended to reward meritorious soldiers, but unexpectedly, two scoundrels from the Jingye Division and one from the Nanzhao Secret Service took advantage of the chaos in my Yang family to infiltrate the Longya Army, feigning meritorious service in order to spy on my Yang family's secrets... What do you all think, these three should be dealt with?"

The crowd fell silent for a moment, then someone shouted, "According to the rules of the Dragon Cliff Army, traitors should be executed!"

As soon as he finished speaking, others immediately echoed, "Such a traitor must be dealt with according to military regulations!"

Although the Longya Army was not a legitimate army, it dealt with traitors very strictly.

In fact, traitors have no place in any era or in any place.

Yang Yingtian nodded slightly, his tone icy: "Execute!"

Three Longya soldiers stepped forward in response, drew their long swords from their waists, and without the slightest hesitation, brought their swords down!
A cold light flashed inside the hall, and three heads were instantly separated from their bodies, rolling onto the smooth floor.

Blood splattered, and a stench of blood mixed with the fragrance of wine spread throughout the hall.

Those present were all elites of the Longya Army, and they were already used to such bloody scenes.

The maids responsible for serving food and pouring wine were pale-faced, but even though they were trembling with fear, they dared not make a sound.

Yang Yingtian looked at the bloody scene before him without a trace of emotion on his face, as if he had only swatted a few flies.

He sat down again, picked up the crystal-clear jade cup in front of him, took a small sip, and said calmly, "The traitor has been eliminated. Everyone, please continue drinking. Tonight, we will not leave until we are drunk."

Although he spoke gently, everyone understood the deeper meaning behind his words.

The public beheading was, in effect, a warning to them.

If they harbor any disloyalty, their fate will be the same as theirs.

The three bodies were quickly carried away.

The blood-stained ground was cleaned up by the Yang family servants immediately.

The floor was spotless, and the sounds of clinking glasses drifted from inside the hall, as if nothing had happened.

Lin Xuan picked up his wine glass and took a small sip.

Just now, two of his colleagues were beheaded in front of him.

He didn't know either of them, and didn't even know the name of one of them.

If he hadn't been immune to the Mirror of Inquiry and hadn't been a good actor, his fate would have been no different from theirs.

This is perhaps the fate of most undercover agents.

He initially chose to take on the Yang family's mission simply to clear his name as a spy for the Nanzhao Kingdom.

It wasn't until tonight that he truly realized just how brutal this mission was.

What happens next is never predictable.

One wrong step and you'll fall into an abyss.

He already had a thorough understanding of the nine passes of Longya Mountain, and even providing only the currently known information would be far more valuable than providing other intelligence.

After tonight, he must find a way to get out of there as soon as possible.

At this moment, a figure slowly walked up to Lin Xuan.

Lin Xuan quickly stood up, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "Greetings, Patriarch!"

Yang Yingtian smiled, his previous cold expression completely gone. He raised his glass and said, "You are a hero of the Longya Army. This glass is for you."

Lin Xuan raised his wine cup, bowing respectfully, "Thank you, Patriarch!"

Yang Yingtian patted him on the shoulder and said, "I hope you will forge ahead bravely in the future and make new contributions to the Yang family."

Lin Xuan sensed a trace of true energy and probed into his body.

Concealing one's cultivation level is a very simple Jiuli secret technique.

The true energy within his body has always remained at the seventh rank.

At the same time, from another direction, Lin Xuan sensed a powerful mental force sweeping over him.

It seems that even after passing the Heart-Searching Mirror, they still do not fully trust him.

This spiritual power is only at the peak of the fifth rank, so it's naturally impossible to test his spiritual power.

He has now mastered all mental power and wields it with ease.

He will not be exposed unless he encounters a high-ranking mage.

Lin Xuan drank the wine in his cup in one gulp, and Yang Yingtian went to encourage the next person.

The deaths of the three undercover agents were just a minor incident at tonight's banquet.

After the banquet, Lin Xuan, carrying the rewards, went down the mountain with Commander Wang.

There were no tasks for the next few days.

Commander Wang specially gave him three days off.

The life inside Qianjun Pass is dull and boring. After each mission is completed, the Longya Army inside the pass takes turns to rest.

Back in his courtyard at the entrance of his alley, Lin Xuan spread out his spiritual power but did not sense A Luo.

She must have been acting with the Nanzhao secret service.

late at night.

Lin Xuan quietly left home.

Not long after, in an inn in Bozhou City.

In the room on the second floor, Lu Feng looked surprised: "Why are you here? Do you have some important information?"

During their undercover work, they cannot come here unless there is something extremely important.

Lin Xuan asked, "Sir, is there a spy named Kong Zheng in the Yang family's Jingye Division, using the alias Wei Lang?"

"You've met?"

Lu Feng looked surprised, then immediately said, "Impossible, you don't know each other's identities, how did you know..."

Lin Xuan lowered his head and said in a deep voice, "Last night at Longya Fort, Kong Zheng sacrificed himself, and another of our secret agents also died with him. I don't know his name..."

Lu Feng's expression turned solemn as he asked, "What exactly happened?"

Lin Xuan recounted his experiences at Longya Fortress that night.

Lu Feng fell silent for a long time before finally speaking: "The Yang family has the Mirror of Inquiry, and the Jingye Division knows that, but I didn't expect them to use it on you so casually... The Jingye Division will avenge Kong Zheng and Shen Li!"

Then, he realized something, looked up at Lin Xuan, and asked in surprise, "Wait a minute, you also looked in the Mirror of Inquiry, why weren't you exposed?"

Lin Xuan took out a jade pendant from his pocket and handed it to Lu Feng, saying, "This was given to me by a friend. I was able to fool the Mirror of Inquiry entirely because of this."

He just carved this jade plaque at home.

This way, his secret wouldn't be exposed, and it would also be a good opportunity to lure out the Jiuli tribe.

Lu Feng took the jade pendant and discovered that both sides of the pendant were engraved with some kind of spiritual pattern.

He asked, "This belongs to the Jiuli tribe. Do you know anyone from the Jiuli tribe?"

Lin Xuan nodded slightly and said, "When I was in Sizhou, I met a friend from the Jiuli tribe through the Tian family. During the month I disappeared, I was invited by her to visit the Jiuli tribe."

Lu Feng had already realized that this jade pendant should be able to withstand attacks of mental power.

Unexpectedly, he actually had friends from the Jiuli tribe. Compared to Kong Zheng and Shen Li, Lin Xuan was incredibly lucky.

Lin Xuan handed over a thin booklet and continued, "I have recorded all the passes I encountered on my way to Longya Fort in this booklet."

Lu Feng took the booklet and glanced at it, saying, "You've worked hard. However, the imperial court has long since figured out the nine passes of Longya Pass, but we have no way to deal with the Jiuli tribe's formations. Even if we knew them, it would be useless. The imperial court has requested assistance from a certain Jiuli tribe several times, but they have refused each time..."

Lin Xuan remained silent for a moment before speaking again: "What if I could break through these barriers?"

Lu Feng was stunned, his face showing shock: "You know the Nine Li Secret Techniques?"

Lin Xuan shook his head and said, "This subordinate does not understand, but my friend does. This subordinate can try asking her."

Lu Feng looked at him and tentatively asked, "Who is your friend?"

Lin Xuan said, "She is the Holy Maiden of the Xuanwu Tribe of the Jiuli Clan."

Lu Feng suddenly stood up, looking at Lin Xuan in shock.

The Xuanwu tribe is a relatively isolated branch of the Jiuli people. The imperial court had tried to make contact with them, but they refused. Lin Xuan actually knew their holy maiden...

Moreover, it seems that the two are not simply acquaintances.

He really knows how to surprise himself. The Yang family's greatest asset is the nine passes of Longya Mountain.

If we can overcome these nine obstacles, the difficulty of eliminating the Yang family will be greatly reduced.

This is more useful than any intelligence.

Lu Feng stared straight at him and asked, "How confident are you?"

Lin Xuan honestly said, "I'm not sure either, they might not help, but we have to try."

Lu Feng nodded and said, "I will do my best to cooperate with whatever the court needs me to do."

He looked at Lin Xuan with an extremely serious expression: "If you can truly help the imperial court break through the Yang family's nine-fold barrier, you will be the greatest contributor to this battle. The imperial court will not treat you unfairly, whether in terms of strength or status..."

……

Qianjun Pass.

Commander Wang sat in the barracks, leisurely sipping his tea.

The Yang family's current situation is actually not good.

The An and Song families joined forces to deal with the Yang family. Even though the Yang family had brought in many experts from the Western Regions, they were still struggling to cope.

Especially after the patriarch publicly beheaded the spies from the Nanzhao Secret Service and the Yongguo Jingye Service, the Yang family immediately suffered a fierce reprisal from the Jingye Service and the Secret Service, and the casualties of the Longya Army on missions increased sharply.

However, he is not worried about his future.

With the natural barrier of Longya Mountain, the Yang family is virtually invincible in the southwest. They have weathered hundreds of years of storms, and they should be able to stand firm this time as well.

Before he could finish his tea, a commotion came from outside the barracks.

He walked out of the barracks and saw dozens of Longya soldiers walking in from the city gate, but they looked rather disheveled, each with wounds and injuries.

Recently, his men have suffered numerous casualties.

Commander Wang strode forward and asked the leader, "Commander Wei, what's wrong?"

The man lowered his head and said, "Lord Commander, this mission has failed. The weapons were stolen on the way..."

Commander Wang patted him on the shoulder and said, "It's alright, it doesn't matter if the things are lost, it's good that you're back."

He looked around and asked, "Where is Commander Chen?"

The man trembled, tears streaming down his face, and choked out, "Commander Chen... Commander Chen held off those bandits all by himself to cover our retreat. I'm afraid he's probably dead..."

Commander Wang was immediately startled: "What!"

Chen Yu was his most capable centurion. Not long ago, he had been commended by the family head and had a bright future. He was very likely to become a trusted confidant of the Yang family in the future. How could he have perished on such a trivial task...

But upon closer reflection, it doesn't seem surprising.

Given his aggressive style of doing things, always charging ahead and facing danger alone, he was bound to get into trouble sooner or later.

He had tried to persuade Chen Yu many times, but Chen Yu never listened.

Commander Wang stood there stunned for a long time before letting out a long sigh and saying softly, "What a pity..."

Banshu.

Tian Qingluan had just returned from the shop when she saw a large crowd gathered outside the alleyway in front of her house.

These people were all wearing the uniforms of the Yang Family Longya Army.

In front of a courtyard at the entrance of the alley, offerings such as paper money and wreaths were laid out.

Commander Wei poured a bowl of wine in front of the courtyard gate and said sadly, "Commander Chen, may you rest in peace..."

The Longya soldiers present all bowed and said in deep voices, "Commander Chen, may you rest in peace!"

They were all subordinates of Commander Chen. In recent days, Commander Chen had taken great care of them and saved their lives countless times. Even his death was to save them.

Everyone spontaneously chose this way to send him off on his final journey.

Tian Qingluan was slightly startled as she watched this scene.

Is that guard Chen dead?
Although she wasn't particularly familiar with this neighbor, she often bumped into him at the alley entrance and at Yang Xiao's residence, and her impression of him wasn't bad. Upon suddenly learning of his death, she couldn't help but feel a little emotional.

The world is impermanent.

Some people don't even realize when they've already seen each other for the last time.

This reminded her of the pain in her heart once again...

Lin Xuan stood on the street, watching this scene from afar.

Every undercover mission is a new betrayal and deception.

Hopefully this is the last time.

Lin Xuan's gaze lingered on Qingluan for a long time until she disappeared into the alley before he slowly left.

……

One hundred thousand mountains.

Xuanwu Department.

Aya sat barefoot, cross-legged on the grass, munching on dried fish.

Her favorite food used to be dried fish that her mother dried, but after eating the pastries made by her older brother, the dried fish didn't seem to taste like anything anymore.

She stood up, tiptoed to look in a certain direction, turned to look at the figure meditating beside her, and asked, "Holy Maiden, it's been a month, when will Big Brother come back?"

Youmeng remained in contemplation and did not answer.

What she didn't tell Aya was that he probably wouldn't be coming back.

With the allure of the outside world and the women he loved, he had no reason to return to the Xuanwu tribe.

It's meaningless for Aya to come here every day to wait for him.

Aya didn't see the person she was waiting for, so she looked at Youmeng and said, "Holy Maiden, you come here with me every day, are you also waiting for your big brother?"

Youmeng shook her head and said, "It's quiet here, which is more suitable for meditation."

"Oh……"

Aya responded and sat cross-legged again, preparing to meditate.

Before closing her eyes, she habitually glanced in a certain direction.

She looked there countless times every day, but her older brother never appeared.

This time, it seemed that the witch god heard her heart's longing. Just as she was about to look away, she suddenly saw a small black dot appear on the distant horizon.

The black dots skimmed past the treetops and flew quickly toward them.

A familiar figure gradually came into her view.

"Big brother!"

She was so excited that she suddenly jumped up from the grass.

Youmeng's eyelashes trembled, but she did not open her eyes.

Aya is always easily startled; she's used to it.

Until she sensed a familiar presence appearing beside them.

She opened her eyes and saw the figure that had frequently appeared in her dreams for the past month.

Lin Xuan landed on the grass outside the Xuanwu tribe, carrying a huge bundle on his back.

His forehead was slightly sweaty. Even though his mental strength was strong enough to fly, carrying a bundle heavier than himself from Bozhou to get here was still exhausting.

He looked at Youmeng and Aya with some surprise and asked, "Holy Maiden, Aya, what are you doing here?"

Aya grabbed Lin Xuan's arm and said happily, "Big brother, you're back! The Holy Maiden and I have been waiting for you here every day!"

Youmeng glanced at Aya.

She always speaks so bluntly, but she never explained herself.

Deep down, she seemed to want him to know that he was waiting for her here every day.

Lin Xuan glanced at Youmeng.

At that moment, a strange sense of guilt welled up in his heart.

It seems he deliberately left them in the mountains while he went out to enjoy himself...

Youmeng glanced at Lin Xuan, her expression barely changing, and said, "Let's go back to the tribe first."

Lin Xuan nodded slightly.

A moment later, the three returned to the wooden house where Lin Xuan had been staying.

The hut was unchanged from when he left.

The only change might be that the flowers in the ceramic pot on the table are of a different kind.

Lin Xuan opened the bundle on his back and took out a large wooden box filled with a dazzling array of pastries.

This was something he had promised Aya last time.

Looking at the large box full of all kinds of pastries, Aya couldn't help but swallow her saliva several times. She really wanted to grab a piece and try it, but she didn't know where to start.

Lin Xuan took out a smaller bundle and handed it to Aya, saying, "These are the pretty clothes I promised to buy for you. See if you like them."

Bozhou only sells fabric, not ready-made clothes. He visited almost every tailor shop in Bozhou, paying three times the price to have them work overnight to sew these few pieces for her.

With Aya's gift, it's no surprise that Youmeng also received one.

Aya is still a young girl, so you can send her food and clothes.

Youmeng is already a woman, and women usually prefer things like rouge and jewelry.

She's beautiful enough without makeup; she doesn't need any rouge.

Lin Xuan gave her a box full of jewelry.

He opened the jewelry box, looked at Youmeng, and said, "I didn't know what kind of jewelry the Holy Maiden liked, so I bought a variety of styles..."

(End of this chapter)