Chapter 22: Exploring the Palace at Night

Late at night. Full moon.

Zhao Chengfeng's mansion has completely declined. Since the bloody case of Zhao Wangfu, it has been inaccessible here. Although the scene of the crime has been cleaned up, the remaining blood stains on the ground are still shocking.

Outside King Zhao's mansion, Zhao Xiaofeng stood quietly in front of the gate.

The gate of the palace had already fallen to the ground, and the doors that had been majestic were now covered with dust.

Zhao Xiaofeng suppressed his grief and indignation and walked in gently.

As soon as he entered the door, what appeared in front of Zhao Xiaofeng was the shocking bloodstains. Because of the time, the bright red blood stains have turned dark black.

Zhao Xiaofeng's vision was already blurred, and tears flowed wantonly on his face like a flood that had opened the floodgates. He crouched on the ground, his body shaking violently. This was his home, and now, he's back!

Although Zhao Chengfeng was the general of the Great Zhao Empire and was awarded the throne, his Zhao Mansion was not large. Zhao Xiaofeng had already walked through every room and every corner here, and finally, he came to the back garden of King Zhao's mansion. The back garden of King Zhao's mansion is small and exquisite. A bonsai is the biggest feature here.

Zhao Xiaofeng saw a pot of withered chrysanthemums at first sight, and he walked over slowly and saw a hole. The entrance to the cave is not large, and only one person can pass through. Brushing the weeds at the entrance of the cave, Zhao Xiaofeng jumped down without hesitation.

As soon as he jumped into the hole, Zhao Xiaofeng smelled a strong foul smell. He pulled out a fire fold and lit a small torch that he carried with him. In front of him, dozens of corpses lay on the ground. The corpse was highly decomposed, emitting a strong stench.

Zhao Xiaofeng closed his eyes, and tears slid down the corners of his eyes again. Although he didn't know these people, judging from the way he dressed, he could vaguely see that these people were all members of Zhao Wangfu's family. Zhao Xiaofeng carefully moved the dozens of corpses together, and then he took off his coat and gently covered it. This coat was given to him by Uncle Nine, and he wants to keep it here forever now. This is his homage to the dead!

At the end of this passage there was an open wall, and inside the wall was a temple. The temple covers an area of about half an acre. The huge temple was empty and empty. There was a pile of black ashes in the temple hall with a wisp of black veil on the ashes.

Zhao Xiaofeng suddenly walked over, slowly bent down, and gently picked up the wisp of black yarn. For some reason, he had a strong interest in this strand of black yarn, as if he had seen it a long, long time ago. Why this is happening, even Zhao Xiaofeng himself can't say clearly.

Before her death, Grandma told Zhao Xiaofeng that the Rubik's Cube Ball was in the basement of the palace! This was the only basement that Zhao Xiaofeng found in the Zhao Palace. But here, there is no shadow of the Rubik's Cube ball.

If the Rubik's Cube Ball is really an artifact, then it will be more difficult to find it. Because the artifact itself has a hidden ability, if it really wants to hide itself deliberately, then it will be difficult for ordinary martial arts cultivators to find it. Only when martial arts cultivation reaches the realm of gods can it be difficult to feel its existence. Zhao Xiaofeng came this time to try his luck. Because he knew that although artifacts had hidden functions, they couldn't be hidden all the time. Hiding is energy-intensive.

Zhao Xiaofeng searched in the basement, he searched very carefully, every corner was searched, even the thick dust on the ground, he carefully checked. No, no, still no! In such a close search, he didn't even see the shadow of the Rubik's Cube Ball, and he didn't even notice the slightest breath of the Rubik's Cube Ball. Could it be that Grandma remembered that the Rubik's Cube Ball was not in the basement of Zhao Wang's Mansion? Or was there more than one place in the basement of Zhao Wang's Mansion? Or had the Rubik's Cube Ball been taken away?

Zhao Xiaofeng sat down and sat on the dusty ground. If the Rubik's Cube Ball is invisible at this time, as long as he doesn't leave, he will definitely be able to wait for the moment when the Rubik's Cube Ball appears. Although the artifact can be invisible, this state of stealth cannot be maintained for long, and it generally does not exceed a day.

The strong rancid smell in the basement pierced Zhao Xiaofeng's nostrils. Zhao Xiaofeng didn't care, he sat quietly on the ground, closed his eyes, like an old monk in a trance. There were some questions that he couldn't figure out. As the commander of the First Army, why did his father Zhao Chengfeng lose the Rubik's Cube ball so carelessly? The Rubik's Cube Ball is a heavy treasure in the army, and it must be kept in a very secret place, guarded by a special person, who has such a great ability to steal the Rubik's Cube Ball unknowingly? There is another question, which makes Zhao Xiaofeng puzzled the most: Since grandma knew that the Rubik's Cube Ball was hidden in the basement of the palace, why didn't she tell her father Zhao Chengfeng? You must know that Zhao Chengfeng lost the Rubik's Cube Ball and was in a very embarrassing situation, not only was the 50,000 Rubik's Cube Army no longer majestic, but even his official title of general of the town was deprived, and he was finally forced to step down from the throne and "return to his hometown"! Does grandma know that even if she tells her father the whereabouts of the Rubik's Cube Ball, it will be useless and she will not be able to save the situation? Is it ...... Could it be that the Rubik's Cube Ball hidden in the basement has already lost its magic power? At that time, his mother, the wisteria god Ah Zi, was sealed in this basement. Mother suffered a catastrophe, and the Rubik's Cube lost its power. Could it be that this Rubik's Cube Ball is not an ordinary artifact, but the mother's divine core? Legend has it that all cultivators in the Divine Spirit Realm not only have primordial gods, but also divine cores. The original god cannot be destroyed, and once the original god is destroyed, it will never be destroyed, not only will the cultivation be lost, but even the life will be difficult to preserve. The Divine Core can leave the physical body, and its power is almost the same as itself. It's just a legend, no one has seen it with their own eyes. Could it be that the Rubik's Cube Ball is the divine core of the Mother Wisteria God?

Zhao Xiaofeng was sad for a while, and his tears had wet his clothes at some point. He sat quietly on the ground, feeling his mother's breath. Although he has never seen his mother since he was a child, the deep affection of flesh and blood thicker than water has always haunted his heart.

Three full days have passed, and Zhao Xiaofeng has not yet discovered the Rubik's Cube Ball! He knows that if he waits any longer, it will be useless! He has found this place, and there are still many opportunities in the future.

After leaving Zhao Wangfu, Zhao Xiaofeng still had an important thing to do, although he knew that it was difficult for him to do this, he must try.

On this night, there are no stars and no moon. The sky was dark and dreary, as if a huge black cauldron was clasped on the vast earth. In the palace of Zhao Jingcheng, the lights are bright. The gates of the palace were closed, and on the gatehouse, there were groups of guards patrolling back and forth.

Zhao Xiaofeng hid in the dark under the gatehouse. He's looking for an opportunity. It's a pity that there are too many people here, and he has been waiting for a long time and has no chance. There was no choice but to walk to the right along the gatehouse. On the gatehouse, the lanterns and torches are as bright as day. As soon as he walked a few steps, Zhao Xiaofeng was discovered by the guards on the gatehouse.

"Who, what?"

Zhao Xiaofeng didn't run, and raised his head lazily, revealing a small face full of dirt.

Seeing that it was a child with a dirty face, unkempt hair, and ragged clothes, the little leader of the guard treated Zhao Xiaofeng as a wandering little beggar, and shouted: "Get out of the way, this is not the place for you to sleep!"

Zhao Xiaofeng raised his face and smirked: "Don't you have no money to buy cakes to eat, you can take this gold ingot." As he spoke, he took a paper bag from his bosom and laughed and threw it up the gatehouse.

There was a commotion among the guards on the gatehouse. Someone rushed to open the paper bag, and what kind of gold ingots were in the oily paper bag, which were clearly two hard and moldy black steamed buns. The little leader of the guard spat at the ground: "Bad luck, Lao Tzu wants to shoot him with an arrow!" He really opened his bow and arrows to shoot Zhao Xiaofeng. But when he looked downstairs, the little smirking Hanako had disappeared without a trace.

This guy scolded secretly: "Hell, a little named Hanako is running so fast!"

At this time, Zhao Xiaofeng had successfully entered the palace. The palace is also heavily guarded, with five steps and one post, and ten steps and one sentry. Thankfully, it's night, and there's a place for invisibility.

Zhao Xiaofeng hid behind a rockery and observed the surrounding situation. Although it was night, the magnificence of the palace still frightened Zhao Xiaofeng, who had lived in the deep mountains and old forests for a long time. With the bright fires that can be seen everywhere, Zhao Xiaofeng is guessing the residence of the Emperor of the Great Zhao Empire. There were tall and majestic buildings everywhere, and he really didn't know where the emperor lived, and even if he did, he didn't know anything about the palace, and he didn't know which emperor was. What should I do? Why don't you catch someone and ask first! Thinking of this, Zhao Xiaofeng swept towards a nearby building. His current figure is very fast, and it is difficult for ordinary people to find his trace. Even if he is discovered, no one will be able to see his true colors. Because his face was covered with mud. His style is just in case.

Big red lanterns hung everywhere in the palace, and the whole palace was shrouded in red light.

Zhao Xiaofeng tiptoed forward, he listened as he walked, within half a mile, any wind and grass could not escape his ears. He has lived in the Forest of Ten Thousand Beasts since he was a child, and hunts for a living, and no cunning beast can escape his tracking. But now, as if he had become a beast, he was always wary of the hunter's bow and arrow.

Suddenly, there was a rush of footsteps in the wide, clear hallway.

Zhao Xiaofeng hurriedly hid in the dark corner of the corridor. Although the footsteps were noisy, Zhao Xiaofeng could conclude that there were a total of three people coming.

The footsteps were getting closer and closer, and the group ran past Zhao Xiaofeng. In the hazy red light, Zhao Xiaofeng was surprised to find that there were not three people in this group, but four! Three people ran in front, and one person followed leisurely behind, looking like that, it was easier than walking. But this man's speed was not slow, and no matter how the first three people ran, they didn't want him to fall half a step. What is even more surprising is that although this person walked quickly, he was silent, not even a little sound. No wonder Zhao Xiaofeng only heard the footsteps of three people just now.