Standing too far away earlier, Poison Master Zhui Ming couldn't clearly see their faces. Now face to face, he noticed a familiar face in the crowd.
It was the lanky Taoist who had stuffed snow into the guard's mouth. He bore a striking resemblance to Wang Daxia, who had the fastest promotion record in the Embroidered Uniform Guard. His master Yan Shifan had been tricked by Wang Daxia several times and often cursed him as "that damned brat," wishing him an early death. However, Wang Daxia had powerful backing - his superior Lu Ying and female physician Wei Caiwei. Though the Lu family had declined, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. Doctor Wei also had Consort Shang's support from the palace, making it difficult to move against him.
Wang Daxia was too famous - Poison Master Zhui Ming had seen him before. But this thin Taoist was much leaner than Wang Daxia, with a pale, small face and a sharply pointed chin that showed a faint blue tint, clearly freshly shaven.
Their temperaments were completely different too. Wang Daxia always wore a cheeky, carefree grin, while this thin Taoist had gloomy eyes and a cold, stern demeanor.
Could it just be a resemblance? Poison Master Zhui Ming wasn't sure. He didn't dare approach, merely stepping aside to let the group dispose of the bodies.
Poison Master Zhui Ming immediately grew wary and asked, "Who are you people? Why are you disguised as Taoists coming to Wudang Mountain?"
Wang Daxia snorted coldly, "Right now you're begging us, not the other way around. Save your breath!"
Seeing the murderous glint in Wang Daxia's eyes made Poison Master Zhui Ming even more uncertain. The Wang Daxia he remembered was a smiling tiger - someone who could stab you while still wearing a smile.
To stabilize this key witness, Lu Ying quickly fabricated a lie: "We're here for wealth. We heard Prince Jing's sacrifice to the Black Tortoise requires seven days and nights of grand rituals, with thousands of taels of gold just for calligraphy. We came to make a fortune for the new year. Just now we heard from the guards that Prince Jing lost something, hence the mountain gate closure to catch thieves. You must be fellow travelers here for wealth too."
During such rituals, fist-sized writing brushes were used to copy sacrificial texts. Gold was shaved into powder to make golden ink - each character cost at least one tael of gold, truly making every word precious. A thousand-character sacrificial text costing a thousand gold taels was no exaggeration.
Keeping bad company rubs off on one - now even Lu Ying's lying skills could rival Wang Daxia's.
The two guards' bodies were thrown off the cliff without even an echo of their landing. Convinced by Lu Ying's tall tale, Poison Master Zhui Ming hurried over and said, "Yes, I'm just a petty thief too. Just had bad luck - was discovered after stealing just one ritual object. If not for meeting you fellow professionals, I'd probably have been caught by the guards already."
Lu Ying saw through him but didn't expose him, asking, "What remarkable thing did you steal to alarm Prince Jing so?"
Wang Daxia added, "Show us, let us have a look."
Poison Master Zhui Ming's bundle was full of various poisons - he didn't dare open it. He said, "A golden incense burner. I threw it off the cliff fearing the guards would search me. Survival comes first."
Pretending to believe him, Lu Ying said, "Let's hurry. If the patrol guards discover the two sentries are missing, we won't be able to escape."
As Lu Ying led everyone continuing uphill, Poison Master Zhui Ming hesitated, "I've already been discovered. Why are we going up the mountain instead of escaping downhill?"Lu Ying spun another lie, "Do you think we're the only ones trying to steal? The Taoists from Wudang Mountain also want to profit from this, working from both inside and out. Don't worry, we have people to assist us. As the saying goes, 'thieves never leave empty-handed.' Since we're here, we must steal something to take with us. We can't return empty-handed and break the rules of our trade."
What a principled habitual thief! Wang Daxia thought to himself: Commander Lu, you've learned to be wicked.
With no way out but to follow this group of thieves, Poison Master Zhui Ming had no choice but to stick close.
Lu Ying gave a meaningful glance, and her subordinates understood. As they ascended the stone steps, they surrounded Poison Master Zhui Ming, keeping him in the middle.
Lu Ying and her group hurriedly arrived at the Great Sage Nanyan Palace on Zixiao Rock. This was a palace carved through the rock, built on a cliff face with steep precipices on both sides, as if it had grown right out of the stone.
At the palace entrance were sentries from Prince Jing's residence. Seeing a group of Taoists approach, they naturally demanded to see their talismans to verify their identities.
Lu Ying declared clearly, "We were sent down the mountain on business by our temple master and didn't know there would be sudden talisman inspections up here, so we weren't prepared. 'I stand before you unrecognized, leaving only a bamboo hat to avoid being forgotten.' Please have our temple master come out. You may not know us, but our temple master does."
As soon as she finished speaking, the palace gate creaked open. The temple master of Great Sage Nanyan Palace emerged holding a horsetail whisk, scolding, "You wretched disciples! Why are you only returning now! The grand ceremony is tomorrow, and you still have the heart to play outside!"
The temple master was actually from the Embroidered Uniform Guard. "I stand before you unrecognized, leaving only a bamboo hat to avoid being forgotten" was their secret code phrase, taken from a poem by the famous Tang dynasty Taoist Lü Dongbin, who had once practiced cultivation at the Great Sage Nanyan Palace on Wudang Mountain.
Seeing the temple master personally come out to claim them, the guards let them pass, warning, "Don't let it happen again. Next time you go out, you must remember to bring your talismans."
Just like that, Lu Ying and her group swaggered through the palace gates. This place was traditionally believed to be where the Mysterious Martial God achieved enlightenment and ascended to immortality, hence the name Great Sage Nanyan Palace. Since ancient times, it had been a sacred Taoist site, and after centuries of expansion, it now contained over nine hundred rooms alone.
The temple master led them to a secluded palace building to take shelter. As soon as they reached this safe location, Lu Ying gave a signal, and everyone rushed forward together, tying Poison Master Zhui Ming to a chair.
Still completely in the dark, Poison Master Zhui Ming shouted, "I really threw the golden tripod over the cliff! I have nothing on me except some life-saving pills.Wei Caiwei opened Poison Master Zhui Ming's bundle, which was full of all kinds of "interesting items"! There were poisons she recognized and others she didn't. Among them was an oil-paper package containing dried mushrooms. On each mushroom cap was a simple carved figure resembling ancient characters on medicinal oracle bones, each in different poses, creating an eerie and unsettling feeling.
Wei Caiwei recognized these mushrooms. She picked one up and held it to Poison Master Zhui Ming's mouth. "You claim these are life-saving pills? Then please try eating one and see what marvelous effects it has."
Tied to the chair and unable to move except for his neck, Poison Master Zhui Ming turned his face away, avoiding the mushroom.
Lu Ying asked, "What is this thing? Is it very dangerous?"Wei Caiwei said, "Back in Tieling, there were Shamanic priests. Whenever they performed rituals, they would dance continuously for days and nights without eating or drinking, as if possessed by immortals—something ordinary people couldn't achieve. In reality, there was a trick to it: they consumed this type of mushroom. After eating it, they would dance uncontrollably, forgetting all fatigue until completely exhausted. Afterwards, the priests would sleep for several days straight."
Wang Daxia found it intriguing, "Just dancing? It won’t kill you?"
Wei Caiwei nodded, "They dance until they collapse. It’s extremely harmful to the body, so most Shamanic priests only do it once a year."
Wang Daxia: "Is it really that miraculous? I kind of feel the urge to try it..."
Wei Caiwei, aware of Wang Daxia’s habit of putting anything in his mouth, warned, "This thing can cause impotence in men. Don’t even think about touching it." In truth, it didn’t.
Wang Xiaoxia trembled with fear, and Wang Daxia immediately abandoned the idea.
Wei Caiwei continued searching through the bundle and poured out scab fragments from a bamboo tube. "This is the smallpox variolation material. Lord Lu, we’ve caught him red-handed—he’s the one who tampered with the Jade Guanyin."
Hearing these final words, Poison Master Zhui Ming instantly realized who they were. "You’re not thieves at all—you’re Prince Yu’s people!"
Lu Ying stated, "We are from the Embroidered Uniform Guard, tracking the criminal all the way to Wudang Mountain. You harmed the imperial heir, and we’re taking you back."
Having just escaped one danger only to fall into another, Poison Master Zhui Ming felt utter despair and decided to lay all his cards on the table. "I confess! I’ll confess everything! I only beg to keep my wretched life! I was instructed by Yan Shifan to do this. Now Prince Jing wants to silence me, and my former master Yan Shifan refuses to protect me. I have nowhere to turn—I’m willing to cooperate with the Embroidered Uniform Guard and identify the true culprit!"
Hearing Yan Shifan’s name again, Wang Daxia’s eyes flashed with murderous intent. "What evidence do you have that Yan Shifan instructed you? Prove you’re his man!"
"I—" Poison Master Zhui Ming hurriedly explained, "It really was him! Otherwise, why would a commoner like me, with no grudge against Prince Yu, harm the imperial heir? Listen to me: Prince Jing already has a concubine pregnant. He’s competing with Prince Yu to produce a son but has been at a disadvantage. Yan Shifan helped him eliminate Prince Yu’s son—they’re partners in crime. The next step is to target Prince Yu himself. If both Prince Yu and his son are removed, Prince Jing will be the only remaining son. Even if he isn’t named Crown Prince, he’ll eventually ascend the throne. I swear every word is true! If I’m lying, may I die without a burial place!"
Poison Master Zhui Ming’s vehement oath didn’t surprise Lu Ying. She had seen through Prince Jing’s nature back during the incident at Qionghua Island in the Forbidden City. Now, with the witness and smallpox evidence, even if the Jiajing Emperor wouldn’t immediately punish Yan Shifan and Prince Jing, he would never pass the throne to Prince Jing.
As long as Prince Yu ascended, the new emperor would eventually settle accounts with Prince Jing without their intervention.
Wang Daxia listened in silence. He was no longer the politically ignorant youth of the past. With the witness and evidence in hand, he knew the emperor would still refrain from acting against Yan Shifan to maintain court balance.
At this moment, his father’s murderer Yan Shifan was at the Golden Hall on Wudang Mountain’s peak. I must find a way to kill him with my own hands!
If I miss this chance, he’ll harm more people!
That night, the group rested at the Great Sage’s Nanyan Palace. The next day, the temple head would give them talismans and see them off Wudang Mountain.At midnight, Wang Daxia quietly rose from bed and slipped out the door like a cat, intending to assassinate Yan Shifan at the Golden Hall.
Just after leaving the Great Sage Southern Cliff Palace, he saw flames soaring into the sky from the Golden Hall atop the mountain, with torches glittering like brilliant stars. He heard people shouting: "Ghosts! There are ghosts! They're possessed!"
Wang Daxia was bewildered. A guard from Prince Jing's residence tumbled down the stone steps, his face covered in blood. Supporting himself against a tree to stand up, the guard spotted Wang Daxia.
Wang Daxia drew his blade, ready to silence the guard, but the guard seemed blind to the weapon in Wang Daxia's hand. Spreading his arms, he began dancing wildly, swaying and posturing, circling around Wang Daxia in a frenzied motion.
As he danced, blood continuously streamed from his forehead, like a corpse devoid of sensation, possessed by a ghost.
Ghosts! There really are ghosts! Wang Daxia had always been afraid of ghosts. Witnessing this eerie scene, he froze in terror.
His fear of ghosts ran deep—even when a mouse knocked over a spirit tablet on Wei Caiwei's family altar, he had been terrified. How much more so now, with a ghost dancing around him.
A warm hand pushed Wang Daxia's drawn blade back into its sheath. "Don't be afraid. Come with me."
It was Wei Caiwei's voice!
Her voice acted like an amulet, dispelling Wang Daxia's fear. He slowly turned and saw Wei Caiwei shrouded in a black robe.
Wei Caiwei explained, "I put dancing mushrooms in the midnight snack. All the guards who ate it are now dancing."
Lu Ying threw a set of Prince Jing's guard uniform and armor at the stunned Wang Daxia: "Put this on. Were you planning to act alone? Don't even think about it. We'll take down Yan Shifan together."
Author's Note: Dancing mushrooms are real, you know. The world is vast and full of wonders. Everyone, don't eat mushrooms of unknown origin.
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