Chapter 28: The Third "Decay of the Celestial Beings"

Li Miao finished speaking and immediately rose, preparing to depart for Shaolin with Yongjie.

"My Lord!"

Hearing a soft call from behind, Li Miao turned to see Yin Minjun approaching.

"Let me accompany you."

Li Miao looked her up and down, then smiled. "Is there no need for Elder Yin to keep watch over the affairs of the Miao people?"

Yin Minjun shook her head. "I have already given clear instructions to my fellow disciples. With so many major sects acting against the Miao people, I will not be missed."

"Furthermore, as the Hengshan Sect is now under your command, it would be a dereliction of duty to stand by and watch you head to Shaolin alone."

"My martial arts may be lacking, but at the very least, I can handle menial tasks for you."

As the second-in-command of the Hengshan Sect, Yin Minjun was accustomed to the formalities of social interaction. Her words were perfectly poised, revealing nothing of her true desire to stay by Li Miao’s side.

Li Miao nodded. "Very well, then let us go together."

With that, he set off on horseback, accompanied by Yin Minjun and Yongjie.

All three were masters with profound internal energy. They traveled without pause and arrived at Shaolin in just a few days. Before they could reach the mountain gate, they heard a voice calling from afar: "Thousand-Man Commander!"

Li Miao looked up to see a man in the official uniform of the Embroidered Uniform Guard approaching with swift, light steps. It was the Centurion surnamed Zhang who had accompanied the eunuch Cheng Yuanzhen to Taian City—one of Li Miao’s own subordinates. Having survived the encounter with Yun Zelin at the Taishan Sect due to his decent martial arts, he had managed to escape with his life.

Li Miao went to meet him, looked him over, and asked, "Who has come from the capital?"

Following the events in Taian City, the imperial court had already been preparing to move against the Ming Cult; Bu Lei of the Northern Secret Service had already appeared in the Huguang region. It was only natural that the Embroidered Uniform Guard would send forces to handle a matter as significant as the Ming Cult’s occupation of the Shaolin Temple.

Centurion Zhang glanced at Yongjie and Yin Minjun. Li Miao waved his hand, signaling that he need not mind them and should speak freely.

"Commander Bu has sent word back; the Commander-in-Chief himself has arrived. You have arrived at a fortunate time, Thousand-Man Commander. We have only just reached the site, but the Shaolin gates are barred. The Commander-in-Chief fears an ambush by the Ming Cult rebels inside and has refrained from entering."

Li Miao nodded. "Take me to the Commander-in-Chief."

Centurion Zhang accepted the order and led Li Miao toward the mountain gate. The area outside the gate was already densely packed with people preparing for battle, including the presence of firearms and cannons.

Li Miao swept his gaze across the crowd. With nearly all the Thousand-Man Commanders of the Northern Secret Service present, it was clear the court was determined to eradicate the Ming Cult. In the distance, he saw Zhu Zai standing with his hands behind his back, speaking to Bu Lei—likely coordinating the troops for an assault on the gates.

Li Miao started to walk toward them, but as soon as Zhu Zai caught sight of him, he raised a hand in a gesture of prohibition, his eyes clearly signaling for Li Miao not to approach.

Li Miao stopped, frowning at Zhu Zai. With a friendship spanning over a decade, the two understood each other perfectly; a mere glance from one was enough to convey a thousand words. Without a single syllable exchanged, Li Miao understood the emotion behind Zhu Zai’s look.

*The old man... is he worried about me? But why?*

Wang Hai had already informed Zhu Zai of the events in Taian City, so he knew the extent of Li Miao’s martial prowess. What could possibly threaten Li Miao inside the Shaolin Temple? Moreover, with the Embroidered Uniform Guard surrounding the gates, why would Zhu Zai be worried enough to keep him away?

Li Miao found it strange, yet he knew Zhu Zai was not a man to act without cause. There had to be a compelling reason.

Li Miao turned back to instruct Yin Minjun and Yongjie to find a place to hide. Once they were gone, he told Centurion Zhang to keep his arrival a secret. He then slipped into a dense forest, leaped onto a treetop, and balanced on a branch no thicker than a finger, observing the situation at the mountain gate from afar.

Seeing that Li Miao had understood and hidden, Zhu Zai seemed relieved. He spoke a few words to Bu Lei, who then departed. Zhu Zai turned back to face the mountain gate, standing with his hands behind his back. Li Miao clearly saw him make the sign of a "three" behind his back.

*Three watch of the night.*

He was telling Li Miao to wait until midnight to meet him in secret.

A moment later, a wooden, colorfully carved sedan chair arrived at Zhu Zai’s side. The chair was lacquered in vermilion and gold, adorned with embroidery, pearls, jade, tassels, and paintings—an display of extreme opulence. The chair alone was worth thousands of taels of silver. The founding emperor of the Great Shuo had forbidden the use of such ornate chairs, restricting them to high-ranking officials or the elderly and infirm. Although the rule had gradually faded, most people avoided such ostentation to prevent accusations of exceeding their station.

The four bearers of the chair were all second-rate masters!

As the chair stopped, an attendant rushed forward and prostrated himself before the door, acting as a human footstool. Li Miao squinted to see that the man on the ground was none other than Cheng Yuanzhen, the Chief Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, who had led the men to Taishan to claim credit for the victory.

Who was in that chair, to command a high-ranking Fourth-Rank eunuch to serve as a footstool?

The curtain lifted, and a withered, aged hand emerged. A bearer stepped forward to steady the arm as the occupant descended. He was a man of extreme senescence, his temples frosted with white, his hair sparse, his teeth loose, and his face a map of deep wrinkles. He walked with a tremble, like a man at death's door. Yet, his attire—a narrow-sleeved *yisa* robe with python patterns embroidered on the chest—was the same status-granting garment worn by Zhu Zai.

The man stepped off Cheng Yuanzhen, leaned on his attendants, and walked to Zhu Zai’s side.

Zhu Zai bowed. "Elder Brother."

"Hmm." The man accepted the bow without offering any gesture of return, as if it were his natural right. "Do not wait. Fire a few shots first. If that rebel Ji Tianrui is still inside, we shall capture him."

"Yes." Zhu Zai turned to order the Embroidered Uniform Guard to fire upon the thousand-year-old temple.

Li Miao, watching from a distance, could not hear the conversation, but his keen eyes saw everything. He smiled. "As I thought. If the imperial court did not possess such figures, it could not hold this empire."

The man looked decrepit, but he was not truly that old. Based on the strength of his frame, he was likely only in his fifties. Li Miao was all too familiar with this appearance, having seen it on the Taishan Sect a month ago.

"The Five Decays of Heaven."

This man was also a master who had reached the realm "Beyond the Pinnacle" in at least two disciplines!