Chapter 81: Divine Axe Sect, Divine Artifacts
"It's Duke Zheng..."
Zhao Wumian looked at Chang Mao: "Why are you here?"
Chang Mao put away his spear and said, "I have been ordered by the Crown Prince to come to Longjiang Shipyard to supervise the construction of 180 seagoing vessels to transport military supplies to Liaodong."
The Ming Dynasty had military settlements in Liaodong, but the military rations produced were limited and could not be self-sufficient.
The Liaodong garrisons were the key barrier against the 200,000-strong army of Nahachu, the Taiwei of the Northern Yuan Dynasty, so food supplies were transported by sea.
Since the fourth year of Hongwu, sea transportation of food and wages has become the main way for Liaodong Garrison to obtain military supplies.
Zhao Wumian knew this after reading the documents in the archives.
The soldiers behind him moved, and the guards inside the shipyard swarmed out.
"What are you doing out here? Go back and keep watch!"
Chang Mao waved his hand, and everyone retreated. He continued to ask Zhao Wumian: "What's going on?"
Zhao Wumian briefly explained the situation.
Chang Mao was surprised: "So, they made such a big fuss just to get into the shipyard?"
Zhao Wumian said: "I am also wondering. Where does this river lead to?"
"Make a pond."
Chang Mao pointed behind him and said casually, "Of course the shipyard has to build ships. This river connects six ponds for making ship parts. It also flows through the Tizhusi, Dushuisi, government offices, government residences, command halls, etc. There are also tent factories, paint shops, Yau Ma Tei, and the master craftsman's office... There are so many places."
"and many more!"
Zhao Wumian suddenly interrupted: "What did you say just now? The Grand Craftsman's Office?"
"Correct."
Chang Mao said proudly: "The shipbuilding skills of our Ming Dynasty are the best in the world, relying on the master craftsmen of the Great Craftsmanship Institute. Whether it is the hull defense, traps, array arrangement, or gunpowder and firearms, they are all designed and cast by the master craftsmen of the Great Craftsmanship Institute. Those tower ships on the Qinhuai River are amazing enough, but for the shipyard, they are just flashy vases. Only the warships and giant ships produced by the shipyard behind me can be regarded as real weapons!"
At this point, Chang Mao pondered and said, "Could they be here to steal the boat?"
"How can a mermaid steal a ship? At most, he can steal the method of building a ship..."
Zhao Wumian suddenly realized something was wrong: "Who are these master craftsmen?"
Chang Mao understood his implication: "Do you suspect they have defected to the enemy? Their families are all in the shipyard. If they dare to leak the secret and defect to the enemy, not only will they be tortured to death, but their entire family will die. Don't worry."
"Do not."
Zhao Wumian asked solemnly, "Did they learn from the Divine Axe Sect? Was the predecessor of the Longjiang Shipyard the former headquarters of the Divine Axe Sect?"
Chang Mao was stunned and blurted out: "How do you know?"
"Because the former leader of the Divine Axe Sect, 'Sai Gongshu' Chu Huanan, was imprisoned in the imperial prison!"
Shen Weiyang had asked him for this person to help unlock the Nine Palaces Lock, so Zhao Wumian remembered it very clearly.
Various clues are connected together.
Zhao Wumian suddenly realized, "So that's it! Chu Huanan's crime is that he assisted Zhang Shicheng, supervised the manufacture of city defense equipment, siege weapons, and mechanical beasts for him to resist the Ming army, causing heavy casualties in our army. Logically, his entire family should be executed, but the emperor locked him up in the sixth level of the imperial prison... I thought it was just to suppress the Taotie, but now it seems that it's not that simple...
Chu Huanan is the leader of the Divine Axe Sect. He possesses the most profound mechanical skills of the time and is also a master of Yin-Yang magic. According to legend, there is a "Weapon List" in the Divine Axe Sect, which was passed down from Gongshu. It records the casting methods of hundreds of siege weapons from the Warring States Period to the present. It is not passed down except by the leaders of the successive generations, and is known as the "Divine Weapon List".
But after Chu Huanan was arrested, he would rather die than tell us where the artifact book was, and he also used magic to erase his memory, causing the artifact book to be lost forever... This person is loyal to Zhang Shicheng! He would rather die than tell our dynasty where the book is hidden, but he may not tell Zhang Shicheng, and Zhang Shicheng..."
"In the last few years before Zhang Shicheng committed suicide, he was defeated in many battles and sought help from many parties, including Goryeo!"
Chang Mao also understood, his eyes lit up, and he quickly continued: "I heard that in the tenth year of Longfeng, King Zhonglie of Goryeo sent the Great Guard Li Chenglin to lead 50,000 troops to help in the war... Now it seems that Zhang Shicheng not only sold his martial arts, but also may have sold this news! The shipyard was originally the place where Chu Huanan led his disciples to manufacture military equipment. It is most likely hidden here. We dug three feet into the ground but couldn't find it. They may know where it is... This merman entered the shipyard just to get back the artifact list!"
Chang Mao was both angry and happy: "This traitor dared to sell me the divine skills, he really deserves to die! Now these master craftsmen are all disciples of the Divine Axe Sect. Although they have superb skills, they are still not as good as the famous 'Sai Gongshu'. If we can really find the divine weapon list, it will be a great achievement. Let's go and capture them and force them to tell us the information!"
Chang Mao was eager to go to the State Guesthouse.
The lost artifact may reappear, which is a great thing!
"Wait a minute."
Zhao Wumian said: "They are envoys from Goryeo..."
Chang Mao sneered: "Who do I care who she is? As long as I can find the divine artifact list, I will take all the blame!"
He was a general commanding troops and knew very well how powerful those mechanical creations were.
The Fire Cannon Red Lotus General, the Fire Gun Five Thunder God Machine, the Gunpowder Heavenly Thunder Son, the Mechanical Beast White Tiger...
A warrior can release a magic image only when he reaches the fourth realm, and the giant mechanical beast can be controlled by two ordinary people. It is indeed useless for masters, but for ordinary soldiers, it is enough to rush around and break through the military formation. It is an unparalleled weapon!
Zhao Wumian said calmly: "You are wasting time by going to the State Guesthouse now, which is exactly what they want!"
Chang Mao immediately stopped, frowned and turned back: "What do you mean?"
"Don't you think this is going too smoothly?"
Zhao Wumian pondered and said, "There is a conspicuous third-level merman in the delegation. This merman caused trouble as soon as he entered the state guesthouse. That night, he broke into the Longjiang Shipyard alone, intending to steal the artifact list... If it was really that simple, wouldn't they have just sent this merman? Why would the delegation have to make such a big fuss? She's the daughter of the king, and she's the descendant of a general?"
"Right……"
Chang Mao frowned even more tightly: "So what you mean is..." "Obviously, making a feint to the east and attacking in the west!"
As soon as Zhao Wumian finished speaking, Xiaokui descended from the sky and said, "Master! Master! There are a few missing!"
Zhao Wumian knew it was referring to the State Guesthouse delegation.
Zhao Wumian reached out to catch it: "Which ones are missing?"
Xiao Kui tilted her head and thought for a while: "One, two, three, four, five."
It didn't know who was who, nor did it remember their names. It only knew the number that Zhao Wumian gave it.
Zhao Wumian immediately realized that the ones missing were Jin Chi, Liu Jing, Long Tu, Wang Lan, Cui Qiang... These people who had reached the third level of martial arts, all ran out without a single one missing!
Zhao Wumian was stunned after hearing this.
Cui Qiang jumped out of the window into the water. The Gu formation just now could escape underground, and it was suspected to be a dragon diagram.
How did the remaining three come about?
Qi Shizhou didn’t stop it?
So many Jinyiwei couldn’t stop him?
"Ran?"
Chang Mao was shocked and paced back and forth anxiously: "A cunning rabbit has three burrows! A cunning rabbit has three burrows! There may really be a divine artifact list in this shipyard, but there should also be some where they went! We have to prepare for both situations. What should we do? If they really take the divine artifact list back to Goryeo and then flow into the Northern Yuan Dynasty, hiss!"
Chang Mao has always been fearless, and he broke out in a cold sweat when he thought about this.
"Don't worry."
Zhao Wumian remained calm as always, frowning in thought.
"..."
Chang Mao had always been dissatisfied with Zhao Wumian, thinking that he relied on slander and flattery, as well as his bad luck to make the Eight Diagrams recognize him as the master, which made the emperor and the prince trust him so much. But now, seeing that he remained calm and composed from beginning to end, he had to admit his loyalty.
Zhao Wumian said: "Let's think about it the other way around. Under what circumstances would these third-level masters be used?"
Chang Mao said: "Of course it is to break into the important place."
"Yes."
Zhao Wumian's brows relaxed. "If it's a tunnel or something like that, there's no need for it. If the defense is not good enough, there's no need for so many people. So, the place they're going to must be in broad daylight, with a large number of people and strict security! In that case, can't we just look around and see where the fight is going on?"
"Eh?"
Chang Mao was stunned for a moment, then he slapped his thigh and said, "Yes! You are really smart, I have a way! Nobita!"
He shouted, and an eagle's cry was heard in the shipyard, and a huge golden eagle flew out.
The wingspan is nearly nine meters, covering the sky and the sun!
"Come!"
Chang Mao leaped and flew onto the back of the golden eagle.
Zhao Wumian understood what he meant. He asked Xiaokui to hide his ability, then he jumped and landed on the back of the golden eagle.
The golden eagle flapped its wings and flew away quickly. The two men looked down, looking for signs of a fight.
Zhao Wumian reminded, "We don't have to go too far. Just surround the State Guesthouse and gradually expand the area. No matter what method they use to escape without being noticed, with the magic of the third realm, they can't run far!"
"Ah."
Chang Mao no longer doubted Zhao Wumian's judgment. Facts had proved that what he said was absolutely right - about three miles away from the State Guesthouse, there were crisp sounds of weapons fighting, as well as the light emitted by Yin-Yang magic and true Qi. Looking down from the sky, it was clearly visible!
"there!"
Chang Mao raised his hand and pointed, and immediately let the golden eagle fly over.
Zhao Wumian looked in the direction of the sound and had a strange expression on his face: "This is really... enemies meet on a narrow road..."
Because that place is Jinghu Villa!
Under the stars and the moon, the small Mirror Lake in the villa looks like a piece of beautiful jade inlaid in the earth.
——"This manor was originally built by Zhang Shicheng. It has beautiful scenery and many traps. After my father conquered Yingtian, this manor became the imperial manor. From now on, it is yours."
What Zhu Biao said flashed through Zhao Wumian’s mind.
This is so meow...
Zhao Wumian was at a loss for words for a moment.
Could it be that the artifact list is hidden in Jinghu Villa?
It seems that my luck is really bad. I have lived here for several days, but no opportunity has been triggered.
If this were someone with a higher luck value, it would probably be delivered to your door.
The chief of the guards, Xiao Yuzheng, led more than eighty good fighters to form a defensive formation, while the enemy was attacking desperately.
The mechanisms of Jinghu Villa are no longer the same as they were during the time of Zhang Shicheng. If one wants to know the layout of all the mechanisms inside and go in safely to hunt for treasure, one must first capture Xiao Yu, who is in the third realm!
No wonder so many people came out in droves...
At this moment, Zhao Wumian understood everything, and his face turned cold: "Since you are here, don't leave!"
……
(End of this chapter)
