Late at night, at the residence of Huang Xiong, leader of the Chai Gang.
Not long after Jiang Yan left, a bright red lantern suddenly lit up outside the entrance to the residence.
Its crimson glow drove away the surrounding darkness. The ground turned bloodred, as if covered by a scarlet carpet.
Before long, one red lantern after another appeared.
They hung in front of every residence, their scarlet lights joining together in a sea of bloodred, vivid and bewitching. The whole neighborhood seemed to have become a world of blood.
A bloody stench began to spread. At first it was faint, but as time passed, it grew stronger and stronger.
Pfft! Pfft!
Pfft! Pfft!
Faintly, cries for help, sounds of struggling, pleas for mercy, and furious curses rang out from the residences.
But the sounds soon vanished. In their place came a series of drinking noises, as if some sharp object had pierced the bodies of living creatures and was sucking their blood.
For a time, the red lanterns hanging around the residences grew even more vivid. Their glow grew brighter and brighter, as if it would soon illuminate the whole city.
"Who dares to run amok in Moyun Prefecture? What manner of evil creature are you?"
A loud shout rang out. A middle-aged man vaulted into the middle of the street.
He was tall, dressed in a golden robe, with a square face and a lock of white hair hanging over his forehead. Three swords—two long and one short—were strapped to his back.
Vmmm! Vmmm! Vmmm!
As the man in the golden robe arrived, the red lanterns, which had been still, began to tremble and shine dazzlingly.
In an instant, the sky, the ground, and the surrounding walls were all dyed red.
Amid the redness, countless tiny tentacles