Time to Close the Net-Catch Them All!

The old man selling candied hawthorns and the peddler selling wooden carvings exchanged a glance. They saw the same thing in each other's eyes.

The plan to kidnap Princess Yunshu was no longer viable.

Now they had only two choices.

Either grit their teeth and make their move, then die without a burial place under the assault of the guards, the Demon Suppression Guard, the Imperial Guard, and that Early Martial Saint Stage Qilin.

Or abandon the kidnapping plan and retreat at once, before they were exposed, placing all their hopes on the Blood Sacrifice Array.

The first meant certain death. The second still offered a sliver of hope!

They made their decision almost simultaneously.

"Retreat."

The old man selling candied hawthorns mouthed the word silently, hoisted his rack onto his shoulder, and inconspicuously edged toward the outskirts of the crowd.

The peddler selling wooden carvings also packed up his stall. Calling out, "The carvings are all sold! Time to pack up!" he retreated in the opposite direction.

Both of them moved naturally, blending into the bustling crowd without attracting the slightest attention.

But their eyes betrayed what they truly felt.

Resentment.

Rage.

And a deep sense of helplessness.

Their Branch Sect had been wiped out last night, and tonight their kidnapping plan had fallen through.

An operation that had seemed all but certain had suffered setback after setback because of the sudden appearance of Evergreen Saint Venerable.

At the same time, across the entire Capital City,

a vast, silent net was quietly tightening.

The Demon Suppressing Division's most elite Demon Hunter Guards had all been deployed. Dressed in civilian clothes and working in pairs, they blended into the crowd and searched every street and alley.

Their gazes swept over every vendor and every passerby, especially solitary figures whose movements seemed suspicious.

The most capable men from the Imperial Guard and Royal Forest Guard had also been sent out. Plainclothes soldiers were secretly stationed at the city gates, street corners, alleyways, and every other key point.

They had been given only one order.

Keep an eye on suspicious targets. Do not alert them. Wait for the signal to close the net!

Without a secret decree from His Majesty or an order from Prince Wu'an, no one was to act on their own.

Xiao Qianjun was personally stationed in the Imperial Garden, but on the surface, he was merely watching the lanterns.

In truth,

his spiritual sense had long since spread out, enveloping the entire Imperial Garden.

He had spotted several suspicious targets in the crowd, but he had not made a move.

He had simply left an inconspicuous tracking mark on each of them.

Prince Wu'an had said to wait for the signal.

At that moment, in the rear courtyard of Prince Wu'an Mansion,

the night was as still as water, and moonlight shimmered across the hot spring pool.

In the pavilion beside the pool, Lin Changqing and Sixth Ancestor Su Tianheng sat facing each other.

A pot of Spirit Tea, two teacups, and several plates of delicate pastries sat on the stone table.

Lin Changqing lifted his teacup, took a sip, and looked as relaxed as if he were on vacation.

Sixth Ancestor also held his teacup, but a hint of gravity lingered between his brows.

He had arrived at the mansion before the Flower Deity Lantern Festival began.

Su Gan had sent word that Prince Wu'an was certain something would happen at tonight's Flower Deity Festival.

Without a second thought, he had torn open space and come over.

Lin Changqing's judgment last night had already been proven a hundred percent accurate. He had no choice but to believe him.

However,

when he saw Lin Changqing leisurely sipping tea, he couldn't help feeling even more puzzled.

Hadn't they said there would be a major incident tonight? Why wasn't Prince Wu'an the least bit nervous?

Lin Changqing set down his teacup, picked up a piece of osmanthus cake, and took a bite.

"Mmm, this pastry really does taste good."

The corner of Sixth Ancestor's mouth twitched.

Was this really the time to discuss pastries?

But he didn't urge him. He simply lifted his teacup and continued drinking.

Time passed, bit by bit.

Cheers from the Flower Deity Lantern Festival drifted faintly from afar, accompanied by the booms of fireworks.

The whole Capital City was immersed in the festive cheer.

No one knew that a silent struggle was unfolding in the shadows.

The Demon Suppressing Division's elite, along with plainclothes soldiers from the Imperial Guard and Royal Forest Guard, had already spread throughout the city.

There were three times as many guards around the Imperial Garden as in previous years.

Behind rockeries, beneath covered walkways, among flower beds—fully armed soldiers were hidden everywhere.

Lin Changqing's perception had already marked every rat lurking in the shadows.

Their positions, cultivation levels, and identities were all crystal clear in his mind.

Not a single one had slipped through.

Lin Changqing finished the last bite of osmanthus cake, lifted his teacup, and took another sip.

Then he set it down, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

"It's time to close the net."

Sixth Ancestor's hand, holding his teacup, came to a stop.

He looked up at Lin Changqing, a glint flashing in his eyes.

After waiting all this time, the moment had finally arrived.

He drained the remaining Spirit Tea in his cup and set it heavily on the stone table.

A satisfied look spread across his face.

"At last, these rats that skulk in the dark are coming out of their holes."

He looked at Lin Changqing, his voice steady.

"Evergreen Saint Venerable, what do you plan to do? Just say the word if you need me to do anything."

Lin Changqing rose to his feet and stood with his hands behind his back.

His gaze seemed to pierce the night as he looked toward the busiest places in the Capital City.

"Their plan is to activate the Blood Sacrifice Array during the Flower Deity Festival, using the crowd's blood and vital essence to summon a Demon Saint's avatar."

Sixth Ancestor's pupils contracted sharply.

A Blood Sacrifice Array. A Demon Saint's avatar?!

Every one of those words weighed on his heart.

No wonder the enemy had chosen to strike during the Flower Deity Festival.

That was when the crowds were thickest. If the array was activated, the casualties would be astronomical!

Lin Changqing continued.

"There are six nodes in the Blood Sacrifice Array, scattered across the busiest places in the Capital City."

"Beneath the Ancient Well at Caishikou, at the North City Abandoned City God Temple, at the Xuanwu Lake Pleasure Boat Pier, at the South City Grocery Street Entrance..."

With each place he named, Sixth Ancestor's expression darkened further, because these were all the busiest areas during the Flower Deity Festival!

"These beasts must be wiped out, or Great Yu will never know a day of peace!"

"Once the array is activated, every citizen in those places will become a sacrifice!"

Lin Changqing turned to look at Sixth Ancestor.

"Sixth Ancestor, go destroy these six array nodes. Each one has a Blood Sacrifice Artifact serving as its core. Destroy the artifact, and the array will collapse on its own."

"The martial artists captured as sacrifices are also being held near these nodes. If you move quickly, you should still be able to save some of them."

"I'll deal with the rest of the rats."

"I'll go at once!" Sixth Ancestor nodded firmly, cupped his hands in farewell, and raised a hand to tear open space.

With a flash, he vanished into the rift.

A silver-white ripple of spatial energy lingered in the night sky, then disappeared in an instant.

Lin Changqing drained the last of his Spirit Tea and rose to his feet, his gaze piercing the night toward the Capital City.

A faint smile hung at the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were cold as ice.

"I've held back for long enough. It's time to stretch my muscles."

He raised his right hand and slashed through the space before him. Space split open.

He stepped inside.

At the same time,

something happened in almost the same instant at several of the Capital City's busiest locations.

Beside a rockery at the back of the Imperial Garden,

a wealthy merchant who had been admiring the flowers suddenly shuddered.

He felt a terrifying pressure descend from above, locking onto him with pinpoint accuracy.

Before he could even circulate the spiritual power in his body, the space before him suddenly split apart.

An invisible hand reached out of the void and yanked him inside.

He didn't even have time to scream.

Several citizens nearby, who had also been admiring the flowers, froze for a moment and looked around.

"Where's the gentleman who was standing here just now?"

"Wasn't he still here... Huh? Where'd he go?"

"Maybe he went over there to look at the lanterns."

The citizens gave it no further thought and went back to admiring the flowers.

At the entrance to South City Grocery Street,

a peddler who had been calling out his wares at the top of his lungs suddenly turned pale.

He spun around and tried to run, but before he could take a step,

the space before him split open. An invisible hand, formed from purple-gold sacred might, yanked him straight inside.

His stall remained where it was, covered with little wooden carvings.

The woman at the neighboring stall stared for a moment, then scratched her head.

"He was right here just now. How'd he disappear in the blink of an eye?"

At the North City Abandoned City God Temple,

a middle-aged woman who had been setting up an array in a corner suddenly shuddered.

A flicker of terror crossed her eyes. She opened her mouth to call for help,

but before a sound could escape, a pitch-black hole split open in the space before her.

She was sucked inside, without even a chance to struggle.

The surrounding air fell silent for a moment.

Several blood-red artifacts, only half set up, lay scattered on the ground.

Beneath the Ancient Well at Caishikou, at the Xuanwu Lake Pleasure Boat Pier, beneath the archway on Vermilion Bird Street...

The same scene played out simultaneously in one corner after another.

The Holy Demon God Sect's followers hiding among the crowds, regardless of their cultivation—from Subordinate Sixth Rank martial artists to Grandmaster Peak experts—

were yanked into the void one after another by invisible hands, with no chance to resist or escape!

In the wilderness outside the Capital City,

clouds covered half the moon, casting a dim silver light over the land. The wilderness looked as if it had been dusted with gray-white frost.

Suddenly,

dozens of holes tore open in space, like dozens of cracks splitting open across a sheet of black paper.

Dozens of figures tumbled out of the rifts.

Some slammed straight into the ground; others tumbled through the air several times before crashing down.

Their faces were filled with terror, and they still hadn't figured out what had happened.

The old man selling candied hawthorns, the woman selling vegetables, the teahouse waiter, the peddler who roamed the streets.

And several people dressed as wealthy merchants, scholars, and even beggars... Every one of them wore a look of horror.

"What's going on?!"

A key member at the Eighth-Rank Grandmaster level struggled to his feet, his voice trembling.

"Spatial Shift! Someone forcibly shifted us out of the Capital City!"

Another old man, also a Grandmaster, spoke in a low voice, his expression as sour as if he'd swallowed a fly.

"Dozens of people, scattered throughout the Capital City, were all forcibly taken away by Spatial Shift at the same time."

"Even among Ninth-Rank Martial Saints, few have the skill and precision to pull off something like this!"

A follower at the Seventh-Rank Grandmaster level had already begun to tremble.

"Y-yes, but was it Prince Wu'an or the Boundless Saint Emperor himself, who sat in the Capital?!"

At those words, everyone fell silent.

Only the wind sweeping across the wilderness broke the stillness, along with the increasingly loud thudding of their own hearts.

And just then,

a Spatial Rift silently tore open before them. A young man in black robes stepped through.

Moonlight spilled over him, revealing a clear, composed face.

He stood with his hands behind his back,

looking down at the terrified cultists.

A faint smile played at the corner of his mouth.

But to everyone watching, that smile cut deeper than the winter wind.

Dozens of people froze in place.

Every gaze converged on the young man in black. Instinctively, they all took a step back—some even several!

Cold sweat streamed in fat drops down their foreheads.

Among them were several Eighth-Rank Grandmasters. The rest were Seventh-Rank Grandmasters or Sixth-Rank martial artists.

In any faction, they would have been elite among elites.

The Holy Demon God Sect had spent countless resources and years cultivating them into its core force.

To activate the Blood Sacrifice Array during the Flower Deity Festival, the Holy Sect had summoned every hidden expert from around the Capital.

But now... standing before Lin Changqing, these elite core members didn't even dare breathe too loudly.

Lin Changqing looked at them.

Even a powerful, well-established sect like the Holy Demon God Sect would be reeling for a long time after losing so many top experts at once!

Lin Changqing's lips slowly curled into a smile that sent a chill down everyone's spine.

"You've been working hard at the Flower Deity Festival for long enough. Time to call it a day."

"I'll send you on your way now, so you won't have to go back and worry about work."