A night of bloodshed

Judging by Shen Ruiwen's reaction earlier, the Inner City must have noticed the Void Cult's presence.

They haven't acted for so many days. The higher-ups might be planning something too.

Lu Mian's eyes flickered.

When the nest fell, no egg could remain intact.

He still had to rely on Thousand Chimes Commandery City, so naturally, he did not want the Void Cult disrupting the existing order.

After some thought, Lu Mian burned all the cultists' bodies, along with their red-cord Snake Knots. He kept only the woman's red-cord Snake Knot.

After destroying the evidence, Lu Mian left the dilapidated manor with the Great Cleaver on his back.

He no longer had any desire to hunt Evil Spirits or Weird Beings. All he wanted was to return to Thousand Chimes Commandery City as quickly as possible and report his discovery.

Thousand Chimes Commandery City.

The first half of the night was as peaceful as ever, with only a light snowfall.

In the latter half, fully armed squads quietly appeared in the city's streets and alleys.

These squads appeared in the Outer City, the Refugee District, and even the Shed Quarantine Zone.

Sun Feifei wore leather armor with a sword at her waist, her gaze somewhat bewildered.

She had no idea what had happened or why they had suddenly been summoned to the Guard Hall in the middle of the night.

Then something even stranger happened.

The members of all twelve guards under the Guard Hall were shuffled around and temporarily assigned to five-person squads.

Sun Feifei did not even know her current teammates' names, let alone what they were supposed to do.

Her teammates felt much the same.

Everyone was baffled.

In fact, even their current squad leader, Xu Tian, was baffled.

"What on earth has happened in Thousand Chimes Commandery City..."

"For them to mobilize on this scale..."

Xu Tian was the leader of the Black Panther Guard's twelfth squad, responsible for gathering intelligence from outside the city.

Given his position, he naturally had access to numerous intelligence channels.

Yet he had caught no wind whatsoever of tonight's operation.

At present, all he had was an address.

The mission instructions were simple too.

Half a cup of tea later, Xu Tian led Sun Feifei and the others into an alley in the Outer City.

"When I point out a house, charge inside and kill everyone in it."

"Remember, leave no survivors. Not a single person."

"And be careful. These people are extremely dangerous!"

Xu Tian spoke flatly.

Sun Feifei's eyes widened at his words.

Was this going to be a purge?

But she had no time to think.

Xu Tian had already charged into the alley and pointed at a house ahead.

Sun Feifei and the others took a deep breath, drew their weapons, and followed him.

Bang!

Xu Tian kicked the door open and strode into the house.

The people inside jolted awake.

"You... who are you?"

"I'm a member of the Artisans' Hall!"

A man sat up in bed, staring at Xu Tian and his squad in terror.

Shunk!

Without a word, Xu Tian drove his saber into the man's heart.

"Aah!"

The man screamed, his eyes fixed on Xu Tian.

"Murder!"

The man's wife screamed at the sight.

Remembering Xu Tian's instructions, a young man in the squad raised his saber to slash at her without hesitation.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, the seemingly frail woman on the bed became a blur as she sprang up.

Shunk!

Pain tore through the young man's lower abdomen.

A dagger had plunged into his belly, dripping with blood.

The woman grinned and pulled out her dagger, ready to attack again.

Whoosh!

Xu Tian reacted and lashed out with a vicious kick.

Bang!

The woman staggered back several steps.

Sun Feifei and the others finally reacted, attacking the woman with their weapons.

Under their combined assault, the woman had no chance to escape, and her room to maneuver steadily shrank.

At last.

Sun Feifei spotted an opening. With a flick of her wrist, her sword traced a flourish and pierced the woman's heart with precision.

"Cough, cough..."

"My soul is about to return to the Land of All Beings."

"When the Snake Mother descends, I shall be reborn."

Facing death, the woman showed no fear. Her eyes burned with fanatical devotion.

An inexplicable chill gripped Sun Feifei as she looked at her, and she instinctively pulled her sword free.

The woman let blood gush from her heart. Smiling at Xu Tian and his squad, she began reciting a scripture.

"Heaven has neither sun nor moon; earth has neither mountains nor rivers."

"Crimson Brightness Calamity, Great Void Wish..."

Her voice was calm and peaceful.

She sounded like a traveler returning home after many years away.

Only after several dozen breaths did she collapse and die from blood loss.

Yet the smile on her face never changed.

As for the young man she had stabbed, the strange wound would not stop bleeding, and he too died in despair.

The heavy stench of blood filled the room.

"Let's go."

"Take all the bodies back to the Guard Hall."

"We may have more assignments after this."

Xu Tian sighed.

"Squad leader, just who were these people?"

Sun Feifei could not help asking.

"I don't know either."

"I'm afraid only the higher-ups know."

Xu Tian shook his head.

The latter half of the night was destined to be a night of bloodshed.

Snowflakes drifted through the sky, and death bloomed in Thousand Chimes Commandery City.

Bloody purges unfolded throughout the Outer City, the Refugee District, and the Shed Quarantine Zone.

Screams rang out through the snowy night.

In some places, fierce fighting broke out, followed by explosions and then fires.

The citizens of Thousand Chimes Commandery City had no idea what was happening outside and were terrified.

They did not know whether Weird Beings or Evil Spirits had entered the city, or whether some great upheaval had occurred.

No one dared go out to investigate. They could only hide at home.

The Inner City.

Compared with the chaos and bloodshed in the Outer City, the Inner City seemed somewhat quieter.

In truth, however, a bloody purge was taking place there as well.

Figures in white robes embroidered with gold leaped across the rooftops, slaying one target after another.

Amid this bloody, terrifying scene, a figure walked through the snowy night holding an oil-paper umbrella.

He was a handsome man with a face like polished jade, yet his hair was entirely white.

Before long.

He entered an alley and stopped before a house built of blue bricks and red tiles.

After half a night of snowfall, white snow covered most of the eaves.

The white-haired man was very polite and even took the trouble to knock.

Creak...

A smiling young man with a fair complexion opened the door.

"Allow me to introduce myself."

"Ke Yuanyi, master of the Evil Surveillance Palace."

The white-haired man spoke softly.

"So it's Hall Master Ke."

"I thought the old chief would come in person."

"It seems I don't carry enough weight in his eyes."

The young man shook his head, looking somewhat disappointed.

"To kill you... I alone am enough."

"If you want to see the old chief, you'll have to kill me first."

"Unfortunately, you can't."

The white-haired man spoke indifferently.

"Then I'll have to experience your skills first, Hall Master Ke."

"I hope you'll still be able to talk afterward."

The young man's smile did not fade.

Whoosh!

The next instant.

Both men struck at once!