By now, braziers and lanterns had long since been placed throughout Sword-Forging Manor, brightly illuminating the entire estate.
At the foot of the mountain, however, several large bonfires had appeared. Figures carrying torches seemed to have surrounded every route leading to the manor.
Thousand-Household Commander Lu and Ao Jian were already standing outside the manor, looking down at the situation below and the figure at the very front of the Prefectural Soldiers.
"Gao, have you gone mad? What are you doing?"
Thousand-Household Commander Lu shouted anxiously.
He had already reached an understanding with Commandant Gao. The man should certainly have ignored that imperial edict, so why had things turned out like this?!
A shadow fiend?!
"Thousand-Household Commander Lu, you too have received imperial favor, and we received that imperial edict together. Naturally, you know why I must do this! Once Sword-Forging Manor is replicated by shadow fiends, the consequences will be unthinkable!"
Standing at the intersection, illuminated by the soldiers' torches behind him, Gao Yan barked in a deep voice.
His powerful Elixir Force voice allowed everyone in the manor to hear him clearly.
"Imperial edict?"
Ao Jian frowned and looked at Thousand-Household Commander Lu beside him.
Thousand-Household Commander Lu immediately understood the reason. His expression turned stern. "Stop trying to sow discord! The shadow fiends that replicated the manor's many craftsmen have all been slain, and even those of the manor lords are dead! I think you've already been corrupted by a shadow fiend!
"Soldiers of the Prefectural Garrison, as a Thousand-Household Commander of the Qingkou Embroidered Uniform Guard, I order you to withdraw immediately! Do not let shadow fiends deceive you!"
But Commandant Gao merely sneered. "What a distortion of the truth! I think you've all been replaced by shadow fiends! I hold an imperial edict, and I've