Preparations Before Battle!

"Could it be that Talisman Masters were ugly and frightening?" Wei Fan guessed inwardly.

At the end of the corridor stood a spacious hall.

The interior was exceptionally dim, with only the oil lamps on the walls casting a faint glow.

In the hall stood a large bronze table, around which sat eight black-robed figures. Only when the three approached did they discover that beneath the robes were not people, but stark white skeletons.

"Hm?" Wei Fan sensed a gaze coveting him, yet his expression remained perfectly calm.

"You have come!" An old, hoarse voice rang out.

Other than Lu Qingshan, who was accustomed to this, both Wei Fan and Shi Meng frowned.

For throughout the entire hall, apart from the three of them, there was not another living thing.

A wisp of green smoke drifted past, and one of the black-robed figures at the bronze table came to life.

The black-robed Talisman Master raised his head. His hollow eye sockets swept across the group before lingering briefly on Wei Fan.

"Master, the Calamity of Strangeness is about to descend. Please save the villagers of Wushan Village!" Lu Qingshan said with cupped fists.

"The Night Watch Team was founded by Zhu Yiwu and me. Now that the Calamity of Strangeness is attacking, I will naturally do my part."

The black-robed Talisman Master spoke in a low voice.

At those words, delight appeared on Lu Qingshan and Shi Meng's faces.

Wei Fan's expression remained unchanged.

He had always felt that this Talisman Master was exceedingly strange. The man was surely not as devoted to the villagers as he appeared.

"In the cabinet by the entrance are specially made talismans I prepared for you, high-grade Little Flame Talismans, and secret medicines capable of temporarily increasing combat strength. Take them and distribute them," said the black-robed Talisman Master.

"Thank you, Master!" Lu Qingshan's face lit up with joy. With the Talisman Master's aid, they would gain another measure of strength against the Calamity of Strangeness.

Thus, following the black-robed Talisman Master's instructions, Lu Qingshan took out the talismans and secret medicines and distributed them to Wei Fan and Shi Meng.

Wei Fan cautiously put them away, though his heart was filled with doubts.

Soon after, the three left the Talisman Master Tower.

In the center of Wushan Village, the square where the Monster Suppressing Stone stood was already packed with people.

They were broad and powerfully built, each one a martial artist above the Strength Training Realm.

From afar, Wei Fan sensed two powerful auras.

One belonged to the old man with the goat beard, and the other to Zhu Yiwu, head of the Zhu family.

"At the peak of the Mortal Realm? I wonder what stage I'm at now," Wei Fan mused inwardly.

His current strength was enough to instantly kill Blood Rage Realm warriors, but he knew little about the Bone Forging Realm and Marrow Condensing Realm above it.

The three approached and joined the Zhu family's martial artists.

Zhu Yiwu swept his gaze over them without saying much.

Zhu Chenghuan, standing behind him, frowned slightly and asked, "Lu Qingshan, where is Zhu Luo?"

Zhu Luo was the Blood Rage Realm expert he had placed in the Night Watch Team. It was highly unusual that he had not appeared at such a time.

"Zhu Luo didn't return to the Zhu family?" Lu Qingshan looked equally surprised.

Since Zhu Luo had not gathered at the Night Watcher headquarters, Lu Qingshan had assumed that he might have returned to the Zhu family.

But judging from Zhu Chenghuan's reaction, Zhu Luo had neither come to gather nor returned to the Zhu family.

"That shouldn't be possible!" An ominous thought rose in Lu Qingshan's mind, and he hurriedly said, "Could Zhu Luo have gone missing?"

"Missing?" Zhu Chenghuan's expression darkened.

As a Blood Rage Realm expert, Zhu Luo would have some ability to resist even if he encountered a wraith-class strange monster.

How could he vanish into thin air for no reason?

Besides, tonight he had ordered Zhu Luo to deal with...

As he thought of this, Zhu Chenghuan turned an unfriendly gaze toward Wei Fan and asked, "I know everyone in the Night Watch Team. You're the only unfamiliar face. Are you the newly appointed Vice Captain of the Night Watch Team, Wei Fan?"

"That's right." Wei Fan nodded without betraying anything.

"Did you see Zhu Luo tonight?" Zhu Chenghuan stared fixedly at Wei Fan's face. Blood qi surged throughout his body, radiating an invisible pressure.

Lu Qingshan and Shi Meng both frowned, but Zhu Chenghuan's aura was too powerful. For a moment, they were both suppressed by it.

Zhu Chenghuan was in the Bone Forging Realm?

A trace of surprise flashed through Wei Fan's eyes. He had not expected the Zhu family to possess an expert above the Blood Rage Realm.

Wei Fan knew that Zhu Chenghuan suspected him, but with the Calamity of Strangeness about to arrive, the man presumably would not dare make a move against him.

So he replied without changing expression, "I was on watch in the southern district. I never saw Vice Captain Zhu Luo!"

Their conversation drew the attention of the Luoyuan Chamber of Commerce martial artists. Zhu Yiwu also turned around and asked in a deep voice:

"Chenghuan, what's going on?"

"It's nothing, Father. I was just asking about the Night Watch Team's situation!" Zhu Chenghuan quickly explained. He then shot Wei Fan another look, his eyes brimming with warning.

Wei Fan remained silent, forcefully suppressing the killing intent in his heart.

The Calamity of Strangeness was about to arrive. Now was not the time to settle accounts.

Just as he was thinking, Wei Fan sensed something. He looked behind the Luoyuan Chamber of Commerce martial artists and saw a lovely figure in a pale yellow short tunic smiling sweetly at him.

Liu Yin'er?

Wei Fan frowned. He had always felt this woman was not simple; there was something about her he could not see through.

Afterward, under the Zhu family and Luoyuan Chamber of Commerce's discussions, the martial artists were assigned to different areas, forming defensive lines along the walls of the village's Outer Circle.

The Night Watchers, including Wei Fan, were responsible for the eastern wall, while the western, northern, and southern districts were guarded by the Luoyuan Chamber of Commerce and Zhu family martial artists.

"Captain Lu, I'll head home first. I'll meet up with you later!" Shi Meng suddenly said.

"No problem!" Lu Qingshan nodded. He knew Shi Meng wanted to return home and make some arrangements.

Facing the coming Calamity of Strangeness, no one could guarantee that they would survive unscathed.

"The Monster Suppressing Stone should still hold for a few more hours. We'll gather at the eastern district garrison in one hour!" Lu Qingshan said.

Wei Fan and Shi Meng nodded at those words.

The three each returned home.

Wei Fan walked along the bluestone-paved road. Before he even reached his home, a sharp whistle of something cutting through the air sounded beside his ear.

Whoosh!

Little Shadow, covered in dark blue feathers streaked with crimson secret patterns, landed on Wei Fan's shoulder.

"Tonight is destined to be anything but peaceful."

Wei Fan sighed and walked toward his home.