The Barrier
It's rare to have such a quiet night in Rizhao City; even the wind seems to be much quieter than before.
Guards with spirit swords at their waists patrolled the city in twos and threes without stopping—this was a new rule set by the eldest daughter of the Jimo Household, who also specifically instructed them to patrol diligently at night and safeguard the peace of Rizhao City during this special period.
The guards were rarely valued in this way, so naturally they dared not slack off.
Wang Wu was one of the men responsible for the night patrol. By the time the moon rose above the willow trees, they had already patrolled the central district several times. But the two showed no signs of fatigue; on the contrary, they became even more serious and cautious.
Suddenly, a few strange noises came from the alley ahead.
Wang Wu and his companion exchanged a glance, then quietly drew their swords and gave chase. His companion led the way, disappearing into the alley, where a soft laugh echoed.
"Oh, it's just a cat!"
He came out carrying a white cat. The cat was incredibly docile when the scruff of its neck was pinched, and it even gave Wang Wu a soft meow.
The two of them immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
There are many low-level cultivators who have settled in the city. They cannot afford to keep other spirit pets, but first-level spirit cats are very cheap and easy to raise, so some cultivators keep them as pets.
"I guess it's another monk's cat that ran away and can't find its way home," its companion offered an explanation.
Seeing that the cat was alright, his companion released it.
But Wang Wu still couldn't calm down, so he said, "It's not good to have a spirit cat running around outside so late at night. I'll catch it and take it to the city lord's mansion!"
But when he went to look for the spirit cat again, it had already vanished without a trace.
Seeing this, his companion advised, "It's just a spirit cat, not some powerful spirit beast. Don't bother with it."
After a few words, Wang Wu was finally persuaded.
After the two had walked quite a distance, a wisp of black smoke slowly emerged from the alley where they had previously discovered the spirit cat.
The barrier surrounding Rizhao City was set up by a former patriarch, a rare array master who must have spent considerable effort and Spirit Stone consulting countless ancient texts to create such an array.
The formation requires a large amount of Spiritual Qi, and it takes ten Spirit Crystal to complete in just one day. If it weren't for a powerful and established cultivation Aristocratic Clan like the Jimo Household, they probably wouldn't be able to afford such a large expense.
However, for the Jimo Household, such an effort was worthwhile as long as they could protect Rizhao City.
Therefore, the large amount of Spirit Crystal in the treasury was reserved for the operation of the formation. Even though the Rizhao City rarely opened its barrier in the past, the family heads never dared to use these Spirit Crystal.
With Evil Cultivator eyeing the area, Fu Yinqiu dispatched a large number of guards from the manor to the array's core to prevent the barrier from failing. Even the Spirit Crystal were placed by three people, and no mistakes were allowed.
Even so, the trouble that was bound to happen still occurred.
The guards had no idea when the black smoke started spreading; by the time they realized what was happening, it had already enveloped them all.
Within a few breaths, the dozens of people guarding the array's core immediately fainted.
The person responsible for placing the Spirit Crystal fainted on the ground, and the Spirit Crystal in his hands rolled to the side.
A thin, bony hand picked it up, but the pure Spiritual Qi on it instantly burned the person. When the person couldn't bear the pain and threw the Spirit Crystal away, a deep burn mark was left on the already withered and blackened hand.
"As expected of the Jimo Household's formation, even the Spirit Crystal they used are working against me!" A voice like that of an old woman rang out, making people feel inexplicably afraid.
The black smoke slowly solidified, revealing an old woman whose entire body was wrinkled, her skin hanging loosely on her face like tree bark.
Her strange appearance makes it impossible to tell that she was once a rare beauty.
"Stop complaining, Mother!" Another figure appeared, calling the old woman from before "Mother," but he himself was no better off than her. "Let's hurry and finish what the master ordered, otherwise we might not even make it through today."
He looked at his withered wrist, which seemed not to belong to a human hand, but more like a tree branch!
If it were someone from the Jimo Household here, they would never recognize that these two people, who seemed to have become spirits from ancient trees, were the once arrogant Zhang Huizhen and her son Jimo Renjie.
They eventually accepted the mysterious man's help, but paid a price they could never have imagined.
When they were overcome by the black smoke and then awoke amidst a cacophony of noise, they were horrified to discover that they had suddenly aged decades!
Although their cultivation was destroyed, both of them retained their former youthful and beautiful appearance because they had taken the Appearance-Preserving Pill.
The one who found it hardest to accept was Zhang Huizhen. She was someone who valued her appearance extremely much, and over the years she had spent countless Spirit Stones to maintain her looks.
But all of that was destroyed!
The mother and son blamed the Jimo Household for all the crimes. In order to regain their former youth and strength, under the influence of a mysterious person, they turned against their own son and sister.
The young girls, as beautiful as flowers, and the innocent children, who were calling them "mother" and "big brother" just a moment ago, showed fear in their eyes that even made them waver for a moment.
But Zhang Huizhen and her son still didn't let them go. Their withered arms fell on their vibrant bodies, and the two people who were once young and beautiful were reduced to skeletons in the next instant.
When the mother and son regained consciousness, only two sets of clothes remained on the ground, and Zhang Huizhen seemed to still have the image of her daughter's terrified expression before she died lingering in her mind.
But this is far from the end!
After the deaths of Jimo Qunfang and the other woman, Zhang Huizhen and her son did gain temporary strength. But soon, their strength slowly dissipated, and their skin and flesh loosened again... They once again fell into despair.
This time, the mysterious person finally revealed his true identity—a man named Feng Ji gave them the final choice: destroy the barrier of Rizhao City.
From this point on, they will be truly liberated, regaining their strength and youth.
The two agreed without hesitation, which led to today's events.
Zhang Huizhen had long loathed her current state, and after being reminded by her son, she couldn't wait to reach out her hand towards the center of the formation.
The billowing black smoke from the two figures condensed again, transforming into sharp blades that pierced towards the center of the formation.
With their attack about to succeed, their bright future was within reach!
The next second, a blinding white light suddenly burst forth, and Zhang Huizhen and her son couldn't help but reach out to block it.
When they opened their eyes again, there were more people in front of them.
The guards, who should have been drugged, were now pointing their spirit swords at them, while Fu Yinqiu and Sang Ying, who shouldn't have been there at all, had their swords pressed against their necks.
"It's been a long time, Madam." At that moment, Zhang Huizhen admired herself for being able to greet the person in front of her with a smile even in this situation.
However, the other party seemed quite dismissive of this.