Chapter 1159 - 957: Counterattack

Outside the city, on a barren mountain, several people climbed high to look far into the distance, watching the city lights.

The leader glanced over the message on the Mother-child Talisman in his hand, then tilted his head left and right and said, "The people inside the city may have already discovered the target and are looking for a chance to make a move. Changes could happen at any moment. Have everyone ready to respond."

The person on the left said, "We've been ready for a while. Once something happens and the Xun Gate and City Defense Array are closed, we'll immediately charge over, forcefully break the array, and extract them."

The person on the right sighed, "Hopefully we can successfully capture them in secret. Otherwise, even if we break out of the city, it'll be hard to escape and leave. We'll probably have to hide in this Heavenly Domain for a long time. Once we succeed, we must strip the target clean the first moment and clear out everything on him. We absolutely cannot leave anything that can be used to locate him."

At the foot of the mountain where they were, another group lay in ambush, ready at any time.

In the Commander Mansion, Feng Chi suddenly received a transmission from Shi Chun.

After reading the contents, Feng Chi paced in thought for a while, then quickly stepped out the door, summoned her core subordinates over, pointed at the brightly lit Prefecture City, and said, "As the population grows, all sorts of messy, chaotic phenomena are on the rise. Some warnings ought to be made public. I see the city is quite lively tonight. Just right—assemble a squad and go to the execution ground to give a public talk, gather passing commoners and merchants to listen, and issue an open warning."

Her subordinate froze for a moment, but still cupped his fists and accepted the order, "Yes."

After he withdrew, Feng Chi secretly assembled several dozen more reliable people, had them disguise themselves, and temporarily took custody of the items on them, cutting off the possibility of them easily contacting outsiders. She also issued temporary-contact Mother-child Talismans.

Very soon, a team of several hundred people was organized and headed toward the execution ground, shouting as they went.

"Conflicts have been breaking out frequently in the city lately. The City Lord is sending people to give a public talk. Anyone interested, go to the open space at the execution ground to listen…"

By the time they arrived at the execution ground shouting, quite a few people had indeed followed. At least ten thousand gathered in loose clusters on the open space below the execution ground. Among them was Shi Chun, who had come after hearing the news.

Of course, there were also the four tails who had followed Shi Chun.

Blending into the crowd, Shi Chun looked around. After confirming the four tails were in position, he felt this scene was strangely familiar—or rather, deeply impressed in his memory. He muttered inwardly: he'd just asked Feng Chi to arrange a place; he hadn't expected Feng Chi to arrange such a good place, one that left him savoring the setup.

The disordered crowd stood without pattern, people constantly coming and going, weaving in and out among them.

For example, a small, thin man squeezed out of the crowd, gave a simple, foolish smile to a cloaked man blocking his way ahead, and apologized, "Excuse me."

The cloaked man looked up and only felt the other's eyes were dark like a vortex, faintly resembling some old acquaintance.

Just as he was momentarily dazed, that small, thin man had already made his move, tapping a finger on his acupoint, while several long, slender steel needles followed up, piercing into his acupoints.

After doing this, the small man immediately ducked into the crowd on the side, the people around silently making way.

The cloaked man was about to collapse when someone beside him secretly reached out to support him, while those surrounding him front, back, left, and right kept him standing, making it so those nearby couldn't see anything unusual.

And that small, thin man was none other than Huang Yingying.

After taking down one tail, he drilled through the crowd again to another tail scattered elsewhere. Using the same "excuse me," he subdued the man in the same way.

Then he moved toward yet another tail.

Earlier on the way, he had already received Shi Chun's instructions and memorized all four tails. Then, coordinating with Feng Chi's side, they launched a joint operation.

So within what looked like a chaotic crowd gathered here, quite a few people with ulterior motives were actually hidden.

Within what seemed like a disorderly gathering, there were in fact certain orderly guides hidden.

The four tails assumed the people gathering around them were random passersby, not knowing they were all cooperative personnel dispatched by Feng Chi.

As for the "Void Escape Divine Arrow" that Shi Chun had Huang Yingying prepare, that was a backup for when they had no choice but to engage in a big fight. If it really came to a fight, Yu Xuanbing would still be the one assisting from the shadows.

For Shi Chun, if he could avoid fighting and killing, he naturally would. This was a territory he had built with effort. Once these experts at the Heavenly Immortal Realm started fighting, what they destroyed would be his hard work.

Reality also proved this truly was his turf. He could mobilize all corresponding forces in this city to coordinate with his actions; he could have every group in this city unwittingly cooperate with his moves and carry out his will.

"Everyone, here's a cumulative figure for you. In the past half year, there have been over eighty brawling incidents in this city, and over a thousand theft incidents…"

While the man on the stage was loudly proclaiming, Shi Chun, standing in the crowd, didn't even turn around to look before receiving a message from Huang Yingying, informing him that all four tails had been dealt with.

After reading the message, he immediately turned, said "excuse me," and slipped out of the crowd.

As for those four controlled tails, someone directly splashed wine over them; then people on either side each took one arm and, saying "excuse me" through the crowd, led these four staggering, seemingly drunk men away.

Once out of the crowd and at a secluded corner, a carriage was already waiting and the men were thrown straight inside.

The carriage quickly carried them away, vanishing into the night-shrouded street.

In the end, four stripped-naked men were brought up Yuling Mountain. Everything they had on them was gathered, collected, and packed together, then sent to Feng Chi, who arranged for them to be examined one by one, item by item.

Her subordinate took out a glowing Mother-child Talisman and quickly handed it to Feng Chi, saying, "City Lord, there may be accomplices. How should we reply?"

After reading what was on it, Feng Chi pondered, "There's a code embedded. If we reply with the wrong code, it'll backfire. Don't reply for now."

On Yuling Mountain, after Shi Chun received Feng Chi's transmission and learned there might be more accomplices of the Demon Cultivators, he could only sigh inwardly. He had no way to make the captured ones speak immediately either, so he also instructed not to reply and to drag things out.

At the same time, he launched a counterattack. Since they dared to come onto his turf and move against him, no matter who they were, he had to organize a counterstrike in return!

He had Feng Chi immediately contact the remaining Stargazing Pavilion personnel, informing them that during this time period, Demon Path cultivators might flee through the Xun Gate. The Stargazing Pavilion people were to rush out through the Xun Gate, send word to the Stargazing Pavilion forces in the Heavenly Capital, and ensure that before the Demon Path reacted, they stationed people at the Xun Gate出口 on the Heavenly Capital side. Anyone going out against the flow during this time could be from the Demon Path!

Hearing they were going to move against the Demon Path, Feng Chi was shocked and hesitant, but thinking it was the other side who struck first—and against the Master at that—she grew angry and executed the order at once!

After the previously contacted Wu Jinliang arrived, Shi Chun once again led a few people to slip into the depths beneath Yuling Mountain's belly, opened the Two Realms Channel again, and took those four Demon Cultivators with him, all together slipping into the Netherworld.

As soon as the Two Realms Channel vanished, the red-clothed woman lying on the deck chair in the deep residence suddenly opened her eyes, the shock and doubt in them refusing to fade. This was her first time clearly and in full detail observing Shi Chun's complete cross-realm traversal.

She couldn't sit still anymore. She stood up, her heart surging.

The closed room could not confine her restless heart. She opened the door, walked out barefoot, ignoring how the spring scenery beneath her thin clothes was largely exposed, feeling the chill outside, pacing under the eaves to calm down.

In teahouses or wine shops near the Xun Gate in the city, some people had been sitting for a long time without leaving.

Someone took out a Mother-child Talisman, repeatedly sending inquiries, but after never getting a response, he suddenly realized something had gone wrong. Clutching the talisman, he transmitted to his tablemate, "Something might have happened. You leave the Xun Gate at once and report upward."

"Alright, be careful." The person at the opposite table dropped those words, then quickly rose and left.

The one holding the Mother-child Talisman looked around again. Their group had dozens lurking here in ambush, also acting as backup to receive those four Demon Cultivators.

If the four Demon Cultivators succeeded smoothly, they didn't need to do anything. If the covert capture failed and a fight broke out, and this side tried to close the Xun Gate, they would immediately step in to stop it, to ensure the four Demon Cultivators could get away with their targets.

If they couldn't break through via the Xun Gate either, only then would they force their way through the array and out. The people waiting outside the city to receive them would make their move then.

And those outside the city didn't actually know they were the last-resort option, nor that there were already people arranged inside the city at the Xun Gate to receive.

In the Nanshan Royal Capital Right Minister Mansion, a man quickly found the chief steward Liu Guang, who was behind the desk going through the accounts. After a hurried salute, he transmitted, "Chief, something may have happened over at Heavenly Domain Dingnan Prefecture. The four who had locked onto the suspect target suddenly lost contact."

Liu Guang frowned, looked up, and asked, "What happened?"

The man shook his head. "No idea. The people in charge of support don't know what's going on either."

Liu Guang asked, "Any unusual signs before it happened?"

The man immediately picked up the Mother-child Talisman to inquire. After getting a reply, he quickly reported, "There were no unusual signs, and no sounds of fighting at all. Right before it happened, the local Prefecture City was going to announce some warning at the execution ground. The targets went to watch the spectacle, and they followed along. Then they lost contact."

As he spoke, he also presented the contents on the Mother-child Talisman for Liu Guang to inspect personally.

Liu Guang scanned it back and forth a few times, then said grimly, "They may already be exposed. Immediately order the others over in the Heavenly Domain to withdraw at once. Do not use Dingnan Prefecture's Xun Gate; use the Xun Gate at the Domain Central."

"Yes." The man took the order, then quickly picked up the Mother-child Talisman and sent the instructions.

Just then, Liu Guang's brows twitched. He too took out a Mother-child Talisman. He didn't know what instructions the Right Minister, currently in the Royal Palace, had for him. After he fixed his gaze on the content, his face changed drastically and he immediately looked up. "The person you're in contact with right now is already exposed and has been targeted by the Stargazing Pavilion. Cut this line off completely at once. Send someone else to contact and withdraw the personnel inside the Heavenly Domain."

"Ah! How is that possible…"

"Nothing impossible about it. Do it at once."

"Yes. Then those four who lost contact…"

"Do I even need to say it? Something's already happened to them."

"Was it the Stargazing Pavilion that moved?"

"Don't know. We'll find a way to confirm. Stop wasting time. Handle what's in front of you now—if you're any later, it'll be too late."

"Yes."

Inside an empty mountain belly, the walls and floor were covered with white cloth. Scattered on the ground were traces of Sandal Gold Flame Energy, and quite a few 'Ice Sheep' providing oxygen.

The four Demon Cultivators lying naked on the ground slowly came to and couldn't help shivering. Sensing that their cultivation was being suppressed, they got up one after another, discovering that everyone was still alive—while also noticing an extra naked person in a corner, covered in wounds.

"Why is it so full of Yin Qi in here? Are we already dead?" Someone shuddered as he spoke.

Another staggered over to that fifth person and squatted down to push the hair away from his face. Once he saw the features, his expression immediately changed drastically. "Young Master?"

The others hurriedly tottered over when they heard that, and were all taken aback after a look.

The person lying on the ground whom they called 'Young Master' was none other than Gong Yuanzhi. He weakly opened his eyes to look at them, his lips trembling.

On one side of the cave entrance, blocked by a curtain of cloth, stood Shi Chun and the others, listening in.

Shi Chun knew that a direct interrogation wouldn't yield much in a short time, so he threw Gong Yuanzhi in among them.

The moment the startled shout of "Young Master" sounded from inside, Shi Chun's eyes narrowed sharply. He already had the answer he wanted: these Demon Cultivators were indeed sent by the Gong family.

That was much faster than interrogating.

He tilted his head, signaling.

Chu Jingtang and Lao Changtai immediately went to the cave entrance, pushed aside the curtain, and went in.

The few people inside turned their heads in panic.

Chu Jingtang walked straight over, kicked them aside, grabbed Gong Yuanzhi by the hair, and dragged him away.

The badly battered Gong Yuanzhi let out a feeble wail, "I'll confess, I'll confess everything… uuu, I'll confess it all…"

At those words, the four Demon Cultivators were shocked. Their leader cried out urgently, "Young Master, you—"

Smack. Lao Changtai walked up and gave him a slap that sent blood spraying from his mouth and nose, two teeth flying out, shutting him up on the spot. Then he swiftly moved to restrain them, rendering them unable to move. Only then did he plant his hands on his hips, looking down at the few on the ground with a cold grin. "No need to rush. We'll take you one by one and let you savor it slowly."