29: Chapter 29 Desperate Situation!

Behind the Celestial Prison, the Mass Grave.

Dense gray Evil Qi churned like boiling water.

Chen Ran, holding a black iron saber, was just about to turn and leave.

The surrounding temperature suddenly dropped to freezing.

The withered bones scattered on the ground began to tremble slightly, emitting a teeth-grinding friction sound.

Deep within the gray fog, a shrill wail tore through the silence.

Countless wandering ghostly Evil Qi, drawn by some kind of energy, frantically gathered in mid-air.

In the blink of an eye, a wraith about a zhang tall with a green face and fangs condensed into shape.

The wraith was surrounded by visible cold Yin wind, its body composed of substantial Evil Qi, and ghostly green fire flickered in its empty eye sockets.

It let out a piercing shriek, opened its mouth full of sharp teeth, and, carrying the sky full of flying bone fragments, lunged violently at Chen Ran below.

A strong wind hit his face, causing Chen Ran's clothes to flap loudly.

Chen Ran stopped his footsteps and slowly lifted his eyelids.

"Noisy."

He did not draw his saber.

He did not even change his posture.

He just slightly twisted the wrist of his right hand holding the scabbard.

The majestic True Qi of his Rank 6 Inner Breath Realm erupted instantly.

Including the scabbard, the black iron saber turned into a blurred black shadow, carrying a violent power that crushed everything, slashing diagonally from bottom to top.

A piercing sonic boom erupted in the air.

The saber energy, like a bolt of black lightning, instantly tore through the space in front.

The wraith's shriek stopped abruptly.

Its massive body of Evil Qi froze in mid-air, and then a straight, thin line split down the middle.

"Bang!"

Before the wraith could even scream, it shattered like fragile porcelain, turning into ashes that dissipated with the wind.

Chen Ran's expression was calm, as if he had just casually brushed dust off his sleeves.

He hung the long saber back on his waist, stepped on the broken bones covering the ground, and strode into the thick fog.

...

Capital City, inner hall of the Six Doors.

Lin Wan, dressed in a black martial outfit, rested her hands on the edge of the table.

A detailed map of the Capital City and its surrounding terrain was spread on the table.

A constable wearing green clothes walked quickly into the hall and knelt on one knee.

"Chief, I have investigated clearly."

"The meeting point Zhang Yulong revealed is an abandoned villa thirty miles west of the city. It was once the private residence of a corrupt official from the previous dynasty, abandoned for many years, with hidden terrain."

Lin Wan's eyes were like torches, and her finger pressed heavily on the location of the villa on the map.

"The core account book of the Official Silver Case must be hidden there."

The constable in green looked troubled.

"Tonight is the Lantern Festival, the pressure on city security is immense, and almost all the yamen's manpower has been transferred. Should we report to the Demon Suppression Division to request reinforcements?"

Lin Wan's eyes turned cold, and she straightened her body.

"We cannot report it."

"The news of Zhang Yulong's confession has been sealed by me, but there must be an informant for the other side among the upper echelons."

"If the news leaks, the account book would have been moved long ago."

She drew the saber at her waist, its blade flashing with a cold glint under the candlelight.

"Tonight is the Lantern Festival, the whole city's attention is on the streets; this is exactly when their defenses are weakest and they are most anxious to move the account book."

"Pass on my order: gather all the elites of the First Squad, change into plain clothes, bring signal arrows, and follow me out of the city tonight to strike at the heart of the enemy."

The constable in green clasped his fists to accept the order and turned to leave.

Lin Wan watched the flickering candlelight and gripped the hilt of her saber.

After the constable in green left the inner hall, in an unnoticed dark corner, he quietly released a completely black carrier pigeon from his sleeve.

The carrier pigeon flapped its wings and flew high, blending into the night.

...

At dusk, the Celestial Prison changed shifts.

Chen Ran hung his name tag on the wall, changed out of his prison guard uniform, and put on an inconspicuous green long gown.

The holiday had arrived, there were very few troublemakers, and even they, the prison guards, were rarely so idle.

The streets of the Capital City were decorated with lanterns, and the noise of the crowd was deafening.

The annual Lantern Festival arrived as scheduled.

Both sides of the long street were hung with lanterns, and the hawking of vendors intertwined with the playful noise of children.

Chen Ran stopped at a roadside stall, bought a bowl of steaming Yuanxiao, and walked with the bowl to the edge of a stone bridge.

Under the bridge, the water flowed murmuringly, reflecting the lights of ten thousand homes.

"Whoosh — Pop!"

A cluster of gorgeous fireworks suddenly bloomed in the night sky, turning into a sky full of meteors.

A burst of cheers erupted from the crowd.

Chen Ran ate a Yuanxiao and looked up at the night sky.

Immediately after, several fireworks rose into the sky, illuminating the entire night sky of the Capital City as bright as day.

"What beautiful fireworks!"

"Probably set off by some wealthy family."

The onlookers chatted excitedly, while Chen Ran's gaze crossed over layers of rooftops, casting towards the distant night sky in the west of the city.

Amidst the countless colorful fireworks, there was an extremely subtle, glaring scarlet light rising from the direction of a low hill outside the city.

Chen Ran narrowed his eyes, his expression slightly changing.

That was not a firework for viewing.

That was the emergency rescue signal arrow unique to the Six Doors.

"Forget it, it has nothing to do with me."

In the night wind, there was a faint trace of extremely weak clashing sounds of weapons.

That was the direction of the abandoned villa.

Chen Ran narrowed his eyes slightly.

"That woman Lin Wan, she went out of the city tonight?"

"Looks like something happened. It would be a pity if she died; it's rare to have such a good labor boss."

Chen Ran thought for a moment, put down the porcelain bowl, and left a few copper coins on the wooden table.

His figure flickered.

His whole person, like a drop of water merging into the ocean, instantly disappeared into the crowded throng.

...

Thirty miles west of the city, abandoned villa.

The cold night wind passed through the dilapidated courtyard wall, rolling up fallen leaves and a pungent smell of blood across the ground.

The battle was coming to an end.

Lin Wan panted heavily, her back against a broken stone pillar.

Her black martial outfit was soaked with blood, and there was a saber wound on her left arm deep enough to see the bone, with blood dripping from her fingertips onto the mud.

Around her, more than a dozen corpses of Six Doors elites lay scattered about.

"Clang!"

Lin Wan raised her notched saber, struggling to block a slash from a black-clothed assassin.

The huge recoil force caused the web between her thumb and index finger to split, and she was shaken back several steps, kneeling on one knee on the ground.

On the courtyard walls and rooftops surrounding the villa, black-clothed death warriors holding sharp blades stood densely packed.

There was no sound, only suffocating murderous intent.

A tall man wearing a dark gold mask walked slowly out from the crowd.

He held a dripping longsword upside down, and with every step he took, a powerful aura belonging to the Rank 6 Inner Breath Realm radiated from his body.

The masked man looked down at Lin Wan from a high position, emitting a scornful sneer.

"Divine Constable Lin, do you really think you are very smart, being able to follow the clues to find this account book?"

He raised his hand and threw a blood-stained account book at Lin Wan's feet.

"It's just that the masters felt you were in the way, so they deliberately threw out bait to lure you into the trap."

Lin Wan gritted her teeth tightly, blood overflowing from the corners of her mouth.

From the moment they stepped into the villa, death warriors pouring out from all directions completely surrounded them.

The opponent was not only well-prepared but also dispatched several top experts of the Rank 6 Realm.

Even though she was exceptionally talented and skilled in martial arts, she had only just entered the Rank 6 Realm a few years ago.

In just over ten minutes, most of the subordinates she brought were killed or injured.

"Send Divine Constable Lin on her way," the masked man coldly commanded.

The surrounding black-clothed death warriors slowly approached, their cold blades flashing in the night.

Lin Wan bit the tip of her tongue violently, forcibly squeezing out the last bit of Qi and blood in her body.

She took out the last special red-tailed signal arrow from her bosom, lit the fuse, and threw it forcefully into the night sky.

"Whoosh —!"

A glaring red light shot into the sky, emitting a sharp whistling sound.

This was the highest-level rescue signal.

The masked man watched the signal arrow rising into the sky, not only not stopping it but laughing wantonly instead.

"Did you think I wouldn't have accounted for this?"

He raised his left hand and snapped his fingers.

The next moment.

In the woods on the outskirts of the villa, dozens of gorgeous, huge fireworks suddenly shot into the sky.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Deafening explosions rang out one after another.

The brilliant, colorful fireworks exploded in the night sky, illuminating the entire sky above the abandoned villa as if it were daytime.

Lin Wan's red signal arrow, symbolizing a call for help, was instantly drowned in the sea of fireworks, leaving not even a trace.

Lin Wan's pupils shrank, her face turning pale.

Today is the Lantern Festival.

The fireworks filling the sky became the enemy's most perfect cover.

People in the city would only think it was a festival celebration; it was impossible for anyone to notice the life-and-death struggle here.

All routes of retreat were cut off.

There were no reinforcements; no one would come.

The masked man shook his head mockingly and raised the longsword in his hand.

"Go in peace."