【Imperial City Storm】She is going to be the savior
The night in the imperial city was another kind of thick, indissoluble ink. Unlike the silence of the mountains, the darkness here was fragmented by the towering palace walls.
The soldiers patrolling the palace at night were holding red lanterns in their hands. Zhou Suyao didn't know if it was a psychological effect, but she felt that the faint red light from the lanterns looked so strange to the naked eye.
She also smelled the air, which seemed to be filled with stone and another indescribable stale scent. She wrinkled her nose and touched the tip of her nose uncomfortably.
In front of him, Qi Jie was like a shadow close to the ground. With a light tap of his toes, he landed in the shadow cast by the huge palace wall. Zhou Suyao was silent for a while, then bent down and followed his steps.
"This way." Qi Jie lowered his voice very low.
Following his guidance, Zhou Suyao swiftly made her way through the collapsed rockery and half-human-high weeds. Each step she took on the slippery gravel made a subtle sound, but to her at that moment, it was like the sound of a drum. She took a deep breath, summoned her spiritual power, and slowly descended, so as not to make too much noise.
Soon, they came to a gap in the palace wall that was partially covered by a huge rockery. Qi Jie stopped here and turned sideways to make a very hidden gesture inward.
Immediately, a sound of suppressed pain came from the gap, and Zhou Suyao's heart stopped in her throat.
Qi Jie slipped in first, and she followed closely behind.
Inside the gap was a narrow space surrounded by a small piece of broken wall debris. A few rays of moonlight leaked through the gap, barely outlining a human figure.
Qi Shuobei.
But Young Master Rao Tiandao, who had always been so high-spirited that even his sword-flying skills required some trickery, now sat in a state of disarray, leaning against the broken wall. His once magnificent robe with a Qilin pattern was torn in several places, stained with the blood of an unknown individual.
He raised his head, exchanged a quick look with Qi Jie, and then said nothing more, "After the Xincong Sect was disrupted, most of the Xincong Sect's disciples came to Raotiandao for refuge, and Mingluo was no exception. That day, I originally intended to take Mingluo to see Xuan Yangming, hoping that because of our past teacher-student relationship, Xuan Yangming would confess his guilt... I never expected that as soon as the two of us were in the same space, a strange red light erupted from Mingluo's body, and then... she fainted, and my eyes were blinded for a moment. When I could see again, Xuan Yangming had already taken Mingluo away and fled to the imperial city."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Suyao immediately understood: the Tongsheng Seal.
But at this moment she didn't know whether the two people from the Qi family were enemies or friends, so she had to hide such crucial information first.
Qi Shuobei continued, "The head of the Raotiandao clan had no intention of getting involved in this matter, so I had no choice but to send my assassins. They risked their lives to bring back the last bit of information, saying that Ming Luo had been taken to a dark underground chamber deep within the inner court, and that contact had been completely cut off since then. I tried several times, but the underground chamber was impossible to approach. Furthermore, the eunuchs and palace maids patrolling outside all had blank stares and stiff movements... I suspect this was Xuan Yangming's doing."
"But... such a big commotion." Qi Jie was puzzled. "Is Xuan Yangming's influence in the Imperial City really that huge? So big that the entire Imperial Palace has become his puppet?"
Qi Shuobei nodded. "Theoretically, there are indeed many strange things. But..." He paused, then continued, "It's just that Ming Luo was taken away by Xuan Yangming's forces in Raotian Dao. If this news spreads back to the Spirit Dao, the other Daos will definitely criticize us for not protecting her well, and thus attack us... What's more, after the incident in the underworld, we have long been partners in life and death. If she stays in the Imperial City for one more day, her life or death will be uncertain."
He gritted his teeth before speaking the rest of the words: "I... I can't bear to see our companions trapped in such a dangerous situation!"
After saying that, he raised his head and saw that the expressions of the two people in front of him were both wonderful.
"Wow." Zhou Suyao turned her face away to hold back her laughter, then she started clapping.
Qi Jie also lowered his head and scratched his head awkwardly.
Qi Shuobei:?
"Alright, alright." Zhou Suyao still remembered the most important thing and immediately suppressed her smile. "So what should we do next? We can't just run around like headless chickens without a plan."
"Of course." Qi Shuobei said, "You know, for every guest staying at Raotiandao, we will cast a sound transmission spell on them. Once this spell is cast, Raotiandao can contact them at any time through the magic instrument 'Diting Conch', and ignore any magical obstacles."
"Then we have to go back and look for this thing around the Heavenly Path..." Zhou Suyao frowned.
Seeing her so anxious, the two Qi brothers laughed out loud. Then, Qi Jie took out a magical weapon shining with golden light from behind him like a magic trick and stuffed it into Zhou Suyao's hand.
This thing is about the size of a baby's fist, and is a dazzling golden color all over, but its texture and touch are like an exquisitely carved piece of white jade.
"You should try it." Zhou Suyao stuffed the magic weapon back into Qi Jie's hand. "After all, I'm not someone who can do things like that. I don't know how to use this thing. If something unexpected happens at this moment, it will be too much of a loss."
Qi Jie did not hesitate at all. His fingertips quickly brushed across the sharp edge of the Qilin on his shoulder. A drop of hot blood immediately oozed out and fell on the pattern in the middle of the Di Ting Snail with incredible precision.
Buzz——!
The lines on the conch shell instantly lit up, emitting a soft glow. Qi Jie closed his eyes and concentrated, his consciousness like an invisible thread, penetrating the heavy palace walls and the strange barrier, and exploring the underground dark room.
Beside him, Zhou Suyao and Qi Shuobei stared with bated breath. The air seemed to freeze, and only the low humming sound of the listening conch echoed in the small space.
Suddenly, the light of the Di Ting Snail flickered violently. Qi Jie groaned and his body shook violently, but he could not care less. He forced down the blood and energy surging in his throat. Just as he was about to send his question through his mind, Shuo Bei rushed over from behind and asked anxiously, "Ming Luo! Answer me! Where are you? How are you now?"
A brief, yet terrifying silence.
Then, an extremely weak and intermittent thought suddenly rushed into the listening conch, echoing in the narrow ruins and ringing in the ears of the three people.
"Shuo...Shuobei..."
The voice was as weak as a gossamer.
"It's me! And Ajie and Suyao! Hold on, we're outside, we'll come to rescue you right away."
"No!" Ming Luo's voice suddenly rose. "Go...! Now! Leave the Imperial City immediately...! Right now...!"
"Why...!" Qi Shuobei asked anxiously, "Where are you now? We can..."
"No!!" Ming Luo spoke quickly, his tone filled with extreme fear, "This matter is not as simple as you think... Go back quickly... Run away - ah!"
There was a short scream that stopped abruptly, and then the surroundings became silent again.
The light of the Di Ting Snail suddenly went out, and it turned into a cold and dull piece of stone, which rolled out of Qi Shuo's powerless hands with a snap.
“Ming Luo——!”
His eyes were bloodshot, and his already injured body looked even more shaky.
"It's not as simple as we thought..." Zhou Suyao complained subconsciously, "Oh my god, what on earth does that old ghost Xuan Yangming want to do?"
Qi Jie sighed, but still put his hand on Qi Shuobei's shoulder and said softly, "The most important thing right now is to return to Lingdao first. Since Mingluo is like this, it means that this matter is indeed not something that the four of us can solve. We still have to go back and find help."
"It's easy for you to say," Qi Shuobei said, his eyes red, "but the sect leader doesn't want to take care of this matter. Who else can we turn to for help?"
Just then.
Da...da...da...
A very subtle yet unusually clear sound of footsteps came from far away, breaking the dead silence in this corner.
The footsteps were neither hurried nor slow, with an incomparable calmness that sounded particularly harsh and eerie in the empty imperial city.
The three of them were suddenly startled, as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over their heads. They instantly broke free from their grief and anger, immediately restrained their breath, and shrank into the deep shadows of vines and debris.
The footsteps are getting closer.
They saw a shadow slowly moving.
A hunched figure dressed in the blue uniform of a chief eunuch, leaning on a seemingly ordinary ebony cane, slowly came out. He lowered his head, with the brim of his hat pulled down low, revealing only a swollen and pale chin, and his steps were weak and dragging.
He walked to a place about ten steps away from where the three people were hiding. He seemed to be tripped by the gravel on the ground. His body swayed slightly and he let out a series of suppressed coughs.
Qi Jie's hand silently pressed on the hilt of the sword at his waist. Qi Shuobei also endured the severe pain, stretched out his right hand, and was ready to summon his divine power at any time.
Behind them, Zhou Suyao frowned slightly, her back pressed tightly against the cold ruins of the wall.
In her body, the demon clan's spiritual power was surging wildly, as if it had sensed its natural enemy and was madly colliding with her spiritual consciousness.
Just when the three of them were on edge, the old eunuch finally raised his head slowly.
Beneath the brim of his hat was a face swollen as if it had been submerged in water for days. The skin was sagging and covered with dark brown age spots, and his eyes were cloudy and eerie.
He parted his dry lips, revealing an extremely stiff smile. His uneven yellow teeth made him look even more sinister in the dim light.
Then, he slowly raised his right hand, which was hidden in his sleeve, in a stiff posture that was completely contrary to human nature.
His limbs were like machines that had not been oiled for a long time, making a teeth-grinding creaking sound.
However, as the skinny hand was raised little by little, an indescribable chill suddenly erupted, and a thin layer of white frost quickly condensed on the ground at a speed visible to the naked eye.
An even more terrifying scene happened.
The skin of the raised hand began to melt rapidly, exposing the flesh and bones beneath it, appearing a rotten, disgusting blood-black. However, the flesh and blood did not drip onto the ground. Instead, it twisted and condensed like a living thing, and then turned into an even more terrifying—
Bone Staff.
"The night dew is heavy... The three distinguished guests are in this remote place... Ahem... Are you lost?"
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