Night had barely fallen when a group of uninvited guests appeared in the sky above the pitch-black imperial city — none other than Han Li and the other eight Yellow Maple Valley cultivators.
Hovering above the dark city walls on their flying artifacts, Liu Jing, who led the group, glanced down at what was supposed to be forbidden ground. After a moment's hesitation, he waved his hand with commanding resolve.
"Move!"
His voice was decisive, without the slightest trace of doubt.
He was the first to charge forward.
The others naturally followed close behind. Any fear of the Seven Sects' prohibition had long since been discarded.
Han Li didn't rush to the front. Instead, he deliberately hung back, flying at the tail end of the group.
This wasn't because Han Li had any ulterior motive — he was quietly sensing the "Five Elements Inversion Grand Formation" he had set up the night before.
When they flew to within a few li of the palace, a faint, enigmatic smile tugged at the corner of Han Li's lips.
Excellent! The formation was still intact. The spiritual energy markers he had secretly placed hadn't been disturbed in the slightest. This filled Han Li with quiet delight.
Moments later, the nine of them were hovering above the palace, gazing down at the imperial compound below.
"Listen up, everyone! Tonight's operation goes exactly as we planned — we split into two groups. One group heads for the current Yue Kingdom emperor's bedchamber to rescue him from the Black Evil Sect's clutches. That's the only way to prevent them from getting desperate and using the emperor as leverage against us. The other group goes straight for the Cold Palace where the Black Evil Sect Master is holed up — we concentrate our forces and take out the Four Great Blood Attendants first. After that, both groups merge up and deal with the Black Evil Sect Master, who's still in seclusion." Liu Jing repeated tonight's plan with a solemn expression, and the others nodded repeatedly.
The personnel had already been assigned. Chen Qiaoqian and Zhong Weiniang, the two female cultivators, would rescue the Yue Kingdom emperor. Liu Jing and the rest would charge straight for the Cold Palace guarded by the Four Great Blood Attendants — Han Li among them.
"Seventh Junior Sister, Junior Sister Chen — be careful, both of you!" Before parting ways, Liu Jing gave them a particular warning.
The two women acknowledged him with serious faces and flew off at an angle.
Soon, they had vanished silently into the darkness.
"If any of us run into other cultivators down there, don't hold back. Anyone who's freely moving around inside this palace is definitely one of the Black Evil Sect's people. Let's get moving — we can create some opportunities for our two junior sisters." Liu Jing turned back and addressed the group in a cold voice, then immediately urged his artifact toward the Cold Palace that Han Li had indicated.
Han Li and the others followed close behind.
Moments later, their dramatic descent from the sky was quickly spotted by the Black Evil Sect disciples guarding the outer perimeter of the Cold Palace.
A series of shrill whistles rang out, and from hidden positions around the Cold Palace, a torrent of spells and magical artifacts surged skyward, hurtling toward the group in a devastating volley.
"A mere candle dares to rival the moon!"
Liu Jing swept his hand upward, and a shimmering silkworm kerchief flew from his grasp, instantly expanding into a massive barrier that shielded the space before him — and even the others behind him, including Han Li. He clearly had a great deal of confidence in the power of this artifact.
Sure enough, the moment the kerchief unfurled, the spells and artifacts all struck it at once. But after a blinding flash of white light, the kerchief remained completely unscathed — in fact, it deflected several spells straight back, sending the Black Evil Sect disciples below into a chaotic panic.
"Brother Liu, what a move!"
Song Meng, who was charging down alongside Liu Jing, called out in admiration. Then, without the slightest restraint, he hurled the object in his hand.
A colossal blue sword materialized out of thin air in the night sky — Song Meng's prized top-grade magical artifact, the "Blue Silk Sword."
"Go!"
Song Meng formed a seal with both hands, and the great blue sword emitted a long, piercing hum before spinning on its axis like a wheel. This left the Black Evil Sect disciples below — already shaken by the sword's enormous form — momentarily stunned.
A cruel grin spread across Song Meng's face.
He extended two fingers and pointed at the "Blue Silk Sword," which had transformed into a massive disc of light.
Instantly, the blue radiance on the disc contracted and then surged outward, unleashing countless razor-thin blue threads that blanketed the dozens of zhang below.
The Black Evil Sect disciples watching this spectacle were terrified to the core. They threw out every defensive spell and artifact they had, desperately trying to withstand the all-consuming onslaught.
A chorus of agonized screams rang out in a terrible cacophony.
Under the rain of innumerable blue threads, most of the Black Evil Sect disciples failed to protect themselves. They either died horribly, riddled with holes like honeycombs, or managed to shield their vitals but had their limbs and other parts pierced clean through, instantly losing all combat ability.
"What a devastating technique — 'Ten Thousand Threads Across the World'! Junior Brother Song, your fame with this move is well deserved. It truly lives up to its reputation."