The thick fog enveloped the surrounding Lincheng, like a maze making people unable to distinguish between the four cardinal directions. Fei Jiangnan and Gao Tianwolf wandered around in the fog for a long time but still couldn't find the direction of Lincheng. What's worse, they also lost sight of Chen Mo and others.
"Minister Pei, this fog must be under someone's control, specifically designed to confuse people... Those scoundrels must know we are coming. Even if we continue searching here, we will not find the people of Lincheng..."
After thinking for a moment, Gao Tianwolf couldn't help but say with a sigh.
In the past, he had already gone into this fog, deeply aware of its terrible nature. If it were not for his good luck, he might have been trapped here for a lifetime.
Pei Jiangnan pressed his right hand on the hilt of his sword, closed his eyes slightly, and said seriously, "The fog is merely a deceptive tactic controlled by humans. As long as we find the direction, the next thing will be much simpler... Get down."
As Pei Jiangnan spoke, he opened his eyes, drew his Yanlín sword from its scabbard, and then a knife glow like a full moon spread out from his body.
Gao Tianwolf immediately lay obediently on the ground. Then, he saw Pei Jiangnan's blade glow painted a huge circle, constantly expanding outward. Dimly, he could still see the distant firelight and the faint city in the distance.
"Found it."
Pei Jiangnan gazed distant at the city, forcing a smile on his face. Gao Tianwolf immediately jumped up, "With the direction, we can go straight into the city now."
"Let's go."
Pei Jiangnan didn't waste time, sprinting in the direction of Lincheng. Gao Tianwolf, who was only a five-level cultivator, had much slower footwork than the other, but he followed eagerly to be able to act alongside his idol.
Lincheng is getting closer, Pei Jiangnan can see various battle marks on the city walls, and the walls are filled with dead bodies. According to their appearance, it's more than 90 percent likely that they are the protectors of Lincheng.
Red lights stood on the city walls, floating at intervals. Pei Jiangnan couldn't discern any abnormalities in the red light. After approaching the city wall, he walked quickly forward, mourned for a moment in silence for the fallen protectors of Lincheng, and then passed through the gate into the city.
"Little Gao, inside there must be many dangers. You don't have to follow me to die... I cannot ensure your safety 100% because the situation inside is unknown."
When entering the city, Pei Jiangnan couldn't help but remind one.
Gao Tianwolf spoke solemnly, "As a member of the Ministry of Martial Arts, we should fight for the country and the people. That's what you told us earlier, Minister Pei. If we let the people of Lincheng suffer and endure hardships out of fear of death, it's not something that a person from the Ministry of Martial Arts should do... Minister Pei, even before joining the Ministry of Martial Arts, I was fully prepared to die in battle at any moment. How could I back down because of a little danger?"
"Alright, good courage. If you can survive and come out, then follow me from now on."
Pei Jiangnan laughed heartily and said.
Gao Tianlang nodded solemnly, his heart filled with excitement. To work under his idol was something he had always dreamed of doing.
The mist outside Lincheng was very thick, half a zhang apart, gender was indistinguishable, one zhang apart people and animals were indistinguishable. Even further away, people were not visible. However, once inside Lincheng, the fog thinned out quite a bit. From afar, one could see black clusters of people crowded in every corner of the city.
The people were all expressionless with fear, huddled on the ground. In front of them lay dozens of corpses, and beside the corpses stood a dozen people in black robes.
"See, if you dare to defy our orders, this is your fate. Don't think that just because you have more people, you can escape our control. If you don't listen, there's only one way for you - death."
The black-robed leader pointed to the corpses beside him and shouted loudly.
His voice was accompanied by spiritual energy, as if amplified, echoing throughout Lincheng. Even the two of them far away, Pei Jiangnan and Gao Tianlang, could hear it clearly.
Gao Tianlang pulled out his sword, his face filled with anger. "How dare you harm the people, which is something that can be endured? Minister Pei, there's no need for you to say anything. Let's go!"
"The ones who harm the people, deserve to die."
Pei Jiangnan's face was dark and serious. He also pulled out his sword. Since he was a child, he had always acted with integrity, and only fought after giving advance warning to his opponents. However, he couldn't bear the anger inside him anymore when facing such beastly people. He immediately struck without hesitation. There was no need for him to be polite with them.
Within a few breaths, Pei Jiangnan had killed more than half of the black-robed people, and Gao Tianlang had also killed two. The remaining few withdrew and wanted to retreat among the common people in order to survive; only one person managed to escape from the city at that moment.
Pei Jiangnan paid no attention to the one who had escaped. His eyes were quick and his hand was swift. With a casual slash, he killed those who wanted to hide among the people. But it was too late; he saw the leader of the black-robed people had already slipped into the crowd of civilians. As he was about to strike, the leader pulled his hands back at random, grabbed two civilians in front of him as shields.
"You..."
Pei Jiangnan's eyes bulged with anger upon seeing this. His Yanling sword trembled slightly in his hand, and he wanted to strike to kill the black-robed man but was concerned about the two civilians in front of him and the crowd behind him.
The black-robed man, seeing that Pei Jiangnan dared not act, laughed haughtily, "With such strength, I suppose you must be Pei Jiangnan, one of the Empire's Double Tigers. Your abilities are indeed impressive, but you're too cautious to amount to anything great. It's no wonder you've been relegated to the restricted zone, with no courage to even fart..."
Pei Jiangnan knew that this was the black-robed man's tactic of encouragement, and he did not let the insult affect him. He scanned his surroundings for an opportunity to break through. However, Gao Tianlang, as his little fan, couldn't bear it anymore.
"Shit, how dare you slander Pei Minister, who is devoted to the nation and the people? It's nothing like the cowardly mouse you hide in the sewers, spit, break down, worthless scum. Have the guts to come out and fight me one-on-one? Can you do it?"
Gao Tianlang raised his sword and pointed it at the black-robed man from a distance, let out a cold snort, and then sneered with an expression of disdain.
The black-robed man was first taken aback, a hint of anger appeared on his face. He was truly angered by the boy in front of him, especially when he said that he was just a mouse hiding in the sewers. However, he was someone who had experienced many storms, and the anger was quickly suppressed.
"You, this young boy with no scent of filth yet, are easily killed. If you ever dare to speak to me like that at any other time, I will make sure you won't see the sunrise tomorrow... However, today I have important business to attend to and have no time to waste on words with you. Pei Jiangnan... Pei, where's Pei Jiangnan?"
As the black-robed man was speaking, his gaze suddenly shifted. He saw that Pei Jiangnan, who had been standing not far in front of him, had suddenly vanished into thin air. When he realized this, he suddenly felt a chill at his back, and a hand had already landed on his shoulder.
In that instant, the black-robed man's face turned pale as a ghost. He tightly grasped his hands, trying to use the two hostages to threaten Pei Jiangnan. However, Pei Jiangnan noticed this and casually chucked a palm down, causing a terrifying spiritual pressure to suddenly appear.
"Puff"
The black-robed man's hands went weak, and he spat out a mist of blood. His body collapsed abruptly onto the ground, and the two hostages were freed at this moment. They trembled in fear, thanked Pei Jiangnan, and then fled to a distance, afraid of being involved in any harm to their own lives.
"It's all over now."
Pei Jiangnan's face was startled, and his Yanling sword was raised high. He was about to kill the black-robed man in one stroke, but before he could move, the latter suddenly laughed.
"Pei Jiangnan, do you really think that by killing me, everything will be over?"
