After reaping the benefits, they started scouring the place like hounds, interrogating and catching any suspicious NPCs with green halos atop their heads.
For players, a task like hunting down Dark Piles was not difficult, as long as one was willing to observe carefully.
Because NPCs with green halos atop their heads were considered to be dangerous individuals.
And at this stage, the players’ strength was already not weak.
For the ordinary citizens of Yingtianfu City, they would not have the green halo that signifies danger for the players who were part of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
Thus, those with such halos who deliberately disguised themselves as commoners while skulking about were simply giving themselves away.
Jiang Dali issued tasks to the players asking them to deal with the Dark Piles, which was akin to casting a wide net to catch more fish.
Regardless of whether this action would be successful in the end, he had a third contingency plan in his heart.
The third contingency plan fit his temperament very well - if deception did not work, then fight!
If it were possible to deceive the enemy with a disguise and infiltrate their ranks, that would be best.
If not, and the enemy saw through their ruse, it wasn’t a big deal.
An enemy unmasked in an instant could also be dispatched swiftly, which was quite satisfying.
As for the possibility of the enemy turning the tables on them with a countermove, that was simply out of the question.
Because whether someone harbored hostility towards him or not, Jiang Dali could tell at a glance.
The plan arranged by Jiang Dali might be cautious, or it might be a stroke of luck.
Except for not discovering the unexpected presence of Wang Lianhua, the overall execution of the plan was fairly smooth.
Although Wang Lianhua, for the time being, seemed not to fully trust their identities, he also had reservations and did not expose them on the spot.
Now, Wang Lianhua sensed the danger but was already stuck atop a tiger, forced to pinch his nose and take it one step at a time.
At this moment, Jiang Dali and Xiao Feng had both followed Wang Lianhua to a long street not far from the Forbidden City.
"It seems that the Emperor is still inside the Forbidden City.
Indeed, nowhere is safer than the Forbidden City right now.
If he were to move out of the Forbidden City, he might encounter even greater danger along the way."
Jiang Dali’s thoughts were restless, but he proceeded silently without a word.
The four were all first-class experts with unique movement techniques. They were capable of scaling walls tens of feet high and quickly skirted the city soldiers unnoticed, approaching the Forbidden City.
Returning to the Forbidden City this time was not like the last when they entered directly on the back of Demon Hawk.
Jiang Dali, despite having the experience of escaping the Forbidden City last time, felt an awe-inspiring reverence upon viewing the imposing and strictly guarded walls, as he followed the three.
The Imperial Palace was heavily guarded, like a monstrous beast that swallowed people whole without spitting out their bones.
Just as Jiang Dali was pondering where to stealthily enter the Imperial Palace,
The White-clothed Man and Wang Lianhua seemed to be very familiar with the route, quietly leading the two to a building not far from Chengtian Gate and stopping.
The entire wide passageway of Chengtian Gate was in clear view.
In front of the gate was the Outer Five Dragon Bridge.
To enter the palace, one would need to cross the bridge.
And there were Imperial Army guards in front of Chengtian Gate, making it almost certain they would be detected the moment they emerged.
After stopping, the White-clothed Man and Wang Lianhua seemed to be waiting for something, both of them holding their breath and standing still without uttering a word.
Seeing this, Jiang Dali and Xiao Feng found it odd but also understood that they must be waiting for an opportunity.
Due to their current disguised identities, the two couldn’t ask further questions and simply had to join the wait, putting on a look of "I understand, I know everything" like allied forces.
The four stood in silence like statues, hiding in the dark corners of the buildings, each either closing their eyes to rest or silently guarding their Spirit Platform and breathing to refresh their spirit, creating a solemn atmosphere for a while.
Soon the sun dulled and a chill set in, signaling the arrival of dusk.
Then, a bustling and shouting noise suddenly came from the opposite street.
Accompanied by the sound of messy footsteps, a large group of players in various outfits swarmed toward them.
Jiang Dali’s eyes opened, and he glanced at the players with their glaring blood bars, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
"It seems that the key to entering the Forbidden City lies with these players... The Southern King also knows how to mobilize the power of the Abnormal People.
These players should originally have had no access to the Inner City, but now they suddenly all appear in the Inner City, and, what’s more, right near this Chengtian Gate.
There’s only one possibility for this situation, that is the Southern King has used his own energy to quietly allow a large group of players to enter the Inner City in batches beforehand, then arranged for them to lurk nearby and go offline.
At this critical moment, the players come back online together to launch an assault on the Purple Gold Palace, impressive!"
Jiang Dali’s gaze flickered slightly, and alarms screamed in his mind.
The fact that players could go offline was no longer a secret to the natives, who thought of it as a kind of magical talent of the Abnormal People, an ability to vanish into thin air, just as the Abnormal People could resurrect.
But very few natives truly knew how to use this talent to their advantage.
This time, however, Jiang Dali had seen such a person, feeling the sensation of encountering a formidable rival in his own trade and truly developed an intention to kill the Southern King.
"This Southern King... is not simple. He has a profound understanding of the players’ potential and has a great ability to ’harvest leeks’.
He might threaten my ’vegetable garden’ in the future. He can’t be spared. And certainly can’t be allowed to really become the Emperor of Ming."
At this thought, the horde of players in front of him were already rowdily rushing onto the bridge.
The Imperial Army guarding Chengtian Gate was also alarmed, lining up and rushing out to drive and slaughter the players.
At that moment, the White-clothed Man suddenly opened his eyes and uttered a low shout, moving with a step of one chi and seven inches, as precise as if measured with a ruler, his speed extremely fast as he hurtled forward with his sword.
"Brother Wang, let’s go."
Jiang Dali smiled and glanced at Wang Lianhua, who hadn’t moved yet.
Wang Lianhua’s eyes narrowed, and he felt a chill in his heart, displaying his movement technique to follow suit.
Jiang Dali and Xiao Feng pursued closely behind.
Almost at the moment when everyone charged toward Chengtian Gate, several agile figures rushed out from various corners not far away, heading straight for the direction of Chengtian Gate.
And inside the Forbidden City, urgent alarms sounded simultaneously, the piercing noise causing one’s heart to constrict, as if a significant event had suddenly occurred.
"Has the Southern King made his move?"
Jiang Dali was startled. Seeing the White-clothed Man clearing a path, he quickly followed suit, issuing a whale-like howl that repelled several Imperial Army soldiers rushing to attack. He pretended to be rough and bellowed, "Sea and Sky White Whale Miao Guangzong is here, wise ones better get out of the way. Today I will break into the Forbidden City and see for myself what the Honored Concubine looks like!"
With this bellow, and under the spread of the whale-like howling cultivation technique’s sound waves, almost everyone present felt their Qi-Blood roil and their eardrums pound, discomfort overwhelming their bodies.
A flurry of shocked and astonished gazes suddenly converged on Jiang Dali, as they remembered the name of the boldly foolish Sea and Sky White Whale Miao Guangzong...
(Requesting monthly and recommendation tickets! Starting tomorrow, I’ll be updating with over ten thousand words for a few days. Everyone, please vote more to keep us in the top hundred in monthly tickets so that we can have a fan title next month.)