Slumping into a chair, Tuluo Cheng gripped the cup tightly and muttered, "There are no gods in this world. Those cunning people must have tampered with the incense sticks. I will try again tomorrow and expose their scheme!"
Having made up his mind, Tuluo Cheng slowly calmed down. Realizing he was drenched in sweat, he felt ashamed of his weak mentality and slammed the table in frustration.
While Tuluo Cheng fumed in shame and doubt, the city slowly fell into slumber as the moon rose higher into the night sky.
In the middle of the night, a group of people dressed in black, their faces covered with black cloth, quietly left the inn.
After their shadows disappeared into the darkness, the elite soldiers of the Feng Army exchanged looks. One of them nodded and then whistled.
A second later, another whistle echoed through the night.
Upon receiving the signal, the elite soldiers stood motionless, as if nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, after receiving the signal from the elite soldier, the Feng Clan’s shadow guards made a hand signal and split up.
As they disappeared in different directions, one of them rushed to the barracks.
Within minutes, the shadow guard arrived at the barracks and slipped into the commander’s tent. Appearing before the sleeping Feng Xiyan, he knelt and bowed his head.
"Master, the targets have made their move."
Hearing this, Feng Xiyan opened his eyes. Sitting up in bed, he looked at the shadow guard and said, "Begin the plan."
The shadow guard replied, "Yes, Master." With that, he vanished from the tent.
Getting out of bed, Feng Xiyan put on his night clothes and mask. Grabbing the black sword among the ten hanging on the weapon rack, he left the tent.
Looking up at the moon hanging in the sky, Feng Xiyan’s eyes turned cold.
Channeling his internal energy into his feet, he activated his lightness skills and disappeared from there. A second later, more than forty shadow guards followed him.
Soon after, Feng Xiyan, Feng Yi, and the group of shadow guards landed lightly on the rooftops of several buildings near the Temple of Fairy Bai.
Noticing the group of men in black clothes hiding nearby, Feng Xiyan gestured for Feng Yi to come closer and asked, "How are the preparations?"
Feng Yi lowered his head slightly and replied, "Reporting to Master, everything is ready. We are only waiting for the right moment and can clean them up."
While Feng Xiyan and his men observed from afar, the group of infiltrators also kept watch on the soldiers guarding the temple.
After a few minutes, a new group of soldiers approached.
"Brothers, thank you for your hard work. We will take over from here. You can go back and get some rest," said the leader of the new group.
Nodding, the leader of the first group, said, "Thank you. Then we will leave the security here to you guys."
After exchanging a few words, the first group left while the second group’s leader began instructing his subordinates and arranging their positions.
Seeing the opportunity, the leader of the men in black made a hand gesture, and the others nodded. A second later, they rushed from their hiding place and leapt over the temple’s high wall without making any sounds.
Watching everything from the rooftop, Feng Xiyan said calmly, "Let’s go."
With that, he and the shadow guards vanished from there.
After avoiding the patrolling soldiers, the group of masked men arrived at the main hall of the temple.
Seeing the number of patrolling guards nearby, one of them said, "Sir, there are too many soldiers around. The risk is too high."
The leader frowned as his mind raced. Just as he decided to use someone as bait to draw the soldiers’ attention, a soldier suddenly shouted, "Who is there?!"
Hearing this, the leader’s heart sank. "Not good. They have spotted us!"
"Sir, let’s retreat. Tonight is not the right time!" another man urged.
Just as the leader was about to signal a retreat, the soldiers suddenly rushed in another direction, leaving the area empty.
Seeing this, the leader’s eyes lit up. This was a gift from the heavens!
Without wasting another second, he ordered, "Let’s go in now!"
"Yes, Sir!" In the next moment, the group of masked men charged into the main hall.
Standing on the roof of a side hall, Feng Xiyan smiled faintly and said, "The prey has fallen into the trap."
"Master, should we do it now?" Feng Yi asked.
Feng Xiyan thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No. We haven’t learned their true purpose yet. Let’s wait and see."
"But what if they try to harm Fairy Bai’s golden body?" Feng Yi asked again.
At this, Feng Xiyan sneered. "They won’t get the chance to lay a single finger on her golden body."
Sensing the shift in the temperature, Feng Yi quickly lowered his head and stopped asking questions.
After a short silence, Feng Xiyan’s killing intent faded. "Let’s go see what they are really after."
With that, Feng Xiyan, Feng Yi, and the shadow guards disappeared from the rooftop.
Inside the main hall, the masked men busied themselves checking the surroundings. After confirming no one was around, they gathered in front of the altar.
Staring at the food on the long table, one of the masked men swallowed hard. "Sir, there is so much food here. Can we eat some?"
The leader rubbed his growling stomach and swallowed his saliva.
Since arriving in Xiqiang City earlier that day, they had only been given two meals consisting of one steamed bun and a bowl of porridge. It was just enough to keep them alive, but far from enough to satisfy a soldier’s hunger.
After staring at the food for a long moment, the leader said, "Alright. But we need to ask for permission first."
Hearing that, the others exchanged glances. After a moment of silence, one of them asked, "How do we ask?"