Chapter 319: Chapter Eight: Forced to Launch

Luo Feng left the Wei Yang Hall Master’s cave residence.

"Another piece of trash!" Luo Feng had anticipated this before the meeting, since the Nest, the Guifang, and the Ten Thousand Shadows Pavilion all belonged to Wei Yang Hall Master’s faction. This meeting fully confirmed his judgment.

Wei Yang Hall Master is a piece of trash!

“Maintaining a city’s operation through trade, and collecting a share from residence and rental fees—I can understand that,” Luo Feng thought. “But still, it’s not enough. Now they steal, plunder, and even exploit under the guise of screening suspected cultivators… they keep squeezing.”

“Wei Yang Hall Master, you truly are a piece of trash.”

“Fortunately, you haven’t obtained the City Founder’s authority. If you had, who knows how much more you’d do.”

Wei Yang Hall Master is different from Luo Feng.

Wei Yang Hall Master had long reached the Semi-Hunyuan Awakening stage, and had accumulated deeply within it—he could barely improve further himself. He only wanted to effortlessly gain more resources and no longer wished to struggle. He naturally valued Yulan City.

Luo Feng is different!

Luo Feng’s cultivation soared like a rocket. Yulan City in the Jiuhe Sacred Realm is merely one stop on Luo Feng’s cultivation journey.

“Once I’ve accumulated enough depth and break through the Dao of Birth and Death, I’ll obtain the City Founder’s authority—and expel Wei Yang Hall Master.” Luo Feng thought.

“Yuan Xiang Hall Master!”

Luo Feng walked through Yulan City and sent a message to Yuan Xiang Hall Master: “Starting now, I will investigate the entire city for hidden low-level Hunyuan lifeforms.”

“Investigate now?” Yuan Xiang Hall Master was pleasantly surprised and replied with a laugh, “Young Brother Luo Feng, you act far faster than other Elders. Just appointed as Commander of the Patrol Heaven Palace, you’ve already screened all suspected cultivators—and now you’re launching a full-city sweep.”

“Every cave residence in the city is shielded by arrays; cultivators inside cannot be checked yet,” Luo Feng replied.

Cultivators outside their cave residences make up only a tiny fraction of the city’s total.

“Start your search. After you finish, I’ll arrange to shut down the cave arrays in batches,” Yuan Xiang Hall Master transmitted.

“Understood.”

Luo Feng replied.

His third eye naturally opened—the simulated Birth-and-Death Eye—and he began observing his surroundings, faintly perceiving the souls of countless cultivators on the nearby streets.

“Hu.” “Hu.” “Hu.” “Hu.” “Hu.”

Five Luo Feng clones emerged from his cave residence.

Each Luo Feng opened his simulated Birth-and-Death Eye.

Six Luo Feng clones in total, each assigned to a sector, began a Ditanshi search.

At this moment, Yulan City was drizzling; its cultivators varied in appearance. Luo Feng’s single extra eye made him utterly unremarkable in the city. His six clones floated calmly, scanning one place after another.

“Found one hidden entity: a Huoxin Worm clone.”

“Found a second: a Huoxin Worm clone.”

…

“Found the ninth: a Shihun Snake clone.”

…

Even upon discovery, Luo Feng did not alert them; he silently recorded each cultivator’s identity. Using Yulan City’s detailed database, he could easily determine their identities and cave locations.

After half a day, Luo Feng’s six clones had traversed the entire city and finally reunited.

“Yuan Xiang Hall Master, I’ve surveyed the entire city. Every cultivator outside their cave residence has been checked,” Luo Feng transmitted. “I found twenty-two hidden entities.”

“Twenty-two?” Yuan Xiang Hall Master was overjoyed. “Once we kill them, following the karmic threads, we should capture even more hidden entities.”

Luo Feng nodded.

In terms of observation techniques, he was unmatched in the city—but many were still stronger than him in karmic tracking.

“I’ll immediately assign the Elders to act separately. They’ll kill these twenty-two hidden entities and use karmic threads to capture more,” Yuan Xiang Hall Master transmitted. “You don’t need to worry about this minor task.”

“Understood,” Luo Feng replied.

Karmic tracking could be handled by others.

Luo Feng’s simulated Birth-and-Death Eye could observe the entire city, but the wider the scope, the less detail he could perceive—he could only sense faint, blurred energies of cultivators. He could barely discern their physical forms, let alone their souls.

“They’re moving,” Luo Feng’s simulated Birth-and-Death Eye had already locked onto the twenty-two suspected hidden entities.

He saw clearly: twenty-two Elder-level beings acted simultaneously, instantly assassinating the twenty-two hidden entities.

Then, using karmic threads, they swiftly captured their connected clones.

…

Inside a common cave residence in Yulan City’s outer district.

A red-robed cultivator lived alone.

“Lord, our mid- and low-tier clan members hidden in Yulan City have been dying one after another,” a voice echoed in the red-robed cultivator’s mind. “At least thirty clan clones have been killed—and the number is rising rapidly.”

“Mid- and low-tier clan clones being killed one after another?” the red-robed cultivator frowned. “How could so many be exposed?”

“Only the leaders know about this operation. We strictly control core members. As for mid- and low-tier clan members… we don’t enforce strict restraint,” the voice replied.

“These mid- and low-tier clan members don’t even understand the operation’s importance. Their true bodies remain outside the city. Only their larval clones are inside,” the voice added.

“Then ignore them.”

The red-robed cultivator replied, “Wait patiently. It’s not time to act yet.”

“Yes,” the voice responded.

…

In Yulan City, following Luo Feng’s discovery of the twenty-two hidden entities, seventy-six additional hidden clones were captured via karmic threads. Dozens more cultivators suspected of association were sent to the Patrol Heaven Palace.

Over a hundred of these suspected cultivators committed suicide during arrest.

“Young Brother Luo Feng has truly done a great deed. This screening has already exposed nearly two hundred hidden entities,” Yuan Xiang Hall Master was satisfied. They had guessed many low-level Hunyuan lifeforms were hiding here.

In the past, finding them was far too difficult.

Now, it was much easier.

Luo Feng, undeterred by effort, remained stationed at the Patrol Heaven Palace, reviewing every suspected cultivator. Those arrested were released the same day, without their treasures seized—sparking widespread gossip among the city’s cultivators.

…

“Lord, we’ve lost 205 clan clones. These clones belonged to twenty-three clans—all mid- or early Divine Emperor-level,” the voice reported.

“Ignore them,” the red-robed cultivator didn’t care.

A few mid- or early Divine Emperor-level clan members meant nothing to the true “City Annihilation” operation.

“Seizing this opportunity, I’ve ordered all members to lie low and avoid any unauthorized action,” the voice said. “After such heavy losses, they’ve all obeyed and gone silent.”

“Wait patiently. When the time is ripe, we strike,” the red-robed cultivator remained calm.

The red-robed cultivator gazed toward Yulan City’s core district.

“The Elders of Yulan City have no idea how many clan members have infiltrated. Half of the core members of the Huoxin Worm and Shihun Snake races across the entire Jiuhe Sacred Realm have already gathered here,” the red-robed cultivator thought.

Only Divine Emperor Late-stage cultivators qualified as core members.

Only Divine Emperor Perfect-stage cultivators were leaders of a clan branch.

“Boom!”

Suddenly, Yulan City shook violently as a terrifying aura erupted.

The red-robed cultivator was startled. His gaze pierced through the arrays, seeing dense purple light engulfing the entire city.

“Boom!” Another thunderous crash. The city’s drizzle turned to mist; an invisible force spread through every corner.

“Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!”

A chorus of explosions.

One after another, hidden arrays across Yulan City activated, summoning furious, surging heavenly forces. The energy above the city resembled a raging ocean, roaring endlessly.

Normally, Elders only devoted a fraction of their attention to maintain Yulan City’s defense systems. But during critical moments like a siege, they would fully activate the arrays, causing their power to surge dramatically.

This was exactly what was happening now. The city’s arrays activated one by one, their power continuously escalating.

This gradual activation meant Yulan City wasn’t in immediate panic.

“What’s happening? Why are Yulan City’s arrays activating fully?” the red-robed cultivator’s heart lurched. “Has our operation been exposed?”

“Impossible.”

“All core members involved are under strict restraint. Even the detailed plan is known only to the leaders,” the red-robed cultivator grew uneasy.

After dozens of breaths, every array in Yulan City had erupted, their terrifying power enveloping every corner. The cultivators inside grew tense.

“I am Yuan Xiang,” a calm voice echoed across the entire city. “Cultivators of Yulan City, do not panic! We have a method to detect hidden low-level Hunyuan lifeforms. Starting now, we will shut down all cave arrays in batches. When your cave array is deactivated, please shut down your personal arrays to facilitate identity verification.”

“The entire verification process will be completed within one day,” Yuan Xiang Hall Master’s voice rang everywhere.

“They can scan the whole city?”

“Excellent!”

“It’s about time we wiped out all hidden low-level Hunyuan lifeforms.”

Across the city, the vast majority of cultivators cheered. Over ninety percent were below Divine Emperor level—they had no defense against hidden Hunyuan lifeforms. To them, it was a nightmare.

If they could purge them all at once and then conduct periodic screenings, Yulan City’s safety would rise dramatically.

“Lord! They’re scanning the whole city!” the voice was urgent.

The red-robed cultivator had heard the city-wide announcement. His face darkened.

He was the leader of the “Annihilate Yulan City” operation—the first to arrive. Other “Lords” had not yet arrived; the planned operation time had not come.

“The forces inside the city were deployed early and are fully assembled. But only thirty percent of the external forces have arrived—the rest are still en route,” the red-robed cultivator fumed.

“Enough. Even if we launch prematurely, our low-level Hunyuan clan may suffer heavy losses—but our chance of destroying the city still exceeds ninety percent.”

The red-robed cultivator’s eyes turned icy.

He knew he could not wait any longer.

If he waited, they would scan the entire city!

“Transmit my order: execute the plan as scheduled!” The red-robed cultivator’s voice suddenly echoed in the minds of every hidden low-level Hunyuan lifeform within the city—a silent psychic wave that compelled all hidden entities to obey.

PS: Tomorrow we rest; the battle for Lancheng begins the day after tomorrow!

(End of chapter)