Chapter 271: No Nine Yang Divine Art!

From the attack to the counterattack, from the abduction of commoners and noble youths, to the formation of a rescue team from the "loose personnel" of the docks, only a few hours had passed.

Combat-ready forces—or any group that can be mobilized at short notice—are precious and limited for any organization or faction.

Perhaps even the Beast Cult had never anticipated how swiftly "Huicheng" and the "Royal Family" would respond.

"Ultimately, the core issue of organizational structure is human initiative, and what drives action has always been mutual trust."

A simple greeting followed by immediate action is nothing like the inefficiency of individual approvals, official orders, and personnel requisitions.

Every member of the Alumni Association is an inheritor of the Heroic Souls, equal in self-perception and mutual recognition.

This kind of heartfelt trust and identification is extremely rare.

"Shall we go?"

"Let's go."

This simple, efficient rate of action is incomprehensible to most large organizations and powerful factions.

Unless it's a dictatorship, nothing could respond faster than this.

When the Beast Cult planned the attack, they surely never expected the counterstrike to come so swiftly—even the group that abducted the hostages was already being gradually caught up.

After all, nearly all of Huicheng's major factions had been infiltrated by the Beast Cult; even if they couldn't hinder or delay the enemy's response, they could still send timely warnings to prevent mission failure.

But the Alumni Association is different—its core members are all intermediaries from various organizations, factions, and backgrounds.

Once they act on their own, they can rapidly mobilize a force of fighters, requiring no approvals or reports.

You a few, me a few, just gather enough people and it's sufficient.

Without middleman procedures or bureaucratic review, there is no leakage or inefficiency from red tape.

Say "go," and they simply go.

Li En even had time to split his forces into two routes while using his own "alibi" to plant a "scheme" on the ground.

"Listen, your top priority is not to reveal your identities. Don't waste time hunting evil—every slave in the market is evil."

Talia S Daer once again donned her "assassin's garb," and behind her stood a group of clumsy, burly men. They were all deeply uncomfortable in these robes and tight-fitting suits, especially with the cheap "monocle masks" strapped to their faces.

Most of these members were Holy Knights from the Weavers' Knight Order, and their character was trustworthy.

Most people's prejudice against Holy Knights would cause them to be immediately ruled out as suspects—indeed, classical Holy Knights never hesitated to strike evil; as long as they stayed true to their conscience, the means hardly mattered.

This prejudice actually stems from the Church's Holy Knights, who, unlike classical or free Holy Knights, are bound by the rule: "Serve the gods, worship the gods." And the deities often impose upon them restrictions like "obey the law, never lie, fight for the faith."

This prejudice was remarkably useful at this moment.

The side of justice disguising itself as cultists to launch an attack—perhaps this was unique.

Their clothing and disguises were not fake; during today's battle, so many such robes and masks had been seized.

And most of the robes and masks worn by ordinary believers and low-rank members were homemade, shoddy goods—can you believe it? Even these low-level cultists had to equip themselves!

"Remember, no Nine Yang Divine Art! I don't want any radiant wounds visible on these slave traders' corpses!" Some wounds were too distinctive, almost signature—they had to be avoided at all costs.

Watching the men nodding repeatedly, Talia S Daer sighed, utterly unable to feel reassured.

She felt like a weary old hen leading a clutch of chicks—except these chicks were each more stubborn than the last.

"But if we don't use Nine Yang Divine Art, what do we have left?"

Are Holy Knights just launchers of Nine Yang Divine Art? Outsiders might joke like that, and they'd get angry—but truly take away their Nine Yang Divine Art, and they'd panic on the spot.

"No Nine Yang Divine Art! I've said it many times—whether you slash, bite, or even tear with your bare hands, just don't use Nine Yang Divine Art!"

Holy Knights are inherently organizational creatures—find one, you find a nest; crush one, a whole group appears; eliminate a squad, and you'll see a full knightly order. Cough—anyway, the moment radiant wounds from Nine Yang Divine Art appear, everyone will immediately pinpoint the Holy Knights, and tomorrow they'll come knocking on Li En's door.

Talia S Daer scanned each one, reluctantly entrusted by Li En himself—she had to get this right. Thinking back to Li En's half-spoken words, she guessed he'd already foreseen this exact situation.

"Wait—what are you all laughing at?"