Chapter 410: Designing a Trap, the Whole City in Emergency

"Everyone, stay alert!" Lin Xuan shouted sternly, simultaneously crouching down to carefully inspect the protective case in front of him.

Inside the carriage, the "Void Core" was emitting an intense black-purple light, but Lin Xuan keenly sensed a trace of abnormality. This energy fluctuation pattern had subtle differences from the data previously provided by Xu Feng—almost imperceptible, but for a high-level Practitioner like Lin Xuan, it was a fatal warning.

"Something's wrong," Lin Xuan whispered, while taking out the energy detector specially made by Xu Feng from his waist to scan the "Void Core" in the case. The data on the detector jumped rapidly, eventually displaying a set of readings that clearly did not match the standard parameters.

"This is a fake!" Lin Xuan's expression changed abruptly, and he immediately took a "Core" out of the case, carefully probing its internal structure with Wood Element Energy. Sure enough, this seemingly perfect "Void Core" was just a meticulously crafted counterfeit. Although it emitted real Void Energy on the surface, it lacked the key structure of a true core inside.

"We've been tricked," Lin Xuan looked around rapidly, suddenly realizing that this ambush had been a meticulously designed trap from the very beginning, "Quick, the whole team immediately—"

Before he could finish, the communicator on his wrist suddenly emitted a sharp alarm, followed by Xiao Yuan's anxious voice: "Lin Xuan, emergency! Five Array Eyes are under fierce attack simultaneously, and the number of enemies is three times what it was before! They seem to have been prepared for a long time, and their combat power has clearly increased. The area around the CCTV Building has already fallen into a chaotic battle, Yage has appeared in person, and Li Shibo is seriously injured!"

Lin Xuan felt as if his heart had fallen into an ice cellar, and cold sweat broke out on his body instantly. He finally understood Yage's true plan—this batch of "Void Cores" was just bait, intended to lure him away from the Urban Great Array so they could launch a full-scale attack.

"Damn it!" Lin Xuan punched the carriage wall, making a dull sound, "Xiao Yuan, hold on, I'm returning to reinforce immediately."

He quickly adjusted his thinking and issued new orders to his team members: "Do not discard the imitation cores; replace them all secretly with tracking devices. Even if they are fakes, they might be connected to the real cores. The whole team, assemble and return to the city area at top speed!"

The team members acted quickly, implanting the special micro-trackers inside each "Void Core," then resealing the cases to disguise them as if they hadn't been discovered, leaving two members to continue monitoring while the rest sped back with Lin Xuan.

Lin Xuan chose the fastest route, heading straight for the city area. The vehicle sped through the night, while news of distress from various Array Eyes kept coming through his communicator.

"The guardian of the Fire Element Array Eye requests reinforcements! The defense line on the south side of the Tiantan has been breached, the old Practitioner is seriously injured, and Zhou Zhuo is supporting the Array center alone!"

"The electronic defense system of the Jinrong Zhongxin is suffering from a high-level hacker intrusion; Xu Feng is repairing it urgently, but the enemy's power is endless!"

"The Gugong Wood Element Array Eye is in distress! Void Energy is eroding the main Array structure, and the guardians led by Xiao Yuan are outnumbered, having already retreated step by step to the interior of the Taihe Hall!"

The most distressing news came from the Earth Element Array Eye: "Three guardians have already sacrificed themselves at the Aoti Zhongxin, and the Earth Element Array energy is decaying rapidly. Requesting immediate support, otherwise it will fall within an hour!"

Every message was like a sharp knife stabbing into Lin Xuan's heart. He knew well that if any single Array Eye were completely destroyed, the overall defensive capability of the Urban Great Array would drop significantly; at that point, the other Array Eyes would face even greater pressure, potentially leading to a chain collapse.

"It's all my fault," Lin Xuan clenched his fists, his nails digging deep into his palms, "I shouldn't have left, I shouldn't have fallen into such an obvious trap."

The team member beside him, Zhang Peng, comforted him: "Team leader, Yage's plan is meticulous; even if you had stayed at headquarters, it would have been difficult to deal with attacks erupting in five places simultaneously. The most important thing now is to return as quickly as possible and stabilize the situation."

Lin Xuan took a deep breath, trying to calm his emotions. Self-reproach was useless; the urgent priority was to formulate an effective response strategy. He opened the map system on the vehicle to analyze the situation of each Array Eye and his own position.

"The Earth Element Array Eye situation is the most critical, but it is the furthest from us. Although the Wood Element and Water Element Array Eyes are also facing powerful enemies, both Xiao Yuan and Li Shibo have rich combat experience and can hold out for longer." Lin Xuan made a quick judgment, "We will reinforce the most dangerous Earth Element Array Eye first, and then split up to support other locations after stabilizing the situation."

At the same time, he contacted Lin Jiangjun through a special channel—that high-ranking military official who had provided help during the Five Elements Academy crisis, and who was also his distant relative.

"General, emergency situation. Requesting military assistance to blockade the areas around the Aoti Zhongxin, CCTV Building, Gugong, Tiantan, and Jinrong Zhongxin, and to evacuate civilians; the reason can be a sudden security drill or terrorist threat."

Lin Jiangjun responded briefly: "Received, the operation will begin within fifteen minutes. Stay safe, contact me anytime if you need support."

With the military's assistance, at least civilian safety could be ensured, reducing unnecessary casualties. Lin Xuan contacted Xu Feng again to ask about his situation.

"Barely holding on," Xu Feng's voice was full of exhaustion, "but the hacker attacks are getting stronger, and our firewall has already been breached seven layers deep. We can hold for forty minutes at most."

"Hold on, I will send people to reinforce as soon as possible," Lin Xuan comforted him, "At the same time, activate the backup power system and prepare for a network disconnection. If the situation becomes critical, it is better to cut off all network connections in the building than to let them take complete control of the system."

The vehicle finally drove into the city area; the distant sky was already shrouded in purple mist, and at the five Array Eye locations, one could clearly see energy pillars of different colors shooting into the sky, colliding violently with the Void Energy. The entire city was shrouded in an eerie atmosphere; most ordinary citizens might only feel that the weather was abnormal, but Lin Xuan knew this was a sign that the Dimension Barrier was being gradually weakened.

Approaching the Aoti Zhongxin, Lin Xuan could already feel intense energy fluctuations. The military had acted quickly; the surrounding roads were already blocked, and armed personnel were evacuating the last batch of civilians.

Lin Xuan led his team to pass through the checkpoint set up by the military quickly, rushing toward the main stadium of the Aoti Zhongxin. As soon as they entered the venue, suffocating Void Energy rushed toward them, more intense than at any time before.

The stadium had become a battlefield. Dozens of Black-Clothed Persons were fiercely attacking the central Earth Element Array, while the few remaining guardians were struggling to resist within the Array's shield. The Earth Element Array, which should have presented a stable brownish-yellow light, was now dim and unstable, flickering from time to time, clearly nearing the edge of collapse.

"Attack with full force!" Lin Xuan gave the order, and the five-person team immediately dispersed, launching a surprise attack from different directions. Lin Xuan himself headed straight for the center of the Array, preparing to reinforce the guardians and stabilize the Array energy.