My disciples are all villains.

The capital had Si Wuya, Shen Xi, and the others holding down the fort. They were more than enough to deal with the fierce beasts. The only worry was the appearance of the black lotus army. The enemy was hidden in the dark while Great Tang was in the light.

Lu Zhou wondered why the enemy chose these specific four circuits?

After a moment, he decided not to dwell on that matter. What was important was recovering his supreme mystic power as quickly as possible. In this situation, even if he had the Supreme Mystic Card, things would still be difficult. After all, the duration of the Supreme Mystic Card was very short. Apart from that, if he wanted to synthesize an enhanced Peak Trial Card, he had to get three Peak Trial Cards.

Following that, Lu Zhou observed Yu Zhenghai who was at Shanbei Circuit. The situation was calmer than Jiannan Circuit where Yu Shangrong was stationed.

As for Lu Li and Yan Zhenluo, he did not need to observe them. After all, Yan Zhenluo had six Birth Charts. With the support from the White Tower Council, there should be no problem there.

"It's still best to capture the mastermind first." As long as Lu Zhou could find the Black Emperor and the beast emperor, he would be able to solve the other problems easily.

"Report." Zhao Hongfu's voice rang from outside.

"Come in."

Zhao Hongfu, Si Wuya, and Lu Qianshan entered the Hall of Runes together.

Lu Zhou was puzzled. "Lu Qianshan?"

Lu Qianshan raised his head and saw Lu Zhou was still old due to the effect of the Disguise Card. He asked in confusion, "Where's Pavilion Master Lu?"

Zhao Hongfu replied awkwardly, "This is Pavilion Master Lu."

Lu Qianshan was confused by Lu Zhou's change from young to old. Nevertheless, he greeted Lu Zhou respectfully, "Greetings, Pavilion Master Lu."

"Why are you here?"

"Since Pavilion Master Lu left previously, the royal court treated us quite well. However, they didn't know I'd planted spies in the royal court. Moreover, after receiving Mister Seventh's secret information, I led the Lu clan and fled the capital," Lu Qianshan replied.

Lu Zhou nodded. It made sense. Lu Qianshan had offended the Black Emperor previously, the Lu clan no longer had a place in the capital.

Si Wuya said, "Master, I have a new discovery."

"Speak."

Si Wuya temporarily placed the map he had drawn on the ground and said, "This is Jiannan Circuit's Land of Shu. This is Shanbei Circuit, Jiangbei Circuit, and Jiangdong Circuit. It just so happens these four circuits are at the periphery of Great Tang. If they only want to carry out the annihilation plan, they can start anywhere; they didn't have to pick these four circuits. Therefore, I suspect they have other motives…" He glanced at Lu Qianshan before he continued to say, "General Lu met with the Black Emperor many times in the past, and during one of his visits, Eunuch Zhang unwittingly revealed a piece of key information…"

At this point, Lu Qianshan took over and said, "Eunuch Zhang said that His Majesty had been devoting his time trying out an unprecedented cultivation path. Therefore, he neglected many things, allowing the Black Tower Council, Great Ming, and other forces to rise…"

Lu Zhou asked, perplexed, "An unprecedented cultivation path? What does it have to do with this war?"

Lu Qianshan shook his head and said, "I don't know..."

Si Wuya pointed at the map and said, "The places they chose happened to be places where the fierce beasts are most concentrated. I suspect that... they're waiting for an opportunity..."

Lu Zhou stroked his beard and nodded. "Are there any anomalies in these places?"

"I haven't found any yet..." Si Wuya shook his head. "I keep feeling like I'm forgetting some crucial information, but I can't seem to remember what it is."

Lu Qianshan smiled. "There's no rush. It's amazing enough that you're able to deduce so much with just a sentence from Eunuch Zhang."

This information was not completely useless. At the very least, it showed that Mu Ertie was very afraid of Lu Zhou; that was why he did not dare to show his face up until now. It seemed like the Dark and Light Alliance and the fierce beasts were just cannon fodder.

Zhao Hongfu said, "Pavilion Master has already gone to Jiangdong Circuit; the crisis there has been temporarily resolved. We have the White Tower Council's support there as well. Pavilion Master has already killed Li Tianze, the leader of the Five Tigers of the Dark and Light Alliance. There's no need for everyone to worry; with Pavilion Master here, Mu Ertie won't be able to do anything."

Upon hearing this, Si Wuya could not help but remind, "Master, the more it's like this, the more careful we have to be. Casualties are inevitable. When it's time to retreat, we should retreat. We shouldn't fall for their goal to create distractions…"

Lu Zhou nodded slightly. "I know what to do. Continue to observe the situation. If you find anything, report back immediately."

"Understood."

Lu Zhou waved his hand, and everyone bowed before they left the Hall of Runes.

After checking in on Zhu Hongggong, he discovered that the black lotus army and the fierce beasts had already been dealt with. Then, he cut off the Heavenly Writing's power of sight and entered his meditative state.

…

In Jianbei Circuit.

Duanmu Sheng faced the setting sun. The gradually vanishing sunlight shone on the blood and sweat that drenched his body. He had lost count of the number of times he had swung his spear. Perhaps, the mountain of corpses under his feet would give one a rough idea of the number of times he had swung his spear.

The corpses of the Li Li were piled high; it was hundreds of feet tall.

Duanmu Sheng stood on the mountain of corpses as he continued to swing the Overlord Spear with all his might at the incoming Li Lis. Every time the Li Lis charged forward, he would stab them to death.

The blood and the purple smoke wafted from the corpses of the Li Lis; the flowers and the trees hundreds of meters around them had long withered.

"Again!"

Bang!

"I'll kill as many as I can!"

Bang! Bang Bang!

From north of the two mountains, on the grassland that was thousands of meters away, the hordes of Li Lis charged toward Jianbei Circuit. From afar, they looked like murderous ants.

At this point, Duanmu Sheng's movements had slowed down considerably due to exhaustion. He gradually became numb.

After an unknown amount of time had passed, a dark figure appeared at the back of the army of Li Lis. He flew forward toward the peak at Jianbei Circuit and looked at Duanmu Sheng, who was covered in blood, before he said with a mocking smile, "I wondered who ruined the plan. As it turns out, it's just a piece of trash…"

Duanmu Sheng glared at him. He thrust his Overlord Spear forward and asked, "Who are you?"

The black-clad man said indifferently, "It doesn't matter who I am. What's important is that you did something you shouldn't have done. What else do you have to say before you die?"

Duanmu Sheng was not afraid. Instead, he asked in confusion, "The Li Lis are your doing?"

The black-clad did not bother to hide anything. "The people of the red lotus domain are greedy and ignorant. The Li Lis' ability can purify their souls and wash away their sins."

"I don't want to hear about this. These things are evil. What's your purpose?" Duanmu Sheng asked.

The black-clad cultivator felt slightly speechless; he found it difficult to communicate with the person in front of him who was as obtuse as a hard rock.

"If I don't teach you a lesson, you won't know how to speak properly." The black-clad cultivator raised his hand. He did not hesitate to launch a round Daoist seal. A black light shone in the center of the dark seal. He intended to finish off the piece of trash in front of him with the palm strike. He did not need to use much strength; it was as easy as squashing an ant.

Duanmu Sheng's expression changed drastically. He knew the seal was from a Thousand Realms Whirling expert; it was not something his weak nine leaves could withstand. In the end, he could only raise his Overlord Spear horizontally in front of him to block the attack.

Bang!

Duanmu Sheng's arms grew numb, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. He fell off the mountain of corpses to the ground. Fortunately, the characteristics of his cultivation and the beatings he received over the years helped him forge a tenacious body.

The black-clad cultivator revealed an expression of surprise as he flew forward. He looked at the dead Li Lis around him and said in amazement, "What a tenacious and courageous person! It's unfortunate you almost ruined a huge plan."

Duanmu Sheng raised his head. His eyes were burning as he looked at the black-clad cultivator hovering above the mountain of corpses.

The black-clad cultivator turned around and said, "You're really unlucky. I'm sorry, but I don't have the time to play with you…"

Following that, the black-clad cultivator launched three palm seals consecutively. His strength had increased compared to before.

The three palm seals, one at the top; one in the middle; and one below, flew out before they surrounded Duanmu Sheng, cutting off all his escape routes. With this, he no longer tried to dodge. He lay on the ground and sighed.

Bang!

A white light descended from the sky and pierced the ground, blocking the inky palm seals.

Duanmu Sheng raised his head and saw a white-clad cultivator in the sky who was smiling.

The white-clad cultivator said, "You can't kill him."

The black-clad cultivator exclaimed in shock, "The White Tower Council?!"

"I've been entrusted by Si Wuya of the Evil Sky Pavilion to ensure this person's safety. You can leave now," the white-clad cultivator said.