ATPnovel Chapter 193 Dragon Riders Enter the City
Chapter 193 Dragon Riders Enter the City
Night falls.
[Jade Meat Shop] in the north of the city.
The place has a refined-sounding name, but it's actually a high-class brothel.
The three-story building, with its carved beams and painted rafters, and red lanterns hanging at the entrance, was already starting to get customers at this hour.
Madam Xu, the madam, was swaying her hips at the door to greet customers when she suddenly saw a group of people coming from the other end of the street.
They were all dressed in silver armor and rode white horses, with the riders sitting upright, and even the way the horses swayed their heads was exactly the same.
The knight at the front held a flag, black with gold lettering, embroidered with a ferocious dragon.
Snow Dragon Rider.
The handkerchief in Xu's mother's hand fell to the ground.
"Oh dear..." Her legs went weak, and she almost collapsed to the ground. "This, this is..."
A thousand cavalrymen were divided into four columns and slowly marched along the long street.
The rhythmic clatter of hooves was unsettling, and the clattering of armor against each other sounded like a knife being sharpened.
All the shops on both sides of the street slammed their doors shut.
The pedestrians had long since disappeared.
Some brave souls peeked through the crack in the door, but after just one glance, they shrank back, too afraid to even breathe.
"My goodness..." On the second floor of the silk shop, the young shop assistant peeked through the window crack, his voice trembling.
"What kind of soldiers are these? They look even scarier than the Imperial City Guards..."
Manager Liu, standing to the side, looked even more displeased.
He could see clearly that even the weakest of those thousand cavalrymen was at the peak of the first rank.
Those in the front row, with their deep, ocean-like auras, are definitely grandmasters!
Manager Liu felt his worldview had been shattered.
"The Prince of Zhenbei... this is truly going to turn the world upside down..." he murmured.
The Great Snow Dragon Riders didn't linger anywhere, but instead split up and headed in the four directions: east, south, west, and north.
Each team of 250 riders dispersed immediately upon reaching the designated location, forming groups of five to patrol the streets.
The silver armor reflected the twilight, its cold light chilling.
The temperature in the entire capital city seemed to drop by ten degrees all at once.
……
In the south of the city, there is a private residence.
Seven men in black are arguing.
"The Corpse Refining Sect's orders are for us to retreat!" a bald, burly man roared.
"If we don't leave now, are we just waiting to die?"
"Retreat? Where to retreat to?" another scholar-looking man sneered.
"The city gates have been sealed off by the Imperial City Guard, and the streets are teeming with Snow Dragon Riders. You think you can fly out?"
"That's better than waiting to die here!"
"Wait a minute." An elderly man sitting in the corner suddenly spoke, his expression grave.
"We are surrounded."
The seven people exchanged glances and stood up at the same time.
But it was too late.
The door opened.
It wasn't kicked open; it was gently pushed open from the outside.
Thirteen men in black stood at the door, all dressed in matching black outfits.
They were none other than the Thirteen Protectors.
"The Undying Demon Sect?" Taiyi, the leader, asked.
The bald, burly man gritted his teeth: "Who are you?"
"The Thirteen Bodyguards under the Prince of Zhenbei".
As soon as he finished speaking, all thirteen people moved at the same time.
Lacking the overwhelming violence of the Heavenly Guards, the Thirteen Protectors' teamwork was more refined.
The seven formed a formation: three attacked, four provided support, and the remaining six blocked all escape routes.
The bald, burly man was the first to step forward, throwing a punch that sent a whistling wind through the air.
Taibao on the other side neither dodged nor avoided, and exchanged punches in kind.
"Bang!"
The two fists collided, and the bald, burly man's expression changed drastically. He was sent flying backward, crashing into the wall, which collapsed on one side.
He spat out a mouthful of blood, exclaiming in horror, "How is this possible?"
He was also at the peak of the Grandmaster level, yet he couldn't withstand even a single move.
But no one answered him.
Seeing that things were not going well, the scholar-dressed man pulled out a short sword from his sleeve and stabbed towards the window like a ghost.
Two thugs were guarding the window.
The two attacked simultaneously, one with a palm strike and the other with a punch.
The scholar's short sword pierced a man's palm, producing a metallic clang, without even breaking the skin.
Another man's fist had already smashed into his chest.
With a "crack," his sternum shattered.
The scribe fell down with his eyes wide open, never understanding what was happening until his death.
Why is it that even though I am at the peak of the Grandmaster level, I can't even withstand a single move?
The remaining five were terrified and wanted to fight to the death, but they were simply no match for them.
The Thirteen Protectors cooperated so well; they attacked while I defended, and retreated while I advanced.
In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, all seven of them were lying down.
The last to die was the old man, who cried out in his dying breath:
"Aren't you afraid I won't destroy the Demon Sect and take revenge?"
Taiyi, who was in the lead, squatted down and looked at him:
"A mere Undying Demonic Sect dares to speak of revenge? Once our lord is free, he can wipe them out with a single hand!"
The old man died with his eyes wide open, filled with regret.
The thirteen people quickly cleaned up the scene and then left quietly.
It was as if they had never been here.
……
Jade Meat Shop.
Just as Mrs. Xu had finally recovered and was about to call the girls out to continue working, a scream suddenly came from the backyard.
"ah--!"
It was Chuntao's voice.
Mrs. Xu's heart skipped a beat, and she lifted her skirt and ran upstairs.
As soon as she got upstairs, she saw Chun Tao lying on the floor, pointing at the room, trembling all over.
The door was open, and three people were lying inside.
Three women, scantily clad, but already dead.
His death was gruesome; his eyes were wide open, and a look of terror lingered on his face.
Xu's mother recognized them; they were the female cultivators who had come to her door to sell themselves three days ago.
Her exceptional skill in serving others has earned her a fortune these past few days.
but now……
Xu's mother's legs went weak again.
Because she saw several men in black standing next to the three women's corpses.
"They are from the Hehuan Sect," a Heavenly Guard said coldly.
"Using seductive arts to drain a man's vital essence, harboring malicious intentions, by order of the Prince of Zhenbei, he is to be executed immediately!"
Mrs. Xu's lips trembled, and she couldn't utter a single word.
Another Heavenly Guard walked over and said coldly:
"You bear responsibility for concealing this matter. I'll spare your life this time because you were unaware of it, but if it happens again..."
He didn't finish speaking, but Xu's mother understood.
"No, I wouldn't dare..." Mrs. Xu collapsed to the ground, "Absolutely not..."
The Heavenly Guards nodded, then vanished in a flash.
Xu's mother sat on the cold ground, looking at the three corpses, and suddenly burst into tears.
This capital city... is unbearable to stay in!
……
As night deepened, the streets became completely deserted.
Only a few squads of snow dragon riders patrolled the streets, their hoofbeats echoing clearly in the empty air.
The Imperial Guards stood watch at every intersection, their eyes wide open, afraid of missing a single person.
East of the city, Qingshui Lane.
Liu Zhenshan personally led a group to Courtyard No. 7.
Looking at the five corpses in the yard, especially Old Scar's unseeing eyes, Liu Zhenshan felt a chill run down his spine.
He knew the Prince of Zhenbei was ruthless, but he didn't expect him to be this ruthless.
"Sir, the cleanup is complete," a centurion reported.
"As the prince instructed, the body was transported outside the city for cremation, and the ashes were scattered."
Liu Zhenshan nodded, then suddenly remembered something: "What about other places?"
"The secret passage of Songji Silk Shop in the south of the city has been raided, and four people have been arrested."
"The cellar of the Yue Lai Inn in the west of the city was overturned; all six were killed, and there are still..."
The hundred households counted on their fingers.
"So far, we have cleared nineteen strongholds, and there have been no survivors."
Liu Zhenshan gasped.
Nineteen places!
It's only been an hour!
"Is there any news from the Prince's side?" he asked.
The centurion shook his head: "Lord Yuan just relayed a message, instructing us to continue according to plan, to seal off what needs to be sealed off, and to investigate what needs to be investigated. The Prince said..."
He paused, then lowered his voice:
"The prince said that this is just the beginning and we shouldn't rush to celebrate."
Liu Zhenshan gave a bitter smile.
Celebrating victory?
How could he dare?
All he wants now is for this whole mess to pass quickly so he can go home alive and well.
Just then, a loud bang suddenly came from afar.
"boom--!"
It looked like something had exploded.
Liu Zhenshan's expression changed: "Which direction?"
"North of the city! That's the Corpse Refining Sect's stronghold!"