Page 158

The puppet that had killed Old Shi’er was quickly smashed to pieces by the Ghost Doll. After all, it was merely a spell-crafted puppet. It could launch a surprise attack on Old Shi’er, but its direct combat ability was undoubtedly no match for the Ghost Doll.

After the puppet was destroyed, no one immediately set out to track down Old Liu’s location, because... the test was not over yet!

No one knew if there were more of the same beings among them, and due to the tragic death of Shen Twelve, everyone became even more vigilant of those around them.

Chen Qing gazed at the blood and organs of Old Shi’er scattered on the ground, sighed, and shook his head, "It’s regrettable what happened to Twelfth Master, but now is not the time for sorrow. We need to find all the monsters quickly. Who will go first?"

"I’ll go!" Shen Old Fourth spoke up dully, and everyone’s eyes lit up. Old Fourth volunteering to go out was a strong indication that he was likely alright. So, could it be that the last one was among those two juniors?

With doubt, Chen Qing began checking everyone one by one, but the result... was very unexpected!

There was no issue with any of them!!!

After Old Eleven, Shen Yisen, was also confirmed to be clear, the atmosphere in the Shen Family relaxed quite a bit. But Chen Qing felt even more weighed down!

Because, according to the information, there was still one left!

Out of the four bugs that had escaped, one had taken over the body of the Shen family’s eldest, one was now confirmed to be Seventh Master Shen, and Seventh Master Shen being compromised meant that Fifth Master Shen likely had problems too. But that was only three. Where had the fourth one gone?

It wasn’t possible that it had been killed before it could parasitize someone, was it?

Chen Qing thought about this and felt a stroke of luck; it would be somewhat better if that was the case.

Even if the worst-case scenario of Seventh Master Shen being a host happened, it was out in the open, at least there was some preparedness for it.

What he disliked the most were threats hidden in the shadows, unbeknownst to him.

"Lord Chen?"

After the examination, everyone silently began to pick up the flesh and blood of Old Shi’er. Looking at Chen Qing who seemed to be lost in thought, Old Qi hesitated before asking with a relatively gentle tone, "Is there something you’re struggling to understand?"

Chen Qing’s arrival, although indirectly triggering Old Liu’s early assault that led to Twelfth Master’s terrible death, everyone was rational and knew that without Chen Qing, Old Liu might have committed even more heinous acts in secret.

Moreover, they were also grateful to this mysterious young fellow, who had lifted the dark clouds that had been looming over the Shen family for many years!

Ever since they had suspected that a monster had infiltrated the Shen family, they had all been wary of each other over the years, unable to truly trust one another.

Especially him, Old Qi; due to his fearsome abilities, he could distinctly feel the suspicion from everyone towards him over these years.

Now that the clouds had dispersed, and within just moments, he could sense the warmth from Old Fourth and Old Eleven. He had to admit that all this was thanks to this stranger.

At those words, Chen Qing laughed, "Nothing much, just a bit unexpected, that’s all..."

Chen Qing felt it wasn’t the right time to disclose the existence of another hidden bug, to avoid dampening the morale.

"The most urgent task now is to find Old Liu, and not let him escape the city. If Seventh Master Shen manages to get out of the city, he could use the spell arrays outside Nanyang City to trap us."

"He won’t get away!" Old Qi said with a cold laugh.

At that moment, in the sky above Nanyang City, a gigantic eye opened, causing the citizens of Nanyang City to shudder in fear. And above each of the four city gates, a gigantic eye also opened.

In the room, several objects resembling crystal balls floated into the air.

Inside the crystal balls were all the points of view of the Thousand Eyes in the sky.

Everyone in the room, including Chen Qing, could clearly see the whole Nanyang City through the crystal balls.

It was a 360-degree, ultra-clear perspective, making Chen Qing feel it was even more incredible than the ’Sky Eye’ system in modern Huazhong!

"It’s not just Old Liu who wants to blockade Nanyang!" Old Qi said coldly. "If he dares show his face within the city, I’ll catch him immediately and pull the creature out of Old Liu’s body, soak it in poison, and let it endure torments beyond its worst nightmares!"

Everyone felt a little more at ease. With Seventh Master’s Thousand Eyes Technique fully activated, it was virtually impossible for Old Liu to slip out of Nanyang City undetected.

But as soon as this thought crossed their minds, something unexpected happened.

"Eh? That... is Sixth Brother... no, wait, it’s that monster!" Old Ten pointed at one of the monitors.

Old Qi and the others frowned as they looked over, puzzled. Was Old Liu just blatantly walking out like that?

"No..." Chen Qing immediately realized what Old Liu intended to do: "Seventh Master intends to use the common people in Nanyang City as hostages!"

Everyone was stunned, and their hearts chilled.

As expected, in the next moment, figures of Seventh Master Shen appeared on various streets; their clothes and appearances were nearly identical, making it impossible to tell the real from the fake.

The key was that these Shen Lius who had suddenly appeared didn’t hesitate to start massacring the crowded streets!

The crystal balls showed the extremely bloody massacre happening everywhere. Indiscriminately, massively slaughtering men, women, the elderly, and children, the streets of Nanyang were almost instantly stained red with blood!

"Damn it!!"

Old Fourth’s eyes were bloodshot with rage at once!

Old Qi, however, was relatively calm: "Lord Chen was right, that guy... intends to use the commoners as a threat..."

Almost nine hundred puppets appeared at once, all advanced mechanical puppets, difficult to discern from the real ones, and each possessed formidable killing power. The locations where they appeared were incredibly scattered, spread throughout all of Nanyang.

Among them, over a hundred puppets took the chance to flee towards the city gates in different directions, while the remaining eight hundred commenced a random and bloody massacre in the city.

A dilemma was now presented to everyone present.

Should they prevent Old Liu’s escape, or rush to save the people of Nanyang City first?

It was impossible to attend to both. Old Qi was well aware of what Old Liu was capable of.

To stop him from escaping, they would need at least two members of the Shen family at each city gate.

Alone, aside from Old Fourth, the rest faced the risk of being killed if they confronted Old Liu by themselves!

The current situation allows for the defense of Old Liu’s formation, with Old Si leading Old Shi Yi, me leading Old Shi, and the mysterious Prefectural Governor teaming up with the demon-looking Ghost Doll; we can guard three city gates.

The fourth city gate was sealed a long time ago, and if Old Liu takes that route, he won’t be able to get through immediately.

It’s barely possible to lock down Old Liu for a short time.

But the key issue is... with this arrangement, I’m afraid that Old Liu could massacre over a hundred thousand civilians in Nanyang City in less than two hours!

However, if we choose to stop the puppets inside the city, even if only one Shen family member goes to aid the city, we can’t ensure the defense of the city gates!

"Seventh Master, what should we do?" Old Shi looked at the massacre in the room, his brows tightly knitted, showing a sense of urgency.

Nanyang is the Shen Family’s stronghold, and there are many wealthy families in Nanyang City that have collaborated with the Shen Family for hundreds of years.

Relying on the protection of the Shen Family, they have become wealthy, but they have also contributed a lot; besides mutual trading benefits, the scholars among these families occupy most of the official positions in Jiangnan, which is the basis for the Shen Family to secure its position in Jiangnan.

These people cannot die; without them, rebuilding would be difficult!

Chen Qing was also observing the residents in secret, feeling extremely tense.

The indiscriminate massacre could potentially harm his own relatives, and from the Crystal Ball, he could see that his mother and sister-in-law were also among the chaotic crowd in the city!

"Save them!"

Without any hesitation, Chen Qing spoke up.

Old Shi frowned at Chen Qing. Although he had been a great help, it wasn’t his turn to give orders, was it?

"Can we maybe allocate a bit..." Old Si frowned, "Let Old Shi, the fastest, go into the city for the rescue, and I’ll guard a city gate alone!"

Upon hearing this, Seventh Master’s eyes lit up; this was indeed a solution.

"It’s not appropriate..." Chen Qing immediately shook his head.

Old Shi frowned, but Seventh Master respectfully looked at Chen Qing: "Lord Chen, why do you say that?"

"Because that monster might not have intended to escape from the outset. Instead, it could be lying in wait within the city, hunting down isolated Shen family members.

Have you considered that the reason it chose to kill Old Shi’er first is that the Seventh Master’s Technique is best suited for breaking formations?

Old Shi’er’s death makes the Seventh Master and Old Shi the next biggest threats.

As long as the two of you are taken out alone, even if he stays in Lyuzhou City, we would almost have no way to deal with him! "

Upon hearing this, Seventh Master immediately nodded: "Lord Chen is right; we weren’t thorough in our consideration!"

"So what do we do?" Old Shi asked anxiously.

"Groups of three, to ensure maximum safety for ourselves. First, rescue the people. Even if the monster escapes, I have other methods."

Seventh Master looked at Old Si, and after exchanging glances, he said, "Lord, how do you think we should form the groups?"

"Old Shi with me, and the three of you together, how’s that?" Chen Qing said with narrowed eyes.

"Huh?" Old Shi stared at Chen Qing in astonishment. Why would he choose him, especially since he had been the most hostile? Was he trying to get back at him?

"Sure!" Seventh Master smiled, a subtle hint in his eyes: "Please take care of Old Shi, Lord!"

"Who needs his care?" Shen Old Shi protested immediately.

"Rest assured, Seventh Master!" Chen Qing promised earnestly.

Upon hearing this, Shen Yifeng performed a bow and then promptly led the other two out of the restaurant.

--------------------------------------

"Seventh Master, is it really okay to entrust Brother Shi to him like this?" Old Shi Yi, obviously older and more composed than Old Shi and Old Shi’er, didn’t ask the question until they were outside.

"If he had chosen me or you, I might have had some doubts, but him choosing Old Shi, I am relieved."

"Why is that?" Old Shi Yi said in surprise.

"I observed carefully just now. I reckon that Lord Chen must have relatives in Nanyang City!"

"What??"

Not just Shi Yi, but Old Si was also taken aback: "Really?"

"He hid it well, but he couldn’t hide it from me because if he looked at my Crystal Ball, my Crystal Ball would also notice his gaze. Just now, for a brief moment, he looked seventeen times at the fourth ball, which is the position of Zhongbei Street in Nanyang," Seventh Master explained.

"What if he’s just very interested in that location?" Old Si frowned. "How can you be sure he has relatives there?"

"You might have all forgotten, but General Hong Rui, a month ago when he returned to Nanyang, brought a group of strangers to his residence. He claimed they were relatives of some Lord he was assisting. These days, with the dramatic changes in the situation, no one paid attention to this useless General. But now, think about it. Is it possible that the relatives of the ’some Lord’ the General mentioned are actually Lord Chen’s? "

"I see," Old Si suddenly stamped his foot: "So he chose Old Shi to rescue his relatives more quickly?"

"Hmm..." Shen Qi murmured somberly: "The young man indeed has the patience. He didn’t show the slightest panic during Old Liu’s massacre. His temperament is truly remarkable. Unfortunately, Old Liu... is a person even more meticulous than me. I guess... he might have figured it out as well!!"