The court lackeys of the eight-hour workday

Chapter 360 Practice
On the eleventh day of the tenth month of the twenty-fourth year of the Jiajing reign.

It's a moment.

Through the announcements of hundreds of eunuchs, the entire population of Nanjing learned that at noon today, Master Zheng would perform magic to exorcise demons and distribute silver in the Heavenly Street.

If it were just about exorcising demons, the people might not have been so enthusiastic. But distributing money, especially one endorsed by the government, was enough to tempt them.

In less than an hour, Tianjie Street was packed with people who had rushed there after hearing the news. People from all directions were still surging towards Tianjie Street, struggling to squeeze through.

In the center of the main street, hundreds of guards had already drawn their swords, their eyes fixed on the surrounding people behind the blades, creating a deserted space in the crowd.

In the very center of this space stands a Dharma altar.

The entire structure is made of sandalwood with a gilded copper plate covering the outside. It is carved with lotus and cloud and thunder patterns. The base of the altar has nine steps and is 33 feet and 3 inches high. Twelve brocade banners with gold embroidery hang from the top of the altar, with glass bells at the corners of the banners that ring in the wind.

The area below the altar was bustling with noise.

"Wow! Just by looking at this altar, I can tell that Master Zheng must be a truly powerful immortal!"

When will Master Zheng begin his ritual?

"That's about enough, that's about enough time!"

Before he finished speaking, a commotion arose from the front of the street.

A figure floated over from the front.

He wore a tall crown and a wide belt, with flowing sleeves that seemed to float in the clouds. The hem of his robe was subtly embroidered with silver thread, shimmering like waves when the sunlight swept across it. He had a heroic appearance and an ethereal air, and his robes fluttered as if he were an immortal.

Most importantly, he "flew" over.

With a light touch of the eaves, he floated dozens of feet like a leaf, landing gracefully on the altar without a sound.

It was Zheng Anqi.

Ordinary people had no idea about the lightness skill of the Celestial Realm; they only felt that this person was truly a virtuous master, and they all clapped and cheered!

But this action made Zheng Anqi frown.

"Ah...a commoner."

He always thought highly of himself and never felt that others should be equal to him. These common people had never seen much of the world and only thought that clapping and cheering was a sign of respect. However, Zheng Anqi felt that this placed him in the same position as idle people who performed acrobatics, and a trace of anger arose in his heart.

But he didn't dwell on it or try to correct it.

There's no need to argue with the dead.

The guards around the altar shouted in unison, silencing the commotion of the crowd.

On the altar, Zheng Anqi picked up the magic sword on the table and simultaneously activated the divine power of the "Mysterious Observation" realm. The protective true energy, as thin as a cicada's wing yet extremely condensed, reappeared, swaying slowly around his body like a light veil.

To those unaware of the truth, he truly seemed like a god at that moment.

The noise gradually subsided.

laugh--

Zheng Anqi swung his magic sword, producing a sharp explosion! He then twirled it several times in the air, the air whistling as it passed through the holes in the sword.

As Zheng Anqi's playing became faster and faster, the sound grew sharper and more urgent, eventually merging together to form a melody that seeped into the mind.

At first, the people below the altar only found the music pleasant, but as Zheng Anqi's sword danced faster and faster, they felt their bodies gradually becoming hot, and their originally clear minds gradually became drowsy and fanatical.

They raised their hands high and waved excitedly at Zheng Anqi.

A series of strange noises suddenly came from the ground inside a house on one side of the street.

Karaara—

A series of machine whirring sounds rang out, several floor tiles were flipped over, a figure darted out from the crack, and then several other figures flipped up.

It was Cao Hanyan, Gao Anyu, Gu Feixuan, and Wang Hai.

As for Xiao Si, she is not good at facing enemies head-on, and most of today's events are on her shoulders. She has already arrived at another secret room under the Heavenly Street and is ready to activate the Gu worms.

The four of them frowned as soon as they arrived, raising their hands to cover their chests. "Something's not right, this is... martial arts."

Wang Hai frowned and said.

"When the people of Yingzhou wiped out the entire Emei sect, they used a kind of evil sonic technique. When the garrison commander faced off against the people of Yingzhou before, they also used a long flute to activate sonic techniques to fight against the enemy."

Cao Hanyan pursed her lips, opened the window, and looked at the people outside.

"not good."

“That Master Zheng’s martial arts skills are already enough to cover the entire Heavenly Street with this sound technique… The minds of these people have been affected. If he wants to, he can kill a thousand people at any time.”

Wang Hai suddenly realized.

"No wonder he dared to do this so brazenly even though he knew the garrison commander had arrived... Right now, all the people on the main street are his hostages!"

The four of them looked at each other.

Wang Hai said in a deep voice.

"The garrison commander should arrive soon. Our task is to disperse the people here as much as possible before he makes a move, giving the garrison commander room to act as he pleases."

"Brother Cao, you and Brother Gao go to the houses along the street and kill as many guards as possible so that they cannot dump their valuables."

Cao Hanyan bowed and then she and Gao Anyu disappeared in a flash.

Wang Hai then spoke to Gu Feixuan.

“Brother Gu, I have prepared a fine bow for you. It is a privately held treasure from the Nanjing Imperial Guard’s treasury, and it is the personal weapon of a celestial being.”

He turned around and went to the wall, activated the mechanism, revealing a space, from which he took out a longbow and handed it to Gu Feixuan.

"You are skilled with a bow and assassination, so go and see if you can take down a few of those four guarding eunuchs. Just do your best, don't force it."

Gu Feixuan took the bow, bowed, and then disappeared.

Only Wang Hai remained inside.

Wang Hai stood silently, listening to the strange noises coming from the Heavenly Street and the frenzied shouts of the people, silently counting the hours in his mind.

After a long pause, he suddenly nodded.

"it's time."

Wang Hai took out a Gu worm from his pocket, and with a burst of true energy, the cicada-like Gu worm began to vibrate its wings, making an extremely faint sound.

This was the signal he had made with Xiao Si.

As the Gu worm began to flap its wings, a scream suddenly came from outside.

"Insects! Insects!"

"Snakes! So many snakes! Watch your step!"

"Ahhh-"

As time went on, the screams gradually grew louder, clashing with the eerie sounds coming from the altar.

More and more people were awakened by their instinctive fear of poisonous insects, broke away from their previous frenzy, and began to struggle and flee in the crowd, gradually spreading their influence to the area below the altar.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Wang Hai opened the door, slipped into the crowd, and disappeared.

On the altar, Zheng Anqi looked at the people below and revealed a leisurely smile.

"Little tricks."

With a burst of true energy, the magic sword in his hand suddenly accelerated, and an even more shrill sound came from the hole, about to snatch the people's minds back into his grasp!

Just then, a sword rang out!
A figure suddenly leaped up from the roof of a house beside the altar! He charged straight at Zheng Anqi!
Zheng Anqi turned his head and his eyes met Zheng Yi's mother's in mid-air.

"You're the one I've been waiting for!"

(End of this chapter)