Slender willows sway in the breeze

Chapter 105 Intricate Connections

Without the support of evil power, the black tentacles vanished instantly, and the surrounding darkness quickly receded.

The man in black robes was pale, his eyes filled with terror and resentment.

"You...you actually broke my spell!"

Gu Changzhou, sword in hand, closed in on the man in black in the blink of an eye, and said coldly, "Speak, who are you? What are your schemes? How many accomplices are in the palace?"

The man in black gritted his teeth: "Don't even think about getting any information out of me. You... will all die!"

After he finished speaking, he suddenly bit his tongue, spat out a mouthful of black blood, and instantly turned into a cloud of black smoke, trying to escape.

Gu Changzhou was not about to let him escape so easily. He quickly used his spiritual power to set up a spiritual barrier around him, trapping the black smoke inside.

The black smoke surged wildly within the spiritual energy barrier, constantly impacting it and emitting a hissing sound, as if it wanted to corrode the barrier completely.

Gu Changzhou frowned, doing his best to maintain the spiritual energy barrier, while turning to the shadow guard and saying, "You step back and heal your injuries as soon as possible. I will deal with this person."

Although the shadow guard was unwilling, he knew that he could not hold the Marquis back at this moment.

So he stepped aside and quickly took some medicine to heal his wounds.

The black smoke that the black-robed man had transformed into condensed into a distorted face, glaring fiercely at Gu Changzhou: "You think you can trap me like this? Even if I die, I'll take you down with me!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the black smoke contracted rapidly, then expanded at a terrifying speed, unleashing a powerful force that attempted to break through the spiritual energy barrier.

Gu Changzhou felt immense pressure, his feet sinking deep into the ground, yet he still stubbornly maintained the spiritual energy barrier.

Just as the two sides were locked in a stalemate, a deep roar came from the depths of the Spirit Bamboo Forest.

Immediately afterwards, the ground began to shake violently, and black cracks spread out like a spider web, from which large amounts of black mist poured out, quickly enveloping the entire spirit bamboo forest.

Gu Changzhou realized something was wrong; this evil force was even more powerful than the man in black robes.

He realized that the man in black robes might just be bait, and the real danger was yet to come. At that moment, the black mist that the man in black robes had transformed into took advantage of Gu Changzhou's momentary distraction and once again attacked the spiritual energy barrier with all its might.

There was a "click".

A crack appeared in the spiritual energy barrier.

Gu Changzhou felt a chill run down his spine, knowing he could no longer remain locked in a stalemate with the black mist that the man in black robes had transformed into.

He acted decisively, holding the blue talisman in his hand, and poured his spiritual power into it. The talisman shone brightly, forming a blue vortex channel in front of him.

"go!"

Gu Changzhou grabbed the shadow guard who was healing nearby, and the two of them disappeared into the vortex passage in a flash.

Almost the instant they disappeared, the black smoke formed by the black-robed man broke through the spiritual energy barrier and surged out like a black tide.

However, Gu Changzhou and the Shadow Guard had already disappeared.

The black smoke billowed and churned angrily, emitting bursts of resentful roars.

The two arrived at the edge of the Spirit Bamboo Forest.

The shadow guard looked at Gu Changzhou with a guilty expression: "My lord, I am incompetent and have failed to help you. I almost implicated you."

Gu Changzhou waved his hand, his expression grave, and said, "This is not your fault. The black-robed man's strength exceeded our expectations, and there seems to be an even more powerful being behind him. The most urgent task is to inform His Majesty of the situation here as soon as possible, strengthen the palace's defenses, and find out the hidden evil cultivator."

Gu Changzhou and the Shadow Guards didn't dare to delay for a moment and immediately headed towards the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Along the way, the atmosphere in the palace was tense, and the guards were in a hurry, clearly having noticed the unusual spiritual energy fluctuations coming from the direction of the Spirit Bamboo Forest.

When they arrived at the Hall of Mental Cultivation, many experts and ministers from the palace had already gathered outside. Everyone looked solemn and whispered among themselves. When they saw Gu Changzhou arrive, they all surrounded him.

"Lord Molin, what exactly happened at the Spirit Bamboo Forest? Why is there such a strong fluctuation of evil spiritual energy?"

An elderly minister with white hair asked anxiously.

Gu Changzhou's expression was stern: "Please calm down, everyone. This matter is extremely complicated. Allow me to go in and report to His Majesty in detail."

Having said that, he led his shadow guards straight into the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Inside the hall, Bei Chenyao sat on the dragon throne. Upon seeing Gu Changzhou enter, he immediately asked, "Minister Gu, what exactly happened? Why such a commotion?"

Gu Changzhou recounted his experiences in the Spirit Bamboo Forest in detail, from the appearance of the man in black robes to the evil force that was even more powerful than the man in black robes.

Bei Chenyao's face darkened upon hearing this.

He slammed his fist on the armrest of the dragon throne and roared, "Outrageous! How dare they be so presumptuous in my palace! They truly do not respect me!"

Gu Changzhou said, "Your Majesty, the evil forces are coming on strong and are hiding in the shadows. We must strengthen our defenses as soon as possible and thoroughly investigate whether there are any other evil cultivators hiding in the palace."

“What you say is absolutely right, Minister Gu. I hereby order you to immediately mobilize all the guards and experts in the palace to strengthen the security throughout the palace,” Bei Chenyao said. “In addition, I will have Commandant Su lead his men to conduct a thorough search of the palace and make sure to wipe out those evil cultivators in one fell swoop.”

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Gu Changzhou accepted the order and was about to leave the main hall.

“Furthermore,” Bei Chenyao said gravely, “there may be an even greater conspiracy behind this incident. I want you to investigate secretly and see if any court officials are involved.”

"Your Majesty, rest assured, I will do my utmost to find the mastermind behind this."

Gu Changzhou said.

Just then, a guard rushed into the hall, knelt on one knee, and reported: "Your Majesty, Master Liu requests an audience."

Bei Chenyao frowned slightly: "Let her in."

Liu Sijun hurriedly entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Seeing that Gu Changzhou was also there, she nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

She then bowed to Bei Chenyao and said, "Your Majesty, just now I sensed a powerful and evil spiritual energy fluctuation coming from the direction of the Spirit Bamboo Forest in the Longevity Palace. I was worried and came to inquire about the situation."

Bei Chenyao briefly recounted what Gu Changzhou had just said. After listening, Liu Sijun said with a solemn expression, "Your Majesty, I believe that the failure of Xuanfeng Alchemist to refine pills yesterday may be inextricably linked to this matter."

Speaking of Master Xuanfeng.

Bei Chenyao narrowed his eyes.

Yesterday, the Crown Prince suddenly mentioned wanting to introduce an alchemist...

"Master Liu is absolutely right. The most urgent task now is to strengthen our defenses. I wonder if you could refine some pills that would help with defense and combat against evil cultivators?"

Liu Sijun nodded: "I can refine some Mind-Clearing Pills and Evil-Repelling Pills. However, refining these pills requires some special medicinal materials. I wonder if the palace has any in reserve."

The Heart-Cleansing Pill can help people resist the silent invasion of their consciousness by evil cultivators, while the Evil-Repelling Pill can weaken the power of evil cultivators to a certain extent.

Bei Chenyao immediately ordered, "Gu Qing, go and make the arrangements quickly."

(End of this chapter)