Unknown Intrusion

Chapter 88 Falling out
"The Earl of Carlton's vassal fleet?"

Song Xunfang stood in the hall, his gaze sweeping around with a serious expression. His intuition told him that the situation before him was not simple.

Encountering a fleet at sea naturally makes it difficult to trust it.

But the other party produced a badge.

This is the coat of arms of the Earl of Carlton.

The kingdom system does not mean that a count can govern the Song family, which is a baron; in fact, there is no superior-subordinate relationship between counts and barons.

However, as an established noble family, the Song family was unwilling to make enemies. Therefore, they reached a tacit understanding with the black and red flag fleet to fight against the rock giants and terracotta soldiers in the palace, and agreed to share the spoils of war.

However, Song Xunfang could never fully trust these people wearing black and red cloaks or capes, and now that he knew about the attack, he immediately became even more vigilant.

"Captain, shouldn't we be more careful?" the second-in-command whispered, clearly sensing that something was wrong.

Song Xunfang nodded, his gaze still fixed on the men in black. Although their group was small, each person moved with great efficiency, clearly not ordinary adventurers or pirates, which made Song Xunfang uneasy.

"Stay vigilant, especially around the men in black," Song Xunfang whispered. "They might have other plans."

"Let's gather our forces first to avoid being attacked!"

"Yes!"

At the same time, the leader of the men in black, a tall man with a cold face, was standing at the back of the group, his gaze also sweeping over the Song family's group, his eyes revealing a hint of coldness.

"Sir, the Song family seems to be wary of us," a man in black reported in a low voice.

"Hmph, of course they'll be on guard." The leader sneered. "If we annihilate or severely damage the second fleet, preventing it from transmitting any messages, we'll naturally have a greater chance of success."

"But now that news has been sent that the Second Fleet has been attacked, naturally the first suspect is us."

"However, this does not affect our plans."

The leader's plan was simple: use the Song family's power to first eliminate the guards in the palace, and then launch a surprise attack when the Song family's forces were exhausted, so as to seize the magic core in the palace in one fell swoop.

This would not only allow them to obtain the treasures in the palace, but also weaken the Song family's maritime power, paving the way for subsequent actions.

"Sir, when shall we make our move?" the man in black asked.

"No rush, we'll act after we break into the core area." The leader sneered, "Now, let them clear the way for us."

"It's here, it's here!"

As the battle progressed, the rock giants and terracotta soldiers were gradually defeated. In the distance, another huge hall appeared, with marble pillars stretching out, and a huge magic circle could be vaguely seen, emitting a faint light. It was obviously the central control point for these guards.

"Captain, the core area is just ahead!" someone shouted excitedly.

Song Xunfang nodded, but remained vigilant.

He knew that the closer he got to victory, the less he could afford to be careless. Especially the men in black; they always made him uneasy.

"Everyone be careful, keep your formation, and don't get separated," Song Xunfang shouted.

"Make your move!" the leader of the men in black suddenly shouted.

With a command given, a man in black suddenly swung his sword, and a flash of light passed by.

Some of the men in black even pulled out handguns and fired without hesitation.

"clap clap"

"Ahhh—" Even though they were on guard, screams still suddenly rang out, and several members of the Song family who were caught off guard were slashed and shot.

"kill!"

These actions were extremely swift; after the initial slashing and shooting, they quickly flanked the Song family's two sides, clearly indicating that they had been preparing for this.

"It was a trap after all!" Song Xunfang's heart sank, but he said decisively, "Everyone, kill all these traitors!" Regardless of whether they were from Earl Carlton's vassal fleet or not, even if they were Earl Carlton's confidants, anyone who dared to make a move would die!

"Bang bang bang!" Several gunshots rang out, and the sailors of the Song family fleet immediately retaliated, with several men screaming as they were hit.

Handguns are difficult to reload after firing, and after shooting, people immediately draw their knives and slash at each other. The two sides clash and fight to the death.

Screams echoed continuously; the fighting was extremely brutal.

"Captain, the situation is not good!" the second-in-command shouted anxiously.

The men in black launched an extremely fierce attack, clearly coming prepared. Their combat strength far exceeded expectations. The Song family's team had already expended a lot of resources in the previous battles, and now, facing the sudden attack from the men in black, they seemed somewhat overwhelmed.

"Hold on! We outnumber you! Sound the horn immediately!"

Song Xunfang directed the battle, attempting to stabilize the situation, and gave orders.

"Yes!"

Just as one person was about to blow the horn, a flash of light appeared, and a severed arm flew out, its five fingers still tightly gripping the horn.

Before he could even scream, two blades pierced him from different sides, making two soft thuds as they met inside his body, even producing a muffled metallic clang.

With a swift movement of the knife, the man convulsed and collapsed, blood gushing out continuously.

But then another member of the Song family picked up a horn, and with just one blast, it seemed as if by magic that the horn resounded throughout the entire palace.

"Something's happened!" The Song family fleet scattered throughout the palace. Upon hearing this, a captain immediately drew his sword.

"Come on, come with me!"

In front of the main hall, in the blink of an eye, more than ten people had died, including men in black and members of the Song family. Blood flowed and gathered into streams.

"Enough!" The leader of the men in black grinned maliciously. Suddenly, he threw something out, which exploded with a bang as soon as it hit the ground, turning into white mist.

The white fog started thin but spread rapidly, gradually dimming the sunlight inside the palace. The ancient murals on the walls seemed to writhe, and a putrid smell filled the air.

"Not good!" Song Xunfang gripped his long sword tightly, his eyes scanning the surroundings. He could sense that evil spirits lurked within this ancient palace, and they were slowly awakening.

"You bastards, are you trying to drag us all down with you?"

"What good will this do you?"

After holding back, Song Xunfang still burst into a tirade of curses.

The man in black did not answer.
Suddenly, a soft laugh echoed throughout the hall, as if whispering in someone's ear.

"Die!" a man standing beside Song Xunfang shouted, suddenly waving his staff. A beam of blazing white light burst forth from the tip of the staff, and the air seemed to be torn apart wherever the light passed, emitting a piercing shriek.

"Ahhh—" A scream suddenly rang out as several evil spirits hidden in the shadows were struck by the white light and instantly turned to ashes.

However, this is just the beginning.

More evil spirits poured out from the cracks in the walls, floors, and ceilings. They came in all shapes and sizes, some like twisted human figures, others like ferocious and terrifying beasts.

"Reduce your breathing and don't move!"

As the number of evil spirits increased and the white fog thickened, those with special eyes could see that the men in black rolled over and lay motionless on the ground.

Each man in black had a badge on his chest that emitted wisps of white mist, seemingly obscuring his body.

A malevolent spirit seemed to sense something was amiss. It floated around aimlessly, but found nothing. Its gaze greedily fell upon the living person before it howled away.

"No!" was followed by screams and a flash of white light.

(End of this chapter)