The wedding was livestreamed by the sister, revealing his identity as a Taoist priest.

Zhao Tiezhu's patience has run out.

"Kill him."

The sledgehammer was the first to move.

The shotgun was raised, its muzzle aimed at the chest of the leading Taoist priest.

At a distance of less than eight meters, a shotgun could turn an adult man into a sieve.

"Bang!"

Gunshots rang out in the closed exhibition hall, deafeningly loud.

The moment the shotgun shell left the barrel, the leading Taoist priest made a hand seal with his left hand.

A semi-transparent light screen suddenly lit up and blocked the four people's way.

The shotgun rammed into it.

"Ding!"

Like raindrops hitting a steel plate.

Countless projectiles hovered in front of the light screen for a fraction of a second before falling to the ground in unison.

The clattering sound rolled all over the ground.

Big Hammer's smile froze on his face.

He glanced down at the pile of bullets on the ground, then looked up at the thing that was still faintly glowing...

"What...?"

Zhao Tiezhu's pupils contracted sharply.

"shot."

His voice changed.

"Fire!"

Nine guns fired simultaneously.

The bursts of assault rifle fire, the bursts of pistol fire, and the roar of shotguns.

The barrage of comments poured out, all the firepower focused on the four Taoist priests.

The light curtain trembled violently, but it did not shatter.

Not only was it not broken, it didn't even have a crack.

"Shadow" was the first to stop.

He stared at the light screen, his pupils behind his gold-rimmed glasses blank.

He had seen bulletproof glass penetrated in the Middle East.

I've seen armored vehicles torn apart by RPGs in Africa.

But he had never seen it before...

A bullet can't penetrate a layer of light.

"impossible."

His voice was trembling.

"This is impossible..."

The magazine is empty.

The guns of the nine men were out of bullets.

The empty magazine clattered to the ground.

The air was thick with the smoke of gunpowder.

The four Taoist priests stood still, their robes completely free of dust.

Zhao Tiezhu broke out in a cold sweat.

"RPG!"

he growled.

"Sledgehammer! RPG!"

Big Hammer pulled a rocket launcher from his back faster than ever before.

Shoulder it, aim, and pull the fire button.

A rocket roared out.

The leading Taoist priest did not perform any more hand seals.

He raised his right hand and pushed forward.

The palm strike was invisible to the naked eye, but the rocket in flight stopped!

The bullet was less than a foot from the Taoist's palm, as if it were being held by an invisible hand.

Then it turned around.

The warhead was aimed at Zhao Tiezhu.

Zhao Tiezhu's mind went blank; the fear of death enveloped him.

Fortunately, the rocket did not hit him.

"boom!"

An explosion rang out from the east wall of the exhibition hall, shattering bricks and sending debris flying.

The shockwave knocked the two nearest mercenaries to the ground.

The four Taoist priests did not move an inch.

The leader withdrew his hand, looked at Zhao Tiezhu, and his gaze was so calm it was maddening.

"I've seen...I've seen a ghost..."

Big Hammer lay on the ground, trembling all over.

He tried to stand up, but his legs wouldn't obey him.

"What the hell is this... It's fake... It's all fake... It's magic... It must be magic..."

Zhao Tiezhu took a step back.

They took another step back.

He has escaped death countless times.

But at that moment his mind went blank.

Because all of this was beyond the cognitive framework he had developed in his thirty-seven years of life.

"withdraw."

He made a decision.

"Retreat! Now..."

He hadn't finished speaking.

The second Taoist priest moved.

He took a step forward and clapped his hands together sharply at his sides.

"Bang!"

An invisible force surged from all directions, slamming the nine mercenaries to the ground simultaneously.

Zhao Tiezhu's knees bent.

He wanted to stop.

I can't stand up.

The hammer slammed its face directly onto the floor.

"Shadow's" glasses flew off.

The other six were in even worse shape; some were kneeling on the ground, while others were lying flat on their stomachs.

The pressure is still building.

It's getting heavier and heavier.

Zhao Tiezhu braced himself with his hands, veins bulging, teeth grinding together.

His body was pressed down inch by inch until his forehead touched the cold ground.

Nine retired special forces soldiers.

Nine outlaws who crawled out of the flames of war.

At this moment, they were all pinned to the ground, unable to move.

The leading Taoist priest looked down at them.

"Mr. Chen has given the order."

His voice wasn't loud, but to Zhao Tiezhu, it was more deafening than the rocket he'd just fired.

"Do not kill the ignorant."

"But anyone who dares to touch the light..."

He raised his head, his gaze passing over the nine people and landing on the seven-colored radiance of the Seven Star Lamp.

"Sever his limbs and send him to the authorities."

……

Seven minutes later.

Three armed police special forces vehicles braked suddenly in the parking lot on the east side of the convention center.

Qinling was the first to jump out of the car, rifle held to his chest, his gaze sweeping over the bombed-out East Gate.

The thick smoke has mostly dissipated.

The place was a mess.

"We're late."

His voice deepened to the bottom.

Song Tieshan and his men from the Criminal Investigation Division jumped out of the second car, their faces ashen.

"They're gone...they must be gone..."

"team leader!"

One of the team members suddenly shouted out.

"there!"

Everyone turned to look at the source of the sound.

A corner of the parking lot.

Three black minivans were parked there quietly.

The engine didn't make a sound.

The car lights were not working.

Not moving at all.

Qinling paused for a moment.

"Their car."

Qiu Yuanzhi's voice came through the communicator.

"The location signals overlap; it's those three vehicles!"

They didn't leave?

impossible.

Seven minutes.

Enough for any well-trained team to disappear into the night with their gear.

Why are they still here?

"All personnel on alert! Follow me inside!"

Qinling charged through the east gate with his gun raised.

Special forces soldiers followed closely behind, deploying in tactical formation.

Along the way, there were broken glass, empty bullet casings, smashed display cases, and traces of gunpowder everywhere.

They advanced through three exhibition areas.

The innermost circular exhibition hall had its doors open.

Qinling leaned against the door frame and quickly peered out.

Then his movements froze.

"What's wrong?"

Song Tieshan squeezed up from behind.

I glanced at it.

Also settled.

In the very center of the exhibition hall.

The Seven Star Lamp hung there quietly, its seven-colored radiance still flowing, without the slightest damage.

Before the lamp, four young men in dark blue Taoist robes sat cross-legged, as if meditating, their breathing even.

Behind the lamp, nine fully armed mercenaries lay on the ground, their limbs twisted at abnormal angles, their faces pale and unconscious.

Guns were scattered all over the ground.

There was no blood.

There were no signs of a struggle.

It's as if these nine people fell down on their own.

Qin Ling slowly lowered the gun he was holding.

His mouth opened.

No sound.

Behind him, Fang Shouye rushed into the exhibition hall. Upon seeing that the Dharma lamp was intact, his legs went weak and he knelt down on the ground.

The 72-year-old man covered his face, his shoulders trembling violently.

Shen Nianqing stood at the door, her gaze falling on the four Taoist priests sitting in meditation.

Her eyes reddened.

Qin Ling came to his senses and slowly walked towards the leading Taoist priest.

"you……"

His voice was soft, carrying an emotion he himself couldn't explain.

"How did you do that?"

The Taoist priest opened his eyes, stood up, and clasped his hands in a fist salute.

"It's my duty."

……

A thousand miles away, at Taiqing Palace.

It was just past the hour of Yin (3-5 AM).

An elder hurried through the corridor, his footsteps particularly clear in the night.

He stopped in front of the main hall, took a deep breath, and pushed the door open to enter.

"Celestial Master!"

Inside the hall, the candlelight flickered slightly.

"The Seven Star Lamp... something's happened."