News from East Sea City

The first rays of morning sunlight rose from the deep sea, gently warming the earth. However, the streets of East Sea City were unusually solemn.

"Restricted movement! Restricted movement! All residents, go home immediately, and do not go outside!"

Squads of guards charged down the streets, their faces tense as they shouted orders to the residents. It seemed the guards had just received the command. Some of them hadn't even had time to fasten the buckles of their armor. Armed with weapons, they stood watch on the streets.

The early risers heading to the market were confused and began chattering among themselves.

"What's going on?"

"Why are they sending us back home?"

"Can I still buy my groceries?"

Some well-informed people took this opportunity to boast.

"Hah, you all don't know?"

"Something big happened in East Sea City last night. The four major families, led by the Zhou family, were all wiped out in a single night."

"… Does that mean the city lord and the head of the Spirit Hall are dead?"

"Of course!"

"This is great news! Evil deeds always lead to retribution. Those parasites oppressing us deserved to die!"

"Exactly! The Zhou family even drove my neighbor's daughter to suicide."

"Finally, someone avenged her!"

"Be careful with your words! There are still guards on the streets!"

At this, the people glanced at each other and quickly lowered their heads as they headed home.

At the Zhou family estate, members of the Holy Knights of the Elder Hall had arrived after hearing the news. They were stopped by local guards at the entrance.

The guards frowned, glancing at the knights before extending their hand, "Crime scene. No unauthorized entry."

The knights exchanged amused looks, and one of them casually pulled out a gilded token from his pocket. Upon seeing the token, the guard's pupils shrank instantly. As a guard of the Spirit Hall, he knew all too well that this was the highest-level insignia of the Spirit Hall, only held by Holy Knights!

The guard immediately straightened up, hurriedly opening the door without any hesitation. "Please, sirs!"

The knights showed no intention of reprimanding him. Their mission was to investigate the situation and report back to His Holiness the Pope. Time was of the essence, and there was no need to waste effort on minor guards.

As they stepped inside the gate, an overwhelming sense of pressure hit them. The bodies of the Zhou family members were scattered all over the place.

One of the knights moved forward to inspect the bodies. He found that none of the victims showed signs of panic on their faces. The knight stood up, his expression hardening.

"These people died without any awareness."

"It seems that the assailants were highly skilled."

Another knight added, "The head of the Zhou family was at the rank of Spirit Doulou. There should be signs of a struggle before his death."

"Perhaps we can find some clues."

The leading knight nodded slightly and stepped forward. "Let's take a look at the head of the Zhou family's body."

They arrived at the Zhou family's council chamber. All the corpses were positioned exactly where they would stand during discussions, indicating that the victims hadn't even had a chance to fight back before they died.

"Hiss!"

The knights gasped at the sight.

"Who could have done this? This is terrifying!"

"Even a Spirit Doulou couldn't react. The perpetrator must be at least at the level of a Super Douluo."

Only a Super Douluo could achieve such overwhelming dominance.

At that moment, one of the knights noticed something unusual.

"Wait, hold your breath! There's poison in the council chamber."

He stepped forward to carefully examine the bodies, discovering small, bloody holes on each victim. He took out a dagger from his waist and dug out a sharp metal shard from one of the wounds.

His expression grew serious as he turned to the others. "Like the Zhou family members outside, the people in the council chamber were also struck by hidden weapons."

"The only difference is that the weapons inside the chamber were coated with poison."

One of the more experienced knights stepped up to inspect the poison and grimly said, "I recognize this poison. It's Mandrake Poison! It's extremely potent and takes effect instantly."

"And Mandrake Poison is incredibly rare. Even our Spirit Hall has only one sample in storage."

Hearing this, the knights fell silent.

The speed and precision of the enemy's actions were beyond their imagination. Even as Holy Knights, they had no leads. As for the fools in East Sea City, they were completely out of their depth.

This was destined to be an unsolvable case.

After a moment of silence, the leading knight clapped his hands and walked out of the council chamber.

"There's no need to investigate further. A Super Douluo-level powerhouse is beyond our ability to handle. Burn the bodies to prevent any potential plague. Also, write up the report and send it to His Holiness."

At the Butterfly Farm.

Inside Bibidong and Hu Liena's room, the two women were staring at the intelligence report on the desk. After reading it, Hu Liena took a deep breath.

"The four major families were wiped out in a single night? And without a sound? Even the Holy Knights couldn't find any clues. This is terrifying!"

After her exclamation, Hu Liena suddenly looked up, staring at her teacher's furrowed brow. "Could this have been done by Ye Tian's Scorpion Douluo?"

If anyone by the sea had such terrifying power, it could only be someone under Ye Tian's command.

Still staring at the report, Bibidong shook her head slowly. "It wasn't the Scorpion Douluo. Even with his rank of 94, he couldn't have silently killed everyone."

"But one thing is certain. This was Ye Tian's doing."

As soon as she saw that the wounds of all the victims were the same and caused by bullets, the answer became clear.

"I didn't expect Ye Tian's men to be so impressive."

A flicker crossed Bibidong's eyes. Last night, Hu Liena had been worried about Ye Tian facing retaliation from the Zhou family. Now, early in the morning, they received such a surprising report.

"It seems Ye Tian's methods are more complex than they appear."

Hu Liena grew serious. Suddenly, a chill ran down her spine.

What if Ye Tian found out the truth and didn't side with the Spirit Hall?

Knowing her teacher's temperament…

She didn't dare think any further. That would be a tragedy she could never bear to witness.

Across from their room, Ye Tian had just finished washing up and stepped outside. Zhou Long was already waiting at the door. When he saw Ye Tian, he handed over a report and respectfully said, "Young Master, everything has been taken care of."

"The storerooms of the four major families have also been quietly emptied and stored at our secret base in the city."

Taking the report from Zhou Long, Ye Tian smiled calmly. "Good work, Uncle Zhou."

The order to empty the storerooms had been given by Ye Tian. Since they were already wiping out the four major families, there was no reason to leave their wealth behind. Otherwise, who would cover the ammunition costs of the Polaris Squad?

As he read through the inventory of the spoils from the storerooms, Ye Tian's eyes narrowed slightly. The four families truly were fat sheep!

(End of chapter)