Nightfall

The big tactical array of Chang’an was different from other tactical arrays in the world since it could connect with Heaven and Earth. No matter how bad it was destroyed, it could recover by itself if it had enough time.

Because of this, the Academy planed to trap and kill the Abbey Dean in the city. On the contrary, the Abbey Dean’s purpose was very clear—he wanted to destroy the city.

Since he had to destroy Chang’an, there was only one way he could take.

He walked along the gap of the God-stunning Array that the Haotian Taoism had torn up. He seemed to walk along the Vermilion Bird Avenue, but in fact, his every step fell just right on the dim spots of the array, heading to the small building in the Imperial Palace.

However, this road had been chopped with many marks. The God-stunning Array mobilized the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the city and pushed him out of the Limitless State.

The marks, in another word, the characters were telling him that the road was impassable.

From the market to the small lane, in the wild snow and wind, the Abbey Dean felt colder and colder. He had confirmed that before he could destroy all the Divine Talismans along the road, he could never enter the Imperial Palace.

There was a direct and simple way to solve the dilemma: kill Ning Que, the one who wrote these Divine Talismans. Thinking about this, he turned around and flew with the wind, heading to Yanming Lake.

When Eldest Brother perceived where the green robe flickering and stampeding in the lane was going to, his mind weighed down.

To perform the Limitless State within such a small zone was like embroidering in a pinprick or flying inside a grain of sand. Even if he had not been injured, he could not catch up to the Abbey Dean.

However, he had to chase. He could not leave the Abbey Dean to his Youngest Brother alone. He stepped into the snow, dripping with blood, and his cotton jacket began trembling—however, he had not entered the Limitless State because Yu Lian caught him by the belt behind him.

“The Abbey Dean is going to kill our Youngest Brother.”

Eldest Brother looked at her in the eyes.

“I know. That’s what he should do.”

Yu Lian answered in peace because she could not do anything more.

The Abbey Dean showed up on the snow bridge near the Yanming Lake.

He was far away from the Vermilion Bird Avenue. The God-stunning Array was horrifying. The wind and snow seemed normal but they contained infinite power. He could not find a peaceful laminar of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.

No one could enter the Limitless State under this situation.

He walked down the snow bridge, passing through the reed marsh, and arrived at the foot of Yanming Mountain. He climbed the mountain in a snowy pass and finally reached the edge of the cliff but he found no one.

He saw various messy traces on the ground: footsteps, sitting marks, and many scrawled handwritings, some of which were written with fingers and some with branches.

He looked at the handwriting on the ground, picturing what had happened last night. However, he still didn’t know… where did Ning Que run off to?

When he turned to the lake and found two lines of footprints pointing at the faded lotus, the broken willows, and the crushed wintersweet, he frowned.

He couldn’t find Ning Que, neither in his sights nor in his sense of perception. It should not happen since even if he had the God-stunning Array, he could not avoid the vision of Haotian.

There must be someone helping him.

It must be the other footprint’s owner on the snow lake.

A few small round stones fell on the ground, smashing holes in the snow and rolling forward. They impacted the stone steps on the street, clicking, and slowly stopped.

They were just as big as a fingernail and could be contained a lot in a deerskin bag. If they were used to pave, they could cover the entire city.

A light aura flowed from them and merged into the tiles and stones on the street, feeling like the Great Blockage Formation in front of the Devil’s Doctrine’s gates.

The stones were very round without any edges. They were different from the intent of the Stone Array in an interesting way, which softly covered the space instead of simply filling up it.

Ning Que and Mo Shanshan walked out from the stones.

They had already left Yanming Lake, passing through the closed Bun Shop, and arrived at the Southern City.

“Even the Great Divine Priest of Light, who created the Stone Array, could not expect that a thousand years later, a genius Talisman Taoism girl could improve it like this,” said Ning Que with a smile.

Said Ning Que with a smile.

Mo Shanshan had no mood to smile. She said worriedly, “What should we do next?”

Ning Que said, “The present situation looks complicated, but in fact, it is very simple. The Abbey Dean should have figured out the way to come out and he should be on his way to kill me.”

Mo Shanshan said, “He can also withdraw from Chang’an.”

Ning Que explained, “We don’t want him to leave. A powerful man waiting outside Chang’an will be a failure of both the Academy and the Tang Empire. I don’t know if it’s lucky or not, he would not like to go back either. Because for him, this is the best opportunity.”

Looking at her toe cap, Mo Shanshan hesitated.

Ning Que knew what she was thinking, so he said, “Eldest Brother will come to save me, but Third Sister will stop him because they both know this is not the point.”

Mo Shanshan looked up at him, confusedly.

“Unless I can trap the Abbey Dean with the God-stunning Array or separate him from Haotian’s world in some way, Third Sister will take action. I don’t blame her because I would do the same thing if I was her. This is the only chance and we must take it.”

He continued, “What I should do right now is to hide. Then I need to find him and try to trap him. The question is who is faster.”

Mo Shanshan thought for a moment. She pushed up her glasses with her index finger, looking at the quiet lane in front, and said, “Write it here.”

Aiming at the lane, Ning Que pulled out his podao and swung. The marks disappeared with wind and snow just like the complicated expression on his face.

There were two mansions in this street standing opposite each other. One was the Official of Counsel’s and the other was the Xuanwei General’s; One was his home while the other was hers.

An old house filled with cobwebs and dust suddenly collapsed.

Hearing the noises, Ning Que didn’t turn around. He held his podao and continued moving forward. Mo Shanshan walked following him, throwing stones on the street.

From Yanming Lake to the Southern City, and then Eastern City, they walked while throwing stones all the way. They hid from the Abbey Dean and looked for the way to trap him in silence.

The second floor of the Building of Pines and Cranes collapsed and the signboard of the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store fell and broke.

Ning Que no longer needed Mo Shanshan to give him directions. Holding one end of the array eye pestle and sensing the green robe running in the city, he was thinking of the Black Umbrella and wielding it.

Finally, he returned to the familiar Lin 47th Street.

He pushed open the closed wooden door of the Old Brush Pen Shop. Looking at the calligraphies on the walls, he went to the backyard, pulling out his podao to cut.

A cat scream sounded on the wall and snow was kicked to the air.

The well in the small courtyard was broken and the wall collapsed.