As the night fell, a group of unexpected visitors soared into the dark royal city. When the imperial vessel reached the dark city walls, Liu Jing, leading the group, glanced at this supposed sanctuary, hesitated slightly before finally raising his hand with great resolve. "Let's go!" His voice was decisive, without the slightest hesitation. He then stepped forward first. Seeing this, the others naturally followed, flowing through the crowd, their earlier concerns about the seven sects' restrictions now completely forgotten. Han Li did not rush ahead but deliberately stayed behind, flying at the rear of the group. This was not due to any particular intention on Han Li's part, but rather because he was quietly sensing the "Five Elements Reversal Array" he had set up the night before. When they reached a distance of several miles from the imperial palace, a faint, enigmatic smile appeared on Han Li's lips. Excellent! The great formation remained intact, and the subtle spiritual seals that Han Li had secretly arranged were untouched, which filled him with great joy. A short while later, the nine of them floated above the imperial palace, gazing down upon the entire imperial complex. "Listen carefully everyone!" Liu Jing solemnly restated their plan for tonight. "We will split into two groups as originally planned. One group will rush directly to the current emperor of the Yue State's residence, rescuing him from the Black Death Sect. This will prevent the enemy from panicking and using the emperor as leverage against us. The other group will proceed straight to the Cold Palace where the Black Death Sect's master currently resides, gathering strength first to eliminate the four Blood Servants before anything else. Once both groups have completed their tasks, they will reunite and finally confront the master of the Black Death Sect, who is still in seclusion." The others nodded in agreement. The personnel assignments had already been made—Chen Qiaoqing and Zhong Wei'nan, the two female cultivators, would go to rescue the emperor of the Yue State. Liu Jingzhe and the others surged directly toward the Cold Palace guarded by the Four Blood Servants, including Han Li. "Seven sister, Chen sister, please be especially careful!" Before parting, Liu Jingzhe added a special instruction. The two women nodded solemnly and then darted downward, vanishing silently into the darkness shortly thereafter. "When you meet other cultivators, don't hold back. Anyone who can move freely within this palace must be from the Black Shad Sect. Let's act now—this will give our two sisters a chance." After saying this firmly to the group, Liu Jingzhe immediately took to the air, heading straight for the Cold Palace as Han Li had indicated. The others followed suit. Soon, the imposing, thunderous arrival of the seven of them was noticed by the Black Shad Sect disciples stationed at the outer perimeter of the Cold Palace. Immediately, a series of sharp cries rang out, as various spells and artifacts surged forth from hidden spots near the Cold Palace, sweeping toward the group and delivering powerful blows. "Even a grain of light dares to compete with the full moon!" Liu Jing raised his hand, and a shimmering silk handkerchief detached itself, instantly expanding into a vast shield that protected not only himself but also the others behind him, including Han Li and the rest. It was clear he had great confidence in the power of this artifact. Indeed, as soon as the handkerchief unfurled, the spells and artifacts struck it simultaneously. Yet after emitting a brilliant white glow, the handkerchief sustained no damage—instead, it deflected several spells back, sending the black-souled clerics below scrambling and disoriented. "Master Liu, what a skill!" Song Meng, who had charged forward alongside Liu Jing, exclaimed in admiration. Then, without hesitation, he launched his own item into the fray. A colossal blue greatsword materialized suddenly in the night sky—precisely the top-tier artifact, "Blue Silk Sword," favored most by Song Meng. "Go!" With a swift gesture of his hands, Song Meng summoned the sword, which then emitted a long, resonant cry and began to rotate smoothly, like a great wheel. This unexpected motion left the black-shield monks below, who had been stunned by the sword's immense form, momentarily speechless. Seeing this, Song Meng's face tightened into a grim smile. He extended two fingers and pointed them at the sword, now transformed into a vast disc. At once, the blue glow on the disc contracted and expanded, then burst forth with countless fine threads of blue silk, instantly enveloping a radius of several dozen zhang beneath it. Witnessing this spectacle, the black-shield monks were left breathless, their protective spells and artifacts rushing forth in frantic defense, attempting to withstand the overwhelming assault. A continuous wave of cries erupted, filling the air. Under the relentless barrage of blue silk threads, most of the Black Shao disciples failed to withstand the assault—either dying in gruesome fashion, their bodies pierced like honeycombs, or though they managed to protect their vital organs, their limbs and other parts were torn through, rendering them instantly helpless. "Such a masterstroke—'Ten Thousand Silks of the World!' I've long heard of this technique from Brother Song, and now it truly lives up to its reputation." One of Chen Qiaoqian's senior colleagues, witnessing its power, sincerely praised it, a touch of pride glowing on Song Meng's face. At that moment, several of them landed calmly at the entrance of the Cold Palace. The Black Shao disciples who had narrowly escaped death no longer dared to move—they were now utterly shaken and disoriented. "Activate the Four Shao Array and encircle them within." As the remaining Black Shao disciples faced Liu Jing and his companions with growing apprehension, a voice of extraordinary coldness resonated from within the Cold Palace. Then, a figure in white shimmered with a hazy, cold radiance, appearing instantly at the main gate—none other than the "Ice Demon" whose shift had just come up. Having issued a fierce command moments before, he now stared in growing astonishment and outrage at the cultivators of Huangfeng Valley. "Hmph! Let the demonic beings pay with their lives!" Upon hearing this and observing the figure's cultivation level, Liu Jing immediately recognized him as one of the Four Blood Servants. With a cold snort, two streaks of silver light shot forth from his body, swiftly heading straight for the opponent's head. Seeing this, the others raised their various artifacts, eager to swiftly combine their efforts and eliminate this newly arrived black-demon cultivator. They were not engaged in mere sparring—they certainly wouldn't allow a single combat. Han Li also launched six streaks of golden light from his storage pouch. Of course, he was delighted to see this Blood Servant fall at once. Yet, just then, the scene before Han Li and his companions suddenly blurred, followed by a sensation of spinning and tilting—like the world itself had begun to whirl. To their great surprise, they found themselves suddenly transported to a snowy landscape. The surroundings were blank and white, the wind howling steadily, large snowflakes drifting everywhere—where was the white-robed figure now? Though surprised, Liu Jing and his companions remained calm. They knew they had been caught within the Four-Element Array. After a moment of shock, they composed themselves. After all, there were so many fellow disciples at this level of foundation stage—what could a small array possibly do to them? As soon as the sentence was spoken, everyone exchanged glances and for a moment, no one spoke. "I do have some understanding of array techniques and have heard of the Four-Aspect Array, but I haven't studied the specific methods for breaking it. In fact, this array is rather obscure among array techniques—most people wouldn't take the time to research it." The senior sister of Chen Qiaoqian hesitated and said, observing the quiet atmosphere. "Then this is going to be a bit troublesome—do we really have to break through the array by sheer force?" Liu Jing furrowed his brows, murmuring with some reluctance. After all, while breaking through the array with brute force is straightforward and simple, it takes considerably longer and drains a significant amount of everyone's magical energy—a clear disadvantage when facing the subsequent battle. It's likely this is precisely one of the reasons the enemy has chosen to deploy this array! Hearing this, the others also looked at each other, puzzled and concerned. At that moment, a curious voice broke in. "Wait! What are you doing, Han brother?" Song and Meng were completely unfamiliar with the array tactics, and instead of worrying about breaking it, simply observed around and soon spotted Han Li's actions. Han Li was gently withdrawing a crystal sphere artifact and placing it before his eyes, gazing steadily in a particular direction through it. This unusual gesture piqued Song Meng's curiosity, prompting him to ask without hesitation. Han Li's question drew the attention of Liu Jing and the others as well, who now looked at him with growing curiosity. Han Li calmly set down the crystal sphere before turning to Liu Jing and saying, "I might have found a flaw in the array!" "What? You've found a flaw!" Upon hearing this, the people watching him were filled with surprise, and Liu Jing was especially delighted.