The moment Wang Tai named the location, Zhang Yuanqing pulled out his phone, opened the map, searched for the location of Xinda Logistics in Jiangxin Town, and handed the phone to Fu Qingyang. Jiangxin Town was over a hundred kilometers from Songhai City, right on the border of Jiangnan Province.
Fu Qingyang glanced at the map and nodded. "The town isn't large. A single cast of my Insight covers a third of its area. Three uses will be enough to locate Lust."
He looked toward the red-haired old man and the curly-haired toy poodle perched on the desk. "We can't be certain whether this is a trap set by the Soldier Master sect. To be safe, let's call Elder Luoshen as well. Her Dragon Roar counters all mental control skills. Yuanshi, inform the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter and have her join the operation."
Turning to the deacons, the Money Prince added, "The rest of you will seal off the perimeter routes to keep Lust from escaping."
*So cautious... With five Dominators joining forces, even an ambush by a Heavenly King could be handled with ease.* Zhang Yuanqing fished out his phone as he walked out of the study.
At a time like this, he had to be grateful for cloud backups. The physical phone might have been ruined, but his contacts, photos, and messages were safely preserved in the cloud.
He had not lost the crazy Palace Master's number.
Pushing open the brown wooden door, Zhang Yuanqing dialed her number.
After a few rings, the call connected, and a teasing, smiling voice drifted into his ear. "Heh, you rarely call me of your own accord. Did you miss me?"
Her voice was soft and magnetic, reminiscent of a coquettish enchantress flirting with her lover.
*She always loves teasing me...* Lacking the nerve to flirt back with this lunatic, Zhang Yuanqing answered in all seriousness, "We've pinpointed Lust's location. Fu Qingyang invites you to join the strike."
The Palace Master of Halting Slaughter reigned in her laughter. "Fu Qingyang wouldn't invite me over a mere Lust. Are there other enemies?"
Ever the smooth talker, Zhang Yuanqing laid on the flattery at once. "Palace Master, your intellect is truly radiant, your mind as keen as a blade. It's like this..."
He explained Fu Qingyang's concerns.
Once she heard him out, she answered bluntly, "Ten minutes!"
Zhang Yuanqing hung up and returned to the study under everyone's watchful eyes. "The Palace Master will arrive in ten minutes."
Fu Qingyang, Elder Skyfire, and Elder Gou gave slight nods and waited in silence.
The room grew quiet, no one speaking, like a vanguard poised to march onto a battlefield.
*I hope today's operation goes smoothly and wipes out this hidden threat once and for all. If this bastard doesn't die, I won't even be able to sleep peacefully, and I won't be able to accept it.* Zhang Yuanqing sat down beside Guan Ya, his expression grave.
Guan Ya pursed her lips and quietly took his hand, out of everyone's view.
"With our lineup, Lust is just an insect," she said with a smile.
Zhang Yuanqing nodded, feeling his tension ease a bit.
Her hand was cool, soft, and smooth, comforting to hold.
Five minutes later, a violent gust swept through the villa courtyard, rattling the windows. The double brown doors of the study burst open with a crash as a gale howled into the room.
Everyone turned away and raised their arms to shield themselves from the oncoming blast.
When the wind died down, a tall woman in a black gown stood on the red carpet leading directly to the doorway. A black veil covered her face, and her dark hair fell like a waterfall.
*Elder Luoshen of the Water God Palace... Is she the elder who saved me back at Songhai University? I remember Fu Qingyang saying an elder was hidden at Songhai University...* Zhang Yuanqing studied her while combing through his memory for female students and teachers, trying to match a face and deduce her identity.
She was remarkably tall, around one hundred and seventy-three centimeters. The skin beneath her veil was extraordinarily fair, and a pale, slender forearm peeked out from her black sleeve. Her hands were well-proportioned and refined.
Though the veil concealed two-thirds of her face, the misty eyes revealed above it—reminiscent of mountain fog after rain—were breathtaking.
Zhang Yuanqing racked his brain, recalling every female teacher and student he knew, growing increasingly puzzled. *How could a beauty like this have escaped my notice during my whole year at Songhai University? That's practically an insult to my observation skills.*
Elder Luoshen glanced across the room, offering a slight nod to Elder Gou. Fu Qingyang and Elder Skyfire, however, were completely ignored.
The former had publicly challenged her in the meeting room just a few days ago, while the latter belonged to a faction that was historically like water and fire to hers.
After another five minutes of waiting, Fu Qingyang seemed to sense something and looked toward the window on the left. By the time he turned, the other three elders had already shifted their gazes.
Crimson threads crept through the seams of the window frame. More and more poured inside like a miniature waterfall, pooling in the study before swelling upward, taking shape as a woman in a magnificent Song-dynasty gown, wearing a silver mask.
One in black and one in red, the two female Dominators stood in striking contrast.
Fu Qingyang spoke flatly. "Everyone is here. I'll make this brief. Ten minutes ago, we tracked Lust Divine General to Jiangxin Town. To prevent any Soldier Master sect ambush, I asked you all to join this strike.
"Lust won't stay in one place for long; he might even leave today. Speed is paramount, so we won't take conventional transport. The Dominators will carry everyone directly."
With that, he looked at the five Saints in the room.
Hearing this, the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter smiled playfully at Zhang Yuanqing. "Little paramour, come here!"
*Little paramour...* The official walkers in the study turned their gazes toward Yuanshi Tianzun in unison.
Even the aloof Money Prince paused for a beat.
Zhang Yuanqing cleared his throat hurriedly. "Palace Master, please don't joke around."
*This lunatic!*
*My girlfriend is right here!!*
*My future brother-in-law is here too! Are you trying to get me killed?!*
Under Guan Ya's cool, lingering stare, Zhang Yuanqing stepped toward Fu Qingyang. "I'll go with Elder Fu..."
The Palace Master of Halting Slaughter sneered, not pressing the matter.
With tacit understanding, Guan Ya walked over to Elder Luoshen. The other Saints chose their corresponding elders based on their classes and factions.
Fu Qingyang promptly seized his trusted subordinate by the shoulder, threw open the window, and rode a streak of sword qi straight into the sky.
With nothing beneath his feet and the wind roaring in his ears, Zhang Yuanqing instinctively wrapped his arms around Fu Qingyang's waist, hooking his legs tightly around his thighs.
*Amazing... It's just like the sword immortals in legends who ride swords through the air, except they step on a blade, and Fu Qingyang seems to ride bare sword qi...* Zhang Yuanqing looked down, marveling at the city skyscrapers shrunk down to the size of toy building blocks.
Just then, he heard Fu Qingyang's low, helpless voice. "Could you not cling to me like this?"
The noble Money Prince had never experienced such physical intimacy with another man, let alone a woman.
"I'm a little afraid of heights, worried I might fall. Leader, we're both men. A little hug doesn't hurt," Zhang Yuanqing said, putting his social prowess on full display.
Fu Qingyang said nothing more, seemingly unable to bother with him.
***
Jiangxin Town, inside a residential building.
The bedroom curtains were drawn shut against the daylight, leaving the room dim while the air conditioner hummed, blowing cold air.
A double bed creaked violently, accompanied by a woman's intermittent sobs and pleas for mercy.
A gaunt back leaned over the bed, two long legs hoisted onto his shoulders as he thrust at a frenzied pace, the loud impacts echoing through the room.
The woman's dangling calves tightened and flailed by turns.
Her face was twisted in agony; she had lost count of how many times she had passed out and come around. She was in utter torment, but no matter how she begged, her master showed no hint of mercy.
It was as if she were merely a disposable tool, a toy to vent his desires upon.
"You're making too much noise!" Lust Divine General snapped coldly.
He grabbed a piece of underwear discarded by the bed and shoved it into the woman's mouth.
Her cries and moans instantly muffled into whimpers.
A crowded residential apartment was nothing like his pleasure den. Within his domain, no one cared if the slaves screamed until their throats tore.
Here, however, a woman's cries could draw unwanted attention, such as neighbors calling the police.
Lust Divine General had no desire to invite trouble while keeping a low profile.
Looking at the tear-streaked, agonized face of the young woman, he let out a sneer. "A newlywed virgin really can't take much. Your husband is useless. Once I'm done with you, he'll finally understand what real virility looks like."
After failing to hunt down Yuanshi Tianzun, he had laid low in a village far from Songhai, passing two days with a few picked village women before relocating to Jiangxin Town.
The virtue of small towns was stealth, but quality women were scarce. This young woman was freshly married, with a great figure and pretty face—a rare beauty for a place the size of Jiangxin Town.
Thus, Lust Divine General intended to stay a couple more days until he grew bored of her.
He had already chosen his next destination: a tourist town in Jiangnan Province.
Influencers and young women flocked there to take photos, leaving the place teeming with beauties. To him, they were wild flowers waiting to be plucked.
The only drawback was weaker concealment, but compared to Songhai and other major cities, it was undeniably safer, as tourist towns lacked stationed official branches.
Once the heat died down, he would return to Songhai.
Songhai City was a sprawling metropolis where women could be plucked by the dozen. He would learn from this setback, rebuild his pleasure den, and round up women with greater discretion.
The authorities wouldn't hunt him indefinitely. If the search yielded nothing, they would settle for issuing a bounty notice. As a Divine General who had reigned for years, did he really care about another wanted poster?
After a torrential flurry of thrusts, Lust Divine General released his desires in satisfaction.
Casting aside the long legs draped over his shoulders, he threw on a man's bathrobe and walked to the window, drawing back the curtains to let bright sunlight flood the room.
*One woman isn't enough; three is the bare minimum. Perhaps I should target standalone villas, gather my toys there... but that lacks cover.*
Looking up at the blue sky, Lust Divine General exhaled an irritated breath.
While he could ravish any target he fancied and crash into any home, acting as a groom every day and taking a new bride every night, it still fell short of his needs.
He needed slaves—many, many slaves.
Right then, Lust Divine General sensed an invisible ripple washing in from the distance, sweeping across the nearby residential buildings like a wave before expanding outward.
*A Scout's Insight?!*
*An Insight on this scale and range must come from a Dominator at least! The authorities found me?!* His expression changed drastically. He refused to believe the Five Elements Alliance's useless bunch could trace him here, but there was no time to ponder.
The moment that ripple passed over the area, he knew he was exposed.
*Is it Fu Qingyang or Huangsha Baizhan? Puppeteers excel at slaughter, but lack crowd-control skills. They wouldn't dare fight me to the death in a densely populated area. If only one Dominator came, even if I can't beat him, I can use ordinary lives to stall him and find an opening to escape...* His thoughts flashed rapidly as he drafted an escape plan: sneak to the edge of Jiangxin Town and break through at the weakest point of their perimeter.
Without hesitation, Lust Divine General pulled a pitch-black cloak from his inventory, shook it out, and draped it over his shoulders.
His body dissolved into thin air, entering stealth.
Cloaked in black, he leapt from the fourth-floor window and landed in the shrubbery below.
This item was the Night Rover Cloak, an item belonging to the Night Rover class that granted the core skill of Night Roaming. Wearing it endowed the user with the ability for fifteen minutes, but it required a half-hour cooldown before it could be donned again.
It carried two penalties: the wearer could not fight or use skills while wearing it, and their spirit body would remain weakened for half an hour afterward.
Having survived for years, Lust Divine General naturally possessed various life-saving escape tools.
Leaping out of the bushes, he moved to sprint out of the compound and flee the town, only to freeze in his tracks, scanning his surroundings with suspicion.
The once-bustling compound was completely deserted and utterly silent.
*This isn't the real world, yet it isn't an illusion either... I can't sense the mark I left on that woman.* Cloaked in stealth, Lust Divine General looked around in shock and uncertainty.
Just moments ago, he had realized his connection to his "toy" was severed, yet an Illusionist's tricks could never cut off the link between him and his prey.
"Come out, Lust! Now that you're inside my Mirror World, there is no escape."
A woman's voice rang out, cold yet melodious.
Still in his Night Roaming state, Lust looked up to see a graceful silhouette standing upon the wind above the compound, her skirts and long hair dancing in the breeze.
*An elder of the Water God Palace? Two of them came?!* Lust's heart sank. Before he could react, fierce winds whipped through the Mirror World, and a torrential downpour cascaded from the heavens.
Within the misty curtain of rain, Lust's outline was clearly traced.
Night Roaming could not erase a person's physical existence.
*Swoosh!*
Suddenly, an invisible blade slashed through the rain straight toward him.
Lust Divine General tore off the Night Rover Cloak, stowing it into his inventory while diving sideways.
He barely dodged the streak of sword qi.
Springing back to his feet, he looked toward the direction of the strike.
That single glance caused his pupils to contract violently, draining all color from his face.
Standing where the sword qi originated was not just one person, but a whole group.
A young man in a white suit, stern and unsmiling; a burly, towering elder with fiery-red hair, brimming with vigor despite his age; a curly-haired toy poodle riding an ethereal white lion; and a woman in a sweeping red gown wearing a silver mask.
Along with the black-gowned woman riding the wind above...
Five Dominators!
The only non-Dominator present was Yuanshi Tianzun, standing among these powerhouses without the slightest modesty of a minor player. He smiled and called out, "How does it feel to be the prey, Lust Divine General?"
Those were the very words Lust Divine General had sneeringly spat at him by the reservoir.
Zhang Yuanqing was returning them in full.
Lust Divine General's face twitched violently as he roared in fury, "How did you find me?! You couldn't have found me!"
Despair detonated in his chest. He knew his situation all too well; there was zero chance of escape. Unless Fear, the foremost of the Four Heavenly Kings, descended in person, breaking through a siege of five Dominators was an impossibility.
"We have Wrath Divine General to thank for reporting your illicit activities in Jiangxin Town," Zhang Yuanqing added, twisting the knife.
"Wrath?!" Blue veins bulged across Lust's gaunt face. "Why would he sabotage me?! He—"
Zhang Yuanqing raised an eyebrow. "You guessed right. Your affair with his wife was exposed. Oh, and I'm the one who told him."
Lust Divine General stared at Yuanshi Tianzun in shock, his features twisting hideously.
A moment later, he swallowed all his fury and resentment, turned toward the elders of the alliance, and shouted, "I surrender to the Five Elements Alliance! I will cooperate! I'll hand over everything I know about the Soldier Master sect!"
This was his final bid for survival.
Zhang Yuanqing's heart dropped.
As a high-ranking member of the Soldier Master sect, the intelligence Lust possessed was of undeniable value. The elders might very well choose to take him alive.
Zhang Yuanqing refused to see scum like this locked up; he wanted him dead.
"You aren't worthy!" Fu Qingyang stated coldly.
"Why waste breath on him!" Elder Skyfire was a quintessential Fire Master—if he could fight, he wouldn't waste words. With a hiss, flames erupted from his palm, condensing into a magnificent, blazing broadsword.
He slammed his foot down with a loud thud, his body turning into a streak of fire that closed the distance to Lust Divine General in an instant.
*Swift as Raging Fire!*
When it came to burst speed, no class could match a Fire Master.
Lust Divine General summoned a black iron shield and thrust it forward.
A flash of crimson light tore across the space.
Elder Skyfire's silhouette reappeared behind Lust.
A molten scar appeared across the black iron shield in Lust's hands before the shield split cleanly in two along the cut. Across his chest lay a charred wound that carved deep into his internal organs, the flesh of his torso completely carbonized.
Elder Skyfire's strike had not only shattered a high-grade defensive item, but also severed the Mist Lord's bronze skin and iron bones, devastating his organs.
Clutching his chest, Lust Divine General stumbled backward. The defense he took so much pride in had been the first thing to shatter.
Yet his powerful vitality kept him from dying on the spot. In a desperate struggle, he spat out a plume of grayish-white mist that billowed in all directions.
A Mist Lord could teleport through thick fog and disperse their body into mist to ignore physical attacks.
*Whoosh!*
A sudden gale rose out of nowhere, sweeping the fog straight into the sky and exposing Lust Divine General's scorched body.
Elder Luoshen's ability to command wind and rain was the perfect counter to a Mist Lord.
Despair washed over Lust's face.
The Palace Master of Halting Slaughter drifted into the air, her gown billowing as thousands of crimson threads erupted behind her with a soft pop, blanketing the sky as they surged toward Lust Divine General.
Lust's eyes flashed crimson, forming twisted, sinister runes.
As a Musician, the Palace Master was equally adept in mental manipulation, and under the suppression of her higher level, his bewitchment failed to take effect.
Yet the red threads turned traitor.
As if granted minds of their own, they whipped around to strike back at the Palace Master.
Unlike ordinary items, an Arbiter of Fate's threads were truly alive, woven from their own life force and mental energy.
*Roar!*
A clear, sonorous dragon roar echoed at the right moment, cleansing the mind and shattering all mental control.
The rebellious threads regained their "senses" and plunged fiercely into the open wound on Lust Divine General's chest.
Beneath his skin, thin lines bulged and writhed in every direction.
"Aaaagh!"
He shrieked in agony as crimson blood streamed from his eyes, nose, mouth, and ears.
Moments later, Lust's scalp split open, and worm-like red threads burst forth, tearing into skin as tough as steel. Inch by inch, they peeled it away from his skull, stripping the face, then the neck, the chest... More and more skin was ripped from his body until, within dozens of seconds, his entire hide was peeled off.
Lust Divine General wailed in torment, thrashing across the ground as blood soaked into the soil, his flayed muscles coated in dirt and gravel.
He was still alive!
The red threads returned to the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter, bearing the flayed skin. Reaching out to take it, she watched his agonized thrashing with a cruel smile playing on her crimson lips.
*What a terrifying lunatic...* Zhang Yuanqing watched the spectacle with a chill running down his spine.
He had fantasized about torturing Lust, believing such filth deserved death by a thousand cuts, but he had never imagined the Palace Master would literally skin him alive.
Elder Gou spoke in a deep voice. "Put him out of his misery!"
Neither he nor Fu Qingyang had intervened, knowing that Lust had violated and murdered a member of the Slaughter-Halting Palace, so they had stepped aside to let her take her revenge.
Even so, her brutality prompted Elder Gou to speak up.
The Palace Master chuckled softly and waved her long sleeve. Countless red threads wrapped around Lust, lifting him high into the air.
Raising her snow-white wrist, she clenched her fingers tight.
The dense mesh of threads contracted violently, cleanly slicing Lust Divine General's calves, arms, torso, and neck apart.
*Splatter!*
A pulsing heart, severed limbs, swollen intestines, ruptured stomach, and liver spilled across the earth.
Blood sprayed outward, spattering the ground like dots of ink.
Lust Divine General of the Soldier Master sect had returned to the Spirit Realm!
Elder Gou leapt lightly from the white lion's back. The king of the plains, faint and ethereal, stepped gracefully over to the remains and licked them clean, leaving not a trace of Lust Divine General behind.
"Luoshen, release the Mirror World," Elder Gou said, looking up.
Elder Luoshen waved her hand from midair, and the surrounding space shattered like glass.
Moments later, the compound's residents reappeared. Some sat chatting in pavilions, others hurried home on electric scooters, and some walked dogs in the shade of the trees.
They went about their business, oblivious to the Dominators who had suddenly appeared in their midst, as though blind to them.
Zhang Yuanqing looked toward where Lust Divine General had died. Only a faint trace of blood remained, which the blazing summer sun would soon bake away.
*Phew, we finally took down Lust. The crisis in Songhai is resolved, and I can finally expand my team and recruit subordinates...* The haze hanging over Zhang Yuanqing's mind cleared completely.
Elder Gou spoke up. "Leave those deacons behind to clean up; the rest of us will head back. Ah, Palace Master, please stay a little longer. Lust harmed many people in Jiangxin Town; we'll need your help hypnotizing them."
The Palace Master replied, "The minds of ordinary people warped by bewitchment are no longer like those of normal humans. Hypnosis won't cure them; it will only make them appear to be normal psychiatric patients."
Elder Gou sighed. "At least that way, they can still live normal lives."
The Palace Master gave a slight nod, accepting the task.
Coming here had been like riding the clouds, bearing the grace of immortals, but the return trip offered no such luxury. Fu Qingyang heartlessly abandoned the "clingy" Zhang Yuanqing, leaving him to take a car back to Songhai.
Inside a police car provided by the Jiangxin Town Police Department, Zhang Yuanqing and Guan Ya sat in the back. With a major weight lifted from their shoulders, both felt considerably more relaxed.
After watching the scenery rush past for a while, Guan Ya turned her gaze toward Yuanshi Tianzun beside her, smiling faintly. "Are you very close with that Palace Master?"
Her tone and expression were entirely casual, as if she were merely asking in passing.
In the past, Zhang Yuanqing might have joked, *We're only half-acquainted; after all, we haven't gotten down to each other's bare truths yet.*
Now, however, he was no longer an amateur. He replied with steady composure, "My familiarity level with that Palace Master is a C, but my intimacy level with you, Sister Guan Ya, is an E—a whole major realm higher."
It was not only the style of humor Guan Ya liked, but also an unobtrusive declaration of his preference for her.
Sure enough, the corners of Guan Ya's mouth curled into a satisfied smile. "An intimacy level of E requires relentless dedication to maintain."
Zhang Yuanqing seized the opening. "Sister Guan Ya, I'll come over to your place for dinner tonight so we can maintain it properly."
"I'm a little tired today. Let's do another day," Guan Ya backed down, true to form.
"You're doing this again? No way, I'm definitely going to your place tonight."
"Oh."
"Huh? You actually agreed?" Zhang Yuanqing beamed with delight.
"I'm staying at a hotel tonight."
"..."
***
Sanzhuang Province, inside a high-end apartment.
In a study offering a clear view of the lake, Queen sat cross-legged on the sofa wearing short shorts and a tank top, a laptop resting before her.
At home, she had washed off her smoky makeup and taken out the silver hoops in her earlobes. She looked less like a domineering older sister and more quiet and pretty.
The computer screen displayed a chat window:
*Queen, I heard Deacon Xinhai is already scouting a new captain for Team Six. You're in an awkward spot now—are you really going to Songhai or not?*
*I want to go, but I don't dare. Lust hasn't been caught yet.*
*How many days has it been? The colleagues who died at Lust's hands are almost at their seventh-day memorial, and the Songhai Branch still hasn't caught him.*
*He's a Divine General of the Soldier Master sect. How could he be that easy to catch? Just wait a bit longer...*
*You brought this on yourself. You kept talking about applying for a transfer to Songhai, and Deacon Xinhai tried to keep you for so long, but you refused to stay. Well, now the deacon's pissed and deliberately bringing in a new captain to replace you. You'll have to go to Songhai whether you want to or not.*
Looking at the chat, Queen curled her lip and closed the window.
"I'm going to Songhai no matter what, hmph!" she muttered. With a look of anticipation, she opened the official forum.
Over the past few days, she had opened the forum repeatedly, refreshing again and again, hoping the Songhai Branch would post an announcement confirming that Lust Divine General's case was finally closed.
Then she could happily pack her bags, take up her post, and join Yuanshi Tianzun.
Within the official organization, choosing the right leader was paramount.
Following a mediocre deacon was nowhere near as promising as serving as a maiden under Tianzun's wing.
Upon opening the forum, the hope in her eyes faded, and her bright face fell. "Another day of waiting for nothing."
If a peak Saint truly wanted to hide, finding him was indeed extraordinarily difficult; otherwise, the upper-middle echelons of evil organizations would have been rooted out long ago.
Out of habit, she hit refresh once more. Her eyes went wide.
A pinned announcement sat at the very top of the forum:
*#Songhai Branch: Lust Divine General Has Been Slain#*
*The Songhai Branch took down Lust Divine General?!*
*How did they manage that...?* Queen straightened her spine instantly, energized. She gripped her mouse and clicked the post, desperate to read every detail of the operation.
Chapter 312