The entire structure of the Library shook and thundered just as Ye Zhiqiu, with an iron-blue complexion, hurried toward it.
Her figure was as swift as the wind, gliding through the air like a hawk, her feet barely touching the ground.
As Ye Zhiqiu hastened on her way, she cursed inwardly.
After the newly admitted disciples entered the tower, they would stay inside for two whole days; naturally, she, being a prestigious instructor, couldn't just wait idly outside the Library.
She had already arranged to meet with Chief Lin of the city's east later to have tea and play mahjong for a while.
Yet Ye Zhiqiu had not expected that before she had even left the Martial Arts Academy's gates, such an incident would occur within the tower.
When she landed on the Library's front steps, she saw North Courtyard Instructor Qiu Feng and West Courtyard's Shao Lingshan standing in front, confronting a young man dressed in blood clothes behind the door.
The young man looked to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, with a hawkish nose and deep eyes, exuding a cold temperament as he glanced outside with a slightly mocking expression.
Not understanding the situation, Ye Zhiqiu tapped the ground with her foot and glided into the building.
"Old Qiu, Shao Lingshan, what's the situation here, and why are you just standing there watching?"
But Shao Lingshan's expression was dark, and he didn't move an inch, "Don't go over there, come back!"
How could Ye Zhiqiu listen to this rival of hers? She had already skimmed to the door and reached out to grab the neck of the young man in blood clothes.
The young man didn't resist at all, standing there with a smile brimming his face.
At that moment, there suddenly came a 'boom' explosion from inside the building.
Ye Zhiqiu was slightly startled and looked towards the source of the sound.
It was the third door along the left corridor, with huge tongues of fire spewing out from it.
She also saw scorch marks on two other doors in the building.
"That's one of your Martial Arts Academy's Ten External Skills, the Martial Arts True Intent of the Cloud Clearing Palm. Now, it has been burned to ash."
The youth in blood clothes let Ye Zhiqiu grab his neck, a wicked smile appearing on his face: "Coach Ye, with every step you take forward, a set of Martial Arts True Intent in this Library will turn to ash.
If anything happens to me, all the books in this entire building and everyone inside will be buried with me."
Ye Zhiqiu's eyes filled with astonished doubt.
She did not know if the other party was telling the truth or not.
The youth in blood clothes, however, chuckled dismissively and produced a flaming-red talisman, waving it in front of Ye Zhiqiu.
"See this? Blast Flame Talisman, worth about ten taels of Demon Silver each on the market. Right now, there are precisely six thousand nine hundred of these talismans buried in this building, with power enough to blow the entire structure into the sky. If you don't believe me, feel free to try again."
Ye Zhiqiu couldn't help but draw a sharp breath as she noticed the similar fiery talismans stuck on the nearby walls.
But with such an extravagant gesture, what exactly did these people intend?
Six thousand nine hundred Blast Flame Talismans—that's sixty-nine thousand taels of Demon Silver.
The youth in blood clothes spoke casually, brushing away Ye Zhiqiu's hand: "If Coach Ye would rather not attempt again, then please step outside and remember to close the door!"
With her complexion iron-blue, Ye Zhiqiu stood still, unable to move.
As she hesitated, a deep and powerful voice came from behind: "Coach Ye, step back. This scoundrel is probably telling the truth."
Turning her head, Ye Zhiqiu saw the towering figure of the Martial Arts Academy's Head, Lei Yuan, standing outside the door.
Another person stood beside him.
It was a middle-aged man dressed in the gear of the Police Pool of Blood Thousand Households, with green hair, green beard, and green eyebrows, an exceptionally strange visage.
Ye Zhiqiu immediately recognized him as the Thousand Households Commander Cao Xuan of the Police Pool of Blood Thousand Households from Xiushui County under the Eastern Town Commandery.
She huffed with a displeased and unwilling look, retiring from the door, yet not closing it.
Instead, two individuals dressed in Inner Sect Disciple attire came out from inside to push the door, gradually closing the heavy ironwood door.
After Ye Zhiqiu stepped out, she discovered there was an entire array of Police Pool of Blood officers flowing in. All clad in Heavy Armor, wielding swords and exuding a murderous aura, they surrounded the twelve-story Library tightly, leaving no way out.
Ye Zhiqiu couldn't help but look towards Lei Yuan and Cao Xuan with a suspicious expression, "Head Lei, Households Commander Cao, may I ask what is happening? Who are these thieves that have come in?"
"They are the Blood Wind Thieves under the command of Li Daogui."
These words came from Thousand Households Commander Cao, his green eyebrows slightly raised: "About three days ago, our undercover agents noticed someone making large purchases of Blast Flame Talismans on the black market and immediately reported back to the Eastern Town Commandery.
We traced the source and finally locked down the wanted criminal Blood Wind Sword Li Daogui. This person infiltrated Xiushui County not long ago, but his intentions are unknown. Despite our best efforts to investigate, we only found Zhengyang Martial Arts Hall recently, regretfully a step too late," Households Commander Cao said.
Lei Yuan's brows furrowed deeply as he looked at Cao Xuan with piercing eyes, "Li Daogui has no grudges with our Formless Divine Sect, so what is he doing at our Zhengyang Martial Arts Academy?"
Cao Xuan's expression darkened immediately as he looked at the twelve-story building in front of him, "He must have come for Qin Muge's 'Defying God Flag.' Somehow he got wind that the clue to the Defying God Flag might be hidden in this Library."
Lei Yuan and several instructors present were slightly stunned, exchanging glances with each other.
Lei Yuan then began massaging his temples with a headache, pondering how to defuse this dangerous situation.
"Rest assured!"
Cao Xuan stood with his hands behind his back, looking toward a few windows on the seventh floor, "The power of those Blast Flame Talismans is terrifying, but they must be remotely controlled with a spell to be activated.
The Blood Wind Thieves were heavily damaged by our Eastern Town Commandery not long ago, leaving only one 'Eighth Rank or below' sorcerer alive in Li Daogui's followers. As long as we take down this person, Li Daogui and his gang of Blood Wind Thieves will have nowhere to fly to," he said.
As his gaze stayed on the spot, four figures in black quietly opened several of those windows.
Just as they were about to slip inside, Cao Xuan's pupils suddenly contracted. He saw countless crossbow arrows, each half a finger long, shooting out from inside the windows.
Those were Flying Locust Crossbows, which in a blink of an eye left the four black-clad individuals riddled with holes and soundlessly falling from the seventh floor.
Four martial masters of the Police Pool of Blood who were 'Eighth Rank or above' lost their lives in an instant.
Then, four burning scrolls fell from the seventh-floor windows as well.
Lei Yuan watched from a distance, his face twitching involuntarily. He felt it was a waste for the lives of those four Police Pool of Blood martial masters, as much as he lamented the lost scrolls.
They were scrolls of 'Sixth Grade' Martial Arts Formulas, each worth its weight in gold.
These damned Blood Wind Thieves indeed lived up to their words.
He looked at Cao Xuan, whose face was as dark as the bottom of a pot, "Does Households Commander Cao have any other plans? A forceful attack is out of the question—the various books and True Intent scrolls inside the library are worth up to a million demon silver. The key issue is that those True Intent and visualization scrolls are priceless, not available for purchase. If this building is damaged, neither of us can bear the responsibility."
Cao Xuan's face alternated between shades, and after a moment of contemplation, he fiercely clenched his jaw, "We still need to deal with the sorcerer. Before a forceful attack, we must kill that person. Since our men can't sneak in, we'll have to find a way to contact someone inside.
Any Martial Arts Instructors from your Zhengyang Martial Arts Hall who are inside the building, or True Disciples with higher combat strength will do. We can distract from the outside, giving them a chance to make their move up close."
The Martial Arts Instructors of Zhengyang Martial Arts Hall were mostly around 'Seventh Rank' in cultivation, while True Disciples generally possessed Eighth Rank combat abilities.
This was more than enough; sorcerers' weaknesses lie in their lack of close combat abilities. Once approached, a Ninth Grade martial cultivator is enough to take down an Eighth Rank sorcerer.
Yet, Lei Yuan was deeply troubled.
Today's timing was peculiar, with not a single True Disciple inside the Library, not even one from the Second-leaf or Three-Leaf Inner Sect.
He didn't know which of the twenty or so Martial Arts Instructors inside the building were still alive, as most were likely dead.
As for the over four hundred Inner Sect Disciples, only three had reached the lower Ninth Grade in combat strength, with the rest falling far short.
Even for those three, their strength was insufficient. Sending them would be no different from sending them to their deaths.
He shook his head, "Let's try to confirm who among the martial masters inside is still alive first."
At this moment, Shao Lingshan suddenly interjected, "The Blood Wind Thieves have always been meticulous in their actions; before making a move, they will surely eliminate all the Martial Arts Instructors to remove hidden threats. In my opinion, Households Commander, you'd best not count on them. However, there is still one person inside that can be of use."
He smiled slightly, with a glint of something special in his eye, "Yesterday, a young man named Chu Xisheng slashed Long Family's second young master Long Sheng with a single sword strike, as swift as lightning. The academy's principal praised his sword skill for being simple yet refined, capturing the true essence of the fast sword technique. If he gets close to that sorcerer, he will surely succeed."
"Shao Lingshan!"
Ye Zhiqiu shouted angrily, his eyes brimming with raging fury, "Stop spouting nonsense here! Chu Xisheng's Primordial Skill has not even reached the second level; are you trying to send him to his death?"
Lei Yuan was similarly displeased, his gaze at Shao Lingshan containing a trace of menace.
Objectively speaking, if that sorcerer truly was just a lower Eighth Rank, then Chu Xisheng had a chance.
But the risk involved was immense.
Even if Chu Xisheng succeeded, how would he withstand the Blood Wind Thieves' retaliation?
Before they could break into the building, Chu Xisheng would be dead.
However, Cao Xuan hummed in response. His eyes flickered as he fell into thought.
To his knowledge, Long Family's second young master also practiced the fast sword technique.
If this young man named Chu Xisheng could outpace Long Sheng with his fast sword, then his sword speed must be incredibly powerful.
If there were no other martial masters that could be used inside the building, then this young man might indeed be an option.