Meanwhile, Pei Guang's group…
Pei Guang, trekking through the so-called "shortcut" to the Artisanship Commission, received a message from Seele. Seeing it, he immediately dialed her number.
"Hello? Can you hear me?"
"Loud and clear!" Seele replied.
"I see you're at the Artisanship Commission. Encountering trouble?"
"We want to head to the Alchemy Commission, but there are a lot of enemies in the way—no elite monsters, though," Seele explained.
Pei Guang sounded impressed. "Wow, you're quick. We're on our way too, though this 'shortcut' feels more like a 'longcut.'"
Seele teased, "Why didn't you take a starskiff?"
"If I could locate one, I would have. It worked for you, but now? Nada." Pei Guang shifted focus. "Anyway, you're looking to bypass the mobs, right?"
Seele hesitated. "Ideally, yes. But if we could take them out efficiently, that'd be even better. Also, we want to conserve energy for the bigger fights ahead."
Pei Guang chuckled. "Typical Seele—demanding the impossible. Well, good thing I have a solution. We've left some disguise kits in the shared inventory. Put on the headgear—they're ugly, but effective. If you don't have enough, toss someone into a trash can and pull them along."
He continued, "When you encounter mara-struck enemies, just shout: 'The mercy of Sanctus Medicus, the Ambrosial Arbor's new growth! Disciples shall attain enlightenment together!' Then flash some tokens I'll share with you, and you should be fine."
Pei Guang uploaded a set of detailed instructions and added:
"If anyone questions you, say 'The Reignbow Arbiter brings calamity; the Sanctus Medicus' Grace prevails.' Be confident! If they insult your headgear, just claim it's a side effect of taking their medicine. The key is to sound convincing. And hey, have Dan Heng pose as a high-ranking figure you've captured—threaten to use him against the Cloud Knights or something. Stick to the script and you'll be golden."
Seele sounded doubtful. "Will it really work?"
Pei Guang laughed. "Of course! From my experience as a player, once you've infiltrated an organization, their defenses are as good as nonexistent. Just remember, if you have to fight, leave no one alive to raise the alarm. That's the golden rule."
"Got it!" Seele replied with newfound determination.
She then shared the details of Pei Guang's infiltration plan with the group after hanging up.
Upon hearing it, Sushang expressed her concern: "Can this really work? This plan feels so… unconvincing, like something no sane person would think up."
Seele smirked. "Exactly. That's the point! Pei Guang isn't exactly normal—he's a player. If he says it'll work, it'll work. Now, who's coming with me to infiltrate? And who's volunteering to play the hostage?"
Sushang offered, "Why not me? I'll stay hidden in the trash can, ready to strike. If anything feels off, I'll jump out and attack."
Seele nodded. "Sounds good!"
At that moment, Luocha chimed in, "Perhaps my abilities could lend credibility to this plan?"
Silver Wolf, still nestled in her barrel, reassured them, "Relax. Pei Guang's plans might sound absurd, but their success rate is ridiculously high. He's turned information warfare into an art form. As long as the disciples don't have someone who can predict the future, there's no way they'd suspect their secret codes have already been exposed. It's only been a few hours since we got the intel."
Seele clapped her hands, ready to move. "All right, less talk, more action. I want every last one of those disciples wiped out!"
The group put the plan into motion. Pei Guang had left enough ridiculous silver masks in their shared storage for everyone—Seele, Silver Wolf, Dan Heng, and Luocha each donned one. Meanwhile, Sushang and Xueyi were stuffed into trash cans, playing the part of "spoils of war."
The plan sounded absurd no matter how you sliced it, but everyone knew from experience that the crew's methods, no matter how unconventional, somehow always worked. They decided to give it a try: best-case scenario, they'd pull off the heist without breaking a sweat; worst-case, they'd simply fight their way through.
Within the Artisanship Commission, a bizarre sight unfolded. Four figures, each wearing grotesque silver masks, pulled a cart carrying two individuals—one dressed as a Cloud Knight and the other resembling a Xianzhou official. At the front of the group, Seele, clad in her signature purple and blue, marched confidently while shouting, "The mercy of Sanctus Medicus, the Ambrosial Arbor's new growth! Disciples shall attain enlightenment together!"
Dan Heng followed, holding his spear aloft. Tied to the weapon were precisely four trinkets, all bearing the mark of the Abundance. Thanks to his weapon's unique effects, however, what others saw was an entirely different spectacle: Dan Heng appeared to be waving a giant pink bunny, its face and limbs adorned with dangling Abundance relics.
This bizarre procession somehow made its way through the Artisanship Commission, unimpeded.
If the disciples from the Divination Commission had witnessed this, they would have screamed, "Run for your lives!"
Unfortunately for the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus, the Divination Commission's members had all been wiped out.
The disciples at Cloudford? Gone. Even Dan Shu, the Abundance leader in Exalting Sanctum, believed that the trail of information the Trailblazers followed only related to some alchemical formula.
Thanks to Stelle's secrecy, no one outside her party knew the true depth of the Trailblazers' knowledge. Even the formula had been presented with minimal details, leaving the enemy none the wiser.
And now, the bizarre troupe marched boldly into the heart of the Artisanship Commission, playing out Pei Guang's audacious scheme.
No one knew that an outsider had obtained the important contact code and token. Hidden in the shadows, a member of the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus saw this scene and quietly shouted, "Brothers and sisters, what are you doing?"
Hearing the voice, Seele immediately looked over. As she felt the eyes of the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus member, who was staring at her through such an ugly mask, she felt like her brain short-circuited in that moment.
Not to mention anything else, just the lifelike nature of the mask—if anyone saw someone wearing it, they'd immediately mistake them for a walking symbol of Abundance.
At this point, Seele stepped forward and glanced at the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus' member who had emerged. After drawing a random pattern in the air with her hand over her chest, she spoke: "We've captured someone from the high ranks!"
The Disciples of Sanctus Medicus follower asked, "High ranks?"
Seele answered confidently, "Watch your tone!"
The follower was startled. "I'm terribly sorry..."
Although the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus followed a flat management structure internally, they held those with power in high regard. If Seele's response had been soft or hesitant, it would have felt suspicious. However, she answered with absolute confidence, and the four people with her clearly weren't ordinary. They looked like Abominations of Abundance, no matter how you looked at them.
The most important thing was that she matched the code and held the token. The follower couldn't understand why they were making such a grand display, but then thought to himself: "A grand display is exactly what we need. It's already turned into a battle, and now is the time to be loud. We need to show those cursed bow-wielding lackeys just how powerful the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus's followers are!"
At this moment, Dan Heng spoke up and added, "These two are just regular Cloud Knights, but one is a Judge from the Ten-Lords Commission. We're planning to hand them over to the leader and use their blood to consecrate our cause!"
The Disciples of Sanctus Medicus follower nodded enthusiastically. "Well said! Let's use these lackeys' blood to consecrate our cause!"
Seele replied, "In that case, let's head out!"
The follower stopped them. "Wait!"
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a map, handing it to Seele. "This is our defense layout at the Artisanship Commission. You'd better get there quickly. If you're late, it'll cause trouble."
Seeing the map, the expressions of Seele, Dan Heng, and Silver Wolf didn't change at all, but when Luocha saw it, he instinctively twitched his mouth.
He knew the plan was unreliable, but what he didn't expect was that, despite its shakiness, the plan had actually worked. And without saying a word, the other party had directly handed over the map?
Not just Luocha, but even Xueyi, who was in the trash can, had been watching.
When she saw the group blend in so easily, gain trust so quickly, and even get the map, she couldn't help but doubt whether Seele and the others were truly members of the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus. Was she being played?