"The Dark Army only recently emerged, but they’ve already killed many innocents in the areas where they operate. Some small towns have even been turned into ghost towns. The major powers of the Divine Land have sent numerous experts to investigate, but none have returned!"

Hearing this, Ye Fan and Su Qingxue gasped, horrified by how terrifying this force was.

Ye Fan was also angry. Logically, with Heavenly King Hall’s current power, we should be able to control all information. Why haven’t we received any news? Is something wrong?

The two asked, "Third Brother, we didn’t know anything about this. How did you find out?"

The man laughed sinisterly. "Because I just came from there a couple of days ago. Of course I know everything!"

"You said they don’t spare any living being, right? So how did you manage to get out alive?" the two asked, puzzled.

A green light suddenly flared in the man’s eyes.

"Third Brother, what’s wrong with you?"

The question was followed by two screams from the room. Ye Fan had a bad feeling and quickly ran over with Su Qingxue, only to discover that the two men were already dead. They immediately gave chase.

Soon, they caught up with the man. In the darkness, his eyes glowed green, and his expression was utterly terrifying.

"You’ve been running for a while. You must be tired," Ye Fan said.

"Who are you?" the man snarled at Ye Fan.

He had wanted to begin a massacre but had fled after sensing two powerful auras. He never expected to be caught.

"The one who’s come for your life, of course!" Ye Fan replied.

"Is that so?" He glanced at Ye Fan with disdain and then made his move.

Ye Fan threw a punch, and the man’s body was instantly pierced through.

Ye Fan then crouched down to examine the corpse, while Su Qingxue watched with a disgusted expression. What’s so interesting about staring at a dead body?

"This man has been dead for days!" Ye Fan said. "But it seems his body was being controlled. In other words, he was just a puppet!"

"What a bizarre technique!" Su Qingxue remarked immediately.

Ye Fan pulled a silver needle from the man’s neck, from which he could feel an aura of death. He finally understood. This was no ordinary needle; it bore the aura of that person—the one who had followed him into this world.

With this realization, Ye Fan said, "If the Dark Army isn’t eliminated, it could cause a major catastrophe!"

Su Qingxue silently agreed. This force is terrifying!

Ye Fan immediately contacted Heavenly King Hall, Biyan Pavilion, and the Underground Boxing Ring. He issued a command to hunt down these puppets at all costs. He also ordered the three factions to mobilize half of their forces to exterminate the Dark Army.

After the orders were given, Su Qingxue said, "Ye Fan, I’ll fight by your side this time!"

"Alright!" Ye Fan agreed without hesitation.

Su Qingxue’s current strength was not to be underestimated. As a Saint Level expert, she was still no match for him, but she could be considered top-tier. They hurried toward the city where the Dark Army was located.

「Third Heaven」

The three forces convened.

Ye Fan addressed them, "The reason I’ve gathered everyone today is simple. A brutal force has emerged, one that slaughters both Martial Artists and ordinary people without distinction! If we don’t destroy this force, the world will inevitably descend into chaos! Now is the time for us to fulfill our responsibility!"

Then, he turned to Nangong and Bi Hai Feng. "Each of you lead a team and follow me into battle!"

The two accepted the command.

Ye Fan took the lead, entering the city that the Dark Army had already plundered. He knew this enemy’s power was no simple matter. Aside from himself, no one else was a match for them.

This had once been a bustling place, but now it was utterly desolate. It was eerily silent and shrouded in an endless darkness that reeked of death.

They’re truly a group of conscienceless fiends.

At that moment, the puppets charged forward.

Ye Fan shouted an order, and the two sides clashed. In the end, the puppets were still just puppets and no match for the allied forces.

While Su Qingxue and the others engaged them in battle, Ye Fan pushed deeper into the mountain forest behind Dead City, where the Dark Army’s headquarters was located. When he arrived, however, he found the place completely empty.

"Strange. Are there only puppets?" Ye Fan wondered aloud, perplexed. The Dark Army is supposed to be terrifyingly powerful, so why is no one here? This doesn’t add up.

He stood still, pondering the situation.

Suddenly, a figure appeared above, rushing down to attack him. Just as Ye Fan was about to act, a streak of white light flashed past, instantly piercing through the figure.

The newcomer was Su Qingxue.

"Ye Fan, are you alright?" she asked.

"I’m fine!" Ye Fan replied.

He walked toward the fallen figure. "I know this person. It’s Broken Blade Guest! He was considered a powerful expert in the Divine Land. I never thought he’d end up as a puppet!"

I knew Broken Blade Guest well—an expert of the Supreme Level. To think that the final fate of such a formidable warrior would be to end so dismally... What a somber end.

"Could we have fallen into a trap?" Qingxue asked.

"Qingxue, you mean...?" Suddenly, Ye Fan understood. Not good! He finally realized they had indeed been tricked. He spun around and rushed back, shouting to the allied forces, "Return to Heavenly King Hall!"

"Leader, what’s going on?" Nangong asked, confused by Ye Fan’s sudden urgency.

"We may have been tricked!" Ye Fan explained. "The enemy was targeting me all along! Heavenly King Hall is in danger!"

Nangong was instantly alarmed. They immediately invoked Heavenly King Hall’s highest authority to return at maximum speed.

Heavenly King Hall had already dispatched half of its Martial Artists to help encircle the Dark Army.

At that moment, Tiancan was in the command center reviewing intelligence. For some reason, he felt a deep sense of unease. He had only felt this way once before, when King Hall was besieged. Now that the feeling had returned, he had a bad premonition. Since poring over the reports had been fruitless, he decided to go out for a walk.

At the entrance to the Heavenly King Hall base, Tiancan saw two guards standing rigidly. But then they began to advance straight toward him.

"What’s happening?" he asked.

The two didn’t answer and continued to approach.

"What is the meaning of this? Why aren’t you two at your posts? What are you doing in here? Who do you report to?"

Suddenly, a green light flared in the eyes of both guards.

"Holy crap!" Tiancan immediately sounded the alarm as the two charged at him. He acted fast and took them both down, completely baffled by their sudden transformation.

Soon, more figures emerged from the darkness of the night. One by one, Martial Artists with glowing green eyes appeared, moving like zombies, as if they were being controlled.

Ghost-suppressing Clan! The words flashed through his mind.