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The daytime bloodshed and clamor finally subsided, replaced by an impenetrable darkness and deathly silence.

The air was thick with the stench of blood, gunpowder, and a faint, sweet, metallic scent. Inside and outside the city walls, scattered torches flickered in the night wind, illuminating the weary figures of the sentries patrolling back and forth, and the blurred, grotesque outline of the mountain of corpses and sea of ​​blood below the walls.

Inside the Xuanwei headquarters, apart from necessary patrols and guard duties, most of the garrison soldiers had taken the time to sleep on the ground in an effort to recover their strength.

Xue Rengui was dozing fully clothed in a side room next to the main hall, his "Zhenyue Halberd" lying beside him, ready to be awakened at the slightest sound. Although the daytime battle had successfully repelled the enemy, his own side had suffered heavy casualties and exhausted its arrows and other supplies. While morale hadn't collapsed, it was stretched to its limit. He knew that Ziyad would not give up easily, and tomorrow would surely bring an even fiercer battle.

Deep within the compound, in the study of a secluded courtyard, Yi Junze was not resting. Dressed in plain white robes, his hair loose and flowing, he was perusing an ancient book about the geography and customs of the Khorasan region, illuminated by a simple bronze lamp. The lamplight cast a steady glow on his serene and jade-like profile.

Bai Qing'er stood like a shadow in the shadows to her side, her eyes clear and cold. Her dark, fitted outfit made her almost blend into the darkness, with only her overly pale hands and calm eyes reflecting a faint light under the lamplight.

“Master Aunt,” Yi Junze suddenly spoke, breaking the silence of the study, “what do you think Ziyad is thinking right now?”

Bai Qing'er lowered her head slightly: "Your Highness, this man is arrogant and fierce. He suffered setbacks and losses during the day, and he will certainly not be willing to accept it. Judging from his temperament, tonight... I'm afraid it will not be peaceful."

Yi Junze closed the book, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the table: "Yes, I'm not willing to give up. If we can't take it by force, we'll think of crooked ways. Sneaking into the camp, night raid, fire attack, or sending experts to infiltrate, kill the generals and seize the flag... all of these are necessary. Especially since he knows I'm here."

A cold glint flashed in Bai Qing'er's eyes: "Is Your Highness worried that they will target you?"

"It's not worry, it's certainty."

Yi Junze said calmly, "Although I didn't directly make a move on the city wall during the day, that last move... if there were any experts with keen senses around him, they would definitely have noticed something amiss. To capture the enemy, you must first capture their leader. If we can capture or kill a high-ranking official of the empire, Mulu will collapse without a fight, and it could even shake the entire western front. This temptation is enough for him to take the risk."

"That……"

"It's alright."

Yi Junze waved his hand gently: "Xue Rengui has been fighting all day and is exhausted, so it's inevitable that his soldiers will be careless in guarding against such underhanded tricks. Aunt, tonight, you and the Xuanwu Guard will have to work hard. The outer perimeter of the camp can be guarded by the Xuanwei Guard. But the inner circle, especially the area near the lonely residence and Prince Peroz's residence... is your responsibility."

Bai Qing'er bowed: "Your Highness, I obey your command. I will ensure that no villains disturb Your Highness."

"Hmm. No need to show mercy, and no need to leave any survivors." Yi Junze's tone remained calm: "Since they're here, let them stay here forever."

"Yes."

Bai Qing'er quietly left the study, like an ink droplet dissolving into water.

As night deepens, the waning moon is obscured by thin clouds, and the starlight dims. Around midnight is precisely the time of day when people are most drowsy and least alert.

Outside the Xuanwei military headquarters, the towering walls stood like the silent spine of a colossal beast in the night. Torches were intermittently lit atop the walls, casting limited light and looming shadows. The Xuanwei guards, straining with focus, scanned the darkness beyond the walls. The fierce battles of the day had made them exceptionally sensitive to any unusual activity.

About two hundred paces from the western wall of the camp, there were ruins of a Persian nobleman's residence, abandoned due to war. Overgrown with weeds, the ruins provided an excellent hiding place.

At this moment, dozens of dark figures, like ghosts, silently lurked here. Their entire bodies were shrouded in black cloaks, even their faces and heads covered with black cloth, revealing only pairs of eyes filled with murderous intent. Their movements were extremely light and agile, their auras perfectly concealed; unless one was deliberately sensing them at close range, they would be extremely difficult to detect.

The leader was tall and thin, with eyes as sharp as a hawk's. He held a pair of strangely curved, long blades in his hands, which did not reflect light in the dim moonlight. He was Hassan, the leader of "Shadow of the Crescent Moon," the most mysterious and elite assassination unit under Ziad.

This team was small in number, but each member was a master of stealth, assassination, and hand-to-hand combat. Several of them had also mastered unique martial arts originating from Persia, specializing in concealment and deadly strikes. They had not participated in battle during the day, conserving their energy for this very moment.

Hassan lay crouching behind the broken wall, his gaze fixed on the outline of Xuanwei's headquarters in the distance.

"Targets confirmed: First, the Sassanid false prince Peroz, life or death, preferably captured alive; second, the Chinese army's commander-in-chief Xue Ge, killed; third, the nobleman in that secluded courtyard, captured alive if possible, but killed if that's not possible!"

Hassan repeated his orders to the men behind him in a very low voice in Arabic: “They have been fighting hard all day and must be exhausted. We will split into three groups. One group will come with me to infiltrate and find Peroz and Xue Rengui. The second group will be responsible for creating chaos and attracting the attention of the defenders. The third group… will go straight for that isolated courtyard to test its strength. Remember, be quick. If you succeed or encounter resistance, retreat immediately. Do not linger in battle!”

The crowd nodded silently, their eyes gleaming with bloodlust and fanaticism. In their view, infiltrating this fortress, which had already been fiercely contested for a day, to carry out a decapitation mission was risky, but the success rate was not low. If successful, the glory and rewards would be immeasurable.

"action!"

Hassan waved his hand, and dozens of dark figures, like melting ink, silently slipped out of the ruins. Taking advantage of the darkness and the terrain, they moved with astonishing speed and unpredictable routes toward Xuanwei's headquarters. They avoided the main gate and the main watchtower, choosing a relatively low section of the wall near a shadowy spot.

Several members of Group B took the lead, clinging to the base of the wall like geckos, casting out hooked ropes, and silently scaling the top with the swiftness of cats. Their mission was to eliminate the sentries on this section of the wall and create fire or other chaos.

However, just as the first member of the "Shadow of the Crescent Moon" was about to touch the wall—

A sudden change has occurred!

From the shadows atop the wall, several equally dark yet even more eerie and chilling figures appeared out of nowhere! They seemed to have been waiting there all along, blending into the darkness, until the enemy was within arm's reach, at which point they suddenly revealed their fangs!

A flash of cold light!

It was the faint sound of short blades, rapiers, and Emei daggers—weapons extremely suitable for close-quarters assassination—slicing through the air, so fast that it almost defied visual perception.

"Pfft!" "Crack!"

The soft thuds of blades piercing flesh and necks breaking sounded almost simultaneously. The several Arab experts who had just scaled the wall didn't even have time to cry out before clutching their throats or chests, their eyes filled with disbelief and horror, they plummeted from the top like birds with broken wings, crashing heavily to the base of the wall, convulsing a few times before falling still. Until their deaths, they hadn't seen who their attackers were or how they had struck.

"There's an ambush!"

Hassan's pupils contracted sharply as he stood beneath the wall, alarm bells ringing in his mind! Had the other side been prepared all along?
But he was also a decisive man. Knowing that their whereabouts had been exposed, he immediately changed the plan: "Charge! Follow me and charge straight in! The remaining three groups, create maximum chaos!"

The remaining shadowy figures, no longer concealed, sprang into action, each employing their own methods: some leaped directly onto the wall, others attempted to cross using grappling hooks, and still others launched a direct assault on the nearby side gate. In an instant, the silence of the night was shattered by the sounds of battle emanating from the west side of the camp.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack on the west wall!"

The sentries of Xuanwei Guard finally reacted, and the alarm gongs and bugles sounded mournfully. The guards, who had just fallen asleep, were awakened and rushed to the west side with their weapons.

However, the real killing did not take place on the front lines of the wall where a chaotic battle was about to break out.

While the "Shadow of the Crescent" launched a strong attack, drawing most of the attention, Hassan himself, along with seven or eight of his most elite confidants and three groups of men, bypassed the area of ​​direct conflict and successfully infiltrated the headquarters from another relatively secluded corner!

During the day, Ziyad specifically instructed that there might be someone more important than Xue Rengui there! If they could capture him, it would be a great achievement!
The courtyard was quiet, with only a few dim lamps casting a yellowish glow under the eaves. There seemed to be no heavy guard.

Hassan was secretly pleased. He made a series of gestures, and his skilled men immediately scattered and took up advantageous positions to block the courtyard exit. He himself, along with his two most capable assistants, rushed towards the most elegant study in the center like three wisps of smoke—the light was still on!

However, just as their feet were about to step onto the steps in front of the study...

Without warning, the flames of the few dying lanterns in the courtyard all flickered violently in one direction. Immediately afterward, a cold, viscous, invisible force field silently enveloped the entire courtyard! This force field was not purely physical oppression, but more like a kind of stagnation and erosion that directly affected the mental level, slowing down thinking, hindering the flow of qi and blood, and veiling all five senses with a thin veil.

"Oh no! Is there a formation? Or..."

Hassan, being the most skilled, felt the most acutely the alarm, and a warning screamed in his heart! He abruptly stopped and tried to retreat.

But it was too late.

In the shadows of the pillars, behind the artificial hill, and even beside the moon gate they had just passed, figures in dark robes appeared without warning, like ghosts emerging from hell.

The person in the lead was none other than Bai Qing'er.

Dressed in black, she stood silently on the steps leading to the study, as if she had been waiting for them all along. Moonlight shone on her overly pale face, making her features appear even more cold and beautiful, yet also lifeless, like a delicate doll. Her eyes calmly looked at Hassan and the others, without murderous intent, without anger, only with the indifference of looking at inanimate objects.

"Since you're here, stay."

Bai Qing'er's voice clearly reached the ears of every intruder, carrying a chill that penetrated to the bone.

Before she finished speaking, she moved.

With a slight sway, she vanished from the steps. The next instant, she appeared in front of Hassan's assistant on his left! The assistant didn't even see how she moved; he only felt a blur before his eyes as a slender, white, yet icy-cold hand lightly touched his chest.

The assistant was horrified, and instinctively slashed out with his curved sword! The blade flashed sharply, accompanied by the sound of wind being cut.

However, Bai Qing'er's hand seemed boneless; at the very moment the blade was about to strike her, it slid in just a hair's breadth away from the blade, her movements as graceful as a dance, yet incredibly fast.

"puff!"

A soft sound, like puncturing a water-filled airbag. The assistant froze, his eyes wide with utter terror and disbelief. He slowly looked down and saw a pale hand gently pressed against his chest. He clearly felt an extremely cold and vicious surge of internal energy instantly invade his heart, freezing his blood and suffocating his life force.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but only spat out a mouthful of black blood mixed with ice shards, and collapsed limply to the ground.

A single, fatal blow! It was impossible to even discern what technique was used!
Hassan and his other assistant were terrified! What kind of martial art is this? So bizarre and ruthless!

"Witch! Prepare to die!"

Hassan roared, his pair of oddly shaped curved blades drawing two strange arcs, one above and one below, locking down Bai Qing'er's vital points. Another assistant also ruthlessly stabbed from the side!
Bai Qing'er moved with light steps, like a ghost, narrowly missing the gap between the two attacks. She didn't seem to be in a hurry to retaliate, but simply looked at them with her cold eyes.

At the same time, the Xuanwu Guards that had appeared around them also moved. Like the most precise killing machines, they moved in pairs or groups of three, silently and efficiently attacking the other "Crescent Shadow" members who had broken into the courtyard. There were no shouts, no lingering combat, only the short clashes of weapons, the cracking of bones, and the muffled groans of people falling to the ground. The Xuanwu Guards' coordination was impeccable, their moves ruthless and direct, targeting vital points, and they clearly possessed combined attack techniques. Often, within just a few moves, a Great Arab expert would be killed.

Hassan grew increasingly alarmed as the fight progressed. He discovered that despite their combined all-out attacks, they couldn't even touch the hem of her clothes! The woman's movements were far too unpredictable, as if she could anticipate their every move. Furthermore, the occasional flicks of her fingers and the palm strikes she unleashed carried a chilling, bone-deep aura, forcing him to expend a great deal of internal energy to defend against them, leaving him feeling constrained and restricted.

"We can't let this drag on!"

Hassan's mind raced. He knew the mission had failed, and if he didn't leave now, his entire army would be wiped out. Gritting his teeth, he hurled a pair of curved blades at Bai Qing'er, simultaneously retreating rapidly towards the courtyard wall, intending to abandon his men and escape alone!

"Want to go?"

Bai Qing'er's cold voice rang out again. With a flick of her sleeve, the two curved blades infused with Hassan's inner strength clattered to the ground as if they had struck an invisible wall of energy. She herself, like a persistent ailment, arrived first despite being behind Hassan, blocking the path between Hassan and the courtyard wall.

With a light flick of her wrist, her five fingers, as delicate as orchids in bloom, were enveloped in a faint gray aura that was almost imperceptible to the naked eye, as she pointed at Hassan from mid-air.

"Mysterious Yin Finger!"

Hassan felt the air around him suddenly become incredibly heavy and cold, as several sharp and venomous finger strikes were already upon him, sealing off all his escape routes. He roared and poured all his remaining inner strength into his palms, desperately striking out in an attempt to defend himself.

"Oh!"

The energy clashed, producing a muffled thud. Hassan felt as if he had been struck by a heavy hammer; his body trembled violently, and he staggered backward, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. He felt a chilling true energy rapidly invading his arm's meridians, causing excruciating pain as if his meridians were being pierced by ice needles, and his internal energy circulation immediately became sluggish.

Bai Qing'er simply took a half-step back, her expression remaining aloof, as if she had only done a trivial matter.

Just then, the last remaining member of the "Shadow of the Crescent Moon" who was still resisting was killed by two Xuanwu Guards working together. In the courtyard, apart from the Hua Empire's side, not a single intruder remained standing. The battle, from beginning to end, lasted only the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, so fast that even the garrison troops from other areas of the headquarters had not yet fully arrived.

Hassan leaned against the wall, looking at the cold corpses of his men scattered on the ground, then at Bai Qing'er who was approaching step by step with an indifferent look in her eyes, and at the silent and murderous Xuanwu Guards around him, who seemed to have been born from the darkness. An unprecedented despair and chill welled up in his heart.

He knew he was finished. This "Crescent Shadow," meticulously cultivated by General Ziad, had been completely destroyed here tonight. And the enemy... seemed not to have even exerted their full strength.

Looking at Bai Qing'er, Hassan gave a bitter laugh and said in broken Chinese, "The warrior of God... will not... yield..." A resolute glint flashed in his eyes, and he bit down hard on a certain spot in his mouth.

"Want to die? Not so easy!"

Bai Qing'er flicked her finger, and a wisp of wind struck Hassan's cheek precisely. Hassan groaned, half of his cheek went numb, and he failed to break the venom sac hidden behind his teeth.

"Take him away and hand him over to Commander Xue. Let him 'treat' him well. Make sure he gets all the information he needs."

"Yes!"

Two Xuanwu Guards stepped forward and skillfully dislocated Hassan's jaw and limb joints, dragging him away like a dead dog.

The courtyard was quickly cleared, the body was dragged away, and the bloodstains were covered with a special powder to mask the smell. Everything returned to silence, as if the brief but bloody massacre had never happened.

Bai Qing'er walked to the door of the study, bowed and whispered, "Your Highness, the villains have been eliminated. The ringleader has been captured and handed over to General Xue for interrogation."

Inside the study, Yi Junze's calm voice came from inside: "I understand. Thank you for your hard work. Go and rest."

"Yes."

Bai Qing'er turned around, her figure in black disappearing back into the shadows of the courtyard. The Xuanwu Guards vanished silently, just as they had arrived.

In the distance, the shouts of battle on the west side of the headquarters gradually subsided. After creating limited chaos, most of the intruding Arab Group B members were surrounded and killed by the Xuanwei Guards who had reacted, while a few were captured.

Night returned, and a deep silence settled over everything. (End of Chapter)