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Lady's Temple.

Wolves charging into a sheep pen.

That young man who had once narrated Lu Ding's exploits in the All Under Heaven One Family restaurant within the Lady's Temple area, offending Feng Yueming and incurring the wrath of the Broken Branch Guardian from the Fierce Pursuit Hall, Du Huaisheng, had now also joined the 749 Bureau.

But he wasn't combat personnel.

Instead, he leaned more towards clerical work.

The Propaganda Department.

Perfect for recruitment drives.

At this moment.

He held video recording equipment, adjusted the music, and followed alongside a group of investigators dispatched from Hanjing to the new city, charging straight for the Lady's Temple.

Of course, logically speaking, his cultivation and strength couldn't keep up.

But this guy was a bit clever.

He opened his mouth with a flattering plea.

"Seniors, big brothers, could you give me a lift? I'm from the Bureau's Propaganda Department, filming videos specifically for our recruitment campaigns."

"Some of the promotional videos for the Grand Guardian were edited by me."

"Today's full-scale assault on the Lady's Temple is a rare, golden opportunity to film promotional material. If you take me along, I'll make sure you look super cool in the shots, perfect for cutting transition scenes for the Grand Guardian's videos."

Hearing this.

The group, who originally had little interest in babysitting this Second Restriction-level minor cultivator for fun.

Instantly perked up.

"Come on, follow me!!!"

Someone directly channeled their qi and whisked Du Huaisheng away.

And so.

Until they landed at the Lady's Temple.

Seeing those vermilion gates.

Du Huaisheng activated his equipment, music blared, and he shouted, "Action!!"

The moment the catchy music kicked in.

The assembled crowd of Fifth Restriction investigators charged forth from the main gate, from the high walls, and began.

Demolition!!!

Boom boom boom boom!!!!

"749 Bureau on official business, civilians clear out!!!!"

Such scenes.

Unfolded simultaneously across multiple locations within the Lady's Temple area.

Those Propaganda Department personnel, holding recording equipment, perfectly timed capturing every investigator's move, every atmosphere-filled instant.

Kicking down doors, demolishing walls, shattering buildings, apprehending suspects.

Those who resisted arrest were killed. Those who fought back and refused to submit were killed. Those who attempted to flee were killed.

As the atmosphere grew white-hot.

The music reached its crescendo.

One could see demonic beings and Qi Refiners who had previously plagued the area, breaking laws and committing crimes, exploding into bloody mists in time with the drumbeats. Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom.

Perfectly on beat.

The ones carrying out the executions were one after another, White Ridge 749 investigators with different faces.

The time of slaughter.

The time of eradicating sin.

The time of accumulating merit.

The time of increasing one's balance.

Simultaneously.

Because of the Lady's Temple's great purge, treating all beings equally, the operation to cleanse all dens of iniquity was underway.

The Wuwang higher-ups sent a notification to Yuwen Longyuan.

The new city's four districts: east, south, west, and north.

The Eastern District was the strongest, being the land where nine dragons converged, where spiritual energy flowed naturally, worthy of being called a blessed paradise, gathering various powerful aristocratic families and factions.

The Southern District was the wealthiest, firmly seated upon earth veins, with a climate nurturing to people. Even during the previous period of indistinct seasons and chaotic timekeeping, the Southern District still fared relatively well.

The Western District bordered the sea and had many mines. It should have been the fastest developing area, capable of opening a port. However, after the previous disturbances, the Great Han's development stalled, naturally leading to many unfinished buildings, incomplete factories, and the like. A struggling economy dragged down its people. Under such circumstances, it became the poorest district.

The Northern District was vast, stretching as far as the eye could see. It didn't have any major advantages, but also no significant drawbacks.

According to the Great Han's original plan.

The Western District, as the port for foreign trade, would also serve as the new city's entry and exit point, because the Western District faced the sea outward.

The Eastern District was the central court, the core.

The Southern District was the main residential area.

The Northern District nurtured troops, forming an integrated military and administrative system with the 749 Bureaus of the East, South, and West, achieving self-sufficiency and ensuring the ability to handle any emergencies.

Once this blueprint was implemented and solidified.

The new city, separated from the Great Han by an uninhabited buffer zone, could become self-contained and self-sufficient, while also being able to give back to the Great Han.

Unfortunately, it was targeted.

Others couldn't bear to see the Great Han have this new city as its external avatar.

Faced with this new city, a coveted prize, everyone wanted a piece of the pie.

Therefore, it might seem that Lu Ding's initial choice of the Western District, the poorest area, was an unwise decision when he first arrived.

But in reality.

He had his own considerations.

Once the Western District was unified under one banner, the previous port plan could be restarted. Once the port was established, the foreign trade plan could resume, stimulating the economy.

It would also, to a certain extent, allow control over the influx of outsiders and restrict the movement of people within.

It was essentially locking the door to beat the dog.

Moreover, the Western District was the smallest. Port areas generally aren't large; too big makes them hard to manage. So it was also considered the softest target.

It consisted of just five sectors.

White Ridge, Path of Dry Bones, Lady's Temple, Asura Street, and Mouth of the Evil Prison.

Now, White Ridge and the Path of Dry Bones were already in Lu Ding's pocket. The Lady's Temple was also within easy reach.

Three out of five already taken.

This made many people rather restless.

They could accept that the 749 Bureaus across the new city had all received special envoys dispatched by the Great Han. Let's all play the game together; it's not like they haven't played before. They won last time, they can still win now!

But what they found hard to accept was Lu Ding's intention to unify the entire Western District under one banner.

Why were the names of all five sectors in the Western District so ominous?

This was precisely because of the strategic importance of the Western District's port location.

This place, aside from the Great Han, was something no one else wanted to see developed.

Therefore, back when they were blocking the Great Han's development of the Western District, a battle had erupted here. It wasn't massive in scale, but it was extremely brutal.

White bones piled into ridges, hence White Ridge. The road paved with dry bones became the Path of Dry Bones. The Lady's Temple? That was because during the great battle's outbreak, many female family members and relatives of the deceased came to burn incense and pray to Buddha, hence Lady's Temple. The Slaughter Goddess was just an added element.

Otherwise, why would there be a Rooster Sun Lady's Temple? And why isn't White Ridge called Lady's Temple?

Asura Street, the penultimate key location. Back then, whether it was the investigators defending this place or the enemies besieging it, the brutal battle that erupted turned everything upside down. Everyone's ferocity could be called that of an Asura.

As for the final Mouth of the Evil Prison.

That place, facing the sea, was the grand finale location. No spring warmth or blossoming flowers, only mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

Called the Mouth of the Evil Prison, it was actually a meat grinder.

The sea resembled hell. The Mouth of the Evil Prison was the entrance from the new city to the sea, and also to hell, wantonly devouring lives during the fighting.

So, something they worked so hard to stop back then.

How could they possibly allow it to become unified again, returning to the control of the 749 Bureau?

Leading to the port's restart?

The visible faction was Wuwang, manifested through Yuwen Longyuan in the Western District.

The invisible factions, however, were undercurrents swirling, each with their own hidden agendas.

Fortunes change.

Previously, it was Lu Ding dividing his investigators, dispatching personnel to infiltrate the leaderless Path of Dry Bones, waiting on standby for orders, preparing for the purge.

Now.

It was the various factions dividing their forces, coming to the Western District, initiating actions to prevent the Western District's unification.

Regarding this.

Their attitude was.

At worst, they'd restart the previous brutal war.

Sink the Western District!!!!

They absolutely could not allow Lu Ding to complete the unification of the Western District, preventing the Great Han from restarting the new city's port.

Night fell.

Multiple messages converged in the Special Envoy's office at White Ridge 749.