At the same time, deep within the palace of the imperial city, Yan Jinghong sat cross-legged inside a secret chamber. Suddenly, he opened his eyes.

What kind of eyes were they?

They looked as if they had been stained with blood. A sinister and eerie aura filled them, like the gaze of an Asura crawling out of the abyss. Anyone who saw them would feel a chill run down their spine.

Black mist coiled around his body. Within the mist appeared hideous ghostly faces. Some cried, some laughed wildly, and some twisted in furious rage.

Each of these faces represented the seven emotions and desires of humanity. Greed, anger, obsession, hatred, love, revulsion, and desire.

The demonic art he cultivated originated from the Devil's Love-Forgetting Art. Once mastered to the advanced stage, one could condense the Devil's Wheels of Seven Emotions and wield supreme demonic power. (Author's note: Refer chapter 377)

In the past, Lin Canglang devoted all his effort to cultivating the Devil's Love-Forgetting Art, yet he still failed to condense even a single Devil's Wheel of Seven Emotions.

Yan Jinghong's talent far surpassed that of Lin Canglang. After less than half a year of cultivating this sacred-tier demonic art, he successfully condensed all of the Devil's Wheels of Seven Emotions.

Because of that achievement, even the hidden Human Emperor experts within the Tianbai imperial family of the Tianbai Empire had suffered crushing defeat at his hands and could only await slaughter.

"Oh? You finally returned? In that case, the game can truly begin!"

The moment Ling Feng absorbed the demonic miasma that Yan Jinghong had implanted inside the disciples of the Divine Ling Sect, Yan Jinghong sensed the disturbance.

He immediately realized that Ling Feng had returned. Ling Feng was most likely inside General Weiyuan's Mansion at that moment.

"Hehe, Ling Feng, the more you care about the lives of those people, the more I will kill everyone around you one by one. I will make you experience a purgatory of endless suffering! Heh heh heh!"

Inside the deep palace halls, a ghastly laugh echoed like the cry of a ghost. The occasional patrolling guards who heard it felt their scalps tingle with fear.

...

Inside General Weiyuan's Mansion.

Ling Feng continued absorbing the demonic miasma from each disciple of the Divine Ling Sect. With the strength of his Chaotic Physique, the demonic miasma could not erode his elemental qi. Instead, it was completely transformed.

However, each strand of demonic miasma that he refined left behind a trace of evil qi that gathered within his sea of mind. Even the Sacred Mystical-Heaven Art could only suppress that energy to a degree. It could not completely remove it.

This left Ling Feng somewhat uneasy. Unfortunately, there was no time to hesitate and no better method to remove the demonic miasma from these disciples.

After the demonic miasma disappeared, the disciples regained their cultivation. One after another they thanked Ling Feng.

"Sect Leader, you managed to slip in without anyone noticing. However, there are still many guards outside. It will not be easy to take all of us out!"

Luo Jianying looked at Ling Feng and voiced his concern.

"Don't worry, I have my own method!"

Ling Feng patted Luo Jianying on the shoulder and asked another question.

"Jianying, aside from all of you, are there other prisoners inside this mansion?"

"Yes!"

Luo Jianying nodded and explained slowly.

"Besides us, there are several Tianwei Academy students and some members of the Alchemist Guild. There is one more thing. From what I know, a few people from the residence of the Ascendant Eagle General have also been imprisoned here. As for the stronger elders, they seem to be detained somewhere else."

"I see."

A sharp glint flashed in Ling Feng's eyes.

It appeared that Yan Jinghong had gathered the most important figures in another location. Those with weaker cultivation or ordinary strength had mostly been imprisoned inside General Weiyuan's Mansion.

In other words, this place resembled a trap designed to lure Ling Feng.

Each strand of demonic miasma contained a trace of Yan Jinghong's spiritual consciousness. Once Ling Feng dispersed that consciousness, Yan Jinghong would immediately know that he had returned to the imperial capital.

"There is no time to waste, so I will keep this brief. For now, all of you should enter one of my magical treasures. Someone inside will explain everything to you."

After speaking, Ling Feng opened the teleportation passage of the Five Elements Heavenly Palace and allowed everyone to enter it.

Once that was done, he repeated the same process for the Tianwei Academy students and the Alchemist Guild members who were also imprisoned inside General Weiyuan's Mansion, rescuing them one group after another.

Finally, Ling Feng moved toward the southern courtyard. This area was where the members of the Deng family were being held.

Through Boundless Vision, Ling Feng spotted Deng Yongshi. The sight eased his mind. He quickly dealt with the guards at the entrance and slipped into the grand hall.

Besides Deng Yongshi, several other Deng family members were also present. Just like the others, they had all been implanted with demonic miasma.

"Everyone, please follow me and leave immediately!"

The moment Ling Feng entered the grand hall, he opened the passage to the Five Elements Heavenly Palace.

The Deng family members stared at him in confusion. They clearly did not recognize the man standing before them.

"Ling Feng!"

Only Deng Yongshi recognized him instantly. Joy flashed across her face. A moment later her expression tightened with concern.

"You... why are you here? This place is extremely dangerous!"

"Don't ask questions right now!"

Ling Feng glanced at Deng Yongshi. She had clearly suffered under the torment of the demonic miasma and her complexion looked pale and weak. Compared to the spoiled and arrogant young lady she once was, she now appeared far more resilient and capable. Among the Deng family members, everyone seemed to regard her as their leader.

If this had happened in the past, a pampered young lady like her would have panicked long ago. Leading others through such a situation would have been unimaginable.

"Mhmm! Everyone listen to Mr. Ling. He is my teacher, and you can absolutely trust him!"

Deng Yongshi nodded and guided the others into the Five Elements Heavenly Palace one after another. When it was her turn, she paused and looked at Ling Feng as if she still had something to say.

"When we reach a safe place, I will explain everything!"

Ling Feng gave her a faint smile. His accidental disciple had grown a great deal.

"Yes!"

Deng Yongshi nodded and stepped into the Five Elements Heavenly Palace as the last person. By this time, dawn had begun to approach.

Ling Feng felt a trace of curiosity. In theory, Yan Jinghong should have already sensed that he had returned to the imperial capital. Yet Yan Jinghong remained strangely patient and had not appeared.

The current Yan Jinghong was very different from the man he used to be. No one could tell what schemes he might still be hiding.

Whether it was a conspiracy or an open strategy, Ling Feng felt no fear.

Before absolute strength, every scheme was nothing more than a paper tiger.

Taking advantage of the final cover of night, Ling Feng quietly left General Weiyuan's Mansion.

By the time the guards awoke from the illusion, they would likely discover in horror that every prisoner inside the mansion had vanished without a trace.

And they had not even caught a glimpse of the enemy's shadow!