Lan Yongzheng was currently hiding in a manor on the outskirts of the imperial capital. This manor was, in fact, a private residence of the Wang family. After all, it was due to Lan Yongzheng's betrayal and his provision of the accurate time and route map for Xiao Yunlong's entry into the capital that the astonishing ambush took place in the suburbs.
Although the ambush in the capital over a year ago involved many major forces in the imperial capital, the Wang family was the nominal leader. Therefore, upon learning of Xiao Yunlong's arrival in the capital these past few days, the Wang family immediately became nervous and instructed Lan Yongzheng to hide here instead of frequenting the Tian Ce Mansion.
Originally, this place was sufficiently concealed, and coupled with Lan Yongzheng's timid nature, he had never emerged since hiding there, nor had he shown himself to outsiders. However, both Lan Yongzheng and the Wang family had underestimated Xiao Yunlong's intelligence capabilities.
Xiao Yunlong's Black Armored Guards were not only mysterious but also possessed formidable martial arts cultivation. Periodically, members of the guard would disappear, only to return with significantly improved martial arts prowess. Xiao Yunlong suspected this was directly related to that mysterious old man.
After all, these Black Armored Guards were given to him by that mysterious old man, and Xiao Yunlong had no idea where they went. He speculated it must be an extremely mysterious place conducive to cultivation, otherwise, some of these Black Armored Guards, despite not having exceptionally outstanding martial arts talent, would not have advanced so rapidly.
Therefore, for these mysterious and powerful Black Armored Guards, finding a living person in the imperial capital was not a difficult task at all.
This time, Xiao Yunlong did not conceal his movements. After leaving Bei Yun Ju, he immediately headed towards the suburbs at the fastest possible speed.
Although many hidden sentries from the major forces of the imperial capital were concealed around Bei Yun Ju, these sentries, seeing such a display, knew that King Xiao Bei from the Northern Territory was likely up to something big again today. However, they didn't know Xiao Bei King's destination for the moment, so they couldn't accurately guess.
When Xiao Yunlong and his entourage's vehicles left the city center of the imperial capital and headed towards the western suburbs, a sentry finally reacted and exclaimed inwardly.
"Not good, it's that place! Damn it, why am I only realizing this now!" With that, the sentry hastily took out his phone and dialed a number.
The call was quickly answered, and the voice of Wang Youdao, the current head of the Wang family, came through: "What is it?"
"It's not good, Patriarch. King Xiao Bei has gone out of the city," the sentry said urgently.
"What does him going out of the city have to do with you? Why are you so flustered!" Wang Youdao hadn't realized the gravity of the situation yet.
"But the direction he's going out of the city is towards that manor in our western suburbs. If nothing unexpected happens, it's likely..."
Before the sentry could finish, Wang Youdao also finally realized the seriousness of the matter and exclaimed, "What did you say? Are you sure?"
"Absolutely certain. I'm following behind him now. It's not good, Patriarch, King Xiao Bei has already turned onto the small road on the left. I'm sure now that he's..."
Still without waiting for the sentry to finish, Wang Youdao immediately hung up the phone and rushed out of the room towards the backyard.
In the backyard, Old Master Wang was leisurely basking in the sun on a reclining chair, while two attractive maids were peeling oranges for him.
"It's not good, Father! King Xiao Bei has found Lan Yongzheng's whereabouts, and he's heading towards that manor in the western suburbs," Wang Youdao shouted as he ran into the courtyard.
Old Master Wang could no longer sit still and immediately sat up straight. Despite being over eighty years old, his physique was still robust due to his decent martial arts cultivation. Last night, he had even had these two attractive young girls attend to him as he slept.
"Then what are you waiting for? Hurry and gather the family's experts to go there! If it's too late and Lan Yongzheng falls into that fellow Xiao's hands, we will inevitably be exposed, and this fire will be uncontrollable," Old Master Wang shouted anxiously.
Wang Youdao did not move, only saying, "It's too late, Father. According to the sentry, that fellow Xiao has already left the city and is on the small road on the left. He'll reach the manor in five minutes. It's clearly too late for us to bring people over now. Moreover, our family's experts might not be a match for that fellow Xiao!"
"If that's the case, then quickly call Lan Yongzheng and tell him to escape immediately! Escape through the side gate into the western mountains!" Old Master Wang shouted.
"Father, I already called him on the way here. I believe Lan Yongzheng has already escaped the manor by now!" Wang Youdao said.
"Your reaction is quite good, but that fellow Xiao is, after all, the God of War of Long Country. Since he already found Lan Yongzheng's whereabouts, he wouldn't not have set up defenses in advance. With Lan Yongzheng's limited men, even if he has a Northern Territory Guardian accompanying him, it's likely difficult to escape. Therefore, we must prepare for the worst!"
After speaking, Old Master Wang suddenly waved his hand and said, "You immediately go to the Long family. This time, no matter what, we must get the Long family to help. As You De said, although the Long family is behind the scenes, we are ultimately in the same boat. If our Wang family truly falls, they won't be able to remain untouched!"
Wang Youdao quickly replied, "Father, we received news from the Long family this morning, and I haven't had a chance to tell you yet. Several sect-guarding powerhouses from the hidden sects of the Western Regions have arrived in the imperial capital. I was actually planning to ask you when you would be free to meet and have a meal with these sect-guarding powerhouses from the Western Regions."
"I'm free now. Lan Yongzheng is probably exposed. You arrange it immediately, and we'll meet with those sect-guarding powerhouses from the Western Regions' hidden sects right away to discuss cooperation matters. Additionally, you must also go to the Dragon Guard Pavilion. No matter what, we must invite Zhongshan back these two days, preferably by having him invite some Dragon Guard Pavilion powerhouses to return!"
As expected, the older the ginger, the spicier it is. Old Master Wang quickly made a series of deployments and decisions that were most beneficial to his Wang family.
"Yes, Father. I'll go arrange it now!" Wang Youdao bowed and retreated.
At the same time, Xiao Yunlong had already arrived at the manor in the western suburbs of the imperial capital.
The manor was not large but was built beside a stream, appearing very serene with a beautiful environment.
In fact, as Old Master Wang had predicted, Lan Yongzheng, who was leisurely resting in the manor and enjoying a massage from two voluptuous and fiery women, sprang up from the bed as if electrocuted upon receiving Wang Youdao's call.
This sudden movement startled the two women greatly, but Lan Yongzheng had no time to say more. He immediately bolted, not even bothering to put on clothes, and rushed out wearing only a pair of shorts.
As he ran out, Lan Yongzheng did not forget to shout, "I've been discovered! I must leave here quickly! Guardian, please protect me!"
At this moment, Lan Yongzheng finally managed to grab a long robe, put it on, and then his figure swept towards the backyard. Behind him, an old man in a coarse cloth robe with white hair and beard also appeared.
However, at this very moment, three Black Armored Guards suddenly appeared and blocked Lan Yongzheng's path.
"Well done, King Xiao Bei! I can't believe you found me even though I was so well hidden. But do you really think these three can stop me? How ridiculous!"
"Guardian, please take action and deal with them. King Xiao Bei will be here soon, and we must... as quickly as possible..."
Before Lan Yongzheng could finish, the white-haired guardian elder beside him had already rushed out.
Seeing this, Lan Yongzheng couldn't help but sneer, thinking that these three guards couldn't possibly be a match for a powerhouse who was once one of the four guardians of the Northern Territory.
However, the next moment, Lan Yongzheng could no longer smile. His face instantly stiffened with shock.
These three Black Armored Guards had just returned after disappearing for a period, and their martial arts cultivation was so profound that even Xiao Yunlong didn't know its extent.
With just one exchange, the white-haired guardian elder was sent flying with a punch, falling to the ground and spitting blood, unable to even stand up.
Seeing this, Lan Yongzheng, without a second word, tried to flip over the backyard wall and escape into the western mountains.
One of the Black Armored Guards waved his hand, and with two whistling sounds of air being broken, the next moment, accompanied by Lan Yongzheng's scream, his legs were severed, and he fell to the ground.
The guards in the manor rushed over upon hearing the commotion, but none dared to step forward rashly. After all, if even such a powerful guardian elder couldn't win, they were even less likely to be opponents.
The three Black Armored Guards simply stood guard over Lan Yongzheng, not speaking. The scene suddenly fell silent.
Lan Yongzheng's face turned extremely pale, and sweat beaded on his forehead. He knew that if nothing unexpected happened, he was probably finished today.
"I never would have imagined, truly never imagined, that the King Xiao Bei of those years would be so powerful. Let alone anything else, even these three Black Armored Guards are extraordinary!"
Lan Yongzheng suddenly shook his head repeatedly, lamenting weakly.
"Of course, you couldn't have imagined it, otherwise, you wouldn't have committed such a despicable and shameless act of betrayal!" Just then, Xiao Yunlong's voice, as sharp as a knife, came from outside.
"King Xiao Bei, you've indeed come!"
Lan Yongzheng, slumped on the ground, turned his head and saw Xiao Yunlong, standing as straight as a spear, walking in with a host of powerful subordinates.
Xiao Yunlong walked up to him step by step, looking down at him, and said, "Hand over the main planners and participants of the ambush in the capital a year ago, and I'll give you a swift death. Otherwise, I'll make you wish you were dead but couldn't die!"
Lan Yongzheng gritted his teeth and said, "If I hand over the list, will you spare my family?"
Xiao Yunlong raised an eyebrow and said, "Others can be spared, but Lan Mingyu is an exception!"
"Alright, I promise. I'll give you the list. I believe that with your reputation as King Xiao Bei, you'll keep your word!"
Lan Yongzheng said, pulling out a letter from his embrace, and added, "This letter was intentionally left by me. It contains evidence of my contact with the Wang family. As for other participating forces, I have no way of knowing. The Wang family wouldn't have let me know at that time either. This is all I can say!"
Having said that, Lan Yongzheng suddenly grinned and asked, "King Xiao Bei, do you know why I so readily agreed to you, knowing that you wouldn't let my son go, and that he is the person I care about most in my family, yet I still agreed?"
"Why?" Xiao Yunlong retorted.
"That's because you will never be able to kill my son in this lifetime. I'm not afraid to tell you, my son has already gone to a mysterious place. When he returns, it will be the day of your death!" Lan Yongzheng suddenly burst into laughter.
Lan Mingyu had indeed contacted his master and gone to a mysterious place.
"Mysterious place?" Xiao Yunlong raised his sword-like eyebrows and sneered, "Remember, don't walk too fast on the road to the Yellow Springs. I believe your son will follow you soon!"
With that, Xiao Yunlong took the letter, then held the envelope and waved his hand, instantly severing Lan Yongzheng's throat.
"I... I will wait for you... on the Yellow Springs road..." Lan Yongzheng stammered, then fell to the ground with a thud.
At this moment, the former guardian elder of the Northern Territory saw that the situation was not good and repeatedly begged for mercy.
"I was wrong, Your Highness of the Northern King! I was wrong! Please show mercy. I am willing to follow you faithfully from now on. Please..."
"Your words are polluting my ears. Kill!" Xiao Yunlong gave the order, and the Black Armored Guards immediately acted, instantly ending the opponent's life.
Looking at the secret letter in his hand, Xiao Yunlong grinned mockingly, then said coldly, "Next, it's time for the Wang family!"