Chapter 30 – The Hunter's Trap
Night draped itself over Longxuan City like a dark velvet shroud.
The glow of lanterns dimmed in the streets, one by one, until only moonlight lingered across tiled rooftops and misty courtyards. The sounds of laughter and trade faded, replaced by the distant call of spirit owls.
But in the alley behind the Silver Crane Pavilion… death was already watching.
A cloaked man crouched beneath the eaves, whispering urgently into a faintly glowing talisman. "Reporting again—subject identified as male, masked, in possession of Heaven's Heart Seed. Possible cultivation level—Core Formation, mid-stage, or higher. Awaiting—"
A whisper cut him off.
Soft, quiet, almost human.
"Are you done talking about me?"
The guard froze.
His talisman flickered weakly in his trembling hand.
Ye Tianlan stood behind him, no sound, no killing intent—just there, like a shadow that had decided to take form. His face mask gleamed faintly in the moonlight, the eyes behind it calm and terrifyingly steady.
The man tried to speak, but his voice caught in his throat. "Y-You—"
"Do you know," Tianlan said softly, "what separates hunters from prey?"
He stepped closer, his presence folding the air itself.
"It's not strength. It's timing."
The man reached for his blade—but his hand never made it.
A flash of silver, too quick to see, cut through the moonlight. The sound was soft—like silk tearing.
The guard's body went limp before he realized his throat was already open. He fell against the wall silently, blood pooling at his feet, the talisman slipping from his fingers.
Ye Tianlan caught it before it hit the ground.
He looked at the flickering rune etched into the crystal surface. A faint voice was still speaking on the other end:
"Watcher Three, report your position. Do you copy?"
Tianlan's lips curved faintly.
"Watcher Three can't answer," he said evenly. "But I'll pass your message soon enough."
The line went dead.
Ye Tianlan stood still for a moment, gazing down at the corpse.
There was no satisfaction, no hesitation—only precision. The wind tugged at his robes as he whispered, "I warned you not to follow shadows."
He turned, slipping deeper into the alleyways. His spiritual presence melted completely—gone, as if he'd never existed.
But his mind was already weaving.
"If one was watching, there are more. And they're organized… disciplined. Celestial Guards, most likely."
He glanced up at the faint shimmer of moonlight above the tiled rooftops.
"Good. Let them come."
By dawn, Longxuan City was alive again.
Merchants shouted, hawkers bargained, and the plaza was flooded with cultivators returning to the fair.
No one noticed the faint symbols now etched into the edges of several rooftops and alley mouths—tiny, nearly invisible runes of qi that pulsed once every few seconds.
From the balcony of his rented room, Ye Tianlan watched the crowd below, his eyes half-closed.
"The bait is set."
Mei looked up from the breakfast table, a dumpling half in her mouth. "What bait? Please tell me you're not feeding spirit beasts again."
"Worse," he said quietly. "I'm feeding curiosity."
She frowned. "You're what?"
Tianlan stood and adjusted his mask. "They think they're stalking me. But I've already drawn them into a circle."
Her chopsticks froze. "You set a trap in the city?"
"Correction," he said. "Around the city."
She gaped at him. "Do you ever rest?"
He gave her a rare smirk. "When there's no one left to chase me."
Later that evening, he moved through the lower district—his pace unhurried, aura faint, body wrapped in the hum of illusion. The talisman he had taken from the dead guard now glowed faintly in his hand.
He infused it with a trace of his qi. Immediately, it pulsed back with a signal—three more watchers, stationed in different parts of the city.
"Predictable," he murmured.
He followed the first signal to a teahouse by the east gate. The watcher sat by a window, pretending to read a scroll. Tianlan entered quietly, took a seat behind him, and ordered tea.
When the man reached for his cup, he found a folded slip of paper resting beneath it.
He opened it—and froze.
Inside, written in elegant calligraphy, were four words:
"Behind you, fool."
The watcher turned—
—and found nothing.
A shadow passed through the window behind him, silent as a ghost.
Moments later, a faint thud echoed in the alley outside.
By midnight, all three watchers were gone.
No one saw them leave. No one saw Tianlan return.
Back in his room, Ye Tianlan set four talismans on the table, each glowing faintly with trapped energy from their owners. He wove a thread of qi between them, forming a complex sigil.
"The Celestial Guards use linked communication arrays," he said, half to himself. "If I can reverse it… I can see their command post."
Mei, sitting on the bed with wide eyes, asked, "You're going to hack a spiritual array?"
He glanced at her. "Hack?"
"Sorry. Cultivator term: 'break through an ancient communication link and make the enemy cry.'"
"That one's acceptable," he said.
Within moments, the sigil shimmered to life. A faint projection flickered above it—an outline of the city map, with glowing blue dots marking hidden outposts.
Tianlan studied it silently.
"So… ten guards in total. Two commanders. One in the Dragon Spire, and one…" He traced a finger over the map, eyes narrowing. "…beneath the palace."
Mei leaned closer. "You're not thinking of—"
"I am."
"You can't seriously be planning to—"
He looked at her. "If I eliminate the roots, the tree won't grow again."
She groaned. "You're going to storm a palace, aren't you?"
"Not tonight," he said, standing. "Tonight, I'm going to make them believe their prey vanished."
He picked up his mask again, the silver gleam reflecting the flickering lantern light.
"Let them search the ashes while I stand among the smoke."
Outside, thunder rolled faintly beyond the city walls.
The wind carried the scent of rain, heavy and sharp.
Ye Tianlan stepped out into the storm, cloak snapping behind him, eyes calm but burning with intent.
"Let's see how long the hunters last," he murmured.
And as lightning flashed across the dark clouds, the sigil he'd left behind glowed faintly—activating dozens of false spiritual signatures across Longxuan City.
For the first time in years, the Celestial Guards didn't know where their enemy was.
They only knew he was watching.