Lin Yun stood a short distance away, but the Monk and Daoist hadn’t noticed him at all. Just then, however, Imprisoned Dragon pushed through the crowd and came to stand before the pair.

Of course, everyone, including the Monk and Daoist, recognized the Imprisoned Dragon Young Master. While Lin Yun’s fame was currently widespread, very few people had actually seen him, aside from the Martial Artists who had watched the battle that day.

That was why, along the way, the Martial Artists who were boasting about Lin Yun had no idea that he was right in front of them.

Imprisoned Dragon’s expression was as impassive as ever. Looking at the Monk and Daoist, he spoke as Lin Yun had instructed, "Monk and Daoist, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and follow me to the Death Row Shelter. Didn’t you tell Lord Ye you wanted to join? Why haven’t you taken out your Forbidden Artifacts and Dharma Artifacts yet?"

As soon as Imprisoned Dragon said this, everyone present turned to look at the Monk and Daoist. After all this time, the crowd had thought the pair had left the Mysterious City. They never expected them to still be here, swindling people.

"Get them! Once they join the Death Row Shelter, we won’t be able to get the Forbidden Artifacts and Dharma Artifacts!" Lin Yun suddenly roared from the edge of the crowd.

Lin Yun’s roar was like a spark on dry tinder. The hundred-plus Martial Artists in the area swarmed forward, and the Monk and Daoist finally spotted Lin Yun at the edge of the crowd.

"Lin Yun! You’ve opposed us time and time again! Do you realize the Buddha will not spare you?" the Monk and Daoist roared furiously.

Hearing this, Lin Yun, who was already seething with rage, cursed back, "Get lost! You two, a Demon Monk and an Evil Daoist, are the scum of the Buddhist and Daoist paths! The Buddha should be thanking me for getting rid of you!"

"Enough talk! Get them, everyone! We can’t let these two join the Death Row Shelter!" Having confirmed the identities of the Monk and Daoist, the crowd cared for nothing else and swarmed toward the pair.

Because they were on a busy street with people coming and going, the Monk and Daoist had nowhere to run. They were quickly surrounded by the hundred-plus Martial Artists.

"Monk and Daoist, hand over the Dharma Artifacts and Forbidden Artifacts, or we’ll kill you today!"

"That’s right! If they don’t hand them over, we kill them today!"

The crowd roared, their attitude making it clear they wouldn’t stop until they had the Dharma Artifacts. The allure of such items was simply too great; it was no wonder these people were so desperate.

With no way out, the Monk simply ripped the wig from his head, revealing a shiny, bald scalp to everyone.

"Amitabha. Since you benefactors insist on forcing our hand, don’t blame this poor monk. Vajra Undying Body!" the Monk said with a solemn expression.

"Boundless Celestial Venerable. This poor Daoist apologizes as well. Celestial Venerable Saint Body!" the Daoist said, taking out his duster.

The moment they finished speaking, a Martial Artist threw a punch that landed squarely on the Monk’s eye. With a strange yelp of "OUCH!", a purple-black bruise instantly blossomed around the Monk’s eye.

"Celestial Venerable my ass! Get ’em, brothers!" someone cursed, and the crowd of Martial Artists instantly attacked. In a flash, only the miserable cries of the Monk and Daoist could be heard.

"OW! Who hit this poor monk’s nose?! Is there no justice? You’d even hit a man of the cloth?"

"Who—who was that? Who kicked this poor Daoist’s ass?! The Boundless Celestial Venerable will not forgive you!"

Facing over a hundred Martial Artists, the Monk and Daoist were completely outnumbered. Amid their miserable cries, all that could be heard were the shouts of the crowd as they laid into them.

Watching this from the side, Lin Yun felt a deep sense of satisfaction. ’These two bastards slandered my mother. A simple beating is letting them off easy.’

Just as the crowd was enjoying the beatdown, a bright light suddenly erupted from the center of the throng. With a BOOM, the hundred-plus Martial Artists were all blasted back several steps.

"A Forbidden Artifact..." Seeing the Forbidden Artifact in the Monk’s hand, the crowd grew wary. The power of a Forbidden Artifact was equivalent to a full-power strike from a Primordial Ocean Realm expert.

"Come on! Why’d you stop hitting us? OUCH, this poor monk’s eye..." Holding the Forbidden Artifact, the Monk and Daoist now looked like a pair of swollen pig heads. It seemed they had taken quite a beating.

He had been forced to use another Forbidden Artifact. Now, the Monk had no more left; only the Daoist still had one.

His heart bleeding with pain, the Monk glared at Lin Yun as if he wanted to eat him alive. "Lin Yun, this poor monk will not let you go! I’ll make you kneel before the Buddha for at least a hundred years!"

"You damn Monk, you should worry about yourself. Today, even the Buddha would want me to deliver justice," Lin Yun said with a laugh, feeling incredibly refreshed.

"Who dares to come closer? This poor monk won’t be polite today, and I mean what I say," the Monk said, glaring at the crowd with his swollen face.

With only one Forbidden Artifact left, the Monk knew they couldn’t handle so many people. He could only try to intimidate them and find a chance to escape.

Who would have thought, however, that Lin Yun clearly had no intention of letting them go. He called out, "Everyone, the Monk and Daoist should be out of Forbidden Artifacts! That was probably their last one! If we all attack together, we can definitely seize their Dharma Artifacts today!"

Hearing this, greed once again surfaced on many faces. Dharma Artifacts! And once the Forbidden Artifacts were gone, the Monk and Daoist would have nowhere to run.

"That’s right! Get them, brothers! Their Forbidden Artifacts are all used up! Now’s the perfect time to snatch the Dharma Artifacts!" Imprisoned Dragon also shouted from within the crowd.

’We’re screwed...’ Realizing the situation was bad, the Monk and Daoist didn’t hesitate for a second. They turned and fled into the distance.

Seeing the two of them run, the crowd was even more convinced of Lin Yun’s words. They all roared and gave chase. Once again, the Monk and Daoist had been thoroughly trounced by Lin Yun’s scheme.

Only after the Daoist used up their very last Forbidden Artifact did the two finally manage to escape.

In a small alley, the Monk and Daoist gasped for breath. They were now completely out of Forbidden Artifacts. It was clear they could no longer stay in the Mysterious City. If they were found, even escaping would be difficult.

"Lin Yun! This isn’t over between us!"

Having utterly ruined the Monk and Daoist, Lin Yun was in a great mood, humming a little tune as he returned to the Death Row Shelter.

「Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in the Yanhuang Capital City.」

Inside a luxurious mansion, the place where the Royal Family held Lin Xiaotian and his wife under house arrest, an old man was seated in the host’s chair in the main hall. Lin Xiaotian sat below him.

The old man seemed to have achieved a state of Returning to the True Self; not a single trace of his energy was exposed. However, if any expert had been present, they would have definitely discovered that the old man was at least a master of the Seventh Layer of the Primordial Ocean Realm, several times stronger than even Ye Yunlong.

"Xiaotian, as your master, I have already done my best. Lin Yun is the one His Holiness wants captured. I was only able to protect you and your wife because the Dean personally intervened, and only then did His Holiness agree."

"Master..." Hearing the old man’s words, Lin Xiaotian began to speak with a dejected look, but the old man cut him off before he could continue.

The old man was Lin Xiaotian’s master, as well as one of the two vice-deans of Yanhuang Academy. He had already done everything in his power to protect Lin Xiaotian and his wife, even going so far as to beg his own senior brother—the Dean of Yanhuang Academy—before His Holiness finally relented.

"Xiaotian, you don’t need to worry. Yun’Er is gifted and intelligent. Even if he is captured by His Holiness, it’s not as if he’ll have no chance of survival. For now, the best thing you can do is ensure that you and your wife remain safe. I believe that will be the greatest encouragement for Yun’Er," the old man said calmly. After speaking, he departed using Sky Control.