It was four in the morning. The sun had just started rising on the horizon. The darkness started retreating as the light started covering the land, showing its dominance.
The Royal Guard reached the Royal Palace.
The celebration was long over. The guests had returned. Even the Princes and the Emperor were back to their rooms.
Only Minister Wang, Royal Commander, Fu Min, and his team were left in the banquet hall.
The door opener as the Royal Guard entered.
"Did you distribute the portraits? That was fast," Royal Commander complimented the guard who had just come back.
"I haven't finished the distribution. I just found out something crucial and decided to return in the middle. It's bad news," the Guard answered.
"What bad news?" Minister Wang asked as he squinted his eyes.
"The portraits you gave me... The man in the portrait was recognized by the guard at the entrance of the city. The Saint Killer heir... He is already inside our city." The guard answered.
Everyone grew stunned as they stood up, shocked. Their mouths were opened wide.
"He is already in? What a bad timing! That bastard just had to come to us now. The guests are about to come tomorrow. We can't let him roam freely..." Minister Wang exclaimed with deep concern on his face.
"How did he even enter? This city doesn't allow people inside. Were our guards not doing their job properly?" The Royal Commander asked as he squinted his eyes.
"Apparently, the man impersonated to be the Prince of Fengshu. He also had the official token. No one is allowed inside the City for now except Royalty from kingdoms. He used this to gain an entry apparently," the guard answered straight away.
"That bastard! Prince of Fengshu was killed by him! So he took the token from the man and used it to impersonate him—what a scheming bastard. Seal the entire city. No one should be allowed to leave. For now, don't let any citizen know about it. We can't let him know that we know," Minister Wang said as he started leaving.
"Where are you going, Minister!" Long Chen asked.
"I'm going to inform His Majesty about this. I also need his permission to activate the Sealing Barrier of the city," Minister Wang replied right before he left.
"What is a Sealing Barrier? It's the first time I'm hearing about it," Bu Xo asked Fu Min.
"Sealing Barrier? I'm sure you wouldn't know about it since it hasn't been used before." Fu Min answered. "You would still have known if you had placed some importance in studies. It is clearly mentioned in the books of protection."
"Yeah. I remember reading that. Isn't that the barrier that covers this whole city? It's never been used before. It not only stops people from leaving the city, but it also seals the city from inside. People can not even use any Teleportation talisman to Teleport inside the city..." Gu Yan pointed out.
"Really? That's so amazing," Bu Xo exclaimed in amazement.
*****
"No. I can't give you the permission to activate the barrier," Emperor Meng Lian straight away refused the request of Minister Wang to activate the barrier.
"But, your majesty. He is inside the city. It is our best opportunity to catch him since we know where he is. If we don't activate the Sealing Barrier, he can escape the same way he did last time. We need that barrier if we don't want him to escape."
Minister Wang knew that activating the barrier was the only way to make sure that they don't fail to catch Long Chen now.
"I know what you mean, but I can't give permission. You don't know how the sealing Barrier works. It not only stops people from leaving, but it also stops people from coming in. It seals the space of the land," Emperor Meng Lian answered.
"You know the envoys of nineteen worlds are coming to our land tomorrow. If I seal our land, they won't be able to come. They'll not only think that we're scared, but they'll also start thinking of us as the ones who can't keep promises. I can't let our reputation be destroyed before them," he continued.
Hearing the concerns of Emperor Meng, Minister Wang understood how wrong he had been. A deep sigh left his lips before he answered, "This... I never thought about it..."
"Of course you wouldn't. That's why you're not the Emperor," Emperor Meng replied.
"Now that the man is here, focus all our effort within the city. I want him caught in twenty-four hours. He should not be free when the ranking exams take place," he continued. "You are responsible for it all. I don't care how you do it. No mistake shall be forgiven."
"I will give it my all and make sure he is caught," Minister Wang acknowledged before he turned back and left.
The door closed behind him after he left.
"He is here, huh. If he isn't caught, it would be troublesome. He can damage us a lot if he harms one of our guests. The relationship between the worlds will be in trouble if something like that happens. I guess I'll have to provide them with security as well," the Emperor muttered as he gazed at the door which was closed.
He laid back on his bed as he closed his eyes.
"If the ranking exams weren't over my head, I would have sealed the city in a heartbeat to capture that bastard. It would be so sweet to watch him die," he muttered as he placed his hand on his forehead.
*****
Even though the night seemed to be silent, there were many conversations and schemes taking place throughout the night.
The guards were looking for Long Chen, and with some help, they managed to find the hotel where Long Chen was staying.
"Is this where he stays?" The Royal Commander asked the receptionist at the hotel as he showed the two portraits.
"Yes. This guy is here with two women. As for the other guy, I haven't seen him," the receptionist answered.
"It's fine. We are more concerned about this guy anyway. Take us to his room," The Royal Commander said.
He was here with over fifty of their strongest guards. The hotel was also surrounded entirely.
The receptionist escorted Long Chen to the room of Long Chen.
"This is the room. He should be inside," the receptionist said with a whisper.
"Good. You can step back. This is where it all ends," the Royal Commander said gravely.
He kicked the door of the room, breaking it instantly.