Su Hao rode the Water Scale Beast while the Dream Butterfly perched on top of his head.
His sense of security... was overwhelming.
Not a shred of fear.
If the little one had sensed any dangerous spirits approaching, he would have bolted long ago.
No way he'd still be hanging around here.
A dozen minutes later.
"Get down, no, lie flat!"
The experienced squad leader Zhou Ming barked.
Another teammate, who barely stood out, had already called in the special forces team, who proceeded to tie up each person one by one.
"Put restraints on their fingers!"
A captain-like figure said, "We must immobilize all five of their fingers to prevent them from summoning any other spirits."
Other special forces members used a special locking device on the hands of those Black Society criminals.
Making their five fingers completely immobile.
Su Hao learned something new.
Summoning a spirit envoy requires spreading five fingers, palm forward.
Other spirit abilities also mostly need gestures and voice coordination... well, their mouths were gagged too.
The spirits of those Black Society lunatics had basically lost all combat capability, or were simply dead.
"One, two, three... fifteen in total.
"Two are elite-level spirit envoys, four are full-fledged spirit envoys, the rest are peripheral members."
The numbers were actually quite substantial.
The special forces immediately used facial recognition to identify several of them.
"Bu Xingchang, wanted for twelve murders, on the run for three years. We thought he'd left Dongyun Province."
"Huang Ri, involved in last December's terrorist attack, a full member of the Black Society."
"Full member?"
Su Hao looked at the battered Huang, revealing a demonic... no, a gentle smile. "Need any help? Maybe I can pry something out of him."
"Uh..."
A special forces captain glanced at Su Hao, then at the spirit on his head.
Recalling how, just moments ago, the frenzied Black Society members had fallen one by one, their faces still wearing expressions of satisfaction...
He shuddered.
Could only politely and cautiously decline, "We have a complete interrogation process. Besides, full members of the Black Society usually don't have access to classified intel.
"Even the Black Society's strongholds in different regions operate independently."
Su Hao could only sigh in disappointment.
...
The area they were responsible for had been quiet for a while, but muffled explosions still echoed from other zones.
From within the villa district came occasional dull thuds, as if sound was being blocked by something.
Bai Hongzhen, who had gone through a whirlwind of action only to catch a single ordinary peripheral member, couldn't stand still anymore.
"How about... we check out other places?"
Squad leader Zhou Ming didn't refuse this time, but turned to Su Hao again, "What do you think?"
Bai Hongzhen: "???"
Why do you ask me, but then turn to Su Hao?
He looked at the fallen men, then at the Fire Wool Crow soaring in the sky... emmmmm, he had no opinion at all.
Su Hao rubbed his chin, "I think it's doable, but someone needs to stay here."
"In that case, then..."
Squad leader Zhou Ming's gaze swept over Bai Hongzhen and another teammate, "Classmate Wang, you stay here. I'll leave my Stone Giant here too."
After all, that Bai guy was too rash; leaving him alone would make Zhou Ming uneasy.
...
"Fall down!"
In the distance, a Black Society member trying to break through the blockade saw the transparent light shield around him vanish, and both he and his spirit collapsed.
Su Hao and his group continued forward.
Suddenly,
"Caw—"
The Fire Wool Crow soaring in the sky spotted something.
It let out a sharp cry.
Su Hao patted the Water Scale Beast's head, and it quickly dashed forward.
Before long,
A circle of special forces members and several spirit envoys appeared ahead.
They surrounded a Black Society member in the middle.
A man with a gloomy expression, accompanied by a Blade Leaf Warrior.
The Blade Leaf Warrior was elite-level, but more importantly, its blade was pointed at a mother and daughter lying on the ground.
"What's going on?"
"I was too impulsive."
A male student lowered his head.
Su Hao asked and learned the situation.
Dongyun University had stretched their patrol area too wide, which helped them find many fugitives but also left them understaffed.
The male student who spotted the target was too eager, and as a result, failed to subdue the opponent quickly.
Letting the enemy take hostages.
"What do we do?"
Zhou Ming and Bai Hongzhen arrived from behind.
Along with them came several other spirit envoys who had noticed the situation.
But none had a solution.
"Can we use illusion magic to control that Black Society member?"
Su Hao shook his head.
Illusion magic had its limits.
It was also a type of ultimate move, unable to silently break through a spirit envoy's protective barrier.
"Using illusion magic would be detected, and that might provoke the enemy. How about..."
At that moment,
The Black Society member roared, "Back off, all of you back off! As long as I can leave, I swear I'll let them go!"
He stared at the ultimate-form spirits around him and the young students.
Listening to their insincere pleas.
He bellowed.
"What do you brats know!
"You have resources, you have spirits. Unlike us?
"Without the Black Society, we'd have nothing. How could you sheltered students in your ivory towers understand the cruelty of the world!"
His face grew increasingly deranged.
The Blade Leaf Warrior looked more ferocious by the second.
Then,
"Now!"
Su Hao shouted low.
The Fire Wool Crow flashed past.
The Blade Leaf Warrior, about to swing its arm down, suddenly froze, its face twisting in pain.
It let out a "Sss—" and collapsed, rolling on the ground.
The Fire Wool Crow, which had just raised its Flame Feather Blade, froze, then symbolically slashed down once, and again struck the frenzied man, sending him flying.
Other spirits surged forward, protecting the mother-daughter hostages and surrounding the Blade Leaf Warrior and the frenzied man.
But they were still dazed.
What just happened?
Why did that Blade Leaf Warrior suddenly go mad?
Too much pressure?
Only Zhou Ming and Bai Hongzhen stared at Su Hao in shock.
Su Hao stared in shock at the Dream Butterfly.
The Dream Butterfly looked utterly innocent.
Wasn't it you who told me to stack a dozen Spirit Burst marks?
...
At the same time,
Inside the Dragon Lake Villa District.
Death Messenger Ling Jianmu's Doom Bird had been burned into a bald bird.
His other main spirit, the 'Death Locust,' had long since fallen among the building ruins.
Only an equally injured Wind-Chasing Pegasus remained, carrying him.
Instructor Sun's Three-Headed Hound was also looking a bit sluggish.
But his ace, the Fire God Soldier, still blazed with raging flames. Every punch it threw stirred up storms of fire.
It beat the Doom Bird, already strong even among transcendent-level spirits, into submission.
It was quasi-royal level!
Surrounding it were over thirty elite-level spirits, forming a tight encirclement.
The injured Wind-Chasing Pegasus, barely transcendent-level, couldn't carry Ling Jianmu away.
Four massive water curtains enveloped the battlefield, the aftermath of the battle raging within.
Until it finally subsided.
"Transcendent level..."
"If it weren't for the special method limiting the battle's range, it could probably destroy half of Dragon Lake Villa District."
Su Hao rode the Water Scale Beast, watching from afar.
The Fire Wool Crow gazed at the sky full of firestorms, filled with longing.