The bottomless entrance to the sewer is like a hungry beast with its mouth open to reveal its dark throat, and the strange smell of fermented domestic waste is constantly emerging. Aldrich Triss jumped down, not wanting to touch the climbable stone wall ladder, which was covered with sticky sludge.

After landing, he waved to the people waiting above, and then two flaming torches were thrown down, Aldrich caught them with odd accuracy, held them high to illuminate the surroundings, and only after finding that the neighborhood was safe and sound did he signal that he could come down.

The leader of the Dark Police Department, Titus, and his Night Knights, immediately lined up and entered, followed by the Night Watchmen, and finally the captain Rufer West.

From time to time, a strong breeze blows through the sewers, and with the help of the ever-dancing orange torch flames, the crowded entrants can see their surroundings clearly.

With boxy stone walls and sparse weeds growing in small crevices, these wild plants seem to adapt to their new environment, a little different from their counterparts on the ground, with dark colors, barbed leaves, and even tender stems that are wrapped in layers of scales, giving them extra resilience and tenacious vitality.

The water seepage is particularly severe, and the few places that appear to be particularly damp and wet are covered with thick mosses, and their delicate rhizomes burrow into the rocks through the holes, firmly grasping the uneven places, and even expanding the fine cracks.

Titus, who also covered his face with a cloth towel, came to Aldrich's side, "According to the sewer distribution map borrowed by the municipal administration, this is the entrance to the sewer No. 27 in the sixth district, and the next exit near is the Rose Theater in Victory Square, where our men found clues, and the target was No. 44 of the ninth district, one of the rats' nests. ”

Captain Rufer Vester forced his way over and looked at Knight Triss: "How is it?

Aldrich nodded, "I'll open the way ahead, but when I encounter a fork in the road, I hope someone who is familiar with or knows the terrain will come and point me in the right direction." ”

Titus immediately agreed: "There is no problem at all, I remember all the terrain distribution here." He held out his finger and pointed to his full forehead, his eyes full of confidence.

This elite team of twenty knights with swords staggered through the sewers for more than half an hour, and nothing unusual happened except for the occasional bump into a few unkempt homeless people who made their homes in the sewers.

Quietly, with only the sound of steady breathing, Aldrich occasionally looked back and saw rows of torches, the flames of light reflected on the shiny armor, glowing with a golden-red halo, like an abyssally seeded smoky centipede roaming the sewers, and like a chain of extremely precious flame necklaces.

Strangely enough, as time went on, as they gradually adapted to the environment of the sewers, their sense of smell seemed to become very dull, and even Titus, one of the leaders of the Night Knights with the worst cleanliness fetishness, ripped off the cloth that covered their mouth and nose.

After walking through the 7th and 8th districts, and successfully entering the entrance of the 36th sewer in the 9th district, Aldrich Tris, who had just stepped into the boundary of the ground, felt a completely different atmosphere as he walked in front of the team.

The cold, humid environment became dry and warm, and the surrounding walls and curved vaults seemed to have been dryly roasted by fire, or repeatedly exposed to the summer sun.

He immediately raised his right hand and clenched his fist vigorously to signal the team to pause and rest, and Titus, not far behind him, immediately rushed over, and was about to ask Aldrich if he had noticed anything unusual, but when he also stepped into the ninth district, he immediately felt the same feeling.

"It's strange, there is no garbage in the sewer gutter, even the dirt that can be seen everywhere has disappeared without a trace, and the surface above is a trading area with a lot of shops, how can this be?"

It is unknown whether he was talking to himself or asking Aldrich questions, and without waiting for Knight Triss to answer, the Night Knight Captain unexpectedly found that his nose was back in action. Then he smelled the fishy stench emanating from his body, as if he had been in the gutter of the sewer for a long time, contaminated by the assimilation of the filthy environment.

Titus rummaged through the cloth towel that covered his face, and found that it was sticky and a little greasy, so he quickly crumpled it into a ball and stuffed it into his pocket, and with a haha in his mouth, he motioned for Aldrich to continue leading the way.

"Be careful, the inside of the Dark Police Department has been in other lairs, but never been to District 9, and the environment here doesn't seem to be anything special, but I still feel some kind of danger everywhere. ”

'Danger!' Titus' level is nothing more than that. As the first intruder, I sensed that the blade lurking in the shadows was only a certain threat. ’

Aldrich nodded silently, lowered his right fist, and found that the fire behind him cast a flickering shadow in front of him, and with Titus's approval, he had an extra torch in his left hand.

The Night Knight's expression was relaxed, but his eyes kept wandering to the left and right, and he saw Knight Aldrich Triss at the front of the line, his right hand swinging slightly, never leaving the standard sword tied to his belt, and secretly exclaimed, moving the arm shield to his shoulder, palm against the end of the hilt.

The two of them went on alert almost at the same time, and the Night Knight behind them tacitly did the same, and the Night Watchman led by Rufer West was not far behind.

This temporary team composed of knights with swords, but at the critical moment, they maintained the same level, Captain West saw it, and attached more importance to the Knight of Tris, who presided over training and other related matters, if it was not for his persistence, he would have been embarrassed in front of the elite of the Dark Police Department just now.

After a quarter of an hour of walking, three forks appeared around the corner, Aldrich immediately stopped, Titus hurriedly stepped forward, looking at the unexpected choice in surprise, "No, the distribution map of the sewers, I remember that there is no fork in the road here, only a straight road." ”

In other words, the rats that were moving in the sewer gutters dug up and built two passages without permission, which presented us with a problem. Aldrich squinted his eyes and came to the corner, and with the help of the torch's flame, he could tell the year of the fork in the road.

"It's been a bit old, and even though it's all freshly laid masonry, it's all old and faded now. The rats have been operating here for many years, and they will certainly not be satisfied with the straight passage, and do some private work within their ability, and it is possible to make a mess of the terrain distribution of the sewers. ”

"It all sucks. Without the instructions of the map, I fear that we will get lost in this labyrinth of Sector 9, and although no obstacle will appear along the way, I am sure that the veteran thieves and assassins who have been following us for a long time will soon be waving their knives at us. ”

Meaningful, Titus looked back at the end of the group, his gaze beyond the impenetrable darkness of the firelight, as if sensing the hostility of the Night Knight's special expression, and the sound of Suo's broken words was then gone.

Aldrich Triss was quick to say hello and beckoned Captain Rufer West: "My gut tells me that the passage on the left side of the fork in the road is safe. I suggested that the party split into two parts, with the Night Watchman walking with me in front, some distance in between, about half a minute's foot. If one of them is sniped, each can rescue each other. ”

"Bait! Tactics to lure snakes out of their holes, that's a good idea. Captain West was already itching with his hands, and Aldrich's proposal was right for him.

Since the Night Patrol Knight was the bait, the Night Knight Captain Titus had no reason to object, and he was also looking for an opportunity to see the strength of the Tris Knight, so he split the team into two parts on the spot.

The six Night Patrol Knights, including Aldrich Triss and Captain Rufer West, formed a diamond-shaped array and headed towards the left passage of the fork, and after half a minute, Titus, who had pinched the time, led the Night Knights to follow.

Many figures in the shadows of the sewers have different attitudes towards this, and most of them are cautious, but there are also many greedy people who are eager to swallow the bait.

The Night Knights, who can form a crow battle formation at night and can exert their strength better, are famous in the underground world, even if there are only twelve people, just enough to form a battle array, no one dares to easily brush their tiger whiskers. As for the pretending Night Watchman, he has long been regarded as a prey to be killed at will by hungry beasts hidden in the dark, and he is ready to slaughter them.

But that's really the case!

A shadow clings to the arc-like vault of the sewer, fingers grasping the gap, and a short knife with a sharp blade in its mouth, like a huge gecko, silently waiting for its prey to approach.

As a veteran thief, after receiving a task, he usually sneaks near the target in the night, swings his knife suddenly, and easily harvests the lives of mortals, and there is no record of missing a hand.

Flesh Hunter Schalke is also known in the underground world, but it's a pity that he wants to be famous and crazy, and he is a bit high-profile, and he will always leave his own unique mark on the body after the death of the target person, a crossbone evil talisman with a meaning of death and poison, and the size of a fist.

Even if he looked down on the unworthy 'night watchman' in his heart, Schalke didn't dare to look at them directly, for fear of affecting them, after all, they were all knights with swords, and they all had some strength.

When the team led by Aldrich came to the bottom of the Flesh Hunter's hiding position, the Knight of Terris suddenly felt a faint stabbing pain in his neck, as if he was caught in the rope trap of the Ring of Punishment, which was a sign of danger. His right hand gripped the hilt of his sword and slashed diagonally upwards without hesitation.

The veteran thief Schalke just set off to pounce, and when he saw the bright blade coming through the air, his hair suddenly stood up, and it was too late to dodge, so he hurriedly changed the short knife in his mouth into his hand, hoping that this sharp blade that he had carried for many years could block the minions of the prey.

"Sonorous!"

The remnants of the clash of gold and iron resonated, the slashes that were not gaining momentum, the rush to resist the unpredictable, the hunter and the prey exchanged with each other.

Schalke felt like he was being charged head-on by a galloping horse, and then dragged across the rough ground, and he slammed into the wall of the passage, his bones as if they were about to break.

'Anticipate the enemy's opportunity, this knight is not simple. Schalke is definitely finished, let's not act rashly. In the dark depths of restlessness, the turbulence gradually subsided.

Stepping across the gutter of the living water, Aldrich adjusted the rhythm of his breathing, pressed his left hand on the chest of his prey, and exerted his penetrating power to completely destroy his resistance. Kick away the unscathed daggers, pluck out the claws of his prey, rip off his light, thin cloak, and twist it into ropes to bind his limbs.

The members of the Night Watchman, who had come one after another, immediately recognized his identity and skillfully searched for many bits and pieces of the veteran thief, among which was a simple silver coin that glowed faintly golden in Aldrich's true vision.

'Divine power!'