"Ouch," Zhou Rui staggered and fell into the loosely formed circle of the Daoming Sect’s Eagle Hall. The lower-level members of the Eagle Hall were a bit puzzled as to why this guy had simply stumbled into the circle without being stopped, but in the chaotic situation, no one suspected anything. Just as the warriors of the Eagle Hall in the back row were preparing to push Zhou Rui out, a sudden change occurred. Zhou Rui flipped over, leaned back on his shoulders, and the cavalry sword and off-hand blade hidden in his sleeves were already revealed. The two sharp blades directly pierced into the backs of two lower-level Daoming Sect warriors whom he had just dodged with nimble movements. The weapons Zhou Rui used were also carefully refined Damascus steel, and the grips were custom-made by craftsmen according to the shape of his hands. With his daily use and maintenance, they had become like extensions of his arms. With a stab, a twist, and a pull, he immediately left huge wounds in the backs of the two warriors, and blood spurted out, forming a cloud of blood mist. Zhou Rui didn't mind the blood splashing on his back at all. He had already rushed forward, but at this moment, he no longer stopped for anything, taking advantage of the surprise caused by his surprise attack, he directly pounced towards the old man.

Although the old man was commanding the suppression with great majesty, appearing calm and composed, there was not much distance in the crowded square from where Zhou Rui broke through to where he was standing. Zhou Rui's movements were so agile and swift that he pounced on the old man almost in the blink of an eye.

Zhou Rui never did unnecessary jumping or pouncing. His legs were strong and powerful, and the impact of a forceful kick was not to be underestimated. The old man still had three close-fitting guards beside him. One of the guards in front of him, seeing that it was too late to block the old man, actually opened his arms to shield the old man.

"Heh," Zhou Rui didn't have the habit of exhaling and shouting. Yelling didn't fit his aesthetics. With just a cold snort, he had finished breathing and plunged into the guard's arms with a surge of force. The cavalry sword pierced through the guard and into the old man's body. Although it didn't go in very deep, the old man, in fright, actually pushed the guard in front of him away fiercely, and then fell to the ground. The other two guards wanted to hold the old man up, but how could Zhou Rui let them succeed at this moment? Taking advantage of their attention being on the old man, he waved the double blades in his hands left and right, and then rolled forward. This kind of move, which was not martial arts-like at all, had no Jianghu flair, and was completely unknown where it came from, achieved extraordinary results. He and the old man, who had already suffered minor injuries, rolled together, which made the two guards somewhat at a loss. They slashed two knives at Zhou Rui. At this time, Zhou Rui rolled sideways, and then jumped up, stabbing a sword at a guard from the side. And when he rolled to the ground just now, the off-hand blade in his left hand had already cut a long gash in the old man's abdomen. With current medical technology… no one could save this old man.

After Zhou Rui stood up, he didn't look at the old man again, and concentrated on dealing with the enemies coming from all directions. He didn't care about the officers and soldiers of the Daoming Sect's Guardian Army, and the low-level warriors of the Eagle Hall were generally not afraid of him, but they couldn't withstand the sheer number of people. However, Zhou Rui had rich experience in group fights. He knew that in the current chaotic situation, entanglement in the middle wouldn't be a problem for him in a short time with his skills, but if the time was long and his strength was exhausted, he would only be活活be exhausted and hacked to death. The few short exchanges just now also gave him some understanding of the strength of the old man's guards. Being able to rush in at once, kill the old man with lightning speed, and not be injured himself to make any exchanges, was definitely due to his extraordinary performance. Although these four guards were not particularly strong, they were also top-notch experts. If Zhou Rui hadn't been by Ye Tao's side for a long time and improved quickly in sparring with Liu Yong, Jin Ze, and others, and his style was also very strange, making it impossible for his opponents to react for a while, he estimated that it would be absolutely impossible to do it. Now, he couldn't even replicate those strange movements between the gaps.

Zhou Rui spun around on the spot, and the flying blade suddenly forced back the enemies who rushed up. He then took two steps back, casually pulled a Daoming Sect follower in front of him to block the enemy's swords. In Zhou Rui's view, everyone in this square who believed in the Daoming Sect was an enemy, and he had no psychological barriers at all.

However, it wasn't so easy for Zhou Rui to really escape. As he used a follower to block the enemy, the people who were crowded in the square saw him as if they had seen a plague or a god of death. And just now, whether it was stabbing the backs of the Eagle Hall warriors or rolling on the ground to cut open the old man's abdomen, they were all very violent and bloody moves. He was now covered in blood, making him exceptionally terrifying.

Fortunately, in the current chaos in the square, not everyone could see his actions just now. It only took him a few breaths from breaking into the Daoming Sect's high platform defense circle to killing his way out. While wandering through the crowd, he casually pulled the Daoming Sect followers who couldn't dodge in time to block the enemy. At this time, Zhou Rui felt that he had stirred up a hornet's nest. The Daoming Sect had actually sent out most of its manpower to track him down, and some people even climbed onto the high platform, shouting and directing the warriors on the ground to track and surround him.

Zhou Rui secretly cried out in distress. But he gritted his teeth and simply rushed towards the defense circle of the Anqing Bing Ma Si (military administration office) officers and soldiers.

Just as the people of the Daoming Sect were shouting "Don't let the thief escape" and constantly dispersing manpower to track him down, the special operations camp on the periphery also began to move. Fires started in various places, and thick smoke rose up. A few scattered fireworks couldn't really cause much damage quickly, let alone directly affect the situation here, but the people on the Daoming Sect's side still felt a tightness in their hearts.

With a bang, Mo Leng had already pounced up, his palm striking beside Zhou Rui. If Zhou Rui hadn't dodged in time, this palm could have directly taken his life. But when Zhou Rui dodged this palm, he had to brace himself and take a knife on his left shoulder.

"This way!" Zhou Rui suddenly heard a familiar voice. He looked up and saw Guan Huan standing on a rooftop not far away. Guan Huan was smiling, but he was also covered in blood. Guan Huan threw a cloth bag down to the crowd below. When the cloth bag landed and scattered, several heads rolled out. The Da Zhanggui (senior manager) and the third-in-charge, who was very good at handling personnel matters, who had come this time for the Nanshan Association had both died at the hands of Guan Huan. Guan Huan's skills were more than a notch above Zhou Rui's. He was also experienced, and when the square here started to become chaotic, the defense of the guests waiting to participate in the Dharma Assembly in the back became lax. It would probably take a while for someone of Guan Huan's status to break in head-on and kill them one by one, but leading a few good men over the wall to launch a surprise attack caught them off guard. He killed the guests until corpses littered the field. As for collecting a few heads, it could only be said that Guan Huan's bad habit had come up again.

Guan Huan laughed loudly and said, "The Daoming Sect, which deceives the world and steals its name, dares to hold a Dharma Assembly without its lair. It's really thick-skinned."

Guan Huan was on the Eagle Hall's list. His appearance caused the Eagle Hall’s members to grit their teeth. But Mo Leng remained unmoved and continued to strike Zhou Rui with a palm. Guan Huan was also not polite. He picked up his heavy cleaver, jumped down, and slashed at Mo Leng's head.

The people of the Zong Mo (Demon Sect) group and the special operations camp were all actively causing trouble. The entire Nanshi (Southern City), centered on this Tudigong (Earth God) temple square, was originally a place of more noise than tranquility, let alone now that it was so lively.

Guan Huan and Zhou Rui stood shoulder to shoulder, which made Mo Leng unable to do anything for a while. He fought faster and faster. And the people of the Daoming Sect around him also surrounded him. Guan Huan and Zhou Rui were able to protect themselves for the time being, but they were finally trapped in the encirclement and it was difficult to escape. Zhou Rui originally felt a little that he might not be able to avoid it, and that he was a bit reckless, and underestimated the enemy's combat power, and although the old man he killed was certainly an important figure, he didn't even know who it was, which was enough to make him depressed. Just as Zhou Rui was about to apologize, he saw that Guan Huan didn't seem to care at all. He whispered, "Don't panic, retreat little by little, just in this direction."

The place they were retreating to was not a good place. Not far behind them was a sea of fire. But Zhou Rui had great trust in Guan Huan. The two of them fought against Mo Leng while mutually covering each other, constantly injuring and killing the surrounding small soldiers.

The entire square became more and more noisy. Now, not only the Daoming Sect's Guardian Army, the Eagle Hall's warriors, and the Snake Eye's assassins and killers were involved in the battle, but the Anqing Bing Ma Si (military administration office) officers and soldiers also began to suppress the panicked followers. Later, even two teams of Imperial Guards appeared, roaring and killing their way in from both sides of the square.

"Someone is coming to support us?" Zhou Rui asked. At the critical moment, when he passed Guan Huan, he asked.

"No!" Guan Huan chuckled, answering without any worries. "It's okay. Weren't you ready to die? The comrades have all withdrawn, so we'll be fine."

"Haha, that's right." Zhou Rui thought about it and felt that it was right. He calmed down. Although he wasn't so willing to die, he also realized that this deal shouldn't be a loss. The old man went without saying, just the enemies killed in the battles before and after were enough. He regretted Guan Huan instead. "You shouldn't have come to save me!"

Guan Huan laughed loudly. They had retreated to the edge of the fire, and the back was scorching hot.

"Come, follow me." Pulling Zhou Rui, Guan Huan turned around and retreated into the fire. The entire building only had its frame still burning必必波波(onomatopoeia for crackling fire). The people of the Daoming Sect were stunned. Could it be that there was something else in this sea of fire?

"Surround it, and search it after it's burned down." Mo Leng touched his nose and said helplessly.