As the gunshots rang out again, the onlookers on the shore finally realized the danger and hurried towards North Mountain Road.
A gentleman does not stand beneath a dangerous wall. With such a dense volley of gunfire, staying put would be suicidal.
Those martial artists rushing towards the bridgehead also abruptly halted, their expressions filled with alarm.
They clearly saw, under the bridge lights, a group of masked armed assailants charging onto the bridge.
Unscrupulous, vicious, and brutal.
Even as seasoned practitioners, they were shocked.
Was it aimed at that Chen Fan?
They all simultaneously felt a desire to retreat.
No matter how high one's martial arts, it couldn't stop bullets.
Hadn't Chen Fan, who had defeated Mr. Gongsun, also been shot off the bridge?
Only a few figures still charged onto the bridge; they were none other than Gongsun Yuan and a few of his capable disciples.
Gongsun Zheng and Gu Yueqing were still in the water. As vital members of the Gongsun family, they couldn't simply stand by.
Behind them, several figures also ascended the bridge, but they appeared much calmer, not in any particular hurry.
It was Xu Yunhou and the Xu family experts!
Xu Yunhou knew that these gunmen were likely targeting Chen Fan, so he wasn't in a rush.
West Lake's Broken Bridge had a gentle slope, making the bridge quite long. From the bridgehead to the highest point was over fifty meters.
It would take these masked bandits some time to charge up.
On the other side of the bridge, Xue Ci's figure moved like a phantom, holding a rifle. He had reached the spot where the dragon-patterned compasses were placed.
With a hint of joy, he moved rapidly towards them.
From the sniper scope earlier, it had been clear that Chen Fan had brought more than one dragon-patterned compass.
If calculated this way, today's haul would exceed expectations.
The directive was merely to obtain one dragon-patterned compass to complete the mission. Obtaining several at once would undoubtedly bring significant rewards.
Even if Chen Fan survived the shooting and returned with only fragments of the compass, he could still account for himself.
His breathing grew hot as he approached the railing, reaching for the bag hanging there, and then for the one belonging to Gongsun Zheng.
But at that moment, he suddenly sensed something and turned his head sharply.
In the lake on his side, the water surged violently, as if a torrent of bullets were being unleashed.
A terrifying aura, like that of a god or demon descending, appeared, utterly chilling.
"Chen Fan?" Xue Ci's pupils contracted, and he exclaimed, "You're not dead!!"
"Nonsense!"
Chen Fan coldly retorted with disdain.
Xue Ci retreated without hesitation, simultaneously pulling the trigger of the submachine gun in his hand.
Da da da…
Flames spat from the muzzle, bullets tearing through the falling water, aimed at the figure rising from the lake.
The bullets were expended in an instant.
At such close range, with his marksmanship, there should be no possibility of missing, yet he felt a sense of dread and unease.
From a killer's instinct, he knew he hadn't eliminated Chen Fan.
With the previous sniper shot and now this burst of gunfire failing to kill him, he was already certain that Chen Fan was the Lord of the Night.
When he first heard news of the Lord of the Night being in Da Hua, he hadn't quite believed it.
But now, he had no choice but to believe.
The Lord of the Night was a super-expert ranked fifth on the underground world's dark list.
Years ago, the Lord of the Night's ranking wasn't fifth, but first. It was only because he had rarely appeared in recent years and had been dormant for a long time that his ranking had dropped.
Without thinking, he abandoned the idea of grabbing the last dragon-patterned compass and turned to flee rapidly towards Bai Di.
Facing an expert ranked fifth on the dark list, whose power he had just witnessed firsthand, Xue Ci had no intention of engaging him.
Especially since he had already obtained several dragon-patterned compasses, he had exceeded the mission requirements.
Da da…
Gunfire erupted beside him; his subordinates were also firing.
But at that very moment, he saw a figure flash and appear behind one of his subordinates.
That subordinate, also a seasoned assassin, had no time to react before a cold glint flashed, and his head flew into the air.
That cold glint was Gongsun Zheng's sword, which was now in Chen Fan's hand.
"Be careful!"
The other assassins reacted, shouting in Siamese and dropping their guns, lunging forward with knives.
"Snipe him, snipe him!"
Xue Ci sprinted towards his point of origin, desperate to escape Chen Fan, shouting orders for the snipers he had stationed at Bai Di to open fire.
His speed was considerable, covering two to three meters with each stride.
He glanced back from the corner of his eye.
Another cold glint flashed, a sword's chilling brilliance.
A Blood God Hall assassin parried with his saber, which snapped with a clang, and his body was cleaved in two.
Another assassin circled behind Chen Fan, thrusting a combat knife fiercely.
However, Chen Fan seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, reacting with a sword strike that bisected both the assassin and his knife.
Within a few breaths, all the assassins who had come with Xue Ci lay dead, their bodies cut in half, undeniably deceased.
Xue Ci's heart pounded, fleeing with all his might, widening the distance between himself and Chen Fan.
The Lord of the Night, the former number one on the dark list, was indeed terrifying!
He couldn't muster the slightest courage to confront him.
Fortunately, the distance had now opened to over thirty meters. With a bit more distance, and with a few of his subordinates providing support, he should be able to escape.
Just then, Chen Fan's body leaped suddenly, covering five to six meters.
With a crack, sparks flew from the railing.
Xue Ci was overjoyed. His subordinates had opened fire.
As long as Chen Fan could be held up, he could escape.
The crack of gunfire finally rang out.
Chen Fan did not pause, rolling on the ground once more.
Another burst of light splashed, hitting the spot where Chen Fan had been.
"Xue Yi, well done!"
Xue Ci shouted, continuing his frantic escape.
Amidst the rapid gunfire, he could imagine Chen Fan constantly dodging bullets.
But in that instant, a strong sense of unease arose in his heart.
His acute intuition for danger was the trump card that made him a gold-medal assassin.
He rolled on the ground.
A scorching stream of air grazed past him.
"Xue Yi, you bastard, you missed!"
Xue Ci scrambled on the ground, dodging the sniper fire.
However, he then heard a muffled groan in his earpiece.
It was then that he realized this wasn't a miss; there was an enemy sniper!
And Xue Yi was now silent, evidently dead!
Someone from the Night organization, Shadow?
Xue Ci was seized by terror and, without thinking, plunged into the lake.
But at this moment, a sense of dread several times stronger than before washed over him.
In his peripheral vision, a sword's gleam magnified before his eyes, like a streak of lightning.
With a sharp twist, Xue Ci raised his pistol, and while ducking and rolling to avoid the attack, he pulled the trigger.
He had clearly seen the demonic figure behind the sword.
At such close range, there was no reason to miss.
His shots were aimed to kill.
However, in the next instant, his eyes widened in horror.
As the sword's light swung back, it precisely deflected.
With a series of clangs, each bullet was flicked away by the sword.
The last bullet was even split in two by a single stroke.
An immeasurable chill crept into Xue Ci's heart.
Was this still human?
At the highest point of the bridge, a large group of people rushed down. Amidst the gunfire, some sprayed bullets into the lake.
Boom, someone even threw a grenade into the water, creating a towering plume of spray.
Xue Ci knew those were the gunmen arranged by Su Yuhua, and a glimmer of hope for survival ignited in his heart. He dropped his gun and charged directly at Chen Fan.
As long as he could tie Chen Fan down for even half a minute, his chances of survival would greatly increase!
However, a sword's light descended, piercing from his forehead downwards.
Xue Ci's consciousness plunged into darkness.
"This, is the strength of the fifth-ranked on the dark list?"
His final thought flashed and vanished. Xue Ci's body collapsed on the ground, blood pouring out.
Chen Fan did not spare a second glance at Xue Ci's corpse. Facing the thugs rushing down from the bridge, he stepped forward with his sword, ready to engage.