The sudden explosion sounded like muffled thunder, shaking the twilight sun into ripples.

In the city's southern district, near the city walls, Chen Shuangran abruptly lifted the curtain of her carriage and looked in the direction of the explosion. The carriage driver and several pedestrians nearby also stopped, examining the direction of the sound with suspicion and uncertainty.

"It's a cannon..."

"...What happened again?"

The Houguan County unrest in the morning had failed, even costing a group of core members. Considering that the government would be interrogating the captured individuals intensively, Chen Shuangran's side had quickly reacted by transferring and relocating some of the people still in the city.

However, only half a day later, the sound of cannons erupted again within the city, causing everyone to instinctively shudder, feeling that another group had been exposed.

One wrong step leads to another. If the government continued to investigate like this, the losses in this wave would be unpredictable, and it was even hard to say whether they would be uprooted.

"Prepare to leave the city."

Fan Zhong, standing beside the carriage, said.

After the unexpected event in the morning, he had suggested leaving the city immediately, but Chen Shuangran was bold and unwilling to leave. Now, however, she had to prepare for the worst. As he spoke, Tun Yun, who was a little further away, had already disappeared into the nearby alleys. When he reappeared, he was on the roof of a nearby house, gazing in the direction of the commotion. After a while, more muffled sounds followed.

Tun Yun made a "wait and see" gesture.

After a while, he came down from above, his eyes flickering thoughtfully.

"Northeast side, seems like Huaiyun Ward. Heavy fighting..."

"Huaiyun Ward?" Chen Shuangran looked puzzled, exchanging glances with Fan Zhong, Chen Yan, and others. "We don't seem to have anyone there..."

"Huaiyun Ward is near Golden Silver Bridge," Deng Nian, the carriage driver, interjected. "Seems like the place of Four Feet and Five Feet..."

"So fast?" Chen Shuangran looked at Chen Yan. "...Uncle Yan?"

Chen Yan shook his head. "Impossible, haven't notified them yet..."

The group had already decided in the afternoon to inform the government about Sun Wukong's assassination of Tie Tianying, but compared to the transfer of many personnel within the city, this matter was not urgent. Moreover, the situation was sensitive. How could Chen Yan have arranged it so quickly? Feeling the commotion from that direction, Chen Shuangran immediately asked Tun Yun to confirm the situation, feeling somewhat relieved.

"That means Tie Tianying recognized him..." Fan Zhong said. "That kid's temperament is strange. He thought he could hide his identity by covering his face with a floral cloth during the day, but his figure is too obvious. It's not surprising he was caught..."

The group stood there, listening to the rumbling sounds, and after a while, they felt a faint sense of unease.

"These two don't seem to have any other accomplices in Huaiyun Ward..."

"...Is it necessary to fire so many cannons?"

"If Tie Tianying is seriously injured, the imperial court doesn't have many masters to use. It should be the Zuo family being cautious... Don't forget they used explosives this morning too..."

"Ning Yi from the southwest started a bad trend, the Jianghu isn't like the Jianghu anymore..."

"If it's a calculated attack against the unprepared, the two should be blown to bits..."

"They're not that old, learned martial arts and came out into the world, this... Sigh..."

Everyone had fought fiercely in the morning and set a trap, wishing they could kill those two little dogs. But now, hearing the distant rumbling sounds, the group - especially the martial artists - felt a faint sense of empathy, putting themselves in their shoes. The Zuo family's little dogs learned morally corrupt and dishonorable tactics from the southwest. If they were to face these guns and cannons in the future, they would probably be unable to cope...

...

The setting sun cast a wide glow.

Ning Ji ran through the flame-lit streets.

His body felt like it was on fire, his agitated blood threatening to burn him from the inside out. But at this moment, he didn't feel any of it. The street scenes and figures flashed by, people watching the distant spectacle, many only crying out in surprise after he had swept past like a storm. Running to an intersection, he instinctively swerved to avoid pedestrians, even breaking a tree, scattering leaves everywhere, but he didn't feel much resistance.

Countless chaotic thoughts flashed through his mind.

It shouldn't be like this...

The Zuo family had promised him...

Why did they use cannons?

Why are there still sounds?

The Zuo family promised...

Is it Tie Tianying?

Or Tun Yun?

Right, Tun Yun...

If he killed his way over, clashing with the Zuo family's arrangements, causing the imperial court to use cannons...

Little bastard dog...

That still wouldn't warrant cannons. Cannons can't hit Tun Yun, they'll only hurt innocent people...

Don't they understand...

He didn't know where he was running, the distant cannon fire gradually ceasing. Ning Ji climbed onto a nearby rooftop and continued to run, his eyes able to clearly see some of the situation in Huaiyun Ward. He saw smoke rising, indeed some houses had been blown open...

It looked a lot like his own...

He ran down from the roof again.

Reaching the street near Huaiyun Ward, there were more and more people on the road. Some were there to watch the excitement, and some seemed to be residents fleeing from Huaiyun Ward. Ning Ji heard a buzzing sound and shook his head, forcibly suppressing his chaotic thoughts. He grabbed two people on the street and asked, "What happened over there..."

The people were also frightened, flusteredly saying, "Yo... The government said... They encountered bandits..."

"...They're catching rioters..."

"Did they catch them?" Ning Ji asked.

"Seems like they were killed by the cannons... So scary..."

He walked closer, the entrance to Huaiyun Ward already blocked by soldiers. Ning Ji wanted to enter, but was stopped by several soldiers.

"I live here! My family is inside!" Ning Ji shouted at them. "I still have family members..."

"They're catching people inside. Young man, didn't you hear the cannons? You can't enter now. Those bandits are very powerful. Your family might have run out. Look around," the soldiers advised.

"Those bandits... What bandits..."

"We don't know. We said you can't enter—"

The soldiers' skills were crude. Ning Ji had already killed them countless times in his mind, but he finally endured it. He craned his neck to look inside, the incident seeming to have occurred around his small courtyard.

It's unwise to force his way in. This might not be about the little bastard dog. He must remain calm. She might have already escaped, knowing his worries, hiding nearby. Or perhaps... the Zuo family had promised to help, she's been rescued. He needs to find out where they are...

He turned around, wandering through the surrounding shops and crowds, but he didn't see Qu Longjun or anyone who seemed to be arranged by the Zuo family. Instead, his behavior was obviously suspicious, and several gazes locked onto him, including those of government officials.

Ning Ji didn't care. At this moment, he would chop anyone who came out.

After searching like this, Ning Ji lost patience and was about to find an alley to jump onto the rooftops and break through the blockade. At the edge of his vision, a figure appeared furtively.

"Ah, Sun, Sun... Young Hero Sun..."

Ning Ji looked over and saw Meng Biao, a lackey of Pu Xingui, appearing from the street market. He looked pleasantly surprised but also anxious. When Ning Ji approached, he said, "Young Hero Sun, you... Why are you still here..."

"What do you mean still here? Why can't I be here?"

"Ah?" Meng Biao glanced around. "Just now... Just now I heard over there that the imperial court's operation was to capture you... You two young heroes? They even used cannons, fought for so long. I originally thought something must have happened, I didn't expect Young Hero Sun to be unharmed... Uh..."

Meng Biao looked Ning Ji up and down, realizing that there were no signs of fighting on his clothes. He then realized and shrank back. "So, the one fighting the imperial court's masters was just Young Hero Long alone? Young Hero Long is truly... Admirable..."

Previously, when dealing with He Zhang and Meng Biao, it was always Four Feet, who was less skilled, who came forward. Long Aotian, known as Five Feet, was consistently gentle but also arrogant. They only learned from Ning Ji that his brother's martial arts were higher, and if he were to take action, there would usually be no survivors. This rumor had made them hesitant in the past, but today's events had truly provided proof.

Ning Ji's hand was already reaching for Meng Biao's shoulder.

"What do you mean fighting the imperial court? What do you mean admirable?"

A sharp pain suddenly came, and Meng Biao gritted his teeth, shrinking his body. "That, that, that... The fighting in the ward was so intense just now. I, I, I... I was worried about you two young heroes. Young Hero Sun... No matter what happened to Brother Long, this place isn't safe. We should avoid the limelight first..."

In the already intense setting sun, Meng Biao saw that the young man's eyes seemed to have turned red, and the pain in his shoulder was getting worse, bone-crushing. He wanted to say something, but suddenly, that hand released his shoulder, and then everything spun. His whole body was thrown out.

With a whoosh, something crossed the long street.

Ning Ji's figure swayed like a phantom.

Meng Biao's figure flew towards the distance, falling to the ground and rolling a few times before getting up. People ran around, and the evening sky was gradually getting darker. Not far from his vision, soldiers waved flags on high ground, and one end of the street became solemn. The boy named Sun Wukong stood at the head of the street, and a figure half-covered in blood appeared in everyone's vision about ten feet away. He had chains in his hand, and at the end of the chains was an octagonal hammer.

Meng Biao could vaguely recognize the other person's identity.

- Little Yama, Yue Yun.

And even if he didn't understand the identity of this person, Meng Biao also knew that he had stepped into a high-end game where he shouldn't be.

He could almost imagine the entire development of the situation.

The imperial court ambushed Young Heroes Long and Sun today, even using cannons. This Little Yama was obviously also in the ambush team. The reason he was so beat up was likely because of Young Hero Long's counterattack. Now that Young Hero Long's life and death were unknown, this Sun Wukong was clearly enraged. This was going to be a fight to the death.

Without thinking much, he ran into the crowd, hoping that the imperial court would focus on this Young Hero Sun and wouldn't bother catching him.

Large crowds were running towards the distance.

The roadside shops put up their doors.

Meng Biao's figure disappeared into the crowd.

On the street here, the wind blew through the grass stalks and scraps of paper on the road. Soldiers gathered in the distance, and for a moment, no one stepped forward. Yue Yun gripped the octagonal hammer in his hand.

Ning Ji raised his hand and slapped his head, once, and then again.

Yue Yun revealed a bloodthirsty smile as he slowly walked closer.

"As expected... You were the one who killed Master Tie today."

Ning Ji slapped his head, tilting his head and not looking at the other person.

He spoke with difficulty.

"Fought with bandits inside for a long time... It's not like that, she doesn't know martial arts... No need to fight, no need to use cannons..."

Yue Yun looked at him, chuckled, and then fixed his gaze.

"Originally, I thought his martial arts were very high, so... I fired a few rounds first, but... He was killed directly. No fun..." Yue Yun leaned over and said, "But fortunately, I waited for you again."

Ning Ji's blood-red eyes turned over blankly. He opened his mouth several times.

"...Tie... Tie Tianying... Isn't dead."

"...Who told you that?"

"..."

"..."

...

The wind blowing from the sea swept across the street.

In the sky, the blood-red color became dark red like the tide.

Flags waved in the air.

The gazes looking over were fiery.

Ning Ji remembered Qu Longjun's eyes.

In an instant, the chains whirled, and the octagonal hammer howled as it flew into the sky, then was pulled back across the long street. Yue Yun roared "Ah—", the activation of his inner strength raising a thunderous wave of sound. His boxing stance and figure had all been unfolded, like an angry-eyed heavenly king displaying the dharma to suppress everything, about to unleash a thunderous attack on the front.

At this moment, Ning Ji was like an enraged Asura, rushing straight towards the other person's attack, his dual blades slashing like a tide towards Yue Yun's chest—