Chapter 1176: The Final Encirclement
After confirming that Qian Wuyi was temporarily safe, Zhou Mo began to gradually check on the current status of the other squads in "Jidao."
According to Yan Zhichun, Jiang Ruoxue, and Lao Sun, their respective locations had all encountered problems of varying degrees. For now, it seemed those problems were mostly resolved, though how well they were actually handled would depend on subsequent developments.
Within a few hours, almost all members of "Jidao" had reached their destinations.
Lao Deng led his team to the venue of an "Earth Ox" according to the map. It was an open-air stadium that looked like some kind of tug-of-war game.
An unusually robust female Earth Ox was sitting in the center of the plaza, waiting for them. When they met, neither side spoke a word—they merely nodded at each other.
Aunt Tong led her squad to the site of a towering "Earth Rabbit." Its game was called "Penglai." The two parties were equally in sync, exchanging no unnecessary words.
Xiaoxiao and Lin Qin arrived at a glass shop, where they encountered a lazy-looking "Earth Dog."
Lin Qin had some prior acquaintance with this one, since the last "Calamity Year" had left the four girls severely battered and bruised. After they briefly stated their purpose, the Earth Dog immediately let everyone inside for shelter. During that time, the Earth Dog even asked about Su Shan's recent situation, and Lin Qin could only answer truthfully, "No idea."
Finally, there was the captain of the eighth squad—an unknown old man.
Zhou Mo spent quite a while confirming the man's information before finally making contact with him.
According to the old man, he was leading his squad to the game venue of an "Earth Rooster." That "Zodiac" looked colorful, but it would bristle with hostility at the slightest disagreement, making everyone terrified.
Zhou Mo briefly reassured the old man, but a question lingered in his mind—
Who exactly was this old man?
Back when the eight squad captains were being chosen, that old man had immediately raised his hand, claiming to be the captain of one squad.
Although Zhou Mo had his doubts, seeing that neither Jiang Ruoxue nor Yan Zhichun objected, he didn't call him out in the midst of that chaotic scene. But now, no matter how hard he tried to recall, he couldn't remember when this old man had actually joined "Jidao."
Then again, "Jidao" had always been a bizarre organization; it was normal for members not to be familiar with each other. At least for now, all plans were on track.
"No... there's still one person I need to confirm..."
Zhou Mo closed his eyes, straining to control his dwindling "Faith," and precisely located that person among the crowd.
"Tsk, boss of 'Tiantangkou,' how are you holding up?" Zhou Mo asked.
"Oh?" Chu Tianqiu's voice came back. "Rare. You can still contact me?"
"I managed to touch you during the chaos," Zhou Mo said. "Tsk, you sound fine. Then you're on your own."
"Ha..." Chu Tianqiu chuckled. "Tell Yan Zhichun she owes me a huge favor. She needs to figure out how to repay me."
Zhou Mo naturally understood what Chu Tianqiu was referring to. He paused, then uttered two words he almost never said—
"Thanks."
"Flattering," Chu Tianqiu said. "You not saying anything feels more normal to me."
"Tsk, then why don't you just die instead."
...
Chu Tianqiu ended his conversation with Zhou Mo and looked up at the large group of "Participants" surrounding him.
By now, all the members of "Tiantangkou" were encircled in the center, bearing wounds.
Chu Tianqiu knew this was inevitable. After all, "Tiantangkou"'s mission was to cover the retreat of the entire "Jidao."
This meant that while fleeing, "Jidao" never fought back against the "Participants"—they only focused on disappearing into the crowd. In contrast, "Tiantangkou" kept attacking the reinforcements that arrived. Before long, all the "Participants" abandoned their pursuit of "Jidao" and turned their encirclement toward "Tiantangkou."
Although over a hundred people had surrounded the twenty-odd members of "Tiantangkou," no one dared to make the first move.
After all, "Tiantangkou"'s squad looked far too formidable. Not only were all of them "Echoers," but several were highly skilled in hand-to-hand combat.
Zhang Shan took a deep breath and spoke. "Chu Tianqiu, don't you have something to do?"
Chu Tianqiu glanced at the sky. "That's right. That arrogant Qi Xia told me to board the 'Train' and take care of something. It's almost time."
Little Glasses pushed up his glasses, then scanned the crowd. "Mr. Chu, why don't you go first? Being held up here doesn't seem like a decision you'd normally make."
Chu Tianqiu thought for a few seconds. "I know I should focus on the bigger picture, but for some reason, there's a voice in my head telling me to make sure you're all safe before I leave."
"That's truly flattering." Little Glasses paused, then turned to look at the others behind him. "I haven't seen Old Lyu in a long time... Is he dead?"
"No idea," Chu Tianqiu said. "We can't worry about the dead right now. Let's figure out how to break free first."
Zhang Shan flexed his muscles. "How about I hold them off? You guys find a way out."
"Don't be foolish," Chu Tianqiu said. "Something like 'one against a hundred' doesn't exist in reality. You can't use 'Tianxingjian' right now. No matter how good a fighter you are, you'll be overwhelmed by the crowd."
"'One against a hundred' really is impossible..." Zhang Shan scratched his head. "But I seem to remember some boastful guy telling me he could fight while retreating, taking down thirty-seven people barehanded."
"Oh?" Chu Tianqiu let out a light laugh. "Are you sure he wasn't just bragging?"
"Hell, who knows?" Zhang Shan said. "Can't even remember who said it anymore."
"Don't be reckless," Chu Tianqiu said. "You just fought with Baihu. It's a miracle you're still alive. Let's find a way to break out together."
Li Xiangling picked up a wooden stick and examined it. After a moment, she slammed it against the ground, kicked the tip to break it off, revealing a sharp, jagged edge—making it more like a spear.
"All weapons are killing techniques. I promised my grandfather I wouldn't hurt anyone unless I had to..." Li Xiangling looked up. "Unless I'm about to die."
She spun the wooden stick a few times, pointing it at the encirclement in front of her—
"The six-harmony long spear repels enemies; the six-harmony short spear takes lives."
Before the encirclement could react, Li Xiangling stepped forward, rotated the stick half a turn around her waist, then thrust the sharpened tip forward, drawing blood from a few people on the spot.
As the martial adage goes, "He who strikes first gains the advantage." Li Xiangling had to break through the encirclement before more people could react.
A melee erupted instantly. Zhang Shan stepped forward and grabbed two people who tried to counter Li Xiangling.
Seeing this, the entire encirclement charged in, engaging "Tiantangkou" in a chaotic brawl. Chu Tianqiu wanted to help, but his teammates kept shielding him. He could only protect Wen Qiaoyun behind him, doing his best to avoid injury in the chaos.