Chapter 1124: One-Sided Rules

Lin Geng had never participated in "Cangjie Qi," so he had no idea what the two "words" meant.

Chu Tianqiu shook his head and continued, "In the game, one 'Shuai' and one 'Pao' are exchanged for 'Tian Tang Kou' to clear an obstacle for 'Ji Dao' once."

"It's hard to imagine you'd make such a losing deal," Lin Geng said. "This obstacle clearance could be fatal."

"You're right," Chu Tianqiu nodded. "Although this is the first time in my life I've made such a rash and impulsive decision, I actually feel okay about it now."

"Oh?"

"It's strange," Chu Tianqiu said. "Yan Zhichun used those two 'words' to threaten me, then I lost the game, left the scene, lost a key ally, and even agreed to all sorts of unreasonable deals with Qi Xia and Yan Zhichun. It should have been a day to make anyone furious, but now I feel unusually relaxed."

Lin Geng let out a bitter laugh in response. "Maybe you never wanted to be a leader in the first place. It was probably some obsession that pushed you into it."

"Is that so?"

"Now that you have less to carry, and you just need to fight with your back to the wall, it must be a lot more relaxing than before, right?" Lin Geng said.

"Maybe it is."

Chu Tianqiu fell silent and led the group behind him into the crowd.

Now, almost all the "supporters" were charging into the battlefield from every direction, making the scene even more chaotic.

"Tian Tang Kou" couldn't tell which side was "Ji Dao," leaving them stuck in a deadlock.

"Qiao Yun," Chu Tianqiu turned to the slender figure beside him, "what do you think we should do?"

Wen Qiaoyun paused for a moment, then quickly observed the situation with a serious expression. In a short time, she spotted the key details.

Although hundreds of people on the square were tangled in a massive brawl, it was clear that one group was more aggressive. They formed teams and attacked anyone in sight.

"Even though I don't know what 'Ji Dao's purpose is..." Wen Qiaoyun whispered, "they're gathered here for sure not just to kill people."

"Understood." Chu Tianqiu nodded and signaled to Li Xiangling and Zhang Shan up ahead. "No need to initiate attacks—just resist anyone who comes at us."

"Got it."

The two agreed, and sure enough, the situation was just as Wen Qiaoyun had judged. Some people here seemed completely non-aggressive and paid no attention to the others' fights; their focus was entirely on the Bai Hu in front of the giant clock.

Meanwhile, the other group was highly aggressive, repeatedly targeting the "Tian Tang Kou" members moving forward.

Li Xiangling stepped ahead, her strikes swift as a dragon, injuring several people's knees in just a few moves and clearing the path ahead in an instant.

From a distance, Chu Tianqiu could already see Yan Zhichun's figure. She was standing with Jiang Ruoxue, Zhou Mo, and Zheng Yingxiong, and attackers were gradually closing in on them.

Fortunately, Zhou Mo had picked up an iron rod from somewhere and was unhesitatingly injuring several assailants on the head.

However, none of those four were combat-capable "Hui Xiang" users. If anything, perhaps only Yan Zhichun's "Hui Xiang" had some offensive power, but she appeared to be standing there in a daze, likely suffering from the aftereffects of overusing it.

"It's too late. Everyone scatter—Yan Zhichun's death would be a disaster," Chu Tianqiu decided quickly. "Our group is too large now, which hinders movement and advance. Once we're dispersed, make your way to the woman in white ahead and identify yourselves as 'Tian Tang Kou' when you reach her."

Yun Yao and Zhang Shan relayed the orders swiftly, and the "Tian Tang Kou" team of over twenty people scattered into the crowd.

As Chu Tianqiu had anticipated, once the group dispersed, it became even harder for the others to distinguish friend from foe among the darting figures, greatly increasing "Tian Tang Kou's" forward speed.

Chu Tianqiu stayed put, carefully observing the battlefield, then pinched an eyeball in his hand.

"Tianqiu..." Wen Qiaoyun asked from behind, "What's wrong? Is something off?"

Chu Tianqiu shook his head, his gaze fixed on the distance.

"Something feels off," he said gravely. "Right now, 'Ji Dao' has surrounded the 'Bai Hu,' the 'participants' have surrounded 'Ji Dao,' and on the outer edge, there's a ring of 'Ren Ji Sheng Xiao' surrounding everyone."

Wen Qiaoyun had also noticed the group of "Ren Ji Sheng Xiao" in tattered suits standing darkly in the distance. Although none of them had "Hui Xiang," they were ultimately from management and wouldn't hesitate to kill "participants."

To them, anyone without a mask was an enemy.

"I know 'Di Ji Sheng Xiao' are powerful... but are 'Ren Ji Sheng Xiao' that strong too?" Wen Qiaoyun asked. "I even thought they were about the same as ordinary people and that we might not be at a disadvantage in a fight."

"You're not wrong in theory," Chu Tianqiu nodded with a smile. "But there's a fatal issue... According to the rules of 'Zhong Yan Zhi Di,' 'Sheng Xiao' can kill us freely, but can we 'participants' attack 'Sheng Xiao'?"

As he finished speaking, Chu Tianqiu flicked his wrist and tossed the eyeball into his mouth.

Almost simultaneously, a tall man raised an iron rod and leaped from behind, swinging it fiercely at the back of Chu Tianqiu's head.

It seemed Chu Tianqiu's current appearance made him look like "Ji Dao" at first glance, which matched the impression "Ji Dao" had left on all the "participants" here.

"Tianqiu, watch out!!" Wen Qiaoyun cried out in alarm.

The next second, a sound like metal clashing rang out. The rod struck the back of Chu Tianqiu's head as if it had hit an unyielding iron pillar.

The tall man had never expected Chu Tianqiu's body to be so tough. His arms went numb from the shock, and the rod flew out of his hands.

He looked down and saw that the rod was even bent.

"Damn... what kind of monster..." The man stared at Chu Tianqiu in terror, but Chu Tianqiu had no intention of attacking him.

"Monster...?" Chu Tianqiu raised an eyebrow, then smiled. "And someone who tries to sneak attack and kill others isn't a monster?"

"You bastards have the nerve to make excuses..." The tall man gritted his teeth. "You lunatics want to destroy the giant clock and the display screen... If those get ruined, what are we 'participants' supposed to do? How can we escape?!"

Chu Tianqiu sighed but didn't answer the question. He turned back to Wen Qiaoyun and said lightly, "Let's go join up with the others. Today, it looks like everyone here is going to have to work hard just to survive."

The two ignored the tall man and walked away from the scene.