When Yang Shen and Nie Guanshan left the building, they called out to Chen Chuan to join them.

“Come on, Captain Chen.”

After learning about his status, the two were at least polite to him, regardless of what they were plotting in their heads.

During missions, their conversations were recorded by their Realm Passes. If they were polite to each other, it showed that there was no conflict within the team. If anyone died or was crippled later, they could just say that it was simply an accident, and they weren’t responsible for it.

The moment they stepped outside, it started drizzling, though the rain was slightly red, like thinned blood. It was also a bit corrosive.

The insects started moving about in a disorderly manner before falling in waves. The moment they touched the ground, they were drenched by the rain and could only squirm and struggle. Then, they started melting into the water. Soon, a faint, rotting smell filled the air.

Yang Shen and Nie Guanshan were protected from the rain by their protective gear and wide-brimmed hats. When some raindrops landed on their skin, they just bounced off. None remained on their skin.

It was the same for Chen Chuan. They weren’t using any technique for this. Their qi had simply reached every part of their bodies, and they could release refined force through it. As long as they achieved a certain degree of mastery, they could do this.

At this point, even if Chen Chuan submerged himself in water, he could make sure that not a single drop remained on him after he left, just like He Xiaoxing had done.

As the trio walked over, they ran into the fleeing mercenaries, who were followed by gunshots that struck the ones in the back and took their lives.

One of the mercenaries had the back of his head shot through not too far away from the trio. With a grunt, he collapsed in front of them. His head had practically exploded. His blood mixed with the rain, and they couldn’t quite tell which was which.

Since the three were clearly going for Chen Bitong, the marksmen in the buildings weren’t going to ignore them. A shower of bullets came charging toward them.

The bullets hit Chen Chuan, Yang Shen, and Nie Guanshan and sank into the protective gear, but couldn’t penetrate through. As they continued walking forward, the sound of bullets falling followed them.

Upon seeing that most of the mercenaries had fled and noticing that shooting at the trio was useless, the shooters stopped the gunfire, but the muzzles were still trained on the targets.

As the three got closer, they heard a loud bang that echoed in the square and among the buildings.

Yang Shen brought his arm up and pinched his thumb and index finger together to catch a bullet that was about to hit the center of his brow.

Even though he had moved quickly, he gave off the feeling that he had done so with complete ease. He squeezed the bullet and threw the flattened metal on the ground.

They continued forward without slowing down.

Fang Zhixin, who stood in the back, turned to Chen Bitong with a worried look on his face.

Chen Bitong had used a lot of energy in the fight against Lao Hu. He had also repaired his arm, which used up a significant amount of blood essence.

Since the three came at this moment, it was clear that they weren’t going to be easy opponents.

He recognized Chen Chuan among them, but didn’t relax because of that. He had spoken to Chen Chuan quite a lot during the lessons at the training center and knew how much potential he had and how powerful he was. Even if the other two only matched his strength, they wouldn’t be easy opponents.

Yu Lie had also noticed Chen Chuan, and he clenched his fists. If Chen Chuan joined the fight, it meant that the World Ring Defense System had acknowledged his strength.

While Yu Lie could only stand at the back and watch.

When the trio drew close to Chen Bitong, they heard rustling sounds from their Realm Passes. They could no longer contact the people outside.

After coming to this place, Chen Bitong’s group had set up a number of domain interference entities. The only reason the National Ad Hoc Special Operations Committee was able to communicate inside was because they had a unique frequency and implants. Domain interference entities were unable to affect the specially modified implants. But things were different for the trio. The moment they stepped into the area, their Realm Passes were affected.

Even so, they didn’t stop and kept walking forward until they were around thirty meters away from Chen Bitong.

They had learned a lot from the fight. While Chen Bitong could move in and out of the rift at will, the range was around forty meters. It may be a bit larger, but no more than fifty meters.

They didn’t think that Chen Bitong couldn’t travel further away, but that if he did, he might lose the element of surprise, or the tells would be really obvious. He did not go further as to not expose this weakness.

That was why they chose to stand thirty meters away. It made attacking Chen Bitong easy, and if things started going south, they could retreat and regroup. Their first priority was always ensuring their own safety.

To Yang Shen and Nie Guanshan, their goal was to win, not to risk their lives.

Chen Chuan cast a glance at Chen Bitong before looking past him to the rift and the mangled cavalrymen on the ground.

Chen Bitong seemed to be stopping those people from exiting, but he was also letting the rift continue existing. What exactly was he doing?

Since Chen Bitong was a martial artist, the first thing Chen Chuan thought of was that Chen Bitong might be trying to use the rift to reach a higher limit.

But it was unlikely the reason was this simple.

He lacked information, though, so he couldn’t figure anything out.

Nie Guanshan took out some documents from his pocket and raised them up high enough to see. “Chen Bitong, we’ve come here on orders from the Department of Administrative Affairs and the World Ring Defense System. Please stop whatever you’re doing and come back with us for an investigation. If you refuse, we will resort to violence.”

Despite saying that, he knew that with how things had progressed, Chen Bitong wasn’t going to give up on whatever he had planned. He wouldn’t go back with them after a few words. Still, they had to stick to the procedure.

Chen Bitong examined them, and his gaze lingered on Chen Chuan for a while before he said, “It’s fine. Just do your job.”

“I heard that you were part of the development squad, Chen Bitong. It means that you’re my senior, but you’re much stronger than I am. I never killed my own team member,” Yang Shen said as he cast a glance at where Lao Hu had exploded.

Chen Bitong ignored his mockery, but did observe him for a little longer. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The rules in the past might have been different, but those who could join the development squad were no ordinary martial artists. They were all elites among the elites.

Then, Chen Bitong turned to Chen Chuan again, but before he could say anything, Nie Guanshan continued, “If you refuse to surrender, I’d like to make something clear: We have a job, so we won’t be holding back.”

“Then, please get ready as well. I’m not going to hold back either,” Chen Bitong said while meeting his gaze squarely.

Yang Shen scoffed and said meaningfully, “If I were you, I’d be worried about myself. I heard that you have a son. He’s your only child left, isn’t he? You were a hero, so I bet he idolizes you. If he learned about what you’re doing right now, what would he think?”

Chen Bitong said nothing.

Since he was refusing to respond, Yang Shen huffed, turned around, and walked to the left.

Nie Guanshan remained still, as if he was waiting for Chen Chuan. Upon seeing this, Chen Chuan went to the right and stood to Chen Bitong’s left.

Because of this, it seemed like Nie Guanshan was the one who would be facing Chen Bitong head-on and be attacked first. But once the fight started, Chen Bitong would actually be the one to decide his target.

In Nie Guanshan and Yang Shen’s eyes, Chen Bitong was sure to attack Chen Chuan, so no matter where he stood, things would be the same.

There was also a reason why they had said all those things before the fight. They had stated their statuses and backgrounds to give Chen Bitong the impression that they weren’t going to be easy targets. At the same time, they didn’t give Chen Chuan the chance to talk. Because of that, Chen Bitong would instinctively think that Chen Chuan had the lowest status among them and would be the easiest to take down to break out of the encirclement.

They were also planning to give Chen Bitong the chance to do so later. Then, they would be able to carry out their original plan.

Once they stood in their positions, Chen Chuan moved his hands to the buttons. He unbuttoned the protective overcoat, which revealed the squad captain coat underneath, and threw the overcoat to the side.

Meanwhile, Yang Shen moved his hands to his sides and spread his fingers. Thin, long, and white cords trailed down from them. As he activated his refined force, the cords grew longer.

He narrowed his eyes and started mumbling something. It was slow and rhythmic.

As for Nie Guanshan, he removed his gloves. Underneath was a pair of metal gauntlets covered in tiny spikes.

A devoted look appeared on his face, and he slowly moved into a strange stance.

He leaned forward a little and bent his knees while putting his hands together before lacing his fingers, as if he was worshipping something. His hands were brought to the same height as the center of his brow. Meanwhile, he lifted his heel and only stood on the ground on his toes, so it looked like he was about to lunge forward.

Chen Bitong’s eyes first landed on Yang Shen, and he remarked, “The Dragon Binding Force, huh?”

He then turned to Nie Guanshan and said, “And the Deity Worshipping Stance.”

The two were using the secret refined forces of the former national religion.

The Dragon Binding Force allowed the user to use long cords to bind the enemies. If the cords wound around him, even Chen Bitong wouldn’t be able to break free.

Meanwhile, the Deity Worshipping Stance was a refined force that focused on training but could also be used in real fights. It only had two simple moves.

When the practitioner laced their fingers together, their bodies entered a powerful defensive stance. Most refined forces would be useless against them at that moment.

Once the practitioner fended against external attacks, they could attack with both fists. According to legend, their power would take down everything in their path.

Since the two refined forces were from the former national religion, they corresponded to rituals, and the practitioners could bring out unbelievable power. Chen Bitong’s expression turned grim when he recognized the two refined forces.