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The Fools also had arrangements within the group of thirty.

It's much easier to place your own people among a group of mercenaries who have gathered together for money than to infiltrate the Knights of Favonius or the Thousand Rocks.

In short, not long after, Ruksha received orders from Azhar to immediately close Sumeru City, restricting entry and exit, and prohibiting anyone in Sumeru City from approaching its borders.

The message was personally delivered by the Great Sage, thus bypassing the scribe, Elhesen.

"It's true."

A sharp glint flashed across Asfar's face.

The current situation is completely under El-Hysen's control.

Not long ago, Elhesen had just told them that the Great Sage might have him set up a checkpoint outside Sumeru City, or even blockade Sumeru City.

Sure enough, they arrived not long after.

"So, should we do it or not?" Luksha asked.

"Yes, of course we'll do it. But it'll just be a show. Once our own people arrive, we'll try to use this opportunity to gather as many people as possible and spread the news as quickly as possible. The more the better. I'll go tell the clerk."

"Okay, I'll make arrangements right away."

Ruksha turned and left the thirty-man group's encampment, while Asfard took out his phone and sent a message to Elhesen, informing him of the Great Sage's further movements.

Ehrlich's plan was just as the two had imagined: to put on a show and use the opportunity to attract a group of people.

"See? That's what it means for great minds to think alike!"

Asfard was quite pleased that his own rough-and-ready thoughts clashed with those of the scribe, Elhesen.

Soon, the group of thirty people guarded all the entrances and exits of Sumeru City, strictly restricting the entry and exit of personnel.

However, unlike before, this time the group of thirty people all wore a red scarf tied around their left arm.

Before long, all the entrances and exits of Sumeru City were crowded with people eager to enter and exit.

"No, what right do you have to block the entrances and exits? Who gave you that authority?"

"You stinking mercenaries dare to try and stop us? If you can't, then go back to the desert!"

"Where is your leader? Where is Ruksha? I need to see him!"

These days, merchants are the ones who need to frequently travel in and out of Sumeru City and are in a hurry so they can't afford to waste a single moment.

In Sumeru, although the status of merchants is not as high as that of scholars, it is still higher than that of the lowest-ranking mercenaries.

When they were stopped by a few mercenaries, they almost immediately lost their temper.

"This is the Great Sage's order, and I don't know why," the mercenary who was carrying out the blockade order told him frankly.

"The Great...Great Sage!"

The title of the great sage effectively intimidated these arrogant people.

"That...that..."

"Then, the great sage must have had a deeper meaning in doing this."

The merchant hesitated for a long time, but in the end, he dared not speak ill of the great sage.

But why is there always a faint, unpleasant odor emanating from the air?

It's almost like being in a latrine.

what happened?

"Who pooped in their pants? Why does it smell so bad? What did they eat?"

Discontent was heard from the crowd gathered at the scene.

The people, already feeling uncomfortable from being stuck in Sumeru City, immediately pinched their noses and began to verbally attack the unknown man who was pulling down his pants, spewing profanities at him.

In the distance, Tina's party slowly approached Sumeru City.

Chapter 278 Hardline Confrontation

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Chapter 279 Death Struggle

With a gunshot from the Fools' soldiers, the two sides broke off all pretense of civility and began to exchange fire.

The crowd that had gathered to watch the commotion immediately opened fire on both sides, and fearing being hit by bullets, they hurriedly withdrew from the area.

Tinali frowned as he watched this scene, his expression not looking too good.

Chaos has broken out in Sumeru City, and a civil war may break out soon, which may reduce the effectiveness of their rescue of these people.

According to the original plan, the ideal scenario was for this group of people to go to various parts of the city and spread their experiences, observations, and opinions throughout Sumeru City through their social connections, helping them gain the upper hand in public opinion, and then proceed with the civil war or other actions.

It seems that there are quite a few forces belonging to Azar or the Fools in Sumeru City, which gives them the confidence to overturn the table and prefer to fight directly rather than let them stay outside the city.

The good news is that this shows Hazard and the Fools are at their wits' end and have no other options, and are now even in a wait-and-see mode.

It's okay, let's have a match first. We can reduce the price, but these people are real people, and the events are real experiences. As long as these two points are met, everything else can be dealt with slowly.

On the scene, the soldiers of the Fools discovered that the shields of the Tinari group had blocked their attacks, and they decisively turned their guns toward the thirty mercenaries on the scene.

First, take out the mercenary closest to you, and then you can buy more time to figure out how to break through this shield.

For the thirty-man mercenary group that had been dispatched to be stationed here, this was truly bizarre.

They are now besieged on all sides.

A traitor has emerged from their own ranks, resulting in the deaths of several of their brothers, including a squad leader who was ambushed and severely wounded. Now, the Fools have turned their guns on them.

"If it doesn't work, let's retreat. The gunfire should have already reached the outside world, and the fleeing civilians will spread the word. Reinforcements should arrive in about ten minutes at most."

The mercenary squad trembled as they hid behind cover.

They're just mercenaries!

Although Commander Ruksha's reward this time was quite generous, ... you can only spend it if you're alive!

While the group was engaged in a mental battle, outside, the Fools had no choice but to turn their guns around again.

Despite the fools' best efforts to resist, the outcome remained unchanged.

Those "tin cans" were taking advantage of their immunity to the light weapons in their hands and charged straight at them, almost touching their faces!

The battle on the scene ended quickly, leaving only the Fool's squad leader panting.

He was taken prisoner.

According to the captain of the Fools and the few survivors of the mercenary squad, although Sumeru City is currently in an unusual state, it has not yet reached the point of civil war.

It's just that this group of fools inexplicably started to take action.

Upon hearing this, both Tinali and the leader of the desert troops breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately.

With the civil war raging, there might still be a chance to catch the last train.

"Look, look, who's that with donkey ears?"

"Hiss, keep your voice down, aren't you afraid someone will hear you? That's Tinari, the forest ranger of Huacheng Guo, a genius scholar of the Shenglun School, very popular and respected in the Church Council!"

Tinari: "..."

Thank you. My donkey ears are quite sensitive; I can hear you all.

"The forest ranger from Huacheng Village? What's he doing here? And he's with... which soldiers are they from, Inazuma?"

"No, it doesn't seem like it. Speaking of which, why is the stench in the air getting stronger and stronger? It feels like a public dry toilet in the sweltering summer heat."

Tina looked in the direction they were talking.

As the battle ended, some of the bolder people came to watch the battlefield.

At this moment, these people gathered together and discussed the chaotic scene on the battlefield.

It must be said that there is an advantage to quickly resolving a battle. Ordinary people don't even have time to react before it's over, and afterwards they can go about their business as usual, with minimal impact.

In Teyvat, the people aren't so dramatic, especially those who are bold enough to peek out and join the fun right after a battle. It's practically nonexistent for them to cry and scream at the sight of something bloody.

Those who returned largely delayed their plans, allowing them to at least pass on some information before reinforcements from either side arrived to disperse the crowd.

Meanwhile, on the other side, the following troops were carrying the rescued people on stretchers into the city of Sumeru.

The onlookers who had gathered at the scene saw the people being carried over on stretchers and realized that the smell they had been smelling earlier was coming from these people.

"Lord Tinari, who are these people? Is Huacheng Guo really that poor? Are there so many beggars there? Do they need the help of Sumeru City?"

Such a question left Tina Li speechless, she sighed.

“These are not beggars. They are people who were captured by the Great Sage Azar and the Fools after they learned the truth about the Void Terminal last time. Most of them are from Sumeru City. Everyone can come up and identify if there are any of your relatives or friends.”

"Huh?"*N

A chorus of "ah"s, albeit unevenly, erupted from the crowd.

However, although no one was willing to step forward to verify, Tinari's confident attitude of welcoming verification won the trust of many people.

After struggling to process the news, someone broke the silence and asked, "So that means... the rumors circulating in Sumeru City were all true?"

"Yes, it's true, and the truth may be even more outrageous than what's being circulated. We are investigating it."

Tinaari readily nodded in agreement.

"..."

Now it's the onlookers' turn to be confused.

You look at me, I look at you.

Many people still cannot accept this result.

After all, not long ago they were still arguing fiercely with others, defending the Church of Christ and calling those people conspiracy theorists...

The psychological letdown of suddenly realizing that you were the one who was wrong is bound to be quite significant.

"I advise everyone to go back home if there's nothing else to do. Stay in your homes and wait a while. There might be more fighting later, and it could be quite intense. It wouldn't be good if you were accidentally injured."