The sky was dark, and the rain poured heavier, washing the blood off the city walls.

Inside a rouge shop in the city, voices of conversation were heard.

"From the sounds outside, it seems our army has broken in."

"What?! This is bad, there are ambushes in the city, we must quickly notify Duke An and the others."

The staff inside this rouge shop were all spies of the Inspectors.

To remain hidden, these spies were just ordinary people with exceptional skills, capable of killing an Entry Grade Martial Artist if they had the advantage.

After all, Lower-Grade Martial Artists only have a slightly stronger body than ordinary people as they lack Innate Spiritual Qi for protection, whereas these spies are adept at assassination techniques that can swiftly slit an enemy's throat with precision.

Days ago, they had discovered a troop ambushed in the city's civilian houses and taverns.

But due to the city being on lockdown, not even a fly could escape, and there were no Imperial Guards patrolling, they had no opportunity to send out intelligence, only to pray anxiously that Duke An and the others wouldn't fall for it.

Yet from the current situation, Duke An and the others had already taken the bait.

"Lv Xuan, Lu San, when we go out later, the three of us will separate. You must get the message about the ambush in the city to the army, do you remember?" the squad commander of the spy team said.

The two called Lv Xuan and Lu San licked their dry lips and said, "Big brother, it's been a long time since we've been this nervous. These old arms and legs, I wonder if they can still handle it."

"Even if it costs us our lives, we must get the message through. We, as spies, have a compensation of thirty taels of silver," the squad commander chuckled, easing the tense atmosphere.

Previously during the city lockdown, they had no chance to send out the message; now the army has broken in, chaos within the city has created a slim opportunity.

The message must be delivered before the army delves deeper into the city.

"Understood."

...

On the main street, Vermilion Bird Street, in Luonan City.

The Chen Army's vanguard squad had already arrived here, and at the unyielding remnants who refused to lay down their weapons, they directly took out crossbows to shoot them down.

Constant screams reverberated through the air.

One defeated Imperial Guard after another fell into pools of blood.

Zheng Guozhu was the captain of one of the four vanguard squads. He was initially a subordinate of Yang Minggui, one of the thirty-six commanders of the Celestial Master Army, and later defected to Chen Mo after Yang Minggui's death in Xia Lin City.

By now, he could be considered a veteran of the Chen Army.

His cultivation had also reached the Eighth Grade.

He made a gesture, and immediately four soldiers broke off from the squad, pairing up in twos, back-to-back, with one hand holding a crossbow and the other a short dagger, approaching the houses along the street while the squad kept watch on the surroundings.

Soon, one of the soldiers in the lead kicked open a house door, and their partner behind them was the first to step inside and check, while the leading soldier kept an eye on the rear.

They cautiously searched the house, knocking here and there to confirm if there were hidden rooms or cellars, then came out and shook their heads at Zheng Guozhu.

The squad continued onward, replicating the procedure to check every house in the city to prevent enemy soldiers from hiding there and backstabbing the Chen Army after they passed. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

They cooperated seamlessly.

Soon, they approached a large building, which, judging by the plaque, was a tavern, unsuitable for two-person searches.

Zheng Guozhu split the squad into two groups, taking one into the tavern while the rest stayed outside.

The tavern doors were tightly shut, harder to open than the previous house doors.

In the end, Zheng Guozhu himself kicked them open. Behind the doors, a heap of tables and chairs blocked the way, the main hall on the ground floor littered with messy, damp footprints. Seeing the footprints, Zheng Guozhu instantly became alert, and following soldiers, without needing more instructions from him, quickly split into groups to search the ground floor.

They soon found a shivering shopkeeper under the counter.

Upon discovery, the shopkeeper kept pleading for "mercy," a wet patch beneath him, frightened to the point of urination. Zheng Guozhu asked if anyone had been in earlier, but he kept repeating, "Don't kill me."

Zheng Guozhu gave him a quick look, then spared him and continued to search the back courtyard.

At that moment.

"Don't move, surrender and we won't kill!"

"Don't come over..."

A noisy commotion came from the stairwell on the second floor of the tavern.

By the time Zheng Guozhu arrived, his soldiers were already in a standoff with the remnants hiding inside the tavern.

The Chen Army continued urging them to lay down their arms and surrender.

But whether from fear or panic, the remnants clung to their weapons and told the Chen Army not to advance.

At that moment, a Chen Army soldier, succumbing to pressure, pulled the crossbow trigger and shot a defenseless remnant soldier.

The standoff was instantly broken.

The remaining remnants faced a barrage of crossbow arrows and a series of stabbing long spears.

In just an instant, the staircase was stained red with blood.

Zheng Guozhu said nothing, continuing the search of the tavern with his men.

As for the bodies left behind, there was no time for them to handle it.

Once the tavern was searched, the squad moved on.

The heavy rain did not halt their advance.

And a hundred steps behind them, the main force of the Chen Army followed slowly.

...

In the study of the Prime Minister's Mansion.

Lu Sheng was confirming the details of the Soul Devouring Array with Xu Zheng.