Want to Leave? Ask My Sword First

As soon as the man on the slope leaped over the scattered rocks, a Yellow Soul Ring lit up beneath Ren Yu's feet.

Green Jade Vine swept out along the ground, coiling around his calves. The man swung his axe and chopped off the leading length, but his steps slowed.

Xu Sheng had already moved in from the left to meet him.

"Leave one vine. We'll need it to tie him up!"

There were no lights on the south side of the quarry, only two torches at the foot of the slope. By their faint light, he saw the axe rise and knocked it upward with his steel sword. His wrist immediately went numb.

What strength!

Xu Sheng didn't meet him head-on. With a beat of his wings, he shifted half a step to the side, and his Yellow Soul Ring lit up.

Crimson-gold light coated his blade.

When the axe came down a second time, Xu Sheng slashed at its thinner edge. The two weapons collided, and a notch broke out of the axe blade. The axe-wielding player's expression changed at once.

He tried to retreat, but the vines around his feet pulled taut again. Xu Sheng seized the opening and charged in, smashing his sword hilt hard into the man's shoulder!

The man grunted and was dragged down among the rocks by Ren Yu.

"Tie him tight, and watch his other hand!"

Xu Sheng kicked the hatchet away. Ren Yu pulled out the thick rope she carried, twisted the man's hands behind his back, and bound him to a tree at the edge of the slope. Vines still coiled around his legs. He struggled twice, then stopped, the pain too much for him to move again.

Xu Sheng shook out his aching right hand and turned to look down the slope.

Du Wenhe had already gone down.

The man guarding the children turned sideways, gray-black scales spreading along his neck. Two yellow Soul Rings and one purple Soul Ring made the stone wall beside him flicker between light and shadow.

"Spirit Hall?"

"Dong Chang! Let Tang Heng and the villagers go!"

Du Wenhe sent a green vine sweeping out, pulling the child closest to Dong Chang aside first.

Dong Chang's face darkened. "I'm finding a few students for someone. Their food and lodging are covered. Tang Heng insisted on getting in the way, saying their parents hadn't agreed. Now a parent is right here. What more do you want?"

The woman holding a child hurriedly shook her head.

"I didn't agree! I came looking for my child. They wouldn't let me take him away..."

"Shut up!"

Dong Chang reached out to grab her, but a vine had already stretched across in front of her. Short claws grew from his fingers, and with two quick slashes, he severed a length of the green vine.

Du Wenhe's first yellow ring lit up, and more vines coiled toward Dong Chang's waist and legs.

"White Wings, take them away! Juechen, stop him!"

Ji Juechen came down the slope even faster than Xu Sheng.

A player holding a shield stood in the stone path. Ji Juechen pressed his iron sword against the shield's edge instead of striking its center head-on. He turned his arm, and the blade slid along the rim toward the back of the man's hand.

The man hurriedly pulled his shield back, and Ji Juechen squeezed through the opening.

Dong Chang shook the vines off his legs and turned to grab the child, only to find an iron sword in front of him.

Ji Juechen's first yellow ring lit up. Enhanced Soul Power poured down his arm into the sword, and its tip stabbed straight at a seam in Dong Chang's scales!

Dong Chang knocked the blade aside with his claws. Ji Juechen used the force to retreat half a step. His sword arm trembled from the impact, but he remained in front of the child.

Du Wenhe's second yellow ring lit up in turn.

A bundle of thicker vines curled around Ji Juechen's side, blocking the tail that swept toward him. The vines' outer skin split on impact, but the fibers inside remained taut.

"Don't take him head-on. Fight around him!" Du Wenhe shouted.

"Keep him busy on his right!"

Before Ji Juechen had finished speaking, his sword tip rose again, thrusting straight for Dong Chang's left ribs.

Xu Sheng saw at a glance that the skin between Ji Juechen's thumb and forefinger had split and was bleeding.

He immediately signaled to Mo Yifan, then ran toward the children, keeping close to the stone wall.

Once the people were escorted out, Du Wenhe and Ji Juechen wouldn't have to stay where they were and take a beating.

Mo Yifan had already circled around the three combatants and crouched beside Tang Heng. Tang Heng's clothing was torn across his chest, and his left arm lay against his body. Seeing someone approach, he struggled to get up.

"Don't move. I'll cut you free first."

"The children... take the children away first."

"White Wings has gone over there. Don't worry."

Mo Yifan cut the ropes and was just about to help Tang Heng up when Tang Heng sucked in a breath of pain. His left arm had swollen all the way around, and the slightest touch drained the color from his face.

Mo Yifan didn't dare touch the injured arm again. He crouched a little lower.

"Put your right hand on me, slowly. Can you stand?"

Tang Heng nodded through gritted teeth. Supporting him by the waist, Mo Yifan tried twice before he managed to get him on his feet.

Xu Sheng glanced at Tang Heng's swollen arm, gritted his teeth, and cut through the ropes in his hands even faster.

Another muffled thud came from the middle of the yard. The rope finally came apart, and Xu Sheng gathered the woman and eight children by the stone wall, then turned to count them.

The youngest had cried himself hoarse. Another child clutched a bundle of clothes tightly, refusing to let go no matter who tried to pull him away.

"What's in there?" Xu Sheng asked.

"Shoes my mother made."

"All right, hold on to them and come with us. See that big brother? Follow behind him. I'll guard this side."

He pointed at Mo Yifan. Supporting Tang Heng, Mo Yifan glanced back at the cave entrance.

"The path is clear. There's a gentle slope just below. Lu Song should be here soon too."

Although the message requesting help had already been sent, no one could say when the people from the city would arrive. Xu Sheng glanced at the cave entrance. The stone path was still empty.

"Ren Yu, go lead the way! Yifan, protect Deacon Tang, and don't let the children fall behind!"

The moment he finished speaking, a streak of dark light stabbed out from behind the scattered rocks.

Xu Sheng hurriedly twisted aside. The blade scraped across his faceplate with a piercing screech.

Ye Xiao landed beside the stone path, the short blade in his hand flickering in and out of sight. He too had only one yellow ring beneath his feet.

"White Wings, right? I brought these people here. If you just lead them away like that, how am I supposed to explain it?"

Xu Sheng got a clear look at his face, and something stirred in his mind.

Ye Xiao! The group owner who shut off chat whenever something went wrong. So his profile picture really was him.

His words sounded nice, but the knife he held in front of the children hadn't moved back an inch.

"Then you're coming with me too." Xu Sheng raised his sword. "Back to the main hall, where you can give us a full account."

Ye Xiao's face darkened. "Isn't going into a noble family better than going back to farm in the village? I just helped lead the way. Do you have to come after me too?"

Beside them, the child holding the shoes shrank farther behind his mother.

Xu Sheng glanced at Ye Xiao's short blade.

"Did you need a knife to hurry them along while you led the way?"

"You-"

Ye Xiao glanced instinctively toward Dong Chang. He was still waiting for this Soul Elder to recommend him, but he had already offended Spirit Hall without getting anything in return. If he really let the children go, wouldn't this whole trip have been for nothing?

In that instant of hesitation, Xu Sheng had already closed in!

Ye Xiao's yellow ring flashed, and his blade vanished into shadow, leaving only the movement of his wrist visible.

Xu Sheng didn't chase the vanished glint of the blade. He kept his eyes on Ye Xiao's shoulder. When he practiced swordsmanship with Ji Juechen, losing sight of the first strike meant he could forget about blocking the ones that followed. He had taken more blows than he could count because of it.

The moment Ye Xiao's shoulder moved, Xu Sheng's steel sword was already across his chest, catching the short blade perfectly.

Ye Xiao tried to circle around him, but Xu Sheng stepped into his path first. Crimson Holy Judgment lit up along the sword's edge. Ye Xiao didn't dare meet it head-on and could only pull his hand back.

He retreated again, but the stone wall was already behind him!

Xu Sheng gave him no room to breathe, striking one blow after another. Crimson-gold light gathered only when their blades collided.

Ye Xiao had clearly struck first, yet his short blade was forced back toward his chest again and again. When he tried to circle around, White Wings stepped across his path first; when he tried to block head-on, a cracking sound came from his blade that made his heart jump.

We both have one ring, so why is the gap so big?

He steeled himself, hid his short blade in shadow, and slashed fiercely at Xu Sheng's arm.

Drops of blood splashed into the air.

Xu Sheng merely drew his arm in half an inch. His sword continued pressing down, forcibly knocking the short blade against the stone wall.

I can take that strike of yours. What are you going to use to stop mine?

A sharp pain shot through the web of Ye Xiao's hand, and he nearly lost his grip on his blade. Before he could steady himself, a kick landed on his chest, sending him crashing into a pile of rocks!

Xu Sheng shook the blood from his sword, then turned and cleared the way.

"Mo Yifan, go!"

Mo Yifan escorted the children into the rear cave. Ren Yu stayed at the entrance to cover them, stretching a green vine across the stone path to block the shield-bearing player chasing after them.

The man smashed through two vines, but a ball of fire suddenly dropped in front of him!

Mo Yifan propped Tang Heng against the cave wall, turned back, and raised a hand. His first yellow ring lit up. A fire feather formed from Soul Power struck the shield, and the burst of heat forced the man back two steps.

"Ren Yu, get in here!"

Ren Yu withdrew her green vine and darted into the cave. Seeing her follow, Mo Yifan took hold of Tang Heng again and urged everyone onward.

After traveling such a long way back and forth and using his Martial Soul repeatedly, he didn't have much Soul Power left. They still had to help people down the slope; he couldn't waste any more here.

When Ye Xiao climbed to his feet, Xu Sheng pointed his sword at him again. Ye Xiao flinched back instinctively. By the time he saw it was only a feint, Xu Sheng had retreated to the cave entrance, protecting the last child.

A piece of rubble suddenly flew out of the yard, grazing his arm before smashing into the wall.

Dong Chang had just forced Ji Juechen back and was looking over at them. Du Wenhe stood between the two of them, tough vines shielding half his body as another bundle of green vines coiled toward Dong Chang's wrist.

"Juechen, go first! Get to the rear cave!"

Ji Juechen didn't retreat. Dong Chang was facing the cave entrance, and as soon as he stepped aside, there would be no one left behind him to stop Dong Chang.

The iron sword darted into a gap in the scales again. A bloody cut opened on Dong Chang's side. In pain, he spun around and lashed out with his claws!

Xu Sheng tightened his grip on his sword and glanced at the gaps between the two fighters, but in the end, he gritted his teeth and ducked into the rear cave.

Du Wenhe was surrounded by bundles of vines. If Xu Sheng squeezed in as well, Ji Juechen wouldn't even have room to retreat.

Outside the slope, a shield was already standing among the scattered rocks.

Lu Song had arrived and was helping the second child down the steep section. The mother sat to one side, holding the youngest and catching her breath. Tang Heng had been helped behind a rock, where he pressed his right hand to his chest and continued counting heads.

"Eight. Not one missing!" Mo Yifan said.

Lu Song had come in a hurry, and dry thorns from the mountain path still clung to the hem of his clothes. He moved his shield a little closer to the top of the slope to block anything that might fly out of the yard, then pointed to the open ground beside the mother.

"Everyone, come over here and sit against the rocks. Don't go down into the ditch. The water's deep there!"

The woman hurriedly gathered several children around her. The child who had been holding the shoes walked over to Tang Heng and tucked the bundle of clothes behind his back. "Teacher, lean against this," he said softly.

Tang Heng patted his head and tried to give the bundle back, but the child hid both hands behind his back. Tang Heng had no choice but to keep it and softly thanked him.

Xu Sheng was just about to turn and call to Du Wenhe and Ji Juechen when a tremendous crash suddenly sounded from the yard!

At the far end of the cave entrance, a figure pressed against the stone wall faded into shadow. Dong Chang's third Soul Ring lit up, and his steps abruptly quickened as he came around the side of the bundled vines and closed in on Du Wenhe.

Du Wenhe raised an arm to block, but the claws still raked across his shoulder. Dong Chang's tail swept through a wooden frame nearby that had already worked loose, snapping it and sending several pieces of stone rolling down!

Ji Juechen had retreated to the other side, but Du Wenhe hadn't managed to get clear.

"Deacon Du!"

Hearing Ji Juechen's cry, Xu Sheng stopped in his tracks.

Dust billowed out of the cave, carrying Du Wenhe's suppressed groan with it.

Mo Yifan grabbed Xu Sheng's arm.

"White Wings, get down here first! Rocks are still falling up there!"

Xu Sheng tore off a piece of his sleeve and hastily wrapped the wound on his arm. Dust was still pouring out of the yard, and the sound of Ji Juechen's sword came through the cave, each strike quicker than the last.

Lu Song carried the last child behind the rock and looked up.

Xu Sheng tightened his grip on his sword and walked toward the cave entrance again.

"I'm going to get Deacon Du!"