This Woman Had No Good Intentions

"Not good. There are other experts in the stronghold. Minjun, take care of your junior brother and sister."

Without waiting for Ding Minjun's response, Miejue gathered a breath of true qi and leaped into the air, gliding toward the distant mountain stronghold like a wild goose.

After several rises and falls, she vanished from everyone's sight, leaving no trace to be found.

Watching Miejue leave, the several dozen remaining Mountain Bandits could not help but let out long breaths.

It felt as though the blade hanging over their heads had finally been moved away.

Having relaxed, the surrounding Mountain Bandits looked at Ding Minjun, Gu Shao'an, and Zhou Zhiruo in the clearing, their faces full of uncertainty.

They wanted to step forward and finish off Gu Shao'an's group, but recalling the strength Gu Shao'an and Ding Minjun had displayed earlier, as well as Miejue's unknown whereabouts, they remained wary.

For a moment, they did not know whether to keep fighting or flee for their lives.

Meanwhile, Gu Shao'an had already moved to Zhou Zhiruo's side, making it easier for Ding Minjun to protect the two of them later.

But when Gu Shao'an looked up at Ding Minjun, he met her thoughtful gaze.

Then he saw the cold curve at the corner of Ding Minjun's lips, and his heart sank.

Something's wrong. This woman had no good intentions.

Almost as soon as that thought surfaced in Gu Shao'an's mind, Ding Minjun seemed to reach a decision.

She immediately shouted, "Junior brother, junior sister, Mountain Bandits deserve death. Not one of these bandits can be spared today."

With that, Ding Minjun took several quick steps and leaped toward a group of Mountain Bandits. Screams immediately rang out.

Watching Ding Minjun cut down the surrounding Mountain Bandits with her sword, then recalling what she had just said—

The Mountain Bandits, who had still been hesitating over whether to flee or stay, began hardening their hearts one by one.

They stared viciously at Gu Shao'an and Zhou Zhiruo.

Gu Shao'an's thoughts turned, and he immediately understood Ding Minjun's intentions.

She was driving dogs into a dead-end alley, forcing these Mountain Bandits to fight to the death.

Her goal was not only to wipe out the Mountain Bandits, but also to use their hands to eliminate him and Zhou Zhiruo.

Cursing inwardly, Gu Shao'an sheathed his sword at once and said to the still-bewildered Zhou Zhiruo beside him, "Shijie, stay close to me."

Zhou Zhiruo was still confused, unable to understand why Gu Shao'an had suddenly become so grave.

Yet she could clearly feel the hostile stares of the Mountain Bandits in the distance.

She immediately nodded at Gu Shao'an and tightly gripped the wooden sword in her hand.

Just as the two of them prepared themselves, the Mountain Bandits finally could not hold back any longer. Seeing Ding Minjun continuously slaughtering the bandits around her, they charged toward Gu Shao'an one after another.

Gu Shao'an watched the rapidly approaching Mountain Bandits with eyes as still and deep as an abyss. His left hand gripped the scabbard tightly, while the fingers of his right hand curled around the hilt as true qi continuously circulated within him.

Several breaths later, the first two Mountain Bandits rushed before Gu Shao'an and Zhou Zhiruo. Their broadswords swung down together toward Gu Shao'an.

The fierce wind from their blades howled, not slowing in the slightest simply because their target was a child.

The instant they swung their blades, Gu Shao'an's palm pressed against the hilt, and his five fingers suddenly clenched tight.

Clang—

A clear sword cry echoed out as the longsword in its scabbard suddenly became a streak of lightning.

In the firelight, a flash of sword light abruptly entered the two Mountain Bandits' eyes.

It was like a rainbow after rain, dazzling and brilliant, yet also like a meteor at the horizon, gone in an instant.

"Pff! Pff!"

The sharp blade swept across the legs of the two Mountain Bandits before him as easily as a knife cutting tofu, followed by two dull sounds of steel slicing flesh.

The blade sank one inch and two tenths deep, cutting skin and tendons but not bone.

The two Mountain Bandits whose legs had been struck by the sword only felt searing pain erupt from their wounds. The intense agony instantly threw their bodies off balance, and they fell to the ground screaming.

Having wounded two Mountain Bandits with one strike, the momentum of Gu Shao'an's longsword had not yet ended.

Borrowing the terrifying initial speed of his sword draw and the force of his turning body, he used the third form of Sunset Swordplay, Melting Gold Boils the Sea.

The longsword swept horizontally with the motion. Flowing crimson sword light, like the lingering glow of the setting sun, passed gently yet lethally over the outer knees of the three Mountain Bandits following behind.

It cut one inch into the flesh, directly severing the patellar ligaments below their knees—the spot struck to trigger the knee-jerk reflex.

"Urgh!"

Three suppressed cries of pain rang out. The three Mountain Bandits felt as if heavy hammers had smashed into their knees, the piercing agony leaving them unable even to attack. Their weapons slipped from their hands as they clutched their knees and wailed without end.

From drawing his sword to wound enemies, to turning and cutting their knees, the entire process had passed as swiftly as a white colt flashing by.

By the time the five Mountain Bandits before him had fallen, Gu Shao'an had already sheathed his sword. Then he grabbed Zhou Zhiruo and quickly retreated several steps, opening a small but life-or-death gap from the Mountain Bandits charging after them.

Yet after only a few steps, more Mountain Bandits stepped over the fallen injured men and rushed before Gu Shao'an and Zhou Zhiruo.

Gu Shao'an did not move, standing firm as a reef.

Whenever a mountain bandit entered the danger range he had set, the sword in its scabbard would dart out like a venomous snake striking. Each time, it either precisely stabbed the wrist holding a weapon, swept across an ankle or calf, or slashed diagonally at the tendons behind the knee.

His sword light lingered only below the waist and never struck deep.

Yet every strike sent several people falling to the ground, their miserable cries unceasing.

Zhou Zhiruo watched blood spray and enemies howl as they fell before her. She was shocked and afraid, but forced herself to stay calm, gripping her wooden sword tightly as she pressed close to Gu Shao'an's side.

There were many Mountain Bandits. If he were at his peak, Gu Shao'an alone might have relied on his lightness skill and movement techniques to fight them in motion, breaking them one by one.

But Gu Shao'an had already gone through consecutive battles, consuming much of his strength, and he was beginning to feel exhausted.

Beside him was Zhou Zhiruo, who was likewise worn out and had almost no inner force remaining.

Outnumbered and restricted by his small frame, if he insisted on fighting to the death, he would inevitably need to use movement techniques to dodge and maneuver before finding opportunities for fatal blows.

After killing several people, once his scant remaining strength was depleted, he would only fall into a passive position.

It was better to do as he was now—wound without killing, target the Mountain Bandits' legs and feet, restrict their movement, conserve his own strength, and retreat whenever the enemy advanced, avoiding being surrounded by them.

The cries of agony continued one after another.

In only a short while, another seven or eight Mountain Bandits screamed as they clutched their legs and feet, collapsing several feet in front of Gu Shao'an and Zhou Zhiruo.

Those figures that were constantly howling in pain and rolling on the ground finally frightened the remaining Mountain Bandits, who immediately became hesitant to move forward.

However, several Mountain Bandits were instead provoked to greater savagery by Gu Shao'an's actions. Having lost all reason, they charged toward Gu Shao'an, who was now beginning to gasp heavily.

In the distance, Ding Minjun was swinging her sword at the Mountain Bandits on the other side when she caught sight of Gu Shao'an's situation from the corner of her eye, and her brows suddenly furrowed.

That unbroken, precise, and efficient barrage of sword draws, that composure in crisis and calm control of the rhythm—all of it far exceeded her expectations.

"How could his sword be so fast?"