Can They Be Killed?

The clingy pests around me had been multiplying lately. That was not a good thing!

"Big brother... hungry... hungry... sob..."

"Shut up!"

Just then, Little Black's adorably foolish voice rang out in Xu Jie's mind, like a young beast that had woken up full and was clamoring for milk again.

Xu Jie hurriedly slit his arm without drawing attention, letting the little black snake cling to the wound like a leech and suck his blood.

Could life go on like this...?

Jinwu University mobilized quickly.

In just two hours, more than two thousand martial arts students left the school under their instructors' lead.

Halfway there, they joined up with the other four martial arts universities in Jincheng City.

Ten thousand young martial artists marched urgently through streets that had long since been cleared and placed under lockdown, heading west.

The City Lord's Manor was fairly considerate toward the martial arts schools, assigning their students to the direction with the lowest intensity of battle.

According to intelligence, the Beast Tide had struck in from Jincheng City's southwest corner. There were not many demons in the western district.

As they traveled, Chu Mingyue stayed close at Xu Jie's side, quietly explaining the Beast Tide's detailed intelligence.

"A mid-level Beast Tide begins with at least a hundred thousand beasts! Yet Jincheng City's Guard Army has fewer than ten thousand men. Holding them back will be extremely difficult. So, during the citywide Level Two alert, whether it's martial arts schools or civilian mercenary groups, as long as they're martial artists, they'll be conscripted to join the defense of the city!"

"Of course, although the Beast Tide is vast in number, they won't all come crashing into the city. Less than half of them will actually attack it. The real headache isn't the city defenses, but the villages built around Jincheng City. They cover an enormous area, more than ten times that of Jincheng City!"

"Now that the first outer defensive line has been breached, it means the outermost villages have been affected. Our mission is to clear out the small beast packs that broke through the defenses and guard each village until the Beast Tide ends!"

"Xu Jie, once we're outside the city, you must obey my orders. Don't act on your own. We need to cooperate with the military to resist the Beast Tide and rebuild a new defensive line. Understand?"

"..."

Xu Jie nodded silently. As for whether he had taken her advice to heart, that was another matter entirely.

Some information about wilderness demons and Beast Tides also existed in fragments of the previous owner's memories, passed down from his nominal father, who had been a mercenary.

The outbreaks of Beast Tides throughout Xia Country followed discernible patterns. Most occurred because wilderness demons reproduced too quickly and grew too numerous.

The beast packs squeezed each other's living space until hunger drove them to gather together and attack human cities, where the population was dense and food plentiful.

The cities themselves were not in danger. It was difficult for a Beast Tide to reach the city walls.

That was because broad stretches of farmland lay outside the cities, where more commoners lived than within the cities themselves, though they were more scattered.

Each time a Beast Tide erupted, fierce battles with martial artists inflicted grievous losses, reducing their numbers.

Then, once some of the demons had eaten their fill, the beast packs would naturally disperse.

While Chu Mingyue was speaking, the vast procession of martial artists from the schools had reached the city gates and begun leaving the city in orderly fashion.

While waiting to leave, Xu Jie sharply sensed a concealed gaze upon him.

He turned his head, but the feeling of being watched vanished again, making him frown slightly.

At the same time, atop the city wall.

A Guard Army captain who had spotted Xu Jie's trace was hiding in a corner, pulling out his phone to send a text message to his superior. He soon received orders to proceed according to plan.

Clearly, the outbreak of this Beast Tide was likely not as simple as it appeared. Xu Jie simply had not realized it yet.

After receiving his orders, the captain summoned a mercenary group that had been temporarily conscripted into the Guard Army, numbering roughly a hundred men.

With meaningful implication, the captain instructed the mercenary group's leader to bring his men along with Jinwu University's students, leave the city together, guard Defensive Line 703, and sweep away the scattered beast packs there.

The mercenary leader was a vicious-looking brute with a knife scar across his face. He clearly had some sort of deal with the captain. Grinning savagely, he nodded and led his men after Jinwu University's two thousand students.

After leaving the city, the students from the five martial arts universities split up as expected, each heading to a different location to resist the beast packs.

Beside the students of every university followed a unit bearing the Guard Army banner. Some were temporarily conscripted mercenary groups, while others were genuine Guard Army soldiers.

The group assigned to Jinwu University, where Xu Jie was, was clearly a band of mercenaries who looked nothing like soldiers.

Not long after leaving the city, quite a few mercenaries began sweeping their unrestrained gazes over the female students in the group.

Some even whistled and deliberately made lewd remarks, causing the instructors to frown.

Before the chief instructor could say anything with a dark expression, Chu Mingyue at Xu Jie's side exploded first.

Because Chu Mingyue's looks could be said to crush every other woman among the five universities, she naturally received the most attention.

She could endure Xu Jie's usual teasing. She had even grown slightly addicted to it, with a faint anticipation in her heart.

But when faced with the mercenaries' provocation, Chu Mingyue, whose temper was not especially good, could not endure it. She immediately snapped.

"Look at me again, and I'll gouge out your eyes!"

"Yo, this little lady's got quite the fiery temper!"

"Hehe, I like this type! She's got spice!"

"Interested in exchanging contact info? Come out and have some fun with your big brothers later!"

At that moment, Xu Jie gave the mercenaries gradually gathering around them an indifferent glance.

He spoke softly, and his words shocked the furious Chu Mingyue on the spot.

"Can they be killed?"

Chu Mingyue jumped in fright. She hurried to Xu Jie's side and warned him in a low voice.

"Xu Jie, don't joke around! These people may be mercenaries, but they've been temporarily conscripted by the City Lord's Manor and are flying the Guard Army's banner. Any martial artist who dares kill a Guard Army soldier will face nothing but death!"

Did he look like he was joking?

Seeing Xu Jie's unconcerned expression, Chu Mingyue knew that he might have developed killing intent for her sake.

It warmed her heart, and she continued persuading him quietly.

"It's nothing, Xu Jie. They only dare talk big. They wouldn't dare casually lay hands on our students or instructors. Otherwise, if the Martial Department holds them accountable, they won't be able to bear the consequences! Don't get any strange ideas. Once some things are done, there's no turning back!"

"..."

Hearing that, Xu Jie swept a glance over the mercenaries who were still constantly harassing the female students and Chu Mingyue, temporarily suppressing the killing intent in his heart.

If he was going to make a move, it could not be here!

Chu Mingyue was right. In Xia Country, killing or injuring soldiers was a grave crime!

However, Xia Country's laws also had several special provisions: the dead could not testify, and the testimony of non-martial artists did not count, among others.