Killing Them into Retreat

Bang, bang.

Wu Ming swept sideways twice in succession, forcing the other two men back, then stepped forward and thrust his spear.

The last man fighting Sun Wang had originally wanted to take advantage of Sun Wang's grievous injuries and finish him quickly. Yet the few men behind him had joined forces, only for Wu Ming to kill one and drive back two within a handful of moves. He was instantly aghast. But Sun Wang had gone mad before his eyes, drenched in blood as he swung his sword frantically, leaving him completely unable to disengage.

Wu Ming's spear struck from behind. He could only barely twist aside to evade it, but even facing Wu Ming's spear head-on, one often found it difficult to dodge, much less evade an attack from behind. The spear still punched straight through his lower back!

"Good!"

"Hahaha!"

At the sight, Sun Wang, covered head to toe in blood, threw back his head and laughed.

He had already fallen into despair, believing he would die here tonight. Yet Wu Ming's spearwork was divine. After forcefully killing several men, even a Second Blood Forging martial artist had carelessly died beneath Wu Ming's spear. Of the men besieging him, one was dead and another grievously wounded. His heart was filled with unparalleled exhilaration. Even if his wounds proved fatal in the end, he had at least dragged several down with him!

Wu Ming ignored the man whose lower back he had pierced and who had suffered grave injuries. Instead, he turned once more and attacked the other two. Beneath the night sky, the spear's gleam reflected the moonlight, scattering flecks of cold radiance. Within only a few moves, he killed them both on the spot!

By then,

Of the twelve bandits who had raided the apothecary at night, six had already perished, one was severely wounded, and only five remained in the fight.

Without the slightest delay, after killing several bandits in succession, Wu Ming immediately rushed toward the western room. Ma Liu had already retreated inside, wielding his Zhanma Blade and relying on the room's complicated layout to barely hold off three bandits. He too had suffered severe injuries.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Wu Ming arrived in a few strides, swinging his long spear and sweeping all three bandits into its killing assault.

Though Ma Liu was trapped in danger upon danger, he had long noticed the situation elsewhere in the courtyard. Seeing Wu Ming charge in, he let out a "Heh," murder flashing in his eyes as he swung his Zhanma Blade and joined Wu Ming in a pincer attack from front and rear.

The three bandits all turned pale with shock, their expressions panicked as their moves grew increasingly disorderly. Against Wu Ming's long spear, after only several exchanges, their throats, chests, glabellas, and other vital points were pierced in succession. One after another, they fell dead.

In the direction of the main hall.

The two men who had been attacking Hu Yong together had long sensed the shocking upheaval behind them. Especially after Liu Chuan had broken away to assist, only to still die beneath Wu Ming's spear, both their hearts skipped a beat, and they knew something had gone wrong.

Though they had no idea what method Wu Ming had used to kill Liu Chuan, there was no doubt that the youngest-looking junior among the four was the hardest to deal with—far more troublesome even than Hu Yong. This was completely beyond their expectations!

"Not good, run!"

Seeing Wu Ming coordinate with Ma Liu to deal with the remaining men one by one, the two exchanged a glance and acted decisively. After joining forces to force Hu Yong back with a single move, they darted to the courtyard wall, each flipping over it and rushing out of the yard.

They were, after all, skilled Second Blood Forging martial artists. Though the rear courtyard wall of the apothecary was high, a full seven feet tall, they still vaulted over it with ease. Hu Yong was unable to pursue in time. Although he leaped onto the wall, he could only watch two figures swiftly vanish into the darkness.

At this moment,

Wu Ming had also finished off the last bandit. Spear in hand, he hurried over, used it for leverage, and vaulted onto the courtyard wall. His gaze swept toward the distant darkness, where he faintly caught sight of the two black shadows speeding away.

"Do not pursue a desperate foe."

Hu Yong reached out and stopped Wu Ming.

Wu Ming had not intended to plunge into the night to hunt them down either. Stopped by Hu Yong, he steadied his breathing, then leaped down from the courtyard wall with Hu Yong and landed back in the yard.

The courtyard was now a complete mess. Corpses lay strewn everywhere, and the scene was exceedingly gruesome. Blood had nearly dyed every bluestone paving slab in the entire yard red. Of the twelve bandits who had attacked the apothecary, only two had escaped!

"Brother Wu, what spearwork! What spearwork!"

Sun Wang, drenched in blood, staggered over with his sword in hand and spoke to Wu Ming with hearty satisfaction.

The spear was known as the king of all weapons, its might extraordinary. At the same level of skill, one often could not stand against spear techniques. They all knew that Wu Ming's spearwork had already reached an exceptionally exquisite realm. His only shortcoming was his youth—he had yet to experience a true bloody battle. Yet in tonight's ambush, Wu Ming had wielded his spear almost like a god, killing or gravely wounding no fewer than ten men in succession!

Sun Wang and Ma Liu had both seen Wu Ming fight from close by. In their eyes, that spearwork was truly like a ghost or phantom, countless times more exquisite than when Wu Ming sparred with them normally. It was simply not something a human could resist. If they themselves had tried to defend against it, they reckoned they would not have lasted more than a few blows before being killed by that tricky, bizarre spearwork.

No wonder those First Blood Forging martial artists had been wiped out by Wu Ming in the blink of an eye. Even one Second Blood Forging martial artist had made one careless misstep and died beneath Wu Ming's spear.

It was uncommon, though not unheard of, for a Second Blood Forging martial artist to die at the hands of a First Blood Forging one. Blades and swords had no eyes. Though Second Blood Forging martial artists possessed greater strength and tougher skin and flesh, they were still made of flesh and blood and could not withstand sharp weapons. Moreover, there were a hundred thousand ways to kill in the martial world—toxins, concealed weapons—and overturning one's boat in a gutter was commonplace.

Of course,

For someone like Wu Ming, who was almost entirely uninjured and had slain a Second Blood Forging martial artist head-on purely through the strangeness of his spearwork, that was still exceedingly rare. If Wu Ming had been an old veteran past fifty whose physique could still maintain its peak, then as the saying went, "The staff fears the old veteran"; such an outcome in real combat would not have been strange.

But Wu Ming had not even reached twenty. Facing such a perilous situation tonight, he had remained unruffled at the sight of blood and acted decisively between life and death. He truly was an exceptional hero rarely seen among the young.

Had it not been for Wu Ming tonight, likely none of them would have escaped unscathed!

"Brother Sun, your injuries..."

Wu Ming stood with his spear lowered and looked at Sun Wang, who was covered in blood. He could not help speaking up. Though he had already fought with all his strength, the enemy had outnumbered them. He could only defeat them one by one and could not attend to every side.

"I won't die. It's nothing."

Sun Wang grinned, utterly unconcerned about his injuries. Though he had just survived a brush with death, as a martial artist, this was not the first dangerous situation he had encountered in his life.

Ma Liu was the same. He tore strips from his clothing and hastily wrapped them around his wounds. He paid little heed to his injuries, though when he looked at Wu Ming, astonishment still lingered in his eyes.

Hu Yong looked at the corpses scattered across the ground, his heart churning without end.

Among Second Blood Forging martial artists, his strength was actually considered quite formidable. Against a bandit like Liu Chuan one-on-one, he was confident he could kill him, but he absolutely could not have done so within a few moves.

Earlier, he had only cast a hurried glance at the battle on this side. What he saw was Liu Chuan facing Wu Ming, seemingly intending to use his superior realm to suppress Wu Ming and force a frontal breakthrough. The attempt had failed, however, and a flaw had appeared in his blade technique. He was swiftly defeated, and Wu Ming seized that opening to kill him in a single move.

The advantage of spearwork had certainly played a part, but more importantly, Wu Ming's spearwork was even more elusive and ever-changing than what he had displayed before!