Laughter

The assassin seemed to have planned this in advance. As he twisted his body to block the sword, his movements didn't pause at all. His hands shot out like ape's limbs, attempting to grapple Elder Yue's body.

Elder Yue reacted just as quickly. Seeing the situation turn dire, he immediately let go of the sword hilt and rapidly retreated.

Screech!

The assassin tore off two pieces of cloth, failing to grab Elder Yue. He settled for the next best thing, tightly gripping Elder Yue's arm.

Just then, the leaves rustled, and three more dark figures leaped down. Their movements were like specters as they went straight for Princess Dongyang.

Elder Yue's expression changed drastically. In his haste, he swung his palm towards the assassin's head. The assassin had already resolved to die and didn't dodge. His legs tightly wrapped around Elder Yue's leg. After just a few struggles, Elder Yue struck the assassin's head with his palm.

Red and white splattered out. Although the assassin was dead, his hands and feet were still clamped tightly onto Elder Yue.

The surroundings had already descended into chaos.

As soon as Bai Jianglan made a move, he was attacked by two suicidal assassins. Their fighting style was a life-for-life exchange. Even someone as powerful as Bai Jianglan had to deal with them carefully.

Of the remaining five guards, two were pierced through the chest by crossbow bolts shot from the shadows and fell to the ground, dead. The other three were alert. After dodging the hidden arrows, they backed into each other, barely holding their ground and fending off the assassins' attacks.

At this moment, Elder Yue, who was closest to the Princess, was restrained by an assassin, and Princess Dongyang had only just managed to sit up from the ground.

Elder Yue dragged the assassin's corpse, his movements clumsy. He only had time to charge towards the nearest assassin, shouting loudly, "Quick, save the Princess!"

Qin Sang was actually the fastest to react, but this was his first time experiencing such a dangerous melee. He was also afraid of Yanwang's peculiar killing methods and revealing his secrets in front of everyone, so he hesitated.

He hadn't expected that his brief hesitation would lead to the situation deteriorating to this extent in an instant.

Qin Sang grabbed the ironwood staff. He vaguely heard a faint sound behind his head, then felt a gust of wind attacking from above. He quickly rolled on the ground.

Thud!

A crossbow bolt shot into the ground where Qin Sang had just been.

Then, a dark figure swooped down from the treetops like a roc, a cold glint of sword light cutting through the gloom.

Qin Sang quickly rolled again to dodge the sword. Just as he was about to call out Yanwang, he heard the Water Monkey shout, "Brother Qin, hold him off! I'll go save the Princess!"

Qin Sang, with no other choice, swung his staff and clashed head-on with the assassin. In the midst of the chaos, he glanced back.

Bai Jianglan traded injury for injury, killing one assassin. Covered in blood, he was like a trailing tail, arriving by the Princess's side at the last moment and blocking one attacker.

The Water Monkey also arrived in time and intercepted another.

The situation had stabilized somewhat. Once Elder Yue broke free, the battle would be decided, and there would be no need to rush Yanwang to kill.

Unexpectedly, the moment this thought crossed Qin Sang's mind, and he was preparing to deal with the assassin slowly, he suddenly heard a faint sound. The sound was so soft it was almost inaudible, but it was unusual. His hearing was sharp, and even amidst the chaotic battle, he could still distinguish it.

"This is..."

Qin Sang's heart stirred. He suddenly remembered it was the sound of a bowstring!

Qin Sang quickly scanned his surroundings and noticed something unusual about the shadows behind Princess Dongyang. Then, he saw a faint, ethereal light shoot out from the shadows.

It wasn't a crossbow bolt, but a needle as thin as an embroidery needle, a hidden weapon that gleamed with a faint blue light, clearly coated with potent poison.

"Princess, be careful!"

Qin Sang shouted, but Princess Dongyang remained rooted to the spot, not daring to move. Elder Yue and Bai Jianglan were too far away to turn back. Qin Sang, without time to think, put all his strength into smashing the ironwood staff he held.

With this strike, Qin Sang employed his skill for hitting birds. The staff flew almost brushing past Princess Dongyang, hitting the poisoned needle in time and sending it flying away.

As he raised his hand, Qin Sang triggered the mechanism for his sleeve dart towards that shadowed area.

The crossbow bolt shot into the shadows. A muffled thud came from within, and then silence.

Princess Dongyang finally reacted. She looked up at Qin Sang, a flicker of alarm on her face, but she quickly calmed down. Then, she smiled at Qin Sang.

"Commander Bai, let's finish this quickly!"

Elder Yue, having broken out in a cold sweat from the previous incident, dared not delay any longer. He took a sword strike to his body as the price, and then killed the assassin with his palm.

The assassination plot was shattered by Qin Sang's single strike. In an instant, all the assassins became incredibly frenzied.

Qin Sang met the sharp sword with his bare fist. After a few exchanges, he felt the strain. He quickly found an opportunity to have Yanwang kill the assassin. The moment the assassin's body stiffened, his fingers moved like lightning, crushing the assassin's throat to cover his tracks.

His timing was precise, with almost no flaws.

This was the first time Qin Sang had killed someone with the Yanluo Banner in front of others, and it went perfectly, just as he had envisioned.

As a faint smile appeared on Qin Sang's face, he suddenly heard a few screams. His heart skipped a beat. It was the Water Monkey!

Swish!

A severed arm flew into the air. The Water Monkey's left arm was empty, and his face was deathly pale.

Elder Yue snatched a sword, swung it to cut off the dangling burden from his body, and used his Eight Steps to Chase the Cicada technique to dash to the Water Monkey's side, finishing off the assassin with a single sword strike.

When everything settled, only one of the five guards remained alive. The Water Monkey had lost an arm. Bai Jianglan pressed several acupoints on the severed limb with his fingers, sealing the blood vessels with his True Qi to staunch the bleeding.

Elder Yue had been stabbed in the left shoulder. Unable to tend to it, he quickly searched the surroundings and then checked if Princess Dongyang was injured.

Princess Dongyang shook her head, indicating she was unharmed. She personally walked to the side, picked up the ironwood staff, and handed it back to Qin Sang, saying, "Thank you, Young Master Qin, for batting away that poisoned needle and saving my life."

Qin Sang replied humbly, "You flatter me, Princess. I only did a small deed. This time, it was all thanks to Commander Bai, Elder Yue, Zhou Ning, and the guards who fought desperately to kill the assassins, which gave me the opportunity to throw that staff."

Princess Dongyang nodded and turned to Elder Yue, saying, "Elder Yue, please tend to your injuries and then bury the guards. Since they died for me, they cannot be left to the elements. When we return to Dongyang Commandery, I will have people bring their bodies back for a proper burial."

Elder Yue accepted the order and left.

Qin Sang crouched beside Zhou Ning, watching Bai Jianglan busy himself. He wondered if this world had surgery for reattaching severed limbs, and even if it could be reattached, he doubted it would fully recover.

For martial artists, it was undoubtedly cruel.

Qin Sang looked at the Water Monkey's pale face, unsure how to comfort him. He took out the Healing Ointment prepared by the old Daoist from his embrace and handed it to Bai Jianglan. "Brother Bai, try this. The prescription was passed down by a former imperial physician."

Bai Jianglan opened the cap and sniffed. He took out some of the ointment and applied it to the Water Monkey's severed arm. The constant bleeding gradually stopped.

Bai Jianglan's eyes lit up. "Good medicine!"

The Water Monkey gritted his teeth and managed to utter a few words, "Thank you, Brother Qin!"

What a tough guy!

Qin Sang praised him inwardly. The Water Monkey was usually lively and chattered incessantly, so Qin Sang hadn't expected him to be so resilient. Despite such a severe injury, there wasn't a trace of despair on his face, and he remained silent while Bai Jianglan treated his wound.

"Brother Zhou, I'm still waiting to eat the nine-whiskered fish you caught!"

The Water Monkey laughed heartily.