A Ten-Thousand-Man Army Was Being Slaughtered

Four days later.

Deep within a desolate, uninhabited mountain forest, Sax and the other ten spread out in a fan formation and advanced slowly.

Ye Lingyuan walked at the rear with Ji Wushuang.

Ji Wushuang said in a low voice, "So Wolf Bandits live in places like this? It does fit my imagination."

Ye Lingyuan said, "Wolf Bandits have an extremely keen sense of smell. They can detect scents from several hundred meters away. They've probably already discovered our arrival, so prepare for battle."

"Wushuang, you volunteered to take part in this. Your Excellency the Pope instructed me to record everything you do along the way—every performance, whether good or bad."

"You don't want to disappoint Your Excellency the Pope either, do you?"

The corners of Ye Lingyuan's lips lifted slightly as she smiled teasingly.

"Of course."

Ji Wushuang smiled. "I'm counting on this performance to earn Teacher's approval and get her to agree to let me leave Spirit City."

Ye Lingyuan asked in surprise, "You really want to leave Spirit City that badly? You're Your Excellency the Pope's only disciple, and you get to see her every day. That's something countless people would envy."

Ji Wushuang said, "I know, I know. I'm fortunate too, but I still want to go out and see the world. Besides, it's not like I'm leaving Spirit City forever."

"My lady, there are sounds of fighting ahead. There should be a second group here to encircle and suppress the Wolf Bandits," Sax said solemnly.

Ye Lingyuan said calmly, "Pick up the pace."

"Yes!"

A distance of just over a hundred meters was crossed in only a few breaths, and the group arrived at the scene of the battle.

Ji Wushuang looked over, his brows furrowing. "So these are Wolf Bandits! They really are vicious!"

Before them, more than a dozen wolfmen clad in human armor and clothing had surrounded several dozen fully armed human soldiers.

Corpses littered the area, with severed limbs scattered everywhere—and all of them belonged to human soldiers.

The blood made this barren forest even more eerie and terrifying.

Ji Wushuang asked, "Aunt Ye, are these soldiers from the Star Luo Empire or the Heaven Dou Empire?"

"Heaven Dou," Ye Lingyuan said. "Wushuang, whether you can win Your Excellency the Pope's approval to leave Spirit City depends on your performance this time. You can make your move now."

"Alright!" Ji Wushuang waved his hand, and the Peerless Sword Casket appeared along with four Spirit Rings. His first and second Spirit Rings lit up in succession.

The Heaven Dou Soldiers all turned their attention to Ji Wushuang.

The dozen or so Wolf Bandits twitched their noses. Their cold eyes, filled with bloodthirsty light, settled on Ji Wushuang and Ye Lingyuan. Their savage mouths split open, revealing sharp fangs that reeked of blood.

"Awroo—"

"Aunt Ye, these beasts seem to be staring at you!" Multicolored streams of light gathered in Ji Wushuang's palm as the Peerless Sword Casket slowly opened.

Ye Lingyuan said blandly, "Perhaps they want to capture me and bring me back to breed little wolfmen. After all, I'm not exactly ugly."

Ji Wushuang broke out in a cold sweat.

He had not expected Ye Lingyuan's words to be this wild as well.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

With a wave of Ji Wushuang's hand, streaks of sword light shot into the sky. Sword qi crisscrossed as they rushed toward the Wolf Bandits ahead.

The lightning power surrounding the blades resonated with one another, flashing continuously and making the flying swords even swifter. Combined with Wind Control Swordplay, the flying swords reached the Wolf Bandits in the blink of an eye.

Splat—

A flash of cold light arrived first, followed by swords emerging like dragons.

In just one breath, ten flying swords severed the heads of ten Wolf Bandits.

Smiles still hung on their faces.

Only when their vision spun and darkness fell before their eyes did their brains finally send out the signal that they were dead.

Thud!

One Wolf Bandit corpse after another collapsed.

Every strike from the flying swords claimed the life of a Wolf Bandit.

In the blink of an eye, the dozen or so Wolf Bandits that had been so menacing moments ago had been separated from their heads.

"These Wolf Bandits got off too easily," Ji Wushuang said coldly.

Only after the power of lightning completely erased the blood from the ten flying swords did they return to their sheaths.

Ye Lingyuan smiled and asked, "Don't tell me you wanted to capture these Wolf Bandits and torture them first?"

Ji Wushuang nodded. "That thought did cross my mind."

Ye Lingyuan reminded him, "They are Spirit Beasts too. When driven into a corner, they can self-destruct. Be careful not to lose more than you gain and bring trouble upon yourself."

"Thank you for saving our lives, my lady." One of the Heaven Dou Soldiers stepped forward and spoke respectfully.

Ye Lingyuan asked, "How did you end up with only this many people left? Where are the others? How many of you were there in total?"

The soldier said, "Reporting to you, my lady, ten thousand of us came this time. Now, only a few dozen remain. Everyone else has already... been killed by the Wolf Bandits..."

Ye Lingyuan said calmly, "You're quite lucky to have held out until we arrived. It's better to leave professional matters to professionals. When ordinary people encounter an exceptionally intelligent Spirit Beast, they're simply courting death."

"We're taking over here. Withdraw."

Hearing this, the Heaven Dou Soldiers said unwillingly, "Lord Soul Master, could you let us stay as well? We want the reward!"

Ye Lingyuan said, "Stay if you're not afraid of dying. Wushuang, let's go."

Ji Wushuang slung the Peerless Sword Casket onto his back and followed.

The Heaven Dou Soldiers said, "My lord, the Wolf Bandits' lair is in the underground cavern ahead. The terrain is extremely complicated. We were ambushed as soon as we arrived and suffered heavy losses. Our numerical advantage was completely useless."

Ye Lingyuan said, "Thank you for the information."

Then she and Ji Wushuang quickened their pace.

Sax left with the only Healing Spirit Master in the team, while the remaining nine split into groups of three and swept off in the other three directions.

At the entrance to a cavern, Ye Lingyuan asked, "Wushuang, did you find anything?"

Ji Wushuang said, "This cavern is huge. The Wolf Bandits' scent is everywhere."

"Cloud Shuttle!"

Ji Wushuang flicked his sleeve, and the Peerless Sword Casket opened on its own. Cloud Shuttle shot from its sheath and stabbed toward the upper rear.

Bang!

A Wolf Bandit corpse fell from above and behind Ji Wushuang. The dull sound was especially piercing within the cavern.

The Wolf Bandit's head rolled to Ji Wushuang's feet.

"The smell of blood here will soon draw the other Wolf Bandits over." Ye Lingyuan crossed her arms beneath her full breasts, a teasing, amused expression on her pretty face.

Ji Wushuang asked, "Aunt Ye, do you want to see me skewer some gourds?"

Ye Lingyuan raised a delicate brow. "Skewer gourds?"

"Awoo—" Waves of wolf howls echoed through the maze-like cavern. Urgent footsteps drew closer and closer, accompanied by repeated roars.

Ye Lingyuan said, "Wushuang, I'll leave it to you."

Ji Wushuang said, "Before my Peerless Sword Casket, without strength, no matter how many there are, they're only coming here to die."

Bang!

The Peerless Sword Casket slammed heavily onto the ground with a dull thud.

Click, click, click—

The sword casket slowly opened, and ten flying swords stirred restlessly, ready to launch at any moment.

"Wind without sound, qi like still water. Light without shadow, swift swords without trace!"

"Third Spirit Skill, Instant!"

The instant the first Wolf Bandit emerged from the cavern, a flying sword that had somehow already left its sheath severed its head.

"What a fast sword! An excellent spirit skill!" Ye Lingyuan praised.

At that very moment—

Wolf Bandit after Wolf Bandit charged continuously out of the cavern.

Ye Lingyuan said, "Wushuang, retreat to the surface first. The terrain here isn't favorable for you."

The exit was right behind them.

There was no need to trap themselves inside and put themselves at a disadvantage because of the terrain.

Ji Wushuang nodded.

In this narrow cavern, which only allowed two people to walk side by side, he truly could not fight effectively. Before he killed many Wolf Bandits, the cavern would be blocked by their corpses.

The moment he left the cavern, Ji Wushuang discovered that the forest around him was already in complete chaos. Wolf Bandit howls and the thunderous blasts of spirit skills echoed through the woods.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

Ten flying swords circled around Ji Wushuang. Traces of lightning flickered around them, merging with sword qi and revealing their razor-sharp edge.

Roar, roar, roar—

Towering, powerfully built Wolf Bandits rushed out of the cavern one after another. There were more than a hundred of them. Their cold, bloodthirsty auras gathered together, making one's heart tremble, while their sinister gazes fell upon Ji Wushuang and Ye Lingyuan.

At this moment, the wolf pack parted down the middle, opening a path. An even larger Wolf Bandit approached with heavy steps, its aura even more terrifying.

"Wushuang, are you nervous?" Ye Lingyuan asked with a smile.

"A little." Feeling the aura emitted by the largest Wolf Bandit, Ji Wushuang smiled. "Aunt Ye, if I kill them, that counts as saving a lot of people, right?"

Ye Lingyuan nodded with a smile. "It does."

"Cloud Shuttle, Light Frost!" Ji Wushuang waved his hand.

The two flying swords surged with the power of wind and lightning, their sharp sword light shooting directly at the Wolf Bandit Leader.

Ye Lingyuan smiled. "This Wolf Bandit is at the Ten Thousand Year Level. It should be the leader of this group. The power of only two flying swords probably won't be enough!"

Clang! The Wolf Bandit Leader swept both arms out, its sharp claws instantly knocking the two flying swords back. Disdain appeared on its savage face as it threw back its head and let out a long howl.

Receiving its command, the hundred-odd Wolf Bandits around them howled in unison and attacked Ji Wushuang from every direction.