The two squads had already discussed how to divide the spoils while pursuing their targets. Now, as they chased them into the cave, each left half their members outside—not only to guard against the other squad, but also to keep anyone from trapping them inside.
But they never got the good news they'd hoped for from the teammates who had entered the cave. All they heard were screams, one after another. Before long, Lu Xiaotian shot out from inside. The few people at the entrance had already retreated some distance when they heard the screams. When Lu Xiaotian burst out like a bolt of lightning, he managed to kill only one of them. The other three saw that the situation was dire and fled in panic for their lives.
During the pursuit, Lu Xiaotian killed another one. The two who remained realized they were no match for him, and by then it was too late to scatter and escape. Before long, Lu Xiaotian caught up with them and killed them both.
Similar incidents had occurred several times on Lu Xiaotian's way out of the Dark Demon Mound. After all, the road could hardly be smooth sailing. Once, his group included several people who were exceptionally good at escaping. After seeing Lu Xiaotian in action, they fled, forcing him to track them back and forth over tens of thousands of miles. In the end, he killed an old woman with white hair with a single sweep of his halberd. As he collected her Sumeru Ring, Lu Xiaotian let out a surprised exclamation. Several hundred zhang away, he saw a scene of utter devastation: spirit trees lay toppled all around, and the mountainside was scored with a chaotic mess of sword marks. Faint traces of blood and scraps of clothing remained on