A Splendid Battle

Battle intent!

Like oil poured onto a fire, it blazed fiercely within his chest.

Facing two Sabertooth Wolves, Ye Tong had no mind to care about Medicine Slave's astonishment. The edge of a treasured sword emerged from grinding; he needed a whetstone to improve his combat experience.

"Step back."

Ye Tong slowly raised his saber.

Medicine Slave's expression changed. He had never seen Ye Tong engage in combat before, and now he faced two Level One Fierce Beasts. Courage could increase one's explosive strength in battle, but blindly persisting could also cost one's life. He understood Ye Tong's temperament. Since Ye Tong had decided to act, a fierce battle was inevitable.

Persuading someone required skill as well.

In order to reduce the danger as much as possible, Medicine Slave tactfully said, "Young Master, how about this old servant kills one Sabertooth Wolf and leaves the other for you to practice with?"

"Step back."

Ye Tong said it again.

Medicine Slave felt helpless inside. He could only retreat five or six meters and prepare to intervene.

Ye Tong knew Medicine Slave cared about his safety, but he truly did not wish to waste such a fine opportunity for real combat. As his toes touched the ground, the yuan energy that had mostly recovered within his meridians began to circulate, and he pounced toward the two Sabertooth Wolves.

Saber shadows rolled like overlapping waves, climbing another hundred feet atop a hundred-foot pole.

The instant Ye Tong lunged before the Sabertooth Wolves, the union of speed and strength was perfectly displayed before them. The Sabertooth Wolf he had locked onto contained brutality beneath its calmness. As it twisted aside to evade, it showed no sign of retreating. Instead, it moved half a meter closer to Ye Tong, its left foreclaw about to slash across his lower ribs.

However.

Ye Tong flipped and leaped up in an instant. As his toes stepped onto the side of that Sabertooth Wolf's back, the saber in his hand cleaved toward the other Sabertooth Wolf that had pounced before him.

Blood sprayed in all directions.

A miserable howl shook the heavens.

In what seemed like the blink of an eye, one of the Sabertooth Wolf's legs had been severed, and a bloody wound more than ten centimeters long had been torn open along its flank.

"This..."

Medicine Slave's body trembled as disbelief burst from his eyes. In that fleeting exchange, Ye Tong's tactics and sharp instincts in battle had stunned him. Logically speaking, even one Sabertooth Wolf should have placed enormous pressure on Ye Tong, yet two Sabertooth Wolves surrounding him had produced such a battle situation...

"Unthinkable..."

Medicine Slave muttered to himself, but the unfinished words caught in his throat.

He watched helplessly as, after heavily injuring one Sabertooth Wolf in an instant, Ye Tong not only failed to take the opportunity to retreat and gain a moment to catch his breath, but instead clung to the severely wounded Sabertooth Wolf like a shadow. Streak after streak of Saber Light forced the wolf to howl and dodge, while continuously obstructing the other Sabertooth Wolf's attacks.

"This footwork..."

Medicine Slave had not noticed at first, but as Ye Tong moved continuously around the Sabertooth Wolf, he sharply caught on to it. Ye Tong's footwork was very strange. It looked like the fleeting movement of a startled swan, yet it contained something peculiar, always allowing him to stay one step ahead of the other Sabertooth Wolf.

"Its foreclaw has been severed, and blood is pouring out. Young Master is wearing down the injured Sabertooth Wolf's fighting strength, then taking the opportunity to kill it before facing the other Sabertooth Wolf head-on, isn't he?" Medicine Slave naturally saw through Ye Tong's tactics, and admiration gradually appeared in his eyes.

However.

That admiration remained on his face for merely seven or eight seconds before it froze completely.

When the other Sabertooth Wolf pounced again, Ye Tong did not evade. Instead, he sank his knees and leaned forward. At the moment the leaping wolf could no longer halt, he thrust up with the tip of his saber.

What did it mean to split open a belly and disembowel it?

The saber tip pierced through the Sabertooth Wolf's abdomen. As the wolf charged forward on its own momentum, it tore open a half-meter-long gash. Blood splashed everywhere, and even its internal organs spilled all over the ground.

"Bang..."

The sound of the Sabertooth Wolf crashing to the ground boomed within Medicine Slave's heart like exploding thunder.

"Awoo..."

The Sabertooth Wolf with the severed foreleg endured the enormous pain. When it discovered that its companion had been killed, panic finally appeared in its eyes, and it decisively fled in one direction. However, having lost a leg, its speed was severely affected. Facing Ye Tong's pursuit without the slightest trace of dragging his feet, it could only turn and fight in fury.

"Pfft..."

"Pfft, pfft..."

Bloody wounds continuously appeared on the Sabertooth Wolf's body. The pain drove it mad. Though it howled desperately, it could do nothing to Ye Tong. Finally, as a streak of Saber Light swept across its neck, blood sprayed out. Its artery was severed, and it toppled headfirst forward.

The battle was over.

Ye Tong retreated several steps and shook his blood-covered hands. Under Medicine Slave's dumbfounded gaze, he walked to the lakeshore and jumped into the clear water. He did not have a cleanliness obsession, but he did not like the sticky sensation of being covered in blood.

"That's it?"

Medicine Slave looked at the final Sabertooth Wolf twitching on the ground as it gradually lost its breath, then slowly shifted his gaze to the corpse that had been split open and disemboweled. Though he had seen much in his life, this splendid battle that had lasted barely half a minute still stunned him. If someone else had easily killed two Sabertooth Wolves, his heart might not have stirred in the slightest. But the person who had killed two Sabertooth Wolves in such a short time was Young Master Ye Tong!

Putting himself in Ye Tong's place.

If Medicine Slave had encountered these two Sabertooth Wolves when he was at Ye Tong's cultivation level, even if he could fight them and ultimately kill them, he likely would have paid a painful price.

But.

At this moment, Ye Tong seemed not to have suffered even the slightest scrape on his skin?

After a long while.

Ye Tong washed himself clean, took out a bundle from the basket Medicine Slave carried on his back, and changed into a clean set of clothes. Only then did he look at the two Sabertooth Wolf corpses, shake his head, and sigh. "It seems I brought too few clothes into the Golden Phoenix Mountain Range."

"What?"

Medicine Slave felt somewhat muddled. Shouldn't Young Master be sighing in satisfaction over how formidable he was right now? Why was he regretting bringing too few clothes instead? He truly could not keep up with that wildly jumping train of thought! With a bitter smile, Medicine Slave quickly washed Ye Tong's dirty clothes, hung them on branches by the lakeside to dry, and then went to Ye Tong's side as Ye Tong dissected the Sabertooth Wolf corpses.

"Young Master..."

Medicine Slave hesitated to speak.

Ye Tong said, "Ask."

Medicine Slave asked, "Since you were brought to the Precious Medicine Workshop at the age of six, you have barely left, have you? We have spent ten years together, and I have never seen you fight anyone. Yet when you fought the Sabertooth Wolves, the exquisite footwork you used and your superb practical combat methods left me in awe. This old servant does not understand!"

Naturally, Ye Tong would not speak of how another version of himself had experienced countless killings. He had already prepared his wording, so he said, "During the year that old bastard disappeared, I lingered near the arena many times and witnessed life-and-death struggles between cultivators. In truth, I also had several experiences fighting others."

"Did you?"

Medicine Slave asked in astonishment.

Ye Tong said, "The two most recent times were these: yesterday, to help Yin Xiaojiu, I fought Butcher Zhang in the arena and won by luck; then recently at Ten Mile Pavilion, I severed one of Tong Kaishan's arms and heavily injured the Tong Family's four household servants."

Medicine Slave suddenly recalled what he had seen and heard at Ten Mile Pavilion yesterday, and he suddenly remembered something else as well: Tong Kaishan's cultivation level seemed to be Qi Refining Sixth Level.

Young Master...

He was only at Qi Refining Third Level. How could he possibly sever one of Tong Kaishan's arms? How could he make the other man flee in such a sorry state that he did not even care whether his four household servants lived or died?

Several hundred meters away.

Jagged rocks rose everywhere, and weeds grew thick.

Four figures hid among them, watching the battle by the lakeshore clearly through gaps in the rocks. Though Ye Tong had won beautifully, the four still held some disdain. After all, even Yasen, the weakest among them, possessed Qi Refining Fourth Level cultivation. As for Calon, he was a Qi Refining Seventh Level expert.

As for Medicine Slave, who had never acted and seemed frightened stiff by the battle, the four automatically ignored him.

"Big Brother, when do we make our move?" Thinking of the blue silver notes on Ye Tong, Yasen's heart burned hot. He licked his lips greedily.

After pondering for a moment, Calon calmly said, "Since we have figured out their strength, there is no need to waste more time. Kill them, take the silver notes and the Sabertooth Wolf corpses. Once we return to Cold Mountain City, I'll take you to Piaoxiang Tower to have some fun."

"Alright."

The other three men's eyes suddenly lit up.

Half a quarter-hour later.

The four appeared before Ye Tong and Medicine Slave with ill intent. Calon, who led them, looked at Ye Tong's cold face and gave a strange laugh. "That battle just now was truly exquisite beyond compare! Little brother, at such a young age, you could kill two Sabertooth Wolves at once. Not bad."

"Say what you came to say." Sensing their ill intent, Ye Tong spoke with a cold expression.

"You..."

Yasen, with his sharp mouth and monkey-like cheeks, had not expected Ye Tong to react like this. Did Ye Tong not know fear?

Ye Tong spoke again, cutting him off. "If you have something to say, spit it out. If you have to fart, let it out."

"You're looking for—"

Yasen was cut off again, but this time Calon stopped him. The feeling of having words stuck in his throat frustrated him so much he nearly coughed up blood.

Calon narrowed his eyes and stared at Ye Tong. "Very simple. Hand over the blue silver on you, along with everything valuable, and I can guarantee that I'll spare your lives. After all, taking wealth without lifting a finger is always easier than drawing blades and swords for a killing spree."

Rob my money?

Ye Tong looked at the group with a trace of pity in his eyes. If he had been alone now, he truly would have handed over all his money. After all, even with the Book of Life and Death in hand, he was no match for these people.

But Medicine Slave was beside him now!

Who had given them the courage to brazenly rob a cultivator at the Innate Triple Stage of his wealth?

Suddenly.

Ye Tong seemed to think of something. A half-smiling expression appeared on his handsome face as he examined the four men and asked, "Before we hand over all our money, could you answer one question for me?"

Calon raised an eyebrow. "What question?"

Ye Tong asked, "I want to know the cultivation levels of all four of you. After all, if someone weaker than me robbed me of all my money, that would be a very shameful thing."

"Hahaha..."

Calon burst into loud laughter, his gaze toward Ye Tong filled with contempt.

Taking advantage of the chance, Yasen finally seized the right to speak. With a hint of pride, he said, "I'll fulfill your little wish. My big brother is a Qi Refining Seventh Level expert, once undefeated beneath heaven. These two brothers of mine are also Qi Refining Fifth Level experts. Crushing you would be as easy as butchering pigs and dogs. As for me, though I'm only at Qi Refining Fourth Level, I can still suppress you. Well? Scared now?"

"Scared..."

Ye Tong nodded heavily. "I'm very scared!"