Giving and Receiving

Two agile figures slipped through the dense, leafy forest, silently approaching an open area ahead. Once they concealed themselves within the brush, they peered through gaps in the grass and clearly saw the battle raging a hundred meters away.

One man and two women.

The man was exceptionally handsome, while the women were delicate and beautiful.

All three were already covered in wounds, surrounded and attacked by more than a dozen black-clad figures dressed alike. Their situation was fraught with peril; at any moment, they could suffer fatal injuries and be killed.

"Is that him?"

Medicine Slave muttered, a trace of regret appearing on his face.

Ye Tong's hearing was sharp enough to catch Medicine Slave's murmur. Lowering his voice, he asked, "Who do you know?"

Medicine Slave smiled meaningfully. "That Purple Robe Youth. Several years ago, I followed Master out once and met him briefly. He is the Second Son of the Zifu County King, hailed as Zifu County's most outstanding cultivation genius—Mu Xiaochen. A few years ago, when he was only eighteen, he broke through into the Innate Realm. Compared with that monstrous princess of the Sky Net Empire, he was only half a year behind."

Mu Xiaochen?

The Second Son of the Zifu County King?

A sharp gleam flashed through Ye Tong's eyes, and a smile spread across his lips. He disliked spoiled young masters, but he did not dislike elite geniuses. Especially the son of the Zifu County King—if he could befriend him, then in Zifu County in the future, he ought to be able to swagger about as he pleased and slap the faces of anyone he disliked, right?

"Cough, cough..."

"I can't swagger about as I please. That's the behavior of a spoiled dandy."

Ye Tong gave a dry laugh and grumbled inwardly, then looked through the gaps in the branches and leaves again toward the battle ahead.

The best way to make friends was to offer charcoal in snowy weather—to save someone amid danger. After all, the grace of saving a life was greater than heaven. But Mu Xiaochen knew Medicine Slave. Even if they saved his life, even if he knew it was Ye Tong's decision, he would likely still place most of his gratitude upon Poison Demon Huo Lanqiu.

Saving someone and making friends—hmm, that was a technical skill too.

Ye Tong chewed over those three words, then patted Medicine Slave on the shoulder. He casually plucked a blade of grass, tucked it between his lips, and walked out from the brush, stopping not far from the battlefield.

Though Medicine Slave did not wish to reveal himself, he could not alter his young master's decision. He could only lean on his Dragon Head Cane and, looking like an old man at the end of his candle, slowly follow at Ye Tong's side.

Mu Xiaochen was trapped in dire straits, and his injuries were worsening by the moment. It made his heart feel as though it had fallen into an icy abyss.

Despair!

It gradually filled his inner heart.

Yet he could not bear the thought that his two confidantes might die here alongside him. At the same time, his hatred for the assassins of the Left Camp deepened further.

The appearance of Ye Tong and Medicine Slave made everyone present change expression slightly, especially the sole black-clad brawny man who had not yet acted. His swordlike brows rose, and a cold glint flickered in his eyes.

For this interception and assassination.

They had conducted countless deliberations before ultimately choosing the uninhabited Tenth Mountain. Yet these two people who had suddenly appeared lay beyond all their prior calculations.

"Is that him?"

Mu Xiaochen, who was being besieged, recognized Medicine Slave after seeing the newcomers. Though he did not know Ye Tong, during their encounter years ago, he had paid particular attention to Poison Demon Huo Lanqiu—and even to the old servant beside Huo Lanqiu.

At this moment.

Mu Xiaochen saw a glimmer of hope.

With a blade of grass between his lips, Ye Tong folded his arms and said with a grin, "Coming to this deep mountain forest, I thought I'd be bored to death. Who would've thought it'd be so lively here? Tsk, tsk. So many people surrounding and killing three people, yet you still need to waste so much time. You really are unbelievably stupid."

Mu Xiaochen repelled the black-clad assassin before him and shouted, "Are you two people from Senior Huo Lanqiu's side? I am Mu Xiaochen, son of the Zifu County King. I have met Senior Huo and Senior Medicine Slave before. Does Senior Medicine Slave still remember me?"

Medicine Slave watched his nose, his nose watched his heart, and remained silent, pretending not to have heard.

Mu Xiaochen's expression shifted slightly. Gritting his teeth, he said again, "Senior Medicine Slave, please save us. Once this crisis is resolved, I will surely reward you generously."

Medicine Slave remained silent.

Ye Tong grew interested. Spitting out the blade of grass, he asked with a grin, "I like the words 'generous reward.' Of course! A drop of kindness should be repaid by a gushing spring; there's nothing wrong with that. But what I'm curious about is just how 'generous' your generous reward will be."

Mu Xiaochen could not discern Ye Tong's identity, but being exceptionally intelligent, he still realized that Medicine Slave seemed to take this youth's lead. At once, he shouted, "What do you need?"

What did he need?

Ye Tong secretly laughed. Taking out a Silver Crystal from his robes, he played with it briefly in his hand before deliberately loosening his grip and letting it fall to the ground. Instantly, Ye Tong seemed to transform into a dramatic actor. He squatted down in exaggerated alarm and cried out in distress, "Oh, oh, oh! This young master only has one Silver Crystal left. How could I let it fall to the ground? I..."

"Ten Silver Crystals."

Mu Xiaochen's eyes lit up. Thrilled that he had seen through Ye Tong's thoughts, he made the promise loudly.

"Yeah..."

Ye Tong's heart burned with excitement. He immediately made a gesture, preparing to have Medicine Slave save them.

Mu Xiaochen did not understand what Ye Tong's strange cry meant, but upon seeing his gesture, he said decisively, "Twenty Silver Crystals, then! We can't hold on any longer. Hurry and help!"

Twenty?

Ye Tong's expression froze, and he blinked several times.

Then, his gaze shifted to the fingers he had raised. That gesture... meant "yeah," but it also seemed to mean "two"! Ye Tong finally understood and did not know whether to laugh or cry. Still, this accidental misunderstanding would earn him ten more Silver Crystals. Naturally, that was something he could only wish for.

"Medicine Slave, save them."

The sole black-clad brawny man who had not acted swayed his feet, and his figure was already blocking Ye Tong and Medicine Slave. Like an unsheathed sword, he radiated a sharp, fierce aura as he said coldly, "The Left Camp is conducting business. Are you two truly going to interfere?"

The Left Camp?

Medicine Slave's expression changed slightly. As his hunched body gradually straightened, a surging aura erupted from him. Ye Tong might not understand the Left Camp, but he understood it perfectly well, because he... had once been a ruthless figure who walked out from that mountain of corpses and sea of blood known as the Left Camp.

The Dragon Head Cane rose, his thumb touching a slightly protruding button.

Six willow-leaf throwing knives appeared in Medicine Slave's left hand. The edges of every blade glimmered with a faint blue sheen—the mark of potent poison.

"Kill!"

The black-clad brawny man erupted into motion, layer upon layer of Saber Light attempting to envelop Medicine Slave.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Three willow-leaf throwing knives shot out in a triangular formation. Though they were blocked by the black-clad brawny man's long saber, they shattered his attack as well.

"Still as a maiden, swift as a fleeing rabbit."

That saying was displayed to perfection in Medicine Slave. When he did not move, he resembled an elderly man in his twilight years, a candle flickering in the wind, decrepit and aged. But once he moved, he instantly became sharp and formidable, nimble and keen.

The black-clad brawny man was at the Xiantian Fourth Level, one level higher than Medicine Slave. The two immediately fought in a tangled melee, and under Medicine Slave's guidance, they gradually drew closer to Mu Xiaochen's position.

"Slash..."

Medicine Slave pressed down with his thumb, and a half-foot-long spike shot from the bottom of the Dragon Head Cane. This sudden killing move sliced open the black-clad brawny man's cheek. As the man's pupils contracted and his body retreated violently, Medicine Slave pounced into the group like a tiger entering a flock of sheep. The remaining three willow-leaf throwing knives struck three black-clad assassins besieging Mu Xiaochen, while the Dragon Head Cane left streaks of afterimages and pierced through the vital points of three others.

Making a feint in the east and attacking in the west—the effect was immediate.

Standing at a distance, Ye Tong silently applauded Medicine Slave's tactics. When he had fought the two Sabertooth Wolves before, his tactics had included this very approach. After tossing out a porcelain bottle, he gave it a light kick with the tip of his foot, sending it flying more than ten meters away.

"Two quarters of an hour remain."

Watching the black-clad brawny man charge toward Medicine Slave again in a mix of rage and alarm, Ye Tong muttered softly.

Poison!

A terrifyingly potent poison!

This was the most virulent poison Ye Tong had personally concocted. Colorless and odorless, it dispersed upon the wind. According to the formula, even an Innate Realm expert would die from poisoning if he inhaled too much of it.

However.

He did not want to place all his hopes on poison. Pretending casually, he reached into his robes and summoned the Book of Life and Death. Flipping to the black page, he poured in True Essence, and more than a dozen names emerged on the page.

Ye Tong had studied the Book of Life and Death. He discovered that as long as he infused it with True Essence, it could display the names of people nearby. Of course, the range only extended around ten meters; any farther than that would not work.

"Um Bato!"

After observing for a moment, Ye Tong locked onto that name.

After a hundred years of research, he had already learned that the darker the writing of a name in the Book of Life and Death, the stronger that person was. He only needed to use qi to rewrite the name, then infuse it with vital energy, and he could draw away the other party's vital energy. That black-clad brawny man possessed the strongest cultivation among the dozen or so assassins, so Ye Tong could determine his identity.

Observe!

Seek an opportunity!

Ye Tong needed to wait until Medicine Slave and Um Bato had reached a critical point in their battle, then inflict a wound by catching him unprepared. Even if he could not kill him, he could still greatly affect him.

When powerful experts fought, the slightest error could result in death and the dissipation of one's path.

With three black-clad assassins dead, the pressure on Mu Xiaochen's group of three decreased sharply. Though they were covered in wounds, they could temporarily protect themselves while fighting with all their strength. The battle between Medicine Slave and Um Bato also intensified. In just a few minutes, Medicine Slave became bloodstained and covered in injuries. Though Um Bato's cultivation was slightly stronger, Medicine Slave had endured countless battles and possessed extremely rich combat experience, leaving Um Bato with no light injuries either.

"Hah..."

Medicine Slave soared into the air, and the Dragon Head Cane became hazy and impossible to track. Layer upon layer of images surged toward Um Bato like a rising tide. He had already used every ounce of strength, even unleashing his final trump card—his most powerful move.

When powerful opponents met, the braver one prevailed.

As Um Bato fought Medicine Slave, he was shocked to discover that some of Medicine Slave's killing techniques were nearly identical to those he had learned in the Left Camp. Though this baffled him, with the battle having reached this point, he too unleashed his strongest move. Saber shadows swept forth with a howling roar.

"This is the moment."

Ye Tong's eyes barely managed to lock onto the two men, and at last, he found an opportunity. Without the slightest hesitation, he rapidly poured True Essence into the Book of Life and Death and quickly wrote the name "Um Bato."