Xiao Yi Xian

In the Magical Beast Mountain Range, Li Xingluo lowered his head in contemplation. Of all the things he could have transmigrated into, he had to end up as a mercenary in the Wolf Head Mercenary Group.

Thinking of how the Wolf Head Mercenary Group was almost completely wiped out in the end, Li Xingluo couldn't help but shiver, as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

He had to find a way to slip away, or his life would be in jeopardy. While pondering his escape, he turned the black ring on his finger with a troubled expression. It had been with him ever since he arrived, but after studying it for several days, he had made no progress.

"Captain, no magic core again!"

A loud shout pulled Li Xingluo back to reality. He had intended to sneak off while the squad was fighting a magical beast, but things had gone the opposite way—the beast had chased after him instead.

"How unlucky, nothing again."

The squad leader was very annoyed. They had hunted several magical beasts today without finding a single magic core, and they had wasted quite a bit of healing medicine. This trip was definitely a loss.

The squad leader cursed and grumbled as he signaled the squad to assemble, preparing to try their luck elsewhere. Li Xingluo had no choice but to follow along.

They hadn't traveled far before they rounded a patch of forest, and the squad leader waved his hand to signal a halt.

Li Xingluo remained listless, leaning against a nearby tree as he took the opportunity to rest.

"Captain, isn't that someone from the Herb Gathering Group? Why is she here all by herself?"

The man who spoke wore a lecherous grin. The squad leader thought for a moment and tapped his subordinate lightly.

A treacherous expression appeared on his face; he was still fuming over the lack of magic cores today.

The squad leader signaled his men, and they rushed forward suddenly. The young girl, who was busy gathering herbs, heard the commotion and whipped her head around, only to see several men surrounding her with malicious intent.

"What... what do you want?"

The girl gripped the herbs she had just gathered tightly, staring warily at this pack of wolves while slowly backing away.

The squad leader rested his broadsword on his shoulder, adopting the air of a boss.

"We don't want much, just for you to hand over all those herbs to reward my brothers here."

"Our Herb Gathering Group has already paid your Wolf Head Mercenary Group for protection, and you promised to keep us safe. Why are you demanding our herbs now?"

The squad leader scratched his ear, flicked his fingers, and gave a contemptuous smile.

"That pittance? You're out here gathering herbs all by yourself now. If you run into any danger, you can't blame our Wolf Head Mercenary Group."

The girl's face flushed red with anger at the squad leader's shameless words; she wished she could slap him to death.

She was so angry she stuttered: "You... you..."

The squad leader seemed to lose his patience. He took two steps toward the girl and slammed his broadsword into the ground, burying it over two inches deep.

"Hand them over obediently, or my brothers here might get a bit rough."

The squad leader waved his hand lightly, and his subordinates immediately began rubbing their hands together with lewd grins, eyeing the girl greedily.

"You..."

"My patience is limited!"

Li Xingluo had been lost in thought and hadn't noticed the squad leader's actions, just as he was preparing to slip away while they had forgotten about him.

The girl's angry accusation reached Li Xingluo's ears. Should he intervene or not?

Li Xingluo was torn. He kept his body in the same position as he had been stealthily moving forward. Perhaps struck by a guilty conscience, he snuck a glance backward. The girl's appearance came into view, and he felt a strange sense of familiarity.

Could she be...? It couldn't be such a coincidence, could it? Wait, didn't they say... The more Li Xingluo thought, the more panicked he became.

The girl had been forced back against a giant boulder by the men; she had nowhere left to run.

Just as one of them reached out to tear at the girl's clothes, a scream rang out.

A severed arm fell to the ground, and the man clutched his stump, wailing in agony. The members of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group stood frozen in shock at what had just happened.

Li Xingluo stood there, a blade in his hand stained with blood, his body shielding the girl.

The squad leader, having regained his composure, realized that the person who had attacked them was none other than Li Xingluo.

"Kid, what are you doing?"

The others also realized that the person protecting the girl was one of their own squad members.

The girl looked at Li Xingluo's back in confusion. Were they having an internal conflict? Regardless of the situation, she was safe for the moment, but why was he protecting her?

"I've long been disgusted by your conduct. A bunch of petty thieves, bullying the weak—I am merely upholding justice."

"Fine, fine, fine. Kid, you've got guts. I hope your bones are as hard as the blade in my hand. Brothers, finish him!"

At the squad leader's command, the five subordinates raised their blades and swarmed forward.

Li Xingluo cursed under his breath: No sense of honor!

The first strike had been a surprise attack. Li Xingluo knew his own strength—he was only a two-star Dou Practitioner. He might have a chance one-on-one, but against a group, he wasn't so sure.

Without time to think, Li Xingluo seized the moment. He slid forward, ducked, and slashed his blade in one fluid motion. One man clutched his stomach and collapsed in agony.

The remaining four didn't even glance at their wailing companion and continued to surround Li Xingluo with their blades raised.

Li Xingluo wove between the four men, and before long, the others had also become corpses.

Seeing Li Xingluo easily wipe out his squad, the squad leader's previous confidence had vanished by half.

"Kid, have you been hiding your cultivation all this time?"

Li Xingluo was currently just as bewildered; he was equally astonished that he had managed to take down five Dou Practitioners in such a short time, as theoretically, it should have been impossible for him.

Li Xingluo seemed to catch a hint of fear in the squad leader's eyes, and the hand gripping the blade was visibly trembling.

"Don't think that just because you took down those five, you can defeat me. I am a five-star Dou Practitioner."

The squad leader seemed to recall something, and his confidence swelled slightly.

Li Xingluo was just wondering why he had felt such a sense of ease earlier; perhaps using a five-star Dou Practitioner as a sparring partner would help him find the answer.

"You can certainly try!"

With that, a trace of a curve flashed across Li Xingluo's eyes. The squad leader looked at the lifeless bodies on the ground, then mustered all his courage and charged at Li Xingluo with his blade raised.

In just a single exchange, Li Xingluo's speed was terrifying; the two figures merely crossed paths.

The squad leader opened his eyes wide in unwillingness, slowly turning around to point a finger at Li Xingluo, who had his back to him.

He wanted to say something, but not a sound could escape his throat. At that moment, a thin line of blood seeped from a tiny wound on his neck, and the squad leader collapsed, filled with resentment.

As he hit the ground, a flare shot straight into the sky. Seeing this, Li Xingluo couldn't help but knit his brows slightly; it was a warning flare specially made by the Wolf Head Mercenary Group.

The surrounding forest began to sway. With no time to think, Li Xingluo didn't even have a chance to check for survivors, though since everyone in this squad except for him was dead, he feared that if they met again in the future, they would immediately suspect him.

The young girl's eyes widened; this person was simply too terrifying. He had wiped out an entire squad in just a few exchanges, yet judging by his attire, he was clearly also a member of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group.

Li Xingluo sheathed his blade and turned around to find the girl eyeing him with vigilance.

"Still not leaving?"

The girl couldn't believe her ears, asking in a daze, "You're letting me go?"

Li Xingluo replied while sprinting rapidly toward a part of the forest that wasn't swaying.

"If you don't leave, are you waiting for the nearby mercenaries to come and capture you?"

The girl took a brief look at the corpses on the ground and immediately followed after him, the two running one after the other.

After reaching a safe distance, both of them were panting heavily. Li Xingluo leaned his back against a large tree and looked at the girl who had approached him.

"It's safe now, you can go!"

The girl struggled to catch her breath, looking at Li Xingluo with a pitiful, pleading gaze.

"If I go alone and run into bad guys or magical beasts, then..."

"So..."

"So, be a hero to the end and let me follow you. I promise I'll return to the Herb Gathering Group tomorrow and absolutely won't bother you."

Seeing that Li Xingluo didn't object, the girl's aggrieved expression instantly turned into a smile. She stepped over to Li Xingluo's side, her soft, slightly youthful voice ringing out.

"My name is Xiao Yi Xian. What's your name?"

Li Xingluo suddenly froze in place. Xiao Yi Xian tilted her head, smiling at him. She was Xiao Yi Xian? Was it really such a coincidence?

"Li Xingluo!"