Thanks to book friend "等待ぁ风云" for the review, tip, and suggestions. I've changed the synopsis. Let me know what you think and which one you like better~~
Gao Xu smiled faintly and stepped after her, showing no sign of impatience. At that moment, only a calm mind could secure victory.
Once they entered the cave, they discovered that it wasn't a single straight passage. Instead, it branched into numerous tunnels, each surprisingly spacious. Whoever had carved them had gone to considerable effort. It seemed this had once been a refuge built for holding out against a siege, and the bandits had simply stumbled upon it.
Gao Xu's expression brightened. This terrain was decidedly to his advantage. There were fifteen Miao Tribesmen, and three branches in front of them. Judging by the force with which the Miao Tribesmen had entered, they were very likely to split up. That made their leader, Tai Zhuonan, the key to this contest.
Whoever killed him would earn five headcount points. With their forces split, that advantage had reached its maximum. After all, there were bandits in the cave too. Lin Yueru and Gao Xu couldn't possibly kill every Miao Tribesman themselves. So Gao Xu had to make a decision quickly:
Which branch had Tai Zhuonan and Lin Yueru taken?
Given Tai Zhuonan's status, he was most likely to take the middle passage. Lin Yueru had evidently thought the same, because Gao Xu could already catch the faint scent of her perfume coming from it.
But after crouching down and carefully examining the ground for a while, Gao Xu reconsidered his conclusion. He'd nearly fallen for it!
If there were no enemies, Tai Zhuonan, as their leader, would naturally choose the middle passage. But what if bandits had lured or taunted them at the time?
In a corner of the left-hand passage lay a patch of scorched earth, identical to the traces left by the bandit who had been poisoned earlier. The dim light inside the cave made it hard to notice.
Lin Yueru had been in too much of a hurry to spot the clue. It seemed that this round had gone to the coolheaded Gao Xu.
Of course, the left passage might not lead straight to the heart of the mountain. It could branch off again along the way, so Lin Yueru still had a chance. Gao Xu needed to capitalize on his advantage and widen the gap.
With the Flying Rainbow Sword in hand and his head bowed, Gao Xu moved through the dim passage like a lone wolf prowling through darkness, baring cruel, razor-sharp fangs.
This environment was ideal for the martial art he'd practiced in his previous life: the Seven Kill True Art. It had been passed down by Walter, the Bracer Guild's "Wolf" from the Trails in the Sky world, and served as the foundation of the Killing Fist. It was exceptionally ruthless!
Although Gao Xu had abandoned the Seven Kill True Art halfway through and switched to the path of cultivation, and was certainly less proficient in it than in sword techniques like the Five Heavenly Blaze Swords, it was more than enough to deal with the Miao Tribesmen before him.
The din of battle gradually reached him. The Miao Tribesmen's roars mingled with the bandits' howls, revealing just how fierce the fighting had become.
Gao Xu slowed down and bent slightly at the waist. He took Viper Saliva from his Emblem space and waited in silence.
The arrogant Miao Tribesmen had clearly walked into a bandit ambush. Surrounded by enemies who outnumbered them several times over, they were in dire straits. Even though Tai Zhuonan swung his saber with fearsome force, he couldn't stop his men from screaming one after another.
The only saving grace was that the bandits feared the lethality of Tai Zhuonan's poison arts and left themselves room to dodge with every attack. Otherwise, his men might already have been wiped out!
Watching Tai Zhuonan from afar, Gao Xu saw nothing in his eyes but resentment and fury—not the slightest hint of retreat. His heart sank a little.
If Gao Xu hadn't been competing with Lin Yueru, this would have been exactly what he wanted to see: two sides locked in a struggle while a third party reaped the benefits. How delightful~
Unfortunately, reality was the opposite of what he'd hoped for. Every time a Miao Tribesman died in the distance, Gao Xu's heart gave a little twinge, because his headcount was dropping by one.
Judging by the corpses on the ground, Tai Zhuonan had brought six men. The other eight had probably split up between the two remaining passages, while the bandits' main force had gathered here. In other words, with Lin Yueru's speed, she could claim those eight headcount points without much effort.
That meant Gao Xu had to kill four Miao Tribesmen in addition to Tai Zhuonan to guarantee victory!
One of the Miao Tribesmen had already fallen, hacked to death by the bandits. Gao Xu knew he had to act.
If he were an ordinary rookie Reincarnator without any tools to help, his only option would be to charge straight in. But that would likely make him a target for both sides, putting him in extreme danger.
Fortunately, Gao Xu had the extraordinary experience of his previous life. A hired hand had to follow their employer into all kinds of bizarre plots and missions. Because the Miao Frontier in the Chinese Paladin world contained the immensely valuable dark-gold item, the Golden Silkworm King, it was a region that Reincarnators visited often. So although Gao Xu couldn't claim to be an expert in the art of gu poison, there was one skill he absolutely had to possess—
The Miao language!
"旦那勾亚咯夏呢那昌蒙,只听卡咯豆!"
His loud, unintelligible shout rang out across the battlefield. The Miao Tribesmen froze as one, and even Tai Zhuonan looked startled. The words meant: "Elder Shi orders everyone to withdraw immediately. Do not engage the enemy!"
The voice sounded somewhat unfamiliar, but anyone here who could mention Elder Shi in the Miao language had to be one of their own.
Tai Zhuonan was arrogant, but he was also shrewd. If Elder Shi had truly arrived, he absolutely couldn't let his men die. He'd have no way to explain himself otherwise.
With that in mind, a flicker of pain crossed Tai Zhuonan's face. He raised his right hand, and a fearsome-looking, ghostly green snake slid out of his sleeve and darted toward the bandits.
This green snake was nothing like the sort found in Hidden Dragon Cave. It dodged blades with astonishing agility, and as it sped along, it made a mournful, flute-like sound, winding and melodious. One bandit couldn't help turning his ear toward it. The green snake bit him on the calf, and within moments his face turned purplish blue before he collapsed to the ground.
This rare Flute Snake was Tai Zhuonan's trump card. Once it was unleashed, it forced the bandits to scatter in every direction, throwing their formation into disarray.
Tai Zhuonan let out a sinister laugh and seized the chance to lead his men in a breakout toward the way they'd come. But a pungent cloud of powder suddenly flew at them from the darkness.
Realgar powder could repel poison and kill insects. The Miao Tribesmen were also skilled at attacking their enemies with poisonous powder, so they dodged to either side almost instinctively. Just then, a streak of cold light flashed past so quickly it left only an afterimage. Blood gushed from the neck of a Miao Tribesman with the least health. He clutched his wound and fell, his face full of disbelief.
"Brother Lei!" One of the Miao Tribesmen cried out in anguish, his eyes nearly splitting with rage. Seemingly the dead man's older brother, he rushed without a thought toward the body sprawled on the ground. A flash of silver—and another Flying Dagger was embedded between his brows. He followed his younger brother into death.
"You're asking for death!!!" If Elder Shi hadn't cared about the lives of his fellow sect members, Tai Zhuonan wouldn't have ordered a retreat. He'd never expected that even then, bandits lurking in the shadows would ambush them and cost him men. How could he not fly into a rage?
"My darlings, come and feed!" Tai Zhuonan's eyes gleamed with icy light like a hawk's. He looked at the bandits as if they were already dead. Even if his poisonous insects weren't fully developed, he'd make these ignorant vermin pay for offending him!
A golden centipede and an amber-colored scorpion raised their venomous jaws and brandished their stingers as they lunged viciously at the pursuing bandits. Meanwhile, Tai Zhuonan put away his saber and flung both hands outward. Two silver objects flew toward a corner of the passage.
That was exactly where Gao Xu was hiding!
这位BOSS在游戏里竟然也跟蛇精一样,翻来覆去就用弦月斩砍人.我想,既然他是黑苗族人嘛,不使使毒实在有失身份,便给他配备了不少毒虫.不过这么一来,反倒像召唤师了,囧...
希望大家不要吐槽~~
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