A Blade to the Throat

At the edge of the battlefield, five surviving members of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group stood back to back in a crude formation, barely holding out against the siege of more than a dozen Snake-People warriors.

Every one of them was wounded, their Dou Qi nearly exhausted. They relied entirely on willpower to keep wielding their weapons.

Not far ahead of them, Xiao Li fought like a madman. The Xuan-Iron Spear in his hand whistled through the air, purple Dou Qi coiling around it like spiritual snakes.

Relying on the numbing effects of lightning-attributed Dou Qi and the Low Black-Tier Dou Technique, Thunder Arc Three-Stage Dance, he had forcibly held back two elite Snake-People whose strength matched his own.

But the bone-deep wounds covering his body and his increasingly labored breaths made it clear that he was at the end of his rope. Defeat was only a matter of time.

Meanwhile, Xiao Ding was facing a Two-Star Battle Master Snake-Person wielding a spear, along with a Scarlet-Scaled Sand Python.

The Scarlet-Scaled Sand Python was two meters long and as thick as a calf.

Most of Xiao Ding's armor had already shattered, revealing crisscrossing wounds beneath it. Blood had nearly dyed him into a man of red.

The Snake-Person Battle Master's movements were bizarre, and the spear in his hands struck like a venomous snake. Every attack was vicious and tricky, aimed directly at Xiao Ding's vital points.

The Scarlet-Scaled Sand Python was even more troublesome. Its red-scaled tail swept out again and again, each strike carrying a terrifying gale that tore through the air.

From time to time, it also spat highly corrosive venom, forcing Xiao Ding to dodge desperately and run himself ragged.

Under the frenzied pincer attack of man and beast, Xiao Ding's situation became increasingly perilous. New wounds constantly appeared on his body, and his movements grew slower and slower.

Qing Mo took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down as he suppressed his presence to the utmost limit.

He did not act immediately, because the key to the entire battlefield was that Snake-Person Battle Master.

He took out a Silent Flying Dagger and quietly waited for a chance to kill with one blow.

On the battlefield, Xiao Ding's breathing grew heavier and heavier. Every block drained all the strength from his body.

"Hiss!"

The Scarlet-Scaled Sand Python seized an opening. Its massive head suddenly shot forward, its bloody maw opening as a foul cloud of poisonous sand sprayed straight at Xiao Ding.

Xiao Ding's expression changed. He forcibly exerted strength through his legs and rolled to the side to evade it.

But the moment he steadied himself, the Snake-Person Battle Master appeared behind him like a ghost, the spear in his hands stabbing fiercely toward his back!

Attacked from both front and rear, there was nowhere to escape!

"Big Brother!" Xiao Li's eyes nearly split with rage as he tried to rush over to help, only to be tightly entangled by the two elite Snake-People before him. He could not break free at all.

At that critical instant, Xiao Ding suddenly twisted at the waist, forcibly wrenching his body around at an unbelievable angle as he raised his longsword to block.

"Clang!"

The spear and longsword collided, sending sparks flying.

Xiao Ding felt an enormous force surge through him. The web between his thumb and forefinger instantly split open, and the longsword nearly flew from his grasp. The impact drove him stumbling backward again and again.

Just as Xiao Ding's old strength had been spent and new strength had yet to rise, the Scarlet-Scaled Sand Python swung its thick tail and viciously lashed it against his leg!

"Crack!"

A sharp sound of breaking bone rang out. Xiao Ding let out a muffled groan, unable to maintain his balance any longer as he dropped to one knee.

"Human, die!"

The Snake-Person Battle Master laughed savagely, his eyes gleaming with cruelty. Without the slightest hesitation, he gripped the spear with both hands, poured all his Dou Qi into it, aimed at Xiao Ding's heart, and thrust with all his strength!

The spear tore through the air with a piercing howl, and the shadow of death instantly enveloped Xiao Ding.

It's over...

Am I... am I going to die like this?

At that moment, time seemed to slow to an extreme.

Scenes flashed through Xiao Ding's mind like a lantern carousel.

He thought of his father and third brother far away in Wutan City, of his father's earnest instructions before he left, telling him that he had to take good care of his second brother...

If I die like this, then Second Brother and the remaining brothers of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group will surely be wiped out as well.

If Father and Third Brother learn of our deaths, how heartbroken will they be...?

Unwillingness, regret, despair... all kinds of emotions surged into his heart.

"Big Brother!" Xiao Li's desperate roar rang in his ears.

As the cold gleam of the spear tip rapidly expanded in his pupils, Xiao Ding could clearly see the Snake-Person Battle Master's ugly, triumphant face. He gave a bitter smile. Who could possibly save him now?

Just as the spear was about to pierce his chest.

Whoosh!

A nearly imperceptible sound of something cutting through the air, almost blending with the wind itself, suddenly rang out.

Then, a flash of silver streaked past Xiao Ding's eyes.

The Snake-Person Battle Master's charging body suddenly froze. The savage grin on his face instantly stiffened, his eyes filled with shock.

He lowered his head with difficulty. At some point, a strangely shaped flying dagger had appeared in his throat.

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but only a hoarse, leaking rasp emerged.

Bang!

Carried by his immense momentum, the Snake-Person Battle Master's body brushed past Xiao Ding's shoulder and crashed heavily to the ground. After twitching a few times, he fell completely still.

Xiao Ding sat down heavily on the ground, gulping in huge breaths. Cold sweat had soaked his entire body.

He slowly turned his head and looked in the direction from which the silver flash had come, just in time to see Qing Mo slowly rise from behind a corpse.

"Qing Mo... Brother!"

The immense joy of surviving a disaster flooded Xiao Ding's heart, and his face immediately filled with excitement.

"The leader is dead!"

"Run! A human expert has come to help!"

The sudden death of the Snake-Person Battle Master instantly destroyed the remaining Snake-People's will to fight. They turned and fled.

Seeing its master killed, the Scarlet-Scaled Sand Python twisted its body and burrowed straight into the yellow sand, vanishing without a trace.

The battle was over, and the surviving mercenaries collapsed to the ground one after another.

Even as they rejoiced at surviving, many of them could not help but weep bitterly as they looked at the corpses of their companions scattered across the ground.

"Brother Qing Mo, thank you. If you hadn't arrived in time, then we..."

Xiao Ding staggered over, looking at Qing Mo with deep gratitude.

"There's no need to be so formal. After all, I'm also the third commander of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group."

Qing Mo sighed. No one had expected the Poison Dragon Mercenary Group to be so shameless.

"It's all my fault. If I hadn't so easily believed Lin Qi's lies, everyone wouldn't have ended up like this."

Xiao Ding spoke with a face full of regret. He had underestimated the Poison Dragon Mercenary Group's viciousness.

"First Commander, this isn't your fault. If it had been us, we would have made the same decision."

"That's right, First Commander. If anyone is to blame, it's Lin Qi! The Poison Dragon Mercenary Group is simply too shameless!"

Everyone hurried to comfort him, but Xiao Ding merely shook his head. He bore an inescapable responsibility for this matter.

"This won't be allowed to stand! I will report this to the Mercenary Association. We will make them pay the price!"

"That's right, Poison Dragon Mercenary Group! I, Xiao Li, swear here and now that if I do not avenge this grievance, I am unworthy of being human!"

Xiao Li smashed his fist viciously into the ground and roared through gritted teeth.

"We won't rest until one side is dead!"

The surviving mercenaries also roared in fury.

Just as everyone was immersed in grief, the sand in the distance suddenly began to churn.

The Scarlet-Scaled Sand Python that had just fled had actually returned, frightening everyone into immediately grabbing the weapons beside them.

"Wait, don't panic! It's Qing Lin and the others." Qing Mo raised a hand, signaling everyone to remain calm.

Everyone looked over and saw two familiar figures following behind the Scarlet-Scaled Sand Python.

Qing Lin walked behind the Scarlet-Scaled Sand Python, with Xue Lan beside her. Xue Lan's face was filled with shock.

That fierce Tier-Two Magical Beast was now as docile as a little cat.

The sight before them left everyone somewhat stunned.

"Brother Qing Mo, this..." Xiao Ding stared at Qing Lin in shock. Could Qing Mo's younger sister control magical beasts just like the Snake-People?

"It's a special Dou Technique that can temporarily control Serpentine Magical Beasts." Qing Mo gave only a simple explanation and did not elaborate.

Although everyone was filled with doubts, seeing that Qing Mo was unwilling to say more, they wisely did not press further. In their eyes, Qing Mo's origins were extremely mysterious, and it did not seem too difficult to understand that he possessed such a peculiar technique.

"Everyone, the dead are gone, but their blood cannot be shed in vain!" Xiao Li swept his gaze over the crowd. "Since the Poison Dragon Mercenary Group dared commit such a beastly act of betrayal and slaughter their own kind, then we must make them pay in blood!"

"That's right! Revenge!"

"Kill that bastard Lin Qi!"

"A blood debt must be repaid in blood!"

Xiao Li's words instantly ignited everyone's fury.

"Good!" Xiao Ding rose to his feet and looked at everyone with resolute eyes. "Once we recover, we will act immediately! This time, it will be a fight to the death between us and the Poison Dragon Mercenary Group!"