Black Robe

After Zhou Yan said that, the Fox Demon by the pool was still laughing.

Before she could finish laughing.

He kicked off the ground and lunged forward, driving his Mountain-Breaking Fist straight at her face.

Less than three steps apart, his fist reached her in the blink of an eye.

"What a temper you have, young master." The Fox Demon did not dodge, a smile still hanging on her lips.

His fist struck her face, only to bounce back. The force he had put into it seemed to have been dispersed before it even landed.

Her face caved in, then sprang back in an eerie motion.

Zhou Yan changed his fist into a claw and seized her throat.

Her skin felt cold and slick beneath his hand, nothing like human flesh.

He tightened his five fingers, his nails digging in, but no matter how he squeezed, he could not get a firm grip.

"What strength you have, young master."

The Fox Demon tilted her head at him. With his hand gripping her neck, the smile on her face turned even more seductive. "Are you really so eager to touch me?"

She raised a hand and lightly slapped the back of his hand.

A frigid force surged into the back of his hand and raced up his arm along his meridians.

Zhou Yan felt his entire right arm freeze stiff, and his fingers loosened against his will.

He staggered back two steps and shook his hand, cold seeping into his fingertips.

"Why did you let go, young master?" The Fox Demon in the center of the pool tilted her head. "Weren't you going to fight?"

The Fox Demon by the pool twisted her neck, producing two crackling sounds.

She stuck out her tongue and licked her lips, smiling at Zhou Yan.

Zhou Yan's heart sank.

Even the penetrating force of his Mountain-Breaking Fist at Perfection could not get through. It had not even broken her skin.

Run!

He made his decision at once, turning and charging into the woods.

Laughter rang out behind him, three voices layered together as if they were whispering directly into his ears.

He had not run fifty steps before his foot slipped.

The solid ground beneath him suddenly turned soft, and the soil began to sink.

He yanked one leg free and stepped forward with all his strength. Just as he steadied himself, someone dropped down upside down from the treetop above.

It was the Fox Demon from the pool.

She hung from a branch by her feet, her hair dangling downward, an eerie blue light flickering in her eyes.

"Where are you going, young master?"

Zhou Yan threw a punch upward.

Her body swayed, swinging out of range, and his punch missed.

As she swung back, she lightly tapped the tip of his nose with one finger.

"Off target," she said with a smile.

Zhou Yan ignored her and changed direction, continuing to run.

As he passed through a thicket, something grabbed his ankle.

Looking down, he saw a pale white hand reaching out from beneath the bushes.

Its fingers clamped around his ankle, so icy he could feel the chill even through his trousers.

Zhou Yan kicked at it, and a soft laugh came from inside the thicket.

He did not dare stop and kept running.

His left shoulder throbbed with pain, and the wound on his lower back had split open again, blood running down his trousers.

After running for nearly the time it took to burn an incense stick, the view before him suddenly opened up.

The pool!

To his despair, he had returned to the same pool. The three Fox Demons floated half-submerged on the water, watching him.

"You're back again, young master." The Fox Demon by the pool rested her chin on her arms as she lay at the shore, her little legs kicking at the water.

"You must be tired from running." The Fox Demon in the center of the pool lay on her side atop the water, propping up her head with one hand.

"I told you already." The last Fox Demon stretched lazily. "Wouldn't it be nice to stay and chat with us?"

Zhou Yan bent over, gasping for breath. Sweat mixed with blood and dripped from his chin to the ground.

"Your injuries are getting worse, young master." She tilted her head at him. "If this drags on, we will not even need to lift a hand. You'll die on your own."

She extended a hand, palm open before Zhou Yan.

Her fingers were long and pale, with a faint flush of pink in her palm.

Zhou Yan looked at her and suddenly laughed.

"I appreciate your kindness, miss," he said. "But I have a habit. I don't dare go into cold water, and I don't dare go into warm water either. I nearly drowned in the village pond when I was little, and it left its mark."

"Is that so?" She smiled and withdrew her hand. "Then how can we make you unafraid?"

"If you put some clothes on, I might be less afraid."

The Fox Demon froze for a moment, then burst into giggles. The other two joined in behind her.

"You really know how to talk, young master." When she was done laughing, she narrowed her eyes. "I'm becoming more and more reluctant to let you go."

Just as she raised her hand to touch Zhou Yan's chest, a streak of sword light slashed out from the woods.

The sword light was cold and swift.

The Fox Demon's hand had only just risen when the sword light cut through her wrist.

In an instant, cold light flashed before his eyes. A furry beast's paw flew up and fell to the ground.

The Fox Demon lowered her head to look at her bare wrist, still smiling as though she had yet to realize what had happened.

No blood flowed from the severed end, only wisps of black smoke.

The hand on the ground slowly changed color. Its skin shriveled, and in the end, it became a dead branch.

"Ah!"

She screamed. Her voice was no longer seductive, but shrill and piercing enough to hurt the ears.

A black-robed figure emerged from the woods.

She had a slender figure and wore a long black robe.

She held a narrow sword, its blade thin.

Judging by her figure, she was a woman in her early twenties. She could not be called beautiful, only pleasant-looking.

The Fox Demon by the pool clutched her wrist and backed away, shrieking, "Who are you?!"

The woman in black did not answer. She stepped forward and drove the sword tip through the Fox Demon's chest.

The Fox Demon that Zhou Yan's full-strength punch had failed to wound now split apart as easily as paper.

As the narrow sword pierced her body, the Fox Demon froze, her mouth open but unable to make a sound.

Starting from where the sword entered, her skin began to crack. The fractures spread across her entire body, and she exploded into a cloud of black smoke.

The other two panicked and screamed as they dived into the water.

The black-robed woman tapped the shore with the tip of her foot and pursued them across the water.

Two ripples spread across the surface, and she had already reached the center of the pool.

With one horizontal slash, she cut through the Fox Demon in the middle before it could dive underwater. The blade sliced through her waist, splitting her in two as she turned into black smoke.

The last one, the hoarse-voiced Fox Demon, desperately dove toward the bottom, leaving only half her head above water.

The black-robed woman swung her sword in a backhand strike, the sword tip touching the water's surface.

A stream of sword qi flowed from the blade into the water. The surface exploded, blasting the Fox Demon into the air as she screamed and flailed.

The black-robed woman did not even look at her before thrusting her sword through her.

The black smoke dispersed completely.

The pool water returned to its normal color. The dark green faded, and the surface became clear, reflecting the moon in the sky.

Zhou Yan dropped onto the ground, unable to summon any strength in either leg.

The black-robed woman sheathed her sword, turned around, and walked over to Zhou Yan, looking down as she assessed him.

Her gaze swept from the blood on his face to the wound on his shoulder, then to his lower back, which was still bleeding.

"You've reached Lesser Qi Gathering?"

"Yes." Zhou Yan pushed himself up from the ground and cupped his hands in salute. "Thank you, miss, for saving my life. May I ask if you are from the Demon-Slaying Hall?"

She raised an eyebrow. "You know of the Demon-Slaying Hall?"

"I heard of it before. The Demon-Slaying Hall specializes in killing demons and monsters. Those sword strikes of yours just now were not something an ordinary Martial Adept could deliver."

"You do know how to talk." The corner of her lips moved as she gave a soft laugh. "These three were merely Fox Demons who had only recently gained some power. Their cultivation was still shallow. They cultivated by absorbing the lingering essence of dead people in the mountains. Many have died in Blackwind Ridge over the years, and that was what raised them."

"It was already fortunate that you survived until now." After saying that, she carried her sword and headed into the woods.

Zhou Yan paused, then hurried after her for two steps. "Miss, please wait! I have not yet learned your name, so that I may repay you someday."

She did not turn around, nor did she slow down.

Her black robe swayed a few times beneath the moonlight before she disappeared deep into the forest.

Zhou Yan stood by the pool, wanting to say something more, but she had already gone too far away.

He lowered his head to look at the wounds covering his body, then looked at the pool.

He had originally wanted to glean some information about the Demon-Slaying Hall...

He had not expected the people of the Demon-Slaying Hall to be so cold and distant!

He turned and headed down the mountain, crossed the ridge, and stepped onto the main road.