A crisp sound of bone cracking rang out.
The excruciating pain instantly caused cold sweat to bead on his forehead, but he managed not to utter a sound.
Trembling fingers, smeared with mud, smeared the blood they had prepared beforehand on their face and body, and then used their Soul Power to force out several bruises.
Finally, he tore his robes and messed up his hair, looking exactly like a severely injured and dying wandering Soul Master.
Her face and figure have also been altered.
They couldn't possibly recognize themselves.
"Almost done." Toji struggled to turn over, positioning the wound so that it faced the road.
The sound of orderly footsteps came from afar. Through his muddy vision, he could see a group of figures appearing and disappearing in the fog.
It was the Clear Sky Sect's group, led by Niu Tian, who was as burly as an iron tower, with his disciples following behind him in unison.
In the center of the group, Wang Dong'er's petite figure stood out.
"Cough, cough cough." Toji let out a weak cough at the right moment, his fingers scratching helplessly in the mud.
The Clear Sky Sect disciple at the front of the group immediately became alert. "Sect Master, there's someone by the roadside!"
Niu Tian glanced at Toji ahead and frowned slightly when he saw that he was injured.
"It's a wounded soldier. Go check on him."
"Good."
A disciple of the Clear Sky Sect in the group stepped forward to inspect it.
The man's clothes were tattered and his face was covered in blood, but one could vaguely tell that he was a young man.
"Hey, are you still alive?" The man gently touched the other person's shoulder.
"Cough, cough cough." Toji opened his eyes at just the right moment, his gaze unfocused and pained. He raised his hand with difficulty, then let it fall limply to the ground.
"He's injured, seriously injured," a disciple of the Clear Sky Sect said, turning around.
Niu Tian then slowly stepped forward.
What happened?
"I just got into a fight and got thrown out, it's nothing, no big deal."
Toji spoke in fits and starts, as if he was using every ounce of strength to even speak.
Niu Tian nodded, signaling for the group to continue forward, and ignored him.
I don't want to get involved in this kind of thing.
Upon hearing Niu Tian's instructions, the team immediately prepared to continue their advance.
Only Wang Dong'er kept turning back to look at Toji.
"Hello."
Toji with all his might, he shouted at them.
"Please... give me some water, I'm really thirsty, thank you."
Niu Tian and the others ignored them.
Wang Dong'er felt a pang of pity and looked at Niu Tian:
"Uncle, are you really just going to abandon him like this?"
"At least give him a drink of water."
He looks like he needs help.
" Dong'er, you can't be too careful. Besides, someone like him who got into a conflict with someone in Shrek City and got thrown out must be a bad guy."
Niu Tian whispered to Wang Dong'er.
"What if a bad guy threw him out?" Wang Dong'er couldn't quite understand. "Uncle, you told me that we should be kind-hearted, but why this time..."
"..."
Niu Tian thought about it carefully, then sighed.
"Fine, I'll just give him a bottle of water."
Anyway, we won't lose anything.
"Thank you, Uncle."
As she spoke, Wang Dong'er quickly turned around and ran back to Toji's side.
When she crouched down, Toji could clearly see the pure concern in her eyes.
Those pinkish-blue eyes were so clear and pure, without a trace of impurity.
"Here you go." She took a bottle of water from her Storage Soul Tool and unscrewed the cap with her slender fingers. "Drink slowly."
At that moment, Toji was stunned.
His prepared remarks suddenly got stuck in his throat.
The water bottle the girl handed her gleamed softly in the moonlight, still warm from her palm.
"Thank you, you're a good child."
He took the water bottle, and this time his thanks were tinged with a genuine tremor.
Then, in front of Wang Dong'er, he tilted his head back and drank it all.
Clear water slid down my parched throat, carrying an unexpected sweetness.
Wang Dong'er smiled faintly, her eyes curving into crescent moons:
"You're welcome. You should rest well. My uncle told me not to help you, but I hope this bottle of water can keep you alive."
Toji watched her run back to the group, her petite figure gradually blurring in his sight.
He gripped the empty bottle tightly in his hand, then suddenly gave a self-deprecating laugh.
The original plan to secretly poison Wang Dong'er vanished.
Even though his plan had succeeded in every way, and Wang Dong'er had indeed been in close proximity to him for a period of time, he had countless opportunities to make his move.
But he just couldn't bring himself to do it.
Because this was probably one of the few acts of kindness he had received during this period that were free of any ulterior motives.
They can be ruthless enough to harm those who show them kindness.
That was truly a birth.
"I don't know why, but after going through so much, I feel like I'm becoming more and more despicable, even repulsive."
"It was clearly Tang San who did wrong, so why should his innocent daughter bear the consequences?"
"How is what I'm doing any different from what Tang San is doing?"
Toji shook his head, laughed, and stood up, leaning against the tree trunk. All the fake wounds vanished in an instant.
"That's enough." He took one last look at the departing group, then turned and disappeared into the depths of the woods. "Let's end this charade here."
"Anyway, we've gathered enough intelligence."
After Toji all traces, he chose to return to camp.
When Toji's figure reappeared at the edge of the camp, Du Busi Di Qiu'er rushed forward almost simultaneously.
Both Du Busi and Di Qiu'er could clearly see the rare hesitation on Shen Er's face at Toji moment.
This man, who was usually decisive and ruthless, had his brows slightly furrowed and his lips pressed into a tight line.
"I was watching you from afar. How did you run into the Clear Sky Sect's group?" Du Busi grabbed Toji's wrist, his rough fingers pressing on his pulse point to check Toji was alright.
Are you alright?
"I'm fine." Toji shook his head.
Di Qiu'er keenly noticed the undried water stains on Toji's clothes. "You've made contact with the Clear Sky Sect's forces?"
What are they doing in Shrek City?
Toji gently broke Du Busi's grip and walked to the campfire to sit down.
The flickering flames cast swaying shadows in his eyes, obscuring his usually composed face.
They didn't find us.
He suddenly spoke, his voice unusually hoarse.
Their goal was simple: to escort their sect leader's daughter, Wang Dong'er, to the Shrek Academy.
"Then what happened to you...?" Di Qiu'er looked at Toji's current state with some concern.
"I'm thinking of using the simplest plan to destroy the Clear Sky Sect."
Toji sighed, then continued.
So I pretended to be a seriously injured wanderer and lay down in front of his group.
"The people from the Clear Sky Sect ignored me, but the one I wanted to target, Wang Dong'er, came to my rescue."
"I almost poisoned that girl, right when she gave me water."
The air froze instantly.
Du Busi froze on the spot, Di Qiu'er's red pupils suddenly contracted, and she subconsciously raised her hand to cover her mouth.
Toji held his head in his hands, staring at the campfire, remaining silent for Jiujiu.