Rescue

The gourd Law Artifact hovering in the air spat out its last mouthful of black sand. At last, unable to bear the strain, it cracked from within and shattered across the ground.

The gaunt Daoist held a longsword as he faced the leader of the Jia Mountain Bandits and more than a dozen Evil Cultivators in a silent standoff.

Shielding three members of the Ye Household who were still breathing, he had fought as he retreated into a secret passage prepared beforehand. He had also activated several hidden weapons he had set up earlier to stop their pursuers.

But those mortal methods could do nothing to the Evil Cultivators outside. They clung to the gaunt Daoist's party like maggots burrowing into bone, impossible to shake off.

"Damn it!" An Evil Cultivator carrying a string of severed heads came out of the Ye Household cultivators' quarters and jogged over to the bandit leader, shaking his head. The leader cursed aloud in anger.

"How come there isn't a single thing worth taking?!" The bandit leader's expression darkened.

Leaving the injured and crippled aside for the moment, he had lost four of his own men on this job. Ruthless bandits like them weren't too afraid of deaths, but people had died and they hadn't taken anything back? How was he supposed to explain that?

"That bastard Zhao said we had to guard against an attack, but he really sent me and my brothers to fight the Ye Household with our lives on the line. Hmph, he'd probably be happiest if I died here and got out of his way. There are more than twenty men left. If he takes them all under his wing, there won't be many strongholds in all of Guo County with a name bigger than his Ghost Horse Owls. Damn it, he's really worked out a fine little plan!"

At that thought, the bandit leader gave a vicious grin. But that plan would only work if he really died.

The head of the Ye Household did have some skill. If they squared off and fought in earnest, the bandit leader might not win. But now the man had to use his own life to protect others. He could simply wear him down until he died here!

"Sizzle." A young Ye Household girl behind the gaunt Daoist trembled as she struggled for quite a while before finally forming the spiritual hand seal correctly.

The black-toothed Evil Cultivator beside the bandit leader stepped forward as if eager to claim credit and held out a leather shield Talisman Artifact to block. The girl's Water Arrow Technique immediately splashed into countless droplets. It didn't seem to have done the shield any damage, but it did wash some of the bloodstains off the bandit leader's magic boots.

"That's weaker than a piss from me," a shameless Evil Cultivator standing opposite the girl suddenly laughed.

"Haha, weaker than my cock, too."

"Xu San'er, you're always bragging. Who doesn't know you're the sort whose feet get wet as soon as he lets it out?"

"Damn you! I'll let you have a taste in a moment."

"Why let him have a taste? Let that little lady up front have her first taste of meat!"

"Right, right. I'll go first when the time comes."

Filthy talk filled the battlefield, and the Evil Cultivators, who had fought hard for so long, gradually regained their morale amid the banter.

Tears glimmered in the eyes of the Ye Household boys and girls behind the gaunt Daoist. His sword hand began to tremble slightly. His spiritual power was overdrawn, and the meridians throughout his body hurt as though they were being sliced by knives and scorched by fire.

I'm so tired. It would be easier just to die!

The bandit leader stepped out from the crowd and raised his hand, sending several blades of saber Gang flying. The gaunt Daoist forced himself to concentrate and controlled his flying sword to block them all. He had barely gained a moment to catch his breath when he realized that if he kept defending, he would inevitably falter.

He was about to raise his sword and seize the offensive, but his vision blurred and his legs gave way. He nearly pitched headfirst to the ground. The gaunt Daoist knew something was wrong: his oil had run dry, and his lamp was about to go out. He bit the tip of his tongue hard, and his spirits rallied a little.

Following the tilt of his body, he twisted his wrist and slashed the sword's edge into the armpit of an Evil Cultivator who had rushed forward too eagerly for merit. Ignoring the man's scream, he spat the mouthful of blood from his tongue straight at the face of the bandit leader, who was hurrying to the rescue.

The bandit leader was a ruthless man seasoned by slaughter. With a glance from his narrow eyes, he swung his saber without thinking, driving it with all his spiritual power.

When the two collided, the blade only managed to deflect the arrow of blood slightly. Surprise showed in the bandit leader's eyes, and he let out a soft exclamation. No longer daring to be careless, he brought out a green-glazed oil-saving lamp, held it before him, and blew hard.

Who would have thought that the deep blue flame the bandit leader had always relied upon would also prove unable to stop the blood arrow? Not only could it not refine the arrow away, it could not even slow it down.

The blood arrow's momentum did not lessen. It cut through the blue fire and shot to within half a foot of the bandit leader. Frightened, the bandit cried out, thinking, I'm done for! But he was quick to act, hurriedly producing a multicolored embroidered brocade umbrella and opening it before him.

Crack. The blood arrow struck the brocade umbrella. The rare mid-grade defensive Law Artifact was corroded through the instant it came into contact with the arrow, leaving a hole the size of a head.

Puff. The bandit leader saw a streak of blood-red light pass through the opening in the umbrella and strike him squarely in the left chest.

"What a pity." The gaunt Daoist gave a bitter laugh. If he had even two parts of his spiritual power left, that sword strike would have pierced the scoundrel's inner armor.

"Bastard!" Using the last of his strength, the gaunt Daoist thrust his sword into the throat of an Evil Cultivator who had come forward to take advantage.

The bandit leader was still reeling from the fright. The blood arrow had shaken him so badly that he could not think for the moment, and he had not had time to be angry at the freshly made corpse of the Evil Cultivator in front of him. Acting on instinct, he discarded the brocade umbrella, rushed up to the gaunt Daoist, who was almost lifeless, and reached out with a numb look in his eyes to seize his hair bun. In the same motion, he swept his saber across and pulled hard.

The bandit leader raised the Daoist's head above his own, letting the warmth of its remaining blood drench him through. Bit by bit, he recovered from his daze.

Blood dripped from the bandit leader's soaked hair bun and ran down his face. Some seemed to have entered his eyes, staining them blood-red. His fierce appearance frightened the lackeys behind him into stopping in their tracks.

Seeing the pillar that supported the Ye Household crash down at this moment, the three young cultivators struggling at death's door broke into heart-rending sobs, further rousing the Evil Cultivators' savagery.

The bandit leader raised his saber and was about to step forward and finish the youngsters off when the clash of metal suddenly rang out behind him.

He was a decisive killer. Whether or not the newcomers were hostile, he knew there could be no mistake in first settling the youngsters with a few strokes.

He raised his saber to strike, but the sound of Sword Qi tearing through the air drew closer and closer. Panic gripped him, and he could not help turning around to look.

Several of the more impatient lackeys following him did the same, raising defensive Law Artifacts and cautiously moving back toward the entrance to the secret passage to look. The more timid ones had already set up their Law Artifacts and clutched talismans tightly in their hands, trembling as they protected themselves.

There was little difference between the two groups. A blazing red sword net came hurtling from the direction of the passage entrance, tearing through countless pieces of rubble and Law Artifacts. In an instant, the sword net crashed to the ground amid pieces of flesh and magic robes, accompanied by screams and shouts.

Before the bandit leader even saw the newcomer, he saw the lackeys nearer the passage entrance lying dead and wounded. He was at once shocked and furious.

A sword-bearing man with a face as handsome as carved jade walked in. He first gave the bandit leader, whose face was half horror and half fury, a slight nod by way of courtesy. Without waiting for the man, who still held a severed head in one hand, to react, Jiang Qing raised his hand and sent out three streaks of green light, easily slicing through the bandit leader's already damaged embroidered brocade umbrella.

The bandit leader only felt his head grow light. Then, from the air, he saw his headless body split in two. He was about to cry out in pain, but no sound came. He only felt his whole body slam heavily into the ground.

He seemed to see a Ye Household boy with tears in his eyes, shrieking as he drove a short dagger Talisman Artifact into his eye socket and stirred it wildly.

The kid's ruthless enough. He's a fine seedling for killing, the bandit leader silently praised him as he lay dying. His severed head still glared with a pair of fierce eyes, but he could hear nothing more.

"Stay here." Jiang Qing gave the three Ye Household youngsters, whose tears and snot were streaming down their faces, that instruction. With a few strokes of his sword, he finished off the Evil Cultivators present who were still breathing, then turned and left.

Zhao Gu outside was no easy opponent, and he had a gang of lackeys to help him. Having left the main battlefield, Jiang Qing was very worried. He did not know whether his three senior brothers could hold out.

Thanks to Brother Jian V for another generous tip, to Brother Aidaier Jiate for the 200-coin tip, and to Book Friend 20231023215701422 for the 100-coin tip. (Brother, if it's convenient, could you change your name? If there's a next time, Old Bai is afraid he'll type it wrong ^_^) Thanks to Yangtuo Qidian and Brother Jian V for one monthly vote each, and thanks to all the brothers reading this book for your support. I'm off today and will try to post three updates.

I hope that honored readers with time to spare can keep up with the story, vote, and comment. You can even throw some coins at me. Brothers who are busy, sorry for the trouble, but please stay on the last page of each day's update for about twenty seconds. Thank you, everyone.