Saving People Again
Sang Ying had thought the Cold Crow Devil Lord was the mastermind behind the abduction of the mortal women, but now it seemed someone else was behind him.
The white-robed cultivators before her, surrounded and attacked, powerless to fight back and waiting to be captured, were none other than the Plain Robe Pavilion party Nan Gurong had led away earlier!
With a bang, Nan Gurong was sent flying by a palm strike and crashed to the ground.
Seeing this, the other Plain Robe Pavilion disciples hurriedly crawled to their senior sister's side and stuffed pills into her mouth.
Nan Gurong coughed up a mouthful of blood and struggled to swallow a Rejuvenation Pill. But the searing pain in her chest still hadn't faded, making it difficult for her even to speak.
"My Plain Robe Pavilion has no quarrel with any of you. Why are you ambushing us?" Nan Gurong asked, unwilling to accept it.
The people standing opposite them all wore masks, save for their leader, who openly showed a face like the bark of an old tree. Watching from afar, Sang Ying recognized him at once as the person who had dragged her out of the bridal sedan chair.
It was because of his hand, shriveled and terrifying like a withered vine.
"Ha! Have you forgotten so soon? That can't be right. It hasn't been long since you rescued those mortals!" the leader said with a sigh.
Nan Gurong's eyes widened at once. Like Sang Ying, she had thought everything would be fine once the Cold Crow Devil Lord was held back. She hadn't expected anyone to intercept them along the way.
"The Cold Crow Devil Lord isn't the real mastermind?!" Nan Gurong exclaimed.
Perhaps certain that Nan Gurong couldn't escape, the leader didn't mind telling them a little of what went on behind the scenes. "What does the Cold Crow Devil Lord amount to? If not for his masterful poison arts, what right would a lowly Devil Cultivator have to order me around?"
At those words, Sang Ying and Nan Gurong both frowned.
For this man to treat even the Cold Crow Devil Lord so coldly, either his cultivation was higher, or he had a greater power behind him.
For someone like him to come specifically to intercept Nan Gurong's party, this demon wedding might lead to even more troublesome matters.
Both women felt some regret now. It wasn't that they regretted saving the people, but that they had acted too rashly. They should have informed their sects before making a move.
But it was rather late for regrets now. The leader seemed to have his own misgivings, and after saying that, he refused to reveal anything more. Instead, he chuckled. "You should be satisfied to know that much. Don't worry, you won't be going alone. The rest have probably been caught already, and we'll send them down to join you soon enough!"
The leader raised a hand and waved, and the masked figures behind him swarmed toward the Plain Robe Pavilion cultivators. The sharp blades in their hands glinted coldly. One slash across each person's neck, and the secret here would be hidden once more.
Nan Gurong could only watch as the vicious ghost mask drew closer and closer, as though a real vicious ghost were about to devour her.
Cold light flashed. She instinctively closed her eyes, waiting for the blade to fall upon her.
But strangely, the expected pain never came. When she could no longer resist opening her eyes to see what had happened, she saw only a slender, tall figure standing straight before her. The woman was like a wall of flesh, blocking every blade and sword in front of her.
"Young lady, you're all right?!" Nan Gurong recognized her at once. Or rather, she would never forget that face for the rest of her life.
Nan Gurong had thought she was certain to die holding the Cold Crow Devil Lord back alone, yet she had caught up with them alive. Didn't that mean the Cold Crow Devil Lord had already...
Nan Gurong didn't dare think any further. Sang Ying's survival was already an immense surprise to her.
"Fellow Daoist Nan, you ran so fast. I almost didn't catch up." Even at a time like this, Sang Ying was in the mood to joke.
Nan Gurong was angry and upset that Sang Ying had walked into the trap, yet also somewhat grateful and happy. She said angrily, "I ran that fast, and you still caught up, didn't you?"
How could Sang Ying fail to hear the reproach in her words? She merely smiled. "Of course I had to catch up. I still have to visit the Plain Robe Pavilion with you, Fellow Daoist!"
"Good! If we can leave here alive, I'll be sure to invite you to the Plain Robe Pavilion as a guest!" Nan Gurong replied at once.
"Then it's a deal." Sang Ying hurriedly settled the matter, as if afraid Nan Gurong would go back on her word.
She naturally meant what she said. Sang Ying still hadn't recovered from the injuries the Ice Flood Dragon had inflicted on her before, and now she had won a costly victory over the Cold Crow Devil Lord. To avoid being left with any hidden ailments, Sang Ying had long since decided to return to the Plain Robe Pavilion with Nan Gurong for proper treatment.
Now that the two had met, she naturally had to settle the matter.
The two women were still making a pact for if they survived, while the leader opposite them had long since grown impatient.
Hearing their agreement, he sneered. "You really are little girls who've never weathered wind and rain, still lost in your sweet dreams! What a pity-none of you will escape today!"
Sang Ying raised the tree branch in her hand. "Then come and try. See whether we can escape or not."
The leader couldn't hold back his laughter. "You're an amusing one, too, woman. You dare make such grand claims with a tree branch in your hand? Do you think it's some divine weapon?"
He was frightening enough to look at, and even his voice was especially grating.
Nan Gurong's expression also grew grim. She was no fool. Now that Sang Ying was using spiritual power again, she could naturally tell that Sang Ying was only at Foundation Establishment, her cultivation even lower than her own.
With such a vast gap in strength, how could Sang Ying possibly win?
She opened her mouth, intending to urge Sang Ying to hurry away while she still had the chance, but before she could speak, the leader opposite them suddenly attacked.
He seemed to be some kind of vine or tree Demon Cultivator. With a raise of his hand, he conjured countless vines that lashed toward Sang Ying. Sang Ying swung the branch in her hand, meeting them head-on.
The Plain Robe Pavilion cultivators thought Sang Ying had gone mad, fighting him with nothing but a tree branch. They all closed their eyes, unable to bear watching a living person perish before them like this.
But in the next instant, a piercing scream reached their ears. When they looked up, the branch they had thought so fragile was still intact, but the leader's right arm had been severed and had fallen to the ground, turning into a pile of rotten vines.
For a moment, even Nan Gurong stared in stunned disbelief. The despair and desolation vanished from their faces, and hope suddenly rose in their hearts.
Having suffered such a great loss, the leader immediately ordered everyone to attack together and leave none of them alive!
Sang Ying let out a breath of turbid Qi. For the time being, she couldn't use Frost Chills Fourteen Provinces. Fortunately, every move the Sword Master had left behind was a supreme technique, and she could use these opponents to try out the new moves she had just learned.
And so, on that day, the Plain Robe Pavilion cultivators had to cast aside their former, shallow understanding of sword cultivators. The magnificent sight of that single sword strike freezing a thousand li, along with Sang Ying's name, was etched deep into everyone's memory.
Many years later, a biography of the late Nan Gurong, Pavilion Master of the Plain Robe Pavilion, would say: With that single sword strike, Nan Gurong of the Plain Robe Pavilion and the woman who would later become the Sword Master formed a bond that could never be severed.