Volume 1, Chapter 9: Wounded
1829 Words
In the dense forest bathed in moonlight, all was silent.
Yet, where the moonlight pierced, a murderous aura surged.
Zhang Guchen brandished his battle blade, leaping down from a tree and pinning the demon scout before him to the ground. Then, with a swift movement of his blade, a bloody gash appeared on the scout's body as he rolled to dodge. Mastering
the Ten Releases of Martial Arts at a proficient level was, here, at this moment, its most powerful weapon!
Taking a deep breath, Zhang Guchen gripped his blade tightly, twisting his waist as the blade slashed horizontally, a flash of light cutting towards the rolling demon scout. What should have been a waist-severing blow was, for the still-rolling scout, a decapitation!
*Sizzle!
* Blood spurted, a long, narrow gash appearing on the demon scout's neck.
In truth, Zhang Guchen had panicked; at the last moment, he had hesitated. Otherwise, the demon scout's fate would have been a severed head, not just a slit throat.
One is beheading, the other is slitting the throat. Although the final result is death, before death, an enemy with a slit throat can still retaliate. The chances are slim, but it's something to be wary of, especially on the battlefield.
Looking at the convulsing demon scout on the ground, Zhang Guchen let out a long breath. Just as he was about to rush to help, he heard Li Man's shout, causing Zhang Guchen's heart, which had just relaxed slightly, to immediately jump again.
"There's another demon scout. I was wondering why the system was so generous this time, rewarding 2 potential points and 2 martial arts points. Completing the border patrol only gives 3 points. It seems the previous rewards were just appetizers."
Zhang Guchen muttered to himself, but quickened his pace, reaching Qian Zhou's side in a few steps. His battle blade slashed diagonally, directly blocking the demon scout's retreat.
The demon scout, already almost powerless against Qian Zhou's attack, was startled by Zhang Guchen's sudden appearance. Qian Zhou stabbed him in the heart, and as he pulled out the blade, he twisted it several times, killing the demon scout completely.
Seeing all his men dead, the remaining demon scout squad leader cursed inwardly. He regretted joining that scout team; they disliked each other from the start, and being from different races, cooperation was impossible.
Desperate, the squad leader's eyes were bloodshot. He completely ignored Li Man's attacks, his sword aimed directly at Li Man's neck—a suicidal move.
"Damn it!" Li Man was caught off guard and thrown into disarray by the squad leader's attack.
Just as Li Man was about to trade blows for his life, a sword suddenly pierced the squad leader's back, emerging from his chest!
"Old Li, are you alright?" The squad leader collapsed, revealing Qian Zhou and Zhang Guchen behind him.
"I'm fine, damn it! I didn't expect this demon bastard to be so cunning, he even had accomplices! Damn it!"
Li Man spat, cursing the demons for their treachery.
"Heh, we're cunning, but who was it that ambushed us from the tree just now?"
A voice suddenly rang out, causing Zhang Guchen and the others to immediately form a circle back to back, their swords pointed at the shadows.
"Who? Damn it, too scared to come out? That's why you demons are all cowards, just hairy beasts hiding in the shadows!"
Hearing Li Man's taunt, a cold snort came from the darkness, followed by a rustling of the surrounding grass, and a group of burly figures emerged.
"Damn, Tiger Clan!" Li Man couldn't help but curse under his breath when he saw the figures clearly.
The burly figures were nearly two meters tall, with horizontal lines on their faces, dark yellow vertical pupils full of cruelty, square noses, and wide mouths, their breath reeking of blood.
Zhang Guchen knew about the Tiger Clan; Qian Zhou had told him along the way that they were a proud race who never liked to ambush people from behind, preferring to kill their enemies head-on. Therefore, the Tiger Clan scouts hadn't fired arrows directly from the shadows, but had come out openly.
Don't mistake the Tiger Clan for virtuous gentlemen. They have their bad habits, including a penchant for brutally abusing their enemies. This causes many to tremble at the sight of them, and some, defeated by the Tigers, commit suicide as their first instinct.
"I'm out. Now, what do you want to do?" The strongest Tiger Clan member, stroking his sword, looked at Li Man with a playful expression, his eyes filled with savagery.
"Damn it, this time it's probably hopeless. We'll try to break through, and if we can't..."
Li Man didn't finish his sentence, but Zhang Guchen and Qian Zhou understood the meaning behind it: "If we can't break through, we'll commit suicide!"
Seeing Li Man's gaze, the Tiger Clan scout squad leader grinned. "What, still thinking of resisting? Haha, brothers, these human soldiers actually want to resist, haha!"
The surrounding Tiger Clan scouts laughed, their laughter filled with cruelty and bloodshed.
At the same cultivation level, the Tiger Clan was already stronger than the humans, let alone now, six against three!
"Capture them alive!"
At the command, the surrounding tiger-like warriors drew their swords, grinning as they charged forward. They understood their squad leader's meaning: only living enemies were fun, allowing them to vent their pent-up rage.
"Charge!"
Li Man roared, and Zhang Guchen and Qian Zhou charged forward like arrows!
This was a time for survival, a fight to the death. Even Zhang Guchen, at this moment, only had the will to fight, no other thoughts.
*Clang!*
The sword hummed softly, as if ignited by its master's fighting spirit, reflecting the moonlight even brighter and colder.
Under the dappled moonlight, the sword rose, carrying its master's determination, charging forward without hesitation!
Zhang Guchen knew that among those present, his cultivation was probably the weakest, but his martial technique was likely the highest among them. Therefore, from the beginning, Zhang Guchen had no intention of engaging in a direct confrontation.
Two tiger scouts charged at Zhang Guchen, their swords raised simultaneously, aiming to cripple his hands. Their eyes gleamed with cruel excitement.
Taking a deep breath, Zhang Guchen held his breath, his eyes fixed on the two swords aimed at him. In this life-or-death moment, only those two swords remained in his mind.
Just as the swords were about to strike his arms, Zhang Guchen moved. He twisted his body, the two swords slashing away from him from the front and back.
Crouching low, he stomped his feet, appearing as if by teleportation behind the tiger scouts.
The two tiger scouts were no pushovers either. When they realized Zhang Guchen was gone, they rolled to the left and right almost simultaneously, narrowly avoiding his horizontal s***h!
"What a pity!" Zhang Guchen thought to himself, regretting that his attack had failed.
The two tiger clan members who had dodged Zhang Guchen's attack now had serious expressions. Only they knew how close they had come to danger; the icy chill of the blade against their backs had left them drenched in cold sweat.
The two tiger clan scouts exchanged a glance, abandoning their underestimation, and swung their battle blades again!
This time, the blades whistled, their momentum overwhelming and breathtaking.
Zhang Guchen's eyes narrowed, his battle blade twisting and turning like a venomous snake, pecking at both blades with incredible speed.
As if electrocuted, a strong, tingling sensation shot through the two tiger scouts, causing the two tiger clan members' hands to tremble involuntarily.
The electric shock caused the sword aimed at Zhang Guchen to veer off course, opening the center gate.
"Not good!" The tiger scout with the center gate open realized the danger and tried to immediately defend, but the tingling sensation in his hand hadn't subsided, making this impossible.
Zhang Guchen seized the opportunity and closed in.
However, the distance between the two tiger scouts was too short, preventing the sword from fully utilizing its advantages, and each sword could only deal with one tiger scout.
In a flash, Zhang Guchen reversed the sword in his right hand, hilt facing forward, and his left hand formed a palm, striking both tiger scouts in the chest simultaneously. The Ten Martial Arts Techniques not only included sword techniques but also palm techniques!
Bang!
A muffled sound rang out as the palm and sword struck their hearts simultaneously. The two tiger scouts turned deathly pale almost at the same time, staggering backward.
The immense force from the hilt and the longsword caused their hearts to pound violently, leaving them dizzy and pale.
The retreating tigers widened the distance between themselves and Zhang Guchen, a distance precisely where the battle blade could exert its greatest advantage.
Whoosh!
The battle blade wailed, slicing through the air, sending two enormous heads flying into the sky. The intense pressure from the violently pounding hearts caused blood to spurt five feet high!
Zhang Guchen had dealt with his opponent, creating a gap in the encirclement—a perfect opportunity to escape. However, Zhang Guchen resolutely turned and charged back into the encirclement.
In the battlefield, three tiger scouts relentlessly attacked Qian Zhou, their attacks leaving him almost powerless to retaliate, and he was quickly covered in blood.
Li Man wasn't faring much better. Although he only had one enemy, it was undoubtedly the strongest—the tiger squad leader!
With a single glance, Zhang Guchen charged towards Qian Zhou.
At this moment, Qian Zhou was pale, covered in blood, and swaying precariously.
Three tiger scouts stared at Qian Zhou with ferocious expressions, as if he were prey, toying with him relentlessly. Their swords sliced through the air, inflicting pain and terror upon their prey. Suddenly, a whimpering sound came from behind them, startling the scouts. The sound was all too familiar—the sound of a
sword
slicing through the air.
Although they didn't know why the whimpering sound came from behind them, it didn't stop them from turning to defend.
Two tigers immediately stopped their attack on Qian Zhou and turned to defend.
But upon turning, they saw a sword spinning rapidly. Without time to assess the situation, the two tigers hurriedly raised their swords to parry.
Clang!
The swords clashed, sparks flying, briefly illuminating the darkness around the tigers.
In the instant the sparks brightened, the two tigers saw a pair of bright eyes in the darkness, their gaze sharp as knives, chilling and piercing.
In the brief moment of surprise, a pair of hands emerged from the darkness, the white palms gleaming slightly in the moonlight, creating a striking contrast with the darkness, drawing them in.
*Snap!
* Two crisp sounds rang out as a pristine white hand simultaneously gripped the necks of two tiger scouts.
Veins bulged on their palms, immense force surging forth, and the cervical vertebrae of both tiger scouts snapped instantly.
- Writer
