Chu Xisheng, having been knocked down by the force of the sword power, quickly rolled over to stand up.
Clutching his saber, his gaze remained as focused as before, watching the two Armored Soldiers in front of him.
By now, his injuries were not light; although his leather armor and golden silk inner armor had spared him from having his belly sliced open, they couldn't dissipate all the force.
The wide-blade broadsword had already shattered his left collarbone.
Using his left hand did not affect his combat power, but now, each movement made Chu Xisheng feel a heart-piercing pain in his left shoulder.
Nonetheless, Chu Xisheng seemed immune to the sensation as he emotionlessly walked forward.
His Hundred-refined Light Steel Saber waved carelessly, seemingly without much effort and no particular pattern, but the sweat on the faces behind the masks of the two Armored Soldiers was as large as soybeans.
Chu Xisheng's saber was faster than theirs, his strength was greater, his reflexes quicker!
So much so that with each swing, his saber seemed to carry endless murderous intent, posing a lethal threat to them.
Under the oppression of that saber light, they had no choice but to retreat step by step, all the while swinging their sabers with all their might, creating a dense web of sword light in front of them.
They coordinated with each other, their sword light seemingly impenetrable.
Chu Xisheng swung his saber still in a casual manner, occasionally swinging with full force but always stopping short, retreating as soon as he touched.
He was like a cat pawing at its prey, completely at ease.
Yet, each of Chu Xisheng's feints forced the two to weave their sword curtains more vigorously, trying to keep Chu Xisheng outside their defense.
However, after just a quarter of an hour, both were drenched in sweat and panting heavily.
They both realized that things were not looking good.
In that brief moment, they swung their sabers more than twice as frequently as Chu Xisheng, and with full force, leaving nothing in reserve.
And with their heavy armor, their physical exertion was more than five times that of their opponent.
In contrast, Chu Xisheng, who had been gasping for breath, had now smoothed his breathing. Not only had his strength not depleted, but he had also recovered quite a bit.
One of the Armored Soldiers, without hesitation, ripped open his Chest Armor.
The Heavy Armor could no longer protect them; it was instead a great burden, a fatal flaw.
The corners of Chu Xisheng's mouth lifted slightly.
The man was quite smart, but it was too late for him to shed his armor!
In that instant, the two opposite had swung their swords more than two hundred times, their Sword Speed had unconsciously slowed, not even 80 percent of their peak.
Without any hesitation, Chu Xisheng closed in fast, his Hundred-refined Light Steel Saber striking forward like a sharp gust of wind.
The two opposite let out roars of anger, one struggling to block and the other aiming a furious chop at Chu Xisheng's neck.
Yet Chu Xisheng's saber, still quicker than the wild wind, just grazed past one man's neck, as he pulled back his saber in time to perfectly block the incoming wide-blade broadsword.
The powerful force from that strike made Chu Xisheng stagger three steps back.
When Chu Xisheng steadied himself, the surviving Armored Soldier had already turned and started running full force.
Chu Xisheng couldn't help but chuckle lightly. The man might have learned some Light Body Skill, but dressed in Heavy Armor, could he really flee?
With only twenty-seven paces, Chu Xisheng caught up to him. His Hundred-refined Light Steel Saber pierced through the man's neck from behind, effortlessly decapitating him.
At this moment, fireworks burst before his eyes again, and his Martial Arts Points rose to 10.
Behind him, Tie Xiaosheng couldn't help but express his admiration: "Brilliant! Precise with the knife, quick with the hands, but most admirable is the combination of intelligence and courage."
These sixteen Long Family elites, whose combat power could match an entire sub-forum of their Iron Banner Gang, had been forcibly defeated by this young man through tactics and fast swordsmanship.
Chu Xisheng also felt completely relaxed, his tensed thoughts uncoiling.
He smiled at Tie Xiaosheng: "Uncle, I think you'd better not talk for the time being. Your wounds might burst open."
Tie Xiaosheng was left speechless with a chuckle. Indeed, his situation was not good at the moment; every word he spoke pulled at his wounds.
Hearing 'uncle' from the other party's mouth, he grew to appreciate this young man even more, feeling a sense of kinship.
Chu Xisheng cleaned his Hundred-refined Light Steel Saber and put it back into the scabbard. He then tore off some comparatively clean cloth strips from the bodies to secure his left shoulder and collarbone.
He'd been focused on the fight earlier, and the pain hadn't felt as intense.
But now, as he relaxed, the pain made him wince and grimace.
After tending to his injuries, Chu Xisheng began to search the bodies.
He was full of expectation but ended up with only thirty-two taels of Demon Silver.
Chu Xisheng couldn't help cursing silently. The Long Family's payroll should be generous, yet these sixteen men carried so little money.
In fact, the weapons of these men were quite valuable, especially those three Armored Soldiers' broadswords and Heavy Armor, worth at least a hundred and fifty taels of Demon Silver.
Unfortunately, these items were too heavy and cumbersome for Chu Xisheng to take away.
He picked up another Hundred-refined Light Steel Saber from the ground and tossed away his spare steel saber.
Chu Xisheng once again hoisted Tie Xiaosheng onto his back and headed in the direction of the hot springs.
Lu Luanti, a Seventh Rank Dual Cultivator of Magic and Martial Arts, was someone Chu Xisheng believed could retreat safely even if she couldn't defeat that Seventh Rank from the Long Family.
Still, he was a bit worried and wanted to go check on her.
However, just as Chu Xisheng had made it halfway, he saw Lu Luanti.
The girl's complexion was pale, and she looked dispirited and dejected.
Yet upon seeing Chu Xisheng, she was overjoyed, her pupils dilating slightly, "Why have you come back? What about those people from the Long Family? They haven't chased you?"
Because her view was obstructed, she hadn't seen the corpses.
But judging by the two Hundred-refined Light Steel Sabers Chu Xisheng had acquired, and the fresh blood staining his clothes, Lu Luanti could vaguely guess the answer.
Could it be that he slaughtered all those clan soldiers from the Long Family?
Lu Luanti realized she might have underestimated Chu Xisheng a little.
Chu Xisheng simply pointed to his shoulder wound and gave a bitter smile, "Didn't I just have a breakthrough to Ninth Grade? I just happened to awaken a certain talent, which allowed me to turn the tables on those people, but at a great cost."
As he finished speaking, another firework exploded in his field of view, adding two more Martial Arts Points.
Chu Xisheng thought to himself that this was the delayed nature of Martial Arts Points.
As Lu Luanti was a high expert at the Upper Tier of the Seventh Rank, she only learned the situation now, which is why the Martial Arts Points were delayed until this moment.
At the same time, he scrutinized Lu Luanti, noting that she was completely unharmed from head to toe.
But why was she so downcast? Could it be that she suffered an internal injury?
Such injuries wouldn't be evident on the surface.
Chu Xisheng asked with suspicion, "What about that person from the Long Family? How did the fight go?"
"Do you even need to ask about the outcome? How could an eagle that can't fly be a match for me?"
Lu Luanti's voice carried a hint of disdain, but then she sighed and said, "However, he escaped. That fellow actually had a Fifth Grade Jade Talisman that enhances movement technique. He was incredibly fast, and I couldn't catch up."
A Jade Talisman is a type of talisman, made from white jade.
Martial Cultivators can use such talismans as well, though they are extremely expensive, costing thirty times more than talismans of the same tier.
Chu Xisheng immediately understood; with a survivor, Lu Luanti's undercover identity was likely to be compromised.
Next, he saw Lu Luanti stretch out her hand to him, "Hand it over!"
Chu Xisheng blinked in confusion, "Hand over what?"
"The advance payment of Demon Silver, of course! I paid you fifteen silver taels in advance for you to cover for me for a month."
Lu Luanti's clear black and white eyes glared roundly, huffing at Chu Xisheng, "But I can't maintain my cover now. I haven't even asked you for guard fees, which is quite generous of me, do you still not want to return the money?"
Chu Xisheng looked embarrassed; he indeed did not want to return it.
Yet Lu Luanti's reasoning was so sound that he had no rebuttal.
Meanwhile, at this moment, a sword-bearing young man was walking quickly through a narrow tunnel seven miles away.
A hole had been stabbed through his chest by Lu Luanti, causing the sword-bearing young man excruciating pain, with blood foaming at his mouth from time to time.
Despite his pain, the sword-bearing young man coughed softly, his eyes filled with a fierce light. As long as he could make it back to the upper levels of the Fire Bone Cave, he would definitely make that couple pay a price.
Just then, he saw a slender figure dressed in a black coarse cloth and covered with a cloak approaching from the opposite direction.
The sword-bearing young man furrowed his brow and gripped his sword tightly, becoming wary.
It's well known that the most dangerous thing lurking beneath the Fire Bone Cave is not necessarily the evil creatures, but various kinds of people.
And this person in front of him felt unfathomable.
At that moment, the shadow in black suddenly asked, "Are you Eagle Sword Duhong?"
The voice was that of a young girl, clear and pure like a mountain spring.
But the sword-bearing young man grew even more vigilant, "That's right, I am Du Hong. Who might you be?"
Just at that moment, he saw a shadow dart towards him like smoke or fog, suddenly appearing before him. Followed by the sound of an exploding watermelon, the sword-bearing young man's head shattered.
From beginning to end, he didn't even have a chance to draw his sword.
Chu Yunyun continued to move swiftly, untouched by any blood or filth. She glanced at the body of Eagle Sword Duhong and continued on her way.
Her keen nose twitched, following the bloody scent left by Du Hong all the way until she arrived in front of a hot spring.
From a distance, Chu Yunyun could see Chu Xisheng, bare from the waist up, sitting on the edge of the hot spring. Next to him sat a delicate and beautiful young girl, close by his side.
The two of them were so close to each other, engaged in something indiscernible.
Chu Yunyun was stirred, and the stone wall she leaned on collapsed inward with a 'thud' at her touch.