After a moment's hesitation, Tang Jian gripped the dagger and gently lifted a corner of the tent flap. Crouching low, he swiftly exited the tent.
Upon emerging, he saw the northern part of the camp suddenly engulfed in flames, with the sound of clashing swords filling the air.
At the same time, in the distance, more than ten knights, armed with torches and swords, were rushing towards the commotion.
Tang Jian was about to follow them when a sudden glint in the corner of his eye caught his attention. He saw more than ten figures behind his tent, their bodies flickering as they rushed straight towards the center of the camp.
His heart skipped a beat.
He remembered clearly that Yan Zi and the other female family members' tents were located there.
A feint attack!
The flames in the north were just a ruse; the real target of the enemy attack was the center of the camp.
It was too late to call back those knights now. Tang Jian's mind raced, and he decided to quietly follow them alone.
As he approached the central tents, the leader of the black-cloaked figures made a gesture, and the rest immediately split into several groups and dispersed.
Tang Jian naturally remembered the location of the tent where Yan Zi had received him during the day, so he immediately rushed towards it.
Before he arrived, he heard a girl's scream from a nearby tent.
Immediately afterward, a figure flew out of the collapsed tent.
Tang Jian looked closely and realized that the flying figure was the quirky servant girl "Xiao Dingdang" he had seen during the day.
Behind her, three more figures, wielding weapons, leaped out and chased after her.
Xiao Dingdang rolled on the ground, then quickly stood up, holding a slightly dim silver short sword in her hand. She retreated continuously, dodging several deadly attacks with surprising agility.
Seeing this, Tang Jian was about to go forward to help, but a black shadow suddenly flashed beside him, wielding a sky-blue long sword and sweeping towards his throat.
His eyes flashed, and he gripped the dagger to block it, simultaneously lifting his foot to kick the person forcefully in the groin.
The assailant obviously didn't expect such a treacherous move from Tang Jian right at the start and quickly withdrew, dodging the devastating kick.
Tang Jian's mouth curved slightly upward, and his other hand formed a seal, which he violently swiped forward.
The black-cloaked figure had not yet stabilized his stance and, startled, immediately took out a talisman and slapped it onto his body. A layer of golden light instantly enveloped him.
However, after Tang Jian's palm swipe, there was no reaction, no ripple at all.
He then remembered that he had no magical power in his dantian and couldn't possibly use a fireball technique that required quite a bit of magical power.
The three black-cloaked figures chasing Xiao Dingdang also noticed the commotion here and paused, turning to look.
"Ignore me and kill that little girl!" the black-cloaked figure engaging Tang Jian, seemingly the leader among them, ordered.
Upon receiving the order, the three didn't say a word, turned around immediately, and resumed chasing Xiao Dingdang.
Xiao Dingdang, of course, saw Tang Jian now, but she had no time to attend to him and could only struggle to deal with the three assailants.
"Brat, playing tricks! You wasted my Golden Light Talisman. Prepare to die!" the black-cloaked figure roared, his long sword carrying a chilling aura as he slashed down at Tang Jian.
Although Tang Jian had no magical power, his years of rigorous training were not in vain. His body swayed, dodging the sword, and he lifted the dagger to stab at the black-cloaked figure's vital spot under the ribs.
There was a "dong" sound.
The dagger struck the golden light surrounding the figure, producing a muffled sound like a bell and bouncing off.
The assailant snickered and immediately stabbed his long sword backward, aiming for Tang Jian's head.
With a "clang," Tang Jian used the dagger to deflect the sword's edge slightly, only to feel a cold chill permeating his body, making him shiver.
The blue long sword in the assailant's hand was clearly a low-grade magical sword, but its quality was much better than the one Chen, the master, had awakened during the day.
Thinking quickly, Tang Jian continuously retreated, creating distance from the assailant, but his gaze remained fixed on the golden light surrounding him.
The Golden Light Talisman used by this person was obviously not of high quality, and after just a moment, its light had become somewhat dim.
Tang Jian's eyes narrowed. Ignoring the pain all over his body, he reversed his grip on the dagger, lowered his stance slightly, like a crouching wolf ready to pounce, and charged towards the assailant.
The latter sneered, relying on the protection of the Golden Light Talisman, and directly confronted him without dodging.
However, before he could get close, Tang Jian crouched low, slid past him, stomped on the ground with his toes, leaped up like a flying eagle catching a snake, and pounced towards the three assailants surrounding Xiao Dingdang.
The three obviously didn't expect Tang Jian, who was engaging their leader, to still be able to distract them. They were completely unprepared.
One of them was holding his sword straight at Xiao Dingdang and hadn't retracted it when Tang Jian landed, slashing his throat with the dagger in his hand, causing blood to spray.
The other two were startled and abandoned the already battered Xiao Dingdang, wielding their swords directly at Tang Jian.
After landing, Tang Jian crouched low, sweeping out with a roundhouse kick, knocking one of them down.
As he was about to rush forward and kill him, he suddenly heard two whooshing sounds behind him. Before he could dodge, two fireballs hit his back, sending up sparks and throwing him heavily to the ground.
The fireballs clearly came from the lead black-cloaked figure, who was at least a Qi Condensation Layer 3 cultivator.
The new injuries, coupled with the old ones, caused the wounds on Tang Jian's body that were nearly healed to rupture again, and blood instantly stained his robe.
However, he immediately stood up and spat out a mouthful of blood to the side.
He had planned to take advantage of their unpreparedness and eliminate at least two of the three assassins, but he only killed one.
"Tang Jian, are you okay?"
Xiao Dingdang saw this, flashed to his side, and said with concern.
"Hold on for a moment. Keep those two busy. I'll deal with the leader first," Tang Jian said in a low voice, not looking at her but at the cultivator.
Before Xiao Dingdang could reply, he had already stepped forward, actively charging towards the lead black-cloaked figure.
"You're looking for death, kid! I'll grant you your wish!" the man cursed, but he didn't dare to relax.
He shook his long sword, and two chilly sword beams shot straight towards Tang Jian.
Tang Jian's body flickered, dodged one sword beam, then tightly gripped the dagger and swung it forcefully, deflecting the other. His foot stomped hard, and his speed suddenly increased, bringing him instantly before the black-cloaked cultivator.
His dagger suddenly stabbed out, aiming for the cultivator's heart.
There was a "bang."
The golden light surrounding the cultivator shook violently again, blocking Tang Jian's dagger.
"Die!" the black-cloaked cultivator roared, and his long sword suddenly slashed down.
Tang Jian couldn't retreat in time and had to grip the dagger with both hands, lifting it horizontally to block the blue long sword.
There was a "boom."
A powerful force pressed down on him, and Tang Jian's already battered body couldn't support it, forcing him to crouch down semi-squatting.
The cultivator murmured, and the blue light on his long sword brightened. A cold stream poured out, quickly turning into a layer of white frost that froze Tang Jian inside.
Xiao Dingdang, not far away, was extremely worried. Although she could barely keep up with the two assassins' joint attack with her agile movements, she couldn't free herself.
The two assassins noticed that Tang Jian was restrained and, feeling relieved, exchanged a glance. They then began circling around Xiao Dingdang, one attacking and one defending, clearly intending to let the black-cloaked cultivator deal with Tang Jian before turning their attention to her.
At this moment, Tang Jian, who was trapped in the frost, suddenly felt the expansion of the faint golden flame deep within his semi-disabled dantian. It transformed into a warm current, rushing along his meridians straight up towards his hands.
Accompanying it was an indescribable sensation of pain, as if the meridians along which the warm current flowed were all breaking apart inch by inch.
He let out a long shout that pierced through the night, and the frost on his body melted instantly. A golden flame ignited at the tip of his left finger, turning the dagger red-hot.
"What's going on..." The black-clothed cultivator was immediately startled.
Tang Jian pushed off with his feet, standing up suddenly. He swung the fiery red dagger, deflecting the other person's long sword and then stabbing fiercely towards his chest.
There was a soft "puff."
The layer of golden light on the black-clothed cultivator was as thin as fragile window paper, easily pierced. The crimson dagger smoothly penetrated his heart.
His chest emitted wisps of smoke, yet there was no sign of blood dripping. Only a smell of burnt flesh lingered.
The black-clothed cultivator's eyes were filled with disbelief. His body swayed and collapsed to the side.
From Tang Jian being trapped in ice to breaking free and counter-killing the black-clothed cultivator, this seemingly complex confrontation had actually taken no more than a couple of breaths.
Tang Jian loosened his grip on the dagger, feeling unbearable pain all over his body and his head spinning. However, gritting his teeth, he flicked his hand, and the still fiery red dagger in his hand transformed into a red light, flying towards the direction where Xiaodingdang was.
With a "pfft!" sound!
The two assassins who were intently engaged with Xiaodingdang hadn't reacted yet. One of them was pierced through by a red light, falling to the ground dead. The other, realizing the reversal in Tang Jian's situation, immediately lost his fighting spirit and tried to turn and flee.
"Where do you think you're going!"
Xiaodingdang wouldn't let him escape. With his capable skills, dealing with a demoralized assassin was more than enough.
After throwing the dagger, Tang Jian felt as if the last bit of strength in his body had been drained. His face was as pale as paper, and his consciousness was blurry. As his meridians suddenly felt unusually warm, he immediately lost consciousness and fell into a deep slumber.