"Good!" Lin Yue responded, spinning her spear to fend off three attackers at once. "Let him handle the small fries while we focus on the big threats!"
Despite the chaos, Tian Lei kept his mind razor-sharp. His only thought was to reduce the burden on his team by eliminating as many enemies as possible. Each step he took brought him closer to being more than just a burden on the team.
By the time he paused to catch his breath, the ground around him was littered with bodies. The dragon's aura flickered, then faded as his Qi reserves dipped.
Tian Lei looked up, sweat dripping down his brow, to see the remaining bandits retreating in fear. But the three elders at the center remained unfazed, locked in combat with Yuyan and the others.
Tian Lei nodded, his grip on his sword tightening as he scanned the battlefield. 'There are more... what! ' His thoughts were abruptly interrupted as a sharp pain shot through his chest. A blade was piercing through his chest!!
He gasped, coughing up blood as he turned to see the source of the attack. To his utter shock, it was Mei Ling—her blade piercing through his chest.
Tian Lei's vision blurred as he stumbled back, clutching at the sword embedded in his chest. Blood seeped between his fingers, the pain overwhelming. His breathing was ragged, and he struggled to comprehend what had just happened.
"Mei Ling... why?" he managed to gasp, his voice weak.
The others froze in shock, their weapons still raised against the bandits. Yuyan immediately pulled Tian Lei toward her, her eyes narrowing as she faced Mei Ling.
"What is the meaning of this?" Yuyan demanded coldly, her tone sharp and unwavering.
Mei Ling stepped forward, her expression calm yet chillingly detached. "Isn't it obvious?" she said with a smirk, her voice dripping with malice. "The reward for betraying you far outweighs any loyalty I might have had."
"You traitor!" Zhang Wei shouted, his grip tightening on his sword.
Mei Ling laughed mockingly. "Traitor? Don't be so dramatic. You were all nothing more than stepping stones to me." She turned her gaze to the three elders, who had momentarily ceased their attacks. "Now, about our deal—I've upheld my part. Do what you will with them, but leave me out of it."
The scarred elder let out a low chuckle. "Oh, don't worry, little girl. We'll keep our promise—for now."
Tian Lei winced, his knees buckling as Yuyan supported him. "Stay with me, Tian Lei," she said urgently, her voice softening for a moment. Her hand glowed faintly as she pressed it against his wound, trying to stop the bleeding. As she tries to took out a healing pill and feed him one.
"You... were with them all along," Tian Lei muttered, his vision dimming.
"Of course," Mei Ling said, her smirk widening. "But don't take it personally, Tian Lei. This is just how the world works."
"Enough talk!" the scarred elder barked. "Kill them all!"
The remaining bandits surged forward, their weapons gleaming in the dim light. Yuyan pushed Tian Lei behind her, drawing her sword with a determined look.
"Hold your ground!" she commanded the others.
But to her utter surprise, three blades suddenly pierced her body before she could react. Two stabbed through her chest on either side, and the third pierced her stomach.
"What...?!" she mumbled weakly as the attackers yanked their blades out, leaving her bleeding and stunned.
She looked in disbelief at her three remaining teammates.
"Why...?" she asked, her voice trembling as she tried to understand the betrayal.
"Not our fault," Zhang Wei said with a shrug. "The senior brother from the Inner Area wants you dead. It's either us or you."
Lin Yue nodded solemnly and added, "Forgive us." Her expression was calm but devoid of any remorse as she raised her sword and plunged it into Tian Lei's chest who was just beginning to heal due to Pill effect.
Tian Lei's vision blurred, his mind spinning in disbelief. Is this how it ends? Am I… dying? he thought as his consciousness began to fade.
But just as the darkness was about to consume him, the golden orb deep within his body began to glow faintly. Its light spread through him, calming his fading vitality and holding his life together by a thread. It also created a invisible Golden veil around him and Yuyan who was near him got covered in same veil, as for this veil effect...
"They're dead," one of the bandit elders declared, inspecting the fallen bodies.
Lin Yue nodded coldly and gestured toward a cliff in the mountains. "Throw them off into the trench. Let the wild beasts handle the rest."
A few bandits approached, picked up the bodies of Yuyan and Tian Lei, and carried them to the edge of the trench. Without ceremony, they tossed them into the deep ravine below.
But their deaths were not as certain as the traitors believed.
As Yuyan hit the rocky ground of the deep trench, her body convulsed in pain, blood seeping from her numerous wounds. Gritting her teeth, she forced herself to move despite the agony. Her trembling hand reached into her spatial ring, pulling out two life-saving pills.
"This... can't end like this..." she muttered through gritted teeth.
She quickly swallowed one pill herself, feeling a surge of warmth spread through her body as it began to mend her critical injuries. With the last of her strength, she pried open Tian Lei's mouth and shoved the second pill inside.
"Come on, Tian Lei... you can't die now," she whispered, her voice weak but determined.
As the pill dissolved, a faint golden glow emanated from Tian Lei's chest. The mysterious orb within him reacted to the life-saving pill, its light growing stronger and spreading throughout his body. His shallow breaths deepened, and his wounds began to close at an astonishing rate.
Yuyan's eyes widened. "What... what kind of body do you have?" she murmured. The energy from he just emitted wasn't ordinary—it was heavy and powerful, far beyond anything she'd ever encountered. But seeing him recovering she began to meditate and recover from her injury too.
Sometimes later, Tian Lei's eyes fluttered open. The pain from his injuries was still there, but it was duller, less overwhelming. He stared up at the rocky ceiling of the trench, disoriented.
"Yuyan?" he rasped, his voice barely audible.
"I'm here," she said, leaning against a nearby boulder, her face pale but she had recovered too. "We're not safe yet. They think we're dead, but we need to get out of here before they realize otherwise."
Tian Lei struggled to sit up, his mind racing. The betrayal, the pain, the desperation—it all came flooding back. But there was no time to dwell on it.
"How... how are we still alive?" he asked, his gaze falling on Yuyan.
"Luck," she replied with a faint, bitter smile. "And those pills. Now, can you move? We need to find shelter and plan our next move."
For now, he was unaware of the golden orb within him, as both of them meditated for some time to recover their Spirit energy before moving out.