In a cliché manner, one might say: "Chen Xiaolian was disheveled in the wind."
Perched atop this stone monument, watching Miao Yan approach from beside the underground river, her movements akin to a startled rabbit, she arrived at the base of the stone monument and came to a halt.
Miao Yan, clad in a snug leather jacket, possessed a curvaceous and fiery figure. Just her long, shapely legs alone were strikingly prominent. Standing before the stone monument, she carefully examined it before suddenly producing an object resembling a cellphone and began capturing images of the inscription.
Observing Miao Yan's actions, Chen Xiaolian remained motionless, his mind as tangled as a ball of yarn, utterly clueless about what was happening.
After swiftly completing her photography session, Miao Yan turned around, stowed away the device, and seemingly glanced into the distance. Then, abruptly, the young woman squatted down.
It seemed that the strap on her leather boot had loosened, prompting her to squat and adjust it, conveniently with her back turned to Chen Xiaolian...
Understandably, when a woman with such a scorching figure, dressed so alluringly, bends over with her back to you, the seductive curvature is enough to quicken the heartbeat and induce dryness of the mouth in about eighty percent of men worldwide. To exaggerate a bit, it's entirely possible for a nosebleed to occur on the spot.
For a brief moment, Chen Xiaolian was somewhat dumbfounded.
However, the next moment, after countless trials of life and death, a bit of sharp intuition cultivated over time suddenly tightened his heart! A sense of inexplicable danger enveloped his entire body, causing the hairs on his skin to stand on end. Suddenly, almost instinctively, he swiftly rolled to the side!
Almost simultaneously with Chen Xiaolian's movement!
Miao Yan, squatting with her back to him, suddenly drew a curved blade in each hand! With a twist of her body, her slender waist almost reached the limits of human flexibility. Leaping into the air, she brought down her blades, two gleaming streaks of light slashing toward the top of the stone monument!!
As Chen Xiaolian barely rolled aside, one of the blades nearly grazed his clothing, slicing into the top of the stone monument with a sizzling sound! Two distinct marks were left on the monument!
As he rolled away, Chen Xiaolian jumped down from the monument, but Miao Yan relentlessly pursued him. With a tap of her toes on the monument, her body swiftly bounced off, her hand releasing one of the curved blades mid-air!
Thunk!!
Chen Xiaolian tilted his head, narrowly avoiding the blade that grazed his cheek and embedded itself in the stone monument, its blade penetrating a third of the way, while the handle trembled uncontrollably.
"What a ruthless woman!" Chen Xiaolian couldn't help but feel a mix of amusement and exasperation.
However, upon landing, Miao Yan swiftly rolled over and, although her blade had been thrown, she had somehow produced two guns at some point. Without hesitation, she aimed the barrels at Chen Xiaolian and pulled the trigger!
"She's really out for blood! Woman!"
Chen Xiaolian didn't have time to comment. He quickly ducked behind the stone monument, hearing the rapid succession of gunfire.
Bullets shattered the stone monument into flying debris!
Miao Yan proved to be fierce in battle. After emptying two magazines, just as Chen Xiaolian was about to peek out to speak, he saw something arcing through the air and landing with a clatter on the ground.
This was... oh brother! A grenade!
As Chen Xiaolian realized what it was, he cursed inwardly: "Too ruthless!"
Without further thought, he leaped into the air and plunged into the underground river behind him!
In the instant he submerged into the water, the grenade behind him exploded!
What a woman, truly ruthless!
This was actually an anti-material weapon!
After a deafening blast, the stone monument was blown to pieces!
As Chen Xiaolian plunged into the water, he made a swift dive to the bottom of the river.
After the grenade shattered the stone monument, Miao Yan waited for a few seconds. Once the explosion subsided, she had already reached the riverbank, brandishing her gun and firing continuously at the surface of the water.
Just now, she had seen that this unknown opponent had extremely fast reaction speed! In the instant of the explosion, they made a precise judgment and jumped into the river.
From the moment she discovered this opponent, through her series of attacks, each one had been evaded with remarkable agility and judgment. The performance, whether in reaction speed or judgment, was top-notch, leaving Miao Yan deeply unsettled!
She had entered the instance early, never expecting to encounter such a high-level Awakened expert in this scenario!
Miao Yan continued firing at the water's surface to suppress, and at the same time, she pulled out another grenade, intending to throw it into the river...
Suddenly, her body swayed!
Looking down, she saw a hand emerging from the riverbank, gripping her ankle. Immediately realizing the danger, Miao Yan didn't have time to struggle. She could only make a protective motion, but before she knew it, she was pulled into the water.
Despite the sudden plunge, Miao Yan, being Miao Yan, made a protective gesture as she fell into the water, holding her breath. She didn't choke upon entry but instead, reacted swiftly. As the opponent's arm just began to entangle her, Miao Yan bent her knee, delivering a knee strike, and simultaneously swung her elbow fiercely...
Chen Xiaolian, underwater, raised his palm to block the opponent's knee strike. The force of the impact made him bitterly smile.
This woman was truly aiming to kill, as this blow, if not blocked by himself, would have likely broken his spine on impact!
The elbow strike, however, was unavoidable. Chen Xiaolian gritted his teeth and braced himself with his upper arm. The pain almost made him lose his breath, and cold sweat streamed down his face.
Realizing he couldn't afford to be careless anymore, Chen Xiaolian suddenly grabbed Miao Yan from behind and pulled her deeper into the water.
He made up his mind to subdue her first; otherwise, there wouldn't even be a chance to talk.
Miao Yan sensed his intention to drag her underwater but smirked inwardly. She didn't resist forcibly but instead, reversed the situation by embracing him and employing close-quarters combat techniques.
For a while, the two tangled underwater, exchanging knee strikes, elbow strikes, and joint locks...
Both were top-notch experts. Miao Yan was undoubtedly skilled, and Chen Xiaolian, after experiencing numerous battles, was no longer the same as the Chen Xiaolian in the Qin Emperor's Tomb. Moreover, both had unique constitutions and long-lasting stamina. Engaged in close combat underwater, they grappled for a good five or six minutes.
Both suffered some injuries; Chen Xiaolian's ribs were struck twice, nearly causing him to cough up blood, while Miao Yan took a punch to the abdomen, causing her to choke. Chen Xiaolian narrowly avoided having his eyes gouged out by Miao Yan, while Miao Yan's wrist was dislocated by Chen Xiaolian.
Overall, Chen Xiaolian ended up at a disadvantage. Firstly, his strength was somewhat lacking compared to Miao Yan's. Secondly, he still harbored some sentiment and couldn't bring himself to go all out.
After grappling underwater for a few minutes, both felt their breath running short. Suddenly, they simultaneously separated, instinctively agreeing to surface for air.
As Chen Xiaolian's head broke the water's surface and he took a deep breath, he noticed Miao Yan emerging less than two meters away. She exhaled and, at the same time, her left hand already held a dagger, her cold eyes fixed on him.
However, Chen Xiaolian quickly paddled backward, increasing the distance, and shouted, "Wait! Wait! Let's stop! No more fighting!!"
Miao Yan's eyes narrowed—Chen Xiaolian knew from experience that whenever her eyes narrowed, it meant she was truly angry and about to unleash her deadliest moves.
Seizing this final opportunity, he shouted, "Miao Yan! Let's stop!!"
The dagger in Miao Yan's hand began to emit a chilling light, but she suddenly heard her name being called.
Her expression changed abruptly, and she retracted the dagger, taking a step back.
"You... know me!"
"I..." Chen Xiaolian began, but Miao Yan's expression suddenly turned stern as she ordered, "Silence!"
Then she gestured to Chen Xiaolian.
Fortunately, having fought alongside her before, Chen Xiaolian and she shared some familiarity and tacit understanding. They immediately imitated Miao Yan's movements, took a deep breath together, and submerged underwater to observe discreetly...
About ten seconds later, a cacophony of footsteps suddenly echoed from upstream in the underground river.
Several Awakened individuals, seemingly from a small team, were in a panicked escape, some of them injured with arrows sticking out from their bodies. They all appeared disheveled.
But behind these individuals, there came the uniform and rhythmic footsteps!
A formation of Terracotta Warriors swiftly approached, their armor bright and uniform, their steps precise, and their hands holding long spears! There were also archers wielding bronze crossbows reminiscent of the Qin Dynasty...
After a volley of arrows, several Awakened individuals fell!
The power of these bronze crossbows was remarkably sharp, instantly pinning several Awakened individuals to the ground. Their low-grade protective gear offered no resistance against such bolts.
The Awakened individuals were quickly caught up to and engaged in combat. The Terracotta Warriors were adept fighters; they tangled up their opponents upon catching them, while a smaller team flanked them from behind with lightning speed.
Soon, these Awakened individuals were completely surrounded by the underground riverbank, hemmed in.
After a chorus of screams and clashes, in less than half a minute, these Awakened individuals were all ruthlessly slain! Some had arrows embedded in their bodies, and their corpses fell into the river, floating on the surface.
The Terracotta Warriors, acting like killing machines, promptly organized themselves into formation after exterminating these Awakened individuals and proceeded orderly downstream...
Chen Xiaolian and Miao Yan hid underwater, witnessing everything. They tacitly refrained from interfering. Only after the Terracotta Warriors had departed did they resurface, exchanging a glance before silently climbing ashore.
Chen Xiaolian looked at Miao Yan.
She was already wearing an extremely tight leather jacket, accentuating her curvaceous figure. After soaking in the water, the jacket clung even tighter, making her appear even more alluring. It was enough to make some men blush.
But Miao Yan seemed oblivious to any impropriety. Once ashore, she immediately went to inspect the bodies of the Awakened individuals. Without hesitation, she rummaged through their belongings, selecting useful items and tossing them directly into her storage equipment.
Observing this, Chen Xiaolian didn't hold back either. He pulled out a sword from one of the Awakened individuals' corpses, examining its quality in his hand.
"[B] class stuff."
If it were when he first experienced the Qin Emperor's Tomb instance, Chen Xiaolian would have definitely treated this kind of weapon as a treasure.
But now, with this [B] class weapon, Chen Xiaolian just glanced at it and casually threw it into his storage equipment.
He couldn't possibly use this kind of item anymore. At best, he would just throw it into the smelting furnace in the base to exchange for energy.
"They're all a bunch of weaklings, nothing good here, not even a storage equipment," Miao Yan shook her head.
Then she glanced at Chen Xiaolian and remarked, "Your equipment is not bad."
Chen Xiaolian noticed Miao Yan looking at the storage wristband on his wrist... It was the modified version that Skyblade's son Fatty had given him.
A genuine high-quality item!
Miao Yan stared at Chen Xiaolian for a moment.
"[A] class protective gear, very agile, and very strong. Your physique has definitely been modified. Your combat skills are a bit rough, but your on-the-spot reaction is fast, and your experience is extensive..." Miao Yan spoke slowly. "Someone like you couldn't possibly be nameless and unknown, but why have I never heard of a guy like you?"
Chen Xiaolian forced a grimace, squeezing out an awkward smile. "You really don't recognize me?"
"No, I don't," Miao Yan shook her head without hesitation, her gaze turning somewhat murderous. "But why would you recognize me?"
"Um, well..." Chen Xiaolian chuckled bitterly. Seeing the increasing hostility in Miao Yan's eyes, he quickly took a step back, raising his hands. "Let's stop fighting, alright? I mean no harm. Whatever you want to ask, I'll tell you. Honestly, I really don't want to fight with you."
Miao Yan, being extremely clever, detected a hint of an unusual familiarity and closeness in Chen Xiaolian's tone—an attitude only found among people who share a certain level of camaraderie and intimacy.
This tone made Miao Yan furrow her brow, piquing her curiosity even more.
"You seem to be familiar with me?"
"Um... we've had drinks together, fought monsters together," Chen Xiaolian smiled wryly. "I guess you could say we're friends."
"But why don't I remember having such experiences?" Miao Yan's expression suddenly changed. "Could my memories have been wiped?! That's impossible!"
"Well, I can't really explain that in just a few words. Um... let's take it slowly, okay?"