Free Web NovelChapter 93: Chapter 93: Avoiding Detours
Kong Chun, Tang Dawei, and the others stood at the bottom of the slope, gazing up in a daze at Xie Yuan, who stood alone on the hillside.
In the distance, a lone peak hooked toward the sky over sheer cliffs and jutting rocks, surrounded by a dense, gloomy forest. Beyond the woods, blood had turned the withered grass crimson and stained the yellow earth red.
The slope was littered with bodies. Amidst them, a handsome youth in black martial attire stood quietly, bathed in blood with his blade in hand. Yet, his expression was perfectly calm, as if he wasn’t the one who had just fought a great battle.
Xie Yuan strode down from the hillside. Under the shocked and reverent gazes of his colleagues, he leaned against an Escort Vehicle and winced.
"Brother Chun, help me with these wounds. The rest of you, clear the battlefield. Make sure they’re all dead and search the bodies. We need to leave as soon as possible."
’Looking cool is great, but this really hurts.’
The others were jolted back to their senses and quickly divided the tasks, springing into action.
It wasn’t that they were unprofessional. The five escort members were all veteran Darts Masters who had seen their fair share of battles, both large and small.
But it was precisely because of their experience that they were so stunned to see Xie Yuan defeat the enemy single-handedly.
In all the battles they had witnessed, they had never seen anyone who could, like Xie Yuan, so completely dominate opponents of the same level and fight one against ten.
It completely defied their understanding. They had thought they were done for today, but Xie Yuan had finished off the entire enemy force by himself.
’This escort run... it’s just Master Xie and five flag-waving cheerleaders...’
As Kong Chun applied medicine to Xie Yuan’s wounds with deep admiration, he sighed.
"Brother Yuan, I get the feeling you’re even stronger than the Escort Leader."
"The Escort Leader wouldn’t have gotten these injuries if he were here."
Xie Yuan chuckled, letting Kong Chun treat the wound on his back while he used his left hand to apply Golden Sore Medicine to his right arm to stop the bleeding.
’My right arm took two slashes. It’s not a serious injury, but it’s hard to put any strength into it. Thankfully, the remaining enemies were just a broken remnant, their morale shattered, so my left-handed blade was more than enough.’
’The gash on my back is deeper, though. That bandit was clearly stronger.’
’Still, none of these wounds are a major issue.’
’With the Golden Bell Shield protecting my body, even a full-powered slash from a Second Training opponent had most of its force nullified, leaving only a minor wound.’
’This Divine Power is truly potent. I just haven’t cultivated it for long enough; otherwise, today’s injuries would have been mere scratches. Without this Cultivation Technique, things would have been much more troublesome.’
Even someone as powerful as Xie Yuan couldn’t have withstood the chaotic blades of ten men. When surrounded, enemies wouldn’t just feint and go easy on his back.
’I’ll have to train even harder when I get back.’
After this battle, Xie Yuan was glad he had practiced the Golden Bell Shield. In a chaotic melee, external techniques were indeed crucial, as they greatly increased his margin for error. He resolved to train it even more when he returned.
’Also,’ he reflected, ’while dealing with ordinary Second Training opponents wasn’t difficult, my efficiency in group combat is too low. If I had a better Cultivation Technique or some killing moves suited for fighting multiple enemies, today wouldn’t have been so perilous.’
Xie Yuan silently reviewed the fight. Once his wounds were treated, the other Darts Masters returned and reported.
"They’re all dead. We couldn’t find any survivors. Besides these crappy blades, there’s nothing on them. Ptooey! These bandits were dirt-poor."
Xie Yuan nodded slightly. The lack of loot was expected; even if these bandits had a stash, they were unlikely to carry it with them.
’It’s a shame we couldn’t find anyone alive to ask why the stronghold decided to attack an Escort Agency again.’
’Moreover, we took a detour just to be safe, yet we were still ambushed. Chicken Mountain isn’t some small hill, but with only about a hundred men, their reach shouldn’t extend this far.’
’And if they were just patrolling outside the mountain, would they need such a strong team? Twenty bandits, with ten at Second Training... that’s over twenty percent of their total numbers, and probably close to half their total strength.’
Xie Yuan had his doubts, but he set them aside for now, deciding to report them later.
Just then, Tang Dawei and the others exchanged glances and said with shame:
"Master Xie, we couldn’t get involved in your fight against the Second Training experts. We’re sorry we let you get injured..."
Xie Yuan waved his hand, cutting them off.
"Second Training against Second Training, First Training against First Training. That’s how it should be. You helped by tying up the other bandits, which was also important as it let me focus on my opponents."
Hearing this, the others’ faces flushed an even deeper red. They hadn’t tied up those First Training bandits at all; the bandits had simply been scared off.
In this whole battle, aside from guarding the Escort Vehicles and shouting encouragement, they really hadn’t contributed anything.
But Xie Yuan didn’t blame them. Today’s skirmish was clearly out of their league; if they had gotten involved, they would have only been a hindrance.
He beckoned with his hand.
"Let’s go! We need to get off this path quickly. Someone escaped to report back. Even though we should be far from their mountain stronghold, we can’t afford to delay."
The men spurred their horses and drove the vehicles, moving swiftly along the Yushui River.
After more than half a day, the terrain on both sides gradually flattened out. They had finally left the mountainous region of Chicken Mountain and reached the plains.
A vast, flat plain stretched out before them, and in the distance, they could see the city of Yulin County. Only then did Xie Yuan and the others breathe a sigh of relief.
Suddenly, on a whim, Xie Yuan looked back.
On the side of Chicken Mountain facing Yulin, near the foot of the mountain, there was a gently sloping platform at a moderate distance.
With his sharp eyesight, he could see a group of men and horses standing on that platform. At their head was a large man with a beard like steel needles, who was staring right at him from across the distance.
The large man’s face was extremely grim as he glared at Xie Yuan. But Xie Yuan simply gave him a cool glance before turning his horse and continuing forward.
Boss Song was silent for a long time before he gritted his teeth and said:
"Good. You run fast. Very good..."
"Don’t let me catch you, or I’ll flay you alive as an offering to my fallen brothers!"
When Xie Yuan told his companions what he had just seen, they were all slightly startled, thankful they had slipped away in time.
’It’s a good thing Xie Yuan reacted so quickly.’ The five men all thought. ’Although we would have left the mountain area quickly anyway, Xie Yuan’s judgment was so precise. He feels just as reliable as the other veteran Darts Masters, or even the Escort Leader.’
’How many escort missions has he even been on? Hmm, but he hit the jackpot again this time... Running into bandits on every single mission, it’s no wonder he’s growing so fast.’
The Escort Team entered Yulin County City, properly handed over the goods, and rested for the night.
Xie Yuan took the time to recover from his injuries. With the mission complete, everyone took the opportunity to relax in Yulin, a city whose prosperity rivaled even Yunzhao’s.
Gambling dens and brothels were naturally the best places for Darts Masters, who constantly walked a knife’s edge, to unwind. However, Xie Yuan had no interest in such things and simply rested quietly at the inn.
The next day, the Escort Team rode back toward Yunzhao. Wary of the mountain stronghold’s unusual activity, Xie Yuan naturally led them on a wide detour, staying dozens of miles away from Chicken Mountain. It took them an extra day to get back to the Escort Agency and complete the handover.
"So that Song from Chicken Mountain turned on you? And he ambushed you outside the mountains?"
Zhao Xingyang stroked his chin and nodded lightly.
"I understand. These bandits have sharp eyes these days... Xiaoxie, you did well. You truly are the treasure of our Longteng Escort Agency. Defeating ten Second Training experts can be converted into one Class B merit for you. Think about how you’ll use it!"
He clapped Xie Yuan on the shoulder with a grin.
Xie Yuan honestly corrected him.
"I only killed nine. One got away."
"We’ll round it up to ten. Weren’t there all those First Training guys too? We’ll just lump them in; it’ll meet the requirements."
Zhao Xingyang said nonchalantly, deliberately raising his voice.
Inside the records room, Lu Zhenyu was standing nearby. His brow twitched repeatedly as he listened, but in the end, he said nothing.
"Oh, right. A large chest arrived for you these past couple of days, sent from Yunzhou Prefecture. It’s in your room. Hmm, and it’s quite heavy."
Zhao Xingyang winked and laughed heartily.
"Not bad, not bad at all! To understand how the world works at such a young age... you’ll save yourself decades of struggle!"
