Chapter 17: Facing Off Against the Elite

Fang Xian and Ye Hongxiu abandoned their horses, leaping swiftly up the right side of the mountain wall. Reaching a higher point, they gauged the wind direction, then cautiously advanced with Ye Hongxiu in tow. Several miles ahead, they detected the silhouettes of those lying in ambush.

“Take the antidote pill. I’m going to add something extra,” Fang Xian said. He handed an antidote pill to Ye Hongxiu and took one himself. Then, producing a fine white powder, he flicked it into the mountain breeze. Instantly, the powder drifted toward the ambushers below.

A chorus of coughs soon broke the silence.

At first, it was but a few muffled coughs, but the sound grew louder and more frequent, spreading rapidly among the hidden men.

“What are you doing? This is no time for such nonsense—why all the coughing?” Cai Jindao turned and scolded.

“Boss, it’s not on purpose! Our throats are unbearably itchy—we can’t hold it in… Cough, cough…”

Soon, every man was coughing, and even Cai Jindao couldn’t suppress a cough as his throat itched. “Not good—we’ve been poisoned.”

An old hand in the ways of the world, Cai Jindao realized something was wrong after only a few coughs. He quickly covered his mouth and nose. But at that moment, a flash of red swept past—a hundred feet away, Ye Hongxiu appeared atop a tree, gazing icily in their direction.

“So it’s you, Elder Cai Jindao. Are you waiting for us here?” Ye Hongxiu called out with a playful laugh.

“Boss, we’ve been discovered!” the men of Hidden Tiger Stronghold muttered anxiously; their ambush had been exposed.

“What’s there to fear? We have a hundred men—they only have thirty. I’ll seize Ye Qingyun’s daughter; the rest of you, kill the soldiers of Azure Cloud Stronghold!” Cai Jindao barked. His words rallied his men, and brandishing his five-foot golden blade, he charged at Ye Hongxiu.

“Elder Cai, isn’t this bullying? If my father finds out, what do you think your fate will be?” Ye Hongxiu retreated as she called out, but her speed was no match for Cai Jindao’s, and the distance between them steadily closed.

At last, after retreating a hundred paces, Ye Hongxiu was overtaken. They had reached a clearing, devoid of shelter for several dozen yards. Ye Hongxiu raised her sword, intercepting the golden blade as it cleaved down.

“You’ve broken through to a first-rate expert?” Cai Jindao exclaimed in shock. Though Ye Hongxiu staggered back several steps, she remained unscathed.

“Please instruct me, Elder Cai,” Ye Hongxiu replied boldly. With a deft twist, she countered, her long sword thrusting straight at him, locking the two in combat.

Meanwhile, a hundred yards away, Fang Xian sat perched on a tree branch, bow bent and arrow nocked, aiming not at Cai Jindao for fear of alerting him, but watching for the right moment.

Their strategy was simple: Ye Hongxiu would first wear down Cai Jindao and lull his vigilance, while Fang Xian waited for an opening to strike. Should Ye Hongxiu fall into danger, Fang Xian would intervene at once.

Clashing blades rang out as Ye Hongxiu faced Cai Jindao calmly, exchanging blows. Though Cai Jindao’s internal strength suppressed the poison’s effects for now, he couldn’t help coughing from time to time, his movements faltering.

After a dozen exchanges, the experienced Cai Jindao feigned an opening. Ye Hongxiu took the bait, lunging to stab his left arm. But Cai Jindao switched tactics in a flash, blocking with a hidden short sword from his sleeve and, with his right hand, bringing his golden blade down in a blazing arc.

Yet Ye Hongxiu remained unflinching. Her sword twisted, stabbing at his left shoulder, ignoring the falling golden blade. Just then, a sharp whistle sounded—a swift arrow flew from afar, striking the golden blade.

The force jarred Cai Jindao, breaking his control. Seizing the opportunity, Ye Hongxiu darted past him, her sword slashing his left shoulder, blood spurting forth.

Wounded and thrown off balance, Cai Jindao felt a powerful threat closing in, his composure shattered as Ye Hongxiu pressed her assault.

Sensing disaster, Cai Jindao tried to disengage, parrying Ye Hongxiu’s sword as he leapt back. But the hairs on his neck bristled—he froze just in time as an arrow whizzed past where he would have been. Halting, however, left him open, and Ye Hongxiu’s sword scored his waist with another bleeding gash.

Unease gripped Cai Jindao. The enemy had an expert marksman, making it impossible to focus on Ye Hongxiu. Wounded, poisoned, and increasingly overmatched, anxiety gnawed at him.

Whenever he tried to subdue Ye Hongxiu with all his might, she would launch a relentless offense, and whenever he came close to harming her, an arrow would interrupt his attack. If he tried to retreat, the archer would anticipate and block him, allowing Ye Hongxiu to press the attack, compounding his injuries.

Though her strikes were mostly superficial, the pain and blood loss, combined with the poison, sapped his strength. Even in a direct confrontation, he was losing ground.

Their battle spanned dozens of exchanges, but only a handful of seconds had passed. Meanwhile, most of the Hidden Tiger Stronghold men nearby had already fled the woods, coughing uncontrollably—some so badly they could barely breathe.

At that moment, a sharp arrow flew from afar, piercing the throat of a mountain bandit. Seeing Fang Xian’s signal to attack, Big Ox and Second Ox led the Azure Cloud Stronghold soldiers in a charge.

“Run! Cough…” “Cough, cough, run!” The bandits of Hidden Tiger Stronghold had no will to fight, coughing so badly they could barely hold their weapons, let alone battle.

Thus, when the Azure Cloud soldiers caught up, half of the bandits had already fled; those left behind were too weak to escape, and Big Ox, Second Ox, and their men cut them down, shooting arrows at the fleeing bandits as well.

“Not good! The Second-in-command and the others are in trouble!” Across the ravine, the remaining fifty men of Hidden Tiger Stronghold observed the scene unfold. The ravine was over a hundred meters wide, and they couldn’t cross quickly enough to help.

“Jump down and climb up to assist!” shouted the head hunter, a second-rate expert, as he led the charge into the ravine and up toward the embattled ridge.

“Go, kill them!” The bandits were eager to join the fight, knowing that Azure Cloud Stronghold had only thirty men, while they numbered a hundred. Even if their comrades across were defeated, they believed their superior numbers would prevail.

But as they climbed halfway, a hail of arrows rained down, felling eight of them instantly. The soldiers of Azure Cloud, all skilled archers from their hunting days, quickly surrounded and fired upon the enemy.

Despite losing twenty or thirty men to the archers, more than twenty bandits reached the ridge and engaged the Azure Cloud soldiers in close combat.

With a roar, Big Ox charged at the enemy leader, while Second Ox led the others into the fray. As a second-rate expert, Second Ox was unstoppable, and with the bandits’ numbers now inferior, they were soon overwhelmed—the advantage swinging ever more toward Azure Cloud.

Fang Xian considered aiding the soldiers, but seeing their growing advantage, he held back, allowing Second Ox and the others to prove themselves. After all, they were soldiers, and nothing honed a man like the crucible of life and death.