Lu Ye and Hu Zi heard the commotion outside while in the ruined temple. They exchanged a glance, and with a single look, they immediately crawled onto the ground with caution.
The ruined temple was drafty, with its mud-brick walls damaged and riddled with holes of various sizes, allowing a view of the outside. Furthermore, because the terrain here was elevated, they had a clear and unobstructed line of sight.
They saw the dirt road in front of the temple.
A grey-clothed man lay on the ground, a long-shafted, hard-feathered iron arrow embedded in his back. A large amount of fresh blood flowed out, staining the grey clothes on his back red.
He lay on the ground, fate unknown. One hand was still tightly gripping a horse whip, and beside him was a green mule. One of the man's feet was still caught in the stirrup, clearly indicating he had been shot from behind while riding the mule in a desperate rush.
A hunting dog was barking wildly and circling his body, occasionally pouncing to take a bite out of the man, sinking three points into the flesh and soaking it in fresh blood.
However, the man remained motionless, as if he had been shot dead by the arrow.
At this moment, several large horses were circling him, their hooves clattering and kicking up dust on the dirt road.
The few people sitting upright on the horses wore black robes with the character "Soldier" patched on their chests and backs, and long sabers hung at their waists. They were indeed the government soldiers from the County Town.
The two leaders were also wearing iron armor. One of them had broad shoulders and a thick back with a long beard, holding a horse bow in his hand, while the other had a short, sturdy figure and was carrying a spear.
The group shouted in anger.
"This bandit has such audacity, unexpectedly trying to sneak into the County Town to gather news."
"He even injured the soldier guarding the gate and fought his way out."
"Let him be arrogant! Wasn't he shot down by Zhang Er Ge with one arrow?"
"Hey, could he be dead?"
Seeing the man on the ground with the arrow in his back being bitten bloody by the dog without moving, the group dismounted one after another.
An impatient soldier went up with his saber to check. He first kicked the horse whip out of the grey-clothed man's hand, then patted the man's head with the back of his blade, but the man showed no reaction.
"Bad Luck!" The soldier spat at the corpse on the ground, turned his head, and smiled at the short, sturdy man in iron armor. "Sun Tou'er, this bandit was shot by Zhang Er Ge with one arrow..."
He was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly saw his colleague's face change color in alarm, and he heard a fierce wind whistling by his ear.
The grey-clothed "corpse" lying on the ground suddenly erupted into action. His limbs pushed off the ground, and his body sprang into mid-air. The hunting dog was still hanging onto his leg, refusing to let go. With a turn of his palm, a dagger appeared, and he stabbed toward the head of the careless soldier.
Lu Ye widened his eyes in the temple. This grey-clothed man was incredibly patient; he had been bitten so many times by the hunting dog and was bleeding profusely, yet he had been faking his death!
The soldier's smile had not yet faded, his posture was relaxed, and a flash of astonishment appeared in his eyes, still unable to grasp the situation.
"Audacious bandit!"
Sun Tou'er, the short, sturdy man holding the spear, gave an angry shout. His skin instantly turned bronze, and his entire figure grew a head taller, looking as if he were cast from bronze.
His arm moved, and the spear in his hand seemed to come alive. He swung it in a sweep, and with a loud bang, it seemed to split the air, leaving only an afterimage in mid-air.
The spear brushed past the head of the stunned soldier. The soldier was only grazed by the spear, but he immediately screamed and collapsed.
While still in mid-air, his hat was shredded into pieces, and his hair fell in a mess.
Almost simultaneously, the spear landed solidly on the grey-clothed man who had sprung up to attack. It was just unfortunate that the hunting dog biting the man happened to be in the way.
The short, sturdy man in iron armor did not hesitate in the slightest, and he did not pull back his spear.
Bang!
A muffled sound rang out.
Accompanied by the miserable whine of the hunting dog and the muffled groan of the grey-clothed man.
The man and the dog were immediately sent flying over a yard away, falling onto the dirt road together.
The hunting dog whimpered a few times and died, while the grey-clothed man vomited blood from his mouth, clearly unable to survive.
Sun Tou'er then retracted his spear, let out a long breath, the bronze color on his skin faded, and his figure returned to normal.
Lu Ye was dumbfounded in the temple. This Sun Tou'er with the spear was too fierce.
Without relying on the horse's strength, just a wave of his arm and a horizontal strike of the spear shaft could produce a loud bang, swatting a normal person three or four meters into the air. How much strength was that?
And what was with his skin changing color and his figure growing? Did he have a transformation ability?
It was a pity that his predecessor was just an honest farmer who had only heard old soldiers bragging about how powerful experts in the army were; this was his first time seeing it with his own eyes.
He turned his head to look at Hu Zi and found that Hu Zi's eyes were bright, and his breathing had become rapid.
"Eldest brother," Hu Zi explained in a low voice, seeing the questioning look in Lu Ye's eyes, "His skin color is like bronze; this is the Bronze Skin Warrior Realm at Minor Accomplishment. His skin is like an old ox, incredibly tough, and one arm has the strength of several hundred jin."
"My Master, who earned the title of Martial Scholar, is at this realm."
Lu Ye asked in a low voice.
"Hu Zi, then what is your level?"
Hu Zi shook his head, feeling ashamed.
"I am just a Minor Martial Disciple who has barely touched the threshold of the Martial Dao. I have trained my muscles to be strong, my meridians are all clear, my essence and energy are full, I have just begun to cultivate True Qi, and my moves are proficient. I can deal with seven or eight ordinary people."
He said with a dim expression, "If it weren't for this Natural Disaster, Master said he would have taught me the Cultivation Method for the Martial Warrior Realm this year..."
Lu Ye nodded. It was fortunate that Hu Zi was a Minor Martial Disciple.
If he were a Martial Warrior, he would never have ended up as a Prey Person, let alone become his sworn brother.
At this time, outside the ruined temple.
The soldier with disheveled hair who had escaped death by a hair's breadth finally came to his senses. He sat on the ground, trembling all over.
The grey-clothed man on the ground was quite tough. Blood flowed from his mouth, and his eyes swept over the crowd with malice.
"Don't... be arrogant."
"My leader didn't just send me alone to scout your city... Once he breaks the city, you will all die... Hahaha..."
He laughed reluctantly a few times, then collapsed on the ground and stopped breathing. This time, he was truly dead.
The soldiers cursed as they stepped forward. Someone cut off the grey-clothed man's head with a saber, wrapped it in a piece of rag, and hung it under the horse's neck.
Others stripped off all the grey-clothed man's clothes to carefully inspect his body, while others rummaged through the bags on the green mule he had been riding.
A moment later, a soldier found a wooden token on the grey-clothed man, with several large characters carved into it.
"Boss, this bandit is carrying the Waist Token of Chuang Potian. It seems that the old bandit Chuang Potian has set his sights on our County Town."
Sun Tou'er took the Waist Token, gave a cold laugh, and said nothing.
Zhang Er Ge, who was wearing iron armor and holding a long bow, looked around and ordered.
"You guys, spread out and search the surroundings. This bandit was running at full speed; there might be other bandits nearby supporting him."
The soldiers responded and mounted their horses, scattering in all directions.
Zhang Er Ge put away his long bow and pointed at the ruined temple by the road, saying to Sun Tou'er.
"Boss, there is a ruined temple there. Why don't we go there and wait?"
Thus, the two walked slowly toward the ruined temple together.
In the ruined temple, Lu Ye and Hu Zi saw the two iron-armored Military Officers walking toward the temple.
The two exchanged a glance, terrified.
Would these government soldiers, while suppressing bandits, happen to treat them as bandits and annihilate them too?
Lu Ye, who had received the original owner's Memory, knew that there were three great disasters on the road of fleeing from famine.
Legitimate Government Soldiers, wild mountain bandits, and fellow Refugees.
The two immediately moved stealthily, holding their breath, and carefully crawled behind the stone platform of the divine statue in the ruined temple.
Lu Ye did not forget to sprinkle a few handfuls of dirt on the half-extinguished fire on his way, though he could not drag away the corpses of the Pockmarked man and his companion lying in the temple.
Almost as soon as they hid behind the stone platform, they heard the temple door creak, and the two Military Officers walked in.
Sun Tou'er took one glance and saw the two corpses lying on the ground, a large bell inverted over the firewood, and several skulls inside the fire.
Zhang Er Ge touched the firewood on the ground with his hand; it was still warm.
He drew the long saber from his waist and quickly circled behind the stone platform, where he saw Lu Ye and Hu Zi hiding.
Sun Tou'er rushed over with his spear and laughed heartily.
"These two must be accomplices of the bandit. Taking them back will be perfect for reporting for duty to the County Magistrate."
He thrust his spear out, feinting a few times between Lu Ye and Hu Zi and shaking the spear tip, causing the air to hum.
Lu Ye squinted instinctively, while Hu Zi, having practiced martial arts, opened his eyes wide.
Sun Tou'er observed their reactions, then suddenly thrust his spear forward, pinning it against Hu Zi's throat.
"Speak quickly! You were hiding in this temple, spying and scouting—are you scouts sent by that bandit Chuang Potian to provide support!"
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