After coughing, Lei Zong Kang felt as if his Qi was gradually returning to normal. His hunched back slowly began to straighten.
Hei Mudan and the others exchanged glances.
Finally, under the gazes of Hei Mudan and the rest, he stood up, walked over, and mounted his horse. Circling around Niu You Dao, he rode up to Hei Mudan and the others. He tossed a bag to Hei Mudan and said:
“The Liuxiang Sect gave me these scent beads to track us along the way. They will probably arrive soon. You need to leave quickly.”
The three of them exchanged looks, then cupped their hands, as if telling him to take care!
Lei Zong Kang turned his horse around and galloped away from the hill.
Niu You Dao called Yuan Fang over. He took the receipts from him, tilted his head, and said, “Take a look.”
Yuan Fang immediately soared up and appeared on the cliff. He gazed intently towards the steppe.
After looking at the receipts, Niu You Dao handed them to Hei Mudan.
Hei Mudan was astonished, “Lord Dao, this...”
Niu You Dao: “Keep them for me and don't lose them.”
The three of them looked at each other in bewilderment. What was this?
Meanwhile, Yuan Fang had already returned and said with a serious expression:
“Lord Dao, someone is approaching. Lei Zong Kang will encounter them. They appear to be people from the Liuxiang Sect. We should leave quickly!”
Niu You Dao flew towards the hill, with Hei Mudan and the others following him. Seeing people rushing towards them, Hei Mudan said:
“Lord Dao, quickly! We need to leave.”
But Niu You Dao seemed to have no intention of leaving. He clearly knew that Lei Zong Kang was spying on them. He hadn't immediately exposed Lei Zong Kang because he wanted to send a message to the Liuxiang Sect that he would be going to Mountain Lake County. He believed that once the Liuxiang Sect learned he was heading to the county, they would take him seriously. After all, in Qingzhou, Niu You Dao had managed to kill Song Yang Qing, who had been surrounded by high-level cultivators. He didn't believe that under such circumstances, the Liuxiang Sect would act half-heartedly and fail to send their main forces to Mountain Lake County.
He had believed this when they were already leaving the Yaoyue Inn.
Of course, unforeseen circumstances could arise. That's why he had considered seeking out the shops of the Heavenly Jade Sect and the Wandong Heavenly Palace in Zhaixing City. However, he had two reasons not to do so. The first reason was that it was not certain the Heavenly Jade Sect and the Wandong Heavenly Palace would help him. The second was that he didn't want to reveal himself in Zhaixing City. He had even told Hai Ru Yue not to mention him to the Wandong Heavenly Palace, because the Wandong Heavenly Palace wouldn't take responsibility for certain matters.
And indeed, this unforeseen circumstance had occurred. He hadn't expected the Liuxiang Sect to use scent beads.
“See who those people are,” Niu You Dao told Hei Mudan.
Hei Mudan and the others began to peer into the distance, but for now, only silhouettes were visible.
Six riders were galloping across the steppe. A Sniffing Bird sat on Cui Yuan’s shoulder. It refused to fly any further, indicating that the bead had only been crushed in this one spot. No more beads were being used.
The six silhouettes stopped and looked around. They didn't know where Niu You Dao had gone. They must have climbed the hill ahead. The scent of the beads had stopped, which made many wonder if something had gone wrong.
They hadn’t known that Niu You Dao would stop the horses near the hill. And there, it would have been inconvenient for Lei Zong Kang to crush the beads in front of everyone.
The seven wished to discuss what to do next, when suddenly, a rider's silhouette appeared from the mountainous terrain.
Lei Zong Kang, seeing the six silhouettes, rode towards them. And as they drew abreast, they recognized each other.
The six noticed that Lei Zong Kang was in a sorry state. His clothes were torn, and blood, not yet dry, stained his body.
Huang En Gui asked:
“What happened?”
Lei Zong Kang shook his head:
“I was exposed. Thanks to some old friends who interceded for me, I'm alive. Otherwise, Niu You Dao would have killed me.”
Huang En Gui asked, “And Niu You Dao?”
Lei Zong Kang pointed at the hill:
“Over there, on the hill. I don't know if he's left or not!”
“Let’s go!” Huang En Gui waved his hand and, leading the way, charged towards the hill. The others followed him.
Lei Zong Kang hesitated for a moment, but then also followed everyone.
Seeing the approaching people, a weight lifted from Niu You Dao's mind. He had been worried that there would be a high-level cultivator among them. But now, it seemed he didn't need to worry so much.
“Huang En Gui and Cui Yuan are at the front. Behind them are the disciples of Wuyou Mountain, Le Zhan Bing and Yao You Liang, and further back are disciples of the Flowing Clouds Sect, Fang De and Fang Shao Qun,” Hei Mudan told him. She, too, immediately calmed down after identifying the enemies.
Duan Hu and Wu San Liang couldn't help but look at Niu You Dao. These few individuals shouldn't pose a problem for them.
However, they didn't understand why Lei Zong Kang was returning again. Was he forced? Or did he genuinely want to fight on the side of the Liuxiang Sect?
Having identified the people, Niu You Dao no longer concealed himself and stepped out to meet them, sword in hand. He was waiting for them!
Yuan Fang watched Hei Mudan and the others cautiously. They also stepped out.
Huang En Gui and the others, upon reaching the foot of the hill, saw Niu You Dao and the rest. They reined in their horses and stared at their opponents in surprise. They hadn't expected them to dare come out to face them.
Huang En Gui and Cui Yuan reached behind their backs and drew their twin moon disks.
Le Zhan Bing and Yao You Liang pulled out their flexible whips. (a chain of several metal segments)
Fang De and Fang Shao Qun drew their swords. Behind them, Lei Zong Kang also unsheathed his sword.
Huang En Gui, holding a moon disk, said:
“Niu You Dao, surrender, and perhaps the consequences won’t be so dire!”
He hadn't even finished speaking when a fierce expression appeared on Lei Zong Kang's face. He suddenly swung his sword right and left.
At such close range, it was most convenient to kill Fang De and Fang Shao Qun.
“Ah!” Blood gushed from Fang De’s waist. He was nearly split in two and cried out fiercely in pain.
Fang Shao Qun, however, managed to dodge, though Lei Zong Kang still managed to inflict a superficial wound. His blood spurted everywhere. He immediately unleashed the force of an invisible palm strike.
Lei Zong Kang, in turn, was sent flying by that palm. He had already sustained serious injuries, and now, from the blow, he coughed up blood again and retreated backward.
Fang De was already lying on the ground, while Fang Shao Qun charged at Lei Zong Kang. Lei Zong Kang swung his sword, only able to defend himself for now.
Huang En Gui and the others turned their heads. They hadn't thought Lei Zong Kang would dare to oppose them!
Seeing Lei Zong Kang in mortal danger, Hei Mudan, Duan Hu, and Wu San Liang immediately moved to rescue him.
Huang En Gui, standing at the very front, moved uphill. The four individuals paid no attention to Fang Shao Qun. Their main target was Niu You Dao.
They knew how valuable Niu You Dao was and hadn't dared to seize him while Hei Mudan and the others were by his side. But now Niu You Dao was alone. This was a convenient opportunity. Just capturing Niu You Dao would be a great achievement!
“Taste the chill!” Niu You Dao shouted, tilting his head.
Yuan Fang tensed slightly, growing wary.
Two moon disks flew towards Niu You Dao.
Niu You Dao, however, stood his ground and didn't dodge. He quickly swung his hand.
“Clang.”
He unsheathed his sword. At that moment, a brilliant blade flashed, instantly deflecting the moon disks so that they flew away.
The sword's scabbard plunged into the earth, and Niu You Dao soared upward, meeting the attacking Huang En Gui.
Huang En Gui drew another moon disk.
“Clang!” A metallic sound rang out.
Huang En Gui was surprised and even frightened. His moon disk seemed to have no effect on Niu You Dao at all. Moreover, a cold glint flashed past him, causing his soul to experience incomparable dread.
Niu You Dao's wrist flickered, and his sword slashed across Huang En Gui’s neck. Blood spurted from the wound, and Huang En Gui’s head flew off to the side. Niu You Dao struck Huang En Gui’s abdomen, sending his body flying instantly.
Having originally noticed Niu You Dao's unusual strength, Cui Yuan threw a moon disk at Niu You Dao. But it was already too late to save Huang En Gui.
Niu You Dao, with his blood-stained sword, immediately batted away the moon disk and, pushing off Huang En Gui’s body, instantly lunged at Cui Yuan.
Two ganbians, spinning, moved towards Niu You Dao. (ganbian: an ancient bludgeoning weapon without a blade, shaped like a bamboo stem)
Niu You Dao, spinning with his sword, dodged them. But the ganbians, like snakes, changed their trajectory and pursued Niu You Dao again. Therefore, Niu You Dao was forced to parry with his sword.
A fierce expression appeared on Cui Yuan’s face. He seized the opportunity while Niu You Dao was occupied and immediately aimed a frenzied strike at Niu You Dao’s head.
In this chaos, Niu You Dao held his sword with one hand, and with the other, unleashed a palm strike to meet Cui Yuan.
“Boom!”
A wave of energy rippled in all directions. Cui Yuan's eyes widened. He now experienced all the delights that Lei Zong Kang had felt earlier, and likewise fell to the ground.
At the same time, Niu You Dao was struggling with the whips, which exerted immense pressure on his sword. He soared even higher, intent on freeing himself from these ganbian whips.
“Thud!”
Le Zhan Bing and Yao You Liang simultaneously leaped to the ground.
Two depressions appeared on the ground, and using this thrust, Le Zhan Bing and Yao You Liang soared upward again. Their whips pursued Niu You Dao as he ascended. The fight was fierce.
Reaching the highest point, Niu You Dao gathered his strength, and his sword gleamed. He aimed his sword at the whips flying towards him.
“Clang!”
The sword and whips clashed together. Yet the whips also wrapped around Niu You Dao’s sword.
Le Zhan Bing and Yao You Liang pulled the whips with all their might, while Niu You Dao, in turn, pulled his sword towards himself. But the sword and whips were tightly bound together.
The three individuals fell from the sky. And as soon as they reached the ground, Le Zhan Bing and Yao You Liang began to move in different directions. Their intention was clear: they wanted to encircle Niu You Dao.
Niu You Dao understood that he wouldn't be able to free his sword for now, and they were trying to surround him. He looked at Le Zhan Bing, and a cold glint appeared in his eyes. He abandoned his sword and charged at Le Zhan Bing.
“Bang!”
The two men exchanged palm strikes.
Le Zhan Bing had not paid attention to Cui Yuan's current state, otherwise he wouldn't have dared to meet Niu You Dao head-on like this.
Yao You Liang noticed that something was wrong with his fellow disciple. He was about to go to his aid, but Niu You Dao had already reached him too.