Chapter 34: On the Brink of Life and Death (Please Continue Reading)

Bang!

A signal flare exploded in the sky, startling both sides locked in a standoff at the gates of the Wolong Mountain stronghold.

Zhang Long had received word long ago to hold the attention of Tie Xiong and his bandits from the front, while the Magistrate had dispatched men to infiltrate through the back of the mountain to rescue Chen Feng. Now, seeing the bandit signal flare from the rear, Zhang Long knew the rescue team had been exposed.

"You dare to play tricks! Today, I’ll use that little wench to consecrate my flag!"

Tie Xiong sprang up, his hair bristling with rage. "Fire at will! I’m going to personally sever that girl’s head!" With that, he leaped off the rampart and vanished.

"Attack!"

Zhang Long, furious and with no path of retreat, waved his hand and led the charge into the hail of arrows. He didn’t even bother with a shield; the arrows of ordinary men could not harm him.

Zhou Chen, sticking close to Zhang Long, claimed a life with every arrow, firing a dozen shots in the span of a few breaths. Bandit leaders on the ramparts were picked off one by one. Zhou Chen specifically targeted the stronger ones; while they were not true experts, each possessed the strength of five or six hundred pounds—roughly mid-stage Body Refining Grade One. Under Zhou Chen’s arrows, none could escape.

With Tie Xiong gone, the second-in-command, Lu Xiao, also disappeared. The cleverer bandits saw the writing on the wall—their leaders had fled. Consequently, they turned and scattered, scrambling to escape. They already feared the authorities, and with their bosses gone, they had no intention of holding the line, wishing only that their parents had given them faster legs.

As the bandit resistance crumbled, Zhang Long moved with lightning speed, leaping onto the ramparts, followed closely by Zhou Chen.

"Where is the Magistrate’s daughter?" Zhang Long grabbed a bandit, pinning him with a blood-stained blade against his neck, and barked the question.

"Spare me, sir! She’s in the side hall behind the main hall… ah!"

Zhang Long finished the bandit with a swift slash and raced toward the main hall with Zhou Chen. When they burst into the side chamber, their expressions darkened. She was alive, but... she was in a wretched state.

The air in the room was thick with a pungent odor. Chen Feng lay across a solid wood table, stripped of all clothing, her fair skin marred by blue and purple bruises. Her legs were spread wide, and she was barely breathing. One did not need to guess what had transpired; a vile implement still remained on her person.

Zhang Long rushed forward, wrapping her in his coat with a grim face. Zhou Chen sighed inwardly; he wasn't surprised. Reality was not a movie. It was rare to arrive in the nick of time, and even rarer for a captive beauty to remain untouched in an enemy camp. Every human heart harbored a demon. Without restraint, that demon would emerge, becoming utterly monstrous. To fall into the hands of such enemies meant a fate beyond imagination—stripped of dignity and human rights, subjected to torments one wouldn't dare dream of.

*No wonder Zhang Long never married,* Zhou Chen thought, recalling Zhang Long's words: without a wife or children, one had no weaknesses to be exploited. As for the maids he used to vent his desires, Zhang Long cared nothing for them. Without attachment, there was no burden. He was a man who lived for the flesh, not the heart. Many martial artists were like this, and many cultivators even preached the severing of the seven emotions and six desires to remain pure and detached.

"Sir!" Zhao Hu rushed in, catching a glimpse of Chen Feng and immediately lowering his head.

"Take your men and guard the door. No one is allowed in!" Zhang Long ordered.

"Understood!" Zhao Hu immediately stationed ten bailiffs at the entrance.

"Sir, Tie Xiong and Lu Xiao escaped down a small path using a rope!" Yang Dali rushed over to report.

"They cannot be allowed to get away!" Zhang Long looked at the others. "You stay here to protect the Magistrate’s daughter. Zhou Chen and I will pursue them!"

"Yes!"

Without a moment’s delay, Zhou Chen and Zhang Long set off. After what had been done to Chen Feng, those two leaders could not be let go. They reached a cliffside where a rope hung, clearly the route used by the fugitives. Zhang Long led the way, grabbing the rope with one hand and his sword with the other, descending rapidly. Zhou Chen followed.

Upon reaching the bottom, the trail was clear. They pursued for several dozen meters until the tracks diverged. Tie Xiong and Lu Xiao had split up. Zhang Long hesitated, wanting to divide their forces but worried that Zhou Chen might not be a match for them.

"Let’s split up. That Tie Xiong is only at Body Refining Grade Two; even if I run into him, I can handle it," Zhou Chen said directly. Zhang Long’s Body Refining Grade Three strength was of no use to him; it was better to act alone. If he encountered danger, he could retreat at any time, but following Zhang Long would only force him to act with restraint to hide his true power.

"Fine. Be careful, and if you meet Tie Xiong, do not engage in close-quarters combat," Zhang Long warned before heading down one of the tracks. Zhou Chen followed the other.

Zhou Chen maintained a speed consistent with a Grade Two practitioner. If he caught them, good; if not, he wouldn't force it. His own safety remained paramount.

*Master, there is an ambush ahead. It’s the second-in-command, Lu Xiao,* Ji Fengxia warned. She had remembered his aura from the gate.

*Trying to turn the tables on me?* Zhou Chen sneered internally. He remained calm, with Ji Fengxia acting as his radar, pinpointing the exact location. As he drew closer, Zhou Chen sensed Lu Xiao’s presence. Although Lu Xiao was well-hidden, Zhou Chen’s cultivation and tracking skills were superior.

*This guy must have practiced a breath-concealing technique, but it’s nothing compared to mine,* Zhou Chen thought. Seeing his chance, he struck. He drew his bow and notched an arrow in one fluid motion.

*Twang! Twang! Twang!*

The bowstring sang like a thunderclap. Nine arrows flew in a chain, aimed directly at Lu Xiao’s hiding spot.

"No!" Lu Xiao was shocked, a barrier of light erupting around him. The shield shattered after blocking three arrows. The remaining six pierced his chest, eyes, forehead, and throat.

"You..." Lu Xiao’s eyes widened, blood bubbling from his lips. He couldn't believe he had been killed in an instant. "How... did you... find me?"

He wasn't actually a martial artist, but a cultivator. His Breath-Concealing Technique had reached the first level, and he was confident in his stealth. How could a mere martial artist find him? Though his spiritual roots were trash, he had reached the third level of Qi Refining through time and patience. Because of his caution, even Tie Xiong only thought he was a rogue cultivator of the first level, while others didn't even know he had powers.

"You talk too much," Zhou Chen said, delivering a palm strike that crushed his skull before searching the body. He found a storage pouch. It contained a variety of items—mostly gold, silver, and jewelry, with no spirit stones. However, there were many manuals. Though they were common, Zhou Chen loved them. Even common techniques could be devastating if mastered to a high level.

"A pleasant surprise," Zhou Chen noted with satisfaction. "Fengxia, come out and clean up!"

"As you wish, Master!" A voluptuous, elegant figure appeared. Ji Fengxia looked at Lu Xiao’s corpse and reduced it to ashes with a flick of spectral fire.

"Done and dusted!" Ji Fengxia returned to the *Mirror of Wind and Moon*. Zhou Chen felt invigorated, his steps light as he headed back.

*Dong! Dong! Dong!*

The crisp sound of a wooden fish grew louder in his ears. Zhou Chen’s steps faltered; he felt as if he had been struck by a paralysis spell. His pupils contracted, his hair stood on end, and an unprecedented, chilling terror welled up in his heart.

The forest had vanished, replaced by a nunnery. The sound of the wooden fish and the faint chanting of nuns drifted from within.

*Boom!*

Zhou Chen’s mind felt as though it were exploding. The chanting filled his head, slowing his thoughts to a sluggish crawl. He wanted to flee, but he couldn't control his body, unable to take a single step!

*Roar!*

He unleashed his full Body Refining Grade Four cultivation. His blood boiled, and his body swelled like a bellows. His muscles and bones hummed, the sound of tigers and leopards roaring within him. This allowed his reason to return slightly. As his frozen thoughts began to turn, he roared internally: *"Add points!"*

Without time to think, he poured over two thousand Wind and Moon points into his *Yi Archery Technique*. In that instant, it felt as though he had practiced for years. His blood surged, his bones hummed, and the chanting in his head was suppressed. He was like a frozen man suddenly thawed. His body and soul felt light.

In that life-or-death moment, bolstered by the points, a flash of insight struck. He instinctively raised his longbow, drawing it into a full moon. The bow trembled, and an invisible intent of archery condensed, a terrifying edge that seemed to pierce heaven and earth.

The sun set, the sky like blood.

*Snap!*

The bow, capable of pulling a thousand pounds, shattered. A pitch-black arrow shot upward like a meteor, piercing the sky and striking the gate of the nunnery.

"This is..." The woman in white, who had left the peak of Wolong Mountain, looked up, her pupils shrinking as she watched the arrow light defy the blood-red sunset.

"The wind flows to the end of the long sky; the Yi Arrow pierces the firmament!"

A free-spirited figure flashed through her mind. The woman in white gasped in shock, "The Yi Archery Technique of the Divine Archer Peak!?"