The sudden ambush left everyone stunned.
However, this couldn’t be entirely blamed on Xu Qingwan.
Who would have thought that a demon would be hiding inside the land god statue?
With a white face, black hair, and a hunched back, its entire body was covered in sticky bloodstains, and its eyes, almost indistinguishable from those of humans, were filled with ferocious and brutal intent.
It was a demon monkey!
After landing a hit, the demon monkey didn’t pursue its attack, instead, it dropped to all fours, continuously letting out ear-piercing screeches from its mouth, as if it was observing the fighting abilities of Wei Changtian and the others.
Behind it, a mess of broken bones and feathers was scattered, likely the remains of the wild chicken demon that the crowd hadn’t even seen.
“Clang! Clang! Clang!”
Zhou Cheng and the two constables drew their swords in succession, while Wei Changtian moved a step forward to catch Xu Qingwan, who was flying back.
From the look on her face, she was still okay, not dead yet.
Without asking if she was alright, Wei Changtian quickly pulled out a bottle of medicinal pills he always carried with him and stuffed it into her bosom. Then, he swiftly drew his willow leaf knife, taking a defensive stance in front of Xu Qingwan, forming a pincer formation with Zhou Cheng.
The two constables were ninth-rank, their combat strength almost negligible.
Zhou Cheng was sixth-rank, and Wei Changtian was seventh-rank. Since the demon monkey could inflict such a severe injury on Xu Qingwan, its strength was at least equivalent to sixth-rank.
Damn it, wasn’t it said that this wild chicken demon was less than five years old in the Dao path?
Wei Changtian’s expression grew increasingly grim. After exchanging a glance with Zhou Cheng, the two of them tacitly decided not to make any rash moves.
In a situation where they couldn’t gauge their opponent’s abilities, they would rather let the demon monkey escape.
Unfortunately, the demon monkey didn’t seem willing to flee.
Perhaps it felt that the people in front of it weren’t its match, so after a brief pause, it launched another attack, targeting the tall constable.
Did it know to pick on the soft persimmon first?
Wei Changtian’s pupils constricted, and he, along with Zhou Cheng, charged towards the demon monkey, shouting, “You guys retreat and use your crossbows!”
“Clang!!”
Zhou Cheng swung his sword, barely blocking the demon monkey’s attack at the last moment, while the tall constable, who had narrowly escaped death, didn’t hesitate, quickly retreating about ten feet before stopping and loading his crossbow.
The short constable did the same.
Both of them knew that with their strength, they would not only be unable to assist but would also drag the others down.
Without them, Zhou Cheng and Wei Changtian would indeed have an easier time fighting.
“Boom! Thud!”
“Whoosh! Whoosh!”
The two of them engaged in a fierce battle with the demon monkey.
Zhou Cheng seemed to have practiced some sort of knife technique, his sword strokes were extremely fast and heavy, and with his sixth-rank cultivation, he naturally took on the main attacking role.
As for Wei Changtian, since he had learned the Fu Yang Step from Xu Qingwan, his footwork was slightly superior, so he played the role of restraint.
One advanced, the other retreated; the two of them maintained an extremely high attack frequency against the demon monkey, their coordination growing more tacit.
With the occasional arrow shot from a distance, they finally managed to suppress the demon monkey, which had a strength equivalent to that of a fifth-rank cultivator.
What a pity.
If Xu Qingwan hadn’t been injured, they might have been able to kill the demon monkey on the spot.
“Roar!!”
“Whoosh!”
The sound of shattering stones, flying sand, and the willow leaf knife’s breaking air mixed with the demon monkey’s eerie screeches, stirring up the air in the entire mountain forest.
As Wei Changtian fought on, he grew more relaxed, but the demon monkey became increasingly exhausted.
It seemed to have realized its predicament was unfavorable, and after being struck by another blow, it suddenly changed its fighting style, almost completely abandoning its defense and attack against Wei Changtian, shifting its focus to Zhou Cheng, who posed a greater threat.
A beast that could change its tactics mid-battle was truly unforeseen by the two of them.
Zhou Cheng’s footwork was originally weak, and now he could only defend and retreat simultaneously, with danger lurking around every corner.
Meanwhile, Wei Changtian, who was beside him, had already used up all his strength to launch a frenzied attack, leaving several bloody marks on the ape-like monster’s body. However, the damage was limited.
He really wanted to target the monster’s vital areas, but this beast was no fool, deliberately leaving its tough-skinned areas like its back and chest for Wei Changtian to hack at, while protecting its vulnerable spots like its throat and head.
The situation changed in the blink of an eye, but it couldn’t be considered a complete reversal.
The ape-like monster’s tactic of focusing on a single target had its advantages and disadvantages. As long as Zhou Cheng could hold out for a while, Wei Changtian would eventually be able to wear it down, even if it took a thousand cuts.
The battle had once again fallen into a stalemate.
Neither Wei Changtian nor Zhou Cheng noticed the sinister glint in the ape-like monster’s eyes, nor did they see Xu Qingwan, who had been severely injured earlier.
…
The battle had reached a stage where both sides were fighting with their lives on the line, with no intention of giving up.
The two captives watched from a distance as the three dark shadows clashed, but they didn’t have the opportunity to shoot arrows to help. They could only stand by anxiously.
They knew that calling for reinforcements would be too late, and their only hope lay with the two Silver Leaf seniors at the Liu Ye Temple.
If they won, they would be rewarded.
If they lost, they would die.
As for sneaking away… their fate would be even more tragic than death at the hands of the monster.
The two captives’ palms were sweating as they gripped their bows, while Wei Changtian and Zhou Cheng were too focused to feel nervous, let alone distracted.
In a battle of this level, even a moment’s distraction could cost them their lives.
“Clang!!”
The ape-like monster’s black-haired fist smashed onto the blade in front of it, and Zhou Cheng tightly grasped the hilt, finally controlling the wildly vibrating Liu Ye sword, barely preventing it from flying out of his hand.
Damn, the force was too strong!
He cursed inwardly, but his pupils quickly contracted.
The ape-like monster suddenly went berserk, ignoring Wei Changtian’s stab at its ribs from the side, and instead charged towards Zhou Cheng at an even faster speed.
“Ah!!”
Zhou Cheng roared in anger, knowing he definitely couldn’t block it, and directly pulled his sword to roll to the side, trying to dodge the attack.
He did dodge it.
But when he rolled out a few feet away and turned back, his face instantly turned as white as a sheet.
It turned out that the ape-like monster had never intended to attack him, but instead had directly charged towards Xu Qingwan, who was coincidentally behind him!
“Pfft!!”
The long Liu Ye sword had sunk more than a third of its length into the monster’s ribs, the heaviest damage Wei Changtian had inflicted on the ape-like monster since the start of the battle.
But the ape-like monster didn’t seem to care, not even glancing at Wei Changtian, and continued to charge forward, its eyes fixed only on Xu Qingwan, who was struggling to stay upright.
“Thud!!”
The bow and arrow fell to the ground, and the two captives stared with wide eyes, their faces frozen in shock, as a chill ran down their spines.
This wasn’t a coincidence, but a deliberate plan by the ape-like monster!
It knew it probably couldn’t take down the two men, but it refused to retreat, and so had targeted the severely injured Xu Qingwan!
Shift the battlefield, find an opportunity, and strike with all one’s might.
A monster with such cunning!
The two captives felt as if they had fallen into an ice cave, while Xu Qingwan’s face also revealed a look of despair.
Even at her peak, she couldn’t block the impending punch, and her beautiful eyes slowly closed, as countless thoughts flooded her mind.
She had saved up 1,236 taels of silver, but hadn’t had a chance to spend it yet, what a pity…
Her parents would be devastated when they heard about her death…
Many colleagues would attend her funeral…
(Note: Please note that I’ve preserved the line breaks as per your request.)
From noble mtl dot come
Was Wei Changtian really just drinking with Huakui that day……
“Boom!”
A muffled sound echoed in her ear, and a massive impact force transmitted from her chest.
Is it over?
It doesn’t hurt that much, either…
No way!
Xu Qingwan was stunned for a moment, then suddenly opened her eyes wide, looking incredulously at Wei Changtian, who was biting his teeth and hugging her tightly as he tried to roll to the side.
“You…”
“Boom!!”
Before she could even utter a word, an impact force several times stronger than before hit her.
Xu Qingwan’s mouth hung open, her eyes fixed on the demon’s fist as it directly smashed into Wei Changtian’s back.
“Crash!”
The two of them rolled on the ground, leaving a long trail of blood behind them.
Wei Changtian was still spitting out blood, his face as white as paper.
Xu Qingwan forced herself to lift her head, looking at him with an expression of tender affection in her eyes, a look that no one had ever seen before.
The demon attacked again.
It leaped high into the air, its fist swinging down once more.