Chapter 169: First Snow (3)
Translator: Kelaude Editor: TomYummy
It wasn’t that Miao Yi was overlooking his shortcomings. Back then, he had caused the death of Wang Zifa and the others in the Sea of Constellations, and wasn’t the slightest bit guilty about it. Those group of bastards never had good intentions to begin with. If he hadn’t taken drastic measures to forcefully subdue them and lure them with profits, they would never have listened to his commands, and would definitely have acted like Song Fu.
However, these handmaidens were innocent. If Yuan Zhengkun had merely killed them, then it was out of bad luck and that was how their life had turned out.
But Yuan Zhengkun shouldn’t have humiliated them while they were still living, and continued to insult them further by hanging them here after death.
His actions were devoid of conscience. Even heaven and earth could no longer bear him! This was something that could only be done by a bastard! He was insulting East Arrival Cave, and furthermore, insulting the East Arrival Cave Master; Miao Yi had never felt such fury before. If he did not seek revenge, then he wasn’t a man!
Perhaps heaven and earth were truly present in spirit. The moment he cried out, a chilling gust of wind blew past. The twelve corpses began to rock, as if in eager anticipation after hearing Miao Yi’s oath!
Miao Yi’s gaze swept across each faces on the corpses. Abruptly, he turned his head around and spread open his arms.
A cloud of silvery mist exploded from the storage ring before descending on him in quick succession. An extraordinarily grand and commanding set of silver armor immediately rested on him, with the Inversed-Scales Spear tightly clutched in his hand.
Beneath him, Charcoal cried out, similarly clad in a forbidding armor as if he were a monster that had emerged from ancient times.
In an instant, Yan Xiu seemed to have forgotten his sorrows as he stared at Miao Yi in wide-eyed amazement, having been caught quite off guard. ‘A set of transcendent artifacts? Even Charcoal has one? This…’
"ROARR…," dragon roars resounded throughout the desolate land, as Miao Yi swung the Inversed-Scales Spear in his grip. Turning his steed around, his gaze once again swept over the unsightly corpses hanging there. "The men of East Arrival Cave are not completely dead yet! Yan Xiu! Follow your Cave Master into battle… to slaughter!" he bellowed furiously.
Just like a monster, Charcoal swiftly trampled through the ruins, carrying Miao Yi as he charged ahead on his path. The obstructions that hadn’t completely collapsed yet were barreled into and sent flying. They had an unstoppable, and astonishingly formidable presence!
His entire body quivering, Yan Xiu loudly yelled, "Understood!"
Quickly leaping onto his mount, they rapidly jumped over the ruins and swiftly pursued after Miao Yi.
The rumbling sounds of the two traveling dragon steeds gradually disappeared far behind the mountain.
Yao Ruoxian stood at his original spot, peering about his surroundings. Scratching his head, he realized that he felt a bit bored being by himself.
Especially considering there were still a dozen grotesque female corpses above him. Whenever the wind blew, they would turn to stare at him with their tongues jutting out and their eyes open wide, making him feel extremely uncomfortable.
"F*ck. Did I take the wrong pill? How did I get kidnapped by that brat to help him look after his home…?" muttered Yao Ruoxian incoherently while gripping his beard…
Inside the realm of Emerald Forest Cave, a bloody battle scene unfolded.
Still heavily surrounded, the newly refined winged helm had already been struck off Qin Weiwei’s head, scattering her raven hair into a disheveled mess on her shoulders. She was severely injured; her expression was ghastly pale, with blood hanging from the corners of her lips. Her mount had already been beheaded, and her skirt stained with red. Limping, she continued to brandish the Serpent Lance in a circle to ward off attacks. She was already a spent arrow, dragging herself on as she grit her teeth.
She had already killed two of the ten Cave Masters who had surrounded her, but she was now helpless against the remaining eight. Every single one of the eight Cave Masters held a trace of mockery on their face as they circled around Qin Weiwei. At times, they would strike out to toy with her. Obviously, they could have killed her already but they chose not to, very much like how a cat toyed around with a mouse.
It’s uncertain if Transient Light Cave was a place where traitor were born, but the moment that the battle was engaged in earnest, the Transient Light Cave Master under Qin Weiwei immediately cried out in surrender when he saw that he was in danger.
However, his opponent wasted no time and immediately beheaded the Transient Light Cave Master after he laid down his weapon.
It was precisely because they would only face death regardless of where they turned to, that the remaining men were forced to fight with everything they had.
Yet, there was too much of a gap in strength between the two parties. The two Mountain Chieftains, Duan Jirui and Luo Wuqing, with Blue Lotus First Grade cultivation hadn’t made a single move, and were simply watching the scene from halfway up the mountain. One by one, the five Cave Masters Qin Weiwei brought were slaughtered. Out of about seventy men under her, nobody survived. Only Qin Weiwei was left alive and being toyed around with as a ruse to lure in the reinforcements.
Both Guan Jirui and Luo Wuqing had lost about twenty men.
After all of Qin Weiwei’s men were decimated, the two Mountain Chieftains watching the fight gave a signal. Apart from the eight Cave Masters surrounding Qin Weiwei that continued to toy with her, the rest immediately withdrew and hid in the mountain forest on either side.
When Gongsun Yu arrived with the others in tow and saw that Qin Weiwei was in such a tragic state, his eyes bulged. Without any hesitation, he signaled the others as he thundered in rage, "ATTACK!"
The units following him began charging towards them from afar at great speeds.
In response, Qin Weiwei let out an anguished cry, "Gongsun Yu, quickly retreat! It’s an ambush!"
Although he was shocked, Gongsun Yu still continued charging with his men; trying in vain to rescue Qin Weiwei before making their escape.
The repercussions of such an act were as expected. More than a hundred men charged out from the mountain forest on either sides, once again trapping Gongsun Yu in the middle.
Seeing the strategy of ‘ambushing rabbits from behind the tree’ effectively crippling the enemy forces twice in quick succession, even the Manor Head of Ever Peace Manor, Zhang Decheng, couldn’t help but chuckle as he watched the battle from the distant mountain range.
At exactly the same moment, three Cave Masters serving under Qin Weiwei—the Cave Master of Ten Thousand Spirits, Wang Hai; the Cave Master of Sun Believer Cave, Li Youqian; and the Cave Master of Coiling Clouds Cave, Zhang Yuniang—arrived together with the forces from the three caves.
Caught in a pinch, Gongsun Yu was overjoyed as he shouted out in surprise, "Hurry and help us break through the encirclement!"
These three Cave Masters were seniors by Yang Qing’s side, and were his trusted aides. The reason why they were assigned under Qin Weiwei was to assist her in emergencies.
After seeing Qin Weiwei in danger, the three of them naturally couldn’t sit idly by the sidelines. They immediately combined their forces to form a wedge, commanding their forces to pierce through like a keen blade.
Signalling with his hand, Duan Jirui commanded the company of over a hundred cultivators to immediately open up a path, taking the initiative to let Wang Hai and the others in.
After the three Cave Masters entered with their men, the opening was immediately sealed.
By the sidelines, Luo Wuqing signalled with a shout, "ATTACK!"
Another wave of over a hundred men charged out from the mountain forest on either sides. The forces of two mountains once again joined forces to attack from all sides, instantly crushing the cultivators of Mount Calming Sea into a pitiful state.
Qin Weiwei was painfully overwhelmed by anger and depression. She feared that Mount Calming Sea would suffer utter defeat.
Gongsun Yu proved himself worthy of being known as the number one expert of Mount Calming Sea. He managed to protect Qin Weiwei, brandishing his spear and launching vigorous attacks while circling around her, forcing the others to keep their distance.
Wang Hai, Li Youqian and Zhang Yuniang charged towards them swiftly and, together with Gongsun Yu, they enclosed Qin Weiwei to protect her.
They were truly the senior subordinates under Yang Qing. Even as things came to a head, they still intended to protect Qin Weiwei and risk their lives breaking through. However, the numbers surrounding them were overwhelming. It was easy to get in, but almost impossible to escape.
However, this instead gave Qin Weiwei an opening. With her hands free, she immediately summoned a bow from her storage ring once more. Standing alone in the center, she quickly drew her bow. A stream of whooshing noises sounded from her hands as the arrows swiftly shot out in quick succession, helping her subordinates defuse the crisis. In acting together, they actually managed to, for a brief moment, force the surrounding enemies to keep their distance.
Nevertheless, she was already severely injured to begin with. On top of that, she was consuming a great amount of transcendence energy. Practically at every moment she imbued her transcendence energy to shoot an arrow, wisps of blood would trickle from the corners of her mouth. Her body was definitely on the verge of collapsing. Although, she was doing her best to grit her teeth and hold on, it looked as though she could collapse at any moment...
Snow was falling, drifting about in a flurry, yet the snowfall did not fall heavily.
Miao Yi and Yan Xiu were charging up the hillside together when they came to a sudden halt. The situation ahead threw them both off.
It didn’t take a genius to figure out the true situation before their eyes. Both of them could tell that Qin Weiwei and the others had fallen for the enemy’s trap and were being heavily besieged. It wasn’t at all comparable to the forces that attacked East Arrival Cave under Yuan Zhengkun’s command. Here, it was obvious that there were the forces of two mountains surrounding them.
"Yan Xiu, stay here and prepare to provide support. If I don’t return, immediately flee for your life from here!" said Miao Yi, slowly raising the Inversed-Scale Spear in his hand.
Yan Xiu was extremely shocked and quickly cautioned, "Cave Master, the enemy has the advantage in numbers. It would be futile even if you go. Besides, Qin Weiwei has always gone head to head with you. Why do you want to throw your life away in vain? Let’s go back to find the Manor Head!"
Miao Yi shook his head, and pursed his lips as he said, "Although I dearly wish for that vile Qin Weiwei to die, Yang Qing has treated me with kindness. I cannot watch on idly and ignore as his daughter is on the brink of danger."
"Cave Master…" feeling anxious, Yan Xiu tried to persuade him again.
But Miao Yi already waved his hand to cut him off. "Even though I, Miao Yi, was born as a town butcher, I understand a certain principle. A man of character should do what is right and forego what is wrong. Yang Qing has always been kind to me, and a learned man should be ready to die for his bosom friends. Today is the day I repay his kindness!"
Not far away, Yao Ruoxian had snuck up and was hiding beneath a large tree. Looking as though he had heard some of their conversation, he slowly turned his head to stare at Miao Yi in shock.
"Cave Master!" Yan Xiu managed to choke out. He could feel his blood racing when he heard Miao Yi’s words, his chest heaving up and down urgently. "I am willing to follow Cave Master through fire and water!" he cried out emotionally.
With this, he declared his intent to follow Miao Yi even unto death.
"Yan Xiu! Could it be that I can’t command you anymore?" Miao Yi swept a cold glance towards him.
Yan Xiu cupped his fists with gnashed teeth and said, "I will do as you bid."
‘ROARRRR….’ Miao Yi thrust the Inversed-Scale Spear in his grasp straight ahead and instantly, Charcoal shot out swiftly like an arrow released from a bow.
The sinister battle armor on Charcoal’s body gradually emitted a crystalline white light, fusing together with a similar brilliance emerging from Miao Yi’s body. The speed at which he ran became faster than ever before.
Observing and commanding the battle from halfway up the mountain, Duan Jirui and Luo Wuqing both had their attention snagged by a lone steed charging towards them at breakneck speed.
Both of them were caught a little by surprise, and thought their eyes were playing tricks on them. Whose mount was it that would actually don a set of transcendence artifacts?
Seeing a man with such a luxurious set of armor appear, both of them initially thought that Yang Qing had arrived. However, after opening their transcendence vision to examine more closely, they discovered that it was not the case.
Yet the imposing manner of this lone cavalryman was incredibly astonishing, and made them worry that some sort of expert had suddenly appeared. They didn’t dare to brashly dispatch troops to intercept him.
Duan Jirui loudly shouted out, "WHO GOES THERE?"
Quite a number of the cultivators surrounding Qin Weiwei were also surprised to the point of turning their heads to look.
"THE CAVE MASTER OF EAST ARRIVAL CAVE, MIAO YI IS HERE! WHO DARES TO CHALLENGE ME?!" Miao Yi angrily bellowed in a response that resonated throughout the mountain range.
When he finished, a number of the men felt relieved. It turned out that this person was just the Cave Master of East Arrival Cave. They had honestly thought that some expert had come.
However, the besieged men of Mount Calming Sea had their spirits irrationally lifted. The Cave Master of East Arrival Cave who had beheaded Fan Renfang and Fang Ziyu had arrived! Above all, Miao Yi’s powerful tag line of—‘MIAO YI IS HERE, WHO DARES TO CHALLENGE ME!’—actually made them see a glimmer of hope in breaking through the entrapment.
Whilst using his spear to parry and kill, Gongsun Yu was instantly filled with joy as he shouted, "Cave Master Miao! The Mountain Chieftain is here! Hurry and help us to break through!"
With a signal from Duan Jirui, twenty men immediately separated themselves from the troops besieging Qin Weiwei and her group, quickly speeding to meet Miao Yi.
He didn’t know much of Miao Yi, so he intended to dispatch a few men to check him out first.
Upon seeing twenty men charging towards him, Miao Yi bellowed with fury, "Those who are in my way shall die!"