But as good as Wu Ying was, so was Senior Cai. A kick that Wu Ying never saw tripped him. Another caught him in the chest, booted feet flexing and imprinting on Wu Ying’s armored chest before throwing him back. Wu Ying let himself go into the fall, doing a backflip as he dodged the cuts that followed the strike. He failed to dodge them entirely though, a cut at his thighs forcing him to stumble as he landed.
Pain. But to his surprise, as Wu Ying struggled to his feet, Senior Cai did not follow up. Instead, he clutched his arm, the one Wu Ying had struck again and again. As for his weapon, his sword lay a distance from him, fallen from numbed fingers. Repeated strikes and the sudden motion must have made his hand spasm.
“Having trouble?” Wu Ying taunted, hoping his opponent would get angry. Praying that he would lose his temper.
“You think you can beat me, even unarmed?” Senior Cai snorted. He charged forward, ignoring his own weapon. “Die, you worthless dog.”
Objective achieved, Wu Ying stopped his taunting. It was almost pitiful how easy it was to read the man. But Wu Ying had no time to pay attention to that as he focused on his opponent. His lead hand dropped close to his other, his body curled up tight as he raised himself to fight. Then as his opponent neared him, when they were but steps away, Wu Ying pulled on his chi, sent his mind into the storage ring, and extracted another sword. This was a dao, heavy and curved, single-sided but perfect for the cut he unleashed. He shoved all his energy, every inch of his sword intent into the blow as he swung. Senior Cai froze for a moment, surprise taking him for a precious second.
It was not honorable. It was not right. Taunting him to fight, forcing him to commit to the attack without a weapon, only for Wu Ying to use one himself. But it was practical. The attack tore into Senior Cai’s body, ripping apart enchanted robes, flesh, skin, and muscle, leaving his opponent sprawled on the ground, his chest split. Not too deep though, for his opponent was stronger, and at the last moment, he had managed to twist aside.
Left untreated, the injury probably would leave him dead. But for now, Senior Cai staggered to his feet, wrapped his fist in power, igniting the very blood of his body and forming smoking tendrils of blood from his chest. The energy wrapped around his fist as he punched. Wu Ying managed to get his dao in front of him, protecting his body, only to be blown away, the sword shattered as it peppered him with hot metal. He flipped over and over until he smashed into the slope of the hill behind, throwing up blood as ribs cracked and his chest compressed. Blood ran from cuts across his face where metal shards had cut him, his entire body feeling singed from the attack. If not for his Reinforced Iron Bones technique, the attack would probably have shattered all his bones.
As if he had used up all of his energy, Senior Cai collapsed onto his face, unmoving. Blood continued to steam from his body, creating a cloud of red around him. Wu Ying struggled to stand and failed, sliding back into the hole his body had created. He stared at the battle that still raged, desperate to get back into the fight and help his friends but unable to do so. At least he had managed to deal with his own opponent.
In the distance, Li Yao had put down another and was holding off her opponent. Tou Hei was dealing with his own opponent, while Yin Xue edged around the pair. When he saw a chance, Yin Xue darted in, injuring and distracting the metal-clad cultivator. That allowed Tou Hei to strike as well, but neither of them seemed to be able to injure the man; his body throbbed with the metal chi that wrapped his whole body in protective armor.
Fed up with fighting two opponents at the same time, the cultivator finally snarled. “Do you people have no honor!”
Before anyone could reply, he was struck in the back and shoulder by Tou Hei, the hit making his head twist to the side. He lurched sideways, and the next second, Yin Xue darted forward and stabbed him in the throat.
“This is war, fool,” Yin Xue said, the cut tearing an inch into the throat and leaving blood to bubble around the wound.
Even then, the man refused to fall and lashed out with his axe, narrowly missing Yin Xue.
Grateful to see that matters were in hand, Wu Ying let himself slump to the ground and circulate his chi. As much as he wanted to, rejoining the fight would just hinder his friends. Better to heal and recuperate as fast as he could, because they still had to run. At least their horses—trained from birth to deal with fights around them—had only moved a distance away. Now, all they had to do was finish off their opponents, gather their horses, and flee.
Chapter 24
Cracked ribs jostled as Wu Ying sat upon his plodding horse, sending sharp pains shooting through his torso and stealing his breath. He churned his chi, using the energy within to bolster his bones and help offset the pain and the damage, to patch himself together. But, for all of that, the damage was done and would not heal any time soon. He could only swallow a Blood Cleansing Pill, borrow the vitality it released to help his body fix itself while he rode, and keep an eye on Bao Cong.
Because as injured as Wu Ying was, Bao Cong was more damaged. Pale, with little chi left and the wounds in his leg and shoulder still leaking blood occasionally, the cultivator swayed in his saddle. They had lashed him to his horse to ensure he did not fall while they rode. Still, Wu Ying stayed close, ready to catch the slumping body or grab the reins if necessary. Bao Cong was insensate, his wounds wrapped, a Marrow Opening and Blood Cleansing Pill already swallowed and working their healing magic. Even so, it was debatable if he would survive if they did not stop soon.
But that was, of course, the last thing they could do. After they had finished the battle, they’d ripped the storage rings off the bodies of the enemy cultivators and taken their weapons and horses before leaving. If Wu Ying’s group was lucky, they had been the outermost patrol and their presence would not be expected for a while. If not…
If not, they would have another battle to fight. And the truth was, none of them were in a position to do so. Even Yin Xue, who had taken pains to reduce the amount of energy and danger he put himself in, was looking worse for the wear, though he continued to ride at the head of the group. As for Li Yao, the petite cultivator sat on her horse, alert and tense by dint of will. Wu Ying sensed the churning abyss that was her dantian, the way she drew in chi without needing to cultivate—so low was her energy state. Tou Hei was much in the same boat as Yin Xue—mostly uninjured but tired and forced to ride at the back to keep an eye out for problems.
Wu Ying grunted as another rough step made him wince. As he rode, his mind churned with recriminations. They should have planned better. He should have gotten more—more talismans, more enchanted items. Figured out a better distraction or way to sneak in. He should have expected things to go badly, and he should have planned for them to cause a distraction or split their forces somehow. He should have…
He should not have brought his friends.
As they rode, he faced his guilt over that final fact. He had asked and they had come, but now, their lives were in danger. For him. For his parents and his village. They would not have acted without him asking. And so, their deaths and injuries were his to bear.
As he cast a look at the swaying Bao Cong, at the way Tou Hei redid the bandage on his arm, Wu Ying mentally chided himself for his selfishness. He’d wanted to save his family, his village—but he had put his friends in danger. Who was he to trade their lives for others?