Chapter 43: Falling Apart

“If you want to snatch food from a tiger's mouth, you'll have to see if the blades in our hands agree to it first,” Luo Yuan said, taking a step forward and glaring fiercely at the Big-Headed Freak's gang.

Zhang Guang had previously been ambushed by them and had narrowly escaped death; he already loathed the Big-Headed Freak to his very bones. “Exactly! We have an extra person on our side. If we truly fight, we won't necessarily fear a bunch of despicable scoundrels like you.”

Wang Yuan and the others gripped their weapons, their expressions solemn as they stood ready. Having each consumed a significant amount of essence, they knew that if they did not stick together, they would likely die even faster. Furthermore, aside from the Big-Headed Freak, who was at the sixth level of Qi Refinement, there were only two others at the fifth level. Their overall cultivation was lower than theirs, so they were not necessarily in a guaranteed losing position.

“In that case, it seems a fight is inevitable. Big-Headed, what else is there to say? The Silver-Winged Centipede is dead, and there might still be spirit insect eggs in the cave. Let's kill these uncooperative fools first, then enter the centipede cave to investigate.”

The man in brocade clothing standing behind the Big-Headed Freak gave a cackling laugh. He brandished a spiked mace and slapped the spirit beast pouch at his waist. Amidst the white mist, a black giant ape nearly ten feet tall began thumping its thick chest with its massive palms, the sound echoing loudly.

“That's right! These people have been in the mountains for over a month; their storage bags must be filled with spirit items,” the others chimed in.

The Big-Headed Freak laughed loudly and stared at Fan Qing. “In that case, let's kill! Blood-Hand Daoist, it seems we are destined for a battle today.”

“Too much insolence!” Even as a woman, Wang Yuan could no longer suppress her rage. She threw herself into a fray against the man with the spiked mace and the black ape, and despite being one against two, she held her own.

Wang Ping, Zhang Guang, and the others also sought out their respective opponents.

Luo Yuan and He Tuozi charged toward a pair of twins with green birthmarks on their faces. However, just as Luo Yuan swung his sword at one of them, He Tuozi, who was behind him, suddenly wore a hideous expression and thrust his spiritual sword toward Luo Yuan's back.

Although Luo Yuan sensed a sharp aura approaching his body, he was too close to dodge in time. In his haste, he deployed an "Earth Armor Technique" at maximum speed!

But before the earth armor could fully form, He Tuozi's sword was already about to touch Luo Yuan's skin.

“Fool! Your side is the one that's actually short on numbers. Die!” He Tuozi's aura suddenly erupted; he was actually at the sixth level of Qi Refinement, having used some method to hide his true cultivation.

“Brother Luo!” Zhang Guang and Zheng Shiqi were both shocked.

“Big Brother!” Luo Qing's face turned pale with terror, leaving her momentarily paralyzed with fear.

However, no one noticed that Lu Xiaotian had vanished at some unknown point.

*Whoosh!* Suddenly, a figure burst from the ground—it was Lu Xiaotian, who had disappeared moments ago.

A cold smirk played on Lu Xiaotian's face. Under He Tuozi's astonished gaze, he swung his short sword. Because He Tuozi had overextended his move, he was also unable to dodge. He could only tilt his body slightly, narrowly sparing his vital organs.

“My arm!” With He Tuozi's scream, his sword-wielding arm flew into the air, trailing a spray of blood.

He Tuozi retreated several yards in panic, hurriedly produced a bottle of healing pills, and swallowed one. He then looked at Lu Xiaotian with a mixture of disbelief and venomous hatred. “How did you single me out?”

The Big-Headed Freak and his gang also stopped their fighting, looking at Lu Xiaotian with bewildered expressions. They had used the same method to ambush two other adventuring teams, yet Lu Xiaotian had seen through them.

“Ever since we were at Moon-Watching City, I felt something was wrong. You are a Qi Refinement fourth-level cultivator with relatively low cultivation, yet you not only possessed the recipe for Essence Pills but also had information on the Silver-Winged Centipede. Furthermore, you were far too familiar with the mountain routes. That is not something a fourth-level cultivator should be capable of. At the time, I only had suspicions.”

“Later, when we were attacked by the Green Bamboo Bees, although I suspected you, there were too many ill-intentioned teams in the Moon-Watching Mountains for me to pin it on you. But once we arrived here and found ourselves in the same team as the Big-Headed Freak, I couldn't help but be suspicious. I think if a few more members of our team had been stung by the bees earlier, you probably would have made your move then.”

“It was only because the Big-Headed Freak saw that only one of us was injured and our strength wasn't severely compromised that he wasn't willing to risk a mutual destruction. Thus, you changed your plan, waiting for us to fight the Silver-Winged Centipede before coming out to reap the benefits—killing us to seize our goods. Am I right?”

Lu Xiaotian spoke coldly. He hadn't intended to waste so much breath, but Luo Yuan, Wang Yuan, and the other team members had already consumed much of their essence. Now that a traitor like He Tuozi had emerged, the team's morale was unstable. His priority was to steady the hearts of the others; otherwise, if morale collapsed, they wouldn't even need to fight—everyone would just flee for their lives.

“I should have just killed this traitor with one strike,” Zhang Guang said indignantly, swinging his spiritual saber.

Luo Yuan said with a solemn expression, “Brother Lu, I owe you my life.”

“You gave me quite a fright just now. I thought this mountain trip would be a waste of effort, but it turns out Fellow Daoist Lu had everything under control all along.”

Wang Yuan let out a giggle. Although they were now one person short due to He Tuozi, Lu Xiaotian's composure was infectious.

“You've said so much, and now you're one person short. Although He Tuozi lost an arm, which affects a cultivator's combat ability to some extent, the bleeding has stopped, so the impact shouldn't be too great,” the man in brocade clothing said grimly, brandishing his spiked mace.

“Is that so?”

Lu Xiaotian sneered. For an ordinary mortal martial artist, such a heavy injury would certainly drastically reduce combat power, but the impact on a cultivator was relatively smaller. He Tuozi had hidden his cultivation; as a sixth-level Qi Refinement cultivator, he could have held his own against either Luo Qing or Wang Ping just by casting spells from the sidelines. The situation was still unfavorable for them, but how could he be without a backup plan?

“Ah!” He Tuozi had just used the spirit pill to stop the bleeding when a sudden, twisting pain exploded in his chest, turning his entire face a sickly greenish color.

“The... the sword is poisoned! You are truly despicable!”

He Tuozi's expression was hideous. His eyes glared at Lu Xiaotian as if they could spit fire; if looks could kill, Lu Xiaotian would have been slain countless times over. After his initial rage, He Tuozi frantically pulled every detoxification pill from his storage bag and shoved them into his mouth, but it was useless. Lu Xiaotian had coated the blade with several types of potent poisons. Within moments, He Tuozi's eyes rolled back, and he collapsed to the ground, twitching in agony.

“Compared to your attempt to wipe out our entire team, are we not allowed to fight back?” Wang Ping swung his heavy staff and chuckled. “Fellow Daoist Lu did a fine job. I, Wang, am truly impressed.”

“Big-Headed, this young man is a highly skilled alchemist. He seems to have many Qi-Gathering Pills on him. He used those pills to exchange for a large amount of spirit herbs and spirit stones. In our team, he has the most spirit stones. By my estimate, the spirit stones, herbs, and Qi-Gathering Pills on him are worth at least two hundred spirit stones.”

Driven by malice, He Tuozi immediately spat out words that were extremely detrimental to Lu Xiaotian. Sure enough, as soon as the words left his mouth, the man in brocade and the others all looked at Lu Xiaotian with eyes full of greed.

The Big-Headed Freak nodded and took two steps forward, his voice sinister. “Now the numbers are even. You're quite a capable young man, but do you think I didn't see through your stalling tactics? It seems you haven't witnessed my methods yet.”

Lu Xiaotian's expression darkened. Had he known, he should have ended the traitor with a single sword strike. He had only kept He Tuozi alive to use his injury and the ensuing dialogue to buy Luo Yuan and the others time to recover their essence. It had truly been a case of "trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice."

The Big-Headed Freak slapped the black gourd at his waist, and with a buzzing sound, a swarm of green flying ants poured out. There were over a hundred of them. Because they were so close, the emergence of these small green ants gave the sensation of a sky-covering deluge.

“Shadow Ants!” Wang Yuan and the others cried out, their faces turning pale. Even a late-stage Qi Refinement cultivator would have to be cautious when facing such a number of Shadow Ants. Insect cultivators often held an advantage over cultivators of the same rank.

“Hehe, at least you know your stuff.” The Big-Headed Freak gave a sinister laugh, commanding the Shadow Ants to split into several squads of ten, each led by an ant that was noticeably larger than the others.

The Big-Headed Freak seemed only able to control seven squads, while the remaining dozens flew about erratically like locusts.

Lu Xiaotian hadn't expected to encounter a fellow practitioner who raised Shadow Ants, but the Big-Headed Freak's control over them was clearly a level above his own. The seven squads of Shadow Ants began to flank him from several directions. Lu Xiaotian cast a fireball spell, but it was blocked by the lead ant. Although the lead ant shrieked and wobbled in the air from the injury, it did not die. Meanwhile, the other squads of ants were closing in from other directions.

After a brief moment of shock, Lu Xiaotian sneered inwardly. The lethality of the Shadow Ants was secondary; the key was that these small flying ants were more durable than the Green Bamboo Bees, and a few stings would cause one's essence to circulate erratically. This was fatal in combat. While the Shadow Ants might pose a massive threat to others, to him, they were merely a significant nuisance.

As Lu Xiaotian drew his spiritual sword, his left hand reached for an antidote, preparing to pop it into his mouth. However, something completely unexpected happened. Fan Qing, the team leader and primary combatant, suddenly turned and fled, abandoning them.

Fan Qing's desertion was a calculated move. He had clashed with the Big-Headed Freak several times before and had never gained the upper hand. He knew how formidable the man was, and with several of his spiritual tools destroyed and his dantian's essence at less than thirty percent, he was no match for the Big-Headed Freak. Although Lu Xiaotian was cunning, he was ultimately too young and might not be able to hold his own. Even if they could barely resist, their chances of winning were less than half.

More importantly, he had already collected the final second-grade demon core required by the Savage Beast Sect. Once he returned to Moon-Watching City, he could join the sect and would no longer need to risk his life in the Moon-Watching Mountains.

“Shameless!” Lu Xiaotian, Luo Yuan, and the others cursed in unison. They were already at a disadvantage, and now the loss of Fan Qing, their main combat force, was the final straw that broke the camel's back.

“Our strength was already greatly diminished, and now we are two people short. We can't win. I'm retreating first!”

Wang Yuan had originally intended to fight to the end, but with the situation deteriorating so rapidly, she weighed her options and decided her chances of winning were nearly zero. After a strike to force back the charging man in brocade, she slapped a "Wood Escape Talisman" on herself and leaped toward a large tree. Her figure vanished instantly, and in the blink of an eye, she reappeared near another tree before disappearing into the thick grass.

Immediately after, Wang Ping's expression shifted, and he also used a Wind-Walking Technique to bolt into the distance.

“Where do you think you're going?” An elder from the opposing side, wielding twin swords, pursued them with impressive speed.

“Brother Lu, what should we do?” Wu Guang, Luo Yuan, and the others looked anxious. The situation had deteriorated to an unbearable degree. The remaining members all placed great trust in Lu Xiaotian; those like Wang Yuan and Wang Ping, who were calculating their own survival, had already vanished.

“There are only a few of us left. What choice do we have? Everyone, run! Let fate decide our lives or deaths.”

Lu Xiaotian said coldly and turned to flee. He was not a heartless man; within his capability, he would lend a hand to Luo Yuan and the others.

However, after Fan Qing, Wang Yuan, and the others fled, the Big-Headed Freak and his gang all set their sights on him. This was naturally due to He Tuozi's words before the poison took hold—that he was an alchemist with abundant spirit stones and pills. Now that he could barely save himself, he had no room to care for others.

“Jieje, Fellow Daoist Zou, the two of us will chase this kid surnamed Lu. The others, send two to guard the Silver-Winged Centipede's corpse, and the rest continue the hunt!”

The Big-Headed Freak's mind raced. He Tuozi had already succumbed to the poison and lay unconscious, his life hanging in the balance. No one had the time to care for him now; the Silver-Winged Centipede was a "cooked duck" that wouldn't escape. But as an alchemist, Lu Xiaotian's wealth might indeed be worth more than the refining materials on the centipede's body.

If only one person went after him, two things might happen: first, based on the recent situation, Lu Xiaotian was deep and cunning and might have a hidden trump card; second, the other team members might object. By bringing along the man in brocade, Zou Xin, who was second only to him in strength, the two could split the spoils more easily than if seven or eight people had to share. Even if the others were unhappy, they would have to swallow their pride and accept it.

“Haha, fine! The two of us will join forces to slaughter this kid and avenge He Tuozi!” Zou Xin was very satisfied with the arrangement and agreed immediately. The two of them, one following the other, began a frantic pursuit of Lu Xiaotian.

Luo Yuan, Wu Guang, and the others exchanged glances before also fleeing in different directions. At this point, it was no longer about a wasted effort; simply escaping with their lives would be a miracle.

“Little lady, don't run! Stay and have some fun with this master!” A disheveled, bearded monk and a youth in green chased after the Luo siblings, while two more tails followed closely behind Zhang Guang and Zheng Shiqi. In an instant, the original team had completely disintegrated.

(End of Chapter)