Woo...

The piercing wind swept through the valley, its sound sharp and deep, like weeping and lamentation, swirling above the valley, unceasing.

"Lucky for us, all top-quality goods. Disciples of the Linglong Hall, and at the Spiritual Rotation Realm. They should fetch a good price. Our half month of waiting here wasn’t in vain."

In the crowd, a hideous man cast a glance at the Linglong Hall disciples, a wicked smile on his face.

This man wore a blue suit of tight-fitting clothes, his hair stood on end, and in his hand, he held a dragon-patterned stick as thick as a forearm. His features were fierce, a scar an inch wide stretched across his upper lip, nearly disfiguring him, and his entire being exuded a savage and violent aura.

Ten Linglong Hall disciples formed a circle. Upon hearing the ugly man’s words, their faces looked grim.

"Senior Sister Mei, these people are very strong. What do we do now?"

A Linglong Hall disciple asked in a whisper to a nearby female disciple in a plum blossom long dress, her beautiful eyes filled with a trace of panic.

They were ambushed while passing through here, and now several sisters were already injured.

And these ruthless bandits were merciless; if they were to fall into their hands, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Mei Jing gripped her precious sword, scanned the surroundings, and resolutely said:

"Wait for me to hold them off, then look for a chance to break out!"

"Mei Jing, Evil-Faced Tiger is a Martial Artist at the peak of the Fifth Spiritual Rotation. It’s tough for you to block him alone. I’ll lend you a hand."

Another tall female disciple said.

"Alright!"

Mei Jing nodded, her gaze cold.

She recognized these bandits. They were, without surprises, one of the largest bandit groups in the Cloud Peak Mountain Range, and this ugly man was their leader. Though his real name was unknown, he was known in the rtiad as Evil-Faced Tiger, a top Martial Artist at the Fifth Spiritual Rotation.

"Hmph, none of you are leaving today!"

Evil-Faced Tiger let out a cold snort, his eyes swept over the leading Linglong Hall disciples, licking the scar on his lips, grinning ferociously:

"Since you’ve fallen into my hands, there’s no escape. I don’t like to destroy beauty, so if you know what’s good for you, you should surrender obediently to avoid unnecessary suffering."

"Despicable coward, what’s so great about an ambush!"

The tall Linglong Hall disciple sneered disdainfully.

"Hahaha..."

Upon hearing this, Evil-Faced Tiger laughed proudly, "We are fugitives by nature. We care only about the results, not about being noble."

Mei Jing’s brows slightly knitted, and she spoke:

"Evil-Faced Tiger, you’re known well around Cloud Peak. If you have the guts, fight me one-on-one. If I lose, you can do as you wish. If you lose, let us go. What do you say?"

The opponents alone had nearly ten Spiritual Rotation Realm Martial Artists, and others wielded powerful Dispel Gang Arrows. A few junior sisters had already been injured by the arrows; a direct confrontation was unlikely to succeed. She had to hold them off and find a way to escape.

"Enough with your nonsense!"

Evil-Faced Tiger’s eyes widened, glaring at Mei Jing, his eyes full of ferocity, "You are all already trapped. What qualifications do you have to negotiate with me? I’m no fool and won’t fall for your provocation. I see you’re quite appealing and have cultivation at the late stage of the Fifth Spiritual Rotation. If you serve me, I might consider making you my queen."

These words caused the bandits to laugh wickedly.

Mei Jing’s face turned pale, biting her lips tightly.

"Senior Sister, there’s no need to waste words on them. Let’s attack together and show them the strength of Linglong Hall." A Linglong Hall disciple gritted her teeth.

"Right, it’s better to die fighting!"

The Linglong Hall disciples all had cold gazes, their eyes filled with chilling intent to kill.

Mei Jing knew that escaping unscathed was already impossible. She took a deep breath and said:

"Alright, let’s fight to the death!"

"Evil-Faced Tiger, face your end!"

Swish!

Mei Jing’s silver snow-fine sword unleashed strands of azure Sword Shadow, striking directly at Evil-Faced Tiger.

Evil-Faced Tiger frowned slightly, showing disdain: "I know your swordsmanship is strong, but I won’t fight you solo."

Whoosh!

As he spoke, Evil-Faced Tiger stepped back rapidly, saying:

"Take action, but don’t kill them."

"Shoot the arrows!"

At his command, a hail of arrows filled the sky, raining down upon Mei Jing and the Linglong Hall disciples behind.

These arrows glowed faintly with Yuan Qi, capable of piercing Martial Artist Gang Qi, known as Dispel Gang Arrows.

Clang, clang, clang!

In an instant, Sword Qi crisscrossed the valley, sparks flying, as arrows were sheared off mid-air.

Mei Jing’s expression grew grim, her gaze locked onto the direction the arrows were fired from.

"Azure Cloud Pierces Nine Heavens!"

With a light shout, azure light surged around Mei Jing, her figure and sword momentum merging, transforming into a cloud wisp across the valley, a several-meters-long azure arc slicing through and killing.

Whoosh, whoosh!

The smooth ground split open, arrows shredded by Sword Qi, and nearly ten Martial Artists who couldn’t dodge in time were either pierced through with a single stroke or crushed into a mist of blood by overwhelming Sword Qi, their bodies shattered into countless pieces.

After the swing, a terrifying sword scar nearly 20 meters long appeared in the valley.

"Kill!"

Nearby, five Spiritual Rotation Realm Martial Artists became furious and unleashed their skills, jointly charging at Mei Jing.

"Azure Spirit Flash!"

Facing five Martial Artists at about the fifth Spiritual Rotation, Mei Jing’s Yuan Qi whirled to the extreme, her eyes bursting with intense azure light, her sword edge gleaming azure, and a shocking sharpness soared to the sky.

Swish!

A flash of azure light, and a distant mountain peak opened with a large hole, while Mei Jing appeared behind the five rtiad warriors.

Thud! Thud!

The two rtiad warriors in mid-run spewed lines of blood from their necks, eyes wide open, toppling down.

Rip!

Mei Jing’s right shoulder’s clothing split open, revealing a cut as long as a finger on her snow-white skin.

"What a fast sword!"

The Evil-Faced Tiger took a deep breath, the cold air penetrating his lungs, feeling somewhat lucky he hadn’t made a move recklessly.

The opponent was only at the late fifth stage of the Spiritual Rotation Realm, yet faced with an attack from five elite members of the expedition group, she managed to kill two with just minor injuries. Such formidable strength was terrifying.

Glancing to the side, the Evil-Faced Tiger frowned slightly. The nine other disciples from Linglong Hall, although their cultivation wasn’t as high as Mei Jing’s, were disciples of the Golden Palace and had refined martial arts. In this short time, several had died at their hands.

If this continued, the cost of capturing these women would be extremely heavy.

Mei Jing saw through the Evil-Faced Tiger’s thoughts. With a flick of her sword, she said coldly:

"Evil-Faced Tiger, it’s not too late to withdraw now."

"Hahaha..."

The Evil-Faced Tiger laughed loudly and said coldly, "A duck at hand, how can it fly away! Second brother, use that!"

"Alright!"

A middle-aged Martial Artist with a withered face stepped forward, wiped his hand, and took out a giant crossbow half a person’s height. The arrow was already on the string, and the arrowhead was a massive drill the size of a fist.

"Be careful!"

A bad feeling surged in Mei Jing’s heart. She warned and then shot out swiftly.

Bang!

The bowstring trembled, and the arrow turned into a streamer, shooting towards the fighting Linglong Hall disciple.

"Break!"

Mei Jing frowned slightly, halted her movement, and slashed out a sword energy that struck the blood-red arrow.

Crack!

The arrow shattered into pieces under the sword energy, but suddenly the arrowhead exploded, transforming into a massive blood net ten feet wide, shooting down.

"Hmph, such a petty trick!"

A Linglong Hall disciple, with a look of disdain, slashed out with her sword.

"Heh heh!"

Seeing this, the Evil-Faced Tiger curved his mouth into a cold smile.

"Junior sister, retreat quickly!"

Seeing the Evil-Faced Tiger’s expression, Mei Jing sensed something was wrong and flew backward.

Clang!

The sword energy struck the blood-red net, sending sparks flying, the strong shockwave spread in all directions, tearing the nearby air, yet the blood-red net wasn’t damaged in the slightest.

"Everyone, strike with full force!"

Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!

Sword energy crisscrossed, and sharp sword energy slashed ferociously at the blood-red net.

To the dismay of others, each sword energy slash was dissipated by a layer of blood-red light membrane, to no effect.

Sizzle!

A flash of blood light, and the blood-red net enveloped the nine Linglong Hall disciples, then contracted, binding them tightly. Only Mei Jing, with the highest Qinggong, narrowly escaped the disaster.

"Junior sister!"

Mei Jing’s face changed dramatically, her figure flashed, appearing beside the blood-red net. Unable to cut it open with her sword, she used her full palm force, striking down.

Buzz!

The Palm Gang landed on the blood-red net, immediately absorbed by the emerging blood-red light membrane, not able to penetrate an inch, instead, the net tightened even more.

"Hahaha... It’s useless."

The Evil-Faced Tiger wore a look of triumph, glancing at Mei Jing, said: "With your cultivation, it’s impossible to open this Candle Sky Net unless you reach the eighth stage of the Spiritual Rotation Realm."

Candle Sky Net!

Mei Jing’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, her cold gaze directed at the Evil-Faced Tiger, "The Candle Sky Net arrows are from the Blood Demon Sect. How do you have them? Could it be, you’re trading with Demon Sect disciples?"

"As long as it’s useful to me, I don’t care if they’re Demon Sect disciples." The Evil-Faced Tiger sneered coldly.

"Senior Sister Mei, don’t worry about us, leave here quickly." A Linglong Hall disciple said.

"But..."

Mei Jing looked at her tightly bound junior sisters, biting her silver teeth.

"Senior sister, if you’re captured too, we’ll all be doomed, falling into an abyss of no return. Hurry and go to Ming Dang Mountain to find the Second Hall Master and other senior sisters for help. There’s still a sliver of hope this way."

"Yes, senior sister, don’t hesitate. Go quickly!"

"Alright, I’ll return as soon as I can!"

Resolving her heart, Mei Jing soared into the air, shooting towards the distance.

"Since you know my identity, how can I let you leave?"

The Evil-Faced Tiger, understanding the consequences of offending Linglong Hall, aimed to uproot the problem. With a long howl, he chased after Mei Jing, swinging a steel rod as thick as an arm with a thunderous force.

Woo woo!

The air was pressured to the point of continuous booming, the intense Gang wind enveloping Mei Jing.

Mei Jing frowned slightly, knowing she must repel the Evil-Faced Tiger to escape, a three-meter-long azure Sword Qi extended from her sword.

"Spirit Return Thousand Turns!"

Her figure suddenly halted, the treasured sword in her hand spinning up a massive azure whirlwind, targeting the Evil-Faced Tiger directly.

Boom!

A loud explosion, and the two figures each retreated wildly.

Blood seeped from the corner of Mei Jing’s mouth. She glanced at the Evil-Faced Tiger, not in the mood for battle, and performed Qinggong hoping to leave.

"Damn woman, when I catch you, I’ll sell you to the East Ridge Demon Region so you’ll know what it feels like when life is worse than death!"

The Evil-Faced Tiger looked at his torn sleeve, enraged, evil green eyes staring at Mei Jing, waving his hand, said:

"Catch her!"