Chapter: 25 A sudden change in the forest.
I wonder who is calling for help?
Xue Ling thought quietly.
And this is the wilderness outside Luocheng. Fang Bie took Xue Ling out of the city for a walk before staying here, intending to remove all traces of smell on his body before returning to the city.
It was probably late afternoon now.
Just when Xue Ling got up from the pool and wanted to wipe her body with a towel and put on new clothes, Fang Bie's voice floated over from a distance: "I'll go and take a look first, you follow carefully."
I'm not going to take a look first, so why don't you follow me? Xue Ling was stunned.
But since Fang Bie had given the order, Xue Ling could only obey.
She wiped her body, changed into new clothes, looked at the old clothes, wanted to burn them but couldn't bear to, so she wrapped the old clothes with green cloth again, then gathered her energy in her feet, and used light skills to float towards the place where the voice came from.
In this situation, Xue Ling sought not speed but concealment. The cries for help persisted, but in the wilderness, most people, even if they heard them, would simply stay away, rarely approaching.
As she drew closer, she could hear the clash of weapons. She was already close, parting the brush to see a man and a woman, one fat, one thin, locked in a battle in the forest clearing. The woman, wielding a gleaming silver sword, pressed forward with ferocious moves, intent on taking her life. The short, stocky man, retreated defensively while screaming for help, looked like he could withstand a dozen blows and fall.
Xue Ling instinctively wanted to draw her sword to help, but as soon as she moved, someone silently grasped her shoulder from behind. Fang Bie's voice came faintly, "It's me."
Xue Ling turned to see Fang Bie standing expressionlessly behind her, watching the fight together.
But Fang Bie had clearly set out first, so why was he now behind her?
Xue Ling was a little confused about this, but Fang Bie pointed at the front and said, "Don't talk, just watch the fight."
"Aren't we going to help?" Xue Ling asked back.
Fang Bie smiled and said, "Help? Who are you helping?"
"Who can fully understand the cause and effect, the whole story? We just want to watch the excitement."
Fang Bie's voice was cold. Xue Ling didn't take it seriously. After all, the situation was clear. If he didn't help, the short and fat man would die on the spot in just a few rounds.
At this moment, something strange happened.
Xue Ling watched the woman in bright red clothes lightly push away the long sword in the man's hand with two or three swords. Seeing that she was about to stab the man's chest, the man was stunned for a moment, as if he could no longer stop or dodge.
But the sword stabbed the man's chest, but it couldn't penetrate no matter what.
"How is it possible?" The woman said in surprise.
The man, who had been terrified the entire time, finally smiled slyly and said, "How is it impossible? Didn't expect it, my little beauty?"
As he spoke, he reached out and grabbed the long sword on his chest, then snapped it with a crack like a stick. The woman was caught off guard and stumbled back in disbelief, "This is impossible, this is impossible."
She didn't want to believe what was happening, but what was happening was the reality of the world.
The man took another step forward and struck the woman in the chest, sending her flying a dozen feet. He watched as she screamed and spat out a mouthful of blood.
This turn of events was completely unexpected. Just now, the woman had the upper hand and was about to kill the man, but in the blink of an eye, the offense and defense were so different that the woman was now a fish on the chopping block.
Xue Ling was stunned by what she had done. Thinking back to when she had actually wanted to help this man, she realized that she was the fool who had no idea what was going on.
The woman looked up, unzipped her waist pouch, and with a clatter, several black iron nuggets poured out. Xue Ling's heart skipped a beat—these nuggets were clearly the mysterious iron nuggets Fang Bie had spent a thousand taels on, and now this woman had several of them.
Could she be the Thunder God?
But the Thunder God was taciturn and clearly a man. How could he have transformed into a woman, killing people and stealing treasure in this forest again?
"Spare me, and I'll give you these nuggets of black iron, along with this thousand taels of silver," the woman said hurriedly. "I know a place where I can find black iron. If you spare me, it's all yours." The man chuckled, stepped forward, and yanked at his waist with his right hand. A flash of cold light pierced the woman's words, and her beautiful head rolled down, her body falling backward.
To her death, she could not believe how he had killed her so decisively.
The man showed no mercy. After killing the woman, he examined the iron block she had taken out, tied it around his waist, and picked up the banknotes. He then briefly examined her body again. Finding nothing of value, he left the body untouched and quickly disappeared into the dense forest, leaving no trace.
Xue Ling was deeply moved by the sudden and swift shifts in attack and defense, the killing and the plundering, all in the time it took to smoke a cigarette.
Looking at Fang Bie again, he looked disinterested and whispered to Xue Ling, "Let's go too."
"Aren't you going to bury the woman?" Xue Ling asked in surprise.
"People in the martial arts world have no place to bury their bodies after death," Fang Bie said calmly. "Insects, birds, and beasts all have their fates; it has nothing to do with us."
Xue Ling glared at Fang Bie, then emerged from the bushes and approached the now-decapitated woman. She saw her head still open, her eyes filled with fear and disbelief, clearly unwilling to accept her own death.
This truly filled Xue Ling with emotion.
She knelt down, reaching out to close the woman's eyes, and at the same time, she wanted to find a place to bury her properly.
Unlike Fang Bie's generous yet pessimistic views, Xue Ling still believed in karma. If she buried her today, perhaps one day, when her body lay exposed in the wilderness, someone would be willing to do the same.
It was nothing more than a feeling of grief for the victim.
At this moment, a stern shout rang out: "I knew this thief must have accomplices. Die!"
Xue Ling looked up and saw the short, stout man who had just left had returned. He raised his palm from the air and slapped her, enveloping her in all directions. It was clear that there was no escape.
It seemed that the short, stout man had only pretended to leave to see if anyone would come to collect the body of the woman in red. Even his earlier cry for help was to draw out her accomplices.
The world of martial arts was a treacherous place. Xue Ling finally understood.
The opponent's martial arts skills were far superior to hers. Xue Ling didn't even have the courage to draw her sword at that moment.
Just when Xue Ling thought she was doomed, a young man in a moon-white robe suddenly stood in front of her. He stretched out his hand and exchanged a palm strike with the short and fat man.
Bang, bang, bang,
Fang Bie took three steps back and fell directly into Xue Ling's arms.
With a wow, he spat out a mouthful of blood.
This fat man's martial arts skills were surprisingly high.
(End of this chapter)