The atmosphere among Yu Juanshu and his two companions was undeniably tense.
Du Sen’s arrangements before leaving had left Du Rong utterly unable to maintain any pretense in front of Yu Juanshu.
Now, on the left, he was calling him “a useless loser who can’t beat anyone,” and on the right, “If it weren’t for you, my dad wouldn’t have been punished.”
Under such a mood, even when they met many classmates along the way, no one was willing to travel with them.
Only Xie Man wore a sheepish smile, occasionally tugging on Du Rong’s sleeve to signal him to stop talking.
But it was clearly ineffective.
Du Rong didn’t intend to listen to her at all.
Not far away, the Hunters watching these three found the scene somewhat amusing.
“That foul-mouthed guy actually has some talent for joining us,” one of them spoke up.
Hearing this, the Hunters laughed. “He probably won’t survive three days.”
They were all Foundation Establishment students; their Essence Souls were far too valuable. Without the protection of the righteous, they were simply a meal waiting to be devoured.
Li Yunxian didn’t smile. She glanced at the silent Yu Juanshu and then at the others before asking aloud, “Who’s going to take care of the ‘useless loser no one can beat’ later?”
Her tone sounded as if she hoped to handle it herself.
Among the Hunters, there was no respect for elders or compassion for the young.
Knowing that the Silver Ginkgo Fairy was particularly good at self-preservation, someone immediately volunteered, “I’ll handle him.”
With ten Foundation Establishment Hunters and only seven targets, naturally some would be left without one.
Before long, the one who appeared weakest and only knew how to run—the Silver Ginkgo Fairy—was one of those left empty-handed.
Of course, in the Hunters’ words, she had “other arrangements.”
“Ginkgo, you observe,” the Leader instructed. “If you spot students from other academies approaching, notify us immediately. We’ll retreat.”
Everyone had come to make a quick score; no one wanted to risk their life. Being the rear guard was an important task.
The Leader also didn’t forget to sweeten the deal for Li Yunxian. “When we divvy up the spoils later, you’ll get a share.”
Whether she’d get anything beyond that would depend on how smooth this cooperation was, and whether there would be a next time.
The Hunters’ sense of morality was, of course, well known.
Li Yunxian was indifferent to these threats and incentives.
This arrangement was exactly the result she had subtly guided them toward. She pretended to bargain for a while before seemingly reluctantly agreeing.
They were eyeing the benefits Li Yunxian would get; she was staring directly at their lives.
Soon, under everyone’s watchful eyes, two groups of students converged.
The usual routine the Hunters were familiar with—where both sides greet each other and then ask whether to team up—did not occur.
The group of four students who had long been targeted by the Hunters showed only an awkward, polite smile when they saw Yu Juanshu’s trio.
The three around Yu Juanshu didn’t even smile. Their gazes were either indifferent or coldly sideways, the words “not welcome” practically written across their faces.
The Hunters focused on Du Rong.
With such an arrogant attitude, no one dared to speak up. This guy looked strong.
“Hao Gu, you’re with me,” the Leader said. He was originally assigned to face Du Rong. After all, judging by his clothes and the decorations on him, Du Rong was obviously the richest.
And yet he was only at Qi Refining Eighth Layer.
Good stuff had to be kept close.
But good things also required being alive to enjoy them, so the Leader didn’t hesitate to assign himself an assistant.
Hao Gu nodded and slightly adjusted his position.
***
The Leader then continued to observe the four students nearby, watching as both groups awkwardly passed each other. At their most embarrassed moment, the Leader raised his hand.
A wave.
“Attack!”
Already prepared, the Hunters all drew their weapons simultaneously.
Knives, spears, swords, and halberds—all deadly strikes unleashed at once.
The students’ faces changed drastically.
The Hunters’ timing was perfect. Most of the students didn’t expect a sudden attack at this moment.
Even among peers, in a critical moment like this, a delay of even a fraction of a second when wielding a weapon could be fatal—let alone when their enemies were all Foundation Establishment Stage.
Fortunately, not everyone was slow.
A long whip rose horizontally, twisting like a snake or dragon, whistling through the air. In an instant, it expanded from a line into a surface, blocking an attack coming from that direction.
From the moment Yu Juanshu entered this area, he had sensed a faint but present danger.
Those who could walk the path of the strong never lacked this kind of intuition.
Others relaxed their vigilance, but Yu Juanshu did not!
“Nine attackers!” Yu Juanshu quickly assessed the number of assailants from the attack.
Li Yunxian held back from engaging; three other Qi Refiners only skirmished around the edges, none of whom Yu Juanshu detected.
Although Yu Juanshu was powerful, he was still only a Qi Refining Stage practitioner.
His whip could only defend one front.
The Hunters attacking from his side hesitated at his display of power, but those assaulting the four students from the other side were undeterred.
Sensing Yu Juanshu’s unexpected strength, they unleashed their full power without hesitation.
In a blink, Yu Juanshu heard a pained scream.
He abruptly turned around and saw a flying arrow pierce through a once-living student’s chest, followed by a long knife slashing the student’s neck.
Head and body separated.
“Bai Yue!!!” came a heartbreaking cry.
Yu Juanshu’s eyes turned blood red as he stared at the Blade Cultivator responsible.
The Blade Cultivator’s heart trembled; he didn’t dare linger even a moment. He immediately grabbed the ‘body’ of his prey.
“Retreat!” The Blade Cultivator shouted without hesitation.
They were a loose alliance, and the Leader was only the strongest among them.
Now the situation had changed. With Yu Juanshu this strong present, retreat was the only option.
That the Blade Cultivator was able to shout first was considered quite honorable among the Hunters.
But Yu Juanshu had already locked onto him—there was no way he would let him escape.
Without warning, the whip appeared before the man’s body, coiling like a giant serpent around his neck.
With a cracking sound, the man’s head was flung high into the air before crashing to the ground, shattering.
At this moment, the other students had reacted as well. Eyes red, they fought with reckless abandon against the Hunters.
Although outnumbered, seeing their comrades fall ignited their fury. They fought without fear of death.
Coupled with Yu Juanshu’s whip providing cover, the Hunters had no desire to engage.
If this place wasn’t worth it, they would just find another target.
Everyone made a swift decision to retreat.
But fleeing was easier said than done, especially when the students had their eyes locked on them.
The students might not be able to defeat the Hunters outright, but as long as they could hold them off, once Yu Juanshu freed his hands, none of the Hunters would escape!
Having all been educated in academies, they needed no communication to reach this consensus.
The Leader and Hao Gu faced off against Du Rong.
Upon seeing Du Rong wielding a whip as well, their hearts sank.
As the whip coiled toward them, the Leader immediately betrayed Hao Gu with a kick, sending him directly into Du Rong’s attack.
He didn’t care about Hao Gu’s resentful glare. With a flash, he dashed away from the battle.
But only a few steps later, he saw Li Yunxian standing squarely in his path.
Hope flashed in the Leader’s eyes.
Since Ginkgo was here—and she was so good at escaping—this had to be the safest direction!
“Quick—” The Leader reached out to Li Yunxian, but before he could finish, he was met with a powerful kick straight to his chest.
In an instant, the Leader was sent flying back along the path he had come.
The retribution for what he did to Hao Gu came crashing down on him immediately.
No one had expected this sudden turn of events, and everyone was stunned as they stared at Li Yunxian.
But none saw the figure who had kicked the Leader.
That silhouette vanished in an instant.
The unknown situation tightened everyone’s attention. They scanned their surroundings cautiously.
Then they saw Li Yunxian—or rather, the disguised Silver Ginkgo Fairy—appear beside Hao Gu.
She held her spirit sword horizontally, cutting toward Hao Gu’s waist just before Du Rong’s whip could strike.
Several spirit treasures clinked down from her pocket and instantly landed in her hand.
Li Yunxian smiled sweetly, her expression seemingly innocent.
“You guys go on ahead. Don’t worry about me—I’m more the type to rob than kill. Rest assured.”