Chapter 42: Turning the Tables

“Remember this: if our opponents are not top-tier experts, you must hide your true strength for the time being. Let those three take the lead. It's better for you to suffer some injuries than to fully expose your power. If you're hurt, I will heal you, but revealing your strength is reserved for catching bigger prey,” Fang Xian reminded his companions.

A piercing cry echoed from the sky. After traveling more than ten miles from the mountain, the King Falcon descended in a spiral, clutching a carrier pigeon. Fang Xian removed the note from the pigeon’s leg, glanced at it with a slight smile, and handed it to Ye Hongxiu.

“The target has left the mountain for Kaiyang County. Intercept and kill them. Leave no survivors.” After reading, Ye Hongxiu’s face turned cold; clearly, their enemies meant to wipe out everyone, herself included.

“Don’t worry. With our skill, we could face an army and still have nothing to fear,” Fang Xian reassured her. In the dense forest by the roadside, the Tiger King had already been summoned and was following secretly; when the time came, he would become a surprise force on the battlefield.

Fang Xian released the carrier pigeon, then wrote a note for the King Falcon to deliver back to the stronghold to Ye Qingyun, informing him that their enemies had sent out a message and instructing him to make preparations at the base as well.

The journey from Qingyun Stronghold to Fang Xian’s hometown in Kaiyang County stretched over a hundred and fifty miles, requiring three days of hard riding. Fang Xian hadn’t lied when he claimed to be from Kaiyang County; the body he now inhabited did indeed hail from a remote mountain village there.

Three days passed in a flash. The road was peaceful, for Fang Xian and his group pressed on tirelessly, and perhaps their foes had not had time to lay a trap, or maybe they intended to strike on the return journey.

At last, they reached the mountain village where Fang Xian’s family had once lived, found the family graves, and met the few surviving villagers. Recognizing most of them from the lingering memories in his body, Fang Xian exchanged stories of their hardships, reassuring his companions of his identity.

He led Ye Hongxiu and the others to pay respects at his ancestral tombs, and afterwards returned to his family’s old house. Within the collapsed rooms, he found a few books, some of them medical texts—for the original owner’s father had been both a village teacher and the local physician.

“Hongxiu, now that you’ve met my people, visited my family’s graves, and seen the books left behind, can you trust me?” Fang Xian asked them.

“My husband, I have never doubted you,” Ye Hongxiu replied, taking his hand.

“You flatter us, sir. We never doubted you, either. No matter who you are, we only know that you treat us well and care for the stronghold,” Gan Scar said.

“That’s right. Without your help, we’d never have had the chance to become true experts in this life. So we believe in you,” Yang Beard added.

“Anyone who opposes you opposes all of us. I believe you are no traitor, but a true supporter of the stronghold,” Chen Bald agreed.

“Please, sir, don’t take it to heart. When the old chief sent us to accompany you down the mountain, he told us you were trustworthy and that we should follow your every command outside,” Bear Half-Blind added.

“Let’s rest here tonight and return tomorrow,” Fang Xian told them. “I doubt our return will be peaceful—be ready for a hard fight.”

That evening, they found a few abandoned houses in the village, tidied them up, and spent the night. At dawn, after breakfast and farewells, Fang Xian led his group swiftly away.

Not long after their departure, a party of armed men arrived, inquired about Fang Xian, and learned he was indeed from the village. But the middle-aged man leading them gave the order to massacre all the remaining villagers, ensuring no one could ever testify to Fang Xian’s origins again.

“Kill them all—!”

Fifty miles from the village, as Fang Xian’s group passed through a small grove, more than twenty men in black ambushed them. Their leader was a first-rate expert, and several others were formidable as well.

“Liu Erleng, Zhao Half-Coin, Li Banner—engage the enemy. The rest of you hold back. If any of them is wounded, add another to the fight, but do not use inner energy,” Fang Xian commanded.

“Attack—!”

Without hesitation, Liu Erleng, Zhao Half-Coin, and Li Banner charged forward. Among the seven, only these three had yet to break through, and they knew this was a chance for life-and-death tempering.

Fiercely, the three took on nine of the enemy, three each, fighting with utter disregard for their own safety. Seeing this, the enemy leader ordered the rest to bypass the melee and attack Fang Xian and the others.

With swift precision, Fang Xian nocked his bow and loosed three arrows in rapid succession, felling three foes and forcing the others to hesitate, wary of his deadly aim.

“Surround and kill those three first!” the leader barked, changing tactics and sending seven or eight more to overwhelm Liu Erleng, Zhao Half-Coin, and Li Banner. He himself rode to intercept Fang Xian’s group, barring their way.

“Husband, let me face him,” Ye Hongxiu said eagerly. Knowing she needed combat experience, Fang Xian nodded.

With a cry, Ye Hongxiu, her red robe billowing, flew at the enemy leader. He was forced to meet her, and the two quickly became locked in battle, while Fang Xian led the rest forward. By now, the three embattled men were in grave danger.

Each was surrounded by four or five enemies—some by six or seven—but only two or three could attack at once. Still, the relentless assault wore them down, and soon Liu Erleng was wounded.

“Bear, you’re up,” Fang Xian shouted. Bear Half-Blind leapt into the fray, drawing off four enemies and easing the pressure.

With the burden lessened, the three fought back savagely. Li Banner took a blow to the back from a club, but in return killed an enemy with a lethal counterattack. This death spurred them on, and they fought with reckless abandon, knowing that so long as they survived and kept their limbs intact, Fang Xian could heal them.

Their ferocity shook the enemy, and each managed to kill another opponent, terrifying the rest. Pressing the advantage, they sustained further injuries but gained the upper hand.

Sensing the tide turning, the enemy leader tried to retreat, but Ye Hongxiu shadowed him relentlessly, her attacks leaving him no opening. With several of his men dead or wounded, the survivors began to falter.

By now, Gan Scar and his companions had fanned out to block every escape route. Escape was impossible, especially with Fang Xian’s bow at the ready.

In less than half an hour, all the attackers were slain. The enemy leader managed to flee into the forest at the cost of a stab from Ye Hongxiu, but Fang Xian shot an arrow into his calf, worsening his injury.

“We’ll rest here for half an hour to tend wounds and eat, then move on,” Fang Xian said calmly. He was in no hurry—he wanted to give their enemies time to prepare.

Over the next three days, they suffered four more ambushes, each force growing stronger, with as many as three top-tier fighters among them. In the heat of battle, Gan Scar and Yang Beard revealed their own mastery.

Through these fierce struggles, Liu Erleng, Zhao Half-Coin, and Li Banner finally broke through during a brief respite. Now, all nine of their group were top-tier experts—except, perhaps, for Fang Xian, who, though not yet recognized as such, already possessed the strength of a true master.