“Take this!”
“Whoa, that’s a ruthless move. We have no grudge against each other— why are you forcing me like this?”
“Enough talk. Return my Spirit Beast’s bones!”
“Does that Spirit Beast have your name written on its forehead? I just happened to pass by and saw one killed. How did it suddenly become yours?”
Clang!
Swords clashed between the two girls, the bright blades reflecting their slightly flushed faces.
Hua Jian guessed that there would be others hunting in the Outer Region of the Secret Realm with the same mindset as hers, but she hadn’t expected the first person she met on the road to be like this.
The girl fighting her was a Sword Cultivator Girl, and her swordsmanship was… well, barely passable. Even Hua Jian, a complete beginner with the sword, could hold her off for a couple of moves.
Hua Jian had already prepared to run if she couldn’t win, but surprisingly, this sword cultivator was just as inexperienced, which gave Hua Jian a boost of confidence. She started to duel seriously.
“What kind of sword technique is that? It’s so chaotic and unruly,” the Sword Cultivator Girl said with a confused look after exchanging a few moves with Hua Jian.
“It’s my own creation the Flower Viewing Sword Style!”
“Ah, a wild style! No wonder I couldn’t find any openings…”
After these words, the girl suddenly changed her sword stance sharply. Hua Jian couldn’t keep up and quickly used her Unique Escape Technique to create some distance.
So that means this girl was just testing me. I actually thought I was impressive.
“Stop!” Hua Jian raised her hand toward the girl who was still rushing forward.
The Sword Cultivator Girl was stunned by Hua Jian’s move but obediently halted.
“Do you have anything to say?”
“Born of the same root, why should we be so ruthless to each other? We’re all just poor souls scraping by outside. Let’s not make things difficult for one another,” Hua Jian coughed lightly. Since she couldn’t win by fighting head-on, she decided to try another approach.
“I’ll split the Spirit Beast with you. How about that?”
The Sword Cultivator Girl frowned. She had been chasing this Spirit Beast all day, and now Hua Jian wanted to take half of it after finishing it off— what an easy deal.
“I injured it, so I get the bigger share!”
“I killed it, and you only came after. Without me, the Spirit Beast would have run away. Half is the most you can get.”
Hua Jian took out the Spirit Beast’s corpse hastily stuffed into her Storage Pouch and pointed at the badly injured beast.
“Look at what you did. You ruined such a good pelt.”
The beast looked like a unicorn fox, and its fur felt nice. If the pelt were intact, it could fetch a good price in Spirit Stones.
Unfortunately, the sword cultivator had no sense of moderation and messed up the fur.
“My hunting style is like that. I want its horn on top of its head. I don’t care about the rest.”
“Why didn’t you say so earlier? I’ll give you the horn then.” Hearing this, Hua Jian scratched her head, signaling that it was an easy matter.
She knew the horn was precious, but trading it for some goodwill from a sword cultivator wasn’t a bad deal.
Without the horn, the beast still had other valuable parts. There was no real conflict between her and the Sword Cultivator Girl.
Boom!
Just as Hua Jian thought to turn foes into friends, a subtle wave of spiritual energy suddenly came from behind the Sword Cultivator Girl.
Hua Jian instinctively activated her Unique Escape Technique and moved away.
The Sword Cultivator Girl snorted lightly and swung her sword back, cutting apart the incoming spirit technique that attempted to ambush them.
At the moment she destroyed the sneak attack, another strike landed where Hua Jian had just stood, shattering the colorful petals left behind by her escape.
“Two junior sisters, I think we can negotiate— how about handing this Spirit Beast over to us?”
A cultivator riding a White Deer slowly stepped out from the forest. It was Lu Tong, who had recently come up empty-handed searching for treasures.
The three of them had heard the noise while tracking a treasure and came over, surprised to find a delivery service instead.
One was a Waimen Disciple from Yaoci, one a disciple from Jian Sect with no distinguishing marks, and the two were fighting over a small Spirit Beast.
Judging by their duel, it was just a pathetic clash of rookies.
Lu Tong calculated silently: three of them plus his White Deer counted as three and a half people— not a problem. They were all Neimen Disciples; beating these two lost little sisters was nothing.
Confident in their numbers, he even cautiously chose a sneak attack. If they could take one down quickly, their odds would be even better.
Unfortunately, these two kids were quite alert and didn’t fall for it.
Still, it was three and a half against two. Advantage is ours! Lu Tong thought confidently.
Hua Jian had already used her escape technique to fly up into a tree branch, looking down at the three cultivators slowly encircling her with a serious expression.
This was her first battle against the Holy Sect’s disciples, and she was a bit nervous.
Unlike her, the Sword Cultivator Girl was fearless. Hearing Lu Tong’s threat, she immediately drew her sword and charged at him.
“You threaten me? Take this!”
Sword Cultivators never feared threats or authority. As a Jian Sect disciple, she was no exception.
“Don’t be so arrogant. Take this!”
Lu Tong drove his spirit beast and engaged the Sword Cultivator Girl. After a few moves, he was already sweating and called for reinforcements from the Tiandao Sect.
Wait, why is this Sword Cultivator’s strength suddenly so strong? Weren’t they just exchanging clumsy moves moments ago?
Seeing this, Sun Zi from Tiandao Sect stepped forward with his sword, joining the attack. Only then did they barely suppress the Sword Cultivator Girl.
The last of the trio, Liu Feng from Jian Sect, did not join the attack against his fellow disciple. After all, he was a Sword Cultivator himself and didn’t approve of bullying a junior sister with overwhelming numbers.
So, he consciously chose to duel Hua Jian one-on-one, preventing her from interfering on the other front.
Being stared down by Liu Feng, Hua Jian felt uneasy. She could run, sure, but this trio clearly had hostile intentions— probably a Mouse Squad sent to target cultivators like her.
With the Sword Cultivator Girl holding two of them at bay, this was the perfect opportunity to take down the Mouse Squad.
If she ran now, once the Sword Cultivator Girl was overwhelmed and forced out of the Secret Realm, she would have no chance against these three later— only to be chased and beaten.
After a quick calculation, Hua Jian made up her mind.
She would help the Sword Cultivator Girl defeat these three cultivators!
A Mouse Squad, huh? You like bullying the weak? You think I, Hua Jian, am someone who won’t fight back?
When it comes to exploring the Secret Realm and playing dirty, Hua Jian has never been afraid of anyone!
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