Chapter 112: Villain Role
The bandits’ rout happened in an instant.
The Third Training master from the Vajra Sect was decapitated. The bandit leader shrieked in alarm. It all happened in the blink of an eye, a sledgehammer blow that shattered the bandits’ confidence and filled them with dread, even though they still held an absolute advantage in numbers.
The last straw was when the bandit leader saw Xie Yuan turn his attention to several other Vajra Sect members, seemingly too preoccupied to bother with him. He gritted his teeth, turned, and bolted. He was as fast as a forest rabbit, disappearing into the distance with a single bound.
When the bandits saw their leader flee, they naturally didn’t dare to stay behind. With a collective shout, they scattered and ran.
The massive encirclement collapsed in an instant without a fight.
Xie Yuan glanced at the rapidly fleeing bandit leader, his eyes narrowing slightly. He then drew the Tiger Bone Axe from his waist and threw it with his full strength.
WHOOSH!
The axe spun through the air, hurtling toward the bandit leader’s back at a speed difficult to follow with the naked eye. It was about to strike him dead.
At the critical moment, the bandit leader felt a vicious gust of wind at his back. He instinctively dove forward, leaping a full ten feet and dodging the fatal blow.
But while he had saved his life, the axe still sliced clean through his left calf. Blood gushed out as he clutched his leg and howled in agony, completely unable to run.
Seeing that the bandit leader could no longer escape and that his men had already scattered to the four winds with no one left to help him, Xie Yuan gave a slight nod and decided to leave him for now.
’My first battle since reaching the Third Training, and others of the same rank are no match for me at all!’
’True, the first kill was an ambush, and the second exploited a moment of panicked retreat. Still, two full-strength attacks took down two Third Training masters. I’m practically invincible among my peers. Even without tricks, it would have only taken an extra slash or two to deal with them.’
In stark contrast to the bandits fleeing in a panic, the Escort Team and the remaining men from the Vajra Sect stood frozen in place like wooden statues. The scene was sharply divided: one half in frantic motion, the other in absolute stillness.
The motion was born of panic and fear; the stillness, of pure shock.
None of them understood how it had happened. With one slash and one throw of his axe, Xie Yuan had suddenly unleashed a level of power far beyond what he had shown before. He had instantly crushed a seemingly invincible foe, scaring the entire mountain of bandits into a full retreat.
The sudden reversal of fortunes sent the escort members on an emotional rollercoaster. Their minds couldn’t process the sudden ups and downs, leaving them staring woodenly at Xie Yuan.
The Vajra Sect members were also frozen. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to run; it was that while Xie Yuan seemed distracted, the tip of his saber was always vaguely pointed in their direction. Their instructor’s blood was still dripping slowly from the blade, drop by drop, spattering on the ground. The sight made them swallow hard, not daring to make a rash move.
Xie Yuan turned back to the four Vajra Sect disciples, a smirk playing on his lips.
"Speak up. Are you from the Vajra Sect or not?"
"I... I’m not! I’m just a bandit from around here!"
SWISH.
The disciple’s eyes went wide. He clutched his neck and slowly collapsed.
Xie Yuan shook his head.
"Since you’re a bandit, I have to eradicate you root and branch. I, Xie Yuan, have always loved to uphold justice!
"What about the rest of you? Are you bandits, or are you from the Vajra Sect?"
Xie Yuan’s saber swayed back and forth, and the three men’s eyes grew dry from staring at it.
One of them shouted in grief and indignation:
"You killed our master, and you killed our senior brother! I’ll fight you to the d—urgh..."
Before he could finish, Xie Yuan’s saber cut him down. Xie Yuan shook his head and said,
"Can’t leave a bandit’s brothers alive.
"What about you two? Bandits or Vajra Sect?"
Fear gripped the remaining two. One of them blurted out subconsciously,
"I’m a disciple of the Vajra Sect! Spare me, Master Xie! Spare me!"
Xie Yuan clicked his tongue.
"The Vajra Sect? So not bandits, huh? Alright then...
"But I have a grudge against the Vajra Sect. That means I have a score to settle, a debt to repay!"
Xie Yuan raised his long saber, about to strike. The two disciples were so scared they fell on their backsides and shrieked,
"Spare us, Master Xie! We’ll do anything for you!"
Xie Yuan’s saber paused. He looked at their expressions, and for some reason, spat on the ground.
"Pah! I’m no shit-stirrer!"
His long saber fell lightly, a breeze whispering over their heads. In that moment, they both thought:
’It’s over!’
However, a moment later, they were still conscious. They opened their eyes to find Xie Yuan squinting at them, a thoughtful look on his face. They went completely limp, and the stench of piss filled the air from below.
’I don’t know why, but it seems my life has been spared for now.’
’Looks like I scared them stiff.’
’I feel a bit like a villain, but my feud with the Vajra Sect is to the death. When dealing with enemies, the more like a villain I act, the better. I’ll consider it venting some anger and collecting a little interest.’
’These are all elite Second Training disciples from the Vajra Sect. Their presence here means they’re part of the inner circle. If they had captured me, they definitely wouldn’t have shown any mercy.’
In truth, Xie Yuan hadn’t intended to spare them. But just as his saber was about to fall, a sudden inspiration struck him.
"You two... are you really willing to do anything?"
Xie Yuan asked, looking at them out of the corner of his eye.
The two men shuddered and immediately dropped to their knees.
"We await Master Xie’s command! We wouldn’t dare to disobey!"
Seeing them with their asses stuck high in the air was quite an eyesore. Xie Yuan put a hand to his forehead and looked away.
"Good. Remember your words. If you want to live, you’ll follow my orders..."
He said to Niu Dachun, who had approached him:
"Go pick up that bandit leader. He’s badly wounded and has lost a lot of blood. You should be fine if you’re careful."
Niu Dachun looked at him with a complicated expression, the shock in his eyes yet to fade.
’This guy... no, Master Xie... just what is going on with him?’
’He can’t be at the Fourth Training. That was the power of a Third Training master. But even if he is at the Third Training, didn’t he just break through?’
’How did he casually take down two Third Training masters with one slash and one throw of an axe, breaking an encirclement that the Escort Team thought was certain death?’
The memory of that stunningly swift draw of the saber and the soul-stealing flight of the axe was almost enough to suffocate Niu Dachun.
’Just a moment ago, I thought he’d gone mad, throwing away our only chance of victory by not working with me. Turns out, he just thought I was dead weight. All he needed me for was to wave a banner.’
’My own perspective was too narrow, my thinking too small...’
Niu Dachun no longer dared to talk back to Xie Yuan. He obediently went to drag the bandit leader back, applied some basic first aid to stop the bleeding, and threw him down in front of Xie Yuan.
Xie Yuan looked at the bandit leader and smiled.
"Want to live? Then listen to me...
"You’ll die either way if you don’t agree. But let me tell you, there are big differences between one death and another.
"You two over there, take his pants off. Go have some fun. By the way, Your Majesty the Bandit King, do you know the ultimate technique of the Vajra Sect? Here’s a hint... it’s related to the *other* gate.
"What’s that? You agree? Heh, should’ve said so sooner. Look how disappointed you’ve made these two fine disciples of the Vajra Sect."
The corner of Xie Yuan’s mouth twisted into a smirk.
’I’m suddenly discovering a unique sort of pleasure in tormenting my enemies.’
「Several days later.」
The Escort Team successfully completed their delivery and returned to the Escort Agency with their prisoners.
Before long, Shen Longteng led the men of the Escort Agency, along with the three prisoners, to the entrance of the county yamen and began to beat the great drum.