“They’re from Goryeo I just heard someone shout ‘Ah Xi’!”
The Bushido Sect members under siege numbered over a dozen. Nishimura Koishi was B-level, and aside from two C-levels, the rest were all D-level. At a disadvantage in both rank and numbers, they could only endure the beating.
“No wonder they kept quiet, and the occasional words were broken Chinese. So it’s Goryeo people causing trouble, trying to frame the Xia Kingdom [China]. We’re not falling for it.” Someone ground their teeth in hatred, but the punches landing on their bodies didn’t stop.
They firmly believed that words spoken in the heat of emotion were the truth, so that one “Ah Xi” immediately made Nishimura Koishi and his group the target, pointing the finger at Goryeo.
Nishimura Koishi, while being hunted down by Liao Yu and the woman who “accidentally” said “Ah Xi,” cursed hatefully, “Lee Moon-hee, just because your Lee Group gained one more A-level, you’ve become this arrogant?”
Boom!
The “Ah Xi” woman punched Nishimura Koishi square in the back. The immense force sent him stumbling, and he fell flat on the ground, losing a tooth.
Seizing the opportunity, Liao Yu stepped on his butt, grinding his foot deliberately, and said in broken Chinese, “Quite perky…”
Nishimura Koishi had never suffered such humiliation. His eyes nearly bulged out, but he couldn’t break free.
He used to often mock Uesugi Fumiaki for having plenty of strength but a poor brain. Now, here he was, suffering from the disadvantage of individual combat strength.
He wasn’t weak, actually; he just wasn’t good at one-on-one fights. Now, being hunted by two people working together, one of whom was abnormally strong, it was only natural he couldn’t win.
Suddenly, Liao Yu spoke a fluent sentence in Korean, though his voice was so low that only the “Ah Xi” woman beside him could hear the content. Nishimura Koishi, pinned underfoot, could barely make out the language.
So it really is you!
His expression suddenly turned dark and sinister. A blue dot lit up at the center of his brow as he murmured, “Water God, arise!”
The “Ah Xi” woman and Liao Yu, who had been restraining him, exchanged a glance and suddenly retreated.
The moment they moved away, the river water beneath the bridge suddenly surged into huge waves, crashing onto the bridge. The bridge surface under their feet was pierced in two places by columns of water.
One Qing Yu Hui member accidentally revealed themselves, shouting in standard Mandarin, “Brothers, be careful! This water is highly lethal.”
Nishimura Koishi was furious: “Do you really think I’m an idiot? Still trying to mislead me with Chinese!”
Under his control, the river water seemed to come alive, madly attacking the Qing Yu Hui members.
But just then, a masked youth suddenly appeared behind him, carrying a large RPG launcher. From a mere five meters away, the rocket was fired.
Nishimura Koishi couldn’t dodge in time and was hit in the lower back.
At such close range, even a B-level expert couldn’t easily survive.
In the tremendous blast, a top-grade defensive artifact at Nishimura Koishi’s waist cracked from the explosion. He himself was shaken, spitting out a mouthful of blood, his head ringing incessantly. He struggled to flee.
But with the “Ah Xi” woman and Liao Yu ahead, and the masked youth of unknown strength but clearly malicious intent behind, seeing no escape, he decisively took out a pill. Just as he was about to swallow it, he heard a sharp cry: “Chief Nishimura, run! I’ll hold them off for a moment!”
He turned his head and saw it was Chiba Mayuka!
The girl descended from the sky wielding Momo [Peach Blossom/Blade], her punch cracking the bridge in several places, like a warrior goddess.
And that wasn’t all. Black mist seeped from the surface of her body, igniting eerily the moment it touched the air, forcing several of the experts surrounding Nishimura Koishi to retreat.
“Chief Nishimura, go quickly! I’ll hold them off!” The newcomer was Su Mo.
Nishimura Koishi didn’t hesitate. He tossed her a white crystal: “Take this. It might help you.”
This was a one-use defensive artifact. Nishimura Koishi gave it to Su Mo hoping it would buy him more time.
At the same time, he frantically shouted into his earpiece: “What are you people, just here for a free meal? When will you get here!?”
Although he was willing to sacrifice an excellent subordinate like Chiba Mayuka to save his own skin, he still had to try to rescue her if possible. After all, subordinates willing to die for you were rare, even if her motive might just be for merit.
The black mist spread, holding them off for a full three minutes. Nishimura Koishi used this time precisely to rendezvous with those sent to extract him.
He turned to look back. Su Mo was just being kicked into the river.
Nishimura Koishi remained silent.
“Look! She took someone down with her before dying!”
Everyone looked. Sure enough, two people had fallen into the river.
“Chiba Mayuka is amazing. A C-level holding off a B-level for that long. No wonder she’s the fearless one who dared to snatch a man from under Ye Qingyu’s sister’s nose.”
“I’d love to be her best friend. She must make you feel so safe…”
“All of you, shut up!” Nishimura Koishi roared. “Full effort to rescue Chiba Mayuka! Whoever saves her gets a huge reward!”
“Yes!”
While they watched from afar, one figure was already rushing towards the riverbank – Sakurai Mei.
…
Beneath the river surface, the masked youth pulled down their hood, revealing Su Mo’s features. It was Ye Qingyi.
She held out the White Jade Ring towards Su Mo. Su Mo smiled and reached for it, but just as he was about to take it, she suddenly pulled her hand back.
Su Mo was dumbfounded, not knowing what game she was playing, and put on an innocent expression.
Ye Qingyi revealed a sly smile and pointed at her own pursed lips.
Su Mo had no choice but to swim over and gently kiss her on the lips.
(* ￣3)(ε￣ *)
But Ye Qingyi played dirty. She suddenly wrapped her arms around his slender waist and didn’t let go for a full half minute.
During this time, she lightly touched the White Jade Ring against the jade hairpin atop Su Mo’s head, actually storing it inside.
Su Mo’s eyes widened in disbelief. He thought to himself, I didn’t even know this hairpin could store storage artifacts! How did she know?
Ye Qingyi gazed at Su Mo reluctantly, about to leave, when she suddenly turned back and gently tapped him on the nose, incredibly flirtatious.
Su Mo raised an eyebrow. How could he, a grown man, let himself be teased by a girl? Immediately, he “tap-tapped” Ye Qingyi twice on the chest then gave a mischievous smile and quickly swam away.
Ye Qingyi’s expression immediately became priceless…
…
Sakurai Mei was the first to arrive at the riverbank. Just as she was wondering how to find Su Mo, a head suddenly popped up from the river. It was Su Mo.
“Chiba Younger sister” Sakurai Mei called out excitedly.
Su Mo looked weak: “Sister Mei, save me…”
With that, he sank again.
Sakurai Mei leaped into the river and fished him out. Before others could arrive, she used spiritual energy to dry both their clothes.
She was just about to ask Su Mo what happened in the river when she inadvertently noticed his lip was slowly bleeding.
Sakurai Mei covered her mouth, a look of surprise on her face…