"Are you going to move or not?!" Qin Hao roared.
"No," Fang Yuan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and met Qin Hao's gaze without flinching.
"This is the Hehuan Sect! It's a demonic sect!" Fang Yuan grabbed Qin Hao by the collar, pulled him close, and roared in a low voice, "If she wants to live, if she wants revenge, she has to take this step, do you understand?!"
"I don't!" Qin Hao forcefully shook off Fang Yuan's hand, his voice hoarse, "She calls me 'brother,' so I have every reason to protect her!"
"Fang Yuan, even though this is just a game, emotions don't distinguish between virtual and reality. If you want to be a bystander, I won't blame you. Now, please move aside."
Fang Yuan's body stiffened, and he silently released his grip.
Qin Hao immediately tried to rush into the battlefield but suddenly stopped.
Fan Xiaomei was seen gripping a long blade with both hands, staggering to her feet. Thick blood still clung to the blade, dripping steadily.
The boy, meanwhile, lay at her feet.
She forcefully pulled the machete from the boy's hand, then held a machete in each hand, cautiously guarding against the people around her.
Seeing this, Fang Yuan smiled.
"As expected, she didn't disappoint me," Fang Yuan murmured to himself.
Qin Hao was stunned, staring blankly at Fan Xiaomei, who was in ragged clothes and covered in blood.
The chaotic battle continued, growing more and more intense. These people, fighting for their lives, became increasingly frenzied.
Of the over three thousand people, in just a short moment, only over a thousand remained.
Another person noticed Fan Xiaomei; it was an adult man in tattered sackcloth, wielding a sickle.
Clang—
One of Fan Xiaomei's machetes was knocked away, and she nearly fell to the ground with the force of the impact.
The sickle struck again. Fan Xiaomei, acting on instinct, gripped the hilt of her blade tightly with both hands, blocking directly in front of her.
Pfft—
Though the long blade blocked the sickle, the curved tip of the sickle pierced her shoulder.
Whoosh—
The man hooked backward, and a deep gash was torn across Fan Xiaomei's shoulder, splattering blood.
At this point, Fan Xiaomei had almost lost her combat ability. The intense pain and fear caused her adrenaline to surge. She muttered something under her breath and thrust forward with all her might.
Pfft—
Warm blood sprayed onto her face.
She cried as she pushed forward, falling into the pool of blood with the man.
When she opened her eyes again, she realized that the blade had pierced the man's neck.
Hoo... hoo...
She lay on her back, gasping for breath, her mind blank, her eyelids drooping as she gazed at the sky.
In truth, Fang Yuan and Qin Hao had completely underestimated Fan Xiaomei's courage and will to survive.
Children in chaotic times, they had witnessed countless partings of life and death, possessing unimaginable resilience and a strong desire for life.
As long as there was a glimmer of hope, they would risk their lives to fight for it. Otherwise, Fan Xiaomei and her brother would not have made it to the foot of the Hehuan Sect mountain.
Those who survived on the battlefield were almost all refugee children, along with a few ruthless adults.
The number of over a thousand people rapidly decreased again, leaving fewer than four hundred.
Corpses littered every corner, blood stained the entire plaza, converging into small streams that slowly flowed outwards.
Fan Xiaomei propped herself up with her long blade, staggering to her feet, tears in her eyes replaced by blood.
Two boys, about fifteen or sixteen years old, rushed towards her.
She used all her strength, wildly swinging her machetes, crying out incessantly.
"Enough. You've done very well."
Suddenly, a familiar voice sounded in her ear.
Fan Xiaomei's body stiffened. She abruptly looked up, and the moment she saw Fang Yuan, tears finally streamed down her face, and she buried herself in Fang Yuan's embrace.
Fang Yuan ruffled her small head, exchanged a glance with Qin Hao beside him, and the two silently took two steps back, dodging the attacks of the two boys.
Seeing Fang Yuan and Qin Hao appear on the battlefield, the hoarse-voiced man from before coldly said to the old woman, "Five Elder, these two openly dare to violate the Hehuan Sect's rules. How about I represent the sect, cripple their cultivation, turn them into human swine, and hang them at the mountain gate as a warning to others?"
Min Hong had intended to speak to stop him, but the words caught in her throat.
This was a good opportunity to test Fang Yuan and Qin Hao.
She was not the only one with this thought.
After all, Fang Yuan and Qin Hao both possessed high-grade spiritual roots and had already cultivated to the Foundation Establishment Stage. If their combat strength was good, they could be considered as cauldrons for dual cultivation, slowly draining their potential.
To say that Fang Yuan and Qin Hao's cultivation levels could catch their eye was barely acceptable, as the Hehuan Sect did not lack Foundation Establishment Stage disciples, especially at this age. There were too many.
Min Hong's previous actions were simply because she found Fang Yuan interesting and wanted to tease him.
The only real value they had was their cultivation talent. Even in the Hehuan Sect, high-grade spiritual roots were rare; among a hundred thousand disciples, only a few dozen possessed them.
The old woman was silent for a moment, then nodded, tacitly agreeing to the hoarse-voiced man's suggestion, but still reminded him, "Gongyang, do not kill them."
"As you command," the hoarse-voiced man bowed and accepted the order.
Fang Yuan and Qin Hao exchanged glances. They had anticipated this outcome when they chose to intervene.
At worst, it would be death. Only Fan Xiaomei's problem made them somewhat troubled.
"Let's hand her over to Zhao Mubai first," Qin Hao reminded him.
Fang Yuan had the same intention. He exchanged a Lesser Revitalizing Pill from the shop and fed it to Fan Xiaomei. Then, he led her to Zhao Mubai and said in a deep voice, "Help me take care of her."
Zhao Mubai nodded solemnly and took Fan Xiaomei's small hand.
Fan Xiaomei was a bit dizzy from blood loss and vaguely tugged on Fang Yuan's clothes.
Fang Yuan turned to look at her, silently pulled her hand away, and then strode towards the platform.
The fighting crowd had now been ordered to stop, making way.
In the eyes of the Hehuan Sect, they didn't care about the lives of these people. They only cared whether Fang Yuan and Qin Hao had cultivation potential.
Gongyang took confident, small steps towards the two, his eyes full of playful amusement.
For him, a Mid-stage Core Formation cultivator, dealing with two Early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators was effortless.
In contrast, Fang Yuan pulled out his Ten Thousand Souls Banner from behind him, and Qin Hao silently put on his gauntlets, their fighting intent soaring into the sky.
Both sides were at loggerheads, their eyes flashing with killing intent.
Suddenly, Gongyang let out a soft chuckle, extended a fair index finger, and beckoned to the two.
It was a clear provocation.
"You sissy, you're quite pretentious, aren't you?" Fang Yuan sneered, gripping the banner in a reverse grip, and charged forward.
On the other side, Qin Hao bent his legs and lunged out.
The battle between the two sides erupted.
Inside the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, six vengeful spirits howled, flying out and pouncing on Gongyang with bared fangs and claws.
Qin Hao's fists moved in wide arcs, and using the momentum of his charge, he punched towards Gongyang's head.
Facing the pincer attack from the two, Gongyang slowly spread his hands, his palms transforming into invisible barriers, blocking the attacks from both sides.
Bang, bang—
Two attack sounds rang out simultaneously.
Gongyang's body did not budge an inch; he still stood gracefully in place.
"Too weak..." He shook his head in disappointment.
However, just as he spoke halfway, he saw Fang Yuan and Qin Hao simultaneously burn their origins, charging at him again with an all-out, no-holds-barred stance.
"Madmen..." The onlookers murmured, their expressions slightly moved.
The battle had just begun, and these two were so decisive in burning their lifespans. What else could they be but madmen?
Little did they know, something even crazier was yet to come.