Mei Xue inclined her head respectfully before pulling back to rejoin the other healers in the caravan.
Shen Yuan’s gaze lingered on her for a moment before he shook his head and shifted his focus back to the road ahead.
…
The caravan moved swiftly thanks to the
Northern Wind Horses
. Shen Yuan remained at the front of the group together with Lian Fang, his gaze remained sharp as he observed his surroundings for any sign of trouble.
The road stretched through rolling hills and forests; it created a vivid landscape.
His instincts told him the bandits would be attacking their caravan soon.
[You seem unusually tense, Yuan’er]
Yue Lan’s voice echoed inside his head; it still contained that hint of teasing.
‘Tense? No, not really,’
Shen Yuan replied inwardly.
‘I’m just cautious, since I don’t have any idea of the bandits’ capabilities. It’s better to be cautious than suffer at their hands later.’
[Looks like you learned from your mistakes from that abyssal entity. So, are you not going to seal your powers like the first time you went out for training?]
Yue Lan brought up his dark past when he was still a naive cultivator.
The corner of his lips twitched as he replied back,
‘Fuck off, no need to remind me of my idiotic actions. I’m not that naive now; all I wanted was a challenge at that time. Tsk.’
[I suppose so, but you look almost eager for a fight now as well. Trying to prove something? Or perhaps testing out how much stronger you are after continuous breakthroughs? Or do you have something altogether planned for them?]
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Shen Yuan smirked faintly,
‘Who knows, maybe all the things you stated. It’s been a while since I’ve faced a worthy opponent, and I want to gauge how much stronger I have improved. Besides, these missions are more entertaining than I expected; meeting new people is always fun.’
[Or potential new harem members?]
‘…Let’s see how much stronger I have become by fighting the bandit leader directly.’
Yue Lan chuckled softly seeing him ignore her question.
[Oh, how delightfully reckless of you. Just don’t get yourself killed. I’d be terribly bored without you.]
Shen Yuan rolled his eyes but said nothing. His focus sharpened as the terrain shifted; the road narrowed, flanked by rocky outcrops and dense patches of forest.
He raised his hand, signaling the rest of the caravan to slow down.
The guards, though inexperienced in combat, were perceptive enough to sense the change in atmosphere. They tightened their grip on their weapons, and even Lian Fang moved closer to Shen Yuan.
“You sensed it too?” Lian Fang asked after coming closer, her green eyes scanning the surroundings with a focused gaze.
Shen Yuan nodded his head. “Yes, this place is ideal for an ambush. The Silver Fox Sect is smart enough to use the terrain to their advantage.”
Lian Fang drew her curved blade, the faint hum of Qi reinforcing the weapon. “Good. I was starting to think this would be a dull escort mission.”
Shen Yuan nodded his head with a smile as his plan seemed to be taking shape, but before he could reply, a sharp whistle pierced the air.
From the treetops and behind the large boulders, figures clad in silver robes emerged, their movements swift and coordinated. The insignia of a silver fox adorned their masks and armor.
“Silver Fox Sect,” Lian Fang muttered, her grip tightening around her blade.
Shen Yuan dismounted calmly, patting the neck of his horse before stepping forward. “Finally. I was starting to think it would be a wasted trip.”
A man stepped forward from the group of bandits, his aura radiating the power of the Extreme Origin Core Realm. His voice was smooth yet mocking as he addressed Shen Yuan, “Well, well, what do we have here? A caravan with such fine beauties and flashy horses? You are practically begging to be robbed.”
Shen Yuan looked around to see the total number of enemies. “Looks like you are not the leader of the Silver Fox Sect.”
The man raised an eyebrow before laughing, “Hahaha, well of course I’m not the Sect Leader of the Silver Fox Sect. I’m merely one of the Inner Elders there.”
Shen Yuan thought over his plans again. “So, will your leader be coming here or not?”
“Why would our Sect Leader come here? To deal with you ants?” The bandit leader laughed out loud, and the other members also started laughing upon hearing Shen Yuan’s words.
Lian Fang also looked at Shen Yuan worriedly; even she didn’t want to face the leader of the Silver Fox Sect who was rumored to be at the Dao Core Forming Realm.
The rest of the caravan grew restless as the fear of the Silver Fox Sect was long established.
But Shen Yuan didn’t budge as he smiled, “Well, it’s good. I can fight with you freely and test my current strength before looking for your Sect Leader for a fight.”
The bandit leader frowned his brows as he continued speaking, his voice dripping with contempt, “Who do you think you are to dare fight our Sect Leader?”
“Shen Yuan,” he lightly replied while taking out his sword. freēwēbnovel.com
“Never heard of you,” the bandit leader replied with disdain.
“Of course you haven’t; it’s not even been a year since my official debut in the cultivation world. But this name will reverberate throughout the Desolate Continent soon enough.” Shen Yuan smirked and unsheathed his sword.
The bandit leader didn’t think much of his words and barked his order, “Don’t listen to his nonsense! Attack the caravan! Take it down as soon as you can.”
The bandit leader pulled out his axe from his back and charged toward Shen Yuan as well.
Three other bandits charged ahead of the group; from the looks of it, they were the vice leaders of the group—all of them being in the Extreme Origin Core Realm.
“Can you handle one of them?” Shen Yuan asked Lian Fang, who was looking at the oncoming bandits with serious eyes.
“I can hold him back, but killing or defeating him will be quite hard,” she assessed the situation and quickly answered.
“Good enough,” Shen Yuan nodded his head and stepped forward while continuing speaking, “Just hold him back until I’m done with the three of them.”
He glanced back at the guards and the healers inside the wagons. “Protect the healers with all your might; no need to unnecessarily risk your life and attack the bandits. Just maintain a tight formation and defend.”
The guards hurriedly moved together and formed a circle around the wagon where all of the healers were sitting while looking outside worriedly.
Shen Yuan looked ahead and raised his sword to block the incoming attack as the bandit leader stood just a meter in front of him.
“Where is your focus, brat?” The bandit leader grinned as he pushed his axe down.
Shen Yuan pushed up with his sword, but before he could push the bandit leader away, one of the vice leaders moved from the side and attacked at his ribs with his short sword.
Shen Yuan took out another sword and blocked the attack while pushing away the axe-bearing bandit and kicking away the vice leader.