Lü Anguo's figure dove downward like a hawk striking a rabbit, his iron-tower-like frame imposing overwhelming pressure. A cowardly soul facing such a ferocious attack would likely lose all courage before blades even crossed — and once one's momentum shattered, even an evenly matched opponent would be no match for him.
Yang Kai's expression remained unchanged, without the slightest trace of panic. To Lü Anguo's surprise, he also leaped into the air, his left hand drawing the narrow blade from its sheath as its gleam illuminated heaven and earth.
Two figures streaked past each other, then both crashed heavily to the ground with dull thuds.
Lü Anguo's eyes bulged wide. Both hands clutched at his neck, but between the gaps of his fingers, great volumes of blood gushed forth. His bulging eyes were filled with utter disbelief.
On the arena stage, he had concealed his true strength, so after being cut down by Yang Kai's single slash he had been thoroughly unconvinced. When Yang Kai had pursued him just now, he had deliberately intended to show Yang Kai what he was truly capable of.
Who could have guessed the outcome would be this.
The very same slash as on the arena stage — but three times faster!
He still couldn't block it.
The only difference was that on the arena stage, Yang Kai had shown mercy and spared his life. This time, he had sent him straight to the underworld!
Lü Anguo couldn't fathom how Yang Kai had delivered that slash. The angle had been completely impossible, and the timing in that fleeting instant was not something a human could possibly seize — yet he had done it.
And the result was that every drop of blood in his body was draining away. Lü Anguo felt ice-cold from head to toe. With such extraordinary skill, how had this man gone to the Meng estate to sign up as a mere guard?
No matter how hard he tried, he could not stem the gushing blood. A strange, hoarse sound escaped his throat. He wouldn't die immediately, but he crumpled to one knee, enduring the terror and agony of death closing in upon him.
Yang Kai sheathed his blade without so much as a glance at Lü Anguo behind him and strode forward.
But after only two steps, his body staggered and he nearly collapsed to the ground.
He didn't know what tier of fighter Lü Anguo ranked as by the martial standards of this Samsara Realm, but it surely wasn't low.
In a straightforward contest of strength, the power he currently possessed was inferior to Lü Anguo's — the direct clash on the arena stage had already proven that.
Any native warrior of this realm, facing a powerhouse like Lü Anguo, would have been defeated without question.
But after all, he was a Sixth-Order Open Heaven cultivator who had entered through Samsara. He possessed discernment and judgment that the warriors of this world could hardly match. The instantaneous opening that seemed impossible for Lü Anguo to grasp was no great difficulty for him, and that was how he could overcome a stronger opponent with lesser strength.
It was not without a cost, however.
His chest had taken a blow from Lü Anguo's fist — at least three ribs should be broken, and the taste of blood surged through his throat.
Yang Kai forced himself to swallow it down, steadied his body, and walked over to Lü Anguo's horse.
The horse had borne the force of Lü Anguo's skyward leap, and all four legs had snapped. It now lay on the ground whimpering in misery, while atop its back, the black sack still contained a human-shaped figure struggling and writhing, whimpering ceaselessly.
Yang Kai opened the sack, and a beautiful, panicked face streaked with tears appeared before his eyes. The jostling journey had left her hair somewhat dishevelled, and she had clearly been crying for a long time — her eye rims were bright red, a truly pitiable sight.
Looking upon that familiar face, Yang Kai smiled.
Long time no see, Senior Sister Qu!
And her current identity was none other than the eldest young miss of the Meng estate.
The young miss's panicked, terrified gaze seemed to find an ineffable comfort in that smile, and she instantly fell silent, staring at Yang Kai with flickers of confusion and bewilderment in her beautiful eyes.
The person before her felt incredibly, achingly familiar — and yet she had never seen him before. The contradiction left her thoroughly puzzled.
Yang Kai reached in and pulled the cloth gag from her mouth, then took a deep breath and said, "Don't be afraid, young miss. I'm a guard from the Meng estate. I've come to rescue you — the bandit who abducted you has been killed!"
Only then did the young miss notice the corpse kneeling on the ground nearby. The crimson blood staining the ground assaulted her vision, and she immediately turned deathly pale. With a startled cry, she instinctively threw herself into Yang Kai's arms.
Yang Kai grunted as blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
The blow from the young miss had jolted his broken ribs, and the injury seemed to have worsened considerably.
Hearing his sound, the young miss looked up and saw the pain etched across his face. With concern, she asked, "You're hurt?"
"It's nothing serious." Yang Kai helped her to her feet. "This is a dangerous place — we shouldn't linger. We need to get back to the Meng estate quickly."
The young miss nodded repeatedly.
Yang Kai led her to the horse he had ridden here and helped her mount. Just as they were about to leave, a faint sound reached them from the distance.
He turned to look and saw a cloud of dust rising on the horizon, with what appeared to be a group of riders galloping toward them at great speed.
Yang Kai quickly pointed in a direction. "Ride that way, young miss! Ride hard and don't stop!"
The young miss looked down at him. "What about you?"
Yang Kai flashed her a grin. "I'll rest a bit and then leave!" With that, he drew his narrow blade and smacked the flat of it hard against the horse's rump.
The horse neighed and galloped off with the young miss on its back.
Yang Kai turned around, transferring the narrow blade to his right hand, and focused his mind in preparation.
The reinforcements from Baotian Peak had arrived — that cloud of dust in the distance must be the Baotian Peak bandits.
Perhaps they had arranged to meet somewhere, and when Lü Anguo failed to show for so long, they had come searching on their own.