Chapter 145: Duty-Bound

Yu Wenlong was startled and immediately swung his saber to parry. As the weapons clashed, Yu Wenlong felt his tiger's mouth vibrate, and his weapon nearly flew from his hand; the opponent's Internal Breath was clearly higher than his own.

The opponent's figure flickered, even leaving behind an afterimage, but it merely flashed past him. The two weapons clashed only once before immediately separating...

Only then did Yu Wenlong realize that the person had already bypassed him and snatched Ruan Jing away.

Yu Wenlong's eyelids twitched. "What fast skills!"

Duan Rong reached out and took Ruan Jing, placing him against the wall behind. Ruan Jing kept his eyes closed, weeping incessantly, just like an ostrich, thinking that if he couldn't see, he wouldn't be so afraid.

Duan Rong turned around; the oil lamp in the corner of the wall reflected on Duan Rong's face.

"It's you?" Yu Wenlong's face was already somewhat distorted, as if he had seen a ghost, and he said in fear, "Aren't you already dead?"

Duan Rong looked at Yu Wenlong with an expressionless face. His gaze was cold and clear, with no intention of wasting words. He directly unleashed his Proficiency-level Cloud Snake Step, his figure flickered, and he attacked Yu Wenlong with his saber!

Duan Rong's figure was elusive; in the dim lamplight, his silhouette was even harder to distinguish, and his saber technique became increasingly strange and tricky. In just two breaths, Yu Wenlong had already been struck by several slashes on his shoulder, calf, and waist, and the tiger's mouth of his right hand holding the saber was numbed by the vibrations!

The blade of the saber in Yu Wenlong's hand had already been chipped in several places, but the edge of the Ox-Tail Saber in Duan Rong's hand remained as sharp as before.

From this, one could see the strength of the two men's cultivation of Internal Breath. Although Duan Rong had not yet achieved the Inner Breath Third Layer and could not send Yu Wenlong's weapon flying in a single encounter, Duan Rong's Third Layer Internal Breath had already formed a certain combat power; every time their weapons clashed, another chip would appear on Yu Wenlong's blade.

At this moment, Duan Rong finally understood where those chipped, discarded weapons in the Miscellaneous Disciple training courtyard came from.

Yu Wenlong's calf was injured, and his movements immediately slowed by a fraction. Duan Rong, appearing like a ghost, suddenly flashed behind Yu Wenlong. Yu Wenlong was greatly alarmed and spun around as swiftly as a spinning top, only to see Duan Rong's cold gaze and the cold light of the Ox-Tail Saber flashing toward his neck...

A single strike to behead!

Yu Wenlong's head flew up. At the severed neck, flesh and blood squirmed, and fresh blood splattered, spraying directly onto the curved vaulted ceiling of the Kiln Cave...

After Duan Rong beheaded Yu Wenlong, he immediately came to the side of Ruan Jing by the wall. Duan Rong used his saber to cut the ropes binding Ruan Jing's hands and feet, then pulled the rag out of Ruan Jing's mouth, but Ruan Jing still dared not open his eyes, his small body trembling incessantly...

"Young Master! Young Master Ruan Jing!"

Duan Rong softly called Ruan Jing twice and patted his chubby, tender face.

Only then did Ruan Jing open his teary, blurred eyes. Ruan Jing had never met Duan Rong, but he recognized the Escort uniform Duan Rong was wearing, and a sense of intimacy immediately rose in his heart...

Ruan Jing immediately threw himself onto Duan Rong, crying, "Big brother, did you come to save me?"

"Young Master, I am here to save you. Don't speak! There are still bad people outside!" Duan Rong explained to Ruan Jing.

Ruan Jing seemed to understand Duan Rong's meaning immediately, closing his chubby little mouth. He looked at Duan Rong with expectant eyes, but his little hands gripped Duan Rong's sleeve, refusing to let go.

Duan Rong picked up Ruan Jing, only to find that Ruan Jing's crotch was soaked; clearly, he had been scared into wetting himself just now.

Duan Rong glanced at Ruan Jing, and Ruan Jing also understood Duan Rong's meaning; his little face turned red instantly. He was already three years old, and his mother often punished him for bedwetting...

Carrying Ruan Jing, Duan Rong flashed out of the Kiln Cave, left the Wild Forest, and headed toward Luanfen Mound. There were still more than ten gang members there, and there was also the gold buried in the grave; he had to bring it back as well.

Carrying Ruan Jing, Duan Rong hid in the shadow of a tree and looked toward the place in the depths of Luanfen Mound where a faint light was shining.

Duan Rong focused his gaze and was immediately shocked, his scalp tingling as if struck by electricity. He saw that the more than ten members of the Bitter Fate Gang had all fallen beside the grave, each with a miserable death, leaving only the empty Escort Cart and a lantern on the cart standing alone beside the graveyard...

"This..." A trace of fear flashed through Duan Rong's heart. "Is there... still someone here?"

Just at this moment, a figure suddenly descended behind Duan Rong like a large bird. Duan Rong gave a start and flipped up like a spring, his right hand in his pocket ready to shoot out the Plum Blossom Needle.

Just at the critical moment, Ruan Jing suddenly called out in a sweet, soft voice: "Daddy! Daddy!"

Duan Rong focused his gaze as he landed, finally seeing the face of the person who had arrived in the dim light shining from afar!

The person who had arrived was none other than Ruan Fengshan!

Duan Rong put down Ruan Jing and cupped his fists respectfully: "Manager!"

As soon as Ruan Jing landed, he immediately threw himself at Ruan Fengshan, and Ruan Fengshan scooped up the lunging Ruan Jing...

Ruan Jing buried his head in Ruan Fengshan's embrace, calling out happily: "Daddy! Daddy..."

"Jing'er..."

For a moment, Ruan Fengshan actually shed tears of sorrow.

Ruan Fengshan held Ruan Jing and looked at Duan Rong in the tree shadow; Duan Rong's shoulder was bandaged, and blood was faintly seeping through.

"Duan Rong, that we father and son can be reunited! I must thank you!"

Duan Rong said sincerely: "Manager, since I am a member of the Yuanshun Escort Agency, protecting the Young Master is part of my duty. It is not worth a word of thanks!"

Even though Ruan Fengshan had a heart of iron, a ripple stirred in his heart at this moment. After all, he had arrived a step late; if not for Duan Rong, his Jing'er would already be dead by now.

Ruan Fengshan fixed his gaze on Duan Rong's face and asked: "Have you found out the background of these people?"

"I heard those people call their Principal the Gang Leader!"

"Gang Leader?" Ruan Fengshan's expression shifted, clearly thinking of something.

"I have already killed that person, in the Kiln Cave deep in the Wild Forest."

"Let's go, take me to see!"

Duan Rong led the way, bringing Ruan Fengshan to the abandoned Kiln Cave deep in the Wild Forest. Ruan Fengshan covered Ruan Jing's eyes, used his foot to flip over the head that had fallen into the corner of the wall, took a glance, and spat on the ground. He naturally recognized at a glance that this person was the Bitter Fate Gang Leader, Yu Wenlong.

"For a pig or dog like you to dare to set your sights on the Yuanshun Escort Agency, you must be truly insane!"

Afterward, Ruan Fengshan carried Ruan Jing and returned to Luanfen Mound with Duan Rong. Duan Rong used a shovel to dig open the grave that the Bitter Fate Gang members had buried. After digging for a while, Duan Rong dug out the skeleton again. Upon seeing the skeleton, Ruan Jing immediately buried his head in Ruan Fengshan's neck, crying that he was afraid. Ruan Fengshan stroked Ruan Jing's back with his large hand, soothing him slowly...

Duan Rong dug for a while longer, and the box cast from refined steel was revealed in the soil layer.

Duan Rong threw away the shovel, channeled his Internal Breath into both hands, and directly lifted the thousand-jin iron box out of the pit.

At a weight of a thousand jin, Duan Rong's arms bulged with Internal Breath, but he still faintly felt it was somewhat strenuous!

Duan Rong's footsteps were somewhat unsteady, and he left several inch-deep footprints on the ground beside the grave before placing the iron box onto the Escort Cart.

Duan Rong brushed the dirt off his hands and body, looked at Ruan Fengshan, and said: "Manager, shall we go?"

"Wait!" Ruan Fengshan suddenly placed Ruan Jing on the Escort Cart, then flashed, grabbed two people who had fainted from atop a grave, threw them onto the Escort Cart, and said: "Bring these two dog things back as well!"

(End of chapter)