Chapter 78: Why haven't they come yet?

He snorted, his magic power erupting to shield his entire body in preparation to take the Daoist technique head-on. Human cultivators were frail, but a centurion possessed thick magic power and heavy armor; a mere ordinary Foundation Establishment technique wouldn't cause more than minor injuries even if it landed.

Two tornadoes appeared on the centurion's left and right, with fist-sized sand and stones spinning at high speed, slamming into him head-on. A cluster of water blades exploded in front of his warhorse, and countless water blades shot into the horse's head. The warhorse was startled and reared up, using the horse armor on its chest and belly to block the subsequent water blades. In the air, a meteorite the size of a water vat appeared, smashing toward the centurion's head.

The centurion's vision was still blurred, but he drew his bow and nocked an arrow, shattering the meteorite above him with a single shot. Of the four Daoist techniques, only the meteorite in the sky posed a slight threat; the other three were merely annoying. He laughed loudly and roared, "That tickles!"

At this moment, Little Wei Yuan was less than fifty zhang away from him!

Little Wei Yuan leaped off his horse, his gaze like lightning, firmly locking onto the two hundred merit points ahead! He sprinted forward a few steps, put his whole body into it, and threw his twelve-foot-long spear with all his might!

Little Wei Yuan had used his full strength for this spear throw; the warhorse simply couldn't withstand it, and he had to dismount.

The spear shot out like a dragon, instantly plunging into the centurion's side and flying out the other, its speed almost undiminished!

The centurion's body suddenly exploded, the wound hollowing out nearly half of his torso! He struggled to look down, only then seeing the horrific wound on his body before he toppled over.

Little Wei Yuan hadn't used Daoist power for this spear throw, relying entirely on his physical body. The centurion's eyes hadn't recovered, and his spiritual sense had been interfered with by the Daoist techniques; by the time he realized something was wrong, the spear had already reached him.

This was the first time Little Wei Yuan and Li Zhi had coordinated, and Li Zhi, noticing Little Wei Yuan approaching the centurion, chose not to dodge but to take the next few arrows head-on, simultaneously sealing the opponent's vision with a Radiant Yang Art. Little Wei Yuan, meanwhile, used the Dao power of an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator to fire off several Dao arts in succession. Dao arts of this power could not possibly threaten the centurion, yet it led him to believe that the other two human Foundation Establishment cultivators had already made their move, causing him to lower his guard and, furthermore, overlook Little Wei Yuan, who was not yet at the Foundation Establishment stage.

The truly fatal blow was the spear Little Wei Yuan had thrown with all his might!

"Qimu'er!!" Another centurion, who had been circling far away, saw this scene and his eyes split with rage; he turned around and charged over. As he moved, the cavalry that had been flanking them followed suit.

Little Wei Yuan wanted to turn back and mount his horse, but an arrow flew from somewhere, directly piercing his warhorse's neck. Countless heavy arrows whistled over, raining down on him as he stood on the ground.

Little Wei Yuan made a prompt decision, leaped up, and mounted the horse left behind by the centurion.

The Liao horse was fierce; it roared on the spot, swung its head, and rammed toward Little Wei Yuan on its back. This Liao horse was the centurion's mount, two feet taller than an ordinary Liao horse; this head-swing was powerful and heavy, enough to make an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator vomit blood. But Little Wei Yuan's physical body was formidable; he punched the back of the horse's head, causing its four legs to go soft, nearly collapsing. Subsequently, a wisp of black Qi, invisible to the naked eye, flew out from Little Wei Yuan and plunged into the Liao horse's body.

The Liao horse suddenly went quiet and stood still.

In Little Wei Yuan's spiritual sense, the Liao horse's soul was struggling violently, refusing to accept control. Little Wei Yuan moved his intent, and thousands of wisps of black Qi in his sea of consciousness split off another, plunging into the Liao horse. The Liao horse's soul was immediately dyed a grayish-black, connecting with Little Wei Yuan's consciousness. This Liao horse had already been tall, but at this moment, it grew another foot, and clusters of white steam began to spray from its nostrils.

Little Wei Yuan spurred the Liao horse, charged toward Li Zhi, and shouted, "Get on!"

Although Li Zhi was shocked, this was not the time to ask questions. He leaped onto the horse's back, sharing the mount with Little Wei Yuan. The centurion's mount was peerlessly brave, and after being blessed by the Heaven-Defying Madman's luck, it possessed infinite strength, carrying two people in heavy armor as if they were weightless.

Another heavy arrow flashing with yellow light arrived, tearing through the air. Little Wei Yuan was unarmed, and in his desperation, he grabbed the incoming arrow! The heavy arrow slid a foot into Little Wei Yuan's hand before stopping, blood already staining the arrow shaft.

This was an arrow shot by the centurion from eight hundred zhang away; it remained infinitely powerful, and given the strength of Little Wei Yuan's physical body, he would still be injured if he caught it with his bare hands.

"Take this!" Li Zhi handed the beast-head golden shield and the lightning halberd to Little Wei Yuan, while he himself drew his bow and nocked an arrow. A water-blue magic-tool arrow left the string like lightning, flying toward the centurion eight hundred zhang away. This arrow flew faster and faster, arriving in an instant.

The centurion drew his scimitar and struck the long arrow in mid-air!

The moment the long arrow was struck by the scimitar, it suddenly exploded, and countless ice shards shot into the centurion's body, covering his entire body in a layer of chilling blue cold.

The centurion let out an earth-shattering roar, shattering all the ice shards on his body. Although he shook off the ice needles, countless wounds spurted blood, but he remained unmoved, continuing to spur his horse in a wild charge; these minor wounds only enraged him further.

Seeing that the Profound Ice Arrow couldn't severely wound the opponent, Li Zhi made a prompt decision: "Retreat! Call for reinforcements!"

The sixty personal guards he had brought out had already suffered eight or nine casualties; these were all battle-hardened elites, and he would feel the pain of losing even one. Li Zhi naturally didn't want to fight to the death with the Liao barbarians in an unfavorable battle.

Li Zhi drew a red arrow and shot it into the sky. The long arrow turned into a cluster of fireworks a hundred zhang in the air, flickering several times before slowly dissipating. This was a signal arrow specifically for Immortal Sect disciples to call for help, common to all Immortal Sects. When the fireworks flickered, they had already transmitted the identity of the rescuer and the strength of the enemy through Daoist power; Immortal Sect disciples within a hundred miles holding specialized magic tools could sense it. Those with high cultivation and strong spiritual sense could perceive it even without magic tools.

Besides his own identity, the information Li Zhi's arrow transmitted was that they had encountered a strong enemy, were fighting while retreating, and needed urgent reinforcements.

Little Wei Yuan also had corresponding signal arrows and had given one to Fang Hetong. But as for calling for help, it was clear that Li Zhi could attract more reinforcements.

At this moment, yellow Qi began to surge in the distance, becoming increasingly intense. Little Wei Yuan's expression tightened, the terrain flashing through his mind, and he said, "Retreat toward Quyang County!"

Li Zhi had originally intended to retreat toward the military fortress, but he understood immediately after Little Wei Yuan spoke; retreating toward Quyang County was the shortest distance to exit the Liao domain. In human territory, the combat power of the Northern Liao iron cavalry would be reduced by thirty percent. Li Zhi also noticed the abnormality in the distance, knowing that an unknown number of Northern Liao cavalry were approaching.

The Southern Qi personal guards were elites after all; though they retreated, they were not in chaos. They formed a circular formation, galloping back and forth, constantly counterattacking the surrounding Liao cavalry with magic-tool arrows, rolling slowly toward the south like a large, thorny ball.

The Northern Liao cavalry galloped back and forth on the periphery, pouring a rain of arrows onto the Southern Qi personal guards. That centurion had exchanged blows with Little Wei Yuan and Li Zhi several times; Little Wei Yuan had been hit by two more arrows, but he had also stabbed the centurion's warhorse to death with a spear. Li Zhi had taken the opportunity to return a shot, piercing the centurion's thigh. But the centurion was extremely fierce, dragging his wounded leg to snatch a horse from his subordinate and charging again.

Little Wei Yuan and Li Zhi fought while retreating. In a short while, another hundred cavalrymen charged out from the yellow Qi in the distance! Fortunately, at this moment, Little Wei Yuan suddenly felt a lightness in his body, as if he had swept away years of dust, feeling incomparably comfortable.

Finally back in human territory!

The Southern Qi elites now had only forty cavalrymen left. After returning to human territory, they finally stabilized their footing. The Liao cavalry's movements became much slower, and the arrows they shot were weaker than before. However, there were too many Liao cavalry, and personal guards were still being shot off their horses from time to time.

"Young Master! Why haven't the reinforcements come yet?" A personal guard captain couldn't hold back and shouted at Li Zhi.

Li Zhi's face was gloomy, the veins on his temples bulging, and he didn't reply.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 79 =====