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"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
As the man dashed forward, arrows whistled through the air behind him, some grazing his scalp, others lodging firmly in his armor.
Yet even as arrows continued to assail him, the man never once furrowed his brow, galloping on his steed with undiminished speed.
"Crack!"
Just as he was about to break free from the valley, a blood-colored spider web above him caught his attention. A blood spider, the size of a calf, suddenly spat out a strand of webbing, sticking to the man's back.
"Whoosh!"
The man reacted swiftly, drawing his blade and severing the spider silk in one stroke.
Xu Taiping was astonished to find that the man's blade was imbued with blade energy, indicating he was at least a martial artist of the Prenatal Realm.
A Prenatal Realm martial artist can condense internal strength but cannot convert it into True Qi.
Before breaking through to the Opening Realm, Xu Taiping himself was considered a Prenatal martial artist.
According to what he had learned before arriving, in this mundane world, reaching the Prenatal Realm was enough to be considered a top-notch expert.
"Boom!"
However, shortly after cutting the spider silk, the man's chestnut horse was brought down by a brawny man wielding a horse-chopping saber, who had dashed out from the woods and cleaved the horse's legs.
"Crash."
With the horse's legs cut, man and beast tumbled to the ground.
But even so, the man did not give up.
Ditching his horse, he ran towards the mouth of the valley with the speed of the wind, wielding a goose-feather saber.
"Young man, run for it!"
Upon spotting Xu Taiping at the valley entrance, the man even took the time to shout a warning.
The two were now only about thirty yards apart.
Xu Taiping said nothing, merely watching him silently.
"Whoosh!"
At that moment, the blood spider spat out another strand of webbing, wrapping around the man's legs and hoisting him upside down.
After being suspended, several men clad in robes embroidered with spider patterns, led by the horse-chopping saber-wielding brute, surrounded the armored man.
"Thought you could run?"
The brawny man punched the face of the man in armor.
His face instantly swelled.
"Kid, he told you to run. Why didn't you?"
After throwing a few punches, the bearded brute turned to Xu Taiping, who was quietly standing at the valley entrance with his horse, and smirked.
"Who are you people?"
The youth asked, his expression unfazed.
Hearing this, the bearded man burst into raucous laughter.
"Ever heard of Blood Spider Valley?"
The brute asked with a chuckle.
"No."
Xu Taiping thought for a moment, then shook his head. He truly hadn't heard of it.
"It seems you're not the ones I'm looking for."
He then turned his gaze back to the brute.
"Oh? So you've come to Green Snail Valley looking for someone?"
The brute asked with a mocking smile, his eyes on Xu Taiping like a predator toying with its prey.
"That's right."
Xu Taiping nodded earnestly.
"Tell me who you're looking for. Maybe I can help you out."
The brute grinned, his companions snickering beside him.
"I don't know if any of you have seen Princess Li Yu of White Tree Nation in the valley."
Xu Taiping said this while looking at the suspended guard.
At these words, the guard's eyes lit up.
But then, in an urgent tone, he shouted:
"Young man, get away! The princess has been taken by them. Go to Black Stone Town for help…"
"Bang!"
Before the guard could finish, his head was met with another fierce punch from the brute, silencing him.
"He's right, that princess is indeed in our hands at Blood Spider Valley."
The brute said, eyes gleaming at the youth.
"Is she still alive?"
Xu Taiping inquired.
"Alive, of course, she's alive."
The brute laughed heartily.
"That's good."
Xu Taiping nodded, quietly relieved.
"So, you're here to rescue her?"
The brute and his men laughed uproariously.
Without a word, Xu Taiping's hand rested on the hilt of his blade.
His stance was clear.
"Commander Cao, don't tell me this young man is the reinforcement the princess has been waiting for."
Seeing the youth ready to draw his blade, the mockery in the brute's eyes intensified.
The now speechless guard stared at the young man, shaking his head with difficulty.
"Since you're so eager to die, let's see whose blade is faster."
The brute then lifted his long-handled horse-chopping saber.
As he gripped the handle, strands of blade energy began to swirl around it.
Seeing the brute ready to strike, his men immediately stepped back, watching with glee.
Xu Taiping remained silent, his gaze fixed on the brute, as if waiting for the right moment.
And it was this look that inexplicably made the brute's skin crawl.
"Forget it, I'm tired of playing with you!"
Suddenly, the brute snorted coldly, then took a fierce step forward, his saber roaring with energy as he slashed towards the youth.
"Whoosh!"
Almost in the instant the brute's saber descended, a dazzling blade light, accompanied by a piercing sound, streaked past him.
The brute, about to strike, felt as if a fierce wind had slammed into his face, preventing his blade from falling.
"Huh?"
He looked at his saber in confusion.
"Crack," it broke.
Then he looked down at his chest.
"Spurt," blood gushed forth.
Finally, he looked up bewilderedly at the youth before him.
A line of blood then spread neatly down from his forehead.
"Such a swift blade…"
The brute murmured lifelessly, and then "Bang," a mist of blood exploded from his body as his towering figure split neatly in two from the brow.
"Thud!"
The brute's body fell to the ground, split in half.
It was only then that his men realized what had happened.
But instead of scattering, they instinctively grabbed their weapons and lunged at the youth.
These men were well-trained, clearly not ordinary martial artists.
Facing the sudden onslaught, Xu Taiping stood still.
Only when they were mere inches away did dozens of fist shadows appear before him, blasting towards the attackers.
"Bang!"
A loud noise erupted as the men from Blood Spider Valley exploded into mists of blood.
Seeing this, the suspended guard first showed terror, then ecstasy as he exclaimed:
"Are you… are you the one Princess Li Yu has been waiting for?!"