Chapter 154: I Was the Fastest to Flee

“Aside from these hand crossbows, there doesn’t seem to be anything particularly valuable.”

Yang Ling looked at the scattered items—some bits of silver, a little Golden Sore Medicine, and a few tools for field use.

The most valuable things were the ten hand crossbows they carried.

They could probably only be used against Eighth-Rank martial artists; they’d fall short against Seventh-Rank ones.

“Chief Constable Yang, these hand crossbows are all regulated items in Zhao State. They probably don’t even have Ironclad Department permits.”

He Yang said.

Yang Ling thought for a moment. “Everyone, you can use these hand crossbows for now. We’ll run into more Rong Tribe spies later, and you can use them on them. Once we get out, you can return them to the Ironclad Department.”

The veteran Seventh-Rank martial artists present had a faint glimmer in their eyes.

Even though they were Seventh-Rank martial artists, they didn’t come from the Ironclad Department.

Zhao State never allowed Jianghu martial artists to illegally possess long-range weapons like hand crossbows or strong bows.

They either needed a permit from the Ironclad Department or had to be part of a Yamen organization like it.

The ten hand crossbows were quickly divided among He Yang and the others.

By then, the Fire Dragon Fish in the ice cavern had been fished out completely.

“Chief Constable Yang, there are sixty Fire Dragon Fish in total. Each of us can take five.”

A veteran Seventh-Rank said with some excitement. He had been the most skilled at fishing and caught the most.

“Are you serious? If it weren’t for Chief Constable Yang, these Fire Dragon Fish would have all been the Frost Force Bear’s, and we might have been killed by the Rong Tribe spies.”

He Yang said sternly. “I think Chief Constable Yang should take half of these Fire Dragon Fish, and we’ll split the rest.”

The other veteran Seventh-Ranks pondered this, then nodded in agreement.

Yang Ling smiled and didn’t decline.

First of all, it was indeed because of him that they could eat these Fire Dragon Fish.

But these veteran Seventh-Ranks had indeed found this place first, so them taking half was also reasonable.

There was another key point.

He also wanted to build connections with these veteran Seventh-Ranks.

Some were sect masters of third-rate sects, others were great elders, and some were affiliated with second-rate sects.

Their connections and influence in the Jianghu far exceeded what ordinary people could imagine.

“I can use them to settle the players later on.”

Half an hour later, Yang Ling’s stomach was somewhat bloated.

He had already eaten all thirty Fire Dragon Fish by himself.

The experience points for both Vajra Bright King Technique and Divine Ape Contemplation Diagram had increased by 3000 points each!

This was equivalent to the effect of taking twelve Foundation Consolidation Pills.

It also saved him about a month’s worth of training time.

Yang Ling glanced at his Status Panel:

Martial Art: Vajra Bright King Technique (Flawless Proficiency)

Experience: 4630/100000

Divine Ape Contemplation Diagram (Comprehensive Mastery)

Experience: 4870/10000

Before he knew it, the progress for upgrading Divine Ape Contemplation Diagram was almost halfway done.

“Once I get out, Divine Ape Contemplation Diagram will break through to Flawless Proficiency, and my Spirit will increase by another 40 points.”

Yang Ling’s heart burned with anticipation.

“Seniors, I’ll take my leave now.”

“Be safe on the road, Chief Constable Yang!”

After Yang Ling left, He Yang and the others exchanged glances, then snorted and prepared to go their separate ways.

But the next moment, they suddenly felt a tremor under their feet.

These veteran Seventh-Ranks were slightly startled and instinctively looked up, only to see a group of Frost Force Bears charging toward them, roaring loudly.

“I’m screwed!”

He Yang’s face changed drastically as he turned and ran.

The others reacted quickly too, immediately making a swift escape!

The injured Frost Force Bear howled, its fierce eyes sweeping around.

...

An hour later, Yang Ling felt somewhat lost.

He hadn’t been to this place before, and the icicles overhead were new to him, so he couldn’t use them as landmarks.

“Either turn back or keep going forward.”

Yang Ling thought for a moment and decided to keep moving. This time, he hadn’t gone far—maybe about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea—when he spotted a familiar face.

Zhang Shendao was huddled in a corner, trembling uncontrollably, breathing cold air.

“Teacher Zhang, are you injured?”

Yang Ling’s expression grew serious. For an Eighth-Rank martial artist like him, only an injury would make him unable to resist the cold here.

Zhang Shendao heard the noise and, like a startled bird, jerked his head up to look around.

When he saw Yang Ling’s figure, a bitter smile spread across his face:

“Am I really about to die? I’m even seeing hallucinations...”

“And right before I die, why am I thinking about a man?”

“Damn it...”

“Teacher Zhang, what nonsense are you muttering? What happened? Why did you get separated from the main group?”

Yang Ling approached and directly reached out to pull aside his clothes, revealing several knife wounds and a few crossbow bolts.

“Brother Yang? Is it really you!? This isn’t a hallucination?”

Zhang Shendao looked somewhat dazed.

Yang Ling pulled out some Golden Sore Medicine. “Take it internally and apply it externally at the same time. Your HP looks like it’s about to hit rock bottom.”

Zhang Shendao, seeing this, grabbed at the lifeline. He first drank a few bottles of Golden Sore Medicine, then sprinkled some onto his wounds.

Yang Ling watched his HP and suddenly moved like lightning, pulling the crossbow bolts out of his body.

Zhang Shendao let out a blood-curdling scream, his face turning deathly pale from the pain.

“Bear with it. We’re players. These injuries will heal quickly as your HP recovers.”

Yang Ling said.

Zhang Shendao’s forehead broke out in sweat as big as beans. It took him a long time to recover.

Five minutes later, Zhang Shendao’s condition had finally improved somewhat, and he began to tell Yang Ling about his experience.

He had followed the Divine Sect’s team to their destination, but not long after arriving, they were ambushed by a group of experts.

These experts worked in perfect coordination. Some used crossbows, others threw flying daggers.

And some were skilled with poison.

The Divine Sect’s team was scattered by the sudden attack.

“I was the fastest to flee, but I was also the unluckiest. I ran into one of their hidden sentries outside.”

Zhang Shendao gritted his teeth.

“I didn’t even have time to react before I was slashed a few times and shot a few arrows.

I didn’t look back and just ran. I knew I was only Eighth-Rank while they were Seventh-Rank. If I didn’t run, I’d die.”

Yang Ling had already confirmed that the ones who ambushed them were Rong Tribe spies.

That Heavenly Wolf Guard Commander had probably been planning this operation for years.

The order Nangong Yue received was to kill him. Now, Yang Ling suspected the Heavenly Wolf Guard Commander had given different tasks to all three teams!

It was very likely that Nangong Yue’s team was just a diversion, stirring up the waters!

Yang Ling recounted his own experience as well.

Zhang Shendao listened, stunned. Suddenly, he gasped sharply:

“Brother Yang, doesn’t that mean Lin Caiyi and the others are also in danger?”

“We can only hope they get lucky.”

Yang Ling pondered. “First, let’s go find the Divine Sect disciples. If Dongfang Haojie isn’t dead, that’s best. Reorganize the team, and we can still regroup with the disciples from the other three sects.”

As long as they gathered all these elites together, no matter how well-prepared the Heavenly Wolf Guard was, they wouldn’t have the advantage.