The Road to Glory

Chapter 44: "I Care."

In the pouring cold rain, Xiao Li swung his blade and cut down a cloaked figure who hadn't managed to retreat in time. Under Pei Shisan's gloomy gaze, he stepped on the cloaked man's back and thrust his blade downward.

The cloaked figure shuddered, twitched twice, and then lay still, fresh blood gushing out from beneath him.

Several corpses lay haphazardly at Xiao Li's feet. Propping himself up with his blade, he panted heavily and glared fiercely at Pei Shisan: "Anyone who stands in my way today will die!"

Pei Shisan narrowed his eyes, observing Xiao Li's clothes, which were almost completely soaked through with blood, and sneered coldly: "You can't even hold your blade steady anymore. Putting on such a brave front is truly laughable."

He made a gesture, and the remaining half of the Qian Squad death warriors, who had been decimated, continued to swarm toward Xiao Li. Their capes billowed like sails as they charged through the rain.

Rainwater mixed with blood streamed down Xiao Li's chin. He pulled out his blade, grinning slightly, his eyes filled with a fierce, almost insane intensity: "Then let's give it a try."

The Miao blade once again clashed with the long blades hacking toward him. Each strike was so fast it was almost impossible for the naked eye to follow, leaving only a deafening cacophony of sharp metallic clashes. Raindrops splattered wildly where the blades met.

Every time they surrounded Xiao Li, five death warriors attacked together, using attrition warfare to exhaust his stamina.

But of the original twelve Qian Squad members, only six remained.

Pei Shisan stared intently at the man being besieged, his hands bleeding from the grip, tightening and loosening around the hilt of his blade. Though he remained silent, his impatience was palpable.

Calm, stay calm.

The more critical the moment, the more composure was needed.

Pei Shisan forcibly suppressed the frantic urge to swiftly eliminate the man before him. The over twenty men he had brought were all elite Hawk Hounds. Though they could kill this guard here tonight, the opponent's sharp fangs had already exacted a heavy toll.

To hunt down a ferocious wolf, one must first remove its fangs.

Amid another grating metallic screech, Xiao Li's blade sliced through a death warrior's weapon. The warrior pushed off the ground with his toes, swiftly retreating, but Xiao Li's five-foot Miao blade instantly closed in on his neck. The death warrior could only desperately adjust his posture, causing Xiao Li's strike to hit his shoulder bone instead of cleanly severing his neck.

Even so, he was severely wounded and was dragged back by one of the death warriors observing the battle with Pei Shisan, who then took his place, barely saving his life.

Pei Shisan's gaze fell upon the Miao blade in Xiao Li's hand, which was two feet longer than an ordinary saber. His eyes narrowed darkly.

If he could seize that blade, this ferocious wolf would lose its fangs.

He had to chop off this brat's arm and then crush his bones inch by inch to vent the hatred in his heart.

Pei Shisan slowly drew the blade at his waist.

However, just as the blade left its sheath by two inches, a shout came from the Gen Squad death warriors in the rain ahead: "Commandant, we have found Han Yang, one of the Remnants of the Previous Liang Dynasty!"

A hint of joy finally appeared on Pei Shisan's gloomy face. He sheathed his blade and looked toward the woman being escorted by the death warriors.

Wen Yu's hands were tied behind her back, her face as pale as snow, her black hair cascading like a demon's. Blood from her collar seeped down with the rain, staining her skirt, and dripped slowly into the puddles in the forest as she walked.

Under the flickering light of pine torches and the stark white flashes of lightning, her cold, almost sorrowful countenance seemed like a masterpiece left behind by an ancient deity.Pei Shisan was momentarily stunned. Although they had portraits sketched by artists for search purposes, neither the facial features nor the spirit captured even ten or twenty percent of the real person.

Snapping back to reality, he sneered coldly: "With the Wen family producing such a bewitching daughter, no wonder heroes from all sides seek to capture and keep her as their private plaything."

He then pointed his blade at Xiao Li: "Your master has already been captured, you remnant traitor! Surrender now!"

The icy rain washed away the sweat beading on Xiao Li's eyelids. His gaze remained fixed on Wen Yu, noticing the large bloodstains on her dress. He asked slowly: "You're injured?"

Wen Yu looked at his blood-soaked appearance, the coldness in her eyes finally cracking. She shook her head lightly, her voice strained: "They won't kill me. Don't worry about me, escape quickly!"

At that moment, the Gen Squad death warriors reported to Pei Shisan: "Captain, this former dynasty remnant killed Gen Five."

Pei Shisan's expression darkened. When he looked at Wen Yu again, his face turned even colder. He sneered: "Escape?"

He immediately pressed his blade against Wen Yu's neck, speaking viciously to Xiao Li: "Drop your weapon. If I can capture this Wen family remnant alive to present to our lord, I naturally won't bring back a corpse. But stabbing a few non-lethal holes in her, or letting the brothers who fought through this bloody night all have a turn with the former Liang princess's bed—that I can arrange."

His blade edge moved as if to slice open Wen Yu's blood-stained collar.

"Don't touch her!" Xiao Li roared, the veins on his hand gripping the sword hilt bulging violently.

Pei Shisan's blade tip pierced through Wen Yu's soaked collar, threatening Xiao Li: "Throw away your sword."

Blood vessels gradually crept into the whites of Xiao Li's eyes. He slowly raised his Miao blade and responded: "Fine."

But then he heard Wen Yu call: "Xiao Li."

Xiao Li raised his bloodshot eyes, meeting her cold yet shattered gaze.

Wen Yu said: "I don't care. I live only for revenge. Whether this body is ruined or rotted means nothing to me. You escape."

A lightning bolt struck, followed by roaring thunder.

Along with the thunder, the Miao blade in Xiao Li's hand fell heavily to the ground.

Cold rain rolled over his eyelids and dripped down. Looking at Wen Yu, he said hoarsely: "I care."

Everything the fall of the Wen family had taken from her—he cared about it all.

If she wanted to live as a walking corpse, then he would be her final layer of armor.

The death warriors almost instantly pinned Xiao Li down the moment he discarded his weapon.

Pei Shisan said coldly: "Break every bone in his body, then hang him in these woods as sacrifice for our fallen brothers!"

The death warriors who had nearly lost their lives to Xiao Li showed no mercy.

Xiao Li was pressed into the muddy ground in the rain. Hammer-like fists and feet landed on his back, making him vomit blood. Half his face was stomped into the mud, yet his eyes remained fixed on Wen Yu's direction.

If this life was only this long—twenty years of misery in exchange for meeting her, being able to protect her one last time before death—it seemed enough.

"Xiao Li!"

Wen Yu's voice was so hoarse she could barely call his name.

The coldness in her eyes shattered like broken porcelain, cracking inch by inch, overflowing with heart-wrenching pain. Tears mixed with rain fell to the ground as she screamed at him: "Fight back!"

Xiao Li looked at her, his bleeding lips moving faintly. It was barely discernible that he was saying "Don't cry."Pei Shisan watched with immense satisfaction, sneering as he ordered his subordinates, "Fight back? Break his limbs for me!"

Wen Yu's eyes burned with pain, tears flowing uncontrollably. With her hands bound behind her back, she strained to lift her head high, her posture straight as a bamboo, resembling a luan bird ready to dash itself against a mountain. Her eyes, overflowing with agony and hatred, now held only the resolve to meet death. "You rebels, how dare you presume to hold power over my life and death?"

She closed her eyes and mustered all her strength, pressing her neck against the blade Pei Shisan held to her throat.

She had only made it this far because Xiao Li had protected her along the way.

She already owed him too much.

If she died, he would likely no longer be constrained by others.

Pei Shisan was horrified and hastily withdrew the blade, but still, blood seeped from the cut on Wen Yu's neck.

The death warriors who were about to break Xiao Li's limbs were also startled by Wen Yu and turned to look.

Xiao Li was covered in blood. As he watched Wen Yu collapse with blood trickling from her neck, a bestial roar nearly tore from his throat. Struggling up from the mud, the death warriors snapped back to attention and tried to restrain him, but the sudden burst of brute force from his body made it impossible for them to grip his arms, sending them stumbling backward.

Seeing Xiao Li charge at him, Pei Shisan raised his blade to strike, but his vision was blurred by the mud and water kicked up by Xiao Li's feet. He hurriedly turned his head away, only to feel as if a thousand-pound cauldron had smashed into his chest. Instantly, a mist of blood sprayed from his mouth.

Xiao Li scooped up the fallen Wen Yu, rolling away from the blades slashing at him by several death warriors. He grabbed a Miao knife and swept it toward their necks.

The length of the Miao knife made the death warriors wary, and they scrambled backward in panic. Seizing the moment, Xiao Li leaped up like a wolf, carrying Wen Yu on his back, and plunged into the vine-covered forest beyond the reach of the firelight.

Several death warriors raised their blades to pursue, but suddenly heard their companions urgently calling from behind, "Commandant!"

Turning back, they saw Pei Shisan bleeding from all seven orifices, as if his internal organs had been shattered. He stared fixedly in one direction, his eyes still wide with shock. "Report... report to our lord... this fist technique is... is..."

He never managed to finish what he wanted to say, dying with his eyes wide open.

The night rain continued unabated. Xiao Li raced through the dense, vine-entangled forest with Wen Yu on his back. His mouth was filled with the taste of blood, his body covered in countless wounds large and small, and two of his ribs were broken. Yet, in that moment, he seemed oblivious to the pain.

His chest felt hollow, and even his mind was blank.

That sense of panic and helplessness made him feel as if he had returned to that snowy night when he searched for Xiao Huiniang's body in the mass grave.

The rain blurred his vision. He had no idea how many wounds the dark, dead branches and broken logs had inflicted on him, but he paid them no mind. As he ran desperately, he kept repeating to the person on his back, "We've escaped, A Yu. You must hold on..."

Pei Shisan had withdrawn the blade in time, so the cut on Wen Yu's neck had not struck a vital spot. Yet, the blood washed down by the rain had stained her entire collar a deep crimson.

Her unhealed chill and the night's flight had completely broken her body.

Her head rested weakly against Xiao Li's shoulder and back, and she replied feebly, "I won't die..."

Xiao Li's wet hair clung to his pale cheeks as he said, "Right, you can't die. You still have to take revenge."

Wen Yu closed her eyes and murmured along with him, "Won't die... take revenge..."Tangled vines blanketed the original gullies between the mountain rocks. Fearing the return of the shadow-like cloaked figures, Xiao Li moved hastily and accidentally missed his footing, plunging with Wen Yu into a fissure in the mountain. Fortunately, he shielded Wen Yu firmly with one arm while gripping a thick vine with the other, straining to slow their descent.

A strained groan escaped his throat as they slid down about ten meters, the skin on his palm scraped raw, before he finally managed to anchor them against the cliff wall by the vine.

But his Miao knife had fallen into the depths of the crevice.

Wen Yu felt the arm clamped around her waist trembling faintly and asked weakly, "Are you alright?"

Supporting both their weight with one arm, Xiao Li gritted his teeth at the sharp clang of the Miao knife striking rocks below. "I'm fine. It's about twenty more meters down. This vine is thick enough to reach the bottom. Hold onto me tight—I'll lower us down."

Blood from his palm dripped down the vine onto Wen Yu's face.

Sheltered by the overhanging vines covering the fissure, no rain reached them. She noticed the blood was warm.

Unsure whether his old wounds had reopened or new ones formed, Wen Yu clung tightly to his shoulders and neck, pressing her face against his blood-scented chest, her eyes burning with unshed tears.

What she owed this man could never be repaid.

When Xiao Li finally reached the bottom with Wen Yu, a flash of lightning revealed his fallen Miao knife and a cave hidden behind vines along one wall.

His scraped fingers retrieved a tinder from his robe. Unscrewing and blowing on it, he was relieved to find it dry. The feeble flame illuminated the small space.

Using his knife to part the vines at the entrance, he led Wen Yu inside.

The cave was dusty but showed signs of previous refuge—dry firewood stacked against the wall and a felt cape spread over dried vines deeper inside, likely used as bedding.

Xiao Li gathered some of the dried vines and lit them with the tinder. The firelight brightened the cave's interior.

After adding firewood to build up the flames, he shook the dust off the felt cape and draped it over Wen Yu, seating her against the wall. "This fissure is nearly thirty meters high. With the vines covering both the entrance and the top, our fire won't be spotted. The rain is heavy tonight—we'll shelter here."

By the firelight, Wen Yu saw his pale face and the blood dripping from his clothes. Even the hand adding wood to the fire was mangled.

Remembering the warm blood that had dripped onto her face during their descent, her heart ached. Hoarsely, she said, "Tend to your wounds first..."

She tried to sit up and help, but Xiao Li pressed her back down. "My hide is tough—it's nothing. Don't move and aggravate your neck wound."

Swallowing back the metallic taste of blood rising in his throat, he unscrewed the hilt of his Miao knife and retrieved the hidden trauma medicine.

Their packs had been confiscated by the Pei family's Hawk Hounds after Wen Yu's capture, leaving only this medicine. Though it worked quickly to staunch bleeding and form scabs, its potency made wounds feel as if scalded by oil or fire.

Holding her shoulder steady, he carefully sprinkled the medicine onto her wound.As the medicinal powder merged with Wen Yu's wound, her entire body began trembling uncontrollably. She tilted her neck slightly, and under the firelight, that expanse of snow-white skin—still damp from the lingering rain—soon became beaded with fine droplets of sweat.