The bandits, surprisingly, all wielded cutlasses which were off-putting as the Misty Province was nowhere near the ocean. After considering their lack of knowledge, she could not be too surprised.

"Young Lady, stand behind us!"

The guards' leader exclaimed, preparing for a full out fight.

"I can fight too." She weakly resisted but headed to the back of the guards, not doing any movements to follow up on her words.

Cowardly, Xue Yueliang thought. But she did not look down on her, as it was only natural for people to try their best for their survival.

The four guards were outnumbered, but due to their perceived superior background and cultivation, they believed they would be able to easily beat the bandits.

The four Zhong Clan members were the first to attack, wielding their swords as they charged forward.

"Old fool, do you think you can harm me?"

The bandit leader laughed out. He was a man about the same height as Xue Yueliang, with short black hair tied at the back of his head. He wore loose robes, and if not for the threatening aura he released, people would assume he was one of those youngsters that had given up on his life. Only following his own hedonistic desires as he wasted away.

He lifted his cutlass and directly received the Zhong Clan Elder's sword without as much as taking a step backwards. The Zhong Clan Elder, however, was forced back, shocking him.

"If that's the best you got, then it's better you just behead yourself." He laughed, completely not taking him as a threat.

Detecting their auras, Xue Yueliang noticed that they were both at the fifth level of the Foundation Establishment Realm. According to reason, the old man should be more powerful due to his superior experience, but he was being easily pushed back. This could only mean that this young man was talented, and people of his calibre usually weren't nobodies. Xue Yueliang's expression turned serious and stored her melon seeds.

If this battle was nothing more than a bandit ambush, she could treat it as some entertainment. However, seeing a young genius battle it off would be worth seriously paying attention to.

"Don't get so cocky!" The Elder exclaimed, raising his sword high up, "Heavy Meteor!"

He slashed his sword vertically at the relaxed young man, but the young man did not react much, causing a sinister smile to appear in his eyes. He believed his arrogance would lead to his death.

"Your thoughts are so clear on your face," the young man laughed, picking his ears. "Of course, you wouldn't know, but some of us can afford to be arrogant."

Without any special movements, he blocked the attack with his cutlass. Surprisingly, he was completely unharmed by this and only forced a step back. The Elder, upset that he did not manage to harm him, was relieved by seeing this.

"See? You're not invincible!"

"When have I claimed to be?" The young man said, "Invincibility is just a fool's dream."

After hearing these words, Xue Yueliang's face could not help but warm up. Though the pirate-like man did not know that she was someone who was pursuing invincibility, he had still called her a fool.

Whatever.

It was not like she did not have the same thoughts when she heard of her master's path.

The Elder clenched his teeth and roared out, "What are you guys waiting for? It's not like all of them can be this strong."

He reasoned that if they could kill the rest of his followers, they could band up against him and survive.

"They say the older they are, the craftier they get, but that doesn't seem to be true for you. Since they are qualified to travel with me, shouldn't their power be close to mine?"

An evil smile appeared on his face as he ordered, "Brothers make sure they die miserably."

The four people were spirited as they finally got the chance to attack. They raised their cutlasses, and each one of them picked an opponent, and their leader retreated, watching the proceedings with a smile. Unlike their leader, they took this battle seriously.

"Ocean Blades."

"Oceanic Strike."

"Oceanic Pressure."

Watching their ocean-themed attack, Xue Yueliang grew suspicious of their background. Perhaps, it was harder to guess their identity than she had presumed.

Maybe they're from the Hidden Ocean Sect? She thought, but she dismissed it. It would be too much of a coincidence if two experts of a cultivation sect came here at around the same time. Besides, they weren't the only ones who used ocean-related techniques.

"Young Lady," the young man said sarcastically, "Why don't you come over here?"

Xue Yueliang's heart dropped, thinking he had noticed her, but his next actions dispelled her worries. He stretched his hands to the Young Lady of the Zhong Clan, but she only recoiled in fear. She was already someone at the third level of the Foundation Establishment Realm and was still so cowardly. Xue Yueliang couldn't help but marvel at how she survived for so long.

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"What a marvel. How did you survive for so long?" The young man laughed and instead walked toward her, almost causing Xue Yueliang to laugh aloud.

"Leave our Young Lady alone!" The Elder called out, trying to untangle from his enemy but was unable to escape. They were all evenly matched, and although he would not lose in the short term, he could not push him behind.

"Don't worry, I won't harm her. Well, not yet, at least."

His gaze finally turned back to her, "You're special. Why don't you tell me your name?"

Was all this just to flirt with her? Xue Yueliang frowned. It did not seem worth it.

"I-I'm Zh-Zhong Xi." She stammered.

"You can't even say your own name?" He laughed, a teasing look in his eyes, like a cat playing with a mouse.

He stooped down, placing his face closer to her neck and took a deep sniff.

"You smell a lot better than the bitter oceans." He complimented.

"You dare!" The Elder shouted, but before he could add anything his opponent snorted: "Why don't you pay attention to your own battle?"

He increased the tempo of his attacks so that the Elder could not pay attention to Zhong Xi. The Elder looking away every two seconds had infuriated him. It made him feel that he was not being taken seriously.

"Hey, how about you travel with me?" The man asked.

Seeing her life was not in danger, Zhong Xi calmed down, asking: "How can I travel with you when I don't even know your name?"

She finally showed the eloquence of a noble lady and stopped trembling like a starving dog.

"Of course, I'm Sun Wei." He grinned.

"Sun Wei," Zhong Xi smiled, but her smile looked too forceful and did not give off the elegance she wished.

"If you can follow me back to my family and get their approval, I wouldn't mind following you to the end of the world."

"A coward is bargaining with me?" Sun Wei laughed but did not make any move to attack her, letting her relax.

As long as you follow me, you will die. She thought, but sadly her acting skills weren't up to par, allowing her face to be easily read.

Sun Wei suddenly moved, wrapping his arms around her neck as he lifted her up with one hand.

"You should know you don't have a choice in the matter." He said, his eyes releasing a cold light. "I didn't want it to be you, either."

Zhong Xi desperately clawed onto his hand, hoping to set herself free, but her struggle only caused him to squeeze further.

Seeing this scene and looking over the battle, Xue Yueliang felt there was not much left for her to see. She had only wanted to see Sun Wei fight, but since he was not fighting anymore, she had no benefit in watching the small fry.

She silently glided off the tree she was on and planned to detour around the place but heard some words that intrigued her.

"I had initially come for Qin Yao, but she's already dead." Sun Wei said, harshly dropping Zhong Xi to the ground.

"Cough, cough. Qin Yao has many sisters. Any one of them would be a better substitute than me." Zhong Xi said, between coughs, unable to understand how she was involved in any of this.

"None of them are disposable." Sun Wei said, causing a slight killing intent to develop in Xue Yueliang's heart which disappeared soon after. She no longer had to live as Qin Yao, so what he said should not affect her.

Before she could leave, Sun Wei's voice shouted out, "Stop right there!"

This time, he was definitely talking to her. Although her veil could limit killing intent, it was something that needed to be activated, so it did not help. Xue Yueliang smiled and walked forward. Looking at the battle in front of her, she cupped her hands.

"Greetings, fellow Daoists." She smiled, "I'm just passing by and have no intention of interfering. If it's not a bother, I'll be on my way now."

"Why are you so guarded?" Sun Wei asked curiously.

Although her aura was suppressed, he felt a slight sense of danger surrounding her, so he did not understand her conservative actions.

Xue Yueliang pointed at Zhong Xi, saying: "That person crawling there is the Young Lady of the Zhong Clan. If you dare attack her, you must have confidence in getting away scot-free. I don't have that confidence."

Sun Wei laughed, "We youngsters should not worry too much. Otherwise, we will live a long but boring life."

"People want different things in life," Xue Yueliang smiled, causing Sun Wei to be intrigued.

"I'm Sun Wei from the Hidden Ocean Sect. Where is the esteemed lady from?"

Xue Yueliang couldn't help but laugh inwardly after remembering how crudely Sun Wei had been treating Zhong Xi and how politely he was treating her.

"I'm Xue Yueliang, and my background isn't anything worth mentioning."

The Invincible Sword Sect was defeated and currently hunted down, and the Qin Clan was a place she had cut ties with. She could only be mysterious or say she was a wandering cultivator, which would not bode well for her. She did not wish to battle when she was outnumbered and outclassed.

"Whichever place can host a fairy such as yourself, is a place worth mentioning." He laughed, his gaze looking at her dishonestly, but she did not let it bother her.

"Well then, I'll let you get back to it."

Xue Yueliang turned around to leave, worried about what the presence of the Hidden Ocean Sect here meant, but not daring to ask.

"What is Lady Yueliang doing here?" Sun Wei hastily asked, leading Xue Yueliang to smile, "I'm just here to train. Why are you so far from home?"

Xue Yueliang could not be bothered to use honorifics anymore as she found it to be a waste of time. He would prefer it this way, anyway.

"I'm here on a sect mission and to return with this lady here," he said, kicking Zhong Xi.

"Well, good luck." Xue Yueliang said, making eye contact with Zhong Xi.

She still did not feel easy with his explanation, nor did she understand why Zhong Xi was important, but she felt the need to rush to where her master had pointed out. She could not be sure why two of the top four sects were here, but she could exercise caution and be there first.

"Would you like to travel together?" Sun Wei asked, but Xue Yueliang rejected.

"I prefer travelling alone. Thank you for the offer."

She turned around to leave and was surrounded by the vegetation, quickly disappearing from his line of sight.

"It's all because of you," Sun Wei grumbled, kicking Zhong Xi again.

He felt that he made a tremendous loss while watching her figure disappear, so he unleashed it on her. The confused Zhong Xi kept silent, wondering how she had entered the Hidden Ocean Sect's eyes or why he went from flirting with her to beating her. She felt whatever the reason was, it would not be good for her.

Sun Wei sighed and bent down, retrieving ropes from his storage ring as he tied her wrists together. Peculiarly, Zhong Xi instantly lost the feel for her cultivation base, and her face instantly paled.

"There's no need to seal the cultivation of a coward like you, but who knows. There may be a day when even a mouse like you dares to bite."

He picked her up with one arm and placed her on his shoulder, leaving behind his men who were still fighting.

"Follow behind me when you're done," he ordered carelessly.

Meanwhile, Xue Yueliang, who had walked a fair distance away, felt panic overwhelm her. Zhong Xi's eyes had been familiar. It was not just the expression of fear and cowardice that she usually elicited that was familiar but something else. It made her recall the only person who had loved her, and a constricted feeling appeared in her chest, making her breathing feel shallow.

She closed her eyes, and she could almost see her cover her naked, bruised body as she comforted with a broken voice: "Don't look, Yao'er. Everything will be fine as long as you don't look."

Killing intent escaped from Xue Yueliang's body, scaring away all the small beasts in the surrounding four hundred li.