"What do mean?" the disciple asked me as she stabilized her plants again, it made the whippings continue, but the lack of energy is obvious from the way they moved. "Hey."

I hummed and tapped the handle of my bat, "I guess you can say that fighting all of those guys together is a bad idea," I raised my bat and rested it on my shoulder, "You know, since they're coordinated and trained well."

The girl scoffed and a look of pure offense appeared on her face, "are you saying that I'm not trained?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. Grass grew from her legs and climbed up her legs, it started wrapping around her body and eventually turned into some sort of light armor that covered her chest and stomach as well as giving padding on her knees and elbows, "see? I'm good."

I nodded, "I guess." I shrugged, "But before everything, what's your name?"

"Li Ming," she replied, refreshing her name on my mind.

"I like your name," I replied.

"Thank you."

The plants started to die down after that and I watched with absolute caution as the Ninjas started moving quicker and more aggressively, cutting down plants in quick and precise manners that showed just how skillful they are. The more I watched, the more I started feeling less and less confident about the upcoming fight and I really had to be honest with myself, even with a Sect Disciple by my side, the chances of us beating the four Ninjas together is slim to none.

I sighed, And it's not like I can run either, right?

I shook my head and thought of a single silver lining that Li Ming can just protect herself if I create another blizzard. But even then, I wanted to make sure so I asked her, "Can you do that ball thing again where you protected yourself with your plants?"

She nodded, "I can,"

"Good." I just hope that I don't have to resort to something like that by the end of all this.

With them being much weaker, the plants died quickly to the Ninjas and before even the last of them died, the few Ninjas that got freed immediately went straight for the two of us. Two out of the four. I thought while staring at the dagger throwing Ninja and the other one who wielded a sword. I felt pretty confident that I can take them both on right as long as I ran around but I can't really do that right now... "You take one and I take the other?"

Li Ming dashed forward and struck the sword wielding Ninja in reply. I also didn't waste time because I was off the moment that I saw her running.

We both met our opponents nigh simultaneously but Li Ming to hers first because she's slightly faster.

I dodged a dagger aiming for my head and took a long stride forward, then I jumped when I saw the Ninja going for a low kick. While in the air, I used the height advantage to make my strike so much harder, I swung down, hoping hard that I'd hit the Ninja in the head and just get this entire thing over with but his skills wouldn't let something like that happen-

Like some sort of insect, the Ninja ducked low and avoided my strike by a few inches before using all four of his limbs to jump to the side. He already destabilized himself way before I reached the ground and when I did do it, the dirt that flew around the place from my bat hitting the soil didn't do anything to stop him from throwing three daggers directly to my chest.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

I blocked two but one hit me in the stomach and it was then that I realized that I still have three other daggers embedded in my skin. Now four. I thought with a silent grimace. Guess being numb to pain isn't all that great after all.

Cold and Qi washed my entire body and the pain started to die.

I didn't even bother trying to remove the dagger and just charged, I aimed high, and when I got close, I struck downwards. The bat met dirt and the Ninja is nowhere to be seen.

I chased, dodging two more daggers by going so far right that they didn't even have a target. No more blocks. I promised to myself as I got close to the Ninja for the second time and again, I raised my bat high, then swung down-

Another Ninja joined the fray, this one holding nun-chucks. In the span of 2 seconds, he started rotating his weapon, transferring it from hand to hand before charging me and hitting extremely fast. Even with my promise, I didn't have a choice, I started blocking while avoiding any dagger that tried to take my life. I couldn't even use the Nun-chuck ninja as a shield because for some reason, the guy just knew where and when the other one is gonna throw, allowing him to move out of the way and me to almost get hit.

During the times I dodged, a chuck would hit me.

That went on until I got tired enough to use my Qi to create a small snowstorm, the resulting frost pelted away at the nun-chuck Ninja but did nothing at the one throwing daggers at me so I made my choice, I'd kill the nearest Ninja to me first before moving on and killing the other one.

A dagger flew my way and I dodged, then something hard hit me in the back. With a pissed off glare, I focused on the Nun-chuck wielding fucker and started swinging wildly, Qi started to pour at every part of my body except for my arms, causing the heat around me to die off as I started to get colder and colder. Mist formed underneath me with every step and thick bouts of ice would grow like mold on the spot where my soles once touched.

I kept swinging and swinging, all the while the snowstorm around me got stronger, a dagger came here and there but a quick block did the job, then I'd restart everything by doing a haphazard swing before turning it into a full-blown strike that missed my enemy but did the job of keeping him at bay. Again and again, I'd miss and the Ninja would dodge, I tried taking in longer strides knowing that I'd cover more distance that way but somewhere down the line, my own motor skills started failing and for some unknown reason, my body coordination just failed.

I'd take a long step forward, then my bat would follow a second later. Too slow. I thought. Those two things are supposed to go together because the swing is both an attack and a way for me to raise my guard, if I take a step before my swing well-

I gasped when a Nun-chuck hit my chest, "alright, fuck it."

The blizzard grew wild.

Then something sharp pierced my chest, breaking the ice and going through my body before coming out the other end as a blood soaked mess. I coughed out blood and stared at the spear that stabbed me, it was green, with bits of red flowing down on its. The red stained it more with each passing second but I would've figured it out even if I'm half blind- A plant?

I turned my head to where I saw Li Ming last and noted that yes, she's there, fighting the two other Ninjas still but she still somehow found the time to stab me in the chest.

I coughed out another mouthful of blood. Did those two really die when I went all out back then?

Did they? Then why didn't I feel my Qi increase? Come to think of it, I killed that Ninja too didn't I? Was I just numb when I cultivated earlier? Is that why I couldn't feel anything related to my Qi?

"Y-you crippled them!" I heard a feminine voice through the cold and haziness. My mind is starting to wander and the edges of my vision is becoming darker by the second, "No matter how much you tried to help us," again, the feminine voice said but I'm starting to lose my focus. Everything felt fuzzy, I can't even understand what she's saying anymore. "You still broke both of them!"

That yell sounded pained and a part of me started to worry, I thought that I needed to save the girl but I knew in my current condition that I couldn't. Unless-

For the second time, I released the reins of my Qi circulation.