Chapter 00138: Fight Your Way Out (Part 1)
# Fight Your Way Out (Part 1)
Chapter 138
Novel: AFK Game: Portal to Another World
Chapter 138: Fight Your Way Out (Part 1)
Though it was the early hours of the morning, the sky was still profoundly dark.
The sun had yet to rise, and the moon had already traveled to the west.
It was the so-called darkest moment before the dawn.
Some in the inn were still snoring away in deep slumber, but quite a few had sensed that the atmosphere was amiss.
Yet, no one dared to venture out and investigate.
Even those who were awake feigned sleep, their ears pricked for any sound, or they would peek stealthily through the cracks in their doors.
Matters of the Jianghu were to be settled by those within it.
Should one stumble upon others engaged in affairs not meant for public eyes and insist on being a witness, it would likely be detrimental to one's health...
Dozens of men clad in black moved soundlessly through the corridor, surrounding the only room with a lit lamp in three layers, both inside and out.
However, they did not rush in at once.
The Plum Blossom Guard were much like the Embroidered Uniform Guard, notorious no matter where they went.
But in the end, they still had a need to save face.
They believed that if this matter could be handled silently, it would be much easier to claim credit for their success.
But the men sent in to do the deed made no sound.
Thus, the main force had entered quietly and was now awaiting orders.
As time ticked by, minute by minute, there was still no sound from within the room.
If they waited any longer, the sky would brighten, and when the common folk emerged, an encounter with this band of men in black would likely be a tad awkward.
The Qianhu in charge of the operation could wait no longer and gave the order to force their way in.
Just as the men in black on either side of the door raised their long-handled sabers, ready to storm in, a red-tasseled spear pierced through the wooden door.
With a sweep of its shaft to the left and right, the two halves of the door flew towards the men in black on either side.
The Plum Blossom Guard had clearly not anticipated the door panels flying toward them.
For a moment, they were thrown into disarray, caught squarely by the impact.
"This young lady is here! Who dares to face me!"
Wielding the red-tasseled spear, Zheng Yinping stood majestically in the doorway.
A sweep of the spearhead forced back the advancing Plum Blossom Guard with their sabers.
Without stopping her steps, she spun, thrust, smashed, and swung the shaft, the single spear keeping every Plum Blossom Guard in the corridor at bay.
Though many in the Jianghu preferred the sword, in truth, the spear was the king of all weapons.
The long spear had a very low skill floor; even a novice with a few days of simple training could be sent to the battlefield as cannon fodder.
Yet, its skill ceiling was also incredibly high.
As the saying goes, 'a month to learn the staff, a year for the saber, but a lifetime for the spear.' It was a weapon that could unleash formidable power in the hands of both a master and a fledgling.
It was for this very reason that the imperial court forbade commoners from possessing spears, while the controls on swords and sabers were comparatively lax.
The inn's corridor was not wide.
All Zheng Yinping had to do was sweep her red-tasseled spear to seal off a large section.
The Plum Blossom Guard, armed with their long-handled sabers, could not approach.
Any who were headstrong enough to charge would either be run through or slammed into the wall by the spear's shaft.
Li Yingluo followed closely behind Zheng Yinping, a longsword in hand, her main task to clean up any fish that slipped through the net.
After all, no matter how powerful the long spear was, it wasn't as if a single touch meant death and a mere graze meant injury.
For instance, when a Plum Blossom Guard was swept aside by the red-tasseled spear, he might seize the moment the shaft was moving to leap forward and chop at Zheng Yinping's head.
It was then that Li Yingluo needed to fill the gap.
As the saying goes, one is influenced by their companions.
Having a close friend who wielded a long spear like a fierce general, it was impossible for Li Yingluo to be a simple, delicate maiden.
Her martial arts were not as practiced as Zheng Yinping's, but her swordsmanship had a very unique character.
It was neither the righteous and proper Gentleman Sword, nor the majestic and powerful Kingly Sword, nor was it the elusive and unpredictable Ghost Sword.
The sword forms seemed ordinary, yet in Li Yingluo's hands, they carried the grace of a high-born lady.
It was less a sword style and more of a sword dance.
But a sword is a weapon.
Regardless of how much humanistic sentiment one bestows upon it, its primary purpose will always be to kill.
Li Yingluo moved like an agile butterfly performing a dance, forming a dense sword net at Zheng Yinping's side.
The two of them, with their long and short weapons, cooperated with perfect tacit understanding.
At times, they would even intentionally let a few Plum Blossom Guard in to ease the pressure on the red-tasseled spear.
Ordinary grunts were simply unable to stop them.
The pair pushed their way fiercely down the corridor like a bulldozer.
And Yang Yiyi, she wielded her 'Compliant Golden-Hooped Staff', responsible for guarding the rear.
The men in black, still dizzy from being struck in the head by the door panels, had just raised their eyes when they saw a copper-capped black ironwood rod smashing down at them.
They immediately sank into a peaceful slumber.
Yang Yiyi casually executed a 'Rampaging Monkey Swings Rod'.
With a series of crisp clanging sounds, the long-handled sabers in the hands of several Plum Blossom Guard were sent flying, some even shattering upon impact.
Because Li Chengxi had allocated all of his attribute points to her physique, Yang Yiyi's strength was immense.
Adding to that, the Hundred-year Black Ironwood Rod was a treasure in its own right.
The combination of the two was incredibly potent.
The three maintained this formation as they pushed forward.
This stretch of the path was traversed smoothly, but trouble soon arrived.
The Plum Blossom Guard had been beaten back initially purely because they were caught off guard, and the corridor was too narrow to leverage their numerical superiority.
By the time the trio retreated to the inn's courtyard, preparing to cross it to reach the main hall and exit the inn, the wide-open space instantly increased the pressure on them tenfold.
Zheng Yinping wielded her great spear, parrying left and thrusting right, but the men before her seemed endless.
They continuously poured out from behind the rockeries in the courtyard, making one suspect just how many men the Plum Blossom Guard had mobilized to capture her.
The inn was built in a square shape around a central courtyard.
The courtyard itself was open to the sky, decorated with some rockeries and a few stalks of bamboo.
"Watch the rooftops!"
In any case, with the chaos and the number of people, no one paid any mind to where the shout had come from.
Li Chengxi had hurriedly reminded the three to be wary of the rooftops.
From Li Chengxi's forty-five-degree, top-down perspective, he could see at a glance several men in black crouching on the roof tiles, pulling out items like throwing darts from within their robes.
The moment his words fell, several glints of cold light were seen piercing the darkness in a surprise attack.
Zheng Yinping immediately demonstrated her superb spear-dancing technique.
She actually wielded the great iron spear so swiftly that it seemed to bend into a U-shape, instantly shielding her front.
Li Yingluo's footwork, in contrast, was light and ethereal.
The incoming darts were batted away before they even came close to her.
Yang Yiyi's method was far more simple and direct.
She immediately twirled her Compliant Golden-Hooped Staff like a great windmill.
A portion of the darts was deflected, and any that got through simply bounced off the tiger fur vest she wore.
"We cannot linger here. Let's go!"
Zheng Yinping's spear struck out like a dragon.
With a few humming sweeps, she cleared away the Plum Blossom Guard blocking their path and lunged forward to clear a way.
There was no time to sweep the area clean as they had just done.
They had to take the path as soon as it was open, otherwise, as the number of Plum Blossom Guard grew, the three of them would be overwhelmed by sheer numbers, no matter how capable they were.
Li Yingluo, of course, stayed close behind her childhood friend, her sword meeting the Plum Blossom Guard who tried to flank them from the left and right.
Yang Yiyi forced back an enemy who seized the chance to attack.
Seeing the others move on, she quickly followed, using the consecutive hops of Monkey Fist footwork.
A smash of the copper hoop brought down a man in black who was trying to circle around to her back.
"Watch this hidden weapon!"
She then gave her staff a flourish.
With a motion like a monkey tossing a pebble at a passerby, she let the staff fly with a whoosh, sending it toward the man in black who was crouching on the tiles above, the one who had been throwing the darts.
This 'hidden weapon' was not small in the least.
Especially since Yang Yiyi had thrown it using the 'Mischievous Monkey Throwing Method', its force was far greater than any mere throwing dart.
The man in black crouching on the roof felt a gale accompanied by the sound of thunder wash over him.
He had just stood up to dodge when the 'Compliant Golden-Hooped Staff' had already smashed into his side.
He let out a wretched scream and rolled off the tiles, and one could even faintly hear the sound of bones breaking.
However, throwing away her weapon meant losing her advantage in reach.
Two long-handled sabers immediately closed in on Yang Yiyi, who was guarding the rear.
They came from her left and right, slashing toward her ribs.
If she wasn't careful, she would literally have blades stuck in both her sides.
(End of Chapter)