Chapter 203
Chapter 203
The female warrior captain said.
"I'm sorry. We only follow our master's orders."
Her words provoked Qiu Xiao. This was precisely the kind of thing he hated most. Qiu Yao'er had always disregarded everyone else, and the warriors under her command were no different. Raging Tide City was a pirate confederation formed by numerous pirate crews. Qiu Tianwei reigned as the leader and king of this confederation, so all pirates revered him as their master. Now that he was older, Pirate King Qiu Tianwei focused more on defending Raging Tide City than personally leading his forces into battle. Eventually, the great pirate army under Qiu Tianwei was divided into several factions.
The elite troops directly led by Pirate King Qiu Tianwei numbered a full ten thousand. In addition, Young Lord Qiu Xiao commanded eight thousand pirates, his adopted son Qiu Hu commanded five thousand, and Qiu Yao'er commanded six thousand. However, as Qiu Yao'er personally led her soldiers into battle and achieved victory after victory, the forces under her command began to grow. Now, the number of soldiers under Qiu Yao'er had swelled to nearly ten thousand, putting her on nearly equal footing with Pirate King Qiu Tianwei himself.
Of course, among her ten thousand pirates, only two thousand were truly elite, direct-line soldiers; the rest were a disorderly mob. But those two thousand elites would not move even on Pirate King Qiu Tianwei's command. They served only Qiu Yao'er as their master and paid no heed to anyone else.
Qiu Xiao said coldly.
"The fortress you live in belongs to my family, and the land you stand on belongs to my family. Even Qiu Yao'er is a member of my family. If my father hadn't taken her in and raised her all those years ago, she would have long been dead and feeding the fish. All of you, get out of my way. I'll kill anyone who blocks my path."
Qiu Xiao shouted as he drew his sword, and the dozen or so female warriors also drew their scimitars.
"Move, or you'll regret it."
"Young Lord Qiu Xiao, please leave this place at once. Otherwise, we will kill you as ordered."
A vicious smile crossed Qiu Xiao's face.
"You brought this upon yourselves."
His sword shot forward, and the dozen female warriors instantly surrounded him. A fierce battle erupted. Qiu Xiao was incredibly fierce, and his martial arts skills were superior to Jin Mulan's. Last time, he had held an overwhelming advantage when he fought Jin Shiying. Therefore, even against a dozen female warriors, he would still have the upper hand.
Moreover, he was the Young Lord of Raging Tide City. The female warriors could block him, but they wouldn't dare to kill him. This meant they couldn't attack ruthlessly, whereas Qiu Xiao could be as vicious as he pleased.
*Swish, swish, swish.*
Three vicious slashes sent bright red blood spraying, but no screams of pain were heard. Three female warriors collapsed to the ground, their bodies deeply cut. It was hard to tell if they were dead or alive. Qiu Xiao laughed cruelly.
"Still want to stop me?"
Seeing the gruesome state of her comrades, the female warrior captain's eyes looked as if they would burst. She screamed.
"Show no mercy! Kill him!"
The remaining female warriors began to attack like madwomen, holding nothing back with each strike. But Qiu Xiao's martial arts were formidable. Even as they fought desperately, they fell like autumn leaves, while Qiu Xiao remained unscathed, seemingly with strength to spare.
*Slash, slash, slash.*
Again, his sword flashed viciously several times, and three more female warriors fell into a pool of their own blood.
"Hahahaha...! How satisfying, how utterly satisfying...!"
Qiu Xiao seemed to be enjoying killing the female warriors, his attacks growing even more malicious. The female warrior captain felt a fire of anxiety burning within her. There were fewer than ten of them left; it seemed they couldn't stop this beast. But their master had ordered that no man was ever to enter her room, and their master's word was sacrosanct.
"Attack together!"
The remaining female warriors attacked with the desperation of those ready to sacrifice their lives, using techniques meant to take the enemy down with them. They put their lives on the line with every move, even using their own bodies as weapons to block Qiu Xiao's blade and create an opening for their comrades. *Kill him, kill him, kill him! Let's die together, take him with us.*
*Slash.*
At that moment, Qiu Xiao's face contorted in pain as a blade cut across his back.
"This bitch dared to wound me?"
He spun around and kicked viciously at the female warrior who had cut him. She was sent flying over ten meters, spitting up a mouthful of bright red blood. Enraged by the unexpected wound, his sword and movements became even faster and more ruthless. The female warriors continued to fall.
*Slash!*
Qiu Xiao swung his sword and pressed the blade against the captain's neck. Instantly, the few remaining female warriors froze, unable to move, glaring at Qiu Xiao with murderous intent. Qiu Xiao spoke in a chilling voice.
"If I so wished, your head would be rolling on the ground. Do you still intend to stop me?"
Overcome with shame, the female warrior's eyes became bloodshot. Her master had ordered her to guard the door, yet even with more than a dozen of them standing watch, they had failed. What was the point of living if she was so incompetent?
"Even in death, I will never let you go. Let's die together!"
The female warrior captain let out a fierce cry and charged at Qiu Xiao.
"If you're so eager to die, I'll grant your wish."
Qiu Xiao swung his sword with all his might. In the next instant, the female warrior captain's head was about to fly.
*Clang!*
Suddenly, a shooting star shot out from the darkness. A single gold coin, flying from an unknown location, struck Qiu Xiao's sword. Sparks flew as an immense force knocked the sword from his hand and wounded his palm. That a mere gold coin could possess the terrifying power of a hidden weapon was enough to make one's hair stand on end. A chill ran down Qiu Xiao's spine as he looked at his hand, now dripping with blood.
"Who is it? Who dares to interfere with my business?"
In response to his voice, a sensual and beautiful figure emerged from the darkness. From the silhouette alone, Qiu Xiao knew who it was. Qiu Yao'er! Though he tried to act confident, his legs grew weak with fear. *What's going on? Wasn't she in her room? Didn't she inhale my aphrodisiac and succumb to its effects? How did she appear from outside?*
Qiu Xiao asked her.
"What... what were you doing?"
Qiu Yao'er replied.
"A duel!"
A duel? He now remembered that today was the day she was scheduled to duel with Zhu Hongxue. Seeing Qiu Yao'er return unharmed, she must have won. To think she could defeat someone as strong as Zhu Hongxue. This meant she hadn't been poisoned by the aphrodisiac. Perhaps the incense was lit too late, or Xu Qianqian and the female physician were poisoned, but Qiu Yao'er had left the room before she was affected. Otherwise, how could she have rushed off to a duel and even emerged victorious? Against the powerful Qiu Yao'er, he was no match at all.
The female warrior captain said.
"Master, the incense in the room was poisoned. I've already extinguished it through the window. But this subordinate was incompetent and allowed this beast to injure seven of our sisters."
"Take them for treatment immediately. Spare no expense. Make sure they recover fully."
"Yes."
As the female warrior captain replied, the other warriors helped their fallen sisters from the pools of blood and prepared to leave to find a physician. Qiu Xiao's fear intensified. What did it mean that Qiu Yao'er was dismissing them? It meant she didn't consider him a threat at all.
For over a decade, Qiu Xiao had tried to sleep with Qiu Yao'er, but despite all his schemes, he had never even managed to touch her. Why? Because Qiu Yao'er was too strong, and she had instilled a great fear in his heart. Every time he saw her kill, Qiu Xiao would tremble, yet his desire for her would only grow stronger. If he hadn't been certain she would be poisoned by the aphrodisiac, would he have dared to come and defile her?
Now, it was clear that Qiu Yao'er was not poisoned at all. The way she had flicked that gold coin just now showed she was brimming with astonishing energy. How could she possibly be poisoned? To confront an unpoisoned Qiu Yao'er and try to defile her was to court death.
"Qiu Xiao, I have overlooked your transgressions many times because you are my brother. But now you have harmed my people. This time, I will not forgive you."
From the darkness, Qiu Yao'er's furious voice trembled slightly.
*Boom!*
A loud noise echoed, and sparks flew as Qiu Yao'er's guandao thrust forward. In that instant, a stone lion weighing several hundred pounds materialized and opened its maw, flying toward Qiu Xiao on a gust of wind. Qiu Xiao was so horrified that all his lust vanished, and he fled for his life. His life was what mattered most, so he ran straight for his father's fortress.
"Qiu Yao'er, just you wait! Raging Tide City will be mine. One day, I'll have you crying beneath me!"
Shouting a line worthy of a pathetic villain making his exit, Qiu Xiao fled in an instant, leaving no trace behind.
Only after Qiu Xiao had fled far away did Qiu Yao'er step out of the darkness. She seemed like a completely different person. Her entire body was flushed, as if dyed by rose petals. Her lips were a stained red, looking as if they might breathe fire. She could no longer stand on her own and had to use her guandao for support. Her whole body was drenched in fragrant sweat, soaking through her clothes. Her eyes were hazy, as if she had burned through her last shred of reason. She had used up all her remaining strength just to chase Qiu Xiao away.
It was a good thing Qiu Xiao had fled; otherwise, Qiu Yao'er's only option would have been to kill herself. The drug's effect was burning through her entire body, leaving her with no strength to resist. Her vision was already blurring, and she looked as if she had completely lost her mind.
"Where is the female physician? She can save me. She has to save me!"
Following her last instinct, Qiu Yao'er stumbled toward her room and threw open the door. Inside, she saw a person writhing in agony on the floor.
*'Is this... the female physician? But why is her body different from a woman's?'*
Normally, Qiu Yao'er would have been repulsed by the mere presence of a man, but now, it was like being in a room filled with leaking gas. A single spark could ignite the entire room in an instant explosion. And so... Qiu Yao'er exploded. The small spark that was Shen Lang instantly ignited the flames within her, and they erupted into a raging inferno.
Her last sliver of reason completely crumbled. Qiu Yao'er violently shook the pirate battle uniform she was wearing, shattering it. Yes, she had truly shaken it to pieces. In an instant, her uniform disintegrated, revealing her stunning and mesmerizingly beautiful body.
She pounced on Shen Lang like a madwoman. Something dreadful had happened. Qiu Yao'er had become a beast. A tragic scream echoed from within the room. The precious treasure Shen Lang had guarded for over forty years could no longer be protected; it was stolen from him completely.