I had no intention of entering the martial world.

Chapter 14 Poison Arrow

The carriage resumed its journey, but at a much slower pace.

Although the axle was temporarily reinforced with hemp rope, it still made a grating creaking sound with every bump, like the groan of a dying old man. The blue mule pulling the cart also seemed to sense the unease, snorting from time to time, its hooves kicking up fine dust from the road.

Shen Xingyao sat on the carriage shaft, holding the reins in her hand, her gaze occasionally sweeping over the dense forest on both sides of the road. Her back was ramrod straight.

Lu Chenzhou walked on the left side of the carriage, about three steps away. This position protected the axle—allowing him to deflect any arrows that came at him—and also gave him a clear view of the road ahead. His steps were steady, and his breathing was calm and long, as if the brief conflict had never happened.

Only the hand holding the sword, and the fresh bloodstain on the tiger's mouth, reminded people of what had just happened.

"Young Master Lu," Shen Xingyao suddenly spoke, her voice soft but clear, "thank you for earlier."

Lu Chenzhou didn't turn around: "It was nothing."

Shen Xingyao was silent for a moment, then asked, "Judging from your accent, Young Master Lu isn't a local?"

"They came from the north."

"North?" Shen Xingyao's tone rose slightly. "North...?"

Before he could finish speaking, Lu Chenzhou suddenly looked up!

Almost simultaneously, Shen Xingyao tightened the reins in his hand, and the blue mule let out a neigh and reared up!

"call out--!"

A piercing sound tore through the air as three jet-black arrows shot out from the dense forest on the left. One was aimed at Shen Xingyao's face, one at the broken axle, and the third was aimed at the eye of the green mule pulling the cart!

Poisonous, and cunning.

Lu Chenzhou moved.

He didn't draw his sword. There wasn't enough time. He simply took half a step forward with his left foot, his body suddenly releasing like a fully drawn bow, his right hand forming a sword-like gesture, pointing in mid-air at the arrow aimed at the axle!

"Ding!"

The fingertips struck the arrow, producing a crisp, metallic clang! The arrow was deflected, embedding itself diagonally in the wheel, its fletching still trembling.

Shen Xingyao reacted even faster. Without even looking at the arrow aimed at her, she simply raised her left hand, drew her short sword, and with a ripple of light like autumn water, precisely severed the arrow shaft! The broken arrow grazed her temple, pulling down a few strands of hair.

The third arrow, the one aimed at the green mule's eye, was too late for Lu Chenzhou to block.

But he did something else.

He slammed his right foot into the ground and rammed into the green mule's neck like a cannonball!

"Bang!"

A dull thud. The blue mule staggered from the impact, the arrow grazing its ear before embedding itself in a tree trunk by the roadside, its fletching whirring.

Startled, the mule reared up and was about to gallop away, but Shen Xingyao held the reins tightly and shouted at it sternly, barely managing to keep it steady.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye.

From within the dense forest came a very soft "Eh," as if surprised that the attack had been completely neutralized.

Then, silence.

A deathly silence.

Only the heavy breathing of the mule and the creaking of the wheels over the gravel could be heard.

Shen Xingyao's knuckles turned white as she gripped the reins. She looked at Lu Chenzhou, who had already returned to his original position and was looking down at his fingertips—the two fingers that had deflected the arrows were now slightly swollen and red, with blood seeping from under his nails.

"You..." Shen Xingyao wanted to say something, but swallowed the words back.

Lu Chenzhou shook his hand, pulled a small strip of cloth from his pocket, and hastily wrapped it around his fingers. The movement was very practiced, as if he had done it countless times.

"Let's go," he said. "They won't just have this one wave."

Shen Xingyao gritted her teeth and gave the reins a sharp tug: "Giddy up!"

The carriage sped up again, but this time, the axles groaned even louder.

Lu Chenzhou walked beside the car, his eyes scanning both sides warily. The dense forest, with its thick foliage, was an excellent ambush location. Those three arrows were merely a test; the real killing blow was likely yet to come.

Sure enough, after walking less than half a mile, three people appeared at the bend in the official road ahead.

They were all dressed in black, but not masked. The leader was a tall, thin man, about forty years old, with a sallow complexion, carrying a long, black spear. The spear was a foot shorter than a normal spear, and the tip had an eerie dark red hue, as if it had been coated with some kind of poison.

Behind him were two men, one fat and one thin. The fat man carried a machete, its blade gleaming coldly; the thin man held a short fork in each hand, the tips of which were also dark red.

The three of them stood brazenly in the middle of the road, blocking the way.

Shen Xingyao pulled on the reins, and the carriage slowly came to a stop.

"The Sihai Escort Agency's vehicle?" the tall, thin man asked, his voice hoarse and unpleasant, like sandpaper scraping against sheet metal. "Leave the goods, and you can leave."

Shen Xingyao jumped out of the carriage, her short sword pointing diagonally at the ground: "Sihai Escort Agency, as long as we are here, we will be there."

"Tsk." The tall, thin man shook his head. "A young girl like you, why learn to fight like that?" His gaze swept over Lu Chenzhou. "Was it you who deflected my third brother's arrow just now?"

Lu Chenzhou didn't speak. He simply unsheathed the iron sword from his back and held it in his hand.

"Interesting." The tall, thin man chuckled, his smile chilling. "You seem quite skilled. I'll give you a chance—get lost now, or I won't kill you."

Lu Chenzhou remained silent. He took two steps forward and stood beside Shen Xingyao.

The smile on the tall, thin man's face gradually disappeared.

"You're courting death." He spat out the two words, and with a flick of his spear, three cold stars burst forth from the tip, aiming straight for Lu Chenzhou's upper, middle, and lower body!

Fast! Ruthless! Vicious!

This shot was more cunning and insidious than the arrow from before. The spearhead was dark red, clearly coated with a potent poison; even a slight graze would have unimaginable consequences.

Lu Chenzhou didn't retreat. He didn't even move.

He simply watched the three cold stars draw closer, the eerie dark red on the tip of the spear, and the cruel smile that flashed in the eyes of the tall, thin man.

Then, just as the spear tip was about to touch him, he moved.

It wasn't dodging, it wasn't blocking, it was... meeting them head-on!

He stepped forward with his left foot, turned his body to the side, dodging two spears aimed at his throat and chest. A third spear was aimed at his abdomen, but he lightly deflected it with the scabbard in his right hand—

"clang!"

The spear tip was deflected, grazing his side and tearing his coarse cloth clothes, but without injuring his skin.

Lu Chenzhou's left hand had already reached out like a ghost and gripped the gun barrel!

The tall, thin man's expression changed. He tried to draw his gun, but found that the barrel was welded to the other man's hand and wouldn't budge!

"Let go!" he shouted, exerting force with his right hand, causing the gun to tremble violently, trying to shake off Lu Chenzhou's hand.

But Lu Chenzhou's hand remained as steady as a rock.

He even twisted his wrist, following the force of the tremor—

"Snap!"

He actually managed to twist the gun barrel off!

The tall, thin man retreated in shock, looking at the broken gun barrel in his hand, fear appearing in his eyes for the first time.

"you……"

Before he finished speaking, Lu Chenzhou had already moved.

The broken spear tip was still flying in the air when he drew his iron sword from its sheath in his right hand. The sword light was as black as ink, drawing a dark arc as it slashed towards the tall, thin man's neck!

There was no wind, no warning, only an extremely fast and chilling killing intent.

The tall, thin man's pupils constricted sharply, and he desperately tilted his head back, simultaneously holding the broken gun barrel horizontally in front of him—

"laugh!"

A soft sound. The gun barrel was severed, and the blade grazed his throat, drawing a bead of blood.

The tall, thin man staggered backward, clutching his neck, dark red blood seeping from between his fingers. It wasn't a fatal wound, but it was enough to incapacitate him.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye.

The fat man and the skinny man then realized what was happening and charged forward with a roar!

The axe cleaves down with tremendous force; the short fork strikes from the left and right ribs, treacherous and vicious.

Lu Chenzhou advanced instead of retreating.

He ducked to avoid the axe, then slashed with his iron sword at the fat man's axe-wielding wrist; at the same time, his left foot kicked out silently, striking the skinny man in the back of the knee!

"Snap!" "Ah!"

Two sharp cracks rang out almost simultaneously. The fat man's wrist was severed, and the axe flew out of his hand; the skinny man's knee was shattered, and he screamed as he knelt on the ground.

Three breaths. All three were rendered useless.

Lu Chenzhou sheathed his sword and took a step back. A drop of blood slowly slid down the blade, landing in the dust and blooming into a dark red flower.

He looked at Shen Xingyao.

Shen Xingyao remained in the sword-wielding posture, but her eyes were wide open, and her gaze towards Lu Chenzhou was full of shock.

She knew this young man was extraordinary, but she never expected him to be... this extraordinary.

She recognized the three men in black. "Poison Gun" Zhao San, "Mountain Axe" Wang Mang, and "Double-Forked Ghost" Li Qi were all notorious bandits in the Jiangling area, with no fewer than ten lives on their hands.

But in front of this young man, they were like three chickens waiting to be slaughtered, with no room for resistance.

"Let's go," Lu Chenzhou said, his voice still calm, as if he had just casually swatted a few flies.