TRWSB – Chapter 183 Come to the rescue

Waiting halfway up the mountain, Jiang Qinxin and the others were visibly surprised when they saw Qi Heng appear.

“Qi Heng, what are you doing here?” Jiang Qinxin asked.

Qi Heng looked at Jiang Qinxin and replied coldly, “Am I not allowed to be here?”

Jiang Qinxin glanced behind Qi Heng at Zuo Yunfei and forced a smile. “Of course not, I just find it strange. Young Master Qi and Young Master Zhuang went elsewhere—I didn’t expect you to be here, Young Master Heng. Did you split up?”

Qi Heng cast Jiang Qinxin a glance but said nothing.

Jiang Qinxin turned to Zuo Yunfei behind Qi Heng and greeted him, “Young Master Zuo, you’re back!”

Zuo Yunfei kept his eyes fixed on Qi Heng and completely ignored Jiang Qinxin’s greeting. Jiang Qinxin quietly rubbed her hands, feeling rather awkward.

Jiang He looked between Zuo Yunfei and Qi Heng, sensing that something felt off.

Tang Tianying, walking behind Qi Heng, looked uncomfortable upon seeing the princes of Jin.

“Young Master Zuo, should we continue?” one of the Jin princes asked as he approached Zuo Yunfei.

“Of course,” Zuo Yunfei said, but his eyes remained locked on Qi Heng. Since Qi Heng didn’t move, neither did Zuo Yunfei.

Seeing this, the prince didn’t push further.

Zuo Yunfei kept staring at Qi Heng, and the prince followed his gaze.

Feeling all eyes on him, Qi Heng couldn’t help but scowl.

“Your Highness, let’s go,” Qi Heng said to Tang Tianying.

Overwhelmed by the strange behavior of everyone around them, Tang Tianying quickly nodded and replied eagerly, “Alright.”

Tang Tianying soon realized, much to his headache, that as he and Qi Heng started walking, Zuo Yunfei followed them.

“Young Master Heng,” Tang Tianying called out with a bitter expression.

Qi Heng glanced back and said, “Ignore them.”

Tang Tianying held his forehead and thought to himself: What a weird vibe! People always say Zuo Yunfei is eccentric—seems the rumors were right. The young master of the Zuo family is acting like a stalker.

“Young Master Qi, do you think we can shake them off?” Tang Tianying whispered.

Qi Heng glanced at him and said, “If the young master were here, probably. I’m not skilled enough.”

Tang Tianying: “…”

Tang Tianying turned his head and caught the Jin prince staring at him as well, with an eerie look in his eyes that made Tang Tianying feel like he was sitting on pins and needles.

Scratching his head, Tang Tianying thought: There’s only one Princess Yueting. If I find the red cherry blossom, will the Jin prince pounce and snatch it away?

Qi Shaorong was steering the sea vessel forward, while Zhuang Hao stood at the bow, continuously controlling the sea beasts along the way to attack the ships pursuing them.

Thanks to Zhuang Hao’s efforts, only one of the four pursuing ships remained. Though just one ship was left, it carried three level-nine experts. Zhuang Hao had no desire to engage them directly, so he kept using sea beasts to harass and obstruct them.

Zhuang Hao’s beast-taming skills had become highly refined through constant practice. Taming sea beasts along the way was a breeze. Meanwhile, the ones trailing behind were exhausted and harried by the endless onslaught.

“This Zhuang Hao kid is too slippery.”

“He keeps summoning sea beasts to stop us, without lifting a finger himself.”

“Does this lunatic not realize that entering the heart of the Dela Mountains is a death sentence? If he keeps going this deep, we’ll all die with him!”

“Zhuang Hao is formidable, but this Qi Shaorong is also quite a handful. We focused too much on how to deal with Zhuang Hao and underestimated Qi Shaorong.”

“It’s too late for that now.”

…

Zhuang Hao turned to look at their pursuers and said, “Those guys are still sticking to us like glue. I’ll give them a little taste.”

Qi Shaorong nodded. “Alright. But there are four of them—be careful.”

Zhuang Hao grabbed his staff and stepped out. The ship was near the shore, making the water element abundant and water magic easier to use. Waving his staff, he summoned massive tidal waves.

Gigantic waves rose into the sky, and dragons of water danced over the sea’s surface.

“What kind of magic is this? It’s so powerful!”

“It looks like water magic—‘Tidal Havoc.’”

“Ninth-level magic like ‘Tidal Havoc’ has this much power?”

“He may already be approaching the next threshold,” one level-nine expert said.

“How’s that possible? He’s so young!”

“If we don’t eliminate him now, it’ll be even harder later.”

…

“Did we lose them?” Qi Shaorong asked.

Zhuang Hao shook his head. “Nope.”

Qi Shaorong muttered, “These guys are really persistent.”

“Well, they are level-nine experts, not just any average thugs. But I’ve got a plan.”

Zhuang Hao pulled out several vials of Beast Lure Elixir and tossed them into the sea.

The elixir merged with the seawater. Zhuang Hao summoned a wave and turned the elixir-infused water into rain that poured onto the ship tailing them.

Narrowing his eyes, Zhuang Hao let a mischievous glint flash across his gaze.

“What did you just do?” Qi Shaorong asked.

“Full speed ahead! That entire ship is soaked in Beast Lure Elixir. They’re now the tastiest bait in the sea,” Zhuang Hao said smugly.

Qi Shaorong chuckled and replied, “Good. Let the sea beasts give them some attention. Let’s go.”

Zhuang Hao nodded. “Right!”

On a branch range of the Rade Mountains.

Qi Heng walked in front, with Tang Tianying following behind.

A demonic beast suddenly appeared. Without saying a word, Qi Heng hurled a bunch of scrolls at it, and the beast was instantly blown away by the explosion.

Tang Tianying choked slightly. Qi Heng’s attacks had always been explosive, but ever since encountering Zuo Yunfei, they seemed even more intense.

Normally, Qi Heng would use magic to handle such beasts, but now he had only one method—smash! Take that beast just now, it was only a level five beast, yet Qi Heng used a level seven magic scroll on it! Such a waste!

Tang Tianying glanced at Zuo Yunfei and thought to himself: So this guy likes to freeload too. Just following behind them without lifting a finger and reaping all the benefits!

Zuo Yunfei stood with his arms crossed, watching Qi Heng work with a lazy demeanor.

With such a clearly “ill-intentioned” person following behind, Tang Tianying couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

Qi Heng pressed on in silence, his face grim.

He had been walking in the mountains for over four hours, and Zuo Yunfei had followed him patiently the entire time.

Suddenly, the sound of birdsong rang out. A giant golden bird swooped down from the mountaintop.

“Metal-Eating Bird,” Qi Heng said, stepping back a few paces as he looked up at the descending beast.

The bird’s massive figure blocked out the sun as it landed, casting a huge shadow.

It locked its eyes on Qi Heng and snatched him up into the sky.

The Metal-Eating Bird fed on metals, and Qi Heng’s body constitution—Pure Gold Physique—was extremely attractive to it.

“Heng Shao!” Tang Tianying called out in alarm.

Zuo Yunfei responded instantly with a flash of lightning. A blade of purple light sliced the Metal-Eating Bird’s claw in two.

Qi Heng, who had been caught midair, plummeted from hundreds of meters up. Zuo Yunfei dashed forward and caught him just in time.

His speed was incredibly fast, narrowly saving Qi Heng from a deadly fall.

Tang Tianying rubbed his nose and thought: What’s going on between these two? Just earlier, Zuo Yunfei looked like he wanted to strangle Qi Heng, and now he’s saving him?

Zuo Yunfei’s eyes, as he looked at Qi Heng, flickered with relief, anger, worry, and regret.

Surviving the ordeal brought Qi Heng a brief sense of joy, but as he realized he was in Zuo Yunfei’s arms, discomfort quickly took over.

“What are you doing?” Qi Heng asked.

Hearing him speak, Zuo Yunfei tossed Qi Heng aside like trash.

Qi Heng let out a muffled grunt as he hit the ground.

Zuo Yunfei glanced at him with a strange look in his eyes.

Tang Tianying quickly approached and asked with concern, “Heng Shao, are you okay? You’re hurt.”

Qi Heng shook his head. “I’m fine.”

His shoulders were clawed and his robes torn, revealing three deep bloody gashes.

Zuo Yunfei eyed the wounds and mocked coldly, “I warned you not to get involved in this mess. Your abilities aren’t enough. Don’t take on things beyond your limits. Haven’t you heard of knowing your own strength? People who don’t know their place will always pay the price.”

Qi Heng shot him a cold glare. “You sure talk a lot.”

“You—” Zuo Yunfei gritted his teeth in anger.

The Metal-Eating Bird circled above, glaring at them in hatred.

“Damn bird,” Zuo Yunfei muttered, raising his staff. Thunderbolts exploded in the sky, and though the bird tried to dodge, one lightning orb battered its wing, leaving it badly wounded.

Realizing it was at a disadvantage, the Metal-Eating Bird cried out and tried to flee.

But Zuo Yunfei wasn’t about to let it go. He gave chase and brought it down.

Tang Tianying came over again and asked, “Heng Shao, are you sure you’re okay?”

Qi Heng shook his head. “Just a minor injury. Nothing serious. Don’t make a fuss.”

Zuo Yunfei returned after finishing off the bird, casting a fierce glare at Qi Heng.

Tang Tianying smiled awkwardly and said, “Zuo Shao, thank you so much.”

Zuo Yunfei snorted and turned away without responding.

Tang Tianying blinked and thought to himself: This young master from the Zuo family sure is difficult to deal with!

“Your Highness, let’s go,” Qi Heng said.

Tang Tianying forced a smile. “Sure.”

He sighed deeply, feeling a bit of sorrow in his heart. He didn’t even need to look to sense Zuo Yunfei’s predatory gaze. Shouldn’t Qi Heng at least say a word of thanks for saving his life?

Qi Heng walked on ahead, and Tang Tianying had no choice but to follow.

He looked up at the sky and said, “Heng Shao, it’s getting late. Let’s find a place to camp for the night.”

Qi Heng glanced at him and nodded. “Alright.”