Wú Gāng gave a grim laugh. "Little girl, stop playing these tricks with me! Both of you are going to meet your end here today!" With that, his attacks grew increasingly fierce, his fist wind whistling as he went straight for Jiang Ye's face.
Jiang Ye barely managed to dodge, but the force of the fist grazed his cheek, instantly leaving a bloody gash.
He clenched his teeth and frantically circulated his Spiritual Energy, only to feel as though it were like a mud ox entering the sea—he was utterly powerless against Wú Gāng's storm-like onslaught.
"Sister Lí, I can't hold on much longer!" Jiang Ye blurted out complaints while dodging in a panic. "Did this guy eat a super-strength pill or something? He's hitting so hard!"
Yè Shūlí was burning with anxiety. She gripped the dagger in her hand tightly, yet she dared not act rashly.
She knew all too well that her paltry skills were simply not enough against Wú Gāng, and stepping in recklessly would only be throwing her life away for nothing.
The crowd of onlookers was growing larger by the minute, pointing and whispering among themselves, yet not a single person was willing to lend a helping hand.
Yè Shūlí felt as though she and Jiang Ye were like two little beasts trapped on a lonely island, facing the malice coming from all directions in utter helplessness.
Jiang Ye accumulated more and more wounds, his blood staining his clothes red, and his movements grew increasingly sluggish as his Spiritual Energy neared exhaustion.
Wú Gāng's attacks showed no signs of letting up; instead, they grew even more vicious, every single punch carrying fierce murderous intent.
Seeing that Jiang Ye was about to collapse, Yè Shūlí's heart sank to the bottom, and a wave of despair rushed over her, engulfing her completely...
"Brat, let's see how much longer you can last!" Wú Gāng laughed grimly, raising his fist high as he prepared to deal Jiang Ye the fatal blow.
At that critical juncture, Jiang Ye's body suddenly went limp, and he fell straight down...
"Sister Lí... I... I'm heading out first..."
Upon seeing this, Wú Gāng looked up and laughed aloud, overflowing with arrogance. "That's it? Trash! I haven't even used my full strength yet, and you've already fallen? Hahaha..." He spat on the ground, lifted his foot with utter disdain, and prepared to kick Jiang Ye's body.
Before the action could lag behind the thought—just as Wú Gāng's foot was about to land on Jiang Ye—a pungent, thick smoke suddenly burst forth, blotting out the sky and choking everyone into a continuous fit of coughing.
"What the hell?!" Caught off guard, Wú Gāng was choked so badly that tears streamed from his eyes.
Amidst the smoke, a figure flashed like a ghost, heading straight for him.
Before he could even react, a sharp pain erupted in his abdomen—Yè Shūlí delivered a ferocious knee strike right to his vital spot.
"Damn it! Which heartless bastard dropped poison gas?!" Wú Gāng clutched his stomach, doubled over, and winced in agony.
Yè Shūlí had no intention of giving him a chance to catch his breath. With a capture hold, she twisted his arm behind his back, followed immediately by a shoulder throw that slammed him heavily onto the ground.
"Ah!" Wú Gāng let out a miserable scream, feeling as though his bones were about to shatter.
Before he could even crawl back up, Yè Shūlí's attack struck again, every move targeting his vitals, fast and vicious, completely disregarding any conventional rules.
Wú Gāng was beaten until his head spun, completely unable to parry, while silently cursing inwardly: This little girl hits way too dirty!
Where on earth did she learn these underhanded moves?!
He struggled to get up, only to find himself firmly pinned down by Yè Shūlí, completely unable to move.
"You... you just wait!" Wú Gāng spat out through gritted teeth.
Yè Shūlí sneered, increasing the pressure on her grip. "Who doesn't know how to talk tough? I'd like to see how you're going to make me wait!"
The pain caused Wú Gāng's expression to twist.
Regaining his composure slightly, Wú Gāng let out a furious roar. "Stinking girl, how dare you trick me!" He burst forth with a sudden surge of power, shaking Yè Shūlí off, and charged forward like an enraged wild bull.
Yè Shūlí had been prepared for this. Slipping away quickly, she dodged while talking trash, "Oh, what a shame, did you get mad out of embarrassment? Come on, come catch me!" She deliberately lured Wú Gāng toward the trap she had set beforehand—a massive, deep pit covered with withered leaves.
Jiang Ye had also "risen from the dead" by this point, quietly getting to his feet, sneaking behind Wú Gāng's subordinates, and initiating his "backstabbing" mode.
"Surprise! Your daddy is back!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. Two daggers had somehow appeared in his hands, fluttering like butterflies as they targeted the soft spots.
Caught off guard, Wú Gāng's subordinates instantly descended into chaos, leaving them with no spare energy to support their boss.
Wú Gāng was run in circles by Yè Shūlí, consumed by fury and completely failing to watch his step. He missed his footing and plunged straight down.
"Oh, damn it!" A miserable scream echoed to the heavens, followed immediately by the sounds of various mechanisms triggering—clack, clack, clack; whoosh, whoosh, whoosh; crackle, pop...
Wú Gāng howled like a ghost in the pit, looking precisely like a wild boar that had fallen into a hunter's trap.
"Boss! Boss, are you alright?" His subordinates wanted to go rescue him, but Jiang Ye blocked their path.
"Where do you think you're going? Your opponent is me!" Jiang Ye's lips curved into a seductive, wicked smile, the daggers in his hands flashing with a cold light.
The surrounding cultivators had originally been watching the fun, but at this moment they were all dumbfounded, staring at Wú Gāng as he bounced up and down in the pit, unable to stop themselves from drawing in sharp breaths of cold air.
These two youths were far too ruthless!
Yè Shūlí walked over to the edge of the pit, looked down at Wú Gāng from above, and smiled like a little fox. "Well? How does it taste? Do you want some more?"
Wú Gāng raised his head, his face covered in dust and blood, his eyes filled with venomous hatred. "You... you just wait!"
Yè Shūlí raised an eyebrow. "Oh? This line again? Are you a broken record?" She pulled a handful of melon seeds from her pocket and began cracking them open. "Take your time waiting, I'm going to eat some melon seeds to calm my nerves first."
Jiang Ye walked over to her side, grabbed a handful of melon seeds as well, and cracked them open as he spoke. "Sister Lí, these melon seeds are really good!"
"Of course they are!" Yè Shūlí raised her chin triumphantly. Suddenly, as if remembering something, her expression shifted. "Wait, I seem to have forgotten..."
"Wait, I think I forgot to search him!" Yè Shūlí slapped her forehead in vexation.
Jiang Ye had a sudden realization as well. "Oh yeah! Almost forgot about that! This is a prime opportunity for us to get rich!"
The two exchanged a glance, revealing crafty smiles.
And so, under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Yè Shūlí and Jiang Ye jumped down into the deep pit and began a "carpet-style" search of Wú Gāng.
Wú Gāng had been battered to within an inch of his life by the traps; having no strength left to resist, he could only watch helplessly as the two stripped him clean of anything valuable on his person.
"Sister Lí, look! A Storage Ring!" Jiang Ye raised a ring excitedly.
Yè Shūlí's eyes lit up. "Oh wow! We're rich!" She took the ring and checked it with her spiritual sense. It was packed to the brim with treasures—Spirit Stones, medicinal pills, weapons, cultivation methods...
It was practically a mobile treasury!
"This haul was definitely worth it!" Yè Shūlí smiled from ear to ear.
Jiang Ye couldn't shut his mouth from grinning either. "Sister Lí, we're set for life now!"
Only after stripping Wú Gāng completely clean did the two climb out of the pit, thoroughly satisfied.
The surrounding cultivators were completely dumbfounded. These two people were just...
far too down-to-earth!
"Ahem," Yè Shūlí cleared her throat and said to the crowd with a straight face, "Everyone, today's little show ends here. I hope you all take this as a warning and don't do bad things anymore. Otherwise..." She cast a meaningful glance at Wú Gāng in the deep pit. "Your end will be just like this!"
With that, Yè Shūlí turned around with a carefree air and strode away with Jiang Ye, leaving the crowd staring at one another in blank dismay.
After this battle, the reputations of Yè Shūlí and Jiang Ye thoroughly exploded across this region.
The combination of the "sharp-tongued woman" and the "goofy man" became common table-talk and gossip for cultivators during their leisure time.
Many cultivators wanted to befriend them; after all, who wouldn't want to know two such "promising" young people?
Yè Shūlí and Jiang Ye could be considered to have firmly planted their footing, securing the capital needed to establish themselves.
Yè Shūlí could finally begin her cultivation journey with peace of mind.
"Sister Lí, look at what that is over there," Jiang Ye said, pointing toward a shimmering mountain peak in the distance.
"A Spirit Mine!" Yè Shūlí exclaimed. The two exchanged a glance, an inexplicable excitement surging within their hearts.