A dozen or so mortals rushed to the water pool and drank greedily, completely unaware that the water was poisoned.

    Logically, their lack of caution should have been a cause for happiness.

    But what truly threatened Tian Lin and the others were not these mortals, but the six Cultivators.

    The poison was meant for the six Cultivators, and if it could only affect these mortals, what use was it?

    "Dammit, stop scrambling! Isn''t there enough water for everyone?"

    Behind the mortals stood a man wearing a red bandana.

    This man was clearly a Cultivator and held a significant position in the Hua Hua Lang group.

    His attire was relatively decent, with a long sword at his waist and a whip in his hand that lashed out at the mortals near the pool: ''

    "You''re here to fill water to bring back, not to indulge yourselves!"

    The mortals who got whipped endured the pain and took several more gulps before taking up water bottles, jars, and iron pots to collect the water.

    Once they filled the containers, the pool was emptied almost instantly.

    Stumbling and staggering, the group began transporting the pool water to the northern hillside.

    For the first quarter-hour, the poison hadn''t fully taken effect. Only one or two frail individuals felt discomfort in their stomachs and had to fall behind.

    But after that, people started feeling weak in their limbs and soon collapsed to the ground.

    The water they were transporting spilled onto the soil as pots, pans, and containers hit the ground.

    The Cultivator with the red bandana, incensed, swung his whip wildly and cursed at the mortals on the ground: "Get up, you bastards!"

    No matter how he wielded the whip, the mortals on the ground would not wake. It was only then that he realized something was wrong.

    As he reached for his sword at his waist, four or five arrows flew from a distance.

    One arrow grazed his shoulder, two hit his legs and waist, and the remaining two were the most lethal, one striking his forehead and the other piercing through his left eye.

    The arrow aimed at his forehead hit his brow, but since it was made from a sharpened branch rather than iron, its penetration was insufficient.

    Even more unfortunate was that although the shooter had excellent aim, the bow was weak.

    If this arrow had hit a regular person, it might have been fine, but since it hit a Body Refinement Cultivator, it had little lethal effect.

    "Boss Seven, your strength is lacking!"

    The Fourth Master teased, but he was in a good mood.

    Because Tian Lin''s arrow was not only accurate but also powerful.

    The arrow that hit the red bandana Cultivator''s eye was shot by Tian Lin.

    As the red bandana Cultivator fell, Tian Lin''s group charged forward.

    A few of them, in a flurry, thrust their swords and daggers together, pinning the fleeing Cultivator to the ground before cutting off his head without hesitation.

    "One of the six Cultivators is down, the remaining five shouldn''t be much of a threat."

    The Third Master couldn''t help but rejoice in victory, but just after his laughter ceased, the sound of arrows whizzing through the air was heard.

    Tian Lin and Master Ting Yu reacted the quickest, especially Tian Lin, who retreated almost as soon as the sound started.

    Master Ting Yu was a step slower; his reaction wasn''t bad, but his aging body lagged behind, resulting in an arrow hitting his shoulder.

    The Second Master and the First Master, however, remained vigilant; almost as soon as they heard footsteps from the forest, they took cover behind large trees.

    But the Fourth and Third Masters weren''t as quick; one was slow to react, and the other was completely caught in the moment.

    The Fourth Master was hit by an arrow in the back, and the Third Master was struck in the chest and waist.

    "Damn it, run!"

    Lang Guan, as he spoke, shot an arrow into a figure in the dense forest.

    His bow and arrows were the same as those of Tian Lin and the others, made from sharpened wood and bent branches.

    These hastily made primitive bows had limited lethality.

    Fortunately, his intent in shooting was not to kill but to disrupt the enemy''s formation, aiming to buy time for the Third and Fourth Masters to retreat.

    Lang Guan''s thoughts were shared by the Second Master and Tian Lin.

    Unfortunately, their bows and arrows failed, whereas the opponents had fine bows and arrows.

    Not only did they fail to restrain the enemy, the Second Master even got an arrow through his foot.

    "Lang Guan, Second Master, you should run, I''ll cover the retreat!"

    In his escape, the Third Master was shot twice more in the back.

    Realizing there was no chance of survival, he knew that at this rate, all six brothers would fall here.

    Behind a tree, Lang Guan''s face flushed with anger, he shouted into the forest: "Cowards! Can you call yourselves heroes with sneak attacks? Come out and face us openly if you dare!"

    A woman''s laughter echoed from within the woods: "How dare you speak such words! Who was it that poisoned the water for an ambush in the first place?

    If it weren''t for our leader''s vigilance, your plan would''ve succeeded."

    Hearing this, the Second Master responded: "For the sake of executing the plan, you''ve disregarded the lives of twenty mortals and even a Cultivator!"

    "Twenty mortals are just a waste of food. And as for one Cultivator — trading one life for six of your brothers isn''t a loss by any means."

    As the Second Master was about to speak again, Tian Lin whispered, "The Fourth Master has arrived, we can lead our men to retreat now!"

    It turned out the Second Master''s conversation was intended to buy time for the injured Fourth Master to escape.

    Similarly, the enemy engaged in conversation to stall and secretly approach Tian Lin''s group.

    "Retreat!"

    Lang Guan shouted, grabbing the approaching Fourth Master and carrying him on his back before running.

    Tian Lin also grabbed Master Ting Yu, practically dragging him like a toy while making their escape.

    Only the Third Master did not run, instead turning to face an approaching man, drawing his bow to shoot.

    The man carried a bow on his back, seemingly unconcerned by the Third Master''s actions.

    As they passed each other, the man casually sliced the Third Master''s throat, beheading him like one would a chicken.

    The pursuit continued, and Tian Lin was the fastest to flee.

    He ran at the front, no longer hearing the footsteps of Lang Guan and the Second Master, let alone the pursuers.

    At this moment, Tian Lin stopped. Master Ting Yu was alarmed: "You fool, why are you stopping? Do you want to die here?"

    Tian Lin responded: "How can we survive without killing those Cultivators?" sea??h thё N??elFirё.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    Master Ting Yu asked, "How much True Qi have you recovered? How many can you kill?"

    Without Jade Liquid, Tian Lin couldn''t quickly restore his True Qi.

    Unsure of the opponents'' cultivation levels, he felt he might be able to kill five of them, yet lacked full confidence.

    "By reaching here, I can hastily set a trap. By using your blood and my True Qi, there''s a seventy percent chance of success!"