Chapter 87: The Unyielding Sister

Bang!

After cleaving through a row of iron shields, Cai was on the verge of collapsing to the ground.

Her surroundings were drenched with copious sweat, and her hands and legs, struggling to support her body, trembled and swayed incessantly.

Her delicate features twitched, contorted by a pain that pushed her body beyond its limits.

Yet, the moment she thought of the person drawing ever closer—the one who might be watching her at this very instant—she could force a smile and meticulously feign normalcy.

“I’m fine, I’m fine… I won’t stop moving forward until my last breath!”

Though no one heard her, Cai uttered the words completely.

She desperately braced her hands against the ground, and despite her body’s unsteady swaying, she still managed to hunch forward with all her might.

Her enemies would not wait for her.

The kingdom’s soldiers, having suffered considerable losses from her impossibly sharp cross-sword in the preceding battle, prepared to deploy a ranged weapon.

Indeed, arrows had long since run out.

However, deep within the military formation, where the twang of bowstrings no longer echoed, countless staves could be raised, and the mage corps could still wield their magic.

Finished incantations spurred the aggregation of elements.

Numerous whistling wind currents, as if alive, vied to descend around Cai, exploding near the young woman.

Sweeping wind blades cut across her, leaving gashes upon Cai’s skin.

She could employ healing magic to mend these wounds as much as possible.

However, lost blood could not be replenished, and her gradually weakening body continued to deteriorate.

Seeing that she still wouldn’t stop, the soldiers intensified their assault.

They ceased using mere hurricanes, instead summoning raging flames to descend with the swirling winds.

Each turbulent gust of wind typically arrived only after a fireball had burst.

The explosive power of the erupting flames was astonishing, immediately unleashing vast swathes of fire, accompanied by intense roars.

The zone where the wind currents descended was precisely at the epicenter of these explosions.

Flames, rising like towering waves, were swept up, not burning Cai directly, yet refusing to extinguish for a long time.

Evidently, the mages had no intention of taking Cai’s life, for You had forbidden them from doing so.

At the same time, the soldiers, including the mages, freely inflicted new injuries upon Cai, a practice inextricably linked to You’s permission.

Cai struggled to raise her sword and cleave through the flames, her body accumulating a thick layer of flying ash, cloaking her entirely in gray.

The existing crimson on her skin, combined with this gray, immediately blended into an indescribably complex hue, making her appear utterly wretched.

Once the flames proved ineffective as an obstruction, the cavalry charged forth from their formation, transforming into a surging tide of metal.

Whoosh, thud!

Cai was becoming increasingly adept with her cross-sword.

For instance, the moment a rider on horseback entered her immediate vicinity, she understood that the best course of action was to hook her sword downwards, swiftly severing the horse’s front leg.

The warhorse, pained, tumbled forward, dragging its rider down to the ground with it.

As for Cai herself, she had already moved to the side a step earlier.

However, she clearly did not yet fully grasp the might of a cavalry formation.

Even with Cai having circled to the side, the iron cavalry, stretching endlessly whether horizontally or vertically, was not so easily avoided.

Bang!

The warhorse’s head slammed violently into Cai, sending her sprawling for a second time.

‘Get up, get up, get up!’

Cai screamed at herself in her heart.

She bit through her lip, her right hand savagely digging into the uneven ground. Propping herself up on her toes, then her calves, then her thighs, she instantly rose to her feet again.

Cai used the most rudimentary method to break through her predicament.

Just as before, she would fell one warhorse at a time, only to be brutally knocked down again during her futile attempts to move, then rise once more.

Healing magic fell upon her, mending all the wounds that could be healed, while the more severely injured limbs were left to worsen further.

Having fallen an countless number of times, she resumed her standing posture just as many.

It was precisely because Cai had spent time by that person’s side, unconsciously becoming similar to them, that even now, she did not know how to utter the word ‘surrender’!

The cavalry’s numbers were finite, but Cai’s tenacity knew no end.

Finally, the cavalry blocking her path were either cut down or stood frozen in terror.

Blood stained the hem of her clothes, trickling down her toes. Her feet, having spasmed numerous times, moved forward, each step like the blossoming of a lotus.

Every crimson lotus that appeared with the movement of her left foot was inevitably ‘crushed’ by the subsequent tread of her right.

Now, sweat and dirt mingled, smearing her once beautiful face into an unrecognizable mess.

Her knees, palms, elbow joints…

Every body part that could be used for support when rising again was chafed and bloody.

If there was one thing that had remained unchanged from beginning to end, it was the smile gracing Cai’s face.

****

After traversing several obstacles, a figure wielding a weapon appeared before Cai the next instant.

Doing one thing repeatedly often leads to the unconscious formation of an instinct.

The hands that had countless times held religious texts now skillfully gripped a cold sword, reflexively raising a chilling gleam.

Clang!

The dark sword parried the pure white one, the two intersecting blades clashing with a resounding clang.

Ultimately, the dark sword repelled the white one, completely pinning it into the mud by her feet.

Without warning, Cai was embraced in an outstretched arm.

Only then did Cai finally realize that the person standing opposite her seemed somewhat different from others.

She found the face before her unfamiliar, yet the sensation of being held brought with it a familiar warmth.

“Is that so? You’re that person! I can’t recall your face, I’m sorry…”

No questions, no explanations, just an unspoken understanding, a warmth after the cold, heating the very air.

Both had strived in their own ways.

Behind Wang and Cai, a scene of utter chaos unfolded, their opposing faces covered in dust, each more comical than the last.

Cai feigned ease, straightening her back and wiping a streak of blood from Wang’s lip with the back of her hand, only to spread it further.

They both tried not to look at each other’s wounds, deliberately avoiding showing their own vulnerable sides, still not being completely honest even at this moment.

Nevertheless, the two figures under the sun had, indeed, converged.

What might have been a romantic scene, to the soldiers, was merely a terrifying sight.

The deep-seated dread etched into their bones was so potent it threatened to seep out, transforming into palpable fear in the blink of an eye.

For a moment, no one dared to approach that spot, not even by a hair’s breadth…

“In places I didn’t know about, my sister and that fellow’s relationship actually became this good?”

You watched the disheartening scene, his heart gradually turning cold.

Had he allowed the two to embrace, he would not have appeared here.

“From the Demon Leader’s previous reaction, she seems to value my sister greatly…”

As his thoughts churned, You’s mind suddenly buzzed.

To describe his current state as a ‘flash of inspiration’ would be no exaggeration.

“I’ve got it!”

Wang was like a ‘trapped beast’ struggling desperately; although in a dying state, her ferocity had not diminished much.

Expecting the soldiers to handle such an opponent was undoubtedly overestimating those lowly henchmen, and even if successful, it would inevitably incur heavy casualties.

You did not wish to return to his kingdom victorious, only to find himself nearly a commander without an army; that would not be cost-effective.

The current dilemma was this:

Due to his strength having regressed to the ‘Broken Army’ tier, You was unwilling to personally risk going forward.

However, pushing all the troublesome tasks onto his subordinates would easily lead to the henchmen being almost completely wiped out.

This psychological struggle was akin to ‘fishing’: You wanted to catch a ‘big fish’ on one hand, but on the other, he was reluctant to invest too much bait, remaining constantly conflicted.

His wavering hesitation was only resolved a moment ago!

This was because, in a sudden realization, You had conceived an excellent, ‘win-win’ scheme.

Within this scheme, the ‘bait’ would no longer be soldiers; You decided to have his sister play that role instead.

After all, foolishly sending soldiers into a human wave attack was far less effective than coercing the Demon Leader into suicide by taking his sister hostage!

Any plan You conceived, he was confident he could turn into reality.

Now, he only needed to do one thing: set a trap to draw his sister to his side.

Taking risks was not You’s style, but he couldn’t afford to be so cautious now. He immediately pushed aside the ‘human wall’ around him and moved to a suitable position.

He called out in Cai’s direction:

“It’s been many years, little sister, do you still recognize your brother?”

To be frank:

If not for the iris pendant around her neck suddenly emitting a glow, Cai would surely not have noticed the distant noise at that moment.

When Cai looked up, You’s gaze met hers.

Having been distracted moments before, the young woman’s ears hadn’t caught the key words, causing her responding gaze to You to be filled with obvious confusion.

“You, the bad guy who looks like the Leader, are you calling me?”

As for first impressions upon their reunion, the brother’s image in his sister’s mind was utterly terrible.

However, You would not be bothered by this. After all, for a brother who intended to use his sister to achieve personal goals, minor matters like affection were unimportant.

You’s psychology was quite complex.

He undoubtedly wanted his sister to return to his side, though certainly not out of familial affection.

This was the mentality of You, as a successful man, intending to reclaim the ‘personal property’ he had lost many years ago.

A person might not care about the ‘property’s’ will, but they would not tolerate that ‘property’ embracing another, especially not being so intimate with their sworn enemy!

His obsession with his sister intensified You’s resentment towards Wang.

Yet, on the surface, facing Cai, he still had to put on the guise of a good brother, forcing out a gentle smile for the first time.

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