Chapter 612: First Encounter
Chapter 612: First Encounter
All of the men and women sent from the clans and families were then escorted to the mountains by the Qing Feng Sect disciples.
The journey to the foot of the mountains wasn’t so smooth with the intense heat from the hot summer sun.
The men and women kept quiet, enduring the insufferable temperature coupled with the anxiety that became heavier with every step they took.
Some were in deep thoughts about what they would face within the mountains, while some were only concerned with the sweat that made their clothes stuck onto their skin, making it unbearable for them.
Lee He Song and the guards walked together and the guards weren’t feeling as comfortable now.
Being in company with so many cultivators, while they were only martial arts fighters, made them feel inferior to the cultivators.
They could only look up to Lee He Song, who by far, stood up straight, had his head held up high and was at ease with himself.
Occasionally, he would take a swig of the wine from the wine gourd he had with him.
Lee He Song being so confident and nonchalant, was now their role model.
"Master Lee, what should we do when we get there?" One of the guards asked and the others nodded their heads to it.
After gulping down a mouthful of his wine and wiping his mouth with his sleeve, Lee He Song said softly, "Stay close to me no matter what.
"Most likely they will order us to be at the front, letting us be the bait to lure out the cultivators from the north, so don’t be too enthusiastic about going into your deaths."
All of the guards nodded their heads.
They were well aware of the huge gulf between a martial arts fighter and a cultivator.
There was no chance for them to survive if they were faced with the cultivators from the north and they weren’t going to end their lives so soon.
Finally, after traveling for two Ke, they arrived at the foot of the mountain.
Many Qing Feng Sect disciples were already there waiting for their arrival.
Xiao Feng stood in front of everyone and raised his hand.
"Alright, I don’t have much patience to tell you what to do.
"Those who are martial arts fighters go first.
"And those who are cultivators follow behind them.
"Now, separate among yourselves and comb through the mountains."
The Qing Feng Sect disciples began to usher the men and women into different groups immediately, allocating them which part of the mountains they were supposed to comb through.
The martial arts fighters frowned and grumbled but they didn’t dare make too much of a fuss with the Qing Feng Sect disciples close to them.
When Lee He Song and the guards were allocated the sector that they were supposed to comb, the other martial arts fighters gave out a sigh of relief when they saw that they wouldn’t have to do it with an old man in their sector.
Anything that would give them a greater chance to survive was welcomed by them.
Lee He Song was also glad to not have others close to him.
It would make it much easier for him.
"There’s no time, go forth and root out these pesky barbarians intruding into the lands of Da Qian Dynasty." Xiao Feng shouted when all of the men and women were in place.
The Qing Feng Sect disciples gave out a roar and they drew out their swords.
With the disciples doing so behind them, the men and women felt unease but they had to do what they were instructed.
Lee He Song waved at the guards and chuckled, "Come with me."
His chuckle and nonchalant attitude brought some solace for the guards and they nodded their heads at him.
They started walking into the forest that was leading up to the mountains.
Initially, they were anxious and looked around frantically, being jumpy with every little noise and movements they’ve heard inside the forest.
But every time, it was a false alarm.
The animals and insects created these noises and made the bushes and leaves rustle.
Slowly, they got used to it and the tension was more relaxed.
Being under the shades of the foliage instead of being directly under the sun helped with it.
They continued to comb through the forest in silence and thankfully for them there were no cultivators from the north in sight.
"I’m hungry and thirsty, maybe we should find something to eat and drink?" One of the guards said when his stomach growled.
They were tasked to do so suddenly and they didn’t have too much time to get prepared.
The others nodded their heads and they glanced over at Lee He Song.
Lee He Song shrugged and said, "I suppose we can do so."
His job was to ensure that they survive this and finding the cultivators from the north wasn’t what he was supposed to be doing.
"I know of a stream nearby." Another one of the guards said.
The other guards swallowed a mouthful of saliva when they heard it.
"What are you waiting for? Bring us to it." They said and the guard who knew where the stream was pointed in a direction to his left.
Lee He Song didn’t hesitate and he turned towards in the directions.
The other guards followed closely behind him.
"What are they trying to do?!" The Qing Feng Sect disciple who was monitoring them some distance away grumbled when he saw them going somewhere together instead of going deeper into the forest.
He cursed and he tried to run up to them.
Rustle.
While he did so, the leaves that had fallen onto the ground of the forest rustled.
Lee He Song with his heightened senses could hear him from a distance away.
He had expected this from the Qing Feng Sect so he wasn’t too bothered by it.
But when he heard another set of footsteps coming towards him and the guards, he frowned and glanced in the direction of these footsteps.
A burly man’s figure appeared not too far away from where he was.
The burly man wearing clothes made up of animal fur, spat on the ground and smirked at him.