Leo wasn't Li Xunhuan or Ah Fei. He didn't have their keen senses; there was no way he could have detected people hiding in the woods from inside a carriage.
It was a beautiful misunderstanding.
Leo immediately grabbed his Green Lotus Sword and tucked the silver into the most accessible part of his robes.
The plot was already unrecognizable, but the Golden Silk Armor was in his hands. He was mentally prepared for this kind of confrontation.
Originally, Li Xunhuan was supposed to reveal his location to save Ah Fei.
The Golden Lion Escort Agency's Chief Ranger Zha was after Li Xunhuan, but now, Li Xunhuan had been knocked out by Leo the moment he appeared.
The one shining brightly was Leo.
The trouble meant for Li Xunhuan had naturally fallen on Leo's shoulders. And he hadn't just taken Li Xunhuan's trouble; he'd taken the Black Snake's as well.
Otherwise, after getting the Golden Silk Armor and narrowly escaping Ah Fei's sword, the Black Snake was supposed to have been turned into a snowman and placed in the middle of the road as a roadblock.
"Alba Li, we have an agreement. You'll protect me, right?" Roxie jolted awake, grabbing Leo's arm, her voice pitiful.
Seeing a living person die right in front of her had finally made Roxie realize the cruelty of the Jianghu and the fragility of life. She didn't want to die.
"Of course. Trust your Dreamweaver." Leo nodded confidently and patted the back of her hand reassuringly. "As long as you cooperate, and as long as I'm alive, you won't die."
"Okay." Roxie was more serious than ever, her face filled with anxiety, all her previous arrogance and petulance gone.
"You stay in the carriage and think about how to build a relationship with Li Xunhuan. I'm going out to fight a few mobs, farm some XP and reputation. I'll be right back."
Leo smiled at Roxie, then lifted the cotton curtain and jumped out of the carriage.
Before arriving, Leo had treated this place as a real world with living people.
But after actually traversing, he found that treating this mission more like a game was better for his performance.
In the early stages of Xiao Li Feidao, one monster after another appeared to block the way. It looked exactly like the standard template for Ah Fei to grind levels.
Most importantly, thinking of it as a game helped alleviate the guilt of killing. After all, killing a person and fighting a boss were completely different feelings.
Leo's gaming skills were decent.
An hour ago, he was a novice player with two garbage skills and a liability for a teammate.
Now, the liability was still here, but his skill proficiency had increased, and he had even recruited two mercenaries.
By all accounts, he should be qualified to leave the starting zone.
This level's bosses were the Golden Lion Escort Agency's Chief Ranger Zha, the Shadow-Walker Master Yu the Second, and the four disciples of the Disciple of Extreme Bliss.
They were a much higher level than Zhuge Lei and the Jade-Blooded Twin Snakes, and deserved to be taken seriously.
Tie Chuanjia and the Twin Snakes wore solemn expressions, already on high alert.
Thump!
Leo leaped from the carriage, his feet landing heavily in the snow and sinking deep.
How embarrassing.
The air seemed to freeze.
Chief Ranger Zha and Master Yu, who had been about to speak, were both stunned.
Especially Master Yu, who was renowned for his lightness skill. The snow he walked on was virtually unmarked.
Zha sized Leo up, his tone uncertain. "The Demon Sword, Alba Li?"
Leo paused. I have a nickname already?
The Demon Sword, Alba Li?
It doesn't sound like a hero's title, but it sounds pretty badass.
This nickname, I, Leo Li, accept it!
Leo feigned nonchalance as he pulled his feet from the snow. "Indeed, that is I."
"The Alba Li who subdued the Jade-Blooded Twin Snakes with a single sword stroke?" Master Yu continued.
The Twin Snakes exchanged a glance and sighed in unison. As long as Alba Li was alive, their reputation for being brought to their knees by a single sword stroke would likely never fade.
Leo felt a headache coming on. In a wuxia world, it was really hard for a normal person to pretend to be a master. These Jianghu veterans were too sharp-eyed.
"I thought the Demon Sword was some incredible figure. I didn't expect him to be a commoner who knows nothing," Master Yu said, greatly disappointed, as if he'd been tricked.
"Master Yu, the Jianghu is full of posers. It is I who have failed to manage my subordinates. A laughable sight indeed," Zha said with a bitter smile.
Idiots.
Tie Chuanjia and the Twin Snakes simultaneously shot them a look of contempt.
That's clearly a wolf in sheep's clothing, a tiger disguised as a pig.
For a rare moment, they were in complete agreement.
"Young Hero Li, the Golden Silk Armor belongs to my Golden Lion Escort Agency. It concerns the reputation of my agency for decades. I ask that you return it, and I can overlook the death of Zhuge Lei," Zha threatened, having judged Leo to be non-threatening. "Otherwise, I'm afraid your journey ends here."
"Chief Ranger Zha, if I didn't know the inside story, I might have actually believed you!" Leo said, struggling to pull his leg out of the snow with a smile. "Without Hong Hanmin tipping you off, you probably wouldn't even have known the Golden Silk Armor was in Zhuge Lei's hands. It was clearly stolen by Zhuge Lei from the master thief Dai Wu. How did it become your agency's property? You, Chief Ranger, are exceptionally shameless."
"Kid, you have a glib tongue!" His secret exposed, Zha's face darkened. "The treasures of the world belong to the virtuous. With your abilities, young friend, the Golden Silk Armor will only bring you disaster. I am trying to save you…"
Master Yu interrupted him. "Chief Ranger, why waste words on this poser of a dandy! Anyone who colludes with Jianghu scum like the Jade-Blooded Twin Snakes can't be any good. Killing him is a service to the public!"
"Tsk, tsk. I've always heard that the great figures of the Jianghu like to brandish the club of morality before they act, to beat their opponents down a peg. Today, I've finally witnessed it myself. This trip has not been in vain," Leo said, looking at Master Yu and applauding with a smile.
Pfft!
The Twin Snakes snickered. They suddenly found Alba Li to be quite an interesting person.
Tie Chuanjia gave Leo a meaningful look, a strange weight in his heart. Having followed Li Xunhuan and experienced many things, he knew all too well the true faces of those so-called famous figures of the Jianghu.
Leo looked towards the forest and smiled. "Colluding with the Jade-Blooded Twin Snakes makes one Jianghu scum. Then what does colluding with the disciples of the Disciple of Extreme Bliss make one? Master Yu, your double standards are quite severe."
Hearing this, Master Yu, who was about to throw a hidden weapon to kill Leo, froze his restless hand. He was suddenly unsure of Leo's true strength.
The four disciples of the Disciple of Extreme Bliss had been hiding in the forest the whole time. An ordinary person, even if they knew someone was in the woods, couldn't possibly have guessed their identities.
Yet Alba Li had exposed them in a single sentence.
The Twin Snakes' expressions turned grim, and they drew their swords in unison.
They had personally experienced Alba Li's miraculous abilities and were no longer surprised.
What made them nervous were the disciples of the Disciple of Extreme Bliss.
The reputation of the Disciple of Extreme Bliss in the Jianghu was no less than Li Xunhuan's, but far more terrifying. It was said that everyone who had seen the Disciple was poisoned to death, without exception.
Normally, if they encountered the Disciple's followers, they would run as far as they could.
But this time, standing by Alba Li's side, though they were afraid, they didn't flee. The strangely skilled young man had, without them realizing it, given them a great deal of confidence.
Hee hee ha ha.
Four grotesque figures dressed in colorful children's clothes emerged from the forest.
It was the four disciples of the Disciple of Extreme Bliss.
Each wore a multitude of shiny silver bracelets that jingled as they walked.
Their appearance and attire were nauseating.
Leo's eyebrows shot up. Seeing these disciples in person, he realized the novel's description of them had been far too lenient.
The visual impact of these four was off the charts.
He glanced at Zha.
To work with these four, the Chief Ranger must have a strong stomach.
The disciple in yellow giggled. "I said we didn't need to hide. We were discovered anyway!"
The one in red clapped his hands. "To hear our name and not flee at once, we haven't met such bold people in a long time! Interesting, interesting!"
The one in green said, "I just wonder if they'll still be interesting when they're dead!"
The one in black laughed. "A dead person isn't interesting, but making a snowman out of a dead person will certainly be very interesting!"