Chapter 1450: Chapter 1450: Minor Victory

Upon hearing this, Erqing and Sanqing immediately charged at Ding Changwei, their long knives raised high, eager to cut him down.

"Go, kill those two maids," Ding Changwei commanded his subordinates, dragging Ji Zhenniang backward, clearly distrustful of Gu Jinli’s words and unwilling to give up his hostage.

"Yes!" The Ding Family’s secretly trained Shadow Guards rushed out, their long knives aimed at Erqing and Sanqing.

Clang, clang, clang!

The clash of weapons echoed as the groups fought fiercely, unable to gain an advantage over each other.

Ding Changwu glanced at Gu Jinli, an axe in his hand. He moved swiftly, aiming right for Gu Jinli’s head: "Wretch, your poison is useless against me. Let’s see what you can do without it!"

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, the heavy axe sliced through the air with a whistling sound.

Confident in his own skill, Ding Changwu’s eyes carried a mocking sneer as he swung the axe towards Gu Jinli, while his other hand wielded a large knife aimed at Gu Jinli’s waist, attacking from both sides with the intent to deal a severe blow in a single move.

Gu Jinli was completely unafraid, moving like a phantom, dodging the axe aimed at her head. Clang, her Tang Blade blocked the knife aimed at her waist, and she slithered like a snake behind Ding Changwu. A short blade peeked from her sleeve, stabbing directly at Ding Changwu’s back.

Clang!

The short blade, also a small Tang Saber, was extremely sharp. It pierced through Ding Changwu’s armor but was stopped from entering his body by another layer of armor worn underneath.

"Ha, scared to die, are we?" Gu Jinli mocked, reversing her grip on the blade to block Ding Changwu’s counterattack. She suddenly leveraged off her back heel, propelling herself into the air, scattering a handful of poison at Ding Changwu as he struggled to see. As she came down, she swung her Tang Blade.

Swish!

It sliced open Ding Changwu’s calf.

Furious, Ding Changwu’s face twisted in rage. He hurled the axe at Gu Jinli: "Wretch, always relying on poison. My mask is thickened, soaked with water, and I’ve taken Lord Ghost’s Detoxification Medicine; your poison won’t affect me quickly!"

This wretch’s skill was limited; all he needed was a quarter of an hour to finish her off.

Gu Jinli leapt aside, dodging the axe thrown by Ding Changwu. She turned back and said, "Oh really? Too bad my poison doesn’t only work through breathing."

Having said that, she fell silent, no longer directly confronting Ding Changwu, but focusing on escaping, scattering poison at the Ding Family’s Shadow Guards encircling her.

In just a few breaths, Ding Changwu’s head began to spin and a wave of nausea surged up from within him.

Bleh!

White foam gushed from Ding Changwu’s mouth. Bent over, he wiped his mouth, staring at the foam on his hand in disbelief. Could he really be poisoned?

With a thud, Ding Changwu’s body collapsed heavily to the ground.

The Shadow Guards he led were in shock, having no idea how the Gu Family had poisoned Ding Changwu.

Ding Changwei was also shocked and immediately called to his Shadow Guards, "Go, capture the Gu Family alive!"

"Yes!" The Ding Family’s Shadow Guards immediately stopped entangling with Erqing and Sanqing, turning to attack Gu Jinli.

But it was too late; You Xi had already returned with reinforcements, charging in on swift horses. Thud, thud, thud, they knocked over three of the Ding Family’s Shadow Guards, leapt from their horses, and drew their blades to attack.

"Protect the madam, kill them!" You Xi shouted, and at his command, all the remaining men raised their blades against the Ding Family’s Shadow Guards.

For a moment, the sounds of weapons clashing, cries of battle, and Ji Zhenniang’s pleas for help mingled into chaos.

Ding Changwei didn’t expect the Gu Family to have such capable people, realizing that capturing them was unlikely. He immediately grabbed Ji Zhenniang by the throat and dragged her into the darkness.

He must at least capture Ji Zhenniang; failing to seize either of them would be a significant loss.

"Gu Xiaoyu, Gu Xiaoyu, save me, please!" Ji Zhenniang cried out with blood in her mouth, fearing being captured by another man and the ruin of her reputation, worse than death.

"Shut up, you troublemaker, I’m not here to save you!" Gu Jinli said harshly, yet she grabbed You Xi’s horse, leaping onto it and riding it towards Ji Zhenniang.

Horses are fast; in the blink of an eye, she caught up with Ding Changwei. Without stopping, she leapt from the horse with her Tang Blade aimed at Ding Changwei’s head.

At that moment, Gu Jinli appeared like an Asura from hell, her face flickering in the dim torchlight, looking utterly menacing.

"Ah!" Ji Zhenniang thought Gu Jinli was coming to kill her and screamed, collapsing in fear.

Clang, crack!

Two soul-shaking sounds echoed as Gu Jinli’s Tang Blade sliced through Ding Changwei’s striking knife, following through to slash at his neck.

The Tang Blade was sharp, and although it was partially blocked by Ding Changwei’s knife, Gu Jinli’s full force cut a long gash on the right side of his neck, severing his carotid artery.

Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle.

Blood gushed out like a fountain, and Ding Changwei, despite being a tough individual, clutched his bleeding wound while still trying to stab the fallen Ji Zhenniang.

Bam!

Gu Jinli kicked fiercely, toppling Ding Changwei.

Erqing rushed up and chopped off Ding Changwei’s head, ensuring he couldn’t move again.

"Fifth Brother is dead, Fifth Brother is dead!" exclaimed the other Ding Family’s Shadow Guards in chaos. Some of the clever ones had already started to flee.

The Ding Family was only a noble family in the Central Plains, not a rich or powerful family, and didn’t train their Shadow Guards in loyalties akin to those of the grand families. Seeing their leader dead, they had no intentions of sacrificing their lives here.

But You Xi and his group were trained personally by Qin San Lang using methods from military assassins and noble assassins, ensuring they wouldn’t let them escape. In no time, they had killed eighty percent of the Ding Family’s Shadow Guards, leaving only five alive as evidence.

Thus, Gu Jinli’s side had a small victory.

"Where’s Xie Huaihua? Find her quickly! We cannot let her fall into the hands of bandits!" Gu Jinli shouted at You Xi’s group.

"Yes." You Xi and the others responded and were about to search when Qing Hui returned, dragging Xie Huaihua along, saying, "Madam, Huaihua is fine, just a single cut, not fatal."

Qing Hui had bonded with Xie Huaihua over the past few days and admired her for her timely assistance, preventing Ji Zhenniang’s defilement. Once safe, Qing Hui had immediately retraced her steps to find Xie Huaihua.

Previously, half of the bandits had been incapacitated by poison, and the remaining ones, realizing the unfavorable situation, attempted to flee with the poisoned Sixth Village Chief, taking Mrs. Cen and Xie Huaihua as hostages.

Qing Hui was well aware of the dire fate awaiting Xie Huaihua if caught by the bandits and charged at them fiercely. The bandits, realizing the situation was amiss and fearing they’d delay their escape, eventually let go.

However, Xie Huaihua still sustained a cut during the chaos.

Gu Jinli smiled upon hearing this, "Mrs. Cen is finished this time... well, it serves her right, an evil deed meets its own punishment."

Qing Hui also loathed Mrs. Cen, considering her too malicious. However: "Madam, the bandits abandoned Sister Tang because she was young and injured and left her not far ahead. Should we intervene?"

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