Chapter 2110: One Inch of Ash

"Who are you calling stupid?" Zhao Ya raised an eyebrow and stood up.

Insulting her was one thing, but insulting the teacher was absolutely unacceptable.

"Whoever it applies to knows in their heart!" Wu Xiaoxiao curled her lip. "If you're weak, don't go running around in the future. Otherwise, if you run into danger, you'll just trouble others to send you back..."

"Enough!" Teacher Moyun on the side scolded.

"Teacher..." Wu Xiaoxiao looked up.

"Say a few less words!" Teacher Moyun frowned and looked over. "Xiaoxiao is still young and doesn't understand etiquette. If she has offended you in her words, please forgive her..."

"It's fine!" Zhang Xuan shook his head.

Having traversed the Master Teacher Continent and the Firmament, his mind had long been as steady as iron; he wouldn't bother arguing with a little girl.

After capturing the Swift Sand Fox Beast, Teacher Moyun seemed to interrogate it with a special method, then quietly left the group to search for nearly an hour, finally returning with a furrowed brow.

Clearly, he too had noticed something amiss, but hadn't found the Green Beast Ancient Grass.

As for Zhang Xuan, he wasn't under much suspicion.

Even with the Sand Fox Beast's speed, it hadn't been caught. This ordinary deity, who seemed to know almost nothing, wouldn't recognize it even if he saw it, let alone capture it.

The night passed without incident, and at dawn the group set out.

With the mission complete and able to carry out the senior's instructions, Teacher Moyun breathed a sigh of relief.

The group headed out of Lingji Mountain.

Having traveled the route before, Teacher Moyun and the students were familiar with it. Moreover, as spiritual energy receded, the fierce divine beasts in the mountains had mostly fled, so they encountered no great danger.

They walked for three consecutive days.

During this time, with Teacher Moyun, a mid-grade deity, handling the hunting, food was no longer a concern. With energy replenished, the Heavenly Dao Qi gradually recovered, and Zhang Xuan's internal injuries healed completely.

Though it was still unknown when his cultivation would break through, at least he was no longer as weak as before.

"We should be able to leave the mountain range today!" Teacher Moyun said. "But don't let your guard down. Outside Lingji Mountain, there are many bandits and outlaws who stop at nothing!"

With spiritual energy declining, many cultivators had turned to banditry to survive, robbing merchant caravans and travelers between towns. Although the city lord's office frequently conducted crackdowns, the effect was minimal.

Wildfire cannot be burned out completely; the spring wind blows it back to life.

Without fundamentally solving the spiritual energy problem, this situation would persist, and no one could avoid it.

Hearing about bandits and outlaws, everyone's expressions turned serious.

On this training expedition, the danger in the mountains was actually less than the distance from the forest to Yeming City.

"You heard that. Don't go running around on the road. Also, if we encounter bandits, we won't be able to protect you!" Wu Xiaoxiao looked at Zhang Xuan and the others, snorting coldly.

Zhang Xuan nodded.

No matter what he encountered, he never relied on others; he depended on himself.

"Zhao Ya, if we really run into bandits, just stay behind me. I'll keep you safe..." Shen Cheng approached.

"No need!" Too lazy to respond, Zhao Ya went behind the teacher.

"This..." Rejected, Shen Cheng looked a bit embarrassed.

Wu Xiaoxiao gritted her teeth again at the sight.

To prevent accidents, the group traveled through the night.

"Teacher, let's rest for a while. In about two more hours, we'll be back in the city. There's no need to keep pushing. If not, we can wait until dawn to continue..." Wu Xiaoxiao said.

After walking most of the night, everyone felt their bodies couldn't take much more.

In contrast, Zhao Ya and the others, who were weaker in cultivation, remained silent and showed no signs of fatigue.

"Alright!" Seeing that the city was not far, Teacher Moyun also relaxed and nodded.

The group found a low-lying spot, lit a campfire, and sat down.

Just as they were about to rest, the rapid sound of horse hooves came from afar, and the ground trembled as if a group of people were charging toward them.

"Damn!"

Unexpectedly, someone would come so close to the city late at night. Teacher Moyun's face changed. With a wave of his hand, he extinguished the flames and quickly stood up to look toward the source of the sound.

Whoa...

The hooves stopped. Over a dozen figures on tall horses arrived and surrounded the group.

The leader, a middle-aged man holding a crescent-blade saber, had a streak of gray bangs across his face, contrasting sharply with his fair complexion.

"One Inch of Ash?" Teacher Moyun's pupils contracted, and his body trembled slightly.

Around Yeming City, there were many bandits of varying strength, but the most famous and strongest was this One Inch of Ash!

This bandit's real name was no longer known. Because of that tuft of gray-white hair, he was called "One Inch of Ash." Not only was he ruthless, but his strength also surpassed Teacher Moyun's, reaching the peak of mid-grade deity.

"Seems my reputation is pretty good!" One Inch of Ash reined in his horse and chuckled.

"Of course the boss's reputation is good!"

"Since you know the boss himself has come, don't waste words. We only want your money. Don't make a mistake and lose your lives!"

Several bandits beside him laughed simultaneously.

Taking a step forward, Teacher Moyun gritted his teeth and said, "I am a teacher at the Night Nether Academy, Moyun! I brought the students out for training this time and have little money on me. I hope Chief One Inch Ash will let us off..."

"Students? In that case, hand over your weapons and that sand mink beast to me!" Frowning, One Inch Ash looked around and said.

Teacher Moyun hesitated.

"We worked hard to catch that sand mink beast—why should we give it to you?" Wu Xiaoxiao stepped forward. "Move aside and let us return to the city, or else... believe me, I'll have my father wipe you all out!"

"Your father?"

"That's right, my father is the city lord of Night Nether City, Wu Fangqing! A Celestial Deity realm expert. I advise you to be sensible. If you dare rob me, he will surely capture and kill you all!"

Wu Xiaoxiao straightened her body, a look of pride on her face.

As the city lord's daughter, she could barely tolerate being outdone by a few pseudo-god girls, but now even a bunch of bandits dared to covet her sand mink beast—utterly reckless.

"The city lord's daughter?" One Inch Ash was taken aback, then burst into laughter, turning to the men behind him. "Boys, tell her—have we ever feared that city lord?"

"Fear? If we feared, we wouldn't be living on the edge!"

"Perfect timing! Tie up this little wench and have her father send money to ransom her!"

"That city lord has been chasing us relentlessly these years. Best to catch this woman and let him taste the consequences..."

...

The crowd erupted in uproar.

"What are you going to do?"

Expecting that revealing her identity would send the petty thieves fleeing in fear, Wu Xiaoxiao was shocked to find the opposite effect. Her pupils contracted.

Her father was a Celestial Deity—in all of Night Nether City, who would dare defy him once his name was spoken? Yet these bandits didn't care at all... Were they truly unafraid of death?

"Do?" One Inch Ash chuckled. "I thought you were just a bunch of poor students, but it turns out there's a big fish here! Boys, keep them here—don't let a single one escape. Catch them, and we'll truly feast..."

"Yes!" The bandits laughed heartily, dismounting from their horses and surrounding the group.

"Shen Cheng, find a way to lead everyone out..."

Not expecting things to escalate like this, Teacher Moyun's face turned ashen. There was no time to say more. Lowering his voice, he shook his body and charged toward One Inch Ash.

The only option now was to defeat this man and use him as leverage to escape.

Whoosh!

Sword aura spread out, exuding a dense pressure.

A mid-grade deity, though still at the bottom of the divine realm, possessed strength and agility far beyond a low-grade deity. Moreover, as a teacher, Moyun's techniques were exquisite, and his sudden attack posed a great threat.

"Courting death!" As if anticipating his move, One Inch Ash raised his crescent-moon blade and, without any flourish, brought it straight down.

The strike seemed simple but carried immense force, impossible to ignore.

Teacher Moyun hurriedly raised his sword to block.

Crack!

The force surged in, causing the long sword to tremble violently. Teacher Moyun felt his tiger's mouth go numb, blood trickling from his palm. Crushed by the overwhelming power, his knees buckled, and he fell to the ground.

Leveraging the weight of his blade and the height advantage of being mounted, the opponent shattered the teacher's every move in a single blow.

"Strength over skill..." Zhang Xuan frowned deeply.

When Wu Xiaoxiao had announced her family background earlier, he knew things would go wrong. The city lord was powerful, but they were outside the city, and these were bandits—wasn't that just asking for death?

It seemed this girl was not only pampered but also utterly lacking in wilderness experience.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have been so reckless.

Of course... even if she hadn't said that, he didn't think these bandits would let them go.

Those who entered Night Nether Academy were all geniuses from wealthy families. If they took the goods but let the people go... wouldn't that leave a hidden threat?

Having roamed Night Nether City for years with a growing reputation, he didn't believe the bandits would show mercy because of the students.

Saying they only wanted the swords and the sand mink beast was just a ploy to lull them into complacency.

Having guessed this, Zhang Xuan and Teacher Moyun, knowing that Wu Xiaoxiao's display of temper would invite disaster, still didn't stop her.

Bang!

As he pondered, One Inch Ash's crescent-moon blade swung horizontally, striking Teacher Moyun. With a single blow, the latter was sent flying, his body stiffening and unable to move.

"Tie him up!"

Clatter!

Two subordinates approached, took out ropes, and quickly bound Teacher Moyun tightly.

"So? Still want to resist?"

Having severely wounded the strongest teacher in two moves, One Inch Ash smiled faintly, looking around with an air of pride.

"This..."

Shen Cheng, Wu Xiaoxiao, and the others all turned pale.

They had thought the teacher could hold off the enemy, or at least buy time for them to escape, but he was defeated in two moves...

If even a mid-grade deity teacher couldn't withstand two moves, wouldn't they fail to last even one?

Just as they were at a loss, they saw the young man named Zhang Xuan step forward with a foolish look on his face.