Chapter 49. Pesticide of Freshness (5)

Guo Dushan and I immediately headed to the room where Baolinghua was. We thought it would be the first place the bandits would target.

Sure enough, the scene was as expected.

“Huhuhu...”

“Kuhuhu...”

Baolinghua, Wei Jiyan, and Pang Guiyin were each holding their weapons, barely maintaining their fading consciousness as they formed a defensive formation.

The bandits, unable to attack them directly, circled around and taunted them relentlessly.

“Be nice and put down your swords. Come on? Huhuhu...”

“Huhuhu...”

“You girls. This, this... Huhuhu.”

Unable to bear the disgusting lines, I threw a throwing knife right away.

“Be quiet!”

“Eeeek?!”

One bandit was instantly killed as the throwing knife pierced his head. The other two turned to look at us, and Guo Dushan rushed in, slashing them to death with his sword.

In the blink of an eye, three bodies were created. One by me, two by Guo Dushan.

“Are you all right?”

As I hurried over, Baolinghua, who had seen us suddenly appear, spoke with a trembling voice.

“You've come to help... Guo Biao, Cheng Biao.”

“Yes, Madam. Please rest assured.”

Fortunately, upon checking, none of them seemed to be injured. Baolinghua, sitting down weakly, said,

“I never thought this place would be a bandit's den. The food had a sleeping drug... It's too hard to resist.”

While internal energy could suppress the poison, it was ineffective against psychotropic drugs. Unless one had a special mind technique to strengthen mental fortitude like Guo Dushan, it was of little use.

“Try to regain your composure... Are you all okay?”

“I'm so sleepy...”

“I don't think I can hold on much longer.”

Pang Guiyin and Wei Jiyan also looked drowsy and disoriented. Initially, I thought they might be able to help, but it seemed all three were in a bad state.

When I looked at Guo Dushan, he shrugged. It was a signal that we should handle it ourselves.

‘Are all experts like this?’

We didn't know how many bandits there were, and our allies were all deeply asleep. Yet, he was so confident. I eventually covered the three who had fallen asleep with a blanket to hide them from view.

As I pulled the throwing knife out of the bandit's head, Guo Dushan said,

“Are we done? Let's go. I'm so sleepy.”

It sounded like he was suggesting a morning walk. I wiped the blade of the throwing knife and asked Guo Dushan,

“Guo, how many bandits do you think there are?”

“Most of the people in this village, I guess.”

I was surprised by his casual response.

Most of the people in this village are bandits?

“What do you mean...?”

“Isn't it obvious? There's a black market right outside the village, and no one cares?”

“Hmm... That makes sense.”

It's not a big village. It probably has fewer than fifty people in total.

It does seem suspicious for a black market to operate openly in such a small place. Guo Dushan continued,

“Whether the villagers have all become bandits or the bandits have taken over the village, they're all bandits now.”

“Have you had such experiences before, Guo?”

“Sure. Being a bodyguard means dealing with such situations.”

Guo Dushan casually flicked his sword to remove the blood, leaving a trail on the wall.

“Let's go. We need to finish this and get some sleep.”

“Understood.”

***

The situation for the zhangzashou and other bodyguards was precarious. Looking outside, they were all lying on the ground, asleep, while the bandits were slowly approaching with their swords drawn.

I quickly counted them in groups of five. There were about thirty in total. As I told Guo Dushan the number, he sighed.

“Normally, it wouldn't be a problem, but I'm so sleepy I might make a mistake.”

“Are you that sleepy?”

“Absolutely. I just want to lie down and sleep.”

Seeing Guo Dushan yawn widely, it seemed he was genuinely sleepy.

“What should we do?”

“Don't overthink it. Let's just charge in. From what I can see... they're just third-rate riffraff. At best, they're second-rate.”

Even second-rate is a bit intimidating. But Guo Dushan dismissed it as if it were nothing.

“Don't overthink it. A fight is something you think about while you're in it.”

With that, he charged out. He was truly an unbearable person. I also drew my throwing knife from my sleeve and followed.

The bandits, who were about to kill the sleeping zhangzashou one by one, raised their weapons when they saw us suddenly appear.

“What, what is this!”

I decided to start with a throwing knife from a distance. As soon as I threw it, it embedded itself in one of their shoulders, causing a terrible scream. This was the signal for Guo Dushan to charge at explosive speed.

*Swish!*

After throwing the knife, I immediately drew my sword. I decided to handle about two of them, leaving the rest to Guo Dushan.

“What are you doing here!”

“Food and Drug Administration, you bastards!”

I immediately swung my sword, severing one bandit's arm in one go. Their hesitation in charging at me confirmed they were indeed low-level.

However, I didn't let my guard down. I wasn't about to make the mistake of getting lost in the heat of battle and losing sight of my surroundings.

The key in a group fight is to avoid being surrounded. In such chaotic battles, it's common to get hit by a blind swing. Therefore, one must always be aware of the surroundings to avoid being surrounded.

“One of you!”

One bandit charged from behind, but I was able to detect him thanks to my focused senses. It was the innkeeper who had greeted us earlier.

‘Got you!’

I immediately spun and slashed his leg. After much practice, this spinning sword technique had become second nature to me.

He screamed in pain, and I knocked him out to interrogate him later.

‘Two down, how many more are left?’

I immediately checked on Guo Dushan. I was concerned about his condition due to the effects of the sleeping drug and the fact that even experts can be killed by a stab in the stomach.

However, it soon became clear that there was no need to worry about a tycoon and an expert.

‘Unbelievable!’

I couldn't help but gape. The scene before me was inhuman.

“Gaaaah!!!”

“Spare me!!!”

Guo Dushan was literally massacring the bandits. He beheaded one with a swift sword swing, grabbed the head, and threw it like a discus, smashing another bandit's skull.

Then he charged at the next target, kicked his shin, breaking his leg, and struck his forehead with the hilt of the sword, killing him. He then threw the corpse into the middle of the bandits, using his internal energy to increase the impact.

“Ahahah!!!”

The bandits hit by the corpse flew like bowling pins. Guo Dushan's strategy was simple. He didn't use any sword techniques or qi. He just swung his sword like a human tank, crushing the bandits.

‘This is terrifying.’

It was the first time I saw Guo Dushan use his full strength, and it was indeed what an expert should be. If violence could take human form, it would look like this.

I made a mental note to not tell him to go away when he asks for snacks next time.

*Clang!*

“Oh.”

Guo Dushan, who was enthusiastically slaughtering the bandits, suddenly sounded troubled. His sword had broken with a sharp metallic sound.

Having been used to crush human bones without any qi, the sword couldn't withstand the strain.

As soon as his sword broke, a bandit with a sharp dagger charged at him.

“You! Die!”

I couldn't let that happen.

“Guo! Catch this!”

I immediately took a throwing stance, gripped the sword like a fastball, and threw it. The sword spun and veered off course.

“Thanks! I'll use it well!”

Surprisingly, Guo Dushan moved like lightning and caught the hilt of the sword with his mouth, like a frisbee-catching dog. I was amazed and asked,

“Wow. Does your mouth hurt?”

Guo Dushan spat out the sword and griped,

“If you were worried, you should have thrown it better.”

I should have thrown it like a gyroball.

With the new sword, Guo Dushan resumed the massacre. In no time, about twenty bandits were gruesomely killed. Eventually, the bandits tried to flee, but Guo Dushan relentlessly chased and killed them one by one.

After the frenzied slaughter, Guo Dushan returned, drenched in blood. He wiped his face to remove the blood and said,

“I used it well.”

As I handed him back the sword, I asked,

“Guo, are you okay?”

“No. I'm so sleepy.”

Guo Dushan looked truly exhausted and tired. I thanked him for his efforts.

“Thank you, Guo.”

“No, I... I can't take it anymore. I need to sleep.”

And with that, he lay down and fell asleep. I checked to see if he had any injuries, but there were none. He was just asleep.

I couldn't help but sigh.

‘This is going to be a mess. I have to clean up all this by myself?’

Fortunately, the bandits were all gone, but the job wasn't over. I had to remove the bodies and move the people to a safe place. But I was the only one awake.

“Snore! Grind... Grind...”

Guo Dushan was now snoring and grinding his teeth as if he were in his own bedroom.

The noise was so loud that I wanted to put a gas mask on him. Then he started scratching his crotch.

‘This is really going to be a mess.’

How can a human be so filthy?

This is why he can't get married.

I quickly retrieved my throwing knife and started to clean up the bodies. I checked if any of the zhangzashou or bodyguards had regained consciousness, but they were all out cold.

With no choice, I started the cleanup, but it seemed endless.

‘Should I just lie down and sleep too?’

I was tempted to do so when...

*Thump thump thump thump!*

I saw a large man running from the village. Instinctively, I felt uneasy and drew my sword.

The large man was holding a Qinglong Yanyue Dao, which glinted menacingly in the moonlight. As he approached, he panted and said,

“Are you the only one awake now?”

“Who are you!”

“I'm their leader.”

The large man spat and pointed at the mangled bandits. It was a gruesome sight. I averted my gaze and nudged Guo Dushan with my foot.

‘Wake up, man.’

However, Guo Dushan showed no signs of waking up. I decided to bluff.

“The fact that you're still charging at me after seeing me decapitate your subordinates is truly admirable!”

The large man, hearing my words, pointed at Guo Dushan, who was sleeping soundly nearby, with his Qinglong Yanyue Dao.

“Crazy bastard, I saw everything. He did it all by himself.”

“Damn.”

It was a night of no success.

The bandit leader slowly approached me with his Qinglong Yanyue Dao, muttering,

“The losses are immense. Damn it. If I had known an expert was awake, I wouldn't have come.”

“Why don't you give up and run now?”

“Don't be ridiculous. I need to recover my losses now.”

He was slowly approaching me, the Qinglong Yanyue Dao gleaming in the moonlight.

‘Wake up!’

I stomped on Guo Dushan's stomach with all my might, hoping he would wake up.

However, the response was unexpected.

*Whoooom!*

Guo Dushan's leather flute sounded long and loud under the bright moon. I held back a headache and took out the throwing knife I had retrieved earlier, holding it in my left hand.

‘This is really going to be a mess.’

It was time for a fight.