Chapter 33 - Crisis!

The revelation that one of the robed men was in the spirit-refining realm didn't really shock Raymond, but it sent a shiver down his spine nonetheless. Since the enemy had come prepared, this mission was practically doomed, however, Raymond hadn't given up just yet. He knew his own strength, if he made use of all the strength he had to launch a sneak attack, he had a shot at injuring, or maybe even killing someone in the spirit-refining realm.

Fighting people in the body-refining realm was a piece of cake, but doing it while looking for an opportunity to ambush a spirit-refining realm cultivator would prove to be quite challenging. Before Raymond could spend too much time brainstorming a plan, the battle had already started. The robed men were the first to arrive, and the clash proved to be devastating. Their martial arts were not only strange but also cruel.

At first, he was only fighting one of them in a one versus one, but after quickly getting rid of his opponent, Raymond was quickly surrounded by at least five of them, eager to avenge their fallen comrade. Raymond kept his cool, but even though his strength was great, he was still a little inexperienced. As time passed and swords clashed, Raymond was soon covered in injuries. He had managed to kill two of his opponents, and the pressure on him had lessened significantly.

Whilst Raymond was trying his hardest, the mercenaries around him were beginning to falter. Since they were outnumbered, all they could do was try and hold out for dear life, but even that was starting to get harder as time passed. Every time a mercenary fell, the pressure on the rest intensified even further. No matter how strong Raymond was, he couldn't get rid of more than 20 cultivators in the body-refining realm all by himself. If he was at the peak of the body-refining realm then he might've had a chance, but unfortunately, he was only in the 7th revolution.

No matter how dire the situation was for them, the real battlefield was still the battle between the spirit-refining cultivators. Almost every single mercenary had bet on this fight with their lives. If captain Ryan lost the fight, then they were truly doomed to die. Although the mercenaries bet their lives on the fight, it didn't look like anyone was going to win anytime soon. It was more likely that the mercenaries would be exhausted to death before captain Ryan could eke out a win.

It was at this point in time that a turning point of the battle arrived in the form of Cristopher Baxter. Although he was supposed to be protected, he decided to join the battle in a moment of impulse. Although his strength was great, half of the robed men immediately abandoned their fights and surrounded him. Cristopher quickly realised his mistake, but no one could help him, since their hands were still full with their own opponents.

"Young master!"

Raymond knew that if Christopher died, the fight would take a disastrous turn. Although his strength wasn't important, they would immediately lose all of their morale if Christopher died, maybe captain Ryan would even give up and just save his own skin by running away. No matter what, young master Christopher could not die here! Trying his hardest to think of a solution, Raymond soon came up with an idea. Although it wasn't that feasible, he had to give it a try. If he succeeded, he might be able to turn the whole situation around!

Without wasting any time, Raymond raised his sword up high and sprinted to Christopher's side. A robed man tried to interrupt him, but Raymond swiftly delivered a subsonic pierce straight through his throat in response. In less than two seconds, he had already arrived next to Christopher. The robed men didn't immediately attack, since the first person to attack would probably just end up dead under Raymond's quick sword.

Christopher was grateful for Raymond's timely assistance, but before he could say anything, Raymond whispered in his ear.

"No matter what happens, just stay here okay? I'll show you something interesting."

Christopher nodded in response, despite not having any idea of what was going on.

Raymond simply stood up straight with an enigmatic smile on his face, before he immediately stimulated his soul power to the limit. The purple hexagram in his eyes started glowing softly, emitting a strange charm that most people would find intoxicating. A strange power with Raymond at its centre diffused into the surroundings, influencing every enemy without their knowledge.

Taking two steps forward, the robed men lost their cool and instantly attacked Raymond. Without losing his composure, Raymond softly swung his sword at his incoming adversaries, or at least that's what it looked like on the surface. The three enemies running at him from the front were instantly decapitated, their heads soaring through the air. Blood splattered on Raymond's face, but he wasn't fazed, instead, he quickly broke through the encirclement and ran away.

The move he had just used was one of the ultimate moves of the Azure Wind Sword Art, the Edge of Ruin! The meaning of the name was quite simple, any enemy who stood in the way would face ruin! The other robed men were a little dazed by the attack, but they quickly regained their bearings and chased after Raymond.

"Don't let that Baxter bastard escape!"

Left standing on his own was Christopher. While the robed men chased after Raymond, it seemed as if they had completely forgotten about him. Not only that, but one of them even shouted as if they were chasing him, and not Raymond.

"What the actual fuck?"

...

The battle between the spirit-refining cultivators was still ongoing, but it had been in a stalemate for a while now. Ryan tried his hardest to gain an advantage, but every time he thought he found an opening, he would suffer a fierce counterattack from his opponent. Whilst their fight was going nowhere, Ryan was getting more and more anxious, if he couldn't defeat his opponent quickly, then young master Christopher and young miss Chloe would undoubtedly die.

Whilst Ryan was caught up in his own thoughts, he heard a commotion approaching quickly. When he turned to look, he could see Raymond being chased by a throng of enemies. Although he was baffled, he didn't move to help Raymond, since he was occupied with his own battle right now. To his surprise, the robed man he was battling seemed oddly concerned about what was going on.

Wasn't their target the scions of the Baxter family? Why would he care about a random mercenary? That created another question in and of itself, why were all of the robed men chasing Raymond? Had they given up on killing Christopher and Chloe? Or had they already perished...

As the thought crossed Ryan's mind, he shuddered. If that was the case, then he would have to flee before he was caught by other members of the Baxter family.. Ryan was only an ordinary mercenary after all, there was no way he could handle the wrath of the Baxter family if he failed his mission.