CHAPTER 20: We Are All Cannon Fodder

Once the gamblers had divided up the pills, Yu Youyou casually tossed her empty pouch behind her.

“Alright, time to get down to business.”

She slowly rolled up the sleeves of her black robe, tightened the silver rope around her waist, and lightly leaped onto the empty arena stage.

The slender child lifted her head, looking down upon the gathered rogue cultivators.

Her voice remained lazy and indifferent as she calmly declared, “Someone come and fight me.”

Just as two young men sitting closest to the arena were about to take a bite of their sweet pastries, they nearly choked in shock.

“Yu—” Su Yizhi almost called her name but quickly remembered they couldn’t use real names here. Thinking fast, he decided to use the alias they had first encountered in the black market.

“Master Bald Dome, get down from there!”

Fighting these burly men—wasn’t that just asking for death?

The rogue cultivators below were just as stunned.

Though rough and unruly, they had great respect for medical cultivators—especially Yu Youyou, who had personally treated many of them. Who would dare lay a hand on her?

Ba Dao, wielding his massive blade, suddenly had a realization. “So Master’s surname is Tu? Master Tu, I apologize for my lack of respect!”

Yu Youyou turned her silent gaze toward Su Yizhi, the originator of this terrible nickname: “…”

The burly men below, especially those whose limbs had been reattached by Yu Youyou, shouted the loudest:

“Master Tu! Just point out which bastard offends you—why trouble yourself to fight? Give me two pills, and I’ll cut that bastard’s three legs off for you!”

“Master Tu! If you don’t have pills, spirit stones work too! One hundred spirit stones per hand—I’ll cut off a hundred hands for you!”

Yu Youyou didn’t mind their rowdiness. She patiently repeated herself, “I really want to fight in the arena. Who wants to spar with me? Just don’t hit my face.”

“Hah!” Ba Dao pulled out his broadsword and slammed it onto the nearby table, sweeping a menacing gaze across the crowd. “Master Tu saved my life! Whoever dares lay a hand on Master Tu, my blade will not show mercy!”

Ba Dao’s underlings also raised their blades in unison and shouted angrily, “No need to be polite!”

Yu Youyou remained silent.

In the end, she pulled out a box of pills and displayed it in front of everyone. “This is my wager—a box of pain-relief pills.”

“Damn!”

“Shit!”

The atmosphere around the arena instantly boiled over. A large figure was the first to react, leaping onto the stage ahead of the others.

Just moments ago, he had been fiercely defending his master. Now, with his broadsword slung over his shoulder, Ba Dao grinned ear to ear at Yu Youyou and called out in delight, “Then I’ll be making a fool of myself!”

Tch.

Are all you black market folks so good at slapping yourselves in the face?

….

Ba Dao tossed his blade aside and clasped his fists. “I am already at the peak of Foundation Establishment. Since this is Master Tu’s first time stepping into the ring, I won’t use my weapon and will suppress my cultivation to the Qi Refinement stage!”

Though he couldn’t see through Yu Youyou’s cultivation level, anyone with eyes could tell she was just a rookie.

Yu Youyou didn’t bother with pleasantries. She was only at the mid-stage of Qi Refinement herself—there was no way she could take on a Foundation Establishment cultivator at full strength.

At that moment, the crisp sound of a shattering wine bowl echoed from the audience below.

Ba Dao moved.

He was like a massive black tiger, transforming his palm into a fist that carried a terrifying gale as it barreled straight toward Yu Youyou’s face.

Loose cultivators specialized in close-quarters combat. The first-floor arena was a battleground for Foundation Establishment and Qi Refinement cultivators, and Ba Dao was a frequent visitor here. The fact that he was one of the rare few to have achieved a ten-match winning streak was evident from the large group of underlings surrounding him.

As expected, even while suppressing his cultivation, Ba Dao’s punch was immensely frightening—his fist was larger than Yu Youyou’s entire face.

He was dead set on getting that box of pain-relief pills!

Yu Youyou was entirely immersed in battle. Channeling her spiritual energy, she swiftly retreated, barely dodging the massive fist as it grazed past her face.

“Shit!” Hadn’t she already said not to hit the face?!

Seizing the opportunity, Yu Youyou rolled across the ground to evade Ba Dao’s next sudden strike. At the same time, she grabbed onto his leg, swept his footing with a powerful kick, and threw him down with force.

“Bang!”

Caught off guard, the eight-foot-tall Ba Dao was actually slammed onto the ground.

Wait… he was taken down?

The crowd below was stunned, watching Yu Youyou execute her smooth combo with practiced ease. Qi Nanfeng and Su Yizhi, standing among them, were even more frozen in shock, unable to find words.

Yu Youyou dared not relax. Her combat skills had been honed through decades of being hunted by zombies in the post-apocalyptic world, but Ba Dao, empowered by spiritual energy, was far more difficult to deal with. More importantly—he had a brain!

Sure enough, snapping out of his daze, Ba Dao seized Yu Youyou’s ankle and, relying on his sheer strength, slammed her heavily against the ground.

The nearby cultivators even heard the dull sound of her shoulder colliding with the floor. Her right arm twisted unnaturally—her bone was clearly dislocated.

Yet, her movements didn’t pause for even a moment. She kicked Ba Dao away with her free foot, broke free, and, with a practiced motion, used her left hand to forcefully snap her own bone back into place!

“Hiss!”

Are all Pill Cultivators this ruthless to themselves?!

Yu Youyou continued dodging Ba Dao’s attacks while searching for an opening.

At this moment, Ba Dao appeared in her eyes like a massive, ugly pill waiting to be refined. Her task was to pinpoint his weak spot and “refine” him!

There!

Yu Youyou targeted Ba Dao’s newly healed right leg, condensing fire-attributed spiritual energy into a thin line and tightly wrapping it around his calf.

“The hell is this?!”

A scorching heat suddenly seared Ba Dao’s leg. He could even smell the distinct scent of burning flesh.

Before he could lower his head to check, Yu Youyou exploded with all her remaining spiritual energy, using the energy thread to hurl Ba Dao off the stage with tremendous force!

As her spiritual energy was depleted in an instant, Yu Youyou collapsed onto the stage, trembling as she tossed the box of pain-relief pills toward Ba Dao.

“Here, take it. Consider it your sparring fee.”

Ba Dao was a true man—he had kept his promise until the very end, never breaking his word for the sake of the pills.

Lying on the ground below, Ba Dao still hadn’t recovered from his shock. He clutched the medicine box in a daze, staring blankly at the lanterns above. Numbly, he pulled out a pill and swallowed it. Instantly, the burning pain in his half-charred leg disappeared.

But his heart hurt. Oh, it hurt so much.

Meanwhile, Yu Youyou was just about to struggle back to her feet to heal herself when a voice suddenly rang out from the edge of the crowd—

“Where’s that so-called Master you guys were talking about?”

The speaker was a towering, bronze-skinned man. He wasn’t wearing a mask, and his bare upper body was covered in old and new scars, making his well-defined muscles appear even more strikingly powerful.

He pushed through the crowd, scanning the area but failing to spot the legendary healer. Instead, his gaze landed on Yu Youyou, sprawled on the stage like a dead fish.

He frowned. “Brats shouldn’t be coming to places like this. Just look at you—you’ve been beaten so badly you can’t even get up.”

A heavy silence fell over the crowd.

On the ground, Ba Dao silently dragged his half-burnt leg further into the shadows.

Seeing no one responding, the man curiously inquired again, “Wasn’t there talk of some great healer? May I ask where he is?”

Still lying flat on the ground, Yu Youyou spoke weakly, “Not a master, just a brat. I’m right here.”

….

After swallowing the Focus Pill that Su Yizhi had stuffed into her mouth, Yu Youyou gradually regained her spiritual energy and finally managed to sit up.

Expressionless, she stared at the man before her.

The man sat cross-legged across from her, scratching his head awkwardly as he gestured clumsily with his hands, struggling to find the right words. Finally, as if mustering all his courage, he spoke—

“Master, you may not know who we are…”

“You’re from the Heavenly Shield Sect, aren’t you?” Su Yizhi, who had been silent on the side, suddenly interjected.

“Huh??” The man was stunned, then overjoyed. “Does this Daoist friend recognize us?”

In the Eastern Domain, there were three major sects: Cloudflower Sword Sect, Pill Cauldron Sect, and lastly, the Heavenly Shield Sect.

“Because only people from the Heavenly Shield Sect randomly strike a defensive pose while walking, even when they’re not holding a shield and no one is attacking them,” Su Yizhi calmly pointed out.

What he didn’t say was that only Heavenly Shield Sect cultivators possessed such absurdly muscular bodies and were covered in countless scars. After all, their training method revolved around relentlessly tempering their flesh.

This cultivation method, to put it bluntly, is about constantly getting beaten to train an unbelievably tough body.

The disciple of the Heaven Shield Sect was momentarily stunned, his hands trembling uncontrollably, as if suppressing the urge to take a defensive stance with a shield.

In the end, he could only sigh. “Since you’ve already seen through it, I won’t hide it anymore. We are indeed disciples of the Heaven Shield Sect.”

Yu Youyou caught a key word. “We?”

The other party nodded, speaking earnestly in an attempt to win some sympathy. “Yes, there were ten of us out for training. Nine of them had their legs broken and are currently washing dishes in the back kitchen to pay off their debts. I had no choice but to come and seek the master’s help.”

“Wait a minute?” The more Yu Youyou listened, the more something felt off.

The Heaven Shield Sect was one of the three great sects of the Eastern Territory. How could its disciples be in such a miserable state—getting their legs broken and forced to wash dishes in the black market to repay debts? And judging by the looks of it, this brother was already at the Foundation Establishment stage. How could he still be unable to fight back?

Then, Yu Youyou witnessed something that redefined her understanding—there was always a higher peak, and fools beyond fools.

“I am Kuang Langsheng. A few months ago, we heard that many strange beasts had appeared in Tonghua County, so we made a special trip here, hoping to temper ourselves in battle against them.”

Su Yizhi leaned in and whispered to Yu Youyou, “Basically, they wanted to get beaten up by the beasts.”

“But who would have thought that the Yunhua Sword Sect got there first? By the time we arrived in Tonghua County, we heard the beasts had already been slain.” Speaking of this, Kuang Langsheng angrily punched his own chest.

The force of it made Yu Youyou’s eyelids twitch. Immediately afterward, a bruise appeared on Kuang Langsheng’s well-built chest.

Kuang Langsheng continued, “Since we had already come all this way, we couldn’t just return empty-handed. So, we decided to head to the legendary black market to try and earn some money in the arena.”

“But who would have thought—the black market arena was terrifying beyond belief!”

That was Kuang Langsheng’s most painful memory. His group, relying on their thick skin and tough bodies, believed that Qi Condensation and Foundation Establishment rogue cultivators wouldn’t be able to harm them. So…

They went straight to the Golden Core stage arena upstairs, hoping to take an even harsher beating.

“It was our first time in the black market, and we didn’t expect the rogue cultivators to be so strong.” A trace of embarrassment appeared on Kuang Langsheng’s handsome face. “First, we lost most of our spirit stones in bets, and then we had our legs broken. Since it was such a humiliating experience, we were too ashamed to let the Pill Cauldron Sect’s alchemists know, so we thought we’d find a healer in the black market instead…”

Yu Youyou and her two companions exchanged subtle glances.

Well, sorry to say, but the alchemist sitting right in front of you is from the Pill Cauldron Sect.

Completely unaware, Kuang Langsheng continued narrating his tragic ordeal. “We were directed by a so-called expert in the black market to seek out a Master Shen Jun.”

At this point, Kuang Langsheng fell silent for a moment, a shadow crossing his handsome face.

Hearing that familiar name, Yu Youyou immediately understood.

“You got scammed out of all your spirit stones?”

Kuang Langsheng’s expression gradually became blank. “Mm. And our storage pouches were stolen too. All that was left were my nine junior brothers with broken legs. To afford medicine, I had no choice but to keep fighting in the arena. But the rogue cultivators had no honor—they took turns challenging me. In the end, we lost even our shields and ended up owing two thousand spirit stones. We couldn’t even contact our sect elders for ransom, nor could we leave to seek help from the Pill Cauldron Sect. We had no choice but to work off our debts here.”

“After gathering information for half a month, we finally realized that Shen Jun was a fraud. The real skilled healer is you, Master!”

Yu Youyou remained unfazed by the flattery. “Then why didn’t you just tell them you were from the Heaven Shield Sect and have them take you to get ransom money?”

Kuang Langsheng: “I did. You are the first ones to actually believe I’m a disciple of the Heaven Shield Sect.”

Well, that made sense. In the imagination of rogue cultivators, the three great sects were composed of elegant, ethereal, and unattainable beings…

It was obvious that aside from being good-looking, Kuang Langsheng had nothing in common with those descriptions.

Kuang Langsheng spoke solemnly, “To be honest, Master, we have an important task to complete in a few months. Please, I beg you to heal us! Once we recover, I will personally bring the medical expenses and our gratitude to you!”

Yu Youyou suddenly thought of something and looked at Kuang Langsheng with an odd expression. “Are you guys going to participate in the Four Territories Tournament?”

“As expected of Master—you are truly perceptive!” Kuang Langsheng was full of admiration.

Yu Youyou finally understood everything.

No wonder. She had always wondered why, in the original storyline, aside from the Yunhua Sword Sect, the other two Eastern Territory sects only sent weaklings. Everyone else sent Foundation Establishment cultivators, but those two sects sent nothing but Qi Condensation disciples.

Turns out, the originally designated representatives from the Pill Cauldron Sect had been defeated by Senior Brother Zhu, while the Heaven Shield Sect disciples were detained in the black market of Tonghua County, their whereabouts unknown.

“We’re all victims here.” Yu Youyou patted Kuang Langsheng’s shoulder and let out a sigh.

All so that Long Aotian’s offspring could evolve into Little Long Aotian… These innocent cannon fodder characters had suffered ridiculous and tragic misfortunes in the background.

She stood up and said to Kuang Langsheng, “Come on, let’s go reattach your junior brothers’ legs.”

Kuang Langsheng was deeply grateful, clasping his fists and bowing deeply.

“Many thanks, Bald Master!”

Hearing this title, Yu Youyou’s eyelid twitched, and any fleeting sense of camaraderie she had just felt instantly disappeared.

“Alright, write an IOU. One thousand spirit stones per person.”

Kuang Langsheng didn’t hesitate. He crouched down and earnestly wrote out the debt note before solemnly handing it over.

He seemed relieved, smiling as he said, “Once we’re healed, we’ll head to the Yunhua Sword Sect and inform our sect to send spirit stones to Master.”

Yu Youyou’s hand, holding the IOU, paused. Her voice remained steady, but there was a slight chill to it. “Yunhua Sword Sect?”

“Yes.” Since it wasn’t a secret, Kuang Langsheng had no intention of hiding it.

“This Four Territories Tournament is being held in the Western Territory, which is quite far away. In the Eastern Territory, only the Yunhua Sword Sect has a giant teleportation array. Our sect’s disciples, along with those from the Pill Cauldron Sect, will be heading there first.”