An Qian immediately placed Qin Shilei gently on the ground, drew the Biyue Sword she had obtained from Feng Yuxiu, and stood on guard.
The orbs of light, which had been drifting slowly, suddenly accelerated and flew towards them upon seeing the firelight.
Upon closer inspection, they were flying creatures, slightly smaller than a fist, resembling moths, and emitting a fluorescent glow all over their bodies.
An Qian stepped forward, blocking the path of the fluorescent insects.
Seeing that the fluorescent insects showed no signs of stopping, An Qian swung her sword at the one flying at the very front.
"Bang!"
The fluorescent insect that was struck exploded like a watermelon.
Juices splattered everywhere, coating An Qian.
The sticky fluid on her exposed skin caused a burning, stinging pain.
Acid attack?
Disfigurement?
Terrifying words flashed through An Qian's mind in an instant.
Chixing!
While An Qian unleashed a fireball, controlling it to burn the fluorescent insects, she quickly retrieved a large bottle of water from her ring and poured it over her head.
As the clean water washed over her, the stinging sensation receded.
At this point, three or four of the over ten fluorescent insects had their wings burned off by Chixing and fell to the ground. The remaining ones were already close.
An Qian twisted her right hand, using a gentle force to pat the nearest fluorescent insect with the flat of her blade.
The fluorescent insect was sent flying into the distance, wobbling for a while before regaining its flight.
Seeing that this method was effective, An Qian used gentle force to swat the remaining fluorescent insects away.
Then, she controlled Chixing to burn and kill the much slower fluorescent insects one by one.
Another series of explosions ensued.
However, An Qian, who was prepared, was not hit by the splatter of juices from the more distant explosions.
He Yuyao quickly stepped forward to extinguish the few leaves that Chixing had ignited.
An Qian, meanwhile, took out another large bottle of mineral water and thoroughly rinsed her hands and face.
She approached the campfire and carefully examined the spots on the back of her hand where the juices had landed.
A few areas on the back of her hand were slightly red, but there was no swelling.
An Qian still felt uneasy. She turned to look at Zhang Xiaoli, seeing that she was still unconscious.
She could only helplessly pray in her heart that the condition would not worsen.
"An Qian, are you alright?" Qin Shilei asked weakly from the ground.
"I'm fine." An Qian did not want Qin Shilei to see the red marks on her face.
Qin Shilei struggled to sit up.
An Qian quickly walked over to help him, chiding, "Why are you moving around?"
Qin Shilei looked at An Qian intently and breathed a sigh of relief, "It should be fine."
An Qian asked in a low voice, "If I really get disfigured, will you not even want to look at me?"
Qin Shilei chuckled softly, "When the lights are off, we're all the same."
"You're asking for it."
An Qian extended two fingers and gently pinched Qin Shilei's lower back. Qin Shilei feigned pain.
"Hungry? How about we have the lamb chops we roasted yesterday for dinner?" Qin Shilei took out several large skewers of lamb chops from his ring, still steaming, and prepared to hand them to An Qian and her daughter.
Just then, lights shone from a distance.
After a burst of noisy footsteps, seven or eight people appeared before them.
"So fragrant."
"Smells like lamb chops."
Then came the sound of swallowing.
The newcomers stared at the lamb chops in Qin Shilei's hands like starving wolves.
"What a pair of peerless sisters."
"There's another one on the ground, also a beauty."
Then came another round of swallowing.
Clang!
An Qian drew the Biyue Sword and faced the group with a cold expression.
There were a total of nine people opposite them, all wielding weapons such as knives and swords.
Among them, three had swollen, red faces, as if they had been stung by more than ten bees.
The leader was a middle-aged man in his thirties, with a long, horse-like face.
His eyes scanned Qin Shilei and his companions.
He soon noticed Qin Shilei's pale complexion and that he had to lean on a woman to remain seated.
An Qian, on the other hand, held a sharp sword and wore feathered armor, looking heroic and spirited.
The horse-faced man, after a moment of consideration, raised his saber and ordered Qin Shilei, "Hand over the lamb chops, or you'll lose your lives."
He intended to secure the lamb chops first, and after eating his fill, he would proceed to the next step.
"Scram!"
As An Qian's mind stirred, her Biyue Sword was enveloped in a layer of fire.
She hoped to scare them off, to avoid injuring Qin Shilei and the others in a fight.
"Boss, why waste words with them? Let's just snatch it."
"Chop the man to death, and the women, hehe!"
"I only want the steak. If you give me an extra portion, you can have the women as you please."
The horse-faced man's subordinates waited for his command to rush forward and attack.
"Go, but don't kill them."
The horse-faced man waved his hand and charged towards An Qian first.
He planned to take down the only combatant first, then leisurely claim the lamb chops.
Chixing!
Since a fight was inevitable, An Qian showed no mercy, flinging a fireball with her left hand.
The swift fireball instantly struck one person in the crowd. The exploding Chixing not only knocked the person to the ground, unable to rise again, but the flying sparks also ignited three or four others.
The horse-faced man's group fell into disarray. Those on fire frantically tried to extinguish the flames, while those not hit hesitated in their steps.
There was no time to unleash a second Chixing, so An Qian charged forward with her sword.
She sidestepped the saber that the horse-faced man swung at her and thrust her sword at a subordinate behind him who was trying to put out the fire.
A decisive blow on one is better than a hundred minor injuries.
As the man, in his panic, was about to raise his sword to block, a sword pierced his heart.
Seven people remained.
By this time, those who had been on fire had shed their clothes and joined the fray shirtless.
An Qian, fearless, parried a long sword cutting in front of her, then kicked someone to her left. She spun and slashed, severing the throat of the person to her right.
The horse-faced man was shocked, not expecting the opponent's strength to be so formidable.
His mind raced, and he withdrew, charging towards Qin Shilei and the others by the campfire, "Stop her for me."
An Qian, seeing that the horse-faced man was preparing to deal with Qin Shilei and the others, became extremely anxious.
Her Biyue Sword struck with increasing ferocity, forcing the five opponents to retreat but not yet break.
She had managed to kill three people quickly by taking advantage of their momentary lapse.
Now, the remaining five were fully on guard and adopting a guerrilla tactic, preventing her from disengaging or quickly killing them.
"Don't come any closer!"
He Yuyao suddenly let go of Qin Shilei, pulled out her submachine gun, and prepared to shoot at the horse-faced man.
The horse-faced man was startled again. He moved rapidly left and right, closing in on He Yuyao, while simultaneously throwing an object.
With a clatter, a cleaver spun and knocked the submachine gun out of He Yuyao's hand.
"It's settled!"
The horse-faced man's heart steadied.
He swung his saber at Qin Shilei, who had already fallen to the ground.
He planned to kill Qin Shilei first, then subdue the woman to threaten An Qian.
Just then, a cylindrical object appeared in Qin Shilei's hand.
With a faint click of the mechanism, the horse-faced man fell backward.
Numerous red spots, as fine as cow's hair, appeared on his upper body, his lips still bearing a smile of impending success.