The Magus Era - Chapter 27

 Black Water

The four Bi Fang Clan warriors were wearing a mocking smile on their faces while they were attacking Ji Hao; however, they all turned around their spearheads which were inches away from Ji Hao’s face and rushed towards Jiang Xue when they heard Jiang Xue’s scream.

Their smile disappeared and their faces turned blue when they realised that Jiang Xue was attacked. They shouted trembly and rushed toward her shimmeringly with all their strength. Jiang Xue’s father was an elder Magi of their clan; if anything happened to her under their protection, even their entire families could be killed by her father.

A figure suddenly showed up. It was an elderly man, standing between Jiang Xue and those warriors. The older man was scrawny, topless, with a two-foot-long, one-horned black snake coiled around his neck. His deathly pale skin was covered by tens of black snake tattoos.

“Go away!” A warrior shouted at the older man. The blazing flame behind him transformed into a pair of fiery wings and spread out in the air. The warrior doubled his speed and flew up to the older man; at the same time, he held his sword high and chopped it hard towards the older man’s neck.

The older man was grinning deviously at the warrior. He stayed still, fixing his eyes on that warrior. The snake coiled around his neck, raised its head while hissing at those warriors and then spurted out a wisp of cold black smoke from its mouth.

All of the four Senior Magi warriors were turned into black ice-sculptures by that smoke instantly. Their bodies were wrapped in half-foot-thick black ice shells; the blazing flame behind them vanished without a trace.

Mr.Crow was quietly standing on Ji Hao’ shoulder. He spread his wings and fluffed his feathers when he saw that black snake, and ceaselessly cawed at it.

The one-horned snake swayed, uncoiled itself from the elderly man’s neck; then rapidly enlarged its body into a several hundred feet long hissing serpent.

The air temperature suddenly cooled; even the plants nearby were all frozen.

“Hey my old friend, he’s only a kid. Why’re you so nervous?” The elderly man asked the serpent.

The serpent’s forked tongue darted out from time to time; it went near the older man’s ear and hissed something to him.

The elderly man’s expression turned grim after that. He showed a trace of respect, turned to Mr Crow and said: “Kid, I didn’t know that you’re taking a Fire Crow with you. Those old guys in your clan… Are they dumb or what? What makes you qualified for making an agreement with a Fire Crow?”

Ji Hao glanced back. He saw that the Gold Black Mountain was only tens of miles away from him, which means he was still in the centre area of the Fire Crow Clan. Only if he made a loud noise would those Magusreists, elders and Fire Crows hear him and come tear this old man into pieces.

He was slightly assured, turned around and said to the elderly man: “What does that have anything to do with you? You stinky snakes… How dare you sneak into our Holy land?”

The older man sneered and said: “What’s the big deal about your Holy Land? I’m already here… It means that… I’m not afraid of you… at all. But I’ve never thought that such an interesting story was happening around here… Haha!”

Once the older man finished his talk, another man rushed out of the woods and darted up to Jiang Xue, who was lying on the ground behind the elder man.

It was Black Water Jiao with his one-horned serpent coiled around his waist. Jiao grabbed Jiang Xue’s neck and pull her up from the ground. Jiang Xue screamed out but Jiao slapped her hard. She then coughed up blood and didn’t dare to make any other sound.

Jiao looked at Jiang Xue in the same way that a horse dealer looked at his animals. He ripped her clothes into shreds, squeezed her breasts and pinched her butt, then pull her head close with his other hand and carefully watched her face.

Jiao splayed his hands across her body and said: “This young woman is quite pretty. I heard that her family is influential in the Bi Fang Clan… And…she’s a virgin! She’s gonna be worth a fortune if we sell her to those slave dealers!”

“I finally got myself a nice piece! Haha!” Jiao’s face flushed red with excitement.

“Slave dealers?” Ji Hao looked at Jiao, who was thrilled. Ji Hao then took a glance at Jiang Xue, who was trembling with tears remaining in the corners of her eyes. Ji Hao took a few steps back cautiously, then said to Jiao and the older man: “Glad that you got something you like. I should head back home then. Goodbye!”

Jiao paused for a second when he heard what Ji Hao said. The older man then said to Ji Hao: “Hey kid, I thought you would want to help this girl and even risk your own life. I mean…that’s what your Fire Crow warriors do, right? Are you really gonna leave now?”

“Do you think I’m stupid?” Ji Hao shrugged and pointed at them, “You two, I suppose both of you are Senior Magi. And your fighting beasts, I bet they’re on the same level as you. I am a Novice Magus. My only company here is Mr Crow. I might be able run away in front of your faces…If I try my best. I would only have myself killed by trying to save her.”

Ji Hao laughed out and continued: “I’m not stupid, ok? Besides, she was trying to kill me earlier. Why on earth would I rescue her now?"

Ji Hao then took tens of steps backward quickly and pointed at Jiang Xue, said in the meanwhile: “Her father is Jiang Shu, an elder of the Bi Fang Clan. She is also the warrior leader of the Fire Crow Clan, Ji Shu’s daughter-in-law…well, though Ji Shu has already killed his own son… Anyway, this girl could be worth a lot of money. Do make a right price!”

At this time, Ji Hao has already moved to the woods. Jiao and the older man took a step toward him. Mr Crow suddenly let out a caw; his wings started to emit a fiery light. Jiao and the older man then stopped hesitantly.

“Good, little guy.” Said the older man, “Never thought that your Fire Crow Clan had a smart kid like you.” The elder man gnashed his teeth and stared at Ji Hao. “You’re going to be harder to beat even than your Abba. The Fire Crow Clan people… are very lucky.”

Ji Hao didn’t respond. He drew back to the woods.

Mr Crow enlarged his body size, grabbed Ji Hao and transformed into a beam of fiery light, then flew toward the Gold Black Mountain.

Jiao and the older man took Jiang Xue and also quickly left the meadow. They found a brook, jumped into it and soon disappeared in the water.

Back in the meadow, four black ice-sculptures suddenly shattered into pieces. The cold air was released from the sculptures, which froze the entire meadow, including Ji hu, Ji Shui and Ji Feng’s bodies.

The older man’s voice came from the air: “What a smart boy… He’ll be really hard to deal with… But, since the Bi Fang Clan have gotten themselves involved in the Fire Crow Clan’s affairs… Us, the Black Water Serpent Clan… will soon get our chance…”

After a while, a few Fire Crow warriors found the frozen meadow. They stood on the Fire Crows’s backs, looked down at those bodies silently.

Later, a horn resounded through the entire Gold Black Mountain. However, the older man and Jiao were long gone, and the Fire Crow warriors had no way of tracking them.