The urge to retreat was already very strong; before entering, he had made up his mind that if anything went wrong, he would run immediately.
Jiang Xun's body leaned back slightly, his center of gravity already shifting backward.
Seeking benefit and avoiding harm—staying alive was the first priority.
"Stop!!"
Han Chen's roar was like a whip, suddenly lashing through the stagnant air.
His face was flushed red, his neck deeply scarred by the vines, but his eyes were fixed intently on Jiang Xun's disappearing figure.
"You think you can just wash your hands of this?! If the three of us die here and you, the guide, are the only survivor... when the Law Enforcement Hall investigates, Xue Sheng will be the first to make you the scapegoat!"
"You won't get away!"
He gasped for breath, his voice broken by suffocation and fear, yet every word was vicious.
"You don't have to risk your life! The Jade Talisman... get the Jade Talisman and crush it! As long as help arrives... both you and I will be fine!"
Although Han Chen was arrogant, he never asked for the impossible.
If he really expected Jiang Xun to rescue them, Jiang Xun wouldn't have the ability anyway.
He only said to get the Jade Talisman and help call for reinforcements.
He still had one sword light left to cut through the vines trapping him; he just needed to retrieve the Jade Talisman within the time it took to hit the ground.
That made sense. Jiang Xun's footsteps paused for a beat.
Just then, Sang Linger, who was hanging on the other side, suddenly let out a very soft sneer from her nose.
She was being strangled and found it hard to breathe, her cheeks pale, but when her eyes looked at Jiang Xun, they held a sense of mockery.
"Relying on him? Senior Brother Han... have you... haven't you seen enough of him on this journey?"
She struggled to turn her head, avoiding a vine trying to wrap around her neck. Her breath was weak, but her words were as clear as ice beads hitting the ground.
"Look at him... greedy for life, afraid of death, ready to slip away... he's faster than anyone."
Han Chen was also desperate. "Then what can we do now? Do you have a way to escape?"
Sang Linger naturally had a life-saving trump card.
It just took some time to activate.
However, her mouth was already being wrapped by vines, making her speech somewhat muffled.
Qin Lin hurriedly interjected at this moment:
"Stop arguing! Quickly circulate your Spiritual Qi. Once these vines finish consuming the Spiritual Power on our bodies, they will start devouring our flesh."
Qin Lin was also anxious!
He had always considered his fate extraordinary; he shouldn't perish like this!
The three immediately forced their stagnant Spiritual Qi out of their bodies to feed the vines.
Once their Spiritual Qi was exhausted, the three would become like sheep waiting to be slaughtered.
Jiang Xun's eyes darkened slightly. His figure had already retreated into the cave tunnel, and the three of them had disappeared from his sight.
This was truly beyond his capabilities.
Moreover, they had repeatedly insulted him; he didn't need to risk his life for these three. He wasn't some saint.
[Ding!]
The prompt in his head was crisp, abrupt, and as ill-timed as ever.
[Detected targeted verbal provocation: Mockery.]
[Scenario Triggered: The Maiden's Contempt]
[Optional response plans:]
[Option 1: Dares to mock me? Then she must be taught a harsh lesson. Intensity: Must produce clear physical pain and a sense of shame.]
[Option 2: Quite a talker, aren't you? Let's see whose mouth is more powerful. Kiss her until she yields; deep contact for three minutes. Goal: Make her physically shut up.]
[Option 3: Calling me a coward? Fine! Let me show you what "audacity" means. Please perform a striptease in public and let loose completely; no time limit. Goal: Redefine "courage."]
[Time: 30... 29...]
Jiang Xun: "..."
His retreating steps suddenly froze on the ground, and an unbelievable twitch cracked across his expression.
I knew it, I knew it.
Was this System... worried he wasn't dying fast enough, or that his death wouldn't be bizarre enough?!
A lesson?
Shut up?
A public striptease?!
If this were a game, he would definitely choose the third option without hesitation.
But what kind of situation was this? The System actually had the leisure to issue this kind of "mission"?!
He regretted it so much his intestines turned green.
He should have just walked away without looking back, regardless of the consequences!
He didn't even have time to curse this damn System and the even more damnable situation.
Choose!
The moment his mind locked onto "Option 1," his body reacted faster than his thoughts.
Without warning, with a burst of momentum, he stepped forward a few paces.
The cloth-wrapped wood-chopping knife in his right hand—his forearm muscles suddenly tightened, his waist twisted to generate power, and as if throwing a heavy stone, he swung it fiercely toward the thickest main vine above Sang Linger's head!
The blade tore through the air with a dull whistle, spinning in a nearly straight grey arc, precisely grazing past the Green Jade Hairpin in Sang Linger's hair.
The blade sliced deep into the base of the vine suspending her in mid-air!
The knife wasn't particularly sharp, but the exertion technique granted by Jiang Xun's "Cleaving Mastery" and his unreserved arm strength made this throw incredibly powerful!
The tough vine was mostly cut through, and the remaining part couldn't support the weight, snapping instantly!
"Ah!" Sang Linger felt the tension above her head vanish. Just as her cry left her mouth, she was already falling in weightlessness.
All of this was too fast for Han Chen and Qin Lin to react.
They only saw a flash of the blade, and Sang Linger fell; a blank space of shock remained in their pupils.
This Mortal has such great arm strength!
What a tricky angle!
At the same moment Jiang Xun threw the knife, he lunged forward like a released bowstring!
His feet kicked off the slippery rocks and wriggling vines in quick succession, his speed so fast he left a blurred afterimage in the gloom.
The body coordination and core strength fully enhanced by the "Trekking" skill were displayed to the fullest in this dash.
Calculating the landing spot, he arrived just as Sang Linger was about to hit the ground pathetically, catching her in his arms.
"Mortal, quickly get the Jade Talisman."
Han Chen shouted.
The force of the fall made Jiang Xun's knees buckle.
With a muffled groan, gravel flew under his feet, but he managed to stabilize himself.
His hands met something cool and soft, carrying the distinct clear fragrance of a young girl and the bitter scent of vine sap.
Jiang Xun had no romantic thoughts; he only felt the body in his arms trembling slightly because her Spiritual Power was suppressed and she had been bound.
Almost simultaneously!
The surrounding group of vines, which had been wriggling slowly, seemed to be completely enraged like a disturbed beehive, letting out a surging friction sound like a tide!
Countless dark green vines shot up from all directions, like numerous venomous snakes that had been waiting for their chance, madly lunging at this new target who dared to "snatch food from the tiger's mouth"!
They were more than twice as fast as before!
There was simply no time to get the Jade Talisman, and besides, he still had a mission!
Without a second thought, Jiang Xun swung Sang Linger upward, slinging her over his shoulder like a sack of rice!
To stabilize her body as it jolted and slid, his left hand had to firmly grip her leg.
The full, rounded curve immediately filled his palm, the touch surprisingly soft and elastic.
He started sprinting while carrying her!
He dodged and wove through the jagged rocks and the gaps between the wildly dancing vines, his pace so fast it was almost frantic.
Due to the jolting of the intense run, his palm gripping Sang Linger's hip and leg inevitably slid up and down with the movement.
His palm and fingertips would "just happen" to brush against, or even slap with some force, the most sensitive areas.
"You... mgh!"
Sang Linger was being carried head-down, her vision spinning. She felt a series of distinct, forceful slaps from behind; she was both ashamed and annoyed, her cheeks instantly burning hot.
She wanted to berate this lecher.
But as her body jolted with his perilous leaps, the touches came and went, making it impossible to tell if it was necessary support in a crisis or... intentional flirtation.
"The Jade Talisman! Where exactly is it!"
Jiang Xun's low roar exploded in her ear, his breath heavy.
His right ankle suddenly tightened, gripped firmly by the tip of a cunningly probing vine.
The massive pulling force made him stumble, and his speed dropped sharply.
If he didn't get the Jade Talisman and get rid of the burden on his shoulder immediately, both of them would be dragged into the death vortex of the vines.
"In... in my robes! On the left... next to the Storage Pouch!" Sang Linger squeezed the words out through her teeth, a sense of humiliation flooding her entire body.
[Ding!]
[Mission completed!]
[Rewards issued...]
Jiang Xun had no time to check any rewards now.
He slammed on the brakes mid-sprint, his body spinning, and his right hand shot out like lightning, reaching without hesitation into the inner lining of Sang Linger's robes, which had been pulled open by her struggling and the vines!
To find that small Jade Talisman, his fingers hurriedly searched, pressed, and probed against her warm, firm chest.
Through the thin fabric, he could clearly feel the girl's body trembling violently, her temperature rising sharply, and her heart beating as fast as a drum.
"Don't move."
All Jiang Xun wanted now was to find that damn Jade Talisman.
Sang Linger closed her eyes tightly, her eyelashes trembling like a butterfly in the wind. Her whole body was as stiff as a rock; the unfamiliar sensations and overwhelming shame and anger bombarded every nerve.
Yet she could only purse her lips, a barely audible sob escaping her throat.
"Found it!"
His fingertips finally touched a hard, warm edge. Jiang Xun pulled hard, and the trial Jade Talisman, carved with mysterious cloud patterns, was firmly grasped in his hand.
With the item in hand, Jiang Xun's gaze sharpened, and he no longer hesitated.
His left hand, which was gripping Sang Linger, suddenly pushed forward and away, while his shoulder exerted force simultaneously.
"Off you go!"
Sang Linger cried out as she was tossed like a discarded package, flying uncontrollably toward a spot behind a stalagmite where the vines were slightly thinner!
With a "thud," she slammed heavily onto the cold, hard ground.
Dust and gravel splashed up, the pain making her vision go dark, but she was temporarily out of the densest circle of vine attacks.
Sang Linger had never been so disregarded; for a moment, she was actually moved to shame and rage.
But since the other party's actions were a necessary measure to save her, she couldn't stay angry, so she could only stifle it in her chest.
With no outlet for her emotions...
...she actually started crying out of frustration.
Large teardrops rolled down onto the vines.
And almost the instant she left Jiang Xun's body, the vines that had been madly swarming toward him seemed to pause collectively.
Then, they keenly sensed the target not far away whose "Spiritual Power aura" was more obvious and enticing.
Like a pack of snakes smelling blood, they immediately whistled and turned, swarming toward her!
The pulling force on his ankle slackened slightly as the vines shifted. Jiang Xun seized this split-second opportunity, let out a low shout, stomped his foot, and forcefully broke free from the vine.
Without even looking back at the dazed Sang Linger, he pushed his speed to the limit and sprinted toward the faint light of the cave entrance without looking back!
Jiang Xun knew it was impossible for two people to escape.
So his goal from start to finish was only the Jade Talisman.
His silhouette vanished in a flash in the dim light of the cavern, fast as a fleeing grey ghost.
Leaving only Sang Linger in the depths of the cave, her body slowly being curled around by the regrouping vines.
And Han Chen and Qin Lin, still hanging in mid-air, having witnessed this thrilling and absurd scene with stunned faces.
With such impressive movement techniques, why were your legs shaking so much outside?!