Bright Sword: This unit is really ruthless

As soon as he finished speaking, several bandits drove their camels, waving their weapons, and rushed towards Zhang Ling.

Zhang Ling took a deep breath, and the basic sword techniques emerged in his mind. He knew that with his current strength, he would definitely not be able to defeat his opponent in a head-on fight, so he could only outsmart him.

He dodged to the side and avoided the attack of the first bandit, then rushed to the depths of the oasis. He knew that the oasis had a complex terrain and was easier to hide and maneuver.

"Chase! Don't let him run away!" the bearded man roared.

The bandits gave chase, and the braying of camels and the shouting of the bandits echoed in the oasis.

Zhang Ling shuttled through the dense bushes, using the terrain to avoid the bandits' pursuit. Sometimes he hid behind a tree, sometimes he jumped onto a rock, and his agility made it difficult for the bandits to figure him out.

"Damn kid, quite slippery!" a gangster cursed.

"Don't let him run away. The boss said we must capture him alive!" another gangster warned.

Zhang Ling dodged while looking for a chance to counterattack. He knew that this was not a solution and he had to find a chance to turn the situation around.

At this moment, he saw a cliff in front of him. The cliff was not high, but there was a thorn bush below.

A thought flashed through Zhang Ling's mind. The corners of his mouth slightly raised, revealing a hint of a sneer.

He deliberately slowed down his pace to allow the criminals behind him to get closer.

"Boy, I wonder where you can run!" a gangster shouted triumphantly.

Zhang Ling ignored him and continued running towards the cliff.

"Be careful, don't let him jump!" another gangster warned.

Zhang Ling suddenly stopped and turned to face the pursuing bandits.

"You want to arrest me?" he asked with a sneer.

"Nonsense! If you surrender obediently, you will suffer less physical pain!" said a gangster viciously.

Zhang Ling didn't say anything, but just silently raised the branch in his hand.

When the bandits saw the branch in his hand, they couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"You think you can fight us with just this broken branch in your hand? You really overestimate yourself!" a bandit mocked.

Zhang Ling ignored their ridicule and took a deep breath, pouring the internal energy into the branches.

The branches suddenly emitted a faint golden light, and a powerful force emanated from the branches.

The smiles on the gangsters' faces suddenly froze. They felt an inexplicable pressure that made them feel suffocated.

"What...what is this?" a gangster asked in horror.

Zhang Ling did not answer, but suddenly pointed the branch towards the edge of the cliff.

"Break it for me!"

With a roar, the golden light on the branches suddenly burst out, and a powerful sword energy shot out from the branches, hitting the edge of the cliff fiercely.

With a loud "boom", the rocks on the edge of the cliff collapsed, rubble rolled down, and dust flew.

The bandits were stunned with fear. They could never have imagined that an ordinary branch could burst out with such powerful force.

"what!"

One of the bandits failed to dodge and was hit by the falling rocks. He screamed and fell off the cliff.

The other bandits also retreated and looked at Zhang Ling in horror.

When the dust cleared, a huge gap appeared on the edge of the cliff.

Zhang Ling stood at the edge of the gap, looking coldly at the bandits below.

"Now, do you still want to arrest me?"

The gangsters looked at each other with fear in their eyes. They knew that they had met a tough guy today.

The bearded man's face turned pale. He could never have imagined that a seemingly frail boy could possess such powerful strength.

"Boy, who are you?" he asked in a deep voice.

Zhang Ling sneered: "You don't need to know."

After saying that, he jumped off the cliff.

The bandits cried out in surprise and quickly ran to the edge of the cliff to look down.

Zhang Ling landed steadily on a big tree below the cliff, and then slid down the trunk to the ground.

He dusted himself off and walked towards the depths of the oasis without looking back.

The bearded man stood on the edge of the cliff, his face looking terribly gloomy.

"Damn kid, I must catch you!" he said gritting his teeth.

Zhang Ling's figure disappeared in the dense jungle, leaving only the bandits cursing on the edge of the cliff. He did not go far, but hid behind a big tree and observed the movements of the bandits. He needed to find out the identities of these bandits and why they appeared here.

Suddenly, he heard a faint sound of footsteps. He turned back alertly and saw a figure walking towards him...

Zhang Ling held his breath, leaning against the thick tree trunk, watching the movement on the cliff with his eyes as sharp as a torch. The curses of the bearded man echoed in the valley, like a group of angry crows. Zhang Ling sneered, these idiots, do they really think he will surrender?

The footsteps were getting closer and closer, and a petite figure flashed out from behind the tree. It was a girl, who looked only fifteen or sixteen years old. She was wearing coarse clothes, but it couldn't hide her beautiful face. Her clear eyes, as pure as a mountain spring, looked at Zhang Ling with a hint of curiosity and vigilance.

"Who are you?" the girl asked softly, her voice as sweet as a nightingale.

Zhang Ling looked her up and down. The girl had no weapons and didn't look like an accomplice of the gangsters. However, in this dangerous place, he didn't dare to take it lightly.

"My name is Zhang Ling," he replied calmly, "Who are you? Why are you here?"

The girl hesitated, a trace of uneasiness flashing in her eyes. "My name is Aya, I am... I am here to collect herbs."

Collecting herbs? Zhang Ling sneered in his heart. What kind of herbs can be collected in this wilderness? You must be kidding! However, he did not expose her, but said lightly: "It's not safe around here, you'd better leave quickly."

Aya bit her lip, seeming to be in a dilemma, "I... I'm lost and can't find the way back."

Zhang Ling sighed inwardly, this girl is really naive. He was about to ask her to follow him, when suddenly, there was a commotion on the cliff.

"Found it! The kid is right down there!" The bearded man's voice was filled with excitement.

Zhang Ling was shocked. It seemed that the criminals had not given up chasing him. He grabbed Aya's wrist and whispered, "Go!"

Aya was startled by his sudden action, and before she could react, she was dragged by him into the depths of the jungle.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Aya struggled, but couldn't break free from his iron grip.

"Don't talk, just follow me!" Zhang Ling's tone was cold and unquestionable.

The two of them shuttled through the dense jungle, and the shouting behind them was getting closer and closer. Zhang Ling knew that this was not a solution, and he had to find a way to get rid of these pursuers.

He suddenly stopped, pulled Aya behind a huge old tree, and whispered, "Hide here and don't make any noise. I'll lead them away."

Aya's eyes were filled with worry, "But..."

"No buts!" Zhang Ling interrupted her, "Believe me, I will definitely come back."

After saying that, he turned and ran in another direction.

Aya watched his back disappear into the dense trees, feeling uneasy. She held the medicine basket tightly in her hands and silently prayed for his safety.

Zhang Ling deliberately slowed down his pace, leaving some obvious traces to lead the bandits in the opposite direction. He knew very well that the bandits were targeting him, and as long as he could successfully lead them away, Aya would be safe.

Sure enough, the bandits soon discovered his whereabouts and followed the traces he deliberately left.

Zhang Ling ran all the way until he was sure that the criminals were far enough away from him, then he stopped. He took a deep breath, adjusted his breathing, and then turned and walked towards where Aya was hiding.

However, when he returned to the ancient tree, he found that Aya was gone.

His heart sank. Could it be that Aya had been discovered? He hurriedly searched nearby, but could not find any trace of her.

"Aya!" he shouted loudly, and his voice echoed in the empty valley.

Suddenly, he heard a faint groan. He looked in the direction of the sound and saw Aya curled up on the ground under a tree not far away, her face pale and beads of sweat oozing from her forehead.

"Aya, what's wrong with you?" Zhang Ling hurried to her and helped her up.

Aya opened her eyes weakly, and when she saw that it was Zhang Ling, a relieved smile appeared on her face, "I... I'm fine..."

"You said you were fine, but you look so bad." Zhang Ling asked anxiously, "What's wrong with you?"

Aya bit her lip and hesitated for a moment before saying, "I...I seem to be poisoned..."

Poisoned? Zhang Ling was shocked and quickly checked Aya's body. He found a small wound on Aya's wrist, and the surrounding skin had turned purple-black.

"This is..." Zhang Ling's face changed. He recognized that this was the symptom of the highly toxic "Purple Evil". Purple Evil was an extremely rare and highly toxic poison. The poisoned person would be paralyzed for a short period of time and eventually suffocated to death.

"How could this happen?" Zhang Ling was filled with self-blame. He should have thought of it earlier. This place was full of dangers. How could Aya, a weak woman, not be prepared at all?

"I...I was accidentally bitten by a poisonous snake when I was picking herbs..." Aya said weakly, her voice getting smaller and smaller.

Zhang Ling's heart tightened. He knew that the current situation could not be delayed. He had to find the antidote as soon as possible, otherwise Aya's life would be in danger.

He looked around and found a patch of grass with purple flowers not far away. He vaguely remembered reading in ancient books that this purple flower grass could cure the purple evil poison.

He hurried to the grass, picked some purple flowers, then returned to Aya, crushed the purple flowers and applied them on Aya's wound.

"Aya, you must hold on!" Zhang Ling held Aya's hand tightly, his eyes full of anxiety and worry.

Aya smiled weakly, "I...I believe you..."

As time went by, Aya's breathing became weaker and weaker, and her face became paler and paler. Zhang Ling's heart seemed to be tightly grasped by an invisible hand, and he was almost suffocated.

Suddenly, Aya's body trembled violently, and then she slowly opened her eyes.

"I...I feel better..." she said weakly.

Zhang Ling was delighted, he knew that Aya was finally out of danger.

However, at this moment, there was a burst of hurried horse hoof sounds in the distance...

Zhang Ling held his breath and listened attentively. The footsteps were getting closer and closer, and finally stopped less than three meters behind him. He turned around suddenly, with the broken branch in his hand ready to go.

A girl appeared before him.

The girl was no more than fourteen or fifteen years old, thin, wearing coarse cloth, with dishevelled hair, her face covered in dirt, and her big eyes filled with vigilance and fear.

Seeing Zhang Ling, the girl was obviously startled and subconsciously took a step back.

"Who are you?" Zhang Ling asked in a deep voice.

The girl didn't answer, but just stared at him closely, her eyes full of vigilance.

"Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you." Zhang Ling tried to slow down his tone and said, "Who are you? Why are you here?"