On the battlefield, a horse is a warrior’s best companion. It helps you kill enemies, saves you a great deal of physical strength and battle energy, and even, when the situation turns dire, can carry you away to escape. William Reed once owned a precious steed named Wuhen, meaning “leaving no trace in the snow.” On the wide official roads, this horse could travel a thousand miles in a day.

Unfortunately, during the escape, his beloved horse was shot dead. This is a common tactic among pursuers: shoot the horse before the rider.

For some other subjects, the once unruly William Reed would slack off, play tricks, and skip classes. But when it came to equestrian training, he never slacked. Like most of the young, spoiled sons of the imperial capital, William Reed loved riding horses and often galloped recklessly through the streets, earning himself more than a few family punishments.

It was only during his flight that William Reed realized how wonderful it was to have a horse. Relying solely on his legs to travel was nothing but asking for hardship.

He hadn’t ridden in a long time, and though this was just a worthless, scruffy nag, William Reed still felt a long-lost sense of comfort. Mounted combat was also a required course for the Lei family. Any family scion who couldn’t master mounted combat was bound for big trouble.

Because of this, William Reed was quite skilled in mounted combat, and knew how to use Thunder Battle Energy to stimulate the warhorse beneath him, pushing it to unleash even greater potential.

The nag beneath him burst forth with unprecedented speed, its eyes bloodshot from the stimulation of Thunder Battle Energy, driven into a frenzy. Carrying two people, it still charged out like a whirlwind. Just as the two leading horses were about to collide—

William Reed and his enemy reacted almost simultaneously, tilting their horses’ heads slightly. The two horses brushed past each other, less than an arm’s length apart. At the same time, William Reed’s Iceflame sword erupted in a firework-like brilliance, bursting forth with six clearly visible, almost illusory lightning sword beams.

Clang, clang, clang—the giant axe of the black iron-level warrior was knocked aside by a continuous force, and before he could react, one of the sword beams pierced his wide-open chest. Even though the Iceflame sword was now badly damaged, it was still incredibly sharp. How could a mere leather jacket and weak battle energy shield possibly withstand it?

One strike through the heart, blood spraying everywhere.

This move, of course, was the first form of the Lei family’s battle techniques: Lightning and Thunder. With this strike, William Reed unleashed six sword beams in an instant. It wasn’t that his swordsmanship had regressed, but rather that his opponent was only a mid-level black iron warrior, not requiring William Reed to go all out.

On the battlefield, anything can happen. Using different levels of sword techniques against different opponents is the most basic tactic, as it conserves battle energy. Otherwise, if you run into a strong enemy and run out of energy, you’re in big trouble.

Although this Lightning and Thunder move only produced six sword beams, it was more than enough to deal with a mid-level black iron opponent. Moreover, these six sword beams were as solid as reality, clearly visible and identical. Obviously, after advancing in a life-and-death situation, William Reed’s overall physical qualities had improved, and his control over sword techniques had made gratifying progress.

After instantly killing the mid-level black iron warrior, the remaining two unranked fighters were no longer a threat. With another magical maneuver, he reined in his horse and passed by, his sword flashing and slicing off one man’s head. The other, seeing things go badly, hurriedly spurred his horse to flee, shouting as he ran.

“Coward.” In a short time, after killing four people in a row, William Reed was brimming with murderous intent, his eyes turning red. Just as he was about to squeeze his horse’s belly to give chase, he suddenly felt Emily Harris behind him let go. Her legs wrapped tightly around his waist.

Before William Reed could ask, he heard the sound of a bowstring being drawn behind him.

Thwack—

The familiar sound of a bowstring snapping rang out, and with a whoosh, an arrow shot out from behind the horse, swift and fierce, chasing down the fleeing rider ahead. Though fired later, it arrived first, plunging hard into the man’s back.

“Ah!”

The fleeing rider fell from his horse with a scream, crashing miserably to the ground.

William Reed turned around in astonishment, only to see Emily Harris’s legs clamped around his waist, her whole delicate body leaning back, bow in hand. At some point, she had drawn her bow, and using this reclined posture, shot down the fleeing enemy, saving William Reed the trouble of pursuit.

“Hiss—” Even with William Reed’s composure, he couldn’t help but suck in a breath of cold air. This girl was really something—she had recovered from her panic so quickly and adapted to battle. Moreover, she had managed to shoot down the fleeing enemy so quickly and accurately, and in such an awkward and strange position.

William Reed could shoot arrows too, and his aim wasn’t bad, but compared to this girl, he seemed to fall short. No wonder this little Emily Harris, so young, dared to go after the Scarred Wolf alone—she really was quite capable.

……

Chapter 10: Bad News

“Brother Lei, my home is to the left…” After shooting a man, Emily Harris’s face was pale. Twisting her slender waist, she straightened up and pressed herself against William Reed’s back, urging him on.